VOLUME 3

Part 1

CHAP
TER 1

What kind of food is this!

A hysterical, high-pitched cry, followed by the sound of cutlery clattering against

the plates, rang throughout the surroundings.

Several people in the restaurant turned their gaze toward the girl that was
throwing a tantrum.

The girls appearance was beautiful, to the point where the word beautiful would
be inadequate to describe her. Her beauty was even enough to rival the most
beautiful in the kingdom, also known as the Golden princess. Even her anger
only added to her charm.

Not only that, even though she was so noisy, her every movement was filled with
grace and brimmed with elegance.

Surely, she must be the daughter of a noble from another country. Not only that,
but both a highborn and wealthy noble. She impatiently lifted her long luscious
hair and stared dissatisfied at the dishes in front of her.

The whole table was almost filled to the brink with plates full of food.

Inside the basket were steaming, heavenly soft, white breads fresh from the
oven. On the plate, there were chunks of lightly grilled meat that was so juicy and
tender it made ones mouth water. The meats was complemented with aromatic,
grilled, sweet buttered corn and creamy, scrumptious mashed potato as side
dishes. The combination greatly excited ones sense of hunger and appetite.
There was also a tasty salad made with grilled marinated tenderloin on top of
vegetables so fresh it was as they were right from the garden. The tantalizing and
aromatic fragrance of tangerine could also be smelled from the salad dressing.

These were the best and most extravagant dishes made by the restaurant inside
the most luxurious inn of the walled city Re-Lantier, the Shining Golden
Pavilion... Their ingredients were guaranteed to be at their freshest through the
use of the spell Preservation. Naturally, all their cooks were first-class elite
chefs.

These were cuisines only the nobles and the wealthy may savor. However, the
girl was clearly not impressed by these artful and superb dishes.

This doesnt taste good at all!

Not only were the people surprised hearing her complaints, but they also
wondered what kind of heavenly food this beautiful girl must be having normally.

The inappropriate grumbling she muttered to herself caused everyone to show a

stunned expression.

In the meantime, the old butler behind her had kept his posture and expression
unchanged. Even after she turned around and stared harshly at him, he still kept
firm. It was as if he had only one expression.

I cannot continue to stay at this ramshackle town, prepare to leave

immediately!

But ojou-sama, it is already dusk

Shut up! Do as I say, is that clear!

Faced with her childish tantrum, the butler finally changed his posture and
lowered his head:

Understood, ojou-sama. I shall make preparations for us to leave immediately.

Humph! If you get it then hurry and make haste, Sebas!

The girl tossed her fork aside with a clang. Having nothing left to vent on, she
stood up dissatisfied and stomped out of the restaurant.

After the commotion, a dignified voice broke through the dissipating tension in
the restaurant:

I give my sincerest apologies to everyone, for causing such a commotion.

The butler took the chair which had nearly been knocked over when the girl stood
up and returned it to its original position. Having apologized, he courteously
bowed his head towards the patrons inside the restaurant. The guests graciously
accepted the old butlers perfect apology, and many even looked at him in
sympathy.

Manager.

Yes.

A man, who had been waiting nearby, quietly moved to the butlers side.

I sincerely apologise for the disturbance and even if it isnt much of a

compensation, allow me to cover the dinner expenses of everyone present.

Quite a few patrons couldnt refrain from showing a delighted expression after
hearing his offer, since eating a meal in the restaurant of the citys most
luxurious inn was definitely not cheap. If the butler was willing to pay for their
meals, it should be more than enough to forgive the commotion brought about by
the behavior of his mistress.

On the other hand, the manager of the Shining Golden Pavilion kept his face
firm and unfazed and courteously bowed in response to the butlers suggestion.
His unshaken expression showed that this wasnt the first time a scene like this
had happened.

Sebas directed his eyes toward a corner of the restaurant, settling his gaze onto a
poor and deprived-looking man in the middle of wolfing down his food. Noticing
the butlers line of sight, the man hurriedly stood up and walked towards Sebas.

In comparison to the other guests, this man really stood out because his utter
lack of manners and class made it impossible for him to blend into his
surroundings without giving off the feeling of being totally out of place.

Though his clothes were just as good compared to the patrons here, his clothes
gave the impression of wearing him and he was looking so much like a clown
dressed in an elegant outfit, that he was a somewhat amusing sight.

Master Sebas.

What is it, Zach-san?

The other guests frowned when they heard the pretentious tone of the man
called Zach. Hearing that kind of servile greeting coming out of his mouth, they
wouldnt have been surprised if he was rubbing his hands together.

However, Sebas expression did not change in the slightest.

As a hired hand, I know I am hardly in a position to make any suggestions here,

but is it possible for us to reconsider leaving immediately?

Are you implying you have difficulties in handling the carriage and horses at
night?

...Thats part of the reason. And I have some things to take care of in this
city I need a bit of time.

Zach was constantly scratching his head. Even though his hair looked clean
enough, the way he kept scratching his head made it look like dandruff would be
flying around any second. Seeing this, some of the guests frowned even further
but in the end it wasnt clear whether Zach noticed or not since he just scratched
his head even harder.

Ojou-sama will probably not accept this suggestion. No, according to her
temperament, she will not change her decision.

Sebas determined with a firm and adamant expression before adding in a curt
voice:

So, we have no other choice.

But

Zachs eyes darted around, as if trying to find an excuse, but he wasnt able to
come up with anything and a frown appeared on his face.

Of course, we still have some time before we leave. I need some time to load all
of ojou-samas luggage onto the carriage. You may do as you wish in the
meantime and take care of whatever you need.

Sebas didnt miss the treacherous look in the scrubby mans eyes, as if he was
still trying to find another excuse to delay the group even further. But he
pretended not to realise Zachs foul intentions and kept his face indifferent.

He also wanted to hide the fact that Zach had fallen for his trap.

So, when do we leave?

About that, it should be around two or three hours? If we leave any later than
that the streets will be completely engulfed in darkness, so three hours would be
the limit.

The mans eyes once again showed that detestable calculating look, and Sebas
again tried his best pretending not to realize. Zach then licked his lips a of couple
times before speaking:

Heheh, then we shouldnt have any problems.

Very well, could you please immediately start making preparations for us to
leave?

Sebas looked at Zachs retreating back. He then waved his hand as if to disperse
an unpleasant air around him, feeling as if something filthy had stuck onto him.

Without showing any visible expression on his face, Sebas suppressed his urge to
sigh.

To be honest, Sebas couldnt find it in himself to like such a base and vulgar
character like Zach at all. Demiurge, Shalltear and some of the others might be
able to treat someone like him like a toy for their personal amusement, but Sebas
didnt even want to get close to that kind of person.

There were some common viewpoints within the Great Tomb of Nazarick: Those
who dont belong to Nazarick are inferior and Apart from a few exceptions,
humans and demi-humans should be annihilated for being an inferior race.
Sebas on the other hand shared the same opinion as his creator, Those who
cannot save the weak shouldnt claim to be strong, but after having met such a
despicable human like Zach, he started to think that maybe the shared viewpoint
of Nazarick wasnt so wrong after all.

Ahh, humans were supposed to be more splendid than this

Sebas lifted his hand to stroke his well-trimmed beard in order to take his mind
off the matter and pondered about on how to continue their current operation.

The operation is going quite smoothly, but perhaps I should still monitor him to
make sure.

While Sebas was considering how to proceed with the direction of the operation,
he noticed a man walking toward him.

Having to leave at this hour must be rather difficult for you...

The man that spoke with Sebas was between forty and fifty years old, clean
shaven and his black hair was streaked with many strands of white hair. Perhaps
due to his old age and extravagant eating habits, there was a big belly on his
stomach.

He was dressed tastefully, his clothes elegant enough for a man in a high
position.

If it isnt Bardo-san?

Sebas nodded slightly as to greet him, but the man hurriedly tries to stop such
gesture:

Ah, no need to be so courteous.

His name was Bardo Lovely and he was a well-known food merchant controlling a
considerable amount of the food trade within this city. Sebas wasnt sure why this
man had come over to talk with him.

This walled city held an important strategic importance for war. As someone
controlling a considerable amount of the food trade, Bardo was one of the most
influential merchants in the city.

When an army numbers in the tens of thousands of people, the logistics involved
with transporting provisions and rations takes quite a lot of time and effort. The
Kingdoms strategy was to march its army there with minimum supplies and
provide the armys need in this city. Which meant this city wasnt quite like the
other commercial, cities since merchants dealing with food or weapons held quite
a large amount of influence and authority inside this town.

Someone with such authority within the walled city of Re-Lantier shouldnt be
talking to Sebas just because they both happened to eat at the same restaurant.
He should have an ulterior motive for trying to converse with him.

However, this was also one of Sebas goals.

Sebas-san, that man is no good.

Is that so?

While speaking with Bardo, Sebas changed his expression for the first time since
the whole incident began. He revealed a courteous smile because he understood
exactly who the merchant was speaking of.

That guy is known as untrustworthy and dishonest, I cannot understand why

Sebas-san is hiring a guy like him.

Sebas quickly thought this over to find the best reply for this situation.

He couldnt reveal the reason they had hired Zach to Bardo. If Sebas told him he
hired Zach because he didnt knew of his character, his evaluation might be
lowered and his judgment could be questioned.

Though were certainly leaving this city soon, I should still avoid the possibility of
Bardo lowering his evaluation of me. In the near future, there may be the
possibility that we will have to use him.

Maybe youre right, but no one introduced himself as shamelessly as he did.

Though his character might be flawed as a whole, ojou-sama quite appreciates
his enthusiasm.

Bardo showed a troubled bitter smile. His evaluation of her was probably lowered
by another notch.

It was for their goal that he had asked her to play this role, so it couldnt be
helped. He felt quite bad that she had to play such a spoiled character.

I overstepped myself, I hope you can forgive my remark. Maybe its better to
hint and advise this to your lady?

Perhaps youre right. But considering the help and support miladys father had
given me, I just cannot bring myself to

Though loyalty is very important too

Bardo muttered a sentence, but the subsequent words could not be heard clearly.

Would you like for me to recommend you some trustworthy men?

No need to be so considerate, Bardo-san.

Though his tone was gentle, he firmly rejected of his proposal. Detecting the iron
will under his statement, Bardo tried another approach.

Is that so? I still think it would be better if proper bodyguards were to follow
along. The road to capital is far. Unlike the Baharuth Empire, the Kingdom of ReEstize's roads aren't very safe. I could help you to find some trustworthy
mercenaries.

Safety of the road is being maintained by the nobles of the area, and they charge
a toll fee for people traveling their roads. Its one of many rights of the nobles,
but its only a means for them to collect revenue. Many parts of the roads werent
maintained nor properly patrolled, with many gaps in security. Therefore, it was
common for travelers to be assaulted by bandits or mercenaries that have turned
to banditry.

In order to solve this problem, under the efforts of the Golden Princess, the
soldiers under the kings direct control started patrolling the roads. But due to
their small numbers, there werent any notable differences. The number of the
patrolling troops was also small due to the constant meddling of the nobles who
were scared of their rights being infringed.

Since it became like this, the country itself didnt really have the power to
maintain the order and security of the roads.

Merchants who needed to travel on the roads normally hired a team of

adventurers or mercenaries to protect themselves. A powerful merchant like
Bardo should know some elite and trustworthy mercenary groups, but Sebas still
couldnt accept his proposal.

Maybe youre right again, but ojou-sama doesnt like to be surrounded by many
people. I wish to follow ojou-samas wish to the best of my abilities.

So its like that?

Bardo exaggeratedly furrowed his face and showed a troubled expression. It was
the face of an helpless adult confronted with a childs tantrum.

My sincere apologies, for us to be so inconsiderate towards your goodwill.

Please dont say that. To be honest, I just wanted to sell you a favor. If it cant be
done, I at least want to improve our relationship.

The daughter of an extremely wealthy merchant or noble from the Empire and
her butler, that was the setting under which Sebas stayed in this inn. Their act
was intended to show their huge wealth and to let the others know of their
presence. Gaining favors from people as wealthy as Sebass group should be in
Bardos interest.

Sebas smiled gently to the fish that had taken the bait:

Of course I will let ojou-samas father, my master, know of Bardo-sans

hospitality and kindness.

Bardo momentarily showed a sudden glint deep in his eyes, but he recovered
instantly. Normally, most people wouldnt have been able to detect such a swift
change, but Sebas saw it clearly.

Then, please excuse me. Ojou-sama is waiting, so I will take my leave now.

Waiting for the exact moment Bardo was about to speak, Sebas beat him to it.

Bardo knew he had been seen through and after taking a peek at Sebass
expression he sighed:

Wheew, if its really like that then it cannot be helped, Sebas-san. The next
time youre in this city, please do come visit me. Ill give all of you a warm
welcome.

Of course, the next time we meet well be in your care.

Looking at Bardos retreating back, Sebas muttered:

Guess there are all kinds of people out there in this world.

Through Bardos words and mannerism Sebas could feel that not all were fueled
by ulterior motives. Bardo did have a genuine worry for a young lady and her old
butler.

It was because of people like him, who wished to help those in need, that Sebas
couldnt bring himself to despise humans.

Sebas joyously showed a heartfelt smile.

After knocking a few times and excusing himself, Sebas bowed slightly before
entering the room.

Please excuse my previous rude behavior, Sebas-sama.

Sebas closed the door and was greeted by a deeply bowing girl. If the patrons
inside the restaurant could see this scene, they would be bewildered and deeply
surprised, because the bowing girl was none other than the hot-tempered girl
throwing a tantrum earlier.

Her expression was well composed, it was as if her hysteria back then had been
just an act and her manner was befitting of greeting someone of a higher
position.

The appearance and outfit were unchanged, but she seemed like a completely
different person.

Another intriguing difference was that one of her eyes was closedher left eye.
She did not do so while inside the restaurant.

Please, theres no need for you to apologize. You were only doing your job.

Sebas looked around the luxuriously furnished room. Of course, if one were to
compare this room to Nazaricks 9th level, the Royal Suite, this room would hold
no charm at all. Of course, that wasnt a surprise since he simply picked the
wrong object to compare it with.

He set his eyes to the corner of the room and found that the luggage was already
packed and gathered. They were able to leave immediately if they wished to do
so. Since they werent prepared by Sebas, she must have done it all by herself
after she left early.

You shouldve let me pack instead.

What are you saying Sebas-sama, I cannot continue to trouble Sebas-sama with
such a menial task.

The girl straightened her body and shook her head. She is one of the battle
maids, Solution Epsilon().

Is that so? But right now I am your butler, you know.

Sebass well wrinkled face showed an expression like of a mischievous child.

Solution noticed Sebass amused expression, and changed her composed face for
the first time to an embarrassed smile:

Indeed, Sebas-sama is my butler, but I am also under Sebas-sama as your

subordinate.

...I suppose thats true. In that case let me give you a command as your
superior: You have done well so far, so let me do the rest. Please rest until its
time for us to leave.

...Yes, thank you.

Then, I will go meet with Shalltear-sama who should already be waiting

impatiently in the carriage, and inform her on the time of departure.

Sebas easily picked up the largest luggage with a single hand, and asked her a
question as if he suddenly thought of it:

By the way, is everything proceeding according to our predictions?

Yes, everything is proceeding just as we had expected.

Solution lifted her hand and pressed it against her closed eye.

I suppose were fortunate. So, whats happening currently?

Yeshes currently meeting with a shabby looking man. Would you like to hear
what theyre saying?

No need, I am going to move the luggage onto the carriage. Let me hear of the
summary later.

Understood.

Solution suddenly twisted her expression.

The corners of her eyes drooped and the edge of her lips curled up. Though the
expression was similar to a smile, it was twisted further than humanly possible. It
was like taking a smiling face made of clay and twisting the features together.

Sebas-sama, please allow me to change the topic.

What is it, Solution?

...When everything is over, would you allow me to take care of that man?

Sebas used his free hand to stroke his beard and briefly thought it over.

About that, as long as you have Shalltear-samas permission, you may do as

you wish.

Solutions brows furrowed slightly, a face filled with disappointment could clearly
be seen. Sebas saw and tried to comfort her:

It should be fine; There shouldnt be any problem with giving you only one guy.

Really? Thats wonderful! Please help me relay my wish to Shalltear-sama. If it

is possible, I want to have that man.

Solution showed a smile brimming with joy. That kind of cheerful sunny
expression without a shred of gloom could charm any on looking person.

Sebas felt pity and interest in the man who made Solution to show such an
expression. He asked her:

So, what did that man say?

I think he said he couldnt wait to enjoy me. Its a rare chance, so I plan to enjoy
him properly too.

Solution showed an even brighter smile.

That smile contained a childlike innocence; like a kid looking forward to the next
big event.

Part 2

A miserable life.

Zach walked quickly, thinking about how miserable his life had been.

Life in the Kingdom as a farmer couldnt be called fortunate or easy.

Though he labored very hard in the fields every day, most of the harvest was
taken by the landlord. If the yield of a full harvest had a hundred shares, it was
still bearable if only sixty shares were taken away. It was still possible to survive
on forty shares, even if it meant a life of poverty.

However, there would be a serious problem if eighty shares were collected. If one
could barely make a living with forty shares, there was no doubt life would
become hellish and unbearable with only twenty shares.

During one of the years with only twenty shares to live with, he returned home
worn out after a hard day of farm work, only to discover that his little sister had
disappeared without a trace.

Zach was still young when it had happened. His adored little sister went missing,
but his parents wouldnt go looking for her. He didnt know what was going on
back then, but now he clearly knew the reason: She had been sold. In this day
and age, slave trade had finally been stopped due to the efforts of the Golden
princess, but slavery had been quite common within the Kingdom back then.

For that reason, whenever he visited brothels and passed by prostitutes, he

would subconsciously stare at their faces. Of course, he didnt believe he could
find his little sister like this. Even If he did find his little sister this way, he
wouldnt know what to say to her. Nonetheless, he just couldnt stop himself from
looking.

Living in such a harsh and poor environment, one also had the heavy obligation
to be drafted into the army.

The Kingdom of Re-Estize periodically went to war with the Baharuth Empire, and
often drafted soldiers from farming villages such as his. To lose an able worker for
even a month was quite a big deal for a small village and it significantly affected
the yield of a harvest. However, there were also those who felt lucky to be
drafted into the army.

Since there were less people that needed to be fed, a familys food expenditure
was reduced. For those who were drafted, theyre provided with rations given by
the Kingdom. For some, that was the first time they experienced how it feels like
to be full.

Sadly, these were just about all the upsides.. Even if you risked your life, without
achieving a major accomplishment receiving any kind of reward would be
impossible. Some didnt even get rewarded for completing great achievements,
only those who were truly blessed with luck could find success within the army.
After the end of the war the soldiers went back to their villages, but they only
found despair because the villages harvest had lower than expected yield due to
lack of workers.

This had happened to Zach after his first two drafts. But during his third draft, a
way to change his fate occurred.

The war that time was like the others, it ended with only a small scale battle.
Luckily, Zach survived the battle. As he was about to head back to his village, he
stopped. He looked at the weapon in his hand and an idea popped into his head.

...Perhaps it would be better to try another kind of life than to go back to that
village.

But he was just a farmer and he barely received any training for war. He didnt
have many choices for his new life.

His body was mediocre and there was no way he could compare himself to those
few that were born with innate talent. All he had learned in his life is to sow seeds
and farm, and when to spread which seeds. That was just about all he knew.

Zach took initiative with his one and only trump card, and that was to run away
with the weapon issued to him by the Kingdom. The thought of troubling his
parents never came into his mind because they had sold his little sistereven
if they did it so the rest of the family could surviveand he no longer held any
love for them.

He had no background and didnt know anyone, so how was he able to escape
the army easily. Luckily, he met with some people who could help him with his
escape, perhaps his luck wasnt that bad after all.

It was a mercenary group that had helped him escape.

Of course, to the mercenary group, Zach was only a farmer and wasnt much of a
use to them. But they had lost many members due to the war, and wished to
quickly return to their former size.

Because of this, the mercenary group easily let Zach join. But this wasnt really a
legitimate mercenary group. During a war, they were mercenaries. During times
of peace, they became bandits.

It is no wonder what sort of life he led after that point.

To have something is better than nothing. To take is better than to be taken from.
Instead of crying, it is better to let the others cry.

He was living that kind of life.

He felt no wrong, and had no regrets.

Every time he heard the victims begging and whimpers, he further confirmed on
his beliefs to be so.

Now he broke into a run in the lower city. He runs in the world thats in even
deeper shade of red than the current setting twilight.

He had been pushing himself ever since he had left the inn, so hes already
breathless with beads of sweat on his forehead. He felt exhausted and wanted to
rest, wondering if he should actually do so. But since he didnt have much time,
he endured the fatigue and kept on running.

As Zach was about to make a sharp turn at the corner of the street

So dangerous~

A complaint and a clattering of metal sounded as the figure quickly turned their
body to avoid a collision.

The near impact startled Zach, and he looked towards the shadow that had
jumped back.

In front of him was a woman with a well proportioned face. The black cape she
was wearing was blending her with the shadows, but her bright purple eyes were
looking at him with great curiosity.

Due to his exhaustion, Zach had lost all of his patience and barked:

Thats my line! That was dangerous! Keep your eyes in front of you!

The woman didnt seem to be afraid of his threatening snarl and showed him a
cold smile.

That smile made Zach want to step back and he couldnt muster the courage to
take out the knife hidden under his shirt. He was like a mouse being stared down
by a lion.

The clattering sound of metals that he heard from the moment she jumped back,
its probably from her armor.
An armor-wearing woman, perhaps she was an adventurer.

...Wrong target to pick a fight with.

Zachs subconscious was sending out danger signals, and he realized the
situation he is in.

He wouldnt look down on this woman because of the naive thinking that females
were of the weaker sex. Zach knew there was a really strong group of female only
adventurers. He remembered this being casually mentioned by the strongest
member of his mercenary group.

Although Zach was in the same group as that member, he was undoubtedly the
weakest of them all. He was made the errand boy because hes weak.

Drenched with sweat from all the running, Zach now regretted the threatening
tone he took and his sweat slowly turned into another kind of sweat.

As Zachs face was showing obvious fear, the womans smile suddenly became
less frightening:

Hmm~ whatever. I dont have much time as well. But if I see you again, be
prepared to feel some discomfort~

The woman casually remarked and walked around him. Zach became interested
in the direction this particular woman was heading, but it was just a part of the
lower town where no one was living.

It was already this late, so why was a beauty like her heading towards the slums?
Though he felt curious, he had more important matters to deal with. He started
running again.

After a while, he reached another part of the lower city that was filled with many
ramshackle houses. He briefly looked around to check if he had been followed.

The sun was gradually sinking below the horizon, and the world was slowly
shrouded in darkness. Zach tried to check a second time to see if anyone had
been following him by hiding in a dark corner. He had repeatedly performed this
action many times already, but he wanted to check one last time just to be safe.

Nodding in satisfaction Zach tried to catch his breath while knocking the door
three times. Five seconds later, he knocked another four times.

After giving the secret knock, a reaction could immediately be felt on the other
side of the door, which was the sound of a wooden plate sliding against the door.
The wooden plate blocking the peephole slid to the side, and a mans eyes could
be seen looking around, to confirm the identity of the intruder.

Ah, its you. Wait a moment.

He didnt wait for Zachs response and blocked the peephole again. The sound of
a heavy lock being opened could be heard next and the door opened slightly.

Come in.
The rooms gave off a slightly rotten odor, it was a world of difference to compare
this to the hotel he had just been in. Zach hoped his nose would get used to this
smell soon, and quickly slid into the room.
The door was closed and Zach saw that the room inside is both dark and small.

This place was a dining hall with a built-in kitchen, but there was only one table.
On the table stood a lone candle illuminating the dim room slightly.

A filthy man who gave off the air of someone who made a living through violence
and brutality pulled out a chair by the table and sat down. The chair creaked as if
it was screaming. The man had a solid frame and a broad chest. Light scars could
be seen on this mans face and arms. The chair looked as if it is about to collapse
under his weight.

So, Zach, what is it. Did something happen?

The situation changed the prey is about to move.

Ah... so they are going now.

Zach nodded slightly. The man complained in low voice: Why did they choose
this hour... Cant they be more considerate of us. At the same time he lifted his
hand and scratched his messy hair.

Is there no way to delay them a bit?

Its not so easy because its a request by that girl.

The man had already heard many times about how the girl was like and
exaggeratedly wrinkled his face.

That old geezer should use some of his brain and try persuading the girl to not
leave at night. Traveling at night is scary and there might be bandits. Damn it, I
cant stand this even idiots know that. Ahhow about sabotaging the wheels
of the carriage to delay them until tomorrow?

I dont think I can... theyre already moving the luggage onto the carriage,
perhaps it would be better to just be done with this quickly?

Hmm, thats not wrong

The man was looking up while thinking deeply.

So, around what time will they leave?

In about two hours.

The timeframe is very tight. Hmm what to do. If we only have two hours to
prepare then we gotta contact the others quickly... Though it might be a bit
difficult, but theyre preys hard to come by.

The man counted his fingers as he thought about the amount time for the
operation. Zach silently listened in on the plan and lowered his head to look at his
hand.

Rich people like them get you riled up, dont they

Zach recalled the pristine and perfect hand of hers.

Those who worked on a farm would never have such beautiful hands. From
handling the hoes and all the heavy farm work they did, everyones hands were
both rough and dirty, down to their very nails.

He knew this world wasnt fair. But...

Zach curled up the corner of his mouth, showed his teeth, and gave a lewd and
lecherous smirk:
Ill have my turn to toy with her... right?

Only after Im done with her. We also need to ask for a ransom, so dont be too
rough and hurt her too badly.

The man also showed a lecherous smile. Perhaps stimulated by his desire, he
stood up.

Alright, its decided. Let me contact the leader.

Got it.

Well send around ten guys to the ambush spot. You should go now, make sure
theyll arrive at the spot in about four hours. If youre delayed somehow, well
attack directly. Try to calm them down in order to make them drop their guard.

Part 3

A carriage was quickly speeding away from the walled city.

Four strong horses were pulling a large carriage that was more than large enough
to carry six passengers.
The surrounding area was unexpectedly bright, illuminated by a large, bright
moon that hung in the sky... Even so, it was still foolish to travel hastily in a night
like this. Putting up lights, making camp and setting a watch detail wouldve been
a wiser choice.

Saying the night wasnt a world controlled by humans wouldnt be enough. To put
it more clearly, places where the light didn't shine didn't belong to humans.
Countless animals, demi-humans and monsters lurked in the night; many with
eyes that could pierce the dark and attack humans.
In a dangerous night like this, the passengers only felt a slight vibration as the
carriage moved down the road.

The trembling wasnt weak because of excellent suspension, it was due to the
fact that the carriage was moving on stone paved roads.

The construction of stone paved roads only began after a proposal from the
"Golden princess, but as of now, the only places that had paved roads were
some of the territories under the kings direct jurisdiction, and the territory of one
of the six grand nobles, Lord Raven. This was due to the opposition of the
aristocrats, who felt the ease of movement would make it easier for the empire to
invade.
The cost of road maintenance stirred up a lot of commotion as well. Princess
Renners suggestion of raising funds from the merchants was hampered by the
nobles who feared that their authority and revenue would be diminished. This
resulted in the current state of affairs looking as if it had been chewed by a dog.
This area wasn't far from the city under the direct jurisdiction of the king, and as
such, the maintenance was done quite well.
However, it wasn't perfect. The carriage traveling on the road would still wobble
occasionally, and the passengers would feel the vibration.

Due to the shaking, the conversation inside the carriage ended as if they had just
finished a topic.
In the carriage was Sebas, Solution besides him, Shalltear seated opposite them
and Shalltear's two slave concubines, Vampire Brides, on either side of her. And
of course, Zach was seated on the driver's seat, driving the carriage.
After a momentary silence in the carriage, Sebas opened his mouth with a
relaxed tone:

"There is a certain matter Ive always wanted to inquire about.."

"Hmm? Question for me? What is it?"

"You and Aura-sama seem to be on bad terms, is there any reason for that?"
"... Actually, I don't think our relationship is bad."
Shalltear answered quietly, inspecting the nail on her pinky with a bored
expression.
The pearly white nail was about two centimeter in length. She held a file in her
other hand, but the nail was already neatly trimmed and didn't require polishing.
Satisfied, Shalltear tossed the file to the vampire seated beside her.

After that, she attempted to extend her empty hands to the breasts of the
vampires on both sides of her, but noting the expressions of the two people
before her, Shalltear made an embarrassed face and withdrew her hands.
"It doesn't feel that way."
Sebas continued. Shalltear's face frowned as if she had eaten something bitter:
"I... Me... okay. It's because my creator Peroroncino-sama made my settings to be
on bad terms with her, so I tease her a bit more. However, it's probably the same
for her, maybe Simmering Teapot-sama made that kid's setting to be at odds with
me."
Feeling disinterested, Shalltear waved her hand and met Sebas' eyes for the first
time.
"By the way, My creator Peroroncino-sama and that kid's creatorSimmering
Teapot-sama are younger brother and older sister. In a way, we could also be
considered sisters.."
"Siblings-- so that's how it is!"
"In the past, when Perorocino-sama and the other supreme beingsLucifersama and Nishiki Enrai-samacame to my domain, they mentioned that.
When she recalled how she accompanied the great beings making their rounds,
Shalltear's eyes were full of adoration:
Perorocino-sama once mentioned that Simmering Teapot-sama had a job called
voice acting. She was very popular and provided her voice for 'H Game', so
whenever he bought a popular game he was looking forward to, the image of his
sister's face came to mind, making him lose his drive."

Although I have no idea what that was supposed to mean, added Shalltear. Sebas
also tilted his head in confusion:
"Voice acting... I recall that it is a job using your voice. They will even sing
sometimes, so it should be similar to bards."

Hearing Sebas' reply, Shalltear let out a chiming laugh and corrected him:

"Wrong."
"Wrong? What is it then?"
"I heard this from Simmering Teapot-sama herself, a voice actress is someone
who bestows a soul to a work through the use of her voice. Which means voice
acting is a profession that creates life."
"Ohh! I get it now, I actually misunderstood it so badly. Thank you for
enlightening me, Shalltear-sama."
Characters such as Sebas that were created by the supreme beings were given
knowledge the moment they were born. However, they only had that knowledge,
without actually knowing what the real thing was like, so they would create some
amusing misunderstandings, just like just now when they misunderstood the
profession of one of their adored creators.

Sebas felt embarrassed, and to avoid making the same mistake, he repeated the
term, committing the meaning of voice acting to memory.
"Don't take it too hard. Oh right, Sebas, since we are journeying together, you
don't need to be so polite."

"Really, Shalltear-sama?"
Don't address me as -sama... We are all servants of the supreme beings.
Although the supreme beings bestowed us positions and set the hierarchy among
us, we are fundamentally the same."
That was correct. Solution served Sebas because she was ordered to. She and
Sebas were of the same rank after all.
"I understand, Shalltear. I will address you as such."
"That is great. Speaking of which, isn't the relationship between you and
Demiurge quite bad?"
Sebas didn't say a word. Shalltear who saw such a reaction squinted her eye like
a mischievous child and continued asking:
The supreme beings didn't order you to do that, so why did it turn out this way?"
"...Actually, I am not so sure myself. It's probably out of my nature, I just dislike
him. However, it should be the same for him."
"HmmmNobody makes me feel that way... But, maybe the feelings of the
creators are embedded deeply in our heart."
"That is very possible."
Shalltear stared at Sebas who was nodding in agreement. Considering his
position, Shalltear thought he might know and asked a question she had
harbored for a long time:
"Who is on the 8th floor? I know Victim is there, but who else is with him?"

Sebas frowned at the sudden change in topic. To find out the true intention
behind Shalltear bringing this up, he looked at Shalltear with a serious
expression. Solution who was seated beside them changed her expression
slightly, but the two who were conversing didn't notice as it was too minute.
"... Long ago, there were foolish people who opposed the supreme beings,
attacking in huge numbers and breaking through the 7th floor. But the 9th floor of
the supreme beings base wasn't attacked. Considering this, the last place that
had been attacked was the 8th floor, right? I don't remember much, but the
enemy attacked with overwhelming force, so we wouldve needed a force on the
same scale to match them. However, no one knew who repelled them. Albedo
seemed to know, she is the supervisor of Nazarick after all, it would be strange if
she didn't."

Not bothered by the silent Sebas, Shalltear continued:

"... She seems to be a step ahead, which annoys me. Who is the mysterious being
on the 8th floor? Is it a character created by Ainz-sama?"
Sebas had been created by Touch Me, Demiurge by Urbet Alain Odle and Cocytus
by Takemikazuchi. But even Shalltear didn't know who the highest of the 41
supreme beings, AinzMomonga created.
It couldn't be that he didn't make anyone.
And so, that character who was on the 8th floor, which Shalltear knew nothing
about, was a logical deduction.
"... No, that should be impossible. I only heard a little about it, but the character
created by Ainz-sama is called Pandoras Actor. His ability is on the same level as
me and I heard he was the guardian of the deepest part of the treasury."
"There's someone like that?"
Unlike Albedo, Shalltear wasn't given information about all the characters in
Nazarick. That's why this was the first time she heard that name.
Even though the treasury was only accessible with a ring of Ainz Ooal Gown, it
would be strange if there were no guards.
The deepest part of the treasury.
The high-level magic items were all stored there, maybe some world class items
as well. If that was the case, then Ainz, who had the highest position of the 41
supreme beings, would be most suited to create a character for that place.
Shalltear felt her pride take a hit for not being able to guard that exalted place,
but she consoled herself, thinking that it couldn't be helped. She believed that
stopping the invaders from reaching the 3rd floor in the first place was also a
huge responsibility, just as important as guarding the treasury.
Moreover, it was the duty that had been given to her by her own creator..

"There is, but I have never met him before, since its impossible to reach that
area without a ring"
"Oh..."
Shalltear responded weakly, apparently having lost her interest, but Sebas didn't
seem to mind.
"In the end, the 8th floor is still a mystery... what a shame."
"That's right, even we can't go in there, there must be something there."
"What is that something you speak of?"
"Maybe there is a mechanism that would even attack us?"
"Hmm, you might be correct, but my guess would be... it's a trap that kills
everyone indiscriminately?"
"The Great Tomb of Nazarick was made with the delicate care of the supreme
beings. With loyal servants like us giving our all to protect it, that level of trap
shouldn't be able to stop them if they could make it to the 7th floor..."
"Want to sneak a peek?"

A child who thought of a naughty idea-- Shalltear was smiling just like that. Sebas
was smiling as usual, but it was deeper than normal.
"You want to go against Ainz-sama's wishes?"
"Kidding, just kidding. Just a joke, don't make such a scary face."
"Shalltear... Curiosity killed the cat. What we should do is wait quietly, until the
moment when Ainz-sama is willing to tell us."
"You are right... Well then, did the prey take the bait?"
The sudden change in topic didn't make Sebas say anymore, and gave a direct
answer:
"Yes, bait, hook and sinker. All that's left is reeling it in."
After a slight nod, Shalltear licked her lips happily, her red eyes glinting
unnaturally.
Sebas who immediately understood why Shalltear was displaying such emotions,
judged this to be a great chance to relay Solution's request:
"Regarding this part, there is something I want to ask of Shalltear."
"... What is it?"
While imagining what was going to happen and immersing herself in its joy,
Shalltear was interrupted and said in a displeased voice. Sebas continued in a
soothing manner:
"The driver of this carriage, could you give him to this girl?"
"... Is he a small fry?"

"Yes, he is just a mouth piece."

Shalltear closed her eyes and fell into deep thought when she heard this request.
Considering all the possibilities, she apparently found an answer and nodded:
"In that case it's fine. He probably won't even taste good even if I sucked his
blood."
"I am very grateful, thank you for your generosity, Shalltear."
"Thank you, Shalltear-sama."
"Ah, it's no big deal. Don't mention it,.
Shalltear smiled affectionately at Solution, it was unexpected of her to have such
a warm expression. Following that, Shalltear went back to her usual self and
gazed at Sebas:
"I misspoke just now, so now we are even."
"I understand... I never thought Shalltear would ever do something so foolish. You
were just joking back then, right?"
"That's it, you are right. If Sebas had said the same thing, I wouldve thought you
were joking as well. I would then send my minions to spy on you without a word,
chop off your limbs if you show any sign of betrayal and drag you before Ainzsama in chains."
"I am not as vicious as you, Shalltear."
"Really? That makes me more suspicious of your loyaltyI think you would
absolutely do that, right?"
Shalltear and Sebas looked at each other with heartfelt joy and smiled.
"Anyway, I adore cute girls the most. Giving him to Solution is a different joy in
itself"
"Well then, how do you intend to capture them? With spells like Paralyze
or Bind Person?"
Before heading to Re-Lantier, Ainz gave Sebas the order to 'capture humans who
know martial arts or magic, but do so for criminals that won't pose a problem
even if they disappear.' So as part of the plan, Sebas and Solution played the role
of a rich wilful daughter and the butler who had to clean up her mess, waiting
patiently for a fish like Zach to bite.
Shalltear's task was to use this fish to haul in the school of fish following behind.
"That is impossible, I wouldn't put in so much effort. Ainz-sama said it would be
fine to turn them into slaves after sucking them dry, but we absolutely have to
catch them. But, investigating one by one would take a lot of time, so just suck
them all dry.
Sebas didnt say I see, and just nodded. But now, he had to admit the choice of
Shalltear made him uncomfortable. With this judgement, Sebas had to speak his
mind:

From this point of view, Demiurge-sama would be a better choice. Similar to

Aura-samas breath, he can control the will of others freely.
Demiurge had the Domination Curse special skill, which was a powerful mind
control technique. In a mission that required the capture of the target, it would be
exceptionally effective.
... Huh?
Shalltear suddenly made an unbelievably low pitch sound.
The atmosphere inside the carriage became heavy, covered by a chilling air.
Even the horses pulling the carriage felt it, and the carriage shook violently. The
vampires seated on both sides of Shalltear turned even paler while Solution, who
was besides Sebas, was shivering. Even Sebas who was on the same level as
Shalltear felt goosebumps.
The killing intent of the most powerful Floor Guardian in Nazarick. Her hostility
was telling of how her quibbles with Aura were just playful banter. If there was a
misstep in dealing with this, it would definitely spark a battle to the death.
Shalltear, who brought the atmosphere within the carriage to a freezing point,
had bloodshot eyes. Spreading from her red pupils, her eyes were entirely dyed in
red.
Sebas Could you say that again? Or a dragonian like you wants to use this
form

The completely red eyes moved:

And fight to the death like this?

I misspoke, please forgive me. I was just feeling uneasy, it would be great if your
Blood Frenzy doesnt activate.
Shalltear answered Sebas with silence.
Sebas could tell that her momentary silence meant she was feeling uneasy about
herself too.
In YGGDRASIL, powerful jobs would be given weaknesses and handicaps in order
to balance the game. One of the few handicaps given to Shalltear was Blood
Frenzy, the more blood her body was getting covered in, the stronger her urge
to slaughter would become. Although her combat strength would increase, it
came at the price of losing control over her mind.
Ainz chose Shalltear, who might ignore orders or even lose control, for this
mission by using the process of elimination.

Albedo had to protect the Great Tomb of Nazarick, as for the remaining two
guardiansShalltear and Cocytusif you observe from a distance, Shalltear
was more humanlike.
Following this, Shalltear took several deep breaths. She seemed to be cooling
down her wrath, and at the same time suppressing the uneasiness in her heart.

After a final, deep breath, Shalltear returned to her normal expressiona

seductive and lusty girland her eyes returned to its usual color.
... Simply put, they would turn into slaves after we suck their blood, so that
would be much simpler. Theres no need to bring them back alive, Ainz-sama
brought this point up before. Also, I will definitely suppress the Blood Frenzy.
By sucking all their blood, vampires could turn a target into a lower-tiered undead
that was absolutely obedient towards their master. Vampires were only able to
create lesser vampires with intelligence far below their own, but Shalltear could
create vampires with an intelligence on the level of a human.

Although there was a limit to how many vampires she could create, if dead or
alive didnt matter, Shalltear could be considered an excellent hunter as well..
Thats right, you need not say more, I will definitely finish Ainz-samas mission
smoothly. I will let Ainz-sama praise me like Well done Shalltear, you are my
most important slave, and then say You are the one most suitable to be by my
side.
Please forgive my shallow thoughts.
Those were Sebas' sincere thoughts, other than apologizing to Shalltear for his
rudeness, he was expressing his apology for another person.
I didnt realized my words were also disrespectful towards Ainz-sama who
appointed you, I am very sorry. Forgive me for displeasing you.
Next, he lowered his head and apologized to Solution and the vampires tooat
this moment, there was a violent vibration from the carriage, and a neigh from
the horses pulling the carriage.
... The carriage seems to be stopping.
Indeed.
Imagining her master praising her after completing the mission, Shalltear who
was immersed in happiness came to her senses. She smiled like a mischievous
girl plotting a prank while Sebas smiled at her while stroking his beard.

Part 4

Coming out from the nearby forest were ten strong men. They surrounded the
carriage in a semicircle. These men all carried different equipment. Though the

quality of their equipment wasnt great, one couldnt say that it was poor either.
One could tell that the weapons were chosen quite carefully.

The men were discussing about what to do with their prey, such as who would go
first. The fact that they seemed completely complacent was obvious. After all,
they had already done this several times before. This time shouldnt be any
different, so they had no reason to be nervous.

Zach jumped down from the carriages driver seat and jogged to these men.

Before he had jumped off the drivers seat, he had cut the reins to prevent the
carriage from being driven away, he also rigged the carriage door so that it could
only be opened from one side, the side that was facing the men.

The men flaunted their weapons for their prey to see. It was as if they were
giving a silent warning that if they didnt come out immediately, they would be
hurt badly.

As if they were reacting to the warning, the carriage door slowly opened.

A beautiful girl appeared under the moonlight. The gathered mercenaries and
bandits showed lewd smiles and looked at her with gazes full of lust. Their
delighted expressions could be seen clearly.

However, there was someone who was surprised: Zach.

Using one sentence to explain his surprise would be Who is this?. Zach had
never seen this beauty before, despite being familiar with the carriage. The
discrepancy confused him, rendering him speechless.

Then, another girl with the same outfit appeared right after her. Some of the men
showed a confused smile because their target should be just one gullible, rich girl
and her old butler.

Yet another seemingly young girl appeared behind the two, and the sight of her
immediately made them forget all their doubts.

Her silky hair shone brilliantly under the moonlight, and her dewy, crimson eyes
displayed otherworldly seductiveness.

To see such a gorgeous and beautiful girl appearing before them, the bandits
could only sigh to themselves. They couldnt even utter a word of compliment
while being so dazed. This moment proved that for something truly beautiful to
show up suddenly, even the desire of beasts will dwindle.

Bathed in the gaze of these charmed men, Shalltear showed an obscene and
seductive smile. She then nonchalantly walked to the front of the men:

Everyone, thank you for gathering here for me. Ah yes, who is the leader out of
all of you? May I negotiate with him for a bit?

Seeing the gazes of the bandits resting on one of their own, Shalltear obtained
the information she wanted. Which meant that except for that one, the others
were not needed.

Wh.what do you want to negotiate?

After seeing the most beautiful girl he had ever seen, the man who seemed to be
their leader finally regained his composure and stepped forward.

Aaah, forgive me. The negotiation was just a joke in order to obtain the
information I wanted. Please excuse me.

Who the hell are you people

Shalltear looked to Zach as he asked the question:

So youre the guy named Zach? I will give you to Solution as promised, so could
you please step aside?

A few became confused, and in search for answers they started looking at each
other, but among these men

Hmph, just a little wench. Your body is quite nice, in a bit I will make you weep.

The bandit, who happened by chance to be in front of Shalltear, reached out to

touch the full breasts that didnt really fit a girl of such young age. But then the
hand fell to the ground.

Could you not touch me with your dirty hand?

The shocked man looked toward his arm that had lost its hand. After delay, he
howled:

Arrghhhhhand, hand my hand!

You only lost one hand, why are you screaming so much? Can you still call
yourself a man?

Shalltear muttered a little and waved her hand nonchalantly. Like that the mans
head fell onto the ground.

How is it possible for her to manage to cut off the mans head, using nothing but
her unarmed and delicate hand? Like a scene from a nightmare, it all felt too
surreal and the bandits became terrified. The men were unable to react because
of their shock. However, the oncoming horrible sight brought everyone back to
reality.

The blood started gushing out from the neck just like a fountain. As if the blood
had a will of its own, it gathered above Shalltear and formed a ball of blood.

Shalltears companions knew that this scene was caused by her special skill
Blood Pool. But these bandits didnt know of such inhuman skills. The very
first thought that came into their mind was:

Its a Magic Caster!

If some of them understood magic properly, they mightve been able to issue a
more specific warning. Magic Caster was just a general term, depending on the
profession there were all kinds of subdivisions and the ways of dealing with each
of them were different from each other. After having seen Shalltears dress, the
first thing that should have come to their minds was sorcery based magic,
followed by the ability to control minds. Since they didn't issue any specific

warning, one could safely conclude that the other party was completely lacking
any fundamental knowledge of magic.
In other words, whenever they saw something they failed to understand, they
would believe it to be magic.

Shalltear understood that these men don't know any better, she then looked at
them with disinterest. The panicking bandits hurriedly raised their weapons in
defence.

So boring, Ill leave whats left to you guys. Only leave this and that guy... got
it?

Yes, Shalltear-sama.

The vampires who followed close behind Shalltear, they walked up and bashed
the face of the bandit who was swinging his sword at Shalltear, flinging him
backwards.

The scene was as if someone was hitting with a metal bat using all his might.

It was like the sound made when a balloon that was filled with liquid had
exploded. The bandit flew across the air with his limbs flailing, accompanied by
sprays of blood and brain matter. The fluid sparkled in the moonlight, making it
even more beautiful due to the element of horror

More than half of the skull had ruptured and had been knocked away flying. The
brain spluttered and fell out of the cracked skull and only then did the body
finally drop to the ground with a wet sound. The sound gave great horror and
fright to the bandits, but it was like the first bell of battle which brought Shalltear
great happiness.

Zach showed a stiff smile while looking at the scene in front of him.

Such an inhuman scene

The nauseating heavy stench of blood, which was caused by vicious killing, made
him want to vomit.

Limbs of men were shredded like paper. The head that got grabbed by both
hands exploded like a pomegranate being cracked open.

One bandits stomach was pierced by a bare hand after being forcibly stripped of
his armor. The wet and glistening intestines were being pulled out for several
meters. The bandit was still alive after this, which showed the tenacity of the
humans.

There was one rolling and crawling in pain on the floor. Because he tried to run
away, both of his legs were brutally broken. From afar one could see white spots
on his leg, the bones that had pierced through the muscle and skin. Still, he
tried to crawl away using his two hands. He was trying hard to get away from the
hellish scene and the origin of horror. Even if it was only for a couple more
moments, he still wanted to live.

The otherworldly beautiful girl looked down at the men who were begging for
their lives, and let out a shrill laugh.

How did it become like this.

Zach tried very hard on finding an answer.

No matter what kind of glorified words one chose to use, one could not disguise
the fact that living beings follow the concept of Survival of the Fittest.
Fundamentally, whatever growth or progression there was in living beings, they
evolved and pushed through because the strong preyed on the weak; it was the
natural order of things. This was the exact belief Zach had always followed. Even
so, was it okay for the strong to go overboard?

Of course not, there was no way he could acknowledge such cruel and vicious
killing, but what could he do? The enemy just by chance hadnt attacked him yet.
If he attempted to run away, the enemy might have done something to Zach to
make him unable to escape, such as the painful and horrible torture he had just
witnessed.

Zach clutched his clothes and felt the shape of the sword that was hidden inside.

Oh why did this sword have to be so small? It would be impossible to fight using
this short sword against a monster able to easily dismember a man.

What should he do then? He cannot imagine himself affecting those monsters in

any way.

Zach seemed to be trying to hide himself, and crouched and hugged himself with
both of his arms. He thought the rhythmic chattering of his teeth was so loud,
what would he do if those monsters heard this sound and came looking for him.

Though he tried his hardest on calming himself since his life was depended on
not being found, he was still unable to stop his teeth from chattering.

Speaking of which, who the hell are these people? Zach didnt recognize them at
all.

As he was thinking

Zach-san, come here.

Suddenly, a mellow voice, which didnt match the cruel scene in front of him,
came from behind Zach.

He looked back in deep horror, and there he found his employer.

The expression shown by his mistress was not her usual haughty one. If he had
been calm enough, he mightve been on guard against her, but he was greatly
confused by this scene of horror filled with the stench of blood, and didnt had the
presence of mind to notice her unusual behavior.

What are those monsters?!

Zach shrieked at the supposedly rich and gullible girl (Solution):

If there were monsters like them, why didnt you tell me!

That was right, if he knew, things wouldnt have become like this. The horrible
and terrifying scene in front of him was all caused by this bitch.

Say something, hurry and say something! Know that? This was all caused by
you!

In his great anxiety and horror, Zach felt angry and impatient. He impulsively
grabbed Solutions collar and shook her roughly.

...I got it, please come with me.

You...you will you save me?

No, as my last chance, I want to enjoy and savor you entirely.

A cold and pristine hand grabbed onto Zachs hand. Like this, Solution led him
away.

Because Sebas-sama doesnt like these kind of things very much. Though I
already obtained permission, I still want us to be a bit further away.

Zach didn't understand what she was saying, but he thought that if he was being
led to another place perhaps he still had a chance at surviving.

Zach pretended not to hear the unending howls and screams coming from behind
him.
This couldnt be helped, because Zach was so weak. There was no way to save
those companions who were supposedly much stronger than Zach.

Please dont be too rough, if its possible I hope you can be gentle, then I will
be very happy.

Behind the carriage, Solution whispered to Zach in a low voice. Her hand reached
towards her back, as if to take off her beautiful dress. Seeing this scene, Zach
was greatly startled, what the hell was this girl doing? His eyes looked as if he
was seeing an odd creature for the first time, and he couldnt tear his gaze from
Solution. Her hand didnt seem to be stopping, and Zach, who was greatly
confused, opened his mouth and asked:

Y..you..What are you doing?

What does it look like?

Like that, Solution continued to slowly strip off her corset.

As if only waiting for this exact moment, the restrained twin peaks bounced
outward. The delicate and perky round shapes, with skin as white as snow,
glowed under the luminescent moonlight.

The scene before Zach made him gulp.

Please.

As if begging to be touched tenderly, Solution pointed her bare breasts toward

Zach.

What do you want me to do

Zach forgot himself, only to stare intently at the naked body in front of him.

So beautiful, this girl had the most beautiful and alluring body out of all the
women Zach had seen in his life.

Before, of all those embraced by Zach, the most beautiful was undoubtedly the
girl assaulted by him on a carriage while they were traveling on the road. But
when it was Zachs turn, the girl was already dead tired and laid there unmoving.
She only opened her legs widely like a frog. Even so, he still thought of her as
beautiful and lovely.

But the girl in front of him is even more beautiful than her, and isnt lifeless like
back then.

As if being lit by the flame of desire, he started to feel warmth in his groin. He
could only pant like a dog, and slid his hand toward Solutions body.

As if touching a cloth made of silk it was that kind of a sensation.

He could bear no longer, and grabbed her perky and well shaped bosom.

The hand sunk in just like that.

The feeling was so soft it felt as if his whole hand had sunk in, Zach thought of
this initially. But after looking toward his hand, he immediately noticed it wasnt
like that.

Literally, Zachs hand really had sunk into Solutions body.

Wh...What the hell is this!

The unimaginable sight made Zach scream and he attempted to take his hand
back. But no matter how hard he tried to pull, he couldnt pull his hand back. Not
only could he not pull his hand back, it was trying to pull him in. It was like there
were many tentacles inside Solutions body, and those tentacles firmly grabbed
onto Zachs hand and continued to pull him in.

Solutions beautiful and well proportioned face remained calm during such an odd
situation, only to stare at Zach silently. Like a scientist looking at a lab animal
that has been injected with a deadly poison, she was looking at him with a gaze
that held both cold mercilessness and great curiosity.

Hey, st...stop! Let me go!

Zach held a fist with his other hand, and mustered all his strength to strike at
Solutions beautiful face.

Once, twice, three times--

Its fine even if he hurt his fist, Zach used all of his strength to strike at the head.
Her face, though it was struck repeatedly by a full-grown man, she remained
unconcerned and didnt even move an inch. Its as if she didnt feel any pain at
all.

But for Zach who was struggling for his life, the feeling was different and strange
as he struck her again, and all the hair on his body stood up on its end.

The feeling was as if he was hitting a leather bag filled with water. In a normal
situation, there would be a feeling of rebound from striking with your fist. But all
of its force was absorbed and there was no feeling of striking any bones. This was
not what hitting somebody is supposed to feel like.

He was distracted by his lust and excitement, but now he suddenly remembered
the scene of the hell and abomination that was behind him.

Zach suppressed his urge to scream.

He finally understood.

This naked girl was also a monster.

You finally noticed? Then, heres the main act?

Before he could reply, it felt as if hundreds of thousands of needles had stuck into
his arm and the pain almost made him faint.

AHHHHH!

I am dissolving your arm.

While in severe pain he heard her cold voice, but he was unable to understand
the meaning. This was already a scenario thats out of Zachs understanding.

Truthfully, I like to watch things as they dissolve. Because Zach-san said he

would very much like to be in me, so our feelings were quite mutual. It made me
very happy that you feel this way.

Ahhhh! Fucking die, monster!

While trying to bear with the severe pain, Zach took out his concealed short
sword. Like that, with all his strength he stabbed the lovely face of Solution. As a
result, Solutions body shook a bit.

Serves you right!

But Zach noticed his thought to be premature.

How was this different from stabbing at a pond? At most, little ripples appeared
on the surface of the water, and that was all that had happened.

Solution kept her cold and observing expression even with a sword in her. She
gazed intently at Zach, and whispered in a low voice:

So sorry, I have immunity to physical attacks, so this type of attack cannot harm
me. This too shall dissolve.

An acidic stench emitted. It was only after a couple of seconds, the handle of the
sword fell from Solutions face onto the floor. It was as she said, a beautiful
unblemished face that was the same as before once again appeared in front of
Zach.

Who... what the hell are you?

The severe pain from his arm was still not subsiding, but the horror of death in
front of him was even more terrible than the pain. His terror almost made him
forget the pain. With tears on his face, he asked.

But the answer was so horrible he wanted to cover his ears.

I am a preying type ooze. Time is limited, so I must swallow you now.

The force of suction of Solutions body became even stronger and he was pressed
into her inch by inch. It was pointless for Zach to resist.

Stop stop stop stop pleeeassee stop! Please forgive me, spare me please!

Zach screamed and cried, and continued to beg. But the force thats pulling Zach
was so strong, that a mere human had no way to resist. His arm, shoulder, and
upper body continued to be swallowed inside her.

Lilia!

Zach cried out this name as his last word before his face and head too got
swallowed into Solution. It was like a snake swallowing its prey whole, Zachs
entire body was now inside Solution.

Only a few minutes have passed since the attack, but there were already no
survivors left. The place was filled with the stench of blood thats quite
unpleasant to the nose.

No, one man was still alive. He groveled under Shalltear on both of his knees, and
he was furiously moving his tongue licking. He was licking the blood and brains
off Shalltears high heels that were dirtied when she, for fun, stepped on and
crushed a bandits skull.

Shalltear satisfyingly looked at her now shiny and clean stiletto.

Thanks for your hard work. As promised, I will spare your life.

The terrified man showed an ugly grimace. While groveling he showed a thankful
gaze toward Shalltear, and kept on kowtowing to thank her. Shalltear showed an
affectionate expression to the dog-like man, and flicked her finger.

Suck.

The two vampires came to be beside him, the man finally knew what she had
meant all along.

You will still live as an undead, so you cant say I lied to you, okay?

Unable to hold themselves back, the vampires bit into the man. Shalltear glanced
sideways as the mans life force was taken gulp by gulp. Solution, with her

disheveled collar and clothes, walked up to Shalltear from behind the carriage,
who then asked:

Hm, so its all done?

Yes, I am very satisfied. Thank you very much, Shalltear-sama.

Not at all, because were both from Nazarick as companions. Ah, so did that
human have his fun?

Hes currently enjoying it, would you like a look?

Eh? Really? Then let me see a little.

A mans arm suddenly burst out from Solutions face, accompanied by a pungent
smell. The stench came from the arm. Because of the strong acid, the skin was
gone and the muscles were already half rotted. Since blood oozed out from the
muscle and reacted with the acid, acrid smoke could be seen wafting off.

It was like an arm that was reaching up from under a pond, trying to grab onto
something and kept on twisting and flailing around. Every time it struggled, the
exposed rotted muscle oozed out liquid and blood.

I apologize, I didnt know he was still so energetic.

Solution apologized with an arm still flailing on her face. She then roughly shoved
the struggling and flailing arm back inside her. After the arm was completely
inside her, she again let out a smile.

Thats impressive! Even though you swallowed a man whole, one cannot tell at
all from your outside appearance.

Thank you for your compliment. You cant tell from the outside because my
inside is quite empty. I am that kind of being, so I guess there are special magic
effects taking place.

Hmm, I see I hope I am not poking my nose into your business, but when will
he die?

Well, if I want to kill immediately I can emit a stronger acid, but its such a rare
chance for a man wanting to enter me, so I want him to at least enjoy it for a day
or two.

I am not hearing any screams, is it because of the acid?

Not at all. If I use acid to dissolve his vocal cords, he might die from suffocation,
so I used a part of my body to enter his throat and suppress his screams. It also
prevents foul odors from leaking.

You take such a good care of your plaything, I quite admire that you can play
with it up to its last moment.
Another thing, can you choose which body-parts you want to use acid to
dissolve? For example, if you only want one part of the prey to be dissolved?

Yes, thats no problem and its actually quite easy. The proof is that there are still
some potions and scrolls inside me, and theyre safe. I can move freely even if
Shalltear-sama were to enter my body, of course only if you dont move around
too much.

Preying ooze type is quite impressive... nhh. Lets play together next time?

No problem, but... where do you plan to look for the toys?

Shalltear noticed that Solution was looking at the vampires behind her, and
showed a delighted smile.

These girls are actually quite entertaining, but I want to wait until someone
invades Nazarick and is captured. I will request Ainz-sama to gift them to me.

Okay, please leave me a share too. Next time, I want to swallow them up to their
chest area and leave the other parts out. It should be fun like that.

Not bad, you should get along pretty well with that inquisitor right?

You mean Neuronist-sama? That special information investigator? Its regretful

that I dont quite understand too much of Neuronist-samas art.

Shalltear wanted to continue her chat with Solution, but a voice came from
behind her and interrupted their conversation.

Solution, preparations are complete here. Its about time for us to leave.

After replacing the horses reins, Sebas shouted from the carriages driver seat.

Okay, I will be right there. Then Shalltear-sama, though I would very much like to
continue chatting with you, please excuse me for now.

Shalltear looked toward Solutions back as she hurried to the carriage, then to
Sebas who was sitting on the drivers seat.

Then, Sebas, I guess we will temporarily part ways.

I see, so youve found their lair?

Yes, I will go there in a moment. I am going to look if there is somebody with

useful information that will make Ainz-sama happy. It seems our efforts were in
vain this time.

I see. It was a pleasure working with you, Shalltear-sama.

Thank you for your hard work, lets meet up at Nazarick later.

Yes, take care

Part 1

CHAP
TER 2

Two shadows could be seen moving full speed through the forest. They were
Shalltears servants and concubines; the vampire brides.

They cleaved through the narrow trail laden with sharp branches. Despite this,
not a single scratch or blemish could be seen on either of their dresses. Even
while wearing high heels, the two vampires moved with unreal speed.

The one in front was carefully carrying Shalltear, while the one bringing up the
rear was dragging what seemed to be a shriveled, old log.

Their current location wasnt that far from where they parted with Sebas.
Although they had no way of measuring the distance to their destination, they
knew they still had ways to go. Suddenly, a sharp, metallic noise broke out, and
the vampire in the front came to a halt.

Because the trail was so narrow, the one following from behind had no choice but
to stop as well.

Why have you suddenly stopped?

As she was about to answer the voice behind her, a chilling gaze from her
mistress she was carrying in her arms washed over the vampire that caused her
body to tremble.

The sense of danger crawling up her spine was because she knew her master
was neither kind nor forgiving.

Her master, Shalltear, who was now cradled in her arms like a princess, shifted
her feet in displeasure.

Sensing the cue, the vampire lowered her arms.

Shalltear jumped, like a bird flying out of its cage. After a brief respite in the air, a
delicate pair of legs in high heels landed on the earth. Her dress followed suit and
gently flowed over her legs, hiding them from view.

Shalltear brushed aside her long silvery hair in irritation, and tilted her head.
Under her icy glare, the vampire couldnt help but gulp in fear.

What is the problem?

The reason Shalltear didnt run herself was simply because it was bothersome,
and because she didnt want to get her shoes dirty. There was another reason,
but no one present would even think it, much less speak it out loud. Even in
Nazarick, there was only a handful who would dare say it in her presence.

As her servant, the vampire was acting as her feet, and forbidden to stop unless
instructed otherwise by Shalltear herself. Feet that didnt listen to its owner were
useless.

Depending on the reason, she might receive severe punishment.

No, it would be a relief if it only went that far. The vampire could detect killing
intent in her masters question.

Excluding those created directly by the Supreme Rulers of the Great Underground
Tomb of Nazarick, the power over life and death over the other minions is held by

the Floor Guardians and Area Guardians. To further incur Shalltears displeasure
past this point would mean certain death.

Realizing that her next words might be her last, the vampire slowly opened her
mouth to beg for forgiveness:

Please forgive me. I stepped on a bear trap.

Shalltear shifted her gaze to the vampires foot and saw that it was indeed
caught by a reinforced steel trap.

Rather than humans, the trap was meant for wild animals like bears. If a human
were to get caught in it, even if he was wearing greaves, the trap would have
fractured the bone. However, a vampire was completely different from a normal
human in every aspect.
Although the trap was snapped firmly around her ankles, rather than a fracture,
the vampire didnt even seem to be in pain. In fact, she didnt even seem to
consider it an injury.

A vampires natural defenses allowed them to brush off most conventional

physical attacks. In order to get around this, one would need to use a magic
weapon forged with silver or similar metals. Needless to say, an ordinary bear
trap wouldnt even be able to deal any damage to a vampire, much less leave an
actual wound. As soon as the snare was ripped open, the holes in the skin left by
its teeth would heal immediately.

However, even when the trap itself did no damage, it was showing its
effectiveness as a tool to ensnare its victims. In the first place, the lack of poison
made it obvious that the trap wasnt meant to be fatal. Rather, its purpose was to
create a casualty and hinder the opponents movements.

Hurry and free yourself.

Yes! Understood!

Having received Shalltears order, the vampire grabbed both sides of the trap
with her slender hands and pulled. Unable to withstand the strength exceeding
that of a bear, the trap opened its jaws and released its prey.

A beauty prying open a bear trap. For those who dont know the strength of a
vampire, it would have been a surreal scene.

Seeing as how theres a trap here, we may not be that far from the scheduled
place. Just a bit farther, I believe.

Yes. Please give me a moment.

The vampire in the back flung what she was carrying to the ground.

The object appeared to be a mummified corpse of a human, bled of all its

moisture. But they would have never bothered to carry along a simple, ordinary
corpse. Sure enough, the body that was sprawled on the ground showed signs of
life and began to move.

At the tip of its hands were sharp claws. A red light, much like those belonging to
a vampire, burned in its empty eye sockets. Razor sharp canines sprouted from
between its slightly parted mouth.

A lesser vampire.

With all of its blood sucked dry, it was one of the bandits that attacked them
previously.

I have a question for you. Are we near your hideout?

The lesser vampire turned to its master and nodded deeply. It let out a voice that
was neither a moan nor a scream.

it says we are, Shalltear-sama.

I see. Why didnt they prepare more traps?

Instead of stopping with a single bear trap, it wouldve been more advantageous
for them to have prepared an alarm system or more traps. However, they were
nowhere to be found.

Shalltear began to survey her surroundings. Believing that their master was
looking for anyone hiding their presence in the area, the two vampire brides
followed suit. Only when Shalltear shook her head did they stop.

Its alright. Its not like you have any searching skills anyway

Upon hearing her mutter those words, the vampire realized why she was
forgiven.
Including her master, the three of them did not have any skills for finding traps,
and thus would not have been able to notice the bear trap before it was sprung.
That must have been why she was spared. Her master did not punish others for
failing a task that was impossible to begin with.

It may have been better for us to borrow the girl.

Solutions class was one that dealt in assassinations. For her, who possessed
skills from the rogue class as well, it would have been easy to detect traps.

Well, theres no point in complaining about it now. Lets hurry to the bandit
hideout.

Before long, they arrived at the vicinity of the mercenary hideout. As they neared
their destination, the clumps of trees began to thin out, and eventually
disappeared completely. What greeted the party was a stretch of prairie with a
few rocks jutting out from the ground.

They had arrived at the land of Karst.

At the heart of a flower-shaped basin, was a large hole dug into the surface. A
faint light could be seen seeping out from the hole. From the light, the inside was
probably a gentle slope that continued downwards.

The two structures that stood on either side of the cave entrance were obviously
man-made.
There stood two wooden barricades, each about half as tall as a person. The
craftsmanship was unremarkable at best. It was just a stack of logs held together
by rope. Two guards were stationed at the entrance, with each standing behind a
barricade. It seems their plan against intruders was to use the barricades as
cover against arrows while raising the alarm.

In a normal battle if they were to advance from here in plain view, without a
doubt, reinforcements would come rushing out. The early alarm would allow their
opponents ample time to make preparations. A slower approach, hidden under
cover, was also impossible. The bandits had cleared the area of any boulders
large enough to conceal a stealth approach.

Additionally, the ones stationed outside each had a large bell around their
shoulder. Even if a surprise attack on the guards proved successful, the loud
chiming would still alert the ones inside.

Their defenses were well thought out.

But there was one way to break through this seemingly hopeless situation.

Magic.

Cast Silence then kill them, or approach with Invisibility, or lure them out
with Charm Person. Destroying the bells directly was also an option.

While pondering which way would be the most enjoyable, Shalltear realized that
she was missing a crucial piece of information.

Is there only one entrance?

The lesser vampire stiffly nodded its head in affirmation.

Shalltears face bloomed into a smile. If thats the case, then there was nothing
more to think about.

A strongly fortified position is strong against surprise attacks, this holds true even
when facing a superior number. But it was different for Shalltear and her party.

For those with overwhelming power, there was absolutely no problem with
meeting these humans head on. It was a simple matter to crush them like the
insects they were. Their only worry would be another exit for their prey to
escape.

Well, we came all this way so theres no need to hide anymore, is there? It isnt
in my nature to skulk around like a spy.

Shalltear-sama is always shining brightly, after all.

Stating the obvious isnt flattery. If you want to flatter me then put more thought
into it next time.

Ignoring her servant that was now begging for forgiveness, Shalltear reached out
her hand and grabbed the lesser vampire.

Im giving you the important mission of being the vanguard. Now, go.

With a flick of her skinny arm, Shalltear threw the lesser vampire, and a sound
like air being torn apart exploded. The scrawny, corpse-like body spun into the air
countless times, and spiraled towards one of the sentries in the distance.

Upon impact, the sentrys head and chest exploded into a bloody mist. It was a
scene that was hard to believe.

The smell of blood was fresh in the air. The other sentry looked at the cruel
remains of his partner in a daze, as if he couldnt process what had just
happened.

To the one who did the throwing, it was a delightful spectacle.

Strike~,

Fantastic, Shalltear-sama.

The two vampires excitedly clapped their hands while Shalltear raised her hands
in celebration. Needless to say, the lesser vampires body was also obliterated
along with the sentry, but no one really cared about that. Since it wasnt even a
member of Nazarick in the first place, there was no need to show concern for the
death of a toy.

Theres no way Shalltear would remember a promise made with a human, either.

Hmm, theres one more, isnt there?

As Shalltear looked around, the two vampires quickly presented a sufficiently

large rock.

Oomph.

As a bell chimed in the distance, Shalltear grasped the rather large rock in her
hand.
Her arm moved at a frightening speed. A moment later, Shalltear happily
announced her accomplishment.

Hmm. This time we can call that two strikes.

Another round of applause.

The sentries inside the cave who heard the bell were yelling that enemies have
appeared. They were so loud that the group could hear them all the way from
where they were.

Shalltear smiled softly towards the growing noise from within the cave and
commanded.

Now, go. You, climb a tree in the area and watch for anyone trying to run away.
And you, get up front and lead the way. But, if a strong one shows up, its mine.
Be sure to tell me.

Yes, Shalltear-sama.

Please have a safe trip.

The vampire that was given the order moved in front of Shalltear. As she slowly
walked towards the entrance, the vampire
disappeared.

The ground gave away, no, it was a trap.

Shalltear may have been able to move out of the way, but a normal vampires
agility wasnt enough to react to the ground vanishing beneath their feet.

Aw~

The vampire was a low level servant lacking any skills to detect traps. Such an
outcome was inevitable. Shalltear knew this, which is why she forgave her for the
earlier mistake. But even so, she couldnt keep the disappointment out of her
voice. A laugh escaped her lips; one that was neither awkward nor sweet.

Thinking back, it shouldve been obvious that they would have laid a trap in front
of the entrance. Her own foolishness at failing to deduce this beforehand, and the
fact that her servant actually got caught in it, was aggravating. These thoughts
swirled inside her and were released through Shalltears smile.

Most of all, the fact that a servant of Shalltear Bloodfallen, the Floor Guardian in
charge of multiple levels of the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick got caught
by such a pathetic trap was something she couldnt tolerate.

A voice filled with killing intent spilled out of Shalltears scarlet lips.

Im going to kill you, so come out immediately.

With a large leap, the vampire showed herself at the edge of the trap. Except for
her dress being dirtied with mud, she appeared unwounded.

Do not disappoint me any further.

Forgive

Leave it. Hurry up and go. Or would you like me to throw you like that trash over
there?

Seeing Shalltear motioning as if to grab her, the vampire understood what her
master meant and let out a small yelp. Shalltear watched as her servant scurried
into the cave, and slowly followed her inside.

Part 2

Inside a private room, a man stopped maintaining his weapon and focused his
ears on the noise.

The bustle of people running, faint screams in the distance.

It was obvious they were under attack, but the enemys strength and numbers
were unknown despite the fact that they were trained to shout such crucial
information.

There was no way he just didnt happen to hear them either. Even if he was
inside a room, it was just a makeshift hole in the wall with a curtain serving as a
door. Although the curtain was thick, it was nowhere near enough to block out
voices entirely.

Their mercenary group, Death Spreading Brigade had seventy members.

Although none of them were as strong as him, some were veterans who had
survived many battles.

There was no way men like them would fall into this much disarray from a small
party. Did that mean the enemy arrived in force? But there wasnt enough noise
to indicate a large battle, and he couldnt sense the presence of that many foes
either.

Then adventurers?.

Few in number, but powerful in combat, then this uncomfortable feeling would
make sense.

The man slowly stood up and strapped his weapon to his waist. For armor, he
equipped a chainmail. It was easy to wear and didnt take too much time to put
on. Next, he grabbed a leather pouch containing several ceramic potion bottles
and secured it to his belt with a knot. Having already equipped his necklace and
ring, which were infused with protection magic, the preparations were complete.

The man threw open the curtains, as if he wanted to rip them from the hinges,
and then stepped out into the makeshift hallway.

Lined an equal distance apart, the hallway was lit by plundered Continual
Light lanterns so bright that it was hard to believe it was the inside of a cave.

The light revealed his full appearance. Hidden underneath the clothes, his body
was lean but not skinny, and his muscles were tough as steel and tempered
through experience, rather than training,

His hair was cut haphazardly, the length was uneven, and it pointed outwards in
random directions. His brown eyes glared straight ahead, and a sneer was
plastered on his lips. The stubble on his chin gave it the appearance of mold.

Although his appearance was untidy, his movements were smooth and elegant,
similar to that of a wild beast.

As he walked towards the entrance where the attack was taking place, another
man was heading in his direction. He recognized the familiar face as one of his
allies. As soon as the other man spotted him, his face brightened in relief, as if to
say victory was now assured.

Whats going on?

Enemy attack, Brain-san!

The man Brain laughed bitterly and responded.

I know that, the attackers? Who are they?

There are two of them, both women.

Women? And only two? Blue Rose no, thats impossible.

With his head turned slightly in thought, Brain continued to head towards the
source of the disturbance.

The strongest adventurer party in the kingdom was called Blue Rose and was
made up of five women. A while back, he had encountered an old woman who
could match him blow for blow and the two had fought to a draw. There was also
a rumor that the greatest assassin of the empire was a woman.

Strong women were not uncommon. After all, the difference of physical strength
between a man and a woman could easily be filled by magic.

Of course, the strongest body coupled with the strongest magical power would
mean that person was invincible.

Brain could feel his heart swell in anticipation at the thought of fighting an
opponent strong enough to attack them head on.

Ah, you dont have to come with me. Head back inside and strengthen the
defenses.

After telling the mercenary such, Brain put strength into his steps and walked
towards the strong opponents from the surface.

Brain Unglaus.

Originally a farmer, he was gifted with what could only be described as a Godgiven talent in the mastery of the sword. Coupled with his natural talent, he had

never lost with a weapon in hand. Even in the battlefield, he was a genius whose
worst injury was a scratch.

Having never known defeat with the sword, he had always walked a path of
victory.

Everyone around him believed it, and he himself never doubted his skill.
However, a dramatic change came into his life at a tournament held in the
Kingdoms palace.

It wasnt as if he joined with the aim of being the champion. He simply wanted to
show his skill to the rest of the Kingdom. He believed that they would kneel to his
strength. But the result, he faced an unbelievable situation.

Defeat.

His first loss since he first held the sword, no, possibly since hed been born.

The one who defeated him was a man named Gazef Strolonoff. He was now
serving as the Knight-Captain of Re-Estize, and known to be the strongest man in
the surrounding nations.

Both men had won all of their battles almost instantly, but the fight between
them was long and drawn out, as if they had been saving all of their time for this
one battle.

In the end, Gazef finished the battle using his martial art Fourfold Slash of
Light. A battle that was still talked about to this day, no one questioned how a
man of the lower class rose to the position of Knight-Captain. It was a fight on a
scale where even the nobles who disliked Gazef had to admit that he wasnt
weak.

The victor was showered with glory, but to the loser, it was as if everything Brain
had built up to that point had come crashing down. Although the battle was
close, Brain realized that his confidence of being the strongest was only a
delusion born from the narrow-mindedness of a fool.

For one month, he locked himself away in his own world. A normal person would
have drowned away his sorrows in alcohol, but Brain threw his despair aside and
pulled himself together.

He rejected countless offers for employment from nobles, and sought strength for
the first time.

In pursuit of strength, he trained his body.

In pursuit of magic, he gathered knowledge.

A prodigy was working hard like an ordinary person

His defeat had elevated him to a new level.

The reason he had rejected offers from nobles was because he didnt want his
skills to rust away. In order for him to train his skills to the utmost limit, he
needed opponents. Since he didnt train himself just to show off, Brain needed
work that provided ample opportunities to experience real battles while also
bringing in money.

It was possible to earn a fortune as an adventurer, but that path was closed to
him. An adventurers work offered little to no opportunities to fight against other
humans. Cutting down monsters wasnt bad, but Brains ultimate goal was to
defeat Gazef. For that, he needed human opponents.

With his options limited, he chose to work as a member of the Death Spreading
Brigade. But in truth, any mercenary group would have suited him just fine.

He had only one goal.

To wipe clean his past shame, to turn his defeat into victory.

In order to gain the strength to accomplish his goal, he needed a weapon. He was
willing to throw away everything else for the weapon of his desires.

Magic weapons were expensive, but the one he truly wanted wasnt any ordinary
magic weapon.

Further south, past the Kingdomwas a city in the middle of a desert. Amongst
the goods that occasionally flowed out from that city was a weapon that, even
unenchanted, far surpassed the cutting ability of ordinary magic weapons. It had
a price to match, so much so that peoples eyes would pop out of their sockets
upon seeing it. That was the weapon he wanted.

And then, he had finally managed to obtain a Katana.

Right now, Brains strength had reached the limit of human potential. He was
confident that he could easily defeat Gazef. Nevertheless, he had never once
allow that confidence to get to his head and continued to train diligently every
day.

When he closed his eyes, even now, he could see it clearly, the image of Gazef
during their great duel.

He had easily dodged Brains attack that no man before him could, and
counterattacked with four simultaneous strikes.

He could no longer remember his own appearance the moment he lost. Instead,
what burned in his memory was the image of the victor who defeated him.

As Brain approached the entrance, the smell of fresh blood hung heavily in the
air. He could no longer hear the screams, meaning that those who had been
fighting near the entrance had all been killed. It had only been two or three
minutes.

The ten men stationed near the entrance were given the task of focusing on
defense, to buy time for the rest to make preparations for the battle. To kill these
men so quickly

If there are really only two of them, they must be as strong as I am.

Brains face broke out into a grin.

He continued with quick steps and drank one of the potions in his belt pouch. A
bitter, strong liquid flowed down his throat and into his stomach. He then downed
another bottle.

He could feel the heat from his stomach spread out to every inch of his body. In
response, the sound of his muscles expanding and growing stronger reached his
ears.

The rapid change was due to the strengthening effects of the potion.

The first one he drank was a potion of Lesser Strength, while the second was
of Lesser Dexterity.

It wasnt necessary to ingest the potion directly for it to work; just spraying the
correct dose on the body was enough. But Brain always thought that drinking it

seemed more effective somehow. Of course, it could simply be his imagination,

but imagination could sometimes draw strength where there was none.

He then drew his katana, and applied oil to the blade. The oil emitted a faint light,
and soon disappeared, as if it was absorbed into the katana. The oil was called
Magic Weapon, and although the effect was temporary, it infused the blade
with magic that further boosted its sharpness.

Activate 1, activate 2.

The keywords triggered the necklace and ring he had equipped and a faint magic
wrapped around his body.

Necklace of Eye, as the name suggested, protected his eyes when activated.
Resistance to blind status, night vision, light filtering. A warrior who couldnt land
a hit was useless. Hindering ones field of vision, or creating distance and
attacking with ranged attacks are all common tactics used by adventurers. Brain
had once lost to adventurers who used such tactics.

Ring of Magicbound allowed its wearer to bind a low level spell to the item
and invoke it with the ring as the catalyst. His ring carried Lesser Protection
Energy, which allowed him to block elemental damage.

If there really were just two enemies, then this much preparation was necessary.
It would be too late to regret not activating the effects beforehand later on.

With this, the preparations were over.

He gathered the overflowing heat emanating from his body and expelled it in one
large breath.

As of this moment, with his strengthened physique, Brain had most likely
achieved the peak of human strength. With the arrogance that could only stem
from absolute confidence in ones ability, Brain thought in his head with a sneer.

Since I went through this much trouble, theyd better be worth it.

With each step, the smell of blood grew stronger and finally, he spotted two
shadows.

You two seem to be having fun.

Not at all, I think they were too weak. I cant fill my blood pool too well.

It was a response that seemed completely unwary of Brains sudden appearance,

as if they already knew that he was coming. Brain didnt make any particular
effort to conceal his presence either, so he wasnt surprised.

He scowled slightly as he looked at the two intruders.

They told me it was two women, but one of them is just a kid and shes
wearing a dress?

He immediately tossed aside such thoughts. Floating above the girl whose beauty
seemed to be without equal, was a sphere that looked as if it was made of blood.

First time Ive seen that kind of magic youre a magic caster?

A magic caster would have no need for armor, which would explain why these
two would be wearing a dress in a place like this.

A faith based magic caster, believer of the bloodline of the origin, God Cainabel.

Cainabel? First time hearing of a god by that name. Is he an evil god?

Yes, he belonged to that category. Well, he was defeated by the Supreme Beings
anyways. According to them, he was a weak event boss.

Shifting his eyes away from the girl who was going on about some Supreme
Beings and whatnot, Brain focused his attention on the woman standing like a
servant. This one was also a beauty. Her buxom figure seemed to radiate
sensuality.

From the splotches of crimson covering her white dress, she must have been the
one who killed the guards.

Brain simply shrugged his shoulders and grasped his katana.

Well, thats not important. Im ready to go whenever. If you cant say the same, I
can wait. Whatll you do?

Giving him a surprised look, the girl covered her mouth in order to stifle a faint
laugh.

How brave of you, will you really be fine alone? You may call more of your
friends, if youd like.

We both know that bringing together a bunch of third-rates wont work against
you two. I will be enough.

Are you one of those? The type that doesnt understand how high the sky is?
Do you think you can touch the stars simply by reaching for them? That type of
naivety should be reserved for children like Aura. Its just disgusting with an
adult.

What wrong with adults like that? I guess a girl cant understand a mans
romance?

Brain drew his katana into a stance. Seeing this, the girl wore a bored expression
and glanced towards the ceiling and spoke.

You can start now.

The girl gestured with her chin, prompting the woman next to her to dash
forward.

Her movement was truly like the wind, but for Brain, even the speed of the
wind was not fast enough.

Haah!

With a roar, Brain launched himself with all the strength in his body and struck
like a storm. The slash held enough power to easily cleave an armored man in
two.

Kuh!

Tsk, too shallow.

Stopped during the middle of her rush, the vampire gripped her shoulder and was
forced to back away. The katana had entered through the collarbone and left a
slash across her chest.

Brain narrowed his eyes as he watched his opponent.

Aside from the fact that he had failed to kill her with the first blow, there was
another thing that he had trouble understanding. The wound on her shoulder
should have been sprouting blood, but not a single drop could be seen.

Is it magic?

While in thought, Brains eyes squinted slightly when he saw the wound that her
hand had been covering.

The katana wound on her shoulder was slowly but surely, being healed. Although
he had heard rumors of the existence of high speed healing magic, this seemed
different. Then there was only one other answer.

A monster with the ability to regenerate, the sharp canines sprouting from her
mouth, crimson eyes filled with enmity, a human-like appearance

Brain, whose trail of thought had led up to this point, realized the monsters
identity.

A vampirehuh. Its special abilities. high speed regeneration, charm, life

drain, spawn vampire minions, resistance against weapons and cold.. I think
there was more.
whatever.

He just had to cut them down. With that in mind, Brain firmly gripped his katana.

The woman widened her eyes and her crimson pupils grew eerily large.

At that moment, Brains mind began to cloud over. The enemy in front of him
started to seem more and more like an ally. However, with a quick shake of his
head, the mist was gone.

A charm? My mind isnt so weak for it to be influenced by something of that

level.

Not only his weapon, even Brains heart was like that of a katana. He was easily
able to dispel simple charm spells.

The vampire looked at him with hatred and bared her fangs, but it was a look
born out of fear. One who was confident in their own strength would have simply
attacked. In other words, the vampire had become wary, whether it was because
of his attack, or because of the realization that he was a formidable opponent.

At least youre smart. But even a wild beast can tell that much.

Brain shuffled his feet and inched towards the vampire. Matching his advance, his
opponent slowly retreated backwards.

How boring.

Brain laughed mockingly, and as if taunted, the vampire stopped her retreat and
advanced slightly.

The distance between the two was now three meters. For the vampire, it was a
distance she could cover in a single leap. However, her wariness towards Brains
skill prevented her from stepping forward immediately. Then a small smile
formed on her lips, and the vampire extended her hand in front of her.

Shock Wave.

The ground tore in its wake as the shockwave hurtled towards Brain. Easily able
to crush full plate mail, for Brain, who was only wearing a chainmail, being hit by
such a blast would leave him gravely injured. Not only that, the huge difference
in physical abilities between the two meant that taking even a single hit would
greatly turn the tide of battle against him.

However the vampire widened her eyes in surprise.

Try celebrating after actually hitting your target. Your movements are too easy
to read.

He was untouched.

Having easily dodged the invisible attack, Brain said with a smirk. The vampire
wore a look of surprise and panic and jumped backwards with a large leap. She
had realized that it was a mistake to underestimate this human as a lower life
form.

On the other hand, although he did not show it on his face, Brain knew he had to
rethink his plan of attack. The thought that she could use magic had escaped him
completely.

Brains ultimate goal was Gazef, and their fight would be settled with their
swords. Because of this, his skill in magic wasnt on par with his skill with the
sword. Against such an opponent, he couldnt predict what she would do next.

The result was a stalemate where both sides glared at each other, waiting for an
opening to strike.

Growing weary of the situation, the girl let out a sigh.

Haa substitution.

As the girl snapped her finger to interject, her dry voice caused the vampire to
tremble uncontrollably.

In front of his opponent who had completely lost her focus, Brain did not move.

Even when given such an opening, he did not take the opportunity to attack.
Instead, he shifted his attention to the girl and stared searchingly.

Her body was skinny and contrasted oddly with her swollen chest. Her arms
looked frail enough for Brain to easily snap like a twig.

There were many types of faith based magic casters. Clerics were strong in close
combat, while Priestesses and Bishops specialized in magic incantations.

Since she asked to switch, she must be confident enough to fight without a
guard. Then

Brains face broke into a smile.

She doesnt seem to be the type to fight with summons. Another vampire, then.

Judging by her behavior, this one must be a higher level than the other vampire.
You can never judge a monster by their appearance. It wouldnt be strange for
her to be even stronger than the one before, especially since she decided to step
in after seeing how strong Brain was.

And the vampires reaction earlier was it fear?

The master feared by its vampire servant shes strong, someone I cant take
lightly.

While keeping the girl in his sights, Brain furiously racked his head trying to figure
out her identity.

A vampires master, is she a vampire lord similar to the ones from the legends? If
I recall correctly, one of the more famous vampire lords was Landfall, who
destroyed a kingdom I heard it was killed by the thirteen heroes.

If the past heroes managed to do it, then it wasnt impossible.

Grasping his katana with renewed vigor, Brain readied his stance.

I am Brain Unglaus.

Having stated his name to the strong opponent, what came back in response was
a look of confusion.

Feeling the awkwardness in the air, Brain asked her.

Your name?

Oh! Youre asking for my name? Cocytus would have stated his already, but I
didnt see you as an opponent so I was slow to notice. Please forgive me. You
shouldve just said so.

The girl grabbed the skirt of her dress, and, like asking a man for a dance at a
ball, gave her greeting.

Shalltear Bloodfallen. Allow me to enjoy this.

With a weapon pointed towards her, the girl gave a graceful bow. Did she think
he wouldnt attack? Or maybe, was she confident enough to block his attack
completely even if he did? The answer was clearly written in her expression, it
was the latter. As if to say, you are not a threat.

Ill break that composure of yours.

Brain glared at Shalltear with a look sharp enough to frighten even the most
hardened warriors. Honestly, he didnt like her relaxed attitude, but a part of him
welcomed it.

The arrogance of the strong.

It was one of the weapons humans could use to defeat monsters whose physical
abilities were far above and beyond their own. In the past, Brain had multiple
encounters with such creatures where he won by using this chance.

Most of all he could mock them after defeating them, teaching the fools that
there were opponents in this world you shouldnt underestimate.

Will you not be using martial arts?

Martial art.

Over the course of a warriors training, they push themselves to the limit and
learn special skills that draw out all of their strength. Martial arts create
unexplainable phenomena that are drawn from the warriors own aura. It is the
use of magic through weapons.

Against an opponent vastly larger than yourself, Fortress would allow one to
shrug off powerful attacks and fight him head on.

By channeling your aura into your blade and releasing it in a powerful blast,
Severing Blade would allow one to take down strong opponents in a single
attack.

If the opponent was heavily armored, using Heavy Blow with a crushing
weapon would prove effective.

Or, by simply strengthening yourself with Ability Boost, one could grasp
victory with just their physical body.

Martial arts allowed one to prepare for many different situations, as such,
warriors trained to learn various skills and master them in order to truly make
them their own. This was especially true for adventurers, who faced dangers far
above the norm.

As for Brain

Hmph. I wont need it against someone like you.

That was a lie. He wasnt stupid enough to reveal his hand before the battle.

Brain slowly exhaled while lowering his body, and returned the katana to its
sheath.
His feet planted firmly.

His breath; narrow and long.

He focused his consciousness to a single point, and upon reaching its limit,
released it in an enormous wave. He had created a world where he could sense
sound, space and presence. It was the first of his original martial art Field.

A range of three meters, despite its short reach, it was a martial art that allowed
one to instantly perceive everything in their surroundings. It would be easier to
describe it as a skill that raised ones accuracy and evasion to the limit.

When combined with Brains trained body, this martial art became incredibly
powerful.

Even if a thousand arrows were to rain down on him, he was confident that he
could instantly perceive and deflect the ones that would hit him, walking away
without a scratch.

Whats more, his body was capable of movements precise enough to split a grain
of wheat at a distance.

And

All life ends when their vitals are cut. That was all he needed.

Instead of learning versatile skills, it was better to focus on just one aspect; a
step faster than the opponent, a fatal attack that will always hit. Born from those
ideals, was his second original martial art Instant Slash

Even after achieving a high-speed slash that was nigh impossible to avoid, he did
not stop.

Difficult didnt even begin to describe his training. He practiced his Instant
Slash hundreds of thousands, no, millions of times, until the calluses on his
hands hardened, until the katanas grip resembled the shape of his palms.

In the endless pursuit of the limit, a new skill was born.

A slash so fast that not even a drop of blood remains on the blade, God Slash,
a skill he felt was bordering on the realm of the gods.

Once the blade left its sheath, it was impossible for the enemy to even see it
coming.

These two martial arts; an absolute awareness and a godlike slash, an

unavoidable attack combining both Field and God Slash formed to create
his trump card.

The target to aim for was the vitals.

Ideally, the neck.

This was his Hidden Skill Wind of the Great Forest.

It was named after the sound of blood sprouting shortly after severing the neck.

Even if the vampire didnt bleed, cutting off her head would secure his victory.

Are you ready now?

In front of Brain, in his imposing silence and sharp breathing, Shalltear merely
shrugged her shoulders in boredom.

Im going to assume you are and start attacking. If you have anything to say,
now would be the time.

After a brief moment

Im going to crush you.

With a joyful declaration, Shalltear stepped forward.

Keep talking while you can. Lets see if you can keep that composure after I
separate your head from your body.

He didnt say it out loud, if he opened his mouth, it felt as if his concentration so
far would be wasted.

Shalltear, seemingly without a care in the world, approached him. She walked
completely defenseless, as if she was going to a picnic.

Seeing his opponent so full of openings, Brain fought to keep the smirk off his
face.

Foolish, would be the only way to describe it. Nevertheless, he wont give her the
chance.

While activating Raise Stats, Brain waited for his adversary to enter his
Field. He concentrated everything to the moment when she would enter the
range of his blade. These foolish monsters that think theyre the strongest,
theyre all the same. They think that humans are weak, that our bodies are
fragile, our abilities nonexistent.

But I will teach you how dangerous it is to underestimate us.

Brain swore in his heart. Martial arts were created so humans could fight enemies
far beyond them.

Ill kill her with one attack.

The prouder they were, the more desperate they become once cornered. If he
couldnt kill her with the first attack, she would no doubt order her servant to join
the fight. Then the situation would become two versus one, and even Brain
couldnt be confident against those odds.

Thats why he had to settle it in one blow.

His face unmoving, Brain silently ridiculed her.

Approaching without care, she didnt understand that she was walking towards a
guillotine.

Just three more steps, two steps.

one.

And then

your head is mine!

Thinking so in his head, Brain put everything into his slash.

Tsuu!

His breath was sharp and short.

The katana exploded from its sheath and cut through the air towards Shalltears
bare neck.

The speed was like a flash of lightning. So fast that by the time the light entered
your vision, your head would already be falling to the ground. Millions of
repetitions had finally resulted in a speed that entered the realm of gods.

I got her.

Brain was certain

and couldnt help but widen his eyes.

The slash that cut through the air had all of his strength behind it. If she had
managed to dodge, then he would have been forced to admit that an opponent
stronger than even his wildest imagination had finally appeared before him.

However
Shalltear had caught it with her fingers.

a slash near the speed of light.

And with a delicate motion like holding the wings of a butterfly.

The air around him seemed to freeze. Brain exhaled a large breath.

I-Impossible.

His voice carried barely a whisper.

Brain forcefully held back his body that was threatening to tremble
uncontrollably. He couldnt believe the sight in front of him. But without a doubt,
resting on his outstretched blade were two fingers, both white as pearls her
thumb and index finger.

Not only that, her wrist was bent at a 90 degrees angle while holding the flat side
of the blade, instead of the sharp edge. Rather than stopping it head on, she had
caught up to the katanas speed caught up to his God Slash from behind.

Although it looked as if she was holding it lightly, no matter how hard Brain
pushed and pulled against her, the katana didnt budge. It felt as if the sword was
chained to a boulder hundreds of times his size.

Suddenly, the power exerted on the katana rose, causing Brain to almost lose his
balance.

Hmph. Cocytus has a few swords too, but it seems theyre not even worth being
wary about when theres this much of a difference between the wielders.

Shalltear peered at the blade while drawing it closer to her face.

Brain, who had no idea what she was talking about, felt the inside of his head
turn white.
It was the despair of having his entire way of life denied in front of him.

But it was thanks to his defeat in the past that he could stay standing. Similar to
how a broken bone grows stronger after its mended; his experience with defeat
was what kept him strong.

It was impossible, but he had no choice but to admit it.

She had easily caught his light-speed slash.

Brain looked pale. Shalltear was surprised to see him this way and frowned. She
then sighed in disappointment.

Do you understand now? Im not an opponent you can beat without using
martial arts. If you finally get it, shouldnt you start getting serious?

Hearing such cruel words, Brain unintentionally let a single word slip from his
mouth.

Monster

Shalltear gave an innocent smile, like a blooming flower.

Thats right. You just figured it out? I am a cruel, composed, merciless and
adorable monster.

She released her grip on the blade and jumped back to her original position. It
was probably accurate to a millimeter.

Are you ready now?

Shalltear said with a playful smile. Hearing the same question as before, Brain
flared up in anger. Just how much could she look down on someone?

On the other hand, Brain shuddered as he realized that his opponent was strong
enough to make a mockery of him, a human who had reached the highest
pinnacle of strength.

should I make a run for it?

Brain always considered survival to be his number one priority. If it seemed like
he couldnt win, the best plan was to retreat and live to fight another day. Even
now, he believed that he still had room to grow stronger. Thats why as long as he
survived, the only thing he had to do was emerge as the winner in the end.

But even if he retreated now, the fundamental difference between their physical
abilities was insurmountable.

Careful not to make his plan obvious, Brain focused his attention on his new
target.

The enemys legs; the plan was to cripple her mobility and flee with everything
he had.

The idea was to attack where her defenses were weakest, the area where her
hands had trouble reaching.

Having decided his next attack, Brain trained his eyes on Shalltears neck and
returned his katana to its sheath. Once launched, he could accurately hit his
God Slash even with his eyes closed. Then the obvious plan would be to
deceive the enemy with his eyes.

Im going to crush you.

Once again, Shalltear stepped forward with light steps.

The first time, Brain had eagerly waited for her to enter his Field. But this
time was different. If possible, he didnt want her anywhere near him.

How his heart had weakened. Realizing this, Brain furiously tried to reignite his
spirit, to no avail. It was like the fire that burned inside him had run out of fuel.
Left in such a state, he waited for Shalltear to enter while observing with his
Field.

Three steps, two steps, one step

she entered his range.

While staring at his opponents neck, Shalltears face entered his vision.

he only had one real target, her right ankle in mid-motion.

He slightly dropped his katana, still in its sheath, all in an attempt to accelerate
himself even a tiny bit faster.

After breaking his concentration, he confirmed that the speed of this slash would
be even faster than the previous one. If he himself were on the receiving end, he
would not be able to defend against it.

This could work!

Just barely visible beneath the edges of her skirt, as he was about to blow away
the thin ankle that suited the girl so well

the katana slipped out from his hand.

Having regained his senses, Brain had no idea what had happened just then. His
Field that blessed him with absolute awareness finally caught up and
revealed the katana that rolled onto the ground, with the girls heel pushing it
into the dirt.

Impossible, but it was reality.

The reason the katana had slipped from Brains grip was due to the high heels
force that was transmitted through the blade.

There was just one reason why he didnt want to believe.

Even with his concentration raised to the utmost limit, even within the Field
that he was so proud of; Brain could not perceive the moment when she blocked
the attack.

From a distance close enough to touch by simply reaching out a hand, Shalltear
looked down at him with an icy gaze. Brain felt an incredible pressure that
threatened to crush him into the earth.

He was panting now.

Sweat flowed profusely down his body, he felt an urge to vomit. His mind grew
dizzy as his vision twisted and turned.

He had been in plenty of situations where he was pushed to his limit, they were
commonplace. However, compared to now, they seemed fake like memories of
a childrens playground.

The high heels released the blade, and Shalltear wordlessly jumped back.

Are you ready now?

The third time hearing that voice, more than anything, he felt absolute despair.

Expecting her next words to be the usual Im going to trample you now, what
flowed into Brains ears next was something different.

Is it possible you cant use any martial arts?

Hearing her sympathetic voice filled with pity, Brain inhaled sharply.

He was at a loss for words. No, what could he possibly say in response? That was
it just now but you defeated it easily. Could he sound any more like a clown?

While biting down on his lips, Brain picked up his blade off the ground.

Were you not that strong, after all? I thought you would be stronger than the
ones at the entrance Oh, Im sorry. It seems the lowest metric I can use to
measure strength is a meter. The difference between one or two millimeter is just
impossible for me to discern.

His unrelenting effort.

His fight with Gazef was when he was confident in his own talent. The man who
did not put in the effort lost to the man who did. Because of that, the failure
engraved into his heart was channeled into a motivating force.

That renewed earnestness he poured into his training was what defined his
existence. Everything he was, this monster before him made a mockery of it.

I must seem pathetic. I, after all the monsters that Ive killed, the arrogant fools
who underestimated me just because they believed themselves to be stronger

While harboring such thoughts, Brain forcibly suppressed his self-deprecation.

Instead

AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!
<TL Note: Tenses starts switching randomly after Brain goes berserk.>

With a scream, he charges at Shalltear with his sword raised high. Towards
Shalltear, who had been looking at him with a peculiar expression he swings
down his katana with the weight of his entire body.

A slash with the power of all of his muscles would have easily cleaved a human in
two, even with the protection of a helmet. Against such a powerful attack,
Shalltear stares at him with no intention to move.

This time for sure, he had her; such thoughts flashed through his head.

But his thoughts were soon replaced by the surreal scene that occurred just
before. Itll be impossible for her to catch this so easi

Immediately after, his worst fears were realized.

A loud noise rang out, and once again, Brain was confronted with an impossible
scene.

Shalltears left pinky moved at an unbelievable speed about two centimeters

long, her fingernail had repelled his slash. Whats more, her hand looked as if it
wasnt even strained. Her fist was not fully clenched, and her pinky was gently
bent against the blade.

With a playful motion, she had stopped Brains attack at full power.

The attack that cut through armor, shattered swords and destroyed shields

His spirit was tattered, threatened to shatter at a moments notice. It took

everything he had to keep himself together. His hand still shaking from the
impact, he channels strength into his grip, raises his katana, and brings it down
once more. And once more, it is casually blocked by Shalltear.

Fuaaa~.

A dramatic yawn, as if it was on purpose. Her free hand covered her mouth as if
to stifle it. Her gaze now points to the ceiling. All traces of her regarding Brain as
an opponent has vanished.

Even so,

Even so Brains katana was still deflected.

By a left pinky.

UUWWAAAAHHHHHHHH!!

A battle cry exploded from his throat. No, that wasnt a battle cry, it was a wail.

Lateral slash deflected.

Upper left diagonal slash deflected.

Vertical slash deflected.

Upper right diagonal slash deflected.

Rising slash deflected.

Reverse slash deflected.

Every attack from every direction on every part of the body, all deflected.

It was as if the katana was being drawn to her nail.

In that moment, Brain finally understood.

An existence that stood in a place reserved only for those possessing true,
absolute strength. It was a place that no amount of god given talent or hard work
could ever hope to approach, let alone fight.

Ara? Are you tired? Well anyways, this nail clipper is awfully dull.

Hearing her words, he stopped his hands that were swinging the katana.

Could one cut a mountain with a sword? Something like that was impossible. Any
child would know something so obvious. Then, could one win against Shalltear?
Any warrior who fought her would know the answer.

Absolutely impossible.

A human could never beat an existence possessing power beyond human

imagination. If, for example, someone could fight her head on, it would be a
being that surpassed humans.

Unfortunately, Brain was just a warrior considered to be one of the strongest only
amongst humans. Yes. No matter how much effort one put in, being born a
human meant that all of it only amounted to an infant swinging a stick.

. I . all that effort.

Effort? What a meaningless word. I was created strong so such effort was
unnecessary.

Brain couldnt help but laugh at those words.

All of his work had been useless. To think he had been so confident, so sure that
he was a prodigy.

His limbs felt heavy, as if they were tied down by shackles.

..? Ahahahaha, why are you crying? Did something sad happen?

He knew Shalltear was saying something to him, but he couldnt hear her. It was
like she was speaking from a place very far away.

The calluses on his hands formed from blisters on top of blisters, the countless
practice swings with the steel rod, they were all meaningless. The endless
running while wearing heavy armor, the bare-handed fights against monsters
that he narrowly won, all meaningless.

The life he had led until now, everything was for naught.

In front of true strength, Brain was no different from the weaklings he had looked
down until now.

I was a fool.

.Are you satisfied now? Will it be alright if I end this?

Shalltear smiled mischievously and approached him with her pinky raised. Seeing
this, Brain let out a cry. It wasnt the battle cry of a warrior that he showed
before, but the sobbing of a child.

Brain ran.

With his back turned.

He knew the difference in their abilities, it was engraved in him. Shalltear would
be able to catch him in an instant.

However, none of that was in his mind. No, he didnt even have the time to worry
about such things. He simply, with his face stained in tears, bared his defenseless
back and ran inside as fast as his legs could carry him.

At this moment, Brain felt on his back the innocent voice of a girl whose breath
smelled of blood.

And now a game of tag? Youre putting in quite the effort, arent you? Then I
guess I should enjoy myself. Ahahahaha.

Part 3

Cold air blew into the large hall. It flew between the gaps in the barricade and
brushed over the forty-two remaining members of the Death Spreading
Brigade. Because it was the largest room in the cave, the hall was usually used
as the mess hall. However, presently, it had been transformed into a fort.

Located within the deepest part of cave that served as the mercenarys hideout,
the sides of the long and narrow hall were lined with many rooms: living quarters
and storage space for weapons and food supplies. Because of this, losing that
area meant that the rest would be picked off one by one. In the case of an attack,
they would build an encampment in the hall and use it as their last line of
defense.

Despite calling it an encampment, the construction was mediocre at best.

First, they placed crude tables on their sides, then stacked several wooden boxes
to complete what could just barely pass as a blockade. Next, they stretched
numerous ropes at around half a mans height between them and the entrance of
the hall. Their purpose was to prevent the enemy from charging into the
barricade.

Just behind these defenses, almost every mercenary held a crossbow and stood
ready. They were arranged at the center and at either flank.
Even if it came down to a firefight, considering the width of the entrance and the
size of the hall, the side waiting in the hall held the definite advantage. If the
enemy tried to change their formation, no matter where they attacked, they
would still be assaulted from somewhere else. Even if they chose to use wide
area attacks, the group was scattered out and it would prove difficult to inflict
any significant damage. It was a formation making use of crossfire.

Despite being protected by such simple defenses that still allowed them to fight
against larger forces, the mens faces were filled with unease.

The sound of rattling metal rang out as bodies trembled against the chainmail
wrapped around them.

It was true that the temperature inside the cave wasnt that high; it was enough
for summers to feel comfortable. But what seized them was something slightly
different from a chill.

Just a short moment before, a loud laughter rang out from the entrance. It was a
terrifying laughter that echoed against the walls of the cavern, rendering it
indiscernible as to whether the voice belonged to a man or a woman. It was this
voice that froze their insides cold.
The strongest man of the Death Spreading Brigade Brain Unglaus. Since he
stepped out to fight, the mercenaries believed that forming a barricade was a
meaningless endeavor. That belief was completely blown away by the laughter.

An enemy that could defeat Brain; someone like that didnt exist. Even now, they
still believed it.

Brains strength was in a different league. He was skilled to the point where even
the empires knights were no match for him; monsters were no exception. He
could kill an ogre in a single attack, and could jump into a pack of goblins and cut
them down like grass. He was a man who could even defeat all the members of
the Death Spreading Brigade in a head-on clash. They had no choice but to call
such a person the strongest.

A man of that caliber had lost; the implications were severe.

The fact that the opponent had the leisure to laugh during a fight against Brain
meant only one thing.

Even when everyone understood, no one spoke.

The best they could manage was to silently look at each others faces.

Every single member of the mercenaries had their mouths closed shut, and
glared in the direction of the halls entrance the caves entrance.

In the midst of the mounting tension

The sound of someone running could be heard; it slowly grew louder.

One could hear the sound of someone swallowing their saliva. A silence
dominated the hall, and was soon broken by the noise of numerous arrows being
nocked to its position.

A man completely out of breath ran through the halls entrance, under watch by
the entirety of the mercenary group. It was a wonder how the arrows didnt
immediately fly in his direction.

Brain!

The boss of the mercenariestheir leader yelled aloud. Following shortly, the hall
exploded in cheers. It was a roar of celebration for their victory against the
intruders.

Each man pounded the shoulder of the one next to him, and shouts praising Brain
rang out in triumph.

His name could be heard countless times. Surrounded in cheers, Brain weakly
held his weapon in one hand and stood at the entrance of the hall with a blank
expression. He suddenly began to search the faces of the mercenaries around
him.

No, that was wrong, he was looking for something else.

Seeing Brain act so differently from his usual self, the cheering in the room slowly
died down.

Brain ran towards the barricade.

H, Hey! Just hold on! Were opening it right now!

As if he didnt hear a word, he squeezed his body through. Not wanting to wait
even one minute, one second, Brain passed the barricade and ran.

With the confused looks of the bandits following behind him, he threw open the
door to a storage room and ran inside.

What was that about? Did he leave something in there?

Who knows? Something was strange about him though he looked like he was
crying no way, right?
Their heads bent to the side, staring at the door that just closed shut; the
mercenaries could not understand the meaning of the strange spectacle that just
occurred before them.

Amongst them, one mans face had changed. He understood the truth of the
situation that only he, no, with Brain combined; only two at present had come to
grasp. However, the man had no time to ascertain whether or not he was correct.

Click, with a quiet sound, another figure had emerged from the entrance.

Needless to say, it was an unfamiliar face. If no one amongst the mercenaries

knew who this person was, it meant that she was the intruder responsible for the
chaos. The commotion in the hall dried up instantly.

That was impossible, then Brains appearance here would take on a completely
different meaning. The fact that the intruder was alive meant that he had lost
and fled.

There was only one intruder, with a hunched appearance that looked incredibly
eerie.

A small body, she looked like young girl. Her hands were hanging loosely at her
sides, and her chin was bent all the way downwards. The strange part was that
considering the position of her head relative to the base of her neck, her neck
looked as if it was at least three times as long as a normal persons.

With such an appearance, seemingly unconcerned that her long and shiny silver
hair was dragging along the ground, she slowly entered the hall. Her fine, pitchblack dress gave her the appearance of being clad in darkness.

No one said a word.

An appearance so queer; a heart stopping chill.

Slowly her head moved. Behind the thin, silver hair that covered the entirety of
her face, two crimson eyes lit up. And slowly narrowed like needles.

Everyone present understood. No they were forced to understand.

She was laughing.

The frightening girl raised her chin, revealing a graceful face. But to those who
saw her appearance just before, there was nothing more disturbing. The face was
too elegant; it looked like a mask carved by the hands of a first-rate artisan.

Hello everyone. I am Shalltear Bloodfallen. Is this the finish line? Is the game
over?

The girl who seemed to be spouting utter nonsense Shalltear scanned her
surroundings. But unable to spot the one she was looking for, her beautiful face
frowned. With no one looking to interrupt her, once more, the girls voice rang
through the hall.

This time its hide and seeeeeeeeeeeek?

She laughs mischievously. As if she found something irresistibly hilarious, the girl
looked down and continued to laugh, her hair covering her face.

With their situation growing more abnormal by the second, the mercenaries
inhaled a giant gulp of breath. All the while, Shalltears laughter grew louder and
louder.

AhahaaaaahahahaAHAHAAAAAAAAHAHAHA!!

With her laugh continuing to ring out loud, she raised her head.

The face that entered their vision caused the mercenaries to simultaneously feel
as if their heart stopped and their blood froze over.

There was no beauty to be found in that face. The color of her iris spilled forth
and dyed the rest of her eyes in a deep crimson. Her teeth, which seemed so
white and beautiful just a moment ago, were replaced with rows of narrow,
needle-like fangs similar to the jaws of a shark. Her lips, which gave off a
bewitching red glint, grew smoother, and a transparent glob of saliva trailed
down from the corner of her mouth.

AHAHAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAAAAHAHAHA!

Shalltears lips tore upwards to just below her ears, and let loose a laughter that
sounded like the ringing of countless off-tune bells.

The air in the hall sounded as if it was screaming.

Even considering that they were inside a cave, the reverberation was frightening.
It was as if the air itself couldnt endure the noise and was crying out in pain.

girl?

monster?

beast?

She was none of those.

An avatar of terror.

Even at this distance, her breath was so overpowering that the stench of blood
was plenty apparent. It looked as if even the air around her was dyed red from
the smell.

Uuuuwaaaahhhhh!!

With a scream, a mercenary completely overwhelmed by terror pulled the trigger

on his crossbow.
The arrow sailed through the air and burrowed itself deeply into Shalltears chest.
Her body shook slightly from the impact.

Fire!

Snapped awake by the voice of their leader, the rest of the mercenaries fired
their crossbows with the feeling of wanting to reject their fear. The arrows fell
with the sound of heavy rainfall and pierced Shalltears body.

Of the 40 shots fired, 31 of them found their mark. Every single one that hit was
lodged deeply into their target. It was an obvious outcome, considering that at
this distance, the arrows could easily penetrate through iron armor.

There were four arrows through the head, if it were a human, the wound would be
fatal.

We got it

Someone muttered.

It was the hope that was on the tongue of every mercenary present. Although she
was still standing, the arrows that covered her body made her look like a
porcupine. Realistically, she was definitely dead. Although it made sense in their
head, a thorn named terror was still lodged deeply in a corner of their heart.

The mercenaries, as if urged by some hidden beasts survival instinct, started to

nock another arrow into their crossbows.

And Shalltear moved.

With an exaggerated movement, like a conductor moving his conducting rod, she
slowly stretched out her two arms. All the arrows that were deeply rooted in her
body slowly began to be pushed out and fell to the floor. Not a drop of blood
could be seen on any of them. The arrowheads seemed untouched, as if they
were never fired in the first place.

Shalltear laughed. The smile that rose to her face could truly be called foul.

The fear took them, their screams erupted in every direction as once again,
countless arrows headed towards Shalltears direction.

Through the eyes, the neck, buried in the stomach, lodged in the shoulder. Even
in that hailstorm, she treated it like a minor annoyance, a drizzle of rain.

Thaaaaaaaat wooooonnnnt wooooorrrrk. Youre trying too haaaaaarrrrrrrd.

A step. Then a leap.

The distance to the ceiling was about five meters. A jump high enough to touch
the top, easily clearing the barricade and landing on the opposite side. Her heels
touched the ground with a click, and the arrows that littered her body all
clattered to the floor.

She turns her face around towards the mercenaries still reloading behind her.

And with one foot forward strikes.

A blow without any of her weight behind it, it was a simple punch that looked as if
she was merely placing her hand forward. But the speed and destructive power of
that punch was in a league of its own.

Her fist easily passed through a lone mercenary and crashed into the barricade.
With an exploding noise, the wood splintered and was crushed, sending chunks of
the barricade scattering everywhere.

A heavy curtain of silence filled the hall. The only noise that could be heard was
from the pieces of wood falling to the ground.

The mercenaries stood staring absentmindedly at Shalltear, their hands no longer

busy trying to reload.

Shalltear proceeded to stick her index finger into the blood orb that floated above
her head. As she slowly withdrew her finger, a string of blood trailed behind it and
drew a character in front of her. Similar to Sanskrit or runes, it had formed a
magic character.

It was a skill called Blood Pool from one of Shalltears classes, [Blood Drinker].
By storing blood drawn from fallen enemies, it allowed the user to create a ball of
magical energy that could later be used for other purposes. Also, by drawing its
power, one could use magic augmentation skills without spending MP.

[Penetrate Magic: Implosion]

10th level magic as the strongest level of magic flew out, the bodies of ten
mercenaries suddenly became bloated.

They didnt even have the chance to scream. As they looked down at themselves
in confusion, a face filled with terror was all that was allowed of them. The next
moment the light popping noise of balloons could be heard as their bodies
exploded.

Ahahaaaaahahaahahaha! Splaaaaaaaat! Its sooooo prrreeeeeeeeeeetttttty!

Shalltear motioned towards the bloody mist and laughed happily while clapping
her hands.

Uwaaaahhhh!

With a cry, an estoc flew out and stabbed Shalltears chest from the back
through where her heart was. It twisted and turned, trying to widen the wound.

Die!

Following suit, a broadsword cleaved halfway through her head and became
lodged around her left eye.

Keep attacking, you guys!

A mixture of screams and roars, their battle cry exploded as three mercenaries
brought their weapons down on Shalltear.

Again and again, their swords slashed through her. However, with the broadsword
still stuck in her face, Shalltear stood calmly. As if their attacks didnt even itch,
let alone actually hurt. She wore a smile that only served to infuriate them
further.

After countless attacks, the exhausted mercenaries released their grip on their
weapons; with a cry of lament, they showered her with punches and kicks.
Despite their difference in size, like a huge boulder, Shalltear stood unmoving.

Shalltear tilted her head and stared at her attackers, deep in thought. Then, as if
she just thought of something good, clapped her hands together.

Haaaaauuuuaaaaa.

As if releasing all of the heat inside her, she let out a massive breath. The
stomach-churning stench of blood filled the surroundings.

Shalltear lazily pulled the broadsword out of her head. Needless to say, it didnt
even leave a scratch.

As she was about to swing the sword, Shalltears hand stopped in midair. The
blade in her hand was gradually crumbling to pieces. In her mind that was hungry
for blood, she remembered one of her class [Cursed Knight]s penalties. She
tossed the weapon aside in disappointment and lazily swiped with her hand.

Three heads rolled onto the floor.

R, Run away! Quickly! Retreat!

You cant kill a monster like that!

Crying out in unison, the mercenaries began to flee.

One of them, who had lost all will to fight, felt Shalltears hand close around the
back of his head. Crack, squish, with a sound similar to forcefully prying open a
shellfish, pieces of his brain flew in every direction as his head exploded.

Ahahahaaahaha. Whats wrong with his heeeaaaaaaad? How scaaaaaaarrrry!

Ahahahahaaaahaha! Wait for me, eveeeeryoooone! Ahahahaaaahahahaaaaaa!

The mercenaries, overcome with curiosity by the bizarre sound behind them,
were greeted with this gruesome spectacle. Like something straight out of a
nightmare, the laughing, bloodthirsty queen ran towards them with the
determination to not let even one of them escape.

A mercenary who stumbled and tripped over his own feet while trying to run fell
to his knees in prostration.

D, Dont kill me! Please! I wont do bad things anymore!

Seeing the man, his face stained with tears, grabbing desperately onto her leg
and begging for his life, Shalltears face formed an evil smile that looked like a
crack. The mercenary instantly realized what her smile meant, and his already
pale face became dyed completely in white.

Whoooooooosssssssh fllyyy!

NO! NOOOOOO!!

Shalltear grabbed the man, who was still desperately clinging to her leg, on his
back and lightly flung him towards the ceiling.

Unable to resist the overwhelming strength that pulled at him, the mercenary
was forced to let go. He clenched his eyes shut as he was wrapped by a
momentary feeling of weightlessness. Soon enough, gravity took him back and
pain shot through his arms as they dashed against the floor.

Ughh!

The pain was proof that he was still alive. A moment of relief, the mercenary
slightly opened his eyes and soon understood that it was a false hope. With her
skinny arms, Shalltear had gently caught him before the rest of his body could
crash onto the floor.

He still hadnt escaped from the clutches of this terrible monster.

No, not only thathis eyes showed a huge, gaping mouth. A stench he had never
experienced before, like a condensed mass of blood, stabbed his nose.

Ahahahahahaaaaha, sooooooo fuuuuuuuun. Did you think you could die so

eaaaasiiiilly?

D, Dont kill.

Noooooooo waaaaaaay, its been so long since Ive sluuuuurrrpeeed someone

uuuuup.

Her mouth tore open up to her ears, it was wide enough to swallow a mans head
whole.

No one at that place had any idea.

Originally from the DMMO known as YGGDRASIL, the monster known as the True
Vampire was a terrifying existence.

Their gaping jaws stretch wide enough to form a semicircle, their canines reach
past their chin, and their crimson eyes glint with the color of blood.

Their feet and hands are equipped with razor sharp claws that are over a dozen
centimeters long. From the eerie way they move, to how they leap at their target
when attacking, the True Vampire was of such an appearance.

A normal vampire was a monster that was both human and bat, and an Origin
Vampire had an appearance that was even more monstrous.

Amongst the different vampire classes, the only monsters that could be described
as beautiful would be Shalltears servants, the vampire brides.

The reason Shalltear herself, who was a True Vampire, had a beautiful
appearance was simply due to the illustration and 3D modeling skills of the guild
member who designed her.

The present Shalltear was the real appearance of a True Vampire. In other words,
her usual form was a lie.

Like a rubber toy, like an ugly, large leech, Shalltear wrapped her mouth around
the mans neck.

With the feeling of countless needles digging into his flesh, the mercenary heard
the disgusting sound of huge amounts of blood being sucked from his body.

A chill permeated through him and he felt his fluids being sucked away. It was a
frightening feeling that he had never before experienced.

Although the mercenary wanted to thrash about, his limbs grew heavy. He could
feel his consciousness rapidly slip away.

Having completely sucked all the blood from the body, Shalltear tossed aside the
now dried-up husk and licked the blood trailing from a corner of her mouth with a
long, slippery tongue. Seeing the mercenaries who were now running in complete
chaos, she broke out into a smile that spanned her entire face.

Theres sttiiiilll this many leeeeeeeeffffft?

Countless screams, like cries of children, wails of despair tore through the cavern
.

Surrounded by the stillness that now blanketed the hall, Shalltear wore a gleeful
expression. The blood orb that hovered above her was now only slightly smaller
than a human head. It had grown from the vast amount of blood it had absorbed.

This is sooooooo muuuuuuucccccccch fuuuuuuuuuun!

Hearing Shalltears jubilant shout, the vampire bride who had been blocking the
entrance bowed her head and responded.

Seeing you happy fills me with joy as well, great master.

Maaaaaiiiiiiiiin diiiiiiiiissssh!

Shalltear headed for the door that Brain had disappeared into, and forcefully
yanked it open. The bolts popped out, and the door was ripped off along with its
hinges.

The room was small, but filled with numerous sacks and wooden boxes.

There, Shalltear smelled something completely unexpected. Mixed with the scent
of dirt the smell of fresh air, it was coming from the outside wind. At the same
time, she felt the presence of the human weaken. Even when she had lost herself
in her Blood Frenzy, Shalltear had never once forgotten the mission that was
entrusted to her.

KUUUUUAAAAAAAAAAAA!

Whether it was from anger or a simple howl, Shalltear screamed in a bizarre voice
as she headed to the source of the breeze, flinging aside the junk blocking her
way.

Less than a meter away, behind a stack of boxes, was a hole. Although it was
mostly covered with dirt, there was a small crack where the fresh air flowed
freely through.

Theeeeey haaaad an emeeergency exxiiitt!

The lesser vampire did not lie; it merely did not know about the existence of this
hidden exit.

What most do not know is that even when under the influence of magic, one
cannot reveal information that he didnt know in the first place. If the person was
told a lie but believed it to be the truth, he would be spreading false information
when prompted.

Unlike Mare, Shalltear did not have any abilities that allowed her to move the
earth. Blowing it away with a shockwave carried the risk of the hole collapsing on
itself.

He had gotten away.

The truth dawned on her. Shalltear, whose mind was dyed red, soon realized that
she had failed her mission.

Fury twisted Shalltears face.

Why, why didnt this human insect move according to her, Shalltear Bloodfallen,
Nazaricks Floor Guardians predictions?

She was going to let him give his worthless life for the good of Nazarick, why
didnt he understand and be happy about that?

As Shalltear was grinding her teeth, the vampire bride who was supposed to
stand watch outside the cave spoke to her.

Shalltear-sama!

Her temper flared at the servant that dared to abandon her watch without orders.
Shalltears vision became momentarily dyed in red as she considered destroying
her on the spot. With great effort, she calmed herself; it was important to hear
what the vampire bride had to say, it may be important.

Whaaaaaat iiisss iiittt?

A large group is heading this way.

Huuuuuuhh? Suuurrviiivooorrs? Thhheeeeen weeeee haaaavvvve to greeeeeet

thheeem! Ahaha ahaha ahahaha!

Part 4

Shalltear leapt forward. Like a bird flying through the dark, she landed on one
foot on top of the barricade at the entrance of the cavern. Her servants, the two
vampire brides, were slowly following her back up the entrance.

Shalltear wore a smile as she looked at the target.

She spotted a tightly formed group.

Leading the front were three men who looked to be warriors. Each of their
equipment was different, but even the shabbiest looking one out of the bunch
was wearing armor forged by overlapping many scales together: Scale Armor.
Each man held a weapon in one hand and was carrying a shield on his back.

Behind them was a red-haired female warrior wearing banded armor. At the back
of the group, protected by those in front, walked a lightly-dressed man holding a
staff; most likely a magic caster. Beside him, walking side-by-side was a faith
magic caster wearing a bishops garb over his armor. The man wore a pendant
around his neck in the shape of a flame.

The group of six, despite being surprised by Shalltears sudden appearance from
the cave, did not fall into confusion and maintained their guard. It was a reaction
born from their experience.

Nooooott baaaaaaadd.

It wasnt too bad to kill humans that were as weak as tofu, but having opponents
that looked like they could actually put up a fight was much more interesting.

Shalltear smiled eagerly as her two crimson eyes glinted with expectation.

It talke!

A look of shock flashed across the magic chanters face, but it was only for an
instant. Having immediately regained his composure

Hostile might be a vampire! Only silver and magic weapons effective. Victory
impossible! Retreat! Dont look into its eyes!

He shouted in a voice loud enough to be heard in the whole basin.

Having shouted only the important information, the response from the rest of the
party was both prompt and swift. The three warriors at the front equipped their
large shields and assumed a defensive stance. They did not stare at Shalltears
face, instead trained their eyes on either her chest or abdomen. The female
warrior behind them took each of their weapons and began to apply a coating. An
unpleasant stench wafted to Shalltears nose.

Alchemical silver.

A special liniment crafted by alchemists; when coated on weapons, it forms a

magical film around the blade that gives it an effect similar to silver.

A silver weapon was expensive. Not only that, they wore out much faster than
weapons made of iron and couldnt be used for very long. Thats why most
adventurers choose to buy the alchemical silver instead, to use it when the need
arises.

With their weapons now imbued with the properties of silver, the group began
their retreat.

Even the way they fled was very impressive. The entire group moved as one,
their movements orderly and in sync.

My Lord, God of Flames:

Its pointless! Focus on defensive magic!

Having stopped the bishop from using his pendant, the magic caster began to
focus his casting to the front of the group. The bishop also followed suit and
restarted his chant.

Although it differs by class, in general, bishops use the power of God to suppress,
destroy, and dominate beings like angels and demons. However, it was a method
only effective against enemies whose magical energy was much lower than the
casters. In other words, the bishop had attempted to cast a spell to suppress
undead just now. The magic caster had instantly understood the strength
difference between the monster and the bishop, and told him to not waste his
energy and use it for something more effective instead.

Having deduced their leader from the flow within the group, Shalltear decided to
follow her orders and capture them. But her heart was still clouded by the
impulse to slaughter, to see more blood.

She wanted to kill, to crush them beneath her feet, to tear them limb from limb,
to cover them in blood. She couldnt bear it. Her breathing grew ragged and
started to foam at the mouth.

Anti Evil Protection

Lesser Mind Protection

One by one, the two magic casters cast their defensive spells on the warriors at
the front.

Shalltear, who was lost in her excitement, albeit dimly, felt something akin to
admiration. Even if it was of the most basic the 1st level, the spells they used
were the most appropriate for the situation. They were different from the
mercenaries with their reckless attacks, from the fool of a warrior who couldnt
even use martial skills and attacked alone.

With that saida pointless endeavor is, in the end, just that; pointless. Against
such a huge difference in strength, none of it had any meaning.

Faced with such a cute resistance, the tiny sliver of self-control that kept Shalltear
at bay was cut.

No more.. I caaaaaaannnnnt! I caaaannnnt waaaaiiiit anymooorrrrre!

With a voice that had its reins cut, Shalltear moved her feet.

It was truly light, like a single step. But to those who saw her, it would seem
faster than a gale.
Just like that, her hand stabs forward.

It penetrates the shield, shatters the armor, ignores the magical barrier, cleaves
through the skin, flesh, and bone; the hand wraps around the beating heart and
in an instant rips it free. Ignoring the crumpling figure of the warrior, Shalltear
bared the dark red, shape shifting lump in her hand for the group to see. The
female warrior let out a small scream, and the bishops face looked as if he was
staring at an abomination.

Glad to have gotten the reaction she wanted, Shalltear giggled in excitement and
cast her magic.

Animate Dead

The warrior who had lost his heart slowly stood back up. He had become a
zombie, the lowest class undead monster. However, it didnt end there.

Shalltear licked the heart in her hand and stuffed it into the orb floating above
her head. When she pulled it back out, in its place was a pulsating mass of blood
it was as if it was mimicking the appearance of the heart from before. She
threw the blood clump at the zombie.

Like an insect, the clump twisted and turned, seeping into the zombies body.
Thump. For an instant, the body trembled. After several convulsions, the zombie
slowly began to transform.

As if all the moisture in its body had evaporated, the skin grew dry and cracked.
Its nails grew several fold, and sharp canines formed from its teeth. The undead
that stood there was no longer a zombie.

Witnessing the birth of a lesser vampire, the shocked voices of the adventurers
cried out in unison.

Thats impossible! Ive never even heard of a vampire that can freely cast high
level magic like that!

Youre looking at one right now! Calm down! Keep a cool head!

But!

Retreat is impossible! We have to fight!

Got it!

As the bishop fell into disarray, one of the warriors raised his weapon and
charged at Shalltear. The remaining warrior attacked the lesser vampire, who had
been his ally in the past.

My Lord, God of Flames. Destroy the foul being before you!

An invisible divine power radiated from the bishops pendant in every direction.
Needless to say, Shalltear was completely unaffected.

Ahahahaaahaahaha!

One of the warriors swords stabbed through the lesser vampire. Its movements
had been dulled by the bishops divine energy. Because it hadnt transformed
completely, it was still part zombie and thus the bishops attack proved effective.
Despite knowing this, the fact that her creature lost to some trivial gods power
was enough to offend Shalltear.

While blocking the sword that came at her with her pinky, Shalltear glared
annoyingly at the bishop who stood at the rear of the group.

Baaaaaaccccck ooooooooffff!

She lazily flicked her right hand. The simple motion slashed the warriors neck
and he fell to the ground, blood spilling from the wound.

Lesser Strength Increase.

A powerful spell was cast on the last remaining warrior. A lesser vampire with its
movements dulled against a warrior buffed by strong magic. The tide of battle
between them was now slightly shifting in favor of the warrior.

Well, they seem to be enjoying themselves so itd be rude to interrupt. Theres

still plenty left to hunt after all.

With her blood thirst still running rampant, Shalltear thought so in her head and
turned to stare at the bishop.

As if to block her line of sight, the female warrior stood in her way, with an iron
weapon, nonetheless.

It was almost cute, in a way. Even when obviously terrified, her determined
appearance as she held her sword it was like the pitiful resistance of a small
animal. Shalltear felt her lower abdomen grow hot as she became enraptured in
the pleasures of the flesh.

What sounds will she make if I bite off her fingers? I should cut off her ears and
feed them to her. No, before doing anything, Ill drink her blood. Its the first
female prey since Ive ventured outside, after all.

Desssseeeerrrrt, fooouuuunnnd.

After proclaiming so with her mouth wide open, she jumped.

Shalltear easily leaped over the woman, and landed directly in front of the bishop
and magic caster.

Before the bishop could even move, Shalltear gently wrapped her hand over his
that was grasping the pendant and instantly crushed it. Flattened by the

overwhelming grip, the bones in his hand shattered completely. With nowhere left
to go, his skin and flesh burst from Shalltears palm.

GAAAAAAAAHHH!!

Satisfied with the bishops screams, Shalltear kindly gave him a gift; she freed
him from his pain.

With a swing of her hand, blood sprouted from the bishops headless neck. The
girl nodded happily as she watched the blood being absorbed into the orb above
her head.

Suddenly, a sword interrupted the scene, penetrating through Shalltear from

behind. But like a giant tree, she did not budge. It was as if the blade sticking out
from her chest was just a trivial inconvenience.

No way. its not working! Even though this is silver?!

Seeing Shalltear unfazed by the blade that had clearly passed through her chest
right through the heart, the woman shrieked.

Just a minute ago, the female warrior didnt have a silver weapon. She must have
picked up the dead warriors weapon instead.

The information that the magic caster shouted wasnt wrong, however, it wasnt
completely correct either. A silver weapon by itself was useless against Shalltear.
On top of being forged with silver, it would have to be infused with powerful
magic, or made of special metals.
Ignoring the woman behind her, Shalltear stared at the magic caster who was still
in shock.
His mouth moved quickly.

[Magic Arrow]!

As the magic was cast, two arrows of light hurtled towards Shalltear and
vanished in an instant.

Shalltears skill Magic Nullification had activated. It wasnt perfect, and could be
suppressed by those with more powerful magic. But with this much difference in
power, the spell was easily nullified.

In other words, what it meant was that the magic caster didnt have a single way
to fight against Shalltear.

Boorrrrrriiiiiiiiinnngg!

Having lost interest, Shalltear swung her hand and instantly cut off his head.

Turning around, the lesser vampire and the warrior were still locked in a heated
battle.

Shalltear reached her hands towards the two heads on the ground. Grabbing both
by the hair, she wore a bored expression as she threw them at both combatants.
A mass weighing at least six kilograms, thrown at a frightening speed, the result
was obvious. Both of them slowly crumpled to the floor.

All the while Shalltear was ignoring her, the dessert the female warrior was
relentlessly slashing and stabbing at Shalltears body.

But it was useless.

Against Shalltear, who didnt even feel ticklish, let alone pain from her attacks, it
was a meaningless action. The only thing it was doing was filling her dress with
holes. But even that, since her clothes were of magic quality, would be repaired
as long as Shalltear herself was fine.

Theeeeeeenn! Deeessseeerrrt! Time to eaaaat!

A laugh like a child who saved her favorite food for last even so, it was a gross,
evil sound. Shalltear turned to the woman attacking her back and met her gaze.

As her vision met with Shalltears crimson eyes, the female warrior realized that
she was the last one left. With tears glistening in her eyes, she retreated a step,
then another. Then, she fervently searched around her belt pouch, looking for
something.

Her world now dyed in red, Shalltear stared at her struggle with a relaxed
expression. She felt a tiny curiosity over what the woman was trying to do.

She quickly pulled out a bottle and threw it.

Shalltear peered at the bottle that was spinning midair in her direction and
grinned.

Although the woman had thrown it with all her might, in Shalltears eyes, it was
too slow. It was easy to dodge. However, the arrogance of the strong did not
allow it. And equally so, Shalltear wanted to see it; the expression on the
womans face as her last, secret weapon was destroyed.

The desire to kill was overwhelming.

But Shalltear held herself back. The longer she waited, the greater the bliss will
be when she finally has a taste.

As Shalltear watched the bottle hurtle towards her, she thought absentmindedly.

Holy water? Or is it liquid fire? Whatever it is, its useless. Such a pitiful
resistance. As I thought, Ill slowly drink her blood first, just enough so she
doesnt die. If shes a virgin, itll be fine if I drink till shes dead. If not, Ill play
around with her a bit, preferably without spilling her blood.

Having decided, Shalltear lazily knocked the bottle aside with one hand. The
impact caused the red liquid to escape from the mouth of the bottle, spilling onto
her skin.

And thena slight pain.

The inside of Shalltears head instantly turned white. The previous blood thirst
that thrashed violently within her body was nowhere to be found.

She blankly stared at the source of the pain; the hand that blocked the bottle.
From where the liquid had touched her, a strong smell leaked out, along with a
faint smoke.

Shalltear shifted her gaze down to the ground. The bottle was laid on the ground
with its cap open, releasing an aromatic fragrance. It was a smell that she knew
well.

It was a potion bottle commonly used in the Great Tomb of Nazarick.

The actual liquid itself was most likely a Minor Healing Potion. Undead are
damaged by restoration items. It was the reason why Shalltears skin was slightly
melted.

Impossible!!

An angry voice that seemed to shake the very air.

Bring that woman to me alive!

In response to her command, the vampire brides that had been standing aside
until now moved. While Shalltear was lost in her thoughts, the woman had used
the opportunity to turn and flee. The two vampire brides quickly closed the
distance and grabbed her arms from both sides.

Although the woman struggled violently, the difference in strength between a

human and a vampire was too different. Too easily, she was dragged in front of
Shalltear.
Look into my eyes!

Shalltear grabbed the womans chin and forcibly brought her eyes to bear on her
own. Needless to say, she kept her strength in check, otherwise she wouldve
accidently ripped her chin off and ended up in an embarrassing situation.
Although Shalltear knew how to use faith magic, as an undead, she couldnt use
the normal healing spells.

Forced to look, the womans eyes soon clouded over, and the terrified look on her
face was replaced with a friendly expression. It was the charming effect of the
Demon Eyes of Attraction. Sensing that she was well under her spell,
Shalltear released the female warrior from her grip.

She had several questions to ask her.

But there was only one that needed to be asked before anything else.

Shalltear picked up the potion bottle that fell to the ground and held it in front of
the female warrior.

Where did you get this potion? From who, where!

At a tavern, a man in black armor gave it to me.

Hearing the words that were spoken as if they werent that important, Shalltears
whole body froze solid.

.Wait. No, thats impossible... but which which city was it?

It was a tavern in Re-Lantier.

Shalltear was shocked, as if the world was shaking. The man in black armor; it
was because she had a feeling that she knew who the female warrior was talking
about.

If that was the case, the bigger problem was, for what reason was this woman in
possession of the potion. It was difficult to imagine that he would give it to her
without reason.

No way

Did he also give this woman some unknown instructions? Or perhaps he gave her
the potion to form a connection, or maybe to strengthen their friendship.

The dignified appearance of Ainz Ooal Gown, the absolute ruler of the Great
Underground Tomb of Nazarick, appeared in her mind. The possibility that she
had ruined some kind of plan that he had devised burned at her heart.

Why did you come here?! Whats your objective!

She no longer had the luxury of feigning delicacy with her words. Now that
learning as much information as possible became the first priority, Shalltear
glared at the woman with bloodshot eyes, with an entirely different feeling from
before.
TL Note: Shalltear usually speaks like a geisha that doesnt come off in English.
She drops it here.

Yes. Our main task was to patrol the roads. But when we heard information that
a bandit hideout was somewhere nearby, we came to investigate. It looked as if
something happened, so we split into two teams and came here on a
reconnaissance mission.

You split your team in two?

Yes. Since we didnt know how many bandits there were, our job was to gather
their attention and lure them to a trap that was being prepared by the others.

So theres another team.

Thinking that another annoyance had popped up, Shalltear clicked her tongue.

So, how many of you are there in total?

With me included, those that came here number seven, and.

What? Wait, seven? Not six?

Shalltears gaze moved towards the corpses on the ground. Three warriors, one
bishop, one magic caster and this woman; the numbers didnt add up.

Against the eyes filled to the brim with questions, the female warrior responded
nonchalantly.

Yes. In case of an emergency, we had a ranger who would travel to Re-Lantier

for reinforcements.

What?

The magic casters voice from before was oddly loud. Thats right, loud enough so
the whole basin could hear.

Kuh!

Shalltears eyes widened as she jumped out of the basin with a speed faster than
the wind. Although she had climbed all the way to the top and scanned her
surroundings, even her eyes that could see in the dark could not see past the
trees. Even when she focused her ears, the only sound that she could hear was
the rustling of vegetation caused by the wind.

Shalltear did not possess skills for detection or magic for searching. In the current
situation, finding a human in this forest was impossible.

Damn it!

She shouted in anger.

She lost them. Honestly, she had been too complacent. With this it made two.
She grinded her teeth.

Come, my kin!

Beneath Shalltears feet, her shadow squirmed, and several wolves protruded
forth. Needless to say, these were not normal wolves. Their dark fur was as black
as the night, and their red eyes glinted with a cruel cunning.

Level 7 monster, Vampire Wolf.

Although Shalltear could summon numerous monsters with her skill, Raise
Kin, only these wolves could track their enemy.

Follow him. Kill every human in this forest!

A roar like command, the ten vampire wolves ran in concert into the forest.

Even as she watched them from the back, she felt that the chances of them
succeeding were low. An image of Aura floated in her mind. While probably not at
her level, a ranger would probably have a few tricks up his sleeve when it came
to covering his tracks.

In other words, it was necessary to assume that he had gotten away and to think
of the next move. Shalltear rushed back to her original spot and questioned the
female warrior, as if she was going to attack her.

First, is there anyone besides you who received a potion from the one in black
armor?

No, there arent any.

Okay! Then next question. Is there a chance that the ranger will rejoin the
remaining team?

None. In a situation where our team faced a good chance of being annihilated,
his job was to abandon the team and return to the city. This was the path with the
highest chance of our survival.

It was a preparation that accounted for both the possibility of defeat and their
surroundings. Because of this, it wouldnt be an exaggeration to say that
Shalltear had been driven to a corner. Realizing this, she flared in anger.

Puny humans, always having so many cunning tricks. If I ever get the
permission to subjugate your kind, Ill make sure that youre treated like the
maggots that you all are!
Lashing out in anger did not change the reality of the current situation.

It was almost certain that the existence of a vampire would be delivered to the
city.

It was unknown whether or not the ranger was able to see what she looked like. It
was the middle of the night, in the corner of the basin nonetheless. It was difficult
to imagine that a humans eyesight would have been able to perceive her
appearance under such conditions.

Even so

Damn it!

Shouting curses, Shalltear fell into thought.

Her orders from Ainz

Your targets this time are criminals. The type that would not inconvenience
anyone even if they were to disappear.

If any of the bandits you come across are able to use martial skills or magic, you
must capture them at all costs, even if you have to suck their blood and enslave
them. If you find any criminals who are knowledgeable about the worlds affairs
or wars, they too, you must capture. Also, do not cause a scene. If the
movements of Nazarick are made known, there is a possibility that it will interfere
with our plans in the future.

were such.

Then she had already gone against most of her directives

Shalltear suppressed the mounting desire to claw out her hair.

Still, okay. Still, okay. Still, okay.

She repeated those words, as if she was trying to hypnotize herself.

Even if the information about a vampire spread to the city, it wasnt as if her
name or anything regarding Nazarick was included.

In other words, there was nothing to connect the vampire that attacked this place
with Nazarick. The people in the city will presume that the mercenaries at this
hideout were slaughtered by a wild vampire if such a thing even existed.

Regardless, the story had its fair share of holes, but it was impossible to make
any further assumptions without more information.

Once again, Shalltear fell into a whirlwind of thoughts.

The next problem was, with her assumptions as the premise, how to deal with
this woman.

Even if she was charmed, her memory would not disappear completely. The
safest option would be to kill her. The problem with that method was that she did
not know her masters intentions as to why he gave the woman the potion.

If he gave it to her with some objective in mind, then killing her here would
create a problem for her master. That was very dangerous.

If she let her return alive, the others will question why she was the only one
spared. Then, all kinds of information especially Shalltears appearance, would
be revealed. While that may not pose too big of a problem at the moment, there
was no telling what would happen in the future.

The best way was to contact the master, but Shalltear did not know how to use
theMessagespell.

Then what was she supposed to do now.

Ahhhhh Im going to be scolded by Ainz-sama

Muttering in a voice small enough so that no one could hear, Shalltear wrapped
her hands around her head.

If only I didnt have Blood Frenzy No, thats rude to my creator, Peroroncinosama. If only I could suppress it

It was already too late for regrets. No matter how she dealt with the female
warrior it didnt matter now, a scolding was inevitable. The only thing left was
to decide which way would best mitigate the damage.

Worse rather than worst.

Shalltear thought about it over and over until smoke rose out of her head, and
she made her decision.

Instead of killing her, sparing her would create more options. Killing her was
irreversible, but if she let her go, then something could be done about it.

Shalltear decided so. No, it wouldnt be wrong to say that she was fooling herself.

Your name?

Its Brita.

Okay I wont forget it!

Shalltear had the woman named Brita stand a bit further away. She then called
over her two servants, the vampire brides.

We are going to collect everything here and withdraw.

She was worried whether there was enough time to pillage. Nevertheless, she
had to bet on fooling the others into thinking that this was an attack to steal the
loot. Since she had already failed, the least she could do was try to spread false
information.

Shalltear-sama, how shall the women be dealt with?

Shalltear fixed her gaze on the woman who was standing a small distance away.

Leave her like that.

No, I mean the other women.

What? What other women?

Yes, Shalltear-sama. We searched the inside of the cave for survivors and found
several women who looked to have been used to relieve their lust. How would
you like them dealt with?

Shalltear frowned.

What the heck.

Shalltear, turned and looked again.

Since they didnt see my face, it wouldnt matter even if I let them be. But was
that the correct course of action? Its annoying so should I just kill them? No, then
it would be suspicious that I didnt kill Brita as well.

Unable to decide which way was the most advantageous, Shalltear held her head.

What should we.

Haaaaa? How should I know!

Why did you have to ask me something like that, you fool.

Her face said as much. If she didnt know, she could claim ignorance if it came
down to it. But willfully ignoring it after having been told was clear treason
against her master.

Enough already, I dont know! I dont know! Leave them here! Stick Brita with
those women!

Is this okay?

Okay or whatever, I dont know, damn it! Shut up for a minute!

I am sorry, Shalltear-sama.

Were leaving! Move it!

The vampires bowed their heads and began to carry out her order. Meanwhile,
Shalltear slowly pulled at her head while crouching.

..Im going to get scolded. what should I do. but.. huh?

Shalltear raised her face and her eyes stared in the direction of the forest that
the Vampire Wolves disappeared into.

.They found something?

She felt her kin disappear in the blink of an eye. They werent sent back with
magic, but instead, killed by someone.

Throw that woman with the rest and follow! Ill leave behind a marker!

Her decision was swift. Having shouted just those words, Shalltear broke into a
run at a speed that seemed to cleave through the wind.

Although she was slowed by the forest, even a human on horseback wouldnt
have been able to run from the present Shalltear.

Having cleared free of the forest in a single breath, Shalltear ran towards the area
where she last sensed her kin.

At that location were twelve humans.

They each had a different set of equipment.

Their equipment werent plain in appearance, and had unique look to them. For
the sake of comparison, they were similar to what Shalltear was wearing. They
emanated a great power. Needless to say, since Shalltear did not have any
abilities that could identify magic items, it was all based on her intuition.
Regardless, the feeling their weapons gave off reminded her of legendary class
items.

Shalltear burned with questions over who these people were. The twelve men
and women had an aura that was hugely different from the humans that she had
encountered so far in this world. It was like the difference between a rat and a
lion.

While Shalltears eyes moved from one person to another, her gaze stopped on a
certain man.

That one is he strong?

Although the surprised Shalltear wanted to gauge how powerful he was, she was
not of the warrior class and could not get an accurate handle on his strength.
Merely that not only was he stronger than her two vampire brides, but even
above Pleiades Solution.

Shalltear observed him.

She had described him as a man because of his equipment, but his face was
androgynous.

Whether to call him a man or a woman, he seemed to be both and neither at the
same time. Short with a youthful face, probably still in the midst of his growth it
only made his gender harder to determine.

His jet black hair was long enough to touch the ground. His sharp, ruby-like eyes
held hints of caution as he stared at Shalltear. With his spear which looked plain,
unlike his armor, the man charged at her

Use it.

A voice like a cool lake; hearing his command, a rumble of agitation ran through
those around him. Shalltear did not understand what that meant, only that he
had ordered them to use an item of considerable power. Perhaps even one that
rivaled the power of Shalltears divine class item.

Although the humans followed the voice and started to move, Shalltear ignored
them completely. She was cautious of only one person and everyone else did not
pose much of a threat.

At the center of their movements was a woman dressed in strange clothes.

It looked like a one-piece dress for women with a deep slit down the side and a
round collar.
The color was a silvery white, with the image of a five-clawed dragon soaring to
the skies stitched in gold thread.

In Ainzs world, it was something called a Cheongsam.

However, the face of the woman in the dress was wrinkled with age. Her exposed
legs reminded one of burdocks or dried potatoes. The clothes did not fit with her

appearance. It was to the point that one would want to narrow their eyes; to the
point that Shalltear looked away.

But that was to be the last small feeling of incongruity.

Everything could have been changed by the smallest of whims.

If Ainz hadnt captured Nigan, if Ainz hadnt countered the Slane Theocracys
information magic so strongly, if the theocracy hadnt made the mistake of
believing the Dragon King of Calamity has resurrected, if Shalltear hadnt been
distracted everything would have changed. However, the fact that so many ifs
coincided, in other words, meant that it was inevitable.

The name of the dress was Bewitching Calamity, Kei Seke Koku.

An item left behind by the God who saved mankind, the subject of their worship.
It held a power that even Shalltear did not possess.

shudder

Even as the highest level Floor Guardian of the Great Underground Tomb of
Nazarick, Shalltears body trembled. It was a warning, almost like a sixth sense.

With her instincts setting off alarm bells, Shalltear moved her eyes and fixed it on
the old woman.

This was a human whom she had to kill, no matter what.

Hit with this realization, Shalltear began to move towards her. The man with the
spear blocked her way.

Move!

Shalltear smacked him in earnest. A normal humans weak body would have been
torn to pieces, but the man was simply blown away and did not die. Not only that,
he still retained his fighting spirit.

Shalltear concentrated on the old woman as the focal point and cast her spell.

Mass Hold Species!

A number of them had their movements constricted. The reason Shalltear tied
them down was because she deemed them to be more than enough to make up
for her previous failure.

As the thought passed through her mind, Shalltears heart became overlapped in
white.

The feeling of a portion of her mind falling away. She didnt know what it was.
And when the truth of what was happening dawned on her, an enormous shock
passed through her and even the undead Shalltear trembled in fear.

Mind control.

She, an undead with absolute immunity to mind control effects, was having her
mind dominated. Shalltear furiously filled her heart, now almost dyed in white,
with hatred. As her head swarmed with the countless thoughts of the worst case
scenario

KUUAAAAAAHHH!!

she screamed and resisted, blood pouring down her eyes. This mind control
that was trying to dirty her, the Floor Guardian of the Great Underground Tomb of
Nazarick, she resisted.

But as if ignoring Shalltears desperate struggle, her consciousness continued to

be dyed white. She did not even have the luxury of using her teleportation magic.
Losing her focus for even an instant would immediately render her completely
under the spells effect.

Shalltear used her class skill and created a Purifying Javelin.

A huge javelin imbued with divine energy was still capable of dealing significant
damage even if the user had an evil alignment. More importantly, throwing it
while using additional MP gave it the effect of never missing its mark.

Shalltear, while resisting with all the strength in her body, glared at the old
woman who had cast the spell that was dirtying her.

Her eyes did not even reflect the huge, mirror-like shield of the man blocking her
path as a threat.

Then she threw.

The javelin flew from her hand like it had a will of its own.

It was an attack strengthened by every skill that she could scrounge up from her
fading consciousness.

Its aim true, the attack that looked like a flash of light penetrated the man
blocking its way along with his shield and struck the old woman.

The two humans throwing up blood, the commotion in the group; this was the last
vision of the world that Shalltear saw.

CHAP
TER 3
(INTE
RLUD
E)

The royal capital of the Kingdom of Re-Estize.

In the deepest part of the royal capital, over twenty huge and circular towers had
been constructed at equal distances from each other and connected by walls,
forming the royal castletown Laurentin. Valencia Palace was located within these
grounds.

Inside the palace, there was a room which held a more functional importance
than its gorgeous decoration. Many nobles and ministers-of-state were gathered
here to attend a palace meeting.

Amongst them was the figure of the Kingdoms Warrior Captain, Gazef Strolonoff.
He knelt before the king Ranpossa III., who sat on his throne, to swear his
allegiance.

He seems to have grown even older.

Although only half a month had passed, that was Gazefs impression after
comparing the Kings current appearance after his return with the one from
before his departure.

His own beloved monarch. That head was already scattered with pale white hair,
the emaciated body was beyond being described as healthy even as a
compliment, and his facial complexion was also very poor. The hand holding the
scepter was as thin as a twig, and the crown on his head seemed quite heavy.

After his reign of thirty-nine years, he was now sixty years old. Originally it was
already time to abdicate the throne to a successor, but the problem lay in the
fact that there was no suitable successor to choose from.

It was not that there were no princes who could be the successor. Although there
were two princes, they were not qualified by far . If his abdication were to happen
now, they would definitely become a puppet of the greater nobles.

The old man announced in a weak voice:

Warrior Captain, it is truly splendid you were able to return safely.

Yes! Thank you very much, your Majesty!

Hearing these words of concern, Gazef bowed deeply as he replied.

Ah, of course we have already received the report, but we would still request the
Warrior Captain to personally give a detailed explanation of the incident, and
what exactly happened.
(TL-Note: Gazefs proper rank amended to Warrior Captain.)

As your Majesty commands.

Gazef explained in depth the events that took place in Carne Village after he had
left the capital to the King. He went into particular detail about the mysterious
magic caster of the name of Ainz Ooal Gown, but didnt mention the suspected
espionage by the Slane Theocracy. This was because in Gazefs judgment, only a
few individuals needed to know about this, and the circumstances were not
appropriate to reveal it here.

Therefore Gazef talked extensively about the heroic deeds of the man he
encountered and how that man risked his life to save the villagers from danger.

This really is a beautiful story. Selflessly placing himself in danger to rescue the
weak

The Kings sentence was filled with praise, causing several nobles to utter
contemptuous remarks about this Ainz Ooal Gown.

A problematic and suspicious individual.

An eccentric person who did not dare reveal his true face to the public.

A magic caster with an odd name.

Eventually there even arose an opinion that he had orchestrated this attack in
order to promote himself.

Gazef had to restrain himself from showing anger. He felt ashamed for being
unable to utter a single word in defence of his benefactor who was criticised like
this.

Of course, there was a good reason for this. Because the nobles who were cynical
towards his benefactor had one thing in common: they all belonged to the large
group known as the Greater Nobility Faction.

The Kingdom of ReEstize was a feudal state with the king controlling thirty
percent of the territory, the greater nobles holding another thirty percent and the
remaining forty percent being controlled by the other, lesser nobles.. Right now,
the kingdom was internally divided into two camps, competing day and night
against each other in a power struggle.

One side supported the monarchy, while the other side, which supported the
Greater Nobility faction, included more than half of the six greater nobles.
Although they were in the presence of the King, this place had also become an
extension of their fighting, a battleground for the two competing factions.

Because of this, being of the pro-monarchy faction and also a confidant of the
King, Gazef was unwilling to casually interject. He knew that his clumsy manner
of speech had no chance of arguing successfully against these nobles, therefore
it was necessary to avoid slipping up and giving others the chance to use his own
words against him.

...The Slane Theocracys covert operatives were able to grasp our movements
and appear at a timely moment this indicates a spy has probably infiltrated the
inner workings of the Kingdom. If this is the case, perhaps it is someone among
the six greater nobles...

Gazefs eyesight drifted towards one particular person amongst the ranks of
nobility, a noble with a particularly cold gaze.

This person had his blonde hair tied to the back and a pair of slender blue eyes.

His skin had the unhealthy white coloration that suggested it was rarely exposed
to sunlight. His lanky figure gave the impression of a viper.

Although his age should not have reached forty, his appearance looked
exceptionally older because of that unhealthy skin tone.

He was one of the six great nobles, called Lord Raven. He constantly switched
between the two factions like a bat in order to further his own profits. He was also
a noble who covertly approached the Kings second prince.

If there is a traitor to the Kingdom, it should be this fellow right?

Noticing Gazefs gaze, Lord Raven curled his lips which were already very thin.
Seeing that kind of provocative attitude, Gazefs expression became even more
rigid.

With that, the Warrior Captains report ends here. There are other important
matters which need to be decided upon.

The king declared, feeling a little exhausted, telling the nobles to back off for the
time being. Gazef walked to the Kings side and surveyed the nobles. As a
personally trusted subject of the King, he was long accustomed to unpleasant
stares.

Well then, in accordance with usual yearly custom, we shall war with the Empire
in a few months time. This is the next item on todays agenda. Lord Raven,
explain to everybody.

Yes, your Majesty.

Like a ghost, the man silently walked up and began to explain in a soft voice.

Nobody made a noise. Not only did he have influence over both factions, he was
also the one with the most power amongst the six nobles. Nobody dared making
an enemy out of him.

No objections were made as Lord Raven went through the planned course of
action and who would send out how many soldiers. After he finished explaining,
he smiled frivolously at the King and bowed:

The report has been concluded.

Thank you, Lord Raven. Does anyone have anything they wish to say?

Once again the room became noisy, with whispers being exchanged.

This time it is our turn to repel the opponent. With that, let us then proceed to
directly counter-attack the Empire.

Absolutely correct. Ive pretty much become tired of only merely repelling the
Empire.

Thats true. Let those imperial fools experience our worst.

Correct, Earl-sama, just as you say.

The room resounded with the merry laughter of the men wearing fine clothing.

Stop dreaming. If it were possible to refute in such a way, who knew how much
fun it would be.

The Kingdom and the forces of the neighbouring Empire would meet every year
on the battleground at Kaze plains.

Until this date, neither side had suffered too serious injuries, but that was
because the Empire never committed its full forces. If there was any real intent to
topple the Kingdom, there would be no need at all to set camp at Kaze plains and
wait for the Kingdoms army to arrive.

Gazef and a few other nobles who still used their brains reckoned that the Empire
used such a method in order to deplete the Kingdom of its national strength.

The Kingdom, composed of militia; And the Empire, composed of professional

soldiers, and having a hierarchy of Knights.

Which sides soldiers were superior was obvious with a single glance, hence the
Kingdom needed to mobilise twice the numbers of the Empires forces from their
population and because of the larger amount of troops, the army needed a
greater amount of food supplies. Although there were magic items which could
produce food, they were only intended to provide nourishment and the resulting
food was so unpalatable that even starving people would hesitate to eat them,
therefore those could never become the main source of provisions for meals.

Moreover, the Empires invasion was just in time for the wheat harvest, leading to
a shortage of manpower in villages, who had to delay the wheat harvest as a
result.

Without having to commit all their forces in an assault, the Kingdoms national
strength would naturally weaken, following which the royal power would also
wane.

That was the reason the Greater Nobility faction turned a blind eye to this. They
were happy that the authority and power of the enemy faction the royals
were decreasing.

Once our national strength became feeble, the Empire would invade with full
strength! Do you really think the enemy is satisfied with the current skirmishes?
Why is your way of thinking so naive?

Gazef was aggravated by those nobles who believed that their own absolute
power would perpetually exist.

So what you are saying is that the suspicious magic caster, who rescued the
Warrior Captain, could possibly be someone from the Empire with the objective of
infiltrating our side for espionage?

Ah, so that was it, youre right. I heard the Empire has a Magic Caster Academy,
so this is very likely.

The names of the people in the Slane Theocracy consist of a given name, a
baptized name and a family name, is it possible that this name is a pseudonym?

Men of that sort who appear in the Kingdom are always those who make others
uncomfortable, do you think we should come up with a way to handle him?

Perhaps you can also consider capturing him. The adventurer's guild does
whatever they please by employing a large number of magic casters. Its a
problem that another such being exists. It will be better for us to find a way to
place him under our authority.

The money paid to the Guild cannot be taken lightly either. Adventurers living in
the Kingdom charge very unreasonable fees for repelling monsters currently
residing in the country!

Bringing him here should be the best option.

Hearing this, Gazef could not stay silent any longer. He absolutely could not allow
them to continue slandering the benefactor who save himself, the villagers and
his subordinates.

One moment please. First of all, that magic caster is extremely friendly to the
Kingdom. The way of thinking, of wanting to arrest this kind of benevolent person
is really unwise

Gazef gave his opinion in an attempt to divert the palace meetings increasingly
biased discussion direction. Several nobles showed obvious looks of disgust.

With only his sword talent, Gazef climbed into his current position. In the eyes of
the nobles whom had long histories of heritage, he was nothing more than an
overnight wealthy upstart.

This was why Gazef was detested by them. Furthermore his swordsmanship was
unparalleled within the Kingdom, which only deepened the nobles hostility.

The hardest part for these distinguished nobles to accept were men with abilities
that surpassed their own, even though their status was lower than their own.

Several nobles did not wait for Gazef to finish speaking before verbally denying
Ainz Ooal Gown one after another, and others followed suit in echoing their
denial.

The king seated on the throne said hoarsely, with a hint of admiration:

... Enough. We conclude that the Warrior Captains judgment is not wrong.
(TL Note: This is the Royal We used here)

Well if your Majesty says so

The nobles did not refute, temporarily holding back their ridiculing smiles.

Gazef sent a look of gratitude towards the monarch to whom he had sworn
allegiance and who had in turn elevated Gazefs status.

Meeting Gazefs gaze, the King nodded gently in indication.

After every power struggle and flattery meeting, his heart and mind would
become exhausted. However, Gazef did not let this show on his face as he
accompanied the King along the palace corridor.

The King, who walked with a cane, had injured his knee in a past war and his gait
would sometimes be unsteady, but considering the Kings dignity, Gazef did not
extend his arm in assistance. Moreover, if he had already reached the condition
which required the assistance of others in order to walk, the great nobles
factions voices in support of abdication would become stronger, requesting the
King to abdicate in favour of a puppet prince manipulated by them.

Although Gazef felt saddened, the King still had to walk with his own strength.

Arriving near the royal quarters after walking slowly along the corridor, the King
suddenly spoke:

... The nobles strength is still needed to curb the Empires invasion. If their
advice is bluntly rejected, this country would split itself apart without having to
wait for the Empire to invade.

Although the content was abrupt, Gazef was very clear on what the King was
trying to say, therefore he could only bit down on his lips.

I envy the Empire.

Gazef did not know the words that would console the Kings whispers.

Three generations ago, the Empire had also been a feudal state. However, the
power of the nobles gradually weakened, and when the current emperor
ascended the throne, it became an absolute monarchy.

The current emperor Zirkunif Lun Farod el Nix.

During his ascension to the throne, the killings were so bloody that it was almost
enough to form a river of blood, therefore this youth was henceforth known as
the Blood Emperor. Gazef recalled coming across him in the battlefield, the
emperor who once wanted to recruit him.

That emperor truly was a born ruler.

Because of my superficial way of thinking, I was unable to protect you, and for
that I am sincerely sorry. Even when issuing you a dangerous order, I was unable
to give you the best equipment for the job we are asking for your forgive-, no,
please forgive me Your subordinates also lost their lives because of this.

No, not at all

Gazef, it may not make a difference, but although it cannot be called an

apology, I would like to give recompense to the families of the deceased. In
addition, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude towards Master Gown for
rescuing my most loyal and trusted aide.

Even though it wasnt the King himself who was rescued, he still wanted to
personally express his gratitude towards a mere lowly commoner. This matter
should be problematic, but

I believe a virtuous man like him will be satisfied with just those words.

Is that so oh?

Two figures walking along the corridor became reflected in the Kings eyes,
especially eye-catching was the beautiful girl who walked in front. That girls
beauty was rumoured to be beyond what could be captured on a portrait; a truly
indescribable beauty.

The King let out a smile. His love for the young princess exceeded that towards
his other children.

Renner Theiere Chardelon Ryle Vaiself.

The 3rd princess inherited her dazzling mothers appearance, and was renowned
by others as the Golden Princess.

Being sixteen years old, she had already reached an age where marriage was
nothing out of the ordinary. This was also another reason for the nobles penchant
to create trouble.

The title was derived from her golden hair, silky smooth and supple as it draped
over the back of her neck. Those healthy-looking smiling lips were a light cherry
blossom pink in colour. Dark blue eyes like sapphires shone with warmth and
vibrance.

The fashionable white dress further strengthened the image of purity she gave
off to others. Around her neck hung a golden necklace, looking as if it was the
emblem of her noble soul.

Standing behind her was a youth who was in the process of growing from a boy
into a man. He was wearing a white armour and could be described with the term
raging fire.

Above his curved sanpaku eyes were two rough eyebrows.

His face bore an expression of a will as strong as steel, with a tanned dark color.
For convenience of movement and the avoidance of battle as well as other
reasons, his blond hair was cut in a neat and tidy fashion.

This youth called Climb was someone whom Gazef did not know how to get along
with. It wasnt that he disliked him, rather he liked him.

However, Gazef simply found difficulty in dealing with the heavy atmosphere that
he gave off. Gazef did not hate serious individuals, but he still hoped that the
other side could relax a bit.

Still, Gazef thoroughly understood Climbs feelings.

Climb who was always by the side of the most beautiful woman in the kingdom,
would often suffer the jealousy and resentment of others, and should not even
have any friends. Also, his origin was also like Gazefs no, even worse than
Gazefs. Therefore he could not display any weakness, for none of his actions
could afford to allow his mistress to suffer any criticism.

Father, Warrior Captain.

The King smiled towards Lana who ran over with light steps, and nodded towards
the deeply bowing Climb.

It seems your meeting is finally over.

Yes. There were many topics to discuss.

So it was like that. Ive thought about it for a second, and wanted to allow father
to listen to my idea, therefore waited here for you.

Is that so? Then I am really sorry.

Her ideas were no trivial matter.

The other reason why she was hailed as the Golden Princess was because she
had a nimble mind and admirable spirit. Not only did she establish landmark
institutions, but also proposed new bills.

Her proposals were almost all relief measure plans for the civilians at the bottom
of society. Moreover, it was not by way of charity, but by preparing a good
welfare policy, giving the civilians who were willing to help themselves the
opportunity to become self-sufficient.

Not only that, but also at the same time improving the status of being a civilian,
boosting their loyalty towards the royal family, strengthening productivity, all
which affected the policies which the royal family had interests in.

Although there were obstructions from the nobles who did not wish for the
strengthening of civilian status, and almost all of the established institutions were
dissolved, the broad range of acquainted people and the people who received her
grace all gave a high evaluation of her efforts.

Then I shall listen to you attentively when we return to your room.

However, father, it is now time for your daughters walk. Climb and I shall
wander about the nearby surroundings then return.

Hearing the Princess indicate that her walk was more important than a discussion
with the King, Climbs expression became even stiffer. Gazef felt some pity for
him.

However, Princess Renner has always had her own way of doing things. As an
attendant, he could not complain.

Is that so? Then go, and come find me in my room to discuss this when you
return.

I understand. Lets be off, Climb.

Pardon me.

As a warrior, Gazef spoke to the deeply bowing Climb:

Climb, you also need to diligently improve your swordsmanship, to be able to

protect Princess Renner under any circumstances.

Yes!

Climb nodded vigorously. Conversely, Renner let out a discontented voice.

Climb is fine. He will definitely be able to protect me at any moment.

Those words were unfounded. However hearing the Princess say it seemed to
give it an element of truth.

Then we shall be off, Climb.

Renners slender fingers tugged the corner of Climbs clothes. Although it was
just an unconscious gesture/act, Climbs expression became even more rigid after
noticing it, becoming as hard as a diamond.

Yes, Princess.

Even though Climbs face was expressionless while he was being pulled away by
the princess, sadness and resignation could be seen in his eyes.

Although the two people forgot to pay their respects, the King did not appear to
mind and was only silently looking at the two as if looking at something he had
long lost in the past.

...As King, feeling pity cannot be a good thing.

Climb was of unknown origin. He was a poor child picked up by Renner when she
had ventured outside the castle.

Only skin and bones, he was a small child almost about to die from starvation,
continuously striving to protect his saviour. No, merely striving was not a
sufficient description.

He had no talent in either the sword or magic nor was he blessed with any
particular outstanding athletic ability.

However, he did diligently train bit by bit. Of course, his talent was not at Gazefs
level, nor did it reach the level of heroes. Even so, his strength forged by hard
work and practice still reached the highest level of all of the Kingdoms soldiers.
However, there are still some things which cannot be surpassed.

Those would be status, power, and also being a man of value.

Princess Renners value as a person was extremely high, and Climb simply could
not match up.

My lords heart is very considerate.

Although I know it is foolish, I still wish for at least one of my daughters...to be

able to attain freedom. No my other daughters will definitely scold me Ive
really become old, thinking about these kinds of things.

The King gazed at an empty space, as if there was someone there:

Perhaps, I must also allow this daughter to fall into misfortune.

If the Princess were to be married at this moment, the groom would definitely be
someone from the Great Nobility Faction.

Gazef, who shared similar thoughts, did not speak. It was because he did not
know what to say. The only people who were able to understand the kings
troubles were those in a similar position, and Gazef was not one of those people.

A surge of silence filled the space between the two men. To shake off this silence,
they strode forward once again .

CHAP
TER 3

Part 1
Translator: Ferro
Editors/Proofreaders: Skythewood, Sene9ty, Fate Trooper, Exct G, Ghostaker,
Namorax

After the transfer, Ainz saw a hill in front of him. No, it wasnt high enough to be a
hill, it was just a mound with a mere six meters of elevation from the base to the
top.

Short vegetation with pointed leaves grew lushly on the mound, giving it the
appearance of having been there for a long time. Looking around, there were
many similar protrusions, giving the impression that the general vicinity was of
this terrain. However, this was obviously untrue.

This terrain had been created through magic by Floor Guardian Mare. Buried
under this layer of earth was the Great Tomb of Nazaricks stony surface.

Ainz activated Flight and instantly flew over the mound. In his broad field of
vision he saw a single piece of land, overgrown with weeds. Not even the tiniest
bit of the Great Tomb of Nazarick was visible, as if it was entirely covered by the
mounds.

Ainz didnt linger over this scene and maintained his original speed as he
continued his flight.

After passing a certain point, the scenery changed with the sensation of piercing
through a thin membrane. The hilly terrain disappeared and the familiar sight of
home was reflected in Ainz eyes.

That was the proof of having broken through the protective Illusion barrier..

Without reducing the speed of Flight, Ainz destination was the large and
solemn mausoleum at the centre, because it was the only entrance leading into
the Great Tomb of Nazarick.

Flying straight to the stairs of the grey temple and finding numerous figures
below him, Ainz repressed his anxiety and landed in front of them.

Ainz-sama, welcome home.

Along with a womans tender voice, many other voices arose as well to welcome
Ainz back home.

Standing at the front, dressed in a gown of pure white, was Albedo, the Great
Tomb of Nazarick's Overseer, who was also the person with the greatest
understanding of the current situation.

The four maids tending to her were battle maids, and standing a little farther
behind were level eighty servants.

After Ainz finished his conversation with Albedo using Message, he

immediately ordered Narberal to use teleport. Not even five minutes have passed
since the end of Messageand Albedo was able to organise this many people
to greet him upon his return allowed one to glimpse at her organisational
abilities.

Feeling impressed, Ainz waved his hand gently in response to the servants
greetings. He was supposed to say a few words in appreciation, but it wasnt
appropriate under the current situation.

Albedo, about the issue discussed over Message

Did Shalltear really betray us?

He was about to say these words, but hesitated. Because deep in his worried
mind, he was afraid that saying them would turn Shalltear's betrayal into
irrevocable fact.. Furthermore, discussing a topic like this in front of the servants
was too dangerous.

Yes. Would you like to discuss this issue elsewhere?

You are right let us discuss this in the Throne Hall, alright?

As you wish. Well then Yuri, present Ainz-samas ring.

From amongst the battle maids standing behind them, a spectacle-wearing maid
quietly stepped forward.

Although the combat maid outfit she wore was the same as Narberals, there
were some differences in the details.

Narberals maid outfit was intended to protect her, whereas Yuris clothes
emphasized ease of movement. This was confirmed by the lack of a metal plate
on the front of her skirt.

Her metal gauntlets had prominent spikes. With clenched fists, they would
become lethal weapons.

The top of the wide blue necklace was decorated with small translucent gems
which didnt reflect light, but sparkled like a swaying flame.

With her hair tied into a low-cropped bun at the back of her head, and properlooking facial features that were both sharp and cold, she gave an intelligent
impression

This was Yuri Alpha. Vice-captain of the battlemaids. Sebas, who served as the
leader of the battlemaids, was a man, therefore it was said amongst the maids
that the person responsible for holding the team together was Yuri..

She was carrying a tray covered with purple cloth with both of her hands. Resting
on the purple cloth was a ring a ring of Ainz Ooal Gown.

Ainz picked up the ring and placed it on his ring finger.

Since the ring would allow the wearer to move around the Great Tomb of Nazarick
at will, every time Ainz went to an outside city he would leave his ring behind,
because he was worried about having it stolen from him.

Looking at the ring on his skeletal hand, Ainz nodded in approval. The unease of
not wearing the ring for several days disappeared, filling him with great
satisfaction.

Well then, lets go Albedo.

Because they couldnt teleport to the Throne Room directly, he activated the
rings power to move to the room right before it.

Accompanied by Albedo, Ainz opened the thick, heavy door and headed deeper
inside, towards the direction of the crystal-like throne. As they walked, Ainz
voiced the question he wanted to ask earlier.

Before we start, I wish to ask several questions. You said that Shalltear betrayed
us. What was the reaction of Sebas, who was at the same place? He didnt turn
traitor too?

Yes, he did not show any signs of betrayal.

Well then, have you asked Sebas for related details?

Yes, we have already completed our inquiry. According to Sebas, they

encountered bandits. After that, Shalltear supposedly went ahead to the
opponents lair to capture more bandits. During this period of time, nothing
suspicious occurred. She even repeatedly expressed her dedication towards Ainzsama.

So, thats to say, whatever happened afterwards was what instigated her
rebellion.

Yes in addition, it seems that she also brought along two vampire brides, but
they appear to have been exterminated.

...Is that so. Those were just minions no, this means something happened
which was sufficient to exterminate them. Well then, my turn to explain what has
happened on my side.

By the time they reached the stairs leading to the throne, the discussion was
almost finished. However, since they had not gone over the most important issue
relating to the cemetery, Ainz continued to talk.

After it was all over, Albedo, who had been listening quietly nodded her head in
understanding.

Although Ainz wished to ask whether the way he handled the situation was
appropriate, there were more important issues that he wanted to know about.

Ainz looked at the throne and chanted the predetermined code words:

Open Master Source.

A translucent window opened up in front which looked similar to a control panel,

yet distinctly different. The window was divided into several tabs, and each page
was filled with densely packed text.

This was the Great Tomb of Nazaricks management system.

Inside, it recorded the daily required administrative expenses: the current servant
types and quantity, the activated magical traps, etc. The settings could likewise
be roughly managed from here as well. In YGGDRASIL, this could be viewed
regardless of time or location. However, Ainz found out through experiments that
in this world, this system could only be operated at the heart of the tomb, the
Throne Room.

Having to come here every time is slightly troublesome but the ring allows
teleport so there is no need to be too concerned about it.

With experienced movements, Ainz opened the NPC tab.

A list of names of all of the NPCs collectively created by the Guild members were
recorded on this page. After changing the displayed names from the original
alphabetically arranged Katakana to levels in descending order, Ainz browsed the
list from the top and after his eyes stopped on a single spot, he silently
turned to gaze upon Albedos face.

Yes, it has already become like this.

Amongst the series of names in white text, only Shalltear Bloodfallens name had
turned black.

Ainz knew the meaning behind what the change in the name meant, but
nonetheless

After repeatedly looking it over twice, three times, making sure that he did not
observe wrongly, Ainz screamed impossible! inside his mind. If skeletal faces
could move, his would have an expression of dismay.

...Is it death?

Ainz steadfastly asked Albedo. He hoped silently that perhaps the transfer to this
world had caused some changes in the systems. However, the truth that Albedo
spoke could not be any more cruel.

If it were death, the name would disappear and leave a blank space. Wouldnt
this mean that she has betrayed us?

Ah...youre right.

Ainz answered Albedo like this, then recalled the YGGDRASIL days when he had
seen this kind of text change.

Although Albedo said it was betrayal, the systems meanings were slightly
different. In a broad sense it was similar to betrayal, but that was the result of
being subject to mind control from a third party, causing the temporarily hostile
NPCs name to display a colour change.

Impossible.

Ainz once again denied this reality inside his mind. Like him, Shalltear Bloodfallen
was an Undead, which meant that she should have been impervious to all types
of mental influence regardless of whether they were beneficial or detrimental.
How could Shalltear possibly be affected by mind control?

Shalltear simply betraying Nazarick was relatively more believable. She could, for
example, have a particular reason for her betrayal dissatisfaction with her
own treatment or outsiders offering better conditions.

If that was not the case, then after being sent to this world, something beyond
Ainz knowledge had happened to cause the incident.

Ainz recalled Enfreas face. Correct, if there were those with innate talents with
unknown powers, perhaps it was possible to influence the mental state of
undead.

...Could it be a special influence from being affected by this worlds peculiar

beings and phenomenons?

That is uncertain. However Shalltears betrayal is an undisputable fact. I

recommend we form a subjugation team immediately.

At this moment, it suddenly occurred to Ainz: the servants, who were welcoming
him back just a while ago, could they have been gathered with the intention of
subjugating Shalltear? In retrospect, the group had a selection of many servants
which were rare in Nazarick, with divine attribute attacks which were which were
effective against undead.

Albedo continued in a firm tone:

I wish to volunteer to serve as the teams commander. With Ainz-samas

permission, I would also like to appoint Cocytus as deputy commander, and also
to select Mare to be included in the team.

This selection, which was the perfect lineup to eliminate Shalltear, demonstrated
Albedos seriousness in the matter.

Shalltear Bloodfallen was extremely powerful. If you were to simply compare her
to the other Guardians, with the exception of Gargantua, she was the strongest.
To be absolutely certain of victory against her, it was necessary to send the team
members Albedo had chosen, otherwise it would be considerably difficult.

What is your opinion on this?

No. Its too early to arrive at this conclusion. We need to first ascertain the
reason for Shalltears betrayal.

Ainz-sama has a really benevolent heart. However, regardless of her reasons,

simply the fact that she dared to stand as the supreme leaders enemy makes
her undeserving of such kindness.

Thats incorrect, Albedo. I am not showing kindness to Shalltear, Im only trying

to understand the reason for her betrayal.

If such a thing could happen to Shalltear, then it was necessary to find a way to
resolve it. If it was dissatisfaction with how theyre treated, other servants and
NPCs could have the same problem. It was necessary to directly address the
future possibility that it would occur to another servant, and to take the
necessary countermeasures.

Even if it was forced control from being affected by abilities like innate talent, it
was necessary to find a countermeasure.

Hearing the Message informing him that the NPC created by his past
comrades had betrayed him, he felt like his position as Guild Leader was being
rejected by his Guild companions, it was a severe blow that almost brought him
to his knees. However, this was already beyond the scope of a guild master.

This problem shouldnt be resolved with his authority as Guild Leader, but as the
Supreme Ruler of Nazarick. It was too early to be discouraged. Hypothetically
although it was impossible if it turned out that Shalltear was actually subject
to forced control, then it was necessary to rescue her.

A superior who put on an amazing countenance, yet was unable to hold out a
saving hand during times of trouble, would fundamentally be unqualified to be
the leader.

As ruler, it was necessary for Ainz to protect his underlings.

Well then, where is Shalltear at the moment, has anyone determined her
whereabouts?

Extreme apologies, it has yet to be confirmed. Taking into account the possibility
that Shalltear could attack Nazarick, all of her immediate subordinates were
locked up. At the same time, to strengthen our defenses, we also dispatched
servants to the first floor.

Is that so. If that is the case, then first we must determine Shalltears location.
Let us visit your elder sister

Part 2

Nazaricks fifth floor was an extremely cold area, created with a glacier as
concept

Producing the illusion of a blue iceberg emitting a glow from within, there was a
tombstone-like object standing amidst the endless white land. Snow fell from the
self-shrouding thick layer of clouds in the sky, dancing in the freezing wind
composed of icy cold water vapour. In the distance, a frozen forest completely
covered in snow could be seen, like a giant hiding under a white mantle.

Ainz clothes were blown about, flapping violently in the chilling cold wind.
Remembering what Albedo beside him was wearing, Ainz asked:

Are you cold? If there is a need, wear your armor. We have enough time for you
to change.

Any ice attack against Ainz was completely ineffective, and he would feel no
coldness no matter how freezing it was. However, it was not the same for Albedo.
This degree of frostiness would not harm her if she wore her full armor, but
Albedo was currently wearing a white dress. Although she was asked before the
transfer as well, it could be that she was just putting on a false front.

But Albedo gave the worried Ainz a tender smile.

Thank you for your concern, but there is no need to be worried, Ainz-sama. This
chill is absolutely not a problem.

Ainz nodded and replied: I see.

Originally this place would apply ice damage and movement-slowing area effect.
But its activation cost money, therefore it was currently deactivated. This prior
decision was a stroke of good luck. Or perhaps Albedo possessed magical items
or abilities to negate ice damage?

Basically, NPCs equipment were all conferred by the Guild member who created
them. The ones Ainz knew well were Pandoras Actor and a few others, and after
the transfer he had briefly looked over everyones data.

Ainz cast aside the doubts in his mind, and looked at the magnificent two-story
high mansion in front of him.

In this cold world of ice and snow, only this structure exuded a strange
atmosphere. Like a building from a story, it gave off a fairy-tale feeling.

However the surface was a frozen layer of ice, creating a cold, discomforting
ambience. In fact, this building did not have a fairy-tale name.

It was called the Frozen Prison.

All enemies of Nazarick were locked in here.

Lets go.

Ainz succinctly instructed with a short phrase, then pushed open the large, icecoated door. Even with its surface covered by a thick layer of ice, the door still
opened easily, as if it was welcoming a guest.

The moment the doors opened, a gust of cold wind rushed out. he temperature
inside the prison was even lower than that of the Arctic world outside.

With the cold wind hitting her body, Albedo started to shiver. Seeing this, Ainz
pulled a crimson cloak out of thin air, the hem of which had the pattern of a
burning flame.

Wear this cloak, Albedo. It might not have any particularly strong magical effect,
but it should be more than enough to block the cold.

Something so valuable! My extreme gratitude! I will treasure this for the rest of
my life.

Although he never said that he was going to give it to her, seeing Albedos
smiling face, he didnt elaborate and merely looked beyond the doorway.

A silent and dark passageway extended all the way into the prison.

Ah, yes. The remnants of the Sunlight Scripture are also locked in here.

Yes. Its only proper that Neuronist Painkill guards them strictly. So warm... like
being embraced in Ainz-samas bosom fufufu.

...Is that so. Well thats great.

Being in my flesh- and skinless embrace should not be warm. However, Ainz
wasnt so dense that he would say this aloud.

Putting Albedo, who was squirming about fully immersed in the cloak, out of
sight, Ainz slowly walked ahead.

What are you doing. There isnt much time left under these special
circumstances.

Yes, yes!

Ainz passive skill Undead Blessing allowed him to observe all of the undead
concealed inside the place. Feeling that this would be bothersome, Ainz disabled
the skill, ignoring the undead moving along the corridor, covered in a layer of
blue white ice. If he did not take prior measures to deal with the moving
obstacles, perhaps he would slip on the completely frozen corridor.

...Ainz-sama, shall I call for Neuronist Painkill? She did not show herself to guide
the way, letting the Supreme Ruler of Nazarick enter without a guide

No need. Although it isnt a bad thing, that fellow talks a lot. Currently there are
some emergency matters which need to be resolved, so I hope to avoid wasting
time as much as possible.

Understood. Then after this matter is concluded, I shall tell Neuronist Painkill not
to talk so much.

No, no, that will not be necessary. I do not find it discomforting.

But then

Seeing Albedo beside him frown, Ainz allowed a smile to surface on his unmoving
face. As the master, he felt it was a good thing that his subordinates would think
about what was best for him, but if it wasnt handled well, it could result in the
subordinates not daring to complain in the future.

Its nothing. I love all of you, regardless of your strong points or weak points,
because you were all created by my past comrades. I would be in the wrong if I
felt displeasure when looking upon any settings which were made with
dedication.

Correct. If Shalltears betrayal was due to her settings, then it was necessary to
forgive her, because she would only be following the intentions of her creator
Peroronchino. However, Peroronchino wasnt the kind of person to plant a bad
seed inside the Guild. This confused Ainz, since Peroronchino was the type who
enjoyed joking around, but dislike damaging relations between companions.

Even so, is it really an external reason? Because that text display means mindcontrol but then there is no way to confirm this. Or perhaps there were some
changes in the settings after arriving in this world. I have yet to completely
memorize all of the NPCs personality settings too. Furthermore, some parts of
the NPCs personality settings were similar to the Guild members who created
them I think there shouldnt be anyone who could completely export his or her
personality into settings, therefore it could be due to this. Speaking of which,
about Shalltear could it be that her settings contain something akin to a timed
explosive mechanism? Because her creator enjoyed H Games, and input some
kind of girl game conquest event in her woah, thats very possible.

Ainz gave a tired sigh. At the same time he felt the woman beside him display an
abnormal change.

Although she was only looking forward and walking silently, it was different from
earlier, because she was not following Ainz pace. Furthermore although she was
facing forward, she was not looking ahead, and her eyesight was fixed on a
certain point.

When Ainz realized that Albedo was muttering something, he perked up his ears
to listen.

I love you I love you I love you

This phrase was endlessly repeated, like a broken tape recorder.

... Hey Albedo, I said that I love all of you. Everybody...hm?

Albedo moved oddly as she turned her head.

No, but still, that is to say, it also includes loving me!

Ah...yes indeed.

Goooh!

With her feet close together, Albedo hopped in a cute fashion and crashed
into the ceiling.

That was the cons of people with extraordinary physical ability.

Bump! No, rather it should be bang. The ceiling let out a startling loud noise,
letting others know just how big of an impact it received. Hearing this sound
similar to an explosion, supernatural semi-translucent monster-like entities slowly
appeared from the floor and the ceiling.

These were the undead hidden in this prison cell which were picked up earlier by
Ainz ability.

Ah, you guys can step down. Its nothing.

In front of Ainz was Albedo who was so delighted that she was about to burst into
song. Although having collided with the ceiling, her races ability could reduce
damage, therefore it caused no pain at all.

The different types of undead respectfully bowed and withdrew, disappearing

entirely, and returned to their guard positions.

...Albedo, we are almost at your elder sisters room. Are you prepared?

The previously jubilant Albedo instantly turned serious.

Yes. Then I shall take out the doll.

Hm, give it to me.

Albedo stretched out one hand towards the wall. A white transparent arm
stretched out of the wall, placing a doll on Albedos hand. It was a baby doll,
about the same size as a real baby.

Ainz took the doll, staring at it without blinking.

It really is disgusting.

It was modeled on an exaggerated babys shape, like an completely distorted

cupid doll. The large eyes rolling around were particularly nauseating. Ainz
furrowed his non-existing brows and looked towards the end of the passageway.
Over there was a large mural in the centered around a door.

There was a mother and baby. It was a painting of a mother cuddling her baby.

If it were only this, then it would be a beautiful painting. Perhaps because it was
made long ago, some areas had lost their colors and its appearance became
appalling. It was almost impossible to discern the babys image, only leaving
behind something similar to a wreckage.

Ainz pushed open the door.

The doors slid open silentlyand cries of babies could be heard..

Not just one or two, it wasnt even an echo..

The cries numbered in the tens, even hundreds, coming together to form one
sound before being heard by Ainz and Albedo. However, no such babies could be
seen inside the room.

Although they could not be seen, they were definitely there.

At the center of the empty room bereft of furniture, was a woman gently rocking
a cradle.

Even as Ainz and Albedo entered the room, the woman dressed in black remained
silent, merely keeping to herself and rocking the cradle. It was not possible to see
her face, because it was entirely concealed by her black hair.

Ordinarily if an NPC saw the Supreme Ruler (Ainz) yet ignored him, Albedo would
definitely chastise it loudly. However she didnt say anything. Ainz knew why,
because Albedos slightly guarded posture already spoke volumes.

Is it about time to start?

It should be. Please be cautious.

As if the words spoken between them was the signal, the womans movements
suddenly froze and she became motionless. Following this, she slowly reached
into the rocking cradle and gently picked up the baby inside. No, that was not a
real baby, but a doll.

Wrongwrongwrongwrong.

She vigorously shook then threw it out. The doll which was thrown out with full
force shattered to pieces as it smashed against the wall.

Mybabymybabymybabymybaby!

With the sound of her gnashing teeth, as if this was the signal, the cries from the
floor and the walls gradually grew louder and louder. The source of the noise
eventually revealed itself as the semi-translucent baby-shaped slabs of meat slid
down from the surroundings.

Tabula Smaragdina really did configure many monsters in this place I wonder
how much money he spent in the end.

This baby-like squirming meat pile was close to level 20 and called a Carrion
Baby.

In YGGDRASIL, all one had to do was pay in-game currency or real cash to
manually spawn a monster inside a labyrinth. These were different from the ones
that respawned naturally and did not revive when killed. It was considered a
luxury by most players and was rarely used outside of role playing.

Manually placing so many Carrion Babieseven if they were low leveled,

showed how fastidious Tabula Smaragdina truly was.

As Ainz was feeling impressed, the woman took out a large pair of scissors from
somewhere and held it tightly in her hand. Sharp eyes from that messy head of
hair glared at Ainz and Albedo.

Youyouyouyou, stolestolestolestolemychildmychildmychildmychild!

...She really is your elder sister. You and her are quite alike.

Eh? Is, is that so?

As if regarding Ainz and Albedos leisurely talk as a sign of malice, the woman
used her murderous intent to fuel her charge towards Ainz. Using only a few
steps to reduce the distance between them to zero, the woman in black mourning
clothes dashed over with an abnormally large stride.

The woman stabbed her scissors at Ainz

Your child is right here.

After Ainz gave the doll to the woman, her actions froze as if a stop button
had been pressed. Following this, she tossed aside the scissors and slowly
accepted the doll.

Good child good child good child!

She hugged her beloved child tenderly, as if she would never again let go.
Afterwards, she carefully placed the baby back into the cradle, and then turned
her hair-covered face towards Ainz and Albedo:

Momonga-sama, and my cute little sister, have you been well?

Its been a while Nigredo. Im pleased to see that you.. well, havent
changed..

Throughout this conversation Ainz managed to maintain his composure because

he had already witnessed this crazy scene before in the game.

I really did scream that time.

A certain Guild member said he had created a new character, and took Ainz and
some of the other Guild members to have a look. This resulted in everybody
unanimously screaming out together, joining together to use all of their power to
attack Nigredo. It was a nostalgic memory.

Elder sister, its been a while.

Correct, Nigredo was Albedos elder sister. Coincidentally, she was also an NPC
created by Tabula Smaragdina.

If Albedo was a strong demonstration of the player Tabula Smaragdinas favourite

gap moe, then Nigredo was the strong manifestation of his other passion, horror
films.

He wasnt a bad person, but he had a strong personality, in various ways.

During normal discussions, he would be coherent. However as the talk became

more in-depth, various parts of his personality that were hard to associate with
would begin to surface. Whilst he was remembering his past Guild member,

Nigredo parted her hair to make way for her previously concealed face, revealing
her real appearance.

Perhaps she thought that concealing her face was disrespectful, but Ainz wished
she had just left it as is.

Her face was truly grotesque - no skin, but rather a mass of exposed muscle.

There were no lips, only beautiful pearly teeth. There were no eyelids, only
brightly shining eyes. Looking at the teeth or the eyes individually, they would be
pretty, but seeing it as a whole could only be revolting.

The ugly face like those appearing in horror films contorted frighteningly.
Although the lack of skin made it harder to determine, she was different from
Ainz. Her face still had muscle so it could be inferred that it that expression
should be a smile.

And Momonga-sama, for what reason are you.

...Ah, sorry. That time you were not at the Throne Hall so you dont know. I am
no longer called Momonga, my name has since been changed to Ainz Ooal Gown.
From today onwards call me Ainz.

After hearing a soft gasp, Nigredo then slowly bowed her head:

Understood, Ainz-sama.

Well then Nigredo, Im here to ask for your help. Can you use your ability to aid
me?

My ability? Is it biological? Or is it non-biological?

...Biological for now alive, right?. Let me explain to you clearly. The target is
Shalltear Bloodfallen.

The Floor Guardian?... Ive been disrespectful. If it is Ainz-samas command, I

shall take immediate action.

Although Nigredos voice was full of doubt, she still gave an immediate response
to the request.

Please, elder sister.

After playfully giving a thumbs up in response to Albedo's request, Nigredo began

to activate several kinds of magic. They were abundant in variety, Ainz found that
some these spells were familiar, and he just instructed Narberal to cast them last
night.

Nigredo was a magic caster, one of the high level NPCs who held a position close
to the highest tier in Nazarick. Although it wasnt visible from her outer
appearance, her class was specialised towards the investigation type, the
collection of information. That was why Ainz had come here to ask for her
assistance in locating Shalltear.

With a speed fitting for the power that she possessed, Nigredo was able to
quickly report the results.

Found.

Cast a Crystal monitor.

After activating the spell, the crystal monitor which shimmered into existence
displayed an armored figure standing vacantly in a patch of open land in the
middle of a forest.

Ainz voiced his praise:

Incredible, pinpointing the exact location of the target, it really is a welldeserved reputation for specialised magic cast

The words of praise disappeared as the image became more vivid.

The person displayed on the monitor display wore a full body armor dyed in a
blood-like crimson color. Only the face part was open, revealing a large hole in

the helmet which was shaped like the head of a swan, with bird-like feathers
protruding from either side. Wing-designed decorations hung from the chest and
shoulders, and the lower half of the body was a bright red dress.

One hand was holding a giant, bizarre-shaped spear, similar to a dropper used in
Chemistry class.

This was Shalltear Bloodfallens full battle mode, a faith magic caster which had
the specialised combat ability of the Valkyrie job.

Spuit Lance! It was the Divine class magic item given from Peroronchino to
Shalltear!

Albedo let out a dismayed voice after seeing Shalltears weapon.

Ainz had Divine class items, so many that he could cover every part of his body
with them. However, it did not mean these items could be easily manufactured.

YGGDRASIL magic items were created from embedded computer data crystals,
but then the performance of computer data crystals dropped by monsters was
uneven, therefore to manufacture Divine class items it was necessary to have
several extremely rare loot computer data crystals for it to be possible. Not
only that, if you wanted these computer data crystals to be embedded into a
container such as a sword-type weaponit had to be a weapon forged from
ultra-rare metal for it to be possible.

As such, even for level 100 players, it was common not to have a single Divine
class item.

Even Ainz Ooal Gown, a guild that ranked in the top ten, did not arm every NPCs
with Divine class items. They would only allow them to possess one or two at the
most.

And Shalltear Bloodfallen possessed the Divine class item Spuit Lance.

The name sounded a little silly, but its ability was extremely vicious. Some
computer data crystals could absorb a set amount of harm to recover the
equipment users stamina, and Spuit Lance was a prime example of
strengthening this capability.

...Lets go right now.

Huh? Ah, please wait a minute! Shalltear is already fully armed. I believe a battle
is imminent, therefore it is necessary to pick some bodyguards for Ainz-samas
protection.

There is no time. If negotiations fail, we can withdraw immediately

Ainz-sama, pardon me for bothering you.

The voice of a woman could be heard in his mind. It was Narberal who had
remained in Re-Lantier.

This poorly timed call made Ainz slightly annoyed.

What is it Narberal? Right now

I am busy. Ainz who was planning to say this stopped midway.

Because he remembered interrupting Entomas Message last night. Although

it couldnt be helped, but if Ainz had acted immediately back then, the situation
might be different now. He could had given the task of rescuing Enfrea to
Narberal.

The slight feeling of remorse made Ainz reply calmly.

The NPCs treated Ainz as absolutely supreme, therefore even if his judgment was
wrong, it was still very easy to place Ainz words as precedence. Because of this,
Ainz had to retain his composure, making sure to take careful and cautious
actions, to avoid making mistakes.

For an ordinary person like me, this really is an unreasonable demand

While mocking his own extremely flawed judgment, Ainz smiled as he reckoned
that it really was not possible. Sensing that Narberal on the other end of the

Message exuded the atmosphere of a servant waiting for her master, Ainz
trembled as if he was struck by lightning.

What am I thinking? I am Ainz Ooal Gowns Supreme Ruler, the one whom
everybody calls by this name. Correct, I am not Suzuki. Impossible? Wrong, since
I have chosen to call myself by this name, then it is necessary to change the
impossible into the possible.

...No, nothing. What is it? Are you only contacting me via Message because
of an emergency situation?

"Yes. Actually there are some people from the Adventurers Guild looking for Ainzsama."

...If it is about last nights events, please ask them to wait for a moment no,
that cant be. It should be about something else, correct?

"Yes! Ainz-sama truly is perceptive!"

At this point Narberal became vague, her silence expressed her confusion. Before
long, as if she had reached a conclusion in her mind, she spoke again:

"Actually, apart from that event, another problem has arisen. That is related to
a vampire."

What? You said vampire?

Ainz turned his eyes towards the Crystal Monitor, focusing on Shalltear who
was still standing upright rigidly.

About that vampire, has the other side mentioned anything? For example silver
hair, or wearing a crimson armor and the like?

"Nothing unfortunately. The one who came to find Ainz-sama was merely running
an errand. The other side only said that other details would be explained at the
Adventurers Guild, and hope that Ainz-sama could head there as soon as
possible. I heard that several adventurer teams were already there The Guild
member is currently nearby, what should I convey to him?"

Ainz shut his eyes. Of course there were no eyeballs, only the light in his eyesockets vanished.

About Narberals Message, what is your view on this Albedo?

After the explanation, Albedo lowered her eyes, then after a few seconds looked
back at Ainz.

Under the current situation without sufficient information, regardless of

whichever option is chosen, both have advantages and disadvantages. It should
be decided by Ainz-samas personal preferences. Personally, I believe that it does
not matter if we ignore those humans.

After Ainz expressed gratitude to Albedo, he slipped into deep thought.

Taking Shalltear as the first priority, it may end up unraveling into the worst case
scenario.

If the Adventurers Guild was taken as the first priority, what kinds of changes in
development would Shalltears situation have?

Thinking from the worst possible outcome, he felt that no matter which decision
was made, it would still evolve into the worst situation.

At this instant if he still had his companions, it would be easy to decide by

majority vote. However, they were not around. As the ruler of the Great
Underground Tomb of Nazarick, and claiming such an important name for himself,
he alone had to make a decision.

After a moment of hesitation, Ainz made his conclusion,

Albedo, send people to monitor Shalltear. I will take a trip to Re-Lantiers

Adventurer Guild. After this matter is concluded, take me to Shalltears location.

As you command.

You heard that, Narberal?

"Yes. Then this subordinate shall inform the messenger that you will be heading
there."

Ah yes, tell him like that. With that Albedo, sorry but I shall be heading to the
Adventurers Guild.

Understood. I shall follow the instructions and send a few servants out.

Sorry for troubling you. And I will be giving my ring to Yuri, please keep it safe
for me.

Actually, there was something else he wished to give to the librarian, but Ainz felt
there was no time left to spare and immediately activated the rings transfer
ability.

The two sisters were left alone in the room, and the atmosphere relaxed. As if
waiting for this moment, Nigredos lidless eyes flashed with curiosity.

What is it? Whats going on with Shalltear?

Ah, she seems to have rebelled.

...Unbelievable... how could this be possible... really?

I cant believe it either, but thats how it is.

Then quickly getting rid of her would do. But looking at the way things are, it
seems that Ainz-sama does not wish for that to happen?

Yes, because Ainz-sama is extremely compassionate No, it should be because

adjudicating her execution before investigating the reason for Shalltears betrayal
could perhaps become a great mistake. Ainz-sama should be thinking along those
lines.

Oh, Nigredo let out a subtle sound which could have meant agreement or
could have been denial.

I understand now. Ill keep surveying Shalltear with magic until your servants
gather and start their watch.

Apologies for the inconvenience, older sister.

Believing the conversation was over, just as Albedo was about to release the
rings ability, she felt that her elder sister still had something she wished to say.
Normally, the elder sister was the type to speak straightforwardly. There was only
one reason which would cause her to hesitate.

Although she didnt want to, if there was a chance that the topic was something
other than what she thought it was, then it was necessary to ask her regardless.

What is it, elder sister?

...Since Im not allowed to leave this frozen prison, Im not too clear about
whats happening outside. Is Spinel still well?

...So it was that after all.

Albedo thought this to herself, and regretted asking. However with an

unwavering tone befitting this question she asked:

Elder sister, you still call the girl by that name

I extremely despise that girl, even if we are all the creations of Tabula
Smaragdina-sama No, the way Spinel was created was different from the way
we were. She is definitely not the type that others can open their hearts
towards.

Thats not true, elder sister. She is quite adorable.

The way I see it, you have been deceived by her. Spinel will definitely bring a
great calamity to Nazarick, I guarantee it.

...About this viewpoint, we shall forever share different opinions. I believe that
girl would never become a scourge.

Is that so? If you the keeper of the Guardians have decided like this, then I
wont say anything more. However, I still hope that you, as keeper of the
Guardians, will bear my concerns firmly in mind.

Got it, Ill be sure to remember.

Holding back an emotional sigh, Albedo transferred to another location.

However, while she would normally laugh it off, today, her words became lodged
in her heart like a thorn.

She believed that the Supreme Rulers creations were all utterly devoted.
However, Shalltear still revolted. This meant that others could turn to betrayal as
well.

Maybe, younger sisters betrayal was also possible

She could not completely erase this possibility. However, for Albedo, this was not
a bad thing.

At the transfer destination, Albedo arrived with trance-like misty eyes.

Ainz-sama, my beloved, I am your faithful dog, your slave.

Towards the absent man she expressed her true thoughts.

Even if all of Nazarick were to turn against you, I would still stand by your side.
Part 3

Come, come, come, Momon-san, please find an empty seat.

There were six men in the room, three of whom were fully armed and ferociouslooking men. Another man, though also mighty and majestic but unarmed, stood
up and welcomed Ainz. There was another thin and neurotic-looking man wearing
a robe. The last was an obese man in the innermost corner of the room.

After Ainz sat down with everyones gaze upon him, the man standing up
immediately opened his mouth again.

Let me introduce myself then. I am the leader of this citys Adventurers Guild,
Burdon Issac.

This middle-aged man looked quite capable and vigorous.

Exuding the atmosphere of a veteran of a hundred battles, there should be

nobody who would question him being an outstanding warrior.

This is the mayor, Panasolei Gierge Di Leitenmaya-san.

After Ainz slightly nodded, Panasolei lightly waved his hand in response.

Obeseno, to be honest, basically his entire body was fat. His belly was a mass
of bloated fatty oil, and even his chin consisted of excessive fat. Because it was
covered with fat, his face looked like that of an unremarkable obese bulldog.

The hair on his scalp was already thin enough to reflect light, and the remaining
hair had already turned white.

Momon-san, pleased to meet you.

Perhaps it was due to a stuffy nose, but when he spoke he would let out a fuee
noise. Ainz once again nodded in acknowledgement to this fat, piggish man.

This person is Re-Lantiers Magician Guild Leader Theo Rakesheer.

The man was extremely thin, like bamboo. While giving off a nervous disposition,
the man nodded towards Ainz.

Like you, these three men were invited to join us. They are all representatives
from three of Re-Lantiers adventurer teams that we take pride in. From the right
to the left is Kuraguras representative Igavaruji-san, Sky Wolfs representative
Berette-san, and Rainbows representative Mokunaku-san.

The postures of these three men were magnificent and gave off the impression of
strength, befitting the colormithril of the metal that hung around their
necks. Although the equipment they wore was certainly trash for Ainz, for the
adventurers of this city it was relatively much better.

Each persons eyes carried a different emotion, but one common sentiment
between all of them was curiosity.

One of them Kuraguras representative Igavaruji, glared with sharp eyes at

the seated Ainz and asked coldly:

Before this, there is something I would like to inquire about, Guild Leader Issac. I
have never heard of the name Momon. Since he is of mithril class, he should have
accomplished some feats before right? Just what has he done?

Although his tone carried a little hostility, Issac, who seemed to not notice,
cheerfully responded:

His feats include taming the Virtuous King of the Forest, and resolving the
cemetery incident last night.

The cemetery incident?

Differing from the confused Igavaruji, the adventurer team Rainbows

representative Mokunaku let out a gasp.

Could it be the incident involving the large number of undead?

Fueee You are quite well informed. That news was quite troublesome, that is
why orders have already been issued requesting no leaking of this information.
Where did you hear about it from?

Whether or not due to nasal congestion, a fuee noise would often be heard
during his speeches. It could also be because he used his mouth to breathe that
his tone had almost no cadence. It felt a little strange, like he was reciting a play
script word for word.
Apologies mayor. I also heard little about it, and truth be told it is difficult to
answer your question of the source from where it was overheard. On top of that, I
do not know of any more details.

As their eyes clashed, both men smiled. Mokunaku had a false smile whilst the
mayor had a wry smile.

Fueee sounds like a lie, but so be it. There should be plenty of people who
know about the undead incident anyways. Fuee sorry, Ive unintentionally
interrupted.

It doesnt matter mayor. As such the Guild has concluded its judgment and
believes that Momon-san is qualified to be a mithril grade adventurer.

Just for that? Because he solved one incident? What about the adventurers who
went through the advancement tests and rose step-by-step? Wont they hold a
grudge?

The bare minimum of politeness demonstrated towards Issac earlier had

completely disappeared as Igavaruji openly revealed hostile intent. At that
moment, another cold voice joined from the side.

Hey Guild leader, explain it clearly. To be honest, I share his sentiment. I dont
agree with Momon-sans mithril rank.

The one who interrupted from the side was the Magicians Guild leader
Rakesheer. He had a mocking expression on his face, but then Ainz understood
that expression was in fact not directed at himself, but at Igavaruji. However, the
man himself did not seem to recognise this and Igavaruji showed a friendly smile
towards Rakesheer.

Between the Magician Guilds Leader and I, great minds think alike.

Ho, ho ho.

As if hearing something hilarious, Rakesheers thin lips curved to become even

thinner. This wasnt an expression of good will, because his eyes clearly showed
his contempt.

Is that so? I feel that your view and my view are as different as night and day.

What do you mean by this

Its true, dont argue Igavaruji-san. Some in the Guild even reckon that Momonsan should be orichalcum class.

What!
Igavarujis face showed plain disbelief.

Seeing that expression, Rakesheer entire face twisted in a smile.

With only two people, Momon-san no, including the Virtuous King of the
Forest, the three of them broke through thousands of undead, and defeated the
individuals in the middle of carrying out an evil ritual.

Something like that is simple if youre stealthy enough!

Rakesheer dramatically sighed and said:

What you say is indeed correct. If I thought it was just that, then Momon-san
would still not be orichalum class. However a certain set of undead bones
revealed Momon-sans true strength.

After Rakesheer said these words, he looked with solemn eyes at Ainz who was
wearing dark armor.

...Skeletal Dragon bones. Momon-san killed a terrifying undead with absolute

defense against magic.

That, that..! A S-Skeletal Dragon is indeed very powerful! But then, even mithril
class adventurers are able to def

 defeat two at the same time?

What!

The gasps came not only from Igavaruji, but also from the other two adventurers.
Following this, the way the two men looked at Ainz appeared to have undergone
a slight change, as if trying to gauge the depth of his skills.

The remains of two Skeletal Dragons were left on the scene. Within such a short
amount of time, would your teams be able to break through thousands of
undead, exterminate two Skeletal Dragons and kill the instigators, preventing
them from setting their scheme in motion? Amongst the adventurers who headed
towards the cemetery, there were even some who witnessed wraiths, the twisted
souls of the departed, and other powerful undead.

Igavaruji wordlessly bit his lip.

Let me ask you another question. Allegedly, apart from Momon-san there was
also a woman in his team. That young woman was a magic caster. Against
Skeletal Dragons, which have absolute immunity against magic, she could only
be said to be quite powerless. In this kind of situation, if you likewise only had
two people No, including the Virtuous King of the Forest, three people, would it
be enough to accomplish that kind of feat?

Rakesheer gave Ainz a respectful bow:

As one of the representatives of this city, I express my heartfelt gratitude to

Momon-san. If it wasnt for your swift response, who knows how many lives would
have been sacrificed. I would like to express my personal gratitude, if you should
require anything, you only need to say it and I shall do whatever possible to
assist.

You flatter me, Magician Guild leader. I was only accepting Bareal-sans
commission and resolved the problem, thats all.

Ho ho ho ho

Rakesheer laughed loudly, one filled with admiration.

Sure enough you deserve orichalcum no, you could even be called
adamantium class. To accomplish such a feat with a small group, and to be so
humble about it, even making it sound like a regular routine. I heard that your
companion is able to use magic up to the third level that cant be true right?

I am delighted by your praise but, I do not wish to show my cards so easily.

Is that so, that really is a shame.

As Ainz and Rakesheer joked, their attitude angered Igavaruji and he loudly yelled
out:

My team wouldve been able to handle it if we had been there! In the first place,
having such few members is his own problem! It must be because of some defect
in his character that he was unable to gather many members!

The rooms atmosphere became tense. As if to cool down the heat, an out-of-tune
fueee sounded out.

Lets end this discussion here. Everyone here didnt gather in order to argue
amongst yourselves, right?

Hearing the last fueee sound, Igavaruji sat down deflated. However he still held
eyes full of angst against Ainz. To this appearance, the two Guild Leaders
reluctantly shook their heads.
I can understand the feelings of those who value strength, but this is not the
main issue at this time. Wed better resolve the question quickly, alright?

Mayor, thank you.

Ah? Although I do not know why you wish to thank me, please continue. Truth be
told Im not too clear either about what is going on.

Very well. If it could be immediately reported then, it would have been better

Dont worry about it. I was also busy at the time dealing with a matter relating to
Stronoff-san.

Another fueee sounded out.

Then, addressing the main point

Before that, at least some basic etiquette is needed. Shouldnt you take off your
helmet?

With an ironic tone, Igavaruji once again interrupted. Even if it were justified, it
was still aggravating, and the other adventurers almost frowned.

It doesnt matter, what he said this time is correct, I have indeed been
disrespectful.

But when Ainz calmly removed his helmet, he revealed a fake face created with
magic. The appearance was ordinary, not that of a handsome man.

Because I come from a foreign country, in order to avoid trouble, Ive been
wearing my helmet. Please forgive my rudeness.

Che, a foreigner.

Give it a rest, Igavaruji. Adventurers who protect mankind from the threat of
monsters are not divided by country boundaries. Your outspoken complaints
against the guilds unwritten rules since its inception truly makes me ashamed as
a fellow adventurer.

Just as Igavaruji was about to interrupt with another rebuke, he realized everyone
present shared the same opinion, so he reluctantly remained quiet.

...Because I am an outsider, being treated with prejudice has been

commonplace.

Ainz statement made several people smile wryly. Igavarujis face changed color
out of anger, but when Ainz once again wore his helmet, there were no more
complaints.

Well then, I hope there are no more complications on that topic. I wish to
immediately tackle the main issue.

Because someone was late, I have yet to hear the contents.

I am very sorry about this, please forgive me.

Ainz lowered his head in a genuine apology. When he was an office worker, he
often had similar experiences where meetings would only begin after the boss
declared that all members were present, and as a result he was had to suppress
his urge to go home. Because of that he was truly able to relate to their feelings.

With his frank and honest apology, in stark contrast to the constantly cynical and
sarcastic Igavaruji, Ainz came out to be more noble. A sigh sounded out, causing
Igavarujis face to become more repulsive, because he understood that his own
self-evaluation had reached a new low.

However there was one person even more livid than Igavaruji.

...Enough of this. If there are more interruptions, get out of here.

That person was of course Issac. With his eyes full of anger and not even half of
the steadiness in his voice as earlier, the one he glared at was of course
Igavaruji.

Igavaruji gently bowed his head in apology.

Seeing the other sides candid movement, Ainz was puzzled. From the hostility
shown towards himself, it would not be surprising if at this moment Igavaruji
were to display an attitude similar to the rebellious nature of middle schoolers
towards their parents. Why then would he withdraw now?

After a brief moment of thought, Ainz arrived at a hypothetical conclusion.

At this gathering of mithril ranked adventurers, if one person was kicked out,
what kind of criticisms would he provoke? Even if the truth was let out, there
would still be the possibility that others would think he was chased out because

he was worthless. With this, his position amongst adventurers would plummet.
This should be the reason why he shut his mouth.

First a brief report. About two nights ago, adventurers patrolling the roads on the
outskirts of Re-Lantier came across a vampire. Of these adventurers who met the
vampire, five were killed. Everyones gathering this time is because of this.

After listening to the description of the vampires appearance, Ainz hopes were
easily shattered.
Due to being too afraid, the surviving adventurer only vaguely remembered the
vampires outfit, hair color and appearance. However, what remained was the
strong impression of a silver haired large mouth

Even if they only had a vague recollection of its appearance, anyone who knew
Shalltear and overheard this would quickly connect it with her. In his heart Ainz
was already certain of who the vampire was.

I dont know how the situation turned out like this, but I should better alter the
memories of those survivors. This isnt good, I have to quickly find an opportunity.

As Ainz furrowed his illusionary eyebrows, the discussion continued.

So thats how it is. Im not too clear on this incident either, but then explaining
solely for my sake would be too much a waste of everyones time, therefore if
there is another opportunity please allow me to listen, and I shall come ask you if
I have any further questions.

Understood. Then everybody, are there any questions?

Where is the concerned area?

Beyond the city's northern gate, you can find a large forest after walking for
three hours. It's just inside that forest.

What class were those adventurers?

Iron class.

... Please tell me, is it only because of a vampire that so many adventurers have
been gathered? Are we intended to use a bidding approach for this?

Thats right, if its vampires, platinum class adventurers should be sufficient to

handle it. right? I absolutely dont understand why so many mithril class
adventurers were called.

The reason is simple, that vampire is very powerful.

Rakesheer interrupted with his answer, and everyone showed surprise as they
looked at him.

A very powerful vampire?

Could you mean that the opponent is a higher class vampire the one who
appeared in the tale of the thirteen heroes, the vampire lord Landfall?

We dont know whether or not the opponent is that vampire lord, but when the
adventurers encountered the vampire, the opponent used the 3rd tier spell
Create Undead. What this means, I shouldnt have to explain to you
adventurers right?

There was nothing more to say. Not only that, their stiff expressions spoke
volumes.

Well I absolutely do not understand what it means. Can you explain it to

me?

I am really sorry, Mayor.

Being able to use magic of that kind of realm, if we were to make a simple
evaluation, we can treat the opponent as having platinum class capability.

Panasolei who roughly understood this explanation frowned.

That also goes to say I will stop talking in such a way.

The light in Panasoleis eyes sharpened, this was one of the changes that the
others felt. From the lazy, sloth-like expression just now, it became a savage wild
boar expression. No, this was Panasoleis true appearance.

In other words, Magician Guild Leader, your meaning is as such: a monster with
the strength rivaling a platinum team, has skills that match a platinum team as
well.

What you say is correct.

So simply put, it just got stronger?

Thinking about it in this way isnt wrong either.

If we consider in terms of military strength, what is the equivalent?

Military this question is rather difficult.

Rakesheer was vexed for a moment, then spoke.

This is roughly my personal way of viewing this. I should say this first, this view
is not absolute. If we take the opponent as an army for evaluation, undead do not
tire or require food grudgingly Id say it should be equivalent to about an army
size of ten thousand.

What did you say!

Hearing this conclusion, Panasolei let out a shocked expression, as if seeking the
opinions of the other adventurers. Apart from Ainz, the others nodded in
agreement with the Magician Guild Leaders statement.

Issac opened his mouth to indicate I will continue from what Theo said, and
as if receiving the baton from Rakesheer he proceeded to say:

Generally speaking, approximately twenty percent of the countrys adventurers

are above platinum ranking. Within the Kingdom there are about three thousand
adventurers, therefore in all of the Kingdoms lands which consists of more than
eight million inhabitants, there are only around six hundred adventurers of
platinum ranking or above. Do you understand this? Adventurers of platinum rank
or higher are that rare.

If its like this, even if I do not wish to understand, I already have. Then to
counter this situation, I would like to ask you adventurers. Do you have the
confidence to go ahead with the subjugation? If there is no way how about
seeking the assistance of Warrior Captain Gazef-san?

Gazef Stronoff the Kingdoms most powerful warrior, exceeding adamantium

class adventurers. He could be considered the Kingdoms final trump card.

However Issac immediately denied this.

Indeed, perhaps no warrior is able to defeat Stronoff-san. However in a situation

where Stronoff-san faced off against an adventurer team weaker than him, the
victor would be the adventurer team. This is because the adventurer team would
have different methods of attacking taking Stronoff-san for example, the
amount of magic and martial skills used by the adventurer team would be four
times that of Stronoff-san. Against a monster possessing special abilities, the
truth is that this difference is enormous.

Well

The best policy is to gather adamantium class and orichalcum class adventurers.
Before that, let us first allow this citys best adventurers to build a defensive net
to stop the vampires invasion.

Wouldnt this method be too passive?

Considering the worst possible development, this should be the best strategy.
After all, isnt the opponent a single person who is able to rival an entire army?

With a fighting power able to take on huge number of troops, scenes of terror in
all sorts of places would appear I honestly do not wish to imagine this
happening.
If the opponent was an army of ten thousand, their location could be easily
determined from the marching. Also, to maintain such a large army, it would be
necessary to prepare a large amount of rations, making it difficult to carry out a
long-term siege.

But then, if it were a single person situation, how would this change? Whats
more, if it were a person able to use different types of Invisibility magic,
specialising in covert actions?

However, about the Guild Leaders opinion, speaking as an adventurer I say that
establishing a defensive net is a very difficult task. This is because in order to
harmonise each others movements, long-term training is necessary...

No need for that, it is enough if everyone is able to fight together. What do you
think fellow gentlemen?

The adventurers immediately raised objections to the mayors suggestion.

It should not be possible. If we are to have a tacit arrangement for action, then it
is necessary to devise of a tight-knit operational plan. But the more detailed the
plan is, the more likely it is for mistakes to occur when unexpected situations
arise. If it is like that, everyone acting by themselves instead of together might
even be better. Speaking of which, why has the vampire appeared in that place?
What has the Guilds investigation come up with?

In this regard, because the opponent is an powerful vampire, the guild has no
means to investigate finer details. Just as we were about to assemble an
investigation group, the incident last night occurred, and our manpower was
dispersed there.

... So thats how it is. Are you concerned that these two incidents are related?

That is true.

Wasnt the matter in the cemetery resolved by Momon-san? From the remains
and relics of the first incidents instigators was there anything to suggest a
connection between the two incidents?

This question made the place fall into a brief silence.

Ainz was puzzled. Before this the Guild Leader never hesitated in answering, yet
for the first time his eyesight slightly turned towards the mayor. It was a askingfor-permission look. Just thinking about it a little, this could be related information
to a terrorist attack against the city, and it was possible that some information
but not all could be told to the adventurers.

From the relics we gathered that the opponent was Zuranon.

The three adventurers expressions turned serious.

But for Ainz, this was the first time he had heard of this name. He could not help
praying to a god he didnt even believed in, hoping that he wouldnt be asked
about things he knew nothing about.

Ignorance is frightening. I must gather intelligence as fast as possible.

The secret organisation which deals with controlling the undead. Then it must be
related to the vampire.

Problems arising at the same time both inside and outside the city is the
objective to divide our fighting force? Or both are diversions, and the real plan is
about to commence this would be too disastrous.

The priority of the task at hand should be to conduct reconnaissance. According

to the rangers reports, theres supposedly a bandits den close to the location
where the vampire had been discovered...

The possibility that the vampire has already left that place is high but then
again, the possibility of it still remaining there is not zero. People should be sent
there first

The adventurer who was speaking suddenly stopped talking.

It was only a natural reaction, because heading into the most likely place to find
the vampire for an investigation was tantamount to agreeing to jump into the
most dangerous place. If there actually was an encounter, and if the vampire
possessed the predicted battle prowess, it would be certain death.

The remarks just now was no different to politely asking someone to go to their
death.

...Let us put this aside for now. It is still more urgent to strengthen the city
defenses first, because perhaps the vampire has already at this moment snuck
inside the city.

... It is an easy feat to sneak inside the city just by using magic. This place is not
like the Empires capital with sky cavalry and magic casters patrolling
everywhere.

It was possible to use Flight to enter the city from the sky, and it was also
possible to use Invisibility to invade from the front. Magic was that
troublesome, therefore concentrating combat power and putting it into defense
first was a very natural idea.

But then it will be incredibly difficult to deal with a situation without any sort of
intelligence, therefore the cave should still be investigated first!

This extremely reasonable proposal gathered the collected approval of everyone

present.

This kind of situation was not favourable for Ainz.

It would be extremely disastrous if Shalltears current appearance was known by

others. Although it was uncertain why future developments there would be
beyond today, if Shalltears current appearance was well-known throughout the
city even the Kingdom, then it could become a great obstacle to behind-thescenes operations in the future.

Ainz thought desperately, but saw no other method to divert the course of events
towards another direction.

In the end there was only one method which would prevent Shalltears
appearance from being leaked out.

Ainz swallowed his saliva he couldnt have secreted, and said:

First, there has been a misconception. The vampire and Zuranon are unrelated.

Why? Momon-san, do you have some insider information?

I know that vampires name, because that vampire is the one I have been
chasing to kill all this time.

What?

The atmosphere in the room shook.

Ainz overclocked his brain thinking, in mental preparation for the main event that
was about to start.

That is an extremely powerful vampire. My true objective of becoming an

adventurer was to obtain information on them.

This was deliberately spread intelligence so that Issac would immediately take up
the bait.

Them? Momon-san, you said them?

Yes, two vampires, of which the silver haired female vampires name is

He suddenly stopped here. Originally he was about to say Carmilla, but female
vampires going by that name was just too common. If there were any players
around, this name would let them detect his own existence. At the moment he
hesitated in deciding what name, he suddenly got a stroke of inspiration, and
blurted out a name.

Henupenuty.

Hah?

He heard a stupefied question. However it was not just one person, but almost
everyone in unison.

...Its Henupenko.

Although it was a name he said himself, it felt like it was said differently from just
now. If anyone questioned on this point, he intended to insist that he pronounced
it wrong earlier.

Henupenu?

Its Henupenko.

Although he changed the female vampires names last syllable to -ko, just from
this name itself, no YGGDRASIL players should be able to detect that it was a
name he had came up with. Ainz felt full of confidence in this perfect name, and
smiled proudly under his helmet.

Is, is that so? Then that Henu. whatever! Since we know that female vampires
name isnt it about time for us to know your true identity? Which country are
you from?

Very sorry, now is still not the right time. I am charged with carrying out a
secret mission. If you were to find out, I will have to leave your country, and the
vampire will be yours to deal with. I do not wish to allow the matter to become a
country-to-country situation. Mayor, you should understand this right?

The mayor nodded slowly. Seeing this motion, Issac clenched his lips and glared
sharply at Ainz.

The Guild Leaders glare did not bother Ainz in the slightest, but to what extent
would they believe his lie? Were there any contradictions? Ainz was unsettled by
these two concerns, but pushing this restlessness aside, with a tone of anger not
permitting others to intervene Ainz continued to speak:

Let my team be responsible for the reconnaissance. If we discover the vampires

there, we shall exterminate them on site.
The dark warrior who arrived late decisively declared as such.

Although they could not see his face, they could clearly feel his confidence and
determination from the tone of his voice.

Pressure, making others mistaken that it was in fact the air itself shaking, cause
people to let out a gasp. All of the people present thought it was themselves
which made that noise.

T-then, the other teams

Unnecessary. I do not need any hindering burdens.

He interrupted the others proposal, gently waving his hand to indicate this.

This rude announcement was made with an arrogant attitude.

Facing adventurers of the same class, such demeanour was inappropriate.

However the adventurers present who had experienced hundreds of battles
felt that this attitude was not borne from narcissism, pride or arrogance, but from
cold calculation. At the same time he was also able to make such an assertion on
the basis of his true strength.

This man was extraordinary.

It felt as if the dark armor was expanding in front of their eyes, the growing
feeling of oppression, even the room had the illusion of becoming narrower. From
this man they sensed an aura whom they would forever not be able to catch up
with, for example that felt from an adamantium class adventurer.

This fellow could be called a hero.

Issac who could not resist remaining silent, took several deep breaths. No, every
person present did the same motion, and the mayor was even sweating,
loosening his collar.

As if whispering, Issac asked softly:

What about payment?

It is fine if this issue is discussed at a later time. However, until the completion
of this incident after the vampires are discovered to be exterminated, I hope to
at least be able to obtain orichalcum class, so that when searching for the other
vampire, my actions will be smoother, because having to prove my strength is
troublesome.

Suddenly all of the persons present made an understanding noise.

Adventurers neither work for cities nor countries, nonetheless until this date this
city had never had an orichalcum class adventurer. If he became this city's
highest ranking adventurer he would probably earn a lot of attention and
reputation. Moreover, being able to give the rare blessing of oricualcum class
would make this reputation spread further. Like this there would be more coming
to be entrusted with highly dangerous missions, which would in turn increase the
chances of receiving news on powerful vampires.

However, even if it could be accepted rationally, there was one man who couldnt
accept it on an emotional level.

A chair creaked. Looking towards the source of the sound it need not be said.
Of course it was the one who kept picking a bone with Ainz Igavaruji.

I cannot completely trust you. S-speaking of which, it isnt certain either that the
vampire is actually that powerful! Even if there was magic used to control
zombies, it could have been through the use of items. I wish to go too!

Even after being shocked, Igavaruji was still able to object, all because he held
unsatisfied hostile intent against Ainz, unwilling to admit to the extent of Ainz
true strength.

Perhaps it was displeasure towards his fellow adventurers attitude, Berette said
in a prickly tone:

Igavaruji, your attitude

No problem.

Ainz very simply agreed. However this was not out of well-meaning, since the
following words were extremely cold.

However, if you come along certain death? I do not know whether it will be a
complete elimination.

It was an extremely rational tone, not threatening nor joking. It was spoken like
he was decisively announcing to others his foreboding fate, causing Igavaruji to
shudder. No, not only Igavaruji, but also all persons present felt as if they were
encased by a cold biting wind.

Ainz gently shrugged:

Ive already given my warning. If you still do not mind then come along.

O-of course!

Although it was a bluff, he would not back down here, not like this. As a fellow
adventurer of the same class, how could he lose face in front of those who held
the power in this city.

Just as the two were butting heads, Issac who had regained his composure a little
asked Ainz:

Self-confidence is good, but how can you be so confident? Of course we are all
too clear about your exceeding strength, but from the evaluation of the
opponents strength, you should also know that this task is not that easy. We are
also concerned whether to entrust everything to you to handle. If in the unlikely
event that you are defeated, we also need to have a fallback planned out

Like a gunshot, Ainz immediately replied:

I have a trump card.

What is it?

Ainz took out a crystal from his bosom as a reply to the interested Issac.

...Cant be that! Impossible, hard to believe

The one who suddenly yelled out was Rakesheer. Panting, he continued:

I have often seen this in precious ancient books supposedly the Theocracy had
one of that kind, hailed as a treasure a magic item holding enormous power.
This is one of that kind a sealed magic crystal. Why would you have such a rare
item!?

Really amazing youre right. And sealed inside the crystal is a level eight
spell.

I must've misheard! What did you say!

Ainz reply made Rakesheer let out a cry, one so strange that even a chicken
being slaughtered would not make such a noise. His facial expression had also
contorted to the point it was quite terrifying.

The ones caught by surprise werent just Rakesheer but also all those present
no, apart from the mayor, everybody let out a stunned expression out of
astonishment and fear. Even adventurers with little experience would be able to
understand the meaning of Ainz words and the value of that item.

...Eighth rank that must be a concocted fabrication right?

...Perhaps it is a fantasy, but if it is that magic of that realm really it is at the

realm of myths.
Are you kidding? That is nonsense!

The three adventurerseven Igavaruji displayed a look of fear, staring at

the crystal on the dark gauntlet without peeling their eyes away.

Apologies in advance! T-that item, may I borrow it for a second?

Why?

That simply for the sake of a magic casters interest. I swear I will not make
any strange movements! If you need anything as collateral, I can give all items
on my body to you, for example this belt

Seeing Rakesheer who was already frantically removing his belt without finishing
his speech, Ainz who slightly couldnt bear this responded:

I know, there is no such need. Please have a look, here you go.

Sorry, may I also touch it?

Then I want too!

The sealed magic crystal was fumbled and passed around through many pairs of
hands until it finally landed Rakesheers hands. He who was the last to touch it,
stared at it with misty eyes, like a woman who obtained her long sought after,
precious jewel. No, perhaps it was even like a youth who had obtained a desired
item.

Too beautiful right, Momon-san, may I cast magic on it?

Seeing Ainz wave his hand in agreement, Rakesheer delightedly activated the
magic.

Appraise Magic Item, Detect Enchant.

Activating two types of magic, the mans expression gradually became

exaggerated, followed by

Incredible!

The masculinity exuded earlier was completely gone. With innocent eyes,
sparkling with pure delight, and also a different tone of voice, he looked like an
overjoyed teenager.

Its true! Sealed inside is indeed a spell of the 8th rank! My magic is only able to
see this little but it is already magnificent, too magnificent!
He was continuously howling like he was a lunatic, stunning everyone present at
the scene. The next movement Rakesheer made was to take the crystal, licking it
all over, then rubbing it against his cheekit was simply crazy behaviour.

C-calm down! What are you doing!

Frightened by his friend who was not the type to show such mad behaviour, Issac
stood up and got closer to Rakesheer. In fact, everybody looked upon him with
either amazed or insufferable eyes. For a man holding a key position in this city
to do such an action, it was just too difficult to see.

Bastard! How can I calm down? This is just too magnificent! Sealed inside here
really is an 8th tier! Although there is no way to know what kind of spell it is!

Rakesheer could not hold in his excitement, gazing at the crystal with shining
eyes. Soon he finally regained a little rationality, and asked Ainz:

Momon-san! W-where was this crystal found? Tell me quickly!

It was found in some ruins, at the same time as many other items were
discovered. Of course the magic was already sealed inside this crystal at the
time. Ive already had several great magic casters determine this.

So its like that! W-where are these ruins?

In a very faraway place Thats all I can tell you.

Of course, this answer of Ainz made Rakesheer clench his lips in regret.

Well, isnt it about time to return it to me?

Woo...ooo.

Rakesheer looked all around, and reluctantly returned the sealed magic crystal to
Ainz. Squinting while he watched Ainz pick up parchment to wipe the crystal,
Rakesheer shouted out loudly:

Back to the main topic, I object to Momon-san going ahead to exterminate

the vampire!

A surprised silence enveloped the scene. Issac covered his face with his palm, but
just to be certain, asked with a bitter expression:

... Why this sudden objection? Although the reason is obvious even without
asking Im still asking tentatively.

Well...because...because it would be too great of a waste

Absolutely crazy. Issac determined his friends current mental state to be such,
and ignored him completely.

Well then, we can ignore Rakesheers opinion

One moment! The eighth tier really is magic in the mythical realm. Such a
priceless item will be used on a mere vampire!

Anger surfaced on Issacs eyes. It was already intolerance beyond words, not an
attitude that one in a high position ought to have.

Issac repressed his wrath and told Rakesheer in a level voice:

... Sorry, Rakesheer. Really, dont make a scene anymore.

The strong emotions implicit in this sentence pulled Rakesheer back into
rationality and speechlessness. His face was flushed red because of his shameful
actions earlier.

Squinting to confirm that his friend was once again back to normality, Issac did
his best to remain calm as he made an official request:

...Well, Momon-san, I shall entrust all of this to you.

Seeing the other side bow as he made this request, Ainz nodded full of
confidence.

Understood. After saying this sentence, he looked through the slit in his helmet
at Igavaruji.

We will be immediately departing immediately, since a vampires penalty under

sunlight is slowed movement.

Penalty? Hey, its their weakness. Indeed, their actions would be slower. I can be
prepared in a short amount of time on my side.

...No need to discuss this with your companions?

Not a problem. They would understand.

... Is that so. Well then, meet you at the Re-Lantiers main gate in an hour.
An hour? Would it be too early? There is still plenty of time before sunset.
I want to rush over there quickly. If you reckon that your courage is lacking, and
need some time to steady your resolve, then I will leave you here and go by
myself. Do you have anything to say?

Got it, Ill immediately start preparing.

He spoke in a clear and loud voice, making Igavaruji give a straightforward

agreement and subsequently got up. Ainz coldly looked at Igavarujis departing
back then turned to survey the crowd remaining in the room.

Then I shall immediately depart. I hope that the others are able to protect Relantier well. I dont wish to find a prickly situation when I return not having
encountered the vampire.

Ah, although we cannot guarantee that there will be completely no problems,

but we will do our very best. If you encounter danger, please retreat as well.

Ainz nodded then left the room.

There were three people left behind in room: Panasolei, Issac and Rakesheer who
was portraying a longing expression.

Allowing everyone to see my embarrassing appearance, I am really sorry.

Not really, relax.

Panasolei had a wry smile as he replied to Rakesheers apology. However,

everyones evaluation of Rakesheer had significantly changed.

Rakesheer himself also felt quite useless. But even so, he still found it difficult to
conceal his look of exhilaration.

Before, when he had encountered the pharmacist Lizzie, she was animatedly
discussing the matter with the potion. Seeing that jubilant appearance, with cold
eyes Rakasheer himself had questioned whether it was necessary to be so
overjoyed about that kind of thing. Right now he was filled with the urge to laugh
at the feelings he had at that time.

He understood. When something appeared in front of his eyes which he could not
possibly obtain, anyone would find it hopeless to repress their hearts amazement
and touched emotions.

Was the item precious to that degree?

Rakesheer was silent for a moment. That was to repress the teenager-like
emotion that surfaced earlier.

Yes. That item could have significantly overturned all past knowledge and
everything magic-related. In truth, magic beyond the sixth tier is only legend.
However, that just now was the first time I had witnessed it.

Different types of magic called magic tiers supposedly first appeared in this
world six hundred or five hundred years ago. Although afterwards several magic
casters appeared which were hailed as heroes, but of those heroes who were able
to use seventh tier magic and above, apart from the thirteen heroes, the others
were rumours.

Amongst hero legends, there was a hero which used a magic which made others
wish to decisively say that it couldnt be done even if you use spells above the
seventh tier. But it was generally agreed that it was a story without evidence?
Also whether the thirteen heroes actually cast seventh tier magic and above was
also dubious.

But then

Rakesheer thought to himself, perhaps not all of those hero tales were fiction. He
put this event firmly in his heart, and told himself to remember investigating this
in his free time.

For example, wielding the Branch of Tonelico, the goblin king who destroyed
countless dragons; the winged hero able to soar in the sky for a long period of
time; the magic warrior riding a Tri-headed Dragon; and the princess who, along
with her twelve loyal knights, ruled over the Crystal Palace, among others.

Well, can we trust him completely?

The one Panasoleii was talking about, was without doubt Ainz.

A potion taken from the hand of an adventurer wearing black armor, and
throwing this vial of potion against the vampire to make the opponent retreat
this was the testimony of the surviving adventurers.

Therefore they came to this citys most prominent pharmacist Lizzie to enquire
about the effects of the potion. The conclusion was that it was an item almost as
rare as the sealed magic crystal just now.

If there was only one rare item, others would feel suspicious, but if there were
two, others would want to know who crafted it. But then, why did the vampire
stop its attack?

There were two possibilities. The first was related to enmity, the other was
abiding by a mutual alliance. That was why it was necessary to consider the
possibility that Momons earlier information and this was possibly connected.
Momon the adventurers sudden appearance along with the vampire, was there
really a hostile relationship between the two?

Could he be working together with the vampire?

This was his area of concern. The three people thought back to the man Momon
and what he said earlier.

This possibility is very low. What do you think Rakesheer?

I am of the same view. There are better methods if he wants to pretend that he
killed the vampire and then send that female vampire into hiding.

Even if assuming he was working with the vampire, what Momon said just now
would not be to his benefit.

Would his objective be to become an orichalcum adventurer?

That shouldnt be the case, mayor. Adventurers do enjoy fame and popularity,
but it is a long distance from having power. What would be the benefits after
becoming orichalcum? Issac.

...It would be possible to receive better paid commissioned work, and the
reputation would be higher. With luck, it would even be possible to receive an
official position with good conditions however these are pretty much all of the
benefits. If he wanted to gain power, other methods would still be faster.

The deep impression that adventurers gave to others was that of professional
mercenaries in the business of exterminating monsters. Indeed, perhaps it was
possible to become the Leader of the Adventurers Guild, but it would be
impossible to climb up to a position able to influence the Kingdoms politics.

If he wanted money, all he would have to do was sell off that crystal and he
would not have to worry about food or clothing for the rest of his life. With
strength like his, it would also be possible to inflate his reputation rapidly. In
truth, it seems that there are already a portion of the guards who refer to him as
a hero from legends.

Panasoleii nodded in agreement.

Defeating the towering large number of undead in one move, unstoppably

breaking through the densely packed countless undead, that act of heroism truly
was befitting of being named a genuine hero.

This was the word of mouth evaluation of the guards that witnessed Momons
battle heroism. They even swore with their hands on their heart that if only he
were present, there was absolutely no need to fear any monster.

Having said that, or quite unfortunately, there isnt any conclusive evidence
which can prove that he is trustworthy. However, Momon-sans rhetoric does not
contain any inconsistencies, and furthermore, if he was the enemy why would he
take out the sealed magic crystal for us to see? That is why we ought to place our
faith in him.

Rakesheers words made the other two people show sour faces. It was clearly
written on these faces that having seen the maniacal behaviour earlier, his
opinion was hardly convincing.

Mayor, Isaac both of you dont trust Momon-sans motives because he

appeared out of nowhere, and when he did the vampire seemed to do the same,
right? However, I believe Momon-sans words were already a sufficient
explanation.

Both men nodded at the same time, indicating that it was correct.

There is also the matter of the vampire stopping its assault on the female
adventurer upon seeing Momon-sans rare potion. If the vampire was chased all
the way here by Momon-san, that also makes sense. Even more so, the female
adventurer did not die, which could also be because the vampire wanted to let
Momon-san know of its presence here, and deliberately spared the female
adventurers life.

So thats how it is letting Momon-san believe it was nearby, effectively

trapping him here. Because the female adventurer possessed the potion, the
vampire figured out that she had a connection with Momon-san and let her go, in
order to let the news of her presence disseminate faster. No contradictions

... Considering Momon-sans unrelenting pursuit of that vampire it is really

difficult to feel happy about him coming here.

Correct mayor. However, although we still do not know which country or of what
religion he is from, it is still better to treat him nicely before he defeats the
vampire, whilst we also increase our preparations at the same time. Although I
personally think that we do not need such suspicion ho ho, I really wish to talk
about items with Momon-san. That armor seems to be quite valuable as well.

...Speaking of Momon-san, ah yes mayor, what of Zuranons corpse?

We do not know where they have gone.

The mayor answered with a grimace.

The miserable corpses defeated by Ainz were placed in the safe care of the
guards, but after daylight, they suddenly disappeared. Although it was speculated
that someone invaded and snatched them away, the guards hadnt been
attacked and nobody saw any suspicious figures.

In order to prevent the transmission of magic, the place was created using a
method which blocked the transmission of magic, which could be described as a
kind of secret room. Therefore even the invaders invasion pathway was
unknown, and had simply disappeared like a wisp of smoke.

There were secret investigations still being carried out inside the city, but no
related trails were found. The possibility of finding anything from this point
onwards was zero. This also meant to say that any possible connections which
could be discovered from the dead bodies had already ceased to exist.

That man who conducted the undead ritual, could he have turned into an
undead and escaped?

...That possibility cannot be entirely refuted.

This really is frustrating, and the forensics were not complete is the secret
shrine under the spirit temple the only thing left that may still have a clue? It
would be great if there is any evidence left behind there.

Hearing you mention this, it seems that Momon-san did not go inside there. If
any valuable items of unknown origin are discovered there, can we give it to
him?

Ah. If those items and their ritual is moved aside, just adhere to the adventurer
rules and hand them to Momon-san.

Part 4

Ainz sprinted along the street.

Warm air rushed through the helmets gap, blowing into the spot where his eyes
were. If he had eyeballs, perhaps he would be blinking non-stop, but since Ainz
lacked organs he only felt that some wind was blowing.

Looking down, the ground flew by as fast as an arrow. Maybe it was because the
distance from the ground was small, or because of other reasons, but the feeling
was faster than the actual speed being travelled at, although having said that it
was not terrifying in the least. Every time the body sprung up, like reflex there
would be increased strength exerted below the feet.

Despite the fact that Hamusuke was adept at maintaining his balance, apart from
the humongous size, it was basically a hamster. It was also quite a difficult mount
to ride because Ainz had to spread his legs very wide, and this unstable posture
had to be maintained without the assistance of a saddle or horse armor. Even
Ainz, who had superior balance over other people, had to be careful not to fall off.

It would be quite difficult to draw swords while riding Hamusuke. Perhaps I should
make a saddle and stirrups for him as soon as possible. When I am crafting this,
perhaps a nearby armor blacksmith might come and help with its preparation.

What made Ainz think this, apart from the unstable ride, was more importantly
because of the figure moving parallel to him.

Riding parallel to him on horseback was Narberal. She was riding on top of a
giant horse donned with a heavy metal armor, summoned by the item Statue of
Animal - War Horse.

The heroic sight of Narberal skillfully controlling the giant horse as they sprinted
along the road was awe inspiring. Her upright figure, ponytail swaying with the
wind, and coffee coloured gown billowing because of strong winds from the front,
looked just like a scene out of a movie.

The difference was like heaven and earth compared to himself, who was riding an
overgrown hamster. Feeling depressed, he looked forward and saw a group of
men.

It was a four-man group. The armor they wore was more complete than the
Swords of Darkness members with whom Ainz journeyed together with before.

Ainz pushed the incident with the Swords of Darkness to the back of his
memories, freed himself from his tangled thoughts and looked at the four men on
horseback in a trance.

Majestic horses.

Ainz did not have much knowledge of horses, but that horse coat was a beautiful
shade of colour, and the body shape looked quite sturdy. It should be some kind
of famous horse.

The four men on horseback rode in an isosceles triangle formation, also like in a
film scene.

I am so very stupid, looking like a moron riding Hamusuke.

His mood was dismal, but only Ainz had this feeling.

The monster you ride is quite amazing.

One of Igavarujis companions who was riding alongside spoke to Ainz. The tone
was different from Igavarujis, lacking hostility. Perhaps it was because of an
adventurers curious nature that was stimulated, that the tone was filled with
wonder and curiosity.

What is that monster called? Is it famous?

... Its called the Virtuous King of the Forest.

Huh? What? Thats the monster in legends!

The man shouted out with wide eyes.

I still cannot get used to this reaction. Is there a need for such a fuss over a
hamster.... ah?

In the corner of Ainz vision, he saw Hamusuke pridefully sway its beard and
twitch its ears. A stronger momentum was transmitted from the waist. He had
half of his attention turned towards the conversation between Ainz and the
others.

After Ainz used his gauntlet to mercilessly chopped at Hamusukes head, he

heard a deeply emotional voice.

No, its just that Igavaruji mentioned it before so thats how it is. He was
jealous.

How did he describe me? Ah, never mind. Its fine if you dont say. I can roughly
guess just by looking at your expression.

Hahaha, sorry. That fellow isnt actually that bad. Its just that sometimes he
covets immediate interests.

...With that kind of companion, your group is lucky to remain unharmed so far.
Or is it that your group has changed many members?

No, ever since this group was formed there has not been any member who was
discarded. Because that fellows personality and his capability are not on par, he
is still quite an outstanding adventurer.

Outstandinghuh.

Ainz turned to look at Igavaruji and saw a pair of sharp eyes filled with hostile
intent.

Must be hard.

After Ainz smiled as he threw out this statement, he lightly raised his hand as a
signal to Narberal, commanding her to repress her gradually emerging emotions
towards Igavaruji. Ainz did not wish to start a dispute here, as there were more
important matters which needed to be dealt with.

Hamusuke raised his head and looked over after Ainz indicated to Narberal.

Master...my head hurts

Those raven black eyes glistened with tears.

He felt a little guilt. Perhaps his chop earlier was too forceful, but then again if he
were thrown down at this speed, it wouldnt be good.

Even if he hit the ground vigorously, Ainz would not suffer the slightest injury. He
had conducted experiments using servants with damage mitigating powers like
himself, and had felt no pain even when falling from a height of a thousand
meters.

The problem were the companions who would feel suspicious about such a sturdy
Ainz. Since he had already permitted them to accompany him to this point, he
hoped to likewise handle the matter to the end. Ainz wish was sincere and
without hypocrisy.

Run more steadily. I do not wish to forcefully clamp onto your body.

Understood, master is concerned for this subordinates body condition right?!

This time Hamusuke welled up with emotional tears. At the moment Ainz ordered
him to watch the road when running, Igavarujis companion from earlier felt
impressed again and praised:

Oh, incredible, maintaining such a position while keeping balance. Even if you
pre-empt and counterbalance, isnt this position quite dangerous?

Its because Im used to it anyhow I plan to install a saddle later.

Saddle...is a little detested of course I am joking! If it is masters opinion, this

Hamusuke shall obey without objection!

Enveloped by Narberals sharp gaze, Hamusuke desperately exhibited a loyal

appearance. Ainz felt a tremor from his waist, a different vibration feeling from
sprinting.

Ainz furrowed his brows on his illusionary face under the helmet.

There was no need to use murderous intent to frighten a mere hamster? This
degree of loyalty is delightful, but could it have gone too far? Discrimination
against humans is fine, but it is necessary to be aware of the time and place
she doesnt appear to fully comprehend this part are her settings like this? If
thats the case then it cant be helped, but still...

Merely bringing Hamusuke along for the action had already made the name and
fame of Momon the adventurer well known, and the Virtuous King of the Forests
loyal appearance as well as its terrified behavior gave two different impressions
to others. The former let others believe that Ainz was a great adventurer which
was evaluated well. Although he was controlling Hamusuke in both cases, as long
as there was an opportunity Ainz would prefer to grow his reputation into that
direction. This was because he wished to quickly obtain the title of Hero and not a
ruthless person.

Furthermore, obtaining allegiance from those outside of Nazarick would definitely

be useful in the future.

Ainz reflected on his own actions slightly. Perhaps he was too rough in his
treatment of Hamusuke, therefore he gently stroked the area where he had
chopped earlier tenderly like he would to a small animal.

Master...its really embarrassing

Ainz clearly heard the sound of gnashing teeth nearby, mingled amongst the
sound of galloping horses.

....It's partly your fault too, you know? Speaking of which, you were too forceful,
apparently out of jealousy? Would it be better to have her do something else?
Narberal is also very loyal, but what kind of reward should I give her?

Just as Ainz troubling himself not knowing whether to give a ring or a treasure,
Igavaruji let out an unfriendly voice.

Hey, Momon, weve already reached the destination.

After indicating understanding, Hamusuke followed by slowly reducing in speed.

Different from horses, being able to communicate directly with Hamusuke was his
greatest strength as a mount. If he were riding a horse, Ainz who lacked
experience, would not have the confidence to handle it easily.

Riding Hamusuke is certainly a bit embarrassing, but I am also quite fortunate

that because of this, I dont have to be riding a horse. However, in the future
there may be an occasion when I need to ride on horseback. To cope with that
contingency, its still better that I train horseback riding.

Ainz jumped down from Hamusuke. After stroking him with the intent of
expressing gratitude, Ainz saw Narberal turn the horse back into a statue, and
the men leading the horses to one side.

Then, lets be off. What kind of formation do you want when entering?

We walk in front, you people follow from behind.

We wont mind whatever you want to do, but please show concern for us and be
careful in your movements.

After hearing Igavarujis impatient response, Ainz took Narberal and Hamusuke
into the forest.

Just like the forest near Carne Village, this deserted forest was extremely difficult
to traverse in. However for Ainz who was equipped with various kinds of magical
items, it was as if it were flat ground. Also, because he was worried about
Shalltear, his footsteps naturally increased speed continuously, and at times even
Igavaruji had to request slowing down the pace.

Even if his requests were justified, the profanities used were full of hostility.
Narberal who followed on one side almost shouted out in accusation several
times, but was blocked by Ainz on every occasion.

Were arriving soon. Do not act rashly.

Seeing Narberals wondrous expression made Ainz smile from under his helmet.
At this moment Hamusuke felt that something wasnt right, and continuously
moved his ears as if trying to clearly locate the source of a sound.

Ainz, who knew the reason Hamusuke showed such a reaction, whispered in his
ear:

Stop listening.

What? Master, what are you saying

If what you are hearing is a metallic sound, thats just the noise I am
making with my hand. Pay no attention to it.

Y-yes, so thats what it is. Forgive me for being rude, master.

Then, apart from that, have you discovered any signs of tracking?

He had already ordered Niguredo to monitor, and in addition had taken many
precautions, but still just for insurance he still asked for confirmation.

None. In addition, it seems that nobody is tracking.

Hey has something happened?

The man who was riding beside Ainz before probed with his question. It was not
the group representative Igavaruji who came over to ask, for obvious reasons
which need not be spoken.

Ainz gave his hand a gentle wave, responding to the other side that there was
nothing.

Is that so?

The man had a look which showed that he did not accept this answer, shrugged
and remained silent after knowing that Ainz had no intention to speak.

Even though I harbour no hatred at all towards you people.

Ainz did not say anything, only whispering this in his heart and silently advanced
through the forest.

After journeying some distance into the forest, the sound of successively and
hastily unsheathing of weapons suddenly came from the back. Ainz stopped his
steps and leisurely looked behind.

What is it?

Still asking that? If youre walking in front, at least you ought to be a little on
alert.

For the first time, the men showed an endorsed attitude towards Igavarujis tone
filled with hostility.

Hey! You fellows hiding over there. Come out slowly!

In the direction which Igavaruji shouted at, there was a tree sizeable enough to
allow a person to hide behind.

In this tense atmosphere, Ainz calmly walked towards the direction of the tree.
Although there were panicked voices calling Ainz from behind, he completely
ignored them.

Narberal had an unworried expression. Although Hamusuke felt some doubt, he

did not stop.

As if in response to Ainz approaching near the tree, a person wearing the same
coloured armor as Ainz revealed himself from behind the tree. In its hand, the
figure wielded a large battleaxe which emitted a weak sickly glow.

The appearance of a warrior full of vigor shrouded the entire scene with a strange
atmosphere. No, it would be more correct to say that only a part of the place was
shrouded in the strange atmosphere.

Ainz lightly raised his hand, gave it a wave and greeted:

Thanks for the hard work.

Thank you, Ainz-sama.

The person who appeared, Albedo, respectfully curtseyed.

Then, Shalltear

Who the heck is she? Is she your companion? And whats with Ainz-sama?

This loud barrage of questions came in succession from behind Ainz.

To Igavaruji and the others, this was a natural reaction, but to Albedo who was
maintaining an elegant curtsey, it was an offence which even death would not

atone for it. An anger so fierce it would burn the surroundings to cinders burst
out.

Hamusuke started shivering, his entire bodys fur stood up, surpassing previous
levels.

The third party also displayed this reaction. Towards the angered individual, of
course his face was deathly pale, and his forehead was drenched in sweat as he
felt that at any moment now his life was not guaranteed.

Allow me to introduce to everybody my companion Albedo.

Ainz-sama, to even call someone like me a companion I am your faithful

servant.

Now that you say it, yes. I withdraw my earlier statement; she is my
subordinate. Is this sufficient to answer your question? Then Albedo, proceed in
accordance with our earlier communication and take the next step.

While the men were all stunned, Albedo got up and walked towards them.

I almost forgot, my name is not Momon, my real name is Ainz. Not that you need
to remember it.

Seeing the men not hesitating to show their confused expressions made Albedo
give out a cute smile. However that smile came with a cold emotion.

So then Albedo, get rid of them. Only capture one man...no, catch one more to
act as backup. Interference has already been activated, so you can rest assured
that there will be no use of magic communication.

While Ainz impartial calm voice made Igavarujis men feel inexplicable dismay,
Ainz continued to command:

Also bring the corpses back to Nazarick. If they have such strength, they could
be used for experimentation to see if it is an intermediary for creating higherlevel undead.

Understood.

Albedo slowly and lightly swung the giant axe.

This movement was not coupled with killing intent, nor was there any hostility or
other negative emotions.

It was a natural movement, because to Albedo, to behead such beings was just
like chopping the leaves off carrots.

If it were not for Ainz command, perhaps she would not even wield the weapon
and would still be able to confirm her own condition as unharmed.

Igavarujis men could not make heads nor tails of the current situation, but
knowing that they faced a crisis, they all took up their arms for combat.

Shrouded by alarmed gazes, Ainz merely gave a slight shrug.

My fault. What I said in the Guild was incorrect: rather than death is certain if
you follow me, I actually meant come along and I shall slaughter the lot of you.

Ainz pronounced a death sentence towards the crowd of men.

I had already given my warning, but you would not listen. Therefore this is the
result of your own choice. Please willingly accept your fate.

Igavarujis group chose to retreat.

Their immediate decision to escape without making any prior communications of

opinion nor hand gestures was because they all understood the difference in
strength. Furthermore, their choice was not to escape together, but to separate
and flee for the highest probability of survival.

The opponents movements appeared to be beyond Albedos calculations, so she

began to move after a brief moment of delay. Even if her physical abilities

exceeded Ainz by far, it would still be tricky to defeat enemies about to escape
into the forest with one clean sweep.

She instantly caught up to her first target, using a capturing skill to make the
opponent faint.

Albedo used her keen sense of hearing to grasp the constant metal sound in the
distance mixed in with the screams of the person who had fainted. However,
because the line of sight was blocked off by the trees in the forest, it was difficult
to confirm the location. In addition, the men who wore no metal armor made, at
most, the sound footsteps upon grass and wood. Therefore it was much harder
for Albedo who lacked the guerilla fighter and thief jobs.

Albedo shook her head and sighed, then ordered:

Mare, dispose the body. Ah, right, remember to get rid of the fellow who was
discourteous to Ainz-sama.

Igavaruji bolted desperately.

At the Guild meeting, he had already figured out early on that the man Momon
was an adventurer stronger than himself, but Igavaruji was still reluctant to admit
this fact.

But then, witnessing him riding the monster the majestic appearance of the
great monster from nearby ancient legends, the Virtuous King of the Forest, he
could only admit even if he was unwilling. To have the strength to tame a
monster like that, he was certainly beyond the strength of mithril class.

After knowing that everyones discussion in the room back then was true,
Igavaruji was filled with rage.

I don't know which country you're famous in, but don't get in our way. If you want
information, I'll give it to you. So shut up and go elsewhere.

His own territory was invaded These were Igavarujis actual thoughts.

To realize his own dream, he relentlessly strengthened his body, experiencing

numerous adventures where he narrowly escaped from certain death in order to
slowly climb up class ranks, yet to have someone from the side leap over many
classes. Of course this would make others feel dissatisfied.

If an opportunity presented itself, he would kick him off the ladder, and even
spread false rumours to destroy others evaluation of him. It was only because of
this attempt that Igavaruji decided to travel with him.

As such, when Momons companion cladded in dark armor appeared, wanting to

slaughter Igavarujis group, he was able to choose to retreat without hesitation.
Even in fear he was still able to take action faster than any other person, because
he driven by the malicious thought of reporting Momon no, Ainz bad news to
the Guild as soon as possible.

You deserve this. I will definitely make it back alive, and make public all that you
have done!

Even knowing that in this moment, that terrifying weapon could chop downwards
from behind Even knowing that his life could be in danger, Igavaruji
concealed his internal feelings and let out a jeer.

He was completely regardless of his companions survival. No, if they became

meat shields to allow his own survival, that would be all the better.

I want to be the number one, then obtain orichalcum class, adamantium class,
and become a hero everyone speaks of.

Apart from himself, there was no need for any other powerful individuals.
Companions were all stepping stones for him to reach the peak. He would
become a hero which saved the world just like the thirteen heroes in the past.
This was the dream Igavaruji had after listening to the hero legends from the
bard visiting the village.

Destroying this dream, and surpassing his group. It was even more unforgivable
especially because he was the kind of person who would do odd jobs.

Run, run, and run.

Being able to continuously run through the forest without running out of breath, it
was truly fit to call Igavaruji a mithril class adventurer.

However

Igavaruji faltered. A ripple was made in his heart, and quite a large one too.

Where is this place? I feared that they placed an ambush so I should have
detoured...huh?

Igavarujis sense of direction told him that he was correct, however, his sixth
sense indicated otherwise. Even if it was his first visit to this forest, he could not
have become lost. Yet for unknown reasons, he found himself not knowing where
he was..

My senses must be wrong.

He determined that this was the case. However, he did not feel that his senses
were wrong at all. It was ominous but he had no choice but to accept it.

...Am I lost? How can that be possible for a Forest Stalker like me to become
lost?

Igavarujis learned job was ranger, specialised in field operations. That also
meant to say that forests were like his backyard. However, now an inexplicable
unfamiliar feeling surfaced, as if this forest had transformed into the bloody
gaping mouth of a carnivorous beast.

Its just like a maze

The supposedly familiar forest now appeared to have changed tremendously,

making him feel unease and anxiety from the bottom of his heart.

At this moment

A slight rustling sound could be heard.

Recalling the black executioner from earlier, Igavaruji frantically turned his head
around to look at the source of the sound, and saw a child peering out from
behind a tree.

It was a dark elf, a close relative of the forest elves, a race which lived in the
depths of the forest.

Why would there be a dark elf here?

According to rumours, the dark elves large village was located in the depths of a
huge forest further south, a place never visited before by humans. Dark elves
were basically like that, supposedly living far away from civilisation. In this
regard, they were vastly different from the forest elves who would trade with
humans.

It gave off a strange vibe that such a dark elf, and a child on top of that, would
appear alone, making Igavaruji feel suspicion. At this moment, the child came out
timidly.

Ah, its a girl.

Wearing a female outfit, a frightened expression surfaced on that incomparably

beautiful appearance, stimulating Igavarujis abusive desires. Although the
thought that this girl was sent over by Momon had crossed his mind, the disparity
in attitude between the two was just too great, therefore he felt that it was an
impossibility and laughed.

More importantly, if this girl was a dark elf of this forest, it must know a safe
route. Even if the black armored woman chased him, he could also use this girl to
act as a meat shield. With this in mind, and figuring that intimidation was
necessary to ensure her obedience, Igavaruji took a step forward.

... Hey.

He intentionally let out a deep intimidating voice, frightening the dark elf into
taking a step backwards:

That, s-sorry

Seeing that battled frightened appearance caused Igavaruji to let out a sneer,
feeling that his plan should be carried out smoothly.

No need to apologise. Theres just something I wish to ask you, so come here for
a second.

Uh...uh, uh, that s-sorry.

Not knowing why the other side apologised again, Igavaruji was baffled, but the
sandalwood wand in the hands of the dark elf girl was already being swung
towards him.

Like chains, Igavarujis entire body was tightly bound by plants.

He was alarmed to the point that his entire body was trembling.

He was a mithril class, yet unable to block the magic cast by this girl?

Even if he used his entire strength to fight free, the plant did not budge one inch.
Filled with anxiety, Igavaruji yelled out as a bluff:

You sh-shitty girl! If you dont let me go, I will kill you! Hey!

The dark elf gingerly lowered its head and walked towards Igavaruji.

It was at this moment that Igavaruji realised that the other sides dress was no
trivial item. The clothing and armor was quite amazing, almost like excellent
goods which Igavaruji would never ever receive. In addition, from her eyes
the memory of his forest elf friends words once again dreamily came to mind.

Except, just before this memory was fully formed, a shadow fell across his face.

The girl forcefully waved her wand downwards.

The girls face still had a frightened expression, but the eyes did not carry any
emotion. There was no feeling whatsoever towards what was about to happen to
Igavaruji. That timid attitude looked like it was a performance being instructed by
others.

He mentally associated this girl and the demonic black armored woman from
earlier.

W-wait a moment! What are you planning

Albedo arrived just as Mares wand descended on the mans head. The helmet hit
by the wand deformed, and the skull underneath had also formed a depressed
crevice, with the eyeballs squeezed out because of the powerful impact. The skull
was completely smashed, just like playing watermelon bashing by the beachside
in summer.
TL: This is an activity called Suikawari in Japan.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suikawari

Youve worked hard.

T-that, Albedo-sama, i-its done w-was it alright?

Albedo, who took off her helmet, smiled at Mare who had timidly raised his gaze.

Excellent. Although the execution method was a bit messy, it was completely
fine. Ainz-sama should also praise you.

R-really! Hehehehe.

After the overjoyed smiling dark elf gave a glance at the corpse, Albedo asked:

What about the last person?

Ah, t-that has already been resolved. T-the corpse was moved behind the
trees.

I see. Beautifully done. Then, Mare, can you help me transport the corpses back
to Nazarick?

U-understood.

Albedo smiled again to the grinning and nodding youth who was holding the
bloodied wand. He honestly was a good kid.

However, it would be better if he were a little more graceful.

Part 5

Its been taken care of, Ainz-sama.

Ainz nodded in satisfaction after hearing this from Albedo, who had removed her
helmet and was carrying it at her waist as she walked over. With this, there would
be no witnesses left regarding the matter with Shalltear. Lifting the shackles of
the armor, Ainz relaxed and asked Albedo:

Youve worked hard. What is the status of the recovery?

Mare has already been ordered to transport it back to Nazarick.

I see. Then the problem is solved. May those who were killed by the vampire rest
in peace, we, the survivors, shall have to restrain our grief and carry on.

Understood. Ainz-sama what what is that thing clutching onto the hem of your
cloak?

Ainz turned to look, and discovered Hamusuke grabbing onto the hem of his
cloak. It did so naturally, a face that was too large to be trying to hide behind
him, but it was odd how fitting it looked. Those large eyes were evidently
moist, and its fur was also erect out of fear. Of course, the object of fear was
Albedo.

This is Hamusuke. It is sort of like my pet.

What! This thing managed to obtain the most coveted position of Nazarick?!

...Huh? ...Ah, Hamusuke. This person is my loyal Albedo, in charge of managing

my residence, the Great Tomb of Nazarick. She is also your superior. Do greet
her.

Just as master said, this humble servant is Hamusuke. Please take care of me
from now on, Albedo-sama.

...Pleased to meet you too, Hamusuke.

Great. With that, lets wrap up the greetings. From here on, Albedo and I shall
proceed forward. Narberal, bring Hamusuke and Mare back to Nazarick and
treat the thing I put in your mouth carefully.

Yes!

Narberal answered in high spirits. Hamusuke rolled the sentient item retrieved
from the cemetery around his mouth and mumbled to Narberal:

U-understood master. Also, this item is noisy! I also have more important
matters to ask, can you calm down in my mouth for a bit? Then, your humble
servant would like to ask a question Narberal-sama, will this humble servant be
in danger? Will this one be eaten?

Since you are apparently Ainz-samas pet, of course no one will devour you
without permission under any circumstances. Do not worry, I will convey this to
everyone.

Ainz face had not moved, but he was smiling. It seemed that after the two of
them had worked together in Re-Lantier, their relationship had improved.

Good. Then we shall be off, Albedo.

Yes.

Watched by Narberal and Hamusuke, Ainz led Albedo towards Shalltears

direction.

Seeing the corpses of these men, your loyal subordinate remembered what you
mentioned in the Throne Hall, don't we need to retrieve the corpses of the men
and the woman Ainz-sama disposed last night?

About that

He was just about to repeat what he said to Narberal last night, that it was
necessary to make them the instigators of this incident, when he was interrupted
by Albedo.

While fighting against Ainz-sama, they might have obtained some information.
Since there is magic that can revive the dead, shouldnt we retrieve the corpses
to avoid this risk? Could it be that you have a particular reason in mind?

Ainz stopped breathing. No, he never breathed in the first place.

What Albedo said had hit the nail on the head.

...Damn.

Magic that revived the dead existed in this world. That meant that there was a
better way than autopsy to obtain detailed and accurate information.

Ainz recalled last nights events. His own identity, Nazaricks name and also
Narberals ability. Those people became aware of these facts and that woman
was especially bad news.

Such a lethal mistake could not be resolved by admitting failure.

He could only hope that there were no individuals capable of using resurrection
magic here. However, from the intelligence obtained from the Sunlight Scripture,
it seemed that there were some people capable of using it in the Slane
Theocracy. Moreover, there was a high possibility that the highest ranking
adventurers could also use it. Those in the upper echelons of the government
could also secretly possess a few individuals capable of using revival magic.

With that, once they determined that the deceased held important information,
those in the highest positions in Re-Lantier would probably find people capable of
using revival magic. Since they knew the problem was bad enough to shake ReLantier, those in the upper echelons would want to dig up more detailed
information.

Ainz felt as if his nonexistent heart was rapidly thumping out loud.

What should I do?

Without question, they just had to retrieve the corpses. However, who should be
ordered to go?

Ainz told Narberal to ignore the bodies at that place. Should he openly tell her
that it was a mistake?

...No, that should not be said.

Since the current situation is that we still do not know why Shalltear betrayed us,
I should avoid saying words that might further lower their loyalty. At times like
this, it would be better not to give out orders in panic.

Ainz felt that he could empathise with the company superiors who would refuse
to admit failure, and decided with a prayer in his heart.

...What you say is correct. However I have a particular reason to ignore those
corpses. Rest assured, everything is within my calculations apart from the issue
of Shalltears betrayal.

So thats it! As expected of Ainz-sama. My thoughts were already anticipated

long ago by Ainz-sama. Ive spoken too much my apologies. Speaking of which,
why does Ainz-sama not use revival magic at all? When gathering intelligence, it
should be possible to do the same to the deceased.

...Oh?

Ainz naturally let out an out-of-tune exclamation.

Did I not mention this before? Then have you heard about Demiurges healing
experiments?

Yes I have. The experiment involving chopping off the limbs, then applying
experimental magic treatment to the severed areas, right?

Correct. Let me ask you one more question. Do you know where the resurrection
magic has to be applied?

Not on corpses?

...No. Ah, it shouldnt be?

Both Albedo and Ainz were in deep thought when realisation dawned in Albedos
eyes.

Ah, I was wrong. Ainz-sama said correctly - not bodies, but on the soul!

Correct. In Demiurges experiments, the severed limbs would disappear, and

then regrow from the body. Therefore in a situation where magic was cast on the
soul, what would then happen to the corpse?

In YGGDRASIL, there were four different methods of resurrection to choose from

in exchange for experience points..

The first type was on-site resurrection. The second type was resurrection at the
entrance of a dungeon. The third type was resurrecting at a nearby safe town.
Finally, the fourth type was resurrection at a specified location, such as a guild.

So, just what sort of resurrection magic existed in this world?

Needless to say, the one Ainz wanted to avoid the most was the fourth type,
which would revive them back at their respawn point. If Nigans respawn point
was in the Slane Theocracy, then it would be tantamount to resurrecting an
enemy who held information. He would have committed the folly of releasing the
tiger back into the mountains.

Therefore, there was no way to conduct resurrection magic experiments. This

result apparently had backfired.

So thats how it is. It really does require close attention. As expected of Ainzsama. Such perception is admirable.

Seeing Albedo lower her head and sigh, Ainz immediately shook his head and
replied:

You honestly need not mind about such matters. Still, it is necessary to find a
place to carry out experiments eh eh. Well then, let us pick up our spirits and
set off again.

Under Albedos guidance, Ainz proceeded to head deeper into the forest.

Within it, the two people came across a vast clearing.

In a place that could be called serene, stood a completely dissonant, scarletarmored figure. The appearance of a fantasy-like illusion shone brilliantly in the
sunlight, but the bloody stench in the air destroyed this atmosphere.

Shalltear.

Her appearance was exactly the same as it was on the Crystal Monitor, even
her posture looked like it had not changed. Therefore, Ainz momentarily
wondered if he was still looking at a monitor.

However, there was a realistic sensation here: the bloody stench drifting along
with the wind.

Ainz continuously took deep breaths, but since his body was obviously incapable
of breathing, he only went through the motion, or it may have just been a
reflection of how he felt emotionally.

Shalltear.

Ainz called out.

Ainz felt that he had issued a commanding voice full of authority, not a useless
deep and hoarse voice.

However, there was no reaction.

He called out again, carefully and intently looking at Shalltear.

Shalltear was not ignoring him. Her lifeless eyes were open but devoid of spirit,
empty, giving off the impression that no consciousness resided behind them.

Albedo, who was also present, flushed with anger at Shalltears attitude. .

Shalltear! Not only do you not offer a single word of explanation, you dare show
such insolence towards Ainz-sama

Albedo, you are noisy! Silence! Do not move! You are not permitted to approach
Shalltear!

With a rough tone, Ainz stopped Albedo who was about to take a step forward.
Under normal circumstances Ainz would rarely display such an attitude towards
his past-companions creations, but this time it was impossible to restrain his
emotions.

He was shocked at Shalltears condition.

...Could this be Is it possible? ...Unbelievable.

Ainz felt dismay as he compared his past experiences with Shalltears current
appearance. At the same time, he forcibly maintained his composure and made a
calm judgment, knowing that the possibility was very high.

He opened his mouth to talk with Albedo, wanting to explain his train of thought
to others and use this as a pretext to allow himself to get his facts in order.

I am certain. Shalltear is currently under mind control.

Is this because of the reason Ainz-sama talked about in the Throne Hall?

We still do not know if that is the case. While prying information from the
Sunlight Scripture, I have witnessed something similar. This is indeed the result of
mind control. I do not know for certain why the undead Shalltear was affected by
mind control, but perhaps it may have been caused by something particular to
this world?

Ainz folded his arms, staring sharply at Shalltear who was standing rigidly.

Shalltears consciousness is being controlled by an unknown person, and

something happened just before that person was able to give any orders. Perhaps
she acted at the same time and defeated the opponent leading her to remain
alone here in an idle state. That should be pretty close to what happened.
However, she may take defensive action should you attack or get too close to
her, NPCs with an evil alignment have the tendency to attack, so do not go near
her.

Understood. But then there will be no means to forcibly restrain and bring her to
Nazarick. It does not matter if the person controlling Shalltear is already dead,
but if that person is still alive, then leaving her like this will eventually be
dangerous.

Your concern is correct.

The reason why Shalltear was affected by mind control was unknown. There
might be a peculiar ability in this world that was effective against the undead. If
so, Ainz could also be affected by mind control if he stayed here.

Although using this item is a bit of a waste, it is still best to release Shalltear
from mind control as quickly as possible.

Ainz spread his fingers. On one of his fingers, he wore a simple ring a simple ring
that had no kinds of decorations whatsoever. It was engraved with three shooting
stars that emitted a silver light, and was actually the most powerful of all the
rings in Ainz possession.

That is?

In response to Albedos puzzled expression, Ainz smiled proudly despite the fact
that his face did not move, and revealed the rings name.

This super rare item, the Shooting Star ring, enables the use of the magic
Wish Upon a Star three times without consuming experience.

This was the gacha item Ainz gambled his entire year end bonus away for.

Amongst all the guild members, only two people, Ainz and Yorumaiko, had this
incredibly rare ring.

No. Rather than describing this ring as a rare item, perhaps it would be better
called a symbol of stupidity, having spent so much money on the game to get it.

Embedded in the ring was the super-level magic Wish Upon a Star. The
number of possible wishes that appeared would be proportional to the amount of
consumed experience. This meant that activating the ring/spell in exchange for
ten percent of your total experience points would present a single choice,
whereas consuming fifty percent would give five possible choices.

There were quite a few wishes to choose from. According to a strategy websites
statistics, there were allegedly over two hundred of them. Additionally, there
were some wishes which appeared more easily, and wishes which did not appear
so easily, therefore it was a horrifying magic where any carelessness could make
the user waste a lot of experience.

Also, magic casters who wanted to learn this super-level magic had to reach the
ninety-fifth level first. Even in YGGDRASIL where it was easy to level up, reaching
this level would still require a considerable amount of experience, therefore
people hesitated whether or not to gamble their experience points on such a
spell.

When using this ring to activate the super-level spell Wish Upon a Star, the
possible wishes one could choose from would be completely randomised, just like
normal. However, useful wishes had a comparatively higher chance to appear
instead of joke wishes. Also, the maximum amount of wishes which would appear
was ten, and the magic had zero activation time, therefore it truly was the most
powerful cash item.

Using such a cash itemone which even had an element of gamblingwould

of course be a shame, but Shalltear was irreplaceable. But expending his own
experience points here could affect the usage of his other special abilities which
consumed experience points to activate, therefore the choice was still made with
hesitation.

Ainz gazed at the ring.

Ainz hoped the activated wish was one which would dispel all of the effects on
the target. Although there were many alternative options to choose from, what
came to his mind was this most direct method.

Because it would also cancel positive effects, this wish was seldom chosen in the
game, so Ainz who made this decision smiled.

Well then, ring, I WISH!

Of course, the magic item could also be activated without saying this. However,
having to choose this strong desire most ideal for the situation from among more

than two hundred wishes made Ainz shout out like this. It was the same shout as
one would make while rolling the dice on a do-or-die gamble.

Because YGGDRASIL magic also had the same effect in this world, the ringactivated ability would definitely release Shalltear from the mysterious mind
control effect. No, this was what he wanted to believe.

The outcome Ainz had feared the most would have been if the ring itself failed to
activate, but it seemed to have been a needless worry. The ring released its
magic without a problem and... The red light in Ainz eye sockets narrowed.

What is...this

As if new information was being forced into his brain he felt something
unpleasant. Yet at the same time, and connected to it, he also felt a great sense
of euphoria. A large variety of human emotions hit Ainz like a wave.

While the emotional ripples dissipated from his body, Ainz realised that this
worlds Wish Upon a Star was changed from YGGDRASILs to the point that
they were practically not the same.

When he knew about Enfreas innate ability, he had fantasised about the
possibility of obtaining it by activating Wish Upon a Star. This speculation was
not wrong. In this world, Wish Upon a Star had already become a magic which
made the realisation of ones innermost desires possible. Although it would be
based on the value of the consumed experience, Wish Upon a Star had
become a magic which made the impossible possible. Moreover, if five levels
were consumed five-hundred percent of experience, the magic would even
enable the realisation of even stronger desires.

With this, Ainz was certain it would be able to remove the magic effect on
Shalltears body, and shouted out with a victorious spirit:
Dispel all the effects applied on Shalltears body!

After the voice sounded for a second, the light in Ainz eyes instantaneously
flared.

...How... How is this possible?

Ainz agitated appearance made Albedo realise that the situation had changed.
She asked nervously:

W-what is it? Ainz-sama!

Ainz did not reply to the question, but instead recalled his extensive in-game
experience in YGGDRASIL, the information absorbed from strategy websites, and
combined this knowledge with the variety of information gathered after arriving
at this world. And most importantly the information he received from trying to
use Wish Upon a Star, which threatened to envelop his entire existence.

At the moment he made his conclusion, incredible anxiety and rage emerged in
Ainz. However, even if his spirit was able to remain stable, there would still be
one emotion left fear.

The flustered Ainz shouted out:

R-retreat! Albedo dont get close! Retreat quickly!

Yes! Understood!

Ainz immediately cast transfer magic. In the next moment, raised earth entered
their view. Although he arrived safely at home, Ainz still frantically ordered:

Albedo! Be careful and vigilant of anyone who follows the transfer!

Yes!

Albedo took up her arms and stood beside Ainz. Ainz also held out his empty
hands, ready to adapt to any changes.

Finally after some time had passed, Ainz slowly relaxed. Albedo also shifted from
a lowered-waist defensive posture to a normal stance.

Damn it!

Even after calming down, a strong emotion of anger still appeared. After
becoming an undead, Ainz strong emotions were automatically suppressed, but
even after it was kept in check, new rage immediately resurfaced.

Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!

Ainz continuously forcibly kicked the ground.

Because his physical strength was extraordinary, a large amount of dirt was
kicked up. Had there been no rain in the past few days, the surroundings would
have raised an alarming amount of dust. Even so, it was unable to quell Ainz
anger.

A-Ainz-sama, p-please calm down

Sensing that Albedos voice carried fear, Ainz realised that his actions were not
befitting that of the identity of a master. He rapidly regained his composure, and
forcibly exhaled his non-existing breath, as if expelling the burning anger in his
heart all at once.

...Forgive me, I lost my composure. Pretend you didnt see anything just now.

Please dont say that. However, I am grateful that Ainz-sama was able to heed
my advice! If Ainz-sama commands me to pretend not to have seen anything, I
shall forget this incident in its entirety. However what happened? Did I cause
Ainz-sama to feel displeasure? If you are willing to tell me, I will work hard to
never let this happen again!

...I was not directing that at you, Albedo. It was because I knew, after activating
the rings power, that my wish did not come true.

Seeing Albedo remain silent, Ainz knew that his explanation was not clear enough
and continued to elaborate:

...Theres only one power that can override Wish Upon a Stars magic.

If it were before, he would perhaps think that it could possibly be some power of
this world that was acting as the obstruction, but Ainz could now confidently reply
that it was not caused by such power. This was because when he activated the
magic, he already realised from the feeling that rushed in.

N-no way that is

Yes, Albedo. Only one World-Class items.

There were only two hundred of these items in YGGDRASIL, even Guild weapons
and Divine-class weapons couldnt match them. If a World Class item was used, it
would be a breeze to control undead which were immune to mental effects.

At this moment, Ainz thought about the Guardians still outside Nazarick. They
could also be targeted.

Blaming himself for not considering this possibility, Ainz ordered Albedo:

Albedo, immediately recall all of the Guardians outside. It is necessary to check

if they are also being controlled like Shalltear. I must head to the Throne Hall right
away! After, the place I must go to is the Treasure Hall.

CHAP
TER 4

Part 1

Translator: Ferro

Editors/Proofreaders: Sene9ty, Skythewood, Ghoststaker, Namorax

Upon teleporting to the Treasure Hall, what greeted Ainz eyes was a brilliant
light, as if all the stars in the sky were gathered together.

A ceiling so high that one would have to look up to even know that it was there, a
wall so large that it was impossible to contain it in ones vision. That vast room
was filled with dazzling treasure.

In the center were gold and jewels forming a mountain range throughout the
room. It was enough to make one abandon the thought of counting just how
much it all amounted to. Buried amongst the mountains of gold, luxury items of
the finest craftsmanship could be seen scattered about.

With a single glance, there was a cup forged in gold, a scepter embedded with
various jewels, a beast pelt radiating a silver light, tapestry meticulous woven
with golden thread, a horn flute that shone like a pearl, a fan of seven colors, a
crystal bottle, an elaborate ring giving off a faint glimmer of light, and a mask
decorated with a black and a white jewel, crafted from the hide of some animal.

Needless to say, this was just the tip of the iceberg. In that mountain of gold,
there were perhaps two or three hundred such items of that level. It was literally
a mountain of treasure. Ainz heard a sigh of admiration from the people who
were accompanying him. The ones who made that noise were two people.

So it was two out of three...

Ainz glanced at the three women standing behind him.

In a white dress instead of battle armour, Albedo was checking out her
surroundings with a look of sincere admiration on her beautiful face. Yuri Alpha,
who returned Ainz ring after he returned to Nazarick, had the same expression.

One person however, was different from the other two. She did not sigh, but
observed Ainz silently.

Although her face was very delicate, it looked as if it was artificially crafted by
hand. Her one visible emerald eye glimmered with a cold light, like that of a
precious jewel. The other eye was concealed by an eye-patch. Her reddish gold
hair shone under the starlight from the ceiling.

She was of the Automaton race CZ2128 Delta, also known as Shizu.

As a battlemaid, her attire was similar to that of Narberal and Yuri. However, her
biggest difference from those two were her urban camouflage accessories and
the cute sticker attached to a corner of her skirt with 1 yen written on it. The
other significant difference was the white gun she had holstered on her waist like
how one would wear a sword.

By the way, the magic gun, Automaton, and Shizus job Gunner were all
additional details added after the large update patch Valkyries Downfall.

Yuri nudged her lens-less black-rimmed glasses. As if her sense of duty as a maid
could not condone this disorderly mess, she asked:

Ainz-sama, why are these treasures not well looked after? Even with protective
magic applied, this cannot be considered a good state of preservation. Should
you give the order, we will immediately get started with tidying up

Take a closer look around.

In the span of a single breath, Yuri surveyed her surroundings and apologised.

I have been discourteous, please forgive my shallow observations.

Pay it no mind. Nonetheless, that is how it is whats buried inside this mountain
of gold is of little value.

Yuri followed Ainz line of sight which was rested on the reason why she had
apologised. Placed all over the walls were numerous large cabinets tall enough to
reach the ceiling. Inside these cabinets were treasures which sparkled even
brighter than the gold mountain.

A wand embedded with a bloodstone, Scarletite gauntlet embedded with a

garnets, lens made from black diamond embedded in the middle of silver rings,
dog statue made from Obsidian, dagger crafted from purple amethyst, a small
altar embedded with countless white pearls, glass lilies which looked as if they
were releasing rainbow coloured light, delicate roses crafted from star rubies,
tapestry patterned with the image of a soaring black dragon, a crown made of
platinum adorned with a humongous diamond, golden incense bowl coated in
precious gems, a pair of male and female lions made from sapphires and rubies,
cufflinks inlaid with fire opals which looked as if it were in flames, beautifully
carved rosewood cigar box, coat made from the hide of a golden beast, twelve
plates made from Apoitakara, silver anklets embedded with four different colours
of jewels, a magic book with a demantoid cover, life-sized statue of a large
woman made from gold, belt with large pieces of imperial topaz stitched on,
chess set with each piece made from a different type of precious gem, fairy-figure
carved from a single piece of emerald, a black cloak with innumerous small
precious stones sewn on; cup carved from a unicorns horn, golden table with an
embedded crystal balls, and more.
This was just a small portion.

Other than these, there were many aquamarine mirrors, red crystals the size of
adults, the giant and elaborate statue of a warrior radiating with silver-white light
called the work of a Ghost Axe God, a stone pillar carved with characters of an

unknown language, alexandrite so large that two outstretched arms would be

needed to encircle it.

These countless treasures made the correct answer evident to Yuri, that there
was simply no space to store them.

Time to go.

Two people spoke out in response to Ainz. Only Shizu remained silent, giving a
nod instead to indicate her response.

After Ainz invoked the spell Mass Fly, the four people unanimously flew up
into the sky.

Only then was it apparent that there was a body of deadly gas, faint purple in
colour, floating in the air.

Yuri looked around to find the source of the purple gas. However, neither the
ceiling, walls, or corners had anything emitting that purple cloud.

As a look of confusion surfaced on Yuris face, a monotone voice spoke up.

Yuri-nee, there is toxic magic in the air.

What?

Yuri felt a cold glance in her direction. The source was Shizus calm green pupil;
an eye which harboured no emotion.

A better way to put it would be that it induced others to believe it was incapable
of feeling emotion. Shizus facial features were delicate, but in another sense it
was also like a mask.

Because she was created as an automaton, Shizu could not display emotions
such was her settings.
Blood of Jormungandr?

After Shizu revealed the name of this tool capable of creating such a toxic zone,
Ainz replied:

Ah, correct answer. Although I have not informed you, this treasure renders the
surrounding air highly toxic. If you did not possess any abilities or tools capable of
countering this toxicity, you would have dropped dead within three steps.

So, is that why I apologies is that why we three were selected?

Correct.

Both the dullahan Yuri who was adjusting her glasses and the emotionless
automaton Shizu were immune to toxins because of their racial traits.

Being of the demonic race, Albedo was not immune to toxins, but of course relied
on another method to render it ineffective.

Correct, that is the reason all of you were brought here, but Shizu, it is not only
that. It was also to confirm something.

Thus Ainz and the others used Mass Flyto bypass the effort needed to cross
the gold mountain, and arrived in front of a door on the other side.

No, could it really be called a door? It was in the shape of a door, but looked like a
bottomless pit attached to the wall.

Arriving at this picturesque door, Ainz was deep in thought.

This here is the armoury, what was the password again?

Ainz-sama, if there is an armoury, does it mean that there are treasures

concealed in other locations?

Huh? Albedo doesnt know all the relevant information about the contents of
the Treasure Hall?

Ainz was puzzled over why Albedo would ask such a question. Nonetheless, even
if she was unaware of such information, it still made sense. The treasures were
not housed inside the Great Tomb of Nazarick. It was necessary to use a ring of
Ainz Ooal Gown to be transported to that location. It was designed in such a way
to make an invasion extremely difficult. It was normal for Albedo to be oblivious
of this information, since she didn't have her own ring just ten days ago.

Although Ainz somewhat wondered just how much knowledge the NPCs
possessed, he felt it was a trivial problem and replied to the earlier question.

Ha ha. I had a comrade by the name of Genjiro. He took pleasure in keeping

things neat and organised, and should have categorised objects according to
their purpose.

Wasnt he the Supreme Being who created our companion Entoma?

Yes, Yuri you are correct. However, whether he actually relishes tidiness may be
questioned. If he truly did, the treasures in that gold mountain would be
managed more orderly, and he would not describe his own room as a mess.
Speaking of which, he should have already separated the items into categories:
armours, weapons, jewelry, auxiliary tools, consumables, manufacturing goods,
etc. In addition, there is also the Nazarick maintenance room yes, and also the
crystal data storage room.

During this rant, Ainz finger was pointed towards the wall, where a twodimensional shadow had appeared.

However, in reality the inside is connected so it shouldnt matter which way we

enter Ah, sorry. I have talked too much.

Not at all, we are grateful towards Ainz-sama for answering our questions so
passionately.

Following Albedos statement, the two battle maids simultaneously bowed to

express their gratitude.

There is no time to spare; what am I doing. Everytime I brag about Nazarick, I

cant stop myself...

Ainz shrugged, then turned again to face the shadow in front of him.

This door could only be opened by a predetermined password. Perhaps with

magic or a skill from the rogue class, one could force this door open. But Ainz had
never learnt such magic or skill, therefore, it was necessary to speak the
password
Ack... I forgot.

This is understandable.

As such mechanisms were plentiful in Nazarick, it was possible to remember

passwords for the place one visits frequently, but there werent many
opportunities to visit the Treasure Hall, so it was impossible to remember the
password for such a place.

Ainz only ever visited to withdraw funds to pay for the upkeep of Nazarick so it
had already been many years since he last stepped foot here.

Failing to retrieve the password from his memories, Ainz said the universal
password:

Glory to Ainz Ooal Gown.

The dark door responded to this phrase, and some text appeared like floating
images in water. The words which appeared were: Ascendit a terra in coelum
iterumque descendit in terram et recipit vim superiorum et inferiorum
(TL: With great sagacity it doth ascend gently from Earth to Heaven. Again it
doth descend to Earth, and uniteth in itself the force from things superior and
things inferior. ~Holmyard, Alchemy, p.95)

Tabula Smaragdina really was a perfectionist.

Ainz couldnt help but let this slip, getting a vague reaction from Albedo.

His mind drifted to one of the people responsible for designing Ainz Ooal Gowns
mechanisms.

Of all the small mechanisms in the Great Tomb of Nazarick, two were by his
design. Abundantly sophisticated designs like this ate up a large amount of the

given data quota in the Great Tomb of Nazarick, causing other players to become
unable to design freely and hence caused them to protest. He took responsibility,
paying for cash items to expand the amount of data.

Ainz paid serious attention to the words that surfaced. This must be a password
hint, but what does it mean?

Ainz spent some time relentlessly searching for the answer hidden deeply in his
mind.

Before long, Ainz finally found the door code from his deepest memories.

It should be And so, thou monopolise the glory of the world, and the
darkness shall flee before thee right?
Ainz who spoke looked towards Shizu as if seeking confirmation.

Shizu nodded in response to Ainz.

Other than Tabula Smaragdina, the comrade who was also responsible for
designing mechanisms was the creator of the NPC Shizu. Her character settings
were set to be familiar with Nazaricks mechanism unlocking methods. Because
of this, Shizu should have easily been able to decipher the earlier password hint.

But despite knowing this, Ainz still did not ask for her assistance, simply for the
sake of his stubbornness of wanting to open the door with his own efforts.

Coming to this world gave life to the Great Tomb of Nazarick. That is why he
wanted to be the first to leave his footprint on this ground. Just like how a person
wishes to step on fresh, undisturbed snow, Ainz wished to open the door himself.

As if in response to Ainz wishes, the black shadow was sucked away into a single
point, and before long, the original shadow was gone as if it had never been
there. Only a fist-sized black sphere floated in the air.

Because the shadow covering the door had disappeared, it was possible to peer
inside the opened hole. There lay a well-managed and orderly world, totally
different from the places before. If an analogy is desired, the most fitting
description would be similar to a museum exhibition.

The dimly lit room was very long, stretching inwards continuously.

There was a space of about five meters between the floor and ceiling. It was not
designed with human height in mind, but to allow entry for non-humans. The
width of the room was approximately ten meters.

The floor was closely paved with slabs emitting black light, appearing like a single
enormous piece of stone. It created an atmosphere of solemn tranquility.

Both sides of the room were lined with numerous weapons, which was quite a
spectacle to behold.

Get in.

Without waiting for the response of the other three people, Ainz walked straight
into the armoury.

Greeting the trio was a range of weapons, including broadswords, great swords,
estocs, flamberges, scimitars, patas, shotels, kukris, claymores, short swords,
swordbreakers

Of course, the display consisted of more than just swords. There were also onehanded axes, two-handed axes, one-handed blunt weapons, one-handed spears,
bows, cross-bows

Even after classifying the weapons, one would still lose count.

Apart from those, there were also many flashy weapons which raised the
question of whether they could still be classified as weapons. Some seemed
impossible to fit inside their scabbards and focused only on its appearance, etc.
These types of weapons made up the majority.

Almost none of these weapons were made from common metals like iron.

There were weapons with blades made from blue crystal, pure white blades with
gold patterns, black blades with engraved purple runes, even a bow with strings
seemingly made out of light.

Aside from these, there were weapons that were obviously dangerous with just a
glance.

A double-handed axe with blood oozing out of its edge, a huge mace where faces
of agony would occasionally flash across the black metal, a spear which looked as
if it were formed from entwining human hands. Such weapons were also
numerous.

Whilst it was easy to guess that these were mostly magic weapons, one couldnt
even begin to guess at their effects. A sword with a blade swaying like flames
was quite obvious, but the magical effect of a whip-like sword with the
appearance of a squirming centipede was simply impossible to predict.

The group observed these weapons from the side and silently walked towards the
centre of the armoury. After around one hundred meters in, approximately

passing several thousand weapons on the way, they arrived at their destination
a rectangular shaped room.

Possibly used to receive guests, in this otherwise empty room there were only
sofas and tables. Looking to the side, you could see an entryway similar to the
one which Ainz and the others had come in from.

There was only one path that could be taken in the place opposite from the
entrance direction, and there was a different atmosphere. If up until now it was a
museum, from here onwards it was a tomb.

The height and width was about the same, but this even dimmer room stretched
endlessly inwards. Although it was difficult to discern due to the bad viewing
angle, it was still possible to spot the numerous large pits dug into the wall which
seemed to have something placed inside.

Hearing the alarmed voices from behind, Ainz replied:

Before us lies the Mausoleum.

The Mausoleum?

Hmm? Albedo you dont know the name of the room past here?

Though I chose the name myselfseeing as Albedo is like this, could it be that
she does not know who the caretaker of the Treasure Hall is?

Then, do you know Pandoras Actor?

Yes. As part of my management responsibilities, I know his name and

appearance Pandoras Actor is the Treasure Halls Area Guardian, equal in
strength to Demiurge and I. Apart from managing this place, he is also in charge
of preparing the gold consumed when activating Nazaricks protection net and
other responsibilities. Simply put, he is the one in charge of finance.

Thats roughly it, but not quite right. That fellow

Ainz speech was interrupted before he could finish his sentence, the three
NPC characters turned their heads to look at the path, at a figure which had
suddenly appeared.

It had a bizarre appearance.

Although the body was that of a humanoid, its head was similar to that of a
distorted octopus. On the right side of the head, at least half was covered by
crooked text tattoos, similar to those which appeared on the door earlier.

The skin colour was like a corpse deathly white with some purple mixed in,
emitting a strange sheen as if covered in a layer of mucus. Each hand had four
slender, webbed fingers.

Its garments were completely black and decorated with silver accessories that
matched well with the glossy leather that clung tightly to its body. It wore several
loosely-fitting belts and had a black cloak which looked as if it were about to be
worn was folded and being held.

Simply put, it was truly of an alien race. Six squirming tentacles extended from
the side of the mouth to near the thigh. Those two pupil-less and blue-white
murky eyes turned to look at the group.

Albedo let out a surprised voice:

Tabula Smaragdina-sama!

This was one of the 41 Supreme Beings. In terms of pure destructive power, he
was a stronger magic caster than Ainz.

No, wrong!

Albedo immediately exclaimed.

Following her reaction, the two battlemaids sprung into action.

Shizu took out her gun, resting the rifle butt against her shoulder and facing the
muzzle towards the figure.

Yuri smashed her fists together in front of her chest; her metal gauntlets collided
to release a loud bell-like sound.

Next, she slid to Albedos side, in front of Ainz and Shizu. Ainz was a magic
caster, Shizu was a gunner. This was the best position to protect those two who
were unsuited for melee battles.

Identify yourself!? Even if you disguise yourself as a Supreme Being, I am not

foolish enough to fail in recognizing my own creator!

Faced with Albedos question, the person with the appearance of Tabula
Smaragdina merely tilted his head in silence.

 is that so. Kill him.

As her cold voice rang out, the two battlemaids hesitated briefly. Even if they
didnt know who this was, they still had reservations about attacking someone
with the appearance of one of the creators.
Given the situation, the battlemaids were not wrong, Albedo was just that good in
making calm and collected judgment without hesitation.
This course of action placed Ainz protection as the utmost priority.
Albedo clicked her tongue at the two who didnt act, and was just about to charge
forward when Ainz spoke:
Thats enough, Pandoras Actor. Show your true form.
Tabula Smaragdinas body contorted.
A moment later, in place of the fake Tabula Smaragdina there was still an alien,
but a different person.
It had a fairly flat face, with the nose and other parts that would normally be
protruding flattened. Instead of eyes and a mouth there were three empty holes
instead - no eyeballs, teeth or tongue. Only three holes which looked like those
drawn by a child with a pen.

The pink, egg-shaped head was smooth, without a single strand of hair on it.

This strange character was a Doppelganger, just like Narberal.

This was Pandoras Actor, a level 100 NPC designed by Ainz to guard the Treasure
Hall. He specialised in transformation, capable of replicating 45 appearances, and
their abilities but only at 80% of the originals power.

The badge on his head bore the emblem of Ainz Ooal Gown, but the clothes he
wore were an uniform from the European Ecological Infrastructure War twenty
years ago, which caused quite a stir for looking similar to the uniforms worn by
the Neo-Nazi Schutzstaffel.

He forcefully brought his feet together with a click, and brought his right hand to
his cap in a dramatic salute.

Welcome, my creator Momonga-sama!

...You look very lively.

Affirmative, every day I am full of energy! Speaking of which, what brings you
here today? Youve even brought along the manager of the Guardians and maid
ojou-sans.

Seeing the Area Guardian's entrance, Yuri and Albedo retreated behind Ainz and
back to their positions. The three each displayed a different emotion.
Yuri, who had her pride as battlemaid, nudged her glasses and appeared
displeased upon being called an ojou-san.

Albedo, standing beside Ainz, became jealous after hearing how Pandoras Actor
was Ainz personal creation. She stood out of his sight and pursed her lips. Shizu
showed no reaction, only holstered the weapon in her hand.

To the innermost safe, in order to retrieve the World Class items.

What did you say! Has the time to use their power already arrived?

Pandoras Actor exaggeratedly displayed an expression of shock. This attitude

made Ainz furrow his non-existing brows.

The uniform as well, why did he set his reactions to be so exaggerated No, Ainz
knew the reason why.

Ainz was the creator of Pandoras actor, that was also to say that his every
movement was what Ainz considered cool, and he was proud and happy back
when he made these settings.

......Ugh, this is just

In the past, he thought that those who wore military uniform were cool. Since he
was an actor, his actions should be more exaggerated. But watching him gain
sentience and actually acting it out

Wow... so lame

A tiny bit, so soft that no one else could overhear him, Ainz could not help but let
a whisper of his honest opinion leak out.

It was truly a black history.

A living relic of his dark past, Pandoras Actor.

If the other guild members of the Great Tomb of Nazarick were here right now,
where NPCs came alive, this would definitely be the largest topic of laughter.
Thats how Ainz felt, he was not pointing out anyone specifically.

......Let it be, I need to pick myself up. The undead me does not have the time to
suffer psychological trauma.

Ainz quietly reminded himself, then gave a calm reply.

......Yes, youre right. I plan to retrieve Greed and no Desire,The Cup of

Hygieia,Memory Blade and Painting of Life.

......and what about the remaining two?

Leave them be, since they can only be used once. Because they are so powerful,
they must only be used at the right moment, or when we know how to re-obtain it
after their use.

Indeed, those overpowered weapons are powerful enough to be called killer

trump cards. They make the impossible possible, even possessing the power to
destroy the world.

Pandoras Actor, I wish to test you. There are two hundred World Class items
in total. How many do you know of?

My apologies Momonga-sama. I only know of eleven.

Ainz nodded. That was the number of World Class items which Ainz Ooal Gown
possessed. He did not know that there was one World Class item Atlas which
had been taken from them in the past. There were parts he wasn't sure about,
but the NPCs' knowledge was affected by their settings and if there were any
contradictions they would simply ignore them.

About this type of NPC settings, Ainz realised certain things after a few days of
observation. When there are no specific settings for some part of the NPCs
personality, they seemed to take after their creator. Even the relationship
between the NPCs seemed to mirror that of their creators. In some respects, it
was like reliving the times with his guild companions. Such as the relationship
between Shalltear and Aura, between Demiurge and Sebas.

Ainz expression did not change as he smiled.

Simply put, they are like everyones children.

Feeling the semblance of past comrades once again by his side, Ainz felt happy,
but lonely at the same time.

Ainz shook his head to get rid of the sad emotions.

Ah, this Pandoras Actor, Ive asked you a pointless question.

Not at all, my knowledge is lacking, my sincere apologies.

After this, he bowed, every movement exaggerated as if he were putting up an

act.

...Let it be. I need to head to the Mausoleum soon. Has anything happened
here?

Nothing at all, because everything here belongs to Momonga-sama and the

Supreme Beings. How could anything happen.

He said in a dramatic tone, and pointed to his surroundings.

However, I am somewhat regretful since Momonga-sama came, I thought that

you had some task for me .

Ainz stopped, and evaluated the alien.

Correct, Ainz thought about using him. Pandoras Actors setting, whether it was
intellect or strategic thinking, was of the top level in Nazarick. Although he would
normally put this wisdom and tactical thinking to some obscure use, when in a
pinch it would be difficult to forgo utilising his intellect.

Moreover, Pandoras Actors ability had a wide range of applicability, and

depending on the situation, could even prove to be useful as all of the Floor
Guardians combined.

However the reason Ainz created him was neither for battle or for business. It
was for the purpose of preserving the identity of Ainz Ooal Gown, leaving
behind the images of his companions.

...You are our final trump card. I wouldnt want to send you to do chores.

...Your words are too kind.

An expression like he wanted to say somethingprobablyPandoras Actor

exaggeratedly lowered his head in a bow.

I hear and obey. So then, today onwards I shall continue to look after the
Treasure Hall.

Ah, good work. Also, from now on call me Ainz; Ainz Ooal Gown.

Ah! Understood, my creator Ainz-sama!

After Pandoras Actors salute, Ainz, having finished speaking, turned around. At
this moment, a voice spoke out from behind him.

However, Ainz-sama, although this may be disrespectful, if a situation has arisen

which merits the use of the World Class items, it would still be better to allow me
to leave the Treasure Hall to operate on some other floor.

............

Indeed, he had a point.

Although Pandora's actor was a treasure, it would be foolish to let him sit around
doing nothing if this resulted in losing an even more valuable treasure. This
situation should rightly be viewed as an emergency and make use of his abilities.
And the gold coins in Treasure Hall also needed to be moved to the Throne Room.

Having decided so, Ainz turned around just in time to see Pandoras Actor place a
hand on his chest in recommendation of himself.

Ainz also heard the expressionless Shizu softly let out a uwah sound.

This sound deeply hurt Ainzbut he settled his spirit.

Pandoras Actors movements were definitely too exaggerated, from the

perspective as his creator, his posture and especially his behavior, they all
seemed to radiate a I am cool feeling.

If it was from a handsome man, that kind of mannerism might fit. However, since
the person was an egghead, it was simply too incompatible. Furthermore, it made
the witness Ainz feel embarrassed.

Ainz silently observed Pandora's Actor for a moment before he took a ring out of
his Item Box and tossed it at him.

The ring drew an arc through the air, landing neatly in Pandoras Actors hand.

This is...a ring of Ainz Ooal Gown, and the items ability is

As Pandoras Actor was about to continue his explanation, Ainz held up his hand
and brought him to a halt. Although he had a sorrowful expression, this was not
the time to be concerned about that.

This is preparation. Albedo, first inform the battlemaids of Nazarick about

Pandoras Actors existence. Before that, Pandoras Actor, you may only travel
between the Throne Hall and the Treasure Hall.

I hear and obey.

After the two spoke, Pandoras Actor placed his legs together so forcefully that it
was almost audible. His fingers were also so straight that even his fingernail
could not have stretched further. This earnest salute, if one were to put it in a
negative way, was too showy.

Ainz gently shook his head as he watched the egghead.

He wasnt a bad person, in fact, his ability and efficiency were impressive, but the
big shame is that

Uwah

Why did he have to be set to have such a personality. The past me certainly
thought this was very cool. Well, I still think at least the uniform is a bit cool

If Ainz could blush, his face would be as red as a tomato right now.

Hey, Pandoras Actor. Follow me.

Ainz grabbed Pandoras Actors shoulder and pulled him to one side. Of course,
he had incidentally instructed Albedo and the battlemaids to stay in their
positions.

Let me ask you an important question. I am your creator, the person you are
most loyal to, right?

Absolutely correct, Ainz-sama. I am your creation. Even if you ordered me to

battle against the other Supreme Beings, I would not hesitate to give it my full
effort!

Is that so...well then, as a person. no, as a man.. your masters, whether

its an order or a request, I dont care. So please just stop it with the salutes.
Okay?

Pandoras Actors empty eye-sockets stared straight at Ainz. His eyes spoke
volumes to Ainz about his confusion.

Ah. That, how should I put it isnt saluting strange? Lets stop that. The military
uniform looks fine so there is no need to change that, but you really dont
need to salute anymore. Seriously, stop.

Wenn es meines Gottes Wille ist.

(TL-Note: German for If thats my Gods will.)

...Is that German? Stop that too. Actually, thats fine, but please, not in front of
me. Please.

O-okay.

As if this was the first time he had been overpowered, Pandoras Actor gave a
faint reply. Before he knew it, the distance between their faces had become close
enough to kiss. Ainz pulled his face away and pleaded weakly:

Seriously, Im begging you. I really didnt think something like this would trigger
my mind suppression. Its even more embarrassing than riding a giant
hamster.. what the heck. Id like to have a more calm conversation with you,
but this is an emergency situation so this will be it for now.

Well then, there is something that must be done before entering the Mausoleum.
Albedo, leave the ring of Ainz Ooal Gown I gave you with Pandoras Actor.

Ainz explained the reason for removing the ring to the puzzled-looking Albedo.

This is the final trap set up there. The golems inside, the Avatara, are designed
to attack all who wear the rings, even we are not exempt from this.

So that was the reason invaders would have used the rings to get here. Then,
the final trap would absolutely have been triggered.

Very sinister, no?

No, no such thing!

Albedo reluctantly removed the ring from her left ring finger, wrapped it in a scarf
then passed it to Pandoras Actor. Ainz who witnessed this also took off his ring,
and placed it inside a ring box which had appeared from thin air.

Oh!

Ainz exclaimed as if he had just recalled something. He took out a different ring
of Ainz Ooal Gown that he kept in that space and placed it into the ring box.

Because even if the rings were deposited into the storage space, it would still be
recognised as possessing the rings. Upon entering the Mausoleum they would be
attacked by the Avataras.

Albedo-sama could you please let go?

Hearing this helpless voice made Ainz turn around yet again to face Albedo and
Pandoras Actor. What he saw was two people engaged in a tug-of-war over a
scarf.

My, my precious
Ainz-sama has already said it. Entering while wearing the ring will trigger the
attack. It will only be a second until youre back here to retrieve it

What are you saying! This is the ring Ainz-sama personally gave me! How could I
...woooooo!

......Albedo, time is tight. If you will not voluntarily deposit the ring, I will

Sorry, Im ready!

Albedo suddenly released her grip, making Pandoras Actor lose his balance. He
let out a surprised yell as he took a few steps backwards.

Right then let us head inside. Pandoras Actor, send Yuri and Shizu to move
some of the treasures to the Throne Room Although it is a little troublesome,
but considering Albedos mentality, dont use her ring. Use the one I gave you
just now instead.

I am extremely thankful to you, Ainz-sama! To think you would forbid others

from using the ring that Ainz-sama have granted me. Of! Course! Since this is an
emergency situation, I wasnt truly against it. I only wished to convey to Ainzsama how highly I value the ring which Ainz-sama gifted me, but even without
me demonstrating this, Ainz-sama has already observed

Understood!......Well then, who should stay behind here to receive Ainz-sama

when he returns?
Albedo, having had her self-appeal time cut short by Pandoras Actor, showed an
expression a graceful beauty should never show. Ainz removed Albedo from his
line of sight, not wishing for his mental image of the beauty to be shattered.

This should take some time. Afterwards, I will send you a Message. Rush
back here then, because without the rings we are unable to leave this place.

Understood.

As Pandoras Actor and the two maids bowed, Ainz took Albedo into the
Mausoleum.

This area which was only lit by dim lights was deathly silent - a suitable place for
souls. Ainz felt a little guilt for disturbing the tranquility of this place, but still
asked the person beside him:

Right. Albedo, how much do you know about World Class items?

Yes. Of what I know, they are the highest class treasures which the Supreme
Beings have collected. Because of love, one of these treasures is now owned by
me...that is about all that I know.

Is that so. Then another day I shall write down all of the items that I know on
paper, since it is safer for more people to know this information. Before that, I
shall first tell you about the dangerous items.

Ainz spoke as he walked, telling Albedo about the World Class items generally.

World Class items.

These World Class items were highly relevant to the YGGDRASIL game world.

The YGGDRASIL World Tree was once covered with countless number of leaves,
but one day a gigantic monster appeared and devoured these leaves. As such,
the leaves were destroyed one by one, until only nine were left. These nine
leaves became the worlds predecessors, called Asgard, Alfheim, Vanaheim,
Nidavellir, Midgard, Jotunheim, Niflheim, Svartalfheim, and Muspelheim.

However, the monster which devoured the leaves of the World Tree relentlessly
pursued these remaining nine leaves. This was the background story of the
game: Players would step out into the unknown and face dangers in order to
protect their own world.

What then, did these World Class items represent? They are equivalent to those
leavesthat is to say, each World Class item equals one world. Therefore, it
was set up so that each World Class item possessed an enormous amount of
power. In fact, many World Class items had extremely abnormal amounts of
power.

There were many player opinions on the topic of whether or not such items were
too damaging to the games balance. However, the game development company
issued the notice The possibilities of the world are not that small and had no
plans to update these Balance Breakers.

As if the game development company placed a lot of sentiment on the phrase

World, whether it was a player class or an enemy, those with the word World in
the name would be set up to be much more powerful than normal.

The final boss of the official campaign, Devourer of Nine Worlds, a beast that
gained tremendous power from consuming the leaves and became the
designated World Enemy. The class granted only to the winner of the
tournament, World Champion, the one chosen by the nine worlds.

Just as Ainz was explaining, the two people arrived at a place with neatly
arranged armed statues placed in cavities on both the left and right sides.

This room had a similar atmosphere and magic as Lemegeton, the room before
the Throne Room. However, golems in Lemegeton did not carry any weapons. In
contrast, the statues here were all wearing super-powerful equipment, and their
inherent strength was no less inferior than Ainz main equipment.

Ai...Ainz-sama...are these statues a replica of the Supreme Beings

Youve noticed. Correct, the Avatara are sculptures based on my past comrades.
However just how did you recognise them? Their appearances are quite
lacking. I dont think Ive managed to capture even ten percent of their charm..

There is no way that a creation of the Supreme Beings would fail to recognise
them.

Is that so?

Yes, that is how it is. However Ainz-sama the name of this location, even
these statues could it be that the other Supreme Beings have passed away?

That...isnt quite it.

No, perhaps this really was the correct answer. Ainz stopped walking, silently
gazing at these statues in contemplation.

Not knowing how to interpret Ainz silence, Albedo revealed an uneasy look.

Seeing a beauty like her displaying such a look of grief, no man would be left
unshaken. Moreover, since it was the face of one of his past companions
creations, even the undead Ainz would feel guilty and become anxious.

However, Ainz who neither had friends nor interacted with women in real society
before, could not think of any words of consolation. Feeling lost, Ainz frantically
looked around him, searching for something to talk about.

At this moment, having found something, Ainz spoke without giving much
thought:

L-Look over there. Do you see those four vacant spots?

Confirming that Albedo had turned to look in that direction, Ainz began a
simplified explanation of why those places did not have statues.

One of those four is where I intend to place my Avatara.

That was not true.

The one who created and placed these Avatara here was none other than Ainz
himself. Because of this, if Ainz retired from the game, the fact that no other guild
members remained meant that there would be nobody to place Ainz Avatara
here.

His guild members said Its for you, and transferred their own equipment and
cash items to Ainz before retiring from the game. In memory of his retired
comrades, and so that their gear may be worn once more, Ainz used cash items
to create golems that were capable of donning equipment.

This is also the story behind why the Avatara looked so ugly.

The information regarding the external appearances of the guild members was
still saved within Pandoras Actor. However, by himself, Ainz did not have the
ability nor skill to use this information to create decent-looking golems.

Hence, he purchased the external appearance data and forcibly installed it on to

the golems. The end result was that the limbs either grew fatter, or became
shortened. The heads grew massive and clown-like, like monsters from
nightmares.

However, this lack of cohesive unity in their appearances exuded a kind of

strange atmosphere which gave people a strong sense of unease. Because of
this, if Ainz kept in mind that they were meant to act as the final gatekeepers, he
should consider it an unexpected stroke of luck.

How should I put this? The feeling is like looking at dolls made during childhood.
It is rather embarrassing

Apart from the embarrassment, Ainz felt another intense emotion.

That was loneliness.

When his comrades retired from the game one after the other, Ainz decided to
create the Avatara to be the caretakers of their equipment. When questioned by
the guild members who had yet to retire, this was his reply.

Perhaps it was for them to be the final caretakers.

But in reality, the reason that Ainz continued to create the Avatara while the
member count diminished was simply because he was lonely. The members
whom he played with all this time were disappearing.

To show that the comrades in the Great Tomb of Nazarick and himself were
together in life and in death, and to become their compensation, he built these
Avatara.

It is the same story for why this place was named the Mausoleum. Its original
name was the Secret Chamber of the Treasure Hall, but Ainz renamed it, in
memory of the companions who departed from or rather vanished from the
YGGDRASIL game. Hence this became their place of slumber.

Even so, my heart still wishes to believe that my comrades were also sent to
an unknown alien world, and they might still be in some corner of this world

Just as Ainz was being so pensive, a grieved shout penetrated through the entire
passage.

Please dontPlease dont say such a thing!

With the earlier feeling of solitude immediately blown away, Ainz hurriedly looked
at Albedo. And was so surprised that he drew back. Albedos eyes were filled with
glistening tears, prepared to fall at even the slightest wink.

......Ainz-sama. Compassionate Ainz-sama who remained until the end, to whom

we devote our complete loyalty, please do not say such a thing! We sincerely
hope that you can stay with us forever as our master!

Albedo kneeled before Ainz and lowered her face.

Mixed with a choked voice, continuously repeating Please...please.... in a

hoarse murmur, it sounded like a prayer, and at the same time, like a wail of grief
and agony.

In his entire life, Ainz had never seen someone pleading so desperately.

He never considered that such a casual joke would make Albedo so emotionally
stricken. This filled Ainz with guilt, and he bent his knee and helped Albedo stand.

Forgive me.

Had he not considered that he was abandoned by his past comrades before?

When he was all alone in the Great Tomb of Nazarick, or every day that he felt
disheartened because everybody was not around.

Did he not feel anger because of his loneliness?

Knowing this bitter feeling himself, why was he unable to understand Albedos
feelings, why did he allow Albedo to feel the same pain?

Albedo who got up and had cried herself into a mess long ago still had tears
trickling down her cheeks.

Ainz took out a handkerchief, and wiped away Albedos tears clumsily and
tenderly.

.........

Although he wanted to apologise once more, he kept silent because he could not
find the appropriate words to say.

Because of his lack of skill with interpersonal relationships, he did not know what
comforting words to say to stop her tears.

Sobbing endlessly, Albedo made a request to the overwhelmed Ainz:

Ai- Ainz-sama, please agree to me, promise to me that you will never abandon
us and leave this place!

......I apologise, however

After however , Ainz did not continue speaking. He had a particular reason for it,
but Albedo assumed that his silence was due to something else.

Why! Why can you not make that promise? Did you have thoughts about
abandoning us already? Why! Is there something which makes you unhappy? If
you would just explain, I will immediately remedy it! If you think of me as a
hindrance, I shall immediately take my own life!

No!

Ainz shouted loudly. Taken by surprise, Albedos shoulders jumped.

Hear me out. First, right now for example...there is no method which can save
Shalltear. Shalltears mind control is the effect of a World Class item. That alone is
absolute. The only way one would be able to resist the effects of a World Class
item is to either possess one yourself, or to have a special class.

While having her tears wiped like a child by Ainz, Albedo asked:

Thats... thats why, you came here... came here to take... take the World Class
items, right?

Correct, in order to allow the Guardians to hold these World Class item.
Theoretically, using a similar type of World Class item should make it possible to
free Shalltear from her mind-control. However, I am hesitant about using the
World Class items inside here truly I am a worthless master, because I place
more importance on mere items than on my loyal subjects.

No, no such thing! The collected World Class items are the results of the
Supreme Beings hard efforts, therefore they are more valuable than us!

... is that so?

If it were a game, Ainz would think so as well. Now, however, he was conflicted
about this way of thinking.

But then, facing this kind of situation, it was also true that Ainz had no method of
using these trump cards.

Among all of the balance-breaking World Class items there were some called the
Twenty. These twenty were items unrivalled in terms of power.

Of the Twenty, there was one particularly famous item named Longinus,
capable of complete deletion of the target, but the price to pay for its use was
the complete deletion of the user.

After having the data deleted by this World Class item, unless another World
Class item was used for revival, there was no coming back. This was regardless of
using cash items or having revival magic. If, for example, someone were to use
such an item on an NPC of Nazarick, they would justify its use based on the NPCs
level. This would remove the largest advantage of the basethe NPCs
collective level amount.

Several similar insane items came to Ainz mind.

Ahura Mazda, capable of inflicting massively powerful effects on targets with

a negative sense of justice across an entire world.

Five Elemental Restriction, which could request the YGGDRASIL developer

company to change part of the Magic system.

Ouroboros, which had an even greater scope than Five Elemental

Restriction, was able to request the Game Developer Company to change a
part of the game itself.

And finally, the most powerful World Class item World Savior. Normally it had
the strength of an ordinary club, but it had an unlimited growth potential. Thus
even during the time the Great Tomb of Nazarick had been at its peak, with all
guild members present, it would take just a single enemy with this item to defeat
the entire place.

These items called the Twenty were so powerful that they could only be used
once before disappearing. As such, it would be regrettable to consume their use
even if they were trump cards.

Ainz Ooal Gown took pride in being the owner of two of the Twenty, thus they
could only be used against an opponent which used an item of the same class,
because only an item of the same class would be worthy of its use.

Therefore if it vanished, it would be well spent.

But what if after it vanished, it fell to the possession of someone else, and
furthermore an enemy of Nazarick? What then?

Nazarick was protected by these World Class weapons, therefore internally it

would not be affected. But if this was not managed well, perhaps opponents
would invade the entrance.

Therefore these World Class items could not be used. It was necessary to find
another method to rescue Shalltear.

Albedo, thank you for what you have just said. Let me tell you why I fell silent
earlier.

With past human emotions still lingering inside him, Ainz took a deep breath like
he would were he still living, because he knew that the following statement would
be of utmost importance.

I plan to fight Shalltear alone. As such I do not know if I may return alive

I understand that it is necessary to fight Shalltear, because leaving her as

she is would be a bad idea!

Ainz had the same thoughts in mind.

It was not known why the enemy had not given orders to Shalltear. If however the
opponent were to give such a command, things would soon become difficult,
because everything about Nazarick could be exposed to the whole world.

But then, why must it be a solo fight? Can we not win with numbers? Are we
incapable of helping you with this?

Once again wiping off Albedos welling tears, Ainz replied:

That is untrue, Albedo. I trust you deeply. The only thing is...this, there are three
reasons. Firstly, I have doubts whether I am the most suitable to be the master.

Ainz-sama, how could you say this?

Ainz raised his hand to interrupt Albedo.

......Thinking over it calmly, accounting for the possibility that players exist in
this world, it is only right to also consider that there is the possibility that World
Class items also exist. Therefore someone who only caught on so slowly like me,
isnt it questionable whether I am worthy of being a ruler? Isnt it questionable
whether I am qualified to lead everybody?

Ainz-sama has value simply by being here! Even if there is something lacking,
we will all fully support you!

Thank you, but I am still the one who should bear the full responsibility for this
incident.

If this world really did have something like Longinus, using a villager to
completely delete a Guardian was a very real possibility. Although Shalltear being
mind controlled was not a pleasant turn of events, from a different perspective, it
was perhaps fortunate, considering that the situation could have been much
more dangerous.

You mean to say that your solo fight with Shalltear is your way of repenting?
Just who could possibly punish you Ainz-sama, the Supreme Ruler of Nazarick!?

That is not the only issue. The second reason Shalltear was all alone in that
place. It is very likely that it will be a trapand a deadly one at that.

Seeing Albedo confused, Ainz continue to explain:

When we, Ainz Ooal Gown, were PKing, our methods and Shalltears current
situation are very similar. We also allow guild members to be become the bait,
and hunt the baited hunter. Of course the possibility of the bait being killed is
very high, but we always guarantee that the enemy who attacked was
eliminated.

In that case, Ainz-sama!

One moment, I am not done explaining. Do you know what we feared the most
in our traps?

Not waiting for a response, Ainz took the initiative to reveal the answer:

That was if the number of attackers were less than the number of bait. If the
baited number was few, we had to be wary of whether the opponent had also set
up an ambush. We needed to ascertain if setting up this trap was within the
opponents calculations.

Seeing comprehension dawn on Albedos face, Ainz still took in a breath despite
being physically incapable of doing so.

And the final reason, is because I will kill Shalltear.

In that case then allow me! I who have received a World Class item is the most
suitable for this task.

... Do you have a chance of winning? Do not lie to me and tell me what the best
odds for your victory are .

Seeing the calm look in Ainz stare, Albedo unwillingly bit her lip.

Albedo your way of thinking isnt wrong. Shalltear is very powerful.

Shalltear Bloodfallen

She is the strongest Guardian in the Great Tomb of Nazarick. Even Albedo no,
even the other level 100 NPCs are not her equal.

Because of this I am the one who shall go. The only person who is able to fight
Shalltear and win is me.

T-This if it is Ainz-samas equipment, perhaps it is sufficient to defeat her, but

then

Ainz who was fully clothed in Divine Class equipment and was even using cash
items, against Shalltear who only had her one Divine Class equipment, Spuit
Lance. From the perspective of equipment, Ainz had an absolute advantage.
However, Ainz left out telling Albedo that there was also a reason why his victory
chances were not high.

Ainz was well aware of that reason.

That was because Shalltear Bloodfallen was Ainz Ooal Gowns absolute nemesis.

The character Ainz was roleplaying as was an Undead Magician, with a build
specialising in necromancy.

This class build was also purely for entertainment.

Shalltears job build was, however, rigorously specialised. Not only that,
Shalltears faith based magic caster class had several skills which could be used
against undead magic, and was also proficient in melee fights.

In light of this, there was already a large gap between the two, not to mention
that Ainz forte in necromancy was ineffective against the undead Shalltear.

Ainz was proficient in areas which were ineffective against Shalltear, who
specialised in dealing with the undead.

Additionally, about Ainz equipment, if a situation arose in which all of his

equipment was taken away, Ainz chances of winning in a confrontation between
the two of them would be slim. No, there would be absolutely no chance of
victory.

Are you trying to say that the situation is not favourable to me?

Albedo lowered her head as Ainz hit the mark.

That is perhaps so, even Ainz was in agreement. He should not be able to defeat
Shalltear.

However

just to let you understand, as the one who you refer to as the Supreme Ruler
of Nazarick, my title isnt just for show.

your way of thinking is quite right, but flawed as well. What you all possess
is merely indoctrinated knowledge.

Eh? What do you mean?

Do you have experience?

What? Experience?

Albedo blushed.

Yes, battle experience.

Ah! Thats what you meant! Yes, I am able to put all of the powers conferred to
me by the Supreme Beings into good use. Therefore, it should be seen as being
pretty experienced.

Ainz shook his head in disagreement with Albedos answer. When he fought
against the woman called Clementine, he had received a lot of inspiration.

Incorrect. Being able to utilise power to its fullest and being experienced are two
different issues. Do you remember that time in the past when Nazarick was being
invaded by a large number of enemies, that scene where Shalltear was fighting
against the opponents?

Although I did not pay my utmost attention when listening to the details, but she
seemed to have said that she vaguely remembered dying.

......And anything else?

Albedo shook her head to indicate no.

Against solo invaders, it was usually us who went to deal with themhaving
such a stingy character has been a great help this day. Well then, it is still me
who will handle this, I who have the highest chance of winning shall do the
confrontation.

Ainz grinned. Of course, his face did not move at all.

However, Albedo seemed to have sensed the Supreme Rulers smile, and had
flushed cheeks like a young maiden who caught sight of her admired man.

Ainz declared war on someone not present.

I am the one known as the Guildmaster of Ainz Ooal Gown. When engaging in
PVP, the actual chance of victory is high invincible against even those with
flawless builds. How can I lose to the type of person who solely relies on their
attribute. Furthermore, the most important fact is the strong bond I have with
Peroroncino. Know that this battle was over even before it had begun
Shalltear.

......Ainz-sama, I will no longer stop you. However, promise me that you will
return safely.

Ainz silently watched Albedo, then nodded slowly.

I promise you, I shall defeat Shalltear and return.

Part 2

Arriving in a world of green, Ainz surveyed his surroundings. He then smiled at

the fact that checking for people in the vicinity was the first thing he did after the
transfer. If there was actually someone whom Ainz should be alert of, he would
have long been under attack and there would be no way he could take his time
like this.

The transfer destination was at least two kilometers away from Shalltears
position, just as a precaution.

Although it was already checked through the use of magic, there was no way of
being certain that the person who had used a World Class item to subject
Shalltear to mind-control was not nearby. However this concern was unfounded.
Ainz lowered his shoulders and turned to look at the two persons who were
following from behind.

Let us split up here.

He instructed Aura and Mare.

Considering the fierce battle to come, Ainz only permitted these two to
accompany him.

He had already rescinded his previous commands, allowing the majority of those
operating outside to return to Nazarick. Apart from Aura and Mare, Sebas and
Solution were the only members of Nazarick who were currently outside.

The main reason for choosing these two people was to psychologically take
advantage of the enemys emotional weakness in battle. Because Aura and
Mares humanoid race was different from Demiurges and Cocytus heteromorphic
race, perhaps the opponent would stay their hand and be unable to bear killing
such adorable humanoid children.

Of course, the opponent could also be a cold-blooded killer. Regardless, in order

to prepare for the unexpected, he wanted someone to be placed nearby.

Although it may also be an unhelpful bad chess move instead.

Ainz looked at the two dual-coloured, differently shaped metal gloves that Mare
wore. The metal glove on the right hand looked like an angels hand, smooth and
releasing a silver-white brilliance. The metal glove on the left hand however, was
like that of a demons, covered with spikes and hooked claws and emitting a red
glow from lava-like cracks.

Following this, Ainz turned to Aura, looking at the scroll hanging at her waist.

...... If the enemy matches our number or outnumbers us, immediately retreat to
Nazarick.

......Understood.

Aura wore a stiff expression as she nodded in response, while Mare followed suit
and quickly bowed his head.

Listen well. It is absolutely crucial that you retreat, because thats part of my
plan as well.. Also, what I have given to you are Nazaricks secret treasures and
you cannot allow them to be snatched away under any circumstances. Depending
on the situation, you must consider them to be more important than your own
lives. Understood?

Ainz cautioned them like this. He felt a bit uncomfortable about Aura, who
hesitated before responding, because it could become a fatal problem if her
loyalty caused her to disobey her order.

Hearing the two peoples response an energetic and a timid one Ainz
harboured some doubts.

To be honest to myself, which is more important to me?

Planning to save Shalltear, yet refusing to use World Class items to do so. From
this perspective, it could be said that the items were more important.

But the reason for refusing to use World Class items was what he told Albedo in
the Treasure Hall. They were the final trump card and had the power to change
defeat into victory in any situation.

Its another matter if there was no other way to save Shalltear, but since there
was still a way, it was the wiser decision not to use it.

Leaving that aside: the faithful servants, who had been created by his
companions and became sentient and loyal NPCs, or the World Class Items who
were the very symbol of adventuring and had elevated Ainz Ooal Gowns
standing in the game YGGDRASIL; which one was more important?

Unable to find the answer despite giving it much thought, Ainz was troubled.

If it were before coming to this world, he could decisively give an answer, but
now he was perplexed.

The guild members shed a lot of blood, sweat, and tears during the design
process, carefully crafting what would eventually become these NPCs that
showed emotion.

Because I currently plan to kill this...this NPC who is like our child...planning
to kill Peroronchinos daughter.

Ainz was troubled.

It could also be described as a sense of guilt.

However

Ainz stared sharply in the direction of Shalltears probable position.

To break the control of a World Class item, this is the only way.

These words were blurted to convince himself

Seeing the worried look in Aura and Mares eyes, Ainz felt that letting these two
continue to worry was not helpful and changed the subject.

Well then, you two go cooperate with them and do a good job scouting the
surroundings.

Ainz finger was pointed at four masses of flesh floating in front.

They were about two metres in diameter and the body was pink in colour. These
monsters also had countless murky eyes which looked like they were haphazardly
sewn together using eyes removed from the carcasses of many different types of
creatures.

They were undead created using the spell Create high-tier Undead , known as
Eyeball Corpses.

Ainz used his maximum number of summons per day to create these Eyeball
Corpses because they had a hidden ability the nemesis of magic and special
ability users.

Those cloudy eyes were not mere decoration, but had excellent visual capability,
perhaps matching or even exceeding that of Auras vision as a ranger. Although
their offensive power was low, their value this time was in their surveillance
rather than combat, with the purpose of assisting Aura.

Understood! However, will they obediently listen to my commands?

Not a problem. I can assure you on this point. In addition, I will use magic to help
telepathically link you together. This way you can be at the centre of command
and patrol safely.

Yes! Although it will be faster if I act personally, we do not know what kind of
forces the opponent has! I understand now! Then after Mare uses magic to
increase our stealth, we shall prepare the ambush in this area.

No problems then, I leave it in your care.

Ainz silently revealed an invisible smile

Demiurge, who was the last to enter the room, quickly walked inside and went
straight to a vacant seat to sit down. Normally, he was never one to display such
rough behavior, his mood was already fully conveyed without the need for
explanation.

So, care to explain yourself?

Demiurge closed his eyes and fiercely asked Albedo, who was one of the people
seated around the same table.

Why would you agree to this?

Although his voice was steady, it was thinly veiled, everyone was able to hear the
sharp undertone.

People would feel more agitated when a normally calm person showed strong
emotions because the dichotomy was substantial. However this was not the case
this time because Demiurges expression was extremely anxious, and even his
companions had never seen him so worked up before.

However, blatantly facing this hostility and question filled with murderous intent,
Albedo remained as her usual self.

Wasn't that Ainz-sama's decision? How could we subordinates defy

Why?

A question as sharp as a knife interrupted Albedos speech.

Why? When Ainz-sama headed towards the human city, you were the one who
vehemently insisted that a Guardian accompany him. Why would you agree to
the matter this time? At that moment you should have also been concerned
about Ainz-samas safety.

Albedo nodded in reply, and Demiurges expression contorted.

Well then, I will ask again! Why did you agree to this?

It was almost as if the room was vibrating in anger. This was completely unlike an
emotion that Demiurge would show.

Cocytus slowly turned his head and gazed worriedly at the two people.

......Furthermore, shouldnt you have known that Ainz-sama was lying?

Demiurge asked in a low tone suppressed with anger.

After Albedo nodded once again, Cocytus mouth moved with a metallic sound.
Both persons knew that this crisp and high-pitched noise was often made when
Cocytus had questions. Albedo explained:

...... A short time ago, I told you what Ainz-sama told me, the reason why he
went ahead by himself. Didnt you find this strange? From Ainz-samas reasoning,
wouldnt it be safer to attack in waves? Wouldnt it be safer if we were to attack
one by one and slowly reduce Shalltears stamina and magic?

......It is as she says, Cocytus. A tactic that we can easily come up with, there is
no way that Ainz-sama overlooked this. In other words, Ainz-sama has
deliberately lied to hide a greater reason.

What. is. this. reason?

I dont know which is why I ask, Albedo. If you already knew this, why did
you still allow Ainz-sama to go forth alone?

Because the Ainz-sama a few days ago and the Ainz-sama right now are like two
completely different people.

Demiurge who was squinting and now slightly opened his eyes had a thoroughly
confused expression, telling Albedo to continue explaining.

Back then, Ainz-sama didnt have an expression like a man, but how should I
put it although I know it comes across as disrespectful, but at that moment
his expression was like a child who wished to run away.

I didnt sense that? Could it be that you were mistaken?

Demiurge looked slightly away and towards the direction of the Crystal
Screen. It showed the clear image of their master walking through the woods.

You think so? I dont think that I would misread the expression on the man I
love....

Albedos eyes also turned towards the Crystal Screen, and she had the
expression of an intoxicated woman. This expression irritated the anxious
Demiurge.

Then! What is his expression now?

The current Ainz-sama has a determined look on his face. As a woman

perhaps this way of thinking is disrespectful, but knowing that my beloved master
wishes to carry out that determination, I will not get in his way. Furthermore, Ainzsama has already promised to me that he will definitely return safely.

Seeing that Albedo was not planning to say anything further, Demiurge asked
disdainfully and with a displeased look:

This is still too irrational, naive; a purely emotional judgment. Ainz-sama is the
last Supreme Being who remains here. Knowing that he faces a situation where
his life may be in peril, it is our responsibility to come up with a plan to remove
that danger. Even if we will be blamed afterwards, even if we will have to sacrifice
our lives, we ought to step forward and act, right?

With a loud bumping noise, Demiurge stood up.

Where do you think youre going?

The voice that called out to Demiurges turned back was eerily calm.

Youre still asking something so obvious? Of course to send out my subordinates

Noticing the sharp sound of metal closing in, Demiurge turned his head and saw
an unsheathed bladeit was Cocytus Divine Class item.

..... I see calling me back and at the same time commanding me to be here,
was it for this, Albedo?

Correct Demiurge the seventh floor is already in lockdown under both Ainzsama and my authority, and all of your subordinates are in our grasp. You or Ainzsama, it doesnt need to be said whose orders they will obey, no?

...... Truly a fool. If Ainz-sama meets his death because of this, how do you plan
to take responsibility! Ainz-sama is our last object of loyalty!

Ainz-sama will definitely return.

What proof do you have for your assurance?!

Demiurge glared. That pair of eyes lacked eyeballs. In fact it was completely
without pupil or iris, but were shining jewels with numerous small cuts.

To believe in our masters, this is also part of our obligation as their creations.

Demiurge repeatedly opened and closed his mouth. And eventually, tightly
closed his eyes shut.

Because he also reckoned that that too is correct.

All of the Nazarick NPCs, who were absolutely loyal to the 41 Supreme Beings,
had subtle differences in the way they demonstrated their obedience. On the
issue of loyalty, of course Demiurge and Albedo had different approaches.

However, Albedos concept of loyalty gave Demiurge a huge shock.

But even so, he was still worried and his restlessness would not disappear. It was
why, in the past, they spoke of a descendant to carry on his will.

If Ainz-sama were to disappear like the other Supreme Beings, to whom should
they be loyal to from that day onwards?

For us who were created to be loyal to them, after this value was lost then what
would be the meaning of existence?

As if to hide his own emotions, Demiurge rudely sat on the chair again, not one
bit like his usual self.

If anything should happen to Ainz-sama, you must discard your position as

Overseer of the Guardians.

...... Demiurge. you. dare. telling. Albedo. to. step. down. from. a. position.
bestowed. upon. her. by. the. Supreme. Beings? Such. insolence!

Albedo smiled at the shocked Cocytus.

No problem. However, Demiurge, if Ainz-sama returns safely, you will have to

obediently follow my commands should any similar situation arise in the future.

Of course.

Well then, Cocytus, what do you think are Ainz-samas chances of winning?

Cocytus reluctantly told the other two his personal judgment.

Thirty to seventy. Ainz-sama is thirty.

Demiurges shoulders could not help but give a jump. For Cocytus, the strongest
warrior amongst them, to say something so ominous, there was no way Demiurge
could ignore this. However Albedo had a different reaction. Upon hearing this
statement, she revealed a beaming smile as she fully grasped the situation with
ease.

Is that so. Then lets wait and see how Ainz-sama turns the tables to obtain
victory.

After splitting up with the two people, Ainz walked towards Shalltears position.
Thanks to his own special abilities, he was able to differentiate between north,
south, east and west, and stuck to a straight line through the woods when
heading towards Shalltear.

Passing through the trees, Ainz caught sight of Shalltear. It saddened him to see
that Shalltear looked just the same as before, like a doll. At the same time he felt
anger towards himself, but an even greater anger at the World Class item user.

Damn.

He cursed softly, but his voice was filled with strong emotions. Even the undead
Ainz who was capable of suppressing emotional turbulence was unable to repress
this.

In order to find my companions, I have to spread the name and fame of Ainz
Ooal Gown through any means, no matter how unscrupulous. But I still
maintained discretion in order to avoid such meaningless battles. How did
something like this happen?

Who was it? Just what kind of power was used? Why use a World Class item
against Shalltear? He did not have the slightest clue.

......No matter who the opponent is, if they managed to extract information from
Shalltear I will have to be kill them without fail.

Within Ainz, intense dark emotions surfaced. From within him gushed out such
fierce hostility and murderous intent, such that even a skull which ought to be
incapable of movement looked significantly distorted.

I will definitely make you deeply regret your own foolishness. Do not think you
can get away so easily when you anger us, Ainz Ooal Gown.

After speaking out his inner fury, Ainz gradually reverted back to his usual
composure.

The real battle was about to start. It was crucial that he kept calm.

I am still stupid, there are better methods at hand.

Ainz revealed a self-deprecating smile.

...... Is it guilt? Or do I not willingly face only wishing to avoid confronting

Although Shalltear was the strongest Guardian, the difference was minimal. If the
other Guardians took turns to attack, victory was certain.

However Ainz did not choose this method for a single reason.

That was because he did not wish to personally witness his beloved children
mutually killing each other.

If the opponent had voluntarily betrayed Ainz Ooal Gown, Ainz would frankly
accept the fact of her rebellion and use all means at disposal to extinguish her. If
that was the NPCs own volition, as Nazaricks ruler, treating her with severity
was only appropriate.

If the betrayal were because of the setting, he would find the most compromising
method.

However, Shalltear this time was different. She had been mind controlled, and
the person in the wrong was Ainz for not considering this situation. That is why
only he could shoulder this responsibility.

He wished to personally handle this.

Ainz took off a ring, a cash item that allowed revival for several times without any
cost. Removing this item represented Ainz steadfast resolve, because if he were
able to revive, he would be less focused.

Its not a sign of him giving up. Determined, Ainz looked up at the sky.

Up until now the enemy has still chosen not to attack. Right now, I can only
sense the surveillance magic from Nazarick is the enemy not watching?

Normally, Ainz would use a large variety of defensive magic. The

counterintelligence magic activated in Carne Village was one such type.

In YGGDRASIL, because friendly fire was rendered ineffective, his companions

could use intelligence magic on Ainz and locate him with ease. However this
world was different. If Albedo and the others wished to observe Ainz, he would
automatically counter with magic.

Thus, the counter magic would be an attack to Nazaricks security net. If he was
careless, Ainz could face the retaliation from the security net and suffer
unnecessary damage.

Therefore Ainz disabled the automatic countering magic, only leaving behind that
which could detect the source of the intelligence magic. From that information, he
gathered that aside from Nazarick, there were no others who were using magic to
watch Ainz at this moment.

Ainz tilted his head quizzically.

Could it be that Shalltear being abandoned here was really a coincidence?

Furthermore didnt Albedo see through my lies? Oh dear, oh dear. Setting

that aside do you not feel that this is quite a gamble, Shalltear?

Needless to say, the expressionless Shalltear did not respond.

Ainz looked at Shalltear and readied himself for battle, but a tiny part of himself
wished to escape this situation.

Even if he had just intonated his determination, when standing here and facing
the reality of the situation, he still felt a tremendous amount of pressure.

Even if he had mentally prepared to heroically put his life on the line... no,
because he had the determination to die, the cowardly spirit left behind by the
man, Satoru Suzuki, would feel fear.

The battle that would ensue was not going to be slash-and-kill like in the
YGGDRASIL game but a genuine fight to the death.

The battles he had fought ever since first arriving in this world, this would not be
like his fights against Nigan and Clementine, where an overwhelming difference
in power guaranteed his victory. This time it would be life or death, and
furthermore a battle under an absolute disadvantage.

If he was not an undead, and

If I wasnt the ruler of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, and also not the
representative of the Guild, perhaps I would not be able to even raise my fist.

Ainz laughed out loud, and like this, pushed aside all of his negative emotions.

The fear of death had already vanished without a trace. Even the anxiety of
defeat had disappeared.

Recalling pride and glory endowed Ainz with strength.

I am Ainz Ooal Gown. With that name at stake, there can be no defeat.

Being able to prove that he was the master of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, this
position was not merely an empty title.

Ainz sharp eyes looked towards the unprepared Shalltear.

...... Well then let us begin!

Ainz shouted loudly, activating his magic. From his large collection of spells, he
carefully selected the tenth ranked defensive magic to be activated.

Body of Effulgent Beryl

Ainz white skeletal body began to emit a green glow. Following this

Ha ha ha!

During the activation of his magic, Ainz laughed out loudly while not taking
his eye soff Shalltear. Because in addition to the satisfaction felt from his
predictions proving to be accurate, he had also won a large gamble.

So I was right! Unless my actions are seen as completely hostile, then the NPC
will not ready itself for battle! It is exactly the same as in the game!

Her behaviour mirrored that of mind controlled monsters in YGGDRASIL. The

game logic also applied to this world, which slightly eased this absolutely
unfavourable situation.

Since its like this, Shalltear, I hope you will not mind but before the battle I shall
kindly request that you remain still and wait a while longer.

Ainz continued to activate different magic.

Flight, Magic Casters Blessing, Infinity Wall, Magic Ward:

Holy, Life Essence, Greater Full Potential, Freedom, False Data:
Life, See Through, Paranormal Intuition, Greater Resistance,
Mantle of Chaos, Indomitability, Sensory Boost, Greater Luck,
Magic Boost, Draconic Power, Greater Hardening, Heavenly Aura,
Absorption, Penetration Boost, Greater Magic Shield, Mana
Essence, Triple Maximize Magic: Explosive Mine, Triple Maximise Magic:
Greater Magic Seal, Triple Maximize Magic: Magic Arrow like this, an
almost endless amount of magic surrounded Ainz body.

Now, here I come!

Upon finishing his preparations, those words were thrown at both Shalltear and
himself.

The first magic which Ainz selected was an ultimate move, a spell surpassing the
tenth rank.

It was called Super-level magic

In terms of magic rank, it was a magic already beyond the ranking system. It
could be considered as both magic and not magic. Firstly, there is no MP used
when it is activated. However there was a limit on the number of times that it
could be activated per day.

When it was first learnt, it could only be used once a day. However beyond level
seventy, it could be used one more time per day for every additional ten levels.

The number you could learn is one for each level.

Rather than magic, it could be more appropriate to consider it a special skill.

That was also to say that the average player who reached level 100 could only
use Super-level magic four times. So then you may wonder, wouldnt Shalltear be
defeated through the continuous use of Super-level magic? Indeed, the
destructive power between Super-level magic and tenth-ranked magic was not
comparable. If only it were possible to continuously use Super-level magic, even
in terms of a simple calculation of aggregate damage, only a handful of level 100
players could survive. this would not include Shalltear, thus she would be
defeated.

However it was not so simple.

Because Super-level magic could not be activated consecutively.

Firstly, every Super-level magic has a set activation period. Although it was
possible to use cash items to remove this activation period, there was another
penalty which prevented Super-level magic from being cast continuously.

When members of a small group activated Super-level magic, all of the members
would be affected by this penalty there would be a period of time during
which it was impossible to re-cast Super-level magic, called the cooldown time.

This kind of penalty setting was designed for Guild wars, so that during wars, one
side could not obtain victory by continuously activating Super-level magic. In

addition, neither cash items nor special abilities were able to remove this
cooldown.

As such, in PVPs, any person who activated Super-level magic off the bat was
often recognised as an idiot.

Because using the only trump card without fully understanding the opponents
ins and outs often spelt defeat. In fact during PVPs, obtaining victory by using
Super-level magic at the start of battle was rare.

However, Ainz first move was Super-level magic.

There was no anxiety or confusion on that face, only a calm light in those empty
eye sockets.

A huge three-dimensional, dome shaped magic about ten metres in radius was
activated with Ainz at the centre.

The magic emitted a white light, and texts or marks of translucent patterns
floated into existence. These patterns were continuously shifting and dazzling to
look at, changing shape every second.

If cash items were used, the Super-level magic could be activated

instantaneously, yet Ainz did not do so. His eyesight moved away from Shalltear
and turned to survey the surroundings.

No ambush ? Or are they still standing by the sidelines? Surely this moment
should be the best opportunity for them to attack?

A magic casters defensive abilities would drop when activating Super-level

magic. Furthermore all the caster has to suffer is a certain amount of damage for
the magic to be automatically cancelled.

As such, basically every time Super-level magic was activated, there would be
several companions to protect the caster. That also meant that now was the
perfect time to attack the unprotected Ainz.

However, there was no change in the surroundings.

Could it be that I was overcautious?

Ainz smiled then shrugged.

Although it had only been a hunch, by now Ainz was certain that Shalltear hadnt
been placed there as bait, she had truly been discarded.

Seriously, what happened here. Hey, Im not omniscient, of course I do not

possess the power to see through everything. If I did, then the situation wouldnt
have become like this.

After muttering to himself, Ainz put on an act of twisting his shoulders.

When activating Super-level magic, it was also impossible to move freely, only to
stand like a wooden statue waiting for time to pass.

In order to make use of the time, Ainz took out a curved metal plate from thin air.
It fixated firmly to his arm after he put it there. The metal plate had a row of
numbers which changed with every passing second.

Without the need for further explanation, it was a wristwatch.

Ainz put his thumb on the metal plate, touching the text on the display.

Momonga-oniichan! Im setting the time!

A voice pretending to be a naive girl penetrated the surroundings. This kind of

voice would seriously make people nearby raise their eyebrows.

...... Why cant this watchs voice be turned off

Ainz voiced out a complaint, but this was merely postulation. The voice could be
turned off in the settings, but Ainz had never turned it off.

The watchs voice was from the creator of Aura and Mare, the Guild member
Simmering Teapot.

If he turned off her voice, this item would be no different from an ordinary watch.

The reason why she would put her efforts into making such a voice which would
make others raise eyebrows, was mainly to make fun of Ainz.

The creator of Shalltear Bloodfallen, Peroronchino, was her younger brother, who
was on good terms with Ainz. As such, Simmering Teapot saw Ainz as her younger
brothers friend, leading to this result.

However, it might not be a prank either.

She would often perform voice acting for the role of loli characters in H Games.
The weird voice just now was also that of a loli. Therefore she may only be using
her work-related voice inside.

Realising that he might come across his sisters voice when he set out to
purchase H Games, his desire to go through with the purchase declined rapidly.
Remembering his companions complaints on this issue in the past, Ainz smiled.

...... I agree. If I heard Simmering Teapots voice when browsing the internet, I
would be shocked too.

After his demonstration of affection towards his absent Guild friends, he

proceeded to pull out several flat sticks approximately fifteen centimetres long
each from thin air. Each plank had carved words, inscribed with Tsukuyomi,
Bow of Houyi, Earth Recovery, The Female Senseis Iron Fist of Wrath.

On his waist there were several slots for holding scrolls. He silently memorised
the order of these compartments, then carefully and slowly placed the sticks
inside.

These preparations took a while, and by the time they were complete the magics
blue light was even stronger. It was at the state where it could be launched.

Then, let us begin.

Having prepared himself, Ainz revealed a look of determination

CHAP
TER 5

Part 1

Translator: Sene9ty

Editors/Proofreaders: Skythewood, Ghoststaker, Namorax, Tainted Dream

A noise could be heard, a sound like sticking a burning torch into a pool of
water.

The magic that transcends level it was as if the sun had manifested on the
earths surface, dyeing the surroundings in white.
The deadly heat born from the tremendous temperature expanded in an instant
and greedily devoured everything within its area of effect.

This scene of certain death probably lasted around five seconds. However, it felt
dozens of times longer.

Before long, traces of the white world disappeared. after the heat dissipated, the
effect had drawn a circle that completely changed the surrounding scenery.

Outside the area of effect, everything was left untouched. The trees remained the
same and the land teemed with life, thanks to the nearby forest. It was the
unchanged the normal world.

On the other hand everything inside the circle had been charred black, a
surreal land of death.

The immense heat had obliterated all the plants in the area, and only smoldering
tree trunks remained. Amongst the blackened surface, there were spots where
the land had turned vitreous. Even now, pillars of smoke were scattered about.

Ainz stood just barely outside the area that permitted no survivors. From within
that area, he felt a ghastly presence pierce through his body.

The source was just one person.

Who else could survive temperatures that eradicated all life?

Kaka ahahaha.

A strange voice mixed with a grinding noise, an unimaginable sound that made
one clench their teeth, flowed into Ainz ears.

The sound had come from the crimson spot in the world of black.

With smoke rising from her body, as if to say that this wasnt enough to kill her,
Shalltear Bloodfallen laughed. Her scarlet eyes were filled with killing intent as
she glared directly at Ainz.

Ainz-sama! That was pretty painful!

Shalltear slowly placed one foot forward, forming a crack along the charred earth.

She closed her distance to Ainz by a step, then another, and swung the Spuit
Lance she held in one hand. The sound as it cut through the air was a testament
of the fact that she could still fight.

A magic caster displayed his true strength in a long range battle. For Ainz, who
was not strong in close combat, narrowing the distance would only put him at a

disadvantage. However, instead of quickly retreating, he spoke to Shalltear with

an imposing attitude, like a champion waiting for his challenger.

It was a boring gift, but how did you like it Shalltear?

Ahahahahaha!

From the bottom of her heart, Shalltear laughed happily.

It was amazing! I cant believe I have to kill someone with such tremendous
power, Ainz-sama!

.... sama you say. Shalltear, why do you still address me with honorifics? Who
is your current master?

You say some strange things. Its obvious that I would call you Ainz-sama, the
Supreme Ruler. And my master right now is.

Shalltear wore a large frown. It was a look of confusion.

.Why am I fighting with Ainz-sama? No, thats not it? Because I was attacked?
But why did Ainz-sama attack me? Because I was attacked, I have to use my
full strength and kill? Why?

Before long, as if Shalltear had come to some conclusion, the smile from before
returned to her face.

I dont really understand, but since Ainz-sama attacked me, I have to kill you!

. I see. . I understand your condition now.

Ara? Whats wrong, Ainz-sama? You seem tired. Do you think you can win
against me like that?

Hmph. You seem to be misunderstanding something. Do you truly believe that I

Ainz Ooal Gown, will lose to the likes of you? There is no defeat for Ainz Ooal
Gown. Shalltear, you will be the one to kneel before me.

Ahahahahaha! How scary!

With a speed that would make even the wind seem slow in comparison, Shalltear
closed in, filled with bloodlust. Every step caused the charred earth beneath her
to explode. Clementine had been fast, but Shalltear was at a different level
altogether. Ainz was thankful for his body that did not need to blink. If he had
blinked even once, he would have lost track of her.

With the sound of laughter trailing behind her, Shalltears lance flew in his
direction. Originally, a Lance Charge had the weight and speed of a knight on
horseback behind it. However, with her strength and speed that was in a different
league and left others agape, Shalltear easily surpassed the power of such an
attack.

Even calling it an ultimate skill did not do it justice. Such an attack was heading
straight for Ainz chest.

Even as the point of the lance flew towards him, Ainz did not budge.

Rather, he opened his mouth and said gently:

It will be dangerous for you.

A voice overflowing with concern, as if he was worried on Shalltears behalf; a

word of warning was his response against her attack.

The moment Shalltear brought down her foot, the spell that had been prepared
beforehand, Triple Maximize Magic: Explosive Land Mines was activated.
Three large explosions roared out and Shalltear was blown back.

Once again, Ainz spoke in a gentle voice:

Forgive me for being late with the warning, Shalltear. In truth, Ive laid some
mines there Maximize Magic: Gravity Maelstrom.

Aiming at Shalltear who had been blown away, Ainz launched a sphere that drew
a black spiral. It was a spinning ball of super gravity that could deal significant
damage even to beings like Shalltear.
She immediately recovered her balance and raised her free hand.

Wall of Stone.

A huge stone wall sprouted from the ground and surrounded Shalltear. It collided
with Ainz ball of super gravity. The stone bent and shattered and was destroyed
along with the gravity spiral.

Hmph! Maximize Magic: Rib Bind!

Another attack. A large ribcage sprouted from the earth and, like a tiger trap,
seized Shalltear. The pointed ends of the pale bone pierced deeply through her
flesh.

Ugh!

Although the spell was supposed to keep the target constricted after the initial
damage, Shalltear easily slipped away, thanks to her complete immunity to
movement impairing effects.

...Shalltear, it looks like Ive forgotten to mention that I laid traps in the
surrounding area. Wouldnt it be a better idea for you to attack me from the air?
......Ainz-sama, I wont fall for that. You probably have traps in the air as well,
no?

Was it obvious?

Yes, very.

The two shared a light laugh, and the intensity of Ainz red eyes dulled slightly.

There was no way that was true. Ainz did not have any more landmine magic
prepared. He also didnt set up any traps in the air either. This wasnt a battle
where he could carelessly use his MP. He couldnt afford the luxury of spending
his MP on spells that might prove ineffective.

Thats why his claim of having set up traps in the ground was a bluff to restrict
Shalltears movements. His eyes had changed slightly because she walked right
into it. Even so, Ainz did not show any sign of relief.

In this battle, Ainz was the challenger. It was an uphill struggle, like walking on an
incredibly thin rope with the possibility that he would slip and fall extremely high.
Knowing this, Ainz did not celebrate such a small victory.

But as expected of Ainz-sama. A simple charge like that wont even let me close
the distance.

An endless stream of compliments could be felt from Shalltears eyes and voice.
At the same time, accompanied by the feeling that she was going to be serious.

The real battle starts now.

If Ainz could sweat, it would probably be pouring down his back like a waterfall.

My only option is to damage her consistently, before my MP runs out.

Otherwise, his defeat was certain.

Shalltear fixed her grip on her Spuit Lance and glared at the magic caster in front
of her. Her master, Ainz Ooal Gown.

Although it was unclear to her why she had to fight her master, the being who
deserved her worship, her brain dismissed it as a trivial problem. She could take
her time thinking about it after killing him.

Having thought as much, Shalltear stared at the lone undead while imagining the
overwhelming advantage that she held in this battle. The thought twisted her lips
into a smile.

A magic caster held incredible power, but that power depended entirely on his
MP. If they were to run out, his combat potential would vanish as well. On the
other hand, although Shalltear was a faith based magic caster, she was also
proficient in close combat. Her enormous physical ability allowed her to fight as
long as her HP remained, even if her MP was depleted.

Thats why, instead of chipping away at his HP, victory in this battle will be all but
certain if she can manage to completely drain her opponents MP. Regardless,
Ainz didnt have any effective healing spells at his disposal.

So tremble as you watch your HP and MP slowly being chipped away. Ahaha. Just
imagining Ainz-samas terrified face is making my heart race!

Then what was the best method to fight? A battle of endurance.

Having decided her strategy for the upcoming battle, Shalltear gripped her Divine
Class item, Spuit Lance.

This weapon had a special ability that returned a portion of the damage dealt to
heal the wielder. No, it could be said that the weapon was specialized for that
effect. That was why Ainz, who normally fought from the back, did not call his
summons to protect him at the front. He knew very well that sending out a weak
monster would only serve to give the Spuit Lance more health.

Ahh, poor Ainz-sama. To think he cant use his summons and has to fight all
alone!

Shalltear held back a sadistic smile and used her skill, Analyze Mana.

Having temporarily gained the ability to detect mana, Ainz remaining MP showed
up in her vision.

Such an incredible amount. just how did he get that much mana?

The amount of MP he possessed was vast, at least 1.5 times greater than
Shalltear. Even if you searched all of Nazarick, you would not be able to find
someone who could match him.

Truly fitting for a Supreme Being, Overspec Undead.. Super Undead.. No,
Godlike Undead?

Even so she did not think for a minute that she would lose. Although it may be
different if it were another Floor Guardian, against Shalltear, an opponent who
specialized in death magic could not pose a threat to her.

With that said, he still isnt an opponent I can get complacent against. Why isnt
he wearing his Divine Class items, I wonder?

The robe Ainz was wearing seemed somewhat shabby. It contained none of the
dangerous aura that his usual raven colored robe exuded.

Some sort of a measure against me? The possibility is quite high. But the battle
wont end at this rate if we just stare at each other. Ill prepare for the long haul
and heal myself..

Regeneration.

Using a spell that was effective even on undead, Shalltear slowly began to heal
the damage from the super magic. Against this Shalltear, Ainz finally started his
attack. He cast the super gravity magic he had used previously.

Maximize Magic: Gravity Maelstrom.

As the black sphere flew towards her at high speed, the thought that she should
put up a stone wall like before passed through her head. However, with that
method, she couldnt pressure her opponent. She had to go on the offensive in
order to force him to use up more of his MP.

Shalltears decision was

Greater Teleportation.

Teleport to close the distance and aim for a melee battle.

Her field of vision warped, the change in surroundings that was supposed to
occur immediately felt slower.

Che!

Shalltear realized it was the effect from the spell that inhibited spatial
transference, Delay Teleportation.

The spot she was expecting to teleport to was where she would be able to reach
Ainz with her Spuit Lance. However, she found that his figure was still a good
distance away. Instead, in front of her eyes were three blinking photospheres
Drifting Master Mine.

As the mines detected Shalltear and were about to detonate, she transformed
into her Mist Form. This skill turned her body into mist and was well suited for a
vampire. Despite describing it as such, she did not become a mist in the physical
sense. It was more like the absence of a physical body, transforming into an
Astral Body. This allowed her to completely avoid any attacks from the physical
world like the imminent three explosions.

Not good enough!

With a roar, Ainz cast Maximize Magic: Astral Smite.

Her resistances slightly lowered by her transformation, the magic that was
effective against ethereal bodies enveloped Shalltear.

With pain wracking her body, she released her Mist Form. Shalltears lips tore into
a smile as she felt a string of sleek fluid trail down her body.

Incredible! As expected of Ainz-sama!

Her sincere admiration did not receive a response, only a look of suspicion.

You dont believe me? But I honestly thought that you are indeed the person
deserving of my loyalty.

As expected, a person skilled in magic combat.

However the smile did not leave Shalltears lips. His magic had depleted
considerably.
Of course, Shalltears health had also taken a hit. But her own loss was still within
her calculations while Ainz MP loss exceeded it. Her profits had pulled plenty
ahead. In other words, Shalltear was now that much closer to victory.

Now, hows this?

Shalltear made her next move.

Force Sanctuary.

A white light enveloped Shalltears surroundings. A barrier created from holy

energy. Although she herself could not attack, it was an absolute barrier that
completely blocked the opponents attack.

On the other side of the light, the appearance of Ainz hastily preparing to launch
his magic could be seen.

Thats right. Itll get dangerous for you if you dont cast your magic quickly .

At first glance, the battle up to that point would have seemed to be progressing
in Ainz favor. Shalltear already understood the reason.

Ability wrong.

Equipment wrong.

Preparation correct.

Thats right. This advantage was due to the many defensive spells Ainz had
prepared beforehand. A magic casters strength varied greatly depending on how
much he prepared before the battle. Of course, Shalltear was the same. That was

why Ainz had immediately destroyed the defenses she had cast on her body. Like
what she was doing now, he couldnt afford to give Shalltear time to prepare her
defenses.

In truth, Shalltear didnt have the slightest intention of casting defensive magic.
She wasnt very good at them, after all. She merely wanted Ainz to waste more of
his MP. That was why the scene of Ainz nervously preparing his spells made her
laugh.

Arara, arent you playing too favorably in my hand, Ainz-sama? Anyway, why
arent you using your scrolls, or your staff, or your wands? Are you trying to save
them? Or maybe youre panicking, or perhaps you know that they wont work
against me? Hmm~?

Ainz magic resistance was capable of completely nullifying all low and
intermediate level magic, regardless of how strong of a magic caster his
opponent was. On the other hand, Shalltears magic resistance depended on the
strength or level of her opponent. A weak magic casters attack would be
completely ineffective, even if it was a 10th level spell. However, against an
incredibly powerful magic caster in this case, Ainz 1st level spells would be
her limit.

Although the power of magic contained in items like scrolls varied to an extent
based on the creator, they were normally adjusted to the lowest level. For this
reason, there was a high chance that spells cast using a scroll would not be able
to pierce through Shalltears magic resistance. It was the reason why Ainz was
not using them.

As Shalltear calmly analyzed the situation, Ainz cast his magic.

Maximize Magic: Thousand Bone Lance.

Piercing through a wide area of earth with Ainz at its center, one thousand, two
thousandno, an uncountable number of bone spears exploded forth. The white
spears scattered and crashed repeatedly into the magic barrier. And with the

sound of breaking glass, Shalltears barrier began to shatter. The rubble that was
scattering to the surroundings melted into thin air.

Che!

The barrier she had created using a big chunk of her mana was destroyed in a
single attack. This was completely outside of her predictions. While feeling
annoyed from this development, another attack flew at her.

It isnt over yet! Maximize Magic: Thousand Bone Lance!

Greater Teleportation.

She chose a location in the air, outside the effective range of Delay
Teleportation.

Did you think I will let you escape Maximize Magic: Gravity Maelstrom!

Somehow, Ainz was able to predict Shalltears teleportation. As if he had grasped

the timing of her reappearance, Ainz magic flew in her direction.

From his skillful battle, Shalltear almost felt like she was falling for him. The way
he fought was impossible without a certain degree of experience.

You still seem relaxed.

Ainz, the one Shalltear had to kill for some reason, spoke quietly:

How is it that you seem so relaxed with me as your opponent? There is no

difference in our levels, equipment wise I have the edge, and my only

disadvantage is that I cannot use the spells I am specialized in. But Shalltear, I
sense from you the conviction that you have the upper hand, the confidence that
you can win, no matter the circumstances.

Towards her master, who was asking her why, Shalltear felt a sense of superiority.

Ahahaha. Then Ill show you just one of the reasons why Im confident. Did you
know I had a skill like this?

Shalltear wore a smile allowed only to the victor and activated her Unholy
Shield. A dark red shockwave that was reminiscent of blood spilled forth around
her. It easily blew away the gravity sphere that was close to impact.

It was one of Shalltears skills that combined both offense and defense.

Tsk!

The sound of Ainz clicking his tongue could be heard. If the reason that Shalltear
clicked her tongue just previously was because of events that extended past her
predictions, then his was because Ainz had just lost the advantage.

Ahaha!

Shalltear laughed at him and displayed another skill.

Floating above her palm was a huge divine war spear that measured over three
meters long. Its blade was particularly large. The pure aura radiating from the
spear was proof that it was no ordinary weapon. Its silvery white brilliance that
seemed to reflect the sun was beautiful.

Ohhh. It is my first time seeing this. Did you create it with your skill?

Ahahaha. How long will you be able to keep up this farce, Ainz-sama? Since you
dont even seem to know what this is, Ill explain it to you. The name of this spear
is the Purifying Javelin!

Mocking his ignorance, Shalltear fired the silvery white spear. She did not throw
it. Instead, it levitated by itself and shot through the air. By expending MP, it had
the added effect of perfect accuracy

Ughhh!

stabbed Ainz through the chest. To Shalltear, it looked as if the face that should
not have been moving was twisted greatly in pain.

Ahahaha! It seems magic weapons with the holy attribute are different after all.
This seems pretty effective?!

Once again, a huge spear materialized in Shalltears hand and was immediately
fired. The spear flew with an unavoidable speed and pierced through Ainz
shoulder.

Kuh, you dare! Maximize Magic: Reality Slash!

A powerful spell was cast.

A minor version of World Break, the most powerful skill possessed by the
strongest warrior class, World Champion. It was a skill that was only obtainable
when one reached the maximum level of that class. Despite being a weakened
version, its destructive power was top class even amongst the 10th tier spells.

Blood sprouted as high as a fountain from Shalltears shoulder as space itself was
cut in its wake.

However, the attack that almost completely ignored her magic resistance as if
time was flowing backwards; the blood returned to her shoulder and the damage
was negated.

Witnessing such a scene, Ainz shouted.

What did you do!

Dont be so surprised, Ainz-sama. This is also a skill.

Shalltear was dripping wet from superiority as she answered his question.

Tsk! You mean my skill is ineffective, yet you use yours freely?

Please dont think of it as unfair. This is a power granted to me by Peroronchinosama. Isnt it proof that he was greater than you, Ainz-sama?

It seems that those words are your true feelings.

It was as if his expression had vanished. His was a quiet voice devoid of emotion.
Before Shalltear could begin to doubt, Ainz shouted once more.

Here I come, Shalltear! No matter what skills you possess, know that my magic
is stronger!

Maximize Magic: Reality Slash and Purifying Javelin were exchanged, chipping
away at each others bodies.

As the skill exchange occurred once more, Shalltear mocked in her head how
foolish he was. At the same time, she was wondering why she was fighting him.

Shalltear Bloodfallen was the Floor Guardian in charge of the Great Tomb of
Nazaricks first three floors, as well as a loyal subject created by Peroronchino,
one of the 41 Supreme Beings of Ainz Ooal Gown. Then wasnt it strange that she
was now fighting that same Ainz Ooal Gown, who had once used the name
Momonga? Why was she pointing her blade against a member of the 41 Supreme
Beings?

If her creator had ordered it, she would have fought with all the strength in her
body. She would not hesitate even if all of Nazarick became her enemy. But this
was different.

No matter how much she wracked her brain, the answer did not come.

However, she could not stop her hands from moving. A voice was whispering to
her, telling her to kill with her full power.

Shalltear spied with Analyze Magic as Ainz used up his MP. While suppressing
her mounting laughter, she used her time reversal to restore her health.

Powerful magic comes at a heavy cost. Among them, Reality Slash,

considering its damage-to-cost ratio was terribly inefficient. The fact that he
used it in succession meant that he determined the crux of the battle to depend
on how much he could wear down Shalltear before the battle came to a melee.

Thats right. Aiming for a short battle was the correct idea, since I would hold the
advantage in a drawn out fight.. though I dont know how effective debuffs
would be against undead.

Shalltear narrowed her eyes as she stared at the person casting powerful spells
one after another.

Alright. Shall I follow your lead?

Shalltears skills were divided into those that could be used infinitely and ones
that had a set number of uses. Her method of recovering through time reversal
could only be used three times a day, same for the Purifying Javelin. The Unholy
Shield had only one charge left.

But saving them held no charm. From the start, Shalltear believed that the final
showdown would come to a melee. Her MP and skills were only tools for her to
chip away at Ainz MP.

Although I can still fight without my MP, if yours is gone then its fatal, Ainz-sama.

Shalltear who fought with both her HP and MP, against Ainz who was forced to
fight with just his MP. From the beginning, there was an overwhelming difference
between the two sides.

Shalltears gentle eyes were fixed on Ainz, who could not choose anything other
than magic. Rather than a mother worrying over her child, it was more accurate
to describe it as a look of compassion from the strong to the weak.

With her last Purifying Javelin fired and receiving Reality Slash in response,
Shalltear moved to the second stage of the battle.

Then how about this? 10th Level Summon Monster.

As if Ill let you! Greater Rejection!

The summoned monster vanished in an instant. Ainz spoke in a voice tinged with
pride.

I wont let you stall for time, Shalltear.

Dont laugh, Shalltear. Hes just using his MP right after my skill!

Struggling to keep a straight face, Shalltear cast her magic.

Is that so? Then shall I face you directly? Maximize Magic: Vermillion Nova.

Triple Maximize Magic: Call Greater Thunder.

Dark red flames that were Ainz weakness wrapped around his body. At the same
time, three enormous thunderbolts, fused from multiple strands of lightning,
pierced through Shalltear.

Along with the feeling of her health being carved away, for the first time in this
battle, an unpleasant expression floated to Shalltears face.

He raised his fire resistance?

No matter how strong a person was, it was impossible to be fully resistant to

every type of attribute. Even if you were to stack resistances from your race,
class, and even Divine Class equipment, there was still a limit. However, if one
were to completely erase a resistance to an attribute, it was possible to raise
another to be fully immune. This was the case even if it was an attribute that you
were weak against.

In other words, Ainz had abandoned a different attribute in order to focus on

improving his fire resistance.

How annoying, I dont know which attribute he gave up.

The only way to find out would be to use Analyze Life to bring up his HP and
cast spells from every attribute to see how it reacts.

As if Id do something as bothersome as that. Then with an attribute hes

definitely weak to.

Maximize Magic: Brilliant Radiance.

Maximize Magic: True Darkness.

While Ainz was purified by a holy light that engulfed his body, Shalltears body
was assaulted by a dark void.

In that instant Shalltear did not miss it; the momentary image of his body
shaking.

Even now, he had quickly fixed his posture and was pretending to not notice. But
no one would fall for such an obvious act. It was the struggle of a body trying to
endure the pain.

Shalltear laughed without letting it show on her face, she had found his
weakness.

No, it couldnt be helped. The undead were critically weak to the holy attribute. It
was incredibly difficult to erase this weakness. Even more so if his equipment was
used to raise his fire resistance, then it was absolutely impossible.

As the two stared each other down, they cast the next magic. Of course, Shalltear
chose the same, Brilliant Radiance.

Just how many times did their spells go back and forth? Even for Shalltear, she
had lost a significant amount of her health. If she hadnt secretly used her skill
that weakens magical effects in exchange for continually draining her MP, then
her HP may have even dropped downed to zero.

As I thought, hes incredible. Both in attack and defense, Ainz-sama is

overwhelmingly more powerful than me in a battle of magic. Even with me using
holy magic in succession, he probably didnt take as much damage as I did. But
still hes used up quite a bit of MP.

Ainz MP that showed up in her vision was now much lower than when they first
started. Despite this, his eyes still burned violently with a fiery spirit.

Ahh, my body is tingling. Such a wonderful man, I want to see what he looks like
when hes defeated and his spirit broken.

Shalltear quelled the feeling surging from her lower abdomen. If she were in her
room, she might have called a vampire bride. Unfortunately, there were none
here. Needless to say, she could hardly pleasure herself and vent her sexual
urges here and now.

Then the only option left satisfy herself in battle.

Her eyes wet with lust, Shalltear stared at Ainz while licking her lips with her
tongue. What sort of reaction will he show if she were to further increase her
advantage right here?

Then Ill be healing myself now. Maximize Magic: Greater Lethal.

The living are healed by positive energy and damaged by negative energy.
Undead are the opposite. Thats why a spell like Greater Lethal, that channels
powerful negative energy inwards, becomes the greatest healing magic for
undead like Shalltear.

Youre right. I have lost a considerable amount of health as well. Greater

Lethal.

Shalltear blinked her eyes several times. She couldnt believe what was
happening. However, seeing how his wounds were being healed before her very
eyes, she had no choice but to accept it.

..Huh? How can Ainz-sama cast faith magic like Greater Lethal? Was it on
the learnable skills list for your class?

No, unfortunately this power is not my own, but from a magic item. It is an item
that lets me use just one specific spell. For that, I have to use up one of my
equipment slots. It also cannot be used with the Maximize Magic skill and the
effect is not as powerful as the one from the original class. There is not a lot
thats good about it.

Seeing Ainz use Greater Lethal a second time while complaining about what a
bother it is, Shalltear muttered that the schedule had changed slightly. With that
said, it didnt make too big of a difference since one of her objectives of making
Ainz spend his MP was successful.

Having made her judgment, Shalltear activated Greater Lethal once more and
treated her wounds. Since she was level 100, it took some time before she made
a complete recovery.

And the last

Maximize Magic: Greater Lethal.

Body of Effulgent Beryl.

while she healed her injuries, Ainz was casting a defensive spell on himself.

Shalltear, in addition to being a faith based magic caster, did not receive a great
amount of information from Peroroncino. Thus, she did not know what type of
effect the Body of Effulgent Beryl spell produced. Seeing Ainz wrapped by the
green sheen that he had worn just moments ago, Shalltear determined that he
had used a defense magic.

Thats the correct decision. I was just about to start attacking you personally.

Just as Shalltear was getting ready to wield the Spuit Lance to her hearts
content, she heard a complaint that sounded as if it was spilled unintentionally.

To think I would be at such a disadvantage.

Completely blindsided, Shalltear loosened the hand that was around her Spuit
Lance and thought to herself.

You just figured it out?

With that said, she reasoned that saying such a thing to her master, Ainz-sama,
would be insolent and did not let it out of her mouth.

master? Ainz-sama?

Shalltear wondered at the word that had surfaced in her mind several times
already throughout the fight. She wanted to know why she had to point her blade
at her master, Ainz-sama. But it was like that. There were plenty of things in the
world that she didnt understand. This was just one of them.

Even when she determined it to be such, Shalltear thought her actions against
Ainz were not consistent with that line of thinking. Thats why, with a calm voice
that couldnt have come from the middle of a battle, she spoke to him.

If the battle is unfavorable, maybe you should run?

But, about that.

Something similar to a bitter smile seemed to flash across Ainz face; on the
skeleton face that should not have been able to move.

I am. yes. I am very selfish, Shalltear. I do not wish to run away.

Ainz stared at his empty, skeletal hand. As if she was drawn to it, Shalltears
vision also moved to that spot.

Though I doubt anyone will understand, even if others think of me as a fool, in

this moment, as a Guildmaster, I feel satisfied. How should I say. I. even
though I held the position of Guildmaster, in truth, all I did was regulate and
handle menial tasks. Ultimately, I did not lead from the front. However, right now,
I am fighting for the sake of the guild at the forefront.though it may just be for
my self-satisfaction.

Is that so? Perhaps thats what they call a mans pride?

That. is that what this is? Perhaps. it may just be out of desperation. It
seems Ive ruined the mood with such a boring story. Forgive me. Shall we
continue?

Part 2

Ainz calmly stared at the figure of Shalltear holding her Spuit Lance. In order for
him to seize victory, he had to get through this melee.

The equipment around Shalltears back swelled, and as if bursting through the
armor, sprouted the wings of a bat. Ainz knew what would come next.

Countless large bats flew into the air from her back. They were Elder Vampire
Bats created from the Raise Kin skill. They were also accompanied by Vampire
Bat Swarms.

Although they werent that strong, they still couldnt be ignored. Ainz
immediately cast his magic.

Shark Cyclone.

In an instant, a tornado that was 100 meters high and measured 50 meters in
diameter made its appearance. It tore through the land and lifted the earth into
the air. Darkened by the debris, the tornado swallowed the fleeing bats into its
body.

Within the raging cyclone, numerous shadows could be seen slowly moving
about. The shadows that were swimming around as if inside an ocean sharks
measuring around six meters. They flocked in groups to the swarms of bats
desperately trying to fly against the tornado, like bait thrown to the surface.
While the spell effective against airborne creatures displayed its strength, much
like how the sharks were tearing through the Elder Vampire Bats, there was
another who was tearing through the storm.

The crimson figure pierced through the tornado head on and charged at high
speed. With the tip of her lance pointing forward, the figure left behind a trail of
heat like a jet.

Unable to react in time, Ainz felt a sharp pain all over his body. Crack, he felt
every bone in his body fracture.

The instant he had lowered his guard, Shalltear moved right up to his eyes and
had pierced through his sternum with her murderous weapon. The tip of the lance
crushed his bones and shot out of his back.

Ugh!

He cried out in pain. Shalltear had used her skill to give the lance a striking
property and delivered a blow to his HP.

The undead Ainz was strong against pain. Like his mind, damage that exceeds a
fixed threshold was suppressed. That was why even a complete novice of fighting
like Suzuki Satoru could keep his composure without losing himself to the pain.

But this was intense.

The feeling of his life being carved away. A feeling similar to your vision
darkening from losing most of your blood, it violently rattled Ainz no, Suzuki
Satorus weak mind.

But Ainz will surpassed it.

The man fighting here was not Suzuki Satoru. It was the Supreme Ruler of the
Great Tomb of Nazarick, Ainz Ooal Gown.

Even as Ainz was searching for his next course of attack, Shalltears assault did
not stop.
With the end of her lance still penetrating through Ainz, she pushed forward
again and again. As the blade stabbed deeper, the thicker part of the lance
continued to dig into his body. The feeling of his body splitting in half and the
pounding pain, along with his rapidly deteriorating health.

It triggered the activation of his Body of Effulgent Beryl.

The green sheen that hugged his body shattered.

The 10th tier magic, Body of Effulgent Beryl. For its duration, it had the
passive effect of reducing damage from strike attacks. When activated, it had a
one-time use of completely nullifying strike damage.

The damage dealt by the lance was absorbed by the Body of Effulgent Beryl.
As if time was reversed, the lance was pushed out of Ainz body.

Pushed away by the lance to his location, Ainz launched his spell at Shalltear who
didnt seem to understand what had just happened.

Wall of Skeletons!

A wall of bone made of countless skeletons wielding weapons appeared between

the two figures. The skeletons that formed the wall swung and stabbed at
Shalltear.

However, not a single one reached Shalltears body.

Maximize Magic: Force Explosion.

An invisible shockwave burst out with Shalltear at its center and crashed into the
wall of bone. The wall bent, and unable to withstand the force of the shockwave,
exploded.

The scattered bones showered down with the sound of rain. But it had proved
useful in buying Ainz time.

Release!

Following his command, Greater Magic Seal released three magic circles,
each firing 30 shots of white arrows of light, for a combined volley of 90 shots.
What was released was normal attack magic, Magic Arrow. The beautiful
afterglow from the flying arrows resembled the wings of an angel. However, this
was an angel that signaled death.

Magic of the 1st tier cannot penetrate Shalltears magic resistance. Sensing the
danger behind the fact that Ainz used it regardless, Shalltear hastily tried to
dodge to her side. However, the white arrows made a sharp turn and perfectly
lodged themselves into the target, like a shower of rain.

The damage from 90 consecutive white magic arrows instantly destroyed

Shalltears health.

The secret behind how they managed to pierce through her magic resistance was
because he had used a skill that temporarily brought up their power to rival that
of 10th tier magic.

His assault did not stop there.

Dance! Triple Maximize Magic: Obsidian Sword!

Three swords that gave off a black light floated in midair. As if they had a will of
their own, they immediately flew straight towards Shalltear.

Shalltear repelled them with her Spuit Lance, as if telling them to stay out of her
way. However, Obsidian Sword continued its assault. It was incredibly difficult
to destroy a sword made of magic with a physical attack.

Magic Destruction.

Shalltear used what little MP she had left to cast a magic canceling spell. With her
MP now completely gone, her magic destroyed two of the swords in midair. But
with one left, the remaining sword continued to attack Shalltear. Magic
Destructions success rate varied depending on the ability of the user. The
result simply showed which of the two was the stronger magic caster.
Ahh, annoying!

Shalltear ignored the blade heading in her direction and charged at Ainz. Magic of
that level wouldnt be able to damage her.

The blow from the Spuit Lance threw Ainz to the side. Ainz was weak to strike
attacks. Unable to ignore the damage, he steadied himself in the air using his
Flight magic. And

Damn it!

For the first time in this battle, he lost his calm and cursed.

It wasnt that his HP had dropped enough to warrant such a reaction. The
problem was the phenomenon that was occurring before his eyes. The health that
he lost was absorbed by Shalltear and had healed her.

The speed of that restoration surpassed the damage from the Obsidian
Sword. In order to deal damage greater than her healing, Ainz immediately
covered her with attack magic.

Triple Maximize Magic: Reality Slash.

One after another, three attacks that slashed space itself drew blood from
Shalltears body. However, she ignored it and approached him to shorten the
distance, bringing the Obsidian Sword on her back with her.

Without her MP, Shalltear has no choice but to close in and fight inside the range
of her Spuit Lance.. But that is not in my favor.

While retreating with Flight, Ainz continued his barrage of attacks.

Triple Maximize Magic: Reality Slash.

Despite the fact that he was on the run, with every blink, the distance between
them was shrinking. It was the difference between the flying speed strengthened
by a skill and that of Flight magic.

With blood spilling from her body, Shalltear closed the distance until she was
right in front of his eyes. Crouching forward, Shalltear released a shockwave with
herself at its center.

Its not Force Explosion! Unholy Shield?!

The shockwave formed from her skill shattered the remaining Obsidian Sword
and crashed into Ainz, blowing him back a great distance.

Kuh! Gaah!

There was no doubt that she had combined her Unholy Shield with another
unknown skill. Ainz crashed into the ground and rolled twice, three times and
forcefully recovered his balance with the help of a magic item and his Flight
magic.

Whether it was because he lacked a vestibular system or because it was a

characteristic of being an undead, Ainz, who didnt even feel dizzy, glared at
Shalltear over the widened distance.

This was a stroke of good fortune. Ainz did not desire a close range fight. The fact
that their distance increased meant that he had more time to use his magic

As he was about to cast his spell, Ainz spotted a gathering of bright light that
appeared in front of Shalltear. As if to block the two, the light occupied the space
between them and formed into a shape the size of a human.

He knew very well what that was.

Ainz twisted his unmoving face into a frown, while Shalltear wore a victorious
smile.

So its here at last. I thought it would appear eventually, but to use it here.
Einherjar Shalltears greatest secret weapon.

The white light took the shape of a complete human.

Its appearance was that of a figure wearing white armor. If you were to exclude
the fact that its skin radiated a pale light, it would look almost identical to
Shalltear, its summoner.

Ainz knew that the appearance wasnt the only similarity the two shared.

It doesnt have the ability to use magic or items, along with some of its skills.
However, its equipment and stats are on par with Shalltear herself. Although the
race was a construct similar to a golem, it wouldnt be an exaggeration to say
that its resistances were nearly identical to those of an undead.

It could be considered as a second Shalltear that could only use regular attacks.

Although he had expected this to happen, the burden of fighting two level 100
enemies at once was huge.

On top of this, Shalltear raised a great number of her kin. Wolves, bats, rat
swarms and many more.

Although none were at the level of the Einherjar, the strength in numbers was not
to be underestimated.

Assuming I take them out instantly with area of effect magic.. What should I do
about the Einherjar?

While Ainz was exploring his options, the Einherjar charged in his direction. It was
a situation that even he hadnt predicted.

Why isnt Shalltear making a move? Isnt her plan to decide the fight with
numbers?

The question was answered as soon as he shifted his eyes. At the same time, the
flame inside his empty eye sockets flared greatly.

Uwah! So unfair!!

He accidently spoke as Suzuki Satoru, asking if something like that was allowed.

The scene that was reflected in Ainz vision; the summoned kin were being
destroyed, pierced by the Spuit Lance.

Shalltear was attacking the creatures she herself summoned with her Spuit Lance
and healing off of them.

The healing ability of the Spuit Lance, needless to say, depended on the amount
of damage inflicted. Ainz, who was the same level with high defense, versus her
weak kin. There was no need to state which side would give more health.

Reflected in Ainz vision in real time was the image of Shalltear restoring great
amounts of her health.

The summoned creatures soon vanished, pierced by the lance.

It was a truly cruel and unthinkable situation.

But since friendly fire exist in this world, it could be called an obvious strategy.

Ainz regained his composure and began to hatch a plan for this unexpected
situation. But to witness a scene where one killed their own summoned creature
to restore health, it was something that could never have been possible in
YGGDRASIL. As if he couldnt completely suppress his agitation, Ainz took the full
brunt of the attack from the Einherjar that managed to close the distance right up
to his face.

Kuughh!

Ainz was blown away with a scream; the Einherjar continued her attack with an
expressionless face.

As Ainz continued to retreat while under attack, he decided that he too, will lift
the seal on his secret weapon.

Shalltears ability to summon kin wasnt unlimited, so it would eventually end.

But letting her heal from all of the creatures around her was too dangerous.

Originally, he was going to use it when the Einherjar made its appearance. Aside
from her healing herself by killing her own summons, the plan was still
proceeding accordingly.
Amongst his 60 or so class levels, there was one particular class.

Even in YGGDRASIL, it was a highly rare class that only a few possessed.

The reason Ainz was able to get such a class was because he ignored power and
maxed his death magic for the sake of role playing. A person who only wanted to
make a strong character would not have been able to find it. It was a coincidence
because builds skewed to the extreme were rare.

The prerequisite was to have five levels in Overlord. The next step was to be
specialized almost completely in death magic while having a total level of 95.
Only then, could you obtain the class.

A rare class like this, if it were a different game, the information would have been
immediately uploaded to a guide site and shared. But YGGDRASIL was a game
where information itself had value. Like the case with World Class items, the
number of people who freely shared newly discovered information with others
was small. This was especially the case with classes that had a secret weapon.

That class was Eclipse.

The Overlord that has mastered death in the truest sense will rise to this class.
Like an eclipse, he will encroach upon all life. was what was written in the
class status description.

And what he was about to use now, the skill learned at level five, which was the
highest possible level of the Eclipse class. It was a skill that could only be used
once every 100 hours.
The name of the skill The goal of all life is death.

In an instant, a clock with its hands marking the twelve o'clock position appeared
behind Ainz back. He then cast a spell.

Widen Magic: Cry of the Banshee.

A womans scream rang throughout the surroundings like a ripple. It was a shout
with an instant death effect.

It was reinforced by Ainz many skills, making it stronger than normal and difficult
to resist. But needless to say, it did not affect an undead like Shalltear and
neither the Einherjar, who was considered a Construct and therefore had
complete immunity to instant death effects.

But strangely enough, not even the creatures in the area that did not have
complete resistance were affected.

Despite the strange situation, Ainz did not budge. Actually, events were
proceeding as they should.

Clunk

With a noise, as if matching the timing with when the spell was cast, the clock
behind Ainz began to tick.

As his health was being chipped away by the repeated attacks from the
Einherjars lance, Ainz observed Shalltear from the corner of his vision and at the
same time, was disappointed.

.As I thought, the battle wont be settled. That Peroronchino, did he set up this
countermeasure just for me? You didnt have to give her a resurrection item,
damn it!

He felt anger in his heart towards his friend whom he had been close with, even
within the guild.

While Ainz was busy dodging the Einherjars attacks, twelve seconds passed.
Having completed a full revolution, once again, the hand on the clock pointed
towards the sky.

And Ainz secret weapon activated.

That moment the world died.

It was not a figure of speech.

Everything had died.

In front of his eyes, the Einherjar turned into a white mist and began to crumble.
Even the lifeless construct had died instantly. Likewise, Shalltears kin,
succumbing to a power that they could not resist, began to die out.

But it did not end there.

Even the air that was devoid of life died and turned the 200 meter diameter into
a space where breathing was impossible. If there had been a being here who
needed to breathe in order to live, the dead air would have contaminated the
lungs and ended its life.

Not only that, the land died as well. With Ainz at its center, an area measuring
200 meters in diameter instantly turned into a desert.

In a world where only death existed, the only thing left moving was Ainz and
Shalltear.

Ainz secret weapon, The goal of all life is death, it strengthened the instant
death effect of spells and skills to the point where even those with complete
immunity were killed.

A method to defend against it was to, like Shalltear, deploy a self-resurrection

effect and so on.

It was also the reason why even inanimate objects like the air and land had died.
Although its effects werent to this extent in YGGDRASIL, in the real world, it was
much more clearly pronounced in the form of granting Death to all equally.

Even Ainz was taken aback by this strange occurrence. The fact that using a
game skill in reality could change it to this degree, it was almost enough to make
him unwittingly shake his head in wonder.

But Ainz swallowed his surprise. His pride was what kept him from letting his
shock seem obvious. As if to say that this was what he was aiming for, Ainz, with
a haughty arrogance befitting a ruler, quietly spoke to the lone survivor.

How do you feel after witnessing the power that grants death to even those
without life?

A fresh breeze flowed into the surroundings, thinning the dead air. Carried by that
wind, another voice could be heard.

It was amazing, as expected of Ainz-sama. All of my kin ended up getting killed.

But Ainz-samas MP seems to be almost gone. On the other hand my health is
still fine.
Shalltears eyes reflected the nearly depleted state of Ainz MP. Although he still
had a bit left, it was only enough to cast probably two or three more spells at
max. With so few, no matter what spells he used, it would be impossible to kill
Shalltear.

This was the case even if he were to use the super-level magic Heavens
Downfall.

Is using two more 10th tier spells your limit? But since Ainz-samas magic is so
strong, theres no telling what amazing things you could do even with just that.

Indeed, it seems about two is all I have left.

It was not a lie.

She won.

A smile of satisfaction rose to Shalltears mouth.

The line that divided the victor and the defeated was now clearly decided.
Shalltear Bloodfallen as the victor, Ainz Ooal Gown as the defeated.

With the composure of the winner, Shalltear praised the loser, Ainz, who had put
up a good fight.

You were incredible Ainz-sama. Like how your MP is almost gone, mine is
completely spent and my skill charges are nearly gone as well. Youve fought very
well until now.

She channeled her strength into her hand grasping the Spuit Lance. The only
thing left was to end his life in close combat.

I agree. Your compliments, I will accept them graciously.

Twitch. Shalltears cheek moved.

She didnt like it.

Ainz Ooal Gowns calm behavior.

But Shalltear cut down the encroaching snake named anxiety with a single slash.

No matter how hard she thought it over, there was no way for Ainz to overturn
this situation. He had already spent his single use secret weapon. Then that could
only be the appearance of the condemned who has accepted his final moments.
Rather than calling it composure, it was more like a feeling of resignation born
from his resolve.

Shalltear slowly walked and began to close the distance. Even if he were to
attack with a scroll, she was confident that her attack would be faster. That was
why there was no need for her to be impatient.

Ainz did not flee. Not only that, he simply stood his ground without moving.
Sensing his resolve, Shalltear asked:

Do you have any last words?

Lets see Because I was at a disadvantage, because I would turn into a

weakling once my MP ran out And because you thought as much, for not saving
your power, I am very grateful, Shalltear. If you had fought with discretion, the
battle would not have gone nearly as well.

.What?

Shalltear doubted her ears. Just now, she had heard something incredibly out of
place.

Having left Shalltear in such a state, Ainz spoke quietly.

The most important aspect of PVP is how well you transmit fake information to
your opponent. For example, switching your equipment in order to raise your holy
resistance while acting as if it was still effective. While on the other hand, leaving
your weakness, the fire attribute, untouched. Only my predictions were slightly
off. I expected you to use Analyze Life and had prepared False Data: Life
in advance, but it ended up being a useless effort. If you ever get another
chance, make sure that you clearly observe your opponents health. Otherwise,
there will be a large disparity between devising the plan and its execution.

They were not the words she was expecting.

Shalltear couldnt understand what was being said. No, she didnt want to
understand.

He simply has yet to accept his defeat.

No, that wasnt it. She felt a strong will. Not only that, a presence of someone
with victory in his grasp.

Her steps as she approached Ainz felt heavy, weighed down by something rising
in her heart.

.Why isnt Ainz sama widening the distance? A magic caster like him wont be
able to beat me at this range, its a bluff!

My friend Peroronchino has told me quite a bit about you, back when he was still
working on your design. Ever since first arriving in this world, I have memorized
the data of all of my servants. Still, if we were to exclude Pandoras Actor, whom I
created personally, among all the NPCs of Nazarick, you may be the one I
understand the most.

A moment ago, you said that you didnt. know about my skills.

Ainz laughed in response.

Is it not obvious that it was a lie? I thought it would make you more confident.
But if you had saved your Unholy Shield, then I would not have been able predict
the outcome of this battle.

Although blood coursed through her veins, as an undead, it was useless to her.
Shalltear felt that same blood drain from her body, coupled with her swelling
anxiety.

It wasnt a bluff.

His words just now did not carry a single trace of falsehood.

Standing before her, the reason that Ainz Ooal Gown did not retreat was because
he was sure of his victory.

Ahhhhh!

Shalltear opened her mouth wide and screamed. She was venting the emotions
surging within her as noise.

Shalltear was supposed to be the lion while Ainz was the rabbit. He should have
been her prey. No, that was never the case.

From the beginning, this was a battle between lions. Shalltear had just thought on
her own that he was a rabbit.

Filled with apprehension, Shalltear resolved herself that even if he resisted the
first attack, she would not stop her assault until he was dead. With the intent of
ending everything, here in this moment, Shalltear thrust her Spuit Lance.

A step faster, Ainz cast his spell. At the same time, moved his hand as if he was
trying to tear off his robe.

The sound of impact rang out.

Shalltear doubted her eyes.

It just wasnt possible.

The Spuit Lance had been deflected by a bright white mass.

If it had been a spell, Shalltear would have immediately prepared herself to

receive an attack. All the while thinking how it was only a useless struggle
because of the low amount of MP that Ainz had remaining. However, Shalltear,
unable to comprehend what had just occurred before her very eyes, felt her mind
go numb for an instant.

The bright white mass was not magic.

 it was armor.

A white armor. The huge sapphire embedded in its chest radiated a pure and
divine light.

The armor had protected Ainz body and repelled the attack from the Spuit Lance.
Due to their difference in height, Ainz, whose field of vision was higher, was
looking down at Shalltear.

No. he may actually have been looking down on her in earnest.

Although the situation was enough to make her furious, the current Shalltear
could not afford such a luxury. It was because she had heard a chilling voice.

From the beginning, I too wished to end this battle in a melee.

Crash. Someone slammed down on the table. The impact caused the grand table
to shake violently.

The battle up to this point was being observed from this room.

Although the sound of the table being slammed had rung out several times
already, this was the first time he had touched it.

Impossible! That. is that. persons. armor!

. Touch Mesama?

Without taking her eyes off of the crystal screen, Albedo muttered the name of
one of the 41 Supreme Beings.

Thats. right! That. is. Touch. Mesamas. armor!

As if he was agitated No, it is likely that he was agitated in earnest a shout

escaped from Cocytus mouth.

The armor that Ainz was wearing belonged to a certain person who had managed
to obtain the World Champion class, of which there were only nine in YGGDRASIL.

The World Champion was a special class granted only to the victor of the official
martial tournament. As for the prize, the champion was given one piece of special
equipment from the administrator.

Touch Me had chosen that white armor as his prize. The power of the armor
suited for a World Champion surpassed that of Divine Class items, rivaling even
Guild weapons. Of course, since it was a reward for the winner of the tournament,
only the World Champion could equip it.

Warrior transformation magic Perfect Warrior . Definitely, if you were to

use that. You would be able to ignore the class restrictions on equipment.

Demiurge spoke in a voice filled with awe while Albedo muttered under her
breath.

Hes thought this far ahead.

Albedo hugged her body with both arms and trembled.

Turning into a warrior through magic allowed one to wear equipment even if was
restricted to a special class. It was a measure by the administration to give a way
for players to enjoy the more obscure equipment like the shuriken, vajra, or the
monk robe. However, this measure of ignoring class restrictions ended up also
including the equipment given to the World Champion for winning the official
tournament.

I. cant. believe. it to. think. this. was. all. part. of. his. plan I. can. only. give.
my. admiration.

The winner of the battle still hadnt been decided. But seeing Ainz, with his
resourcefulness, and the smooth way he carried out his plan that showed his
experience in battle, the gathered Floor Guardians couldnt help but express their
awe.

As the Floor Guardians looked upon their master with a gaze of both delight and
admiration, they heard the sound of the table being slammed a second time.

That. is!

Once again, it was Cocytus who shouted.

Part 3

A slashing noise.

Kyaaaaaaa!

Absent-minded from witnessing an impossible scene, Shalltear screamed. The

blade entered through her shoulder, cleaved her sternum and stopped at her
unmoving heart.

With faltering steps, she retreated. Her crimson armor now dyed in a deeper
shade of red, Shalltear glared with shock.

Ainz held a sword in his hand. A sharp and huge katana wrapped in lightning. It
had cut through her armor like paper.

Even amongst Divine Class items, there were few that could so easily cut through
Shalltears Legendary Class armor.

Then the answer could only be that few.

Indeed.

The weapon that Ainz held in his hand was one of them.

Along with her blood, Shalltear coughed out the name of the weapon.

Takemikazuchi Mk 8!

Once again, the blade hurtled towards her, causing Shalltear to retreat a great
distance in order to avoid it. Her large distance outside of the weapons range
showed how much she feared it.

No one could fault her, especially if one was a Floor Guardian of the Great Tomb
of Nazarick.

Because a weapon wielded by Warrior Takemikazuchi one of the 41 Supreme

Beings, had made its appearance.

As I have already said, Shalltear. There is no defeat for Ainz Ooal Gown.

Ainz advanced forward one step, and Shalltear retreated two.

Realize now, Shalltear. You face Ainz Ooal Gown, with the combined might of all
41 Supreme Beings. From the beginning, you had no chance of victory.

Then the tide of battle was no longer the same as before.

A low voice rang out, one belonging to a man who has blown away his
overwhelming disadvantage.

Shalltear Bloodfallen. Engrave into your eyes the power of the one whom you all
call and revere as the Supreme Ruler of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, leader of the
Supreme Beings.

It was a signal that he was now going to switch to the offensive.

Ainz stepped forward, raising his two hands high above his head and brandished
his katana.

Ainz spoke quietly.

With absolute conviction and an unbroken confidence.

Like walking on thin ice, it was a battle where even the smallest mistake would
have sent him plummeting down a bottomless lake. The current Ainz was now
closing in on the heart of his enemy.

Both of their MPs were at zero. In HP, Shalltear held the advantage.

However, Ainz, who was now a level 100 Warrior thanks to [Perfect Warrior],
surpassed Shalltear who was not of a pure warrior class. Even in equipment, Ainz
held the advantage.

Shalltear took a step back and readied herself to charge in at the same time. She
was planning to attack during the opening after the blade was brought down. In
reality, Takemikazuchi Mk. 8 was considered a large weapon and, like the Spuit
Lance, incapable of nimble movements.

Wrapped in lightning, Takemikazuchi Mk8 cleaved through the air and stopped
right at the edge of Shalltears chest, who was in a stance ready to charge
forward. What followed was a god-speed thrust.

No matter how physically strong you are, it is difficult to stop a swing brought
down in full force in midair. Even more so if the weapon is of a considerable size.

The reason such a thing was possible was because Ainz did not swing with his full
strength. In other words, it was an attack with the assumption that it will not hit,
purposefully creating a weak spot.

Planning your attack while thinking several moves ahead, it was an obvious tactic
for a warrior.

All Ainz did was to put it into practice.

However, he would never have thought of it if not for the battle experience he
got in Re-Lantier. He would simply have swung aimlessly and be met with
Shalltears counterattack.

There was no doubt that he, despite becoming a level 100 warrior, would have
ended up in a situation where he was unable to bring out his full strength and
wasted away the treasure. It was similar to driving a car. Even if one had a
license and knew how to drive, the difference between a beginner and an
experienced driver becomes incredibly apparent when faced with a difficult
situation.

This was experience.

What Ainz believed to be his greatest weapon in his battle against Shalltear.

Dodging it will be difficult.

Shalltear calmly judged it as such while staring at the incredibly fast thrust
heading her way. However, a thrust was a risky technique. Exploiting its
weakness will give her a great opportunity.

Then I have no choice.

With the determination to sacrifice an arm, Shalltear squeezed her left hand into
the trajectory path of the thrust.

The instant the katana stabbed her; Shalltear slightly moved her left hand and
averted the force of the thrust to veer off to her side.

Piercing through her left palm rather than her chest, the katana lost none of its
momentum and cleaved through both the flesh and bone, tearing through the
inside of her left arm. The lightning riding through the blade pierced Shalltears
body from the inside.

Even for an undead, the feeling of having ones flesh torn apart gave her goose
bumps. However, a corner of Shalltears lips twisted upwards.

That was a smile it was not an expression that should have been on someone
who had just received such damage. But it was not a bluff either. This was what
Shalltear had been aiming for.

Shalltear flexed her left arm with the katana lodged inside. Her muscles grabbed
on to the blade and stopped its movements.

It was common that a thrust would often miss its mark or become stuck because
of the muscles. That was why it was considered difficult to use, in other words, it
had a weakness. Because Shalltear knew this, she gave up her left arm to create
such a opening.

It was an incredible technique where the window of timing between the blade
entering the arm and cutting through the flesh was less than a second.

An opening!

With his sword restrained, Ainz had no way to avoid the Spuit Lance.

Shalltear, who was about to swing her Spuit Lance with the speed of light, saw a
surprising scene.

Ainz threw away the Divine Class katana, one of the strongest in its class, and
drew one of the many wooden rods that he wore around his belt.

Hah! How foolish! Youre going to try blocking my Spuit Lance with something
like that?! And you even threw away your weapon, youve made the wrong
choice!

Not clinging to the Divine Class item Takemikazuchi Mk 8 was wise, but there was
no way to win without it.

With a jeer, Shalltear, determined to inflict as much damage as she received in

her left arm, thrust her Spuit Lance with all her strength and was repelled with
a metallic sound.

Eh?

Shalltear let out a stunned noise.

The wooden rod in Ainz hand was no longer there. In its place were two kodachi.
The weapons held a brilliant radiance like the sun, a serene light like the moon.

Smoke rose from Ainz hands that were holding the weapons, as if they resented
being touched by an undead.

Where is this opening, Shalltear?

Ehhh?! What? H, How?

The weight of the weapon that was supposed to be in Shalltears left arm was no
longer present. As soon as Ainz pulled a new weapon, it disappeared, as if it
couldnt exist in the same world. Shalltear vaguely understood: It had returned to
where it originally belonged.

Not knowing how to feint, even if I held a sword in each hand, it would be better
for me to just use one was it?

As if recalling a memory, Ainz muttering seemed to be directed at a person who

was not present.

Maybe, but what about the present me?

Without even a chance to ponder the meaning of those words, the kodachi
seeped in moonlight flashed towards Shalltear.

Despite looking as if it was heading for her neck, the trajectory skillfully changed
course and headed for her shoulder. Such an attack was just barely deflected by
the Spuit Lance.

Aiming for this, Ainz deeply stepped into the gap in Shalltears opening. The
larger the weapon, the weaker they become in close quarters. Understanding this
thoroughly those were the movements of a veteran.

The sun kodachi in his other hand penetrated the Spuit Lances defences and
lightly dug into Shalltears body.

AAAAAHHHHHHH!

A voice filled with pain exploded from the space between her lips.

The pain from the actual sword was nothing. However, pain from the holy
attribute of the blade seeped into her body like a toxin. This she could not
endure.

With the blade still lodged, Ainz moved the sword to the side to try and widen the
wound.

Get away!

Because it was not a distance where she could freely swing the Spuit Lance,
Shalltear threw a kick. Although Ainz blocked it with his kodachi, he could not
completely absorb the force of the impact and was blown backwards. Then
Shalltear saw it; the figure of Ainz letting go of the kodachi and grabbing a small
wooden rod.

And the moment the rod shattered, it covered his hand and revealed a dreadful,
huge gauntlet. Large enough to touch the ground even while standing, the
gauntlet

Haah!

cleaved through the air as Ainz stepped forward and charged with a yell.

Although she unwittingly blocked it with her lance, the fearsome impact rode
through the weapon and struck Shalltears body.

Gueh!

The impact from being rammed by a giant fist forced an embarrassing noise from
Shalltear and sent her flying. The damage from the shockwave was insignificant,
and the physical attack itself was blocked by the Spuit Lance. However, the knock
back effect of the shockwave penetrated the magic defenses of Shalltears
equipment.

Although her stumbling balance was quickly restored with the help of a magic
item, her head was dyed red with anger.

Y, You, how dare you make me utter such a disgraceful sound! Before I tear you
to pieces Ill pry the same. same?

As she turned around, Shalltears vision was met with a huge light and she felt
her temper instantly vanish.

In Ainz hand was a bow covered in the light of the sun. The arrowhead that was
giving off a brilliant resplendence, needless to say, was pointing directly at
Shalltear.

N, No way. No, its a lie. Thats, Hou Yi?

A story passed down in a distant land called China*, a weapon named after the
hero who was said to have shot down the sun. It was the main weapon of
Shalltears creator.
*(Authors Note: A legend from the time of Emperor Yo. The sudden appearance
of ten suns in the sky burned the land and crops. It is said that a man named Hou
Yi shot down nine.)

Almost all of the Guardians had established measures against ranged attacks, so
an arrow was nothing to fear. However, that arrow did not deal physical damage;
instead, it was a mass of elemental damage. In other words, it was regarded as
magic and unblockable.

Damn it! I dont have any MP! I could block it if its magic! Even a skill would be
fine! I shouldve saved a bit if Id known No, thats not right!

The fact that she had no MP, nor any skill uses left, everything was a result of the
earlier battle. In other words, everything was a result of the scheme of the man
known as Ainz Ooal Gown.

With her eyes dyed red, Shalltear let out an angry cry. It was the appearance of
one who understood what was to come next, the struggle of one who did not
want to admit defeat.

You bastard! Peroronchino samas weapon! Everything was part of your plan!
How did you prepare that weapon?! Where were you hiding it! Was it a skill
triggered by breaking the wooden rod?!

Just what sort of trick was it?

It was as if his actions were favored by the world itself.

A magician does not reveal his tricks.

How is that a magic trick! How did you pull out Peroronchino samas weapon
with something like that!

.. Indeed, you are right. This may have been rude to him. Well, the answer is
that it was a cash item. Rather, did you finally come to understand? That
everything was within my plan?

The sphere of light, with its charging complete, flew towards Shalltear. Despite
knowing that it was useless, she held her lance diagonally to block and the
explosion of light covered the surroundings.

While her whole body was burning within the divine light, Shalltear judged that it
was dangerous to retreat back. If things continued like this, she would be
overwhelmed without being able to do anything.

Even if the white armor was powerful, it would not be unaffected by the Spuit
Lance. Then she had to forgo defense and attack while relying on its life
absorption effect.

Ooohhhh!

Ill fitting with her outward appearance, a vigorous battle cry exploded from
Shalltears throat. A chilling voice floated back in response.

A 7 to 3 chance of victory. around there I believe. There is no need to say

which side was the seven, I hope?

Ainz slowly raised a monstrous, huge axe. Emitting a purple light, the pressure
alone from the axe forged from red crystal was enough to make closing the
distance difficult. Despite this, Shalltear charged.

The only thing she could do now was move forward.

Good resolve. This is the final phase, Shalltear!

.. It. is. Ainzsamas. victory.

As if locked in admiration, Cocytus muttered while nodding his head. Whereas

Demiurge, who had no aptitude as a warrior, threw a doubtful glance. Of course,
Demiurge too, believed that his master will emerge victorious. But his need to
analyze the situation logically caused him to question.

Why is that? To me, it looks like it will still be awhile before the victor is
decided.

Shalltear. has. decided. to. forgo. defense. and. focus. on. offense. It. is. not. a.
bad. decision. I. too. would. have. done. the. same. in. that. situation.

Thats right. Ainz-sama has been swapping out his weapons in succession you
cant tell what others weapons he has. In such a situation where there isnt
enough information, leaving a wide distance could turn out to be a painful
mistake. Wouldnt seeing the bow make her even more sure of that? So Shalltear
has no choice but to fight at a range where her Spuit Lance can reach. And she
cant even use her magic or skills, which would spur her on even more towards
that decision. Maybe thats how she judged the situation?

Aha, so thats it. The Supreme Beings never did ostentatiously flaunt their
weapons in front of us. So youre probably the only one who completely
understands their weapons, Cocytus.

Cocytus shrugged his shoulders.

I. too. am. only. knowledgeable. about. their. names. and. effects. I. have. never.
seen. them. in. person.

Hmm. Ive understood most of it. In other words, now that Shalltear has
abandoned her defense, Ainz-sama will pull out the axe and

Suck. The. Blood. And. Eat. The. Flesh.

Thank you, Cocytus. It appears that Suck The Blood And Eat The Flesh has poor
balance and thus decreased accuracy. However, it should not be a problem
against Shalltear who has decided to forgo defense.

To. think. that. the. entire. flow. of. this. battle. had. been. dictated. by. Ainz
sama. Although. I. have. said. this. before. I. can. only. give. my. admiration.

If its him, then its even possible for him to read everything from the view of a
god. Wouldnt you agree that his insight is fitting for the one who led the
Supreme Beings? . Honestly, he probably would have ruled Nazarick just fine
even if we didnt exist. Its a little frustrating.

.I. give. my. admiration. to. his. aptitude. for. strategy. as. a. magic. caster.
no. as. one. who. battles.

However... is it not true that the victor still has yet to be decided? A battle of HP
will not be in Ainz samas favor.

At those words, Albedo smiled. It was a smile that was sure of his victory.

Itll be alright.

Why is that?

He is the one who wears the name of Ainz Ooal Gown, the one who rules over us
all, the one who is both high and supreme. Such a being has declared his victory
with his name.

Each time the two exchanged blows, their health was chipped away.

Although Shalltear healed herself with her attacks, Ainz attacks dished out
enough damage to ignore healing of that level. At the same time, his health was
also being chipped away by the Spuit Lance. The battle was turning out to closely
resemble such a chicken race.

The armor threatened to break with every attack from the axe. The feeling of
bones breaking and flesh being crushed. It was met by a lance thrust, the lance
that was imbued with the striking property from a skill. It transmitted the
sensation of shattering through bone.

This feeling. Based on the remaining health, I might win.?

Shalltear was glad that she still had a path to victory. If they continued this
exchange of blows, she would very narrowly be able to win.

A close combat abandoning defense and focusing entirely on offense, where the
only thing she could think about was which side would fall first. Ever since such a
grisly exchange began, Shalltear had been anxious. A faint glimmer of hope now
showed on her face.

That was because, in a corner of her mind, she was calmly calculating their
health losses. Her delight was as great as her previous anxiety.

Ahahahaha!

Even while trading blows, laughter trailed out.

Ahahaha! Ainz sama! It seems youre going to be the first to run out of health?!
The difference in our base health is proving to be crucial here!

A single phrase threw cold water over her thoughts.

. Do you really believe that?

The machinator who gave her a harrowing fight all the way up to this point, the
voice of the one who had been controlling everything within the palm of his hand,
she realized her own foolishness.

Impossible.

Then how was he going to turn the tables on this battle?

Shalltear could not understand. The answer came in the form of a voice from a
third party.

[Times up Momonga onii-chan!]

A female voice.

One she had never heard before, the purposefully childish female voice reminded
Shalltear of a certain woman from her memories. That person may sound like
that if she disguised her voice, she thought.

Shalltear, what time do you think is it talking about?

Unaware of the meaning behind the question, as they continued their melee of
stabbing each others bodies with their weapons, Shalltear floated an honest,
questioning look to her graceful face.

If everything until now has been proceeding according to my plan, then this time
we have spent also falls within the realm of my predictions. Then the time that
has elapsed as told by this watch, what meaning do you think it holds for you and
I?

The axe in Ainz hand disappeared and was replaced by a shield of pure white.
The shield that matched so well with his armor gave him the appearance of a
pure white paladin.

The shield made a solid noise as it repelled the attack from the Spuit Lance.

Why was he now switching to defense? Although it was probably due to the
female voice from just before, Shalltear could not understand the reason for it.
Ainz, who had completely switched to defending, the echo of metal carried with it
his chilling voice.

There is no need to even answer. It is to bring this to an end. The time has come
to finish this battle.

Why? Shalltear still had 25% of her health remaining. Then just how was he going
to end the battle? Although Shalltear wanted to scream those words, they would
not come out.

. A single attack of super magic cannot bring you down from 100%. Then
would not the answer be to bring your health down to where it is appropriate? It
seems your health has dropped considerably from our melee.

..Ah, Ah, Ahhhhhh!!

With her composure gone, Shalltear showered him with attacks; As if her
imminent defeat could somehow be prevented by stopping him from talking.

Solid noises rang out endlessly from her barrage. It was like a torrential
downpour.

However, Ainz splendidly blocked all of her attacks. With the composure and
confidence to not let even a single drop touch him, even if it had been a
waterfall, he continued to speak.

. In actual fighting strength, I fall short. but equally so, I am higher in magic
resistance. Then do you understand what I am trying to say? Here I come,
Shalltear. You can only pray that my calculations were wrong.

Kuuuuuuu!!

Sensing her approaching defeat, Shalltear renewed her assault. Seeing her face
that was greatly twisted, yet still not unsightly, Ainz started his final gamble.

Although he had boasted with confidence to Shalltear, in truth, not everything

was still certain.

Super magic shared similarities with skills and did not consume MP. However, it
was still considered to be magic and thus could not be used while he was a
warrior.

If he released his warrior transformation magic, he will no longer be able to wear

his shield and armor and they will fall off of his body. There was no chance that
he could block Shalltears attack in that moment. If she were to use all of her
skills in that attack, there was a possibility that the super magic would not be
enough to end the battle.

That would mean his defeat.

However, there was no other way to win.

Ainz estimated the timing. He would first have to release his magic, then use the
cash item he held in his hand.

Ainz laughed lightly.

Even in YGGDRASIL PVP, he had never used so many cash items. A game and
reality this was the difference between recreation and a fight he had to win at
all costs.

Now!

He blocked Shalltears powerful attack with the shield of his friend and gathered
strength to his eyes.

He released the warrior transformation, and launched the supermagic.

Like before, a magic circle appeared in the surroundings. As he was about to

destroy the cash item in the shape of an hourglass in his hand

for an instant, he hesitated.

It was born from the feeling of guilt of killing the NPC who carried the thoughts of
his comrade.

A fatal mistake.

Shalltear did not miss that opening. Having discovered the item in his hand, she
channeled her skill into the Spuit Lance with the intent to destroy his arm.

Ainz, who released his warrior transformation, had no way to avoid that attack.

shudder.

As the Spuit Lance was about to break the item, she felt the presence of an
enemy crawl up her spine.

Not knowing how it appeared, Shalltear sensed a presence right by her side. It
was filled with such hostility that she could not simply overlook it. This was
something she absolutely could not ignore.

Shalltear quickly took her eyes off of the item and turned to look at the one
responsible.
And saw that there was nothing.

The desert 200 meters in diameter created by Ainz magic. Within it, there was
no one save for Ainz and Shalltear. The hostility that she sensed before was
already gone without a trace. As if it was a daydream

Ah!

Although Shalltear, having regained her senses, shouted, it was already too late.

The broken hourglass reduced the casting time to zero.

[Heavens Downfall].

At the same time as his voice, everything was wrapped by the light that formed
from the narrow space between them.

Within the white heat, Shalltear felt her body crumble away.

Her right hand carbonized and broke apart. In that white world, the Spuit Lance
slowly fell to what should have been the ground. Her face dried up from the
raging heat and her eyes could now only see white.

Her throat too, dried up and no, whether or not her throat had yet to finish
burning it was difficult to speak. However, these words alone, she had to say no
matter what. Gathering all of what was left of her life, of the existence known as
Shalltear Bloodfallen, she spoke.

....Ahhhh, Long live Ainz Ooal Gownsama. You are supreme, truly the
strongest existence in all of Nazarick.

Towards the strongest leader of the 41 Supreme Beings, she expressed her
heartfelt respect. As if the wave of heat had burned away her fetters, while her
body could no longer move, her heart felt very light.

At the same time, within her fading consciousness, she recalled the appearance
of a figure that should not have been there. It was the one who had cut a path of
light through the darkness in order to achieve this outcome.

Normally, undead are immune to all mental effects. However, there was a
method that held the same power, despite not being considered as a mental
effect. That person used such a method.

Shalltear simply smiled as she said:

.... Brat.

And with a satisfied expression, Shalltear completely vanished into the white
world.

While releasing the skill Sky Eye that she had been maintaining until now, the
pretty, pink lips that were pouting returned to its original position. Aura wore an
unhappy look as she piled on abuses to the person who was not there.

Stupid. An undead shouldnt be getting mind controlled. Really, so dumb.

W-whats wrong, oneechan?

Hm? Nothing.

Mare looked over to where Aura was staring, but the only thing he could see
within this forest was trees. However, he could make a guess from the direction
she was staring at.

She was likely observing the battle between their master and Shalltear.

His sisters skill from the ranger class allowed her to observe everything within
two kilometers around her. That was why she, along with the Eyeball Corpse, was
given the task of keeping watch.

S-so, is the battle over?

Yeah. Ainzsamas complete victory.

O-of course.

Not even Nazaricks strongest Guardian could defeat him. Mare imagined the
figure of Ainz and thought it was obvious. There was no way that the one who led
the Supreme Beings could be defeated.

Then oneechan, uh, um, when are we going to collect the items Shalltear was
wearing?

Aura recalled the scene right before she released her skill.

I think Ainzsama has already taken care of it. Lets pull out like weve been
ordered to.

O, Okay.

Knowing that his sister was in a somewhat bad mood, Mare agreed without a
word.

The one who could have been called Auras best friend became mind controlled.
She then pointed her blade against their master, the object of their esteem and
loyalty. Although it was obvious that she had to die, it couldnt be helped that
Aura would be a bit grumpy.

Part 4

Within the throne room, Ainz reopened the list and, as expected, found only
empty space where there used to be Shalltears name. With this, Shalltears
death was confirmed and the 1st phase of the plan was concluded.

Pain filled his heart. Although there was no other way, confirming it like this had
made him fully realize what he had done and he was overcome with a sense of
guilt.

Ainz apologized to Shalltear in his heart. Swallowing his nonexistent saliva, he

gazed at the Floor Guardians that had gathered there.

Then I will now carry out Shalltears resurrection. Albedo will watch Shalltears
name. If, like last time, she is still under the effects of mind control

Ainz-sama, though it may be impertinent, at that time, we will deal with her.

At Demiurges words, Cocytus and Aura both expressed their agreement and
even Mare passively showed his affirmation. Only Albedo was quietly watching
the situation.

Demiurge.

As Ainz muttered, Demiurge, unlike his usual self, nailed in his point with a voice
that carried a strong emotion.

Ainz-sama, as a Supreme Being, your words are most noble and we are well
aware that we must devote our all to following your will. However, allowing any
further harm to come near you will be our greatest shame as your servants.

Demiurges eyes moved slightly from Ainz to Albedo.

If Shalltear rebels once more, we Guardians will destroy her. Please leave this to
us.

Understanding their good will, Ainz had no intention of continuing to be stubborn.

I understand. Guardians, if such a time comes, I will leave it to you.

They bowed their heads in unison.

In that moment, Ainz felt ashamed.

A pathetic master.

In the end, he had left open the possibility of his children fighting each other.

From the beginning, the cause was his incompetence. He was to blame for
everything.

As Ainz was about to heave a sigh, he saw Albedos tender expression as she
stood quietly and stopped himself.

Ainz-sama, it is fine if you simply remain here. If all of the Supreme Beings were
to disappear, then we would no longer have anyone to pledge our loyalty to. And
even if we know that we were not abandoned, it would still become lonely if
everyone were to leave.

.. Indeed. If no one is here then it would get lonely.

Ainz unwittingly moved his eyes to the insignias of the 40 flags hanging across
the Throne Hall.

.. Yes, you are right. back in the Treasure Hall. that was foolish.

Ainz let out a whisper that affirmed his conviction and gazed at the Guardians.

Guardians, protect me. Prepare yourselves!

As they strongly responded in force, Ainz grasped the Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown
that floated just beside him and pointed it at a corner of the throne room.

There, laid a mountain of 500 million gold pieces, more than enough to revive
Shalltear.

Normally, it would require a keyboard to be operated. There was no need for such
a thing now.

The mountain of gold began to lose its shape and slowly changed from a solid to
a liquid state.

As the Floor Guardians watched with nervous eyes, the melted gold flowed and
gathered into a single pool. The gold that weighed ten thousand tons became
compressed and changed into the small form of a person. It eventually took on
the appearance of a golden doll and the light gradually receded.

Soon enough, the light disappeared completely, leaving behind a skin of white
wax and long silver hair. In that place was, without a doubt, the figure of Shalltear
Bloodfallen.
Albedo!

Without taking his eyes off of Shalltear, Ainz loudly shouted Albedos name.

There is no need to worry. It appears the mind control has been dispelled.

Is that so.

Ainz heart was swept by a powerful sense of relief. He could feel his mind
regaining its calm. He put his hand into his item box and pulled out a black
mantle, all the while approaching Shalltears body.

Her eyes were closed and her chest was unmoving. Although the body that was
loosely lying on the floor had the appearance of a corpse, the undead were living
corpses, there was nothing wrong with this fact.

The strange part is

The part that was confirmed just now was a chest that was so flat that it seemed
to belong to a boy rather than a girl. In that moment, his eyes lost the place
where they were headed and struggled to avert their gaze.

Having just been revived, Shalltear was not wearing any clothes and he didnt
know where to look. In his panic, the thought that he could just look elsewhere
didnt even enter his mind.

Since his eyesight was greatly improved from when he was a human, Ainz could
see everything in clear detail. Because she was lying down outstretched, the
slight space between her legs

Ainz hurriedly threw the black mantle in his hand.

The mantle unraveled in the air and accurately landed on Shalltear, covering her
body.

I didnt think it was a pity! Im an undead so I dont have a sex drive! Well, almost
none. I was just tiny bit curious since her clothes didnt appear with her. Well, you
know, you cant take off all their clothes in YGGDRASIL. Like Im saying, right, its
not like I was curious if she had hair down there!

Not knowing who he was making excuses to, his thoughts were in turmoil as Ainz
walked towards Shalltear. His head grew hot, which may or may not have been
the reason his footsteps had slightly slowed. He also ignored the female voice
behind him saying: If it interests you then you need only to say the word. I am
always ready.

As Ainz stood in front of her, sensing his presence, Shalltear opened her crimson
eyes. Like someone who overslept, her gaze circled around and stopped on Ainz.

Ainz-sama?

A dazed voice, still only half awake. But within it, one could sense the clear
presence of loyalty. Although it was already confirmed by both Albedo and the
entire administration system within Nazarick, Ainz felt it with his body. With joy,
he fell to his knees and carried Shalltear, who was lying on the floor, in an
embrace.

Ueehhhhh?

It was a slender body that did not match with her immense physical strength.

While wearing a stunned expression that showed she had no idea what was
happening, Shalltear let out a strange noise. Paying no mind, Ainz hugged her
even more tightly.

Thank goodness. No, forgive me. Everything was due to my mistake.

Yes? Thats not true, I dont know whats going on, but how could Ainz-sama
ever make a mistake?!

Shalltears cold arms wrapped around his back and drew him close. Although the
way her hands were groping around was slightly gross, Ainz left it to the fact that
she was probably confirming her sense of touch after being dead until just
recently.

Ahh, my first time right here.

He heard something along those lines, but ignored it.

However, with a monotonous voice, Albedo raised an objection.

Ainz-sama. Shalltear is probably tired, so perhaps you should stop.

You may be right.

Like Player revival, NPC revival may be similar and come with a penalty. After all,
this was their first attempt at resurrection since coming to this world.

Let us save the full story for later. Before that, I would like for you to tell me a
couple of things.

As Ainz released his arms, Shalltear wore a face of regret before shooting Albedo
a piercing glare. In response, Albedo flaunted her usual kind expression. Although
it seemed like the two were about to continue glaring each other down like usual,
Shalltear moved her gaze and brought it to an end.

Yes, anything. but Ainz-sama, why am I in the throne hall? And this
appearance, your reaction, have I done something to cause you trouble?

That is what I wanted to ask you, do you remember what happened?

N, no.

.. I am sorry, Shalltear. I would like you to tell me the last thing you
remember.

Shalltears memories lasted up until the incident five days prior. Her memories of
between then and now had vanished.

Like what he did in Carne Village, Ainz was able to erase or fabricate memories
with the 10th level magic [Control Amnesia]. However, fabricating memories that
spanned even a short length of time cost a large amount of MP. Erasing five days
worth of memories, even for Ainz who boasted a MP pool and recovery rate that
surpassed the limits of ordinary magic casters, was impossible.

Of course, there was always the possibility that reviving an NPC came with the
cost of a few days worth of memories. And although he didnt know whether
such a thing could be done, there was also a chance that her amnesia was the
result of several people cooperating together.

There was too much information that he lacked. At this stage, it was most likely
impossible to solve the puzzle.

What was certain was that the identity of the one who used a World Class item on
Shalltear had sunk back beneath the surface.

An unknown identity is quite bothersome. There is a high possibility that the

enemy will aim for an opportunity to bite Nazarick from below the water. No,
perhaps I should be thankful that theyre stopping with just that. Well.. I will
have to thoroughly exact my revenge on whoever is responsible for this.

Ainz forcefully swallowed the fury that even his undead trait could not suppress
and gently spoke to Shalltear.

Is there anything else that you feel is off?

If this was YGGDRASIL, there would not be any problems. NPCs did not suffer
from the level down penalty. However, there was no way of knowing that this
world would be the same.
There was a chance that her level fell like a Player Characters would.

At that question, Shalltear patted around her body and answered.

I dont think there are any problems.

I see.

As soon as he answered, Ainz was gripped with apprehension as Shalltears face

showed a shocked expression.

Ainz-sama!

What is it! Whats wrong?!

My chest is gone.

If one had to summarize the look on the faces of the Guardians from her words, it
would be give me my concern back. With his lips turned upside down, even
Demiurge wore an incredulous expression.

You, do you even know what youre saying given what the situation was like until
now?!

Hearing Albedo yell as everyones representative, Shalltears shoulders flinched.

Ainz felt the strength leave his body, enough for him to feel as if he was going to
keel over. As he stared at the Guardians who were starting to bicker with
Shalltear, various thoughts regarding resurrection ran through his mind.

In particular, he thought that it would be good if the people at the graveyard,

Clementine and Khajit, would lose their memories as well if they were to be
revived.

But that was being too optimistic.

The reason was that he didnt know as to why Shalltears memories had
vanished. Being brought back from the dead there was no guarantee that using
revival magic was the same as spending gold to revive an NPC.

While Ainz was in the midst of such thoughts, Shalltear was one-sidedly being
admonished by Albedo and even had traces of tears in her eyes.

Seeing this, Ainz knew that his eyes were filled with a sense of longing.

The scene of the sister Simmering Teapot picking on her younger sibling,
Peroroncino. His comrades laughing as they watched over them.

The same scene that was now overlapping with the NPCs.
As Ainz was about to lightly raise his hand, it halted in midair. As if a thin glass
wall blocked his way.

What Ainz felt was loneliness.

The warm place where the Guardians existed, it was like a projection on a screen
different, a place far off.

If Ainz were to join them, they will assume a stance of servitude. But that was
merely out of intimidation, different from the warmth of his past comrades.

He felt it was regrettable.

As he let his hand fall weakly to his side, as if she sensed something, Albedo
turned and quietly stared at Ainz. It was impossible to discern the emotions
hidden within him through his eyes. Just as he was about to ask her why she was
staring at him despite this, his eyes went wide at the tender light that glinted
from her pupils.

She was gently holding out her hand to him. After a brief hesitation, Ainz grabbed
it and joined the rest of the Guardians.

Albedo was the first one to open her mouth, soon followed by the others.

Ainz-sama as well, please give Shalltear a firm scolding.

I agree! Please say something harsh to this idiot!

Indeed. I. believe. it. will. be. prudent. to. give. a. strong. word. of. warning.

Its Ainz-samas precious words so make sure you listen closely.

B-but not too mean. Uh, umm, I mean

ha, hahaha.

Despite the surprised eyes of the Guardians that fell on him, Ainz could not stop
the laughter that burst from his lips, no, his heart.

Having laughed aplenty, Ainz quietly turned his eyes to Shalltear.

Although I have said this to Albedo before, Shalltear is not to fault for this
incident. All of the blame lies with me. My predictions could not reach this far
despite all of the information that I managed to obtain. Shalltear, you are
blameless. Remember these words.

Th-thank you.

I will leave the matter of finding out what happened to Shalltear to Demiurge.
How about it?

Demiurge bowed his head to express his reverence towards the command. Then,
as if suddenly remembering, asked.

Ainz-sama. About Sebas.

He is bait.

The Guardians all nodded their heads in subordination as Ainz calmly proclaimed
that he would use one of their own as bait. It was obvious to them that the will of

the master of the Great Tomb of Nazarick took precedence over the safety of
their comrade.

I do not wish it, but there is no other choice. . Although I do not know why
Shalltear was targeted, if the enemy were to make another move, there is a high
chance that their next target will be the one who accompanied her. That is why I
did not call him back to give him a World Class item. Albedo, select someone
who will secretly observe Sebas surroundings. . Even if Sebas is to be bait, I
have no intention of handing him over so readily. Tell the observer to engage the
enemy if they approach him.

Having given his order, Ainz narrowed his eyes. The intensity of the red flames
dimmed slightly.

.. I dont know who used a World Class item on Shalltear, but eventually,
somewhere, we will clash. At that time, I will be sure to repay this debt in full!

I hear and obey. I will take their strength into consideration and send a dispatch
as soon as possible.

I leave it to you. Although I have learned that resurrection is possible thanks to

Shalltear, I do not wish to ever repeat having to kill what my comrades have
created.

Deeply moved, they bowed their heads. Even if the Guardians already knew that
Ainz cherished them so, hearing it directly from his own mouth made it all the
more effective.

As if she had just vaguely figured out what had happened to her, Shalltears face
was appalled. Her expression struggled to hide her shame. Ainz gestured at her
to perish the thought.

At that moment, someone beside him spoke.

Uh, umm, Ainz-sama.

What is it, Mare?

Um, uh, well, the traces of that battle, should I cover it?

No need. Did you know? If you destroy a magic sealing crystal, a powerful blast
will come forth and destroy the entire area.

Re-really?

. Forgive me, I lied. It is like this. Sometimes, even a lie can turn into the
truth. Magic sealing crystals are supposed to be valuable, so they will not be able
to test it. Albedo, create a crack in Nigans crystal. Tell the head blacksmith to do
the same on the armor I commissioned. It should seem like it went through a
battle.

I will carry out your order.

Also, it appears I have been too naive. There is no doubt that there is an enemy
near us who seeks to harm Nazarick. We must move onto the plan for
strengthening Nazarick as soon as possible. For that reason, I will use my skill to
create an undead army. I have said all this before.. ah, was it only Albedo who
was present then? Regardless, this will be our utmost priority. I wish to establish a
plan to collect the corpses from the Re-Lantier graveyard.

There is something I wish to say to you regarding that matter, Ainz-sama.

What is it, Albedo?

When Ainz-sama creates undead with his skill, it is to my knowledge that using
human bodies as the catalyst will, at best, result in the weaker type of undead
minions, even if they are of the intermediate rank.

Right. And what of it?

The undead made from the bodies of the Sunlight Scripture were, at best, level
40. When he tried to raise them past that level, after a certain time, they
vanished along with the corpses.

Yes. In truth, I have devised a way for you to obtain new bodies. Will you not
consider using corpses other than humans?

. I will assume that you are not talking about the corpses of Nazaricks
servants.

No, of course not. It is a different race.

Albedo smiled. A smile that was both cruel and beautiful.

Aura discovered a village of Lizardmen. Will you not invade their land and purge
them?

EPILO
GUE

The leader of the mithril ranked adventurer group Sky Wolf, Berette, opened
the front entrance to the adventurers guild.

Adventurers were looking at him with respect and worship.

Berette was already quite used to this scene, but the intensity of the gazes did
not seem to be as strong as compared to a month ago.

Guess it cant be helped.

He set his eyes on the bulletin boards commission contents, but unfortunately he
was unable to find any mithril ranked ranked missions at all.

Missions only entrusted to mithril ranked adventurers did not appear very often.
However the reason for the shortage of missions this time was because an
adventurer who could quickly solve all missions ranked mithril and above had
appeared.

"...Momon-san."

Half complaining, Berette muttered this name.

About a month ago, this man exterminated a vampire that was both highly
capable and unbelievably powerful.

It was a fierce battle that had shaken the heavens and earth. He didnt witness
the battle himself, but after the seeing the remnants of the battle, one could
imagine just what kind of battle it was. Igavaruji's adventurer group, Kuragura,
had accompanied him but were completely annihilated from the collateral
damage they suffered during the fight. This result was not surprising.

No, if anyone were to join that battle, it would be certain death.

The explosion of the magic sealing crystal had charred the surrounding ground
black, some areas had even turned into a desert. The shocking thing was, if it

hadnt been done that way, the vampire wouldve been impossible to defeat.
Furthermore

They survived..."

On the other hand, they, who had been victorious and returned safely, would
naturally be regarded as more of a monster than the vampire against whom
Berette never stood a chance.

That was why his tone just now had been humble, and furthermore, Ainz was
strong enough to command the respect of others.

Just as he was fantasizing about this absolutely powerful being, he heard the door
opening and a commotion broke out, as if a burst of wind had entered the guild.

Roughly guessing what the commotion was about, Berette also turned his gaze
toward the direction everyone else was looking at. Sure enough, he saw the
person he expected.

The main topic of this town was the Dark Hero, Momon.

With two great swords on his back and accompanied by a woman of peerless
beauty.

The front part of that armor was made using a large amount of adamantium...
Just how much money is it worth?

The title of Dark Hero came from that set of ultra high-class full-body armor,
which had been severely damaged upon his return. It had been charred all over,
with ruptures and claw marks, but now that set of dark armor was unblemished
and shone brilliantly under the sunlight.

This was the due to the efforts of the Magicians' Guild, who mobilised all their
magic casters to cast repair magic on it.

The metallic plate hung in front of his chest was the living legend, adventurers
object of worship, humanitys trump card that protected them from other
powerful racesadamantium.

His achievements already far surpassed orchichalcum rank, which was already a
high enough rank that had never once appeared in the city of Re-Lantier.

Like the appearance of a hero that came right out of a storybook, the atmosphere
inside the guildhall suddenly became rowdy.

The Kingdoms third adamantium adventurer

Thats him...Dark Hero Momon...and the one behind him is Alluring

Princess Nabel, she really is as beautiful as the rumors say.

You know in that forest, the huge chunk of it that has been burnt to cinders is
said to be his work Ive heard he used martial arts to burn everything down.

No way, how is that possible...If an area of that size was destroyed using martial
arts, can you really say hes still human?

Hes probably one of the few who could do such a thing? The adamantium rank
is the pinnacle for adventurers. If one were to say that hes the best within the
adamantium rank, I wouldnt be surprised at all.

Under everyones worshipping gazes, Momon leisurely walked towards the

counter. The adventurers who were discussing mission details with the female
receptionist all parted to give way to this highest-ranking adventurer. Their
expressions showed respectand fear.

Momon casually spoke with the receptionist.

The task entrusted to us is completed, please help us search to see if theres

any new work.

The girls eyes widened, but only for a moment. Berette knew why she had
opened her eyes so widely. The job Momon and Nabel had accepted was very
difficult even for mithril ranked adventurers. This mission had been expected to
take a while, but they solved it within such a short amount of time.

Thats right, if it was entrusted to him, even mithril ranked missions could be
completed with a breeze.

This was only natural, since the highest ranking adventurers were of this caliber.

Guess theres nothing left for me to do.

Berette couldnt help complaining, but then again he wasnt serious. After
reaching the rank of mithril, unless there were special circumstances, one would
have more than enough money to retire and live wealthily for the rest of their life.
Adventurers who continued adventuring after reaching this rank mostly did so for
reasons other than money.

Ah, Momon-san. I am very sorry, but at the moment we dont have any suitable
missions for you, my sincere apologies.

The receptionist stood up and bowed deeply.

So its like that

It was as if he intended to say something but stopped halfway. After a few

seconds he spoke again:

I see, thats wonderful, because I suddenly remembered an urgent matter that

demands my attention, so Ill return to my hotel first. If anything urgent comes up
you can find me there. I assume you know which hotel I am staying at, right?

Yes, its Shining Golden Pavilion right?

Momon nodded and elegantly turned around, causing his red cloak to billow, and
proceeded to walk out. When Momon passed him by, Berette thought he could
hear him talking, but the voice was so soft, he couldn't make out the content of
his intermittent speech.
What Berette did not hear, was Ainz commanding his distant subordinates to
reveal the full extent of their military might.
"Order Gangantua to start moving, call Victim and wait for Cocytus to return.
Since this is a rare opportunity, let all the Floor Guardians move out together."

VOLUME 4

PROL
OGUE

"Welcome back, Ainz-sama."

Returning to his own room after half a month, Albedos next words drained all the
strength from his body.

"Would you like to have something to eat? Would you like to have a bath? Or
would you like to have me?"

For a moment, Ainz thought he could see multiple heart shapes fluttering behind
Albedos body

"...What are you doing"

"Im playing newlyweds, Ainz-sama. I heard that there is no better way of

welcoming back a husband who went out on a work trip with the family pet. How
was it?"

He finally understood why no one welcomed him back at the surface this time.
This man who had never dated before, let alone married, was just about to calmly
reply "I don't know", but immediately swallowed those words. His pride as a man
did not allow him to show weakness. Besides, how was one supposed to answer a
question like How was it??

Although he had no self-confidence... why not reply with a knowing attitude for a
guaranteed flawless response.

"It was very charming, Albedo."

"Thats wonderful!"" Albedos smile showed how delighted she was.

Being assaulted by Albedos bewitching smile, Ainz sat down slowly and prepared
to deal with business.

He felt like there was a snake slowly crawling up his back.

It was probably due to the animalistic desire flashing in Albedo's golden eyes that
he felt that way. If he were to jokingly answer "I want you", she would
immediately use it as a pretext to descend like a carnivorous beast on him.
Somehow, the words "reverse rape" appeared in his mind.

His sexual appetite was effectively non-existent, but the small remaining amount
still made itself known at the smell emitted by Albedo. His desire to know what
would happen next was spurred on by curiosity and the thought that no harm
would be done.

Stop it, you idiot.

It wasnt because of strong self-control that he ignored Albedos feelings, it was

more like resignedly telling himself that it would be impossible for a human
skeleton.

Before coming to this world, he had jokingly changed Albedo's settings to "be
madly in love" with him. Because of that, he felt as if he was taking advantage of
her feelings that way and thus he was unable to take even a single step forward
to accept her feelings

But I cant do anything about the thing I have lost A purely platonic relationship
would not progress smoothly Thats why I am afraid of taking the next step.

These were the thoughts of Ainz, who had never gotten into a relationship with a
member of the opposite sex before.

Besides, from a certain point of view, the NPCs his comrades had created were
like children. To tarnish that kind of important things would make him feel very
awkward.

Im so stupid. This isnt what I should be thinking of.

"Ah!"

Because Albedo suddenly let out her voice, the light in Ainz eye sockets became
brighter.

"Wha-What is it!? Albedo! What happened?"

"Forgive me. A newlywed wife definitely has to be wearing the Final battle attire
(naked apron) to receive the husband."

Finishing her words, Albedos red face looked down at her skirt, saying:

With your permission, Ill change immediately.

While stealing glances at him, she added with a bashful, yet still discernable
voice: ...in front of Ainz-sama."

"....Ah, yes.... um, seriously. haa~~~, Albedo stop joking around, and let us
begin the organisational meeting and exchange information."

"Yes, as you command."

Ainz forced himself to place the regretful for reasons unknown Albedos
inexplicable effort at the back of his mind and slumped into his chair. He then
tossed three leather bags onto the table. Toward Albedo, whod already changed
from a newlywed bride back to an outstanding secretary, he said:

First of all, take this currency obtained in Re-Lantier and use it for various
experiments.

The three bags all had different sizes, with the largest one bulging enough to be
able to stand. Inside of them were the gold, silver and copper coins Ainz had
earned as an adventurer.

"As you command, this money will be used for Nazaricks defense systems, as
well as experiments on the summoning systems for minions."

"See to it. Furthermore, confirm at once whether or not these can be used for the
manufacturing of magic scrolls and other items."

The gold obtained in the game YGGDRASIL wasn't just used to buy items, it was
also used for many other things: to cover the administration fees for a Guilds

base-defense systems and the costs for automatically summoning servants of

level 30 or higher, as a medium to launch certain spells, to pay the
manufacturing costs of items and even as a price for the revival of dead NPCs.

It had already been confirmed there were no problems using YGGDRASIL's gold
coins in this world. However, they still needed to find out if this world's currency
could also be used to cover their expenses, especially if it was possible to use
silver and copper coins since gold coins were the only currency in
YGGDRASIL.

It wouldnt be the slightest exaggeration to say that these experiments could

affect Nazaricks fate. If the currency obtained in this world could be used in the
same way as in YGGDRASIL, then future operation policies would be affected,
notably regarding the importance attributed to coins.

Depending on the situation, the priority given to obtaining coins would increase.
On the other hand, if the currency of this world couldnt be used, then the money
in the treasure room would become the final lifeline and any pointless spending
would have to be curbed.

"Now about Clementine "

Saying the name of the womans missing corpse, Ainz made a face as if hed
bitten a bug.

Because of Ainz mistake, this woman who learned much precious information
had probably been revived. The disquieting sensation that she was probably
disseminating her information was slowly accumulating.

The number of possible enemies were many, yet information regarding them was
scarce. In contrast, the information on this side had already been leaked.

It would be best if the targets receiving the information were original guild
members, but being that lucky would simply be wishful thinking. Our future
actions should be taken with more caution. Still, what should be done about the
identity of Momon?

Momon will probably be suspect, but it would be a waste to immediately abandon

an identity in the middle of elevating its fame. The fact that Ainz and Momon
were the same person should not have been leaked yet.

Theres no choice but to adapt to future developments.

Unable to think of an answer, Ainz put the subject to the side to avoid pondering
on futile questions.

"Order Pandoras Actor to throw one of that womans swords into the treasure
rooms Shredder to see what happens."

"Shredder?"

Albedos question reminded Ainz of the machines real name.

"Exchange Box. It allows people with Merchant abilities to appraise items of

higher value. Order Pandoras Actor to make use of Nearani-sans appearance to
use his special ability."

While looking at Albedo, who signaled her understanding by lowering her head,
Ainz put the parchment on the table.

"There is another thing. This is the world map obtained from Re-Lantier."

"Is this.it?"

Albedos softly pursed her eyebrows, the reason was simple. This map was way
too roughly made.

"I understand your dissatisfaction. This is only a map of the surrounding, it shows
only a portion of this world. Moreover the measures are inconsistent and many
landmarks are left unmarked."

There were many examples of information that Ainz had obtained from the
President of the Magic Association in Re-Lantier that were not shown on the map,
such as the locations of the Centaur tribes in the grassland, the Scorpionmens
nest in the desert, the Dwarf countrys mountains, etc.. In all, this map was only
useful for humans.

The reliability of a dubious map was low, but better maps would cost more money
and time to map; and there were no better ones available.

These were the words of Magicians Guilds President, Theo Rakesheer, who was
very close to Ainz, so it should be the truth.

Obtaining a map of such a degree was already an unreasonable request, as could

be seen from his attitude.

"I understand. Then I shall have copies made and distributed to each Floor
Guardian."

"Very good, before that let me explain."

Ainz pointed to the middle area where minute details were inscribed around the
area.

"This is Re-Lantier, and here is the Great Tomb of Nazarick."

The finger moved from the middle toward the northeast, near the enormous
forest that were the surroundings of Nazarick. This could be ascertained from the
terrain.

"Here is the Azellerisia Mountain range, the border between the Kingdom of ReEstize and the Baharuth Empire. Starting from the southern tip and revolving
around the mountain range, this large area is Tove Forest. And between the
southern tip of the mountain range and Tove forest is a river that flows into a
ladle shaped lake. Ainz pointed to the southern side of the lake.

"This are the Great Wetlands, the location of the Lizardmens village."

Confirming Albedos nod, Ainz continued to explain.

"The following is from the Magicans Guild Presidents explanation about the
surrounding countries. To the Kingdoms northwest is an area with a great
number of mountain ranges where many races of demi-humans have formed the
Confederation of Yagrande. Caution should be taken toward the five, or maybe,
seven headed dragon acting as one of the representatives. And to the Kingdoms

southwest is a country known as the Holy Kingdom. Its marked haphazardly on

the map, but the countrys border is protected by a wall, the 10,000 Mile Great
Wall. It guards against the Wilderness, where many demi-humans are in constant
dispute."

"Thats where Demiurge was sent before."

"Thats right. On the other side of the Wilderness is the Slane Theocracy, a
possible enemy we must caution against."

"Is this line the border?"

Albedo used her marble white hand to point at an encircling line.

"Most likely. Truthfully speaking, this border doesn't say much. Its very rough.
Look here, to the Northeast of the Empire lies a number of countries. Together
they form the Nations Alliance, they also seem to include demi-human cities. The
Southwest of the Empire has many canyons forming a giant array of Stela.
Countless caves house a group of humans who raises Wyverns. Their tribes lives
right here.

Summarizing Ainz words, this area seems to be similar to Wulingyuan, but actual
situation wasnt very clear.
(TL Note: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wulingyuan.)

"Wyvern-riders?"

In YGGDRASIL, flying dragons could be summoned by those with the cavalry job
who had reached the late thirties levels, and there was no similar evidence in this
world of riding monsters.

"Its like this...ordinarily they can be said to be extremely powerful. Nonetheless,

for the Great Tomb of Nazarick, they are not so useful for invading and then
below this, to the east of this giant lakewe reach the edge of the map."

Ainz pointed at the table surface beyond the map.

"There seems to be a country here that is called the Dragon King Country."

"Dragon?"

"Correct. It is a country that was created by a powerful dragon in the past. This
countrys royalty has also inherited dragon blood whether it is true or not is
doubtful well, thats the extent of the maps explanation."

If it were the world where Ainz went by the name of Satoru Suzuki, this layer of
gold plating would probably be a sham. However in this world, the possibility of it
being true was much higher.

"Then Ainz-sama, the countries we ought to be alert against are the Slane
Theocracy, and the Confederation of Yagrande?"

Ainz folded his arms and let out a "Uhn" noise.

To the degree of talking about countries, and because there currently was no
view that could be made due to the lack of intelligence, towards this response
Albedo slowly lowered her head.

"Very sorry, this country right now also needs to be an alert factor."

"... Correct. Even if there is no big deal about this country, it is also possible for
an alarmingly powerful individual to exist."

The person who used a World-Class item on Shalltear, and the like.

Even if these thoughts were unspoken, it seemed to have been transferred to

Albedo.

Ainz then respectively pointed at the areas south and east beyond the map.

"Towards the east there is a city called the Sea City, towards the south there is
another city created by the one name Eight Desire King, its the city you must be
most wary of. Eight Desire Kings City is a floating city in the desert."

"Floating city?"

"This is merely hearsay, and may not be accurate, but there is a metropolis below
the floating city. As if the floating city can generate an unlimited amount of
water, the metropolis is entirely surrounded by a magic enchantment, such that
people cannot imagine it is in a desert."

Albedos eyes turned frosty, and several words were whispered.

"Would you like to have servants carry out some forced reconnaissance?"

"There is no need to take such a risk. Even if the World-Class item users arrived
here, before understanding their combat prowess, it is also necessary to confront
them with a smile how is Shalltears condition?"

"Regarding the resurrection, physically there is no problem, except..."

"Your speech is hesitant. Is it something that will make me upset?"

"Ah! Extremely sorry for this. Actually mentally she is a little disturbed.

"... Did the effects of mental dominance still remain? Even with the resurrection
after death is it unable to dispel the effect of the World-Class item?"

"No, not like that because of showing hostility and battling with Ainz-sama,
deep down she considered this to be an unforgivable sin."

Ainz was momentarily confused.

That was entirely Ainz mistake, Shalltear committed no wrong. She was already
told this several times.

"Please forgive my rudeness of objecting to Ainz-samas decision."

Ainz nodded towards Albedo who had a sincere expression.

"I think its best if there are some punishment."

The fire in Ainza eye sockets darkened, he opened his mouth, but closed it
immediately because the person in front of him still had words to say.

"......[Carrot and stick] is a well known idiom. If Ainz-sama were to mete out
punishment, then the guilt in Shalltears heart will disappear, on the other hand,
without punishment the negative feelings in her heart wont go away."

So it is, it is true that there cant be reward without punishment, the two must
both exist to hold reason.

Regarding the parts though, to what degree to punish and to what degree to
forgive, these are all decided by Ainz. If it was the usual, everything would simply
be forgiven by Ainz.

On the other hand, even though itd be slightly hard on Shalltear, but this is a
good educative opportunity.

".....I get it, lets give Shalltear some punishment."

"Thats right, this way will be best, also please forgive my impudence."

"What are you saying. To propose your viewpoint like earlier is what I need. When
I am out of ideas, proposing ideas like you did just now is exactly what you should
do for your duty as The Great Tomb of Nazaricks Floor Guardian Overseer."

"Thank you very much!"

With red cheeks and wet eyes, the world class beauty lowered her head toward
Ainz. Getting embarrassed over her heartfelt words, Ainz waved as reply.

"Therefore, (we) shall go do work. The matter here will rely on thee."

"Yes! Leave it to me! In Ainz-samas absence, I will take the responsibility and
manage properly."

On the way, Ainz heard a little bit of a wifely tone mixed up in there but he
ignored it, because Albedos words were not finished.

"However, Ainz-sama must take care, the World-class item user who brainwashed
Shalltear might attack here."

"Well!"

Returning to this room, Ainz let out a displeased sound for the first time.

"If they were to come, easily repelling them cannot be done. Rest assured,
Albedo. If we encounter an unknown assailant, I will treat retreating as priority,
and even have servants prepared to serve as shields."

Ainz slowly looked towards the ceiling, imagining the presence of alarms which
should have been there.

The hostile World-Class item user, players who may or may not exist, and
vestiges of players who existed in the past of course would not necessarily
appear as an enemy. However matters concerning safety should not be handled
carelessly, therefore preparations ought to be made with regards to the worst
case scenario.

"The first consideration is that before the enemys true identity is confirmed,
operations must be as covert as possible. However, it is also necessary to place
bait to lure prey how should such a scheme be carried out?"

Albedo slightly lowered her eyesight, but from this reaction Ainz already
anticipated the result.

"The report from the Cocytus has not yet been received. Entomas report was
within the expected range, and the battle begun pretty much closer to the
destination, so the report was prepared in advance."

"So its like this although this is not the desired outcome, the important thing is
what we can gain from that."
"I am relieved that you think that way."

"Good. Although I wish to head over there to witness it personally, regrettably my

adventurer work has piled up and I am unable to go. However I still wish to know
of the condition of the battle, therefore video record the battle between the lizard
men and the army of the Great Tomb of Nazarick."

CHAP
TER 1

Part 1

Azellerisia Mountains - the mountain range separating the Baharuth Empire and
the Kingdom of Re-Estize, which also served as the national border. The Great
Forest of Tove covered the mountain ranges southern foothills and to the north of
the forest lay an enormous lake.
This enormous lake had a radius of approximately twenty kilometers, and was
shaped like an inverted calabash, divided into the upper lake and the lower lake.
The upper lake was relatively deep, hence large creatures gathered there while
the lower lake was inhabited by smaller creatures.

At the southern end of the lower lake was a large region where the lake and the
wetlands blended into each other. Multiple structures had been built there, with a
dozen wooden stilts serving as a foundation for each one. A door opened at the
side of one of these houses, and its owner entered the sunlight.

His demi-human race was known as lizardmen.

Lizardmen were beings which shared human and reptilian characteristics. More
specifically, aside from their heads which did not have basic human features,
they were bipedal lizards, with dexterous hands and feet.
They were regarded as demi-humans along with goblins and orcs, and were not
as civilised as humans, with a lifestyle considered barbaric to others. However, it
also could not be denied that they have a culture of their own.
Adult male lizardmen had an average height of about 190 centimeters and were
proud of their strong muscles, weighing over 100 kg with little body fat
A reptilian tail used for maintaining balance grew from their waists.

Evolution caused them to have webbed feet for ease of movement on the
wetlands. It was also because of this that land activities were slightly
inconvenient, but this posed no problem for their general lifestyle.

Their dark green and charcoal grey scales were similar to those of a crocodile
instead of a lizards, and they were harder than the low-end defensive equipment
used by humans.
Their hands had five fingers just like humans, but with short claws growing at
their tips.
The weapons wielded by both hands were basically very primitive items. Since it
was impossible for them to discover ore in the wetlands, their weapons were
mainly spears crafted from magical beasts claws, or akin to blunt weapons with
stone bound to them.
The sky was a clear blue, the sun had already risen to mid-air, and a small
amount of thin white clouds were in a combed pattern in the sky. It was a good
weather, with the distant mountain range clearly visible.

The lizardmens field of vision was wide, and the suns blinding glare could be
seen even without moving the head. He, Zaryusu Shasha, squinted and walked
down the stairs rhythmically.
He, Zaryusu Shasha, squinted and walked down the stairs rhythmically, while
scratching the imprint of a black scale on his chest.

Lizardmen had a strict class society, with the tribal chief as the leader of the
tribe. This position was not determined by blood, but elected by the tribe for
being the strongest individual. This election for tribal chief took place once every
years.

Assisting the chief was the council of elders made up of elected elderly
lizardmen. Below them were the warrior class, followed by general male
lizardmen, general female lizardmen, and lizardmen youths. Their society was
structured this way.
Of course, there also existed those who did not belong to any of these categories.

First were the druids, who were led by the elder druid. They aided tribal life
through the use of magical cures and weather forecasts to predict dangers.
Next were the hunters, whose ranks consisted of rangers, responsible for fishing
and hunting, but since ordinary lizardmen would also assist in this aspect, their
most important job were forest activities.

Lizardmen were omnivores, but their staple food was a species of fish around
eighty centimeters long, and they did not consume many plants or fruits.
Despite this, hunters entered the forest mainly to harvest timber. For lizardmen,
land was not safe, and even simply collecting wood from the forest required
skilled personnel.

As such, they were allowed to make their own decisions, but still fell within the
jurisdiction of the chief and had to obey the chiefs commands. Lizardmen
therefore had an explicitly paternalistic society with division of labour done
according to jobs. However, there were also those outside the jurisdiction of the
tribal chief.

Those were travellers.

Hearing about travellers would evoke the impression of foreigners, but this was
impossible in lizardmen society. Lizardmen had a closed society, and a situation
where an outsider was accepted into the tribe was exceedingly rare
So, who were these travellers?

They were lizardmen who wished to see the outside world.

Basically, unless something drastic like a shortage of food occurred, lizardmen
would not leave their hometown. However, there was a small chance that a
lizardman who wanted to see the outside world would appear.

When travellers decided to leave the tribe, they would have a special insignia
engraved on their chests. This was proof that they had left the jurisdiction of the
tribes control upon leaving the tribe.
Most of those who left the tribe never came back, died during their travels, found
a new place to call home, or encountered a different fate but on rare occasions,
they would return to their hometown after having seen the world.

Travellers who returned were evaluated highly because of the level of knowledge
they had gathered. Although they were individuals detached from the power
hierarchy, they were still prominent within the tribe.

There were some who kept their distance from Zaryusu out of respect, but his
fame was greater than that. It was not only because he was an traveller. The
reason was
When descending from the lowest stair to the wetlands' surface, his favourite
weapon holstered on his waist collided with his scales, creating a clicking sound.

It was a blue and white blade with a dim glow. The shape was a bit peculiar, the
blade and the handle were integrated, resembling a three-pronged fork. Starting
from the grip part of the body it became increasingly thinner, until becoming
paper-thin at the tip of the blade.
There were no lizardmen who did not know of this weapon. All the surrounding
lizardmen tribes referred to it as one of the four treasured magic items: Frost
Pain.

This was the reason behind Zaryusus great fame.

Zaryusu started to move.

He had two different destinations. The gift which he intended to bring to one of
those destinations was currently carried on his back.
It was one of the large fish which served as the staple food of lizardmen. Walking
as he carried four of these fishes on his back, the stench which entered his nose
did not cause any discomfort to Zaryusu. On the contrary, it was a smell which
made him feel very hungry.

A strong desire to eat. After puffing out wind several times out from his nose, he
expelled this desire. Like this, Zaryusu pattered as he walked without stopping
through the Green Claw tribe village.
Children, who still had their bright green scales, ran around and let out sha sha
sounding laughter, but stopped as they noticed the objects on Zaryusus back.
Healthy growing children peered towards Zaryusu from under the shadows of
houses no, it was because of the fish that they gathered together. Their
mouths were slightly parted, even drooling. They stayed a slight distance away,
but their eyesight was still locked on, with gazes like children who craved snacks.

Zaryusu smiled wryly and pretended to not notice as he continued walking. He

had already decided who to give them to. It was regretful, but they werent
meant for the children.

The children's gazes were not caused by hunger --- something that would've been
impossible a few years ago. This gave Zaryusu a feeling of happiness.

With his back facing the reluctant gazes, he passed through the residential area
and arrived at the hut that was his destination.
This area was not connected to the village. Going a bit further, and it became
dissimilar to the wetlands which were the general depth of the lake. This hut,
which was sturdier than it looked, was built on this subtle border and was larger
in size than Zaryusus home.

The strangest feature was that it was tilted. Because of this reason,
approximately half of the house was submerged in the water. This was not
collapsed due to damage, but was intentionally constructed to be so.
Swishing, Zaryusu got closer to the house whilst making audible water noises.

Wheedling sounds could be heard from the hut, it could probably smell the scent
of fishes.
With a squeak, the head of a snake with deep brown scales and amber eye-pupils
appeared from the window. after confirming that it was Zaryusu, the neck
extended and coquettishly twisted around him.

Good, good.

With a habitual hand movement, Zaryusu stroked the snakes body. The snake
comfortably squinted using the eye protection membrane. Zaryusu also thought
that the scaly snakeskin felt fine.

This creature was Zaryusus pet, called Rororo.

Since Rororo was raised from young, it was as if it could actually understand
language.

Rororo, Ive bought food. Be good and eat it okay?

Zaryusu chucked the brought fish through the window. Dang and Pluck sounds
came from the inside.
I really want to stay and play, but right now I really need to attend to the fish .
See you in a bit.

It probably understood the contents of the speech, and let out a reluctant noise
and slowly released Zaryusu before returning inside the house. Afterwards, a
chewing sound could be heard from inside.
Having confirmed that Rororo was in good health, judging by the spirited manner
of eating, Zaryusu left the hut.

Zaryusus destination after departing the hut was the lake, which was a fair
distance away from the village.

Zaryusu silently pattered along the forest. Swimming in the water should be
much faster, but his concerns of whether any problems would occur on land had
fostered his habit of monitoring the land path. It was just that the trees would
obstruct his line of sight while walking, therefore to Zaryusu it could also be
considered a matter which consumed his concentration quite a bit.
Finally he could see his destination from a gap in the trees. Zaryusu let out a sigh
of relief since no obstacles had arisen along the way. With only a short distance
left to travel through the forest, Zaryusu quickened his pace.
Brushing aside tree branches like a diver swimming in the water, Zaryusu
widened his eyes in surprise. This was because he saw the back figure of a
person he did not expect to encounter.

That person was similar to Zaryusu: a lizardman with black scales.

Older brother

...Oh, its you.

The lizardman with black scales turned his head around and looked welcomingly
at Zaryusu. This lizardman was the current tribe chief of the Green Claw tribe;
Zaryusus elder brother Shasuryu.

He won the competition to be a chief twice in a row, and retained his position
without needing to fight this year. His body was amazingly huge. When he stood
next to Zaryusu, who was of an average build, he made him look small in
comparison.
There was a single long, white and old scar on his black scales. It looked like
lightning piercing through dark clouds.

This fellow who carried an enormous sword on his back, was close two meters in
height and was huge and plain. The steel sword proof of being tribe chief
had magic which increased its sharpness and prevented rusting.
Zaryusu and his older brother stood next to each other on the lakeside.

What are you doing here?

...Older brother, that should not be your line, but mine. This is not the kind of
place the tribe chief would need to visit personally.
Muu-
Lost for words, Shasuryu muttered his catch phrase, then turned to look at the
lake in front of them.

Sticks stretched out from inside the lake, surrounding the area. Being carefully
placed, there were very fine mesh nets between the sticks. Their purpose was
obvious with a single glance.

It was a fish farm.

Could it be stealing a meal?

Hearing Zaryusus words, Shasuryus tail jumped and flapped against the ground
with a flopping sound.

Muu, there is no way that could happen. I am only here to check up on the
breeding conditions.
...

Younger brother, do you see your older brother in that kind of light?!
Finishing his statement with a strong intonation, Shasuryu slid one foot forwards.
The pressure he gave off felt like a wall pressing down on Zaryusu. Even Zaryusu,
who was an experienced traveller and veteran of many battles, felt the urge to
take a couple of steps backwards.
However, he had the perfect retort.
If its only to inspect the breeding conditions, then it also means that you dont
want them. Such a shame, elder brother. If they were raised well, I was thinking
about giving some of them to you.
Muu-

The flopping sound stopped, and the tail appeared dejected.

So very aromatic too. They have become nicely fattened because of the
nutrients diligently fed to them, even more plump than hunted fish.

Oh-

If you keep them in your mouth, some really good tasting juice will flow out.
Biting down with a crunch will also make it seemingly melt in your mouth."
Muuu-
Once again the cocked tail gave off a flopping sound, and it was even more
intense than before.

Half of Zaryusus attention was transfixed on that tail, the other half was directed
to addressing his elder brother in an almost teasing manner.

Sister-in-law has also mentioned this before. Elder brothers tail is just too
honest.
What? That horrible person, making fun of her husband. Say again, which part is
honest?

At the sight of his elder brother replying whilst looking over his shoulder at the
tail which was still, Zaryusu was momentarily lost and dont know how to react,
before vaguely replying right.
Huh. That horrible person If you have a woman then you will understand
how I feel right now.
I wont be able to marry.

Huh, nonsense. Is it because of that mark? Youre better off ignoring whatever
those elders say. Saying that there are no women in this village who find your
affection annoying even the person with the most beautiful tail will accept
you.
Lizardmen stored nutrients in their tails, therefore having a thicker tail was an
important key factor for the opposite sex. In the past, Zaryusu would have
chosen a thick-tailed female. However, the grown up Zaryusu, who now had an
understanding of the world, wouldnt choose in such a way.
Taking the current situation in the village into account, I have no desire for
females with thicker tails. If I had to use tails as the criteria, I would choose a
female with a slim tail instead. Personally, I think one like sister-in-laws is also
fine.

Of course it is fine for someone with your personality except, dont you dare
mess around. I do not want to butcher anyone over some silly matters. Speaking
of which, you also ought to realise the pain of being married. Its just not fair that
I am the only one.

Hey, hey, elder brother... Ill tell sister-in-law.

Ugh this is one of the pains of being married. Even me, your elder brother and
tribe chief, can be threatened.
Boisterous laughter sounded out by the peaceful lakeside.

After the laughter stopped, Shasuryu looked at the fish lake as he voiced out
some words of frustration.
But honestly? Its just too great; Your

Zaryusu came to the rescue of his elder brother who fell silent.

Do you mean the breeding farm?

Right, right, thats the one. In our tribes past we have never had an individual
who would do such a thing. Furthermore. many people already know of its
success. In the future, more and more people will feel envy at the sight of your
fish and copy your ways.
Its all thanks to elder brother. I know elder brother has said all kinds of things
about me to everybody.

Younger brother, talking to many people about reality does not count for much.
That kind of stuff is merely recounting anecdotes. If it werent for your hard work
in nurturing such delicious fish from this breeding farm, those words would have
been meaningless.
The initial breeding farms were constantly failing. This was expected, since they
were built solely based on the impressions from talks during his travels. Just the
construction of the fence was met with constant setbacks. After a year of trial
and error, although the fish lake was created, there was still more work to be
done.

Fish could not be left alone without being looked after. It was necessary to obtain
fish feed.

The fish in the fish lake had died out many times by experimenting with a wide
variety of food for the sake of finding out what kind of feed was best. There were
also instances of the surrounding nets being broken by monsters, freeing all of
the fish.
There were some who criticised him behind his back for treating fish captured for
food as toys. There were also those who said that he was nothing but a fool.
However, the results of his efforts finally bore fruit.

The shadows of enormous, swimming fish were reflected on the lakes surface.
Comparing its size to hunted fish, it would be in the very large category, and no
lizardmen would believe that these were fish that had been completely reared
from birth, apart from Zaryusus elder brother and sister-in-law.
...Simply amazing, younger brother.

Seeing the same sight, Zaryusus elder brother said this in a low voice at the
same time. His words were filled with emotion.

This is also thanks to elder brother.

The younger brother who replied also conveyed such emotions in his tone.
Huh, what have I done?

Truthfully, elder brother - Shasuryu did not do anything. However, that was just
the official stance.
During times when the fish health deteriorated, priests would suddenly show up
here. When collecting materials to build a fence, there would be many individuals
who came to help. When captured fish were separated and allocated, there would
be live fish. In addition, there were also fruits brought back by the hunters to be
used as fish feed.

Those fellows who came over to assist all refused to reveal who they were doing
this favour for. However, even the dumbest person would realise who was pulling
the strings, even if the person was adamant on not disclosing the name.
Because it was not appropriate for the tribe chief to look after travellers, who had
seceded from the tribe hierarchy.
Elder brother, wait for them to grow a little more larger, then I shall take some to
your place first.
Hum. Then Ill look forward to it.

Turning around, Shasuryu took a step away from the place, then said in a low
voice.

Im sorry.
...What are you saying, elder brother. Elder brother has not committed any
wrong.

These words may or may not have been heard. Zaryusu merely looked silently at
the back figure of Shasuryu moving away from the lake shore.
Having confirmed the condition of the fish lake and returned to the village,
Zaryusu suddenly felt a strange feeling, and looked towards the sky, yet there
was nothing out of the ordinary up there. The whole sky was blue, with a thin
layer of clouds at the mountains towards the north.
It was the usual landscape.
There were no changes. Just at the moment he brushed it off as a misconception,
a weird layer of clouds appeared in the middle of the sky.

Almost at the same time, black clouds which blocked out the sunlight suddenly
appeared at the centre of the village. Those were thick rainclouds which cast a
shadow over the entire village.

Everyone was surprised and looked up into the sky.

The druids had said there would be clear skies for the entire day. Priests made
their weather forecasts using both magic and their many years of knowledge
accumulated through experience, therefore the accuracy of their predictions was
extremely high. As such, anything that was not predicted would come as a
surprise to anyone.

However, the strangest feature was that there were no rainclouds apart from the
dark clouds covering the village. Simply put, it was as if someone had called out
the clouds and placed it above the village.
Furthermore another strange feature appeared.

Whilst the clouds swirled with the village as the epicentre, they also expanded in
range at a constant rate. It was as if the sandwiched sky was being invaded by
the terrible momentum of the ominous dark clouds.
Warriors all around scrambled to be on alert. Children escaped by rushing back
into their homes. Zaryusu bent down, observing the surrounding while reaching
towards Frost Pain.
The dark clouds completely covered the sky, and blue sky could still be seen in
the far distance. It was as if the dark clouds were targeting this village.
From there, a clamour arose in the village centre. The wind carried over a highpitched sound produced by lizardmens vocal chords.

That sound was an alarm, one which signaled that there were formidable enemies
and advised others to evacuate according to the situation.
Zaryusu who heard this sound bolted along the wetlands at a speed which was
fast for lizardmen.
Run. Run. Keep on running.

Moving in the wetlands was extremely difficult, requiring use of the tail to act as
counterbalance. At a speed unattainable by humans although lizardmen feet
were more suited for this environment Zaryusu reached the source of the
alarm.
At that place, Shasuryu and the tribes warriors had formed a circular formation,
staring at the village centre.

Following the object in their line of sight, Zaryusu also glared at the same place.

Everyones eyes were focused on a monster which looked as if it were created

from dark mist.

Within the dark mist, numerous terrified faces would appear then quickly vanish.
Although faces of various races appeared, the one thing they had in common
were expressions of agony.

Carried by the wind were sounds of sobbing, resentment, painful lament, and
dying gasps melding together to form a chorus.

With his back frozen from the gathered resentment, Zaryusu trembled in fear.
...Not good we should have let all the people in the vicinity escape, leaving
elder brother and I to deal with this, but if that were the case...

The surrounding lizardmen were all elite warriors of the tribe, but the opponent
was one which even Zaryusu was terrified of: a powerful undead. In this situation,
the only two who were able to give a proper fight would be Zaryusu and his elder
brother. Even more importantly, Zaryusu knew that this undead had special
abilities.
Diverting his attention slightly, he noticed that the majority of the lizardmen
present were all taking short and sharp breaths, as if they were scared like little
children -- despite all of them being of the warrior class

The monster stood at the village centre and made no movement.

After some time had passed, whilst maintaining a tense atmosphere and aware
that only a tiny disturbance would trigger off the escalation into a fierce battle,
the warriors slowly narrowed the distance. They resisted the mental stress and
moved into action.

Using his peripheral vision to confirm that Shasuryu had drawn his weapon,
Zaryusu also swiftly and silently took up his sword. If it became a fight, he
intended to launch a surprise attack faster than anyone else.
It is necessary to tell others about that guys special ability, therefore, I cannot
act rashly.
The tension in the atmosphere thickened. Suddenly, the sounds of resentment
stopped.

The noises emitted from the monster mixed together, forming one sound
different to the intelligible cursing earlier. It had a definite meaning now:
Listen well. I serve as the messenger of the Great Being and I came here to
announce his decree..

Everyone looked at each other. Only Zaryusu and Shasuryu did not break
eyesight.
Proclaiming your death sentence, the Great One has sent his army to
exterminate you. In his leniency, he has granted you mortals time to put up a
meaningless resistance. Eight days from now, the lizardmen tribe of this lake
shall become the second sacrifice.

Zaryusu and grimaced, revealing sharp teeth and issuing an intimidating sound.
Resist stubbornly, mortals. Allow the Great One to relish in your demise.

Like smoke which constantly changed shape, the monster also gradually
deformed and floated into the sky.

Do not forget. Eight days.

As if there were no obstruction, it flew in the sky towards the forest, with its
departing back figure watched by many lizardmen. Zaryusu and Shasuryu were
silently looking at the distant sky.

Part 2
The biggest hut in the village the assembly hall was rarely ever used. Clan
leaders had absolute authority on all matters and assembly only happened once
in a blue moon. There was no real value to having the hut, but on this day the
inside of the hut was filled with strained clamor.

Many lizardmen had gathered, causing the spacious hut to feel narrow and
stifling: the warriors, the druids, the hunters, the elder council and Zaryusu, who
was a traveler. Everyone sat cross legged, facing Shasuryu.

Acting in his capacity as clan chief, declared the start of the meeting and the first
to speak was the elder druid.

The aged female Lizardmans body was covered in white dye, showing fantastical
drawings. Although the symbols had many meanings, their significance were
unknown to Zaryusu.

You all remember the black cloud that covered the sky? That was magic. From
what I know, there are two spells to manipulate weather. One is called Control
Weather, a 6th tier magic. We can safely rule that out since magic of that level
is in the realm of legends. The other is a 4th tier magic called Control Cloud.
This is also a spell that only a powerful magic caster can cast. We would be fools
to stand against such a foe."

Behind the Elder Druid, the similarly garbed druids nodded their heads in
agreement.

Although Zaryusu understood how powerful 4th tier magic was, the other
Lizardmen did not and their voices of doubt filled the surroundings.

Not sure of how to explain, the Elder Druid showed a perplexed expression before
pointing at a Lizardman. The one being pointed at showed a confused expression,
pointing at himself as well.

Yes, you. Can you defeat me?

The Lizardman slowly shook his head.

He might stand a chance if both sides were using weapons, but if you included
magic, the odds of winning were really low. Or rather, it was nearly impossible for
a mere warrior to win.

However, even I can only use 2nd tier spells.

So to say, he should be twice as strong as you?

Facing this kind of dumb question, the Elder Druid sighed and shook his head.

Its not that simple. Faced with magic of the 4th tier, even our Clan Leader would
be easily killed.

"Although its not absolute" added the Elder Druid speculatively then closed his
mouth.

Finally understanding the terror of 4th tier magic, the room became silent. At this
moment, Shasuryu started talking.

In the end, what the Elder Druid means to say is...

Fleeing would be the best course of action. Even if we fought, there would be no
way to win.

What are you saying!

Following the thick and low roar, a tall Lizardman stood up. He had a similar build
as Shasuryu and was the Head Warrior.

To flee without even putting up a fight! Running away when facing just that level
of danger is intolerable!

What is in your head!? It would be too late if we are to start fighting!

The Elder Druid glared and stood abruptly, face to face with the Head Warrior.
Both of them had already lost their temper and made threatening sounds. Just
when everyone feared the situation was about to escalate, a cold voice could be
heard.

...Thats enough.

With faces like being woken with cold water, the two of them turned to Shasuryu
and seated themselves as if in apology.

Head Hunter, let us hear your point of view.

......Elder Druid and Head Warriors opinions are both understandable, they both
make sense.

To answer Shasuryus question the skinny Lizardman opened his mouth. Although
he seemed small in size, it was not for a lack of muscle, but rather that his
muscles were densely packed.

That is why since there is still time. We should examine the situation.
Supposedly, they are sending an army. There ought to be signs of construction for
a forward base and such, therefore we should observe first and decide
afterward.

Without any information, saying this or that would be completely useless. A

number of people expressed their agreement.

Elder.

Theres not much to say, all of the opinions are correct. All thats left is to leave
the decision up to the Clan Head.

Muu...

Letting his gaze wander, Shasuryu met Zaryusus eyes, who was sitting among
the crowd, and gave him a nod.. Zaryusu felt as if hed gotten a gentle push on
the back whether the road ahead was dangerous was unknown still, he
raised his hand to show he had an idea.

Clan Head, please allow me to speak.

At this time, the focus of all the Lizardmen gathered on Zaryusu. Most of them
wore expectant expressions, but others showed discontent.

This isnt the place for a Traveler to be speaking. You should be grateful were
already allowing you to attend, a member of the Elder Council declared. Step
down right...

Bam! The sound of a tail striking the floor, it cut through the Elders words like a
sharp knife.

Silence.

Giving off a dangerous vibe, Shasuryu's voice carried the guttural sound that
Lizardman made when riled up, the tension in the room increased sharply as the
heated atmosphere from earlier cooled down.

In this atmosphere, an Elder opened his mouth without paying attention to the
gazes around him who were warning him Dont do anything unnecessary.

But Clan Head, to receive special allowance just because hes your younger
brother is not good. Besides, Travelers are

I said to be silent. Didnt you hear me?

Geh

Presently, all who are seated here possess wisdom. Why not hear the idea of the
Traveler.

Travelers are

The Clan Head has spoken and you still refuse to comply?

Moving his sight from the silenced Elder, Zaryusu looked at the other Heads.

Elder Druid, Head Warrior, Head Hunter, do you also think theres no value in
listening?

Zaryusus words are worth listening.

The Head Warrior spoke first.

What kind of warrior would disregard the words of Frost Pains wielder.

I agree, theres definite value to listening.

Then the Head Hunter spoke followed by the Elder Druid who shrugged.

Of course we have to hear. Refusing to listen to a wise man is something thats

only done by fools.

Receiving the intense mocking, some of the elder councils members pursed their
eyebrows. Shasuryu nodded to the three Heads and let Zaryusu continue his
speech. Zaryusu sat still and opened his mouth.

To flee or to fight, if we had to decide we must choose the latter.

What is the reason?

Because it is the only choice.

Normally, if the Clan Head asked for the reason one must explain clearly. But
Zaryusu didnt continue and closed his mouth as if he was finished.

Shasuryu cupped his chin and sunk deep into thought.

Have you seen through what I am thinking? Brother.

Zaryusu did his best not to leak his inner thoughts. At this time, the Elder Druid
showed a pained expression while directing his question to no one in particular.

Is it possible to win?

Of course we can win!

Head Warrior shouted as if to disperse the feeling of unease, but the Elder Druid
only narrowed his eyes.

...No, in the current situation the odds of success are very low.

The one to directly reject the Head Warriors opinion was Zaryusu.

...What exactly are you trying to say?

Head Warrior, the opponent should already know about our sides fighting force,
otherwise they wouldnt approach us with such a belittling attitude. If that is the
case, then it is impossible to obtain victory with our current fighting power.

Then what shall we do? Just as everyone was about to voice out their doubts,
Zaryusu spoke out before anyone else to share his inner thoughts.

Thats why we need to disrupt the plans of our enemy Does everyone here still
recall the previous war?

Of course.

Even those with dementia would be unable to forget the last war which took
place several years ago.

In the past these wetlands had been inhabited by seven lizardmen tribes: Green
Claw, Small Fang, Razor Tail, Dragon Tusk, Yellow Speckle, Sharp Edge and Red
Eye.

However, now only five remained.

It was a war which claimed the lives of many, and wiped out two tribes.

The reason for this conflict was the bad harvest of the staple food, fish. Led by
the hunter classes, the fish hunting zone was expanded further around the lake.
Of course the other tribes followed suit.

And then conflicts over hunting and fishing spots amongst the hunter classes
arose. Since it concerned food resources necessary for the survival of the tribes,
it was impossible to make concessions

Quarrels soon turned into fights, and it was only a matter of time until these
fights escalated into carnage...

Next, in order to support the hunter class, the warrior class also took action. A
fierce battle was sparked because of the food shortage.

Five of the seven existing tribes were embroiled in the fighting and ended up in a
three vs. two situation: Green Claw, Small Fang and Razor Tail against Yellow
Speckle and Sharp Edge. Apart from the warrior class, other male lizardmen and
even female lizardmen were mobilized to fight for their tribes.

After several large battles, the side with the three tribes that included the Green
Claws emerged victorious, leaving the defeated two tribes so destitute they
became unable to sustain themselves and were forced to scatter. These
remnants were then absorbed by the Dragon Tusk tribe who didn't participate in
the war.

Ironically, since the number of lizardmen had been greatly reduced, the food
shortage which had originally sparked the conflict had been solved as well. The
staple diet of fish could now be distributed to everybody.

What of it?

Think about the words which that person left behind. He said that this village
was the second, which also means that he has left a similar message at the other
villages.

Ah.

Numerous voices that agreed with Zaryusus words arose.

It means we need to form another alliance!

Could it be that

Yes, we should form an alliance.

Just like in the previous war.

In that case, perhaps we may yet win?

The small mutterings between the Lizardmen soon evolved into a big commotion.
The entire hut was discussing Zaryusus opinion, yet Clan Head Shasuryu
maintained his silence. The chiefs eyes looked as if he was gazing into the
depths of his heart, rendering Zaryusu unable to turn his face to him.

After allowing ample time for discussion, Zaryusu spoke again.

Dont be mistaken. The alliance I spoke of includes all of the tribes.

What?

At that suggestion, the second person to understand its meaning was the Head
Hunter, who let out an astounded sound. Zaryusus eyes locked onto Shasuryu
and Lizardmen in his line of sight subconsciously parted to either side.

Clan Head, I also suggest forming an alliance with Dragon Tusk and Red Eye.

The surrounding erupted in an enormous commotion, as if a grenade went off in

the room. They had no communications with Dragon Tooth and Red Eye who did
not take part in the war. Furthermore, Dragon Tooth took in the remnants of
Yellow Speckle and Sharp Edge, the refugees of their enemy tribes.

To form an alliance with those two tribes, forming a five tribe alliance.

If that were possible then it might be possible to win. As everyone held this faint
hope, Shasuryu suddenly spoke out:

Who shall be the representative?

I will go.

Shasuryu was not surprised by Zaryusus immediate answer. The surrounding

lizardmen reckoned that it was because he understood his younger brothers
character and had anticipated this response. Letting out sounds of empathy, they

also thought that there was no candidate more suitable to be selected. However
there was one who was of an opposing opinion.

Sending a traveler?

It was Shasuryu. His ice-like gaze pierced directly through Zaryusu.

That is true, Clan Head. However we are at trying times. If the other side is
unwilling to listen to my words merely because I am a traveler, then they have no
worth as an ally.

Zaryusu easily repelled the cold stare. After the two glared at one another for a
brief moment, Shasuryu let out a lonely smile. It was either because he gave up,
or because of his helplessness in stopping his brother, or perhaps internally
ridiculing himself for agreeing. It was a smile without gloom.

Bring along the seal of the Clan Head.

That had the meaning of being the Clan Heads representative. Several elders
which wished to express the view that this is not something a traveler should
possess were silenced under Shasuryus powerful glare.

My extreme gratitude.

Zaryusu bowed. Accepting his gratitude, Shasuryu continued speaking:

...I shall select the representatives who will head to the other tribes. First is

Cold wind blew at night. Because it was the wetlands, high humidity and the
summery heat combined together to give people excruciating pain, however at
night this heat mellowed and the gusts of wind would even be considered
freezing. Of course for the lizardmen with sturdy skin, this hardly registered as a
significant change.

Zaryusu stamped along the wetlands, his target being his pet Rororos hut.

Although there was still some time, it could not be said for certain that nothing
unexpected would suddenly happen, and more so it was not known if the enemy
would abide by their declared schedule, or perhaps hinder Zaryusus movements.
With all these considerations, riding through the wetlands on Rororo was still the
most appropriate.

The stamping footsteps slowed down and stopped. The bag on his back which
was filled with various items also shook. The reason for stopping was because the
moonlight illuminated the sight of a familiar lizardman leaving Rororos hut.

Both individuals staggered at the sight of each other, and the confused Zaryusu
crooked his neck in a bow. The black scaled lizardman drew himself closer and
closed the distance.

... I reckon that you are the one more suitable to take the mantle of Clan Head.

Those were the only words of Shasuryu who had approached to within two
meters.

...What are you saying older brother.

Still remember the previous large war?

Of course.

Since Zaryusu had raised this question during the meeting, there was no way he
would not remember. Of course this was not the main point of Shasuryus
question.

...After the war you became a traveler. At that time when you had the insignia
burned upon your chest, you have no idea how much I regretted it. Even if I had
to use my fists, I should have stopped you.

Zaryusu fiercely shook his head. His brothers expression at that time still
remained a thorn in his heart.

...It is all thanks to older brothers permission that I was able to learn the ability
to raise fish.

If it were you, even if you remained in the village you would be able to come up
with that method. Such an intelligent man as you should be able to be the
supporting pillar of this village.

Older brother.

The past was the past, therefore any hypothetical discussions starting with what
if... were pointless. The past was already set in stone, but to ponder over such
events were these two mens weakness.

No, not exactly that either.

...Not as Clan Head, but as your older brother, I cannot tell you that things will
go smoothly if you go alone. Come back safely, dont try to be brave.

In response to this remark, Zaryusu replied with a haughty smile:

Of course I will complete this mission with perfection for you to see. This task is
nothing to me.

Huh. Shasuryus face broke out into a wry smile.

Then if your mission were to be a failure, the fattest fish that you have raised
shall be mine.

Older brother, that kind of thing is nothing amazing, and not something you
ought to be saying at this moment.

...Muu.

Both men silently laughed.

And then exchanged serious looks.

So is your objective really just that?

...What are you saying? What do you mean?

For a brief moment Zaryusu narrowed his eyes and then thought to himself
Darn!. With knowledge of his older brothers insight, his reaction just now was a
mistake.

... Your speech in the hut was as if to incite everybodys opinion, yet the way you
said it was obviously withholding something.

Zaryusu fell silent and Shasuryu continued:

...The cause of the previous war was not solely due to the dispute between
tribes. A substantial increase in the population of lizardmen was also one of the
reasons.

Older brother Lets not talk about this any further.

Zaryusus grim tone seemingly confirmed Shasuryus statement.

So it was that.

...It can only be that, in order to prevent a recurrence of the previous war.

These words that Zaryusu spat out implicitly contained his own detestable
thoughts and plans. It was simply too foul, and if possible he did not wish for his
older brother to know about them.

So then if the other tribes refuse to form an alliance, what then? Because those
who are only willing to provide support and those who wish to flee from the
outset would surely refuse.

In that case then The only option is to exterminate them.

Starting with wiping out your own tribe?

Older brother...

Hearing the tone of persuasion in Zaryusus voice, Shasuryu smiled almost

inappropriately.

I understand that your concern is correct, and I also agree. As the guiding figure
for the tribe, since it concerns the survival of our tribe, of course I would have to
consider this. That is why you need not be reserved, younger brother.

I appreciate those words. Then shall they be brought to this village?

No. According to that person this village was the second one, so the main battle
should take place at the first village. Ordinarily it would be the best strategy to
gather at the final village or the one with the highest defence, but if it were to be
destroyed then it would have serious impact on the subsequent battles, therefore
let us establish our defensive position at the first village. To exchange intelligence
reports with you, let us communicate through the elder druids magic so that you
can directly transmit from over there.

Understood.

The magic which older brother described was a delicate one which was unable to
transmit too much content or if the distance was too far away, but Zaryusu
judged that it would be fine for this instance.

Then I assume that there will be no problem if we draw out rations for the
soldiers from your farm?

Of course, but spare the juveniles. It was not easy to get them where they are
now, and even if we were to abandon the village it would eventually come in
handy.

Deal. Then how much can it provide?

...If we are talking about dried consumables, around one thousand tonnes should
not be a problem.

If it is that then in the short term there will be no problems.

Ah, I leave it in your hands then. So, older brother, let me go ahead Rororo.

Reacting to Zaryusus voice, a snake head appeared at the window. Pale blue
moonlight reflected on the scales, giving off a fantasy-like beauty.

We have to depart. Can you come over here?

Rororo looked for a moment at Zaryusu and Shasuryu, and retreated its head
back inside. Then a sound came out like that of a heavy animal moving through
water.

Older brother, there are still some issues which I wish to hear about, are you
able to answer? What about the numbers? Depending on the situation we need
equipment to be used for negotiations.

Shasuryu paused slightly, then replied:

...Ten warriors, twenty hunters, three druids, seventy females, a hundred males,
children thats about it.

...Ah, I understand.

Shasuryu gave a tired smile and Zaryusu remained silent. A sudden loud water
noise broke the silence. Both men observed the direction where the water noise
came from, and smiled out of nostalgia.

Ah, older brother, me too. I did not expect it to grow so big. When I picked it up,
it was so small.

I also find it hard to believe, it was already quite large when you brought it
back.

The two men reminisced about the past Rororo. Then four snake heads surfaced
on the water a short distance from the hut, all four using the same action in
splitting the water and heading towards Zaryusu.

Suddenly the snake raised its heads and the figure of an enormous body could be
seen inside the water. The beast had four reptilian heads connected through long
necks to the enormous four-legged body.

It was a monster, a hydra.

This was the name of Rororo's species.

It was not only evident from the snake elements, but also recognisable from the
chewing sound when it was fed with fish.

With an unexpectedly fast movement unbefitting of its large body that spanned
five meters in length, it arrived beside Zaryusu.

Zaryusu climbed onto Rororos back as nimble as a monkey.

You have to return safely. In addition, its more your style not to use your brain
like you did in the past when you shouted not even one person shall be
sacrificed.

...I have also matured, that is what happened.

To Zaryusus words, Shasuryu snorted.

The kid has grown into a man now Well, alright. Dont get into trouble. If you
do not come back, the first target to be attacked will be determined.

I will return safely. Just wait for me, older brother.

After some time passed, they exchanged gazes filled with emotion and without
warning, the two drew apart.
Part 3

The ninth floor of the Great Tomb of Nazarick. This floor had many rooms of
various types. It goes without saying that these included Guild Members and
NPCs rooms, but also included imitations of large communal baths, cafeterias,
beauty salons, clothing stores, grocery stores, fitness salons, nail salons and
numerous other types of facility rooms.

The creation of these rooms had no actual significance for game play. It was
because the players here had an attachment to these things, or perhaps due to
the players pursuit of an ideal city, or perhaps a longing for these features due to
the poor working conditions in real life.

Within these rooms, there was one particular room whose manager was the Great
Tomb of Nazaricks deputy chef. Although his ability would normally be used in
the cafeteria, according to certain days of the week and time of the day he would
come to this room and make preparations for those that might stop by.

The room was designed in the concept of a bar with few regular customers and
was illuminated with soft gentle light.

There was a shelf lined with alcohol behind the counter and eight chairs.
Although there were only these features, it was sufficient for a quiet tasting. The
deputy chef thought of this space as his own castle, and it gave him immense
satisfaction and fulfillment

However the atmosphere of the place also relied upon customers having refined
taste. He realised this minutes after today's first customer was welcomed in.

Glug, glug, glug, phew

Making a sound like that, that person downed his drink.

While wiping the glass, he thought to himself: for people who drink like that,
there are more suitable places.

In fact, the ninth floor also had common rooms and tavern facilities, so there was
no necessity for those who drank like that to come to this bar.

The deputy chef struggled to keep his face from contorting at the sight of the
person chugging down the approximately 500ml beer mug and then slamming it
onto the counter.

One more!

Responding to the customers request, the deputy chef injected a continuous

stream of Polish distilled vodka, and then injected a shot of blue food coloring.

He then gently present the cup.

This drink is called Ladys Tears.

The customer looked at the drink with suspicion. After being casually informed of
this name, and because she did not see the cocktail mixing process, the
customer then revealed an expression of gratitude.

Ah, does the spreading blue colour symbolise the tear?

Yes, it is just as you say.

He lied through his teeth.

The woman grabbed the cup, placed it besides her mouth and drained it in one
gulp like one would with a glass of milk after a shower.

With no hesitation she slammed the empty cup on the counter like with her
previous drink.

Huu, feeling a little tipsy~

You drank too fast, so it cannot be helped. How about retiring a little early
tonight?

...No, I do not want to go back.

Is that so...

While wiping the glass, he felt annoyed by the womans gaze.

Wanting to say something, yet unwilling to speak out, that is why women are so
troublesome. Gentlemen are more suitable for this kind of establishment, not
troublesome women. Barring women from entering is impossible, it would be
too disrespectful to the Supreme Beings. I really messed up this time.

The one who invited her was none other than himself. This was the result of him
greeting her out of concern on the ninth floor upon seeing her distraught
appearance. He now regretted his actions, but since he had offered to be a host,
it was also necessary for him to display etiquette as a bar owner to customer.

Even though I am serving drinks made sloppily, I have to handle this properly!

Having resolved himself, he asked:

What is the matter, Shalltear-sama?

In that moment the woman, Shalltear, prepared to answer as if she was waiting
all along for this question to be asked, proving that his conjecture was correct.

Sorry, but I do not wish to talk about it.

Stop kidding me. His face involuntarily contorted, but since he was a mushroom
man, the woman could not comprehend his facial movements. Neither did she
say anything, merely continuing to toy with the drink glass on the counter.

A bit drunk?

...Yes, that is true.

...That is not possible.

Shalltear seemed to feel that she was already drunk, but he was certain that it
was impossible.

Intoxication and poison were seen as the same kind, so a person who had
absolute immunity against poison could not possibly be drunk. Of course,
Shalltear, being undead, was immune to toxins and could not become drunk.
Basically, those who came to his store either unequip poison neutralising items,
or knew that they would not be drunk and just wanted to enjoy this atmosphere.

Except, Shalltear genuinely felt that she was drunk, intoxicated due the
atmosphere.

Well then, what to do? He thought. Fortunately at this moment he heard the
ringing sound of salvation. He lowered his head to the arriving customer.

Welcome.

Its good to see you, Piki.

The person who shouted out the nickname given to him because of his
mushroom-like appearance. He was a regular patron here, the butler assistant by
the name of Eckleya, accompanied by the male servant who was carrying him.

As usual, Eckleya was silently placed upon the chair. For Eckleya who was one
meter in height, sitting on the tall bar stools was a difficult task.

Piki felt it was odd that Shalltear didnt made any greeting. He turned to face her,
and found her with her head facing downwards as she was mumbling something.
Listening carefully, it seemed that she was making an apology to the Supreme
Being.

Eckleya ordered wine with fake grandiose:

That one.

Understood.

Hearing that, only one specific drink floated to mind, one which involved the
synthesis of ten different strong spirits to produce a ten coloured drink: the
Nazarick.

The exterior appearance was extremely beautiful, and the taste was deeply
satisfying, with regular customers often commenting that it deserved the name of
Nazarick. However it was not something he would recommend to others.

In order to make it even more delicious, he had gone through much trial and
error, and it was still incomplete.

With skillful movements he produced the ten-coloured drink, and placed it in front
of Eckleya.

The lady over there, please try this.

After this, a plick...plock...bang noise could be heard.

Eckleya wanted to slide the cup over to her on the counter. However that move
was something only found in mangas or performed by people with great skill, and
definitely not something a penguin could pull off.

Piki picked up the dropped glass, confirmed that it was not damaged and let out a
sigh of relief. He then took out a cloth and wiped the spilled drink off the counter.
With displeased eyes, he spoke slowly:

Could you please refrain from waving your flipper around? If you insist on doing
that, I will put you in a basin and push you out.

...Im really sorry.

Becoming aware of Eckleya for the first time, Shalltear raised her head and
greeted.

Ah, if it isnt Eckleya. Its been a while.

A while But we see each other every time I come to the ninth floor.

Is that so?

Yes it is, but I hardly ever see you in this bar. I thought that only Guardians like
Demiurge come here. Last time, him and Cocytus came together to appreciate
their drinks quietly.

Oh, is that so?

Hearing her colleagues words, Shalltears eyes widened.

Whats the problem? Why are you acting like this?

Its no big deal No... Ive committed a grave mistake, that is why Im finding
comfort in alcohol, just like a failure would.

Eckleya made a subtle facial gesture towards Piki, silently enquiring What is it
with this girl?, but Piki didnt reply to this, and merely shook his head.

Since he wanted to give them a more enjoyable drinking experience, he asked:

To lighten up the mood, how about some apple juice?

The two of them were surprised by this suggestion.

Made from apples picked from the sixth floor.

Their curiosity were aroused and both of them nodded at the same time. Their
straightforward reaction gave Piki a strong sense of satisfaction.

What was then placed on the table were two portions of unremarkable apple
juice. His eyes drifted over to the male servant, but as usual, his offer was
declined.

Of course, Eckleya had a penguins beak, so he had not forgotten to include a

straw.

A refreshing taste.

Although it isnt bad, it lacks impact Perhaps it is not sweet enough?

That was the impression the two people had after finishing it in one go.

Well, it cannot be helped. I tasted a sample when I brought it over, and

compared to those stored in Nazarick, its flavour is insufficient.

There are apple trees on the sixth floor? I dont recall there being any.

Wherever Shalltear had heard of this impression before, she gave the correct
answer before Piki replied:

Could it be that it is the one which Ainz-sama brought back? I heard from Albedo
that he was experimenting to see if outside fruits could be cultivated in Nazarick,
to serve as replenishable consumables.

Piki had also heard of this.

Apart from this, he had also accepted various foods from the outside because it
was his task to confirm if it were possible to produce ability boosting cuisine.

Thats right, I heard that too. If the plan goes smoothly, next would be
cultivating fruit orchards, but it looks like the sweetness is still lacking by far.

No, its not like it is undrinkable. I would prefer this if I am looking for a
refreshing sweetness.

...Then who is doing the cultivation at the moment? Aura and Mare are out,
could it be that this responsibility... has been given to the monsters?

No, no. Its delegated to the forest sprite that Ainz-sama brought back from the
outside.

Wondering who it was, Eckleya made a puzzled expression, whereas Shalltear let
out an expression of realization.

What is happening? Have there been new people joining Nazarick?

Shalltear answered Eckleyas question. Although Piki had seen the forest sprite,
he did not know how the situation came to be and so he perked his ears to listen.

It seemed that the forest sprite was brought back after the battle to confirm the
guardians teamwork. As a result of some agreement, it came to Nazarick and
became an apple farmer.
<TL: Events from Drama CD 1>

Nazarick is also evolving, becoming more powerful.

Both Piki and Shalltear agreed with Eckleyas words.

As deputy chef, Piki had no idea of the future plans for the Great Tomb of
Nazarick. But now he understood that Ainz Ooal Gown, the final remaining
Supreme Being, had put his full effort in gaining power in this world and
becoming more powerful.

I see. Then in the future there may be more entities like that forest sprite joining
the ranks of Nazarick.

Shalltear puffed up her cheeks and vented her dissatisfaction at Eckleya.

I detest this. For this place created by the Supreme Beings Why should those
filthy things be allowed to roam these grounds?

He also shared the same sentiment. This place was blessed with the presence of
the Supreme Beings. For those who were born in this place, the mere thought of

outsiders being allowed to enter would cause them to frown, but there was a
point more important than his personal thoughts.

We have to endure this. It is Ainz-samas decision after all.

The highest Supreme Being, Ainz Ooal Gowns decision was absolute. If he said
something white was black, then it must be black.

I did not mean to question Ainz-samas decisions!

Towards the panicking Shalltear, the two others also nodded in agreement.

Then in the future we also need to become role models, displaying more loyalty
to Ainz-sama. I dont think anybody but you will rebel against Ainz-sama.

That is true. Speaking of which, how is it Shalltear? If you join me now, I will
grant you an even higher status in the future

Eckleyas started his usual recruitment talk which would never succeed, but
was interrupted by a strange scream.

Hyaaaaa~~

Both mens stares were directed at Shalltear who was covering her head and
ceaselessly professing her loyalty.

...What happened? Her tone is different from normal too.

In response to the astounded Eckleya, Piki shook his head and shrugged.

Who knows?

CHAP
TER 2

Part 1

Translator: Ferro

Editors/Proofreaders: Sene9ty, JcqC, Skythewood

It had already been a half day journey riding on Rororo through the wetlands. The
sun was already high in the sky, yet Zaryusu had not encountered any enemies
he was concerned about, and arrived safely at his destination.

In the wetlands, there were several residences with houses constructed in the
same fashion as those of the Green Claw tribe, surrounded by sharpened spikes
facing outwards on all sides. Although there were wide gaps between the spikes,
it was sufficiently effective in obstructing large creatures such as Rororo from
invading. Although number of houses was less than that of the Green Claw tribe,
individually, each one was larger.

Therefore it was not clear which side had a larger population.

Every residence had a flag attached to it billowing in the wind. The flags all bore
the Red Eye lizardman mark.

Correct, this was Zaryusus first intended destination the settlement of the Red
Eye tribe.

After surveying his surroundings, Zaryusu sighed in relief.

This was because, fortunately for Zaryusu, their place of habitat was in the same
patch of wetlands, consistent with previously obtained knowledge. He originally
reckoned that they could have moved away as a result of the last war, in which
case he would have to begin searching for their tribe.

Zaryusu looked back in the direction which he came from, and although he
couldn't clearly see it, just narrowly outside of his line of sight was his own
village. Right now, his village should be vigorously making various preparations.
Although he left with anxiety, he could be fairly certain that the village would be
safe from attack for the moment.

The fact that Zaryusu was able to arrive here safely was proof.

He was unable to determine whether this was a flaw in the Great Ones plan, or
whether his own actions were also within its calculations, but in any case the
opponent did not currently intend to go back on its word, and did not attempt to
intervene in the battle preparations.

Of course, even if the so called Great One moved his hand to interfere, Zaryusu
could only act to implement his beliefs.

Zaryusu leaped down from Rororo and stretched his body. Although riding Rororo
over long distances made his muscles stiff, stretching his back made the fatigue
seem rather pleasant.

Following this, Zaryusu instructed Rororo to remain at this position to wait for
him, then took out some dried fish from his backpack for Rororo, to serve as its
breakfast and lunch.

Honestly, he wanted it to forage its own meal from around here, but refrained
from giving the order due to the possibility of disturbing the Red Eye tribes
hunting grounds.

After petting each of Rororos heads several times, Zaryusu set off by himself and
proceeded forwards.

If he brought Rororo with him, the other side could feel apprehensive of the hydra
and be unwilling to come out. Zaryusu was here to form an alliance, and did not
wish to appear high-handed.

He advanced whilst making splashing water noises.

At the corner of his vision, Zaryusu could see several Red Eye tribe warriors
walking in a single file around the inner edge of the spike perimeter. Their
equipment was exactly the same as those of the Green Claw tribe, not wearing
armour and holding wooden spears made from sharpened bone attached to the
tip of a wooden staff. There were also people holding ropes used for rock slings,
but since these were not loaded with rocks, it should indicate that they had no
intention of immediately attacking.

Zaryusu tried as much as possible to avoid stimulating the other side, so he

slowly drew closer until both sides arrived before the main entrance. He directed
his gaze to the watchful lizardmen and raised his voice.

I am Zaryusu Shasha of the Green Claw tribe. There is a matter I wish to discuss
with your tribe chief!

After a while, a venerated lizardman holding a walking cane appeared, with five
burly lizardmen following behind him. The old lizardmans entire body from top to
bottom had markings painted on with white body paint.

Is this the Elder Druid?

Zaryusu maintained his authoritative posture.

This person before him was an equal in terms of position, therefore he could not
put on an appearance of weakness. Even as the elder druid observed the mark
on his chest, Zaryusu did not falter.

Zaryusu Shasha, of the Green Claw tribe. I have come with a matter to discuss.

...Although I cannot say that you are welcomed, the leader of our tribe is willing
to meet you. Please come with me.

This strange rhetoric confused Zaryusu.

What made him perplexed was why the other individual was not called tribe
chief, and also why they did not require him to display an item to prove his
identity. However saying anything at that moment could upset the other party,
and that would spell trouble. Although he felt that something was off, Zaryusu
silently followed behind the line of lizardmen.

He was brought to a beautiful small hut.

It was even larger than Zaryusus older brothers. The walls were dyed with a rare
pattern, proving that the owner of the house was of nobility.

What concerned him was that it had no windows, only a gap for ventilation.
Lizardmen could see objects clearly in the dark, but this did not mean that they
enjoyed darkness.

Then why would anyone want to live inside such a dark hut?

Zaryusu had many doubts but couldnt turn to anyone for answers.

Looking behind him, the druid and warriors who led the way earlier were all gone.

When those who led the way had told him that they were leaving, he felt that
they were being too careless. He almost let his doubt slip.

But when Zaryusu heard that this was the wish of the leader, of the tribe acting
chief, His opinion of the person waiting inside the hut rose.

Although he had promised his brother that he would return safely, Zaryusu was
already prepared for the possibility that he would be unable to fulfill that promise.
As such, surrounding him with armed guards to pressure him would prove
ineffective. In fact, it would only make him feel disappointed by the fact that this
was all they could muster.

However, if the other party already knew his thoughts and still displayed
generosity...

Possibly a skilled negotiator, a troublesome opponent...

Ignoring the peeping eyes from the distance, Zaryusu went straight to the door
and announced in a loud voice:

I am Zaryusu Shasha of the Green Claw tribe, and I have come here to meet
with the leader of the tribe.

A small voice from within responded in kind, the voice of a female. It granted him
permission to enter.

Zaryusu opened the door without hesitation.

The interior was as dark as he had imagined.

Because of the difference in brightness, even if he had night vision capabilities,

Zaryusu could not help but to blink a few times.

The air inside smelled something akin to medicine, mixed with the scent of herbs
that stabbed the nose. Zaryusu visualised an elderly female lizardman, but this
was negated by reality.

Welcome.

A voice spoke out from within the darkness. He had mistaken the voice from
behind the door as elderly. But hearing it close up, it contained a youthful
energy .

Finally accustomed to the change in light, a lizardman appeared in front of his

eyes.

White.

This was Zaryusus first impression.

Snow white scales, a spotless purity. Round, bright red eyes like rubies, and slim
limbs that did not belong to a male, but to a female.

Her entire body was covered in red and black patterns, meaning that she was an
adult, able to use a variety of magic and was unmarried.

Zaryusu had once been stabbed by a spear in the past.

In that moment, Zaryusu felt his body burn fiercely as if it had been pierced by a
hot iron stake and likewise his heart also accompanied this by beating rapidly,
both combining to produce a feeling of pain shooting across his entire body.

There was no pain, but then...

Zaryusu was lost for words as he stood motionless.

Having interpreted his silence in her own way, she merely gave a self-deprecating
smile.

"It seems that I am a strange sight even for the wielder of one of the four
treasures, Frost Pain."

Albinos in nature were exceedingly rare, partially because they were too
conspicuous. It made it difficult for them to survive.

The somewhat civilized lizardmen had a similar tendency Weak to sunlight, bad
eyesight, they have not reached a level of civilization where such feeble
individuals could survive. Therefore it was extremely rare to come across an
albino adult. There were even cases where they were killed at birth.

It should already be considered fortunate if albinos were seen as detestable

existences by ordinary lizardmen. There were even some who saw them as a kind
of monster, that was why she had a self mocking attitude.

However Zaryusu was not like that.

"...What is it?"

The female lizardman inside asked a surprised question towards the motionless
Zaryusu standing at the door. Without reacting to the question, Zaryusu let out a
tremolo cry.

Hearing this sound, the female lizardman widened her eyes and opened her
mouth, in surprise, confusion and in embarrassment.

That sound was none other than a courtship cry.

Zaryusu came back to his senses and realised what he had done. Just like how a
human's ears would turn red, he flicked his tail repeatedly in agitation.

"Ah, no, wrong, wait not wrong, not that, this isnt what I..."

Zaryusu's frantic movements caused the female lizardman to calm down, and
she smiled, making Zaryusu puzzled.

"Please calm down. Its troubling if you move so violently.

Ah! Sorry.

Zaryusu hung his head, made an apology and then entered the room. At the
same time the female lizardmans tail drooped as if she had finally relaxed.
However the very tip of her tail was still fluttering, indicating that she was not
entirely calm.

Please come over.

...My sincere gratitude.

Entering into the home, Zaryusu saw that the area where she was indicating had
a cushion woven from an unknown plant. He sat on it, and she sat opposite to
him.

This is the first time we have met, I'm a traveler of the Green Claw Tribe,
Zaryusu Shasha.

Thank you for your courtesy. I am the acting chief of the Red Eye Tribe, Crusch
Lulu.

After the introductions were over, the two observed each other as if to guess
each other's intentions.

The hut was temporarily submerged in silence, but this could not be allowed to
continue. Zaryusu was a guest, therefore it should be the host Crusch who should
say the first word.

First, mister messenger, I believe there is no need for us to be so formal. I would

like for us to speak freely, so please make yourself comfortable.

Accepting the proposal to speak without reserve, Zaryusu nodded.

I am truly grateful for that, since I am not accustomed to speaking with a serious
and formal tone.

Then do you mind sharing the reason for your visit?

Although she asked, Crusch already had a rough idea.

The mysterious undead which appeared at the centre of the village. Magic that
controls the weather, 4th tier magic Control Cloud. And now the male
lizardman from a different tribe, one who could even be called a hero.

From here, there could only be one expected answer. As Crusch pondered on how
to deal with Zaryusus reply she felt all of her expectations shatter.

...Please marry me.

...

...?

?!

...Ha?!

For an instant, Crusch doubted her ears.

Actually, this was not my original purpose for coming here. I fully know that this
should wait until after my objective is completed. But I cant lie to my heart. You
may laugh at this foolish male.

A...a...ah... ha.

These were words which she had never heard since the moment of her birth, and
ought to have no relevance to her. Her thoughts were torn to shreds in a
turbulent storm, scattering all over the place and as such she couldn't organize
them.

Towards such a flustered Crusch, Zaryusu revealed a forced smile and continued
to speak:

I apologize, I dont know what to say, we are currently facing a contingency. Your
response can wait until this is over.

Uh, ha...haha.

Finally able to piece together her psyche and successfully resume her thoughts,
Crusch regained her composure. However upon immediately recalling Zaryusus
words from a moment ago, her thoughts once again slipped into disarray.

Crusch tried to secretly take a peek at the males face in front of her which had
an extremely calm expression.

Saying something like that to me, but hes still so calm Perhaps he frequently
proposes to other people?! Or perhaps he is already accustomed to this having
been proposed so often? Although he certainly is rather dashing Ah, what am
I thinking! This is part of his plan, it must be, intending to control me, making a
proposal to me and proclaiming love. P-p-proposing to someone like me...

She, who had never had the experience of being treated as a female, was unable
to keep her cool and failed to notice that the tip of Zaryusus tail was also slightly
trembling. The man in front of her was also using strength of will to control his
emotions from displaying themselves.

That was why a period of silence resulted. Both individuals required some silent
time to allow the exuberance to settle.

Barely ten minutes later, it seemed possible to finally return to the original topic
at hand.

Crusch intended to ask Zaryusu again for the reason for his visit, but
remembered the words from earlier.

...Just how do you bring that up!

With a slap, Cruschs tail hit the floorboards. The male in front of her flinched,
almost as if he was the one who was struck.

This action was too impolite, and Crusch panicked inside.

Even if he was only a traveler, the other person was also a tribe representative
and furthermore not just any ordinary lizardman, but the hero who wielded Frost
Pain. Impoliteness towards such a person could surely not be forgiven.

But this is your fault! Whats more, say something!

Zaryusu was in fact reflecting in embarrassment on his rash action, and had
chosen to remain silent. However Crusch, who was preoccupied with her
emotions as if she was putting a lid over an active volcano, did not notice this at
all.

The silence continued, but since this was not a solution to the current situation,
Crusch who had realised this decided that it was best to change the topic.

Since you are not fearful of my body, perhaps it is not surprising that you are a
hero?

Towards Cruschs barbed words, Zaryusu wore a look of confusion that showed he
was clueless as to what she was saying.

Crusch also wondered just what exactly she was thinking.

Not afraid of my albino body, I mean.

...Its like the white snow that covers the top of the mountain range.

...Eh?

...A beautiful colour.

Of course, she had never heard this line once in her life.

W-What is this male saying!

The internal pressure building up within Crusch reached a point at which it could
no longer be contained, and the lid holding it in was blown off with this single
phrase. Whilst Crusch was lost in the chaos of her own thoughts, Zaryusu
smoothly reached out and stroked her scales. Their bright colour was of a
polished beauty and on those slightly cool scales his hands moved downwards
like water in a flowing river.

Hiss! It was a short warning noise, but something else was mixed within her
breath as well.

It gave both the chance to regain some of their lost composure.

The two realized what was just done to her and what he just did subconsciously.
Their entire bodies trembled. Why did I do that? Why did I let him? Doubt became
anxiety, and anxiety led to confusion.

As a result, two tails slammed the floor, violently enough to shake the hut.

Then both of them looked at each other, and confirmed the status of the others
tail. As if time had stopped, both tails stopped moving.

The atmosphere was heavy, or perhaps better described as nervousness. Silence

fell upon the two individuals, followed by the two secretly stealing glances at
each other. Finally managing to get her thoughts in order, Crusch asked him with
an icy gaze, determined to detect any lies in his words.

...Why did you all of a sudden?

Although Crush had trouble expressing her thoughts in words, Zaryusu appeared
to have understood as he replied honestly and without hesitation.

It was love at first sight. Besides, death may result from the war this time, and I
do not wish to leave any regrets behind.

This simple honesty, his words that hid none of his emotions made Crusch
momentarily lost for words. However, there was a part that she just could not
relate to.

...Even the wielder of that famous Frost Pain is prepared to die in battle?

Correct. The opponent is an incomprehensible enemy, one which cannot be

taken lightly Have you seen the monster that acted as the messenger? The one
which came to our settlement had this appearance...

Crusch accepted the illustration which Zaryusu passed over, and nodded after
giving it a cursory glance.

Yes. It was the exact same monster.

Do you know what kind of monster that was?

No. Including me, no one in the tribe had any idea.

Is that so actually I have come across that kind of monster once before...
Zaryusu spoke up to this point and paused to observe Cruschs response as he
continued ...and I fled.

Eh?

It was impossible to defeat. No, to put it nicely, it was a fifty-fifty chance of

dying.

Crusch then understood that the monster was such a terrifying undead, and
heaved a sigh of relief that her decision to stop the warriors back then was the
right decision.

It can emit a scream that causes mental confusion. Not only that, it has an
ethereal body therefore it is almost entirely immune towards attacks with
weapons which are not magically enchanted. Using numbers will not work.

Amongst the magic which our druids use, there is a kind of magic which can
temporarily imbue magic on swords

...Is it able to defend against mental attacks?

It is able to strengthen the resistance, but protecting everyones mental state

would be too much and our strength would be insufficient.

So its like that are all the druids able to use that magic?

If it is strengthening resistance, almost all of the druids are capable of it. But Im
the only one in this tribe who can shield the mind from confusion.

Crusch noticed that Zaryusus breathing had shifted ever so slightly. It seemed
that he had already noticed that Cruschs position was not merely an empty title.

Correct. The lizardman Crusch Lulu was an extremely skilled forest druid. Maybe
even above some of the other elder druids amongst the lizardmen.

...Which number was the Red Eye tribe in order of the tribes that were
attacked?

The opponent said we are the fourth.

I see then, what are your plans?

Time passed by.

Crusch was contemplating whether revealing the plans would be beneficial. The
Green Claw tribe would certainly choose to go to war, and Zaryusus objective in
coming here should be to form an alliance, requesting to head to battle together.
With that in mind, what should be done for the bests interests of the Red Eye
tribe?

Red Eye tribe originally did not intend to form an alliance. Their opinion was to
choose to seek refuge. Going to war against people able to use 4th tier magic
was an incredibly foolish idea. Moreover, knowing that the undead which were
sent out by the opponent possessed such terrifying abilities made it more obvious
that there could not be any other verdict.

However, was honestly revealing such thoughts really for the best?

Towards Crusch who was trapped in her own thoughts, Zaryusu narrowed his
eyes, and opened his mouth to speak:

Let me tell you what I truly think.

Having no idea what Zaryusu was about to say, Crusch looked at him with
unblinking eyes.

What I am worried about is what happens after seeking refuge.

To Crusch who was unable to understand the meaning of this sentence, Zaryusu
calmly continued.

Do you think that after moving away from a familiar environment which you are
used to living in, you will be able to maintain the same lifestyle as the one right
now?

Impossible no, it would be rather difficult.

If they were to leave here and establish a new place of habitat, they would have
to fight with their lives on the line they would have to win the fight for
survival. The reality was that lizardmen were actually not the only occupants of
this lake, and they had obtained this piece of wetlands after many tiresome years
of warring. For this kind of species, it was not possible to easily set up a new
habitat in unfamiliar environments.

Theres also more than enough chance that there wouldnt be enough food.

Probably so.

Crusch, who was unable to understand what this male lizardman standing in front
of her was getting towards, replied with a sharp suspicious voice.

Then, if the nearby five tribes seek refuge at the same time, what do you think
will happen?

That!

Crusch fell silent, because she already figured out the true meaning behind
Zaryusus words.

Although the size of the lake was quite vast, when a tribe would choose a certain
area to serve as a place of refuge, that area should also be the place that other
tribes would want to obtain. Therefore, just moving to a new place could trigger
another fight for survival, nearby would also have opponents who would fight for
fish as the main source of food supply. Like this, what kind of situation would play

out? Finally there would be no guarantee that the most feared result would arise,
that being a war just like the one in the past.

Dont tell me the reason you want to fight even though we might not win

...Thats right. With the other tribes combined, Im considering how many less
mouths we can feed.

For something like that!

That was why he wanted to form an army. So even if they lose the battle, there
would be less lizardmen to feed.

In a war for survival, it would be extreme but understandable to think that

everyone aside from the battle-able warriors, hunters, and druids were
expendable. No, in the long-term it may be better if the rest simply died.

Less mouths to feed means less food required to survive. In that case, even
coexistence may be possible.

Crusch frantically tried to think of reasons to reject his idea.

You dont even know how dangerous the new location will be, yet you want to
start from the beginning with reduced numbers?

Then Ill ask you this. Lets say we easily win the battle for survival, what then? If
our fish dwindle, will the five tribes fight one another next?

We may be able to catch more fish!

And if we cant?

She could not answer in the face of Zaryusus chilling barrage of questions.

Zaryusu acts with what is the closest to a worst case scenario in mind. Crusch
thinks with wishful thinking as her foundation. If a bad situation arises, her
choices will lead to disaster, while Zaryusus will not.

And even if they were to be defeated and the number of adult lizardmen
decrease, they will have died a glorious death in battle.

...If you refuse, we will have to attack the Red Eyes first.

The dark tone of his voice caused Crusch to flinch.

It was a declaration that they will not allow only the Red Eyes to flee to a new
land with their members intact.

That was the correct, reasonable judgement.

If a tribe with reduced numbers fled to a refuge where the Red Eyes, with their
full strength undiminished, had settled, the only thing that awaited them there
would be doom. Considering the danger, the only measure would be a
preemptive attack. It was an obvious choice for one responsible for an entire
tribe. If she herself had been in that position, she would also have made the
same decision.

Even if we lose the war, I believe that allying with us will lower the chance of
there being bloodshed between our tribes in the new habitat.

Crusch, unable to understand what he meant, showed an honest, confused

expression on her face. Zaryusu explained himself so that his real intentions
would become clear.

It will plant a sense of camaraderie. Rather than as different tribes, we will be

able to recognize one another as allies who fought together.

Thats right.

Crusch chewed Zaryusus words in her mouth.

He was claiming the possibility that tribes that spilled blood together will not be
so quick to war against each other if food becomes scarce. But her own ideas and
experience caused her to doubt. With her face slightly lowered, as soon as she
was about to fall into deep thought, Zaryusu posed a question.

By the way, how did the Red Eyes overcome that period?

It felt like being stabbed by a needle. Before she herself realized it, Crusch
jumped up. Seeing his face straight on, she could see the surprise on Zaryusus
face, the one who had asked the question.

Ah, he asked because he really didnt know.

Although she had known him only for a short time, Crusch had grasped the basics
of his personality, of the male named Zaryusu. She intuitively realized that it was
not a question to threaten them.

Crusch narrowed her eyes and stared at Zaryusu. Her gaze was so sharp that it
seemed like it would pierce a hole through him. Unable to understand the reason
for her glare, she saw how it made him feel helpless. But even so, Crusch could
not control herself.

Is there a reason that I need to tell you?

She spat out her words, tone brimming with loathing. The change in Crusch made
him doubt whether he was talking to the same person.

But Zaryusu could not back down. It might contain the answer that will let
everyone survive.

I would like to hear it. Was it a druid power? Or was there another method?
Therein could be our salvation

Zaryusu stopped there and closed his mouth.

If it really did hold the answer, there was no way that Crusch would look as
pained as she did now.

As if she read his mind, Crusch snorted like she was ridiculing everything,
including herself.

Youre right. That is no salvation.

After a pause, she wore an exhausted smile and continued.

What we did was a war of fratricide we ate our dead.

Zaryusu was unable to open his mouth from the shock that overcame him. Killing
the weak reducing the mouths to feed was not taboo. But eating your own was
a foul act and a taboo amongst taboos.

Why is she telling me this willingly? This is something that should be taken to the
grave. Why did she reveal it to an outsider, an envoy? Does she intend to not let
me leave alive? No, this isnt that sort of atmosphere.

Crusch herself could not understand why she told him.

She knew well how much scorn this would invite from the other tribes. So why

Her mouth moved smoothly, as if it was not her own.

That day, when a different tribe started the war, our tribe also had serious food
shortages and were in a dangerous situation. But the reason our tribe did not
participate in the war was because we were composed of many druids and few
warriors. Our druids were able to create food through magic.

Cruschs mouth did not show any signs of stopping, as if it was being controlled
by a different consciousness.

But the food our druids made just werent enough, not if you were to compare it
with the size of the tribe as a whole. The only choice left to us was to walk the

path of gradual destruction. Then one day, our tribe chief brought back food.
Bright red meat.

Maybe I wanted him to listen to my sin.

Crusch grinded her teeth together. The male in front of her listened quietly. Even
if he was disgusted, he hid it and listened.

For that, Crusch was grateful.

Everyone vaguely knew what kind of meat that was. For the moment, we made
strict laws and anyone who broke them were banished. The only time the tribe
chief would bring back meat was after someone had been banished. Even so, we
all closed our eyes and ate in order to survive. But something like that could
never last very long. The grievances that piled up suddenly all exploded one day
and took the form of a revolt.

With her eyes closed, she remembered their chief.

We ate we knew and still ate. That makes us accomplices and yet looking
back on it now, its laughable.

Crusch finished a silent prayer and stared straight at Zaryusus face. She looked
into his quiet eyes and saw that they harbored no disgust. She felt surprised from
the joy that sprouted from somewhere in her heart.

Why did she feel happy?

Crusch too, vaguely knew the answer to that question.

... Look at me. Once in a while, someone like me is born in the Red Eye tribe.
Since ancient times, they will display a power. In my case, it was the power of a
druid. This leads to us having authority that almost rivals that of the tribe chief
And I was the center of the rebellion that split the tribe in half. We won because
we had the greater numbers.

And in the end, the food was divided up evenly amongst those who were left?

Yes as a result our tribe managed to survive. During the rebellion that time,
the tribe chief never surrendered. He died with countless injuries. And when he
received the final blow, he smiled at me.

As if she was coughing up blood, Crusch continued to speak.

It was the pus that slowly coalesced in her heart, ever since she killed the tribe
chief.

The pus that she could never reveal to the members of the tribe who trusted her
and fought against their chief, Crusch was just barely able to confess it to the one
named Zaryusu. That was why her words did not stop, like water emptying out at
the bottom.

They were not the eyes of someone staring at their killer. No hatred, jealousy,
hostility, curses, none of it. It was such a beautiful smile! The chief always faced
reality directly and acted. And we we acted on our ideals and hostility. Maybe
the one who was in the right was the tribe chief! Thats what I always think
about! Because the chief died the one who was regarded as the root of all evil,
our tribe was able to unite as one once more. And whats even worse, since our
numbers were smaller, we even got the gift of no more food problems!

This was her limit.

As the tribe acting chief, as the one who shouldered the sin, desperately enduring
it all, the force of her collapse was as great as her struggle. The overflowing
muddy stream swallowed everything. The thoughts that had been torn to shreds,
it was difficult to change them with words alone.

With a faint noise, although her tears did not fall, mentally, she was crying.

It was a small body.

It was agreed that in nature, weakness was a sin. Of course, children were to be
protected, but regardless, both male and female lizardmen emphasize strength
as a virtue. On that point, the female in front of him could only be seen as an
object of ridicule. One who gathers a tribe, how could she show such weakness in
front of a stranger, one from a different tribe nonetheless?

However, what Zaryusu felt in his heart was a completely different emotion.

It could have been because she was a beautiful female. But as much as he
thought so, he believed that the one before him was a warrior. Wounded,
groaning, in torment, but still she tries to walk forward. His thought was that a
warrior of such caliber only briefly showed a moment of weakness.

One who tries to stand and walk forward, that person was not weak.
Zaryusu approached her and hugged Crusch around her shoulders.

We are neither omniscient nor omnipotent. We can only choose our course in
the moment. I may have acted similarly had I been in the same position. But I
dont wish to console you. Just where would one find an answer that is wholly
correct this world. We merely walk forward, the soles of our feet bearing
countless wounds from our regrets and suffering. You as well, your only option is
to move forward. This is what I believe.

As their body temperatures transferred to one another, though slight, they could
feel the beating of their heart through their bodies. They were caught in the
illusion of the two beating hearts matching their rhythm and slowly becoming
one.

It was a mysterious sensation.

Zaryusu felt a warmth that he had never before experienced since the day he
was born. It wasnt because he was hugging a lizardman.

Is it because Im holding this female, Crusch Lulu?

After a while, Crusch separated herself from Zaryusus body.

The heat leaving him was regrettable, but he could not mention it out of
embarrassment.

Ive shown you something shameful do you scorn me?

Just which part of it was shameful? And do you see me as the type of foolish
male to scorn someone getting up and walking forward through the pain and
suffering? You are beautiful.

"
A white tail repeatedly slammed against the floor.

What should I do.

Without even being able to ask the muttering Crusch what she meant, Zaryusu
asked a different question.

Anyway, does the Red Eye tribe cultivate fish?

Cultivate?

Right, its raising the fish that will become food.

We do not. Fish are natures blessing, after all.

The cultivation that Zaryusu was talking of was a technique that was not known
to any of the lizardmen tribes. The idea that they could raise their prey with their
own hands was an idea that fundamentally different from their way of thinking.

That seems to be the druid way of thinking. Would you not care to compromise?
Raise the fish with the sole purpose of eating them. The druids of my own tribe
agreed.

Crusch nodded her head.

Then I will teach you how to cultivate fish. The important part is what you feed
them. You can give them the fruits created from the druids magic. Thatll greatly
enhance their growth.

Is it really okay for you to share that?

Of course. Theres no use keeping it hidden. Its more important that many
tribes survive using this method.
Crusch deeply bowed her head and raised her tail high.

Thank you.

Your gratitude there is no need. In return, I wish to ask you again.

The gratitude disappeared from Cruschs face. Seeing her behaviour, Zaryusu
calmed his heart.

The question that absolutely could not be avoided. Both Zaryusu and Crusch
inhaled at the same time.

And he asks.

What will be the Red Eye tribes course of action regarding the upcoming war?

...From the consensus of yesterdays meeting, we will be fleeing.

Then I will ask Crusch Lulu, the tribe acting chief. And today, is the decision
unchanged?

Crusch did not answer.

Her answer here will determine the fate of the Red Eye tribe. It was obvious that
she would hesitate.

However, there was nothing for Zaryusu to do here. All he could do was smile
awkwardly.

... Its your decision. The reason that the previous tribe chief smiled at you was
probably because he was leaving the future of the tribe in your hands. Then now
is the time for you carry out your mission. I have said everything there is to say.
All that is left is for you to choose.

Cruschs eyes darted searchingly around the interior of the hut. She was neither
looking for an escape, nor seeking help. But simply to draw out the correct
answer from within herself.

Whatever she decides, Zaryusu would accept it.

I will ask as the tribe acting chief. How many refugees are you planning to
evacuate?

For each tribes refugees Im considering ten warriors, twenty hunters, three
druids, seventy males, a hundred females, and a few children.

...And the rest?

Depending on the situation, they will die.

Crusch wordlessly stared up into space, then suddenly muttered.

I see.

Then tell me your decision, Red Eye tribes acting chief, Crusch Lulu.

Crusch devised countless ideas.

Of course, killing Zaryusu was also one of the possible choices. She personally did
not wish to kill him. But acting chief Crusch was different. What if the whole tribe
fled after killing him?

She discarded that idea. Its future was too dangerous. Also, there was no
guarantee that he really did come alone.

Then what about promising him before fleeing.

This could also become a problem. If things went wrong, it would set off a war
between them and the Red Eye tribe. They would become a target of population

depletion. The other sides true intentions would be to reduce the population, it
would not matter who the target was.

In the end, he figured that should the answer be no to forming an alliance,

Zaryusu would probably return to his village and lead an army here to
exterminate the Red Eye tribe.

However, not knowing if Zaryusu had realised, there was one loophole. In the
end, the food problem wouldn't be resolved.

Crusch suddenly smiled. From the very start there was no way out. From the
moment Zaryusu suggested to her to form an alliance; From the start when the
Green Claw tribe's phase of action began

There was only one path of survival for the Red Eye tribe, that was to form an
alliance with the others and participate together in the war. Likewise, Zaryusu
should have understood this reasoning.

Even so, he had to wait for Crusch to personally respond. He probably wanted to
discern whether Crusch who was in command of the tribes lizardmen, had the
qualifications to become an alliance partner.

All that was left was whether she wanted to voice out her decision.

Except, after declaring that decision, there would definitely be many individuals
who would lose their lives. However
Let me first make one thing clear. We are not going to war for the sake of
sacrificing lives, but to obtain victory. I have perhaps said many things which
have made you feel unsettled. However, we want to be the ones with the
standing and laughing victoriously. Please do not be mistaken on this point.

Crusch nodded to express her understanding.

This male lizardman really was kind. With such thoughts, Crusch voiced out her
own decision.

... We, the Red Eye tribe shall cooperate with you, because I do not wish to see
tribe chiefs smile become meaningless, and also because it will grant Red Eye
tribesmen a chance at survival.

Crusch lowered her head in a deep bow; her tail was straight and elevated.

I am extremely grateful.

Zaryusu nodded slightly. That elevated tail expressed a complex thoughts, more
intensely than his words.

Early morning.

Zaryusu stood in front of Rororo, looking towards the main entrance of the Red
Eye tribe.

He could not resist opening his mouth wide and yawning. Last night he was a
guest spectator at a Red Eye conference until late at night, therefore he was
currently a little fatigued. However there was not much time left, and it was
necessary to visit another tribe within today.

Zaryusu desperately fought against his drowsiness, but momentarily subsided to

it and gave another yawn, but the one this time was even larger than the
previous one.

Although sitting on Rororo was not comfortable enough for sleeping, he felt like
he was able to do so.

After taking a glimpse of the yellow sun which had just risen, Zaryusu turned his
gaze back at the main entrance, and then felt some confusion. This was because
a curious object had just run out of the main gate.

It was a bundle of grass.

There were weeds grown on top of a clothing which was sewn together from
many long strips of cloth and threads clothes. If one were to lay on the wetlands
and observe it from a distance, it would look like a bundle of weeds.

Ah, I believe I have seen a similar monster somewhere before

Zaryusu was just recalling a sight he had seen during his travels as a traveler
when Rororo behind him let out a warning low growl.

Of course Zaryusu understood who that bundle of grass actually was, and it was
impossible to be incorrect because her white tail was slightly visible.

As he was staring blankly at that excitedly swaying tail whilst at the same time
reassuring Rororo, that bundle of weeds had already arrived beside Zaryusu.

Good morning.

Un, good morning looks like you unified the entire tribe without a hitch.

He turned his gaze towards the Red Eye tribes residence. Since early in the
morning, the gathering area had already been palpitating with murderous intent.
Many lizardmen were frantically running around. Crusch also stood on one side
facing the same direction and replied:

Yes, no problems have arisen. Today we should be able to arrive at Razor Tail
tribe settlement, and those who wish to flee have also already packed up.

The druids inside the village used magic to pass on a situation update. Razor Tail
tribe was told that they would be the first tribe to be exterminated. The first tribe
which would be wiped out was not the Dragon Tusk tribe, therefore this was more
advantageous in terms of timing.

Then Crusch, why would you want to come to our side?

The answer is very simple, Zaryusu, but before I give my reply, first tell me one
thing. What are your plans?

After yesterdays meeting which took place from evening to early morning, the
two individuals felt no reservation even when calling out each others names. The
reason was because they had become familiar enough that even their manner of
speaking to each other had changed.

Coming up next, I plan to visit another tribe the Dragon Tusk tribe.

They are the tribe where strength means everything right? I heard that their
fighting force was the strongest out of all the tribes.

Erm, you are right. Seeing as the other side is a tribe of which we have never
exchanged with before, we have to prepare ourselves mentally.

All information on the other side was cast with a veil of mystery. Therefore just
heading towards the other sides base was an extremely perilous matter.
Furthermore, they had absorbed the survivors of the two exterminated tribes of
the past war. This fact merely elevated the upcoming danger.

To the defeated from the two tribes, Zaryusu, who played an active role in the
previous war was an absolutely hated enemy, detested to their very bones.

Even so, they were the most needed helping hand out of all the tribes for this
war.

If that is so then, it is still better for me to go with you.

What?

Is it so strange?

The weed pile made a small movement, and let out a faint whispering noise.
Because he could not see her face, he could not know what her intent was.

I dont mean to say that it is strange but it would be very dangerous.

Is there still a place that is safe now?

Zaryusu stayed silent. He was calmly thinking, bringing Crusch with him would be
beneficial in many ways. However as a male lizardman, he still had reservations
against bringing a female lizardman, whom he had feelings for, to a knowingly
dangerous place.

I really am not calm enough.

Although Crusch was hidden inside the grass, and her expression could not be
seen, she almost seemed to smile slightly.

... Then, let me ask you another question. What is with your appearance?

Does it not look nice?

The question of whether it looked nice or not was a strange one. However,
wouldnt it be better to give a little compliment? Zaryusu did not know how to
respond, and after a moment of deep thought, sized up the others unseen
expression and replied:

...I should say that it looks good right?

How can that be possible.

Crusch steadfastly rejected this. Zaryusu felt his strength drain from him, that
couldnt be helped.

It is solely because I am weak against sunlight, therefore when I head outside, I

almost always dress like this.

So thats why

Ah, you havent given me your answer. Will you let me travel with you?

Any further discussion on this would probably not sway her mind. From the point
of view of forming an alliance, bringing her along should be advantageous for

obtaining this objective. She also thought along the same lines, which is why she
probably made this suggestion. With that being said, there was no reason to
refuse her company.

...I understand, then please lend me a helping hand, Crusch.

Crusch was delighted from the bottom of her heart as she replied:

Understood, Zaryusu. Leave it to me.

Are you already prepared for departure?

Of course. My backpack is already filled with all the various necessary items.

After hearing this, Zaryusu subtly assessed her back region and discovered that
there was a slight lump on the surface of the grass. A fresh grass smell wafted
from that area, as well as some concentrated fragrance. Since she was a forest
druid, therefore there should be some herbal related skills, that was why the
contents inside should be filled with related goods.

Zaryusu, you look very tired.

Ah, yes, I am a bit. The past two days have been hectic, Im lacking sleep.

At this moment, a white scaled hand stretched outwards from underneath the
weed costume.

For you. This is a strength replenishing fruit. You eat it along with the skin.

There was a purple fruit on the outstretched hand. Hesitantly, Zaryusu placed it
in his mouth and gave it a bite.

His mouth was immediately filled with a sudden sharp and bitter taste, getting rid
of a bit of tiredness. Certainly for raising alertness, this effect was barely
passable, but after continuously chewing it multiple times, suddenly a gush of
taste exploded from the top of his tongue. Not only that, but even the breath he
spat out had the same taste.

Muu, what is with this cooling sensation that even permeates the nasal cavity?

Zaryusu subconsciously shouted out his brothers catch phrase. Seeing his
reaction, Crusch could not resist chuckling.

Do you feel that your drowsiness is slowly disappearing? The reality is that it has
not actually vanished, please do not get overly familiar with this sensation. It is
still better that you find time to rest.

Zaryusu felt that his mind was clear and refreshed because of his inhaled and
exhaled breaths, and because his entire body was filled with a cooled sensation.
Feeling satisfied, Zaryusu nodded and replied:

Then let us find some time and have a quick nap on Rororo.

Having said this, Zaryusu immediately climbed on top of Rororos back, followed
by Crusch likewise climbing upwards. The unfamiliar feeling of having a weed pile
laying against its body made Rororo unhappily glare at Zaryusu, but eventually
thought of a method to reassure it.

Then lets be on our way. Because the ride will be bumpy, hold onto me.

Got it.

Crusch hugged Zaryusus waist the prickly feeling of the weeds gave Zaryusu a
bit of an itch.

......

The difference in the actual feeling and what he had imagined it to be like, made
the corners of Zaryusus lips curl.

Whats wrong?

No, nothing. Rororo, lets depart.

What was it that made her so jubilant? Cruschs extremely merry laughter came
from behind him, making Zaryusu irresistibly reveal a wide smile on top of
Rororos back.

Part 2
The newly dominated Tove forest was full of silence, every living being was afraid
of the kings gaze and held their breath.

But, only this place was different.

The sounds of trees being cut down and voices spread throughout the
surroundings.

The golems here would make one think of heavy construction machinery Heavy
Iron Machine, were transporting wooden logs to a construction area of a huge
building. This building still had a long way to go before completion, the
foundation was huge, and a small part was completed.

Working within this area were a group of golems and undead.

Out of the undead working here, most of them were Elder Liches, who wore
conspicuous red robes.

Upon each ones shoulders were demons about thirty centimeters in length,
sporting long bat wings and red copper-colored skin demons known as imps.
The imps lifted their venomous tails up high in order to prevent them from
dripping poison and hinder the Elder Liches.

One particularly hardworking Elder Lich opened up the plans in his hands, and
gave orders to the working golems.

Looking at the golems who stopped and obeyed his command, he compared the
construction site and the plans in his hands. After a little consideration, he spoke
to the imp sitting on his shoulder.

After listening, the imp expressed his understanding, flapped his wings and flew
up into the sky.

With flying that could not be considered elegant, the imp surveyed the area with
his eyes opened wide. Not long after, the imp found his target and quickly flew
downwards.

That person was the Great Tomb of Nazaricks Sixth Floor Guardian, Aura Bella
Fiore, and also one of the new kings of this forest.

The Dark Elf girl used a rolled up paper as a megaphone, allowing her voice to
travel far. The imp flew down and stood in salute in front of her, Aura then
inquired in a familiar tone.

Good~ now which group are you coming from?

Aura-sama, it would be Group U, number 3.

U Group, good good, understood. Now what else is the problem?

The ones working here were divided into groups named with letters, from A to U,
each group was sent to a different area to do a different job. From Auras
memory, she remembers that Group Us job was the construction of the storage
warehouse, whose construction progress was also the second fastest.
TL Note: A to U means the Japanese Language Hiragana system, which is A, E, I,
O, U. Not English!

There are problems with the width of the logs used for construction, are we able
to request for a little more ti

At this moment, the imps voice suddenly stopped, this was because a sound
came out from a piece of iron hanging around Auras wrist.

Its break time~

Hearing a bubbly female voice, the color of Auras face suddenly changed, her
ears dropped down, and changed into an embarrassed expression.

Yes, understood, Simmering Teapot-sama!

Aura energetically replied to the voice from her wrist.

So, because it is already time to eat, the work for this morning will end for now.

Out of all the monsters working in the area, almost all of them didn't need to eat.
On that issue, Aura herself was also wearing the Ring of Sustenance, and needed
neither food nor sleep. But since her own master worried about the wellbeing of
everyone and always said Always have a good rest, she followed his instruction
happily.

Although it would be rude to you, but it is time for rest, so please come back in
an hour.

Understood, then this subordinate will take his leave.

The imp quickly left and flew into the air, leaving only the sound of his flapping
wings.

Looking at the imp going towards where the construction of the warehouse was
happening, Aura shook her shoulders, then looked at the strap on her wrist.

This time she showed an expression filled with happiness.

This was a reward given to her by her master because of all her hard work. Of
course, towards their main task as a Floor Guardian, working hard at their job was
a given, and did not warrant a reward. In fact, it should be obvious to give all that
she has for the master.

However, she could not just reject the wristwatch given to her by her master.

Hohoho, I really want to hear more of Simmering Teapot-samas voice.

Aura warmly touched the strap on her wrist. Her current actions could be
comparatively warmer than when she was touching her own pets.

All the voices that came from this instrument were from the one who created
Aura.

Even though the voices were only used to tell the time, this still served to satisfy
Aura greatly.

When she heard that her younger brother had received the Ring of Ainz Ooal
Gown, she felt a little envious, but honestly speaking, right now she felt that the
object she obtained was so much better.

Hohohohohohohoho.

Auras ears drooped, and she looked shyly at the strap. She looked at the light
shining brightly onto the strap, and satisfyingly nodded her head.

Why did Ainz-sama set some times when it cannot be used?

Ainz-sama ordered that the times 7:21 and 19:19 can not be set as alarm time.

Eh... why dont we just ask him? Ah, this is bad!

Aura looked at the numbers on the strap, and quickly ran off.

In front of where she was going was a maid.

One of the 41 maids within the Great Tomb of Nazarick, a homunculus whose
outer appearance was that of a beautiful lady, but she was an exception.

Her head was that of a dog, with a vertical line running down the center of her
face like a scar with signs of stitching. It felt as though her face that had split into
two halves were being sewn back together.

Her name is Pestunia S Wanko.

She is the Great Tomb of Nazaricks Head Maid, and also a High Priest.

As per Aura-samas wishes, I have brought a hamburger, as well as two pickles,

french fries with skin on, the drink would be cola Woof.

After a long pause, she let out a woof sound, making Aura think that she may
have just forgotten to add it at the end. But Aura did not say anything special
about this, because there was something else that had her attention. It was the
smell which would make ones stomach growl. Although the Ring of Sustenance
made it so that one did not have to consume food, it did not mean she could not
eat. Also eating should be a fortunate thing, especially if it was food that was so
delicious.

Speaking of the overall effect of eating this

Ah, no need, no need, I am not eating this for the sake of a beneficial effect.

Understood woof.

Aura walked towards the side of Pestunia, where a meal cart was emitting a
fragrant smell.

Time to eat, time to eat.

Pestunia, upon hearing Auras self-composed meal song, took off the silver lid off
the plate on the meal cart.

Aah~

Aura could not help but stare intently at the food revealed before her, at the
same time spoke the words that immediately came to her mind.

Although A7 beef is also good, but I much prefer a mixture of beef and pork. If
only I could use that combination to create a 3 layered meat pie.

Then, this servant will convey your suggestion to the chef woof.

Ah sorry to trouble you!

Aura then took the plate and happily walked away.

Part 3

Zaryusu observed the Dragon Tusk Tribes settlement before him. At the same
time, a bundle of vegetation appeared from beside him. Needless to say, that
bundle of vegetation was actually Crusch. She reached out her hand out to part
the grass, revealing what Zaryusu thought was a beautiful face.

Do you really wish to directly charge inside? Are you trying to clash with them
head-to-head?

Wrong, it is the opposite. The Dragon Tusk Tribe values strength heavily. If we
were to casually part from Rororo and enter the place, we could quite possibly
come across people picking a fight before we even meet with the tribe chief, and
that would be troublesome. Proceeding forward whilst riding Rororo would deter
that kind of situation from arising.

After riding Rororo forward for a distance, various warriors throughout the village
must have seen them. Each one was holding weapon, and watching Zaryusus
group with unwavering gazes.

Sensing hostile intent, Rororo let out a low growl. Zaryusu listened to Rororos
warning and indicated for it to continue proceeding forward.

Continuing forward would eventually ignite into battle. Yet they kept proceeding
forward until they had reached a threshold, a brink where anything could happen
at any moment; before Zaryusu finally let Rororo stop and jumped down. Crusch
also followed suit and was down in a moment.

Several warriors sharp gazes were directed towards the two individuals. Those
gazes carried such intensity that they were no longer simply hostile but outright
murderous.

Crusch was slightly intimidated by their gazes which caused her to halt her steps.
Although she was an incredibly skilled individual amongst druids, she lacked
experience of being in the frontlines.

Conversely, Zaryusu took one more step forward. Using half his body to shield
Crusch, he shouted out loudly:

I am the representative of the Green Claw Tribe, Zaryusu Shasha, and my visit
here is to discuss matters with the tribe chief!

His powerful bellowing voice seemed almost as if it would disperse the murderous
intent around them. The Dragon Tusk Tribe warriors were all startled and seemed
almost as if they were intimidated.

Following this, Crusch also spoke up, announcing herself:

I am the Red Eye Tribe's acting chief, Crusch Lulu, and likewise I have come to
visit the tribe chief.

Although her voice was not loud, it carried the pride and self-awareness of a tribe
leader. The young skinny female lizardman from earlier was gone with the
encouragement of the males self-confident voice.

Once again, we are here to see the tribe chief! Where is he!

At this moment, the atmosphere around them was rippling. It was just like the
mood of the scene had suddenly turned into actual attacking force directed at the
two of them.

Each of Rororos four heads did a somersault. Opening its jaws, it let out a
threatening roar in all four directions as it shook its heads and glared angrily. As
the gigantic hydras sharp growl emanated, fear seemed to permeate the
surroundings as the atmosphere tensed up.

... There was no need to protect me from something so trivial.

I did not intend to protect you, because you came of your own volition. However,
I am the one who allowed their entire tribe to perish, therefore it ought to have
been only myself to shoulder their hostile gazes.

Warriors started to gather at the interiour of the tribe settlement. All of them
were muscular and burly lizardmen with light scars on their scales, suggesting
that they were veterans of countless of battles. However Zaryusu perceived that
the tribe chief was not amongst them.

Each of the lizardmen were merely warriors. None of them carried authority like
his older brother did, nor had a strange appearance with the confident
atmosphere of being tribe chief like Crusch.

During this period when only Rororo was emitting an intimidated sound, each
individual lizardman maintained a high level of alertness. At this moment

Haah!

Crusch exhaled a breath of air, letting out a weak sound. However, Zaryusu, who
predicted that there would eventually be one lizardman making an entrance,
remained unmoved. This was because even before the opponent had shown
himself, he could feel that there was an enormously powerful being slowly getting
closer.

But he still could not help staring dumbfounded at the lizardman who appeared in
front of him.

To simply put it, that lizardmans appearance was simply bizarre.

The opponent was an enormous individual with a body build exceeding two
hundred and thirty centimeters in height. This feature alone would be insufficient
to justify calling it bizarre, therefore there were other reasons for describing the
appearance as such.

Firstly, his right shoulder had a weird outer appearance being relatively thicker
than the other, just like how fiddler crabs have a unilaterally giant claw on only
one side. No, his left shoulder was not thin at all, with a thickness about the same
as Zaryusus own shoulder. It was simply his right shoulder which was abnormally

thick, and this was not because of illness or congenital malformation, but was
actual muscle.

His left arms ring finger and pinky were completely gone.

His mouth was parted far backwards, perhaps as a result of a cut injury, and his
tail was squashed quite flat, not like a lizardmans but rather more like a
crocodiles.

However, even when compared to these, the most striking feature was the
insignia seared on his chest. Although it was different image to the one on
Zaryusus chest, the meaning was the same, proving that this lizardman was also
a traveller.

That lizardman with the strange appearance sized up Zaryusu, and let out a
terrible laughter as his teeth clashed together, sounding like collision between
dead wood.

Welcome, wielder of Frost Pain.

His deep voice was extremely fitting for his appearance, except it had the effect
of making even plain talk sound threatening.

This is the first time we have met. I am the representative of the Green Claw
tribe, Zaryu

The lizardman waved his hand indicating that introductions were not necessary.

Just the name will do.

... I am Zaryusu Shasha, and this is Crusch Lulu.

That person cannot be a plant monster? However, since you already bring a
hydra here, bringing along a monster to be its food shouldnt be too much of a
surprise.

... That is not the case.

Towards Crusch who was about to shed her weed costume, the strange looking
lizardman once again waved his hand to indicate that it was not necessary.

Dont treat my joke for real, how troublesome.

Feeling uninterested, the strange looking lizardman gave a brief glance at the
bundle of weed which was Crusch before once again turning his gaze towards
Zaryusu.

Then, why have you come?

Before that, would you please give us your name?

Ah. I am the tribe chief of the Dragon Tusk Tribe, Zenberu Gugu. Feel free to call
me Zenberu.

Zenberu revealed his teeth as he smiled. Although it was within expectations, the
fact that a traveller was also the tribe chief still came across as startling news.

But then on the contrary, this was also the most acceptable answer. It was
impossible that such a powerful male lizardman was merely a traveller. In truth,
at the moment he had appeared, the surrounding hostile intent had immediately
dispersed like smoke. This male lizardman possessed such large authority as well
as having extraordinary combat prowess and cohesiveness.

You may also call me simply as Zaryusu. Then, Zenberu, please let us know if
there has been any unnatural monster which has visited your village recently.

Un, that Supreme One person.

Since the opponent has been here, the matter to discuss becomes much simpler

Zenberu raised his hand, interrupting Zaryusus speech.

I can roughly guess what you plan to say. However, we only believe in strength.
Unsheathe your sword.

The burly lizardman standing before Zaryusu the Dragon Tusk tribe chief,
Zenberu Gugu smiled revealing a mouth full of teeth.

What!

Only Crusch exclaimed. Zaryusu and the surrounding warriors all showed
expressions of agreement.

... This method is simple, Dragon Tusk Tribe Chief. It keeps the judgment brief,
and wastes no time at all.

You truly are an outstanding emissary. No, since you are the master of Frost Pain,
that should be a given, right?

Selecting the strongest as the tribe chief for lizardmen this was a natural and
ordinary matter.

However, for a problem where the subsistence of the tribe was at stake, was such
a simple method of determining an answer appropriate? Shouldnt this be a
matter to be discussed and evaluated by everybody, taking detailed analyses
from different approaches before arriving at a conclusion?

Crush thought as such, then realised how coming up with this idea was
incredulous.

In reality, all of the surrounding observing warriors, regardless if they were male
or female, all agreed with the tribe chiefs judgment. If it were before, she herself
would also feel that this decision was one of the options.

Then why does the current me feel doubt about this?

Where did this doubt originate?

Did she think this way because she had suffered the magic attack of some
stranger? Impossible. When it came to magic, she was confident that she would
not lose to anyone.

Crusch turned to look at the two individuals.

Zaryusu and Zenberu.

The two of them standing together looked like a child versus an adult.

Of course, body physique did not determine everything, and as a magic caster
she understood this point fully. However after seeing the difference in body build
which was like that of heaven and earth, she could not help internally screaming
out at herself that she did not wish for it to be like this.

Do not wish? I hope that they do not no, do I not wish for them to battle?

Crusch wanted to comprehend why such a miraculous feeling would swell up

inside of her. Why did she not wish for this to happen? Why did she not wish for
them to fight each other?

There was only one answer which was obvious.

Crusch let out a slight smile. It was both a wry smile and also a self-mocking
smile.

You can only honestly admit it now, Crusch. You dont want Zaryusu to fight
because you fear that he will be injured fear that he may possibly die.

Simply put, that was the matter.

In this kind of battle, only rarely would it end with the death of one party.
However the meaning of rare meant that there was still a possibility of it
happening. If the fight escalated to one which involved a loss of reasoning, a life
could be easily taken away. Born as a female lizardman, she did not wish that her
partner would lose his life because of his participation in this battle.

This also meant to say that in fact, subconsciously, Crusch had long already
accepted Zaryusus pledge of love.

It is because no male in the past had treated me like he did that was why I
would so simply if its like this, does it mean that I am easily swooned? Eh, in
the very least I feel a bit happy and also a bit saddened ah, really, enough!

Honestly accepting her feelings, Crusch walked to the side of Zaryusu who was
preparing for battle, and gently tapped his shoulder.

Are you missing anything in your preparations?

Nothing. There are no problems at all.

Once again Crusch tapped his shoulder.

His powerfully built shoulders.

From a young age, she had walked the path of a druid, and had come into
physical contact with male lizardmens bodies during prayers, anointment of
medicine, and when casting magic. However it seemed like this time spent
touching Zaryusus body was even longer than those previous times aggregated.

So this is Zaryusus body ah.

When facing battle, hot blood flowing through the body inflated the powerful
muscles allowing others to sense his masculinity.

... What is it?

Since Crusch had still had not let go, Zaryusu momentarily felt that this was
strange.

Eh? Ah, that this is a druids blessing.

This will your ancestral spirits still assist me even though I am of a different
tribe than Crusch?

My tribes ancestors are not so narrow-minded. Good luck.

Crusch withdrew her hands from Zaryusus shoulders, and prayed in her heart for
her ancestors forgiveness. This was because she had lied in order to wish for the
man of her hearts victory.

At the same time, Zenberu was undergoing similar preparations. In his right wrist
he held an enormous spear a metal spear with a length close to three meters,
one which ordinary lizardmen would need both arms in order to use.

Then he casually gave it a wave.

The lateral sweeping motion generated a gust of powerful wind, such that
Crusch, who was a distance away from that sweeping motion, also felt it.

Will victo no, is everything alright?

About this I will adapt to the situation as necessary.

Crusch originally intended to ask whether it was possible for him to win, but she
did not speak out. Zaryusu knew he was facing a battle where defeat was not an
option.

Then this male lizardman could not possibly lose. They had only familiarised over
their half-day journey, and had only met since one day ago, but if anything
Crusch understood one thing well.

This male Lizardman was worthy of being fancied by her.

Then, are your preparations complete? Bearer of Frost Pain ah, Zaryusu.

They are complete, and we can start anytime.

Zaryusu cooly turned to have his back facing Crusch, and walked into the
perimeter of the fight zone.

Crusch exhaled one breath. The reason was that she could not resist gazing at his
back figure.

Cruschs hand was in contact for a very long time actually it was not that long
and the warmth left on his shoulder was already slowly disappearing.

The upcoming battle would be simple, similar to the one used for determining
tribe chief. Because it was a one versus one fight, therefore the involvement of
third parties by adding magic enhancement was a violation of the rules.

When the warmth was still on his shoulders, Zaryusus mind was sent into
disarray. Whilst Cruschs hands had not left his shoulders, he almost thought that
she had cast some defensive magic on him, but as her tribe's acting chief surely
she would not be oblivious to this rule.

Then, even when the other side had clearly not used enchantment magic, why
did he currently feel so fired up inside?

Was it because he himself was a male, and wanted to put on a good performance
in front of a female? Older brother once said that he was too dense but this
phrase seemed to be untrue now.

Zaryusu entered into the circle made up of lizardmen and swiftly unsheathed
Frost Pain. The sword responded to Zaryusus command and gave off frosty white
mist.

The surrounding lizardmen burst into clamour.

They knew the previous wielders of Frost Pain, and were also survivors of the
Sharp Edge Tribe, therefore would have personally recognised the prowess of
Frost Pain.

Seeing the ability which only the true owner of Frost Pain could bring out,
Zenberus hideous facial expression turned into one of delight, revealing his teeth
as he growled deeply, just like a wild beast would.

Towards the lizardman in front of him blatantly giving off an eagerness to fight,
Zaryusu only coldly threw out a sentence:

I wouldnt want you to suffer serious injuries.

This provocative speech heightened the surrounding lizardmen's antipathy to the

maximum, however the subsequent water splash and sound of collision with the
water surface brought about by extraordinary momentum silenced the
surrounding.

That was the result of Zenberu stabbing the wetlands with his halberd.

Oh then let me taste defeat with satisfaction! Hear me well! If I were to die in
this battle, he will be your tribe chief! There will be no objections to this!

The surrounding warriors should have disagreed, but nobody voiced out an
objection. In truth, if Zaryusu really did kill Zenberu, everybody would give their
obedience even if they had to bite their lips to do so.

Very well, bring your resolve to kill me to the fight. I should be your toughest
opponent to date.

Indeed understood. Then, if I were to die by your hands

Zaryusus gaze slightly shifted backwards towards Crusch.

Of course, I will let your woman return home safely.

... Not mine just yet.

Ho, looks like you really do wish to chase that weed monster. Is that female
lizardman that good?

Extremely so.

Zaryusu ignored the female Lizardman squatting with her hands covering her
face.

That I really wish to see for myself. If I win, just before I let her go, why dont I
cut her open first.

Up until then, Zaryusu had a warriors willingness to fight. Now another

motivation to fight had surfaced.

... It seems like I now have a reason for me to absolutely not lose. I will not let a
fellow like you see Cruschs face.

You really do like her to the point that no medicine can save you.

Yes, that is how much I like her.

There were several female lizardmen who spoke some words to the kneeling
Crusch, and she immediately gave a denying response by shaking her head to
signal them that they should just ignore those two for now.

Ha!

Zenberu delightedly laughed out loud.

Then defeat me! If you were to pass away, it would all amount to nothing!

That was my intention all along.

Zaryusu and Zenberus exchange of words concluded at this point and they
looked at each other.

Im about to make my move.

Bring it.

Both lizardmen exchanged brief words, but neither made any movement.

Just as the surrounding observing lizardmen were starting to get restless, Zaryusu
began to slowly draw closer. They were in the wetlands filled with water, yet no
splashes could be heard.

Zenberu remained still as he waited.

Moments later, the moment when Zaryusu closed in Something flashed with a
loud bang before the eyes of Zaryusu as he lept to the side. That was the sound
made by Zenberus halberd.

There was no technique involved; it was just a simple swing.

But that was why it was so shocking.

Zenberu took a stance with his halberd as he prepared to attack Zaryusu again.
With just his right hand, Zenberu was able to wield that giant halberd. After each
tornado like swinging action, he was able to immediately resume his original
stance.

Zaryusu was puzzled.

Therefore, in order to confirm the intention of these actions, he once again

jumped into the enemys attack range and was again greeted with another
identical fierce horizontal swing. Zaryusu blocked with Frost Pain and a great
impact landed on the hand he was holding Frost Pain with, and his body was
knocked back.

To send a grown lizardman flying with one arm, his arm power was indeed
extraordinary.

Blood boiled with excitement.

When the warriors saw their Chief display unrivalled arm power, they roared
loudly.

Zaryusu swayed his tail to regain his balance as he retreated.

He shook his numb hand as he squinted.

What is this all about?

Zaryusu focused on the giant body right before his eyes.

What is this? He is too weak.

Zenberu was quick as lighting, and would send Zaryusu flying if he blocked with
his sword. But that was all, there was nothing scary about that.

Zenberus movements were akin to a kid playing with a stick: there was no
technique to speak of, just powerful swings with brute force. But was that really
all? With that giant arm of his, Zenberu should be able to wield it more skillfully
than this.

Is he holding back to lure me off guard?

Zaryusu felt that wasnt it.

Well being wary of this unknown strange feeling, he rethought his strategy.
Zenberu who had yet to take a step asked with a smile:

Well? You are not going to use Frost Pains ability?

That sneer was probably a taunt and Zaryusu didnt react to it.

I was defeated by the wielder of Frost Pain in the past.

Zaryusu remembered, he knew who Zenberu was referring too. That person was
the chief of Razor Edge, the one who was killed by Zaryusu.

Zaryusu eased his focus on Zenberu slightly and observed the surrounding.

Among the hostility he felt around him, the ones with the strongest killing intent
should be the survivors from Razor Edge.

The two fingers on my hand are like this because of that fight.

Zenberu showed his left hand which was missing two fingers to Zaryusu.

If you use the power that guy unleashed to defeat me, you might be able to
win.

Is that so?

Zaryusu answered calmly.

Indeed, that ability was strong.

And becauses that ability could only be used thrice a day, he had a great chance
of winning if he were to utilize that ability. Zaryusu only defeated the previous
owner of Frost Pain because the ability had been used up. If he had used that
ability, Zaryusu probably would had died.

But it was impossible for someone who knew the ability of Frost Pain to taunt him
into using it.

Zaryusu tightened his guard.

I dont understand Anyway, things will never end if we drag on like this, I should
attack.

Zaryusu made up his mind and dashed in with twice the speed.

Zenberu swung his halberd at Zaryusu with amazing speed.

Zaryusu didnt dodge and blocked it with Frost Pain. Everyone who saw this
thought Zaryusu would be sent flying back.

Sword and halberd clashed and the attack was parried easily.

There was no need to use abilities. Zenberu was merely wielding the halberd like
a kid, and it could be parried no matter how hard he swung it.

Zenberu opened his eyes with shocked no, it was admiration.

At the same time, Zaryusu charged towards Zenberu giving him no time to
withdraw the halberd to defend. Even if he had that kind of muscle, it would take
time to pull the deflected halberd back. That was enough time for Zaryusu to
close in.

The next instance, Frost Pain slashed towards Zenberus body

Blood splashed out.

A loud cheer erupted and a soft cry could be heard.

The one who was bleeding and retreating wasnt Zenberu. It was Zaryusu who
was bleeding from the two cuts on his face.

Contrary to his tactic so far, Zenberu took large strides towards Zaryusu to attack
with his weapon, not letting him get away.

That weapon was claws.

Frost Pain and the claws clashed with a crisp metallic ring. After that, the sound of
the halberd falling into the water could be heard.

Wargghhh!

Zenberu breathed out deeply, and attacked consecutively with his large arm as
he stepped forward.

Unlike the childish halberd play earlier, Zenberus attack with claws was on the
level of a master. Zaryusu finally understood after the most important
information was leaked out.

Zenberu was not a warrior, but a monk who uses his own body as a weapon by
utilizing a special energy called Qi.

Zaryusu blocked the chop with Frost Pain.

The claws of lizardmen were harder than humans, but not so tough that they
could emit such metallic noise. Thats right, this was the result of hardening the
body parts such as claws and fangs. An ability known as Natural Steel
Weapon, an ability of monks.

It was said that a punch of a monk who had reached the highest level could
destroy the hardest material adamantium. But judging from the feel of the
exchanges, Zenberu wasnt at that level yet, he was at most at the level of steel.
Even so, he was on par with one of the four treasures of the lizardmen, Frost Pain,
and that was not to be trifled with.

The two of them exchanged blows.

Zenberu attacked with his claws while Zaryusu slashed with Frost Pain. They
evaded each others attack and lept back, pulling away from each other.

 Hahah, you are still alive!

Zenberu licked the blood and meat on his fingers.

Zaryusu used his long tongue to lick the red liquid on his face.

Zaryusu felt lucky, for having avoided the claw to his eyes. He was hurt, but it
was just a nick, he could still fight on. He was thankful to the ancestors
protection and

Maybe I dodged that because of Cruschs ancestors.

Zaryusu was grateful while Zenberu complained unhappily.

"Speaking of which, you seem to be holding back by refusing to use that ability."

Zenberu clenched both fists and repeatedly beat his chest.

My apologies, but I have no intention to use that move.

Eh? Then dont complain after your defeat that you did not use your full
strength.

After exchanging blows with me, you still think I am the kind of person who
would say such a thing?

... No, I dont think so. Sorry, I have said too much. However if you do not plan
not use that move, then its my turn now!

With the sound of piercing wind, Zenberu launched a kick towards Zaryusu with
his leg that was as thick as a tree trunk.

The movement was made without a shred of hesitation.

As Zaryusu was avoiding that leg thrust, he swung Frost Pain to slice Zenberu.
However a metallic sound rang out and the sword was deflected.

Zaryusu widened his eyes in exclamation.

If one were to use a blade to block an attack by flesh, the attacking party would
be the one to be injured, this much was common sense. However, utilising
monk's Qi energy overturned this logic.

This was the effect of 'Steel Skin'. At the moment that an attack came into
contact with the users skin, this special ability would use Qi to envelop the body,
turning skin into the toughness of steel. This ability was the same as 'Natural
Steel Weapon', where similarly the amount of training that was put into refining
the technique meant that a greater toughness could be achieved.

The opponents skin had deflected a magic sword. This meant that the opponent
had already refined the monk ability to great heights. However Zaryusu remained
confident that victory was within his grasp.

It wasnt that the difference in both parties battle technique was astronomical,
but rather that Zenberus circumstances were inherently relatively unfavourable.

Allowing one to be overwhelmed by continuous attacks.

Kicks, tail sweeps, punches, chops, attacks of all sorts.

Zenberu relied on his bodys ability with each strike, which was not only fast but
also heavy. Facing such an enemy, even Zaryusu had to drop his offence to
maintain his defence.

Continuous attacks were followed by even more continuous attacks.

If he were to forgo defending against the enemys crushing attacks, Zaryusu

would no doubt be defeated. The surrounding lizardmen believed that the tribe
chief who was launching continuous attacks without stopping had victory in his
grasp and were shouting out encouragements.

Zenberus claws occasionally grazed Zaryusu, easily breaking apart the hard
scales protecting the body, causing fresh blood to flow. His injuries were not light
at all.

Zaryusus body was full of these wounds. His life was like a candle in the wind,
and it would not be surprising for him to surrender at any moment. The evidence
was all over the lizardmens faces as they revealed joyful smiles in delight for
their victorious tribe chief.

However, Zenberu did not share their sentiment.

Every time a continuous strike was blocked, Zenberu felt that victory was slipping
further and further away, which distressed him immensely.

The blade of Frost Pain harboured cold frost which stacked frost injuries for every
cut it inflicted on enemies. In addition, it had an effect where any enemy coming
into contact with the weapon would suffer some frost injuries. In other words,
merely by exchanging contact between the blade and flesh, Zenberu was slowly
being eroded by the frost.

With both hands frozen and both legs numb, his movements became more and
more slower.

What a shame... because the previous fight was such a quick defeat I didnt
even know that it originally had such an ability! It seems like it doesnt just have
that one ability! No wonder it is one of the four treasures!

It was precisely because Zaryusu knew that the item had such an effect that he
chose to stick to defence Rather, that was why he would choose this method
as it was able to guarantee causing harm to the opponent. It was because of this
that he did not evade Zenberus attacks but took them head on.

This choice was the most cautious and also an elaborate path to victory.

It was flawless. For the current Zenberu, it was the greatest enemy.

Towards Zaryusu who leaped over, Zenberu released a powerful punch. If this
move were to be blocked, Zenberus chances of winning would plummet.

Zenberu felt like he was picking a solo fight against an impregnable fortress.

Ah, ah, what a shame, can I not defeat him However, I have waited for this
moment for a very long time!

He recalled the memory of going by himself to pick a fight with that male
lizardman. Since then, he had become much stronger, and had gone through
never-ending back-breaking training in order to obtain victory. When he heard the
news that the person who had defeated him had been killed, he had felt
immensurate regret, and yet he had not stopped his training.

All in preparation for this day to come.

As tribe chief, he had been unable to set everything aside to go pick a challenge,
therefore when he heard that the wielder of Frost Pain had arrived in the village,
he was hard-pressed to contain his joy.

He could not allow this fight, which he had been waiting for all this time, to end
so easily.

Zenberu punched and kicked, yet his sense of touch was gradually diminishing,
and his Qi too was increasingly ineffective in reaching his hands and feet. Even
so, he still attacked relentlessly.

So strong, even stronger than the fellow from that time!

Seeing as he himself had trained unceasingly, this male lizardman in front of him
must have also undergone continuous training unabatingly up until this point.

Since the start, both lizardmen had not drawn any closer during the fight, and of
course he could also find an excuse by saying that he had lost to the ability of
Frost Pain, but he did not wish to use such cowardly words.

Incredible! No wonder he is the master of Frost Pain! The strongest male

lizardman amongst all lizardmen!

On the outside, Zenberu did not stop his continuous attacks, yet inside he was
calmly complimenting Zaryusu who was using Frost Pain to block his moves.

Injuries, blood flow, and more injuries.

Crusch, who was unwaveringly staring at this ferocious match, had already
foresaw the outcome through her outstanding druid abilities.

Truly incredible insight that he had already figured out the fight roughly just
after it started.

She took in a large surprise at Zaryusus excellent capability as a warrior.

The surrounding ceaselessly emanated with sounds of encouragement.

Those cheering were directing their ardor towards the relentless attacker, at
Zenberu who appeared to be completely prevailing against his opponent. The
surrounding lizardmen seemed oblivious to the fact that Zenberus limbs were
already slowing down in movement.

Zaryusu was strong. Crusch was confident in this conclusion.

Almost all of the lizardmen relied on strong and robust bodies, using brute
strength to fight, but Zaryusu no, even Zenberu as well relied on technique to
fight, and Frost Pain was merely a supporting asset.

As such, about this current situation the gap between the two individuals and
Frost Pain were largely related, but Crusch understood clearly that Frost Pain was
not the sole factor in bringing about this outcome.

Hypothetically, if one were to give Frost Pain to an ordinary person to use, would
that person be able to deal with Zenberu like this?

The answer was probably not. Zenberu was not such an easy opponent.

The weapon was indeed powerful, but Zaryusu who was able to beautifully utilise
the the weapons ability was likewise a first class warrior.

But even more commendable than that was his sharp and insightful mind.

Zaryusu had been able to evade the opponents strike when he had dropped the
halberd, because he was ever cautious and constantly observing the situation. He
first observed the opponent for his trump card, and realised that the halberd was
merely a bluff.

Having faced the tough decision of being branded a traveller, yet having the
resolve to shoulder the consequences, just what else and how much knowledge
had he brought back during his travels apart from rearing fish and these battle
tactics?

Without being aware of it, Crusch had already become firm in the belief that
Zaryusu had victory in his grasp. Right now, her heart was beating rapidly not out
of worry for him but for another reason as she gazed silently at that male
lizardmans face.

He really is an outstanding male lizardman.

The exciting battle mulled away everyones time easily, but for the two who were
fighting, it felt like a very long time. They were out of breath and the physical and
mental exhaustion was much greater than the time that was spent.

Zaryusu who retained his will to fight despite bleeding all over had commendable
courage. He received high praise from the lizardmen watching for keeping up
with their chieftain far longer than anyone else could manage.

Suddenly, Zenberu who seemed to be inches away from victory dropped his
battle stance.

The surrounding lizardmen waited with bated breath for Zenberu to announce his
victory when he shouted.

But the content was the opposite of what they expected.

It is my loss!

Their chief should have been moments away from victory.

So why did the chief declare his loss? Only Crusch knew that this would happen.
She ran briskly into the center of the circle formation.

Are you alright?

Zaryusu breath out deeply when he heard that question. He lowered the sword in
his hand and answered exhaustedly:

No mortal wounds It wont affect any future battles.

... Good, I will heal you with spells.

Crusch made a rustling sound with her grass attire and revealed her face.

Zaryusu felt a soothing warmth over his wounds, different from the searing pain
he suffered earlier. Zaryusu immersed himself in the sensation of energy flowing
into his body and turned his head to face the giant lizardman who fought a
deadly duel with him.

Zenberu was surrounded by his tribesmen as he explained what exactly

happened and what Zaryusus tactic was.

That should do.

After casting her spell twice, Crusch announced the treatment to be complete.
Zaryusu looked down at his own body.

There was still dried blood on his skin, but the wounds had healed completely.
Zaryusu could still feel tightness when he flexed his wounds, but it doesnt seem
like those will rip open.

Thank you.

You are welcome.

Crusch smiled brilliantly, she looked beautiful showing her pearl white teeth.

How pretty.

Ah!

Her tail hit the water surface hard.

The two of them fell silent.

Crusch was silent because she was baffled by how casually this male lizardman
said these words. For Crusch who was not used to compliments, it was not good
for her heart to hear Zaryusu say them too often.

On the other hand, Zaryusu didnt understand why Crusch didnt respond. Could
he had made some mistake such a feeling of unease flashed across his mind.
Actually, he had always felt his life would have nothing to do with female
lizardman, so he didnt knew what kind of reaction to make. Unexpectedly,
Zaryusu was also at a loss.

As the two were troubled and wondering what to do, a voice saved them.

Hey hey hey, you are too enviable you bastard.

The two of them looked towards the one speaking Zenberu.

Zenberu was dumbfounded momentarily when the two of them reacted the same
way.

Eh~ white one, can you heal me?

Zenberu was unmoved even after seeing Cruschs albino face. When Crusch
recalled her impression after seeing Zenberus appearance for the first time, she
understood Zenberus lack of reaction.

Alright But would it be a problem not to let your tribal druid to heal you?

Yeah, it doesnt matter. Dont talk so much, Im hurting right now, even my
bones are freezing, can you hurry up?

You are the one who want me to do this, remember to explain to your druids.

Yes, I am the one forcing you, so please.

Crusch sighed and started her treatment.

Zaryusu felt the number of hostile gazes had fallen, and looks with good will had
started popping up.

Okay, Im done.

Crusch casted more healing spells on Zenberu compared to Zaryusu. This meant
that his wounds were deep, although it didnt show.

Oh, your skill is better than the druids from my tribe.

Thank you, but I seldom do this for other tribes No, thank you for your
compliment.

Well, our injuries are mended, lets go into the main topic for today okay? It is a
bit too rush for you?

Oh! Lets hear what you want to say Although I wanted to tell you that
Zenberu paused when he reached this point, and then said with a smile: But
lets have a drink first!

Zaryusu and Crusch the both of them looked puzzled, as if they didnt
understand what Zenberu was saying.

Troublesome formal matters have to be discussed in a banquet, you

understand?

Letting the other party know your strength will give you the advantage in
negotiations. Zaryusu understood that he had to risk his life for this as this was
how lizardmen did things. But he couldnt understand the behavior of throwing a
banquet since Green Claw didn;t had such a custom.

It seemed depraved to party right after a deadly battle.

I dont get it

A sense of resignation washed over Zaryusu, making him show his surprise
honestly as he answered softly. But waves of regret appeared in his heart
immediately, for he had shown such a childlike reaction to a tribal chief that had
yet to ally with him. Zaryusu could also feel Crusch looking at him with a weird
gaze.

For Zaryusu who had no experience with love, it was impossible for him to sense
that Crusch was looking at him because the one she likes had displayed a new
side. It was a look of curiosity adoring something cute.

No, what I meant is that drinking too much will dull the mind and that will be
troubling for me.

Zaryusu changed his words in a panic, but Zenberu didnt seem to mind and
replied:

Hey hey hey, you are a traveler, right? If you want to learn knowledge around
here, that would be the Dwarves right?

No, I didnt learn from the dwarves, but from men living in the forest.

Is that so? Then remember this, friends who drink together will become buddies,
that is the teaching of the dwarves. There might not be much time left, but we
should start our talks soon. Am I right, Zaryusu Shasa?

I see I get it now, Zenberu Gugu.

Awesome! Everyone, we are having a banquet! Bring that here! Begin the
preparations!

A fire pit almost two meters wide was set up on the ground, the flames almost
searing the sky. Its red glow fended the darkness of the night away.

Near the fire pit was a giant pot more than a meter high and about 80 cm in
diameter, the scent of alcohol lingered in the air.

Dozens of lizardmen took turns to scoop the liquid from within. But the wine from
the winepot seemed to be bottomless.

Like Zaryusus Frost Pain, this was one of the four treasures, Giant Pot of Wine.

The taste of the never ending wine was bland and would make anyone who
appreciates alcohol frown. But for the lizardmen, this was delicious wine.

Thats why they kept coming back for more.

A short distance away from the wine pot was a very quiet place. As for why, it
was because of the drunk lizardmen lying motionless here.

The lizardmen who had blacked out from the alcohol were all dumped here.

Crusch who had removed her grass attire treaded the ground carefully
although she stepped on the tail of a lizardmen unintentionally as she moved
forth. Her steps were steady and did not dont seemed to be drunk, but she didnt
seemed to be completely fine either.

Her tail seemed to be moving independently, thrashing about lively. It curled at

times, straightened the next. Erect this moment, and drooped later, excited like a
child.

In fact, Crusch felt as if a refreshing wind was blowing across her heart. Part of
the reason was the alcohol, but the feeling of liberation also aided this.

This was the first time she showed her albino body to a large group of people. It
surprised some of the people, but since their chief also looked like a mutant, she
mixed in with the others in no time.

Crusch carried the food with both hands and walked with brisk steps.

She came to the place where Zaryusu and Zenberu were sitting cross legged and
drinking with each other.

The two of them used something like a coconut as a cup. Inside were transparent
fluid, but the whiff of alcohol was strong.

Raw fish was placed right before them to complement the wine. Zenberu greeted
Crusch who walked over with a smile.

Ah, plant monster.

... Cant you change the way you address me?

She already took that attire off, but this male lizardman insisted on calling her
that. He was probably planning to tease her like that forever. Crusch who realized
this fact decided to stop her futile resistance.

Have you finished your discussion?

Zaryusu and Zenberu glanced at each other and nodded.

For the most part.

They wanted to talk man to man, so they asked Crusch to give them some time
alone. They already made it so clear, so she had no choice but to leave and
collect the food, despite wanting to take part in their dialogue. If they wanted to
discuss the upcoming battle, she would be involved too.

She wanted to know the essence of things while avoiding the awkward details

This is a talk between men.

But Zenberu shut out the topic coldly with this phrase. Crusch showed her
displeasure on her face honestly, and had no other option but to change the
topic.

So what are your plans? Form an alliance and fight together?

Huh? Oh, of course we will fight. Even if both of you had not come, we would still
fight.

The sound of wooden planks rubbing against each other came from Zenberus
mouth.

You are really a battle maniac.

Dont praise me like that, I will get embarrassed.

Zenberu ignored the stunned Crusch and requested something from her.

Oh right, plant monster, can you help me convince him? No matter how I beg
him, Zaryusu still wouldnt become our tribe chief.

Zaryusu also showed a resigned and fatigued expression.Crusch could tell from
that tired look that when Crusch wasnt around, this question had been repeated
countless times.

It is impossible for him to take this job. He is from a different tribe and is a
Crusch wanted to say traveler, but she remembered that Zenberu was a traveler
too, so she changed the topic: Why did you became a traveler?

Huh? Oh, losing to the owner of Frost Pain was a huge blow to me, so it was only
natural for me to want to leave and visit different places and become stronger
right? So I became a traveler.

Zaryusu who was beside him drooped his shoulders tiredly. Crusch remembered
Zaryusu talking about his travels too.

When Zaryusu became a traveler, he was motivated by his determination,

resolve and sense of duty to his tribe. Zenberu who was a traveler must had
similar thoughts But that wasnt apparent from the way he was behaving.

Crusch placed her hand gently on Zaryusus shoulder to console him, conveying
to him the message that he is he, you are you.

To the bystander, Cruschs action must seemed like that of a lover. When she
became aware of that, Cruschs tail started to panic. Zaryusus tail was also
thrashing intensely.

The two of them looked at each others eyes and smiled shyly.

Zenberu pretended to not see all that and continued saying happily:

I thought that there must be powerful guys in that mountain since it is so big,
learned a lot from the dwarf I met in my travels and got that war scythe. I didnt
want it at first, but since he said that was a momento of our meeting, I had no
choice but to accept it.

... So that happened, thats great.

Crusch answered coldly.

Yeah, thanks.

 Sarcasm didnt work.

With the nice atmosphere ruined, Crusch picked up a cup and drank it all. She felt
her throat heating up, a warmth spreading from the wine in her stomach to her
entire body. Zaryusu did the same.

At this moment, the sound of a soft query came. The feeling was totally different
than before, making it hard to discern who was asking immediately.

So, do you think we can win?

Zaryusu answered softly.

... I dont know.

Yeah, I guessed as much, there are no guarantees in war. If someone assured

victory without knowing the strength of the adversaries, I want to beat him up
and ask him not to bullshit.

Crusch didnt say anything more to Zenberu who was laughing softly.

But our enemy is careless, this might affect our chance of winning.

Crusch explained to the baffled Zenberu in Zaryusus stead.

Do you remember what that monster said?

Sorry, I was napping then.

... Someone must have heard it right?

Hmmp, I forgot because it is a hassle. Anyway, the important is they attack us,
we hit them back, right?

This guy is hopeless Crusch gave up explaining with such a face while Zaryusu
explained with a wry smile.

... They said, Resist stubbornly, mortals.

A dangerous expression appeared on Zenberus face, his features scowled into a

sneer.

How maddening, looking down on us from the very beginning.

Zenberu roared angrily.

It hinted strongly of wrath and displeasure.

Thats right, they are looking down on us. To be that confident means they
have the forces to overwhelm us easily But we will crush the arrogance of our
foes. We will unite the five tribes and show them the largest force we could
assemble. We will strike them down head on, and tell them we are not
defenceless weaklings.

Hmmp, not bad, thats a simple way of putting it. I like that.

As the two male lizardmen was discussing passionately on how to fight, Crusch
poured cold water onto their plans.

It wont do us any good to wound their pride too much. We just need to show
them our worth, correct? If they knew we are of use, they might refrain from
wiping us out.

Hey hey, you want us to bow our heads to those annoying people?

Zaryusu I understand the danger in evacuating, but I think keeping our lives is
more important than losing our freedom.

Crusch said her piece softly.

The other two didnt rebuke her thoughts or mock her about this.

No one wants to be dominated, but being enslaved has more future than losing
their lives. If they have a future, there will be endless possibilities.

For example, if they taught the fish farming technique to everyone, they might be
able to abandon their current homes and run away.

If one was to give up on this possibility and order everyone to die, he has no right
to be a leader.

Listen to this.

After hearing what Zaryusu said softly, the three of them perk up their ears and
listened to the laughter from the banquet being carried here by the wind.

We might not be able to have fun like this after being dominated.

Maybe we could, right?

Really? I dont think so. I dont think an existence that is amused by our death
would be so charitable. If they had any mercy at all, they wouldnt attempt to
wipe us out with such a playful attitude.

Crusch nodded in agreement.

Even so

What I want to say is please dont die.

I wont, not before I hear your answer to that question.

Crusch and Zaryusu gazed into each other eyes under the cool night sky.

And made an oath.

Completely ignoring the disgruntled Zenberu.

INTERM
ISSION

The conference room behind him should have started discussing a different topic.
But his work in that conference room was finished, so he had left.

Just his work of making reports was done though, he still had his job as the first
seat of the Black Scripture, which is the captain, to complete. It included reviving
dead members, choosing temporary staff to fill the gap, training and
experiments. As the Six Scriptures were a secret organization, he also had to live
another life as a spy in the Theocracy.

And for his private life, he still needed to attend matchmaking sessions under
the premise of a polygamous marriage. There were only three awakened Godkin in Slane Theocracy, so the higher ups had subtly requested him to ramp up
his reproduction rate.

Such menial things kept piling up, depriving him of all his free time.

I was hoping that they would give me some time to relax today.

After being liberated from the highest level conference in Slane Theocracy the
Archbishop conference, he stretched his shoulders lightly and his eyes were
drawn away by a clicking sound.

He knew who was making that sound before looking at that person. Only a very
small number of people in the Slane Theocracy were allowed to enter this place
so it was easy to identify that person at once from those who were absent during
the conference.

As he had expected, a young girl was leaning against the wall.

She had a head of unique hair, with different colors on either side. One side was
silvery white that lit up your eyes, while the other was so black that it seemed to
devour everything. Her eyes were also different colors.

Beside the girl was a War Scythe that looked like a pole arm.

She appeared to be less than fifteen years old, but her actual age was way
beyond that. Ever since he became the captain of the Black Scripture the first
seat, her looks had not changed.

He moved his gaze towards her ears hidden by her hair but he restrained
himself.

The girl didnt like others to look at her ears.

The shiny lips of the girl became a crescent as if she was reading his mind.

She was an interracial child born from almost impossible odds, the strongest
special seat within the Black Scripture, Certain Death. Her job was to protect the
sanctuary where the five holy equipment were laid.

The sound came from a toy in the girls hands called Rubik's Cube, made popular
by the Six Holy Gods. While she was producing the clicking sounds, the girl said:.

Its quite easy to get one side, but its really hard to get two, right?

It was simple for him, but he wasnt sure if he should answer honestly, so he
responded with a wry smile. The girl didnt seem interested in the answer anyway
and continued asking:

What happened? Why did all the archbishops gather?

The report should have been delivered to you.

Didnt read.

She answered curtly.

Its faster to ask someone about it. Was the prophecy of Thousand Miles
Astrologer wrong? The mission to defeat the Catastrophic Dragon Lord
something happened to them right?

Their eyes did not meet throughout the conversation as the girl kept looking at
the toy in her hands.

... They fought a mysterious undead and retreated after two deaths and one
heavily wounded.

Who died?

There was no emotion of sadness for the death of someone from the same side.
Her attitude was similar to asking about something unrelated to her, and he
wasnt bothered by this. This attitude fit right in with the style of this girl.

The bodyguard of Kaire-sama, Cedran, and Beaumarchais who attempted to

capture the vampire who appeared to be still.

So its Thousand Wall Shield and Divine Chain. The 'Earth Miko Princess' died
from a mysterious explosion recently, and the Black Scripture lost two more good
men what a disaster. Who is the heavily injured?

Its Kaire-sama. Some curse seemed to prevent healing magic from mending her
wounds, so she retreated.

And the vampire?

Left alone. When we tried to approach or capture it, the vampire counterattacked. So our people decided to leave it alone in that place.

Isnt that just avoiding the problem?

... It was decided during the conference to maintain the status quo.

That was the conclusion made earlier in the conference room.

Instead of suffering major losses from attacking, it was better to let it be before
gathering their forces. Anyway, the other nations wont be able to defeat that
undead anyway. If someone like that turned up, that meant someone they had to
be wary of appeared, and they had to tighten their national defence first In the
end, they came to a consensus to leave a bare minimum team and withdraw
everyone.

He agreed with this decision.

Only someone on the level of a God-kin or Dragon Lord could defeat that
vampire in a straight fight. It would be wiser to leave a team behind and watch
out for the one that could defeat that vampire.

Hmm, that wasnt a vampire, right?

He agreed with that too, thats why he said it was a mysterious undead.

Could it be a Dragon Lord? Vampiric Dragon Lord or Elder Coffin Dragon Lord?

The curve of her lips grew steeper into an obvious smile. That was if that blood
lust expression could be called a smile.

... Werent these two dragons destroyed?

He replied as the atmosphere turned awkward, but got an immediate answer:

Both of them are undead Dragon Lords, its hard to say if they are truly dead.

The girl lifted her head for the first time and looked straight at him. There was a
glimmer in her different colored eyes, filled with curiosity, joy and the urge to
fight.

Between the vampire and me, who do you think is stronger?

He replied to the question he was expecting with a prepared answer.

Of course its you.

Is that so

She seemed to lost interest and stared at the toy again.

He sighed in relief.

What a pity, I thought I had a chance to taste defeat.

As he listened to the mumble of the girl, he wondered: Who would win if the two
of them really fought?

He fought the girl and the vampire before. While the vampire felt stronger, but
there was no way the vampire could win against Certain Death.

Their equipment was on a different scale.

That vampire seemed to be unarmed, which was the weak point of powerful
monsters. They were too confident of their strength, so they dont wear powerful
gear.

On the other hand, the girl was equipped with the relics of the Six Gods, so he
judged her to be stronger. What if both sides had equipment of the same level?

Impossible.

He dismissed the question immediately. It was impossible to find and obtain

equipment that could rival the girls godly equipment.

But what if the vampire found it?

In that case Maybe the strongest undefeated special seat of the Slane
Theocracy will know failure. And it would be the time to despair with the defeat of
the guardian of mankind.

No, why does he need to assume the girl will fight alone?

He wasnt at her level, but he was an awakened God-kin and had many items at
their disposal. If they use these items, they could defeat that vampire if there
was only one. There was no way for so many undead that strong to exist.

He heard laughing while lost in thought, and looked at the source with a frown.

Lets talk about something else, when are you getting married?

This was an undetermined agenda that surfaced during the earlier meeting. She
meant when he was going to get a girlfriend to put it nicely, a wife, to say it
nastily, a tool to make babies.

Theres no one yet.

Well, you are still young.

When the Black Scripture members went on mission, they would wear magical
masks to conjure a fake face.

By the laws dictated by their God, someone over the age of twenty will be
considered an adult in Slane Theocracy. He was a lot younger than twenty when
he took off his mask.

After the marriage, your partner will be detained within the Theocracy but
dont worry, she can still raise a child.

I know that, Im also a member of the Scripture.

Thats true. Ah, it would be better to tell your prospective wife that you need to
marry multiple wives. There is no problem in the eyes of the law, but there are
people who dislike polygamy despite being educated that way.

With permission granted by the Theocracy, it was possible for a man to marry
many wives. It was an archaic practice to protect the bloodline of the few
powerful men in the past. But the norm was monogamy, with just a handful of
successful application for polygamy a year. Even when successful, they were
limited to just two wives.

Thank you for your kind reminder, what about you You dont plan to get
married?

He asked because she was much older than she looked.

Well, if there is a man who can defeat me, we could get married. Even if he is
ugly and had a twisted personality It doesnt even matter if he is not human if
that man could defeat me. How strong would our child be?

The girl place her hand on her abdomen and smiled for the first time today. He
was sure this answer meant the girl didnt plan on ever marrying.

But how would things change if an existence that could defeat that vampire
appears?

A sense of uneasiness clouded his heart.

CHAPT
ER 3

Part 1

Oh, I can see it.

Zenberu who was seated at the very back of Rororo looked to the front and
smiled.
They could see the tribe that was designated as the first to be destroyed several
hundred metres ahead Razor Tail Tribe. Their size was about the same as Green
Claw, but the number of lizardmen was much larger. This was probably because
lizardmen from the other tribes had also gathered here. They were in the
preparation for battle phase and everyone seemed to be busy.

What an irresistible atmosphere.

Zenberu made loud breathing sound, smelling the taste in the air. It was a scent
that made one hot blooded, but Crusch who probably hadnt smelled something
like this before thought differently.

Isnt it dangerous for us to ride in on this child?

They could feel the high tension from such a great distance, which made Crusch
who was dressed like a vegetative monster voice her uneasiness. She was afraid
that the Hydra would draw the wrath of the bloodthirsty lizardmen.

The other party probably knew about Zaryusu, but they might not have seen
Crusch or Zenberu before. And not all the Razor Tail tribesmen knew about
Zaryusu either.

Wrong, the opposite is true. We wont be in danger if we ride towards them on

Rororo.

She had a baffled look, it wasnt visible, but that was the feeling Crusch gave.
Zaryusu made a simple explanation.

My older brother should have arrived, and he definitely would have told them
that I would be riding on Rororo. News of us coming on Rororo should have been
reported to my older brother, so we just need to approach slowly.

After they advanced on Rororo for a while, a black scaled lizardman came out
from the village. Zaryusu waved at that familiar lizardmen.

Thats my brother.

Heh.

Ho.

They responded in unison, Crusch was simply curious whereas Zenberu felt like a
beast who found a strong opponent.

As Rororo closed the distance between Zaryusu and Shasuryu, they were finally
close enough to make out each other faces. The two brothers stared at each
other.

The two of them were only apart for two days, but because they had already
steeled themselves to the fact they might not meet again, their emotions were
really strong.

Its great that you returned, younger brother!

Ah, I bring good tidings, older brother!

Shasuryu shifted his gaze to the two behind Zaryusu. Zaryusu could feel the
hands of Crusch that was hugging on to him stiffen from nervousness.

As they closed the gap completely, Rororo came before Shasuryu and stretched
its neck towards him affectionately.

Sorry, I didnt bring any food with me.

The moment Rororo heard this, it withdrew its four heads as if it was throwing a
tantrum. The Hydra couldnt understand the language of the lizardmen, but it
could tell what Shasuryu was saying through their understanding similar to that
of family members. Or it simply didnt detect the scent of food from Shasuryu.

Well then, lets dismount.

Zaryusu said to the two behind him and agilely lept off Rororo. He then grabbed
Cruschs hand and assisted her in getting down. Shasuryu looked at Crusch in
surprise.

What is that Plant Monster?

Getting this sort of reaction made Crusch a little depressed, but she didnt retort.
This was probably thanks to Zenberus constant teasing. But the next stunning
blow made her stiffen.

She is the female I like.

...Ohh.

Shasuryu sighed. He then stared at the stiff Crusch who was still holding hands
with Zaryusu.

Muu I just want to ask one thing, is she a beauty?

Yeah, I am thinking of marrying Eh!

The sharp pain coming from his hand made Zaryusu shut up, because the one he
was holding hands with was poking him with her claw. She didnt hold back at all.
Shasuryu looked at the two of them with displeasure.

I see So you are picky about the appearance And you kept playing cool,
saying I cant marry. You just havent met the right one yet... Alright, back on
topic, I am the chief of the Green Claw tribe, Shasuryu Shasha. Thank you for
agreeing to ally with us.

Shasuryu wasnt trying to confirm this fact, but was absolutely sure of it. But
Zenberu and Crusch wont be shaken up because of this small matter.

We should be the one thanking you. I am the acting chief of the Red Eye Tribe,
Crusch Lulu.

Everyone thought that Zenberu would introduce himself after Crusch finished her
greeting, but that didnt happen. Zenberu was sizing up Shasuryu without
hesitation.

Satisfied, Zenberu nodded and spoke with a feral expression.

So you are the one, the warrior who could utilize the power of the druids, I have
heard about you.

I am surprised that even the Dragon Tusk knew about this."

Shasuryu replied as the two of them stared at each other like a couple of wild
beast.

I am Zenberu Gugu, chief of the Dragon Tusk Tribe, until the day your brother
agrees to take over.

Thank you for coming. You are indeed worthy to be the chief of the tribe which
values strength over everything, I welcome you.

So, want to have a match? Shouldnt we find out who is stronger?

... Thats a great idea.

Zaryusu didnt want to intervene. Finding out who was stronger now will definitely
make things easier in the future.

But Shasuryu raised a hand, diminishing Zenberus urge to fight.

I agree with you, but this an awkward timing.

Why is that?

Shasuryu smiled at Zenberus unhappy face.

... The scouts we sent out are about to return, we should be able to obtain
detailed intelligence about the enemy. We can fight after hearing their reports,
right?

A small house was used as the conference room of the chiefs.

The chiefs of the gathered tribes and Zaryusu were gathered here, a total of six.

Zaryusu, the one who killed the previous Sharp Edge Chief, bearer of Frost Pain
was famous and all the chiefs knew of him. He was also the brave one who
convinced Red Eye and Dragon Tusk to join the alliance, so no one was opposed
to him taking part in the conference.

In the small house, the six sat in a circle. When the other three chieftains saw
Cruschs white scales, they were surprised, but had already regained their
composure.

After finishing their greetings, the first who spoke was the chief of Small Fang.

He was petite compared to other lizardmen, but his limbs were as strong as steel.
Originally from the hunter group, his ranged attack skill was the best among all
lizardmen in the vicinity of this lake. In fact, during the fight to decide the
position of chieftain, he settled each of his matches with just one precise rock
throw.

In order to determine the position of the enemy troops, he mobilized all the
hunters to reconnoiter.

The enemy numbers nearly five thousand.

This number exceeded the total population of all lizardmen, but was still within
expectation. Some even sighed in relief when they learnt of this number.

... And the leader of the enemy?

I cant say for sure, there are monsters that looked like giant mass of red meat
in the middle, but its too difficult to get in close.

What about the make up of the army?

An army of undead, mainly skeletons and zombies.

The undead of lizardmen?

No, they are not lizardmen. I dont really know about the creatures living on
land, so I cant be certain. But it should be human types, I didnt see any tails
either.

When Zaryusu heard that, he was sure that they were the race living on plains,
humans.

Can we launch a surprise pre-emptive attack?

That would be difficult, the other party is using an open space cleared out from a
corner of the forest. How long did they take to clear the trees? It is strange that
the felled trees are nowhere to be found Ah, I digress. Anyway, they are in the
forest. Leaving whether we can succeed aside, it would be very hard to bring
warriors along.

What about a sneak attack with just the hunters?

Spare us, Ms. Crusch. There are roughly twenty five hunters, how could we
defeat the undead army of five thousand? We will just get wiped out.

Hmm What about using the power of the druids?

Several of them nodded in agreement to Shasuryus suggestion and their eyes

fell on Crusch. But the one answering was Zaryusu.

No, lets not do that.

Ah? Why?

The other party had kept their words so far, but they wont do so if we attack
them.

Indeed. We should avoid initiating the attack before we gather all the
tribesmen.

So we will prepare for a defensive battle?

Defend, hard.

The lizardman who spoke with a strong slur was the chieftain of the Razor Tail.

He was covered in white armor that was shining in a different manner from
metals.

The armor was emitting a soft magical gleam. That was one of the four treasures
of the lizardmen, White Dragon Bone.

It was a set of armor made from the bones of a frost dragon that had resided in
the Azellerisia Mountain. Armor made from bones even that of a powerful
dragon would not be imbued with magic. But that set of armor was enchanted
with magic without anyone knowing when.

The problem was that the magic could possibly originate from a curse.

This was because the White Dragon Bone converted intelligence into defence
power. If an intelligent lizardman wore it, it would turn harder than steel,
matching mithril and even the legendary adamantium.

But even if you removed the armor, the intelligence would not recover. Thats
why there were some who said this magic was actually a curse.

Among the lizardmen, he was widely known for his intelligence. After wearing this
armor, the defence of the armor was strong enough to deflect all the weapons of
the lizardmen, even one of the four treasures, Frost Pain. It was probably as
strong as adamantium.

And normally, those who don the armor would lose all intelligence and appeared
to be brain damaged. But he was still able to think, proving how high his original
intelligence was. Hence, Razor Tail had never decided the position of chieftain
through physical combat after his birth.

Here, swamp, weak foundation, wall easy break down.

I see, so we should initiate the attack?

Yeah, why not, attacking is better than defending, each of us just needs to take
down three to four foes right? We just need to defeat them, piece of cake.

The others in the conference looked at each other after hearing what Zenberu
said. In the end, Crusch changed the topic.

The problem is enemy reinforcements They might be gathering their forces.

Hmm That is hard to say. From the size of the open space, they cant fit in
anymore undead Though they just need to place them inside the forest.

The undead dont need food, rest or large open space to set up camp. It would be
hard to gauge their numbers from the size of the area.

To play it safe, we need to consider a defensive strategy.

Well then, we the Red Eye will take care of strengthening the walls for a
defensive fight. I hope everyone could provide help.

The other chieftains nodded in agreement, even the depressed Zenberu did so.

In short, we need to prepare our defences and set up a command structure.

First of all, we should leave the druids to Crusch, their command would be left in
your hands.

Amidst the agreement of everyone present, one person raised his objection.

The chieftains should form a special team.

The gaze of everyone fell on Zaryusu who had spoken.

I see So that how it is, brother.

You are saying we should form an elite team?

Thats right. The enemy outnumber us, if we dont take out their commander,
we might lose. If the monster that visited all the villages shows up, we cant win
by numbers, and have to destroy it with a small group of elites.

Wouldnt our forces be leaderless then?

From the warriors choose choose leader will do.

Even if there is no commander, they just need to charge the enemy right

The special team will command from the back, and will only move out if we
discover the enemy commander or if the battle is not going well. Is that okay?

That should be fine. Well then, including Zaryusu, how about the six of us
forming one team?

No, we should form two teams of three.

Splitting up meant they could fight on two fronts, but their force will be spread
out and weakened.

One team will attack the enemy commander, the other will be in charge of the
defence.

Well then, we three chieftains will form a team, Zaryusu and the two chieftains
you brought over will form another, that should be the best way to divide
ourselves. The mission of the teams should be to react to the situation.

Yes, that is great. Any problems, Zaryusu?

I understand. Any objections, Zenberu, Crusch?

I have no objections.

Me too. Its a pity I cant fight as I please, but I will follow the will of the victor.

Well then, there is still four days before they attack us, right?

Correct.

Are there anything we need to prepare for?

We need to stock up on throwing stones and strengthen the walls. Also, we need
to interact with the other tribes and set up a chain of command, ensuring that all
of the tribes can function as one.

As for the allocation of work, we, the Small Fang tribe wish to leave that to
Shasuryu like before.

We okay with that what about you two?

Crusch and Zenberu nodded in agreement too.

"Then I will take over the command. Next, we will decide the details of all the
work we need to do in the next three days.

After the work for the day was done, Zaryusu walked silently in the noisy and
lively village. Several lizardmen greeted him with respect when they saw
Zaryusus mark on his chest and Frost Pain on his waist.

It was a bit irritating, but in order to raise morale, he had to answer them.
Zaryusu thus answered them with a serious, proper and confident expression.

Zaryusu maintained this attitude as he headed to the outer walls of the village.
They were rushing to construct walls over there, many lizardmen were
concentrating on their work.

First, they bound the stakes that were some distance apart with vines. Mud with
low water content was then smeared on. The druids then casted some magic to
remove the moisture, and the wall is complete. There were some cracks on it,
probably because not all the water had evaporated. They then repeated the same
steps in another place.

Ara, what is it, Zaryusu?

Nothing, just wondering what you were doing.

Walking with splattering noise in the wetland, Zaryusu made his way to Crusch
who was dressed like a vegetative monster and pointed at the work that was
being repeated in front of them.

What is that?

Mud wall. We dont know what type of enemy will be coming, but I wanted to
make it hard for them to move in But there is no time, we are not even half
done.

Is that so But isnt it easy to destroy things made from mud?

No problem. If the mud is thin, it is easy to break it. But thickening it will make it
tougher. Because this is a rushed job, and there's shortage of sufficient materials
and it will weaken if it rains. But it wont break down so easily."

That is true, no matter what material it is, it would be hard to destroy if it was
thick enough.

In front of Zaryusu who was thinking about that, dozens of lizardmen were
working as fast as they could, but progress was as slow as a tortoise. Even if they
worked on it for three days, it wouldnt be much wider. But it was better than
nothing.

For now, the parts the wall couldnt reach would be covered by fence that would
be hard to tear down.

In the direction Crusch was pointing at

The stakes over there were pulled out, and planted some distance away, forming
a triangle with the two other stakes besides it. Between the stakes were vines
loosely bounded together, forming ropes blocking the passage between them.
Zaryusu thought for a moment, and recalled that the fence around the Red Eye
tribe looked like that too.

What is that?

By placing something heavy there, the fence wont fall even if it were being
pushed or pulled. As for the ropes, they are meant to prevent enemy from getting
through. If the ropes are pulled taut, it would be easily cut by swords or knives,
thats why we left some slack on it.

Crusch answered Zaryusus questions excitedly.

During their short journey, Zaryusu was always the one teaching her. Being able
to teach something to Zaryusu made her happy. Apart from this, there was
another feeling involved.

I see it is harder to destroy it that way.

These impressed words made Crusch felt proud.

Zaryusu nodded deeply.

The plan to turn the village into a stronghold was progressing steadily. It couldnt
match up to the defensive structures of humans and dwarves, but for the
wetlands that were hard to traverse on, there was no better way.

By the way, Zaryusu, did you tell the warriors

As Crusch was saying that, the cheers of the warriors were carried by the wind
into their ears. It was an intense and hot blooded noise.

What is happening? This sounds familiar I know! These are the cheers when
you guys battle. Could it be a duel between your brother and Zenberu?

Zaryusu nodded and noticed that Crusch looked worried.

... As the commander in chief, wouldnt it be troublesome if your brother loses?

I dont know, but my elder brother is strong. If he had the chance to use his
druid powers, he will become even stronger, even I might lose to him.

Shasuryu who casted several buffs on himself was very strong. He would
probably refrain from using offensive spells in a mock battle, but if he does,
Zaryusu wont be a match without Frost Pain.

The reason why the original owner of Frost Pain didnt use its special ability that
could only be used thrice in one day against Zaryusu was because he had used it
up during his fight against Shasuryu.

Thats great

Zaryusu was wondering whether he should show Crusch how strong his brother
was in a fight, but he remembered something else that had been worrying him.

He hesitated, but decided to voice it out in the end.

It was despicable to say this after all the plans had been set in place. But he
couldnt hide this from the one he likes, thats how pure and strong he felt about
Crusch.

I am worried about one thing

Hearing Zaryusus anxious voice, Crusch smiled. That was a deliberate smile,
something that was not her style an expression that didnt fit the situation
stopping Zaryusu from continuing. The one who spoke in place of Zaryusu was
Crusch.

You mean that thing you didnt bring up during the conference right? If the
enemy already anticipated this, and was waiting for us to form an alliance.

Zaryusu fell silent, she was right.

The other party gave them time, announced the order of attack deliberately and
didnt get in the way of Zaryusus efforts to form an alliance. What if their plan all
along was to gather all the lizardmen in order to annihilate them.

I have many worries, someone who thinks as deeply as you should feel even
more so. But no matter what, we will fight this battle with our foes We can think
about the other things after that.

They wont give up even if we win. The chance of them giving up is abysmal.

That might be so, but what you said that night is true. Look

Crusch extended her arms toward the empty space before her. But Zaryusu
understood that she was referring to the entire village.

"Look at all the lizardmen from the various tribes working towards the same
goal.

Indeed, the lizardmen from all the tribes were advancing together as one.

The image of the five tribe banquet surfaced in Zaryusus mind. The tribes were
interacting harmoniously together without reservation. It would be a lie to say the
survivors from the two destroyed tribe bore no grudges. But they displayed the
will to swallow their grudge in the face of this incident.

The irony.

Zaryusu muttered. He always thought their divided worlds would carry on

forever, he never thought the appearance of a mutual enemy would allow him to
witness the unity of the lizardmen.

"We need to protect the possibility of our future, Zaryusu. The alliance of all the
tribes would promote our development.

Building walls with mud was a technique Zaryusu had never seen before. But
now, the other tribes knew about this technique. In the future, all the lizardmen
tribes would build such walls. With such strong walls, it should be able to keep
the monsters from breaking in. That way, the chances of the weak young ones
being attacked would fall, and the number of lizardmen would increase.

They could meet the increase in demand for food by using Zaryusus fish
breeding farm.

Maybe in the near future, all lizardmen will unite into one giant tribe in these
swamps.

Let us obtain victory, Zaryusu. It is impossible for us to know what happens in

the future, maybe everything would be over after this battle. If that is so, we can
start developing a wonderful world without food problems and the need for
lizardmen to kill each other.

Crusch smiled. Zaryusu suppressed his emotion, if he allowed his feeling to run
loose, he might not be able to reign in it; but he had something he had to say.

You are an excellent female lizardman After this battle is over, please tell me
the answer to that question I asked when we first met.

Crusch smile became even more brilliant.

I understand, Zaryusu. I will tell you my answer after this is all over

Demiurge was in a great mood as he hummed while he worked.

He picked up the polished bone, wondering where he should put it for the best
presentation. Shortly after, he made his decision and sliced off the tip and place
it within the item he was building.

The bone fitted in perfectly like a piece of a puzzle.

If building a house without using nails is known as precision wood joint, then
what Demiurge was doing should be precision bone joint.

That looks great.

Demiurge caressed the bone with a smile on his face. If he continued to work on
it, he had a feeling he can complete an outstanding piece.

But I am lacking the right femur of a man about 1.2m in height.

He could complete it even if he dont find that bone. But without it, it wouldnt
look as nice.

Usually, Demiurge would compromise and make do with this. But this gift was
meant for his beloved master, so he had to make it perfect.

It would be great if I can find something suitable.

Demiurge, who was in a good mood, started moving.

Actually, Demiurge liked to create such items. His interest was not in using bones
to make items, but in carpentry work. His interest in this field was rather wide,
from art pieces to furniture, his skills had surpassed that of weekend hobbyist.

In fact, if you ignore the material he was using, anyone would be impressed by
the quality of his work.

The other items displayed in this tentage, such as the bronze bust of the master
cast from lava, all sort of chairs and clamps are all made by Demiurge. They
might be for practical use and lack decorations, but they were all excellent
pieces.

As Demiurge was studying a material he picked up from a corner of the tent, he

felt some movement near the entrance.

Demiurge put the bone in his hands back gently and held the item bestowed to
him by his master that might not be replaceable, focusing on what was
happening outside. Normally, the one outside should be his underling or
colleague. No one could have broken through all three layer of Demiurges
defences without him noticing, but he had to be wary of the one who had
controlled Shalltear.

Several seconds later, someone opened the entrance of the tent. He was dressed
in pure white, wearing a mask with a long beak like a bird.

Peruchinera.

He was a clown, a creation of the Supreme Being just like Demiurge. For this
operation, he had been assigned to assist Demiurge.

Confirming that he was not under mind control, the tension in Demiurges eyes
dispersed, and he relaxed the grip on the item in his hand.

Demiurge-sama, the skin has been peeled.

These words made Demiurge felt that it was a shame.

Demiurge wanted to enjoy this work himself, but in order to guard against the
mysterious enemies, he couldnt leave his post most of the time and had to
assign the task to Peruchinera.

Demiurge did not express his emotions and gave new instructions to Peruchinera.

Good work. Well then, begin the next phase. It would be disrespectful if we give
that thing to Ainz-sama like this.

Demiurge asked Peruchinera who was bowing gracefully.

So, how many died?

None. Thanks to the tormentor, they only lost consciousness, therefore we can
continue peeling their skin soon. A few were unwilling to be healed but that was
within expectation, so there is no issue.

That is splendid.

It took a lot of effort to collect the materials, they had to peel few more times for
it to be worthwhile. That might be so, but he didnt want to peel the skins in a
painless fashion or drug them.

I want everyone to be happy.

Peruchinera said suddenly, making Demiurge remember his personality.

Peruchinera was known throughout Nazarick for his gentleness and mercy. He
was created for the purpose of making everyone happy, and his action was based
on this belief.

The people in the Great Tomb of Nazarick find happiness in serving Ainz-sama.

Demiurge nodded in agreement.

I see. Let me ask you, Peruchinera, do you mean that other people will feel
happy when they serve Nazarick?

How could that be, I dont mean that. Serving Ainz-sama makes us so happy that
we could cry tears of joy. But if they were forced to do the same, thats not
happiness.

Ohh, then what should we do about this?

Simple, just pick one person and cut off his arms. That way, the others will
compare themselves with him and know that they are more fortunate. How
wonderful. And to make the one whose arms were chopped off feel blessed, we
just need to chop off another persons legs. Ahh, I made so many people happy!

Demiurge looked with satisfaction at the clown that was throwing his head back
in laughter.

I see, you are right.

Part 2

It felt long if you spend all your time waiting, but when you prepare for something
with a deadline, you would feel that time passes by in a flash.

The promised time had come.

That day, the burning sun crawled up in the sky as slow as a tortoise, the sky was
blue and devoid of clouds. There was no sound from the wind, the world seemed
so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.

The tension was so thick that you could cut it with a knife.

Some of them gulped, others breath in deeply.

An unknown amount of time passed since the gathered lizardmen had turned
silent.

Suddenly, a dark cloud that seemed to appear from a hole in the sky spread
speedily across the blue sky just like it did before.

Shortly after, the cloud blocked out the entire sky, and the surrounding dimmed
with the absence of sunlight

The lizardmen saw countless undead march slowly from the border dividing the
forest from the wetlands. With the trees in the way, it was impossible to tell how
many of them there were, they just kept emerging like an endless flood.

The invaders included 2,200 zombies, 2,200 skeletons, 300 undead beasts, 150
skeleton archers, 100 skeleton riders. An army of 4,950, not including the
commander and its guards.

Opposing them was the five tribe alliance of lizardmen.

Green Claw has 103 warriors, 4 druids, 7 hunters, 124 male lizardmen, and 105
female lizardmen.

Small Fang has 65 warriors, 1 druid, 16 hunters, 111 male lizardmen, and 94
female lizardmen.

Razor Tail has 89 heavy armor warriors, 3 druids, 6 hunters, 99 male lizardmen,
and 81 female lizardmen.

Dragon Tusk has 125 warriors, 2 druids, 10 hunters, 98 male lizardmen, and 32
female lizardmen.

Red Eye has 47 warriors, 15 druids, 6 hunters, 59 male lizardmen, and 77

female lizardmen.

Their combined strength were 429 warriors, 26 druids, 45 hunters, 491 male
lizardmen, and 389 female lizardmen. A total of 1,380 troops, excluding the tribal
chiefs and Zaryusu.

The battle where one side outnumbers the other by three to one thus began.

It was a house made from wood.

There were no decorations, the wooden structure was plain to see and the design
was as plain as a cabin. But the ceiling was five meters from the floor while the
length and breadth were more than twenty meters either way.

There were barely any furniture inside, just a giant mirror on the wall, a huge and
sturdy table as well as the chairs around it.

Several people were seated on the chairs, and parchments rolled into scrolls were
placed on the table before them scrolls imbued with magic.

And finally, this is the last set. These are teleportation scrolls.

After the loud voice of a young girl said so, another scroll was placed on the
table.

The one who took out the scrolls was a human female in maid attire.

The young girl had a cute face, with her hair tied up into buns on either sides of
her head. But she had a distinct aura about her, with the most exceptional thing
being her eyes.

Her eyes were big and round, but there was no light in them, just like low grade
glass balls, and she never blinked.

Her petite body was covered by a modified maid costume, with propped collars
covering her neck completely. Aside from her face, she didnt show any skin at
all.

She was one of the battle maids, Entoma Vasilissa Zeta.

And, this are the Message scrolls, but there are a lot. Could someone please
tidy up the table?

Entoma requested the figure occupying the seat of honor and that person nodded
slowly.

Tidy it up.

Alright~, please clean it up quickly then.

With Cocytus acknowledgement and Entomas instruction, the figures

surrounding the table started working together.

They were all of the heteromorphic race, some had the form of praying mantis,
some looked like ants, there were even ones that seemed to be an exposed brain.

They might all appear different, but they had two common points. They were all
servants of Cocytus and they belonged to the organization of Nazarick.

That was why they obeyed the command of Entoma who was weaker than them.

In the power structure of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, the most important thing
wasnt combat power, but the fact that one was a creation of the Supreme
Beings. From this point of view, Entoma had a high level of authority.

After confirming that the tables had been cleared

Well then, please accept this, Cocytus-sama.

Entoma said without moving her mouth, picking up the bag by her feet and
fished out several scrolls of parchment.

These are Message scrolls. According to Ainz-sama, these are made from skins
Demiurge-sama went through great effort to obtain. Ainz-sama conveys that he
wants a report if there are any problems when using them.

I see Understood. I will test this out.

Cocytus used one of his four hands to pick up several of the scrolls.

Demiurge has pulled further ahead.

Cocytus said to his subordinates with a wry smile. When his subordinate heard
that, they smiled along too.

With the parchment in his hand, Cocytus fell into deep thought.

He had heard about the stock of low level magic scrolls being diminished
gradually.

Finding a place that would provide the raw ingredients to make various types of
items was an important issue that needed to be resolved. They had plenty of
stock right now, but it would deplete with constant use. And so, a lot of people
started taking action, including their master.

Cocytus heard that the apple tree in the 6th floor was one part of the plan.

For Cocytus whose duty was to guard Nazarick, he couldnt do anything, which
was obvious since he wouldnt be able to move out and search for ingredients.

Demiurge who was creating an outpost outside would definitely solve the
problem. This was something he expected.

His comrade completed his duty.

Cocytus should be happy for him, and he actually is, but he couldnt completely
suppress the fire of jealousy in his heart. For his colleague to be of use to the
Supreme Being the master they adored, made him envious.

His mission was to defend Nazarick.

This important task was probably more crucial than any orders received by the
other Guardians. No matter who you asked, they would answer that this was a
crucial task. They had to keep the lowly ones from desecrating the residence of
the Supreme Beings.

However without invaders, there was no way to prove Cocytus loyalty and hard
work.

That was why Cocytus wanted to achieve something.

For the Guardians, aiding their master would bring strong sense of joy. Cocytus
wanted to taste that happiness too.

And that chance was right before him now.

Cocytus turned his head and looked at the scene reflected in the mirror and
tightened his grip on the scroll.

What was shown wasnt indoors, but a location somewhere in the wetlands.
Thats right, the scene shown in the Mirror of Remote Viewing was the reason
why Cocytus was holed up for two days in this wooden house built by Aura.

The battle this time No, in the face of the absolute strength of the Great Tomb
of Nazarick, it would be a one sided slaughter, so it was just a means of collecting
carcasses. When Cocytus received this harvesting mission, his master gave him
several orders.

One, Cocytus was prohibited from taking to the field. This included his servants.
The issue had to be solved with the troops that were allocated.

Two, the Lich assigned as the commander was to be held in reserve until the last
moment.

Three, he was to carry out the mission by his own judgement.

There were some other minute details, but the main points were these three.

He had to use the soldiers dispatched to the lakeside region to obtain victory. If
he were to succeed, Cocytus could then display his loyalty to his glorious master.

Thank you for your hard work, please relay my thanks to Ainz-sama.

Entoma nodded weakly.

And so Will you be going back?

No, I received orders to witness the battle here 'til the very end.

So she was here as an observer.

Cocytus concluded, and felt hot blooded thinking about the heavy responsibility
bestowed on him.

Well then, time to begin.

Cocytus activated Message and issued an order to the undead commander.

" Advance."

Two bonfires on elevated platforms illuminated the surrounding with flickering

light.

On the stage stood several lizardmen, comprising of the tribal chiefs and key
figures.

Before the stage was a large group of lizardmen preparing for battle, the noise
they were making undulating like waves. Uneasiness, anxiety and fear They
tried their best to conceal these emotions, but they couldnt hold down their
worries, that was why they were so noisy.

What followed next would be war. The friend beside you might become a corpse
the next moment, the one who might fall in battle could be themselves. What
they would be marching into would be a cruel field of battle.

Shasuryu Shasha stepped forward from amongst the tribal chieftains to stop the
rowdiness.

All lizardmen, listen up!

The majestic voice echoed out and the open space became silent, making
Shasuryus voice exceptionally clear.

I know that we face a great number of foes.

No response, but the uneasiness could be seen clearly in the eyes of all present.

Shasuryu paused momentarily and continued loudly.

But do not fear! For the first time in history, we the five tribes have formed an
alliance. After this alliance, we are now all of one tribe. Thats why, the ancestral
spirits of the five tribes will watch over us and bless us even if we were of a
different tribe in the past.

Head Druid of all tribes!

Taking the cue, Crusch led the five head druids of tribes and stepped forward.
She removed the dress covering her and revealed her white scales.

Leader of Head Druids, Crusch Lulu!

In response to Shasuryus introduction, Crusch took another step forward.

Let our ancestors descend!

Listen, children of this large tribe!

What was this new tribe?

Crusch spoke with determination. Her voice was tense at times, calm at others;
alternating between a mighty roar and the melody of song.

In the beginning, almost everyone was disgusted by Crusch albino appearance,

but seeing how she present herself confidently, the feelings of dislike faded away.

Cruschs body swayed gently during her speech. The white scales sparkled
brilliantly under the light of the bonfire The reflected gleam made it look as if
the ancestors had descended onto Crusch.

Everyones face started to show signs of adoration.

Now, our five tribes are now one, that means the ancestors of the five tribes will
watch over all of us! We are all witnesses! All lizardmen! Behold the countless
ancestors descend by our side!

Crusch spread her arms out with a grand gesture, pointing to the sky. The gaze of
all present followed, but what they saw was just the cloudy sky with no signs of
miracles descending. But someone said something softly.

He said there is a tiny beam of light.

The soft voice gradually became big, several other lizardmen said: I see them.
Some said they were small beams of light; some shouted they saw lizardmen
descending; some uttered that were large fishes; some screamed these were
children; some even uttered in disbelief those were eggs.

All the lizardmen had the same thought in mind the ancestors really
descended.

The ancestors are here to protect us!

It was only natural for them to shout something like that.

Feel this! Feel the power flowing into your body!

Cruschs voice reached the heart of everyone, the sound seemed so far, yet so
near.

Led by that voice, the lizardmen felt some sort of energy surging into their body.

Feel it! Feel the strength bestowed onto you by the ancestors of the five tribes!

All the lizardmen present definitely felt it.

They felt that surging power. The feeling of their hot blood flowing washed away
all their unease, their body started heating up as if they just drunk alcohol.

This could be taken as the best proof of their ancestors descending.

Crusch looked away from the revel faces of the lizardmen and nodded to
Shasuryu.

Lend me your ears, lizardmen. The ancestors have descended onto us. We
cannot match the enemy in numbers, but will we lose?

No!

The lizardmen intoxicated in the atmosphere responded to Shasuryu in unison,

shaking the very air.

Thats right! With the ancestors upon us, it is impossible for us to lose! Defeat
the enemy, and present victory to our ancestors!

Warrghh!

The lizardmen were in high spirits, no one felt uneasy anymore. There were only
lizardmen who had morphed into warriors as they headed toward the battle that
was upon them.

They were not charmed by magic. Even with so many druids, there was no way
they could spare the energy before battle to cast such magic on all the gathered
lizardmen.

This was just the effect of the special drink that was given to all lizardmen before
the ceremony.

It was a beverage that grants courage, passed down from previous generations of
lizardmen. It was brewed from a special herb that made the lizardmen felt
intoxicated, happy and saw illusions for a short period of time.

Cruschs speech was just buying time for the herb to take effect.

Once the truth was known, it wasnt much. But for those who saw the effects with
their own eyes the lizardmen who witness the ancestors descending, it was a
ritual that brought out the courage in them.

Well then, we will hand out the paint to everyone. It used to be one colour for
each tribe, but right now the ancestors from all five tribes are among us, so use
all the colours to paint yourself!

Several druids carried pots and walked through the lizardmen crowd.

The lizardmen took paint from the pot and started drawing war paint on
themselves. They believe these were the drawing of the ancestors who had
descended onto them, so they allowed their fingers to move freely, painting
patterns on their body.

With the ancestors from all five tribes descending onto them, many of the
lizardmen covered their whole body with paint. But the lizardmen from Green
Claw didnt draw many war paints on themselves. This was because Zaryusu,
Shasuryu and the elites of the tribes didnt draw any. In a way, this was like fans
imitating their idol.

After surveying the crowd and confirming that everyone had finished, Shasuryu
drew his greatsword and pointed at the main gate.

Move out!

Wargghhh!!

Countless roars shook the surrounding.

Part 3

The forces of the Great Tomb of Nazarick were roughly divided in two and
deployed onto the wetlands.

From the view of the lizardmen, the zombies were on the left while the skeletons
were on the right. Skeleton archers and riders were positioned behind the
skeletons.

Undead beasts were situated behind as the core of the army.

The lizardmen army had a smaller force and were divided into two groups as well.
Facing the zombies were female lizardmen and hunters, while the warriors and
male lizardmen were set against the skeletons. The Druids were placed inside the
village protected by walls.

The lizardmen formed up outside the village because there was nothing to be
gained from a defensive battle. They had no incoming reinforcement and the
walls werent really sturdy. On the other hand, the undead army didnt require
any provisions or rest.

With such a disadvantageous position, a defensive siege battle would be foolish.

But after both sides set up formation, the difference in numbers was clearly
shown.

One lizardman had to fight against three, ten against thirty, the ratio remained
the same. But the difference was prominent when it was a thousand against
three thousand. Just lining up three thousand undead was highly intimidating.

Even so, the lizardmen did not show any fear. With their ancestors descended
amongst them, numbers were not a problem.

Moments later, the undead army started advancing slowly. The first to move were
the zombies and the skeletons. The skeleton archers and riders remained in
place, therefore they were probably conserving their forces.

The lizardmen army started their march too.

Warrrggghh!

Deafening roars covered the entire wetlands, followed by the splashing of water.
The mud flew everywhere and the water splashed.

The two armies continued their advance and were about to clash mightily. At this
moment, something happened to the forces of Nazarick.

Although the zombies and skeleton moved forth at the same time, their pace was
different. This was because the zombies were slow and stiff while the skeletons
were agile and fast. Most important of all, they were in the wetlands which
affected mobility.

The movements of the stiff zombies were obstructed by the mud, slowing them
down. But the light skeletons were not affected much.

Hence, the first to clash were the skeletons and the lizardmen warriors.

The lizardmen did not have any formation, simply charging ahead to engage the
enemy, with no stratagem to speak of.

Leading the way were the five warrior captains from each of the tribes. For the
commanders to be in the frontlines could be considered foolish in some ways. But
they were the highest ranking combatants, so the morale of the lizardmen would
plummet if they didnt led from the front. Thanks to their effort, all the lizardmen
were highly motivated.

Right behind them were the 89 Razor Tail heavy armor warriors. Wearing leather
armors and shields, this group had the highest defence among all the tribes.

With their shields raised, they formed a wall that was charging into the skeleton
army.

An intense collision the vanguards of the warriors and the warriors smashed
into each other.

In that instant, countless bones flew everywhere as the lizardmen unit crashed a
hole into the skeleton formation.

Angry roars accompanied the cracking sound of bones. There were occasional
moans of pain, but the bone cracking sounds were overwhelmingly louder.

The lizardmen gained a staggering advantage in the first clash.

If it were a human army instead, the result would be reversed.

Because the skeletons were made up of bones, piercing weapons were ineffective
and they had resistance towards slashing attacks too. Hence, for the human army
with swords as their primary weapon, it would be difficult to deal effective
damage against the skeletons.

Because of their blunt weapons such as maces and warhammers, the lizardmen
completely gained the upper hand. The bane of skeletons were blunt weapons.

Whenever a lizardmen swung the weapon in their hand, the bones of the
skeletons shattered easily. Even if they survived one hit, they would be crushed in
the next attack. On the other hand, whenever the skeletons attacked with their
rusty swords, it got deflected from the tough scaly skin of the lizardmen. Some of
them were hurt, but no one suffered mortal wounds.

The very first clash.

The shattered bones of five hundred skeletons littered the wetlands just like that.

The image reflected in the mirror stunned Cocytus.

It was just the initial clash, but the combat prowess of the lizardmen were beyond
his imagination. Cocytus was an excellent warrior and could judge how good his
opponent was to a certain extent. The skeletons were behind the lizardmen in
single combat. But they should be able to make up for it with their numbers.

But it ended with such a result, what is happening? It even made Cocytus suspect
that the lizardmen were strengthened by some unknown powers.

The ones that could defeat the lizardmen in combat would probably be the
skeleton archers and riders.

As Cocytus was observing the situation, the skeletons were being crushed. The
usefulness of the skeletons and zombies were reduced to tiring out the
opponents.

In that case, the effective forces would be the remaining 300 undead beasts, 150
skeleton archers, and 550 skeleton riders. They were outnumbered instead.

Cocytus started calculating in his heart.

The undead were strong in battle, especially in a drawn out fight. The undead
didnt feel anything, and wouldnt feel neither fear nor pain. They didnt need rest
or sleep.

The advantage these characteristics brought were evident with no need for any
explanation.

For example, most creatures would fall from a powerful hit from a mace to its
head. Even if they didnt die, they would bleed profusely and feel pain. The one
who got hit would lose all will to fight. Some warriors who were trained to resist
pain might be able to stand their ground, but most people would lose the will to
fight.

This was natural for living beings.

But what about the undead?

Smash its head? It would keep on attacking.

Break its arm? It would stab at you with its stump.

Take out its legs? It would crawl at you.

Thats right, as long as their negative life force remains, the undead would
continue to fight. As long as the condition for its death was not met which was
cutting its head off for most undeads it wont lose its will to fight like humans.
This meant that the undead was in a way, the perfect soldier.

In terms of individual strength, the lizardmen obviously had the upper hand. But
that could change.

Cocytus raised his evaluation of the lizardmen by one level and acknowledged
that they were not enemies that could be defeated easily. What he needed to do
now was to turn this into a battle of attrition.

"How about retreating for now and observe the situation?

I believe this is a wise move, my lord.

Sending out the skeleton archers and riders might be a better option, master.

No, I think we should press on with the attack and sap them of their stamina, my
liege.

How would waiting for them to tire help? If we cant destroy the enemys base
camp, they would be able to rest and recover right?

Indeed. Our foes had strengthened their defences with just a fragile wall. How
about taking that village and routing them?

After hearing the response from his underlings, Cocytus picked up a Message
scroll. He glanced at Entoma from the corner of his eyes and observed her
expression.

Entoma seemed disinterested as she looked in the direction of the mirror. She
was putting green biscuits she took from somewhere towards her chin. In the
next instance, clear cracking sound could be heard. Her attitude seemed to be
implying that she wasnt involved. That was probably why her facial expression
was blank.

Wrong, that expressionless face was just a decoration.

Cocytus remembered her true identity and realized how stupid he was when he
tried to read her expression.

She was a Familiar Eater. Even Cocytus friend, one of the Evil Five, Kyouhukou
(Lord of Terror) said without hesitation that she is the most scary one. That was
Entomas true identity.

Cocytus gave up trying to read Entomas thoughts from her face and used the
scroll to issue the instruction to the commander.

Are they looking down on us?

Zenberu mumbled. He wasnt loud, but it was enough for everyone surveying the
enemy from on top of the mud walls to hear.

Their archers and riders are still held in reserve, I think they are underestimating
us

Thats right, I thought the enemy would charge at us at one go

Fight with zombie, smooth.

There were only 45 hunters fighting the zombies. Using hit and run tactics by
throwing rocks at them, the hunters were luring the zombies slowly away from
the skeletons. The female lizardmen moved slowly to the flank of the skeletons.

Arent their movements rather queer?

Indeed.

Instead of being lured, the zombies were focusing completely on the hunters.
Was the commander agreeing with this? No, there was no way any commander
would accept this, but in actual fact, that was how the zombies were moving.
Then, what is the objective of the enemy? Everyone present were baffled by this.

I dont understand why they are moving this way.

Yes, I agree with Shasuryu.

No matter how they thought about it, there doesnt seem to be any purpose in
the zombies action.

Zaryusu thought about it for a moment and shared his thoughts with the others.

Maybe there is no commander?

No commander? Ah, you mean the undead are just following the very first
instruction they received?

Yes, correct.

Among the undead, the lowest tier comprising of skeletons and zombies lack
intelligence, so giving timely orders would be the most efficient way to utilize
them. But the enemies this time felt as if the only order they received was to
eliminate any lizardmen near them. Thats what Zaryusu meant.

That is to say our foes thought they could win against us if they have the
numbers No, could this battle be just an experiment to see how well the
undead fight without a commander?

That may be so.

Damn it! What kind of joke is this?

The one lashing out in anger wasnt Zenberu, but Shasuryu. Even Shasuryu
couldnt take it anymore, the lizardmen were betting their lives on this war.

Calm down Shasuryu, it might not be so simple.

Ah, my apologies It is a good thing that we have the upper hand.

"You are right older brother, we have to use this chance to diminish the enemy's
numbers.

The fatigue from battle was heavy, the mental strain would be enormous in a
chaotic fight. Without knowing if the enemy would come from the front, back, left
or right, just swinging your weapon under such conditions a few times would be
much more tiring than normal.

But the undead wouldnt get fatigue and would fight without rest.

The difference between the living and the undead would become more prominent
with the passage of time.

Time was the enemy for the lizardmen.

Tch, I want to take the field too.

Endure, Zenberu.

If the skilled Zenberu was to join the fray, they could level the skeletons in no
time. But that would mean revealing their own trump cards. Zaryusu and the
other five were the ace in the hole. They had to show their ace if the situation
called for it, but before the strongest foe shows itself, they must not show their
hand.

But wouldnt it play right into our hand if the enemy doesnt advance? Zaryusu
said to the others. The others agreed with him, and Zaryusu asked Crusch who
was beside him: How are things on your end?

... Yes, the ritual is going as planned.

Crusch answered as she looked inside the village behind them. The group of
druids were performing a ritual inside the village that could become another ace
for the lizardmen. It usually took a lot of time, but with all the druids of all five
tribes gathered here, the progress was sped up and it could be used in this battle.

... Teamwork, what an amazing thing.

Yeah Thats true, we did share some information after that war But there are
so many more things I want to do after the war now.

The other tribal chiefs strongly agreed with Zaryusus view. They shared their
knowledge because of this war, and witnessed first-hand the importance of
developing together as a community. There were alliances in the past, but the
three chiefs who didnt exchange views in the past were doing so more freely
now.

Zaryusu smiled as he looked at the five of them.

Whats so funny?

Nothing, it is just that despite being in such a situation, I still feel really glad.

Crusch understood Zaryusus thoughts immediately.

Me too, Zaryusu.

Seeing Crusch smiling brilliantly, Zaryusu squinted his eyes as if he was looking
at something bright. Both of their eyes were filled with admiration and love for
each other.

They didnt touch each other physically. That was obvious. After all, there were
lizardmen dying out there even at this very moment. They couldnt do as they
please despite knowing that. But their tails were like independent creatures,
squirming around and tangling together sometimes.

Muu

As the older brother, how does it feel?

They are in their own world.

How passionate.

In conclusion Its good to be young. Their future is bright.

The four older lizardmen nodded in unison as they watched their cute juniors.

It was impossible for Zaryusu and Crusch to miss that. Although their tails were
twitching about, they still kept their poker faces.

Elder brother, the enemy is moving.

Shasuryu and the others smiled wryly as Zaryusu shifted gears so suddenly. They
looked towards the enemy formation and saw the skeleton riders flank the battle
in front of them before advancing.

Hey hey, are they charging for us?

With skeleton riders? Are they planning to bring down our morale by striking at
us?

No, they are probably flanking to the rear of the warriors and male lizardmen to
surround them.

Not good.

Everyone came to the same conclusion that the mobility of the skeleton riders
was a threat.

If the skeleton riders were deployed at the start of the fight, the lizardmen could
exterminate them first. Right now, the warriors and male lizardmen were in a
chaotic fight, the hunters were luring the zombies and the female lizardmen were
throwing rocks from the flank of the skeletons, there were no available forces to
stop the skeleton riders.

I think we should take action.

Accepting the proposition from the chief of Small Fang, Shasuryu nodded in
agreement.

The problem is who we should send Lets show the enemy our strength.

Skeleton riders.

Skeletons with lances riding on skeletal horses. Nothing special to note except
their strong mobility, which was exceptional in the wetlands. With their body
made from bones, their feet sink shallowly into the mud, allowing them to
traverse the terrain with the speed of horses.

The one hundred skeleton riders took the roundabout way to the back of the
lizardmen army for a pincer attack.

They could see three lizardmen running at them to the left of their advancing
route which was the direction of the village but the skeleton riders ignored
them. Without any orders, they would ignore anything if they were not attacked.
That was the kind of monster the unintelligent undead was.

They almost reached the rear of the lizardmen army when the skeleton rider
leading the charge suddenly tumbled. The skeleton rider was flung high into the
air before it fell heavily into the wetlands.

A human would be confused and wouldnt be able to act immediately. But the
unintelligent undead skeleton rider moved instantly in order to carry out its
instructions.

It stood up immediately, but was limping slightly due to the damage.

That skeleton was hit by another skeleton rider, and their bones were scattered
all over the wetlands.

Such a scene happened consecutively in several places.

The reason this was happening in the wetlands? The answer was simple traps.

Open boxes were buried in the ground and the horses would tumble if they were
to spring the traps.

The skeleton riders fell one after another. If they were humans, they would slow
their advance. But the skeleton riders didnt do that. They had enough wits to
avoid a hole that was already there, but still fell for hidden traps. They didnt
receive any orders to do so and didnt had the intelligence to make such a
judgement call.

The scene of them going full speed into traps was like mass suicide.

The traps might be very effective, but they could only stall for time. Some
damage was dealt to the skeleton riders, but it was not enough to destroy them.
The skeleton riders that had fallen all over the place got up with their bodies
covered in mud.

At this moment, a whistling sound was heard and the head of a skeleton rider
flew off just like that.

The skeleton riders saw this as an act of hostility and looked around the vicinity.

Another skeletons head was knocked off like shattered glass.

The skeleton riders discovered three lizardmen about 80 meters away from them.
They could also see them using slingshots, shooting rocks to snipe the head of
the skeleton riders

The skeleton riders started moving.

At the same time, the fight with the skeletons was changing.

With the sound of bow strings releasing, arrows rained down on the battlefield.

The 150 skeleton archers fired arrows at the skeletons and the lizardmen
simultaneously. It wasnt just one shot, but two, three...

This was an unexpected assault for the lizardmen.

Several lizardmen were hit and fell. They couldnt defend against the arrows
while they fought against the skeletons.

The skeletons were hit too, but took no damage.

Placing the skeletons that were resistant to piercing attacks in the front and the
skeleton archers firing from the back was a great combination. With the time
needed to defeat 2,200 skeletons, this tactic would be enough to wipe out the
lizardmen.

But the problem was that this tactic was implemented too late. If it was used at
the very beginning, the lizardmen would definitely be in a dire state. The
skeletons would then overwhelm them with numbers and earn a decisive victory.
But it was too late.

Ignoring the dwindling skeletons, the lizardmen charged at the skeleton archers.

The arrows from the 150 skeleton archers fell like rain, downing several lizardmen
onto the mud, but it was just a small number.

With the thick skin and hard scales of the lizardmen, their defence was on par
with humans wearing leather armor. Even if arrows pierced their skin, their tough
muscles might be able to stave off fatal injury.

Another reason for the minimal casualties were the weak arrow shots. They didnt
have enough power to kill the lizardmen.

The lizardmen roared fearlessly as they charged. In the face of the rain of arrows,
the lizardmen crossed their arms to protect their head, braving ahead even if
their body was pierced.

On the third wave of arrow attack

This was the limit of how fast the skeleton archers could shoot. If they had
intelligence, they would probably retreat. If they moved back and regrouped with
the surviving undead army, they could be utilized in a better way.

But the skeletons did not have the mental capacity to store such complicated
instructions. They didnt receive any other orders, so they simply executed their
original mission Even with the lizardmen closing in, they could only fire arrows
at them.

With a roar, the skeleton archers were swarmed by the lizardmen, just like they
did to the skeletons. At this distance, archers lost their advantage and could only
be attacked one-sidedly. As they fell one after another, almost all the skeletons
had fallen into the wetlands, and just the army of zombies was left.

Finally, a new enemy was unleashed.

Undead beasts.

Undead created from wolves, snakes, cobras and all sorts of animals. A monster
that combined the tenacity of zombies with the agility of animals.

The undead beasts rushed at the lizardmen. The fast moved fast, the slow
travelled slowly, an assault with no formation to speak of.

The attack coming from down low was unexpectedly hard to evade. The undead
beasts will gnaw onto the feet of the enemy. After immobilizing them, it will deal
the killing blow, a style similar to wild beasts.

For the lizardmen who were getting more and more tired, this attack was difficult
to fend off. Several lizardmen whose movements had dulled got their necks torn
apart by the undead beasts. Even those who believed the spirits of their

ancestors was with them couldnt help but panic when they saw their comrades
fall.

The Head Warriors fought at the front, but were pushed back slowly. As they were
thinking that it was just a matter of time before their battle lines will be broken,
the wetlands suddenly swelled up.

What appeared was two conical masses of earth about 160cm in height, with no
head or limbs.

The two masses started moving.

It moved smoothly across the wetlands despite the absence of limbs, heading
straight for the undead beasts. After closing the distance, whips that were longer
than its height emerged from where its shoulders should be.

That was one of the lizardmens ace in the hole, the fairy of the wetlands
summoned through the combined effort of all the lizardmens druids.

The wetland fairies charged into the midst of the undead beasts, flinging its whip
like tentacles to grab the enemies. The undead beasts engaged it ferociously with
claws and fangs.

It was a battle between creatures without fear. But the wetland fairies had the
advantage due to their superior combat power.

Their priest could overpower the undead. This fact revived the courage of the
lizardmen and they renewed their attack.

An intense battle ensured

Unlike the fight with the skeletons, the lizardmen also suffered casualties. But the
scale of victory was tilting towards the lizardmen who had the advantage in pure
numbers.

He was going to lose.

Cocytus understood this fact.

His forces lacked any undead that have intelligence. That was the reason for the
loss, and was something he was worried about from the very beginning, but
Cocytus didnt imagine the army to be this weak.

Cocytus regretted his shallow thinking deeply. There was a way to turn the tide
under such a situation, but it wasnt a good method as taking such a step was
equivalent to admitting his loss.

On the other hand, how could he report this failure to his master? Cocytus picked
up the Message scroll. Who should he contact at such a crucial moment

... Is this Demiurge?

Yes my friend. For you to actually message me, something happened?

A steady voice sounded out in Cocytus mind. Demiurges intelligence was top
notch in Nazarick, he might be able to think of a solution.

In a way, Demiurge was one of Cocytus rivals, so Cocytus was not too fond of
asking him for help. But avoiding defeat took priority, how could an army from
the Great Tomb of Nazarick fail? To avoid losing the fight, Cocytus threw away his
pride and lowered his head for help.

Actually

After using a scroll to explain the current situation, Demiurge who listened quietly
gave a troubled sigh.

And what do you need from me?

I wish for you to lend me your wisdom, the battle will be lost if this carries on. I
can accept it if it was my personal fight, but I do not wish for Nazarick and the
Supreme Beings to be disgraced by this.

Does Ainz-sama truly wish for victory?

What do you mean by this?

I am talking about why Ainz-sama formed an army from such lowly serfs.

Cocytus also had doubts about this. He couldnt fathom why they had to form an
army from the lowest servants in the Great Tomb of Nazarick.

... Ainz-sama must have his reasons, but what is his intention?

... I can think of several possibilities.

As expected of Demiurge Cocytus didnt express this out loud and kept his
respect in his heart.

Let me ask you Cocytus. You had been in this place for several days now,
shouldnt you be gathering intelligence on the lizardmen before the attack?

Demiurge was right. But

But Ainz-sama ordered me to defeat them with the forces given, and to do so in
a direct confrontation.

That might be so, but I want to think about it carefully, Cocytus. The important
thing should be what kind of result do you want to present to Ainz-sama, right? If
the objective was destruction of the village, you would need to consider the best
way to go about it, correct?

Cocytus couldnt answer, Demiurge got right to the point.

Ainz-sama must have considered all this when he gave those serfs to you.

... You mean Ainz-sama intentionally gave me forces that wouldnt be able to win
the fight?

That possibility is high. If you had collated intelligence beforehand, you might
have been able to tell that the forces you have on hand is insufficient to take the
village. In that case, you should report to Ainz-sama that the current forces are
not enough to complete the mission, I will need more reinforcements. That
should be Ainz-samas goal.

Which meant that Cocytus had to understand the true intention of his master. He
should not just follow orders blindly and had to make adjustment on the fly. That
was what Demiurge was trying to say.

This was Ainz-samas method of changing our way of thinking. But he seemed
to have another objective as well

What else is there?

Cocytus asked Demiurge in panic. He had already made one mistake, he doesnt
want to risk another one.

Ainz-sama sent out messengers to the villages, but did not mention Nazarick by
name. He also forbid you from taking the field. This means

Cocytus gulped and waited for Demiurge to carry on. But Demiurge didnt
continue.

Urg! Cocytus, my apologies, I have an urgent matter to attend to. Sorry but I
need to go, may you obtain victory.

Demiurge cut off the communication suddenly and the message ended.

Cocytus could guess what made the calm and collected Demiurge so flustered.
He shifted his eyes onto someone in the room. He saw Entoma casually tearing
off a tattered talisman from her forehead.

For a Talismancer to use a talisman meant

Everything was too late.

It was time to deploy the undead that was held back until the very last moment,
the ace card. But was this really the intention of his master?

This was probably the first time Cocytus thought about the intention behind the
orders of his master. But he could only come to one conclusion.

Cocytus activated the Message spell.

Lich Commander, I order you to attack. Show the lizardmen your true
powers.

An old and luxurious robe covered its body of skins and bones. One of its hands
was holding a twisted staff. Its rotting face was just a skin covered skull with evil
eyes full of intelligence in its sockets. The emitted negative energy covered his
body like a thin fog.

This undead magic caster was a Lich.

The undead obeyed Cocytus' command and looked at the wetlands. He then
issued orders to the Blood Meat Hulks standing behind him. They were undeads
with fresh red muscles and fats, made by the Supreme Being just like him.

Kill those three lizardmen.

The two Blood Meat Hulks obeyed the orders and walked towards the three
lizardmen destroying the skeleton riders.

Although Blood Meat Hulks were low-tier undead that could only attack with brute
force, they had regenerative abilities. If they were facing physical attack on the
same level as them, they would be able to stall for time.

The Lich was certain the Blood meat Hulk could stall for sufficient time.

This wasnt a good strategy. As a magic caster, the Lich was not good in melee
battles, so having the Blood Meat Hulks close to protect him was the orthodox
way to fight.

However he couldnt use such tactics.

The order he received was to show the lizardmen your true powers. Hence, he
had to take the base camp of the lizardmen alone with his overwhelming power.

As the Lich advanced, his terrifying face laughed softly.

He felt this was too easy.

As a creation of the Supreme Being Ainz Ooal Gown, he was far superior to the
Liches that spawn automatically in Nazarick. And his mission was to display his
might to the lizardmen.

He vowed to win in the name of his master.

I, Iguvua, will present this victory to my master.

Part 4

After finishing the extermination of the undead beasts, the lizardmen stooped
their shoulders tiredly and sighed in relief. They were saddened by their losses,
but had a faint smile as well.

There were many injuries, but they count themselves lucky they didnt lose more.
If the wetland fairies didnt join the fray No, if they had appeared any later,
their formation would have been broken and they would have been routed.

Lets go.

The Head Warrior said, announcing the commencement of the next fight.

Everyone were weak from fatigue, and only managed to pick up their weapons
after some time, and seemed too tired to wield them. They might be exhausted,
but the war wasnt over.

They were needed to take care of the zombies in the distance and guard against
enemy reinforcements.

Alright, bring the heavily wounded back to the village, the rest follow us

A sudden burst of flame cut his speech short.

A heat wave radiated out to the surrounding, the two fairies caught in the midst
of the fire were swaying weakly.

After the flame dispersed completely without a trace, the appearance of the two
fairies was terrible. They were on the verge of falling from that one attack.

Before anyone could scream, the flame blasted once again. The fairies couldnt
withstand the attack and their bodies began to crumble, dispersing into the fire.

The powerful fairies that displayed unmatched strength against the undead
beasts were gone. The lizardmen couldnt process what was happening and had
blank expressions.

What happened?

They knew the wetland fairies were destroyed, but they were rejecting this
reality. If the two wetland fairies were really defeated, that meant a stronger
monster than them was approaching.

The lizardmen couldnt suppress their confusion and looked around in fear. When
they saw an undead in the distance, a fireball was shot from its hand once again.

The fireball that was the size of a human head flew through the air and blast into
the lizardmen unit taking point.

Normally, fire would be put out when it come into contact with water, but this
fireball was a magical phenomenon and ignored such common sense. The
moment the fireball hit the water surface, it exploded as if it had collided with
solid ground, creating a tornado of fire.

The exploding flame engulfed several lizardmen and disappeared.

An illusion it disappeared so fast that this was the feeling it gave. But the smell
of burning flesh from the lizardmen that laid on the ground motionless was
definitely not an illusion.

The undead advanced slowly, its attitude so casual and arrogant. That was the
pace of a powerful being confident in its strength.

As the lizardmen were hesitating whether they should charge in just like how they
had handled the skeleton archers, the fireball struck again.

The fierce explosion robbed several lizardmen of their lives in a blink of an eye.

The overwhelming power made the previous battle seem like a game.

Warrgghh!

The lizardmen roared and shook off the fear in their hearts. As several of them
were about to charge in with no regards for their lives, a cold voice erupted from
an unimaginably far distance.

Fools.

With this word, another fireball burned the charging lizardmen before they could
scream.

The undead moved slowly, and the hundreds of lizardmen immediately took a
step back. The wall separating the truly strong from the weak forced them back.

Run!

A spirited roar sounded out, shocking the lizardmen like lightning. It was one of
the Head Warrior.

That fellow is different from the other enemies! We are no match for it!

That was correct. The enemy advanced slowly by itself, that majestic swagger
made all the lizardmen feel a chill on their skin.

Run back and report to the Chiefs and Zaryusu.

Let us buy some time!

Yet another fireball exploded, felling several lizardmen.

Run! Report to them!

The five Head Warriors ordered the lizardmen to escape as they gauged the
distance between each other. They spread out with the blast radius of the fireball
in mind, their goal was for one of them to reach the enemy. It was a suicide
formation for this sole purpose.

The five of them of them looked at each other after spreading out and sprinted at
full speed.

The distance was about a hundred metres. It was a hopeless distance, but they
still charged in with all their might. They knew even if they fell while rushing in, it
would leave clues for the chiefs and Zaryusu who were watching from behind.

The lizardmen escaped, scattering like the spawns of a spider.

Zaryusu watched this scene calmly. No, Zaryusu had been watching its every
move since the powerful enemy showed itself. Watching the undead that was
spreading the flames of death.

The movements of this foe was different from the unintelligent enemy earlier, he
was probably the enemy commander.

The undead started using the wide area fireball attack when the five Head
Warriors were about a hundred metres from it. Even though they attacked from
five different directions, all the Head Warriors attempting the assault were burned
alive en route.

It is time for us to fight.

Zaryusu nodded in agreement with Zenberu, Crusch gave her consensus too. She
acknowledged that the time when she might sacrifice in the battle field had
come.

Thats right, it is our turn. That one is too powerful. This is probably the right
hand man of that Supreme One and the commander of this army At the very
least, it must be an ace.

Indeed, it is impossible for anyone to control several undead of that level. But
how should we do this? It is a little too far away.

Cruschs question gave Zaryusu a headache.

Their aim was not to sacrifice themselves in battle, so a strategy was necessary.

Zaryusu and Zenberu couldnt fight at such a long distance, they had to close in
for melee attacks. And the problem was this distance of one hundred metres.

Zaryusu and the others could take a couple of hits from fireball, but they will
suffer more than a couple of attacks before they close the gap. And the real test
begins after reaching the target. It was easy to see that taking the attack of the
fireball from the front will kill them.

Such a despairingly long distance.

Ah Really, I didnt know one hundred metres could be so long.

Zaryusus group thought about how to reach the enemy without injuries or with
minimal injuries.

How about tunneling through the wetlands?

Even for the powers of a druid that would be difficult. It would be great if we
could use Invisibility.

They could sneak close immediately using Flight after casting Invisibility. But
these were not among the spells a druid could learn.

How about making a shield while we advance?

Making a shield will take too much time.

What about dismantling... a house?

Zenberu smiled wryly as he knew the proposal he just said wouldnt work. The
enemy was attacking with fireball explosion, even if they could protect one side,
the heat would still get in from the side. There was no time to craft a full body
shield to protect against the heat.

Oh right there is another way.

What is it, Zaryusu?

Crusch who was a little afraid asked. Did I make such a scary expression?
Zaryusu thought. But it couldnt be helped, he was so troubled that he wanted to
curse out.

No I just found a shield.

Iguvua nodded with satisfaction at the current situation.

It was progressing smoothly. The two Blood Meat Hulks were still battling, but he
was making good progress towards the village.

There were several foolish lizardmen who wanted to charge him, but they
seemed to understand the futility of their action after witnessing the power of
fireball. The five that spread out before the assault had the best record right now,
but they only made it to fifty metres.

It was as though Iguvua was walking alone in the wilderness as he advanced

silently. He might pity the lizardmen as weaklings, but he didnt let his guard
down.

It was a short distance to the target village. He planned to shoot fireball

consecutively and raze the houses together with the lizardmen.

But the lizardmen would definitely try to stop him from reaching the village. It
should be about time for someone to attack. Iguvua who was musing about this
found himself proven right.

... Oh, I see.

Iguvua saw a hydra heading straight for him.

If that was the ace of the lizardmen, he will crush it with overwhelming strength
and sap their will to fight. That would make the destruction of the village simpler.

To play it safe, Iguvua checked for other enemies in the surrounding and the sky.
After confirming it was clear, Iguvua stopped and waited leisurely for the hydra to
enter his attack range.

When the hydra got into the region that was hard to determine whether if it was
within the attack range, it started charging. Thats right, it ran full speed towards
Iguvua.

Fools, you think you can cover this distance with your snail-like pace? Beasts will
just be beasts.

Iguvua laughed mockingly and shot the fireball he conjured at the hydra.

The fireball flew straight and scored a direct hit on the hydra. The eruption of
flames engulfed the hydra.

Although the hydra staggered, it continued to advance. It carried on charging

even though it was on fire. No, the flames dissipated instantly, that was just the
imagination of Iguvua. The scene before Iguvua conveyed the exemplary
determination of the hydra.

Iguvua frowned with displeasure. His pride was seriously wounded when the
beast endured the attack.

Indeed, the hydra had damage resistance buff cast on it, but it wasnt any of the
high tier spells and could not negate all the damage.

I remember hydras have the special ability of fast regeneration But it

shouldnt work against fire attacks No matter, it has high vitality since it is a
monster. It is no surprise for it to tank one hit.

Iguvua consoled himself that way, but he could not appease his wrath. Iguvua
was a special creature created by the Supreme Being, Ainz Ooal Gown. It is
disrespectful for the enemy not to fall from his attack.

Iguvua casted an icy glare that was the opposite of his seething anger at the
approaching hydra.

... How unpleasant, die!

He fired a fireball once more, engulfing the hydra in flames again. It even gave
the illusion of charring flesh from such a distance. The wounds might not be fatal,
but it would make it hesitate from advancing further.

But

Why isnt it stopping? Why is it still coming?

Part 5

Rororo ran relentlessly. It might be huge, but it had a speed matching the
lizardmen since it was traversing the wetlands. Ripples splashed everywhere with
loud splattering sounds.

Its amber eyes turned white from the high temperature, two of its four heads had
lost its strength.

Despite that, it ran.

Another fireball struck Rororo squarely in the body. The heat inside the fireball
exploded in an instant, penetrating Rororos entire being. It felt a pain equivalent
to being punched all over its body, its eyes were dry as the fiery air burned its
lungs.

With burns all over its body, the feedback of pain that came nonstop from its
body warned Rororo: it will die if it was hit again.

Even so it ran.

Ran.

And ran.

It didnt stop advancing nor stop its feet. The high temperature peeled the scales
away, warping the skin underneath it and blood gushed out. Despite that, it still
ran.

Unintelligent beasts would have definitely escaped, but Rororo didnt.

Rororo was a type of monster called hydra.

There were all sorts of monsters, with those that surpass humans in intelligence,
and those that were no different from animals. Rororo belonged to the latter.

For Rororo who was only as smart as a normal animal to continue advancing on
the verge of death towards Iguvua who was dealing such pain to it, it was
incredible and hard to fathom.

In fact, even its enemy Iguvua was baffled, and suspected Rororo was being
manipulated by magic.

But that was not so.

Thats right, that was not the answer.

Iguvua would probably never understand.

Rororo who only had the intelligence of a beast it was running for the sake of
family.

Rororo didnt know its parents, though not because of hydras being the type of
monster to abandon its offspring. Before it reached a certain age, it should have
had lived with one of its parents to learn the way of survival through them. But
why didnt Rororo do so?

That was because Rororo was a deformed baby. Normal hydra would be born with
eight heads, and that will increase as it grows older, up to the maximum of
twelve heads.

But Rororo was born with just four heads, so its parents abandoned Rororo and
left with its other siblings.

Although hydras become powerful creatures in their adulthood, it was only a

matter of time before Rororo would have died in natures harsh environment
without its parents protection during infancy.

If it wasnt for the male lizardmen who happened to pass by and picked it up.

And so, Rororo got a family that was its father, mother and close friend.

Rororos consciousness was about to fall apart from the pain when it thought
about a question it had always pondered.

Why was its body so big? Why did it have so many heads?

It thought about this when it looked at its foster parent. And Rororo held a belief
from old conclusion.

Some of its heads would fall off in the future, limbs would sprout out like grass,
and it would look like its foster parent.

If Rororo really morphed like that what would it ask its parent to do?

Thats it. They hadnt slept together for a long time, it will ask for that. They had
to sleep apart because Rororo got too big, which made it feel a bit lonely.

The flames seemed to blow Rororos thoughts away and filled its entire field of
vision as incredible pain hit its entire body. It moaned weakly as the pain pulsed
through its entire body.

The pain was comparable to being hammered countless times.

It hurt so much that it couldnt think anymore.

Rororos legs sent signals to stop advancing in the form of spasms.

But even so

But even so Rororo did not stop moving.

Rororo's advance got slower. Its muscles were burned and rigid, it couldnt
maintain its usual running speed.

Just taking a step forward was hard.

It was hard to breathe and it hurt when it inhaled, its lungs probably being
damaged by the heat.

Only one of its heads could move, the others were just a burden now. The image
of the undead conjuring a fireball from its hand appeared vaguely in Rororos
murky eyes.

Its instinct as a living being told it one thing.

If it was hit again, it will definitely die. But Rororo was fearless as it relentlessly
braved ahead

That was the request of its parent and friend, that was why he would not stop.

As Rororo used all its might although it was exhausted to stumble forward a
few steps, a red fireball flew from the hand of the undead once again, slicing
through the air towards Rororo.

This hit will definitely rob Rororo of its life, that was an undeniable fact.

Death awaited it.

This was the end

If

Thats right if that male lizardman wasnt here.

Will that male lizardman allow Rororo to die before his eyes?

Watch such injustice unfold in front of him?

That was impossible.

 Icy Burst!

Zaryusu who was running behind Rororo lept out to the side and shouted as he
swung Frost Pain.

The air before his sword seemed to freeze instantly, forming a white wall of mist
before Rororo. That was an extremely cold wave of air.

One of the abilities of Frost Pain.

A powerful skill that could only be used thrice a day Icy Burst, it could freeze
everything within range instantly and deal heavy damage.

The wall of cold mist blocked the incoming fireball as if it was solid barrier. The
fiery ball and chilly wall according to magic theory, it was wise to counter one
with the other.

It hit

The ball burst into flames, struggling mightily against the white mist.

Both sides were like a white and red snake struggling and devouring each other.
After pushing back each other for a moment, the two energies disappeared.

The undead was stunned and taken aback. It was the most natural reaction after
seeing his spell dissipating.

There was still some distance between the two groups, but they were close
enough to make out each other's expressions and actions. An impossible
distance was covered thanks to Rororos effort and determination, bringing the
three lizardmen this far with no injuries.

Rororo

Zaryusu didnt know what to say. In the end, he chose a clear and simple phrase
from the millions of expression in his mind.

Thank you!

After shouting his gratitude, Zaryusu sprinted without looking back. Crusch and
Zenberu were right behind him.

A weak cry that was almost inaudible came from behind. That was a cheer for
ones family.

Speechless. His fireball was negated, making him express his disbelief with
words.

Impossible!

Iguvua cast fireball once more. He was not willing to acknowledge that the
lizardmen rushing at him had dispelled his magic.

A fireball rocketed towards the three lizardmen.

It was blocked by a wall of mist conjured by the leading lizardmen with his sword,
and it disappeared together with the wall. Thats right, it was the same situation
as before

Try all you want! I will block all your attacks!

The angry roar of the lizardman projected over.

Iguvua clicked his tongue with a face of displeasure.

For the magic casted by me, who was created by the Supreme Being Ainz-sama
to be blocked by a mere lizardman!

Iguvua suppressed his wrath with all his might.

It was very likely that fireball wouldnt work anymore, but since they had to hide
behind the hydra during their approach, there should be a limit to how many
times this defence could be used. It might be ten times, or it might only sap some
stamina for each use, and could be conjured indefinitely after recovering enough.

How should I deal with them? If possible, I want to test his words out...

Iguvua could shoot many more fireballs, but it was hard to judge which of the
lizardmans words were true.

Iguvua and the lizardmen were less than forty meters apart.

The lizardmen charging in seemed to be warriors and as an undead magic caster,

Iguvua wanted to avoid melee combat.

He couldnt use fireball in this situation. Iguvua wasnt dumb enough to confirm
how many times they could block his spell. If they didnt hide behind the hydra in
the beginning and had closed the distance, Iguvua might test it out. But that
chance had been destroyed by that damn hydra.

Curses just a mere hydra.

After spitting out these words, Iguvua decided his next course of action.

Well then, how about this?

It just so happened that they were running in single file. Iguvua pointed his finger
at the three charging lizardmen who were drawing close. Electricity sparked on
his finger.

Taste my Lightning!

A white flash of lightning emerged and

Even from this far, the white light on Iguvuas finger could be seen Lightning.

Icy Burst from Frost Pain could fend off fire or ice element attacks. But Zaryusu
had never used it against Lightning before, and wasnt sure if it would work.

Should they try their luck, or spread out to minimize the damage they will take?

Zaryusu gripped Frost Pain tightly.

The air was buzzing with static electricity, proving that a lightning attack was
imminent.

Leave this to me!

Zenberu made his judgment before Zaryusu did and jumped forth with a shout.
The spell was casted at the same time.

Lightning

Warrghhh Resistance Massive!

When the lightning looked as if it would pierce through Zenberu, his body buffed
up, deflecting the lightning arc that was supposed to hit the other two behind
him.

Resistance Massive.

A skill of monks, granting the ability to reduce magical damage by dispersing the
Qi from ones body in an instant.

This was the skill Zenberu had learned as a traveler after losing to the Frost Pain's
Icy Burst. Although it was a wide area attack, it worked against any magic that
dealt damage.

Both friend and foe yelped, but Zaryusu and Crusch who trusted their teammate
werent too surprised. Hence, the lizardmen drew nearer while the undead was
shocked.

As Zaryusu ran, he finally figured something out.

If he used Icy Burst during his duel with Zenberu, he would be blocked by this
skill. He would then be wide open for an attack and lose. That was probably why
Zenberu was luring Zaryusu to use that skill.

Haha! Too easy!

Zenberus casual voice made Zaryusu smile, but his face tensed the next
moment. Zaryusu realized that his voice had hints of pain in it.

Even a male lizardman like Zenberu couldnt suppress his pain completely, his
wounds must be serious. Furthermore, Zenberu wouldnt agree to hiding behind
Rororo if this technique was perfect.

Zaryusu stared ahead, the enemy was less than twenty meters away. That
impossible distance had been cut down to this last stretch.

With the distance drawing close, Iguvua judged the group before him to be strong
foes that were not to be underestimated. They could defend against his spells
and were worthy of praise. Iguvua had other means of attacks, but he needed to
consider his defences too.

Not bad for a sacrificial offering, worthy enough for me to show my might.

Iguvua activated his magic with a cold sneer.

4th Tier Summon Undead.

The wetland bubbled and skeletal bodies with four hands holding round shields
and scimitars emerged to protect Iguvua. They were undeads known as Skeleton
Warriors, much more powerful than normal Skeletons.

He could summon other undead, but he chose skeletons for their resistance
against cold attacks. Iguvua and monsters made from bones were immune to
cold attacks.

Iguvua looked loftily at the approaching enemies under the protection of his
guards. That was the attitude of a king facing against challengers.

The distance had been closed.

There were just 10 meters left.

That was all that was left. After seeing that the undead showed no signs of
attacking, he glanced backwards.

He looked at the distance they had covered. This was a short distance for a
sprint, but these one hundred meters were deadly grounds with no place to take
cover. If they didnt have either Rororo, Frost Pain Zenberu or Crusch, there was
no way they could had make it through. But they had come so far and the enemy
was within reach.

They overcame this distance.

Zaryusu was relieved to see Rororo being carried back to the village by the other
lizardmen. He then cursed himself for relaxing and glared at the undead.

Zaryusu admitted that it was a formidable opponent.

If he had not met it under such circumstances, Zaryusu would have definitely ran
away already. His instinct was telling him to escape just by seeing it face to face,
and even his tail was standing on ends. Zaryusu could see from the corner of his
eyes that Zenberu's and Cruschs tails had the same reaction.

The two of them must be thinking about the same thing as Zaryusu. Thats right
they were doing everything they could to suppress their urge to flee as they
faced the undead.

Zaryusu tapped the backs of the both of them with his tail.

The two of them looked at Zaryusu in surprise.

We can win if we work together.

That was all that Zaryusu said.

Thats right, we can win, Zaryusu.

Crusch stroked her back that was patted by Zaryusu and replied.

Hah, things are getting interesting!

Zenberu answered with an arrogant smile.

And the three of them covered the final stretch.

Eight meters apart.

Zaryusus group who had sprinted all this way was out of breath. In contrast, the
undead had no need for breath. The two groups locked eyes and the undead
spoke first.

I am the Lich serving the Supreme Being, Iguvua. If you forfeit now, I will grant
you a painless death.

Zaryusu couldnt help smiling. He could tell this undead named Iguvua knew
nothing at all.

No matter how you thought about it, there was only one answer.

Although Zaryusu was smiling, Iguvua didnt feel displeased and waited quietly
for an answer. Iguvua knew he was strong and was confident in disposing of
Zaryusus group. That was why he displayed the arrogance of the mighty, and
was even thankful for saving him the hassle of walking all the way.

Lets hear your answer.

Haha, you really need one

Zaryusu raised Frost Pain tightly; Zenberu lifted his fists and took a stance;
Crusch didnt do anything, as she felt the mana deep within her, prepared to cast
her spells any moment.

I will give you an answer then fat hope!

The Skeleton Warriors who judged the reply to be hostile raised their scimitars
and shielded their bodies.

Then die an excruciatingly painful death. You will regret rejecting my final offer
of mercy!

Thats what I want to say, go back to hell undead! Iguvua!

At this moment, the battle that would decide the outcome of this war began.

Zaryusu! Get him!

Zenberu who dashed out faster than anyone else stretched his giant arm and
attacked the Skeleton Warrior.

He didnt care when the Skeleton Warrior blocked it with its shield, using brute
force to press them back. The shield was dented, and the Skeleton Warrior
staggering back collided with the other Skeleton Warrior and lost its balance. At
the same time, Zenberu used his tail to swipe at another Skeleton Warrior, but
missed.

The formation of the Skeleton Warriors was broken and Zaryusu used this chance
to slip through.

Stop him!

Two Skeleton Warriors slashed at Zaryusu after hearing Iguvuas command.

It was possible for Zaryusu to dodge; he could also use Frost Pain to block if he
wanted to. But Zaryusu did neither of these. Dodging would mean he was slow,
Zaryusu didnt want to make any unnecessary moves in front of Iguvua.

And more importantly, someone already took care of it

Earth Bind!

The earth moved like whips, binding the two Skeletal Warriors. The whips made
from mud were like steel chains, restraining the movement of the two Skeleton
Warriors as Zaryusu charged into the gap in their formation.

Thats right Crusch was present too.

Zaryusu wasnt fighting alone, he just needed to trust his comrades.

Even Cruschs magic couldnt seal off their movements completely. The scimitars
of the Skeleton Warriors still grazed Zaryusu. But that was nothing, his boiling
blood made him impervious to this pain.

Zaryusu ran with brisk strides.

He charged at Iguvua who was pointing his finger at him. Even if he got hit by a
spell, Zaryusu had to endure it and charge the target. He moved with iron willed
determination.

Fools! Know true fear! Scare!

Zaryusus vision shook and he was confused about where he was. A strange
unease spread in his heart and he was paranoid about things around him
attacking him...

His legs was slowing down to a stop. Zaryusu was shaken mentally due to the
effect of the spell Scare and his legs was not responding to him. Even though his
mind was telling his legs to move, but his heart was stopping him.

Zaryusu! Lions Heart!

The moment Crusch shouted, his fear vanished instantly and his will gushed out
from within stronger than before. The magic that granted courage defeated his
fear.

Iguvua glared unhappily at Crusch and pointed a finger at her.

Annoying! Lightning!

Hyaa!

Crusch screamed.

Zaryusu who started running again was almost consumed by hatred, but got hold
of himself in the end. Hatred could be a good weapon sometimes, but in the face
of a powerful foe, it could get in the way instead. What he needed when fighting
a strong enemy was fiery heart and an ice cold mind.

Zaryusu would never turn his head.

Iguvua attacked Crusch just now, but that meant Zaryusu could use this chance
to close the distance. Dismay could be seen on Iguvuas face and it knew it made
a mistake. This reaction made Zaryusu, whose beloved female was harmed,
sneer mockingly.

Tch! Light

Too slow!

Frost Pain that sliced in from the side knocked away Iguvuas finger.

Ugh!

A warrior has reached you, magic caster! I will let you know your spells are
useless now!

The legendary mages aside, magic casters who were in melee range could be
stopped from casting their spells.

Even a powerful undead magic caster like Iguvua was no exception.

Zaryusu narrowed his eyes, he felt something was off. It felt strange when
Zaryusu slashed at Iguvua, he must have some defence against physical
weapons.

But he wasnt invulnerable. Thats right, if he had resistance against damage,

Zaryusu just needed to deal more damage.

What he needed to do was to keep on slashing.

Talk was simple, but doing that would be hard. Zaryusu knew that too. But that
was the only thing Zaryusu who was a mere warrior could do.

Dont look down on me, lizardman!

Three arrows of light suddenly flew towards Zaryusu from Iguvuas body. The
arrows of light that appeared without any preparatory actions or signs made
Zaryusu block them with his sword on reflex, but the magic arrows went through
the weapon and hit Zaryusus body, inflicting dull pain.

This was Silent Magic: Magic Arrow. Silent Magic didnt require any preparatory
actions, so it could not be disrupted from being casted. Not only that, Magic
Arrow was also a type of spell that could not be evaded, so Zaryusu couldnt
dodge it either.

Zaryusu gritted his teeth and cleaved at Iguvua with Frost Pain.

Ughh! Critters! You are just a mere lizardman!

Magic Arrow might be undodgeable, but its damage output was low too. For
someone who had gone through tough training like Zaryusu, he was not so weak
as to be rendered unable to fight from this bit of magic damage.

Magic Arrows struck Zaryusu once again, the pain pierced through his heart and
will. Zaryusu endured the excruciating pain and struck back.

After several exchanges, Zaryusus movements became dull. The sharp pain
prevented him from making agile movements, which was contrasted by the
undead who knew no pain.

Iguvua and Zaryusu who understood this point made entirely different
expressions.

The weak fall and the strong prevail, that was the natural law of the world. The
result of the one on one duel between the two was obvious. But it was also a fact
that the unity of the weak gave them a chance to fight on par with the strong.

Middle Cure Wounds!

Zaryusus pain disappeared with this voice and he regained his vitality once
again.

The calm Iguvua was angered by the healing spell that came from the back and
shouted:

Damn lizardmen!

Zaryusu was fighting together with companions he trusts. Crusch, Zenberu and

Rororo I will not lose!

Imbecile How could I, a creation of the Supreme Being lose?! How foolish!

Iguvua glared at the three lizardmen with his venomous eyes. He didnt use any
summoning magic as the undead he had summoned earlier were still around. As
long as those undead were still around, he could not raise new ones. Hence,
Iguvua continued casting Silent Magic: Magic Arrow while Zaryusu slashed away
at Iguvuas body this monotonous fight kept repeating.

It felt as though this battle would never end.

In that case, the duty of breaking this stalemate rests on the ones behind them.
When one side receives reinforcement, the match will be settled in an instant.

Both Zaryusu and Iguvua were sure about that.

Enduring the pain of the lightning attack coursing through her body, Crusch
pulled through and casted 3rd Tier Summon Beast.

With a dong, a giant crab about 150cm big appeared a crab with a large right
claw.

It appeared as if it had been waiting under the wetlands the entire time, but it
was actually a nature beast summoned by 3rd Tier Summon Beast.

The nature beast advanced to Zenberus side and hammered the Skeleton
Warrior with its oversized claw.

Zenberu who received unexpected reinforcement smiled. For Zenberu who had to
endure the attack coming from all sides and protect Crusch, he was glad to
receive help.

Hey! Strange crab! I will leave those two over there to you!

The crab who acknowledged its duty, the giant crab Snap Grasp, waved its
smaller claw and moved towards the Skeleton Warriors.

How should I put this The situation might be serious but the two of them are
so alike.

Crusch thought about something she shouldnt be thinking about at such a

moment and smiled. But she stopped her smile immediately and surveyed the
battle, regulating her breathing with deep breaths.

She had been casting defence buff and healing magic on Rororo when they
charged here. She had also casted support buffs on Zenberu, overextending
herself.

The consecutive use of spells and the summoning magic on top of that had
exhausted Crusch, she couldnt even stand steadily at this point.

She didnt even have the energy to spare to heal herself. Analyzing calmly,
Crusch concluded that her worth as a combatant was depreciating and healing
herself would be a waste of mana.

Even so, it would make Zaryusu and Zenberu who were fighting in the frontlines
uneasy if she was to fall. Blood dripped from the corner of Crusch's lips as she bit
the inside of her mouth to keep herself conscious.

Middle Cure Wounds!

The healing spell flew towards Zaryusu who was locked in melee combat with
Iguvua.

Her legs lost strength and her vision wavered. She could feel the sensation of
water all over her skin.

Crusch couldnt understand what was happening, why and when did she fall into
the mud.

But she understood immediately that she didnt suffer new wounds, so she
probably blacked out momentarily.

Crusch was relieved, not because she was still alive, but because she could still
fight.

She didnt force herself to stand. No, she didnt have the energy to do so, so she
decided to conserve her strength.

In her blurry field of vision, she could see Zaryusu and Zenberu fighting. The back
of her companions during their short time together. Zenberu who was fighting the
four skeleton warriors and Zaryusu who was enduring Iguvuas magic attacks
were covered with wounds.

Crusch adjusted her breathing and casted her spell.

Middle Cure Wounds!

She cured Zenberus injuries.

Middle Cure Wounds!

She healed Zaryusus wounds.

Huff, huff

Crusch panted hard.

But her breathing was still rugged, she felt the air wasnt coming in even though
she was breathing so hard.

This was probably the symptoms of mana exhaustion. She felt tremors of violent
headache. Even so, Crusch worked hard to open her eyes.

They had sacrificed so much for this battle, how could she be the first to retire
from the field.

Crusch used all her effort to open her eyes and chanted.

Middle Cure Wounds!

Zenberu bashed the skull of a Skeleton Warrior with his clenched fist. The
sensation of him making a slight dent turned into the feeling of the skull
shattering. And so, he killed off a Skeleton Warrior.

Thats the second one. Huff Hah.

He expelled the air from his body in an attempt to push the fatigue out along with
it, and glared at the remaining Skeleton Warriors. The crab summoned by Crusch
was nowhere to be found. Zenberu only managed to defeat the other two thanks
to it fending off two enemies.

He only hung on because of Cruschs support.

Two more to go. After that will be Iguvua.

Flexing his thick right arm, Zenberu confirmed that it could still move.

His left arm was wounded badly and couldnt exert power. Zenberu had used his
left arm as a shield a little too eagerly. He stared at his limp right arm.

Never mind, just think of it as giving them a handicap.

Zenberu glared at his annoying foes. He attempted to move his left arm, but the
pain coursing through his body was not what he expected from moving his
fingers.

This is nothing. A comrade continued charging even after its heads became
burdens. I, Zenberu, dont want to be mocked by them.

Zenberu understood how strong the Skeleton Warriors were after fighting them.
Two of them could fight Zenberu on par. Thats how strong they were.

If he took on four at the same time, chances of victory would be slim.

Thank you, giant crab. I will not eat mud crabs for a long time as thanks.

After offering thanks to his beloved food, Zenberu turned his killing intent
towards the two Skeleton Warriors closing in.

He clenched his fists.

I am still standing, I can still fight.

To be honest, Zenberu was surprised that he could still fight on.

Stop thinking about foolish things!

There only need to be one reason.

Zenberu mocked the past him.

Behind the Skeleton warriors was Zaryusus back. The figure that did not retreat a
single step while facing the powerful existence Iguvua.

That back is really broad

Really.

Zaryusu, Crusch and Rororo. We fought together all this time, thats why I can still
go on.

Hey hey Zaryusu, you are wounded all over. Arent you in worse shape than
when you fought me?

Zenberu sent a Skeleton Warrior flying with his large arm, and used his left arm to
block the scimitar of the other Skeleton Warrior.

But he failed to parry the sword, which made another wound in his abdomen.
That was the place Crusch had healed with magic.

Crusch is already shouldering a heavy burden, and now you do this.

He was healed by Cruschs healing spell once again and the wound mended
slowly. Zenberu didnt turn to look back, but her voice came from near the water
surface. It was easy to imagine what kind of posture she was in while casting the
spell. Even so, she didnt stop casting her magic.

... Thats a good woman.

If I ever get a wife, a woman like that would be great.

Zenberu who was thinking that felt envious of Zaryusu.

I dont want to be the first to fall and be the laughing stock.

Feinting with his large arm, he attacked with his tail. Zenberu laughed. I am older
than those two.

The two Skeleton Warriors hid their body behind shields and closed in. The
shields blocked the view of Zaryusu, evoking strong emotions from within
Zenberu.

Dont block the way! I cant see the back of the awesome man like this!

Zenberu roared and charged forth

Iguvua and Zaryusus even match was still continuing. Their faces were reflected
in each others eyes. Zaryusu saw that Iguvuas gaze diverted slightly away from
him. The undead poker face of Iguvua suddenly twisted horribly. What happened
next froze Zaryusus mind and body.

He heard the sound of water splashing behind him. Someone fell.

Look! Your companion is down!

He couldnt turn back. It might be true, it might be false. Thoughts that made his
scales stood on end also surfaced, but the enemy before him had overwhelming
strength. He didnt have the luxury of turning his head to find out. The moment
he turned his head, the fight would be over. Zaryusu didnt fight this long just to
lose for some stupid reason.

Zaryusu fought to secure victory firmly in his hand.

If Iguvua was telling the truth, it would be bad if he didnt dispose of the enemy
reinforcements soon.

Zaryusu was steeling himself to take the next magic attack when he heard the
sound of someone getting up from the water and bones cracking.

Zaryusu! We settled this side! The rest is up to you!!

Middle Cure Wounds!

Zenberu roared in great pain and the sound of him falling into the water reached
Zaryusu.

The moment Cruschs hoarse voice was heard, Zaryusus wounds got mended.

Muu!

Displeasure creased Iguvuas face. Without looking back, Zaryusu knew the two
of them completed their task perfectly. Whats left was

My turn!

Iguvua used his staff to parry Frost Pain that was coming at him.

Ku ku ku I am the Lich Iguvua, dont look down on me just because I am not

proficient in melee combat!

Although he said that, Iguvua could tell his chance of winning was low.

In a one on one fight, Iguvua could win with superior physical attributes. But the
white lizardman behind kept healing the lizardman before him, turning the tables
in terms of health left.

Only one out of three blows was deflected. The other two tore at Iguvuas body.
Even though he had resistance toward slashing weapons like skeletons and the
additional ice damage was negated, the situation was dire.

Iguvua was panicking.

I am the creation of the Supreme Being Ainz Ooal Gown, the commander of this
army. I can not fail!

He wanted to summon undead soldiers to act as meat shields, but Iguvua would
be attacked whenever he tried to cast spells. It was tough to do so with an enemy
right before his eyes.

He would lose if this went on.

Iguvua decided to show his final hand. It wasnt a great plan Depending on the
circumstances, this might doom him, but that was the only choice he had left.

He suddenly turned around and ran. While Zaryusu was surprised, but he still
took the chance to cleave at Iguvuas back. Iguvua who took a hit on the back
staggered, but did not fall. Zaryusu clicked his tongue at Iguvuas seemingly
endless health, and sprinted to catch up with Iguvua who was pulling away.

Iguvua turned back to show his undead face filled with wrath, but seemed to be
elated about something.

A red sphere of light appeared in Iguvuas hand. It was Fireball.

Using wide area spell at such a range? He wants to kill himself No!

Realizing Iguvua wasnt looking at him, Zaryusu was filled with fear. Iguvua was
looking behind Zaryusu. He was focusing on Crusch and Zenberu who were lying
on the ground.

What should I do!?

Zaryusu thought frantically.

This was a major lapse. He could give Iguvua the final blow by sacrificing the both
of them. If he didnt do that, there would be no telling how the battle would turn.
With both parties low on health, any mistake would be fatal.

To defeat Iguvua Didnt they fight through all this while in order to do that? So
many lizardmen had given their lives for this goal.

Then he should sacrifice the two of them. They will definitely forgive him with a
smile. If he was in their shoes, Zaryusu would want the other party to do so too.

Even so.

Zaryusu wasnt someone who would abandon the comrades fighting alongside
him.

Only one way was left Save the two of them and then destroy Iguvua.

Things were simple once he made up his mind.

Icy Burst!

Zaryusu created a barrier of cold air on the ground near his feet.

Gaarrgghh!

Zaryusus body was chilled by the cold air bursting forth, pain that could only be
described as intense spread through his entire being.

He glared at Iguvua with sharp eyes even though he was about to lose
consciousness. Zaryusu endured this numbing pain.

He couldnt help but scream despite his best efforts as the cold fog dominated
the surrounding.

The white cold air covered everything and Iguvua laughed sinisterly when his
scheme succeeded.

Ku ku, you could have won if you had abandoned your comrades.

Iguvua was completely immune to cold and electricity. He who was totally fine
inside the cold gush of air crushed the fireball spell in his hands. If he casted it,
it would collide with the white fog around Iguvua and cause an explosion.

He could deal the final blow to the other two after the fog dissipated. More
importantly, he needed to put down the lizardman that was still standing. As he
looked around, Iguvuas face scowled. He miscalculated something.

Well then, where is he?

This was a fog that concealed everything from sight.

Iguvua had the ability to see through the darkness with his eyes, but couldnt see
through objects that obscured his sight like this. He had no idea where the enemy
was.

But that wasnt a big problem. With how the lizardman was shrieking just now, he
seemed to have suffered great injuries. He shot out the cold air to counter the
fireball, so he must have suffered damage on the same level as taking a
fireball hit.

Suffering this injury on top of his already heavy wounds, it might had been fatal.
Whats left was to crush him slowly.

Leave this foggy place first?

After considering it, Iguvua decided not to.

If he moved now, he would be giving his position away.

The important thing was to summon undead guards. With a meat shield, victory
will be his even if that lizardman was still alive.

Iguvua who was about to cast his spell heard the sound of water rippling.

One of the four treasures of the lizardmen, Frost Pain.

A weapon made from ice extracted from the lake when it froze that one and only
time. It harboured three magical powers.

Number one, the sword was imbued with cold energy, dealing additional ice
damage to the enemy it attacks.

Number two, the powerful skill that could only be used thrice a day, Icy Burst.

Number three

The sound of air being sliced echoed out.

Before understanding what was happening, Iguvua saw the tip of a sharp object.

Iguvuas head was hit by a powerful strike.

The sword lodged into Iguvuas right eye rattled wildly. Iguvua who finally
understood what was happening screamed.

Hyaaa! Why! Why are you not dead!

Frost Pain pierced deep into Iguvuas right eye socket, he could feel his health
falling drastically

In front of Iguvua who was standing unsteadily with a sword lodged in his head
was Zaryusu who was covered in frost.

Iguvua couldnt understand why Zaryusu was still standing after taking such a
powerful ice attack.

The third ability of Frost Pain.

Granting the user with resistance to ice damage

Even though Frost Pain offered resistance to the cold, it couldnt completely
negate a powerful skill like Icy Burst. The damage from the cold chilled Zaryusu
to the bones. He was on the verge of collapsing, his breathing ragged and his
movement dulled. His tail drooped weakly into the water. It was almost
impossible to fight on when you even had difficulty just breathing. That strike
wasnt aimed carefully, but a blow thrown out by instinct using all his might.

It was a lucky hit.

Zaryusu struggled to keep his eyes open.

He gave everything he had to deal this final blow to Iguvua, and he could feel
that it was a fatal hit.

Zaryusu who had no energy left to fight looked at Iguvua with a glimmer of hope.

Iguvua was wavering. He couldnt keep his body intact as the skin fell off his face
and cracks appeared on his bones. Even his clothes were rotting away. It was a
matter of time before he would fade away. The moment Zaryusu was certain he
was victorious

A bony hand covered in skin grabbed Zaryusus throat.

I I am created to serve the Supreme Being How could I be vanquished like

this!

Iguvua wasnt even holding him with much force and Zaryusu could break free
easily, but

Ahhhh!

Zaryusu wailed as an intense pain permeated his entire body.

Negative energy flowed into Zaryusus body, robbing him of his vitality. Even
Zaryusu who was trained to endure pain couldnt withstand the feeling of the
pain caused by the cold that seemed to be injected directly into his veins.

Die! Lizardman!

Pieces of Iguvuas face had dropped off, disintegrating in mid air.

Iguvuas life was deteriorating as well, but his intense loyalty towards his master
made him cling on to life desperately.

Zaryusu was struggling with all he had, but he was overcome with fear as his
body refused to move as he wished.

Zaryusu didnt have much health left. The negative energy Iguvua was injecting
into him was draining his life force away.

Zaryusus gaze wavered and his vision blurred.

The world seemed to be covered by a thin fog.

Iguvua who was clinging to consciousness mightily had a victorious smile as he

watched Zaryusu slowly lose his strength to struggle.

Kill this lizardman, as well as the other two behind him. They should be the elite
of the lizardmen.

Killing these lizardmen would be the best gifts he could offer to the Supreme
Being his creator.

Iguvuas expression was depicting these emotions strongly without words,

allowing Zaryusu to surmise what Iguvua was thinking.

Go to hell!

His body was not reacting to him as he could feel his body temperature dropping
as if a poison was spreading through his body. He could hardly breathe, and his
mind was the only thing that was clear.

He couldnt die yet.

Rororo who sprinted with all its might.

Zenberu who shielded him.

Crusch who exhausted all her mana.

Not just them, he was also shouldering the burdens of all the lizardmen who had
sacrificed themselves in this war.

Zaryusu who was racking his brains for a way out heard a whisper.

The gentle voice of Crusch

The hearty voice of Zenberu

The playful whimpers of Rororo

Sound that should be impossible for him to hear.

Crusch had lost consciousness and Zenberu should be knocked out.

Rororo should had been taken far away from here.

Was Zaryusu hearing things as he loses consciousness? Imagining the voices of

the comrades he knew for less than a week? The call of his family?

No.

Thats right, this line of thinking was wrong.

Everyone was here with him

Ahhhh Ahhhhhh!

? You still have this much strength left?!

Zaryusu who was on the verge of losing his consciousness roared and the
surprised voice of Iguvua could be heard.

Zaryusu moved his eyeballs and glared at Iguvua. His eyes were filled with
indomitable will, making it hard to believe that his eyes were unfocused just
moments earlier, stiffening Iguvuas expression.

Crusch! Zenberu! Rororo!

! What are you doing! Just die!

Where did such vitality stem from? The huge amount of negative energy injected
into Zaryusu was draining his life force constantly. Zaryusu also felt that his limbs
were heavy and his body ice cold.

Even so, Zaryusu felt warmer with every name he shouted. This warmth didnt
originate from his life force.

It came from within his chest his heart.

The sound of muscle tensing erupted. It came from Zaryusus right arm, his
clenched fist. He was gathering all the strength he had left in it right now.

Impossible! How can you still move! You monster!

The scene of Zaryusu still moving despite all that was incredulous.

Heated emotion appeared in Iguvuas mind, but he suppressed it.

He was Iguvua, the field commander of Great Tomb of Nazarick's army. And more
importantly, he was an undead created by the great king of death Ainz Ooal
Gown.

He cannot permit his powerful self to lose this fight

Die!

Its over you monster!

Zaryusu was a step faster.

Thats right, his strike with all his might was an instant faster than Iguvuas
injection of negative energy

The tightly clenched fist hit the hilt of Frost Pain

Zaryusus fist bled. After taking such a heavy blow, Frost Pain that was lodged
into the left eye pierced all the way through Iguvuas brain.

Oooowwwwww!!

Iguvua was an undead that couldnt feel pain, but he could still feel his
negative life dissipating.

This this impossible Ainz sama

Iguvuas eyes reflected his understanding of what failure was. When Zaryusus
body fell like a puppet with its strings cut, a huge splash could be heard

... Please Please Forgive me

Iguvuas body fell as he apologized to his master.

The room was silent. The scene reflected in the mirror was unbelievable and no
one said a word. Except for the maid Entoma.

Cocytus-sama, Ainz-sama has summoned you.

Understood.

Cocytus who had lowered his head turned slowly to face Entoma.

Basked in the worried gaze of his subordinate, he gritted his teeth in shame.

At the same time, he wanted to compliment the lizardmen.

A magnificent battle.

They turned the impossible possible and achieved a turnabout victory. The Lich
did have some lapses, but it was more than capable of winning the battle despite
that.

... Spectacular. Absolutely spectacular.

Cocytus kept repeating this phrase which reflected how he actually felt.

The lizardmen overcame this huge obstacle.

... A pity.

Cocytus sighed as he watched the lizardmen cheering and dancing in celebration.

The warriors reflected in the mirror might be weak, but it stimulated Cocytus
fighting spirit.

Ah What a pity

Cocytus hesitated. He picked the worse scenario he could think of, thought about
it and made his conclusion.

Let us be off.

Part 6

Zaryusu felt his body being lifted out from the darkness, it was really
comfortable.

Opening his eyes, a blurry world greeted him, similar to the one he sees
whenever he wakes up.

Where am I? Why am I sleeping here?

He had many questions, and at the same time realized a weight pressing down
on him.

White.

Zaryusu stared at that white colour, that was the first word that came to mind in
his sleepy mind. As he became more wake away, he understood what that was.

That was Crusch. She was sleeping on top of him.

Ah

I survived.

Zaryusu felt relieved and almost said that out loud, but held it in. He couldnt
bear waking Crusch who was still sleeping, suppressing his urge to touch her.
Even though her scales were beautiful, he couldnt caress the scales of a female
lizardman so thoughtlessly.

Zaryusu pushed the thought of Crusch out of his mind and thought about other
things.

There were many things he needed to consider.

First of all, why was he here.

Searching his memory, he tried recalling what happened. After seeing the
destruction of Iguvua, his consciousness was cut off. He wasnt captured and was
still lying here, meaning his tribe probably won the war.

To avoid waking Crusch, Zaryusu sighed softly. He felt the burden he shouldered
recently lightened. But thinking over it calmly, there were still some worries. They
still didnt know about the enemy or what their goal was, there was a high chance
their foes will strike again No, they will definitely do so.

He allowed his mind to rest. Zaryusu felt the warmth from Cruschs body and
sighed again.

After this, Zaryusu lightly moved his body. His entire body could move with no
problems. He thought he might be maimed, but luckily he was fine.

Zaryusu remembered his brothers in arms. Aside from Crusch, there was nobody
else here. What happened to Zenberu? He was uneasy, but was quite sure a
powerful lizardman like Zenberu would be fine.

Crusch seemed to be waken by Zaryusus movement and stirred, as if a soul had

been injected into her supple body. She should be waking soon.

Hmm

Crusch made a cute sound and moved her dazed eyes to look around her. Shortly
after, she noticed Zaryusu under her and smiled happily.

Muu

Crusch who was still half asleep hugged Zaryusu and grinded against him. Just
like an animal wanting to leave her scent behind.

Zaryusu stiffened, allowing Crusch to grind as she pleased. An evil thought I

didnt do anything surfaced from a corner of his mind.

The white and smooth scales were smooth and comfortable, emitting an alluring
fragrance of herbs.

It should be fine to hug her back right?

When he couldnt stand it any longer, Cruschs eyes focused and looked at
Zaryusu right in the eye.

And froze instantly.

Facing Crusch who didnt move while hugging him, Zaryusu wondered what he
should say. In the end, he chose something he thought would not be a problem.

 Can I hug you too?

It only seemed okay because his heated passion got into his head.

Crusch made an intimidating cry and her tail thrashed around. She then rolled
away from Zaryusu until she hit the wall.

He could hear Crusch who was lying prone saying Stupid, stupid, I am stupid.

... Well, I am glad you are safe, Crusch.

These words allowed Crusch to regain her composure but her tail still kept on
thrashing about Lifting her head, she smiled at Zaryusu.

You too, its great that you are fine.

Seeing Cruschs gentle face, Zaryusu had lewd thoughts, but suppressed it and
asked a proper question.

Do you know what happened after I blacked out?

Yeah, more or less. After you defeated Iguvua, the enemy retreated. Your brother
also defeated the monsters and saved the three of us That was yesterday.

Zenberu isnt here

He is fine. He had stronger recovery speed than you and regained consciousness
after receiving healing spells. He should be settling the aftermath of the battle. I
seemed to have blacked out from exhaustion after hearing all that

Crusch got up and sat down beside Zaryusu. Zaryusu wanted to get up too, but
Crusch stopped him.

Dont push yourself, you have the most serious injuries out of us all.

She was probably recalling the scene that time as her voice grew softer.

Its great that you are okay, really great

Zaryusu caressed Crusch who was looking down and consoled her.

I will not die before hearing your answer. I am worried about you too.

Answer. This term stopped their movements.

They didnt say anything as the room fell into darkness, and their heartbeat
almost seemed to be audible.

Crusch moved her tail slowly, tangling Zaryusus tail. The black and white tail
entangling together looked just like two snakes mating.

Zaryusu looked at Crusch quietly, and Crusch was looking at him too, their
reflection could be seen in each others eyes.

Zaryusu uttered something softly. No, it wasnt words, but a cry. That was the cry
he uttered when he first met Crusch.

A mating call.

Zaryusu didnt do anything after the cry. No, he couldnt do anything except
letting his heart beat intensely.

Moments later, Crusch made the same sound a cry. The same emotional cry
while shaking her tail, that was the cry to accept the mating call.

An indescribably seductive expression appeared on Cruschs face, Zaryusu could

no longer pull his eyes away from Crusch. Crusch pushed herself onto Zaryusu,
the position was similar to the one they had while sleeping.

There was almost no distance between their faces, their warm breathing mixed
together, their heartbeat synchronized through their chests that were touching,
and two of them became one

Oh! Getting busy!?

The door was opened strongly and Zenberu charged in.

Crusch and Zaryusu froze like ice sculptures.

Zenberu looked at the two of them in confusion at Crusch who was riding on
Zaryusu. He tilted his head and asked.

What, you havent started yet?

They understood what Zenberu was saying and silently moved away from each
other and stood up, approaching Zenberu without a word.

Zenberu looked down at the two of them confusedly and leaned forward.

Gahhhh!

He took two punches to the stomach. After exhaling, Zenberus giant body
collapsed onto the floor.

Wooo... What powerful punches especially Crusch Gahh that really

hurts

Leaving Zaryusu aside, the punch of wrath from the female lizardman could even
win against Zenberu. That wasnt enough to vent their anger, but no matter how
much they beat Zenberu up, that atmosphere would never come back.

They held each others hand It was a strange substitute for beating Zenberu
up. Zaryusu asked Zenberu one thing to ease his worries.

Forget about that for now, I have questions for you. I heard some of it from
Crusch, but could you tell me what is the situation right now?

Zenberu didnt care about the two of them holding hands and answered:

Dont you know? All the tribes are having a victory party.

My older brother is hosting the party?

Thats right. Anyway, the hunters scouted the region and did not find any signs
of the enemy, and no traces of reinforcement or ambush. It would be difficult to
hide such a large army. We are still on alert, but your brother has already
declared victory. I am here on your brothers orders.

My brothers orders?

Yes, your brother said Shahaha, just let the two of them sleep together. They
might already be getting it on, shahaha. Its a bit embarrassing to interrupt, but I
am curious, shahaha.

Dont bullshit! Whats with the shahaha?

Oh There wasnt any shahaha

Theres no way my brother will laugh like that, really

I am just expressing it more vividly

You are the worst.

A chill that could match 'Icy Burst' came out from Cruschs mouth along with
these words. That frightening voice even gave Zaryusu goosebumps. Zenberu
who was being lectured shivered and stiffened.

So, why are you here?

Ermm, I am here to disrupt

If you dare say you are here to be the third wheel, I will let you taste all the
magic that you can think of.

Zaryusu and Zenberu were pretty sure that Crusch wasnt joking.

Eh I am here to invite you guys to join the party. We are the key figures in this
victory, right? We cant miss the party. And we need to discuss about the future
of the lizardmen too

I see

After hearing Zenberus roundabout explanation, Zaryusu smiled wryly after

catching on what he wanted to say. Zenberu meant to say: There might be
another battle, now was the time to display their strength.

I got it, are you going too, Crusch?

The unhappy Crusch puffed her cheeks, looking just like a Delmas frog residing in
the wetlands. But Zaryusu thought she was much cuter.

So, are we going?

Zenberu casually asked Zaryusu and Crusch who were looking into each other's
eyes.

Ah Yeah, you are right, lets go.

After the two of them acknowledged, the trio walked out together. When they
walked down the stairs and stepped into the wetlands, Zaryusu suddenly
disappeared from Crusch and Zenberus view. Something large suddenly knocked
Zaryusu down.

Bang voom voom splash.

Thats roughly how it sounded like.

Zaryusu disappeared from their view, and was replaced by Rororos figure. Its
four heads twisted around energetically, pushing their noses at Zaryusu who had
fell into the wetlands.

Rororo! You are alright!

Zaryusu who was covered in mud stood up and walked up to Rororo, gently
caressing its body and observed it. It seemed to have received magical
treatment, all its burn wounds from before had been healed, it was as if it was
never hurt in the first place.

Rororo whimpered as it entangled Zaryusu with all of its heads, almost covering
Zaryusu completely in its tight embrace.

Hey hey hey, stop that, Rororo.

Zaryusu laughed as he restrained Rororo with his voice. Rororo only cried happily,
but didnt let go.

Splash splash splash.

Zaryusu suddenly heard this rhythmic sound of water splashes, and was baffled
when he found the source.

It was Crusch. She was watching Zaryusu and Rororo with a gentle smile, but her
tail was hitting the wetlands with a fixed rhythm.

Zenberu who was standing beside Crusch shuffled away slowly with a stiff
expression.

Rororo stopped moving too. It probably sensed that something was wrong.

What is it?

No, its nothing

Zaryusu looked at Crusch who asked him the question and was confused. No
matter how he looked at it, Crusch was smiling and happy that Zaryusu and
Rororo were reunited. But somehow, it gave him a chilling feeling.

How strange

Crusch smiled again.

Rororo released Zaryusu and he regained his freedom. Zenberu seemed to be

fearful of something. Zenberu probably couldnt stand this strange atmosphere
anymore and changed the topic in a hurry.

Alright Rororo, you and I will move on ahead.

Of course, Rororo couldnt understand the language of the lizardmen, but it

obediently allowed Zenberu to mount it and ran off with amazing speed.

After those two had left, a strange atmosphere fell between Zaryusu and Crusch.

Crusch hugged her head as she shaked it.

Ah~ really, what am I doing. It feels like my heart isnt my own. Even though it is
irrational, I couldnt help myself. This is like a curse.

Zaryusu understood how she felt. Because he felt the same way when he met
Crusch for the first time too.

To be honest, Crusch I am very happy.

What!?

Splash, a loud sound of water erupted. Zaryusu then moved to Cruschs side.

Listen, can you hear it?

Hmmm?

The things we successfully defended are also the things we have to protect from
now on.

Sounds of rowdy laughter were carried here with the wind, they should be holding
a banquet right now. The banquet was meant to bid farewell to the ancestors,
celebrate their victory and to mourn the dead.

Wine was originally an expensive luxury. But they managed to have several
banquets thanks to Zenberus tribe bringing one of the four treasures that
supplied unlimited wine. And because all of the tribes were gathered here, they
could enjoy this unbelievably joyous atmosphere.

Zaryusu listened to the joyous cheers and said to Crusch with a smile:

This might not be over yet, that Supreme One person might still attack, but even
so we should relax for today.

Zaryusu then put his hands on Cruschs waist.

Crusch followed the flow and stuck onto Zaryusu, resting her head on Zaryusus
shoulder.

Shall we go?

Yeah Crusch answered and after hesitating for a moment, she called out:...
My darling.

The two lizardmen walked together, disappearing into the noisy crowd

CHAPT
ER 4

Part 1

Cocytus treaded with extremely heavy footsteps towards the Throne Hall. As if
they were affected by a contagion, the servants following behind him likewise
had footsteps which were slow and heavy.

The reason for these heavy footsteps was because of the defeat they had
swallowed as a result of the war against the lizardmen. As the commander of the
glorious Nazarick army, he had allowed failure to stain its reputation.

Sure, being created as a warrior, Cocytus himself held a lot of respect for
outstanding warriors like the lizardmen.

However, this was a completely different matter.

Nazarick does not tolerate failure. Furthermore, this instance was not a defensive
battle like those in the past, but was the first expedition. Anyone who was
decorated with defeat in their first battle could not possibly be in a positive
mood.

Recalling Demiurge's words, the army assigned to this task had been weak
indeed, but was just an excuse. Even if there is a possibility his master planned
for the expedition to fail from the very beginning.

Eventually, the Throne Hall lay ahead, and the room just before it, named
Solomons Gate, was already within eyesight. As such, the closer they became,
the heavier their footsteps became, as if they were under the influence of some
kind of magic effect.

Even if he were to be blamed by the master, it would not matter. Even if he were
to be killed, or ordered to commit suicide, he had already mentally prepared
himself for any action necessary in order to wash off this shame.

What Cocytus feared the most, was disappointing his master.

If the last remaining Supreme Being were to abandon him, what would he do?

Cocytus thought of himself as a sword, one which was in the hands of the master
and would obediently slice anything when ordered. That was why, being
considered useless or ineffective by the master was the most terrifying.

Not only that, if the other Guardians were to be given up on for the sake of
shared responsibility, Cocytus would not know how to face them.

There is no way this will be forgiven, if it turns out to be severe to that degree.
Even if I were to offer up my life, it would still not be enough for forgiveness.

Furthermore...

If the master became disappointed because of this, and left this place just like
the other Supreme Beings, what then...?

Cocytus shuddered. Being someone who had complete immunity to coldness, the
cause of the shudder was of course not from external factors but from within. He
was under such considerable mental stress and torment that, if he were human,
he would have easily been at the brink of puking.

No, that will not happen. Ainz-sama definitely cannot give up on us.

The last Supreme Being in this great tomb, where all the others had already left.

Even if he was the individual of highest authority, he was also everybodys

supporting pillar.

Therefore, how could such a kind hearted liege give up on us - he comforted

himself with these words, but deep down, he still harboured some uncertainty
over events to transpire which could not possibly happen.

They arrived at Solomons Gate.

Normally, apart from the golems and crystal monsters which guarded the
surroundings, this room would be devoid of any person. Right now however, there
were many figures. Specifically, these were four Floor Guardians - Demiurge,
Aura, Mare, and Shalltear. In addition, the four had brought along their chosen
highest ranking servants.

The spectators all had their eyes on Cocytus. Guilt allowed a look of panic to
momentarily flash across his face.

Because he felt that everyone was pointing the finger of blame on his failure. No,
Cocytus felt that perhaps everyone was blaming themselves. His thoughts from
before once again crossed his mind. Would everybody harbour the same kind of
thoughts?

Looking closer, he saw that self-blame was silently floating in everybodys eyes.

My apologies, I have arrived late. Even Demiurge who was outside arrived
earlier than I did.

Not at all, not at all. No need to apologise for such a small matter.

Demiurge replied on behalf of everybody.

His voice was no different from his usual tone, with no negative emotions
detectable. However, Demiurge was a Guardian specialised in strategy, extensive
control of emotions and concealing inner thoughts, therefore it was impossible to
determine whether or not he felt any displeasure.
Therefore when taking this into account, Demiurges earlier outburst during his
observation of the fight between Ainz and Shalltear was a rare sight. Although,
that display also went to show how much of a loyal heart he possessed.

The other Guardians have already been informed of the matter. This time let me
substitute for Albedo as the representative of the Guardians, does anyone else
have anything they wish to discuss regarding this?

No, there are no issues with you taking on this responsibility.

Albedo was currently substituting Sebas role in serving the master, and as such
was not on site.

Thats great. Then, after the final person has arrived, let us head to the Throne
Hall together. However, since Albedo is not present, I would like to first discuss
the order in which we are to pay homage. Ordinarily we would have a practice
beforehand, but we have no time for that, therefore we shall omit it this time.
There will only be verbal instruction, therefore listen carefully everybody.

Each Guardian and servant expressed their understanding. Cocytus, who had
similarly responded, did have one query. All of the Guardians were already
present, therefore who were they waiting for?

However, that persons arrival immediately answered his question.

Cocytus suddenly detected a living being headed towards this place.

Looking in that direction, he discovered an alien-shaped creature floating in mid

air heading straight towards Solomons Gate.

The outer appearance was that of a fetus. No, it would be better described as an
embryo. It had a tail, and its body was an extremely bright pink colour. Above its
head was a halo and on its back was a pair of featherless stick-like wings. This
alien was roughly one meter in size, and was slowly moving forward.

That is?

Demiurge replied to Auras question.

This is Victim, Guardian of the Eighth Floor.

So that is Victim

Victim turned a circle after arriving at Solomons Gate. Cocytus felt that he was
surveying the surroundings.

Victim did not have a neck, therefore to survey his surroundings it was necessary
for him to turn his entire body.

Uoy tresed dna dnuora nur annog reven ,nwod uoy tel annog reven ,pu uoy evig
annog reven [How do you do, I am Victim.] (TL: Victims language sounds like
gibberish to the ordinary reader)

Demiurge was completely unfazed by Victims strange method of speaking, and

responded on behalf of everybody:

Welcome, Victim. I am Demiurge, substituting as representative for Albedo for

the first time.

ssa latem ynihs ym etiB. [I have heard about this matter from Ainz-sama.]

After speaking, Victim turned his body one full circle and once again sized
everyone up.

smaeb leets tlem t'nac leuf teJ [I have also heard about everybodys reputation,
therefore let us kindly spare with introducing ourselves.]

I see, understood. Then since everybody has arrived, let us clarify what we were
discussing earlier.
Everybody listened attentively to Demiurges explanation, because in a moment
they would be paying a visit to Ainz-sama, the integration of all of the Supreme
Beings, at the heart of the Great Tomb of Nazaricks heart. If there was even a
slight mistake, surely the only acceptable apology would be through death.

After the explanation and a quick moment for everyone to digest what was said,
under Demiurges lead the Guardians brought along their servants and entered
the Throne Hall.

As they entered, Cocytus, who had only been in this room a handful of times
before, felt incomparable joy.

Exquisite architecture, as well as the flags representing the Supreme Beings, and
also the World class items placed in the deepest part of the room. This room was
truly worthy of being hailed as the heart of Nazarick. It was an eye-catching sight,
causing any person to momentarily forget their internal torments.

The Guardians left their servants behind along the way and assembled
themselves in a row as they arrived before the steps below the throne. Following
this, they faced the guild symbol of Ainz Ooal Gown hung on the wall and saluted,
expressing their own respect and loyalty.

Afterwards, they all got down and knelt on one knee, with their heads inclined
downwards, and silently awaited for their master to arrive.

Before long, the heavy sound of doors being opened resounded from behind, and
single pair of footsteps was heard entering into the large room. Without having to
look backwards, they knew that those footsteps did not belong to their master,
because the master of the Great Tomb of Nazarick could not possibly make his
entrance by himself.

All hail the arrival of the most Supreme Being of the Great Tomb of Nazarick,
Ainz Ooal Gown-sama, and also Overseer of the Guardians, Albedo-sama.

That was battlemaid Yuri Alphas voice.

Once again the doors made a sound as they were opened, bringing along the
crisp sound made by shoes and the repeated sound of a staff striking the floor.
From behind those sounds there was also the sound made by someone walking in
high-heels.

In general, when the master entered a room, those inside ought to bow in order
to demonstrate their sincere respect, but then everybody at the scene did not
make any salute at all. This was because they had long already demonstrated
their most sincere respects.

However, only Cocytus was different.

Being completely occupied with his internal anxiety caused him to involuntarily
make an external movement. The movement was actually extremely slight, but in
this kind of situation it had a great impact on the atmosphere.

Through a special ability, Cocytus detected that the other Guardians had directed
their attentions towards him. Despite working hard to suppress her anger,
Albedo, who was walking behind the master, failed to conceal it. However in this
kind of situation, nobody dared to speak out.

The footsteps slowly passed by the row of Guardians, and the sound of stairs
being climbed and the throne being sat on could be heard. After this, Albedos
voice loudly rang out in the room.

Everybody please raise your heads to gaze upon the noble presence of Ainz Ooal
Gown-sama.

All of the spectators simultaneously raised their heads to look at the master who
was seated on the throne, their movements producing a brushing sound made by
friction.

Cocytus also raised his head immediately.

With the staff clasped in his hand symbolising the status of a ruler, an eerily
frightening aura wrapped around his entire body, and exuding mysterious dark
rays from behind his back, this was indeed the Supreme Being of The Great Tomb
of Nazarick Ainz Ooal Gown.
After Albedo, who was standing beside Ainz, inspected all of the Guardians at the
foot of the stairs including Cocytus, she nodded in satisfaction then turned to
face Ainz.

Ainz-sama, the Guardians of Nazarick have all gathered before you. Please give
us our commands.

After Ainz gave a low Un sound of agreement, he struck the ground heavily with
the staff in his hand. This attracted the gazes of everybody, and he slowly
opened his mouth to speak:

Welcome, all of you Guardians before me. First, allow me to express my thanks.
Demiurge!

Yes!

Every time an issue arises, you get called upon. Youve worked hard, thank you
for your dedication.

Oh, oh, your words are too kind, Ainz-sama! I am your servant, therefore when
called upon I must of course immediately respond duly. This is to be expected.

Demiurge was delighted to the point that he was slightly shaking as he made a
deep bow.

Is that so. Right, have any suspicious individuals appeared on your side?

None. I have taken special care in my preparations. If any person gets close, he
or she should be very easy to detect

... That is good. However, above everything else you must not slip into laxity
during the preparations. This is because the opponent may have some methods
inconceivable to us. Apart from that, the skin that you have given to me
according to the conclusion of the Chief Librarian, this can be used to
manufacture low rank scrolls. Is there a method to provide a steady supply of
such?
Yes! There will be no problems at all. We have already accumulated a relatively
adequate amount.

I see then, what is the name of the wild beast?

Wild beast? Ha! About the kind of creature that Ainz-sama is referring to

Demiurge deliberated for a brief moment, then continued with his reply.

They are two-legged sheep from the Theocracy. How would you feel about
naming them Bellion sheep?

Demiurges elated tone caused some confusion in Cocytus. Basically, Demiurge

was a good-tempered, even gentle, person. However, he was only like this to his

comrades who were likewise created by Supreme Beings. To others, he was an

extremely cruel person.

Under his superficial display of good mood, it was possible to have a brief
glimpse of his cruel personality. Although Demiurges deep malice was directed
towards the wild beasts which were the topic of discussion earlier, would he use
such an attitude to talk about beings which lacked sentience?

Judging on the basis of Demiurges personality, something felt out of place.

However, the current situation rendered it inappropriate to raise this issue with
him.

So thats what it is sheep.

Ainzs words carried a slightly pleased intonation, causing Demiurge and Albedo
to break into smiles.

Although I would prefer to call them mountain goats but that name is also
satisfactory. Well then, please continue to graft those sheep for their skin will
excessive capturing have an impact on the ecosystem?
There should not be. Furthermore, with just the use of healing magic, we are
able to immediately repeat the grafting process. That is why as long as the
supply required to be produced is not large, it will not be necessary to carry out a
large scale capture. All of this is the result of our outstanding tormentors hard
work.

Eh? If healing magic is used, wont the part that was cut off disappear?

About this issue there is one thing that we now understand through our
healing experiments. If, before we apply healing magic, we merely allow that part
to undergo a significant change in shape for example mincing the flesh then
that fleshy body will effectively be preserved. That means to say, if magic is cast
after the skin has been removed, healing magic will effectively recognise it as a
foreign entity, therefore it will not disappear even when healing magic is applied.
This is also the reason why they would not die starve even if they ate the meat.
In addition, although this may count as outside the topic, if one aspect of healing
magic is rejected by another aspect of healing magic, sometimes it is as if it
cannot operate smoothly and results in a scar. Likewise, the lower the rank, the
more likely it is that scars will form due to time lapse.

So thats how it is magic is powerful very well, continue with your progress.

As you command. Henceforth I will proceed with conducting trials according to

age and gender. With time, I feel that I will know whether or not a certain species
of a certain ages skin is the most suitable.

Regarding this hand the responsibility of this part over to the Chief Librarian.
Victim is next.

snaem ti kniht uoy tahw snaem ti kniht ton od I .drow taht gnisu peek uoY. [Yes,
Ainz-sama]

There is only one reason for summoning you here. If an inconceivable event
were to occur, your special skill will be required for the protection of me and the
other Guardians sorry about that. I promise that I will immediately assist with
your reincarnation, my apologies in advance.

siht naht reggib semit eerht tsael ta eb ot sah gnidliub ehT ?stna rof retnec A ?
siht si tahW [Demiurge had already told me, please do not worry, Ainz-sama. I
am also the servant of Ainz-sama. Furthermore, my death is my raison d'tre. If
this modest ability of mine is able to assist the Supreme Being, I would be joyful
beyond compare.]

Is that so please forgive me.

Seeing the Supreme Being lower his head, Victim exclaimed:

sihT ekaT !enolA oG oT suoregnaD s'tI [This humble one would not dare!]

When encountering an extraordinary situation, in order to prevent the opponent

from escaping we may even have to kill you. Even if you are cooperative after
accepting this, we would like you to know that we wont be killing you because of
anything personal. Although you are also one of my precious children, and I wish
not to cause you any harm, if we allow an enemy we do not fully comprehend to
escape, we may experience a disastrous end, that is why

tihs suoires emos ees annog er'uoy ...ruoh rep selim 88 stih ybab siht nehw
,tcerroc era snoitaluclac ym fI [Please say no more, Ainz-sama. I fully understand
your feelings]

In Nazarick, some mechanisms are used by uttering a single phrase. Although it

is borrowed from the Gospel, that phrase is [Giving up ones life for friends is the
greatest love of all]. This phrase directly refers to you; thank you for your love.

Ainzs gaze shifted from the Guardian who would die for his loyalty to the other
Guardians.

Next is Shalltear.

Not expecting to be called upon, Shalltears shoulders gave a startled jump, and
her response was in an abnormally high pitched voice.

Yesyes!

... Come over here.

Because unlike the other Guardians, only she was called to the masters side,
Shalltear was surprised and stood up in a flurry of panic. From her back, one
could see that she was evidently unsettled, similar to someone who was about to
be sent up to the chopping block. However, she still stood up attentively, as if the
glory she desired was over there.

After Shalltear climbed up the stairs, she immediately got down on one knee at a
short distance from the throne.

Shalltear, I wish to talk about the matter which has been disturbing you.

Just by hearing these words, Shalltear immediately understood what the master
was referring to, and her face turned into a look of shame.

Ah! Ainz-sama! About that matter, please give me my punishment! Even if I was
clearly a Guardian, I still carried out such a grave sin so stupidly, please give me
the most severe punishment!

Shalltears pained voice echoed around the Throne Hall, and Cocytus was
exceptionally able to relate to her feelings. No, any Guardian and all fellow
creations of the Supreme Beings were able to.

Even if they came under the effect of mind control, they would be unable to
forgive themselves, who had turned their Supreme Being into an enemy.

Is that so then, Shalltear, come over here.

Seeing the masters hand beckoning towards her, Shalltear slowly crawled
towards the throne.

To Shalltear who had hung her head upon arriving before the throne, Ainz
reached out with his bony hand and warmly stroked her head.

Ai-Ainz-sama....

Almost frightened to pieces, Shalltear cautiously raised her head and let out a
small voice.

... The failure that time was my miscalculation, even more so because the
opposition possessed a World Class item, therefore things were looking south
from the very outset. Shalltear I love all of you who are loyal to Nazarick, all of
you who were created from scratch. Of course, this also includes you. You who
wishes for me to impose a severe punishment for something you are not guilty of,
how could I do such a thing?

It was as if the master shifted his eyesight out of sadness. Cocytus had no means
of knowing which direction the master had shifted his gaze, but it did seem like
the master had slightly opened his mouth. The masters face was completely
skeletal and lacked lips, therefore it was impossible to determine this from the
shape of his mouth, but the master should have spoken a name.

Oh, Ainz-sama! You actually said that you love me!

Shalltears emotion-filled voice resounded across the entire room.

Because he was behind Shalltear, Cocytus could not see her face. However,
everything was evident from her reaction. Her voice was choked with tears and
her shoulders were shaking.

It was possible to see the masters other hand warmly caressing Shalltears face,
and his hand even held a white handkerchief.

All right, all right, Shalltear, stop crying. This would ruin your pretty face.

Shalltear stayed silent, merely placing her face probably her lips upon the
back of the hand that was just now stroking her hair.

Both Mare and Aura were already in tears.

Demiurge also slightly rubbed the corner of his eyes. Cocytus was a bit envious of
those who were able to shed tears, and once again turned to look at the back of
his companion who had pledged loyalty for life.

The thing that Shalltear was the most terrified about was probably the case
where the last remaining and kind Supreme Being had given up on the useless,
troublesome and disloyal her.

However, the master had shattered this source of concern.

Shattering it by using the word Love.

How much joy did Shalltear feel inside? He, Cocytus, who stood on a similar
platform as her no he who stood on a platform that was slightly worse off
than hers, could only carry unparalleled envy in his gaze as he silently looked at
her figure from behind.

Then, Shalltear, you can step

Ainz-sama.

A cold voice interrupted the masters speech. This disrespectful act caused
Cocytus to angrily stare daggers at Albedo. Following this, he felt his feelings
jump into turmoil, and an unsettling feeling arose inside of him.

Reward and punishment is a natural part of common sense. I still feel that it is
necessary to hand out some form of punishment.

... Albedo, about my decision, are you not

The masters words stopped halfway. Cocytus had no idea why kind of reason
would cause the master to halt his response. The last speech should have settled
the issue with Shalltear.

Ainz-sama, I also support Albedos opinion. Please serve a punishment upon me.
This will also allow me to achieve joy out of loyalty.

... I understand. Let us leave the determination of your punishment for a later
time. Step down.

Yes, Ainz-sama.

Shalltears originally red eyes had turned even redder as she walked down the
stairs and returned to her place and reassumed a respectful posture.

Afterwards

Cocytus, Ainz-sama has a few words for you. Listen carefully.

A cold chill crawled down his spine.

It was finally his turn.

Cocytus hung his head incredibly low. When attending to the master, this kind of
posture which only allowed him to gaze at the floor did indeed demonstrate an
attitude of ultimate respect. However, Cocytus was like this because he lacked
the courage to look straight at the masters eyes.

I have already seen your battle with the lizardmen, Cocytus.

Yes!

It resulted in a defeat.

Yes! This instance was my failure, for which I offer my extreme apologies. Please
also punish me

Cocytus admission and apology was stopped by the sound of a staff striking the
floor. Afterwards, Albedos cold voice immediately stimulated the hearing sensory
organs.

Your attitude towards Ainz-sama is too disrespectful, Cocytus. If you wish to

apologise, then do so with your head raised.

Disrespectful!

He raised his head and looked up at his master who was seated on the throne.

Cocytus, as a defeated general, do you have any words you wish to say? This
time you did not personally enter the front lines and only commanded from the
back lines. What are your thoughts?

Yes, I was in charge of the military power. Since despite that I was unable to
obtain victory, and furthermore even lost Ainz-samas personally created Lich
Commander, I am truly, extremely sorry!

Eh? Ah, there is no pity in losing that kind of disposable undead, dont let this
bother you. Cocytus, what I meant to ask about was your thoughts about warring
with an army. Do treat this as the main purpose in your reply; I do not intend to
blame you for this defeat.

All of the Guardians and all of the servants standing behind them awaiting orders
were thoroughly confused. All except for Demiurge and Albedo.
Oh! As it turns out, Demiurge was correct!

Cocytus felt that the master was about to continue speaking, and frantically
pieced together his thoughts.

Because it was destined to be a defeat no matter who was in charge. Even if it

were me.

A brief wry laughter resounded throughout the Throne Hall. For the Supreme
Being, Ainz Ooal Gown, how was defeat possible? In fact, up until this point he
had never experienced failure. With that in mind, what was said was nothing
more than comforting words for Cocytus.

However, the question is whether or not we have obtained anything from that
battle. Cocytus, I now rephrase my question. What do you think needs to be done
to obtain victory this time in battle?

Cocytus began his thought analysis silently. The present him knew what was
needed for a victory, therefore he blurted out what he was missing.

I underestimated the lizardmen too much. It is only prudent to be more cautious

with my actions.

Yes, that is precisely it! No matter how weak the opponent is, they cannot be
underestimated and Narberal should also be allowed to observe this battle.
What else?

Yes, there was also insufficient information. From this battle I now understand
that in a situation where I am unfamiliar with the opponents extent of strength
and the terrain, the chance of victory would certainly be diminished.

Very good, what else?

Having an incompetent commander was also one of the problems. Because the
ones battling were lower class undead, a commander should have been sent out
who is flexible according to the circumstances and able to give out correct
commands at the right times. Also, when taking into account the weapons used
by the lizardmen, the zombies should have been used as the main force in
carrying out the attack, exhausting the opponent, or alternatively have all of the
forces attack together and not act separately.
What else in addition?

... I am extremely sorry, at the moment I can only come up with this much

No need to apologise, what you say has been correct so far with quite
remarkable perception. Of course, there are still other areas which need
improvement, but youve already completely understood some things. To be
honest, I would prefer that you did not have to ask others and discover these
flaws by yourself but it still counts as within the permissible spectrum. Well
then, why did you not do those from the start?

I did not consider them. I thought that merely using overwhelming military
strength was enough to defeat the enemy.

If its that However, after sacrificing those undead, you now think differently
right? Very good! So long as you are able to consistently improve yourself, and
avoid another similar failure, then there is meaning to this defeat.

Cocytus thought he saw the master break out a small smile.

There are many different kinds of defeat, but your defeat was not of the fatal
kind. Apart from that lich, the rest were all automatically generated soldiers. Even
if those undead were to perish, Nazarick would not be affected in any way. On the
contrary, if a Guardian were able to learn a lesson, and no longer be defeated,
then this defeat has been rather rewarding.

My extreme gratitude, Ainz-sama!

However, defeat in battle still remains a fact, therefore I will have you punished
alongside Shalltear

At this moment, the master stopped speaking. After a short moment of silence
waiting for the master to issue a punishment, Cocytus felt uneasy, but knowing
that he had not disappointed the master, the axe of anxiety hanging over his
head had already dissipated. However, the following words still made Cocytus
shudder.
Originally I planned to have you retreat to the back lines, however, perhaps this
way is for the better. Cocytus, you shall personally wash away the shame of your
defeat go exterminate those lizardmen. This time you are not permitted to seek
assistance from anyone else.

If the lizardmen were wiped out, without letting word of this defeat spread, then
Nazarick would still remain undefeated.

If one were to treat all living beings outside of Nazarick as inferior, then one
would definitely relish the opportunity to slaughter them mercilessly for the sole
purpose of washing away Nazaricks and ones own defeat. If it were the Cocytus
of the past, he would also accept this order without hesitation, but then

Cocytus shivered all over.

Because he knew what the forthcoming action would represent.

Inhaling deep breaths several times, then exhaling.

Cocytus did not respond to the masters request, causing all of the others at the
scene to feel puzzled before Cocytus eventually replied.

There is a matter I wish to request of Ainz-sama!

It was as if the whole world had stopped, with all of the spectators focusing their
attention towards him.

Cocytus was a Guardian. Even in Nazarick, he had the highest level of authority
and skill, with only a handful of others being able to be compared to him. Despite
this, he felt a wave of cold chill that made his entire body shiver.

Although regret gushed out like a torrent from inside of him, it was all already too
late to take back his words.
Although Cocytus possessed compound eyes which enabled him to have a quite
broad field of vision, his head was completely lowered and thus had no means of
seeing the masters expression. This became his salvation, because if the master
expressed anger or displeasure, Cocytus would be frightened to the point of
petrification.

I implore of you, Ainz-sama!

Before the master made any response, another interrupted Cocytus speech.

You dare!

The one who made the denouncement was Albedo, with a deafening scream, as
expectedly formidable as one would expect from the Overseer of the Guardians.
Cocytus, who was powerless to move, felt as if he was a young child scolded
harshly by his mother, and could not stop trembling.

You who allowed the glory of Nazarick to suffer a defeat, what standing do you
have to make a request from Ainz-sama?! Simply outrageous!

Cocytus did not utter a single word and resolved to not raise his head without
obtaining the masters approval first. Even if Albedos anger intensified, he would
not waver.

If you dont

However Albedos anger was interrupted by a mans calm voice, and dissipated
like smoke.

Dont be like this, Albedo.

The master repeated his words to pacify Albedo who had burst forth.
Raise your head, Cocytus. What request do you have, and can you share it with
us?

That calm voice was devoid of any anger, but this just made it even more
terrifying. That fear was very similar to peering and feeling imminently sucked
into a bottomless lake.

Wearing equipment, Cocytus could resist fear-inducing mental attacks from

external forces. That was why the fear attacking his being originated from within
himself.

After swallowing a mouthful of his own saliva more accurately described as a

mouthful of poison Cocytus slowly raised his head, and looked at the Supreme
Being who was his master.

The light shining in the masters empty eye sockets seemed to slightly turn into a
shade of bright red.

I repeat myself again, what request do you have, and can you share it with us?

He could not utter a single word. Although he tried to speak out many times, it
was stuck in his throat, and no words could come out.

What is it, Cocytus?

Heavy silence filled the air.

I am not angry, I merely wish to know what you are thinking, and what you
request.

As if comforting a child that remained silent, the tone was quite gentle. Under
this gentle encouragement, Cocytus eventually said:

I oppose exterminating all of the lizardmen, and I request for your mercy.

After giving his decisive speech, Cocytus felt as if the atmosphere was shaking.
No, the atmosphere was actually convulsing.
The main source came from the front from Albedos killing intent. The
secondary source was from the wavering confidence of the other Guardians. Only
Demiurge and the master were as calm as a still lake and were unaffected by any
ripples.

Cocytus, do you know what you are asking of?

Albedos cold voice was filled with murderous intent, even causing Cocytus,
whose entire body was of a frozen attribute, to feel a chill.

Ainz-sama commanded you to exterminate the lizardmen, as penance for your

crime, yet you as the defendant dare to sing a different tune Guardian of the
Fifth Floor Cocytus, have you become afraid of the lizardmen?

That tone was mocking, but Cocytus could not refute what was asserted.

It was natural for Albedo to have that attitude. If their positions were reversed,
Cocytus would probably also be aggravated.

You remain sil

What made Albedo shut her mouth was not a voice, but the sound of a striking
sound. That was the resonating sound made by the staff coming into contact with
the floor.

Albedo, quiet. It is I who is asking Cocytus, dont be presumptuous.

My extreme apologies! Please, please forgive me!

Albedo lowered her head in apology and returned to her original position.

The master turned his gaze around, and stared at Cocytus with sharp eyes. It was
still impossible to determine the masters emotions. It looked as if it was at the
bursting point of rage, yet it could also be an amused look.

Cocytus, seeing as you make such a request, the reason must be due to some
benefit towards the Great Tomb of Nazarick right? Do explain.

Yes! In the future, tenacious warriors may appear amongst them. As such,
exterminating them completely at this stage would be too much of a waste. This
subordinate reckons that it is in our interests that we should wait for more
tenacious lizardmen to appear in the future, and for now have them pledge their
deep loyalty to Nazarick and accept them to serve us.

... This suggestion is indeed not a bad one. Lizardmen corpses are of high
quality when used to serve as undead in comparison to using human corpses. If
only it was possible to have a perfect method of collecting the corpses buried in
Re-Lantier, then there would be no purpose in using the lizardmen corpses.

Just as Cocytus was about to say So then, he realised that the master had not
finished with his speech. He felt an uneasy premonition which unfortunately
became a reality.

However, compared to using lizardmen, if I were to use corpses to create

undead, the efficiency in terms of consumption cost should be higher. Not only is
it possible to guarantee loyalty, but it is also not necessary to waste
consumables. The lizardmens advantage is that eventually they can increase
their population, and this advantage would require a lengthy period of time to
realise If I have missed out anything, speak up for us to hear. Is there any other
benefit which can convince me?

If it were possible to obtain the masters mercy, his own desire would be realised.
However, Cocytus could not think of any other benefit.
This was because all along he had considered himself as a weapon, and would
only rely on the master to command the troops, and also because he himself had
never considered this before, which was why he had no further means to
convince the master. He had not considered what should be done to allow for the
group as a whole to reap the most benefits beforehand.

Furthermore, what the master requested was a benefit in relation to the Great
Tomb of Nazarick. Cocytus did not wish to exterminate the lizardmen because
they had dazzling and outstanding individuals; he was attracted to those who
protected a group because he was a warrior himself. However, these thoughts
were his personal feelings, and not a decision based to serve the wider group.

Cocytus was frantic.

If he allowed his silently watching master to become agitated or displeased, then

this miraculous suggestion would become meaningless, and all that would result
would be the command to exterminate all of the lizardmen from before.

He desperately racked his brain, but still could not come up with an answer.

What is it, Cocytus, can you not come up with one? Then shall the final decision
be extermination?

The question had been repeated.

Cocytus mind was completely blank, his teeth felt heavy, and only his thoughts
were ceaselessly darting around and coming up with nothing.

A deep voice resounded throughout the gravely silent Throne Hall.

 Is that so what a shame.

Just as these what a shame words were about to suffocate Cocytus into silence,
a calm voice lent out a helping hand.

Ainz-sama, please allow me to insert a few words from the sidelines.

What is it, Demiurge? Do you have something to add?

Yes. About Ainz-samas earlier decision, if it is convenient, would you be willing

to listen to my humble opinion?

... Then speak it out for us to hear.

Yes! Ainz-sama, you fully understand the importance of experimentation,

therefore, would you consider having a few lizardmen to be taken here for
experimentation?

Oh, this is an excellent suggestion.

Cocytus felt that as the master leaned forward from the throne, those two red
eyes almost seemed to rest on himself for a brief second.

Yes. First, no matter how Nazarick turns out to be in the future, we will
eventually come across a day where we require a completely different
composition of strength, or will require control over different species. This
subordinate believes that at that moment, having done a competent amount of
controlled experimentation and not having done a sufficient amount of control
experimentation will be the determining factor.

Demiurge stood even more rigidly upright and looked directly at the master
seated upon the throne before giving his conclusion.

I believe that we should control the lizardmen tribe, and commence a controlled
experiment that doesn't base on fear.

The sound of a staff striking the floor resounded throughout the surroundings.

... An excellent suggestion, Demiurge.

A thousand thanks.

Then, about the lizardmen group, I shall go with Demiurges suggestion and
change the extermination order into that of leadership. Does anyone have any
objections to the decision? If there are any, raise your hand.
Those glimmering deep red eyes gazed over each of the Guardians.

... Looks like there are no objections. Then it shall be decided.

All of the persons lowered their heads, demonstrating that they understood.

However, Demiurge, your suggestion is remarkable, impressive even.

Demiurge lightly smiled.

I do not dare to assume so, Ainz-sama. You should have already been aware of
this long ago, and merely waited for Cocytus to suggest it, right?

The master did not reply, and only revealed a wry smile. However, the masters
attitude already exposed everything.

Cocytus felt his whole body immediately relax.

He was clearly in charge of commanding the glorious Nazarick army, yet he had
produced a defeat. When he voiced a different opinion to the masters decision,
he had not prepared an alternative solution. How should this be described? It
would probably be

Incompetent. I am so incompetent.

... No, that was not the case, Demiurge. You place me in too high regard. I
merely wished that you are able to express your own thoughts, regardless of
what kind of thoughts they are.

The masters gaze once again shifted and paused at Cocytus for the longest time.
Understanding the meaning behind his masters words, although Cocytus felt
shame, he also felt powerless to lower his head.
The first task is to understand the real meaning behind orders. After paying
close attention to understanding the orders, you then carry out the most
appropriate course of action. Guardians, after listening carefully, you must not
blindly follow orders and take action. Before action, you must give some thought
to what should be done for the best interests of Nazarick. If you think that there is
a mistake in the contents of your orders, or if you can come up with an even
better method, your duty is to come before me, or the one who made the
suggestion, to report So then, Cocytus, going back to the earlier topic, I
mentioned that you will be punished, right?

Yes. You wanted me to exterminate the lizardmen as a group.

Indeed. However, right now you are not to exterminate them, but to control. As
such, I have to alter your punishment. The lizardmen group shall be your
responsibility to control, and they are to develop a deep loyalty within their
hearts towards Nazarick. You are forbidden from using fear to induce control, and
the lizardmen are to become a controlled unit not created out of fear.

Cocytus had never shouldered such a heavy responsibility before No, amongst
all of the Guardians, perhaps only Demiurge had such a kind of experience.

This difficult mission is self-imposed. This thought briefly flashed across Cocytus
mind, but how could he voice out such cowardly words. These words could not be
said regardless if it was to the tolerant Supreme Being to whom he had pledged
his undying loyalty, or to his colleague who lent a helping hand.

I hear and obey. Because there are many concerns, I would be grateful for any
assistance and advice from others.

Of course, this matter will necessarily require various information, rations and
manpower. Regarding these aspects, the responsibility will be left with Nazarick.
I am extremely grateful. I, Cocytus, swear that I shall deliver good results and
will not squander Ainz-samas benevolence.

Cocytus shouted out these words from his heart.

Good. Then all of the Guardians are henceforth ordered to head out to attack.
One side shall act as bait, and the other side shall be responsible for
demonstrating our true strength, to show these lizardmen that our true strength
is not merely that small amount. Of course, if Cocytus you think this will
detrimentally affect their control in the aftermath, I can rescind my order.

Cocytus thought carefully then replied:

There should be no problems.

Is that so. Then, all of the Guardians, immediately prepare to depart.

All of the Guardians at the scene voiced out their affirmation and understanding
in unison.

Albedo, I also wish to head out. Help with preparing the soldiers.

As you command. After giving it some thought, there are also some enemies
who have a preference for spying. Is it that we can conveniently allow them to
miscalculate our true objective?

That is precisely it. However, do not forget that we also have an objective of
making a demonstration.

Then, we can send out Nazaricks Veteran Guards to act as the main force, so
that the composition of the army appears even more powerful.

Cocytus internally agreed with Albedos response.

There was a kind of undead guard known as Veteran Guard.

Nazarick Veteran Guards only existed amongst the guards of the Great Tomb of
Nazarick. It could be said that Veteran Guards were high class undead. They
possessed items with various magic effects, and were equipped with magic
armour and shield, and furthermore were skilled in fighting special abilities. They
were quite excellent undead guards.

There are no problems with that. How many do you require?

Three thousand.

Thats a little on the small side. With this kind of numbers, it will be difficult to
reach an earth shattering effect. We want to obtain an overwhelming victory
this time, causing those who look down on Nazarick to feel true terror. If the
number is less than the previous instance, then there is no meaning in it. I hope
that I can double the numbers. What other units can we use?

Then, we can also mobilize Nazaricks Elder Guard and Nazaricks Master
Guards, what do you think? With this, the number will reach six thousand.

No wonder she was the Overseer of the Guardians. Albedos response was as
fluid as water. To this, Ainz gave a concise answer.

Very well! Then, have there been any problems in activating Gargantua?

None, Ainz-sama. We have already gotten Gargantua operational.

Then, Shalltear, you shall use Transfer to send all of the forces over.

But if it is only myself, then my magic power is insufficient.

Allow Pestunia to assist. Have her transfer magic power to you. If it is still not
enough, find Lupusregina to assist.

Understood.

Following that, have Nigredo and Pandoras Actors alarm network transferred to
our side here. Although this will allow Sebas alarm network to slightly weaken
we are only able to physically strengthen our monitoring. Very well! Then,
everyone move out! Tomorrow we will give the lizardmen a taste of the Great
Tomb of Nazaricks true strength.

Part 2

Thank you, Demiurge.

After the master had left the Throne Hall, the first thing that Cocytus did was to
give his thanks to Demiurge. To Cocytus who was bowing deeply, Demiurge gave
one of his regular slight smiles.

No, it was nothing.

That wont do. If it were not for you, the lizardmen would definitely have been
exterminated.

... Cocytus, I would say that you should not take Ainz-samas words at face level.
I believe that Ainz-sama originally expected things to turn out this way.

Demiurge raised a finger during this explanation, after which there was a
surprised voice. The one who gave out that voice sounded like himself, yet also
sounded like it came from all of the surrounding Guardians.

That also means to say that I reckon that Ainz-sama predicted that you would
say those words earlier, thus he sent you to be the commander for the invasion
of the lizardmen settlement. I also believe this because when you opposed the
extermination of the lizardmen settlement, Ainz-sama appeared to be extremely
delighted, and when you were unable to suggest an alternative, he looked quite
disappointed in comparison.

Then what you mean to say is that Ainz-sama felt disappointment because
things did not go according to his plan?

That is precisely it. It also means that all of the dialogue that happened in this
place was quite possibly within Ainz-samas predictions.

No wonder he is Ainz-sama! Apparently he has perfectly calculated this far

ahead!

B-But then.a-about tha-that

... If you have something to say then be quick about it.

Elder sister Aura severely directed her stuttering younger brother Mare to speak
quickly.

Y-yes, about that, I always felt that something was off. At the start, why were
those weak undead assigned. Th-that c-cant say for certain, maybe Ainz-sama
set this expedition up to fail from the very beginning

Instead of thinking of defeat as a given, maybe our master took into account
that Cocytus will scout the Lizardmen out and report back the viability of the
task?
Cocytus thought back to that conversation he had with Demiurge and felt
ashamed, because he had screwed everything up.
If he was not familiar with Cocytus personality, it would not have been possible
to carry out this plan. As expected of Ainz-sama
In the battle with Shalltear it was already possible to figure out Ainz-samas
fighting ability, but it was not expected that he was also a strategist of the
highest class. It truly is remarkable to the highest degree. Although Ainz-sama
said what he said, I still feel that it is sufficient to act accordingly to Ainz-samas
orders
It really is incredible. Being able to bring together all of the Supreme Beings,
goes to show that his name is not just for show.
After Demiurge whose brain was top class finished, Shalltear approved what was
said with delight, and all of the other guardians nodded their heads in agreement.

Ainz returned to his room and leaped onto his bed. After a lengthy hang time,
Ainz body fell into the bed, then he began to roll around.
Rolled right, then rolled left.
He was only able to roll as such because the bed was large enough.
Although his exquisite changpao was already greatly wrinkled, Ainz, who was
completely fine with this happening, continued to laugh softly as he rolled
around. Of course, he acted so childishly because nobody else apart from himself
was allowed to enter.
Not long afterwards, Ainz who was fully satisfied in his indulgence in the
mattress, laid there facing the ceiling.
Haaa, so tired Ah~ I really wish to indulge myself in alcohol to my hearts
content, and drink myself into a stupor although thats no longer possible.

Ainz finished complaining then gave a big sigh However Ainz did not breathe,
that was why it was merely the appearance of a false sigh.
It was because he was an undead, that was why he was indifferent to physical
and mental fatigue. However, to describe it in human terms, for the past month
he had been worn out every day. If he still had a stomach, it would have been
long ruined by now.
Because Ainz had been enduring pressure.
Momon the warrior had vanquished the silver-haired vampire Shalltear. For
those who didnt know, perhaps they would only consider this feat as incredible,
but to the mysterious person who used a World class item on Shalltear, it would
give another impression. The opponent would probably keep a close eye on
Momon, or even establish contact.
That was why Ainz had remained on alert for the entire day, and had also
prepared several cash items to enable him to escape at any moment. During his
free time, apart from maintaining alertness, he had also done some imaginary
role playing or perhaps better called paranoia training visualising if the
opponent had showed up, would he be able to escape whilst at the same time
devoting energy to collecting information.
Although being stressed out like this every day had no real impact on Ainz Ooal
Gown, it was still mentally taxing on the remnants of humanity he still possessed,
as the human Satoru Suzuki. During his free time where he was able to relax and
be by himself, he would push aside his attitude as Nazaricks Supreme Being, and
revert to his childish behaviour. This was probably because deep within Ainz, that
stressed out and tired Satoru Suzuki desired to act like that.
I have no memories of ever having such restless and sleepless work before
makes me wonder how much overtime I will be getting this month.
This outburst of complaint was perhaps due to the Satoru Suzuki personality
taking over Ainz.
The Great Tomb of Nazarick no, I mean Ainz Ooal Gown is not a corporation.
Joint venture companies are compassionate enterprises, and should fully
guarantee compensation for employees overtime.
Rambling as such, Ainz pursed his non-existent eyebrows.
Eh? It cant be because of duty allowance that I am not entitled to overtime
compensation? Wow
Ainz once again rolled left and right. After rolling over about five or six times, he
suddenly stopped moving.
Enough meaningless babble needs to stop here Come to think of it, Cocytus
was quite incredible too, being able to speak out as he did.
It was surprising. Apparently Cocytus would empathise with the lizardmen.
That action of Cocytus had made Ainz feel troubled greatly.
Satoru Suzuki was the kind of person whom, when preparing a briefing, would
first fully assemble all of the data, then proceed by following standard practice to

the letter. As such, he was not accustomed to dealing with unexpected problems.
However, if only it were mentioned in writing as part of the information, then he
would be able to handle it according to the data information. In other words, for
Satoru Suzuki, the key to the success of his briefings were that any problems
were already dealt with at the investigation stage. Such a kind of person was
extremely unsuited for situations where it was necessary to adapt to the
situation, to the point that he detested such scenarios.
As it was, it was neither possible to bring data into the Throne Hall, nor have the
comfort of being able to say then, please turn to the next page. Therefore Ainz
had prepared for flow of events in the Throne Hall long before, by rehearsing the
entire sequence in his mind for more than ten times. In his heart, he had even
prayed that nobody would act unexpectedly.
And this small wish of his had thus been shattered by Cocytus.
He was extremely worried about what Cocytus wanted to say, but had also felt
delighted.
It was because at the same time he also had the pleasure similar to that of a
parent it was as if there was a docile child in the household who had, for the
first time, expressed his own opinion. The most important thing was that the
persons development had exceeded Ainz expectations by far.
When he returned to Nazarick previously, he asked a maid to cook a dish. What
he asked for was steak. With elements such as proficiency level, she might
require more practice, but the steak doesnt require high levels to be made. He
was not expecting the meal to provide buffs upon consumption, just something
that could be eaten.
However the result could only be described as a blackened piece of charcoal.
Even if that maid non-stop repeated the exercise, the end product was always
charred meat.
Whilst he was accepting that maids sincere apologies, Ainz was also able to fully
accept these results which were within expectations. It was exactly the same as
when Ainz was trying to equip a large sword in the clothing room.
In YGGDRASIL, only those who possessed the job-specific special ability were able
to cook. This was because food could temporarily raise battle capability through
buffs, which was why requiring a job specific special ability was natural. However,
that maid did not have the cooking special ability.
That also meant that if he wanted to do something which required a special
ability yet lacked the skill himself, he would be bound to fail.
This matter regarding Cocytus was Ainz objective all along, which could also be
described as an experiment. Ainz wanted to test if his servants, who already had
their settings fixed, were able to learn new things. This experiment concerned
proving whether they could continue to develop after learning tactics or strategy.
Allowing Cocytus to command weak undead was because he simply thought that
through defeat he could probably obtain much more.
Ainz was extremely pleased with the end result. Cocytus had shown Ainz that
there was the possibility of such growth.

Of course, there was a large difference between learning through actual actions,
and merely learning through memorisation.
Ainz eventual objective was to acquire and perfect all of the magic particular to
this world if such did exist. Right now, Ainz was still uncertain of whether the
currently existing magic was either technique or knowledge. In any case, this
experiment proved that the knowledge aspect could indeed be developed.
Cocytus proved that growth was possible. He demonstrated this exceedingly well.
Ainz thought to himself.
Without growth, one could only wait until eventually one stopped. Even if they
were powerful now, there would eventually one day where they would certainly
be surpassed.
Even if he had a one hundred year lead in military technology, if he no longer
made any progress, then eventually there would be one day where he would lose
the position of being the most powerful. Right now, the neighbouring country
could probably count as a powerful nation, but if it believed that it would forever
preserve its status as the most powerful nation, without any need for further
improvement, that would be incredibly foolish to a fault.
Even if those are my thoughts but whilst I am overjoyed that the child has
grown up, at the same time I worry whether I am a person worthy of their loyalty
as Supreme Being.
As he rambled on, Ainz gazed at the ceiling above the bed.
Ah, ah, so scary, so terrifying
The remnants of human personality, Satoru Suzuki, once again lamented because
of this new source of unease.
Since growth represents change, then who can guarantee that their current
loyalty will not waver either? Even if it does not change, there is still the
possibility that one day I will be considered ill-suited to be the glorious Supreme
Being of Nazarick. A worry that I, who was nominated to be the Guild Leader, will
lose the right to be branded as such.
... I have to become a Supreme Being worthy of the Guardians loyalty is there
anyone who can teach me in the ways of being an emperor...?
There shouldnt be anyone who was so conveniently programmed that way in
Nazarick.
Trapped in his own thoughts, the images of two persons came to Ainz mind.
Those two were part of the dreadful five person team, respectively the one who
held the title of Duke, Lord of Terror, and the one who had King in his name,
Gashokukochuuou. Carefully considering whether or not he should approach
those two individuals to be educated, Ainz gave a short response to himself.
... Pass.
Unless he ran into a dead end, he did not wish to be taught by those two.

Let it be so long as no major mistakes are made during actions, I should be

fine for the moment. Anyways about those bipedal sheep
Ainz was already aware of the identity of the bipedal sheep long before, which
was why he did not pursue specific details of the bipedal sheeps appearance.
That was a type of monster which he had encountered before in YGGDRASIL.
Having the heads of both a lion and a mountain goat, as well as the tail of a
snake, paws of a lion, and legs of a mountain sheep. That should be right it is a
chimera
In YGGDRASIL, chimeras walked around on two sheep legs and used their lion
legs as arms to initiate attacks; a monster which was born with a lions head and
a mountain goats head. This monsters appearance was based off the deity
called Baphomet.
Then why did Demiurge not directly say it was a chimera? Although he pondered
this question, Ainz already had his answer.
That is, it could possibly be a chimera subspecies. Is that how it is, Demiurge?
Ainz laughed heartily, then added a note to his evaluation of Demiurge:
Unexpectedly poor name picking taste.
In YGGDRASIL there is also a species like Chimera Lord whose appearance was a
bit No, I should say the appearance of fish type chimera is strange to the point
of being disgusting. Bipedal sheep is a new species of chimera Theocracy
chimera having someone bring one to Nazarick isnt a bad idea either. Then
theres also Victim
His appearance was exactly the same as in Ainz memories, except there was one
feature which caught his attention.
The language he used it really is the Enoch language used by angels, right? It
feels like conversing with someone who speaks another language
Because it was already automatically translated, Ainz had no idea which
language was spoken, but he felt that it was a bit strange. Of course, it could very
possibly be because Ainz himself didnt understand the Enoch language.
Let it be, no need to debate it. Good, its about time to set out for battle
Ainz once again rolled left and right to get enough of it. After he stopped and lay
there, he returned to pondering over the points he was concerned about earlier.
He buried his head inside the bed and took a deep breath.
Of course, Ainz did not have lungs, therefore this was just a pretended
movement. However, inconceivably, he could smell a fragrance.
This is a floral smell is there perfume on the bed? Could it be that wealthy
peoples beds are all like this? If that is so, that really is surprising perhaps
those pretending to be wealthy can also notice this aspect? Mmmm

Part 3

There was a type of ability called Danger Perception.

Amongst adventurers, bandits, and others whom possessed discovery-based
skills, this was considered the most important ability. Just as the name stipulates,
it was an ability which enabled the detection of danger.

This ability was split into two types. One type was not reliant on reasoning or
observation, merely reliant on sense to trigger awareness. The other type was
awareness which was reliant on reasoning and observation accumulated from
experience. The former can be described as a sixth sense internal feeling, and
the latter can be described as one which was derived from the small changes in
the surrounding one derived from minute changes in sound and smell.
The latter would be naturally improved on the battlefield and during solo
adventures, even if it were not intentionally trained. It was obtained through
experiences by placing oneself in dangerous situations.
And ability-wise, this aspect of lizardmen was many times greater than that of
humans. Biologically, their sensory organs were more sensitive, because they
lived in harsher environments. Humans tended to live in safe places far from
monsters, whereas lizardmen lived as neighbours to such monsters.
Zaryusu, who was a traveller and often travelled alone, was even more sensitive
to slight changes in the environment.
Feeling tension filling the air, he opened his eyes.
Before him was a familiar room although he had only stayed here for several
days. Humans, even if they tried to, would not be able to make out details in this
room which had no light source, but it was not that difficult for lizardmen.
There was nothing out of the ordinary in the room.
Zaryusu looked around, and after confirming that there were no strange objects,
he gave a sigh of relief as he moved to sit upright.
He was an outstanding warrior, which was why even if he was sleeping moments
ago, he was as awake as normal. There wasnt an issue of drowsiness, as he was
even energetic enough to immediately enter battle.
This was also related to the fact that lizardmen were habitually light sleepers.
However, Crusch who was sleeping beside Zaryusu showed no signs of waking
up.
Having lost the body warmth of Zaryusu, Crush merely sleepily let out a
dissatisfied soft murmur.
If it were under normal circumstances, Crusch would also sense the change in the
air and wake up, however this time it seemed as if she had not noticed at all.
Zaryusu felt some regret, whether or not he had allowed Crusch to shoulder too
much burden.
He recalled last night, and came to the opinion that the burden on Crusch was
perhaps greater than his. During the operation of defeating the powerful

opponent, the lich, the female Crusch seemed to have suffered a greater burden
than the male Zaryusu.
He himself wished that he could allow her to continue sleeping, but after listening
carefully, he could hear the frantic movements of many lizardmen beyond the
house doors. At these times when various emergencies had already occurred, not
waking her up would might be more dangerous.
Crusch, Crusch.
Zaryusu used a bit of force to shake Crusch several times.
Mmm... Mmmm
Crusch curled her tail, then immediately revealed her red eyes.
Mmm?
It looks like something has happened.
This phrase caused the drowsy Crusch to instantly widen her eyes. Zaryusu
grabbed Frost Pain which was by his side and immediately stood up, and not long
afterwards, Crusch was also out of bed.
The two of them walked outside and immediately understood the reason for the
commotion.
They saw a large thick dark cloud covering the air above the village.
Looking to the distance, they could tell within a moment that the dark cloud was
completely different to ordinary dark clouds. This was because it was a clear
cloudless sky for miles around.
That also meant that this was
Its back?
It was the enemys signal for another attack
Looks like it.
Crusch agreed with this view. All of the lizardmen of the five tribes that had
grouped together to fight could see the dark cloud in the middle of the sky, and
were talking about it. However nobody had a look of fear on their faces.
That was because they were victorious under unfavourable circumstances in the
previous battle, causing everyone to become more spirited.
The two of them ran towards the village, giving off a water splashing noise as
they sprinted. They passed by several lizardmen who were commencing their
battle preparations, and wasted no time in arriving at the main entrance.
There were many warrior class lizardmen already gathered at the main entrance,
all of them cautiously prying outwards. Included amongst them was their familiar
companion, one who had gone through hell and back with them, Zenberu, and
beside him was the tribe chief of the Small Fang Tribe.

After Zenberu waved towards the two individuals who were generating large
splashing noises as they came over, he immediately jutted his jaw towards the
direction of outside the entrance.
Zaryusu and Crusch stood beside Zenberu and observed outwards from the main
entrance.
On the other side of the shore, at the boundary between the wetlands and the
forest, was an army composed of skeletons.
So they have come again.
Huh
Zaryusu responded to Zenberu, then clicked his tongue.
This was anticipated, except it had arrived too soon. At first he reckoned that
since their losses were so severe, they would require some time to replenish their
troops, and had not considered having completely miscalculated. Apparently, the
opponent was capable of once again marshalling units for a large army.
... However, these skeletons should be weaker than those summoned by the
lich.
These words had a hidden meaning. What Zenberu meant was that he believed
that the current skeleton army was in fact stronger than the one which invaded
before.
Zaryusu also observed intently at the skeletons arranged on the shore of the
other side. This was to size up the opponents strength, to then carry out the
appropriate defensive actions.
Indeed, they were all skeletons, but the ones this time were different from the
previous ones.
For outward appearances, the biggest difference was their equipment. The
skeletons from before were only equipped with rusty swords, but the skeletons
this time were quite well equipped. Furthermore, their physique seemed better
than the ones from last time. The skeletons seemed to have three different kinds
of equipment.
The most numerous kind of skeleton wore elaborate breastplates. In one hand
they held triangular-shaped shields, kite shields, and in the other hand they held
all sorts of weapons. They even carried quivers and compound bows on their
backs. These were skeletons which were equipped to be both offensive and
defensive, with capabilities to fight at both long and short distances.
Next were helmeted skeletons which wore identical breastplates, draped in
tattered red cloaks, holding bucklers and bastard swords.
Finally, and the fewest in number, were the skeletons which were fully equipped.
They wore beautiful shining golden full body armour, and held lustrous spears in
their hands. Their dazzling fresh red cloaks had not a speck of dirt on them.
Zaryusu observed this much, and discovered a particular fact. He couldnt help
but doubt if he had seen incorrectly, and rubbed his eyes several times. However
that remained a reality.

Eh that cant be
H-How is that possible
At the same time as Cruschs exclamation, Zaryusu who had discovered the same
fact involuntarily spoke out in a pained low voice. This time, Zenberu replied:
... Oh, you realised it too.
Zenberus voice was also extremely pained.
Mmm
Zaryusu was done with speaking, and remained silent. He did not wish to speak,
because once words came out, he would be terrified. Yet it was impossible to
remain silent:
... Their weapons seemed to be magic equipment.
Crusch by his side nodded solemnly.
All of the various equipment on the skeleton army carried magic power. Some of
the skeletons carried flaming swords, some held blue electricity hammers, and
some skeletons even held spears with tips coated in a green light, or had sickles
coated in a viscous purple liquid.
Looks like that is not it. You two should also look closely at the armours and
shields. Those are also magic defensive equipment.
Hearing Zenberu utter these words, Zaryusu immediately looked closely.
Following this he even more involuntarily let out a groan. This was because
Zaryusu discovered that those shining armour and shields looked simply like they
were naturally luminescent, and not at all like if the light given off was from the
reflection of sunlight.
Just what kind of authority could enable such numerous skeleton soldiers to all be
equipped with magic items? If it were simply magic weapons which had
heightened sharpness, Zaryusu had heard it was possible for large countries to
achieve this amount over a long period of planning and accumulation. However,
to enable each magic weapon to have attribute furthermore to have quite a
large variety of effects was a completely different matter altogether.
Zaryusu thought of the dwarves which Zenberu had mentioned a few days ago.
Dwarves were a mountainous race which excelled in metalworking. During feasts,
those dwarves would often talk about the legend of a particular hero the King
who established the great Kingdom of Dwarves, the hero who wore shining metal
armour and solo defeated a dragon, then becoming one of the thirteen heroes,
Magic Engineer. Even within the legends told by the dwarves, there were no
stories which told of this kind of magnitude of magic equipment preparation
for a legion exceeding over five thousand units.
Then, what was the scene before Zaryusu?
... Is that an army from the myths?

If this was not a story from mankind, then it must be a scenario from a mythical
story.
Zaryusus entire body was trembling. Because he realised that this exceeded his
predictions, and they were facing an enemy which absolutely should not be
provoked.
However, from the very start, he himself had gathered everybody here whilst
carrying on his conscience the fact that they could all be wiped out. How could
he, who had started this outrageous battle, be afraid? He had already figured out
that the opponent was a powerful enemy which exceeded their imagination. The
importance was on what to do now.
Impossible. That must be an illusion.
All of the people at the scene who heard these words shortly displayed an
expression that spoke what kind of nonsense are you spewing. The opponent
was indeed silent and immobile, but their existence was plainly clear. They even
gave off an atmosphere which caused people to tremble, therefore they could not
be a simple illusion.
However, these words would cause confusion, which was why the one who broke
the silence was the tribe chief of the Small Fang Tribe. He absolutely could not
have gone deranged, which was why he spoke these words.
What basis do you have for such an assertion?
Towards Zaryusus question, the Small Fang Tribe chief confidently answered:
We have taken turns in sending out scouts, yet nobody has seen that kind of
undead before. With a number such as that, there is no way they could have
remained undiscovered. Of course, all of the scouts who were sent out have
returned safely.
So that is why however, I dont think that is an illusion.
... But then no, perhaps it is not an illusion. If it is not an illusion, we can
imagine that an underground tunnel was used for their transport. If there is such
an underground passage, it could explain why they were not discovered before
their arrival.
... It does not matter whether they used a tunnel to get here, or whether they
flew through the skies. What should we do now? Although they look as if they
have no intention of starting the fight, it still feels like they are not here to
negotiate.
It does seem that way however, think about the previous situation. I feel that
the opponent will initiate some sort of action
Zaryusu stared at the skeleton army.
He was looking for the commander amongst the enemy at this moment, a chilly
wind rises. It didnt stop and continued to blow.
Such a strange and sudden freezing wind could not be a natural phenomenon. It
must be created by magic.

Wind? Eh that cant be! This must be another kind of magic how is this
possible
Crusch held herself and trembled. The reason for that did not appear to be
because she felt cold, therefore Zaryusu asked:
Crusch, what is the matter with this cold wind
... Perhaps you will have no way of believing this, but hear me out Zaryusu. I
originally thought that the climate change in the past was created through magic
of the 4th tier, Cloud Control, but I was wrong. Although Cloud Control is able
to control clouds, it is unable to generate these kinds of cold wind. Which is
why this is not simply the control of clouds, but actually causing changes in the
weather and meteorology. That means, I believe that the opponent has been
activating 6th tier magic Weather Control.
However, that kind of magic belonged to a realm that was beyond her
capabilities, which was why she lacked self-confidence Crusch explained this to
Zaryusu in a low voice, such that none else could listen in.
Zaryusu knew how shocking it was to have magic in the realm of the 6th tier.
That kind of magic was in a realm which could not even be attained his most
powerful adversary to date, Iguvua. It was also believed to be the highest tier of
magic in this world.
Is this the strength of the Supreme One? So thats how it is then it makes
sense
If 6th tier magic could be used, then being hailed as Supreme One was no
overstatement.
Hey, hey, hey, it seems that everyone is anything at all but reassured.
Zenberus complaint accurately pointed out the atmosphere in the surroundings.
Cold wind which could not possibly appear at this moment meant that this was
an unnatural change in the environment. This caused the lizardmens morale to
plummet to the lowest levels.
The degree of change only extended to clouds last time. If it were only that, even
the druids could pull it off by putting together a large bonfire ceremony. However,
once the lizardmen felt this kind of autumn-like wind, they realised that the
opponent possessed great power. Power to control the weather, which was
supposedly an uncontrollable natural phenomenon.
Even if they had not heard Cruschs words, the ceaselessly blowing cold current
was enough to depict just how powerful their impending battle adversary was.
Cheh, the opponent has begun to move.
Zaryusu gritted his teeth, using willpower to suppress his tail from fiercely waving
about. Just as he anticipated, sure enough the opponent had chosen this moment
to move out.
After the organised skeleton army begun their advance, marching uniformly with
precise equidistant footsteps, the nearby warrior class lizardmen immediately
became frantic, and some even let out deep warning growls. However, Zaryusu

who observed the skeleton army moving silently, formed a different opinion. That
was not the initiation of a battle.
Just as Zaryusu and Zenberu were about to request aloud for the panicking
lizardmen to calm down
Calm down!
A majestic shout which rippled the atmosphere sounded out.
Everybody looked towards the same direction, and found themselves looking at
Shasuryu.
I say again, calm down.
In this silent space, only this voice filled with self-confidence and authority
reverberated.
Also, do not be afraid, warriors. Above all else, you must not disappoint the
numerous ancestral spirits behind you.
Shasuryu passed through the group of lizardmen which had retained their calm
and were peacefully silent, and arrived by Zaryusus side.
Younger brother, what action has the opponent taken?
Hmm, older brother, although they have begun to move they do not appear to
be preparing for battle.
Hmm
The five hundred skeletons which had begun to move formed into ten ranks.
Just what are they planning to do?
As if the skeleton army had been waiting for this question to be asked, they once
again began to move.
Under perfect and precise commands, the legion parted to either side from the
centre. What appeared from the gap of approximately twenty skeletons in width
was a figure.
That figure was not very large. Even if it was about two hundred and fifty
centimetres in height, it was possible to see that the figure was shorter than
Zaryusu.
That person wore a pitch-black robe, and gave off a terrifying aura. He wore a
similar attire to the powerful lich from yesterdays battle, therefore likewise, this
opponent should also be a magic caster.
However, there was a decisive difference between the two, that being their
strength.
Seeing that figure, Zaryusu felt his back getting the shivers. His instinct was
telling himself that if he were to compare this person who had just appeared to
yesterdays lich, the difference in their strength would be like that of a baby to a
warrior.

Even if the distance between them was so large, it was still possible to be
affected by that terrifying freezing aura emitted from that persons entire body.
Not only that, but the opponents equipment were also of a different class.
As if it was impossible to resist death an absolutely dominating image.
Is that an Overlord of Death?
Zaryusu could not resist speaking out the most appropriate description of this
creature, and these words completely hit the point.
That person was an Overlord which dominated over death.
... Oh, oh!
What exactly was this Overlord of Death attempting to do?
The lizardmen which were nervously watching this Magic Caster let out a
panicked sound altogether. At this moment, an enormous hemisphere-shaped
magic array approximately ten metres in diameter expanded outwards with the
magic caster at the centre.
A blue and white radiance floated on the surface of the magic array, with semitranslucent markings which looked like it could be words or symbols. Those semitranslucent markings were rapidly changing, and at any given moment none of
the words were the same.
Being unable to understand what exactly it was, Zaryusu felt confused.
When a magic caster was casting magic, one would not project it into the air like
he did with the magic array. The opponents current movements were already
beyond Zaryusus area of knowledge, therefore he turned to the female
lizardman here who was the most familiar with magic and asked:
What exactly is that?
I-I dont know. I cannot figure out what that is either
Cruschs reply was a bit terrified. It looked like she was even more frightened
because she possessed knowledge about magic yet was unable to understand
that behaviour.
Just at the moment that Zaryusu was planning to comfort her
Not knowing if the magic had successfully activated, the magic array broke apart,
becoming numerous light particles flying towards the sky. In the next instant
like there had been an explosion in the sky, the particles spread out
And the lake completely froze.
Not a single person could understand what exactly had happened.
Shasuryu who was a tribe leader with outstanding qualifications; Crusch who had
extraordinary druid powers; even Zaryusu the traveller who had seen much and
had a wide breadth of knowledge. Even these individuals, who within lizardmen
history could be considered to possess miraculous abilities, could not
immediately comprehend the current situation.
No way of understanding why their own feet were inside ice.

Before long after enough time had passed for the brain to accept the situation
before their eyes a crying rang out
Every lizardmen indeed, everybody let out a lamenting cry.
Even Zaryusu was the same. Crusch and Shasuryu, and even the most
courageous Zenberu, were no exception. As if terror crept out from the depths of
their souls, everybody could not help but scream.
This fact laid out before their eyes was simply too terrifying. The lake, which
absolutely would never freeze over, which had never frozen over ever since the
moment of their birth, was apparently frozen solid.
The lizardmen frantically lifted their feet. Luckily the layer of ice was not thick,
and broke immediately, but the broken areas immediately froze up again. A
chilling cold vapour came from underneath, making it painfully obvious that this
sight was not an illusion.
After Zaryusu agitatedly clambered up the mud wall, he immediately surveyed
the surroundings, then was stunned into silence by what he saw from his widened
point of view.
Everything in his field of vision was completely frozen over.
Indeed, it was inconceivable to imagine that such an enormous lake would be
entirely frozen solid. However, this radiating ice which covered everything in
sight was also reality.
One corner of Zaryusus mind was also worried about the situation of his fish
farm, but now was not the time to be worried about such things.
That cant be
Crusch, who had also climbed up, looked around and was lost for words just like
Zaryusu. From her gaping mouth, she let out a despaired voice.
Like Zaryusu, she did not wish to believe that this scene she saw before her was
real.
Monster!
She cursed loudly, whilst at the same time wishing that swearing and cursing
would mitigate her internal fear.
Get up here, quick!
Older brother Shasuryu bellowed.
Several lizardmen had already toppled over. The remaining warriors who were
still able to move cooperated together, helping to pull up their collapsed
companions from the frozen ground.
Those lizardmen whom were being helped up had pale faces and were shivering
constantly. The cold gas which wafted upwards probably had robbed them of their
vitality.
Older brother, Ill go check on the others!

Zaryusu who wielded Frost Pain could not be affected by this degree of influence
from the cold air.
No Do not go!
Why, older brother?!
The enemy will probably start moving in a short moment. You are not permitted
to leave! Grasp the overall situation, do not let any information slip! This is
something which can only be entrusted to you who have wandered across the
world and acquired various kinds of knowledge.
Shasuryus eyesight moved away from Zaryusu and turned to speak to all of the
surrounding warrior class lizardmen.
Right now I will be casting some ice resistance magic upon you all, Protection
Energy Ice. Quickly go and inform every single person in the village, and avoid
coming into contact with the ice.
I will also assist with casting the magic.
Please do! Then, Crusch, let us act separately. If any individual is discovered to
be in an emergency situation, immediately cast healing magic!
Crusch and Shasuryu began to cast defensive magic on the unharmed lizardmen.
Zaryusu remained on top of the mud wall, and looked towards the enemys
position with sharp eyes, making sure to grasp the opponents every single
movement. It was imperative to carry out the task given to him by his brother
with perfection.
Hey ho.
Zenberu who had climbed up to Zaryusus side gazed leisurely at the enemys
position.
You need to relax a bit. Your older brother is looking forward to your wisdom
right? Even if you miss something, he wont blame you. The more important thing
is to not be too hooked up in it, and end up narrowing your vision.
Zenberu in his carefree voice had given Zaryusu a sharp warning.
Just like with that lich battle, everyone should cooperate and divide up the labour,
and focus on their own role to the best of their ability.
Zaryusu surveyed the surrounding and discovered that warrior class lizardmen
had also likewise climbed on top of the mud wall to observe the enemy. Correct,
he was not here to fight a war by himself, but to fight shoulder to shoulder with
everyone.
It seems that he who had witnessed that overwhelming power magic had
been shaken.
Zaryusu exhaled one giant breath, as if to get rid of his internal worries all in one
go.
Sorry.
Theres nothing to be sorry about.

... Thats right, because you, Zenberu, are also here.

Ha, dont look to me for matters which concern thinking.
The two of them laughed at each other, then continued to observe the enemys
movement.
However, that really is a true monster.
Yeah! It is basically on a completely different level
The Overlord of Death had the insufferably arrogant posture of a king, and
pompously gazed in the direction of Zaryusu and their village. That supposedly
quite small body seemed expanded by ten times its size.
... He should be the one referred to as the Supreme One.
That ought to be pretty spot on. Furthermore, I really hope there are no others
powerful enough to cast magic that freezes the entire lake.
Thats right, and I hope so too. In the eyes of that monster who is even able to
freeze the lake, we lizardmen are no more than ants. Ah~ what a shame! Were
no different than small insects. Speaking of which theres movement.
The magic caster who froze the lake raised the hand which was not holding onto
a staff, and gave a wave in the direction of the village. That action ought to be a
command given Zaryusu felt as such, and in the next moment received a
terrifying proof of it.
Oh oh oh oh!
The sound came from various parts from within the village.
What is that! What on earth is that?!
After Zaryusu, who at this stage deeply believed that there was nothing more
that could surprise him, saw the sight before his eyes, on reflex gave out an
anguished cry.
What appeared before him was a two-armed, two-legged colossus which seemed
to be carved out of stone.
There in its thick rock chest region lay a red light which shone just like a
heartbeat. With thick hands and stubby legs, its stout body shape was even a bit
cute, that was, if it was not over thirty metres in height.
This kind of gigantic rock figure suddenly appeared in the forest. Calling it an
illusion would in fact be even easier to mentally accept.
The rock figure slowly began to move, and raised an enormous boulder from who
knows where.
And then threw it.
Zaryusu involuntarily covered his eyes. Without a doubt, all those who collided
with the giant boulder would be met with nothing but absolute death.

In the darkness, Zaryusu heard the movement sounds of surprised persons, and
an enormous collision sound reached him. Even the mud wall began to shake
violently.
This was followed by the sound of intense rain the sound of rebounded gravel
as it fell onto the ground, and the exclaiming of both adults and children from the
village.
Although he was already accustomed to death, it was still intolerable for him to
face such horror which exceeded imagination. The shocking lesson moments ago
even caused those who had fought victoriously in the previous war to shriek just
like small children.
Comforting himself with the fact that he was still alive, Zaryusu exhaled and
calmed himself down. After cautiously opening his eyes, what he saw reflected in
his eyes was the sight of the undead army beginning to move, and the giant
stone figure was nowhere to be seen.
In the wetlands between the two armies was the giant rock boulder which was
non-existent moments ago. The undead legion gathered close to the rock, raised
their shields flatly above themselves before kneeling down. The other skeletons
jumped on top of the raised shields, nimbly maintained their balance then, like
the skeletons below, likewise raised their own shields.
At that moment, Zaryusu understood what the opponent was doing and, as if he
had been struck by lightning, started trembling.
Could it be stairs? Apparently even this myth-like army is used as mere
stairs!
The skeletons approached the giant boulder at abnormal speed and the stairs
made out of undead army units was finally completed.
Following this, the other undead soldiers also began to move. These undead were
even more impressive looking than the skeletons moments ago, and numbered
approximately one hundred. In their hands were spears with a piece of cloth
attached, like the kind used by horse-back spearmen.
Bright red cloth all of their spear-flags had a single emblem.
Those undead wore cloaks billowing in the wind, and stepped into the wetlands
one after each other in perfect unison, advancing forward silently as they
shattered the ice beneath their feet. This was followed by another group of
skeletons which also entered the wetlands in perfect unison. The second group
maintaining a fixed distance from the first group before stopping and crossing
spears with each skeleton on the other side.
The crossed spears formed a single path leading directly to the large boulder.
... Is that a path for the Overlord?
Zenberu was correct.
The death magic caster stepped on the path arranged by the undead, and
following behind him were numerous figures who had seemingly appeared out of
nowhere.

Leading the path was the magic caster whose extent of true strength had
reached unfathomable heights.
On his body he wore a pitch-black changpao, so dark that it looked as if it had
been cut from a piece of the night, and in his hand he held a staff which radiated
a black aura. That radiating aura seemed to form into agonised human
expressions, which collapsed and disappeared. Even under the hood was a skull,
with vacant eye sockets which had a shining small red light in either of them.
The opponent wore innumerable magic accessories which were absolutely
beyond Zaryusus comprehension, and walked forward at a commensurate pace
with the authority of a king.
There was a white clothed woman following behind the Overlord of Death.
Although she had a human appearance, there were one particular area which was
different to humans. Namely, that was the wings attached to her body at the
waist.
She cant be an Akuma?
Akuma.
Demons were those who used violence to bring about destruction, and Devils
were those who used their intelligence to bring about depravity. These kinds of
otherworldly existences grouped together were referred to as demons. It is said
that they are atrocious monsters which existed solely for the extermination of all
sentient and good living beings. They were also synonymous with the word evil.
Zaryusu had once before heard about demons during his travels.
He had heard how terrifying demons were. It was said that two hundred years
ago, a being known as the king of the demons the Demon God had led
demons under his banner, and had almost exterminated the entire world.
The Demon God had met his end at the hands of the thirteen heroes which
vanquished him, and in a certain place it was still possible to see traces of that
battle.
If undead could be described as creatures which detested the living, then demons
were creatures which tormented the living.
A pair of dark elf twins followed behind the demon, and behind them was a silverhaired girl. Not only that, there was also a bizarre creature floating in the air, and
lastly there was a human-like male with a long tail.
Although the bizarre creature gave off an impression that it was not strong, a
single glance of each of the others would cause tails to start to tremble. His feral
instincts were fiercely warning himself, saying it was crucial to quickly get away
at full speed.
This line of persons walked forward silently, passed through underneath the spear
banners, and climbed up the stairs leading to the giant boulder. Without
hesitation, they stepped on the undead soldiers, and stood on top of the giant
boulder like royalty. The Overlord of Death, who walked in front, stretched out his
hand and gave it a wave.

In the next moment, a high back throne giving off a black radiance appeared, and
the Overlord of Death directly proceeded to sit on top of it.
The ones which walked behind, which should be his trusted people, formed a line,
and as if waiting for something they looked towards the village. However apart
from this, they did not make any other movements.
What kind of situation was this?
Several lizardmen looked at each other uncomfortably, and finally decided to
allow the cleverest person at the scene to make a judgment call.
... P-Please tell us, what we should do, Zaryusu-sama? Shall we prepare to flee?
This speech was devoid of battle intent. Their powerless and drooped tails spoke
volumes about how they felt inside.
No, that will not be necessary. Think about the previous lich. Our opponent is a
magic caster who is by far more superior to that lich, and making an attack at
this distance should be childs play for him. The most frightening thing is what
kind of words does he have for us.
The lizardmen revealed an expression of agreement.
During this period of time, Zaryusus gaze remained focused on a line people that
had approached. Like a commoner looking at royalty, he did not stop observing
the powerful creatures standing on top of the giant boulder.
This was so that he would not let any information slip his attention.
When the distance between them had closed, he could already make quite
detailed observations, and it could even be said that they were close enough to
exchange gazes.
Was the Overlord of Death seated on the throne observing the lizardmen? The
outward appearances of the dark elves did not show any hostile intent, the silver
haired girl had a mocking expression, the demons gentle appearance conversely
caused hairs to raise on end, it was completely impossible to see if the bizarre
creature was up to anything, and the male who had grown a tail had no emotions
in his eyes.
After exchanging observations like this for a while, the Overlord of Death once
again gently raised the hand not holding a staff to the vicinity of his chest.
Several lizardmen who saw this action flickered their tails intensely.
Do not be afraid. Do not put an embarrassing display in front of our
opponent.
Zaryusus razor-sharp rebuke made all of the lizardmen at the scene immediately
raise their heads and straighten their backs.
A number of black clouds appeared in front of the Overlord of Death, numbering
twenty. The black clouds spun ceaselessly, growing in size and each becoming
approximately one hundred and fifty centimetres in size. Before long, many
horrifying faces appeared floating inside the black clouds.
Those are

Zaryusu recalled that it was the monster which had approached the village, and
was also the same kind of undead monster which he had once come across
during his travels.
Although he had already explained this in Cruschs village, unless they were to
use magic weapons, weapons forged from special metals, magic or special
martial arts, it would be exceedingly difficult to harm this kind of incorporeal
creature.
Even when all of the lizardmen tribes were aggregated, they only possessed a
small number of magic weapons, which meant to say that even defeating one
would be very difficult.
Not to mention that the opponent had apparently summoned twenty of that kind
of monster with great ease.
... So, thats what it means to be able to control death itself.
Zaryusu despairingly thought to himself that the opponent was indeed a
supremely powerful being able to have the powerful lich swear loyalty to him.
After the Overlord of Death uttered some unknown words, he stretched out his
hand and waved as if intending for everyone to attack. Following this, the
monsters flew over, surrounded the village and began to chant in unison.
The Supreme One transmits his message to you as such.
The Supreme One requests a dialogue. Will the representative please step
forward.
Should you waste our time, it shall only serve to aggravate the Supreme One.
After this unilateral declaration, the incorporeal undead returned to their masters
side.
Ha...? It cant be That is it?
Zaryusu had a stumped look as he said this.
So he sent out such powerful undead just to transmit this message?
However, what was even harder to believe was when the silver haired girl, who
was waiting at attention at the back, forcefully used both hands to make a clap
once she received her instructions from the supreme ruler of death.
At the moment of the hand clap those undead were exterminated.
What!
Zaryusu, who had taken in a large shock, involuntarily shouted out.
Since that move was not to return the summoned monsters, but to exterminate
them.
Priests could exterminate undead. Although normally sending them back was
already not easy, if there were two individuals and there was a great difference in
strength, they could do more than make the undead retreat, and even directly
exterminate them. However, to exterminate a group of undead at the same time
was impossible.

What that meant was that the silver haired girls strength was on par with the
Overlord of Death. If that was so, then the others by his side were fearfully also
the same.
Ha ha ha ha
Zaryusu could not stop his own laughter.
This was natural. At this moment, what could he do other than laugh? If the
difference in their strength was as such
Younger brother!
Ah, older brother!
Zaryusu replied as he glanced to the voice which came from the under of the
mud wall, and discovered that both Shasuryu and Crusch had arrived at the wall.
Both individuals climbed up the mud wall and looked in the direction of the magic
casters entourage.
Crusch forcefully squeezed herself between Zenberu and Zaryusu, almost
causing Zenberu to fall over. However, this should have counted as a forgivable
action.
Is that the enemy's leader? The atmosphere around him is so strong that merely
looking at him will cause peoples bones to chill. Although the appearance is
similar to the lich which you defeated but the strength of both individuals
simply cannot be compared
... Older brother, have you finished on your side?
Mm, pretty much. My and Cruschs magic reserves have been depleted.
Furthermore, after hearing that beings words I also think that we must resolve
this matter first. About what that being said Zaryusu, are you willing to come
along?
Zaryusu looked silently at Shasuryu for a while, then nodded gravely. Shasuryu
momentarily showed an anguished look, but immediately returned to normal, so
fast that nobody had noticed his expression.
Sorry.
Dont mind it, older brother.
Shasuryu had only apologised before jumping off the mud wall, treading on the
thin layer of ice coating the wetlands, and letting out splashing sounds.
Im off then.
Be careful.
After Zaryusu hugged Crusch tightly, he also followed Shasuryu and jumped
down into the wetlands.
Zaryusu and Shasuryu treaded across the thin ice above the lake, moving forward
together. After they walked through the main entrance, Zaryusu felt the Overlord
of Deaths group gaze intently at the two of them, as if their gazes carried actual
pressuring strength. He desperately restrained his strong emotions telling him
not to get away.

At this moment, Shasuryu spoke out.

... Sorry.
... Sorry for what, older brother?
... If negotiations fall apart, the opponent may perhaps kill the two of us there
and then.
Zaryusu had already prepared himself mentally a while ago. It was because of
this that he had hugged Crusch so tightly first.
... Considering the opponents numbers, I cannot allow older brother to go
forward alone. If you were by yourself, the opponent would probably also form
the opinion that we are not paying them enough respect.
Amongst lizardmen, Zaryusu was indeed widely known, and extremely suitable to
take part in negotiations. However, his identity was that of a traveller, therefore
even if he were sacrificed, it would not affect the lizardmen group structure. From
this perspective, his loss would not be regretted.
Even if the hero were to be killed, so long as there were other remaining tribe
chiefs, the battle could be continued. The only pity would be the loss of Frost
Pain. Without it, there would be no means to block the cold wind coming from the
frozen lake.
The two of them continued silently forward, getting step-by-step closer to death.
They arrived before the undead stairs leading up to the throne, and announced
their arrival loudly. If the throne was situated even further back, they could have
chosen to climb up the stairs first, but the opponent stood at the brink of the
stairs, showing that they were not intended to climb up.
The king must sit at a higher level.
Although lizardmen did not have such a rule, many tribes had the habit where
those in a higher position would look down on the others. Of course, from the
perspective of holding talks, this was considered disrespectful treatment of the
other party.
Therefore, whilst on the surface it was called negotiation, blatantly there was no
intention for these negotiations to be conducted between equals.
However, requesting equality in talks would be overconfidence. Indeed, Zaryusu
and the others had won the previous battle, but after seeing the rows of enemy
soldiers on top of the enormous boulder, they were forced to realise that their
previous victory had no meaning even if they did not wish to believe so. All of it
had been just a game.
Our delegation has arrived! I am the lizardmen representative, Shasuryu Shasha,
the strongest hero amongst the lizardmen!
I am Zaryusu Shasha!
Even so, their sonorous voices still had no flattery in them. They knew that this
was foolishness, but this was their remaining dignity. Perhaps the previous battle

was only a game in the opponents eyes, but they absolutely could not forfeit the
honour of those who sacrificed their lives in that battle.
No response. The Overlord of Death seated on top of the throne merely looked
critically at them, unceremoniously sizing them up. It was completely impossible
to tell if there was any intent to take action.
The one who replied was the demon who had a pair of black wings which grew
from her waist.
Our master does not consider that you have not entered into a listening posture
which demonstrates respect.
... What?
Once the female heard the confused voice, she called out to the man by her side
who had a tail.
Demiurge.
Prostrate.
Suddenly, Zaryusu and Shasuryu knelt down, with their heads buried into the
wetlands. Their actions made it look like these two persons thought it was only
natural to do.
The cold mud stained the two persons bodies, and the shattered ice blocks
immediately froze up again.
It was impossible to stand up. Even if they used their entire bodys strength, their
bodies did not budge. As if there was an invisible giant hand which was pressing
down on them from above, their bodies had completely lost all freedom of
movement.
Do not Resist.
In the moment that the sound once again was heard in their heads, Zaryusu and
Shasuryu felt as if their bodies had given birth to another mind taking over
their decision making organs. Their bodies seemed to act according to the
instructions of that organ.
After seeing the two energy-drained persons awkwardly kneeling in the muddy
ground, the female demons seemed to look very satisfied, and faced the master
as she reported:
Ainz-sama, their respectful listening postures are prepared.
Thank you for your hard work Raise your heads.
Permitted to Raise your Heads.
Zaryusu and Shasuryu moved their heads which was the only body part able to
freely move, and gazed upwards as if respectfully welcoming a king.
I am the master of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, Ainz Ooal Gown. First, I give
you my thanks for helping me complete my experiment.
Experiment? So many of our companions lives were taken away, yet he still
dares to call it an experiment?

The despise in their hearts roused their burning anger, but then they still
restrained their emotions. It was because now was still not the time to turn the
tables.
Then, let us directly address the main issue accept my authority.
Ainz the magic caster gently raised his hand, stopping Shasuryu who desired to
speak out.
Knowing that insisting on speaking out would not be wise, Shasuryu could only
obediently stay silent.
However you defeated us earlier, which should mean that you are unwilling to
accept my authority. This is why we shall attack again four hours later. If you are
still able to win, I promise to take no further action against you, and will even
guarantee to support reasonable compensation to you.
... May I please ask a question?
You may, ask away.
The one who will be attacking will it be Your Mightiness?
The silver-haired girl standing at the back raised her brow slightly and the female
demon smiled more deeply, possibly because they were unsatisfied with the Your
Excellency title. However, they did not make any particular action, perhaps
because the master did not say anything about it.
Ainz ignored those two persons, and continued talking.
How can that be possible. I will not be taking action myself. Instead, the one who
will be attacking will be my trustworthy aide furthermore I will only be sending
out one person. He is called Cocytus.
Hearing these words, Zaryusu felt a deep despair as if the world had ended.
If it were a large army that would attack, perhaps the lizardmen would have a
chance of victory. This meant that, at first, he had believed that this time could
also be a continuation of yesterdays unfortunate battle which was called an
experiment. If it were like that, then there should still be a miniscule chance of
victory.
However, it was not going to be a large army which was sent out to attack.
The one attacking would only be one person.
The previously defeated army had once again made such a big declaration, but
would only send one person this time. Unless it was a punishment, or there was
some hidden meaning behind his words, he must have complete faith in that
person.
Someone who was trusted by the Overlord of Death who possessed
overwhelming strength. Then, there could only be one answer: that person also
possessed overwhelming strength, and furthermore the kind of strength that
would make lizardmen feel that there was no chance of winning.
"We choose to surren..."

"Losing without a fight is simply too boring. Do put up a bit of a fight, we would
also like to have a taste of victory."
Ainz interrupted Shasuryu, not allowing him to continue.
So blatantly, he would make an example out of us, this bastard.
Zaryusu cursed as such in his thoughts.
The powerful using slaughter to wipe away the shame of defeat.
What that meant was that in a moment the opponent would be carrying out a live
sacrifice. It would be a performance, eradicating the rebellious lizardmen.
"That is all that I wish to say. Then, four hours later, do your best to enjoy it."
"Please wait a minute will this ice melt away?"
Regardless of who won or lost, with the lake frozen, the lizardmen would find it
very difficult to survive.
"... Ah, I almost forgot."
Saying that he had forgotten. This airy attitude of Ainz surfaced in his reply.
"I only wished not to dirty myself with the wetlands mud as I walked, which is
why, after returning to the shore, the magic effect will be dispelled."
"What!"
Zaryusu and Shasuryu were shocked into silence, and questioned if they had
heard wrongly.
He froze the lake simply because he did not wish to get dirty?
This was no longer at the level of being hard to believe. The opponent's strength
was simply too overwhelming, even able to easily change the force of nature, and
furthermore for such a silly reason.
So it turned out that they were opposing such a powerful being Zaryusu and
Shasuryu both felt the same fear as a child would being all alone.
"Until next time, lizardmen Portal."
Feeling that everything that needed to be said was said, Ainz stretched out his
hand and gave it a gentle wave, and a dark hemisphere appeared in front of the
throne. Next, he jumped into that darkness.
"See you, lizardmen."
"Goodbye, Mr. Lizardmen."
"Farewell, lizardmen."
The two attending females and one male also jumped into the darkness after
speaking with an attitude that was as if they had lost interest.
"E-Eh, t-then, good bye, take care."
"drows ym fo enob eht ma I" [Then, goodbye.]

After the dark elf female, the bizarre creature also followed and entered the
darkness.
"Freedom Granted. Then, try to enjoy it as best you can, lizardmen."
At the same moment the last one, the man with the tail, entered the darkness, he
spoke with a gentle voice and also the weight pressing down on the two
lizardmen disappeared without a trace.
Zaryusu and Shasuryu who were left behind in their spots were sprawled in the
mud and did not move. This was because they lacked the strength to pull
themselves up.
They no longer even felt pain from the continuous freezing wind, because they
had suffered a mental attack which exceeded their physical pain by far.
Damn it
Shasuryu cursed in a low voice, quite unlike his personality, and contained in it
was a mix of many emotions.
The two were welcomed back by the various tribe chiefs who had climbed on top
of the mud wall in order to avoid the cold gas. There were no other lizardmen in
the surroundings.
Possibly, this was arranged because they had already considered early on that
there were some matters which needed to be discussed in confidentiality.
Shasuryu roughly thought that this was the case, and that there was no need to
conceal it any further. He then directly informed everybody of what he had
gathered about the progression of that meeting that hardly could called a proper
negotiation.
Nobody had too much of a reaction, except for being slightly alarmed, towards
Shasuryus explanation which was said in a heavy tone. They were most likely
like this because they had probably predicted the conclusion of the negotiation
from a long while back.
Understood then the ice will melt, right? If it does not melt, then we wont be
able to fight even if we wanted to.
Not a problem. The opponent said that the magic would be dispelled.
Was this an exchange brought about by the negotiation?
Towards the question posed by the Small Fang Tribe chief, Shasuryu did not reply,
but merely smiled a little. Seeing that reaction, and understanding what it meant,
the tribe chief of the Small Fang Tribe shook his head disheartedly.
When you were heading to the negotiations, we conducted an investigation
and discovered the shadows of enemies inside of the lake which look like skeleton
soldiers. We fear that they are in a formation surrounding us and awaiting
orders.
I do not think our opponent plans to let us go.
The opponent was quite serious, so this means
That is only speculation.

The four who had not participated in the negotiations gave a long sigh. The
conclusion that they had reached should also be a belief that what would follow
was a live sacrificial ritual.
Then what shall we do?
... Mobilise all warrior class lizardmen, and also the ones here
Older brother can you permit only five people to participate?
Out of the corner of his eye, Zaryusu saw the puzzled expression on Cruschs
face. He continued, appealing towards all of the male lizardmen including his
older brother.
If the opponents objective is to demonstrate his own powerful strength, then
lizardmen shouldnt be exterminated completely. Therefore, we need an
individual who is able to lead, a central figure to bring together all of the
survivors. If all of the people here were to lose their lives, it would be a huge loss
for the future of lizardmen.
... That is a valid point. Isnt that right, Shasuryu.
Hmm, Zaryusu is correct.
The two tribe chiefs alternatively looked at Zaryusu and Crusch, then both
expressed their agreement.
Theres nothing unacceptable with that; I also agree.
After the approval of the final tribe chief Zenberu, Shasuryu could not find any
reasons to refuse his younger brothers request.
Our decision is thus settled then. I have also thought about it, that it is
necessary to have someone survive to lead and bring together the tribes
Crusch should be very suitable to carry out this responsibility. Her albinism may
perhaps be a hindrance, but her abilities as a druid are indispensable.
Wait a moment. I also want to fight together!
Crusch shouted loudly, protesting why she was excluded now out of all times.
Furthermore, if we were to leave one person behind, wouldnt leaving behind
Shasuryu be better? He is the most trusted tribe leader amongst us!
And that is exactly why we cannot leave him behind. The opponents objective is
to demonstrate overwhelming force, probably in hopes that we will despair, so
that we will submit to his authority easier. However, what would happen if there
was someone amongst the survivors they could pin their hopes on, hmm?
And amongst the tribe chiefs present, the one with the lowest popularity is
Crusch.
Crusch was speechless. It was an indisputable fact that she as an albino had the
lowest popularity.
Knowing that nothing she said would convince them, Crusch fixated on Zaryusu.
I also want to go together. When you called me here, you had already decided
let me make my own decision, so why do you still say such words?

... Because at that time, everybody would very likely all be killed, but now we
have a relatively large opportunity to allow one person to survive.
Dont joke with me!
The air was shaking as if it were echoing Cruschs anger. Because of her agitated
emotions, the sound of the mud wall being slapped numerous times could be
heard as Cruschs tail went into an uncontrollable frenzy.
Zaryusu, you convince her. See you again in four hours time.
Shasuryu threw down these words before departing quickly with long strides,
followed by the sound of shattering ice and splashing water. Three tribe chiefs
jumped down the mud wall and followed Shasuryu. Zenberu also had his back
towards the two as he waved his hand gently to give his regards.
After seeing them off, Zaryusu turned to face Crusch.
Crusch, please understand.
How can I understand! And it is not a given that you will lose! If you had the
support of my druid powers, perhaps you may win!
This sentence was so hollow that even Crusch who said it did not believe in it
herself.
I do not wish for my loved female lizardmen to be killed. Please fulfil this foolish
male lizardmans desire.
Crusch showed a pained expression, and hugged Zaryusu.
Youre too selfish!
Sorry
You might die.
Uh huh
Indeed, the chance of surviving was incredibly low. No, rather it could be said
with certainty that there was no chance of surviving.
In just one short week, youve already captured my heart, yet you still tell me to
watch helplessly as you get killed?
Um...
Meeting you was my stroke of luck, but also my misfortune.
Crusch who was hugging Zaryusus torso tightened her grip, as if she had no
intentions of letting go.
Zaryusu made no noise.
What should he say?
What could he say?
His thoughts all along had been stuck on the same problem.

After a period of time, Crusch raised her head, with her expression filled with
determination.
Zaryusu felt uncomfortable in his heart as he sensed that Crusch would be
adamant about coming along. At this moment, Crusch spoke a few words
concisely to Zaryusu.
Get me pregnant.
Hah?
Come quick!

CHAPT
ER 5

Part 1

Ainz main base was the fortress that Aura was constructing the place that
Cocytus visited yesterday. Faint construction noises could still be heard in the
distance.

When they entered a room, Victim who had been following quietly behind said to
Ainz.

emoh gniog m'I ,syug uoy wercS (Well then, allow me to bid farewell here.)

Thank you for your hard work. Please defend the first level of Nazarick until we
return.

amabO sknahT (By your will).

Portal.

Victim went into the door of darkness conjured by Ainz with the first level of the
Great Tomb of Nazarick as his destination.

After seeing off the Guardian capable of activating a deadly powerful movement
restriction skill, Ainz turned his attention towards the room. At the same time, he
could sense Aura lowering her face.

She must have done everything she could to give Ainz a grand welcome. Traces
that showed the commendable effort put into this room could be seen
everywhere, but it paled in comparison to Nazarick. Aura probably felt shame
from this.

It is not that bad.

For Ainz who was just a salaryman, he didnt mind it that much. His room in
Nazarick wasnt too bad either, but it troubled him as it was too luxurious. In fact,
he felt relaxed and comfortable here.

I want an eight tatami room. I should find a corner to prepare one. Oh, I have to
compliment Aura and convey my satisfaction for her work.

If people dont talk about their trust, gratitude and care, they wouldnt become
successful.

Ainz remembered a quote he saw framed inside the display cabinet of a CEO
during a corporate visit. He didnt know who coined it, but it was a great quote. It
felt like something an ideal boss will say.

You have to show your gratitude. People wont strive for the best if there is no
reward Something like that?

My apologies Aura, for insisting on using this place. Do not mind the details, I
have high praise for what you have accomplished. If this is made by you, then it
is as good as Nazarick.

... Yes.

Auras eyes slightly widened. I should console her more. Although Ainz wanted to
do that, no better words came to his mind, so he covered it up by observing the
surroundings once again.

The smell of fresh timber still lingered here.

Normally, instead of this place that had absolutely no defences, returning to

Nazarick was unquestionably safer. Without defensive magic, it was like a house
made of paper in a way. But on the flip side, Ainz was using himself as bait to lure
in the big fishes.

There was a large distance between here and the lake, so the ones that could
chase them here if they existed would be players from YGGDRASIL, or
people at that level.

This meant that the purpose of building this place was to bait the enemies
targeting Nazarick to reveal themselves.

It was dangerous of course, but Ainz felt the risk was necessary to achieve this
goal.

They are still not showing up. Could it be the plan is a failure? Anyway, what is
that?

... Aura, I want to ask you. What is that thing?

Ainzs gaze stopped on the lone white chair placed deep inside the room. The
back was made high and imposing. It was made so well that it was no
exaggeration to call it an art piece. If he ignores that one glaring issue.

Its bit plain, but I have prepared a throne.

The one answering confidently was the subordinate following behind him
Demiurge. Thats what I thought, Ainz said to himself in his mind and asked a
further question.

What bones did you use?

Bones from all sorts of beasts. The best parts are from beasts like Griffon and
Wyvern.

... Oh I see.

That was a throne made from countless bones. It wasnt in the logistics list of
goods they brought from Nazarick, so it was something Demiurge made outside.
No matter how he looked at it, skulls from humans or demi-humans were
definitely used too. It might look pure white without a shred of blood and meat on
it, but it still gave the feeling of blood stain.

It was a bit disgusting, sitting on that thing was akin to sitting on a cushion of
needles, making Ainz hesitate. But his subordinate had put in effort to prepare it,
it would be difficult to reject it. Is there any reason he could use that wont cause
complaints...

Ainz snapped his fingers after thinking about it.

... Shalltear. I will give you the punishment for what you had done right now.
Thats right I will punish you with shame.

Yes!

Shalltear who was suddenly named was a bit surprised.

Kneel with your head bowed over there, and put your hands on the floor.

Yes!

Shalltear walked to the place Ainz pointed at which was the middle of the room
and did as she was told with a baffled face.

Ainz walked up to Shalltear and sat on her back.

... Ainz, Ainz-sama!

The surprised Shalltear could only made exhale while whispering Hans-sama.
She was shaken and stiff from fear when Ainz sat on her back.

You are now a chair, understand?

Yes!

Ainz shifted his gaze from Shalltear whose voice was getting shrilled, onto
Demiurge.

Sorry Demiurge, thats how it is.

I see! Marvellous! To use a Guardian as a chair! This is a chair customized

specifically for the Supreme Master! As expected of Ainz-sama. I would never
have thought of that!

Is, is that so

In the face of the glittering respect shown on Demiurge was expressing, Ainz
averted his face, not understanding why he was smiling so brilliantly. After this, a
beautiful woman said to Ainz with a wonderful smile.

My apologies Ainz-sama. Please allow me to excuse myself. I will return shortly.

You need something Albedo? Permission granted, carry on.

After thanking him, Albedo left the room. Immediately, a woman screaming
Hyaaahhhhhhh! and the sound of a wall being smashed violently could be
heard, and the whole fort seemed to be shaking.

After a minute or so, Albedo returned to the room dominated by silence with her
usual smile.

I have returned, Ainz-sama. Oh right, Aura. I accidentally ran into the wall when I
left the room. It seemed to be damaged, could you repair it later? I am very
sorry.

Ah, ermm... Okay, I will get it done.

Ainz swallowed the words he wanted to say and sighed. He focused his
wandering gaze and fixated on the staff emitting an aura of terror.

The real staff of Ainz Ooal Gown was not brought here, this was a replica a
prototype in replicating the guild weapon. Made from parts dug from the depths
of the treasury, it was a prop that looked almost perfect on the outside.

The guild will fall if the guild weapon was destroyed, so it could not be brought
out so carelessly. It was entrusted to the Guardian of the Cherry Blossom Zone in
the 8th floor for protection right now.

We did come up with countermeasures for if we got robbed of our rings, but it is
not easy to just find a place to test it out...

As he was thinking about that, Shalltear suddenly fidgeted, adjusting herself for
Ainz to sit more comfortably. This made Ainz look down at the back of Shalltears
head with a strange sense of unease.

Her breathing was ragged.

It must be heavy for her. Under Ainz was the slim back of Shalltear who looked to
be fourteen. A grown man was sitting on the back of this young girl. Realizing
how perverted, shameful and cruel that was, Ainz felt he might have gone too far.

Shalltear was a NPC created by his companion in the past. Even Peroronchino
wouldnt abuse her like this. This action was akin to soiling the memories of his
past comrades. It was foolish to think of this as a self-punishment.

To torture Shalltear like this unforgivable.

Shalltear, does it hurt?

Ainz was planning to say if that is so, lets end this. Shalltear looked up with a
face blushing with passion, her expression full of pleasure.

Its not painful at all! This is like a reward!

She kept exhaling the heat stored within her body, reflecting Ainz face in her
dazed eyes. Her wet tongue brushed against her lips, reflecting light lecherously.
She squirmed her body like a snake.

... Hnngh!

Ainz felt the urge to get away immediately.

He almost gave in to this urge.

No, I cant do that.

He was punishing Shalltear, but Shalltears mistake was actually Ainz fault.
Thats why enduring the urge to get up was Ainz punishment.

Ainz destroyed the complicated emotions welling up within him.

He tried his best to ignore the chair that was panting and squirming. But he
couldnt help thinking Peroronchino, what a perverted setting this is.

... Well then, lets move on to the serious topic. Did we intimidate them?

I think it was perfect, Ainz-sama.

Exactly, just look at the lizardmens faces.

Ainz smiled in relief after hearing what the Guardians said. Actually, it was
impossible to tell the changes in the expressions of the lizardmen. They might be
closer to humans than reptiles, but their facial expressions were totally different
from humans.

Is that so. Then the first phase to awe them with might is a success.

Ainz exhaled in relief.

He used the Super-tier magic The Creation that could only be used four times a
day after all. If that didnt work, nothing else would.

Demiurge, how long would it take to find out exactly how large the frozen area
is?

We have already started to do so, but progress is slow as the area is wider than
expected. Please grant us more time.

Ainz stopped Demiurge who was about to kneel. Ainz covered his mouth with his
bony finger and thought. The area of effect being larger than expected could be
considered a success in terms of magical experimentations.

The Creation is a Super-tier magic that could change the terrain itself. In
YGGDRASIL, it was used to guard against the heat of volcanoes or the cold of
freezing lands.

It was possible to show their might without using Super-tier magic.

Unrelated to this deployment, Ainz had always wanted to perform this

experiment in determining the area of effect. The Creation was a magic that had
an amazingly large area of effect, and could cover the entire 8th floor in Ainz's
experiment inside Nazarick. But it wasnt clear what effect it would have in the
world outside.

In YGGDRASIL the spell effect could cover an Area, but how big would an Area
be in this world? Ainz wanted to find out. If it could cover an entire plain, that
would be too big.

Similarly, freezing the entire lake was going overboard. Care should be taken
when using Super-tier magic.

Aura, how is our security net?

Yes! We have deployed the undead assigned by Ainz-sama to secure a two

kilometer radius area. But there has been no signs of anything special coming in
so far. I have also sent monsters specializing in scouting to patrol the area within
4 km, but we have not spotted anything suspicious.

I see The enemy might be hiding from detection as they draw close, what
about the countermeasures against that?

There are no problems. With Shalltears cooperation, we have sent out undead
proficient in reconnaissance.

Splendid.

Aura smiled happily after Ainz praised her. Her depressed expression was gone
without a trace.

We have exposed ourselves to this extent, why havent the people who used the
World class item against Shalltear made a move?

Ainz asked again under the gaze of everyone present, but did not direct his
question to anyone in particular.

Why arent they performing surveillance on Nazarick and this place?

Could it be that they are surveilling us with World class items that could not be
detected by normal means?

Ainz tilt his head in response to Demiurges counter question.

... I did consider this possibility, thats why I use Momon If they are really using
World class item to spy on us, they wouldnt be able to spy on Momon who also
owns a World class item. Thats why I have been assuming they will use physical
means such as scouts to watch us They might use magic surveillance too, but it
should be orthodox means...

Ainz realized the Guardians around him seemed confused, which meant his
explanation wasnt clear enough.

Well How should I put this In the past, we owned a mine that could generate
a type of metal that was rare. As we were monopolizing the supply, the market
price for it soared and people started scheming to rob it from us. The item they
used that time was Ouroboros. It was a top World class item known as one of the
Twenty.

Ainz narrowed his eyes.

He was raging mad when he just got robbed, but looking back, it was a nice piece
of memory. Even though they were massacred and dropped plenty of rare items.

Outrageous! They dare usurp the territory ruled by the Supreme Beings?!
Unforgivable! Please give us the order to counter attack!

Hearing how angry Albedo was made Ainz turn his gaze.

He could see the hostility and killing intent released by all the Guardians, even
the calm Demiurge was revealing a sinister smile. Not just that, even Mares
reserved expression couldnt conceal his urge to attack. Ainz couldnt see
Shalltears face as she was acting as a chair, but from her stiffened body, her
determination was conveyed to Ainz through his rear.

Calm down! This is all in the past now.

Ainz raised his hand to calm the Guardians. They looked more settled, but they
still felt unstable as if magma was flowing beneath the surface. To change the
topic, Ainz continued what he was saying.

The enemy used Ouroboros to stop us from entering the World the mine was
situated in. They probably used this chance to search the vicinity and seize the
mine. When the seal was undone, we went in only to find that the mine had been
conquered.

During the rash attempt to take back the mine, about half the guild members
died at least once. Ainz held back on and didnt say this out loud.

I will get to the main point. I mentioned that we were denied access to that
World but people with World class items could still enter that World. Hence, it is
impossible for them to spy on us even with the strongest World class item.

As Ainz listened to the enlightened acknowledgement from his subordinates, he

still bore doubts on whether this was really true.

The possibility was high, but there was no evidence to prove that it was true.

When using Conflict of the Five Elements which was also a Twenty like
Ouroboros, the game company sent a message to the owners World class items.
Aside from an apology, they also sent an item as compensation. The content of
the apology message was: Bearers of World class items, by right, you should be
exempted from any changes to the world. But it is very challenging to maintain
your data while we update the server. Therefore, we have no other choice but to
treat this as an exceptional case as we update the server.

And so, it was impossible for them to defend against this. But that event should
be the exception instead of the norm.

Especially the World class item that could defend against reconnaissance magic.
It would be meaningless if it couldnt protect Nazarick from other World class
items.

And that is why I thought the enemy will approach Momon But those who do
approach are mothers carrying new born babies and adventurers.

They asked Momon to pat the babies head to bless them with health and
strength. The adventurers requested a handshake and wished to become
stronger, but no one wanted to converse with him in private.
Thats why Ainz exposed himself with weak defences this time, waiting for the
enemy to make their move.

Not equipping Cocytus with a World class item was part of the plan. Ainz planned
to use him as bait to lure the enemy out. It seemed scary because the enemy
was unknown, and they could come up with proper countermeasures after
ascertaining who the enemy was.

Regarding this issue May I share my humble opinion?

What is it, Albedo?

Yes, as Ainz-sama explained, the plan was to smoke the enemy out. Could the
enemy be reluctant to approach us since they too are operating in the dark, just
like us?

...Ah.

No problem, Albedo, I already considered that possibility.

He didnt. Ainz was assuming the enemy was thinking the same thing like him,
trying to gather intelligence on him.

What an error. Did I get it wrong from the very beginning?

Excuse me, also

Albedo-san, please stop Ainz cried in his heart. He felt like a candidate who was
reviewing the question script after the exam and realized all his answers were
wrong.

About releasing the information that Shalltear was defeated with items

Yes, thats what I reported to the guild, that is to prevent the people from fearing
Momon if he gets too powerful. Sealed magic crystals seemed to be a rare item
here, it must be difficult to destroy the crystal for experiments. Destabilizing the
crystal and using it to defeat Shalltear is a more convincing story, and people
would be less guarded against Momon.

You are absolutely right. For the people who think sealed crystals are rare, this
isnt a bad method.

Albedos roundabout way of speaking made Ainz feel uneasy.

... But if the other party possess multiple crystals like Ainz-sama, wouldnt the
situation be different?

... Hmm? Ah, thats what you mean.

Ainz made an enlightened expression, but didnt understand at all.

So what if the other party possess several sealed crystals? It was a fact that
sealed magic was valuable in this world. Was Albedo worried about the crystal
being broken during experiments?

But that didnt seem to be all.

An ominous feeling flashed across Ainz mind. He wanted Albedo to explain

further, which made Ainz hate himself for acting cocky earlier.

Is it really okay for me to be the ruler and decide the policies of Nazarick? Am I
steering a ship up a mountain without knowing it?

Ainz felt like running away.

He couldnt bear the burden of a ruler he had experienced several times a

burden that grew heavier in the face of failure Ainz kept complaining in his
heart.

But he couldnt do that. Since he took the name of Ainz Ooal Gown, he couldnt
abandon the creations of his comrades the NPC and the treasures in the Great
Tomb of Nazarick. More importantly, he didnt want to be a parent that
abandoned his children.

I also worry whether you all will betray, abandon or give up on me. Nonetheless, I
will act the part of Ainz Ooal Gown that meets your expectations and is worthy of
your trust.

And so, Ainz made a relaxed expression he practised before the mirror and said in
a pose filled with the confidence of an Overlord.

No problem, I understand why you feel uneasy.

Ainz then looked around him.

Albedo Do share your worries with the other Guardians.

Ah, yes! If the enemy possess multiple crystals like Ainz-sama Someone who
knows about crystals, they would be able to tell this information is false. They will
be sure that Shalltear was not defeated by the crystal although they couldnt
know if Shalltear was at full strength, users of World class item will assume that
Momon is as strong as Shalltear. They will then conclude the mysterious warrior
Momon who suddenly appeared in E-Rantel is someone dangerous right? They
might also suspect that Shalltear might be related to Momon

... Albedo, and Guardians, what do you think the enemies next step would be?

Pardon me. I think that if our foes plan to oppose Ainz-sama, they will spread
rumours of Momon working together with the vampire even if there is no proof.
They would not want Momon to gain further fame.

Urghhh Ainz moaned in his heart.

Part of the goal of going to E-Rantel was to gather intelligence, but the main
target was to raise the fame of the Momon persona and a tiny part of wanting
to run away. The original plan was to wait for the great hero to be born and then
reveal Momons true identity, turning all his fame to that of Ainz Ooal Gown,
spreading this name throughout the world.

He also wanted to show his PK guild will change in this world, so he did good
deeds using the name of Momon. But these plans were probably done for.

Hmm? Demiurge, let me ask you, would it be more effective if such rumours
were spread after Momon became famous?

Aura, that would be a bad move. If Ainz-sama has garnered enough fame, the
masses will just think of such news as malicious rumours. They should cut off the
roots before his fame grows.

A wonderful insight, Demiurge.

Ainz nodded in response to Demiurge who was bowing his head, acting as if he
had the same idea.

I will ask another question. If that is so, why hasnt the enemy started spreading
rumours yet?

After hearing Ainz query, Demiurge raised a finger.

Number one, they have not completed their investigation on Momon-sama yet.
If Momon-sama did defeat Shalltear in a straight fight, they wouldnt want to
incur his wrath. They might want to pull him into their camp. Number two

He raised another finger.

What if their encounter with Shalltear was just a coincidence? They might have
been passing by with some other purpose in mind, just some unrelated third
party.

That is impossible, Demiurge, the possibility is very low

Ainz said that, he just realized this scenario wasnt impossible.

He was totally convinced that the attack had been targeted at Shalltear or
targeted at the denizens of Nazarick. But Shalltear was attacked shortly after
teleporting. If the attack really had been targeted at Shalltear, they had been
eerily precise.

Was he blinded by the fear of the unseen enemy?

Ainz narrowed his eyes or rather, the red glow in his eye sockets.

In the end, the problem was insufficient intelligence and being shorthanded. They
needed more power.

Anyway, the biggest problem is that our intelligence network is too small.

Sebas had been tasked with that too, but the intelligence gathered by a handful
of agents were limited. In the beginning, he thought it would be enough to gain
basic information about this world, but that wasnt enough in the current
situation.

The intelligence gathered by an adventurer and the butler of a merchant had less
importance and quality than that of a high government official.

Ainz couldnt think of anyone who could analyze the gathered intel from different
angles and judge whether the intel was important.

Ara ara, the main problem is the lack of intel. We have to be wary of an enemy
we couldnt see, which made it hard for us to make our move...

After listening to Ainz complain, Demiurge smiled as if he had a great idea.

If that is the case, how about joining forces with a country?

After a short silence, Albedo said Oh. to express that she had understood. Ainz
made the same sound moments later.

I see Demiurge, thats what you mean.

But the other three Guardians were still tilting their head in confusion. Aura
admitted her doubts honestly.

Ainz-sama, what does this mean?

Facing Auras question, Ainz felt relieved that he couldnt show any facial
expression.

Ara ara Mare, Shalltear, do you understand what Demiurge is talking about?

The two of them shook their heads.

I see, it couldnt be helped. Demiurge, please explain.

Yes, by your will. Everyone, Ainz-sama is worried about this unknown enemy. I
think that if we encounter this strong enemy and both sides are openly hostile to
each other, we will need a breakthrough point that could solve our issues during
negotiations.

Sensei, I dont understand Three students and one adult seemed to have these
words carved on their faces. Teacher Demiurge seemed to realize his explanation
was too vague, and continued by accommodating the standards of his students.

What will you do if Ainz-sama is controlled by a World class item user?

I will cut that person into pieces.

... No, thats not what I mean, Aura. Dont you think that being controlled is a
breakthrough point? In actual fact, there are people who could control their
opponent with World class items, so the possibility of Ainz-sama being controlled
is not zero.

The deputy home room teacher Albedo added to teacher Demiurges explanation.

He means after pretending to join under the flag of a country, Nazarick could
use this as an excuse for any actions we take in the future. We can just say that
we are acting under the orders of that country and didnt have a choice. If the
powerful enemy really exists, we could shift the responsibility to that country,
correct? If the enemy doesnt want a direct confrontation, they will do their best
to accommodate us.

I see if there are people who are unhappy with them, we can use this excuse
to pull this third party to our side Thats the idea. As expected of Ainz-sama

Just like the boss of an evil organization stroking a cat on his lap, Ainz patted the
head of Shalltear who was acting as a chair as he said Its not me.

The one who came up with this plan wasnt me, but Demiurge. He should be the
one who deserved this praise.

No, you flatter me. Ainz-sama seems to have reached this conclusion before I
did.

Ah, well yeah. My apologies for seemingly snatching your credit. And on top of
that, it will be much easier for us to garner intelligence.

A country should already have an intelligence network in place. They would be

able to progress by leap and bounds just by sending a minion of Nazarick in.

After learning his advice was of use for Ainz and Ainzs manner of speech as if he
was confirming the two brilliant Guardians made Demiurge smile.

It is just as you said.

Ainz knew that Demiurge was implying that Ainz knew from the very beginning.

Ah, as expected of Ainz-sama, to have thought about this so thoroughly

Hmmm So lowly beings like humans could be of use too.

After Albedo comment, the other Guardians including Shalltear who was
relegated to being a chair showered Ainz with sparkling gaze of admiration.

It made Ainz feel uneasy, but he felt relief that he didnt get it wrong when the
two of them agreed with him.

Well then lets target a country.

If we consider the nations in the vicinity, it would be the Kingdom, the Empire
and the Theocracy.

Wha, what about countries further away? Such as the Republic and the Holy
Kingdom.

I would advise against choosing nations that are far away, and I dont want to
come into contact with the Theocracy before I have adequate intelligence about
them. That leaves the Kingdom and the Empire And from the intelligence
gathered by Sebas, the Kingdom isn't that appealing to me, but we will need to
research this further.

Ainz extended his hand towards the mirror after saying By the way.

We gave the lizardmen a bit of time, lets see whether anything unexpected is
happening.

The birds eye view of the lizardmens village appeared on the mirror of remote
viewing, with tiny spots moving around.

Ainz reached out towards the mirror and gestured, changing the scenery on the
mirror.

The first time of course, was to zoom in.

The sight of the lizardmen working hard to prepare for war was shown
completely.

Futile efforts.

Demiurge murmured at the lizardmen gently.

Let me see, where are they. Its hard to tell the lizardmen apart.

Ainz searched for the six lizardmen he had seen in the recording with a frown on
his face.

Hmmm found the armored one. Thats the one that threw rocks, right? Next,
the buster sword is here. The difference is too minute. It is easy to find those with
prominent colors or equipment Found the one with the prominent arm.

After observing that, Ainz kept shifting the image on the mirror.

... I dont see the white lizardman and the one holding the magic weapon.

Ermm the one called Zaryusu?

Ah, right, thats his name.

Ainz recalled the lizardman who had come forth to negotiate at Auras prompt.

Could he be inside the houses?

Probably.

But the mirror of remote viewing wasnt able to see inside buildings. That was the
case, normally.

Demiurge, Infinity Haversack please.

By your will.

Demiurge bowed and moved to the table in the corner of the room and picked up
the Infinity Haversack. He presented it to Ainz respectfully. Ainz took out one
scroll from within.

He then activated the magic within the scroll.

An invisible ethereal sensory organ was conjured. The sensory organ can't
penetrate magical barriers, but it can pass through normal walls regardless of
their thickness. If it couldnt get in, it meant that a powerful enemy they had to
be wary of was there.

After linking the sensory organ with the mirror of remote viewing so the
Guardians could also see, Ainz started maneuvering the sensory organ that
looked like a floating eyeball.

Lets take a look inside the house.

Ainz chose an old broken house nearby and moved the sensory organ in. Even if
the interior was dark, it would show up as bright as day once the organ got in.

In that room, a white lizardman was being pressed down with its tail lifted up. A
black lizardman was riding on top.

Baffling.

Ainz didnt understand what was going on in the very beginning. The next
instant, that changed to confusion as to why they are doing that thing at a time
like this.

Ainz then moved the sensory organ outside silently.

......

Feeling troubled, Ainz placed his palm on his face. The Guardians by his side
didnt know what to say and looked at each other.

Demiurge: What an unpleasant bunch. Cocytus will be attacking soon and

they still have the nerve to do this?!

Aura: Thats right, thats right!

Mare: Ah, well, ermm

Shalltear: Demiurge is right. Lets teach them a lesson!

Albedo: How envious

Ainz lift a hand to stop the chatter of the Guardians.

... Forget it, they will be dead soon. I saw in a movie once that desperate
situations like these will stimulate their instinct to reproduce.

Ainz nodded to affirm his own opinion.

Demiurge: You are right!

Aura: If it's only this much, we can let them off~

Shalltear: Right, right!

Mare: Ermm, ah, that

Albedo: Me too, with Ainz-sama

Ainz: ... All of you be quiet.

After all the Guardians shut their mouth, Ainz sighed.

... I think I lost my drive, but never mind. There shouldnt be anyone we need to
look out for in the village. But we cant drop our guard, someone might be
heading our way. Aura

Ainz suddenly stopped moving and stared at the two children.

Oh no! I messed up! They are not old enough for sex ed yet No, its way too
soon for that!

Ainz felt he could empathize with how a father feels when an intense sex scene
comes up while watching TV with the whole family.

What are parents supposed to answer when their children ask them where do
babies come from? Shit! I did let Simmering Teapots kids saw that kind of scene
Eh, it should be fine. Ignoring Albedo, Demiurge will probably explain it from
a medical angle That will be the back up plan. Shalltear she seemed to be
fine. Anyway, I will remember this as an issue to be resolved later.

After pushing the problem to the back of his mind, Ainz coughed and said:

If the security net reveals anything, all the Guardians and I will move out
together.

If a player from YGGDRASIL did exist, Ainz didnt plan to honor the agreement he
made to let the lizardmen village go. If the other party wont join them, they will
be destroyed by Nazaricks full might to prevent intel from leaking. If that was the
case, Ainz will destroy the village even if he had to throw in all the forces from
the eighth floor.

Ainz shook off the guilt of betraying the promise he made with Cocytus. If it was
for the sake of something of the utmost importance, a white lie could smooth
things over.

... Alright then, now we wait for the show to start and admire Cocytus combat
prowess.

Part 2
Four hours passed in a flash.

The lizardmen warriors were already gathering in the front gate of the village in
the wetlands where the ice was melting. After the intense battle several days
ago, there wasnt many lizardmen warriors left.

They numbered 316.

Lizardmen that were not warriors would not be taking part because Shasuryu said
The enemy is few, having too many people will only get in the way.

It seemed reasonable at first, but it didnt hold water.

Zaryusu stood far from the lizardmen, watching the gathering lizardmen warriors.

Everyone had warpaint representing their ancestors on them, their face showed
will as tough as steel. They seemed to think they wouldnt lose.

The lizardmen around them cheered the warriors on. In that group, expressions of
unease could be seen clearly.

To keep the anxiety in his heart from showing, Zaryusu worked hard to show a
poker face in front of the other lizardmen, keeping them away from the truth of
this fight being a sacrificial offering to the Overlord of Death.

This was a battle where the Overlord of Death was going to display his might to
the lizardmen, to completely crush the lizardmens will to resist. They had no
chance of winning from the very start. Shasuryus words from earlier actually
entailed the wish to keep the sacrifice to the minimum.

Zaryusu averted his eyes from the lizardmen and glared at the enemy territory
with sharp eyes.

The skeleton army was rooted in the same spot, not moving an inch. The figure of
a monster by the name of Cocytus could not be seen around them. It couldnt be

a skeleton, he is someone the Overlord of Death trusted, there is no way he is a

minion level monster. He must be someone whose will is so obviously strong that
you can even feel it to the tip of your tail with just one look.

The sound of a large creature moving in the wetlands could be heard from behind
the anxious Zaryusu

Hey, Zaryusu.

Zenberu greeted nonchalantly as usual. Even though they were heading

towards death, Zenberu was his usual self.

Our morale seems to be at its peak.

Yes it is, it will be great if it keeps at this level in the face of the powerful enemy,
Cocytus

Yeah. Oh? Its time?

Shasuryu appeared at the main gate, and all eyes fell on him and the two
wetland fairies beside him.

Crusch was absent because she exhausted all her mana to summon the wetland
fairies. After having cast several long time defensive buffs and summoned the
fairies, the intense mana toll made her immobile. When the two of them left the
room, Crusch already told Zaryusu she will lose consciousness from overusing
mana, and that this will be the last time they see each other.

Zaryusu who didnt have his mate besides him cast a lonesome gaze in Cruschs
direction. Her face when she bid farewell broke Zaryusus heart.

Warriors, advance!

Shasuryus uplifting command raised the morale of the lizardmen to new height.

He had to change his mindset to that of a warrior. Zaryusu gathered his thoughts.

Under the lead of Shasuryu and the two wetland fairies, the lizardmen marched
forth slowly.

They moved away from the village to avoid collateral damage to it.

Zaryusu and Zenberu were the rear guard.

Zaryusu looked back at the village suddenly. The tattered mud walls, the worried
group of lizardmen seeing them off, and

Zaryusu sighed and shook his worries away and took large stride forward. He
didnt utter the name of the female lizardman that was right at his lips.

The lizardmen traversed the wetlands, forming up between the enemy skeleton
army and the village.

There was no particular formation, the lizardmen simply gathered randomly as

they waited for the upcoming battle. The only clear arrangement was that the
various tribe chiefs, Zaryusu and the two wetland fairies were standing in front.

The skeleton army was probably waiting for Zaryusu and the others to come. The
skeletons banged on their shields and marched forward.
If the timing was even slightly off, it would just sound like random noise from a
marching army, but their movements were in sync and the sound was as one. In
a different setting, this performance would be worthy of applause and praise.

While the sound drew the attention of the lizardmen, to the rear of the skeletons
several trees in the forest fell.

There was only one reason why the thick large trees fell. Someone cut them
down.

This caused a commotion among the lizardmen.

As they couldnt see how it was done, it might be possible that this was a
handiwork of several beings. However, the timing between the felling of each
tree was too tidy. After seeing the synchronized movement of the skeletons, it
might be possible for several beings working together to achieve that, but not a
single lizardmen thought this was the case here.

A strange premonition lingered in their hearts, the feeling that this was the work
of just one being.

This was because there was no sound of blade cutting into the trees before they
fell. Which meant that it might be improbable, but it was done by a very strong
being in one stroke.

What kind of strength and weapon could cut a large tree in one strike?

The thuds of falling trees together with the banging of shields came closer to the
lizardmen.

Anxious feelings welled up. This was expected, how could anyone keep calm in
such a situation. Even Zenberu who had the resolve to die, or Zaryusu and
Shasuryu were shaken even though they hid it well.

Moments later, the one opening a path in the forest revealed itself. At the same
time, the banging of the shields stopped.

In the eerily silent space, a smooth blue circle appeared before them. If not for
the thick clouds, there was no telling how bright his reflection would be.

That large body of 250cm in height looked like an insect standing on two legs.
The appearance was like that of an ant or mantis, a hybrid born of a twisted devil.

Its hard exoskeleton had a frosty air about it, sparkling like diamond dust.

It had a spiked tail that was twice its height and powerful jaws that looked
powerful enough to chew off a human arm in one bite.

He had four clawed arms with shiny gauntlets gracing each one. A round golden
necklace was worn around its neck and silver bangles adorned its legs.

The powerful being on par with the Overlord of Death made its appearance.

So this is Cocytus?

Zaryusus heart raced and his breathing became ragged.

None of the lizardmen spoke. Their eyes were drawn to the monster that showed
itself, unable to shift their gaze away. Even though they were afraid, they were
too scared to look away.

The group backed away unconsciously. Be it the lizardmen who came with
rousing fighting spirits or Zaryusu and the others who came here with the resolve
to die, all of them were stunned in the face of dominating power.

I know the Overlord of Death is holding back, but to think a powerful being that
wants to fight could be so terrifying.

Even with magic that could suppress fear, the urge to run away still sprung up
from within Zaryusu. It was a miracle that the other lizardmen who werent
protected by such spell did not run away.

Cocytus drew near slowly.

He walked into the wetlands, passing the skeletons with swagger

Cocytus stopped about thirty metres before the lizardmen, on top of a small knoll.
Cocytus then moved his insect like face on his long neck. He seemed to be
searching for someone.

Zaryusu felt Cocytus gaze rested on him for a brief moment.

Alright, Ainz-sama is watching, so show your might. Before that, Ice Pillar.

With the activation of the spell, two pillars of ice sprouted between the lizardmen
and Cocytus, about twenty meters away.

This might be rude for the warriors who came with the resolve to die, but know
this, only death awaits all who cross beyond these ice pillars.

Cocytus crossed two of his arms, his body language seemed to a signal of him
leaving the decision up to the lizardmen.

Hey hey, he is an unexpectedly a nice guy

Zaryusu nodded in agreement when he heard Zenberus comment.

He then took a step forth. Zenberu, Shasuryu and the two other tribe chiefs
followed.

Shasuryu turned back and told the warriors following them:

You lot stay here no, go back to the village. If not you will die because of us.

What?! We want to fight too! It is scary but even so, we want to fight!

There is no cowardice in retreat, living on takes more courage.

But

Not all the lizardmen can go back, thats how it is. As the tribe leaders, we cant
allow others to conquer us without a fight, right?

But chief, we also want to fight.

Hold it young ones! Scram, get out of here, leave the rest to us old timers!

The lizardmen pushing their way to the front were old, but not elderly enough to
be called an old man. They numbered 57, and the other lizardmen couldnt say
anything after seeing their faces.

If they showed resolved or resignation, the others would had insisted in going
with them. But their expressions were pleading them, begging the younger ones
to live on.

The speechless warriors reluctantly fell back.

Shasuryu turned to Cocytus once again.

... Apologies for the wait, Cocytus.

Cocytus extended one of his arm, bending a thin finger, gesturing at them to
come at him. Facing the taunt of the enemy, Shasuryu yelled at the top of his
voice:

Charge!

Warrghhhh!

The lizardmen who steeled themselves mentally roared from the bottom of their
heart and rushed at Cocytus.
Cocytus looked coldly at the warriors charging him.

... I am sorry to do this to you, warriors, but let me cut down your numbers.

Cocytus wouldnt lose even if all the warriors reached him, but he still needed to
pick his opponents.

Personally, Cocytus wanted to show his respect as a warrior and fight in a

distance where the enemy could strike at him. But he owed a deep debt to his
master, so it would be rude to show Ainz a disgraceful fight between a Nazarick's
Guardian and unruly mobs.

Cocytus released his sealed spirit.

The ability of the class Knight of Niflheim Frost Aura. This special ability used
extreme cold to deal damage and slightly lowered the speed of adversaries. At
full power, it would even affect the lizardmen watching from the sidelines.
Cocytus didnt wish for that.

Suppress his power.

Limit the range, lower the damage.

About this much

With Cocytus as the center, the extreme cold covered a radius of 25m.

Affected by the extreme cold, the temperature dropped drastically, making the
air shriek.

... Hmmm, that should do.

Cocytus sealed his spirit.

It happened in a flash, the incredible cold was already gone as if it was an

illusion. But that was definitely not a dream or an illusion. The bodies of the 57
lizardmen on the wetlands was the best proof.

Only five lizardmen could still move, and they were the five strongest people
among the lizardmen. They werent intimidated by their comrades deaths or
Cocytus ability, moving as one.

A rock flew through the air. A lizardman in full body armor led the charge with two
lizardmen following behind. The wetland fairies moved slowly behind the two
lizardmen with their bodies that had cracked in the cold. The last lizardman at the
back kept chanting spells.

The first strike was the rock aimed at Cocytus throat. However, that attack was
meaningless because

The equipment on all Guardians could defend against projectiles.

An invisible barrier seemed to deflected the rock.

The leading lizardman followed next, wearing one of the four treasures passed
down from generation to generation White Dragon Bone. It was tough enough
to block Frost Pain which was also one of the four treasures, the hardest armor
known to lizardmen.

Cocytus who was facing him drew a sword out of thin air as if the blade was
already there.

The taichi Cocytus drew with the length exceeding 180cm, was known as Royal
Blade God Slayer. It was the sharpest of among the twenty one weapon Cocytus
possessed.

He then slashed at the lizardman before him.

The blade that sliced through the air made the air howl a calm sound. In a
different situation, one might want to listen carefully to this clean sound.

After that sound, the body of the tribal chief split in half together with the armor,
falling to the left and right into the wetlands.

Royal Blade God Slayer was not damaged after cleaving the hardest armor of the
lizardmen.

The two lizardmen behind werent fazed by the gruesome death of their comrade,
attacking from either side with their weapons raised.

Shyaa!

On the right side was Zenberus chop, powered by Iron Natural Weapon and
Iron Skin. It was directed at full power towards Cocytus face.

Warrgghh!

On the left side was Frost Pain, aimed at his abdomen.

This melee attack took advantage of the logic of long weapons being hard to use
in close quarters.

And of course, that only applied to normal people.

Cocytus slightly turned and used his blade to block Zenberus arm from the right.
His movement was smooth and elegant, as if the weapon in his hand was a part
of his body.

With the ability of Iron Skin, Zenberu was on par with steel in term of hardness.
But the clash with the armor earlier showed how sharp Royal Blade God Slayer
was.

The blade slid into his arm smoothly as if it was slicing through water.

Ugghhhh!

As blood spurted from Zenberus right stump, Cocytus other hand was already
pinching Frost Pain that was aimed at his abdomen.

Oh, I see. This is a nice sword

Tch!

Zaryusu gave up on the Frost Pain that couldnt be moved and kicked Cocytus in
the knee cap. Cocytus did not dodge and took the blow. In the end, it was
Zaryusu who landed the blow that suffered intense pain.

It was the same sensation of kicking an iron wall with all your might.

Over Magic: Mass Cure Light Wounds!

After exhausting a large amount of mana, it enabled the use of higher tier magic
that was not usually accessible Shasuryu cast a mass healing spell boosted by
magical enhancement.

Fumu

Cocytus seemed intrigued as he stared at Shasuryu who used a spell modifier he

did not know, but the two wetland fairies blocked his view. The wetland fairies
moved in front of Zenberu, whose arm was regenerating from magic, and
attacked Cocytus with their tentacles. Before their attacks even landed, Cocytus
slashed at them impatiently.

As the wetland fairies crumbled into dust, Zaryusus fist landed on Cocytus solar
plexus, abdomen and chest. And of course, the one injured was Zaryusu. The skin
on his fist was torn and bleeding.

Annoying.

Cocytus swung his spiked tail hard at Zaryusus chest.

Guuahhh!

Zaryusu flew like a ball hit by a bat with a cracking sound, flying high and far
before rolling onto the wetlands. He finally stopped after rolling on the wetlands,
but the pain in his chest and the blood spilling from his throat made it hard to
breathe.

The broken bones probably pierced his lungs, he couldnt breathe in even if he
wanted to, feeling like he was under water. The warm liquid spilling from his
throat made him want to throw up. Zaryusu looked at his chest and saw blood
bleeding from his wounds that was gored by sharp spikes.

Just one hit turned Zaryusu to this pitiful state.

Zaryusu tried to breath with all his might glared with spirited eyes at Cocytus
who might move in for the finishing blow.

Since you still have the will to fight, I will return this to you.

Cocytus tossed Frost Pain to Zaryusus side and ignored him, turning to face the
remaining lizardmen.

Shasuryu cast healing magic on Zenberu who had regenerated his arm but lost a
lot of stamina.

Right before Cocytus reached them, another rock came flying at him to divert his
attention But it was in vain as it was deflected easily.

Irritating.

Cocytus mumbled and extended his arm at the Small Fang chief.

Piercing Icicle.

Dozens of icicles as thick as a human arm rained down in a wide area attack.

The lizardman who was within range was pierced by the icicles instantly.

One hit his chest, two hit his abdomen, one in his right thigh, all the icicles
penetrated the lizardmans body easily.

The chief of Small Fang the lizardman with the best guerilla abilities fell dead
into the wetlands like a puppet without strings.

Waarrghhh!

Over Magic: Mass Cure Light Wounds!

Zenberu rushed forth as Shasuryu once again cast healing magic. Zenberu was
buying time for Zaryusu to recover.

He knew that this was rash and how insignificant he was before the might of
Cocytus. Even so, Zenberu did not hesitate charging ahead.

When Zenberu got within range, Cocytus slashed with Royal Blade God Slayer
casually.

That slash was faster than Zenberus dynamic vision

The speed was way faster than Zenberus agility

The sword easily cut Zenberus body

Blood gushed from the body of the decapitated Zenberu and he collapsed onto
the wetlands. Moments later, the head fell onto the ground.

... Well then, two left I heard about your strength from Ainz-sama, so you two
really are the ones to make it to the very end.

Cocytus, who had not moved a single step since the battle, looked at the
remaining duo and swung his blade. White smog seemed to come out from the
blade and the blood and gore on it were gone without a trace. The movement
was so graceful it seemed capable of ridding the world of everything.

Zaryusu who had recovered enough to stand up and Shasuryu who drew the
large sword on his back. The two of them faced Cocytus with a pincer formation.
Zaryusu took some blood that was bleeding from his wound and paint it on his
face.

It looked like war paint that was used to summon the ancestors to descend upon
them.

Little brother, hows your wounds?

Not good, my injuries are thumping dully. I can still swing my sword a few times
though.

Is that so That should do right? Actually, my mana is exhausted, I will collapse

if I am not careful.

Shasuryu grinded his teeth, he was probably laughing. Zaryusus expression

changed when he heard that.

... Is that so. You are pushing yourself too, older brother.

Zaryusu exhaled gently with a smile and relaxed his shoulder. His sword bearing
arm drooped down.

An intense pain hit him in the chest, but Zaryusu tried his best to ignore it.

Dont ever give up hope until the very last moment Zaryusu will keep wielding
his sword.

From the very beginning, he knew there was no chance of winning.

Defeat was inevitable, but he couldnt just give up.

Giving up would mean conning countless lizardmen of their lives, lying to them
that they would be victorious. Since there were lizardmen who believed this liar,
he will not accept defeat.

Giving his all til the very last moment

I can still swing my sword!

Zaryusus roar echoed out loud.

The sound of Cocytus teeth protruding out of his mouth clanking shut could be
heard.

A nice roar

Cocytus was probably laughing. That wasnt the sound of the powerful looking
down on the weak, but that of a warrior acknowledging his equal.

Very well, younger brother. Lets fight til the very end.

Shasuryu laughed too.

Okay My apologies for keeping you waiting, Mr Cocytus.

Cocytus merely shrugged in response to Shasuryus words.

Dont worry. Interrupting the last farewells of two brothers would be very rude.
Prepare to die Ah, it looks like you already did, didnt you?

In the face of Zaryusu and Shasuryu who took a step forth, Cocytus swung his
blade and said:

State your names.

Shasuryu Shasha.

Zaryusu Shasha.

... I will remember them, remember you two warriors. I also have to apologize, I
would normally fight with a weapon in each hand I am not demeaning you, but
you are not strong enough for me to do so.

Such a pity.

Absolutely right Lets go!

The two sprinted at Cocytus, splashing the waters in the wetlands.

The slight difference in the duo's timing made Cocytus puzzled.

They wont enter his attack range at the same time, Shasuryu was faster.
Suspecting the enemy had a scheme in mind, Cocytus waited eagerly for their
attack.

The first to get into range was Shasuryu and Cocytus kept a close eye on him,
wondering what he will do.

Shasuryu stopped right outside the attack range of Cocytus sword

Earth Bind!

He cast a spell.

Numerous chains made from mud flew at Cocytus and Zaryusu used this chance
to charge. To make it harder for his enemy to gauge his attack range, Zaryusu hid
Frost Pain behind his back.

Shasuryu announcing that he had exhausted his mana had been just a trick to
deceive Cocytus. If he fell for it, Cocytus might get constrained by the magical
chains and be hit by Zaryusu who was attacking from behind.

No matter how hard Cocytus exoskeleton was, Zaryusu should be able to break
through by throwing everything he had behind a stabbing attack. Zaryusu who
abandoned all defences in favor of offense will definitely yield a powerful attack.

He seems very confident with his sword.

Cocytus emphatised with him. Just like him, Cocytus bore intense feelings for his
weapons, especially the blade in his hand right now He felt very strongly for
this weapon that was used by his creator in the past. Thats why Cocytus was
using Royal Blade God Slayer despite the disparity in fighting prowess as a show
of his greatest respect.

However, they misjudged one thing. Their opponent right now was the Guardian
of Nazaricks fifth floor.

... The spell cast by those with a level lower than mine wont break through my
defence.

The mud chain bounced off before it could physically touch Cocytus, falling back
into the wetlands like slabs of mud. Low tier magic couldnt penetrate Cocytus
magic defence.

Icy Burst!

With a roar that came from behind his back, Cocytus was covered by a white fog
around him.

Futile effort.

Cocytus, who was completely immune to frost attacks, simply embraced the
gentle freezing breeze as he waited for Zaryusu and Shasuryu to get into range.

One breath later, the moment he was waiting for came. But Cocytus hesitated
slightly, wondering if cutting off their heads was enough to stop them.

When facing Zaryusu who had abandoned his defense, decapitating him might
not halt his attack. The image of a headless body charging him appeared in
Cocytus mind. If that was the case, he will take out the arms, then the head.

No, that is not a clean enough kill, I will finish him in one strike.

Zaryusus reckless charge was too slow for Cocytus.

The vaguely visible black figure The sword swung out by Zaryusu, was pinched
by Cocytus fingers like he did earlier.

Cocytus did not feel any frost from his fingers, Zaryusu probably knew it was
useless against Cocytus and didnt activate this ability.

The unexpectedly quick assault was blocked so easily by Cocytus, which made
Cocytus doubtful. But the doubts only lingered for an instant, he could finish off
his foe with a swing of his blade, there was no need to think further.

And then, there is only one more left.

So it was just a reckless assault...

Cocytus who felt disappointed was about to swing his sword when he changed his
mind.

I see.

Warrghhh!

With a roar a giant sword cleaved through the icy smog. Shasuryu slashed
through the fog strongly enough to disperse it.

Be it the Earth Bind, Zaryusus attack or Icy Burst, all these were just baits.

Cocytus needed to be wary of the stabbing attack from Frost Pain, but the threat
of Shasuryus cleaving sword was greater. This must be the true intention of the
enemy, but

If you want to perform a sneak attack you have to do it silently.

If they couldnt cover their footsteps while running in water, it was not really a
sneak attack. Cocytus was puzzled, was all of this worth the damage they took
from the Icy Burst? Or are they just struggling in vain?

But it was a fact that an enemy was in his attack range.

Zaryusu's only weapon was immobile, rendering him helpless. This was just
changing the order in which Cocytus would kill them. After coming to this
conclusion, Cocytus wielded the blade in his hand.

One slash.

Shasuryus sword broke in two. Before Shasuryus body even hit the ground,
Cocytus withdrew his blade, planning to follow through the attack into Zaryusu

At this moment, Cocytus fingers pinching Zaryusus sword slipped.

The surprised Cocytus checked his fingers, wondering why the sword that he
pinched was sliding forth.

In the misty fog, Cocytus could see that his fingers and the sword were covered
in a red liquid.

In an instant, Cocytus understood why his fingers slipped.

Blood?

Confusion.

Cocytus tried to think back where Zaryusu's sword could have been stained, and
understood after seeing Zaryusus face through the fog.

The blood Zaryusu smeared on his face wasnt war paint. It was used to smear
his sword.

Icy Burst wasnt meant to damage Cocytus or hide Shasuryus whereabouts, it

was to hide the blood on the sword. That was the reason he had hidden the sword
behind his back too.

When Cocytus stopped Zaryusus attack the first time, he used his fingers to
pinch it. Zaryusu remembered that and bet on the slim chance it will happen
again, setting up this scenario with all his wits. A surge of electricity seemed to
jump through Cocytus brain.

It was back then! No wonder the attack felt so weak! That was the reason! The
scheme of using blood to slip through wont work every time. So he was
misleading me, making me feel it was easy to pinch it, so he held back!

The sword slid in slowly, closing in on Cocytus pale blue body. Even Cocytus
couldnt stop the sword with Zaryusus body weight and might behind it with just
two wet fingers.

If the place he pinched it was slightly further away, Cocytus might have been
able to do something, but at this distance, there was nothing he could do.

Cocytus was so moved that he shivered.

It needed a bit of luck, but it was a bet that needed every single round to be won.
Most importantly this was not possible without Shasuryu.

Shasuryu probably didnt know what Zaryusus plan was, but the older brother
trusted his younger brother completely and sacrificed himself. The meaningless
sneak attack and roar was all in the hope of diverting an instant of attention
away from his younger brother.

And it was really just an instant.

In that brief moment in time as Zaryusu was squeezing Frost Pain forth with all
his might the lower jaw of Cocytus moved.

Amazing

The sword slashing at Cocytus was deflected easily. The body with a faint blue
glow did not even have a scratch on it.

This was the result of the power difference between the highest level NPC in
Nazarick and the lizardmen.

Sorry to say, I possess special ability to temporarily nullify the attack of low
tier weapons. If I activate this ability, your attacks will be meaningless.

It was a splendid strike, even Cocytus felt it was worthy of leaving a mark on his
body as a sign of respect to this warrior. However, he couldnt do this as a
Guardian fighting before the Supreme Being.

Cocytus intentionally took half a step back, splashing the mud which soiled his
beautiful blue body.

It was just a tiny step back.

A step back didnt mean anything, even moving back wont affect anything.
Zaryusu was doomed and Cocytus would definitely prevail.

But this step back was the show of praise from the dominatingly strong Cocytus
towards the weak Zaryusu.

Zaryusu resigned to his fate, and had a clear smile only those who had done their
best could show. Cocytus slashed the Royal Blade God Slayer towards him

Part 3

A splendid battle.

Ainz praised Cocytus who knelt before him.

Thank you.

That might be so, but I believe you understand clearly that we are showing them
the whip now, but you need to show them the candy from now on. Do not start a
reign of terror.

I understand.

Ainz nodded and looked at the other Guardians in the room.

Very well. Guardians, listen well. I already said in the throne room that the
lizardmen village will be ruled by Cocytus. If there is anything Cocytus needs, do
lend him your support. Cocytus, I hope you can engrave loyalty towards Nazarick
deep into the hearts of the lizardmen And to provide them with an elite
education I leave all these to you Let me know if you need special items like
Heaven Feather. I will also loan some Power Suits to you in the meantime.

In the game YGGDRASIL, it was possible to change race mid way, but it didnt
mean you could switch as you wish. You needed to fulfil several conditions and
the change would be irreversible.

One of the conditions was a specific item. For example, you would need the Book
of the Dead to be a lich. To turn into an imp required Fallen Seeds. And the
Heavens Feather that Ainz mentioned was a required item to become an angel.

Changing ones race might be possible in this world, thats why Ainz couldnt help
sharing his ideas.

I will seek your advice when the time comes, Ainz-sama. May I ask how you plan
to deal with those lizardmen?

Which lizardman?

Yes, the two lizardmen named Zaryusu and Shasuryu.

The two who fought til the very end. Their corpses should still be in the wetlands.
But what of it?

I see. Collect their corpses, I will use their bodies as material when I create
undead with my special ability.

That would be a pity.

Hmmm, what do you mean? Do they have such value?

When Ainz watched the battle through the Mirror of Remote Viewing, he saw that
Cocytus was absolutely dominating, there wasnt anything else of note.

... They were weak, but I could see their warrior spirit and fearless resolve in the
face of the strong. It is a pity to use them as materials. I think they could become
even stronger, maybe unbelievably so. Ainz-sama shouldnt have done
experiments related to resurrecting the dead yet, how about testing it out on
them?

Does he like those lizardmen?

To be frank, Ainz didnt know what to feel when he heard the term warrior spirit.
He came across the term killing intent in novels and mangas, but didnt think
much of it. It was just like the time when Ainz had warned Narberal about these
things, and she had said Ah, yes, I see, oh~, that kind of feeling. Similarly, the
resonance among warriors was something Ainz didnt understand.

This was because Ainz might look like this now, but he was originally just a
normal salaryman. If a normal citizen born in Japan understood warrior spirit, that
would be dangerous. If it was the spirit of an excellent salaryman, he might
comprehend a little.

I see it is a waste indeed.

But what Ainz was actually thinking baffledly was: Even if you say it is a pity, I
dont understand.

But thinking it through calmly, Cocytus had a point.

He was thinking about performing resurrection experiments somewhere, and Ainz

felt using them to experiment had many benefits. And compared to the blattering
Cocytus in the throne room, he now could provide clear and concise proposals. If
this was a sign of improvement, Cocytus had passed with flying colours.

After thinking about it shortly, Ainz remembered he had excellent subordinates.

He recalled the subordinates standing around him silently in a manner befitting a

servant.

Albedo, tell me your opinions.

My thoughts are the same as Ainz-sama.

...Demiurge, what do you think?

I think Ainz-sama is the most correct.

... ...Shalltear, and you?

I think the same as Demiurge and await Ainz-samas judgement.

... ... ...Aura

Yes, I think the same way as everyone too.

... ... ... ...Mare.

Erm, erm erm, yes, I think the same too.

Their answer was as good as not answering at all, giving Ainz a headache.

After thinking it through, Ainz came to a conclusion Maybe from the standpoint
of a Guardian, they didnt think there was any major issue. Which also meant
there wouldn't be major impact no matter what decision he made.

That was also dependent on the circumstances of the Guardian. There might be
problems if their situation changes.

Simply put, when a small group of people say a hundred million is a small amount
of money, there will be the problem of how trustworthy that statement was. This
was the difference in the perception of values.

A waste of breath well, I could think of it as being fine in resurrecting them

right? I was planning to deliberate over it more, I have made too many mistakes
recently.

With no other choice, Ainz had to weigh the pros and cons from his own
standpoint.

...We had decided to rule over the lizardmen, but do they have a suitable
representative? Or a group that could represent them?

No, but they do have a suitable representative.

Oh? Who is it?

The white lizardman that didnt took part in the battle earlier. She seemed to
possess the power of druids.

Oh, that one! Hmm, that could work

If it was her, she could be of use Ainz thought. He could use her to spy on
things.

However, implementing the idea Ainz had in mind might make Cocytus who will
be ruling the lizardmen feel troubled. So what should he do? Ainz suddenly had a
moment of brilliance.

Wouldnt it be faster to just ask? Although I didnt get any useful answers just
now...

Ainz shared his plans with Cocytus, and Cocytus expressed his acknowledgement.

It was hard to judge whether Cocytus said that to accommodate his master, but
Demiurge and Albedo didnt have strange reactions either when he glance at
them. This made Ainz relaxed and assured him that it shouldnt be a problem.

Very good. How long will you need to bring her here?

Pardon my impudence, I thought Ainz-sama will ask for her, so I ordered her to
wait in a room nearby.

Ainz couldnt help looking at Demiurge and saw him shaking his head.

Awesome, he handled it well, without any instructions and it didnt seem to be

someone elses idea.

This must be how a superior feels when he sees his subordinate mature as he
had hoped for, Ainz thought with a face of satisfaction. But his head was a skull
so it didnt really moved.

No no, well done Cocytus. Wasting time is foolish, your judgement is on point.
Alright then, bring her over.

Erm, please wait!

What is it, Aura?

I dont think a shabby place like this is good enough. Even though we are
hosting people who are submitting to us, it is too run down for Ainz-samas
status. I feel that the meeting should be done in the throne room of Nazarick.

All the other Guardians except Mare nodded gently in agreement.

...My apologies. I miss out on this point, please forgive me!

Ahhh

Ainz never thought about that. He then thought about how to react. Suddenly, he
remembered something. In that case

Aura.

Yes!

I told you that this place you built the place filled with your feelings and
emotions, is as good as Nazarick right? I really mean it. Cocytus, bring her in. I
will hold the audience here.

Ai-, Ainz-sama!

Aura, back down.

Albedo!

Aura protested with her face red, saying Why are you stopping me? However,
Albedo merely glance at Aura before ignoring her fixing her sight at the door. The
one answering the emotional Aura was Demiurge.

...Anything Ainz-sama says is the law. Since Ainz-sama said this place is as good
as Nazarick

It must be true.

Shalltear continued.

I dont think my words are ironclad laws. Although I dont want to be thought of
like that but just this one time, it is a big help.

Aura, I will say this again. As my most trusted subordinates one of the
Guardians, this place you put in so much effort to build is on the same level as
Nazarick. It is true even now when construction works are ongoing Do you
understand?

...Ainz-sama, thank you very much.

Aura deeply lowered her head and the other Guardians did the same.

There is no need to be so emotional This is embarrassing.

Well then, usher her in, Cocytus.

Yes!

In a short moment, Cocytus brought a pure white lizardman into the room.

The lizardman knelt before Ainz and lowered her face to the ground.

State your name.

Yes, Supreme Overlord of Death Ainz Ooal Gown. I am the representative of

the lizardmen, Crusch Lulu.

What an incredible title. He was curious as to who came up with this title, but
Ainz acted like a calm king and said.

... Hmmm, well met.

Yes. Gown-sama, please accept the oath of fealty from us, the lizardmen.

Hmmm

Ainz watched Crusch closely.

The scales were pretty. They shone brightly under the illumination of the magical
light. I wonder how they would feel like if I were to touch them., Ainz was
academically curious.

As he stared closely, he realized Cruschs shoulders were trembling. Cocytus

should have deactivated his freeze aura ability, so it must be due to some other
reason.

Ainz pondered shortly and found the answer, it was obvious.

If she made Ainz unhappy, all the lizardmen would be massacred. That was why
she was so careful in her speech. For Crusch who was under such crushing
pressure, Ainz unnatural silence planted a seed of terror.

Ainz didnt have the hobby of taking pleasure in bullying the weak. If it was for
the good of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, he was willing to do anything no matter
how cruel it was, but he wont perform such destructive actions needlessly.

The lizardmen will be under my rule. However, Cocytus will be the one ruling in
my place. Any objections?

 None.

That is all. You may leave.

Eh? Is that all?

Crusch said in a surprised voice while she remained bowing. Like a person who
was entrusted with unreasonable request who might go insane at any moment.

For now. Crusch Lulu. Your lizardmen will be ushering an era of prosperity now.
Future generations of lizardmen will be thankful for being my subjects.

We dare not, we are already thankful to the Supreme Being for granting us
mercy even after we resisted with violence.

Ainz got up from the throne slowly. He walked to Cruschs side, squatted down
and place his hand on Cruschs shoulder.

Ainz could feel a tremor coming from Cruschs body.

I have a special task for you.

As Gown-samas faithful servant, I will do anything I can

Not as a servant, I want you to do something for me in exchange for Zaryusus

resurrection.

After speaking the name he heard from Cocytus, Crusch lifted her head
immediately, her face twisted from shock.

Gleeful from this jackpot, Ainz continued observing Crusch. She was probably
trying to hide it, but her expression was wavering. It was hard to judge as her
emotions as her facial expression was very different from humans, but it should
shed some clue.

Something like that

I am the one who controls life and death. To me, death is but a state of being.

When he heard Cruschs voice that was tapering off, Ainz answered.

It is the same for poison and sickness, but I cant extend the lifespan of
mortals.

It might be impossible through normal means, but with the Super-tier magic
Wish upon a Star, it probably could be done Although it might be possible, it
was better not to sound it out loud.

... What do you wish of me, your humble slave?... My body?

Ainz was speechless.

No, thats a bit

A reptile was a bit too much. Ainz wanted to back away immediately, but he
pushed himself to play his role. As for the sound of teeth grinding that came from
somewhere, he would just ignore it for now.

Cough cough! No. Its simple, I want you to keep a close watch on whether there
are lizardmen thinking of rebelling.

There are no such lizardmen.

Ainz laughed at Cruschs confident reply.

I am not dumb enough to assume that. I am not familiar with how lizardmen
think, but using the race of humans as example, betrayal is common. That is why
I want an agent on the inside to watch over things.

Crusch turned expressionless again, making Ainz panic on the inside, wondering
whether the deal was a failure. There was a backup plan not involving the

resurrection of Zaryusu, but doing so had the goal of binding Crusch with
gratitude. What should he do if she rejects him here?

I shouldnt be too greedy and go for broke That must be what they mean by no
use crying over spilled milk.

... Before you lies the chance for a miracle. But this chance wont be here
forever. If you dont grab it immediately, it will be gone forever.

With a shiver, Cruschs expression moved like a cramp.

I am not going to use irritating rituals. Resurrection spells exist in this world
right? That is what I am going to use.

That is the legendary

Facing Crusch who swallowed her words back, Ainz adopted an arrogant attitude
and gently said.

Crusch. What is the most important thing for you? I want you to consider.

As Ainz observe Cruschs eyes starting to waver, he seemed to be seeing the

illusion of scoring a client in a business meeting.

Next, Ainz had to let Crusch understand this miracle was not a free service.
Providing free service will make others suspicious, but they will be more receptive
of it with a request for adequate amount of money.

I just need you to watch your fellow lizardmen in the dark. Depending on the
circumstances, you might need to make hard choices. To prevent a betrayal, I will
cast a special magic on the resurrected Zaryusu. If I think you have betrayed me,
I will end him immediately. It must be troubling for you, but the resurrection of
Zaryusu is not something you can get in a fair deal, right?

Actually, there is no such magic.

Ainz acted as if he had said everything and stood up slowly. He then opened his
arms.

Ainz looked at the struggling Crusch.

Oh, right, tell the resurrected Zaryusu this in my place. I revived him because he
is of use to me. I promise not to mention your name. So, Crusch Lulu. Choose
now. This is the last chance for you to get your beloved Zaryusu back. What say
you? Yes? Or no? Choose.

Ainz reached a hand out to Crusch slowly. At the same time, he said to the
Guardians.

Do not do anything even if she rejects Alright, ready to answer now? Crusch
Lulu?

EPILOG
UE

Zaryusu felt a gentle sensation covering his entire body. A hand which wanted to
pull him out from the abyss, but Zaryusu brushed it aside. He felt something
disgusting from the touch of that hand

After a period of time between an instant and eternity, he felt the hand stretch
out towards him once again. Just as he was about to brush it aside for a second
time, he hesitated. Listening closely, he could hear a voice coming from that side.
As it turned out, this rude awakening was the voice of the female he so deeply
loved.

Hesitation.

Hesitation.

Still hesitation.

In this world where it was uncertain if time existed at all, Zaryusu kept on
hesitating. Eventually, he seized the hand despite being very reluctant to do so.

And he was then pulled into a world of clear.

Fatigue permeated through his entire body.

As if his insides had turned into paste.

Then he felt abnormally tired. He had never felt this tired even after overexerting
himself physically.

Zaryusu struggled to open his heavy eyelids.

Blinding light entered his eyes. Although lizardmen eyes would automatically
adjust to light intensity, it could not do so instantaneously. Zaryusu blinked his
eyes

Zaryusu!

Someone was hugging him tight.

C-Crusch?

There should be no way he would ever hear this again, this females voice.

Zaryusu finally adjusted his eyes, and saw the female that was hugging him.

That was indeed his beloved female, Crusch Lulu.

Why? What was going on?

A flood of questions and unease rushed towards Zaryusu. His last memory was
the moment his head had dropped into the wetlands. He had most definitely
been killed by Cocytus.

Then why was he still alive? Unless

Was Crusch killed too?

Eh?

Zaryusu opened his mouth to ask, yet his mouth seemed numb, unable to move
properly.

What gave him his answer was the look of very confused expression on Cruschs
face. Seeing that expression, Zaryusu was a little relieved, knowing that Crusch
was not dead. Then why was he still alive?

A hint was given to him by a voice to his side.

Well. There is some confusion after resurrection. It seems his level also
dropped thus it can be determined that there is not much difference from
YGGDRASIL.

Realizing who was speaking to him, Zaryusu looked with surprise at that
direction.

The one who stood there was the king of death; the magic caster who possessed
incomprehensible power.

In his hand he held a glowing short stick of about thirty centimetres in length, it
emitted a sacred aura that appeared out of place in the hand of the Overlord of
death. It was an extremely beautiful item which seemed to be made out of ivory,
with the front end coated in gold and the handle inscribed with runes.
Although Zaryusu did not know, it was a resurrection wand, the item which
revived Zaryusu. Only faith based magic caster could use items imbued with faith
based magic. However, this magic item was an exception to this faith based
system and could be used.
Zaryusu slowly turned his gaze, and recognised this place as the lizardman
village.

As if they were intending to surround the entire place, all the lizardmen were
prostrating. Even more shocking was that they were motionless that posture
was one of worship towards an extremely powerful being.

What is happening

After witnessing such power, prostrating was only natural. However, the
surrounding lizardmen were not just showing respect, but something more.
Lizardmen did not have gods. Strictly speaking, their objects of faith were their
ancestral spirits. The feeling given off right now by the surrounding lizardmen
was like that of a reverence towards a god.

Hm. Step down, lizardmen. Without instructions, nobody is permitted to enter

the village.

Nobody objected to these words. More than that, it was accepted without a sound
being made. The only sounds which were heard were of bodies getting up and
the splashes by walking along the wetlands. Leaving them behind, the lizardmen
departed from the clearing.

Seeing as he was so powerful that he had such a degree of strength, their wills
should have been completely defeated. The lizardmen culture of submitting to

the strong played a part as well. This meant that everything was developing
according to the other sides script.

Aura, are all of them gone?

Yes, they are.

The one who replied was the dark elf girl. Although there was also the factor that
she had been behind him, out of sight all along, the girl surprisingly gave off no
presence, therefore Zaryusu had not detected her at all.

I see. Then first, a few words for you, Zaryusu Shasha. Congratulations on your
resurrection.

Resurrection.
Until he registered the meaning of this word, Zaryusu required a little time. Then
after he understood it, he also felt a shudder throughout his body.
Resurrection which meant that he was alive again.

He was speechless and could only gasp.

What is it? Do lizardmen have some particular aversion to resurrection? Or have

you forgotten how to speak?

Glug, glug cough y-you can resurrect the dead?

That is true. What, you thought something of this degree couldnt be done?

Did you hold a big ceremony?

Big ceremony? What is that? I have no problems doing it by myself easily.

Hearing this, Zaryusu was completely lost for words. According to legends,
resurrection magic was a power only lizardmen of dragon king lineage possessed.

And he did so all by himself.

Monster? No.

An incredibly powerful magic caster? No.

Zaryusu understood this completely.

Leading a mythical army, commanding demons.

Which meant, this the existence in front of him was one who could rival the
gods.

Zaryusu staggered up, and prostrate in front of Ainz. Crusch also frantically knelt
down in the same fashion.

Supreme One.

He thought the eyes looking down at him seemed a little troubled, but Zaryusu
decided that he was just mistaken.

I pledge my life to you.

Very well. What do you wish for? I will grant it to you in the name of Ainz Ooal
Gown.

Please grant prosperity to the lizardmen.

That is only natural, of course I will guarantee the prosperity of all those who
come under my dominion.

My gratitude.

Good. Is your speech still not clear? Rest for a bit and you will get used to it.
Rest for now. Afterwards there are various things which will have to be dealt with.
The first thing would be the defence of this village that is under my dominion
for the details, discuss it with Cocytus.

Ainz left after he finished saying this. However, before that, there was something
which Zaryusu had to do, and had to do right now.

Please wait. What about Zenberu and older brother?

Their corpses should be around the area

Ainz, who was just about planning to leave with Aura, stopped casually gestured
with his jaw in to the outside of the village.

Can you please revive them?

... Hmm I dont see any benefit in doing so.

Then why me? Zenberu and older brother are very powerful. They will definitely
be useful.

Ainz scrutinised Zaryusu, then shrugged his shoulders.

I will consider it preserve the two corpses well. I will consider it later.

After speaking, Ainz dusted his robe as he left. Aura could be heard saying as she
walked by his side spoke That hydra is so cute ne~, and her voice faded into
the distance and eventually disappeared.

Zaryusu finally stopped collapsing and relaxed.

I made it through alive or rather, I revived

He did not know what kind of rule would await them in the future. However since
lizardmens usefulness left an impression, it shouldnt be too bad.

Crusch, older brother

Never mind about that. Worry about it later. For now just rest well and clear your
fatigue. It will be fine, I can carry you.

Ah thank you.

Zaryusu closed his eyes and lied down. Just like in those days where he had
overworked his body, he was eager to rest, and fell asleep once his eyes were
closed.

Once again Zaryusu felt the touch of gentle hands stroking his body back and
forth as his consciousness slipped back into the darkness.

VOLUME 5

PROL
OGUE

He raised his face and saw the darkened clouds covering the sky bleed out a fog
of rain. Seeing the world of gray spread out before his eyes, Warrior Captain
Gazef Stronoff clicked his tongue.

If only he had left a bit earlier, perhaps he could have avoided this rain.

Although he scanned the skies for a clearing, the thick clouds completely
enveloped Re-Estize, the Kingdoms capital and showed no signs of abating even
if he were to wait.

Having abandoned the notion of waiting it out inside the palace, he donned the
hood attached to his coat and stepped out into the downpour.

He passed through the palace gates guards with only a flash of his face and
headed towards the center of the capital.

Normally, the place would be overflowing with life, but the usual bustle of activity
was nowhere to be found. Instead, it was replaced by the scant number of people
moving about, careful not to slip on the wet surface.

Seeing his empty surroundings, he could guess how long this rain had been
falling.

Cant be helped then. Leaving a bit sooner wouldnt have made a difference.

With his coat steadily growing heavy from the water, he brushed past the other
pedestrians in mutual silence. Although his jacket was able to serve as a raincoat,
the wet sensation of it clinging to his back made it uncomfortable. Gazef
quickened his stride and headed for home.

As his house grew closer, the fact that he would soon be liberated from his
drenched coat brought a sigh of relief to Gazefs lips. Suddenly, his senses were
drawn to the side. His vision shadowed by a thin veil, a narrow road veering off to
his right. There, seemingly uncaring of his soaked body, was a ragged man
plopped down on the side of the road.

Appearing to have roughly dyed his hair, patches of his natural hair color could
be seen all over his head. His hair was drenched and clung to his forehead,
dripping droplets of water from his locks. His face was slightly bent downwards
and hidden from view.

The reason Gazef stopped his eyes on the man was not because he thought it
odd for someone to be outside without a proper coat in this rain. Rather, he felt
that something else was out of place. His eyes darted especially to the mans
right hand.

Like a child grasping onto the hand of his mother, the man held a weapon that
did not match with his ragged appearance. It was a very rare weapon called a
katana, crafted in a city located within a desert in the far off south.

Hes holding a katana A thief? No. This feeling Im getting from him is
different. Am I feeling glad to see him?

Gazef felt that something was off, like a coat with mismatched buttons.

With his feet planted, Gazef stared earnestly at the mans profile. At that
moment, his memory resurfaced like a surging wave.

Is that you Unglaus?

As soon as the words left his mouth, his mind was filled with doubt.

The man he faced in the finals of the palace tournament, Brain Unglaus.

Even now, the appearance of the man with whom he fought a close match was
engraved in Gazefs mind. Quite possibly the strongest opponent he has faced
since first picking up the sword and living his life as a warrior and even if it was
one sided, it was the face of a man he considered to be his rival.

Thats right. The mans gaunt profile matched almost exactly with the face from
his memories.

However that was impossible.

Without a doubt, their faces were very similar. Even if the passage of time
changed his appearance, traces of his past self were still apparent. But the man
from Gazefs memories did not have such a pitiful countenance. He was a man
who was filled to the brim with confidence in his sword and a fighting spirit that
burned violently like fire. He did not have the look of a wet dog like this man
before him.

With the sound of splashing water, Gazef walked towards him.

As if responding to the sound, the man slowly looked up.

Gazef felt his breath fall short. Looking at him from the front, he was now certain.
This man was Brain Unglaus, the genius of the sword.

However, the light from the past was gone. The Brain that was in front of him was
a defeated man with his will completely broken.

Brain staggered to his feet. This dull, languid movement was not that of a warrior.
It was difficult to even call it the movement of an old soldier. With eyes downcast,
the man turned around without a word, trudging away.

As his back grew smaller in the rain, Gazef was struck by an ominous foreboding
that if they parted here, he would never see him again. He closed the distance
that grew between them while shouting.

Unglaus! Brain Unglaus!

If the man denied it, he would decide that the two simply looked similar and
admonish himself. However, a tiny voice flowed into Gazefs ears.

Stronoff.

It was a lifeless voice, one that could not possibly have belonged to the Brain of
his memories whom he crossed swords with.

What, what happened?

Dumbfounded, he asked.

Just what exactly was happening?

Of course, anyone could have their life ruined and fall on hard times. Gazef had
seen countless examples of such people. A man who always chose the easy way
out could lose everything from just one failure.

But was he such a man? The sword genius, Brain Unglaus; it was completely
unthinkable. Perhaps this was simply born from his own sentiment of not wishing
to see the strongest opponent of his past reduced to such a disgrace.

The two men met eyes.

How can he make such a face?

With gaunt cheeks, he had dark bags under his eyes. His eyes were deathly pale
and devoid of all energy. The man was like a corpse.

No, even a corpse would be better than this Unglaus is dead on his feet

Stronoff. Im broken.

What?

From his words, the first thing Gazef looked to was the katana that Brain held in
his hand. But he soon realized that wasnt it. What was broken wasnt the katana,
but

Hey, are we strong?

He couldnt say yes.

The incident in Carne village flashed across Gazefs mind. The mysterious magic
caster, Ainz Ooal Gown; had he not come to his aid, both him and his soldiers
would have perished. Even with the title of the strongest in the kingdom, that

was all he amounted to. He could never call himself strong with his head held
high.

To his silence, Brain continued to speak.

Weak. Were weak. After all, were only human. We humans are inferior.

Humans are indeed weak.

Compared to something like the strongest race, dragons, the difference was clear.
Humans do not have hard scales, razor-sharp claws, wings that soared through
the skies, Breath that obliterated everything; these were everything that humans
did not possess.

That was why warriors held Dragon Slayers in high esteem. With their trained
skills, weapons, and allies, there was glory in overcoming great odds and bringing
down such a race. It was a merit allowed only to the warriors who could be
described as exceptional.

Then could Brain have fought a Dragon and lost?

He stretched out his hand to a place that was beyond his reach and failed; lost
his balance and plummeted back to the earth.

What are you saying. Any warrior would understand that humans are weak.

Thats right. He couldnt understand. Anyone would know that a world for the
strong existed.

Even if he was called the strongest by the surrounding countries, Gazef held
doubts about whether that was really true.

For instance, there was a high possibility that the empire could be hiding a
warrior who was stronger than Gazef. Not only that, the physical strength of
demi-humans like Ogres and Giants far exceeded that of his own. If demi-humans
ever gained even the roughest semblance of technique, Gazef would not be able
to defeat them.

That world might be invisible to him, but Gazef was still fully aware of its
existence. A fact that could even be considered common sense to any warrior,
did Brain truly not know?

There is a world where only the strong exist. Are we not training so we can win
against such foes?

With hope that one day, they will reach them.

But Brain emphatically shook his head, causing his drenched hair to fling droplets
of water to his surroundings.

No! Thats not the level that Im talking about!

A shout like coughing up blood.

The man before him overlapped with his image from Gazefs memories. Despite
his energy seeming to be directed in the complete opposite direction when
compared to back then, it was the same spirit as when they crossed swords.

Stronoff! We can never reach the world of the truly powerful, no matter how
hard we try. As long as were born human, this is the truth. In the end, were just

children holding sticks. Were playing with swords now, but we are still mere
children pretending to be swordsmen.

A calm expression that lost all traces of emotion stared at Gazef.

Listen, Stronoff. You should be confident in your sword too, right? But thats
garbage. All youre doing is deluding yourself if you think that youve been
protecting these people with that useless thing in your hand.

Was the peak you saw really that high?

I saw it and realized; a height that humans can never reach. Actually

Brain let out a self-mocking laughter.

What I saw was just a glimpse. I was too weak to see the actual pinnacle, you
see. It was like childs play, hilarious.

Then if you were to train so you could see that world

Brains face twisted in anger.

You dont know anything! You cant ever reach that monsters level, not with a
human body. Even if you were to swing the sword without end, its obvious that it
still wouldnt do any good! Useless. Just what was I aiming for all this time?

Gazef could say nothing.

He had seen a person whose heart was this wounded. A person whose heart was
shattered from seeing his comrades die in front of him.

There was no way to save such a person. He cannot be saved by others. Without
the will to stand with their own strength, any attempts to help him would only be
futile.

Unglaus.

Stronoff. Strength achieved from the sword really is garbage. Its useless in
front of true power.

As expected, those words showed no signs of his past splendor.

Im glad to have met you in the end.

As Brain turned his back and walked away, Gazef stared at him with pained eyes.

The pitiful figure of his once greatest rival with his heart in tatters. Gazef could no
longer find the energy to speak to him. However, he did not miss the short
phrase that he heard as they parted.

Now I can die.

Stop! Wait, Brain Unglaus!

He shouted feverishly to Brains back.

He ran up to him and grabbed his shoulder, turning him around.

His staggering appearance no longer had the light from the past. However,
despite the fact that Gazef pulled him with all of his strength, Brains posture did
not falter nor collapse. It was proof that he possessed both a well-trained lower
body and an outstanding sense of balance.

Gazef felt a small relief. In the end, his skill had not rusted.

It still wasnt too late. He couldnt leave him to his death.

What are you doing.

Come with me to my home.

Forget it. Dont try to stop me. I want to die Im done with being scared. I dont
want to be constantly looking over my shoulder, frightened by shadows. I dont
want to face reality anymore. And to think I used to be content with this trash in
my hand.

Hearing Brains pleading voice, Gazef felt his irritation swell up inside him.

Shut up and follow me.

And with that, Gazef began to walk while holding onto Brains arm. Seeing how
Brain followed with faltering steps, without putting up resistance, Gazef felt a
sense of displeasure that he couldnt describe with words.

After you change your clothes and eat something, immediately get some rest.

Month 8, Day 26, 13:45

The Kingdom of Re-Estize and its capital, Re-Estize.

A country with a total population of 9 million, old would be the best way to
describe its capital. A place of history, the unchanging daily life, a dirty city that
hides under the guise of antiquity, a static city the place held various such
meanings.

It was something that could be easily understood with a simple stroll through
town.

Aside from the few actual houses on either side, the apparent harshness of the
surroundings meant that freshness or splendor was sorely lacking. However, how
this was interpreted was different depending on the individual. Indeed, there may
be those who see it as the tranquil atmosphere of a land rich with history. Others
could see it as a dull city, endless in its stagnation.

It looked as if the capital would continue to exist as is, even if there was nothing
that was immune to change.

The capital had many roads that were left unpaved. Because of this, in the event
that such places became wet from the rain, they would turn into mires that raised
doubts over whether one was truly inside a city. This did not mean that the
Kingdom was poor. You could not compare them with places like the Theocracy or
Empire.

With the roads being narrow, people did not walk in the middle of the path in
the way of the carriages instead, they squeezed through the sides in a
disorderly manner. The Kingdoms citizens were already used to such congestion
and walked like they were trying to slip through the cracks, skillfully avoiding
others heading in the opposite direction.

Despite this, the path Sebas was taking was different from the norm in that it was
wide and paved with the seldom seen stone blocks.

The reason was obvious with a glance of the surroundings. As the central road of
the capital, the houses that were lined up side-by-side were large and
magnificent, radiating a feeling of wealth.

As Sebas walked briskly with a dignified air, followed by the eyes of various
middle-aged women and young ladies charmed by his elegance. Though there
was the occasional woman who would brazenly send him a sultry gaze to his
face, Sebas paid them no mind. With an upright back and steady eyes directed
straight ahead, his feet did not falter for even a moment.

The feet that seemed to show no signs of stopping until it reached its destination
suddenly halted and focused its attention on the carriage that was approaching
from the side. It then turned ninety degrees and crossed the road.

At the place he was heading to was an old woman. She was sitting next to a bulky
carrying frame while massaging her ankles.

Is there a problem?

Surprised at having been suddenly approached by a stranger, the old woman

raised her face, revealing a pair of wary eyes. But that suspicion immediately
weakened upon seeing Sebas appearance and elegant attire.

You seem to be having trouble. Is there any way I can be of assistance?

N-no sir. Not at all.

Please do not let it bother you. Extending a hand to those in need is a matter of
course.

Sebas showed a bright smile, causing the old woman to blush. The handsome
smile from the gentleman overflowing with charisma shattered her last vestige of
defense.

Having finished peddling from her street stall, the old woman was returning home
when she sprained her ankle and had found herself in a difficult situation.

Even though the area around the road generally maintained a decent public
order, it didnt mean that the people who traversed here were all law-abiding
citizens. It was still possible to run into bad luck by asking the wrong type of
people for help and end up losing both the money and goods. Knowing that such
incidents were reality, the old woman could not blindly ask for help and was at a
loss.

Then it was simple.

I will accompany you. May I ask you to guide me?

Good sir, will that really be alright?!

Of course. It is customary to help those in need.

Sebas turned his back to the old woman who was thanking him repeatedly.

Then, please get on.

T-thats

The old womans embarrassed voice.

Ill end up dirtying your clothes!

However

Sebas showed a kind smile.

Just how was having ones clothes dirtied significant? Something like that did not
even merit a cause for concern when helping others.

He was suddenly reminded of his comrades in the Great Tomb of Nazarick. Their
strange expressions; scowling faces that showed clear contempt. And at the head
would be Demiurge. But no matter what he may say, Sebas firmly believed that
this was right.

Helping others was the right thing to do.

Having convinced the old woman through her repeated refusal, he carried her on
his back and lifted the luggage with one hand.

The sight of him lifting such a heavy object without even a falter drew a sigh of
awe from not only the old woman, but from those around them.

With her as his guide, Sebas began to walk.

CHAPT
ER 1

Part 1

Month 9, Day 2, 23:30

The man lit the lantern hanging from his waist. The special oil gave rise to a
green flame that dyed the surroundings with a ghastly hue.

He stepped outside, feeling the heat seep into his body. Though the man wore a
bitter expression, he had to attest at least this much to the season. Even when
the sun wasnt up, at this time of the day, everywhere in the Kingdom was humid
from the heat. With that said, the worst of it was supposed to have passed and
the days to get steadily cooler. Not even the smallest sign of this could be found
anywhere.

Man~ its hot today too.

No kidding. They say its supposed to be cooler up a bit north, near the ocean.

The mans partner for the night said in response to his grumbling.

If it rained then this heat might ease up a bit.

He looked to the sky as he spoke but saw only clear skies with no trace of even a
single cloud in sight, let alone rain clouds. The stars shining brightly overhead, it
was the familiar sight of the night sky.

Seriously, I wish wed get a good squall Well, lets get to work.

The two men had an air about them that made it difficult to call them ordinary
villagers. First was their equipment. A long sword at their waist and leather armor

 their gear was too excessive for a village militia. Not only that, their face and
body did not belong to those who worked the fields. Rather, they held the
dangerous aura of people well versed in violence.

The two men walked into the village without exchanging a single word.

Silent under the darkness, the only sounds that could be heard in the village were
their footsteps. A veritable ghost town. With great strides, the two men calmly
walked through that creepy atmosphere. Their composure was proof that this was
routine.

The village that these men were walking through was surrounded by tall walls
and even with a cursory glance, one could see six watchtowers. It was difficult to
find such strong fortifications even amongst the frontier villages where monsters
were more likely to appear.

Rather than calling it a village, it was more accurate to describe it as a military

base.

Though with that said, a third party may see it simply as just another village with
tight security. However, the scene that would follow next would make them
furrow their brows.

That was how much of a peculiar sight it was. Normally, a wall would encompass
the residential buildings or storage warehouses while the fields were spread out
outside. Plowing the fields inside the walls would require an incredible amount of
work in order to surround all of the vast farmland. However, this village had
surrounded the verdant grass swaying in the wind and was guarding them as if
they were made of gold.

The man who was walking in that eccentric town felt someones eyes on him
from one of the watchtowers. In reality, it should be his comrade equipped with a
bow. If something were to happen, he could receive help by shaking his lantern
above his head.

Considering his comrades skill with the bow, he would pass on his covering fire.
Rather, just ringing the bell to wake the others was all he needed to feel secure.

But if he happened to accidentally use the signal, he would have to suffer

through his comrades who were fast asleep. Despite this, the man was ready to
shake the lantern as soon as he felt even the slightest suspicion.

After all, he didnt want to lose his life.

With that said, it was doubtful that such a situation would arise. He had repeated
this same job for the past couple of months and would continue to do so.

As he circled exactly half way through his patrol route, something like a snake
struck the mans mouth. No, it wasnt a snake. The thing that had latched onto
the mans mouth and would not budge was a tentacle of an octopus.

His chin was forced upwards and followed by a searing pain on the exposed neck.
Everything up to this point didnt even take a second.

A sucking noise flowed from his neck.

It was the last sound the man would hear in his life.

The hand that was on the mans mouth released its grip. His back, supported
from behind so the body would not fall. After confirming that the blade had
absorbed the blood, the magic weapon, Vampire Blade was pulled out.

The one hugging the man from behind was a figure covered in pitch black attire.
Aside from the eyes, the whole face was hidden and the entire body was covered

in black garment. The fabric itself was made of cloth but the gauntlets and
greaves on the arm and legs augmented its defense. Same for the chest, it was
covered with a metal plate but the female curvature was plain to see and easily
recognizable.

Similarly, behind the other man was a figure wearing the same outfit. This side
also had an uplifted metal plate covering the chest. The eyes turned to the other
side and nodded once.

Having confirmed that the assassination was successful, she checked her
surroundings. There was no sign that they were detected, a small room for relief
in the corner of her mind.

Even with the light from the lantern, they were sticking so perfectly close to the
bodies that it was difficult to tell the difference from the watchtower. The only
cause for concern was the instant they attacked the short distance covered
while moving between shadows, Dark Crossing. But even that concern was over
and done with.

With the dagger reddened from drinking the blood still lodged inside, she
propped up the body that was about to collapse.

To the people in the watchtower, it would look as if the man patrolling had paused
for a bit. Regardless, standing so stiffly like this or falling over would definitely
rouse suspicion.

Then it was necessary to immediately move on to the next phase. However, that
was not her role.

The woman felt a sensation in her hands; the feeling of the mans lifeless body
growing stiff, as if the inside was propped up by a pillar. As if confirming that she
wasnt mistaken, in the next moment, the mans body jerked.

Even when the dead body moved, there wasnt even a shred of surprise.
Everything was going according to plan.

The woman released her hands and at the same time, launched a skill. One of the
skills she learned from her Ninja class, Hide Shadow. As long as a shadow
existed, one could completely meld into it and render detection impossible with
the naked eye.

Leaving behind the two who were now completely hidden in shadow, the men
started to walk forward as if they had just been released from chains. They were
returning to continue their patrol route. It was as if they had just remembered
their original task. But the speed of their gait was clumsy and heavy. Even if their
wound wasnt finished healing, fresh blood did not seep from the slash on their
necks because all of their blood had been drained.

There was only one reason that they could still move. They had become zombies
and were now following the orders of their creator.

The one who turned them were not the women.

Looking at it normally, the only people present here were the two men. Even if
someone were to see past their concealment ability, there would still be no more
than four people. However, there was a fifth. That unseen fifth figure was the one
responsible for the zombies.

That figure was invisible even to the women. But their ninjutsu allowed the two to
detect hidden presences by using magic or skills. This ability reacted to the one
before them.

Preparations here are complete.

Perfect.

Low voices rang out and a small voice soon answered in response.

I know since Im watching. Ill move to the next location. I have to capture the
one with highest authority here.

This was also a female voice. But this one had a high-pitch tone that lacked
maturity and exuded the feeling of a child.

Then our side will start the attack. What about the other two?

Dont tell me theyre playing around somewhere since they dont get a turn?

No way. Theyre hiding outside, near the village. The plan is for them to mount
an attack from the front and rear if theres an emergency. Alright then. Ill be
moving to our top priority. You two follow the plan as well.

Their invisible comrade even if its just her presence rose into the air. She
was moving through the air using Flight.

The presence that grew farther and farther away soon disappeared towards the
building that she referred to as the top priority. It was one of the few buildings
that existed in the village as well as a key location that needed to be secured first
and foremost.

Normally, they would want to prioritize a different building. But the reason that
place in particular was a priority was because of the Message magic.

There are many who shirk this magic, calling it unreliable. At the same time,
there are those who are unconcerned and use it regardless. The Empire that is

ahead of even the Kingdom when it comes to nurturing the growth of magic
casters, those who want information as soon as possible, and the enemy who
rules this village. As such, it was necessary to first secure the liaison agent
located in that building.

Now that their comrade was headed there, they also had to lie in wait at their
assigned location. Everyone had to match the timing and finish their assault
while they were still undetected.

The two ninjas exhaled and ran onwards.

Moving to and fro in the darkness, they would be invisible to an ordinary person.
No, if they used their equipped magic item as well, even adventurers would have
a hard time spotting them. In other words, there was no one in the village who
could see the two women with their eyes.

Her comrade who was running at her side skillfully moved her fingers. Although it
looked as if she was just wriggling them around, the other who saw it read their
meaning

Its fortunate that they dont have any dogs.

She answered agreed with her fingers.

It was a sign language used by assassins. At their level of expertise, they could
communicate as fast as they could speak. Although they had taught it to their
other allies, regrettably, the best they could manage were simple phrases or
commands. On the other hand, both the speed and vocabulary of their signing
was at a level where they could have daily conversations and would often use
them to have secret chats with one another.

I know what you mean. It makes this easier since they wont be attracted to the
scent of blood.

If the enemy had hounds then this would not have been this easy. Although they
had prepared ways to incapacitate them, nothing was more welcomed than
avoiding needless work.

As soon as she replied, her comrades fingers moved rapidly.

Then Ill be heading to my target building.

As soon as she answered affirmative, the comrade who had been running by her
side split from her.

Now alone, she looked at the fields with her peripheral vision while running at
high speed.
What was being cultivated was not a grain like barley or vegetables. It was the
raw ingredient plant of the illegal and most prevalent drug in the Kingdom, Black
Dust. Surrounded by these tall walls, the many fields in the village all grew the
same plant. It was proof that this village was one of the bases for growing these
drugs.

Black Dust, also called Laira Powder, this drug was a dark powder that was mixed
and taken with water.

It was easy to mass produce and thus sold cheaply. Thanks to the easy high and
euphoria, it was the most famous drug in the Kingdom. Not only that, there were
many who believed that the drug was not addictive and that it had no side
effects, causing it to be spread far and wide.

She remembered that fake information and snorted back a laugh.

A drug like that did not exist anywhere. I can quit whenever I want was it? There
should be a limit to such naivety. The results from testing the fluids from a black
dust addict had shown that the users brain had shriveled to about eighty percent
of the average brain size.

Made from a plant that originally grew in the wild, Black Dust is a powerful drug.
It is a wonder how people can believe that such a poisonous plant would not be
addicting. The reason that the Black Dust circulating through the town is listed as
an anesthetic is because the cultivated plants that it was made from was less
potent.

Nevertheless, the drug was still powerfully addicting and took a long time for it to
completely leave the user's system. As a result, it would often be the case that
the addict takes the drug again before it has a chance to leave the body. If
Bishops do not use magic to forcefully draw it out, the addict will eventually
reach a stage in their addiction where it will be nearly impossible to completely
quit of their own volition.

The troublesome part of the frightening drug was that it had weak withdrawal
symptoms. Even if an addict experiences a bad trip, they will not react violently
or cause harm to their surroundings. That was why the Kingdoms higher-ups did
not truly understand its dangers and mostly ignored the Black Dust. Instead, they
opt to focus their efforts on exposing other drugs. It is no wonder that the Empire
even suspects that the Kingdom may be secretly aiding in its production.

During her days spent living as an assassin, she had used drugs if the situation
called for it. And because her organization had cultivated similar plants as well,
she didnt have any ill feelings on the matter. Even drugs can be greatly effective
if used with caution. They were not too different from a medicinal plant with
dangerous side effects, so to speak.

However, this was a request and her personal opinions were not a problem. Only
that

Requests that arent made through the Adventurer Guild are dangerous.

She frowned beneath the mask. The client this time was a friend of the team
leader. Despite the adequate reward, accepting a request that bypasses the guild
could have troublesome repercussions in the future. Even if they were one of the
only two adamantium class adventurer teams in the Kingdom.

Hmm? Was it three now?

Now that she mentioned it, she remembered hearing that a new adamantium
class team was formed whilst having such thoughts, the woman arrived near
the building that they had codenamed No. 2.

Her role was to collect every scrap of information in this building. Afterwards, she
was to set fire to the field.

Although it was true that the smoke from the burning plants was poisonous, it
had to be done in order for her to complete her mission. Depending on the wind,
it may even end up affecting the villagers. There was neither the time nor
method for evacuation.

Necessary sacrifice.

Having told herself as much, she tossed aside the safety of the villagers.

Raised as an assassin, the loss of human life almost never affected her
emotionally. She wouldnt even bat an eye, especially if they were strangers. She
only disliked the leaders expression when there were casualties. But since this
plan had the leaders approval, she did not feel even a shred of desire to go save
them.

And more importantly, they had to use teleportation magic as soon as the attack
was over so they could move to another village and repeat the job. Her head was
filled with nothing but thoughts about the plan.

This was not the only village where the ingredient for the drug was being
cultivated. According to their investigations, there were twelve large scale
plantations in the Kingdom. Most likely, there were still more that they have yet
to find. Otherwise, there was no way to explain the amount of the drug that has
spread throughout the Kingdoms lands.

Weeds have to be pulled as soon as they sprout Even if a lot of it is fruitless, its
the only way.

If they found something like written orders in this village then that would be a
stroke of luck. Regrettably, it was never that easy. They could only hope that the
one in charge of this village would know something.

The leader will be happy if we can get even a small piece of information on the
organization.

The powerful syndicate that cultivated the drug was named Eight Fingers,
named after the eight fingers of the God of Theft, subordinate of the God of
Earth. They were the group that controlled the underworld of the Kingdom.

The criminal organization was divided into eight categories: slave trafficking,
assassinations, smuggling, larceny, drug trade, security, banking, and gambling.
Their reach extended to every criminal group in the Kingdom and the sheer size
of the organization meant that they were shrouded in mystery.

On the other hand, what was plain to see was how much influence they wielded
in the Kingdom. The village sprawled out before her was proof of that.

They cultivate illegal plants in plain sight. That alone was enough to implicate the
noble of the land as an accomplice. But charging him would not lead to a
conviction.

It would be a different story if the royal family or someone from the judicial
authority were to investigate the matter. But even so, it would be difficult to
reach a guilty verdict when it involved the feudal aristocracy. The nobles of this
land will claim that they did not know that the plant could be used as an
ingredient to drugs. They may even accuse the villagers of acting on their own
volition in order to shift the blame.

Public denouncement was ineffective and trying to forcibly curb the circulation of
the drug was almost impossible with the organization bribing the nobles with
influence over the distribution channels.

That was why the only option left was violence, burning the fields as a last resort.

In all honesty, she believed that even if she burned the drugs here, it wouldnt
even make a dent in their operations. With their fingers even in politics, that was
how powerful the organization was.

A bid for time If we dont make a decisive attack someday, then even this will
be useless.

Part 2
It was raining, accompanied by the noisy ringing in the ears.

The Kingdom did not build its roads with particular attention to drainage,
especially when it came to back alleyways. The result was that an entire roadway
could transform into a huge lake.

The rain falling on the surface of the lake splashed about, the wind carrying the
scent of water and spraying it into the air. It was a part of the reason why the
whole Kingdom exuded an atmosphere of being submerged underwater.

Within the world dyed in gray by the sprays of water was a single boy.

He was living in a deserted house. No, even calling it such was doing it a service.
Its pillar was wood that was only as thick as a mans arm. Rags were used in
place of a roof and the only walls to speak of were simply the rags draping over
the sides.

In the residence that was no different from sleeping in the open was a six-yearold boy. Like garbage that has been carelessly tossed aside, he was curled into a
ball and lying on top of a thin cloth.

The wood acting as a pillar, the rags serving as both the roof and walls, they
seemed like the sort a child his age would build as a secret base.

This house that was no different from being outside, its only merit was the
shelter it provided from the rain. The sharp drop in temperature from the
unending rain wrapped the boy in a chill that caused his body to shiver
uncontrollably. The warmth of his breath that confirmed his existence was
immediately robbed of its temperature and vanished into the air.

Before he had fled into the house, the rain had soaked the boy and he was now
losing his body heat, fast.

There was no way to stop his body from shivering.

The chill seeping into his body soothed the bruises he got from a beating.
Perhaps this was his one, small happiness in this worst case scenario.

The boy lay on his side and stared at the empty alleyway, at the world.

The only sounds he could hear were the rain and that of his own breathing. It was
a stillness that made it seem like he was the only one in the world.

Although he was young, the boy knew that he was probably going to die.

He was not of an age to fully understand the meaning of death and thus did not
feel too afraid. He also didnt feel as if there was anything worth living for. The
only reason he clung to life up until now was because he didnt like pain, almost
like an escape.

Although it was cold, if he could die painlessly like this, then death wasnt so bad.

As his drenched body grew numb, his consciousness began to fade.

He should have found a place that would shield him from the billowing wind. But
he was grabbed by a group of hoodlums and his current place was the best he
could manage with his battered body.

He had a small happiness. Then was everything else misfortune?

His mouth hadnt touched food in two days, but something like that was normal
so it wasnt misfortune. His parents were gone so he was alone with no one to
take care of him. But it had been like that for a long time so it wasnt misfortune.
The unpleasant odor around him also wasnt misfortune. After all, it was from the
rags so it couldnt be helped. The life that revolved around filling his stomach
with rotten food and foul water also wasnt misfortune since it was all he knew.

Then the empty house where he was comfortable, the home he toiled to build
that was trashed by someone in jest, his bruised body aching from the beating
from the drunkards, were they misfortune?

No.

The boys misfortune was such that he was unable to see it for what it was.
But even that was over.

The misfortune that the boy was ignorant to was to end here.

Death comes to fortunate and unfortunate alike.

Indeed. Death is absolute.

He closed his eyes.

For his body that could no longer feel the cold, even keeping his eyes open was a
chore.

He could hear the small, unreliable sound of his own heartbeat from the
darkness. In the world where the only noise he could hear was the rain and his
own heart, a strange sound was mixed in.

The noise seemed to block the rain. In his fading consciousness, a childs
curiosity drove the boy to channel strength into his eyelids.

In his vision narrow like a string, it was reflected.

The boy opened his eyes wide.

It was beautiful.

For a moment, he did not understand what he was looking at.

Like a jewel, a lump of gold. Such expressions would have been fitting. But
someone who sated their hunger on half rotten foods from the trash could not
think of such words.

Thats right.

There was only one thought that ran through his mind.

The sun.

The most beautiful object in his world and at the same time, the furthest from his
reach.

The world dyed gray from the rain, the dark rainclouds covering the sky. Perhaps
they were the ones responsible. The sun left for a trip because no one was there
to see it and returned, appearing in front of his eyes.

That was what he thought.

A hand stretched out and stroked his face. And

Until now, the boy was not a human.

No one ever saw him as such.

But on that day, he became human.

Month 9, Day 3, 4:15

Located in the deepest area of the capital of the Re-Estize Kingdom was Ro-Lente
castle. Its walls surrounded a vast stretch of land measuring 1,400 meters with a
protective ring of twelve enormous cylindrical guard towers.

The room was located inside one of these twelve towers.

With all of its lights turned off, a person was lying on the one bed in the room. He
was of a delicate age, the boundary between boy and man.

His blond hair was cut short and his tanned skin gave off a healthy complexion.

Climb.

With no surname, he was the one who was granted permission to stand closest to
the girl called the Golden Princess, a soldier who invited the jealousy of many.

He wakes even before the sun rises.

The moment he regained consciousness from the world of darkness, his mind
immediately turns sharp and his bodily functions almost completely recovers.
Sleeping well and waking up promptly was one of the things that Climb took pride
in.

His sanpaku eyes opened wide, revealing an iron-like will etched within them.

Climb pushed aside the thick blanket covering his body and stood. Even in the
summer, the stone walls surrounding him meant that the nights were still cold.

He rubbed his eyes and found that his fingers came away wet.

That dream again.

Climb used his sleeves to wipe the tears from his face.

A memory from when he was a boy, the heavy rain from two days ago must have
been what caused him to remember.

The tears were not from sorrow.

How many times in a persons life will he meet someone worthy of respect? A
person who you are willing to throw away your life for in servitude just how
many?

The girl Climb met on that day was such a person.

These were tears of joy, tears thanking the miracle that was created from their
meeting.

Climb stood, his face showing a strong determination and a youthful energy
befitting of his age.

His voice, rough from excessive training, recited a word.

Light.

The lamp hanging from the ceiling responded to the keyword and illuminated the
inside of the room with a white light. A magic item enchanted with Continual
Light.

Even though they were used widely, the reason he was given such an expensive
item wasnt because of his special position.

Even if it was for light, burning something in a tower made of stone, with its poor
air flow, was unsafe. That was why almost every room was provided with a magic
light source, despite the initial development costs.

The floor and walls illuminated by the light were made of stone. A thin carpet was
laid out in a futile attempt to cover the cold, hard surface. Aside from that, the
furnishings in the room
included a shoddy wooden bed, a slightly larger closet to accommodate weapons
and armor, a desk with drawers, and a thin cushion resting on a wooden chair.

An outsider looking in would think of it as unimpressive, but to others who were

of Climbs rank, it was an incredibly envious treatment.

Soldiers did not get private quarters. They were placed into a large room with
bunk beds. Excluding the beds themselves, the only furniture the soldiers were
given was a wooden chest with a lock for storing their personal belongings.

Also, in a corner of the room rested a white full plate armor. The spotless armor
had a gloss that made it look as if it was shining. No foot soldier would ever be
granted such equipment.

This special treatment was not something that Climb had earned with his own
strength, but rather a sign of favor from the master whom he swore his life to. As
such, it would be impossible to not invite jealousy from others.

He opened the closet and changed while staring at the mirror attached inside.

Having changed into his worn clothes that smelled of metal, he then donned the
chain shirt over the rest of his attire. Normally this would be where he put on his
plate armor, but instead, he opted for a vest with numerous pockets and finished
with a pair of trousers. In his hand was a wooden stick wrapped in towel.

Lastly, he looked himself over in the mirror, checking for anything that was
amiss, making sure that his gear was tidy.

Any fault in Climb could potentially become a weapon to hurt his master, Golden
Princess Renner.

That was why he must always be on alert. His reason for living wasnt to cause
her harm. It was to pledge his all to her.

Climb closed his eyes in front of the mirror and thought of his masters face.

Golden Princess Renner Theiere Chardelon Ryle Vaiself.

As kind as a goddess, a benevolent and radiant mind befitting her royal blood,
and wisdom that devised many types of policies.

In the truest sense of the word, a noble amongst nobles, the greatest woman.

Possessing the brilliance of gold, nothing can be allowed to blemish such a

flawless gem.
If one were to compare her to a ring, Renner would be akin to huge, brilliantly cut
diamond. Then what was Climb? He would be the prongs that the jewel is set on.
Even now, her worth was diminished because he was lacking, he could not allow
it to grow worse.

Climb could not stop his chest from growing warm at the thought of his master.

Even a devout believer of his faith would be hard-pressed to outshine Climb as he

was now.

After staring at himself in the mirror for some time, Climb, having determined
with conviction that he would not be a hindrance to his master, nodded his head
in satisfaction and stepped out of the room.

Part 3

Month 9, Day 3, 4:35

The place he headed to was a large hall. An entire floor of the tower had been
emptied to serve as a training area.

Normally the place would be radiating the heat of soldiers going about their
training. However, it was deserted this early in the day. The empty space was

quiet; one could almost hear the silence. Because there was stone in every
direction, the sound of Climbs footsteps rang out loudly.

The hall was brightly lit from the semi-permanent light of the magic fire.

Inside, there was armor mounted on stakes and hay dolls to act as archery
targets. The walls were lined with weapon racks filled with various arms that were
left unsharpened.

Ordinarily, a training area should be set up outdoors. But there was a reason that
it was decided to have it inside.

The city of Ro-Lente was home to Valencia castle. Having the soldiers train
outside would mean that they would be seen by foreign ambassadors. To avoid
the risk of appearing low class, numerous areas within the tower were cleared out
to serve as training areas.

A demonstration of strong soldiers dauntlessly practicing their drills would have

diplomatic benefits, but the Kingdom did not see it as such. More than anything,
there was a trend to be seen as elegant, splendid, and highborn.

With that said, there still were drills that were impossible to conduct indoors.
They would either be done discretely in a corner or on a field outside the castle,
albeit outside the capital.

Climb entered the quiet hall as if he was cutting through the cool air and slowly
started to stretch in the corner.

Thirty minutes later, after a thorough stretching session, Climbs face was
reddened, his forehead was drenched with sweat and his labored breaths were
heavy with heat.

Climb wiped the sweat from his forehead and approached the weapon rack.
Checking the grip, he makes sure that it fits securely in his hands. His palms were
already rough and hard from the numerous blisters that came and went.

Next, he filled his pockets with chunks of metal and buttoned them tightly as to
prevent them from falling out.

The many pieces of metal that filled his clothes made it as heavy as full plate
armor. Regular plate armor without any magical enchants provided an excellent
defense at the cost of ones freedom of movement. Keeping actual battles in
mind, training with it equipped was the right course of action.

But even so, it was rare to bring out full plate armor for mere training, not to
mention the white armor that he was given. That was why he was using the
metal chunks as an alternative.

Climb gripped the iron weapon that exceeded the size of a greatsword and held it
high over his head. He slowly brought down the sword, exhaling as he did so.
Stopping just before it struck the floor, he breathed in and raised the sword to its
original position over his head. He stared at the space in front of him with sharp
eyes, completely absorbed in his training as he gradually raised the speed of his
swings.

He had already finished 300 swings.

Sweat poured down Climbs completely reddened face. His breaths were hot, as if
he was expelling the built up heat in his body.

Although Climb trained arduously as a soldier, it was difficult to handle the weight
of the large greatsword. Stopping the blade just before it touched the ground was
especially challenging.
Such a feat required a great deal of strength.

As the count of his swings reached 500, his arms started to cramp and felt as if
they were screaming out in pain. Sweat fell from his face like a waterfall.

Climb knew very well that this was his limit. Despite this, he showed no signs of
stopping.

However

Perhaps that is far enough.

Hearing the voice of another, Climb quickly turned to the direction of the voice
and his eyes reflected the figure of a man.

Calling him burly would have been an understatement. The man was like the
embodiment of steel. The wrinkles in the face reminiscent of rock made him look
older than he actually was. His bulging muscles made it evident that this was no
ordinary man.

There was no soldier in the Kingdom who did not know of him.

Stronoffsama.

Warrior Captain Gazef Stronoff, lauded as the strongest in the Kingdom and
unmatched even in the surrounding nations.

Any further would be overtraining. There is no meaning in pushing yourself so

far.

Climb lowered his sword and stared at his trembling arms.

You are correct. I overdid it slightly.

Seeing Climbs expressionless face as he gave his thanks, Gazef shrugged his
shoulders.

If that is what you truly think, could you not make me repeat myself so often?
How many times does this make it?

I apologize.

Gazef shrugged once more as Climb lowered his head.

This was a conversation that had been repeated countless times between them,
like a greeting of sorts. Usually, this was where their exchange would end and
each man would pursue their own training. But today was different.

How about it, Climb. Would you like to try crossing swords?

At Gazefs words, Climbs blank expression almost faltered for an instant.

Up until now, they had never crossed swords upon meeting at this location. It was
their unwritten rule.

There was nothing to be gained even if they were to train together. No, it
wouldnt be completely fruitless, but the cons greatly outweighed the pros.

There was currently a power struggle between the Kings faction and an alliance
between three of the six great noble families. The situation was dangerous
enough for there to be rumors that the only reason the Kingdom is not split is
because of the yearly war against the Empire.

In the midst of that struggle, if the personal confidant of the King, Gazef Stronoff
though highly unlikely were to lose, it would give the nobility faction a great
boon.

On the other hand, the nobles would jump at the obvious outcome of Climbs
defeat to whisper that he is unfit to protect Renner. There were many who
disliked the idea of the beautiful, unmarried princess trusting a lone soldier with
her protection, one with an uncertain background no less.

Both were in a position where they could not lose.

They could not appear weak, to show a weak point that could be exploited in an
attack. The two were of one mind in that they were both carefully cautious as to
not hurt their respective masters.

For what reason would he break the unwritten rule?

Climb looked around his surroundings.

Because there was no one else here? That was unthinkable. This was an abode of
demons.

There was no end to those who would watch from afar or observe them while
hidden. But he could not think of any other reason.

Unable to figure out his intentions, Climb did not allow his puzzling agitation to
show on his face.

The man standing in front of Climb was a warrior hailed as the strongest in the
Kingdom. Keenly sensing the brief instance of emotion that an ordinary person
would miss, he spoke.

Only recently, something occurred that made me realize that I was lacking. I
would like to practice with someone who is competent.

Stronoff-sama did?

Gazef, the strongest in the Kingdom, just what sort of incident could make him
feel inadequate?

Climb suddenly remembered that the number of troops in Gazefs unit had
decreased.

Climb did not have any close comrades so he had heard it from a rumor
circulating around the mess hall. According to the story, they had lost a number
of their troops after being embroiled in an incident.

Yes. If I had not met the merciful magic caster, if he had not lent us his strength,
I would not be here right now.

Hearing this, Climb felt his iron mask crumble. No, just who could remain
unsurprised? Before he knew it, Climbs curiosity got the better of him and he
posed a question.

Who was that merciful magic caster?

He called himself Ainz Ooal Gown. This is just a hunch, but I feel that he may
rival even that monster of a magic caster in the Empire.

He had never heard of that name.

Climb looked up to the heroes and had a hobby of collecting stories of their feats.
He ignored their races and even collected stories of famous adventurers from the
nearby countries. But even so, the name Gazef spoke just now was unfamiliar to
him.

Of course, there was a possibility that it was an alias.

Th-then *cough!

Climb held back the desire to question him further.

Trying to ask him about an incident that cost him his soldiers even rudeness
has its limits.

I will engrave his name in my heart. But, is it really fine for us to spar?

Not a spar, simply crossing swords. What you get out of it solely depends on
you. You yourself are a first rate soldier amongst the countrys troops. It should
benefit me as well.

Although it was a high praise, to Climb, they were merely empty words.

It wasnt that Climb was particularly strong, only that the standard was low. The
skills of a soldier of the Kingdom were only slightly better than that of its ordinary
citizens. Even compared to the Knights, the Empires enlisted soldiers, they
were weak. There was also no one in the nearby countries with military
distinction. Gazefs troops were indeed strong, but even so, compared to Climb
they fell slightly short. If Climb were to evaluate himself according to the ranks of
adventurers, with copper, iron, silver, gold, platinum, mithril, orichalcum, and
adamantium, he would be gold. Not weak, but there were many above him.

Could someone like that be considered worthwhile to a man like Gazef? A man,
who would, without a doubt, be placed in adamantium class?

Climb shook off such weak thoughts.

The strongest man in the Kingdom was offering to train him. This kind of
experience would not come often. Even if the end result is that he disappoints
Gazef, there would be no regrets.

Then I ask for your guidance.

Gazef grinned and eagerly nodded his head.

The two approached the weapon rack and each picked a sword that fit their size.
Gazef chose a bastard sword, Climb a small shield and broadsword.

Climb then took out the metal chunks from his pockets. Facing someone stronger
than himself with them was a discourtesy. Not only that, he would have to fight
with everything he had for the training to benefit his growth. His opponent was
the strongest warrior in the Kingdom. A tall, thick wall must be felt with ones full
strength.

Now that Climb was finished with his preparations, Gazef asked.

How are your arms? Are they still sore?

Yes, I am fine now. They are slightly worn but will not be a problem for my grip.

Climb flexed both his hands. Seeing that he was telling the truth, Gazef once
again nodded.

I see. That is a shame in its own way. One will rarely be in perfect condition on
the battlefield. If your grip suffers then you must fight in a way to compensate it.
Have you ever trained with those conditions?

Hm, No. I have not. Then I will resume my swings and

Ah, no. No need to go that far. But since you are responsible for the safety of the
princess, you would do well to learn how to fight in situations where carrying a
sword is forbidden. Perhaps also verse yourself in handling various weapons as
well.

Yes!

Sword, shield, spear, axe, dagger, gauntlets, bow, cudgel, and thrown
weapons. Its training for the nine types of weapons that serve as the foundation
for armed combat, however If you stretch yourself too thin then everything will
suffer. It would better for you to narrow it down to two or three weapons and
learn from there. Hmm. It seems Ive said something unnecessary.

Not at all, Stronoffsama. Thank you very much!

Gazef wore a bitter smile and answered with a wave of his hand.

If you are ready then let us begin. First, try attacking me in that stance. Soon
yes, I will not be able to spar with you but I can teach you some tactics using the
nine weapons.

Yes! Then I will be in your care.

Come, but I have no intention of treating this as training. Consider this to be the
real thing and attack.

Climb slowly lowered his sword and turned the left side of his body, covered by
the shield, towards Gazefs direction. His gaze was sharp and his senses already
knew that this was not training. Likewise, Gazef exuded a presence that alerted
him that this was a real fight.

The two glared at one another, but Climb could not make the first move.

Even if removing the metal chunks made it easier for him to move, Climb did not
think he could beat Gazef. In both strength and experience, Gazef was
overwhelmingly above him.

Simply closing the distance would be immediately met with a counterattack. His
opponent was a master who was leagues above him so it could not be helped.
But if this were a real fight, could he simply roll over and die because of
something like that?

Then what could he do?

He had to fight him with a factor that Gazef did not possess.

Body, experience, and mind, Climb lost in everything that was necessary for a
warrior. The difference was in their equipment.

Gazef wielded a bastard sword. On the other hand, Climb had a broadsword and
small shield. If they were magic weapons then it would be different, but these
were used for training, there was no disparity in the weapons.

Gazef only had one weapon while Climb possessed two, since a shield could be
used as a weapon as well. This also meant that he had more ways to attack at
the cost of dividing his strength.

Block the first attack with the shield and slash with the sword. Parry with the
sword and strike with the shield.

Having decided on a counter as his strategy, Climb focused on observing Gazefs

movements.

After several seconds had passed, Gazef showed a smile.

Are you not coming? Then I will attack right now.

His calm demeanor absolute, Gazef readied his stance. Hips slightly lowered,
strength began to mount in his body like a spring. Climb as well; he gathered
strength in his body so that he could block the blade, no matter when it came.

Gazef closed in and swung down his sword while aiming for the shield.

Fast!

Climb gave up the notion of moving his shield to deflect the blow. He focused his
entire mind and body on defending, just blocking the attack.

The next moment his shield was seized by an enormous impact.

The level of force was enough to make him think that the shield had shattered. It
was an attack powerful enough to paralyze the hand that held the shield.
Withstanding such an impact would require the strength of ones entire body.

Deflect it?! How do you match the timing for something like this?! Just the shock
is enough to

Climbs nave thoughts left him vulnerable; he felt another impact on his
abdomen.

Gah!

His body flew backwards, his back colliding with the hard stone floor and
expelling the air from his lungs. A glance at Gazef made it plain to see what had
happened.

Just now, he was lowering his leg that delivered a powerful kick to Climb.

Even if its the only weapon in my hand, it is dangerous to focus solely on the
sword. Like now, you could be hit with a kick. I aimed for your stomach just now
but normally, it would be where the armor is lighter. I may break your knees
even if you were wearing a pad over your crotch, if youre unlucky, armored boots
will crush them. Observe your opponents whole body and watch every
movement.

Yes.

Climb endured the dull pain from his abdomen and slowly stood.

The Kingdoms strongest Gazef Stronoffs physical strength was truly formidable.
If he had kicked seriously, then it would not have been a problem to break his ribs
through the chain shirt and render him unable to fight. The reason that was not
the case here was because Gazef held back and merely touched Climbs stomach
with his foot and pushed him with the intent to knock him back.

It was an instructional spar after all thank you.

Realizing that the Kingdoms strongest had sparred with him, Climb was grateful
as he resumed his stance.

He had to be careful so this precious moment did not end abruptly.

Climb once again raised his shield and slowly edged towards Gazef. Gazef
wordlessly stared at him as he approached. If this continues, it would only be a
repeat of what just happened. Climb had to devise a new plan as he approached.

Gazef waited, exuding an overwhelming calm. There just was no way to make
him fight seriously.

It would be arrogant to even feel angry.

Climbs limit was already visible. Despite waking up early like this to train in
swordsmanship, his progress was slower than a snail. Compared to when he first
started training, it was too slow.

Going forward, even if he could train his body and raise the speed and weight of
his sword, skills like martial arts would be out of his reach.

Someone like Climb, to feel angry over the fact that the man who is the
embodiment of talent did not fight him seriously would be disrespectful. He, who
was unable to draw out the man's full strength, could only blame his own lack of
ability.

His words from before that told him to not treat this as training and attack in
earnest was a warning. It meant attack with the intent to kill or you do not even
stand a chance. A warning that came from a man who stood in a place that was
far above him.

Climb clenched his teeth.

He hated his own weakness. If only he was stronger, then he could be of more
use. He could become her weapon and fight directly against those who would
dirty the Kingdom and harm its people.

The fact that her only sword was so weak that she had to be careful of where to
point it filled Climb with guilt.

However, he immediately tossed aside such thoughts. What he had to do now

was not to lose himself in negativity. It was to throw everything he had at the
man who stood in the world of the strong so he himself could grow stronger, no
matter how small.

Only one thought filled his heart.

To be of help to the princess.

Oh?

Gazef let out a sigh and slightly changed his expression.

It was because the face of the one who stood before him, who was both a boy
and a man, had changed. If he were to compare, up until now, he was like a child
who met a celebrity and could not contain his excitement. That restlessness had
vanished after the kick and was replaced with the face of a warrior.

Gazef raised his level of alertness by a notch.

More so then Climb himself realized, Gazef had a high opinion of him. In
particular, his single-minded, avaricious pursuit of strength, his loyalty that
bordered on religious fervor, and his swordsmanship.

Climbs swordplay was not something he had been taught. He obtained it by

sneaking peeks at others who were in the midst of their training. It was unsightly
and full of excessive movements.
But unlike those who trained mindlessly, each motion of his blade was
meticulously thought out and developed for practical use. To put it badly, it
became a sword to kill.

Gazef thought it was very splendid.

A sword was ultimately a tool for murder. One that was trained casually will not
be able to display its effectiveness in a real fight. It will not be able to protect
those who must be protected.
It will not be able to save those who must be saved.

But Climb was different. He will cut down his enemy and protect the one
important to him.

However

Even if you steeled your resolve, the difference in skill with your opponent is
still grave. Now, what will you do?

Assuredly, Climb had no talent. Even if he worked harder than anyone else no
matter how hard he pushes his body, without talent, he will not be able to
become strong. He will not be able to reach men like Gazef or Brain Unglaus.

Even if Climb wanted to be stronger than anyone else, it could only happen in
dreams and fantasies.

Then why was he giving Climb a spar? Would it not be more useful to spend his
time on someone with more talent?

The answer was simple. Gazef just could not stand by and watch Climb endlessly
repeat his useless effort. If talent was the wall decided the limits of humans, he
took pity on the boy and his unending, reckless charge against that wall.

That was why he wished to teach him a different method.

He believed that although there was a limit on talent, there was no limit on
experience.

And because of the anger he felt at the pitiful figure of his once greatest rival.

But even so, trying to get satisfaction from elsewhere I owe Climb an
apology. But facing me should be useful for this guy as well.

 Attack me, Climb.

At the words he spoke to himself, a powerful shout came back in response.

Yes!
Climb ran as soon as he answered.

Gazef, with a serious expression that was different from before, slowly raised his
sword over his shoulder.

It was a stance for a vertical attack above the waist.

Blocking it with the shield will completely restrict his own movements and
parrying it with the sword will blow him back. It was an attack that rendered the
act of defending meaningless.
Blocking it was foolish. But Climbs broadsword was shorter than his bastard
sword.

The only option was to run forward. Knowing this, Gazef was waiting to
counterattack.

It was the same as jumping into the mouth of the tiger but his hesitation only
lasted an instant.

Climb launched himself into the range of Gazefs sword.

As if he was waiting for this moment, Gazefs sword was brought down and
crashed into Climbs shield. The tremendous impact was even stronger than
before. Climb twisted his face at the pain that was transmitted to his arm.

A pity. The same outcome as before.

With a slight hint of disappointment, Gazefs foot reached Climbs abdomen and

Fortress!

With Climbs shout, Gazef wore a slightly surprised expression.

The activation of the martial art, Fortress was not limited only to the sword or
shield. Its possible to use it on any part of the body. The reason that one would
normally activate it when blocking with their weapons was simply because it was
very difficult to find the correct timing for anything else. Using it on armor carried
the risk of receiving your opponents attack without any defenses. Reserving the
skill for blocking with the sword or shield was simple common sense.

However, the problem was solved if one could predict their opponents next move
like Climb did with Gazefs kick.

Were you aiming for this?!

Yes!

The power behind Gazefs kick disappeared as if it was absorbed by something

soft. Unable to channel strength into his extended leg, Gazef gave up on the
attempt and tried to bring his foot back down to the ground. Catching him in a
disadvantageous position, Climb struck.

Slash!

A martial art, high slash.

Just one, have a single skill that you can use with confidence.

Taking the words that he heard from a certain warrior to heart, this was the
attack that the talentless Climb practiced day in and day out.

Climbs body was not wrapped by an armor of muscles. From the start, his
constitution was never one for that type of figure. Also, even if he did build up
muscle, he could not keep his agility.

Because of this, his body was forged into a specialization through endless
repetition.

The result was a straight, vertical slash, a high speed attack that bordered on the
realm of absurdity. Like a flash of light, a slash that seemed to summon the gale.

This attack was coming down on top of Gazefs head.

In Climbs mind, the thought that the blow connecting would result in a fatal
injury had vanished completely. It was a technique that was only possible due to
the unwavering confidence that the man named Gazef would not die to
something of this level.

With the roaring sound of metal, the bastard sword was raised up to meet the
broadsword coming down.

Everything so far was to be expected.

Climb poured all the strength in his body in an attempt to break Gazefs balance.

However Gazefs body did not budge.

Even in the awkward position of standing on one leg, he easily held off the attack
that had Climbs full strength behind it. He was like a gigantic tree with thick
roots embedded in the earth.

His strongest attack with everything he had, combined with two martial arts, and
Climb still could not match Gazef standing on one leg. Despite his surprise,
Climbs eyes moved to his own abdomen.

The fact that he brought down his broadsword meant that their distance had
shortened. It also meant that Gazef could again kick him in the stomach.

The kick landed on Climbs body as soon as he leapt back.

There was a small, dull pain. The two stood face to face with a few paces of
distance separating them.

Gazef slightly relaxed his eyes and eased his lips.

Although he smiled, it was not unpleasant, but refreshing. It made Climb feel
slightly ashamed.
To him, it looked like the smile of a father seeing the growth of his son.

That was splendid. I will be a bit more serious then.

Gazefs expression changed.

Climb felt goose bumps all over his body. The strongest in the Kingdom had
finally shown himself.

I have a potion with me so there is no need to worry. It can heal fractures.

Thank you.

The taciturn way Gazef implied that he should be prepared for broken bones
made Climbs heart thump loudly in his chest. He was used to injuries but that
did not mean he enjoyed them.

Gazef closed in at twice Climbs speed.

The bastard sword drew an arc that was low enough to skid the ground and
slashed at Climbs legs. Its speed, filled with rotational force, Climb quickly
stabbed his broadsword into the ground in an attempt to protect his legs.

The two sides collided, at the least, that is what Climb believed. In that instant
Gazefs sword changed course and rode up the side of the broadsword.

Kuh!

Climb leaned his body back and the sword flew inches past his face. The wind
from the slash severed a few strands of his hair as it passed by.

Fearful at the fact that Gazef had cornered him this badly this quickly, Climb saw
in his vision that the bastard sword had halted and was quickly coming back.

Before he could even think, his survival instinct caused Climb to push forward
with the small shield. The bastard sword crashed into the shield and a loud
metallic sound rang out.

And

Ugh!

Climb felt intense pain as he was blown away to the side. The impact as his body
crashed violently to the floor forced his sword from his hand.

The bastard sword that had collided with the small shield had moved upwards
and delivered a severe blow to Climbs flank.

Its the flow, not simply attacking and defending. You must move so that every
action can flow into your next attack. Your defense must serve as a part of your
next assault.

Gazef spoke to Climb in a gentle voice while he picked up his sword and
attempted to get up while holding his side.

I controlled my strength so it wouldnt break. You should be able to continue.

What will you do?

Gazef, who did not even seem tired, and Climb, tense and heaving with pain.

This ugly sight of not being able last even a few strikes, he was just wasting
Gazefs time. Even so, Climb wanted to be stronger, no matter how slight.

Raising his sword, he nodded to Gazef and resumed his stance.

Very well, let us continue.

Yes!

With a hoarse shout, Climb charged.

Beaten, flung about, and sometimes even resorting to punches and kicks, Climb
collapsed to the floor with labored breaths. The cold chill of the ground felt
pleasant as it absorbed his body heat through the chain shirt.

Hah, hah, hah

He did not even try to wipe away the sweat. No, he did not even have the energy
to do so.

Enduring the stabs of pain, Climb, unable to resist the fatigue rising all
throughout his body, closed his eyes slightly.

Good work. I tried not to break or crack anything, but how is it?

Sprawled out on the floor, Climb moved his hands and touched the parts that still
gave him pain.

I dont think there are any problems. Painful, but theyre only bruises.

The ringing pain was light; it would not be a hindrance to the princess security.

Is that so Then we will not need the potion.

Yes. After all, careless use will cancel out the effects of muscle training.

Indeed. They should be left to heal naturally but magic will end up restoring the
muscles to their original state. I assume you will be returning to your duties as
the princess guard?

Yes.

Then take it with you. Use it should anything happen.

With a clink, the potion bottle was set next to Climb.

Thank you.

He raised himself and looked at Gazef, at the man his sword could not touch even
once.

The man without a scratch looked at him strangely, and spoke.

What is it?

Nothing I just thought you are amazing.

His breathing was steady, with almost no traces of sweat on his forehead. Climb
breathed a sigh; he realized that this was the difference between him, who was
on the floor, and the strongest in the Kingdom. On the other hand, Gazef wore a
bitter smile.

I see.

How

Even if you ask me how I am so strong, I have no answer to give you. It is

simply talent. I learned how to fight during my days as a mercenary. These kicks
that the nobles call vulgar, I learned them during those days as well.

There is no trick to gaining strength, Gazef declared. The hope that adopting the
same training would, to an extent, help him grow stronger was easily dashed.

Climb, you have potential in that sense. Punching and kicking, using your fists to
fight.

Is that so?

Indeed. In fact, it is rather fortunate that you were not trained as a swordsman
or a soldier.
When one holds a sword, they tend to focus on fighting while only using that
weapon. I believe that this is wrong. Change our view of the sword to see it as
just another way of attacking while incorporating the fists and legs, would that
not be more effective in a real battle? Well my sword is more suited for
adventurers.

Climbs usual blank face was gone and replaced by a smile. He did not expect the
strongest in the Kingdom to praise his skills so highly; his unorthodox movements
and skills devoid of framework.

The sword that the nobles mocked behind his back was being praised. His joy was
immense.

Well then, I will take my leave. I must not be late to the Kings morning meal.
Will you be heading back?

No. There is supposed to be a guest today.

A guest? A noble, perhaps?

As Gazef thought it strange that the princess would be receiving a guest, Climb
responded.

Yes. Aindra-sama will be visiting.

Aindra? Ah! But which Aindra are you referring to? The blue one, right? Not the
crimson?

Yes. Blue Rose.

The relief on Gazefs face was obvious at a glance.

Right Thats what it was. If a friend is visiting

Gazef must have guessed that the reason Climb was not invited for breakfast was
because a friend was coming. In truth, Climb was the one who turned down her
offer. Even if he was in a position where such a thing was allowed, to refuse the
royal family, even Gazef would furrow his brows at the news. That was why Climb
remained silent on the matter and left it to the mans imagination.

Even Aindra herself, who was acquainted with Climb through Renner, requested
that he join them. She would not share the adverse reaction of the other nobles
even if Climb were to join their meal.

This was his consideration for his master who had very few female friends. A
princess had almost no opportunity to engage in lady talk and Climb felt that his
absence would be for the best.

Thank you for your guidance today, Gazef-sama.

Not at all, pay it no mind. I enjoyed myself as well.

If it isnt too much trouble, could I ask you to oversee my training next time
as well?

Gazef paused briefly before Climb could apologize, he spoke.

I see no problem with it if we keep it to when others are absent.

Climb didnt open his mouth, he clearly understood the reason for the mans
hesitation. He then forced his creaking body to stand in order to show his
sincerity.

Thank you very much!

Gazef slowly waved his hand and turned.

I will leave the cleanup to you. It will be troubling if I miss the meal. Ah, right.
That vertical slash wasnt bad, but you should keep your next move in mind.
Think of what will happen next if your opponent blocks or avoids your attack.

Yes!

Part 4

Month 9, Day 3, 6:22

Having parted ways with Gazef, Climb wiped his sweat with a wet towel and
headed for a place that was completely different from the main hall.

The room he was currently in was as wide as the hall he was in before. It was
filled with many people engaging in conversation. A delicious aroma was mixed in
with the warm atmosphere, rousing peoples appetites.

It was the mess hall.

Climb walked through the bustle of noises and stood behind a line of people. Like
the person before him, he grabbed one of the dishes that were piled high. On his
tray, he placed a wooden plate, a wooden soup bowl, and a wooden cup.

He was served his meal in an orderly fashion.

A large steamed potato, barley bread, white stew with small bits of meat and
vegetables, cabbage pickled in vinegar, and a single sausage. From Climbs point
of view, it was quite a luxurious meal.

As the food made its way onto his tray, Climb smelled a sumptuous aroma and
felt it stimulate his stomach. He proceeded to look around the mess hall.

The loud soldiers ate their meals while engaging in superficial conversations like
their next day off, todays food, families, and their trivial duties.

Climb found an empty seat and made his way there through the bustle of noise.

He sat on a space in a wide bench. Soldiers were seated on either side of him,
talking merrily amongst their friends. They barely gave Climb a disinterested
glance before turning away to resume their talks.

The only silence to be found was near Climb.

An outsider looking in would think the atmosphere was strange.

Despite the merry chatter in the surroundings, not a single person attempted to
strike a conversation with Climb. Of course, people would not normally go out of
their way to speak to strangers. But they were fellow soldiers who would, at
times, trust one another with their lives. Indeed, such a response was quite
bizarre.

It was as if the person named Climb did not even exist.

Climb himself made no effort to speak to others, the reason being that he clearly
understood his own position.

The ones who guarded the castle were not mere soldiers. A soldier of the
Kingdom referred to the militia armed by nobles who owned territory. It included
the enlisted men whose wages were paid by the governor and those who served
as city guard. What they all had in common was that they were made up of
common folk.

However, there were many problems with allowing just anyone the job of
protecting the palace, the center of important news and information, and placing
them so near the royal family.

That was why a recommendation from a noble was required in order for someone
to become a guard in the palace. If a guard caused trouble, the noble from whom
he received his recommendation from would be held responsible. As such, only
those with a clean background and a sound body and mind were given a
recommendation.

However, this caused factions to form.

Depending on which faction the sponsoring noble belonged to, that soldier ended
up being roped into that group as well. A soldier who refused would not even
receive a recommendation in the first place. It was fair to say that there were no
exceptions whatsoever to this rule.

It may seem like it would be filled with flaws, but on the contrary, being
embroiled into a power struggle meant that soldiers trained their skills diligently.
Although their strength fell short of the Empires knights, the soldiers who
guarded the palace still boasted considerable skill.

Climbs strength was several levels above them, but that was also one of the
reasons why the nobles were against him. They could not stand the fact that he
was stronger than the soldiers they had recommended themselves.

Of course, there could also be an instance where nobles who sponsored soldiers
did not belong to any faction. However, with the current power struggle of the
Kingdom between the royalty faction and the nobility faction, there was only a
single noble who could come and go between them like a bat.

And among the soldiers, there was only one man who did not enlist on the
recommendation of the nobles.

That person was Climb.

Normally, someone of Climbs background would not be able to serve Renner by

her side.
Protecting the royal family, a duty of such grave importance did not come to a
person of low birth. It was common knowledge that only those of noble rank
could protect royalty.

Regardless, there were exceptions to this case, like the Kingdoms elite warriors,
as well as its strongest soldier, Gazef Stronoff. And if Princess Renner strongly
wished it, there were few who could openly oppose her. Even if members of the
royal family could speak against her, just who would interfere when she had the
Kings approval?

Climb being granted his own private quarters could be called a result of a very
complicated circumstance. A simple soldier would not even dream of his own
room and would have to spend his daily life in the larger area. Although Renner
ordered it, another reason Climb was given his own room was to isolate him. Not
belonging to either faction made him a troublesome existence.

Considering Climbs circumstances, it was obvious that he belonged to the

royalty faction. But that was a gathering of nobles who pledged their fealty to the
King. From their point of view, Climb, with his unclear background, was an
eyesore.

As a result, the royalty faction saw Climb as troublesome to recruit, but if left
alone will work for their side of his own volition. The nobility faction saw merit in
pulling him to their side, but at the same time, recognized its dangers.

Even if they are called a faction, it did not mean that the many nobles who make
up the groups are of one mind. No matter what, a faction was a gathering in
order to further a goal or way of thinking. If the royalty faction had a person who
did not welcome Climb a commoner of an unknown background who was the
closest to a princess so beautiful that she was called golden then it was safe to
say that the nobility faction would have someone who wanted to bring him over
to their side.

Regardless, currently there was no one in either group foolish enough to

approach Climb and splinter their own faction.

The result was that the two factions concluded that they each did not want to
hand Climb over to the opposing side, but at the same time, also did not want
him on theirs.

This was why he did not to speak to anyone and ate alone.

Simply moving his spoon without speaking to others, nary a glance, his breakfast
did not even take ten minutes to finish.

I should be going.

A habit possibly formed from being alone so often, Climb muttered to himself in
satisfaction. As he was rising from his seat, a passing soldier bumped into him.

The soldiers elbow touched the wound from Gazefs training, causing Climb, his
expression still blank, to stop his feet.

The soldier continued to walk by without a word. Needless to say, the soldiers
around him did not say anything as well. The few who saw the incident frowned
slightly but did not speak.

With a long sigh, Climb grabbed his empty plate and walked on.

This type of incident was an everyday occurrence. He even felt it fortunate that it
didnt happen when he had a bowl of hot stew.

Sticking out a foot to trip him or bumping into him on purpose and faking it as an
accident, such behavior was quite common. However

What of it.

Climb calmly walked forward. Those people could not do any worse, especially so
if he was in a place with as many eyes as the mess hall.

Climb straightened his chest, his eyes pointed forward; he absolutely did not look
down.

If he were to appear unsightly, it would be a slight against his master, Renner.

The reputation of the woman whom he pledged his absolute loyalty was on the
line.

CHAPT
ER 2

Part 1

Top Fire Month (Month 9), Day 3, 8:02

White, full plate armor and a sword fastened to his waist. His equipment in
perfect condition, Climb stepped into Valencia palace.

Valencia palace was divided largely into three main buildings. The one Climb
made his way into was the largest and where the royal family resided

Different from where he had been moments ago, the place was designed to let in
as much light as possible, making it blindingly bright.

He walked down a wide hallway that was scrubbed so clean that not even a trace
of dust could be found, let alone any litter. His full plate armor did not make any
noises, the reason being that it was tempered with mithril and orichalcum and
enchanted with magic.

The palace guards knights, also wearing full plate armor, were standing at
attention in the wide and clean hallway.

The Empires knights referred to the common folk who were part of the standing
army. On the other hand, the knights of the Kingdom were those who were
granted a title of nobility. As an example, there were numerous occasions where
the third son of a noble household would become a knight, since they were
unable to inherit his household. However, since the Kingdom paid the knights
handsomely, they only accepted those who were skilled with the sword. It was
impossible with only connections even if one were a noble.

The most fitting way to call them would be as the Kings elite guards.

Coincidently, Warrior Captain was a newly fashioned title for Gazef since there
was much opposition to granting him a knighthood.

Climb lightly greeted those same knights. As expected, only a few greeted him in
response, but some did respond and even greeted him with sincerity. While they
were nobles, these people swore their service to the King and carried a warriors
heart. Their loyalty unforgotten, they carried great respect for those with skill.

On the other hand, among the people Climb passed in the hallway, there were
those whose hatred was obvious at a glance.

They were the maids. Most of them showed a bitter face whenever they saw
Climb.

The maids who worked in the palace were different from normal maids in that
they were the daughters of noble houses who came to gain experience. In a way,
the maids held a higher position than Climb. Especially the ones who worked
close to the royal family, most of them were daughters of high-ranking nobility.
Their displeasure at the fact that they had to lower their head to a man who was
less than a commoner showed itself as anger.

In terms of rank, it was true that Climb was beneath them. They probably wished
to show their distaste while Renner was not around. Having thought as much,
Climb did not show any anger over their behavior.

But what Climb failed to realize was that his thinking spawned a vicious cycle
where the maids would misunderstand his expressionless face as him ignoring
them, infuriating them further. On the other hand, if he was the type who could
notice such a thing then perhaps everything else would have been handled more
smoothly.

It was also true for Climb that every time he was in the palace, his nerves would
wear away slightly.

Although it went without saying, Renner and Ranpossa III were not the only
people living in this palace.

Ugh?!

Speak of the devil, Climb moved to the side of the hallway, straightened his back
and stood at attention with his hand over his chest.

Two people were approaching. The one following from behind was a tall, thin man
with blond hair brushed behind his head.

Marquis Raeven, one of the six great noble families in the Kingdom.

The problem was the short, fat man walking in front of him. His name was Zanack
Valurean Igana Ryle Vaiself, the second prince and second in line for the throne.

Zanack stopped his feet, his chubby face turning into a frown.

Why, Climb. Are you on your way to show your face to that monster?

There was only one person Prince Zanack would call a monster. Although he knew
it was insolent, Climb could not let it stand.

Your highness, Im grateful for your words but Renner-sama is not a monster.
She is kind and beautiful, some even call her the Kingdoms treasure.

What else could you call someone who got rid of the slave trade and proposed
many policies in order to help the citizens? Although the number of them that

saw light was small because of the checks in place by the nobles, Climb knew
better than anyone else how much she cared for the people.

Every time a policy that would otherwise help the common folk was shot down for
foolish reasons like nobles trying to save face, the kind-hearted girl would shed
tears in front of him. This man, Zanack, who did not even lift a finger, had no
right to say anything.

He was consumed by the desire to shout, to bring down his fist.

Even if they were only half-siblings these werent words that should be said
about someone who shared the same blood. However, he could not allow his
anger to show.

Renner had said this:

My elder brother will try to anger you so he can hold you in contempt. Hes most
likely looking for an excuse to separate us. Climb, never let him see you weak.

That sad expression his master who was not accepted even by her own family,
Climb remembered the day when he swore that at least he would never betray
her.

But I wasnt referring specifically to Renner though? That must be what you
really think well, lets stop stating the obvious. But treasure was it? Is she
really proposing her ideas thinking that they would work? It looks to me like she
already knows that they wont, but still acts on them.

There was no way that was true. Just how could it? It was the ugly jealousy of a
man who could only think in those terms.

I do not think that that is the case.

Fufufufufu. As expected, it seems you dont see her as a monster. Is it because

you are blind? Or perhaps shes being clever? Shouldnt I be suspicious?

Not at all. I firmly believe that Renner-sama is the Kingdoms treasure.

Because he was the one who watched her the closest, he was assured that
everything she did was righteous.

Really, thats interesting. Then can you deliver a message to that monster for
me? Although your brother only thinks of you as a political tool, if you
cooperate with me, I can rid you of your right of succession and grant you
territory.

Climb felt his displeasure rising.

... Jokes should be kept in moderation. I did not expect for you to say such
words. I will pretend that I never heard them.

Fufufufufufu. A pity. Lets go, Marquis Raeven.

The man who was searchingly watching the two in silence nodded his head.

Not much was known about Marquis Raeven. Although he had drawn a clear line
between Climb and himself, his eyes were slightly different than the other nobles.
Renner also did not give any specific instructions on how to treat Raeven.

Ah, I almost forgot. Marquis Raeven also shares my opinion and thinks of her as
a monster. No, you could say that we are in complete agreement on this matter.

Your Highness.

Just one more word, Marquis Raeven. Listen, Climb. If you were a bigot then I
wouldnt have even bothered to say anything. But Im giving you a warning
since she could be tricking you. Shes a monster.

Your Highness, though it may be presumptuous of me, allow me a question.

What part of Renner-sama do you feel that she is a monster? There is no one else
who cares more about the Kingdom and its people.

Almost all of her efforts end up as nothing. Her actions are too pointless. At
the beginning, I thought that maybe it was because her preparations were
lacking. Then, the idea came up during a conversation with the Marquis here.
What if everything was calculated? That would tie all of the loose ends together.
If that were true it would mean that a girl who lives half her life inside a palace
and has almost no connections to the nobles is controlling them as she sees fit.
What do you call that if not a monster?

Its a simple misunderstanding. Renner-sama is not that type of person.

Climb was certain.

Those tears were not lies. That girl called Renner was selfless and kind. He,
whose life was saved by her, knew this for a fact.

But his words did not reach the prince. He showed a bitter smile and walked away
from Climb, with Marquis Raeven following behind him.

Climb muttered in the empty hallway.

Renner-sama is the most benevolent person in the world. My existence is proof.

If

He swallowed those last words. Even so, they continued in his heart.

If Renner-sama ruled the Kingdom, it would become a great nation that stood by
its people.

Of course, considering the line of succession, it was an impossible wish.

Regardless, Climb could not give it up.

Top Fire Month (Month 9), Day 3, 8:11

At last, Climb arrived in front of the room in the palace that he frequented the
most often.

Having checked his surroundings several times over, he boldly turned the
doorknob.

Not knocking was absurd, but this was what his master wished for. She refused to
listen no matter how much Climb opposed it.

In the end, Climb was the one who relented. It couldnt be helped that a girls
tears put him at a disadvantage. Although with that said, he managed to
establish a few conditions. No matter what she said, he could not enter without
knocking in the presence of the King.

It was also true that entering without knocking was a source of great stress for
Climb. Needless to say, every time he opened the door, Climb felt that there was
no way that something like this would be permitted.

As he was about to fling the door open, his hands stopped at the sound of a
heated discussion that was flowing through the small crack.

He heard two voices, both female.

The reason he stopped was because one of the voices sounded so absorbed in
the discussion that it failed to notice Climbs presence, albeit he was outside of
the room. He did not want to throw cold water over their enthusiasm. Climb stood
still and focused his ears on the voices in the room. Although he felt guilty about
eavesdropping, he would feel even more guilty if he interrupted such a heated
talk.

say it before? Humans only focus on the profits that are in front of them.

Mmmm

Renner, your plan about harvesting different crops on rotation although I

dont really think that would improve the yield how long would people have to
wait for the results to show?

By my calculations, at the least, it should take around six years.

Then whats the projected loss of profits for those six years when we cultivate
different crops?

It depends on the crop but if were at a hundred now then well be around
eighty percent. So we may have a twenty percent loss. But after six years well
be looking at a steady thirty percent increase in harvest. If we cultivate pastures
and put us on track to raise more livestock then we can expect even more.

If it was just that last part then everyone would jump on it. But will people
agree to the constant twenty percent hit for those six years?

The Kingdom loans out the twenty percent without interest or collateral, set up
a method of payment when people start to turn a profit. If the harvest doesnt
improve dont collect and if the harvest does increase, according to the plan,
people will be able to pay everything back in four years.

It would be difficult.

Why?

I told you. People only care about profits that are in front of them theres
more who prefer stability. Even if you can guarantee a thirty percent increase
after six years, theres obviously going to be people who are hesitant.

I dont understand. The results from the field I tested were favorable

Even if the test goes well it still isnt absolute.

Well I didnt test it under every possible condition, so I guess it isnt.

Accounting for every geological feature of the land or climates would require a
large scale experiment.

Then its going to be hard. Even not knowing if the future thirty percent increase
is the maximum or an average is going to kill your argument. This means you

have to be able to promise a significant profit along with profits in the short
term.

What if we provide the twenty percent free of charge for those six years?

The rival nobility faction will be happy since the King will be losing power.

But if we can secure as much goods as we give after six years, the national
power will see an increase

Then the rival nobilitys power will increase as well while the Kings power falls
by twenty percent. The nobles in the Kings faction will never agree to it.

Then we ask the merchants and

Youre talking about the Great Merchants right? They have their own conflicts.
Carelessly lending their strength to the Kings faction can affect their ability to
conduct business properly with the other faction.

This is too hard Lakyus.

You cant get much advance work done so your policies end up with a ton of
weak spots. Well I can understand that two massive factions make it incredibly
difficult. How about working just on the issues in the palace?

I dont think my brothers will allow it.

Ah, those idi people who left their honor in their mothers womb just for you.

We dont even share the same mother.

My, so from the Kings side then. Anyways, to think that even the royal family
isnt close, so frustrating

As the room became quiet, she realized that the discussion was finished.

Ah, its okay to come in now. Right, Renner?

What?

That voice made Climbs heart thump loudly in his chest. He was astonished that
she already knew he was here and at the same time, felt that it was to be
expected. Climb slowly opened the door.

Excuse me.

A familiar sight entered Climbs eyes.

Luxurious but not gaudy in the room, two blond ladies sat around a table by the
windowsill.
One of them was obviously the master of the room, Renner.

And the girl opposite to her, with green pupils and pink lips that showed a healthy
gleam. Her beauty fell short of Renner but overflowed with a different charm. If
Renner was the brilliance of a jewel, then she was the brilliance of life.

Lakyus Alvein Dale Aindra.

Although you would not think it from her light pink dress, she was the leader of
one of only two adamantium rank adventurer teams in the Kingdom, as well as
Renners closest friend.

At nineteen years old, what allowed her to achieve the countless achievements
necessary to rise to such a difficult position was her overflowing talent. Climb felt
the tiniest traces of envy ooze out of his heart.

I hope you are well, Renner-sama, Aindra-sama.

Hello, Climb.

Hello.

As Climb finished his greeting and was about to move to his designated spot to
Renners right, just behind her he was interrupted.

Climb, not there, over here.

The place Renner was pointing at was the chair to her right.

Climb thought it odd. There were five chairs placed around the circular table, the
same as always. But there were three teacups laid out in total.

One in front of Renner, Lakyus, and next to Lakyus a seat different from where
Renner was pointing. He looked around but could not find the third person
anywhere.

Even as he thought it was strange, he turned his eyes to the chair.

The discourtesy of sharing a table with his master, royalty at that, the order to
enter the room without knocking or in Renners words, a request almost all
of Renners orders placed a burden on his conscience.

But

Climb turned his eyes to the other girl, seeking help. His wordless plea to the
other companion to please spare him was immediately shot down.

I dont mind.

Th-thats Aindra-sama

Like Ive told you already, call me Lakyus.

Lakyus slightly peered over at Renner and continued.

Climb is special after all.

Angry.

Renner smiled as she spoke. The sweet tone of Lakyus words seemed to end in a
heart mark. Rather, it was difficult to call her expression a smile, where only her
lips moved while her eyes were serious.

Aindra-sama, you should stop with the jokes.

Alright, alright. Climb really is stubborn. How about trying to learn from her?

Huh? A joke?

Seeing Renner surprised, Lakyus stopped abruptly and heaved a large sigh.

Isnt it obvious? Its true that Climb is special, but only because hes yours.

Renner blushed slightly and covered both her cheeks with her hands. Climb
awkwardly looked away from her and his eyes immediately opened wide.

What?!

Shocked, Climb lowered his body, grabbed the sword fastened to his waist and
moved to protect Renner. Lakyus let out another sigh.

Climb got surprised because youre like that.

Her calm voice did not contain any caution or sense of crisis. Having understood
what it meant, Climb felt the tension leave his shoulders.

Understood, boss.

The girl sitting in the shadows hopped up in a single breath.

Ah, Climb, you dont know her. This is our team member

Tina-san.

Renner finished Lakyus sentence.

As far as Climb knew, the adamantium ranked adventurer team Blue Rose was
composed of five women: the leader, faith based magic caster Lakyus, warrior
Gagaran, magic caster Evileye, and Tia and Tina who were trained in thief skills.

Climb already met Lakyus, Gagaran, and Evileye but was unacquainted with the
last two.

This person is I see. She really is like the rumors say.

With slender limbs and appearance covered by the clothes that wrapped tightly
around her body, she really did look like someone who would train in thief skills.

I apologize for my rudeness. Nice to meet you, my name is Climb.

Climb bowed his head low to Tina.

Hmm? Dont worry about it.

She answered Climbs apology with a wave of her hand and, completely silent,
like a wild animal, approached the table with smooth movements. She sat in the
chair that was next to Lakyus, so the teacup from before must have been hers.

Even while the number of teacups on the table meant that it was impossible,
Climb looked around the room once more, carefully checking for the other girl
who he wasnt acquainted with.

Lakyus saw what Climb was doing and opened her mouth, as if she immediately
understood him.

Tia didnt come. Gagaran and Evileye both said that they hate formal stuff. This
isnt even that formal though. I dressed up just in case, but its not like I pushed
the others to dress up too.

Despite what Lakyus said, her type of attire was the correct etiquette when
appearing before the princess, but Climb had no intention of telling this to a
person who was both Renners friend and a distinguished noble.

It seems thats the case. But Im grateful to meet the famous Tina-sama. I look
forward to your guidance.

Why dont you continue your talk after you sit, Climb?

Renner drew out a new cup and poured tea as she spoke. The tea from the magic
item Warm Bottle gave off steam like it was just freshly brewed. It was one of
Renners prized possessions that had the effect of maintaining the temperature
and quality of the beverage inside for one hour. She used it quite liberally when
receiving a particularly important guest and rarely brought it out otherwise.

With no way to refuse, Climb resigned himself and sat in his seat, drinking a sip of
the tea.

Its delicious, Renner-sama.

Renner smiled sweetly, but honestly speaking, Climb had no clue as to whether
or not it was good; only that something brewed by Renner could only be
delicious.

That was when, suddenly, he heard a flat, emotionless voice.

Tia should be collecting information today. The three of us was supposed to

visit the palace today, but our evil boss suddenly ordered a job. Everything is the
evil boss fault.

Needless to say, it was Tinas voice. Climb averted his eyes away from Lakyus
frightening smile and asked.

I see Should there be an opportunity, next time, I would like to meet her at
least once.

Climb, Tina-san and Tia-san are twins; even the length of their hair is similar.

So if you just see one then theres no problem.

Although whether or not there would be a problem wasnt the issue, Climb
showed that he understood.

Nevertheless, Climb felt embarrassed by Tinas merciless gaze. As he was about

to ignore it, the thought that she could have spotted something that he lacked
prompted him to ready himself and ask.

What is it?

Too big.

What?

He didnt know what she was talking about. As countless question marks floated
above Climbs head, Lakyus apologetically intervened.

Its nothing. Shes just talking to herself. Dont worry about it, Climb. No, really,
dont worry about it. Im serious.

Yes

What is she talking about, Lakyus?

Although Climb was forcing himself to agree, a confused Renner interfered.

Lakyus watched Renner with a sour expression.

Really, you, whenever its about Climb

Ah, I meant

Shut up, Tina. The reason I didnt bring Tia was because she was going to say
something strange to Renner. Can you understand that and stop talking?

Got it~ evil boss.

Lakyus, what was she going to tell me?

Lakyus face turned stiff at Renners interrogation. She even looked like she was
suffering.

As Climb thought about whether to intervene, Lakyus quickly turned her eyes.

Huh Climb, youre using that armor.

Yes, its an incredible armor. Thank you.

Although it was a forced change of topic, as to not embarrass the guest, Climb
responded and moved his hand to the white full plate armor that he received
from Renner. Forged with a great amount of mithril with a bit of orichalcum
the armor had various magical enchants on it that made it surprisingly light,
tough, and easy to move in.

The mithril for forging the splendid armor was provided by the members of Blue
Rose. No matter how much he gave his thanks, it wouldnt be enough.

As Climb was about to bow his head, Lakyus stopped him.

You dont have to worry about it. We just gave you the leftovers from when we
made our own mithril armor.

Even if it were just leftovers, mithril was a very expensive material. One would be
able to afford a mithril full plate armor once they reach orichalcum rank. A mithril
rank might be able to afford a mithril weapon. Only a person in the adamantium
rank would be able to just give it away.

I just cant say no to Renner, after all.

You didnt accept payment back then. I saved up my allowance

Isnt it odd for a princess to call it an allowance?

Funds from the demesne are counted separately. I wanted to make Climbs
armor with my own money.

Of course you did~. Its Climbs so Im sure you wanted to pay for it~.

If you knew then you didnt have to give it to him for free. Stupid Lakyus.

Stupid? Why you

The sulking Renner and grinning Lakyus, the two bantered playfully.

Seeing such a scene, Climb concentrated so that his expressionless face would
not crumble.

Even the fact that he was able to witness such a kind, gentle scene was all
thanks to the master who accepted him under her wing. However, he could not
allow his feelings to show.

Although a feeling of gratitude was fine, he could not show what lay beyond it,
his strong feelings for Renner.

His love.

He grabbed his feelings and suppressed it. Instead, he said the words that he had
repeated countless time before.

Thank you. Renner-sama.

His message was clear. There was a firm line drawn between them the position
of master and servant ever so slightly, Climb saw it because he had watched
over her for so long, the smallest trace of sadness in Renners smile.

Not at all. Anyhow, weve digressed. Shall we return to the main topic?

Its about the Eight Fingers. I stopped at the part where we broke into three of
their villages for growing drugs and set fire to the fields, right?

Hearing that name, Climbs expressionless face frowned slightly.

Eight Fingers, a criminal organization that operated in the dark side of the
Kingdom.
His esteemed master was acting in order to do something about that group.

As for the fields that were burned, one could only imagine the worst case
scenario for the villages that depended on growing the drug for a living. However,

the lives of those villagers were a necessary sacrifice in order to eradicate the
drug that was eating away at the Kingdom.

If she possessed absolute authority, then any measure could be taken. But even
as the princess, she had no backing. The only option was to make the coldhearted decision of saving whoever she could save and to cut away the rest.

Supposing she petitioned her father, the King, then it may be possible for her to
attack with military or political might. But as long as it was certain that Eight
Fingers had ties to the nobility, there was no doubt that the information would be
leaked and the evidence erased in advance.

That was why Renner chose to personally request Lakyus and her party.

Climb knew well that this was a dangerous move. Normally, an adventurer
accepted requests through the guild and did not acknowledge personal requests.
To do so was a violation of the rules.

Of course, the guild could not impose punishment or expel the highest ranked
adamantium class adventurers . Nevertheless, their reputation within the guild
would suffer and there would be negative consequences in the future. The reason
that her request was accepted despite all of this was because Blue Rose loved
the Kingdom and considered Renner their friend.

Climb felt his gratitude toward Lakyus rise, the one who accepted the job even at
her own risk.

Lakyus decided that it was about time to bring up a certain topic. She opened the
bag Tina had brought and pulled out a single parchment.

It was a writing that the Blue Rose members, including Lakyus, could not
decipher. But if it was Renner, the best brains out of everyone that Lakyus knew,
then perhaps something could be done about it.

We found this when we were burning the villages drugs. It seemed to be some
kind of written orders so we brought it back do you know what it is?

The open parchment contained symbols that were not part of any countrys
written language.
Renner glanced at it and replied immediately.

Its a substitution cipher.

A substitution cipher was a type of code where a word or several words together
was switched for a different word or symbol. If 1 indicated a and 2 was b,
then 11221 became aabba.

Thats what I think too. We looked hard for a substitution chart but couldnt find
one unfortunately. Theres a chance that it was memorized so we captured
someone who looked to be in charge. Our option here should be to ask the
captive with charm magic, but as you already know, charm magic loses its
effectiveness when repeatedly cast by the same person on the same target. The
first time has to count. I didnt want to go ahead with it without consulting you
first.

I see the reason this message was left behind a trap or is it for a different
reason? Then they wouldnt have made it too difficult. Yes, I think I can crack this
code pretty easily.

Lakyus eyes went wide at Renners words. In spite of herself, her eyes met with
Tina who sat next to her.

She couldnt believe it. But on the other hand, she felt that it was to be expected.

Lets see. The first letter of the Kingdoms alphabet is either the male article or
female article; it should be one of the syllables so wait one moment.

Renner muttered as she stood with the parchment in hand and returned with a
pen and paper.

She began to write.

This code switches out one letter per symbol so its easy. And thank goodness
that it uses the Kingdoms alphabet. If it used the empires or if we needed to
translate it first then it wouldve been almost impossible. This is first, if you
figure out just one letter then you can just fill out the rest. Anybody could do it if
they tried.

No no, you just make it sound easy. Wouldnt it be impossible without knowing
tens of thousands of words?

But this is an order written in code. The instructions wouldnt be hidden behind a
metaphor and the chance of them using difficult words is very small. The
messages are probably written clearly so that even children can understand it.
Thats why their scale is so large.

Lakyus inwardly broke out in cold sweats.

Although her friend called it simple, that was absolutely not the case.

If its her then its possible really, her ability is ridiculous.

Every time they met, every time they spoke, she was surprised. Lakyus didnt
know anyone who better fit the term genius.

In contrast to Lakyus who was trembling on the inside, Renner lightly held out the
paper in her hand.

Im finished. It wasnt orders though.

Various locations outside the Kingdom were listed on the paper. Seven were
within the Kingdoms lands.

Could these be where they store the drugs? Important bases maybe?

Such important information wouldnt be written down and just left in a

production facility. Isnt this bait?

A bait? You mean its a trap?

Mmm No, I dont think so. Even though Eight Fingers is one organization, isnt
it more like the eight groups that make it up are cooperating with one another?

Lakyus nodded her head.

Then this is probably about the other seven groups. The organization thats in
charge of drugs leaked this information on purpose so they could spin it into an
advantage.

So they prepared information on all the organizations besides their own I knew
that they werent close, but to think that it was this bad

As an adventurer, the thought of betraying ones allies filled her with aversion.

As I thought, itll be bad if we dont move quickly.

To her friend who was nodding her head, Lakyus repeated her question.

Then what should we do about the brothel? Its a very vile place so supposedly
you can experience anything there.

Even when she said so herself, Lakyus felt her insides boil in anger.

Damn it. Trash that only thinks about their lust can all die!

Remembering the information she received about the brothel, separate from the
daughter of a noble, her adventurer side that endured all kinds of hardships
raged inside of her. There was no need to ponder what anything implied. No
doubt that countless people regardless of gender were murdered there for
entertainment.

In the past when the slave trade still existed, brothels like that had been plentiful
in the underworld, but thanks to the active role of her friend in front of her, the
slave trade was outlawed and those days were long gone. This was probably the
last such brothel remaining in the capital, perhaps in the Kingdom.

That was why removing it wasnt so simple. No doubt that they would be met
with strong opposition. It was the last depraved paradise for those with fetishes
so vulgar, they could never tell other people about them.

Say, Renner. Since we cant rely on the government to investigate, how about
we break in there by force and raze it? Theres no problem as long as we find
evidence, no? If the slave trade is running the brothel, destroying it will be huge.

And depending on the evidence we find, we could deal a big blow to the nobles
who are involved.

You might be right, Lakyus. But if we do that, itll hurt your familys, the Alvein
name. Thats why its difficult. Itll be the same if we used the Blue Rose
members... though with that said, its impossible for Climb to take care of it by
himself.

I apologize for my lack of ability.

As he bowed his head, Renner stretched out her hand and grabbed Climbs hand
with a gentle smile.

Im sorry, Climb. Thats not what I meant. Its the last underworld brothel in the
Kingdom. Its impossible for anyone to do it alone. Listen Climb, whom I trust the
most. I know how hard you work for me, but dont do anything reckless. This is an
order and not a request, understand? If anything were to happen to you

Watching from the side, even to Lakyus, who was the same gender, there was
something in the eyes of the beauty welling with tears that moved the heart.
Then what about Climb?

Although he desperately tried to keep his face still, the bright red cheeks said
everything that needed to be said.

If a bard were to give it a title, it would be The Princess and the Knight. In the
face of such an emotional scene, Lakyus felt a tiny sliver of terror. Although it was
impossible, if Renners actions were all calculated, just how much of a master
schemer was.

Just what am I thinking about my good friend? Its obvious she doesnt have such
a bad personality by looking at everything shes done so far. Shes worked to help

others. If I cant believe in someone whos earned the nickname of Golden, just
who can I trust?

As if she was trying to rid herself of these terrible thoughts, Lakyus shook her
head and spoke.

Now that I remember, Tina and her friends managed to uncover the names of a
number of nobles involved with Cocodoll the leader of the slave trade. But we
dont know whether or not the information is accurate so acting on it would be
jumping to conclusions.

As Lakyus went through the names one by one, both Renner and Climb reacted to
one name in particular.

That nobles daughter is working as my maid.

What? I doubt that he planted her as a spy to watch you but... I guess theres no
guarantee that shes just working as a maid for the experience either.

Right. I should be more careful with how I handle information. You keep it in
mind as well, Climb.

Then shall we discuss how to deal with the locations from the cipher? And
Renner, do you think I could borrow Climb? I want him to tell Gagaran and the
others to be ready to move immediately.

Part 2

Top Fire Month (Month 9), Day 3, 9:49

Climb walked down the Kingdoms main street. With nothing noticeable about his
outer appearance, Climb completely blended into the crowd.

Needless to say, he was not wearing his eye-catching full plate armor. Using a
special alchemy item would allow him to change the color of the armor, but he
didnt feel the need to go so far just to have it on with him.

That was why his gear was light; a chain mail beneath his clothes and a
longsword at his waist to set him apart from the average citizen.

His current equipment was similar to those of patrolmen and mercenaries, the
kind one could find anywhere. It was somewhat enough for others to keep a
respectable distance, but not so heavily armed that the crowd would part before
him.

A person who was heavily armed would no doubt be an adventurer. They armed
themselves to be noticeable rather than out of necessity. Adventurers who wore
gear that made them stand out were not uncommon. It served as a form of
advertisement for their services. There were those among them who went for an
especially novel appearance so that they would leave a strong impression and
spread rumors to sell their name. It was the trademark of an adventurer.

But the people that Climb was on his way to meet had no need for such antics.
The members of Blue Rose spread rumors simply by walking down the street.

Eventually, an inn for adventurers could be seen by the side of the main street.
The place had lodgings, a stable, and a yard large enough to swing a sword in.
Behind its splendid outward appearance was an equally beautiful, decorated
interior. The rooms were even fitted with windows made of clear glass.

As the highest class inn in the Kingdom, it was a place where adventurers who
were confident in their skill and could afford the expensive lodging costs
gathered.

Climb ignored the guard standing at the side and opened the door to the inn.

The first floor doubled as a pub and a restaurant. Compared to the large parlour,
there were only a few adventurers. High class adventurers were as rare to see as
they were skilled.

The faint chatter in the room died down for an instant and eyes filled with
curiosity focused on him. Climb ignored them and looked around.

There were only strong adventurers everywhere he looked. Every one of them
could easily beat Climb in a fight. Whenever he came to such a place, he clearly
realized just how small he really was.

Climb stopped himself from being disheartened and moved his eyes on a certain
spot in the inn.

In the farthest corner of the room, his eyes rested on the two figures sitting
around a circular table.

One of them had a small stature and was wrapped in a jet-black robe.

The face was hidden not because of the lighting, instead it was entirely covered
by a strange mask with a red jewel embedded in its forehead. The area around
the eyes had a thin crack so that it was impossible to even tell the color of the
pupils.

And the other figure...

Although the person before had a small body, the other possessed an
overwhelmingly huge physique. Enough to make one think of a huge rock. In a
way, the body could be described as plump, but not because it was fat. First, the
arms were as thick as tree trunks. In order to support the head, the neck was as
thick as an average womans thighs, and the head resting on top of that neck
was a square. The chin was wide as to better clench the teeth for power, the eyes
for scanning the surroundings looked like the eyes belonging to a carnivore. The
blond hair was cut short strictly for functionality.

The chest hidden behind her clothes was conspicuously bloated by muscles
trained over and over. It was no longer the chest of a woman.

The female-only adamantium rank adventurer team Blue Rose.

They were two of its members, magic caster Evileye and warrior Gagaran.

Climb headed in their direction. The person whom he needed to speak to nodded
her head and shouted in a husky voice.

Yo, cherry boy!

Once more, the stares focused on Climb, but there were no sounds of jeering. As
if they had suddenly lost their interest, they turned away instead, with something
akin to sympathy filling their eyes.
There was a reason for the cold treatment from the other adventurers. They knew
that even for orichalcum or mithril rank adventurers, showing discourtesy to
Gagarans guest wasnt courage, only reckless bravado.

Even while he was being made fun of, Climb calmly walked forward. Since
Gagaran wouldnt change her nickname for him no matter how often he asked,
the most effective method was to pretend that he gave up and no longer cared.

It has been a long time, Gagaran-samsan, Evileye-sama.

He approached the two and bowed his head.

Yeah, long time no see. What, did you come here because you wanted to be
embraced by me?

While motioning with her chin to take a seat, Gagaran asked him with a beast-like
grin across her face. But Climb shook his head with a blank expression.

This was also part of Gagarans usual banter. Although it was a greeting, it did
not mean that she was joking. If Climb ever replied in the affirmative, even in
jest, Gagaran would immediately drag him to a room on the 2nd floor with
overwhelming strength, without any chance for retaliation.

Gagaran, who would openly proclaim that plucking a fresh cherry was her
hobby, was that type of person.

Different from Gagaran, Evileye stared directly in front of her and showed no sign
of turning her face. You could not even tell which direction the eyes beneath the
mask were pointing.

No. Im here because of a request from Aindra-sama.

Huh? From the leader?

Yes. I will deliver her message.It seems well have to move soon. I will explain
the details when I return. Be ready for battle immediately.

I got it. Hmm, youre sure going through a lot of trouble for something so trivial.

Climb remembered that he had something else to say to Gagaran who wore a
wide grin.

I had the fortune of being instructed in the sword by Stronoff-sama today. He

praised the high vertical strike that you taught me in the past.

He had learned that move from her in this inns backyard. Gagaran smiled
brightly.

Oh, that! Not bad at all. But

Yes. I will not be satisfied and train harder.

Thats good and all, but assume that move will be blocked and start working on
a skill to come after it.

Whether it was a coincidence or just common sense to first rate warriors,

Gagarans advice was very similar to Gazefs. Apparently misunderstanding
Climbs surprised face, Gagaran continued to speak with a chuckle.

Obviously, that vertical slash is meant to be a one-hit-kill. Normally, the correct

way to go about it is to choose from a wide repertoire of moves depending on the
situation. But the thing is, thats impossible for you.

She was implying that it was because he had no talent.

So work on a combination that consists of at least three attacks. Make it so that

even if theyre blocked, your opponent cant switch to the offensive.

Climb nodded.

Well, if youre against monsters that have eight arms and such, it may not work.
But it should be fine against humans. Even though having a pattern will be the
end of you if it gets found out, its still pretty effective against opponents that you
meet for the first time. Think of something that will let you push forward over and
over and over.

I understand.

Climb earnestly nodded his head.

This morning, only once could he push forward into Gazef like that. Everything
else was blocked and countered.

But did that shake his confidence? No.

Did he fall into despair? No.

The opposite.

It was the opposite.

An ordinary person was able to get that close to the strongest warrior in the
Kingdom, no, the surrounding countries. He also knew very well that his opponent
had not been fighting seriously. But to Climb, who was walking a pitch black road
completely devoid of light, it was more than enough of an encouragement.

It told him that that his efforts were not in vain.

When he remembered that, what Gagaran was trying to say touched his heart.

Even though he wasnt confident about whether or not he could successfully

come up with a combination of attacks, the burning urge to do it still rose up from

the bottom of his stomach. The next time he fought the Warrior Captain, he
wanted to be strong enough to make him a bit more serious.

Now that I remember, didnt you ask Evileye for something awhile back? Was
it magic training?

Yes.

Climb glanced over at Evileye. Back then, it was turned down by a scoff from
inside the mask. No doubt that bringing up the same topic when nothing has
changed will have the same result.

However

Kid.

He heard a voice that was difficult to read.

Even disregarding the fact that it was through a mask, it held a very mysterious
tone. Even with a mask, as long as the sound was not too thick, it should be
possible to somewhat make out the timber of the voice. However, you could
make out neither the age nor emotion behind Evileyes voice. It was barely
enough to just recognize the voice as female. It sounded like both an old woman
and a young girl, flat and emotionless.

It was because Evileyes mask was a magic item, but why did she go that far in
order to hide her voice?

You dont have the talent. Try something else.

A crude remark, as if that was all that she needed to say.

Climb himself knew at least that much better than anyone.

He did not have any talent for magic. No, not only magic.

No matter how much he swung his sword, no matter how much he bled and hard
his hands became from the blisters, he could not reach the level that he wanted.
The wall that those with talent would easily overcome, even that became an
absolute obstacle that he could not traverse.

Even so, that was not a reason for him to be lazy with his efforts to cross over
that wall. As long as he was talentless, the only thing he could do was believe
that his efforts will allow him to take at least one step forward.

It seems you cant accept it.

As if she read Climbs emotions beneath his expressionless iron mask, Evileye
continued to speak.

Those who possess talent have it from the very beginning... Some claim that
talent is simply a bud that has yet to bloom and that everyone has it Hmph. I
see it as nothing more than envy. Words like that are so the inferior can console
themselves. The leader of those famous thirteen heroes was the same.

The leader of the thirteen heroes; there was a legend that in the beginning, the
hero was just an ordinary person. Although that person was weaker than anyone,
the hero became the strongest by endlessly swinging a sword despite being
covered in wounds. The hero possessed a power that could rise without end.

But that persons talent had simply not bloomed at that time. Youre different,
even with effort youre still only at that level. Talent undoubtedly exists. There are
those who have it and those who do not. So I wont tell you to give up but at
least know where you stand.

Evileyes cold words brought a curtain of silence. And it was she herself who
broke that silence.

Gazef Stronoff now that one is a good example of a human with talent.
Climb do you believe that you can fill the difference between the two of you
with hard work?

His words wouldnt come out. It was only this morning that he experienced the
distance between them which couldnt be overcome with training.

Actually, he might not be a fair comparison. The only ones I know of who can
rival his talent with the sword are the thirteen heroes. Gagaran here is fairly
skilled but still cant beat him.

Dont ask for the impossible. Gazef-ojisan is someone with one foot in the
realm of heroes.

Gagaran replied to Evileyes words with a laugh.

Hey, hey, Evileye. Werent the heroes considered to be monsters with talent that
was in a different league the type transcending the realm of humans?

I wont deny it.

And Im only human. Its impossible for me to reach the level of those heroes.

But you still possess talent. Youre different from a human like Climb. Climb,
dont try to reach for the stars.

Climb knew that very well. But it was true that being told that he had no talent so
repeatedly would make him feel disappointed. Even so, he had no intention of
changing his ways.

It was because his body was for the princess

Sensing something akin to martyrdom from Climb, Evileye clicked her tongue
behind her mask.

I guess you wont stop even if I say it like this.

No.

You are foolish, truly foolish.

She shook her head, unable to understand him.

Moving forward with an unreachable wish will definitely ruin your body. Im
repeating myself, but know where you stand.

I understand what you are trying to say.

But I see you have no intention of listening. You are beyond foolish. It will lead to
an early grave. Wont there be someone who will cry if you were to die?

Huh? Whats this, Evileye? Were you bullying Climb because you were worried
about him?

Evileyes shoulders slumped at these words. She grabbed Gagaran by the collar
with her gloved hand and shouted as she stared at her.

The meathead needs to shut her mouth!

But Im right though, arent I?

Evileye could not say a word to Gagaran who remained calm even when she had
her by the collar. She leaned deeply into her chair and, trying to change the topic,
turned her arrow to Climb.

First, master your knowledge of magic. If your knowledge improves then you
may be able to predict the moves of your enemies who use magic. Then you will
be able to respond appropriately.

Hey, you know how many different spells there are and youre telling him to
study all of that? Arent you being too cruel?

Thats not true. There is a common pool of spells that a magic caster typically
focuses on. He can start by studying those.

Evileye implied that if he couldnt even manage that, he should give up.

No matter how many there are, hell probably be able to manage if he can study
the spells up to the 3rd tier.

Hey Evileye, you said magic goes up to the 10th tier and that no ones
managed to master them. But theres information on those? Why is that?

Hmm

With the air of a teacher instructing a student, Evileye moved around in her robe.
As she did so, suddenly, the noise from their surroundings fell distant. It was like
a thin curtain had been draped over them and the table.

Dont be alarmed. I merely activated a trivial item.

Just how cautious was she of others listening in? Realising that Evileyes answer
to Gagarans question was important enough to warrant using an item, Climb
fixed his posture in anticipation.

In an old legend one of the stories passed down, there exist a group called the
Eight Greed Kings. Some call them beings who stole the power of God and ruled
this world using their absolute strength.

Climb knew the story. As a fairytale, it was quite unpopular, but anyone who was
somewhat educated knew about it.

To sum it up, the Eight Greed Kings appeared 500 years ago. Taller than the sky,
the likeness of a dragon, the Eight Greed Kings destroyed numerous countries
and ruled the world with their overwhelming strength. But in the end, their greed
pitted them against one another and resulted in their demise.

Although the story was obviously unpopular, there were differing opinions on
whether it was fact or fiction. Climb himself felt that the story was overly
exaggerated. However, there were many among the adventurers who felt that
they did, in fact, once exist; with power greater than any that currently exist in
present time.

The basis for their belief was the existence of the desert city far to the south. It is
said that the city was built to be the capital back when the Eight Greed Kings
ruled the continent.

While Climb was deep in his own thoughts, Evileye continued to speak.

It is said that the Eight Greed Kings had a countless number of powerful items.
And the greatest among them was an item called the Nameless Spellbook A
grimoire by that name exists. There is your answer.

What? So youre saying that the spells are in that book?

Right. That magic item holds power beyond comprehension. They say that all
magic is recorded in that grimoire. I have no idea what kind of magic it uses,
there is a rumor that even newly created magic gets automatically recorded.

He knew about the legend of the Eight Greed Kings but it was the first time that
Climb had heard about such a book. He vaguely understood just how rare such an
item was and remained silent while listening carefully.

With it as the foundation, we were able to discover the existence of 10th tier
spells. Of course, there are only a few who know of this story and the Nameless
Spellbook.

Climb gulped loudly.

Y-you do not have any plans to obtain that Nameless Spellbook?

It was a question he wondered because they were the highest class adventurers.

But Evileye snorted back a laugh, as if he had said something idiotic.

Hmph. According to the person whos actually seen it, the strong magic guarding
the grimoire prevents anyone without a strong sense of justice from touching it.
An item thats worth a country will carry with it dangers to match. I know what I
can and cant do, and I would rather not die a fools death like the Eight Greed
Kings.

Its impossible even for the party whose leader possesses a weapon of the
thirteen heroes?

 In a different league, that one. Well, this is something I heard offhand as well
so I cant be certain. The talk has gone off topic. Anyhow, theres your answer,
Gagaran. Do you understand?

And for some reason, Evileye showed a brief moment of hesitation before
opening her mouth.

Climb. Even if you desire power, dont give up your humanity.

Give up on my humanity? Are you speaking of the likes of demons that appear
in stories?

That and others like turning into an undead or magic life forms.

A normal human cannot do something like that.

Thats true but turning into an undead will often twist your heart as well.
Desiring perfection, becoming an undead to achieve ones ideal the heart will
be tempted by the changing flesh and the resulting transformation will be
terrifying.

A tinge of pity could be felt from the voice behind the emotionless mask. Evileye
looked as if she was staring far off into the distance. Gagaran watched her and
spoke out cheerfully.

Wont the princess be surprised if she wakes up one day and Climb became an
ogre?

As if she understood what was hidden behind Gagarans comment, Evileye

reverted back to her unreadable voice.

Well, thats also another method. Transformation magic can be made so that
its effects are only temporary. To put it simply, its one way of raising your
physical strength.

I would like to pass on that.

In regards to becoming stronger, its quite effective. The physical capabilities of

the human body are not very impressive. With the same talent, a stronger body
would be more advantageous.

That was obvious. If the skills were the same, the side with more power would
have the upper hand.

In reality, there were many among the thirteen heroes who were not human.
Even if they are called the thirteen heroes, they numbered far more. It just so
happens that only thirteen had legends attached to them. The battle against
the Demon God was one that transcended the racial barrier. Those who wanted
to put the focus on humans would be rather hesitant to perpetuate a legend
where those of other races played an active role.

Evileye spoke with a cynical edge to her voice. The atmosphere then immediately
shifted and she continued on, her tone heavy with nostalgia.

The wielder of the cyclone axe was the Warrior Captain of the Air Giants. If any
members of the elf royal family who possessed traits of the old elves were
there it would be Dark Knight, the original owner of Kilineyram our leaders
demonic sword. The Knight shared the blood of demons, a mixed blood."

The Four Swords of Darkness

It is said that one of the thirteen heroes, the Dark Knight, wielded four swords:
evil sword Hyumilis, demon sword Kilineyram, necrotic sword Colocudabar, and
death sword Sufiz. The leader of Blue Rose, Lakyus, possessed one of them.

Demon sword Kilineyram the strongest Sword of Darkness that is said to be

created from condensing endless dark energy. Hey, Evileye. Is it true that if you
unleash its full power, it can shoot out enough darkness to swallow a country
whole?

What are you talking about?

Evileye seemed perplexed.

Our leader said so awhile back when we were alone. She was grabbing her right
hand pretty hard and said something about how only a woman of faith like her
can suppress its power.

Ive never heard of anything like that

Evileye tilted her head, thinking it odd.

If the owner says so then it could be true.

Then the thing about dark Lakyus who was born from her dark consciousness
must be true too?

What?

When was it, she was muttering that to herself while she was alone. I dont think
she knew that I was there so I eavesdropped a bit. I, the source of the darkness
will take over your body once you let your guard down and release the demon
swords power. Or something like that, it sounded pretty dangerous.

Thats not impossible I guess. Some cursed items do take over their owners.
If that happens to Lakyus then it wont be a laughing matter.

She told me to keep it a secret, but thats a little you know? I asked her about
it personally but her face got really red and told me to not worry about it.

Hmm. She must have been embarrassed that a cleric like her was controlled by
a cursed item. Theyre the ones who lift those curses, after all. Maybe she didnt
want to worry us? That girl, shes been worrying about it alone.

I havent seen her do that since then but just think about it, ever since she got
that sword, didnt she start wearing those pointless armor rings on all five of her
fingers?

I thought it was fashion, are you saying that those are sealing magic items or
possibly a catalyst?

Climb could not maintain his poker face and frowned.

The current conversation drove him to think that Lakyus was possibly being
slowly dominated by an evil item. Thinking of where she was just recently only
served to increase his restlessness.

Renner-sama might be in danger.

Evileye stopped Climb who was about to run off.

Dont worry. Its not as if something is going to happen immediately. Even if she
were to fall under that dark power, there is no way that it could happen before
the person herself noticed it. If she didnt want us to know then she most likely
judged that she can keep it in check. I dont doubt her willpower, but to think
that sword had such an ability I had no idea.

Should we send word to Azuth-san just in case?

Its a bit frustrating to seek help from a rival but since its a problem about his
niece then I guess it would be for the best.

Ok, then should we get moving? I need to find out where he is.

Yes. We have to be prepared to support Lakyus at any time.

Only adamantium can stop adamantium, after all.

Hmm?! Ah! I just remembered, Gagaran. A third adamantium rank adventurer

team is supposed to be residing in E-Rantel.

What, really? Thats new to me... Did you hear it at the adventurers guild this
morning?

No, thats Oh, right. I apologize. I forgot to tell you. From what I hear, their
color is black.

Black? We have red and blue so I thought the next one would be brown or
green.

Black is a color used in the faith of the Six Gods so there is nothing strange
about it. The next team might be white.

Im not really a fan of the Slane Theocracy though. Because of that one incident,
we fought those guys who looked like they were from some secret unit.

Despite Climb feeling that he had heard something incredibly dangerous, the
conversation ignored him and continued on.

You do not like them, Gagaran? Although this may seem ironic, I can
sympathize with their policy. Well, its more like I feel that the role of the guardian
of the human race that they impose on themselves is just, at least from a
humans perspective.

What? So its okay for them to kill innocent elves and demi-humans?

The disgust was apparent on Gagarans face. Her eyes burned with an intense
hatred. Evileye answered her animosity with a mere shrug.

Around here, there are several human countries like the Kingdom, the Holy
Kingdom, and the Empire. Gagaran, did you know? The farther you venture out,
there are less and less countries that are made up of humans. Depending on the
location, there are countries where humans are used as slaves. One of the
biggest reasons none of them are near us is due to the Slane Theocracy hunting
down the demi-humans.

With her anger cooled by Evileyes words, Gagaran sullenly muttered to herself.

Well, demi-humans are stronger than humans after all. Humans wont be able to
do anything if they unite and advance their civilization.

If you are human, you must evaluate those from the Theocracy highly. Of course,
they may have a cruel side, but there are none who are more beneficial to
humanity. ...Well, it would be a different story if you were to ask the same of the
minorities that are being purged. Not only that, theres a very good chance they
were the ones who formed the original adventurer guild.

Really?

Maybe. The truth is unknown but there is still a high possibility. The adventurer
guild was formed after the battle against the Demon God and in those days,
humans were weak. They preserved their strength and, as to not cause friction
between them and the kingdom, formed the guild so they could provide support.

When she finished talking, a peculiar silence covered the table. Climb could not
endure the atmosphere and opened his mouth.

Forgive me for interrupting, Evileye-sama. You said that new adamantium rank
adventurers had appeared. What are their names?

Hmm? Ah, right. It was Momon. The leader is a warrior whos called the hero in
black and apparently the name of the team hasnt been decided yet. It seems
theyre just called Black.

Heh~ and the other members?

I hear its a two-man team with the other member being called Beauty Nabel, a
magic caster.

What? Just two? Whatre you saying? They must be idiots overconfident in their
skill No, thats why theyre adamantium. They must be hiding something
amazing. So? What kind of feats did they achieve?

Apparently it only took them around two months. First they took care of the
incident in E-Rantel regarding the thousands of undead that spawned. Then they
exterminated the coalition of goblin tribes from the north, gathered an incredibly
rare herb from the Tove Mountains, subjugated a Gigant Basilisk, and
exterminated a group of undead that spilled over from the Karche plains. I also
heard that they defeated a powerful vampire.

Gigant Basilisk

Climb groaned.

With characteristics of both a lizard and a snake, the Gigant Basilisk was a giant
monster measuring ten meters. It possessed a petrifying gaze with deadly poison
coursing through its veins. What was worse was that its thick skin was as hard as
mithril. It was truly a terrifying existence. If they were really able to defeat a
monster that could destroy a small town, then it would not have been strange for
them to rise to adamantium.

However, there was a problem. That was

Thats incredible. But did they really beat a Gigant Basilisk with only two
people? Isnt that impossible with just a warrior and a magic caster? Not a
chance.

Indeed. With only two people, it was close to impossible, especially if it was
only a warrior and a magic caster. They did not have anyone to heal them. Not
only would there have been no way for them to defend against its petrifying gaze
and poison, but also the variety of other attacks at the monsters disposal.

Ah! I apologize; I dont think you can classify them as only two. From what I
heard, they tamed the Virtuous King of the Forest by force.

Virtuous King? What kind of monster is that?

Climb remembered hearing that name in one of legends. However, interrupting

here would have been the height of discourtesy.

Im not exactly sure either. According to the legend thats been passed down, it
is a demon that has been living in the Tove Mountains. Its supposed to be strong
beyond comparison. In the past, an acquaintance right, apparently it hadnt
been there 200 years ago when that person visited the mountains.

Evileye shrugged as she said the number 200.

Although it was an age possible for an elf, by her behavior, it may have just been
a joke.

Heh~. So, how much of that is actually true? Rumors usually come with a bit of
an oomph,
dont they?.

Thats how it was. While telling the story to others, the person doesnt even
notice that they are exaggerating the facts. Bodies that have been chopped to
pieces makes it difficult to get an exact head count. At times, the adventurers
themselves spread rumors to promote their name.

But Evileye raised one finger and waved it side-to-side in a dismissive gesture.

At least this incident is most likely true. According to the first rumor that came
from E-Rantel, he exterminated an undead giant with his sword and broke
through thousands of undead. This is from the reports of the sentries who
managed to survive. Their reports were all nearly identical so they shouldnt be
exaggerated. Apparently it was confirmed that they defeated the two responsible
for the incident from their corpses farther in. Whats more, it was after they
defeated two Skeletal Dragons.

Seeing Gagarans mouth hanging open, Climb asked.

Is that difficult even for you, Gagaran-san?

If there were thousands of zombies or skeletons, then they wouldnt be a

problem. Its possible to break through them. Probably could have done
something about the two Skeletal Dragons too. But Im not too sure about the
two masterminds behind such a huge incident. Im not confident I could win when
I dont even know their abilities.

There were even some remarks that they may have been from Zuranon.

Really, Evileye? Man~ if they were the Disciples of Zuranon then it wouldve
been over right there. Beating them after breaking through the swarm would be
hard. And if you make even a small mistake and get poisoned or paralyzed, then
its over. What did those guys do for healing? Did they rely on potions? This
Momon warrior guy could be using faith magic like our leader. Or maybe its the
Beauty?

I cant deny the possibility.

Evileye nodded her head with an umu umu motion.

But still, a Gigant Basilisk thats still impossible. For a warrior thats the
worst enemy for someone who fights in close range. Even if I can use Gaze Bane,
its still hard without backup.

Did you hear, Climb? Its impossible for Gagaran alone. In other words, it
depends on the skills of that woman Nabel. If they fight together then it would be
possible maybe?

Ah~ it would be easy if that Nabel person was as strong as you, Evileye.
Wouldnt it be simple for you to solo it if you just fight from afar?

Thats asking too much. I would have to fight seriously.

If you were there in the same two incidents with me, then the best I could take
on would be the Skeletal Dragon. But then I would be relying on you too much,
Evileye. If I paired up with an orichalcum rank magic caster and it was just us
two then thatd be impossible.

Climb had a strange thought.

Just how strong of a magic caster was Evileye? A normal team would be made up
of members with similar strength and experience. Was there that big of a
difference between them?

That is not true. I know how strong you are, Gagaran-san. You would not fall
behind a group of newcomers.

Wow~ thanks for the praise. Okay, wanna do it?

No, I will have to decline.

And thats why youre still a virgin. Didnt you hear that its disgraceful for a man
to refuse a meal thats been laid out in front of him? Why are you still carrying it
around like its something good? Whatre you going to do when you actually do it
with a girl that you like? Do you want to be told that youre clumsy? Is that what
youre into? Are you an M?

Digging into Climb without even giving him a chance to respond, Gagaran let out
a big sigh.

Well, its not like Im pressuring you. Im okay with it whenever so just tell me if
you want it. But Beauty, huh. Thats a pretty embarrassing nickname. Isnt the
name just for show?

Shes supposed to be quite beautiful. According to my information, she

Climb thought that Evileyes gaze stopped on him for a brief instant, then soon
understood that he was right.

rivals the Golden Princess.

Gagaran looked at Climb playfully. He predicted what she was going to say next
and made the first move.

What is beautiful and what is ugly is different for everyone. And to me, there is
no one who is more beautiful than Renner-sama.

Yes~ Yes~.

A voice of obvious disappointment.

Hmm, weve went off topic quite a bit. Im sorry for having you take part in
needless chatter. We will start with our preparations like Lakyus instructed.

Gagaran and Evileye stood from their seats. Climb also followed suit.

Sorry, Climb. Theres a lot I want us to do together, but I dont think nows the
time.

Not at all, Gagaran-san. Please dont worry about it. And Evileye-sama as well,
thank you for your advice.

Gagaran silently stared at Climb then let out a tired laugh.

Fine, youre going back right? Look after the leader, will you? Bye bye, virgin.
And make sure you keep your items secure. That weapon at your waist isnt what
you normally use, no?

Right. This is in case for emergencies.

You dont know whats going to happen so even if you dont wear your armor, at
least always carry your sword with you. Thats what it means to be an
adventurer, especially a warrior. Also, do you have the item that I gave you?

The bell? I have it right here.

Climb tapped the pouch tied to his belt.

I see. Then its fine. Remember, as warriors, the only thing we can do is swing
our weapons. But thats dangerous. Magic items are what lets us prepare for
those dangers. Get a lot of items and hold onto them. And keep at least three
bottles of potions with you. Its what saved me in the past.

He had three potions but only brought two with him. Climb responded that he
understood.

Youre surprisingly considerate of others.

You making fun of me, Evileye? Sorry for keeping you, Climb. Basically, what I
want to say is to always be prepared beforehand.

I understand.

Gagaran nodded deeply.

Part 3

Top Fire Month (Month 9), Day 6, 6:15

Nine men and women sat around the circular table.

Despite the leaders who commanded each section of the Eight Fingers gathering
in one place, none of them made the effort to meet each others eyes. They
simply looked over the documents in front of them or talked with their own
subordinates.

It was like a gathering of completely separate organizations. Although the

situation wasnt so bad as to call it explosive, the guarded caution they had for
one another was apparent , like one between enemies. However, from each of
their respective points of view, this was the obvious response. Even if they were
one group and working together, in reality, they would often steal assets from
one another and rarely joined forces.

For instance, the drug trade manages and operates everything from a drugs
production to the moment it hits the market. Something the smuggling group had
no part to play in. The groups did not openly interfere with one another, but it
was common to see them attempt sabotage while the other had their backs
turned.

Such actions held absolutely zero merit for an organization as a whole. This was
one of the pitfalls of multiple criminal groups banding together to form a larger
one.

These people attended the routine division meeting of the Eight Fingers despite
having such terrible relations as they had a good reason to do so.

The reason was: any who did not attend was considered to be a possible traitor
and targeted for purging. That was why even those who had no business in the
Kingdom went out of their way to attend the meeting.

Even those who normally secluded themselves in safety stepped out onto the
spotlight. Needless to say, their fear of being assassinated meant that they
brought bodyguards with them. These were two of their most skilled men that
they were allowed to bring to the meeting, selected carefully from their own
group.

All except for one person.

Everyone is present. Lets begin our regular meeting.

The chairs creaked loudly as the mans voice caused everyone to sit up straight.

The one who opened his mouth was the speaker for this meeting and also the
leader of the Eight Fingers. Adorned with the mark of the Water God, the man
who looked to be in his fifties wore a gentle expression on his face, the type who
did not seem to belong in the underworld.

There are a number of topics for discussion, but the first that needs to be sorted
Hilma.

Yes~?

The one who responded was a woman in white.

Her skin was sickly pale and her clothes were white as well. A tattoo of a snake
crawled down her right arm, starting from her shoulder blades and reaching to
her hand holding a pipe that gave off poisonous, purple fumes. Wearing purple
mascara and lipstick, the thin garments that hung loosely around her body gave
her the decadent aura of a high class prostitute.

She yawned deliberately.

Cant you start a bit earlier?

I heard that your drug cultivation facility was attacked.

Yep, its true, a village that was used as a production plant. Cost me a pretty
penny too. I might cut down on distribution.

Were you able to find information on the ones responsible?

Nope, it was perfect Well, its not like I dont have any leads.

Their color?

Everyone knew what he meant by that question.

Dont know. Its just starting to become clear; I havent gotten that far yet.

I see. As youve all just heard, this is the current situation. Raise your hand if any
of you have any information.

There was no response. It was unclear whether they didnt know, or simply had
no desire to answer.

Then next is.

Hey.

The mans voice rang low, holding an incredible amount of power.

All of the eyes in the room gathered in one spot. In that place was a bald man
with half of his face covered in tattoos of beasts. Everything about him was large;
the outlines of his muscular figure obvious even through his clothes. The cold
glint of his eyes belonged to that of a warrior.

Although the other group leaders had brought bodyguards with them, the man
had no one standing behind him. It would be meaningless to bring along people
who would be of no use. That much was obvious.

The man glared at Hilma, the leader of the drug trade. No, he probably did not
intend to glare at her, but his knife-like eyes made it appear that way.

For a moment, the bodyguards behind the woman drew in their breaths. They
could feel the overwhelming difference in power between them.

They knew that the man was a monster capable of killing everyone in the room.

How about employing our services? Itll be hard for you to protect your assets
with those small fries of yours.

Zero. He was the representative of the security division that accepted a wide
range of jobs, from bouncers to bodyguards for nobility. What made him even
more famous was that he was the strongest member of the Eight Fingers. But the
offer from a man of his caliber

No.

was rejected.

Its fine. I cant reveal my key positions.

That was the end of it. As if he had lost interest, Zero closed his eyes, making it
seem as if he had turned into a boulder.

Then Id like to take you up on that offer.

A skinny man opened his mouth. His soft demeanor contrasted harshly against
Zero.

Zero, I want to hire your guys.

Whats this, Cocco Doll. Can you afford it?

While Hilmas drug trade was on the rise, Cocco Dolls slave trade was on the
decline. With the slave market outlawed by the efforts of the Golden Princess, he
and his group were forced to hide deeper underground.

Dont worry about it, Zero. And while were at it, I want you to lend me the best
of the best, someone from the Six Arms.

Oh?

Zero reopened his eyes, his interest piqued for the first time.

He wasnt the only one who was surprised. Almost everyone present shared his
sentiment.

The name Six Arms originated from the sibling god of the God of Theft, one who
was said to possess six arms. They were the six strongest members of the
security division.

Needless to say, the most powerful among them was Zero, but the remaining five
did not fall very far behind. One with the ability to cut space, one who controls
illusions, and among them was even an Elder Lich, a powerful undead.

If Gazef Stronoff or adamantium rank adventurers were the strongest on the

surface, then the Six Arms were the strongest of the underground. Employing
someone of such caliber could only mean one thing.

You must be in quite a bind. Alright, just sit tight and wait. My strongest
subordinates will ensure the safety of your goods.

Sorry~. I ran into a bit of trouble with a girl that was supposed to be disposed of.
This much preparation is probably a bit excessive but if that store goes under
then it puts me in a sticky spot. Lets save the talk about the payment for later,
okay?

Fine.

Since the discussion is over, can you start immediately? Theres actually
something that I need handled as soon as possible.

Alright. Ill lend you the guy who I brought with me.

Then we can move on to the next topic. Those who know about the new
adamantium rank adventurer Momon of Team Black, any thoughts?

Intermission

Clang clang. One could hear the sound of precious metals banging against one
another.

Having confirmed that there was no longer anything in the upside-down sack,
Ainz spread the glinting coins on top of the table.

He counted the gold and silver coins in stacks of ten pieces each.

Despite having already counted it numerous times, Ainz picked up the sack and
peered inside.

Needless to say, it was empty after checking it a second time, Ainz tossed aside
the sack and grabbed his head.

Not enough This is nowhere near enough

His human face that was created with an illusion became undone. Of course, the
mountain of coins in front of him was a small fortune. It was an amount that an
average person from this world would not be able to earn even after several
decades. But from the perspective of the Supreme Ruler of the Great Tomb of
Nazarick, the only one who could earn foreign currency, it was severely lacking
and a great cause for concern.

Ainz mind was forcibly calmed whenever an emotion he experienced exceeded a

certain threshold. For example, if he was hit by the panic of only having a single
silver coin left remaining, his mind would immediately regain its composure.
Currently however, that response failed to activate because at the back of his
mind, he knew that there were still some gold coins in the coffers. This left him
with a feeling of anxiety that burned through his body.

Ainz shook his head and proceeded to divide the gold coins in front of him based
on how they would be spent.

First, this is the additional funding for Sebas.

Ainz face stiffened as he saw how the pile was reduced in an instant.

Next is costs for the restoration of the Lizardmen village that Cocytus
requested as well as the necessary tools

Although it wasnt as large as the one before, another significant chunk of the
pile also became separated and only a few gold coins remained.

About the supplies for the Lizardmen village, I can use my connections with
the guild as an adamantium adventurer. Itll cover a bit of the costs so about
this much?

He took back a few gold coins from Cocytus pile.

Maybe I should find a merchant and get a sponsorship. It would be a way to

earn a regular income aside from adventuring.

Including Ainz, there were only three parties of adamantium rank adventurers in
the Kingdom. For this reason, there were instances where they would receive
commissions from merchants. Ainz dearly wanted to accept those kinds of jobs
because for him, they were easy and paid extremely well. However, he had
hesitated to do so up until now.

He feared that it would paint his Momon persona as greedy, that the people and
other adventurers would see him as someone who would accept any job for
money.

Ainz was planning to elevate Momon to an adventurer who was praised by all
and when the time came, credit all of his fame to Ainz Ooal Gown. In order for
this plan to succeed, it was necessary that he pay close attention to how the
masses saw him.

But still I have no money. Maybe I shouldnt have stayed in an inn like this.

Ainz looked around the magnificent room.

This was the most splendid room of the best inn in E-Rantel. The money to rent
such a place was exorbitant. Since it was useless to Ainz who had no need for
sleep, he wanted to use the funds for the rent elsewhere.

It was the same for meals. Even if he were served luxurious food, all of it was
useless to him since he could not eat. It would be smarter to refuse them and
save on food expenses.

However, Ainz knew very well that he could do no such thing.

Ainz was, no, Momon was the sole adamantium rank adventurer of this city. Such
a person could not make a cheap inn his residence.

The necessities of life were one of the easier ways of comparing oneself to
others. An adamantium rank adventurer must dress and live befitting of his
status.

He had to show such vanity for the sake of maintaining appearances.

That was why Ainz could not lower the quality of his inn even if he knew that it
was a needless expense.

If the adventurer guild thinks Im so valuable then they could at least pay for my
room Haa I guess they would do it if I were to ask.

But he did not want to owe any favors. Until now, he took on urgent job requests
and worked so that people would be indebted to him. He wanted to save it for
later to use as a bit of intimidation. Spending it on such a trivial matter would
interfere with his plans.

Ah~ Im broke. What should I do? Should I accept some requests, after all? But
there arent any that pay well these days. And if I take on too much then the
other adventurers will resent me

He had to make Ainz Ooal Gown a lasting legend, a good one rather than bad, if
possible. Ainz imitated a sigh and counted his spending money in his head from
the coins that remained.

Speaking of money, what should I do about the Guardians salaries?

Ainz pondered as he leaned back in his chair and looked to the ceiling.

The Guardians insisted that they did not need something like wages, claiming
how they could possibly desire compensation on top of serving the Supreme
Being which is their greatest joy.
But from Ainz perspective, he questioned whether it was alright for him to simply
accept their good will. Work must be met with fair compensation.

Even if the Guardians insisted that pledging their loyalty to the Supreme Being
was in itself the reward, it was difficult for Ainz to be convinced.

It may just be his self-righteousness, having experienced working in a company

for pay. However, he could not abandon the notion that work had to be rewarded.

He did fear the possibility that a salary might corrupt his children who did not
know any better. Even so, there was merit in introducing it as an experiment.

The question is what Im going to reward them with.

His eyes moved from the ceiling back to the few remaining gold coins on the
table.

If I consider the Guardians as department heads of a listed company, then they

would need at least 15 million yen annually Shalltear, Cocytus, Aura, Mare,
Demiurge Albedo would need a bit more, right? So multiply by six and Hmm,
yep thats impossible. I cant raise that much money.

Ainz pulled at his head and suddenly opened his eyes wide.

Thats it! I can substitute it with something else! Currency that can only be used
in Nazarick make something like notes for children and have one equal a
hundred thousand yen!

Having shouted as much, Ainz frowned once more.

But what could they spend that currency on?

All of the facilities in Nazarick were free. Even if he thought of minting coin, he
could not think of what to spend it on.

Maybe use it to buy items from this world?

Ainz compared the common goods of this world with those of Nazarick and
doubted whether any of the Guardians would actually want them.

But if I start charging for the stuff that was free up until now, that would be
counterproductive what should I do

After thinking it over for a while, Ainz came up with a great idea.

Right! Ill just ask the Guardians to think about it. I can ask them if they have
anything that they want badly enough to pay money for!

As Ainz muttered happily to himself about his nice idea, his smile suddenly turned
bitter.

With that said

He realized that he was talking to himself more and more often.

He knew that it started back when the game was nearing its end, the loneliness
from his guild mates no longer showing up. But why was it that his muttering did
not die down even after the NPCs gained sentience and moved about on their
own?

Perhaps it became a habit, or

Because Im still alone

Ainz gave a lonely smile.

Of course, saying that he was alone even with the self-aware NPCs by his side
was rude to them. But he also had this thought; in order to act as Ainz Ooal
Gown, the leader of the 41 Supreme Beings that the Guardians wanted, it was
possible that he was killing Suzuki Satoru.

Ainz heaved a sigh and turned his gaze back on to the coins on the table. That
was when he heard a knock on his door.

After a brief respite, the door opened. Confirming that the person who entered
was the one he was expecting Narberal Gamma, Ainz deliberately fixed his
expression so that one corner of his lips curled upwards, into a face that looked
as if he were looking down on someone.

The low rank illusion that Ainz was able to cast plainly showed his emotions on
the surface. As such, there was a chance that he would show a face ill-fitting of
Nazaricks ruler. That was why he practiced a countless different expressions in
front of the mirror so that whenever he was in the presence of others, especially
Narberal, he could seem more dignified. He had a great deal of trouble choosing
an expression out of the many he practiced.

What is it, Nabel.

He questioned her with an equally decorated voice.

Yes, Momon-sa san.

 It seems the sama appears occasionally. No choice but to leave it as an old

habit. Regardless, at least you fix it when I give a warning, albeit temporarily. I
guess I must give up on that endeavor. Ah, there is no need for you to bow your
head, I am not angry. And the respectable way you address me well, it should
be fine since it seems other people including the guild leader have come to some
misunderstanding about us. So, what is it?

Yes, the iron ore that you demanded of the merchant has arrived.

It wasnt a demand I just bought it normally.

Thinking so in his head, his dignified expression remained unmoving.

I see where was the iron ore from? Was it gathered from all eight locations?

I apologize. I was not told.

Its fine. I have plenty of money. Although I do not know how many places it
was gathered from, there should be more than enough money to purchase all of
it.

Ainz confidently filled the sack with the coins that were stacked on top of the
table and tossed it at Narberals feet. He watched as she courteously picked up
the bag.

Understood, but may I ask you a question?

Is it regarding the reason why I am buying iron ore from different locations?

Ainz explained it to Narberal who nodded her head.

It is so that I may toss them into the Exchange Box. In other words, I wish to test
whether or not the amount of gold differs based on where the ore was mined.

The Exchange Box was not influenced by the appearance of the original object.
For example, regarding a detailed stone statue, it would ignore any workmanship
and calculate its worth to be equal to a stone of the same weight. Then the test

was to see how it handles the difference in components in the actual material.
That was the reason why he was buying iron ore from various locations.

As you already know, Nabel, it works even if you were to put in something like
barley.

Although I inserted in bulk and only got one gold coin from it Ainz added on in
his head.

That was what spawned the plan to build barley fields outside of Nazarick, to
grow them in bulk.
Using Golems and Undead would allow them to create a vast field. Of course,
there were countless obstacles before reaching that point.

I understand. Then I will proceed to buy them as soon as possible.

Right, but maintain your vigilance. There is no guarantee that you will not be
attacked. If something happens you understand what to do, correct?

Use Shadow Demon as a shield, abandon the notion of gathering information,

prioritize my safety above all else and focus entirely on retreating. I will then
move to the fake Nazarick built by Aura-sama, delivering false information to the
enemy.

Correct. Prioritize your safety. Never take the roads that are easily assaulted or
where there are no crowds. And even if humans talk to you or provoke you, do
not cause them severe harm. I was quite shocked when that man begged me for
help while crying, saying how he was only trying to hit on you. You must also
control your bloodlust. I will not go so far as to tell you not to beat a pickpocket
should you happen to run into one, but dont take it too far. Also, refrain from
calling humans insects. In other words, try not to injure or kill humans. We are the
greatest adventurers, Momon and Nabel of Black, after all.

While watching Narberal who seemed to show that she understood, Ainz thought
over any other precautions that he may have missed then nodded his head.

Hmm. This should be enough. Then go, Nabel.

Narberal bowed her head and left the room, the leather sack in tow. Ainz watched
her back as she left and, despite not having lungs, sighed heavily.

The expenses only pop up when I dont have any money. Damn it all.

CHAP
TER 3

Part 1

Mid Fire Month (Month 8), Day 26, 15:27

After escorting the old woman to her house, Sebas headed towards his original
destination.
The place he arrived at was surrounded by wide walls.

Beyond it, he could see three towers, each five stories tall. None of the buildings
in the immediate area reached as high as the towers, making them seem
incredibly tall.

The towers were surrounded by several narrow, two-story buildings.

This was the headquarters of the Kingdoms Magicians Guild. They needed that
wide berth of land in order to create new magic and nurture magic casters. The
reason they possessed so much land despite receiving almost zero funding from
the Kingdom was because they were the ones in charge of creating magic items.

Eventually, he spotted a sturdy looking door. The decorated wooden door leading
to the two story building was left wide open, flanked on either side by numerous
armed guards standing watch.

Without being stopped by the guards receiving only a cursory glance Sebas
stepped through the doorway.

Beyond it was a set of wide, level stairs that led to another door connecting to a
splendid, aged building made of white marble. That door as well was left open as
if to welcome all guests.

Passing through that door led to a small entrance hall, and beyond it was the
lobby. The tall ceiling of the hall was adorned with countless chandeliers that
were lit with magic.

To the right was the lobbys lounge, complete with numerous sofas where several
magic casters seemed to be in the middle of a discussion. To the left stood a

notice board, numerous adventurers and people wearing the robes of magic
casters could be seen staring earnestly at the parchments nailed on the board.

Further inside, several young men and women sat behind a counter. All of them
had the same emblem as the one hanging in front of the building embroidered
onto their robes.

On either side of the counter stood a skinny, life sized puppet without eyes or a
nose a wood golem, reminiscent of a sketch. It was most likely used as security.
Save for the guards outside, the reason that the guards inside the building were
not human was probably so that the Magic Guild could appear unique.

Without missing a beat, Sebas steadily approached the counter.

The young man at the counter acknowledged Sebas and greeted him with his
eyes. Sebas slightly nodded in response. The two were already familiar with each
other because of his frequent visits.

The young man smiled and gave his usual greeting to the man in front of him.

Thank you for visiting our Magician Guild, Sebas-sama. May I ask for the purpose
of your visit?

I would like to purchase a magic scroll. May I see the list, per usual?

Yes, of course.

The young man quickly placed a large book on the counter. He most likely
already had it prepared when he saw Sebas walk in.

Made with rich, thin, white paper and a leather cover, it was a splendid book.
Considering that the words were embroidered in gold thread, it alone would make
it quite expensive.

Sebas pulled the book towards him and opened it.

Unfortunately, he could not read its contents. No, it would be more accurate to
say that those from YGGDRASIL could not read them. Although he could
understand their speech because of the strange rules of this world, written words
were a different story.

However, his master had given him a magic item for this exact problem.

Sebas drew out a spectacle case and opened it.

Inside was a pair of glasses with a thin, silver-like frame. Looking closely, they
were engraved with narrow letters patterns. The lens were crafted from blue ice
crystals.

As he put them on, the magic within them allowed him to read the words.

He quickly flipped through the pages with meticulous precision and suddenly
stopped his hand. His eyes moved from the book and rested on a young woman
who was sitting behind the counter, next to the young man. He spoke to her in a
gentle voice.

Is there a problem?

N-nothing at all

The girl blushed and lowered her face.

I just thought that your posture was quite striking.

Thank you very much.

Sebas showed a gentle smile, causing the girl to blush even deeper.

The gray-haired gentleman Sebas was someone who you would be attracted to
simply by looking at him. On top of his graceful countenance, he radiated an
elegance that turned the heads of nine out of ten women, regardless of age. It
could not be helped that the young woman at the counter would mindlessly stare
at Sebas; it was quite common, after all.

Sebas nodded and returned his gaze to the book, his hand stopping on a certain
page as he asked the young man a question.

This magic Floating Board, could you tell me about it in detail?

Of course.

The young man began his explanation without hesitation.

Floating Board is a tier 1 magic that creates a floating, translucent board. The
size and weight limit of the board varies depending on the caster, but when
invoked from a scroll, it measures one meter on all sides and can hold up to 50
kilograms. The caster can be at most five meters away from the board. Please
note that it can only follow, the board will not recognize any other movement
commands like leading the front and so on. If the caster quickly turns 180
degrees in place, the board will slowly re-position itself behind the caster. This
spell is usually used to transport goods and in construction sites.

Sebas nodded his head.

I see. Then I would like one scroll with this magic.

Understood.

The young man was not surprised by the fact that he chose a rather unpopular
magic. Most of the scrolls that Sebas would buy were the unpopular kind, such as
this one. The Magician Guild could only be grateful to him for helping them get
rid of their surplus stock.

Will one scroll be all?

Yes, if you would, please.

The young man gestured at the man sitting beside him.

Having listened to the whole conversation, the man immediately stood up and
entered through the door behind the counter. Scrolls were an expensive
commodity. Even with guards, it should not be stored at the counter.

Around five minutes later, the man returned. In his hand was a single rolled up
parchment.

Here it is.

Sebas stared at the parchment that was set on the counter. The craftwork of the
rolled up parchment was impressive, even at a glance, it was different from the
ones found in the market. He checked to make sure that the name of the magic
written in black ink matched the name of the magic that he wanted then
removed his glasses.

Ive confirmed it. I will be taking this.

Thank you very much.

The young man politely bowed his head.

This scroll is a tier 1 spell and will cost one gold and ten silver coins.

A potion created from the same tier of spells cost two gold coins. Compared to
that, it was relatively cheap. A scroll was special in that normally, they could only
be used by those who are versed in the same branch of magic. It basically meant
that a potion that could be used by anyone would obviously fetch a higher price.

Of course, even if you were to call it cheap, one gold and ten silver coins was still
quite a large sum for the average person. It was about a month and a half worth
of wages. However, for Sebas no, for the one he served, the amount was trivial.

Sebas took out a leather pouch, loosened the top, and counted out eleven coins.
He then handed the amount to the young man.

The payment has been received.

The young man did not do something like checking the coins for authenticity in
front of Sebas. He had traded with them often enough to earn their trust.

That old gentleman was cool!

Yeah!

After Sebas exited the Magician Guild, the receptionists, especially the women,
gathered together and started to make a fuss.

Rather than the faces of sagacious women, they had the faces of girls who had
met their adored prince. One of the men who sat at the counter frowned with
jealousy, but having experienced Sebas elegance firsthand, remained quiet.

He must have served under some incredibly high ranking noble before. It
wouldnt be strange if he was the third son of some rich nobles household.

Even for nobles, it was common for those who could not inherit the household to
become butlers or maids. The more prestigious a nobles title, the more they
wished to employ such servants. The air of elegance surrounding Sebas made
others believe that he was a noble himself.

He carried himself incredibly well.

The group behind the counter all nodded their heads in agreement.

I think I would definitely say yes if he asked me out for tea.

Yeah, Ill go! Ill go! Definitely!

The girls clamored with high pitched voices. Like how he seemed to be the type
to be familiar with incredibly elegant shops. How he would be the perfect escort
and such. The men glanced at them from the side and held their own discussion.

He seemed quite educated. Could he also be a magic caster?

Maybe, its possible.

The spells that Sebas picked out were always the ones that were recently
invented. That was why they could guess that he possessed ample knowledge
about magic. If he were here on orders to purchase a spell, then he could simply
say the name directly at the counter without going through the book. The fact
that he made the selection after looking through the list meant that he himself
made the judgment on what spells to purchase.

He was definitely not an ordinary old man. In other words, it was not unusual to
think that he was a tutor in magic a magic caster.

And those glasses didnt they seem incredibly expensive?

Could it be a magic item?

No, isnt it just a luxury item? Maybe a dwarf made it.

Right, hes pretty incredible to own such a beautiful pair of glasses.

I want to see the beauty he brought with him that one time.

The words that the man muttered almost as an afterthought was met with voices
of opposition from next to him.

What~? The only thing she had going for her was her appearance.

Yeah, I felt sorry Sebas-san. Hes definitely being overworked.

Even if shes beautiful, she definitely has a bad personality. I didnt like the way
she looked at us. I feel sorry for Sebas-san for having to serve someone like that.

The severe criticism on the same sex from the women caused the men to shut
their mouths.

Sebas master possessed a beauty that would make others fall in love with her in
an instant. Although the women next to them were beautiful enough to be picked
as the faces of the Magician Guild, the difference was like night and day. Even
though the male workers wanted to tell them not to be jealous, it was obvious
what would happen if they were to do so. There was no one among them who
would be that foolish. That was why

Hey, enough with the chitchat.

The young man spotted an adventurer heading towards the counter and directed
his voice at the group, prompting them to put on a serious expression and
continue with their jobs.

Having left the Magician Guild, Sebas glanced up at the sky.

Because escorting the old woman back home took longer than he expected, the
sky was gradually being dyed red. Although his watch showed that it was time for
curfew, he still wasnt finished with his daily tasks. Since it wasnt a problem,
should he push back the rest for tomorrow? Or perhaps he should finish the rest
of his work, even if it meant going past the allotted time.

His hesitation only lasted an instant.

Helping the old woman was his arbitrary decision, he had to take responsibility.

Shadow Demon.

Twitch. Sebas felt his shadow stir.

Please send word to Solution. Tell her that I will be a little late. That is all.

Although there was no answer, the presence moved and became distant, as if it
was moving between shadows.

Now then

Sebas moved his feet.

He did not have a destination. His goal was to completely map out the geography
of the capital. He wasnt commanded to do it; rather, it was out of his own free
will as part of his information gathering.

Let us head in that direction today.

Having muttered so, Sebas rubbed his hair back and spun the scroll he held in
one hand. He was like a child enjoying himself.

He walked farther and farther out from the center of the capital, from where the
public order was best.

After winding through the roads, the streets started to become dirty and a slightly
foul stench began to permeate the air. It was the smell of rotten foods and
sewage. Sebas walked silently through the stench that threatened to cling on to
his clothes.

Sebas abruptly stopped his stride and looked around his surroundings. He
appeared to have ventured into a back alleyway. The path was just barely wide
enough to allow two people to pass each other.

The narrow alleyway and the setting sun, no sign of people anywhere, they made
it difficult for people to take this road. But none of that posed a problem for
Sebas. He walked on in silence, melting into the darkness.

Sebas turned multiple corners in a direction that was more desolate than the last
and suddenly, his unfaltering steps came to a halt.

Without a specific destination in mind, he had been walking to wherever his feet
and whims may take him. However, he found that he had ventured quite far from
the residence he had established as their base. Using his intuition, Sebas roughly
perceived his current location and drew a line in his head from here to the base.

Although it was a trivial distance considering Sebas physical ability, that only
applied when moving in a straight line. Walking normally would end up taking
quite a bit of time. Since it was almost time for the curtain of night to fall, it
would be prudent for him to start heading back. He did not want to worry Solution
whom he was staying with. Should a strong enemy appear, both Solution and
Sebas had a Shadow Demon hiding in their shadows. Using them as shields would
give them ample time to retreat. However

I should be heading back.

Though honestly, he wanted to continue his walk for a bit longer. This was almost
like his hobby; he would often lose track of time when it came to his outings.
However, even if he had to withdraw, Sebas felt that he should at least see what
was past this road and decided to continue down the narrow alleyway.

As he walked silently through the darkness, a sudden creaking noise rang out
fifteen meters in front of him. A heavy iron door slowly opened up ahead, spilling
its interior lights outside. Sebas stopped and quietly observed the scene in front
of him.

When the door was opened all the way, a persons face came into view. Although
he could only discern the silhouette because of the backlight, it was probably a
man. He appeared to examine his surroundings and, failing to notice Sebas, went
back inside.

Thud. Suddenly, a heavy sack was flung out the door and crashed on to the
ground. The light leaking from the door fell on the sack, and by its shape, made it
apparent that something soft was being held inside.

Although the door was open, the man who threw the sack as if he was taking out
the trash did not yet reappear.

For a moment, Sebas frowned then wondered whether he should walk past it or
head back the way he came. He had run into quite a bothersome incident.

After a brief hesitation, he continued down the quiet and narrow path of the dark
alleyway.

The mouth of the large sack split open.

The sound of Sebas footsteps rang through the alley and at last, the distance
between him and sack shortened.

As he was about to walk past, his feet stopped.

Sebas felt something touch his pants. He lowered his gaze and there, found what
he had expected to see.

Extending from the sack, an emaciated, twig-like hand holding onto the hem of
his pants and the topless body of a girl.

The sack was now opened wide, fully revealing the girl from the waist up.

Her blue pupils held no strength, glossed over in a murky glint. The hair that fell
down to her shoulders was withered due to a lack of nutrients. Her face was
beaten, swollen like a balloon. Her dry, cracked skin was littered with countless
pink spots the size of fingernails.

The scrawny body had almost no life remaining.

It was already no different from a corpse. No, it was obviously still alive. The hand
grasping on to the hem of Sebas pants claimed as much. But could you call
someone who could only just barely breathe as being alive?

Will you please release your hand?

There was no response to his words. It was obvious that she wasnt ignoring him
despite hearing what he said. Past the swollen cracks of her eyelids, there was
nothing reflected in her murky eyes as they stared into space.

If Sebas were to move his feet, he could easily brush aside those fingers that
were thinner than tree branches. However, he did not do so and instead, asked
her once more.

Are you in trouble? If so

Hey, old man, whered you come from.

A low, menacing voice interrupted Sebas.

A man appeared from the doorway. Thick chest and arms with a scar on his face,
the man glared sharply at Sebas with a hostility that was plain for anyone to see.
The lantern in his hand shined a red light.

Oi, oi, oi. Whatre you staring at, old man?

The man loudly clicked his tongue and gestured with his chin.

Get lost. If you leave now then Ill let you go in one piece.

Seeing that Sebas did not move even after his warning, the man took a step
forward. The door behind him slammed shut with a heavy thud. Very slowly, the
man menacingly set down the lantern at his feet.

Hey gramps, you deaf?

The man spun his shoulder, cracked his neck, and slowly raised his right fist. He
obviously was not someone who would hesitate to resort to violence.

Hmm

Sebas smiled, one well suited for the expression of an elderly gentleman. His
smile made others feel his kindness and experience a powerful sense of relief.
But for some reason, the man took a step back, as if a powerful carnivore had
appeared in front of him without warning.

Uhh, uh, uh, wha

Pressed back by Sebas smile, the man uttered incoherently. Without even
realizing that his breathing grew harsh, the man tried to retreat back farther.

Sebas fastened the scroll he had been holding in his hand until now to his belt,
the one he bought from the Magicians Guild. He took exactly one step forward in

order to close the distance between him and the man and stretched out his hand.
The man could not even react to that movement. The hand that was grasping
onto the hem of Sebas pants fell to the ground without a sound.

As if that was the signal, the outstretched hand grabbed the mans throat and
too easily, his body was lifted into the air.

When comparing Sebas with the man based solely on their outer appearance,
Sebas had no chance of victory. Age, thickness of the chest, arms, height, weight,
and the smell of violence that their bodies exuded, Sebas could not beat him in
anything.

That old gentleman had lifted the powerful heavyweight of a man into the air with
one hand

No, that wasnt the case. If there was a third party present, that person may be
able to keenly sense the difference between the two men. Humans possessed
the senses of living creatures even if they were duller than that of wild animals,
would they not realize it if such a clear distinction was placed before them?

The difference between Sebas and the man was

the difference between the strongest and the weakest.

Now completely off the ground, the man thrashed his feet about and twisted his
body. As he tried to grab Sebas arm with his hands, his eyes filled with terror, as
if he had come to a realization.

The man had just managed to figure out that the old man in front of him was an
existence completely at odds with his outer appearance. Useless retaliation
would only serve to further anger the monster in front of him.

That girl, what is she?

A quiet voice flowed into the man who had stiffened up with fear.

His voice flowed quietly, like clear water. The stark contrast with how he was
easily holding the man in the air with one hand only served to terrify him further.

S-Shes our employee.

The man responded desperately, his voice etched in fear.

I asked what she was. Are you replying to my question by saying that she is an
employee?

The man wondered if he had given the wrong answer. But was that not the most
correct reply in this situation? His wide eyes looked about frantically, moving
around like the eyes of a scared animal.

Ah, there are some among my comrades who also treat humans like objects. I
ventured to guess whether or not you also fall under that category. If you saw
humans as objects, then you would not feel any remorse. But you replied by
referring to her as an employee. Then you have done what you did while
recognizing her as a human, correct? I will ask you again. What were you going to
do with her?

The man thought briefly. However

A sound like something being crushed rang out.

Strength went into Sebas arm, instantly making it painful for the man to breathe.

Urrkgahhh!

The man screamed with a bizarre noise as Sebas channeled strength into his
hand, making it even more difficult for him to breathe. I will not give you the
time to ponder, answer immediately. His message was clear.

S-Shes sick. I was taking her to the temp

I do not like lies.

Gaaghhah!

The strength in Sebas arm grew even stronger and the mans face became dyed
completely red as he screamed out once more. Even if he could suspend all
disbelief and acknowledge that putting her into a sack to transport her to the
temple was a possibility, Sebas could not sense even a shred of concern from the
man towards the girl when that same sack was dashed against the ground, like
he was throwing out the trash.

StopGaah.

With his air escaping him, the mans life was in danger. He started to flail his legs,
unable to think of anything else.

Sebas easily blocked the fist heading for his face with one hand. Although the
mans flailing legs slammed into his body and dirtied his clothes, Sebas did not
budge.

It was obvious. A normal human cannot move a giant block of steel with their
feet.

Although he was kicked by a pair of thick legs, Sebas calmly continued to speak,
as if he wasnt even in pain.

I recommend that you speak truthfully.

Urk

With the man no longer able to breathe, Sebas narrowed his eyes as he looked up
at the mans reddened face. He aimed for the moment just before he lost
consciousness and released him.

The man rolled onto the floor with a loud noise.

Uugh, haa, haa, haa.

He expelled the last of the air that remained in his lungs with a scream and
greedily gasped for breath. Sebas looked down at him in silence. He then reached
once more for the mans throat.

W-wait, h-hold on!

With fear piercing his body, he painfully stumbled on the floor, away from Sebas
hand.

T-T-Temple! I was going to take her to the temple!

Still with the lies, his willpower is unexpectedly strong

He had expected the man to break under the pain and the fear of death.
However, despite being frightened, he showed no signs of spilling the truth. The
danger of leaking information rivaled the danger that Sebas posed.

Sebas considered changing his approach. In some sense, this place was enemy
territory.
The reason the man did not call for help from beyond the door was because he
did not expect any of his allies to respond immediately. Regardless, staying any
longer will cause the situation to become more bothersome.

He did not receive any orders to cause trouble for his master, only to keep
himself hidden and quietly collect information.

If that is what you were planning then there will not be a problem even if I am
the one to take her. I will make sure that she recovers.

The mans surprised eyes shook side-to-side. He then desperately squeezed out
his next words.

Theres no guarantee that youll take her there.

Then how about if you accompany me?

Im busy right now so I cant. Im going to take her later.

Sensing something in Sebas expression, the man quickly continued on.

Thats legally ours. If youre going to put your hands on other peoples property,
then youre breaking the law! If you take her with you then its kidnapping!

Sebas froze abruptly and furrowed his brows for the first time.

The man attacked where it hurt the most.

Although his master had said that it was okay to stand out to a certain extent,
that only applied when it was necessary for their disguises as a rich familys
daughter and her butler.

If he broke the law and invited the hand of the judiciaries, there was a possibility
that their cover could be blown. In other words, it could lead to a huge uproar and
become exactly the type of conspicuous incident that his master did not want.

Although it was hard to imagine that this rugged, crude looking man was
educated, his tone was still confident. He must have heard it from someone who
was knowledgeable about the law. Then there was a high possibility that his claim
held true.

With no witnesses in sight, the answer was simple. He could simply end it
through force. All that would leave behind was a corpse with a broken neck.

But that was only when it was absolutely necessary. It was a final, last-ditch
method to be used only when it coincided with his masters objective. It could not
be used for the sake of this unknown girl whom he had just met.

Then was abandoning the girl the right choice?

Sebas felt his irritation rise at the mans crude smile.

Can a great, gentlemanly butler like you cause trouble for your master behind
their back?

The man was grinning now, seeing how Sebas frown became more obvious, he
must have realized that he had a hold on the butlers weakness.

I dont know which noble you serve, but wont you be harming your master if
you cause trouble? Ahn? And who knows, that noble might have a good
relationship with us. Wont you get scolded?

Did you think that my master was someone who could not handle the law?
Rules were made to be broken by the strong.

As if he hit a nerve, the man looked momentarily frightened but immediately

regained his confidence.

...So how about you try it then?

Hmm.

The man showed no signs of falling for Sebas bluff. The one backing him must be
quite an influential figure indeed. Concluding that attacking from this direction
was ineffective, Sebas decided to approach from a different angle.

You may be right. A run-in with the law may indeed prove quite troublesome.
However, there is also a law stating that a person may rescue another by force
should they request it. I am merely following the law and providing her with
assistance. First and foremost, since she appears to be unconscious, I believe she
should be brought to the temple for treatment. Do you not agree?

Uh no thats

The man seemed to be at a loss for words.

His mask was undone.

Sebas felt relieved that the man was a poor actor and a dim-witted fool. He had
lied. Since the other party mentioned the law, Sebas simply opted to do the
same.

Sebas, being unfamiliar with this countrys laws, would have had no way to
respond if the man had rebuked him once more with another law; even if the man
had been lying. The man ended up in this position because he only knew the law
by ear and did not bother to study it.

Because his knowledge of the law was what he had heard off hand, it would come
back to bite him should his opponent opt for a legal debate. And the man was
most likely a low-ranking member of his organization. He was not used to a
position where he had to make his own decisions.

Sebas turned his eyes away from the man and brought the girls head close.

Do you want me to help you?

Sebas asked her. He leaned his ear towards the girls cracked, rustling lips.

The sound of faint breathing flowed into his ears. No, could it even be called as
such? It was like the sound of the final remaining air escaping from a balloon.

There was no response. Sebas slightly turned his head and asked once more.

Do you want me to help you?

The circumstances revolving around aiding this girl and the old woman from
before were completely different. Although Sebas did desire to help others in
need, there was a high possibility that helping this girl will lead to no small
amount of trouble. Sebas felt as if a chilling wind was passing through his heart.
He worried whether or not the Supreme Being would permit such actions, about
how this may betray a higher objective.

As expected, there was no reply.

The mans face slowly broke out into a crude smile.

For someone who was familiar with her hell-like environment, it was obvious that
she would not even have the energy to speak. Otherwise, he would not have
pulled her out to dispose of her in the first place.

A stroke of luck does not occur in succession. If it were so frequent, then it would
not be called luck in the first place.

Thats right. If the hand that grasped the hem of Sebas pants was a stroke of
good fortune, there would not be a second time.

Her luck had run out the moment Sebas stepped foot in this place. Everything
that would follow after was the result of her will to live.

That would never be because of luck.

Slightly.

Ever so slightly, her mouth moved. Her voice did not flow naturally like how one
would breathe. They contained a clear, distinct will.

Hearing those words, Sebas gave a single nod.

I have no intention of saving those who only pray for others to extend a
helping hand, like plants waiting for the rain. However if they themselves fight
to survive

Sebas covered the girls eyes with his hand.

Do not be frightened, rest now. I will place you under my protection.

Clinging onto some soft, warm sensation, the girl closed her murky eyes.

The man was in disbelief and tried to voice his obvious response.

Youre ly

The rest could not be heard. The mans body froze, his voice dying in his throat.

Did you just say that I am lying?

Before anyone had noticed, Sebas stood up, piercing the man with his gaze.

His eyes were terrifying.

The mans breath was cut short by the sensation of his heart on the verge of
exploding.

Are you claiming that I would lie to the likes of you?

Uh, nno

Gulp. The mans throat moved as he swallowed the large amount of saliva that
had gathered in his mouth. His eyes became nailed to Sebas arm. The fear that
he had foolishly forgotten from not knowing his place had returned.

Then I will be taking her with me.

Y-you cant! No, no, sir, you cant!

Sebas glanced over at the man who had raised his voice.

Do you still have something to say? Are you trying to buy time?

N-no sir, thats not it. Im telling you that its going to be a huge problem if you
take that girl, to you and your master both. Eight Fingers, dont you know them?

Sebas had heard of them from his information gathering. They were a criminal
organization that operated from the Kingdoms shadow.

You understand, right? Please sir, just pretend that you didnt see anything. If
you take her then theyre going to punish me for screwing up.

The man had realized that he could not win with strength and adopted a
flattering demeanor. Sebas looked at him coldly and spoke in an equally cold
voice.

I will take her with me.

Spare me, Im begging you! Ill be a dead man!

Perhaps I should kill him right here.

Sebas fell into thought. He could hear the man crying even while weighing the
positive and negative consequences of killing him.

Although he thought that the man could be trying to buy time for his allies to
arrive, he ruled out that possibility from seeing his behavior.

Why do you not call for help?

The man blinked and replied immediately.

According to him, if he were to lose them while he looked for help, the fact that
he made a critical mistake would become known to his allies. He also did not
think it likely that they could win in a fight, even with more people. That was why
he was trying to convince Sebas to change his mind.

Seeing such woefully pathetic behavior, Sebas felt the tension leave his body. His
killing intent had all but vanished. Although, with that said, he had no intention of
handing the girl over to the man. If so

Then how about you flee?

Thats impossible sir. I dont have the money for that.

Though I do not think it would be more expensive than your life I will provide
you with the funds.

The light returned to the mans face from Sebas words.

Although it may be safer to kill him, if he desperately escaped then it may at

least buy some time. Meanwhile, he can treat her wounds and move her
somewhere safe.

And if he were to kill the man here, there was a good chance that they would
search for the girl who immediately went missing.

Similar to how the circumstances leading up to the girl ending up in her current
situation were unknown, he could not rule out the possibility of this harming her
acquaintances and family.

Sebas was troubled. Why was he going so far as to take on all of these risks?

He did not understand where the stirring in his heart to save this girl came from.
Other denizens of Nazarick would have ignored it, saying that they couldnt be
bothered. They would have shaken her hand loose and walked off.

One must help others in need.

Sebas responded to the man, setting aside the swaying of his heart that even he
himself could not explain. Now was not the time for such thoughts.

Use this money to hire an adventurer and do everything you can to escape.

As Sebas took out a leather pouch, the mans eyes filled with doubt. The amount
of money that could fit inside a small pouch would not be enough.

However, in the next moment, the mans eyes became glued to the coins that
were tossed onto the ground. The silver-like glint was that of the platinum used
when dealing with trade between countries. Worth ten times more than gold, ten
of such coins were scattered about.

Everything, do you understand? I also have a few questions. How much time do
you have to answer?

Uh, were good for time. Getting rid um, no, I told them that I would be leaving
to take her to the temple so I can be a little late.

I see. Then let us be off.

Keeping his words brief, Sebas motioned for the man to follow him with his chin
and walked on with the girl in his arms.

Part 2

Mid Fire Month (Month 8), Day 26, 18:58

The current house where Sebas resided was in an affluent neighborhood with
high public order, even by the capitals standards.

Although the size paled in comparison to the neighboring houses, it looked to be

built so that two generations of families and their servants could live together.
For only Sebas and Solution, the space was simply too large.

Needless to say, they had a reason for renting such a large mansion. As long as
they were disguised as the family of a wealthy merchant from a far-off land, they
could not live in a shabby residence. That was why, with zero connections and
credibility, they had to put up with paying for the entirety of the lease at several
times the market price.

Having arrived at such a residence and entering through the front door, there was
someone who was there to welcome him. Wearing a white dress, it was battle
maid Solution Epsilon under Sebas direct command. Although there were other
inhabitants like the Shadow Demon and Gargoyle, they did not come to receive
him because they were placed as guards.

Welcome ba

Solutions words stopped along with her head in mid bow. Her eyes were colder
than usual as she stared at what was in Sebas arms.

Sebas-sama. What is that?

Ive picked her up.

Solution did not say anything to his short reply. However, the atmosphere grew
heavy.

Is that so. Though it does not look to be a present for me, what are you
planning to do with it?

Im uncertain. Could you first treat her wounds?

Wounds you say

After looking over the girls condition, Solution nodded her head as if convinced
and stared at Sebas.

Then could you not have dropped her off at the temple?

But of course. Truly, the thought must have escaped me.

Solution narrowed her eyes and stared coldly at Sebas who would not even give
an inch. For the briefest of moments, their eyes locked, and the one who looked
away first was Solution.

Shall I throw it out?

No. Since I already went through the trouble of bringing her here, we may as
well come up with a way to put her to good use.

Understood.

Solution was never one for many expressions, but her current face was truly like
that of a mask.

Even Sebas could not recognize the emotion that was filling her eyes. Only that
she did not at all welcome the current situation. It was so obvious that you could
almost touch with your hands.

First, could you perform a diagnosis of her physical condition?

Understood, I will do so immediately.

No, right here is a bit

Although Solution may deem it trivial, it probably should not be done near the
entrance.

We have an empty room so may I ask you to perform it there?

Solution nodded without a word.

There were no words spoken between them as the girl was moved from the
entrance to the guest room. Although neither Solution nor Sebas were the type to
partake in needless chatter, even more so, an ambiguous atmosphere flowed
between them.

Solution opened the guest room door since Sebas was using both hands to carry
the girl.

Despite the thick curtain darkening the room, the air did not feel stuffy in the
least. The air was fresh because the door had been opened many times and the
interior was kept immaculate.

Sebas stepped inside, small rays of moonlight shining through the slips in the
curtains. He laid the girl on top of the beds clean sheets.

Although he tried his best to heal her by pouring in his Ki, the unmoving body
looked like a corpse.

Then.

Solution nonchalantly tore off the cloth wrapped around the girl, revealing her
ragged limbs.

Though it was a cruel appearance that should have invited pity, there was no
change in Solutions expression. Her eyes reflected nothing but dull indifference.

Solution, I will leave the rest to you.

Sebas left her with only those words and exited the room. Solution did not bother
to stop him as she began to check the girls condition.

After stepping out into the hallway, Sebas muttered quietly so that it would not
reach Solutions ears.

A foolish endeavor.

Sebas unwittingly stroked his beard. Why did he save her? He himself could not
explain clearly.

Perhaps this is what it means for a hunter to not slay a bird that came to him of
its own accord.

No, that wasnt it. Why did he save her?

As the butler who was also tasked with the role of house steward, his allegiance
was with the 41 Supreme Beings. At present, his guild leader, the one who took
on the name of Ainz Ooal Gown was the being whom he owed the entirety of his
allegiance.

There was not even a shadow of falsehood in his loyalty. He believed that he had
always served diligently and would not hesitate to lay down his life in service.

However if he had to pledge his loyalty to only one among the 41 Supreme
Beings, Sebas would choose without hesitation. Touch Me.

He was Sebas creator and the strongest existence of Ainz Ooal Gown, holder of
the World Champion class and in a different league altogether.

As part of the first nine, he gathered the original members of Ainz Ooal Gown
before it grew in power through every possible means, including PK.

No one would believe it if they were told that his reason was to help the weak.
However, it was the truth.

He helped Momonga when he was about to quit the game in frustration from
being PKed continuously. When Simmering Teapot could not find a party to
adventure with because of her appearance, he was the one who approached her
first.

The thoughts that person left behind became the invisible chains wrapping
around Sebas.

Could this be a curse?

What vile words. If a different person from Ainz Ooal Gown a member of
Nazarick created by the 41 Supreme Beings had heard him, they may have
called him a blasphemer and attacked.

Feeling pity for a being who is not of Nazarick is unacceptable.

Those words were most obvious.

With a few exceptions those whose settings were established to be such by the
41 Supreme Beings, head maid Pestonya S. Wanko for example excluding

people like her, the members of Nazarick all believed that those who do not
belong with Ainz Ooal Gown should immediately be cast out.

For instance, he had heard from one of Solutions reports that a member of Battle
Maid Pleiades, Lupusregina, was on friendly terms with a girl from Carne village.
But he knew very well that depending on the situation, Lupusregina would
abandon her without a second thought.

It was not because she was heartless.

An order from the Supreme Beings to die meant that you must die. Likewise,
even if she was a friend, an order to kill her would be carried out swiftly. That was
true loyalty. A fellow denizen who did not understand this would be looked on
with pity.

Judging humans with useless sentiment, that in itself was unacceptable.

Then what about him? Was his current course of action acceptable?

As Sebas bit his lips, Solution walked out through the door. Her face was
emotionless per usual.

How is she?

On top of syphilis, she has two other venereal diseases. Several of her ribs are
cracked, as well as her fingers. The tendons in her right arm and left leg have
been severed and she is missing her top and bottom front teeth. It appears that
her internal organs are failing as well. There are lacerations in her anus and it is
possible that she is addicted to some drug. She has countless contusions and
cuts on her body. Considering her current state, I believe that I can leave out the
rest. Would you like me to explain further?

No, there is no need. There is only one thing that is important. Can she be
healed?

Of course.

Sebas had expected her prompt answer.

Using a healing ability can fix even amputations. If Sebas were to use his qigong,
it would also be easy to completely fix bodily injuries. In truth, if he wanted, he
could have easily healed the old womans sprained ankle on the spot. He did not
do so in order to save it for emergencies and to prevent leaking information.

But even if qigong helped recover ones strength, it could not heal poisons or
diseases. Sebas never learned such skills. That was why he needed Solutions
help for the recovery.

Then I will leave it to you.

Would it not be better to call for Pestonya-sama for healing magic?

That will not be necessary. Solution, I believe you have a healing scroll?

Confirming that Solution nodded her head, Sebas continued.

Then please use that.

Sebas-sama. This scroll was given to us by the Supreme Beings. I believe that
it should not be used on the likes of humans.

It was a reasonable argument. He had to consider a different method. First, heal

her injuries and save her from the danger of death. They could then heal the
poisons and diseases at a later time. However, he was not certain that they could
afford to delay. If it were the poisons and diseases that was killing her, endlessly
restoring her health would prove useless.

After some hesitation, in the end, he spoke to Solution in a steely voice that
would not betray his inner thoughts.

Heal her.

Solutions eyes narrowed and at the same time, something dark red stirred within
her pupils. But that change could not be verified any further due to Solution
bowing her head.

I will carry out your order. Restoring her to normal condition in other words,
will it be fine to restore her body to the state before the injuries were inflicted on
her?

Seeing Sebas give his affirmation, Solution courteously bowed her head.

I will begin immediately.

And once her treatment is finished, will you please fill the tub with water and
bathe her? I will leave to purchase a meal.

There was no one in this residence who needed meals or could cook. And as long
as they did not have an extra of the magic item that rendered meals
unnecessary, the girls meals had to be prepared.

Sebas-sama, although it is easy to heal her bodily wounds I cannot heal her
mind.

Solutions words came to a stop, and after a brief pause, she stared intently at
Sebas and asked.

I feel that calling Ainz-sama will be the best way to heal her mind. Will you not
do so?

...This is not a matter significant enough to warrant contacting him. There

should not be a problem even if we leave her mind as is.

Solution bowed deeply. She silently opened the door to the room and stepped
inside. Sebas watched her go and then slowly leaned his back to the wall.

What to do about the girl.

Once shes healed while the man escapes, release her at a place of her own
choosing. That was the best way. At the very least, it should be somewhere far
from the capital. Releasing her here was both dangerous and cruel. It would be no
different than not rescuing her in the first place.

But for Sebas Tian, the butler of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, was that really the
right course of action?

Sebas breathed a heavy sigh.

How comfortable would he feel if he could expel everything that was mounting in
his mind, just like this sigh? But nothing had changed. His mind fell into confusion
and his thinking was filled with noise.

Foolish, all because of one human

Rather than asking questions that he could not answer, he had to start simple.
Although it would only serve to buy him time, from his point of view, this was the
best course of action in his current situation.

Solution changed the shape of her skinny fingers. They grew longer and
transformed into tendrils that were about a few millimeters thick. Originally,
Solution was a formless slime and could drastically alter her outer appearance.
Something like transforming the tip of her hands was simple.

She glanced over at the door and having keenly sensed that Sebas presence had
disappeared outside, quietly walked over to the girl lying on the bed.

Since Sebas-sama has given his permission, I will finish this bothersome task as
quickly as possible. That would be in your best interest as well. You probably will
not even be awake through it.

Solution spread her palm and pulled out the scroll that she kept stored in her
body.

This scroll wasnt the only thing Solution kept in her body. On top of consumable
magic items like the scroll, she also had various weapons and armor. Considering
that she could easily swallow several humans, something like that was not out of
the norm.

Solution stared at the unconscious girl.

She had no interest in the girls appearance. Rather, only one thought crossed
her mind.

This human did not look tasty.

The empty shell of a body did not seem like it would thrash around very much
even if she were to melt it with acid.

Though I could understand his actions if he wanted to give this to me as a toy

after it recovered

Knowing his personality, she knew he would not allow it. Aside from when they
were attacked during their travels, Sebas, the boss of Battle Maid Pleiades would
never permit feeding on humans.

If the Supreme Being had ordered that the girl be saved, I would have no choice
but to accept it... But are the likes of humans truly worth saving even at the cost
of a valuable treasure granted by the Supreme Being?

Solution shook her head and thought out loud.

I may just devour you before Sebas-sama returns.

She released the seal and opened the scroll. The magic contained within it was
Heal, a tier 6 healing spell that greatly restored health and removed bad status
effects like diseases.

A normal scroll could only be used if the person possessed a class that could use
the same branch of magic as the scroll. In other words, in order to use a scroll of
a faith based magic caster like a priest, one had to obtain a faith based class. To
explain further, the spell had to exist on the list of learnable magic for that class.
However, some thief based classes have a skill that can disguise this list and
deceive the scroll.

As an assassin, Solution possessed several thief based classes. It was why she
was able to use the Heal scroll that she would normally be barred from.

First, put her into a coma just in case, then

Solution used a skill to combine a powerful poison that induced sleep and a
muscle relaxing poison. She then moved to cover the girls body.

Mid Fire Month (Month 8), Day 26, 19:37

Sebas returned with the meal just as Solution stepped out of the room. She held
a steaming bucket of water in both hands, with several towels in each bucket.

The water in both buckets was dark and the towels were dirty as well, showing
just what sort of unsanitary conditions the girl lived in.

Youve worked hard. The recovery it seems that it was completed without a
hitch.

Yes, there were no problems, only that there was no suitable clothing for her so I
changed her into whatever we had on hand. Was that acceptable?

Of course, it does not matter.

Is that so The effects of the sleeping poison should have worn off by now. If
there is nothing else then I will take my leave.

Good work, Solution.

Solution bowed and walked past Sebas.

Sebas saw her off, and then knocked on the door. Although there was no reply, he
felt movement from within and quietly opened the door.

Inside, a girl was sitting up on the bed. She wore a vacant expression, as if she
had woken only recently.

She was truly unrecognizable.

The dirty and withered blonde hair now shined with a beautiful luster. In that
short amount of time, her sunken, scrawny face had been vitalized and regained
its original appearance. Her once shriveled, cracked lips now shone with a pink
glint.

To describe her appearance as a whole, rather than calling her beautiful, it was
more fitting to call her as a girl who possessed an adorable charm.

It was also easy to get a general idea of her age. Although she looked like she
should be in her late teens, her hellish daily life gave her face a dignity that
extended past her years.

Solution had put her into a white negligee. However, it was of a simple design,
lacking the usual laces and frills that were the norm.

You should have recovered completely, but how is your condition?

There was no reply. Her vacant eyes did not show any signs of looking in his
direction.

However, as if he did not take that to heart, Sebas waited for her to speak. No, he
did not expect much from the beginning. He had realized that her vacant
expression was that of a person whose heart was no longer here.

Are you hungry? Ive brought you a meal.

He had purchased it from a restaurant, bowl and all.

The wooden bowl held a stew that was made from slightly seasoned meat broth.
The oil added to the stew to accentuate its scent released a smell that stimulated
the appetite.

Her face moved slightly, responding to the smell.

Please help yourself.

Sebas thought that she had not yet completely walled herself off in her own
world. He held out the bowl along with the wooden spoon in front of her.

Even when the girl did not move, Sebas did not try to force her.

After a certain amount of time had passed, enough to make others feel anxious,
the girl slowly moved her arm. Her movement was nervous, one that feared pain.
Even if her injuries had been healed completely, the memory of the pain
remained untouched.

She held the wooden spoon and lifted a small amount of the stew. She then
brought it to her mouth and swallowed.

The stew was watery and thin. Sebas had intentionally ordered it to be prepared
that way, thinly slicing fourteen types of ingredients and cooking them for a long
time so that there would not be a need to chew.

Her throat moved and the stew traveled down into her stomach.

The girls eyes moved ever so slightly. That tiniest of movements was the
transformation from an elaborate doll to a human being. Her other hand moved,
trembling as it accepted the bowl from Sebas.

While carrying the bowl, Sebas moved it to the place where she seemed to want
it placed.

The girl stuck the wooden spoon into the stew, hugging the bowl closer to her
with her other arm, and ate with an overflowing vigor.

She ate so fast that if the stew had not been cooled to be just right, she would
definitely have screamed out in pain from the burns. The girl did not even seem
to mind that the chest area of her negligee was being dirtied by the stew trailing
out of her mouth. It would have been more fitting to say that she was drinking it,
rather than eating it.

After finishing the stew blindingly quickly, the girl drew the empty bowl close and
breathed out a sigh.

Having returned to being human, her eyes shut heavily.

The feeling of being full, the clean and soft clothes, the softness that had
returned to her body, all of these synergized together to relax her mind and
began allowing her body to accept the feeling of drowsiness.

But as her eyelids began to form a line, in the next moment, the girl opened her
eyes wide and cowered in fear.

Perhaps she was scared to close her eyes, or maybe she feared that her current
situation would vanish like an illusion. Or perhaps she had another reason, Sebas,
who was watching her by her side, could not tell. Perhaps she herself did not
know the reason.

That was why Sebas spoke to her in a gentle voice in an attempt to calm her.

Your body is seeking rest. Do not push yourself and sleep. I guarantee that you
are in no danger here. You will still be in this bed when you open your eyes.

For the first time, the girls eyes moved and stared directly at Sebas.

There was barely any light in her blue eyes; no strength could be felt from them.
Only that they were no longer the eyes of the dead, but the living.

Her mouth parted slightly and closed. She opened her mouth once more and
again, closed.

That was repeated several times over. Sebas watched gently and did not try to
pressure her. He merely stared in silence.

Th

At last, the lips parted and a tiny voice leaked through. The words that followed
came quickly.

Ththank you

Her first words were those of thanks rather than questions about her current
situation. Having caught a glimpse of her personality, Sebas smiled, not the fake
one that he wore so often, but a genuine smile.

Please do not worry about it. Now that I have brought you under my wing, I will
guarantee your safety to the best of my ability.

The girls eyes widened slightly, her lips trembling.

Her blue eyes grew wet and spilled drops of tears. She then opened her mouth
wide and cried like something was released inside of her.

At last, her curse spilled out, mixed in with the sound of sobbing.

She cursed her own fate; she hated the one up above who dealt her such a hand.
She resented the fact that up until now, no one had bothered to help her. That
feeling of resentment then turned to Sebas.

Why didnt he come to her sooner?

Sebas kindness because she was treated as a human, everything that she had
been enduring all this time had come crumbling down. No, it would be better to
say that because she regained her human heart, she could no longer endure all
of those memories.

The girl pulled at her head. With a tearing sound, strands of her hair were ripped
free. Countless gold threads became entangled around her thin fingers. The bowl
that carried the stew fell off the bed along with the spoon.

Sebas watched over her madness without a word.

Her resentment was sudden and clumsy, she was pushing herself. Depending on
the person, they may have found her resentment offensive and raged at her.
However, there was no anger in Sebas expression. Instead, his wrinkled face
carried something akin to benevolence.

Sebas reached out and pulled her into his arms.

Like a father hugging his child, an affectionate embrace with no ill intentions.

Although her body momentarily stiffened, the embrace that was different from
those of the men who lusted after her slightly relaxed her frozen body.

Its okay now.

He softly patted her on the back as he repeated those words like a chant, like
consoling a crying child.

A hiccup and as if she were trying to cling onto Sebas words, the girl planted
her face into his chest and cried even louder. However, that cry was different
than the one from before.

As time passed and Sebas chest became completely damp with the girls tears,
the sound of her cries finally came to a rest. The girl slowly separated herself
from Sebas and lowered her head in an attempt to hide her bright red face.

Im sorry

Please do not let it bother you. It is a great honor for a man to lend his chest to a
crying woman.

Sebas pulled out a freshly washed handkerchief and handed it to the girl.

Please use this.

But its so clean if I

Sebas held the stammering girls chin and raised her face. While the girl grew
stiff as she wondered what was going to happen, he gently brought the
handkerchief to her remaining tear marks.

This reminds me; Solution just recently used Message and had a long
conversation with Shalltear... It seems she was boasting about how Ainz-sama
wiped away her tears.

He wondered just what sort of situation would end up with Ainz-sama doing such
a thing. He was unable to even picture the image of Shalltear crying. Despite his
confusion, Sebas did not stop his hands and finished wiping the tears from the
girls face.

Ah

There, please use it.

Sebas closed the girls hand around the now slightly damp handkerchief.

A handkerchief that cannot be used is a sad one indeed, especially one that
cannot even wipe away a persons tears.

Sebas smiled and stepped away from the girl.

Now, please get plenty of rest. Let us discuss what to do from now on once you
awake.

Because anything was possible with magic, her injuries were healed through
Solutions treatment and all of her mental fatigue was gone. That was why she
should now be able to move normally. However, it was only a few hours ago that
she was in hell. There was a concern that talking for too long may cause her
mental injuries to reopen.

In reality, like how she cried just recently, the girls mind was still unstable.
Although magic could temporarily heal her mind, it did not treat the root of the
problem. Unlike bodily wounds, it was not possible to treat injuries that were not
plain to see.

Among the people Sebas knew, the only one who could completely heal an injury
of the mind was his master and possibly Pestonya.

Even though Sebas tried to get the girl to rest, she hurriedly opened her mouth.

From now on?

Sebas briefly hesitated over whether it was alright to keep conversing like this.
But since the person in question wished to talk, he decided to continue the
conversation while keeping a close eye on her condition.

You would no doubt be too nervous to remain in the capital. Do you have a place
that you can trust?

The girl lowered her face.

I see

He did not bother to state the obvious. She did not.

This has become quite troublesome.

However, it was not as if they had to take action immediately. The man from
before should not be caught any time soon, and it should take some time for the
search to arrive at Sebas.

Although that may just be wishful thinking, he wanted to believe that there was
no reason to panic. At the very least, not until the girl regained her health.

Then, lets see. First, could you tell me your name?

Ah Im Ts Tsuare.

Tsuare, then. Ah, I still have not given my name. My name is Sebas Tian, please
call me Sebas. I serve the master of this mansion, Lady Solution.

That was their setting.

Although Solution wore the white dress instead of the usual maid uniform in case
of sudden visitors, while the girl was here, it would be necessary that he have her
maintain the role of the master.

Solu sama.

Yes. Solution Epsilon-sama. But I do not think that you will have that many
opportunities to see her.

She is quite picky.

As if to indicate that he could say no more, Sebas closed his mouth. And after a
brief moment of silence had passed, he spoke.

Now, rest for today. We can save the discussion for what you will do next for
tomorrow.

Yes

After confirming that Tsuare had laid down on the bed, Sebas picked up the bowl
that had carried the stew and left the room.

When he opened the door, as expected, Solution stood outside. Although it was
most likely to eavesdrop, Sebas did not go out of his way to admonish her.
Solution as well, she showed no signs that the possibility she could be scolded
even existed. That was why she simply stood outside without hiding her presence

or her body. If she truly wanted to hide, as an assassin class, she would have
concealed herself more skillfully.

What is it?

Sebas-sama. In the end, what will you do with that?

Sebas directed his senses to the door behind him. Even if it was shut tight, it did
not block out sound completely. Some of what is said here would be overheard.

Sebas walked on with Solution wordlessly following him from behind.

He stopped where Tsuare would not be able to hear them.

You are talking about Tsuare I see. For now, I am planning to make the decision
tomorrow.

A name

She did not continue, but as if she made up her mind, Solution opened her mouth
once more.

Although it may not be my place to say, there is a very high chance that that
thing will become an obstacle. It needs to be disposed of as soon as possible.

What did she mean when she said dispose?

Hearing Solutions heartless words, Sebas thought that it was to be expected.

This was Nazarick for one who served the 41 Supreme Beings, it was the
soundest way of thinking when it came to those who did not belong with
Nazarick. Sebas actions were what was strange.

You are right. If she were to become an obstacle to Ainz-samas orders, then she
would have to be dealt with swiftly.

Solution looked at him strangely. It was a face that was asking why he had
brought her if he already knew.

She may prove useful to us. Since I already picked her up, I need to think of a
way to put her to good use rather than simply throwing her away.

Sebas-sama, I do not know your reasons for bringing that with you. However,
those injuries mean that there are circumstances that followed. And I doubt that
the ones who inflicted those injuries will look kindly on the fact that the thing is
still alive.

There will not be any problems on that front.

Do you mean that youve already taken care of them?

No, thats not it. Only that should it appear that there will be a problem, I will
use a certain method. That is why I wish for us to maintain appearances until
then. Do you understand, Solution?

.I will carry out your order.

As Solution watched Sebas walk away, she suppressed the small anger rising
within her.

Having been told as much by Sebas, her immediate superior, she couldnt speak
out against him despite her numerous complaints. And if no problems arose, then
it would be of no consequence if the matter was overlooked.

But even so

How could he use the property of Nazarick on the likes of a human

Everything in the Great Tomb of Nazarick belonged to Ainz Ooal Gown and by
extension, to the Supreme Beings. Could using them without permission be
tolerated?

No matter how much she thought it over, the answer did not come.

Top Fire Month (Month 9), Day 3, 9:48

Sebas opened the door to the residence. He was returning from his usual duty of
visiting the Adventurers guild early in the morning to make note of the requests
that had been put up before the adventurers could accept them.

He recorded every piece of information on paper, even rumors circulating around

town, and delivered all of them to Nazarick. Analyzing the contents proved quite
difficult and was left to the sages in Nazarick.

He passed through the door and stepped inside the residence. If this was a few
days ago, Solution would have been there to greet him. However

Welcome back... Seba-sama.

Currently, that task was given to the muttering girl wearing a maid uniform that
extended all the way down to her feet.

The day after taking in Tsuare, they held a discussion and decided to have the girl
work at the residence.

Although they could have her stay as a guest, Tsuare was against it. She did not
want to be treated as a guest on top of being given help. Even if it wouldnt be
enough to repay them, at the very least, she wanted to work.

Sebas saw that the other side of her motive lied in her anxiety.

In other words, she knew very well that her dangerous circumstances will soon
bring a troublesome incident to this residence. She was trying her best to
contribute so she would not be thrown away.

Needless to say, Sebas had reassured Tsuare that he would never abandon her. If
he was going to throw out someone who had nowhere else to go, he would never

have brought her with him in the first place. However, it was also true that he
was not convincing enough to heal the wounds of her heart.

Ive returned, Tsuare. Were there any problems?

Tsuare shook her head.

Different from when they first met, the white brim on top of her neatly cut hair
wobbled.

There no problems.

I see, thats good.

The atmosphere around her was still dark and her difficult expression remained
unchanging.

However, her voice sounded like it was gradually growing louder, as if the thing
that was eating away at her body was becoming undone, little by little.

Then the only problem remaining would be

As Sebas walked onwards, Tsuare followed beside him.

To walk next to the butler, Sebas a direct superior, it was an unacceptable

behavior for a maid. But Tsuare would be ignorant of the maid etiquette, having
never been educated as one. Sebas too, had no intention of teaching her that
lifestyle.

What is on the menu for today?

Yes. Itspotato stew.

I see. I am looking forward to it. Tsuares cooking is delicious, after all.

At the words that Sebas spoke with a smile, Tsuare grew bright red and lowered
her face while squeezing her maid apron with both hands.

T-thatsnot true.

No, no, of course its true. Its quite fortunate since I cannot cook whatsoever.
But are you fine with the ingredients? Please tell me if you are missing something
or have something that you wish for me to buy.

Yes. I will check next time and tell you.

Although Tsuare could act normally in the house and with Sebas, she still showed
an adverse reaction to the outside world. She could not handle any tasks that
required her to leave the residence and as such, jobs like procuring ingredients
fell to Sebas.

There was nothing lavish about Tsuares cooking. They were simple home-cooked
meals.

For this reason, they did not need expensive ingredients and the shopping could
be taken care of quickly. Sebas as well, he was able to learn about many different
ingredients and managed to acquire information on the foods of this world. He
considered it killing two birds with one stone.

All of a sudden, Sebas proposed an idea.

Shall we go buy them together?

Tsuares face showed great surprise. Then, growing scared, she shook her head.
Her complexion turned for the worse and she began to sweat heavily.

No, Im kay.

Sebas thought it was to be expected and did not let it show on his face.

Ever since she started working, Tsuare never tried to do the tasks that required
her to go outside. She locked up her terror by regarding this residence as the

absolute castle walls that protected her. In other words, she was only able to
move after drawing a line separating here and the outside the world that hurt
her.

However, at this rate Tsuare would never be able to step foot outside. And they
could not hide her forever.

Considering Tsuares mental condition, Sebas knew that it was cruel to tell her to
go outside after only a few days. The safer option would be to give her more time
so she could slowly adapt.

However, that was for when they actually had the time to spare.

Sebas had no intention of settling down and spending the rest of his life in the
capital. He would always be a stranger to this land, who was only here for
information. If his master were to order that he withdraw

In preparation for that day, he had to impart her with various possibilities while
he still could.

Sebas stopped and stared directly at Tsuare. She blushed and tried to lower her
gaze but he covered her cheek with his hand and raised her face.

Tsuare, I fully know that you are frightened. But be assured that I, Sebas, will
protect you. I will destroy any harm that may come your way.

Tsuare, place your foot forward. If you are scared then I do not mind even if you
have your eyes closed.

He grabbed Tsuares hand while she still hesitated and spoke the words that he
knew would be mean to her.

Do you not trust me, Tsuare?

As time dragged on, a curtain of silence hanged heavily over the hallway. Tsuares
eyes grew slightly wet as she parted her rosy lips, revealing her pearl-like front
teeth.

Sebas-sama is unfair. I cant refuse if you say it like that.

Please rest easy. Although I may not look it, I am quite strong. There are only a
few apart from the 41 who are stronger than I.

Isthata lot?

Tsuare giggled at the ambiguous number, believing it to be a joke to console her.

Sebas simply chuckled and did not answer.

Sebas continued his stride. Although he knew that Tsuare was stealing glances at
his profile, he did not mention it.

He knew that Tsuare held some tender feelings for him, one that could not quite
be called love.

However, Sebas felt that those feelings were something that was indoctrinated
into her, like a feeling of reliance for the benefactor who saved her from that hell.

Sebas was also an old man and it was possible that Tsuare was mistaking familial
love with the love between a man and a woman.

And even if Tsuare truly loved Sebas, he had no intention of accepting her
feelings. Not when he was hiding so much, not when their circumstances were so
different.

Then I will meet you after a few words with the lady.

LadySolu

Tsuares expression darkened slightly. Although Sebas knew why, he did not say
it.

Solution did not try to come in contact with Tsuare and when she did, would only
give her a passing glance before leaving without a word. It was to be expected
that being ignored to such a degree would create a feeling of anxiety and in
Tsuares case, great fear.

Its alright. The lady has always been like that to everyone. She is not singling
you out in particular And I will only say it here, but the lady has quite a difficult
personality, after all.

As Sebas became overly talkative, the expression that was on Tsuares face
softened slightly.

She becomes sulky if she sees a cute child.

Im not comparedto her.

Tsuare hurriedly waved her two hands.

Although it was true that Tsuare was pretty, she was still no match for Solution.
However, what is beautiful and what is not was different for everyone.

If I had to go by appearances, then Tsuare would be more my type than the

lady.

T-t-thats!

As he gently looked at Tsuares brightly lit face pointed towards her feet, his
brows furrowed at her sudden change in expression.

And my body dirty

Sebas breathed an inward sigh from seeing Tsuares face make a complete
change from before. He then spoke while staring ahead.

Jewels are like that. Those without scratches are considered beautiful and
valuable.

Hearing his words, Tsuares expression darkened in an instant.

However humans are not jewels.

It looked as if Tsuare slightly raised her face.

It seems that Tsuare wishes to keep telling herself that she is dirty. But wherein
lies a humans beauty? For a jewel, it can be appraised with certainty. But the
beauty of a human what is the standard? Is it the average? The general
consensus? If so, would the minority opinion be considered meaningless?

After a brief pause, Sebas continued.

Like how people have their own definition of what they consider beautiful, I
believe that if a persons beauty lies separate from their appearance, it is not in
their past, but their heart. Although I do not know all of your history, from what I
have sensed of your inner self for these past few days spent with you, I do not
consider you dirty in the slightest.

Sebas closed his mouth and the world changed to one where the only sound was
of their footsteps. In the midst of it, Tsuare spoke with determination.

If you say Im beautiful then please hug

Sebas did not let her finish and embraced her.

You are beautiful.

As he spoke gently, silent tears flowed out of Tsuares eyes. Sebas softly patted
her back as to console her and slowly parted.

Tsuare, my apologies. The lady calls.

O-okay.

With a sad goodbye from Tsuare and her red eyes, Sebas knocked on the door
and opened it without even waiting for a response. As he closed the door behind
him, he gave Tsuare who was still glancing at him a smile.

Because the house was rented, despite having many rooms, there was barely any
furniture.

However, this room was decorated enough to not be embarrassed when

accepting guests. But a person with a discerning eye would be able to recognize
the lack of history and the shallowness of the room.

Milady, I have just returned.

Good work, Sebas.

The fake master of the residence sat on a lengthy sofa while wearing a bored
expression. In reality, that expression was an act. Because of the presence of the
outsider named Tsuare, she was donning the foolish mask of a proud lady.

Solution moved her gaze from Sebas to the door.

Shes left.

It seems that way.

While scanning each others faces, like usual, Solution was the first to open her
mouth.

When will you drive her out?

This was what Solution asked every time they met. And like every time, Sebas
gave the same reply.

When the time comes.

If it were like usual, the conversation would have been finished. Solution would
sigh and that would have been it. However, today, Solution did not seem to want
to leave it at that and continued.

Could you clearly explain when this time you speak of will be? There is no
guarantee that hiding that human will not lead to a troublesome incident. Will
that not interfere with Ainz-samas will?

There still has not been any incidents thus far. To think that you would panic
because you fear what some humans might do, that is not appropriate behavior
for one who serves Ainz-sama.

A silence permeated between them and Sebas breathed a small sigh.

This was a very dangerous situation.

Although there was no emotion on Solutions face, Sebas could feel that she was
angry with him. Even if this residence was only a base of operations, Solution still
considered it as a branch of the Great Tomb of Nazarick. She could not condone
the presence of a human that did not have the masters permission.

Solution did not try to attack Tsuare thus far because Sebas was firmly keeping
her in check. However, if this continued, it would become impossible for him to
control her in the near future.

Sebas dwelled on the fact that he was running out of time.

Sebas-sama. If that human becomes an obstacle to Ainz-samas orders then

She will be disposed of.

Sebas assured her as to not let her finish the rest of her words. Solution closed
her mouth and stared at Sebas with unreadable eyes, then bowed her head.

Then I have nothing else that needs to be said. Sebas-sama, please dont forget
your words just now.

Of course, Solution.

However.

The emotion in Solutions mutter was strong enough to stop Sebas in his tracks.

However, Sebas-sama. Is it alright to not report to Ainz-sama? About that

thing.

Sebas fell silent for a few seconds, and then replied.

There will not be any problems. It would be discourteous to rob Ainz-sama of his
time for one human.

Entoma and the others should be communicating with you via

Messagedaily at the appointed time. Could you not simply say a few words on
the matter then? Are you intentionally hiding it?

Of course not. I would not do something like that to Ainz-sa.

Then you are not acting out of your own self-interest?

The air became tense.

Sebas realized that Solution had slightly readied herself into a stance. He
understood just how dangerous of a position he was in.

Every member of Nazarick pledged absolute loyalty to Ainz Ooal Gown and by
extension, the Supreme Beings. With the Guardians at the helm, it would not be
an exaggeration to say that every single member was in agreement of that
creed. Even the assistant butler, clair, who wants to conquer Nazarick for his
own, was loyal to the 41 Supreme Beings and regarded them with respect.

Needless to say, Sebas was one of them.

However, he still believed that it was wrong to cast out a pitiable existence
because of mere possibilities. Although with that said, he also knew very well that
the majority of Nazarick would not agree with him.

No, he thought he knew. Solutions reaction revealed just how shallow his
understanding had been.

Solution was serious. She was prepared to meet Sebas the butler in other
words, her superior in regards to the daily workings of Nazarick and one of the
strongest in close combat, with force depending on his answer. He had no idea
that Solution was prepared to go that far to erase the problem.

Sebas showed a smile.

From his smile, Solutions eyes looked at him strangely.

Of course not. The reason I am not reporting this to Ainz-sama is not because
of my own selfishness.

Then can you show the basis for your actions?

I hold her cooking skill in high regard.

Cooking... you say?

It looked as if question marks were hovering over Solutions head.

Indeed. And would it not appear strange to others if there were only two people
living in this large mansion?

That is possible.

Solution had no choice but to concede on that point. Not having servants while
living a life of luxury in a large residence would definitely appear odd.

I feel that at the very least, we should have one at least one servant with us. If
we were to invite guests to the house, would it not be suspicious if we cannot
even serve them a meal?

In other words, you are using that human as a part of our disguise?

Thats right.

But there is no need for it to be that human specifically.

Tsuare feels indebted to me. That means she would never leak information even
if she feels endangered. Am I wrong?

Very briefly, Solution thought it over, nodding soon after.

You are right.

Thats how it is. There should be no need to ask for Ainz-samas permission if
the matter is only regarding our cover. Not only that, he may even become angry
and tell us to handle such matters on our own.

Sebas quietly asked Solution, who was remaining silent.

Do you understand now?

Yes.

Then this should be enough for no.

Sebas cut his words short. He had heard a sound, like two hard objects colliding
with one another.

It was so subtle that anyone but Sebas might have missed it.

The erratic repetition of the noise confirmed that someone was doing it on
purpose.

Sebas opened the door to the room and focused his senses toward the end of the
hallway.

They both froze, realizing that the sound came from the knocker at the front door.
Since they first arrived in the Kingdom, no one had ever knocked on that door.
Any dealings they had were always done outside and invited no one to their
residence. It was a desperate measure to prevent others from finding out that
only two people were living in this large mansion.

But today, they had visitors. It would be more than enough to cause a
troublesome incident.

Sebas left Solution in the room and walked up to the entrance. He opened the
cover of the prop-up window attached to the front door.

What he saw through the hole was a man with wide shoulders surrounded on
both sides by the Kingdoms soldiers.

The man with the wide shoulders was dressed decently well. On his chest, he
wore a heavy crest that shone with the glint of copper metal. The healthy
complexion of his face was padded with blubber and he was remarkably fat,
perhaps due to his eating habits.

And lastly there was a man who seemed different from the rest.

His skin was pale, like it had never been exposed to sunlight. With sharp eyes and
gaunt cheeks, he looked like a bird of prey like the scavengers that ravaged
rotten carcasses. His black clothes hung loosely on him, making it obvious that
he was hiding weapons.

What irritated Sebas sixth sense was the air of blood and grudges that hovered
around him.

They were truly a mismatched group lacking cohesion. Sebas could not
determine their identity or their objective.

Who is it?

I am patrol officer Stafan Hevish.

The plump man at the very front spoke in a high pitched voice and revealed his
name.

He was a patrol officer, a civil servant tasked with keeping public order. A position
similar to the boss of the normal patrols that made their rounds around the city,
their duties included a wide range of categories. Because of this, Sebas could not
predict why this man named Stafan had decided to pay a visit and became
troubled.

Ignoring Sebas, Stafan continued to speak.

The Kingdom has a law that bans the buying and selling of slaves. It was
spearheaded by Princess Renner who drew up the plans which allowed it to pass.
We received a report that the people of this residence may be holding this law in
contempt and came to investigate.

He then finished by asking if he could step inside.

Although Sebas thought of various words of rejection, denying them entry could
escalate into a bigger problem. There was also no guarantee that Stafan was a
real civil servant. Despite the fact that the Kingdoms civil servants did indeed
wear the same crest as the one on Stafans chest. However, that still was not an
absolute guarantee. There was still a chance although it was a great crime
that it was a forgery.

With that said, allowing a few humans into the residence would not pose too big
of a problem. If it came to blows then Sebas could easily take care of it. In fact, it
would better if they were imposters.

Gleaning something from the silence that formed while Sebas was thinking,
Stafan opened his mouth a second time.

May I speak to the master of this residence? Of course, if the master is not
present then it cant be helped. But I dont think investigators going back emptyhanded will be a favorable outcome.

Stafan smiled with a face that did not carry even a hint of apology. Hidden behind
that expression was a threat backed by the power of the law.

Before that, I have something Id like to ask you. Who is the man standing
behind you?

Hmm? His name is Succulent. Hes a representative of the store that filed the
report.

My name is Succulent. Pleasure making your acquaintance.

Seeing the faint smile on Succulents face, Sebas understood that he had lost.

His smile was that of a cruel hunter mocking his prey for falling into his trap. It
was safe to assume that he had come after perfect preparations. In that sense,
there was a good chance that Stafan was indeed a real civil servant. He most
likely also had a plan prepared should Sebas refuse them. Then at the very least,
Sebas had to try and figure out the opponents intentions.

I understand. I will deliver the news to the lady. Please wait there for a while.

Of course, well wait.

But please make it quick. We dont have the leisure of dallying.

Succulent smiled and Stafan shrugged his shoulders.

Understood. Then if you will excuse me.

Sebas closed the cover and turned in the direction of Solutions room. But before
that, he would have to tell Tsuare to go hide deeper inside.

With the soldiers left out by the door, the two people who were guided inside
Stafan and Succulent each wore an astonished face from seeing Solution.

They had not expected to meet such a beauty. Stafans expression slowly
loosened and his eyes traveled back and forth between her face and chest. He
swallowed his saliva, eyes filling with lust. On the other hand, Succulents face
gradually grew hard.

To Sebas, it became obvious who he needed to be vigilant of. He offered the two
the sofa opposite from Solution.

Solution who was already sitting and Stafan, who was just seated, Succulent
introduced them.

So, just what exactly is going on?

At Solutions question, Stafan faked a cough as he spoke.

According to a report from a certain store, apparently, a certain individual

dragged away their employee. As he did so, the individual unduly handed over
money to a different employee. Buying slaves is outlawed in our country dont
you think that what this person did was illegal?

Stafans shoulders grew increasingly tense, as if he was slowly becoming angry.

Solution replied in a bored voice.

Is that so?

The attitude behind her response left the two men blinking. Although they were
applying pressure, her behavior was completely unexpected.

I leave all complicated matters to Sebas. Sebas, take care of the rest.

A-are you fine with that? Depending on how it turns out, you may be branded as
a criminal.

My, how scary. Sebas, if it seems likely that I will become a criminal then do tell
me. Then everyone, I bid you well.

Solution said her goodbyes and left them with a bright smile. No one could say
anything to her as she left the room. The power of a beautys smile was
confirmed in that moment.

Before the sound of the door closing could ring out, they heard the astonished
voices of the soldiers from seeing Solution.

then I will listen to what you have to say in her place.

Sebas smiled and took a seat in front of the two men. Stafans behavior was
awkward, still entranced by her smile. However, as if to cover for him, Succulent
broke in.

Alright, then mind if I ask you some questions? Like youve heard from Hevish
sama at the entrance, our well, our employee has gone missing, you see. I
interrogated a certain
someone and he says that he handed her over after receiving money. Though I
dont even want to imagine one of our employees doing something like that, I
had no choice but to call the authorities.

Thats right. A dirty crime like slave trading will not be tolerated!

He slammed down on the table.

Thats why Succulent-kun here who called it in without fearing the stores bad
reputation spreading is quite the exemplary citizen!

Thank you, Hevish-sama.

Succulent lowered his head to Stafan, who was speaking with such enthusiasm
that he was spitting at the mouth.

What is with these theatrics?

Thinking so in his head, Sebas began to ponder. The two men in front of him were
definitely working together. Then without a doubt, they made thorough
preparations before commencing their attack. As such, his defeat was certain.
The question then was how to minimize his losses.

And on the flip side, what was Sebas condition to emerge victorious in this
situation?

The victory condition for Nazaricks butler, Sebas, was to solve this problem
without drawing further attention. It was not to protect Tsuare.

However

I suspect that the man who claims to have received money could be lying.
Where is he now?

Hes been arrested for dealing in slavery and is currently locked up in a cell. And
the result from his testimony and our careful investigation is

that the one who purchased our employee is you, Sebas-san.

It meant that the man was caught and had confessed to everything. There was a
good chance that he was pressured to change his testimony so that it would
benefit them.

Sebas was torn between whether to feign ignorance, lie, or deny it outright.

What if he said that she wasnt in the residence? What if he said that he killed
her?

Countless ideas ran through his mind but the possibility of them working was low.
They would not retreat so easily. Though before that, he had to know one thing.

But how did you come to the conclusion that it was me? Where is your proof?

That was the part Sebas could not figure out. As long as he did not leave behind
anything that would reveal his name or identity, there should not have been any

evidence. Then how did they figure out this location? He was always careful of
being followed whenever he was outside. He had trouble believing that someone
who could tail him without him noticing existed in this city.

The scroll.

A flash ran through Sebas mind.

The scroll that he bought from the Magicians guild.

That scroll was definitely different from others in its impressive craftwork.
Someone who knew what they looked like would recognize that his scroll was
bought from the Magicians guild. Then they could trace his steps and glean
something out of it. A person dressed as a butler while carrying a scroll would be
that much more conspicuous.

But even so, that still was not enough evidence to place Tsuare in this residence.
He could argue that it was just someone who looked similar. The problem would
be that things would get more complicated if they were to search the mansion.
Thats right. They would be forced to admit that including Tsuare, only three
people were living in this large mansion.

Sebas resigned himself.

Its true that I brought the girl here with me. However, at that time the girl was
severely injured and on the verge of death. I had no choice but to take her.

In other words you admit that you used money to trade for the girl?

Before that, may I speak with the man you arrested?

Unfortunately that will not be possible. We cant have you two matching your
stories.

Then

I do not mind if you listen to our conversation.

As he was about to say so, Sebas closed his mouth.

In the end, this was a race that had been planned beforehand. There was little
chance that the situation would improve even if he were to go to where the man
was. Going on the offensive from this angle would only be a waste of time.

Then are you admitting to the fact that the girl was indeed a victim of those
horrible injuries? From the governments perspective, I feel that this would be
considered worse.

The work in our shop is pretty difficult. It cant be helped if she were to get
injured. You see that often with the mines and such, its the same.

I do not think that the injuries you are talking about and hers are the same.

Hahaha, its the entertainment business but we get a lot of different customers.
We try to be careful though. Well, I understand Sebas-sans point. We will be a
little yes, a little more careful.

a little?

Well, yes. Anymore and it costs money, here and there.

At Sebas question, Succulent wore a mocking smile, the kind where only the
corners of the lips curl upwards.

Sebas too, responded with a smile.

Enough.

Stafan sighed deeply, like he was dealing with an idiot.

My duty is to check whether or not there was a transaction involving slaves.

Checking on how workers are treated is for someone else. It seems that this
incident was not connected to slavery.

Then could you tell me the name of the civil servant who is in charge of the
working conditions?

Hmm, Id like to tell you but its complicated. Unfortunately, someone who
interferes with anothers work isnt very popular.

Then please wait until then.

Stafan grinned, as if he was waiting for those words.

I wish I could do that, I really do. But since the report has already been made, I
have to arrest you people and investigate as soon as possible, by force if
necessary.

In other words, he had no time.

Even now, looking at the circumstantial evidence, its obvious that youre guilty.
But the store wants to resolve the matter cleanly. Of course, there will have to be
compensation depending on the agreement. And itll also be a little costly to
destroy the false written report about the slave trading.

What is the breakdown, exactly?

Well, you see, were going to need you to return our employee to us along with
compensation for the profit loss during the time she was away.

I see, and how much would that be?

In gold coins lets see here. Well, Ill give you a discount, a 100 gold pieces
and an additional 300 for compensation, making it 400 in total. Hows that?

Quite a fortune, how is that broken up? What type of work does she do on a
given day? How much of it?

At that moment, Stafan interrupted him.

Ah, wait a moment. That shouldnt be all of it, Succulent-kun.

Quite so, I almost forgot. You mentioned that since a report has been filed,
destroying the entry will require a fee even if we reach a settlement.

Of course, Succulent-kun. You cant forget that part.

Stafan grinned.

But.

Hmm?

No, its nothing.

Sebas swallowed his words and smiled.

Succulent bowed his head to Stafan and continued his talk.

Hmm, I apologize for that, Hevish-sama. Anyways, the fee will be a third of the
compensation so a 100 pieces. In total, that will come out to 500 pieces.

I paid money back when I brought her here, is that part included as well?

What are you saying? Listen here, from the moment you agreed, you never
bought a slave. In other words, the money involved in that transaction never
existed. You probably dropped it somewhere.

Did he expect Sebas to simply pretend that he dropped a hundred gold pieces?
Well, they most likely already each took half.

However, the girls body still has not healed completely. If you try to take her
with you now, she may suffer a relapse. There is also a chance that she may lose

her life in the treatments to follow. I believe that it will be safer for her stay with
us for the time being.

Succulents eyes glinted oddly. Noticing his change, Sebas knew that he had
made a mistake. He had revealed that Tsuare was important to him.

Of course, of course, youre right. If she died then you would obviously have to
recompense us, then how about you lend us the lady of this house until her
treatment is finished?

Ohhh! Thats a splendid idea. It goes without saying he should plug up the hole
that hes responsible for!

The smile covering Stafans face was clearly filled with lust. He was probably
already undressing Solution in his mind.

Sebas smile disappeared and his face became expressionless.

Although Succulent was probably joking, he will no doubt push for that idea if
Sebas were to show a weak spot. From the moment that the fact he valued
Tsuare was revealed, the possibility that this troublesome incident will grow
bigger in the future was right before his eyes.

Wont excessive greed lead to trouble?

Ridiculous!

Stafans face became dyed red as he shouted loudly.

Like a pig to the slaughter.

Thinking so in his head, Sebas wordlessly watched Stafan.

What do you mean greedy?! This is all born from my heart that only wishes to
safeguard the law as established by the esteemed Princess Renner! How dare
you be so disrespectful!

Now, now, calm down, Hevish-sama.

As soon as Succulent intervened, the screaming Stafan immediately controlled

his temper. That sudden change suggested that his previous anger was not
genuine, only a ploy to appear more threatening.

Even your acting is clumsy.

Sebas thought so in his head.

But still, Succulent-kun

Hevish-sama, since we already said everything that we came here to say, how
about we come back in two days to hear his reply? Will that be fine, Sebas-san?

Yes, I understand.

With that, the discussion was over. Sebas saw them out to the entrance.

As the last to leave, Succulent smiled and said a few words to Sebas.

But I should really thank that prostitute. I never expected for a merchandise that
was about to be scrapped to lay this big of a golden egg or so a certain
someone says.

Leaving those words behind, the door closed shut with a loud bang.

Sebas continued to stare at the door, as if it was invisible. His face was calm, not
showing any emotion in particular. However, something was clearly present deep
within his pupils.

He was angry.

No, such a vague word did not accurately describe what he was feeling.

Fury, wrath, they would be more fitting.

The reason Succulent showed his true intentions as he left was because he had
blocked off all avenues of escape, because Sebas had no way to respond his
own victory was certain.

Solution, show yourself.

In response to his voice, Solution emerged like water oozing out of shadow. She
had used a skill from her assassin class to melt into the shadows.

I assume that you heard our discussion.

Sebas words were merely a confirmation. Solution nodded her head, as if it

didnt even need to be said.

So what are you planning to do, Sebas-sama?

He couldnt answer her question immediately. His lack of a reply drew an

obviously cold gaze from Solution.

Will you hand over the human and be done with the matter?

I doubt that the problem will be solved that way.

Is that so?

If we show a weakness then they will come for more. They belong to that sort.
The problem will not be solved even if we were to hand Tsuare over to them. The
bigger problem is how much information they gleaned from investigating us.
Although we came to the capital disguised as merchants, if they dig deeper and
find a blind spot they will know that our identities are fake.

Then what do you plan to do?

I do not know. I will go outside for a walk and think it over.

Sebas opened the front door and stepped outside.

Solution silently watched Sebas as his back grew smaller in the distance.

Absurd.

If he had not brought that human with him, this series of incidents would never
have occurred. With that said, that was all in the past. What was important was
what to do from here on out.

As Sebas subordinate, she should not act arbitrarily while ignoring the words of
her superior. However, it seemed that doing nothing and leaving the situation as
is would be more dangerous.

If our youngest was here if we moved as Pleiades then we wouldnt have a

problem

She hesitated.

She hesitated to the point where even she herself thought it was excessive.

Finally, she found her determination and opened her left hand.

A scroll jumped out of her hand, as if it were rising to the surface. It was a scroll
that she had been storing in her body until now. Currently, thanks to Demiurges
efforts, the day when mass production of low rank scrolls would become possible
was nearly at hand. However, that was not the case back when Solution had been
deployed and as such, this Message scroll was given to her to be used only for
emergencies. Solution had decided that the current situation required it.

She opened the scroll and activated the magic contained within. Now used up,
the scroll crumbled to ash and completely vanished by the time it touched the
ground.

In sync with the activation of the magic, Solution felt something like a string
connecting her with her target and brought out her voice.

Ainz-sama?

Is this Solution? What is it? Seeing how you were the one to contact me, is it
an emergency?

Yes.

For an instant, Solution fell silent. That time was born from her thinking of her
loyalty to Sebas, considering the possibility that it was all her misunderstanding.
However, her loyalty to Ainz was stronger than everything.

And although they were to always act in the interests of Nazarick, of the 41
Supreme Beings, it could be said that Sebas current situation ignored this creed.

For this reason, she opened her mouth to hear the judgment of her master.

There is a chance that Sebas-sama has betrayed us.

Huh? Ehhhh?! Wait, no way Hrrmph enough with your jokes, Solution. To
utter such words without proof is inexcusable . You have proof?

Yes. Although it is not enough to be called proof.

CHAP
TER 4

Part 1

Top Fire Month (Month 9), Day 3, 4:01

As soon as he entered Gazefs residence, the fatigue that had built up in his body
hit him all at once and Brain spent almost the entire day asleep. When he awoke,
he ate a light meal and again, fell back into sleep.

Although he didnt want to admit it, the reason he could get this much rest in
Gazefs home was because of the sense of security. Even if he knew that Gazef
would be no match for Shalltear, his old enemys home, which he considered to
be the safest place in the world, gave Brain peace of mind and allowed him to
rest.

The light shining through the shutters fell on Brains face. The sunlight seeped
into his eyelids and woke him from his deep, dreamless slumber.

He opened his eyes and closed them again due to the blinding sunlight, blocking
a sliver with his hand.

Brain sat up and scanned his surroundings like a mouse. The simple room
contained only the bare necessities. His equipment was lying in a corner of the
room.

This is the guestroom of the Kingdoms Warrior Captain?

With a sigh of relief, Brain spoke with sarcasm as he stretched. With a cracking
noise, his stiff body loosened as his blood circulation returned.

He let out a large yawn.

That guy probably lets his soldiers sleep here from time to time. Wont they be
disappointed with a house like this?

The reason the nobles lived extravagant lives wasnt solely due to their love of
luxury. It was to show off and keep up appearances.

Likewise, if their leader was surrounded in luxurious furnishings, it would stoke

the ambitions of the soldiers and make them work harder.

No, thats just pointless meddling.

Brain muttered and snorted back a laugh, not at Gazef, but at himself.

For it was now the second time that his heart found comfort after a shock large
enough to drive him to despair. It must be, since he had the peace of mind for
such trivial thoughts.

Brain thought of the appearance of that powerful monster and could not stop his
hands from trembling.

As expected

He could not shed the terror in his heart.

Shalltear Bloodfallen.

Brain Unglaus, a man who gave his all to the sword, could not even reach her
feet. She was an existence of absolute strength, a monster among monsters with
an appearance as if all the beauty of this world was concentrated in one place.
She was a being that possessed true power.

Just imagining it felt as if terror was piercing his entire body.

Ensnared by the fear of that monster chasing him, he fled all the way to the
capital with almost no sleep or rest. The fear of Shalltear appearing before him
while he slept, of her clawing through the darkness as he ran on the road... he
was dominated by that uneasiness and moved without getting a decent night of
sleep.

Although the reason he fled to the capital was because he hoped that a place
with many people would allow him to hide amongst them, even he himself did
not expect that the terrifying ordeal of his escape would exhaust his mind to the
point where he would seek his own death.

It could also be said that his meeting with Gazef was also outside of his
expectations. Perhaps the small hope that Gazef would be able to do something
for him caused Brain to subconsciously turn his feet in his direction. The answer
was unknown.

What am I to do now

There was nothing.

In his open hand, there was nothing.

He turned his eyes to his equipment resting in the corner of the room.

The katana that he obtained to defeat Gazef Stronoff, but what good would it do
even if he were to beat him? With the knowledge of an existence that was
tremendously more powerful than he, what meaning was there in their
insignificant bickering?

Maybe I should work the fields at least that might still mean something.

As he laughed bitterly at himself, Brain felt someones presence standing outside

the door.

Unglaus, I see youre awake.

The voice belonged to the master of the house.

Yeah, Im up, Stronoff.

The door opened and Gazef stepped inside. He was securely wearing his
equipment.

You were sleeping quite well. I was surprised.

Yeah, thanks to you. Sorry.

Dont mind it. But I must now be off for the palace. Tell me what happened to
you when I return.

Its a gruesome story. You might end up like me.

Still, I have to hear it. Perhaps a drink will make it easier to listen Until then,
treat this as your own home and make yourself comfortable. For meals or
anything else you may need, ask the house servants and it will be prepared. And
if you wish to go into the city do you have money?

I dont but if need be Ill just sell the item on my hand.

Brain lifted his hand wearing the ring to better show Gazef.

Are you fine with that? It looks quite expensive.

Whatever.

Originally, this item was also something he obtained in order to defeat Gazef.
Now that he realized that it was for naught, would there be any reason to
treasure it?

It may be difficult to sell expensive items and it also takes time for the purchase
price to be prepared. Take this with you.

Gazef tossed a small pouch. The clinking sound of metal rang out from the pouch
that landed in Brains hand.

Sorry. Ill be borrowing this for a bit then.

Part 2

Top Fire Month (Month 9), Day 3, 10:31

Sebas walked while thinking of how to deal with the five people who were tailing
him after he left the residence. He had no particular destination in mind. He only
believed that moving his body and a change of scenery would help him think of a
good idea.

Eventually, he found that a crowd had formed up ahead.

There, a voice that sounded like both anger and laughter rang out, along with the
sound of something being beaten. In the crowd, people were remarking about
how someone was going to be killed, and that someone should call the guards.

Although he couldnt see past the crowd, some kind of violence was certainly
occurring.

Sebas thought about taking a different road, but just as he was about to change
his direction, he hesitated and continued forward.

He was heading towards the midst of the crowd.

Pardon.

With that single phrase, Sebas moved between the crowds and stepped inside.

As if they were in awe of the strange movements of the old man who was slipping
through, everyone who was in Sebas path shrank away from him as he passed
by. It seemed like there was another person aside from Sebas trying to make his
way deeper into the crowd. From his voice asking to let him pass, he sounded
flustered from being unable to go through.

Having arrived at the center of the crowd without much difficulty, Sebas
confirmed with his own eyes what was going on.

Several men in ragged clothes were kicking something all at once.

Sebas wordlessly continued on. He approached the men till he was close enough
to stretch out his hand and touch them.

Whats with this old man?!

One of the five men there spotted Sebas and asked roughly.

I thought it was a bit noisy.

You want to be taught a lesson too?

The men moved to surround Sebas, revealing the thing they were kicking. It was
a boy. Whether it was from the mouth or the nose, blood flowed from his face as
the boy lay sprawled out. He was unconscious from being kicked for a long time
but was still breathing.

Sebas gazed at the men. The smell of alcohol hung in the air around them, as
well as from their breaths. Their faces were dyed red and it was not from
exercise. Perhaps they could not control their violence because they were drunk.

Sebas spoke to them with a blank expression.

Though I do not know your reasons, I believe you have done enough.

Ahn? He dirtied my clothes with his food. Im supposed to just let that go?

At the place the man was pointing to, there was indeed a slight smudge.
However, their clothes was dirty from the beginning. Looking at it that way, the
spot wasnt even that noticeable.

Sebas turned his eyes to the one who looked to be the leader among the group.
Although the difference was indistinctable, almost impossible to notice for a
human, Sebas could perceive it with his outstanding senses as a warrior.

Truly this city has terrible public order.

Ahn?

From his remark that seemed to be confirming something far off in the distance,
one of the men felt that he was ignoring them and let out a voice filled with
anger.

Get out of my sight.

What? Gramps, what did you just say?

I will tell you one more time. Get out of my sight.

You bastard!

The face of the man who appeared to be their leader became dyed red. He raised
his fist to strike and collapsed.

Voices of surprise rang out from every direction, and of course, from the four
remaining men as well.

What Sebas did was simple. He used his fist to hit the mans chin with pinpoint
accuracy at a breakneck speed barely visible to the human eye and rattled
the mans brain in his skull. Although he could have blown him away with a speed
indiscernible to the human eye, but he would not be able to instill fear in the
others. That was why he restrained his strength.

Will you continue?

Sebas asked quietly.

As if his calmness and strength rendered them sober, the men retreated a few
steps while collectively apologizing. Sebas thought that the one they should be
apologizing to was someone else but did not express it.

Sebas turned his eyes away from the men as they helped their comrade up from
the ground. He then tried to approach the boy but halted midway.

What was he doing?

Right now, he had his own problem that needed to be taken care of immediately.
But he was trying to shoulder yet another burden. How foolish. When it came
down to it, were these not precisely the types of thoughtless actions and
kindness the reasons why he was in such a mess in the first place?

The boy was saved; he had to be satisfied with just that.

Despite such thoughts, Sebas approached the boy who was lying on the ground.
He lightly touched the boys back and poured in his Ki. A complete recovery
would be simple if he were to use his full strength, but that would be exceedingly
conspicuous.

Having decided that he should stop at just the bare minimum, Sebas motioned
towards the person who happened to be in his vision.

Please take this child to the temple. Its possible that his ribs are broken. Be
wary of this and please carry him carefully on a board so that he does not move
around too much.

Seeing the man he gave the instructions to nod his head, Sebas moved on. There
was no need for him to squeeze through the crowds. Wherever he walked, the
crowd parted before him.

As Sebas was about to be on his way, he sensed that the number of people
following him had increased.

However, there was a problem. It was the identities of the new followers.

The five who were tailing him from the residence were without a doubt,
Succulents men. Then just who were the two people who began following him
after the incident with the boy?

By their stride and the sound of their footsteps, they seemed to be adult men.
But he could not guess as to whom.

Thinking about it will not yield an answer. Then I should first capture them.

Sebas made a turn on the road and walked deeper and deeper into the darkness.
Still, he was being followed.

It makes me wonder if they really have any intention of hiding themselves.

They showed no signs of hiding the sound of their footsteps. Sebas wondered
whether it was because they were not skilled enough to do so, or if there was a
different reason. Regardless, he could just confirm it for himself. As the presence
of passersby grew faint, Sebas was about to make his move when as if
matching his timing the voice of a man still young flowed from one of the
followers.

Excuse me.

Part 3

Top Fire Month (Month 9), Day 3, 10:27

On his way back to the palace, Climb was lost in thought as he moved his feet.

In his head, he thought of the bout with Gazef and repeatedly imagined how the
fight could have gone better. As he was deciding which moves to try if he were to
get another chance, a shout rang out. A crowd had gathered. Two soldiers stood
next to them and awkwardly looked on.

Rowdy voices could be heard from the center of the crowd. By the sound, it did
not bode well.

Climbs face hardened as he approached the soldiers.

What are you two doing?

From the sudden voice coming from behind them, the soldiers turned around and
looked at Climb in surprise.

They were equipped with a chain shirt and spear. They wore a surcoat bearing
the Kingdoms coat of arms over their chain shirt. Although they were the
standard equipment for a guard, these two did not seem to be very well trained.

For starters, their bodies seemed out of shape. They were not cleanly shaven and
their chain shirts were poorly maintained and appeared dirty. As a whole, they
gave off the air of a lack of discipline.

Who the

Seeing Climb who was younger than him speak to him out of the blue, the guard
spoke in a confused voice with a hint of irritation.

Im off duty.

As Climb spoke firmly, the confusion that was in the guards voice spread to his
face. This boy who was younger than they were was speaking to them as if he
were their superior.

As if they judged that it would be wiser to be humble, the guards straightened

their backs.
We think theres been some sort of a commotion.

Climb suppressed the urge to reprimand them that that much was obvious. Unlike
the soldiers stationed in the palace, the guards who patrolled the surroundings
were drawn from the common folk and did not receive much training. In other
words, they were like civilians who learned how to swing a weapon.

He turned his eyes away from the awkward guards and towards the crowd.
Rather than relying on these two, it would be faster for him to act.

Although he might be overstepping his authority and interfering with the work of
the patrols, if he were to ignore a citizen in need, then he would not be able to
show his face to his benevolent master.

You guys wait here.

Without waiting for a reply, Climb tried to force his way through the crowd.
Although there was some space, he could not pass through. No, if any human
could pass through here that in itself would be strange.

While he was trying to force his way in even as he was being pushed back, Climb
heard a voice.

Get out of my sight.

What?

I will tell you one more time. Get out of my sight.

You bastard!

This was bad. They were about to strike the old man.

Climbs face was dyed red as he desperately tried to push his way inside. What
entered his vision was the appearance of an old man and the men surrounding
him. A ragged boy lay at the feet of the men.

The neatly dressed old man gave off an elegance that made him seem like
nobility, or someone who served one. Each of the men surrounding him had a
rough appearance and seemed to be drunk. It was obvious which side was in the
wrong.

The largest among the men made a fist. When comparing him and the old man,
the difference was overwhelming. The girth of their bodies, size of their muscles,
the violent temperament that did not hesitate to spill blood; if he were to strike
him, the old man would easily be sent flying. The people around them who
realized this imagined the tragedy that was about to befall the old man and let
out a small scream.

However, Climb who was in the middle of the crowd felt a small sense of danger.

Without a doubt, the side with the men appeared tougher. But instead, he felt as
if it was the old man who was giving off the atmosphere of absolute strength.

That moment of absent-mindedness cost Climb the chance to stop the mans
violence. He raised his fist and

collapsed.

Voices filled with surprise came from Climbs surroundings.

The old man had accurately struck the mans chin. Not only that, he did so with
incredible speed. It was so quick that someone like Climb who trained their
dynamic vision could only barely catch it.

Will you continue?

Composure and skill that you could not tell from his outer appearance. Combined,
they had no trouble sobering up the men from their drunken stupor. No, even the
onlookers were becoming ensnared by the old mans energy. The men completely
lost their will to fight.

N-no, it was our fault.

As they retreated back a few steps while apologizing in unison, the men grabbed
their leader and fled. Climb had no intention of chasing after them. As if his heart
had been stolen away by the old man with the straight back, Climb could not
move.

A posture that was as straight as a sword, it was an appearance that any warrior
would long for.

The old man touched the boys back as if to check his condition. He then asked a
person nearby to treat him and moved on. The crowd parted in a straight line to
make way for the old man. No one could tear their eyes away from his back, an
appearance that commanded nothing less.

Climb quickly ran to the collapsed boy and took out the potion that he received
from Gazef during training.

Can you drink?

There was no reply. He was completely unconscious.

Climb opened the lid and poured the contents over the boys body. Although it
was easy to think of potions as medicine to drink, there was no problem in
pouring it over the body. That was the greatness of magic.

The potion seeped into the boys body, as if his skin was absorbing the fluid.
Seeing that the boys complexion regained its color, Climb felt relieved and
nodded his head.

The surrounding people saw Climb use an expensive item like a potion and were
just as surprised as they were with the old mans skill. However, needless to say,
Climb did not regret it. As long as citizens paid taxes, it was the duty of those
who lived off of those taxes to protect them and ensure their safety. Since he
could not fulfill his duty, Climb felt that he had to do at least this much.

Although the potion should ensure that there would not be any more problems
with the boy, it would be better to take him to the temple just in case. Climb
signaled to the guards that he had on standby. It seemed they called for more;
the two guards were joined by three more men.

The surrounding people looked at the guards that were arriving only just now with
reproach. The guards looked nervous as Climb spoke to one of their men.

Take this child to the temple.

What happened here? Exactly

There was violence. I used a healing potion so there shouldnt be any problems,
but take him just in case.

Yes, understood!

Leaving the guards to finish up, Climb judged that there was nothing more for
him to do here. Nothing good will come of a soldier who worked in the palace
meddling any further with the work of others.

I assume you can find out what happened here from a witness who saw it from
the beginning.

I will do as you say.

Having received their orders, the guards found their confidence and quickly
moved out. Climb then stood up and ran, ignoring the voices of the guards asking
where he was going.

Arriving at the bend in the road where the old man had turned, Climb slowed his
pace.

He then followed him.

His eyes fell on the old mans back walking ahead of him.

Although he wanted to talk to him immediately, whenever he found the courage

to do so, Climb lowered his face. It felt as if the pressure would overpower him
of the invisible, thick wall.

The old man turned this way and that and the paths grew darker. Climb followed
him from behind without being able to say a word.

This was the same as tailing him.

Climb felt like pulling out his own hair from what he was doing. No matter how
hard it was to speak to him, this wasnt right. Climb tried looking at it as if the
situation was reversed while following him.

Eventually, they turned into an alleyway with no one in sight. Climb took several
deep breaths and, like a guy confessing to a girl he liked, squeezed out his
courage and spoke.

Excuse me.

In response to his voice, the old man turned.

Both his hair and beard were white, but his upright back reminded him of a sword
forged in steel. The clear features of his face were lined with wrinkles and
although they made him appear gentle, his eyes were sharp, like a hawk gazing
at its prey.

He even gave off the air of high nobility.

What is it?

Although he could somewhat feel the old mans age through his voice, it sounded
imposing and was overflowing with life. Feeling an invisible pressure from his
eyes, Climb gulped.

Uh, uh.

Climb was pushed back by the old mans energy and could not speak. Then, the
old man appeared to release the pent up energy building up inside him.

Who are you?

His tone became gentle. Climb was finally released from the pressure and his
throat could now move normally.

My name is Climb, a soldier of this country. Im here to give you my sincere

thanks for doing what I should have done in my stead.

As Climb bowed low, the old man narrowed his eyes as if he was thinking and
muttered a quiet Ahh as if he finally understood what he meant.

Do not mind it. Well then.

As the old man tried to end the conversation and walk away, Climb raised his
face and asked.

Please wait a moment. Truthfully though Im embarrassed to admit it, I

followed you. Actually, I dont mind even if you were to laugh at my forward
request, but if its okay with you, could you teach me that technique that you
used a little while ago?

What do you mean?

I am training to become stronger and wish to learn even a small portion of the
incredible movement and technique you showed just a while ago.

The old man scanned Climb from top to bottom.

Hmm please show me both of your hands.

Climb held out his hands and the old man stared at his palms with a piercing
gaze. It felt somewhat awkward. The old man flipped Climbs hands over and
scanned his fingernails, then nodded with satisfaction.

They are thick and tough, good hands of a warrior.

Hearing his words said with a smile, Climb felt his heart grow warm. He felt a joy
similar to when Gazef complimented him.

No, someone like me is insignificant as a warrior.

I do not think that you need be so humble may I ask you to show me your
sword next?

The old man grasped the sword in his hand and stared at the blade with sharp
eyes.

Aha is this a reserve weapon?

How did you know?!

As I thought, do you see the chip in the blade here?

Looking at the place he was pointing to, there indeed was a slight crack in one
side of the blade. He must have messed up his slash while training.

Ive shown you something embarrassing!

The shame made him want to disappear somewhere. Climb knew that he was
inexperienced and was very cautious, even nervous, about the state of his
weapon, all in an effort to increase his chance of victory by even the slightest
amount. No, he thought he did until this very moment.

I see. I have gotten a general sense of your personality. A warriors hands and
weapon are mirrors that reflect their wielder. You are a person who gives off quite
an agreeable impression.

Red up to his ears, Climb glanced up at the old man.

It was a gentle, graceful smile.

I understand. I will give you a bit of training. However

As Climb was about to express his thanks, the old man stopped him and
continued.

I have something that I would like to ask you. You did say that you are a soldier,
correct? Actually, a few days ago I helped a certain lady

Having heard the whole story from the old man who introduced himself as Sebas,
Climb felt an intense anger.

The fact that someone was abusing the liberation of slaves proclaimed by Renner
in such a way, realizing that even now, nothing has changed since then, he could
not hide his fury.

No, that wasnt it. Climb shook his head.

The slave market was banned by the laws of the kingdom. However, even if it
wasnt slavery, it wasnt rare to hear about people having to work in poor
environments due to debt. There were plenty of those byways regarding that law.
No, it was because of those byways that the law banning the slave market was
able to be passed in the first place.

The law Renner had enacted was almost meaningless. Although that sad thought
ran through his mind, he tossed it aside. What he had to think of now was Sebas
situation.

Climb furrowed his brow.

It was an overwhelmingly disadvantageous position. Although investigating the

girls work contract could allow them to retaliate, it was difficult to imagine that
they would leave a weak spot like that in their preparations. If he appealed to the
law, Sebas will definitely lose.

The reason their opponent did not opt to settle it legally was because they judged
that doing it their way would be more profitable.

Do you know anyone who can stop corruption or lend us aid?

Climb knew of only one person, his master. He could say with confidence that
there was no noble who was more pure and could be trusted than Renner.

However, he could not introduce her.

The ones who could do what they did would have various connections with
powerful people. Without a doubt, the nobles they are friendly with will have
significant authority. If the princess, who is part of the royalty faction, used her
authority to order an investigation and rescue and it resulted in hurting the
nobility faction, it could lead to a full scale conflict between the two groups.

Exercising power was not easy, especially in cases like the Kingdom where there
was no guarantee that two large factions getting into a conflict would not lead to
a civil war.

Renner could not cause the collapse of the Kingdom.

That was the reason why those topics came up in the discussion with Lakyus and
her party. That was why Climb did not say anything. No, he could not say
anything.

Interpreting something from Climbs silence born from his troubles, Sebas
muttered that he understood and told a shocking truth.

According to the girl, that place had many others besides her, regardless of
gender.

Impossible. Despite not being run by the slave trade organization, a brothel like
that exists? Or maybe thats the brothel that they were talking about?

Climb spoke.

If it was to only help them escape I could ask my master. She possesses
territory of her own so if they were to seek refuge there

Is that possible? And the girl could be sheltered as well?

I apologize, Sebas-sama. I cant tell you for certain without asking my master.
But my master is benevolent, that person will approve without a doubt!

Hoh. If your master is that reliable must be quite an amazing person indeed.

At Sebas question, Climb nodded deeply. No one could be greater, he claimed.

Though this regards a different matter, what happens if there is evidence that
the brothel is involved in the slave trade and thus breaking the law? Will that be
covered up as well?

Although thats possible, if the evidence was given over to the appropriate
hands I want to believe that the Kingdom would not be so corrupt as to ignore
it.

I understand. Then allow me to ask you a different a question. Why do you

wish to be strong?

Eh?

At the sudden change in topic, Climb unwittingly made a strange noise.

A moment ago, you asked me to teach you my technique. Though I determined

that you are someone who can be trusted, I wish to know the reason behind why
you seek strength.

Climb narrowed his eyes and Sebas question.

Why did he want to be stronger?

Climb was an abandoned child who did not know the faces of his parents. Stories
like his were not uncommon in the Kingdom. Dying in the mud wasnt uncommon
either.

Climb was also one of those whose fate was to die in the rain.

However on that day, Climb met the sun. The existence that had been crawling
in the dirt, in the darkness, was captivated by that light.

When he was young, he longed for her. And as he grew up, his feelings changed
shape without hesitation.

It was love.

He had to be rid of these feelings. The miracles that the wandering minstrels
sang of would never happen in reality. Like how man cannot touch the sun,
Climbs wish would never be fulfilled. No, it must not be fulfilled.

The woman that Climb loved, her fate was to eventually be married to another. A
princess could not be married to someone of an unknown birth like Climb,
someone who was lower than a commoner.

If the king was to die and the first prince succeeded the throne, Renner would
immediately have to marry a high-ranking noble. It was likely that such talks
were already underway between the prince and the high nobility. She may even
be sent away to a neighboring kingdom as a tool for a political marriage.

Rather, despite being at a marriageable age, the fact that Renner did not even
have a fianc, let alone marry, was what was strange.

To him, this moment in time was like gold. So much so that he would be willing to
pay any price to be able to stop time. If he did not pour all of his time into his
training, then he could enjoy that moment for even a tiny bit longer.

Climb was a simple, ordinary person with no talent. Even so, at the end of
training, he had considerable skill when compared with the other soldiers. Then
would it not be better to be satisfied and stop his training here so he can serve
Renner by her side just a little while longer?

However was that truly enough?

Climb yearned for the light of the sun. That was not a lie or a misunderstanding.
It was a thought born from Climbs honest truth.

However

Because Im a man.

Climb smiled.

Thats right. Climb wanted to stand by her side. The sun shines brilliantly in the
sky, a man could never stand next to it. Even so, he wanted to rise even higher

so that he could become an existence that can be closer to the sun, no matter
how marginal.

He did not wish to always remain as someone who had to raise his face to see
her.

This was the insignificant thoughts of a boy, but well suited for a boy
nonetheless.

He wanted to become a man who would suit the woman he yearned for, even if
they could never be together.

These thoughts were why he was able to endure the life without comrades, the
harsh training, and his studies that cut into his sleep time.

If people wanted to call him foolish and mock him, then let them.

Those who did not truly love another could never understand his feelings.

Sebas narrowed his eyes as he observed his sincerity. As if he was trying to

understand the myriad of meanings behind Climbs short answer. He then nodded
his head in satisfaction.

I have decided how to train you from your reply.

He stopped Climb as he was trying to express his gratitude.

However, I am sorry to say that you have no talent. Training you in earnest will
take quite some time, time that I do not have. I wish to train you so that the
results will show quickly but it will be very severe.

Climb gulped loudly. The glint in Sebas eyes made his back shudder.

The reason he didnt respond immediately was because he felt the power in
those eyes. It was a strength that could not possibly exist, one exceeding even
that of a serious Gazef.

I will tell you honestly, you may die.

This was not a joke.

Climbs hunch told him that he was speaking the truth. He didnt care whether or
not he died. However, that was only the case if it was for Renner. He did not want
to lose his life over a selfish matter.

It wasnt because he grew scared. No, perhaps that really was the reason.

Climb swallowed his saliva once and then hesitated. The surroundings were
dominated by a brief silence, quiet enough to hear the noises in the distance.

Whether you survive is up to you If you have something that you hold dear, a
reason to crawl forward and cling onto your life, you will be fine.

Was he not going to teach him about martial arts?

Despite such questions that rose to his mind, that was not the problem at hand.
Understanding what Sebas words meant, he accepted it and gave his reply.

I am prepared. I leave myself in your care.

Do you mean that you have the confidence to not die?

Climb shook his head, that wasnt it.

It was because in his heart, Climb always carried with him a reason to cling onto
life, even if he had to crawl on the floor.

Sebas nodded deeply, as if he had read what was in Climbs heart by looking into
his eyes.

I understand. Then I will start the training here.

Here?

Yes. It will only take a few minutes. Please raise your weapon.

What was he trying to do? With his mind filled with anxiety and confusion over
the unknown and a faint glimmer of expectation and curiosity, Climb drew his
sword.

The sound of the blade sliding from its sheath rang out through the narrow
alleyway.

Sebas quietly stared as Climb assumed a middle stance.

Then I will begin. Concentrate.

And in the next moment

With Sebas at the center, it seemed as if blades of ice had shot out in every
direction.

Climb could no longer speak.

A vortex of bloodlust was whirling around with Sebas at the center.

Energy that was so dense that its color became visible crashed into him like a
raging wave, making his heart feel as if it would explode in an instant. He thought
that he heard a sound like a soul screaming as it was being crushed. It sounded
as if it was coming from right by his side, a place far away, or perhaps from his
own mouth.

As he was engulfed by the black stream of bloodlust, Climb felt his consciousness
become dyed in white. The fear was so enormous that his mind was letting go of
its consciousness in order to ignore the situation.

Is this all that a man amounts to? This is only a warm-up.

In Climbs fading consciousness, Sebas disappointed voice sounded needlessly

loud.

The meaning of those words lodged themselves deeply into Climbs mind, deeper
than any blade. It was enough to very briefly let him forget the fear that was
crashing into him from the front.

Thump. His heartbeat grew louder.

Haaa!!

Climb released a large breath of air.

His eyes were wet with tears and despite being so frightened that he wanted to
run, he endured. The hands grasping the sword trembled and the tip of blade
shook as if it had gone insane. The trembling that ran through his whole body
caused his chain shirt to clink loudly.

However, Climb gritted his rattling teeth and tried to endure Sebas bloodlust.

Seeing his unsightly appearance, Sebas wore a sneer and slowly formed a fist
with his right hand that was right in front of Climbs eyes. After a few blinks, the
ball-like fist was completed.

Like setting an arrow to a string, the fist was slowly pulled backwards.

Even as he stood there trembling, Climb realized what was about to occur and
shook his head side to side. Needless to say, his signal did not affect Sebas.

Then die.

Like an arrow exploding from a taut string, Sebas fist flew at him with the sound
of it cutting the air.

This will be an instant death.

Climb realized this as time slowed down. It looked as if an enormous steel ball
even taller than himself was hurtling towards him at a fierce speed. His mind was
filled with the image of this complete, absolute death. Even if he were to raise his
sword and use it as a shield, it will be easily shattered by the fist.

His body did not even budge. The enormous anxiety rendered it completely stiff.

There was no way to escape the death in front of his eyes.

Climb gave in to his fate and at the same time, became angry with himself.

If he could not give his life for Renner, why didnt he just die back then? It would
have been better for him to die alone, shivering in the cold rain.

In his eyes, he saw Renners beautiful face.

It is said that when people are close to death, they see their life flash before their
very eyes. It is the effect from the brain searching the past memories for a way to
escape the situation. Still, he found it slightly amusing that the last thing he saw
was the smile of his master whom he loved and respected.

Thats right. What Climb saw was Renners smile.

Soon after she saved his life, the young Renner did not show her smile. When did
she start smiling?

He could not remember. However, he did recall seeing her smile shyly.

If she knew of Climbs death, would that smile be destroyed? Like the dark clouds
that block off the sun?

Dont make me laugh!

Anger surged from the bottom of Climbs heart.

She was the one who saved the life that was tossed out on the side of the road. If
so, his life was not his own. This body was for Renner, to grant her even the
smallest form of happiness

There has to be a way to get out of this!

The chains of fear were shattered by the manifestation of an intense emotion.

His hands moved.

His legs moved as well.

The eyes that were about to close shut were opened wide. He tried desperately
with the naked eye to detect the ultrahigh speed fist heading his way.

All of the senses in his body were pushed to their limit, to the point where he
could even feel the airs vibrations.

Like how people display superhuman strength at the scene of a fire, during an
emergency, the brain releases the safety placed on the muscles and allows them
to display a strength that would otherwise be impossible.

The brain secretes chemicals en masse and focuses the mind solely on survival. It
quickly processes massive amounts of information and selects the most optimal
action.

In this single moment, Climb had stepped foot into the world of first-rate warriors.
However, even that was surpassed by the speed of Sebas attack. It was possible
that it was already too late, that there may no longer be any time left to dodge
Sebas fist. Even so, he had to move. How could he give up?

In that rapid compression of time, his own movements appeared to be as slow as

a turtle. Despite this, Climb desperately moved his body.

And

Boom. With a roar, Sebas fist passed by Climbs face. The wind pressure from his
strike ripped off a few strands of hair from his head.

He heard a quiet voice ring out.

Congratulations. How does it feel to overcome the fear of death?

Unable to understand what he was saying, Climb wore a stupid expression on

his face.

How did it feel to face death? And how did it feel to overcome it?

Climb panted heavily and stared at Sebas with an absent-minded expression. His
face looked as if he had a few screws loose. The bloodlust had disappeared
without a trace. It was only after Sebas words finally entered his head that he
could feel a sense of relief.

As if that intense bloodlust was all that had been holding him up, Climb collapsed
like a puppet that had its strings cut.

While on his hands and knees, he indulgently sucked in the fresh air into his
lungs.

It is fortunate that you did not die from shock. There are times when the body
so strongly believes that it is dead that it forfeits its ability to sustain life.

There was still something bitter left in Climbs throat. This must be what death
tastes like, he thought.

Repeating this several times will allow you to overcome most fears. But you
must be cautious. Fear is what triggers the survival instinct. If it becomes
completely paralyzed, then you will be unable to recognize even the most
obvious of dangers. You must be able to distinguish between them.

T-though I am being rude, Sebas-sama, what are you?

What do you mean?

T-that bloodlust wasnt something that a normal person could give off. Just
who

At the moment, I am simply an old man who is confident in his skills.

Climb could not take his eyes off of Sebas smiling face. Although he seemed to
be smiling gently, it also looked like the fearsome smile of an overwhelming
power greatly surpassing Gazef.

He was an existence that may even be stronger than Gazef, the strongest warrior
in the surrounding countries.

Climb decided that his curiosity was satisfied with just that. He felt that no
good would come from digging any deeper.

However, the one thing that burned in his mind was the question of just who this
old man named Sebas actually was. He even considered the possibility that he
was one of the thirteen heroes from the past.

Then let us try it once mo.

W-wait! I have a question!

The frightened voice of a man sounded from behind, cutting off Sebas words.

Part 4

Top Fire Month (Month 9), Day 3, 9:42

Brain stepped out of Gazefs residence.

He looked over his shoulder and memorized its exterior so that he could find his
way back. He couldnt remember what it looked like back when Gazef had
dragged him here; his mind had been a bit hazy from hypothermia.

He at least knew the location of Gazefs house because he had planned to pay
him a visit in order to challenge him to a fight. However, since he only heard of it
through word of mouth, there was a small error in the information.

That roof doesnt have no damn sword stuck in it.

He closely observed the house while cursing the informant who gave him the
wrong information. It was much smaller when compared to the houses that
nobles lived in. If one had to compare, the house looked as if a decently wealthy
citizen could live in it. Regardless, it was more than enough for three people:
Gazef and the old couple working as live-in servants.

Committing it to memory, Brain resumed his walk.

He was not heading to any destination in particular.

He no longer wanted to go around looking for magic items, weapons, or armor.

What should I do

His muttering disappeared into empty space.

It wouldnt matter even if he were to just go off somewhere and disappear. Even
now, his mind was strongly drawn to that idea.

Although he searched his heart for what he wanted to do, he only found an
empty hole in its place. Not even the ashes of his shattered goal remained.

So then why.

Looking down, the katana was in his right hand. Underneath his clothes, he was
wearing his chain shirt.

The reason that he was gripping this katana before he arrived at the capital was
fear. Even if he knew that it would do nothing to the monster called Shalltear who
blocked his attack at full power with the nail of her pinky, the anxiety of being
without it was too much for him to bear.

Then why was he still holding it? It wouldnt have mattered even if he left it
behind. As expected, was it because he was nervous?

Thinking it over, Brain tilted his head.

No.

However, as to what emotion prompted him to bring his katana with him, no
answer came.

Brain walked while remembering the capital from back when he visited it for the
first time. While buildings like the palace and the Magicians guild were
unchanged, he spotted many buildings that were new. As Brain tried to enjoy the
gap in his memory, there was a commotion further down the road.

He frowned at the commotion. The sound coming from in front of him was filled
with the sharp feeling of violence.

As he was about to turn to take a different path, his eyes became drawn to an old
man. The old man looked as if he was slipping through the crowd as he headed
deeper inside.

W-what? What are those movements?

His eyes blinked several times as words involuntarily spilled out. Those
movements were too unbelievable. They made him think as if he had just seen a
daydream, or perhaps a result of some sort of a spell.

It was doubtful whether even Brain could follow the old mans movements. Such
technique was only possible if one could read the flow of the push and pull forces
generated by both the individual and the whole crowd.

What he saw was a mastery of the body.

His feet moved towards the old man without hesitation.

Having pushed aside the other people and arriving at the center of the crowd,
what Brain saw was the moment when the old man struck the mans chin at high
speed.

Just how? That attack just now if it was me, could I have dodged it? That might
be hard. Did he trick that mans senses? Am I just thinking too much? Anyways,
that was a clean textbook strike, not a single wasted movement

He could feel his groans of admiration spill from his mouth as he ruminated over
the attack that he had just witnessed.

Not only was he unable to see it clearly, it was very difficult to compare a
swordsman and a martial artist using the same unit of measurement. However,
even that short amount of time was more than enough to understand that the old
man was considerably powerful.

The old man may even be stronger than him.

While biting down on his lips, Brain compared the side of the old mans face with
the data of skilled opponents that he had in memory. However, he was different
from all of them.

Just who is he?

In the blink of an eye, the old man moved out of the crowd. A boy walked away,
as if to follow him. Acting on impulse, like he was being drawn in, Brain began to
follow the boy.

It felt as if the old man had eyes on his back, making it hard for Brain to follow
him closely. But with the boy, that was not a concern. And even if the boy was
found out, Brain himself would still be safe.

Shortly after he started to tail them, Brain detected the presence of several other
followers. However, whether they were following the old man or the boy was
none of his concern.

Eventually, the two turned a corner and their path continued to grow darker.
Brain felt nervous, it was like he was being lured out.

Does the boy not think its suspicious? Just as Brain began to wonder, the boy
spoke to the old man.

Because they had just turned a corner, Brain was able to hide in the alley and
listen in.

To sum up their conversation, the boy wanted to study under him.

What nonsense. That old man wont accept a greenhorn like him as a disciple.

When comparing the abilities of the two, if the boy was a pebble, then the old
man was like an enormous gem. They lived in completely different worlds.

How pitiful. I didnt think that not knowing the difference in skill between you
and others could be this pitiful. Thats enough, kid.

Brain thought to himself without saying it out loud.

While he meant it for the boy, it was also directed at his past self who was foolish
enough to believe that he was the strongest.

As he continued to eavesdrop he didnt pay much attention to the bit about

brothels it seemed to have been decided that the old man would train him
maybe once or twice. An old man of that caliber, to a boy like him, Brain could
think of nothing that would be worth teaching.

Whats going on? Did my eyes get hazy again? No, thats not it. That kids skills
arent anything special and he doesnt even have any talent!

Just what sort of training was he going to give him? But from this position, he
could only hear, not see. Unable to resist his curiosity, Brain killed his presence
and slowly moved to try and peer over the corner. At that moment

A terrifying energy pierced his entire body.

His scream could not be described in words.

His whole body froze solid.

It felt as if a giant carnivore was breathing inches from his nose. The world was
dyed in overwhelming bloodlust, rendering him unable to even blink, let alone
move. It made him wonder whether even his heart had stopped beating.

This presence may even rival that of Shalltear Bloodfallen, Brain thought, the one
he believed to be the strongest being in this world.

If the person was weak of mind, their heart would have stopped for real. His legs
shaking, he dropped to the ground with a thud.

If Im like this, could that kid be dead?

If he was lucky, then he would have fainted.

Bent over, trembling as he supported himself with his arms, Brain searched for
the presence of the two people and witnessed an impossible scene. Although it
was only for an instant, the shock made him completely forget his fear.

The boy was standing.

Like Brain, his two legs were shaking in terror. Despite this, he was still standing.

W-Whats going on? How can a kid like that stay standing?

He could not understand how the boy could be standing while he himself was on
his hands and knees in disgrace.

Did the boy have a magic item that blocks fear or knew a martial art to that
effect? Or did he possess some special talent?

He could not say for certain that the possibility did not exist. However, while
staring at the boys unreliable back, Brain knew intuitively that that was not the
case. Although impossible, it was the only thing he could think of.

The boy was stronger than Brain.

Ridiculous! Hows that possible!

Although it looked like he trained his body, he still lacked volume. From watching
how he moved his feet and body while following him, the boy didnt look to have
much talent. Even though it was like that, the result was different.

W-Whats going on? Am I that weak?

His sight grew dim.

Brain knew that tears were falling from his eyes. However, he could not summon
the energy to wipe them away.

Uuu, ugh kuh

He tried his best to not cry out loud. Even so, his tears flowed endlessly.

Why why.

Brain grasped the dirt on the ground and focused his strength in order to stand.
But the bloodlust that was crashing into this body made him unable to move an
inch. As if he was being controlled by someone else, his legs did not budge. The
best he could manage was to raise his face and look at the boy and the old man.

He saw his back.

Even now, the boy was still standing.

Even now, the boy was standing face to face with the old man and his bloodlust.
The back that he had thought was weak seemed incredibly far away.

Was I

Always this weak?

He felt angry with himself, for even after the bloodlust had dissipated, the best
he could manage was to stand.

Their training looked as if it was still going to continue. Unable to endure it any
longer, Brain squeezed out his courage and shouted as he jumped out of his
corner.

W-wait! I have a question!

He no longer had the luxury of thinking that he shouldnt interfere with their
training or that he should find the right timing to appear.

The boys shoulders jumped as the desperate voice caused him to turn around,
revealing his surprised expression. If their positions had been reversed, Brain too,
would have shown the same reaction.

First, I sincerely apologize for interrupting you two. Forgive me. I couldnt bear to
wait any longer.

Is he someone you know, Sebas-sama?

No, he is not. I see, so you do not know him either

They looked at him with suspicion. However, that was something he had already
predicted.

First and foremost, my name is Brain Unglaus. Once again, allow me to express
my apologies for interrupting you two. Im truly sorry.

He bowed deeper than before. He could feel the two moving slightly.

After what he deemed long enough to express his sincerity, Brain raised his face
and saw that their expressions contained less suspicion than before.

And what is your business with us?

From the old mans question, Brain glanced at the boy.

What is it?

As the boy pondered, Brain asked him a question, like coughing up blood.

Why how can you remain standing after receiving that bloodlust?

The boys eyes widened slightly. Because his face was expressionless, such a
slight movement felt like a large change in his emotions.

Id like to hear it. That bloodlust was beyond what a normal person could
endure. Even this body of mine excuse me, even I couldnt endure it. But you
were different, you endured it. You were standing. How were you able to do it?!
How is something like that possible?!

He could not talk like he usually did because of his excitement. However, it was
difficult to suppress it. He who succumbed to his fear and ran in the face of
Shalltear Bloodfallens overwhelming strength, and the boy who received a
bloodlust that was on par with her and remained standing, just where did that
difference come from?

He had to know no matter what.

As if these thoughts were transmitted to him, although the boy appeared to be at

a loss, he thought about it in earnest and replied.

I dont know. In that whirlwind filled with that much bloodlust, I have no idea
how I was able to endure it. But perhaps it may have been because I was
thinking of my master.

Master?

Yes. When I thought of the person I serve strength rose up inside of me.

How do you endure with something like that?

Although Brain wanted to shout that out, before he could do so, the old man
quietly spoke.

It means that his loyalty was greater than his fear. Unglaus-sama, humans are
able to display an incredible power if it is for those who are important to them.
Like how a mother raises a pillar to save her child trapped in a house, like how a
husband supports his wife with one hand when she is about to fall, I believe that
is the strength of humans. This person here as well, he displayed that strength.
And he is not alone in this. If you have something that you would not trade for
anything, then Unglaus-sama will be able to display a power greater than what
you have come to expect from yourself.

Brain could not bring himself to believe him. The thing that he would not trade for
anything, his desire for strength ended up being meaningless. Too easily, it was
destroyed. Did he not grow frightened and flee?

As his expression gradually darkened and his face headed downward, the
following words of the old man brought his face upright.

What is raised alone will be weak. After all, it will be over once you yourself
are broken. Instead, if you build yourself up with another, if you can give your all
for someone else, then even if you are broken you will not fall.

Brain thought to himself. Did he have that something?

However, there was nothing. He had thrown them aside, thinking them to be
useless and unnecessary for his pursuit of strength. It turned out that they were
what were truly important.

Brain laughed out loud. His life was filled with nothing but mistakes. Before he
knew it, words spilled from his mouth like a confession.

Ive thrown it all away. Is it too late for me to try again?

It will be fine. Even someone like me with no talent was able to do it. If its
Unglaus-sama, I have no doubt that you will be able to pull through! Its definitely
not too late!

The boys words had no proof. However, strangely enough, Brain felt a warm
sensation spread through his heart.

You are kind and strong Im sorry.

The boy fell into a flutter from the sudden apology. Someone with this much
courage, he had mocked him and called him a kid.

Foolish. I was so, so foolish

But if you say that youre Brain Unglaus could you be the one who fought
against Stronoff-sama in the past?

So you remember Did you perhaps watch the fight?

Ah, I wasnt able to see it. I merely heard of it from someone who did. That
person said that Unglaus-sama was an incredible swordsman and that people
with his skill in the Kingdom could be counted with one hand. Now that Ive seen
your posture and how you maintain your center of gravity as you move, I know
that the person was speaking the truth!

Pushed back by his genuine compliments, Brain stammered out a reply.

Erm, th-thanks. I-I dont really think Im that great, but Im a bit happy that
youre giving me so much praise.

Hmm Unglaus-sama.

Elder, just call me Unglaus. Im not worthy to be referred with honorifics by

someone like you, elder!

Then since my name is Sebas Tian, please call me Sebas. Then Unglaus-kun.

Although he felt a bit awkward at having kun attached to his name, it wasnt
strange when considering the difference in their ages.

How about you were to teach the sword to Climb-kun here? I believe that it will
prove beneficial to Unglaus-kun as well.

Ah, I apologize! My name is Climb, Unglaus-sama.

Then elder excuse me, will Sebas-sama not be the one to teach him? It
seemed you were discussing that before I interrupted.

Yes, that was what I intended initially. But I felt that it was necessary that I deal
with my guests ah, here they are. It seems they were busy donning their
equipment.

Brain belatedly turned his eyes in the direction that Sebas was looking.

Three men showed themselves. They each wore a chain shirt and held a bladed
weapon in their thick leather gloves.

They clearly gave off a killing intent that surpassed mere hostility. Although their
bloodlust was only directed at the old man, they did not seem to be the type to
have mercy and spare witnesses.

Seeing the men, Brain unwittingly spoke out in a shrill voice filled with surprise.

No way! Theyre coming this way even after receiving that bloodlust? Are they
that strong?!

Then he could only imagine that each one of them was as skilled no, even
stronger than Brain himself. Was the reason that their shadowing was sloppy
because they focused on perfecting their warrior skills instead?

However, Brains fears were rejected by Sebas.

The bloodlust from earlier was only directed at you two.

What?

Even Brain thought that his own voice sounded stunned.

For Climb, it was to train him. For you, because you seemed to have no intention
of showing your face, I sent it to try and drag you out and to root out any hostility
you might have along with your will to fight. I did not do it to those men because I
knew that they were enemies from the beginning. It would be troublesome for me
if they were to grow frightened by my bloodlust and flee, after all.

Sebas had sneaked in something terrifying in his explanation. Brain could not
even bring himself to be surprised. To think that he could control bloodlust of that
scale with such precision, that was no longer something that could be understood
within the confines of common sense.

I-I see. Then do you know the identity of those men?

I could venture a guess but am not certain. That is why I intend to capture one
or two for information. However.

Sebas bowed his head.

I do not wish for the two of you to be dragged into this. Will you not leave this
place immediately?

Hearing his words, Climb asked him.

Before that, I have a question that Id like to ask you. Those men are they
criminals?

It seems that way. I dont think theyre the type of people whove led proper
lives.

Having heard Brains answer, fire burned in Climbs eyes.

Though I may only be in the way, I want to fight as well. As someone who
protects the capitals peace, its obvious that I must protect the citizens.

In his mind, Brain thought that there was no guarantee that Sebas was the just
one in this situation. Well, no doubt that anyone who compares the men who just
appeared with Sebas who gave off the impression of integrity would believe him
to be the good side. But even so, there was no guarantee.

A greenhorn

However, he sympathized with him. When comparing the one who saved that
child from the drunkards with these men, it was certain which side Brain would
take.

Though you probably wont need any help Sebas-sama, I will lend a hand as
well.

Brain stood next to Climb. Sebas would not need any assistance no, there
would not even be any meaning in them being here. However, in order to try and

imitate Climb who was fighting for the sake of someone else, Brain chose an
answer that his past self would not. Even if the boys heart was strong, his skill
with the sword was lacking. He would protect him.

Brain glanced at the weapons the men were holding and frowned.

Poison It seems that theyre experienced seeing how theyre using a weapon
that could kill them Are they assassins?

There were lines engraved on the blades of their daggers, also called mail
breakers. The fluid on the blade gave off a sinister glint. And the way their nimble
movements focused on mobility, different from those of swordsmen, all but
confirmed Brains words.

Climb-kun, be wary. Although it would be different if you had a magic item that
blocked poisons, consider yourself dead if you were to get hit even once.

Even though Brains great physical ability rendered the average poison
ineffective, it would be difficult for Climb to resist them.

Seeing how you did not attack immediately after revealing yourselves head on,
is it fine to assume that you planned a pincer attack and have two more lying in
wait? Since we have already passed that point, first, shall we break through?

Sebas purposefully spoke loud enough so that his opponents could hear him,
causing the men to momentarily freeze. They were shaken because their plan to
attack while surrounding them had been seen through.

It seems that it is the safest option. It would be better to crush the front and
then attack those in the rear.

Brain agreed with Sebas. However, that idea was rejected by the one who made
the suggestion.

Ah, but then there is the possibility that they will get away. I will take care of the
three in the front. How about you two turn to the opposite side and face the two
who will be coming?

Brain replied that he understood and Climb nodded his head in agreement. This
was Sebas battle and they were the ones who were forcefully lending him their
strength. As long as Sebas did not make a critical mistake, they would have to
follow his instructions.

Alright, lets go.

Brain spoke to Climb and turned his back on the men. Although he showed his
defenseless side to the people who were overflowing with hostility, thanks to
Sebas, he was not worried. As he left his back to him, he felt a rising sense of
security, as if a thick castle wall had been built around him.

Now, though it is unfortunate I will be your opponent. Oh no, I cannot have

you be unfaithful with these two.

When Brain looked over his shoulder, Sebas was holding three daggers in the
fingers of his right hand. He flicked his fingers and the daggers that the men
threw towards Brain and Climbs defenseless backs all fell to the ground.

The bloodlust in the mens eyes lessened considerably.

Obviously, seeing thrown daggers being blocked like that would make anyone
lose their will to fight. So you guys finally realized just how strong Sebas-sama is,
eh? But its already too late.

There was no way to escape from that old man. Even if the three of the them
were to split off into different directions.

Incredible.

Climb walked up next to Brain.

Indeed. If someone were to say that Sebas-sama is the strongest in the

Kingdom, Id have to nod my head.

Even stronger than the Warrior Captain?

You mean Stronoff. Truly, against that elder, I I, sorry. Ill speak how I
normally speak. Even if Stronoff and I attacked him together, theres no way we
could win. Ah, theyre here.

Two men appeared once they circled around a corner. As expected, they were
dressed like the three from before. There was a sound of swords being drawn and
Brain followed suit.

The reason that they didnt leave one as an ambush to throw a dagger was
probably because the elder saw through them.

An ambush was only effective if it was a surprise, failing that, they would only be
splitting up their forces. Since they were found out, they probably determined
that working together from the beginning would give them a higher chance of
victory.

Its a naive way of thinking. Climb, Ill handle the guy on the right, you take
the one on the left.

Brain scanned the way they moved and guessing which one was the weaker of
the two, gave the boy his instructions. The boy nodded and raised his sword. The
lack of hesitation was unique to someone who experienced a situation with their
life on the line. Brain was relieved that the boy wasnt a virgin of real battles.

Climb should be able to beat that guy but since hes using poison, itll be a
close fight.

Although Climb had real battle experience, he did not seem like someone who
walked the kind of bloody path where fights against poison users were frequent.
This may even be his first time fighting against poison. Brain as well, he was
always overly cautious when fighting against monsters that used acid or venom,
making it difficult for him to display his full strength in those situations.

Would it be better if I kill the guy on the right quickly and help him? Will that be
to this guys benefit? Will I be stepping on his determination to help with his own
power? Should I just fight in his stead? No will Sebas-sama help him in a pinch?
Do I have to step in if theres no sign that he will help him? To think that I would
worry about things like this

Brain scratched his head with the hand that wasnt holding the katana and glared
directly at the enemy.

Now, sorry about this but I need you to become the sacrifice to fill my idle
period.

Three strikes.

Sebas closed in and with his fist, planted a strike into each man. They could not
even react, let alone defend themselves. And with that, it was over.

It was obvious. With battle strength that was considered to be top class even in
Nazarick, Sebas could defeat assassins of this level with just his pinky.

He turned his eyes away from the collapsed men and watched the fight behind
him.

Brain was overwhelming his opponent from the beginning to the end and Sebas
could watch him without worry.

The assassin whom he was facing appeared to be looking for an opening so that
he could escape. However, Brain did not allow it and fought as if he was toying
with him. No, rather than calling it that, it looked as if he was using a wide variety
of attacks to try and remove the rust from his body.

He did mention something about an idle period. And it seems that the reason
hes not attacking seriously is because hes worried about Climb and wants to be
ready to jump in and help at any time. Hes more considerate than I thought.

Sebas moved his eyes from Brain to Climb.

This side should be fine as well.

An exchange of blows, although the poisoned weapon caused a bit of unease, the
situation wasnt bad enough that he had to go and help immediately. It pained
him that a friendly stranger was dragged into a mess that he caused. However

Had you not told me that you wished to grow stronger, I would have gone over to
help you. A battle with ones life on the line is also good training. I will help you if
it becomes dangerous.

Climb used his sword to redirect the opponents thrust.

Cold sweat flowed down his back. It had almost managed to stab into his armor. A
look of disappointment flashed across his opponents face.

Climb placed his sword out in front of him and measured the space between
them. His opponent on the other side shifted back and forth to stop him from
measuring the distance.

Normally, Climb would block with his shield and use his sword to attack. His
current predicament of fighting with only his sword shaved away at both his mind
and body. Not only that, the poisoned weapon also placed a great burden on him.
He knew very well that mail breakers were specialized for thrusting, and as such,
that was the only part that he had to be cautious of. But even so, as expected,
the thought of being unable to sustain even a scratch dulled his movements.

He could feel his mounting fatigue, not only of his body, but his mind as well. His
breathing grew ragged.

Its the same for my opponent. Im not the only one whos exhausted.

Like him, his opponents forehead was slick with sweat. He was agile, using quick
movements to throw the enemy into disarray, it was a style well suited for an
assassin. That was why inflicting even a single wound on the arms or legs would
make the assassin lose his advantage and destroy the balance of power between
them.

The battle would be decided in a single attack.

That was the reason for the restlessness that flowed between them. Of course,
this was what a fight between those of similar skill was like. Regardless, it was
even more pronounced in this particular battle.

Haa!

With a heavy breath, Climb attacked. It was a small swing with little power behind
it. A wide swing would open him up to a huge blind spot if he were to miss.

The assassin easily dodged his attack and thrust his hand into his shirt. Predicting
his next move, Climb became cautious of the assassins hand.

Climb blocked the dagger that flew at his eyes with his sword.

It was fortunate. Luckily, he was able to deflect the attack because he had
carefully focused his attention.

But without even giving him a chance to breathe a sigh of relief, the assassin
charged in low.

Oh no!

A shiver crawled down his spine.

He had no way to block this additional attack. The fear from the dagger had
made him deflect it with a large swing. Because his sword was still in the air, he
could not bring it back fast enough to match the timing for a counterattack.
Although he wanted to focus on dodging, the assassin had him beat in agility.

He was cornered. At the very least, use his arm as a shield and

As Climb made his resolve, the assassin who was charging at him suddenly
covered his face and leapt back a great distance.

A small stone the size of a pea came flying and struck the assassins left eyelid.
Pushed to his limits, Climbs accelerated mind confirmed it.

Even without turning around, he knew who had thrown it. As proof, he heard
Sebas voice coming from behind him.

Fear is a precious emotion. However, you must not be overcome by it. I was
watching from a bit earlier, but this is quite a dull and half-hearted battle. If your
opponent had the resolve to sacrifice an arm, it would have certainly meant your
death. If your strength leaves you, win with your head. There are times when the
mind surpasses the body.

Yes!

Answering in his head, he was surprised that he had regained his composure. It
was not a feeling of security from relying on someone to help him. Rather, it was
because someone was watching over him.

He could not completely wipe away the fear that he may die. However

If I die, please tell Renner-sama, please tell the princess that I fought well.

He let out a long sigh and quietly raised his sword.

Climb noticed that the light in the assassins eyes was different than before.
Although their time was brief, perhaps their hearts had found a connection
through this battle with their lives on the line.

Like how Climb found his resolve, the assassin seemed to have noticed and found
his as well.

The assassin stepped forward. Needless to say, he closed the distance without a
word.

Confirming that he had entered his range, Climb brought down his sword. In that
instant, the assassin leapt back. He had read the speed of Climbs sword and
used himself as a bait to try for a feint.

But there was one thing that the assassin had missed.

Without a doubt, the assassin had seen through most of Climbs sword
techniques. However, that was only excluding just one attack, the vertical slash
that Climb was confident in. It was heavier and faster than any of his other
attacks.

The sword that lodged in the assassins shoulder was stopped by the chain shirt
and did not completely cut him in two. However, it easily broke through his
collarbone, cut through the flesh, and even shattered his shoulder blade.

The assassin thrashed about as he rolled around on the ground. The pain was so
intense that his scream was silent, spit dribbling from his mouth.

Splendid.

Sebas appeared from behind and effortlessly kicked the assassin in his abdomen.

With only that, the assassin became like a puppet with its strings cut and did not
move. He had fallen unconscious.

In the corner of his eyes, Brain had already defeated his assassin and was slightly
raising his hand to congratulate him.

Then let us start the interrogation. If you have anything that you wish to hear,
please dont hesitate and ask.

Sebas brought one of them over and woke him up. The mans body shook as he
regained consciousness, Sebas then moved his hand to the mans forehead. All of
this did not even take two seconds. Although he wasnt pressing down on it very
hard, the mans head arched back and returned like a pendulum.

The mans eyes had already lost focus, like the eyes of a drunkard.

Sebas began his questioning. Although an assassins lips should have been
sealed tight, the man did not hide anything and chattered away. Seeing that
strange scene, Climb asked.

What did you do?

Its a skill called Palm of the Puppeteer. Its fortunate that it activated without a
hitch.

Although it was a skill that he had never heard of, more importantly, Climb
frowned at the mans information.

They were assassins from Eight Fingers who were trained by one of the Six
Arms, the strongest members of the security group. They were following Sebas
in order to kill him. Brain asked Climb.

Im not too sure but, arent the Eight Fingers a pretty big criminal
organization? I think they have connections with the mercenary groups

Youre correct. Six Arms is the name of the six strongest members of that
organization. I heard that each one of them rivals the strength of adamantium
rank adventurers. We do not know what they look like since that is a matter
regarding the underworld.

And Succulent, the one who appeared at Sebas residence, was a member of Six
Arms who was called the Devil of Illusions. His plan was to have Sebas killed so
that he could freely manipulate his beautiful master.

Having heard up to this point, Climb felt a chill sweep over him. The chill was
coming from Sebas.

As Sebas slowly stood up, Brain asked him a question.

Then what will Sebas-sama do from here on out?

Ive decided. I will first destroy the problematic location. From what he said, it
seems Succulent is there as well. A spark should be quickly stamped out.

Both Climb and Brain drew in their breaths at his wholly unconcerned reply.

The fact that he was going to attack them meant he was confident enough to win
against adamantium rank adventurers in other words, the strongest of
mankind.

But even that felt acceptable.

He defeated three of these assassins in an instant and even that famous Unglaussama is wary of him. Just who is Sebas-sama? Was he an adamantium rank
adventurer in the past?

However, it appears that they have kidnapped several people. It will be better
for me to act quickly.

Right, if the assassins dont return, they would realize that something went
wrong and move the kidnapped people elsewhere. Then we wouldnt be able to
rescue them.

The more time passes, the more disadvantageous it will be for this side whilst at
the same time, the more advantageous it will be for the enemy. That was the
current situation of the person called Sebas.

Then I will begin my assault immediately. I apologize but I have no intention of

changing my mind. May I ask that you two take these assassins to the guard
office?

Ahhh, wait Sebas-sama! If its okay with you, please allow me to help! Of course,
only with your approval.

I agree as well, Sebas-sama. As Renner-samas subordinate, safeguarding the

capitals public order is my obvious duty. If the Kingdoms people are suffering, I
will save them with my sword.

Though Unglaus-kun will probably be fine, it might be a bit dangerous for

Climb-kun.

I am aware of the dangers.

Hey, Climb you ever heard of only being a burden? Well, from Sebas-samas
point of view, theres probably not too much of a difference between me and
you.

No no, that wasnt what I meant. I was only worried about Climb-kuns safety.
Please know that I will not be able to protect you like before.

Im prepared.

What we are about to do now may end up harming you, or your masters,
honor. Are there not other opportunities that would be more fitting for you to risk
your life?

Closing my eyes because its dangerous would only prove that I am not a man fit
to serve my master. Like how that person helps others, if its possible, I want to
extend my hand to those who suffer.

Like when she extended her hand to me.

As if they had caught a glimpse of his firm determination, Sebas and Brain turned
to look at one another.

Have you prepared your resolve?

From Sebas question, Climb nodded his head once.

I understand. Then there is nothing more that needs to be said. Please lend me
your strength.

CHAP
ER 5

Part 1

Top Fire Month (Month 9), Day 3, 12:07

The shop is through this door and according to the assassin; there is another
entrance over at that building.

Standing in front of the entrance of the brothel, in front of the door where Tsuare
had been thrown away, Sebas pointed to a building several doors down. Although
both Brain and Climb were present when extracting the information, they had
never actually been to the brothel and obediently accepted Sebas explanation.

Thats what I heard as well. They said that entrance is used as an emergency
exit and always has at least two people guarding it. In that case I think it would
be better for us to split up into two groups. Considering our fighting strength, how
about letting Sebas-sama take the main entrance by himself while Climb and I
attack from that side??

Although I have no objections, what does Climb-kun think about it?

I have none as well. But Unglaus-sama, once we go inside, what then? Should
we conduct a search together?

Please call me Brain, same goes for Sebas-sama. Anyway though we should
stick together to be safe, there could be a secret passage even the assassins
didnt know about. I think were going to have to search quickly while Sebassama is distracting the enemy head on.

As if he was recalling something, Brain muttered how its common for there to be
a passage that only the boss would know of.

Then how about we split up once we get inside?

As long as were prepared for the dangers, we have to act and hope for the
best.

At Brains words, Sebas and Climb nodded their heads.

Then since you are stronger than me, could I leave searching the interior to you,
Unglau Brain-sama?

I believe that would be best. I will leave Climb-kun with securing the exit over
there.

Needless to say, searching the interior carried a high risk of running into the
enemy. Since Brain was much stronger than Climb, the task would fall to him.

Then this will be it for our final confirmation.

Although they held a general discussion before arriving at the brothel, because
they had not yet seen the actual location, there were parts that were still
uncertain. Now, all of that had been decided and there were none who objected
to Sebas plan.

Sebas placed a foot forward and approached the thick metal door. The door that
Climb thought he himself would never be able to open no matter what he did,
when compared side by side with Sebas, looked like a thin piece of paper.

The front was where the defenses were naturally the highest. Even though they
were about to attack such a place, it was not a concern. Brain Unglaus, who

fought on equal footing with Gazef Stronoff, the strongest in the surrounding
countries, such a person stated that both of them together would not be able to
win. The being who could only be described to be in a different league was now
stepping forward.

Then you should be off. According to the assassins, four knocks on that entrance
should be the signal to show that you are an ally. I do not think that youve
forgotten, but just in case.

Thank you.

He did not forget, but regardless, Climb thanked Sebas.

And if possible, I will try to capture them alive. But should they resist, I will kill
them without mercy. I assume that will not be a problem?

Both Climb and Brain felt a shiver down their spines as Sebas spoke with a gentle
smile.

He was not wrong, his was the obvious response. Both of them knew that if they
themselves were in that same situation, they would opt to do the same. The
reason that they grew fearful and felt a chill down their spines was because
Sebas face looked as if he had an alternate persona.

A kind gentleman and a cool-headed warrior, the extremes of kindness and

heartlessness were coexisting with one another. They felt a premonition; if Sebas
were to go in as he is now, everyone inside would die.

Climb nervously spoke to Sebas.

If it is to avoid needless bloodshed as much as possible, then it cant be helped.

After all, we are few in number. But if you spot someone who seems like a highranking member, could you capture him alive? Interrogating that person could
prove to be more beneficial in the future.

I am not a murderer, Climb-kun. Please rest assured, I did not come here to
purposefully slaughter them.

Climb felt relieved by his gentle smile.

I apologize. Then I leave myself in your care.

Now then, allow me to swiftly destroy this place and buy some time.

If Sebas destroyed this brothel, it should stop their dealings with him, albeit
temporarily. If he was lucky enough to find confidential papers and the like, they
would have to focus on how to retaliate and may even forget about Tsuare
completely.

In the worst case, even if the result ended up only buying some time, it could
provide an opportunity for him to let Tsuare escape. He may even be able to find
a better way.

Now that I recall, there was a merchant in E-Rantel who spoke to us amicably.
Perhaps I can ask him for assistance.

Even if Tsuares mind were to make a full recovery, she would be happier if she
had the support of someone she could trust.

Sebas turned and looked again at the thick door. He touched it while
remembering the scene of Tsuare being thrown away. The door was imposing,
with iron lodged into the wood. A single glance was all that it took to know that it
would be difficult for a human to destroy it without using tools.

I worry about Climb

He did not have to worry about the man named Brain Unglaus. Even if he faced
off against Succulent, his chance of winning was high. But Climb was different. He
would not stand a chance.

Climb was the one who volunteered to take part in the raid seeing how he
offered his aid, Climb seemed prepared. However, the loss of a young life who
tried to help him would be regrettable, especially if it was the life of such a good
person.

I wish for that boy to live a long life

His words were suited to be spoken by those who had lived a long time. Of
course, Sebas was created as an old man so considering the time from when he
was born to now, he would be younger than Climb.

At the very least, it would be best if I am the one to defeat Succulent. I only hope
that Climb-kun will not run into him.

Sebas prayed to the 41 Supreme Beings for Climbs safety.

If Succulent was the strongest in this facility, then it was likely that Sebas would
be the one to face him. However, if he was working as someones bodyguard,
there was also the possibility that he would flee while protecting him. With a
worried heart, Sebas grabbed the handle on the door and turned it.

He could only turn it halfway through. Considering the kind of business this was,
it was obvious that the door would be locked.

I am not skilled at picking locks no choice then. I will have to try and open the
lock my own way.

Sebas muttered in annoyance and lowered his body. He pulled back his right
hand as he held out his left hand in front of him. It was a splendid stance, as
sturdy as a deeply rooted thousand year old tree.

Hm!

What happened next was impossible.

His arm had become lodged in the edges of the steel door, into the hinges. No, it
did not stop there. His arm continued to dig in deeper.

With a screech, the hinges announced their parting from the wall.

Sebas freely opened the door that had lost its resistance.

What the?

As soon as he stepped inside, there was a hallway and a large man with spiked
hair stood in front of a half-open doorway. His eyes and mouth were wide open as
he wore a dumbfounded expression.

It was slightly rusted so I forced it open with a bit of strength. You should keep
the door well oiled.

Sebas spoke to the man and closed the door. No, perhaps it would be better to
say that he propped it up.

As the man stood stupefied, Sebas walked further inside without reserve.

Hey, whats going on?

What was that noise?!

The voices of other men could be heard behind the man.

However, being face to face with Sebas and unable to even react to their voices,
the man spoke.

WW-Welcome?

The man fell into confusion and could only stare vacantly as Sebas walked up to
his face. Normally, a person who worked in a place such as this would be used to
violence. However, the scene that the man had just witnessed was far too
estranged from his common sense that he had nurtured up to this moment.

Ignoring the questions from his allies behind him, the man gave Sebas a
flattering smile. It was because his survival instincts told him that that was the
best course of action. He could also have been desperately lying to himself that
this man was a butler who served one of their customers. The man and his bushy
beard, his cheeks twitching as he tried his damnedest to show a hospitable smile,
such appearance was truly an eyesore.

Sebas also wore a smile; soft and gentle. However, there was no kindness to be
found in his eyes. They held a vicious glint that could captivate people, like a
sharp blade.

Could you please step aside?

A thud, no, more like a splat. A sickening sound rang out.

A rough-looking adult man wearing equipment would easily weigh more than 85
kilograms. A man like that went spinning into the air like some joke and was
blown aside at a speed that was too fast for the eye to follow. Just like that, the
mans body crashed into the wall with a loud splash.

The house shook as if it had been struck by the fist of a giant.

Oh no, if I killed him a bit further inside then he would have been a good
psychological barricade Well, it seems there are more left so I will have to be
more careful from now on.

Sebas told himself that he should restrain his strength a little as he left the
corpse to this side and moved further inside.

Sebas opened the door wide and stepped into the room. With graceful
movements, he looked around him. Rather than someone who was charging into
the enemy camp, he gave off the air of a person who was taking a stroll around a
deserted house.

There were two men.

They were staring dumbfounded at the crimson flower on the wall behind Sebas.

The room was filled with the smell of cheap alcohol of the likes that you would
never find in Nazarick. It mixed with the smell of blood and entrails and gave rise
to a bizarre, stomach-churning aroma.

Sebas put together the information that he heard from Tsuare and the assassin
and tried to map out the structure of this buildings interior in his head. Although
Tsuares memory was filled with holes and had little to offer, he did hear that the
real shop was located in the basement. The assassin had never been down there
and was of no help from this point onward.

Although Sebas watched the floor, he could not find the stairs as they were well
hidden.

If he could not find it himself, then he simply had to ask someone who knew.

Pardon, I have a question that Id like to ask you.

Guaahh!

As soon as he spoke to them, one of the men let out a high-pitched scream. It
seemed that now, the thought of fighting itself had vanished from his mind.
Sebas felt relieved. He could not control his strength very well if he thought about
Tsuare and his fists would end up killing them instantly.

If they gave up the notion of fighting back, he could stop at just breaking both of
their legs.
The men who were trembling in fear flattened their backs against the wall, all in
an attempt to try and get as further away from Sebas as possible. Sebas watched
them without emotion and his mouth tore into a smile.

Hiiii!

They grew more frightened and the smell of ammonia spread into the
surroundings.

Sebas thought that he may have gone too far in scaring them and furrowed his
brow.

One of the men rolled back his eyes and fainted. The extreme tension had caused
him to let go of his consciousness on his own. The other man looked at his
comrade with an envious expression.

Haa as I have just said, Id like to ask you a question. I have business below.
Could you tell me how I might find my way?

T-thats.

Sebas saw the light of fear in the mans eyes as he considered betrayal. Although
the assassins were the same way, it appeared that this man feared the
organizations purge as well. Remembering about the man who fled with the
money he received and how he acted, being purged probably meant death.

Since it appeared that he would not talk without being taught a lesson, Sebas
said the words that would cut down the mans hesitation.

It seems that there are two mouths here. It does not matter to me whether you
are the one to speak.

The man started to sweat profusely from his forehead and his body trembled.

O-O-O-Over there! There, thats where the secret entrance is!

Indeed.

Looking at where he was pointing, it really did look like the seams of that floor
were different.

I see. Thank you. Then you have done your part.

As Sebas smiled, the man understood the meaning hidden behind his words and
trembled, his face growing pale. Even so, he held onto a tiny, thin ray of hope
and spoke.

I-Im begging you, j-just dont kill me!

I refuse.

The immediate reply froze the room in silence. The mans eyes grew round, the
expression of a person trying to deny what he did not want to believe.

But, I told you! Hey, Ill do anything, so let me live!

That is true, but

Sebas breathed out a sigh and shook his head.

I refuse.

You youre kidding, right?

If that is what you wish to believe. There is only one result to come of this.

Pleasegod.

Sebas remembered when he picked up Tsuare and slightly narrowed his eyes.

What right did a man of this kind of profession have to ask something of god?
And to Sebas, the 41 Supreme Beings were his gods. It felt as if they had just
been insulted.

This is what you deserve.

From the steely voice that rejected everything, the man seemed to have realized
that he was going to die.

Was he going to run, or fight? The moment when that choice was placed before
his very eyes, without hesitation, the man chose to flee.

Even if he were to fight Sebas, the result was obvious. Instead, no matter how
small it was, he had a better chance of surviving if he ran. The thinking behind
his decision was correct.

Because for a few seconds, no, even though it was only for a tenth of a second,
his life had been extended.

Having instantly caught up to the man who was making a break for the door,
Sebas lightly turned his body. The gust of wind went past the mans head and he
collapsed like his strings had been cut. A round object hit the wall with a thud and
rolled down to the floor, leaving behind a trail of blood.

A moment later, blood sprouted from the mans headless neck and sprayed onto
the floor.

That was truly a splendid technique. To blow away a head with a roundhouse kick,
although it had the speed and power to make something like that possible, the
most frightening part was that not a single stain could be found on Sebas shoe
covering his foot.

With the sound of his footsteps, Sebas walked towards the man who had fainted
with his eyes rolled back and brought down his foot. With the sound like an old
tree breaking, the mans body convulsed. After a few spasms, he no longer
budged.

Is it not self-evident what would happen to you from everything that you
people have done thus far? But rest assured, at the very least, you have atoned
with your bodies.

Sebas retrieved their corpses.

He lined the area around the stairs with the utterly destroyed bodies. Even
looking at them was horrifying; it would strike fear and hesitation to any who tries
to flee. It was a method that Sebas thought of should he be unable to destroy the
point of entry.

After moving the corpses, Sebas brought his foot down on the secret floor
entrance.

First was the sound of mechanical parts being destroyed. Following that, a large
hole opened up on the floor. The broken floor cover loudly tumbled down the
sturdy stairs.

Aha If I just destroy these stairs, then it would be difficult for them to escape
through this way.

The room was not very large.

The desolate interior had a wardrobe to store garments and a bed, nothing else.

The bed was not the shoddy kind which would only have a sheet on top of it.
Rather, it was a mattress stuffed with cotton, a luxury used by nobles. However,
as if they focused on functionality, the design was plain and its ornaments lacked
flavor.

And on top of it was a naked man.

He looked to be well over his middle age. Due to a life of indulgence, his body
was fat and unattractive.

Although his looks could have been passed off as barely average, the blubber on
his face lost him points fast. Looking at him, anyone would think that this man
was like a pig. Pigs were smart, charming animals that liked things that were
clean. However, in this case, the pig was stupid and base, used as an insult.

His name was Stafan Hevish.

He brought down his raised fist towards the mattress. The sound of hitting flesh
rang out.

A look of euphoria rose to Stafans flabby face. It was because the sensation of
crushing flesh was transmitted to his hand and he felt a quivering pleasure ride
up his spine. His body then shivered.

Ohhh

As he slowly raised his fist, it came away sticky with blood.

Stafan was lying on top of a naked woman.

Her face was swollen and her skin was dyed with red spots due to internal
bleeding. The blood flowing from her crushed nose matted her face. Both her lips
and eyes were swollen as well and her former attractive face was nowhere to be
found. The bedding was discolored, the scattered blood staining the sheets.

The hands that had been raised in the air to try and protect her face now rested
on the bed. The image of her hair sprawled out on top of the sheets made it look
as if she was floating on water.

Hey, what, youre already done? Ahn?

The woman no longer seemed to be conscious.

Stafan raised his fist and slammed it down.

Smack. The fist and the cheeks, along with the cheekbone inside, pain from the
collision was also transmitted to Stafans hand.

Che, it hurts!

In a fit of rage, he struck again.

The bed creaked along with the sound of beating. The womans skin that was
swollen like a ball split open and his fist became covered in blood. Fresh, sticky
blood splattered onto the bed sheets and stained them in red.

Uuu.

Even though she was being beaten, the woman no longer moved and her body
barely showed any reaction.

If this repeated beating continued, her life would be in danger. Even so, the
reason that she was still alive was not because Stafan was controlling his
strength. It was because the impact was absorbed by the mattress. If she had
been beaten on the hard floor, she would have already been dead.

Stafan didnt hold back his strength not because he knew this, but because there
would not be any problems even if the woman were to die. If he just paid the cost
to have her disposed, then everything would be taken care of.

In reality, Stafan had killed multiple women in this shop.

Since he had to paid the disposal fee back then, leaving his pockets lighter,
perhaps he unconsciously held back the strength from his hands.

Stafan licked his lips as he stared at the womans unmoving face.

This brothel was the best place to fulfill a certain fetish. Something like this would
never be allowed in a normal brothel. No, even if it was allowed, Stafan did not
know of such a place.

He liked the days back when there were slaves.

Slaves had been considered property and those who had abused them had the
tendency of inviting scorn. It was the same reason that people frowned upon
those who squander away their fortune. But for someone like Stafan, who had a
peculiar fetish, slaves were the easiest and only way for him to satisfy his lust.
Now that they were taken from him, Stafan had no choice but to vent his lust in
these types of places. What would he have done if he hadnt known about this
place?

Without a doubt, he would have been unable to endure it. He would have
committed a crime and been arrested.

And the one who introduced this brothel to Stafan though he had to make
backroom dealings and use his legal influence for their benefit he was truly
grateful to his master, the noble whom he served.

Thank you master.

A quiet emotion rose to Stafans eyes. Although it was hard to believe considering
his nature and personality, at the very least, he felt a deep gratitude towards his
master.

Only

Fire rose from the inside of his stomach anger.

It was his emotions regarding the girl who was the reason why he lost his slaves,
his outlet for his lust.

that bitch!

His face was dyed red in anger, his eyes were bloodshot.

The face of the royalty that he had to serve of the princess, overlapped with
the face of the woman he was on top of. Stafan gathered the anger building
inside of him in his fist and brought it down.

With a smack, fresh blood splattered once more.

How, refreshing, would, it, feel, to, mess, up, her, face!

Over and over, he beat the womans face.

The inside of her mouth must have been split open by a tooth. An alarmingly
large amount of blood trailed out from between her swollen lips.

The womans only reaction now was to twitch every time she was struck.

Haa, haa.

After several hits, Stafans shoulders heaved and both his forehead and his body
were wet with oily sweat.

Stafan looked down at the woman beneath him. Her appearance was now past
the point of being hideous. She was half dead, no; her body was already a few
steps deep in deaths mire. She was truly a puppet that had its strings cut.

Gulp. The sound of Stafans throat rang out.

Nothing excited him more than doing it with a battered woman. Especially if they
used to be beautiful, the more beautiful they were the better. There was nothing
that sated his sadism more than when he destroyed something beautiful.

How good would it feel if I could mess her up like this?

Stafan recalled the mistress of the residence that he had visited earlier. He
remembered the arrogant face of the woman whose beauty rivaled that of this
countrys princess, the one who was hailed to be the most beautiful.

Of course, Stafan knew that he could not do anything to a woman like her. The
ones who took care of his cravings were the daily scraps of this brothel before
they were disposed of.

A beautiful woman like her would be bought by a powerful noble for a huge sum
and imprisoned in their domain as to not reveal their illicit trading.

Just once, if I could beat a woman like that beat her to death.

If something like that was possible, how enjoyable and satisfying would it be?

Needless to say, it was an impossible dream.

Stafan looked at the woman lying beneath him. Her exposed chest was slightly
moving up and down. Having confirmed this, his lips became wickedly twisted.

Stafan grabbed the womans chest, causing it to contort greatly in his hand.

The woman showed absolutely zero reaction. She could no longer react to a pain
of this level. Currently, the only difference between the woman beneath Stafan
and a mannequin was that she was soft.

Only that Stafan felt a small dissatisfaction over her lack of resistance.

Please dont kill me

Please forgive me.

Im sorry.

Please stop.

The womans screams were revived in Stafans mind.

Should he have raped her when she could still speak like that?

With the tiniest feeling of regret, Stafan continued to play with the womans
chest.

Nearly all of the women who end up at this brothel, their minds were already
broken and their hearts fled elsewhere. Looking at it that way, it could be said
that Stafans partner for today was better than usual.

Was that girl like that too?

What Stafan was recalling in his mind was Tsuare. He didnt even want to hear
what happened to the man who had let her go.

However, Stafan could not stop the jeer from showing on his face when he
thought of the old butler whom he had visited earlier in the day.

What use was there in sheltering a girl who had done it with countless men and
when the situation called for it, with women and even non-humans? He could
barely contain his laughter when the butler showed that he was willing to pay a
fortune of several hundred gold pieces.

Now that I think about it, that runaway womans voice was pretty good.

He searched his memories and recalled the girls screams. Compared to the
others who ended up here, she hadnt been all that bad.

Stafan grinned and moved to fulfill his carnal desires. He grabbed the womans
leg with one hand and wrenched it open. The bone showed through her
emaciated leg and was thin enough to fit in one of Stafans hands.

With the womans crotch spread bare, Stafan mounted her.

He grabbed what had hardened from his lust and

With a click, the door slowly opened.

What?!

Stafan quickly turned towards the door and saw an old man who seemed familiar.
He then immediately recalled the old mans identity.

He was the butler he met at that residence.

The old man Sebas entered the room without restraint, his steps ringing out the
sound of his heels. From how he walked in so naturally, Stafan could not say a
word.

Why was the butler from that house here? Why did he enter this room? Faced
with a situation that he could not understand, the inside of Stafans mind became
blank.

Sebas stood next to Stafan. And after looking at the woman who was lying
beneath him, he turned his cold eyes in Stafans direction.

Do you enjoy beating others?

What?

The strange atmosphere prompted Stafan to immediately get up and reach for
his clothes.

However, even before that, Sebas had already begun to move.

Slap. Such a sound rang out right by Stafans side and at the same time, his
vision shook greatly.

A moment later, his right cheek grew hot and he could feel the pain spreading
wildly.

He had punched him no, he had been slapped across the face. Stafan finally
managed to realize what had just happened.

You bastard, doing something like

Slap. Again, Stafans cheek cried out in pain. And just like that, it did not stop.

Left, right, left, right, left, right, left, right

Shtaaalp!

Stafan had always been the one who hit others but had never been struck
himself. His eyes welled with tears.

He covered his cheeks with both hands while retreating backwards.

As if his cheeks had been burned, the pain slowly began to spread.

Y-you bashtard! You shink you can get awhay vithe thish?!

His swollen red cheeks throbbed every time he spoke.

I cant?

Of courshe not! You imbeshile! Who do you shink I am!

A fool.

He easily closed the distance that Stafan had put between them and Slap!
Once again, Stafans cheeks burned.

Shtaaahp! Please shtahp it!

Stafan covered his cheeks like a child being scolded by his parents.

Although he liked violence, the people he beat on were always the ones who were
powerless to resist. Even if he were to go up against Sebas, who looked like an
old man on the outside, Stafan would be too scared to hit him. He could not when
he had no guarantee that his opponent could not fight back.

As if he had understood what was inside Stafans heart, Sebas eyes seemed to
have lost interest as they turned towards the woman.

What a horrible thing you have done

Stafan ran past Sebas who had walked up next to the woman.

Moron!

Stafans head filled with heat. What a stupid old man.

He would call for the men in this building and teach him a lesson. Now that he
has done something like this to him, he would never forgive him so easily. He
would have him taste horrible pain and fear.

In his mind, he thought of the butlers beautiful master.

The master was responsible for the errors of the servant. He would have them
both take responsibility for this pain. He will make them realize who they had
struck.

With such thoughts in his mind and his belly flopping up and down, Stafan ran
outside.

Hey! Ish anyone there?!

He shouted in a loud voice. One of the employees should be coming soon.

However, he realized that his thoughts were betrayed after stepping out into the
hallway.

It was quiet.

Quiet enough to feel as if the place was empty.

While naked, Stafan nervously looked around his surroundings.

The silence that lingered over the hallway the strange atmosphere instilled fear
into Stafan.

Looking to either side of him, there were many doors. It went without saying that
no one would come out of them. A shop where people with special fetishes
even dangerous ones, visited often would be perfectly soundproof.

But there was no way that the employees could not hear him.

He had seen several employees back when he was ushered to his room. All of
them had been rough-looking men and had splendid builds that an old man like
Sebas could not compare with.

Why ishnt anyone coming?!

because they are either dead or unconscious.

A low voice responded to Stafans shouting. He hastily turned around and saw
Sebas standing quietly.

It seems there are a few inside most of them are asleep.

T-thatshs not posshible! Just how many do you shink are here?!

Three people who look to be employees, ten below. And there are seven
people like you.

What was he saying?

Stafan stared at Sebas with that kind of expression.

For the time being, there is no one here who will come running to your aid. Even
if they should regain consciousness, I destroyed their legs and broke their arms.
They will have to crawl here like maggots.

An expression of shock surfaced from Stafans face. He thought that it was

impossible, but the strange atmosphere within the brothel made him realize that
Sebas was speaking the truth.

However, I do not feel the need to keep you alive. I will have you die here.

He made no move to draw a blade or a weapon and merely approached in

silence, seemingly unconcerned. Stafan feared that incredibly normal movement.
He realized that Sebas was really going to kill him.

Wait! Wait! I half a gooh proposhishon for you!

It is difficult for me to understand you. Do you mean to say that you have a
good proposition for me? Let me think I am not interested.

Shen why are you shoing shomshing like thish!

There was no reason for him to end up in a situation like this. Just what reason
could there be for him to die? For the first time, Sebas was able to understand his
thoughts.

Even when you think of everything that you have done thus far, you still do
not know?

Stafan tried to remember. Did he do something that he shouldnt have?

Sebas sighed.

I see.

At the same speed as his words, Sebas delivered a powerful front kick to Stafans
stomach.

So this is what it means for someone to not deserve to live.

Stafan was assaulted by the unbelievable pain of several of his internal organs
exploding. Although it wouldnt have been strange for him to fall unconscious
from the pain and die, he only felt faint while his consciousness still remained.

It hurts!

It hurts!

It hurts!

Even though he wanted to scream and thrash about, the pain was so intense that
he could not even move.

Die as you are.

Stafan heard a chilling voice. Although he wanted to beg for his life, his throat did
not move.

Sweat entered his eyes and his vision grew murky. Within it, he saw Sebas back
as he walked away.

Save me!

Save me!

Ill give you as much money as you want so save me!

The one who could respond to the silent voice begging for help was already gone.

In the end, Stafan died slowly with excruciating pain flaring from his abdomen.

Part 2

Top Fire Month (Month 9) Day 3, 12:12

Climb, Im going to kill all of the guys upstairs. We dont have anything to tie
them up with and itll be bad if something goes wrong and they scream for help.
Even if I knock them unconscious, itll be dangerous if they wake up when were
going in blin what, whats wrong?

N-No, its nothing.

Climb shook his head to rid himself of his unease. Although his heart was beating
loudly like when he ran with all his might, he ignored it.

My apologies, Im fine now. I am ready to begin whenever.

Is that so? Hmm, it seems youve changed the way you think. Youve been
different since we got here. Right now, you have the face of a warrior. I know
youre anxious. After all, there are a lot of people here that you cant beat. But
relax, Im here and Sebas-sama is here as well. Just focus on staying alive for the
person who supports you.

He patted Climb on the shoulder and with his katana already drawn, Brain
knocked four times on the door.

Climb also gripped his sword.

They could hear footsteps approaching from the other side of the door and the
sound of it being unlocked rang out three times.

Like they planned, Climb threw the door open.

Before they could even hear any panicked voices, Brain charged. The sound of
flesh being cut could be heard, soon followed by the sound of something
dropping to the floor with a thud.

Climb followed him inside.

Brain who had gone ahead of him was already cutting down a second man. Other
than that, Climb saw a man in leather armor holding a short sword. Climb closed
the distance between them in an instant.

Wha! Who are you?!

In a panic, the man swung his short sword but it was easily deflected by Climbs
blade.

He then brought down his overhead swing in a single breath.

The man tried to block it with his short sword but it was just not enough to stop
the slash that had Climbs entire body weight behind it. Climbs sword knocked
away his opponents weapon and slashed through the mans shoulder and
through the nape of his neck.

As the man collapsed groaning in pain, an incredible amount of blood spilled out
onto the floor; enough to make one wonder just where it had all come from. His
body went into convulsions as he neared death.

Having determined that it was a fatal wound, Climb maintained his stance and
remained cautious as he retreated to a corner of the room. Behind him, he heard
Brain run up the stairs leading to the second floor.

Having confirmed that the only things in the interior were ordinary furniture,
Climb ran for the next room.

A minute later.

Having searched around each of their respective floors and confirming that there
were no more enemies, Climb and Brain met up at the entrance.

I searched the first floor and saw no signs of other people.

Same with the second floor. The fact that there arent even any beds here
probably means that this isnt where they sleep Like I thought, theres a secret
passage and they live on the other side.

About that secret passage, did you manage to find it? I doubt that it would be on
the second floor.

No, I couldnt find anything like that. Like you said, its probably the first floor.

Climb and Brain looked at one another and searched the interior.

Climb didnt have any thief skills and could not find anything by simply searching
the area. If they could take their time and had fine powder like flour with them,
they could have scattered them over the area and blown on it. The powder would
have fallen into the cracks of the secret entrance and made it easier to find.
However, they had neither the flour nor the time to spare. Climb took out a magic
item from his pouch.

It was a set of small hand bells given to him by Gagaran of Blue Rose.

Even if its dangerous to go adventuring without a thief, therell be times when

you wont have a choice. When that happens, thisll make a world of difference.

That was what she said when she gave him this item. Climb compared the
pictures drawn on the side of the three bells and picked out the one he wanted.

The name of the magic item that he had taken out was Bell of Detect Secret
Doors.

He could feel Brain looking at him curiously as he shook it once. A refreshing tone
rang out, a sound that only the user could hear.

In response, a pale light gathered at a section of the floor. The light flickered
repeatedly, indicating the location of the secret door.

Hoh, thats a convenient item. All of mine are only for strengthening myself and
things useful in battle.

But is that not obvious for a warrior?

A warrior huh

Having memorized that spot, Climb separated from Brain who was wearing a
bitter smile and circled around the first floor once. The magical effects of this
item had a time limit. It was necessary to investigate as many places as possible
before the time was up. Although he did a lap around the floor, aside from the
first, there were no other areas that reacted to the magic.

Their next course of action was to infiltrate through this door. However, Climb
narrowed his eyes and stared at the secret entrance. He then breathed a sigh
and again, took out the set of three handbells.

The one he chose this time had a different picture than the one before it. And like
before, he shook it.

A sound that was similar yet different from the other rang out.

Bell of Remove Trap.

Be cautious of your surroundings. As a warrior, Climb had neither the ability to

detect traps nor a way to handle them should he fall into one. If they had a magic
caster, then even if he were to get hit with a paralyzing poison, he could be
treated. However, there were only two warriors here. Among martial arts, ones
that nullified poisons did exist. However, Climb had not learned them and didnt
have an antidote with him either. He had to assume that he would be doomed if
he fell into one.

That was why he had to use an item with a limited number of uses per day
without hesitation.

A heavy click sounded from the secret door.

Climb stuck his sword between the edges of the door and forced it open.

The bent side of the wooden floor sprang up and fell to the other side. A crossbow
had been set inside the secret entrance. Light reflected oddly off of the tip of its
quarrel.

Climb changed his position and stared at the crossbow.

The tip was covered in some viscous liquid. The odds were ten to one that it was
poison. If they had tried to open it carelessly, it would have fired the quarrel
dipped in poison.

With a small breath of relief, he looked for a way to get rid of the crossbow.
Unfortunately, it was set quite firm and it did not seem like he would be able to
disarm it without tools.

Having given up, Climb peered into what was through the secret door.

A steep set of stairs led downwards and he could not see anything beyond it due
to the angle. Both the stairs and areas around it were packed with stones, making
it seem very sturdy.

So, whatre you going to do? Are you going to wait here?

Its a bit difficult for me to fight indoors. If possible, I would like to go and find a
place thats wide and easy to fight in and attack their position there.

Considering a 1v1 situation, youd have a higher chance of winning if you waited
at the top of the stairs. But if theres a battle, theres a chance that I would be too
far ahead to hear it And since reinforcements might come running, we should
definitely forget about that idea. Then lets go together.

Yes. I leave myself in your care.

Ill lead the way. Follow a bit further behind me.

Understood. And although the item that I used a moment ago to clear the trap
can be used three times per day, it cant be used consecutively and need a thirty
minute interval between uses. We cant rely on the item.

Got it. Ill advance with the utmost caution. And if you detect something then
give me a shout.

After saying that, Brain moved to the front and walked down the stairs. Just in
case, he advanced one step at a time while prodding the ground in front of him
with his katana. Climb followed him from behind.

At the bottom of the stairway, the ground and even the walls were lined with hard
rocks. A few meters ahead, they saw a wooden door with its edges reinforced
with steel.

Although it was difficult to imagine that they would place a trap at the level of the
crossbow in the passage with the emergency exit, it was common for heavily
armed warriors to be incapacitated by a single floor trap. That had to be avoided
at all costs.

Despite the short distance, Brain advanced carefully and took his time reaching
the door. Climb was on standby at the bottom of the stairs. He did so to avoid
being dragged into any accidents should they occur.

Brain first poked the door with his sword. After repeating this several times, he
grabbed the doorknob and twisted it. His movements then stopped.

As he worried over what might have happened, Brain turned to him and spoke
with a plaintive voice.

Its locked.

Of course. A door would be locked.

Ah, I have something. One moment.

He rang the last of the three handbells at the door.

With the power of Bell of Open Lock, the faint sound of a key unlocking the door
could be heard.

Brain turned the knob and opened the door slightly, searching for a presence
from within.

No ones there. Ill go in first.

Climb followed behind Brain and broke in as well.

They were in a hall.

In one corner of the room, there was a cage that was large enough to fit a person.
Countless number of wooden crates was stacked up against the wall. Was this
where they stored the luggage? Even so, it still seemed a bit too spacious.

There was a door with no key on the opposite side. When Climb listened carefully,
he heard a faint noise, as if there was a commotion in the distance.

Brain turned around and asked Climb.

What about here? Its certainly big enough, but youre probably going to end
up having to fight several people at once.

If that becomes the case, I will open the door leading to the exit and fight at the
stairs.

Alright. Ill take a quick look around and be back soon. So dont die, Climb.

Good luck. Brain-sama as well, be careful.

If you dont mind could you let me borrow that item from before?

Of course. I apologize for not having thought of that.

Climb handed all three bells over to Brain who put them into his belt pouch. He
then wore the determined face of a warrior.

Then Ill be going.

Leaving only those words, Brain went through the keyless door and moved
deeper into the brothel.

Now that he was alone, Climb looked around the quiet interior.

First, he checked to see if anyone was behind the crates and whether there were
any other passages. Although it was the searching skills of a warrior at best,
there did not appear to be any hidden doors. He then investigated the vast
number of wooden crates.

If possible, he wanted to find information on Eight Fingers facilities other than

this one. It would be great if there were contrabands or illegal goods. Of course,
the real search would have to wait until after this place was taken over. But he
had to conduct his own investigation within the scope of what he was capable.

Among the countless crates, both large and small, he approached the largest of
them all. Its length, width, and all, everything was about two meters tall.

He checked the large crate for any possible traps. Needless to say, it was the
same as before. He had no skills of observation and could not imitate the skills of
a thief.

He pressed his ear up against it and listened.

Although it didnt seem like something was locked inside, in a place like the
underworld, anything could happen. They could even be smuggling illegal
creatures.

In a way, maybe it was to be expected that he didnt hear any noises. Climb then
placed his hand on top to try and open it.

Its not opening.

It did not budge.

He looked around for something like a plank or a stick but a quick look revealed
that there were none.

No choice then.

Next, he moved over to try and open the next biggest crate measuring about a
meter on all sides.

This one opened easily. Peering inside, there was a variety of garments. Starting
from a shabby one-piece, there were even a number of clothes a nobles
daughter would wear.

What is this? Is there something hidden beneath these it doesnt appear that
way. Are these spare clothes? Some of these look like work clothes, and this is a
maid outfit? What in the world?

Climb could not understand what all these clothes meant and twisted his face. He
held one in his hand but it was normal clothing. If these were related to a crime,
then they would be stolen goods. However, it was not enough as evidence for
bringing down this brothel.

Leaving the stuff that he didnt understand alone, Climb headed for a crate that
was a similar size to the one before. That was when he heard a loud rattle fill the
room.

That was impossible. He had checked the entire room and confirmed that no one
was here. At that moment, a thought flashed across his mind. Someone could
have used Invisibility to hide themselves here from the beginning.

Climb was startled by the thought and hastily turned in the direction of the noise,
the 2 meter crate that did not open. One of the sides of that crate had been up
against the wall, and the opposite side was now open.

There was no luggage inside the exposed interior. Instead, there were two men.
The inside was a passage and there was a hole where the wall should have been.
The inside of the crate had been connected to a secret tunnel.

While Climb blinked, the men stepped out of the crate one at a time.

Cold sweat ran down his back.

The appearance of one of the men closely resembled the description that he had
heard from Sebas. His name was Succulent, the one who was considered to be
their biggest obstacle in this attack and at the same time, the one they wanted to
capture the most.

He was a member of Six Arms who was said to be equal to adamantium ranked
adventurers. The enemy that Climb could not hope to defeat drew his blade and
spoke while narrowing his eyes.

I knew that there were intruders from Alarm so I went out of my way to take
the secret passage but Maybe you should have prepared more paths, after
all?

The man behind him responded in a shrill voice.

Even if you say that now, I cant do anything about it.

Meanwhile, the man saw Climb and spoke while tilting his head.

Huh? I saw that kid from somewhere.

A boy that youre familiar with? Even I will get angry if you say something like
that in this situation.

Whats with you, Succulent? Theres no way that thats what Im talking about.
No doubt, hes a subordinate of that female I hate the most in the world.

Youre saying that hes a subordinate of that princess?

Succulent looked over Climb from top to bottom like he was licking him all over.

Although the eyes of the man behind him, frighteningly enough, were filling with
lust, his eyes seemed to be trying to gauge Climbs abilities as a warrior. They
were like the eyes of a snake trying to determine if the prey would fit inside his
mouth.

The man behind him licked his lips with his tongue and asked Succulent.

I want to take him with me, can I?

A shiver ran down Climbs back and he felt an itch in his butt..

That bastard, he swings that way!

I will require additional fees.

Succulent ignored the screams of Climbs mind and turned to face him. Although
Climb could not spot any openings in the first place, he was ensnared by the
feeling that he was facing off against a strong citadel.

Succulent abruptly moved a step forward.

The pressure forced Climb to retreat a step back.

Without a doubt, it would not take long for a fight where the difference in skill
was clear to finish. However, Climb had to overcome that difficult crisis.

If I maintain my defenses and focus on blocking, then I will be able to buy time
until either Brain-sama or Sebas-sama arrives.

But there was something that he had to do before that.

Climb drew in a big breath.

Please help me!!

He shouted in a voice loud enough to force all the air out of his lungs.

Winning the individual battle was not victory. They would only be victorious if
they tied up the men here so that they could not run away. Another way to put it
would be that if they let a man of his skill and by extension, a man who seemed
to possess a lot of information get away, then that would mean their defeat. If so,
there would be no reason for him to hesitate to shout for help.

Succulents face turned savage.

The other side was now pressured by the need to finish this fight as quickly as
possible. In other words, there was a considerably higher chance that he would
mainly use bigger skills.

Climb did not let his guard down and observed them.

Cocco Doll-sama, its become a bit more difficult to take this guy with us. It looks
like I have to finish this fight before his reinforcements come.

What the hell! Didnt you say that youre a member of the Six Arms? You cant
knock out a kid like him? Youre making your name cry, Devil of Illusions!

If you say it like that, then youre putting me in a difficult position. Well, Ill do
my best but dont forget that our victory lies in Cocco Doll-sama getting out of
here safely.

Climb maintained vigilance and glared at Succulent as he tried to figure out why
he was called the Devil of Illusions. He wouldnt get a nickname if it was
completely at odds with his abilities. As such, if he could find its origin, then he
could read at least a sliver of his opponents abilities. But unfortunately, he
couldnt tell anything from the mans appearance or his equipment.

Even though he knew that he was at a disadvantage, Climb yelled to encourage

himself.

I am guarding this door. While I still stand, I will not allow you to escape!

Well know if thats possible soon enough. When you fall pathetically to the floor,
that is.

Succulent slowly raised his sword.

Hmm?!

Climb doubted his eyes.

The sword was swaying. His eyes were not mistaken. Although that strange
phenomenon quickly subsided, he had seen it clearly.

Some martial art?

It probably had something to do with the reason he was called the Devil of
Illusions. If so, it meant that his opponent had activated some power. Although he
hadnt let down his guard, he now had to be even more cautious.

Succulent closed in on him while raising his sword.

It could not be said to be the movements of someone who rivaled adamantium

ranked adventurers. Rather, looking at his movements alone, it fell slightly short
to Climb. He raised his sword to match the path of the swing and felt a shiver
that caused him to quickly retreat back.

At that instant, he felt a sharp pain in his side and was almost knocked away.

Ugh!

He staggered back just like that against the wall. He did not have the luxury to
think about what just happened. Succulent was already in front of him.

His sword was raised like before. Climb raised his sword to protect his head and
leapt towards his left side as if he was rolling headfirst.

Pain ran down his upper right arm.

He rolled using the momentum and as soon as he stood up, swung his sword
without even looking.

The sword cut through air.

He realized that his opponent had no intention of giving chase and looked around
while pressing down on his right arm. He saw Succulent run towards the door
leading to the stairs while being wary of him.

Climb ignored Succulent who was about to open the door and directed his gaze at
Cocco Doll. He deemed that if Succulent was in charge of Cocco Dolls protection,
this would be enough to keep him in check. His prediction was correct.

Succulents hand stopped abruptly. He then placed himself between Climb and
Cocco Doll and clicked his tongue. His eyes moved to the door, Climb, and Cocco
Doll in that order and his face grew twisted.

He got me! I apologize but Ill have to kill this brat right here.

What~? If we keep him alive then hell be a good card to use against that bitch.

I was mistaken because of him. I focused on the fact that he was guarding the
door and that was the reason why he babbled about guarding the door. This
bastard toying with me.

Alright, he fell for it! As I thought, they dont seem to have any information
about whats happening outside. Now they wont be able to run.

In a situation where Succulent was the only bodyguard, it was a foolish idea to
run while leaving Climb alive and able to continue fighting. The reason was
because they would be hit with a pincer attack should one of Climbs allies be at
the top of the stairs. For the same reason, he also couldnt let Cocco Doll escape
alone before he finished the battle with Climb.

Climb separating himself from the door after announcing that he would guard it
and showing signs that he was aiming for Cocco Doll caused Succulent to fall for
his bluff. He was now deeply entrenched in the thought that someone was on
standby beyond the door and that they would use a pincer attack to capture
Cocco doll alive. In order to escape safely, he should have determined that he
had to first defeat Climb here.

Of course, this was because he did not know the situation outside. If he did, he
would have simply opened the door and fled.

Having won his gamble, Climb received the rising killing intent and raised his
sword.

Haa

Climb endured the pain being transmitted from his side and upper right arm.
Several of his bones might have been broken but he was lucky to still be able to
move. No, if that pervert did not harbor any weird lust towards him, then Climb
might have died to a single stroke of the sword. Even though he was wearing a
chain shirt, it didnt protect him from the slash completely

But what was that attack? Did he slash with an incredible speed? But it didnt
seem that way

Gazefs face rose to Climbs mind.

Gazef Stronoffs original martial art, Sixfold Slash of Light, was said to deliver six
attacks at once. If so, perhaps he was using something similar, but not quite as
powerful, a Twofold Slash of Light.

However, that meant that Succulent was using a bizarre technique where the first
attack was normal speed and only the second attack was fast.

It doesnt connect. Id be able to deal with it somehow if I knew what kind of

technique it was but anyways, its dangerous to be on the defensive. Should I
attack?

Climb swallowed his saliva and ran in. His eyes switched from Succulent over to
Cocco Doll, causing Succulents face to twist greatly.

A bodyguard wont like it if you go for their target, even if its only a threat. I
know that from experience.

Approach while doing everything that he himself would not enjoy.

Devil of Illusions; a devil that uses illusions theres a chance that the nickname
itself is a deception but its worth checking.

He brought down his sword while closing the distance. But as expected, it was
easily repelled. He endured the impact that was being transmitted and swung
again. It was not an attack that was raised high so there was no strength in it.
Regardless, it was enough.

As his broadsword was again deflected by Succulents sword, Climb nodded his
head in satisfaction and widened the distance.

An illusion! Its not a martial art!

He felt that something was out of place when his sword was repelled. Rather than
the weapon he could see with his eyes, he had felt his sword being deflected by
something slightly in front of it.

Your right arm itself is an illusion. Your real arm and your sword is invisible!

The sword that he thought he blocked was an illusion and the invisible blade was
what slashed his body.

Succulent erased all expressions on his face and began to talk in a flat voice.

Thats right. I just combined a spell that made a part of the body invisible with
illusion magic since I chose classes in Illusionist and Fencer. Now that you know,
its a boring trick, right? You can laugh if you want.

Just how could he laugh? Without a doubt, it sounded incredibly simple when said
out loud and even made one wonder how they didnt notice it before. However, in
a battle where a single slash could mean your death, there was nothing more
frightening than a sword that you could not see. And the fact that the illusion was
visible on top of that made it that much easier to forget about it.

My strength purely as a warrior might be less than yours since my skills are split,
but

Succulent turned his hand holding the sword with a flick. But was that truly his
real arm? There was a chance that the arm he could see was an illusion and that
his real hand was holding a dagger while looking for an opportunity to throw it.

Cold sweat trailed down Climbs body as he realized the terror of illusions.

Among magic casters, an illusionist can only use illusion spells. The higher tiers
have damage spells that attack with illusions and kill by tricking the brain,
however I have yet to reach that level.

That sounds like a lie. Wheres your proof?

I guess youre right.

Succulent spoke with a smile.

Well, but theres no reason for you to believe me. So, hmm, what was I going to
say right. As such, I cant cast any spells to strengthen myself or weaken you.
However will you be able to tell the difference between illusion and reality?

As soon as his words ended, Succulents body became divided and it looked as if
several Succulents were overlapping.

Multiple Vision.

Although it seemed like one of them would be the real body, there was no
guarantee that that was true.

Why did I give a magic caster time!

Climbs objective was to buy time, but giving a magic caster time to cast buffs
was incredibly dangerous.

With a roar, Climb activated the Ability Boost and the Strengthen Perception
martial arts and closed the distance to Succulent in one breath.

Scintillating Scotoma.

Ugh!

Climb felt a portion of his vision fade away. However, the effect disappeared
immediately. It seems his magic resist had succeeded.

Having endured with his feet planted, Climb swung his sword like he was trying to
slash through all of the clones. But only one of them was within the reach of his
swing. As expected, if he wanted to hit all of them, he had to engage the original.
Otherwise, there would be no strength in his sword.

The Succulent that got hit was cut in two. However, there was no blood and the
sword passed through him without resistance.

Wrong.

A chill rose from his guts and the area around his neck grew hot. Climb covered
the area where he felt the heat with his left hand.

He felt a sharp pain from the hand covering his neck and the ominous sensation
of his clothes being dyed in fresh blood. If he had not sensed his bloodlust, if he
had hesitated to sacrifice his hand, his neck would have been severed. Relieved
to have escaped death, he gritted his teeth to endure the pain and slashed his
sword horizontally.

Again, the sword only cut air with no resistance.

Anymore was dangerous.

Having realized this, Climb used Evasion and retreated back. His eyes reflected
the image of two Succulents simultaneously raising their swords. Climb knew that
all the swords were illusions and focused his ears.

The chain shirt he wore and the beating of his heart sounded noisy in his ears.
The only thing that he had to listen to was the sound coming from the man
before him.

No. No. This one!

The noise was not coming from the sword that was heading towards him. The
faint sound of a blade cutting through air came from the empty space in front of
him. It was heading for the middle of Climbs face.

Climb hastily turned his face and felt heat graze past his cheek as well as the
pain of his flesh being slashed open. Hot liquid spilled from his cheek and flowed
down his neck.

One in two chances!

Climb spit out the blood that was trailing into his mouth and poured everything
he had into this attack.

Because he had used it for earlier to shield himself, he could feel nothing but pain
below his left wrist. He wasnt sure if his fingers could move properly. It was even

possible that the nerves were severed. But even if he could only hold on to it,
Climb grasped the handle of his sword.

The pain exploded and caused him to grit his teeth. However, his left hand
moved properly and he could grip the swords handle. Perhaps the pain was the
reason his hand felt like a swollen balloon.

He firmly gripped it with both hands and brought down his sword from overhead
with as much strength as he could muster.

Blood sprouted. Along with the sensation of cutting through something hard,
blood erupted like a fountain. It seemed that he had managed to hit the real one
this time.

Succulent fell to the floor like he had been stabbed in the vitals. Although it was
hard to believe that he had won against a man who was as skilled as
adamantium ranked adventurers, the fact that he had collapsed was the
undeniable truth. Climb forced down his rising joy and turned his eyes to Cocco
doll who was quietly looking in his direction. He didnt seem to have any intention
of fleeing.

Perhaps because he lost a bit of his tension, the flaring pain from his cheek and
left arm made him nauseous.

This cant be called a complete victory.

Although it would have been ideal to capture Succulent alive, that was impossible
for Climb. Even so, they should be able to get a lot of information if they capture
the man that the Six Arms were protecting and helping to escape.

Climb stepped forward to capture him but felt something out of place with Cocco
Dolls expression. He was too calm.

What was the basis for that composure?

At that moment, he felt a hot sensation stab through his stomach.

As if his strings had been cut, strength left his body. For an instant, his vision
turned pitch black and when he came to; he was lying on the floor. He could not
understand what had happened. It felt like a hot, metal rod was lodged in his
stomach. The pain spread and made him violently expel the air in his lungs. A
foot entered his vision that could only see the floor.

Unfortunately, it seems you cant call this a victory at all.

He desperately raised his face and saw Succulent who was almost completely
unharmed.

Fox Sleep. Its an illusion that I can activate after receiving an injury. It hurt,
you know. You probably thought that you killed me, right?

He moved his fingers and slowly traced a straight line across his waist. It was
probably the path of Climbs sword.

Haa. Haa. Haa. Haa.

His breaths were short and rough. Climb could feel the blood sprouting from his
stomach stain his chain shirt and clothes alike.

He was going to die.

Climb desperately clung onto his fading consciousness that seemed like it would
be torn away by the tremendous pain.

Losing consciousness here meant certain death.

However, even if he stayed awake, it was only a matter of time. Succulent will
probably come over to personally finish him off.

He fought well, considering that he was up against a man at the level of

adamantium ranked adventurers. Since it ended up like this, he had no choice
but to resign himself to his fate. The difference in strength was clear.

However he could not give up.

How could he?

Climb gritted his teeth as if he was trying to shatter them.

He could not accept death. He could not allow himself to die without Renners
orders.

Ku, guh! Ugh, urk.

With the sound of grinding teeth and a forceful shout that was more like a groan,
he filled his heart with anger, the heart that was about to cave to the pain.

He could not die just yet. He could not die.

Climb desperately thought of Renner. Today as well, he wanted to return to her

side

There isnt much time so Ill just finish you off. Die.

Succulent pointed his sword at the boy who was groaning.

It was a fatal injury; his death was only a matter of time. However, he had a
hunch that it would be better for him to kill him here.

Um, cant we take him with us?

Cocco Doll-san, please give it a rest. Theres a good chance that this brats allies
are through that door. And even if we do take him with us, hes probably just
going to die before we get to someplace safe. Please just give it up.

Then at the very least, lets take his head. Im going to send it to that bitch with
some flowers.

Yes, yes. If its only that much huh?!

Succulent leapt back.

The boy had swung his sword.

For a boy who was almost dead, the cut was sharp and steady. As Succulent was
about to give a look of disdain at the last-ditch resistance of his pitiful prey, his
eyes grew wide.

The boy was rising to his feet by using the sword as a crutch.

That was impossible.

Succulent, who had killed in numbers that could not be counted in the hundreds,
was certain that his attack from a moment ago was fatal. It was a wound that you
could never get up from.

But the scene before his eyes too easily betrayed the knowledge that he had built
up from experience.

H-how is he standing up?

He felt goose bumps. He was truly like an undead.

With a long string of saliva trailing down his mouth, the boys pale face could only
be described as someone who had thrown away his humanity.

I cant die yet. Not before repay ner-sama kindness.

For an instant, his breath stopped in his throat when the boys eerie eyes turned
to him. That was terror. He was scared of the boy who had done the impossible.

Seeing how the boy staggered on his feet, Succulent came back to his senses.
What seized him then was shame. For a member of Six Arms to be afraid of
someone who was so far beneath him, he couldnt accept it.

You half-dead bastard! Die!

Succulent charged forward. He was certain that the boy would die if he stabbed
him.

But he had been too arrogant.

Looking at them as a whole, there was no doubt that there was an overwhelming
difference between Climb and Succulent. But Succulent who had two classes in
Illusionist and Fencer and Climb who was only trained in the Warrior class, when
comparing the two from a warriors perspective, there was not that big of a
difference. Rather, Climb would be above him. The only reason that Climb was
weaker than Succulent was because of the existence of magic. In a situation
where he wasnt strengthened by magic, Succulent was the weaker one.

With the sound of cutting through air, the sword shot up high and the high
pitched noise of clashing metal rang out.

The reason that he was able to block the boys overhead strike was because his
body was close to dying and his movements were dulled.

Cold sweat ran down Succulents face. He had been too focused on the fact that
his opponent was almost dead. This preconceived notion was completely blown
away.

As a Fencer, Succulent who was trained on how to evade the enemys attacks,
had used his sword to defend himself. That was how far past the norm the boys
attack had been.

That wasnt an attack that could be done by a half-dead human.

This thought brushed past Succulents anxious mind.

No, the speed of his sword was even faster than before he was injured.

Bastard, whats with you?!

To become stronger in the middle of a battle. Thought it wasnt impossible,

Succulent had never seen something like that in reality.

Rather, it felt as if he had shed a layer of something.

What the hell is going on?! Is it a magic item? A martial art?

His panicked voice sounded desperate, so much so that it was hard to tell which
side had the upper hand.

What happened to Climb was simple.

Thanks to Sebas training, the function in his brain that protected the body was
thrown into disarray.

He had experienced death during Sebas training. His tenacity for life overlapped
with the death he now faced and like back then, the limiters in his brain were
released, granting him superhuman strength similar to the one that was
sometimes displayed at the scene of a fire.

Although he had only seen a single blow during his training, without it, he would
have died here without being able to do anything.

Succulent blocked a powerful blow and was suddenly blown back a great
distance.

The impact from being dashed against the ground escaped through his back and
shook his stomach. Although the orichalcum chain shirt blocked the impact, for
an instant, the air in his lungs was expelled and he could not breathe.

What happened? Even though Succulent, the one who had received the impact,
could not figure it out, it was obvious to Cocco Doll who had been watching from
the sidelines.

He had kicked him with his leg. As soon as the overhead slash was blocked, the
boy had immediately delivered a kick to Succulent.

Unable to understand what had happened, Succulent hastily got back on his feet.
For fencers, being nimble was their creed. Lying sprawled out on the ground was
fatal.

Damn it! This bastard doesnt act like a soldier! To think you would even use
your feet! You need to just stick to textbook swordsmanship!

Succulent rolled on the floor while quickly getting back up and with the sound of
clicking his tongue, he poured out his criticisms.

It was a style that was different from what the soldiers trained in. It was dirtier; it
felt like he was facing off against an adventurer. That was why he couldnt let
down his guard.

A feeling of anxiety ran down Succulents back.

At first, he thought that he would win easily, that he could quickly finish off a brat
like this. However, now he could feel that composure start to disappear.

Succulent drew in his breath as he saw how the boy who he deemed dangerous
was slowly weakening.

His complexion looked as if their previous series of clashes had burned out the
flame of his life. No, that was probably the truth. Like how a candle burns brightly
just before it goes out, that power was the same.

Now, he will really die even if he were to simply touch him.

Succulent felt a tiny relief and after a moment of hesitation, was dominated by
anger.

He was angry at the fact that as one of the Six Arms, he had this much trouble
with a single soldier. Also at himself for thinking it was dangerous. However, the
fight was decided. He just had to kill him and run.

However

Thats enough.

He had just barely made it on time.

Climb who was lying on the ground, his face was a mess of dirt and sweat. It had
gone past the point of turning blue and was now completely pale. Even so, he
was still alive. But being stabbed through the stomach was fatal and if he was not
treated immediately, he would die in a matter of minutes.

Brain entered the room, unable to feel relieved.

Inside, there were two men. One of them didnt seem to be a combatant.

Cant you just kill the kid quickly without paying attention to that suspicious guy
over there?

If I do then that man will close the distance in an instant and blow me away with
a single slash. Hes on a whole different level compared to this brat. I wont be
able to win unless I concentrate and fight with everything I have. If I let my guard
down even slightly or let my mind wander, itll be over.

Then the one who just answered must be Succulent.

Thats how Brain understood it. It was clear that he closely resembled the
description. Honestly, that was what he thought back when he saw him with a
clone and holding a bloody dagger. But he was done confirming it.

Brain stomped over without a word and half-heartedly used a draw slash.
Succulent retreated back with a leap and the katana sliced through thin air. But
Brain had only attacked with the intention to separate the enemy from Climb. He
stepped over the collapsed Climb and stopped his feet at where he could cover
for him.

Climb, you okay? Do you have any items that can heal injuries?

He did not have the luxury of time and thus spoke quickly. If there was nothing to
treat him with, they would have to quickly find another way.

Haa, haa, haa, haa. I do.

He glanced over and saw that Climb had put down his sword and was moving his
hand.

I see.

Brain replied with a deep sense of relief and looked at Succulent with a
penetrating stare.

Ill be your opponent from now on. Im going to have to take revenge for this
guy.

No wonder you seem confident. You have a katana, an expensive weapon that
rarely travels up from the south. Ive never heard that a warrior like you was in
the KingdomMind if I ask for your name?

He had no intention of answering him.

Climb was someone who he shared a common objective with his comrade. In a
situation where that comrade might die, he didnt have time to go back and forth
with questions and

All of a sudden, Brain asked himself.

Is this me?

Didnt he throw away everything that did not involve improving his skill with the
sword? As Brain was about to slightly tilt his chin, he let out a quiet laugh.

Ahh, I see now.

His heart, his dream, his goal, his path in life, what made life worth living, all of it
had been destroyed by that monster, Shalltear Bloodfallen. And the one who
found a place in its cracks was Climb. When he himself broke under the savage
bloodlust of the mysterious figure named Sebas, the figure of Climb enduring
despite being weak won Brains respect and admiration. He saw the resplendence
of a man who possessed what he did not.

While he stood in front of Climb, he and Succulent stared each other down.
Seeing him like this, could Climb see the same brilliance that Brain had seen from
his back?

If his past self saw this situation, he would have laughed until tears came from
his eyes, saying that he got weaker.

He had thought that a warrior grew weaker if he had to shoulder something. He

used to think that the only thing a warrior needed was sharpness.

However now he understood.

So this kind of life existed as well I see now. Gazef it seems that Im still no
match for you.

Didnt you hear me? Mind if I ask again? Your name is?

Sorry about that. I dont think there would be any meaning in telling you but Ill
answer its Brain Unglaus.

Succulents eyes opened wide.

What! You?!

Oh my! The real thing?! Hes not a fake?!

No, theres no doubt, Cocco Doll-san. An expensive weapon reveals a warriors

worth. For the Brain Unglaus that I know of, a katana would be a fitting weapon.

Brain smiled bitterly.

Most of the people that I meet for the first time today seem to know about me
if this was the past then I wouldve been happy but Im not really sure how I feel
about it now.

Succulents smile suddenly turned friendly. Brain was puzzled but his confusion
was immediately lifted.

Listen, Unglaus! What do you say we stop fighting? Someone like you is more
than qualified to become our comrade. How about you join us? If its you, I can
tell just by looking that youre strong enough to become a member of Six Arms.
Youre the same as us. Arent you seeking power? Thats what your eyes tell me.

Youre not wrong.

Then Eight Fingers will be pretty good for you. Its the greatest organization for
those with strength! You can get magic items with powerful abilities. Look at this
orichalcum chain shirt! This mithril sword! Ring! Clothes! Boots! Theyre all magic
items! Now, Brain Unglaus, become our comrade. Like me, youll be a member of
Six Arms.

How boring. Thats all your gang amounts to?

His unbelievably cold attitude filled with contempt froze Succulents face solid.

What?

Didnt you hear me? I said that your gang with only that much power is nothing
special.

Y-You bastard! H-Hmph. Then that must mean youre not so strong yourself!

Youre quite right. After seeing a truly strong monster, someone like me is
nothing.

Brain took pity on the frog in a small pond who believed that he was strong and
gave him an honest, friendly warning.

The strength that you speak of is the same. Were probably speaking about
similar things so let me give you a warning. Even if we claim that were strong,
were nothing special.

Brain looked over his shoulder and confirmed that Climb had finished drinking his
potion.

And theres something that Ive come to understand. Strength that is for the
sake of others is greater than strength that is only for your own sake.

Brain smiled. It was a friendly, light hearted smile.

The difference might be tiny. But I still came to realize it.

I dont understand a word youre saying. Its a pity, Unglaus. Its a pity that I
have to kill that genius swordsman who was Stronoffs equal.

You? Do you think that you who only wield your sword for yourself could kill
me?

Of course I can kill you, quite easily, in fact. Ill kill you, and then Ill kill that brat
lying down over there. Theres no more reason for me to hold back and I wont
play around either. Ill come with everything I have.

While keeping Succulent who started to prepare his magic in his line of sight, he
sensed the presence of the one behind him begin to move and sent out a
warning.

Stay still, Climb. Youre not fully recovered yet, right?

Twitch. The movement stopped.

Brain wore a smile and spoke, despite feeling the same surprise that he felt a
moment ago at this side of himself.

Let me take care of the rest.

I leave it to you.

Rather than reply, Brain laughed and sheathed his katana as he lowered his
stance. At the same time, he flipped the katana, sheath and all, so that its top
and bottom side were switched.

Be careful. Succulent uses illusions. Just because you can see it doesnt
necessarily mean its real.

Oh, so thats it That seems like an annoying opponent but it wont be a

problem.

Brain silently watched Succulent without moving. He must have finished casting
his spells, for the number of his afterimages had increased to five. Not only that,
he was wearing a mantle that looked as if it was made of shadows. He could not
even begin to guess as to what sort of spells he cast on it.

Thanks for giving me time to prepare. A magic caster with enough time
becomes stronger than even a warrior. You defeat is certain, Unglaus!

Right, dont worry about it. Its the same for me. After talking with my friend
here... I dont think I could ever lose.

Crunch. He heard the sound of Climb, who had been lying prone on the floor,
moving.

He was regretting the fact that because of him, they had allowed the enemy to
cast buffs. That was why Brain made his announcement so that Climb could
clearly hear it.

One hit.

What?!

I said that Ill end this in one hit, Succulent.

Try it if you can!

Succulent ran towards him with his afterimages.

As he entered the range of his katana, Brain turned his body so that his calm and
defenseless back was exposed to the charging Succulent. And his god speed
slash flew towards empty space, right next to Climb.

Smack.

That sound rang out and the walls shook.

Both Cocco Doll and Climb looked in the direction of where that sound had come
from.

There, Succulents body was collapsed on the floor and did not budge. A sword
was rolling on the ground near him.

Brains draw slash had blown back Succulents body and it had crashed into the
wall at unbelievable speed. If he had not used the back of his blade, even with

the orichalcum chain shirt, Succulents body would have been in two pieces.
Thats how much power was behind that attack.

My Field can detect your presence even if I cant see you with my eyes. To
think that you would use an auditory illusion to try and focus my attention to the
front so you can attack from behind It was a great trick, but too bad your
opponent was me. And going for Climb was also foolish. You were probably
planning to kill him and babble about how I couldnt protect him and what not,
but you focused too much of your attention on trying to attack Climb who was on
the floor. Did you forget who youre facing?

Brain sheathed his katana and smiled at Climb.

See, one hit, right?

That was splendid!

His voice was overlapped by another voice that also said That was incredible.
The two were shocked. The voice they heard belonged to Sebas, but that by itself
was nothing to be surprised about. What shocked them was the direction that the
voice came from.

The two turned their eyes in Cocco Dolls direction.

There, they saw Sebas. Cocco Doll was collapsed next to him.

When did you arrive?

Sebas calmly replied to Brains question.

I just arrived. It seems everyones attention was focused on Succulent and did
not notice me.

I-I see.

Even as he answered, Brain didnt think that was possible.

But I had my Field up. Its range is narrow but it should still catch anyone who
ran in a straight line. And I still couldnt sense him? The only one whos capable
of moving like that until now was that monster, Shalltear Bloodfallen. Ive thought
this when I got hit with his bloodlust, but is he on the same level as that monster?
Just who is he?

Regardless, I have rescued everyone who was taken captive. And I must
apologize to Climb-kun, several of the guards fought back so fiercely that I had no
choice but to kill them. Please forgive me or so Id like to say. It seems that
before I apologize, it would better for me to treat your wounds.

Sebas walked up next to Climb and touched his stomach with his hand. He very
briefly held his hand lightly against his stomach and immediately retracted it. But
the effect was dramatic. Climbs face that had been pale even after he drank the
potion had immediately regained its healthy complexion.

My stomachs healed! You were a priest?

No, I did not use the power of God, but rather poured in my Ki to treat you.

So you were a monk! No wonder, I finally understand.

Brain nodded his head, now he understood why he didnt have any weapons or
armor. Sebas showed a smile of affirmation.

Then what will the two of you do from now on?

First, I plan to run to the guard office to explain what happened here and bring
some soldiers back. Meanwhile, I would like to ask Sebas-sama and Brain-sama to
keep watch here. However, Eight Fingers might send reinforcements.

Im already on board this ship. Ill ride it out til the end.

I do not mind either. However, could you keep me and my matters a secret? I
only came to this country for business and do not wish to involve myself any
further with the darkness of a foreign land.

I dont care either way, Climb. Well, know that my guarantor is Stronoff for now
so Ill leave it to you.

I see. I understand. Then to you both, I apologize but please give me some
time.

Part 3

Top Fire Month (Month 9), Day 3, 19:05

As night began to fall on the Kingdom, Climb finally returned to the palace.

Although his injuries were completely healed, his body was tired. Not just the
battle, he had to mediate several times to handle the aftermath and those took
time. The reason it had worked out in the end was not because Climb was
Renners bodyguard, but because the guards feared the Eight Fingers and

remained passive. What was especially significant was the problem of

responsibility.

The one responsible would be made an example of and murdered by the Eight
Fingers it was a not a groundless worry. There was a high possibility of it
actually happening. That was why he ordered a soldier to deliver to Renner a
document containing a brief account of the situation. He then received
permission to write down his name and the name of his master as the ones
responsible.

Even though it would obviously have its share of disadvantages, there were at
least two benefits.

One was obvious; it would raise Renners reputation.

They were the organization that was dirtying the Kingdom. And not only that, she
exposed the people who committed filthy acts while being involved with the slave
trade. Even better, for Renner who does not step outside the palace, the fact that
she sent her bodyguard to the front would raise her evaluation.

Next were Sebas and the fact that they could protect the girl that he was
sheltering. If they became the ones responsible, they could hide her since she
was trying to not stand out. And once that was done, it would be difficult for them
to become Eight Fingers primary targets.

I couldnt be of much help when we charged in so I have to do at least this

much

Brain said that he was going to deliver the news to Gazef personally and told him
to not worry about it.

Climb absent-mindedly pondered such thoughts as he knocked on Renners door.

Normally, he could just enter without having to knock. But he declined to do so

when it was late, thinking that it would be rude after all. After that one time when
he encountered a Renner who was only wearing a thin silk dress, even his master
consented to him on that point.

Climb smelled himself before he could hear the answer. Even though he had
washed, his nose was used to the smell and he wasnt confident whether or not
the smell of blood was gone from his body. There was just no way that his attire
was good enough to enter the room of a princess. However, it was necessary that
he promptly report todays events with his own mouth.

More than anything, the people who had been held captive were the most
important. For now, those women had been entrusted with the station, but they
would have to be moved to a safe location in the near future. And since some of
them were hurt, they would have to send someone like a priest who could use
healing magic.

The kind-hearted Renner-sama will definitely extend a helping hand to the

suffering citizens.

It pained him to cause all these troubles for his master. If only he were a bit
stronger he ended up not knowing his place and wished for something like that.
Even when it was all thanks to her that he could serve such a wonderful master,
that he could live like this.

Huh? There was no answerright?

He did not hear the reply giving him permission to enter.

There was no night watch in front of the door and according to the time, Renner
should not be asleep yet. Or did she simply fall asleep without informing the
person on night duty?

Climb knocked on the door again.

This time, he heard a faint voice from inside giving him permission to enter. Climb
felt a sense of relief and went inside. What he had to do first had already been
decided.

I apologize for being late.

He deeply bowed his head.

I was worried!

The anger was evident in Renners voice. It was surprising. Climbs master rarely
ever got angry. Even if she was insulted, in front of Climb, she showed no signs
that she was angry. That was why he understood that Renner had been worried
from the bottom of her heart.

He felt as if something warm was going to gush out of his eyes. He endured it and
bowed his head and sincerely apologized over and over.

I was really worried! I thought that maybe Eight Fingers attacked first and had
done something to Climb and So what happened, exactly? I received a brief
report but can you explain it to me in detail?

When Climb was about to start speaking while standing up, Renner offered him a
seat per usual.

Now that he was seated, black tea from the Warm Bottle was poured into the
teacup placed in front of him. A faint steam rose into the air.

He gave his thanks and drank a gulp of the tea that was at optimal temperature.

Climb told of everything that he went through in the brothel. He said that he was
relying on Renners power and that there were people that he wanted her to aid.

So what did you think when you saw them?

When his story was roughly finished, the first question that Renner asked seemed
strange. But as long as he was asked a question, he had to answer.

I pitied them. I thought that if I was stronger, I could have saved those people
before they fell into such suffering.

So thats how it was Climb thought of them as pitiful.

Yes.

I see. Climb is kind.

Renner-sama, if those women require a guard then I am prepared to leave at any

time.

Ill be counting on you when that time comes. More importantly, I should tell
you this beforehand. Tomorrow, or two days at the latest, were going to attack
the facilities that were on the parchment that Lakyus brought in. Because of the
attack on the brothel, I predict that theyll grow more alert as more time passes.

I apologize! Its because I acted on my own!

No its not, dont worry about it. Rather, I was able to make my decision thanks
to you. Besides, what Climb did is held in extremely high regard. You managed to
capture Succulent, a member of Six Arms, and the leader of the slave trade
group, Cocco Doll. This should be more than enough to shake up our opponent at
the roots. Thats why I want to deliver an additional attack to our enemy.

Renner punched the air, a cute punch with neither power nor speed.

Well hit them again before they steal information from the capital!

Understood! Ill rest up and gather my energy for tomorrow!

Please. Expect tomorrow to be a fierce day.

Climb left the room. He seemed to slightly smell of blood.

It mustve been hard on you, Climb. Now then

Renner drank the rest of the black tea that had grown lukewarm and stood from
her seat. She made her way to the hand bell. It was a magic item that when
shaken, the one in the next room that it was linked to would shake as well. She
thought of the face of the maid who was on standby in the next room. Luckily
enough, it was that girls turn today, thinking so, Renner wore a cold smile.

Shoot, which face was good here?

Renner stood in front of the mirror and stretched her face up and down while
holding her cheeks with both hands. Even if a human like her did something like
that, her face would hardly change. What she was doing was something like
affirmation.

Renner removed her hands and smiled.

No. This is for when I make my rounds as the princess

This time, Renner tried a sneer and then another smile. One after another and
finally, she wore an innocent smile.

I think this one will be best.

Having determined that she was finished preparing, Renner rang the bell.
Immediately after, a maid knocked on the door and entered the room.

I have a request. Could you prepare me some hot water?

Understood, Renner-sama.

Renner smiled at the maid who was bowing her head.

Did something happen? You seem to be in a good mood. You look as if

something pleasant has happened to you.

Renner happily smiled again as she confirmed that the prey took the bait.

Yeah! Its really incredible! Climb did something amazing!

She spoke like a young girl; perfectly fitting for the foolish princess who coughs
up valuable information.

Congratulations, your Grace.

Although the maid skillfully hid the hostility she had towards Climb, she ended up
revealing the feelings that she could not hide. That reaction caused a stir in
Renners heart.

Ill kill her.

Ill kill this maid too.

Ill kill anyone who looks down on my Climb.

But Renners expression showed no signs that she knew the truth. For the current
Renner was an innocent princess; the type who was oblivious to the malice of
others and who forgives her maids rudeness, that kind of nave foolish
princess.

Its amazing! Really amazing! Climb defeated some really really bad people and
freed all of the people who had been captured. Now they should be um, he said
that he left them somewhere in the guard station. Now we can punish the nobles
who helped those bad people!

I see. That is really amazing. As expected, Renner-samas Climb-san is splendid.

But could I hear about that incredible thing he did with more detail?

Stupid girl, Renner spread her poison to the fool who was not even suspicious.

She controls everything in the palm of her hand, all in order to obtain the object
of her desire.

Top Fire Month (Month 9), Day 3, 22:10

There was a suspicious looking group that looked as if they were melting into the
darkness.

All of them each wore different equipment and their atmosphere was completely
different from that of soldiers. If one had to mention who they smelled the closest
to, perhaps it would be adventurers.

The one at the front was a man with a rough physique. Next was a lean man
along with a woman wearing light silk. A person in a robe followed them from
behind and lastly, there was a person wearing full plate armor.

In the direction that the group was staring in, there was a door that was opened
wide. The inside was covered in darkness and there was no longer the presence
of other people. Even when looking around the surroundings, there did not seem
to be any people.

This was a strange. All of the goods that were in the brothel had already been
seized and transported to one of the stations for soldiers. However, it was out of
the question that they would not leave sentries behind just because there was
nothing there. If one were to actually look towards the entrance that was empty
of people, they would see a bright bonfire and realize that they were keeping vigil
at night. But the reason that no one could be seen was because those people
used their authority to temporarily remove the sentries.

The boulder-like man standing at the front Zero, sent a terrifying gaze to the
captured brothel and spoke in a low voice, as if he found it despicable.

What a farce. Ill have to apologize to Cocco Doll. I lent him Succulent, a
member of Six Arms and they still fell this easily. And it was even on the same
day truly, what a farce.

Zero sent a sharp glare over his shoulder at the snickering that came from behind
him. The woman who was wearing the light silk knew Zeros personality well and
quickly changed the topic.

Ah, right right. So boss, what should we do? Do we kill Succulent who got
caught? Hes at a station so itll be hard to use force. Then wed have to borrow
an assassin from a different division what do we do?

No, we wont do that. Hes still useful. I will request the Count to have him
released immediately. This will become an unexpected expense. Find out the
Counts tastes.

The thin, frivolous-looking man asked a question.

And Cocco Doll?

He will likely use his own connections. If he asks, then we will use our
connections as an apology. Also, what happened to the client list? There wasnt
any information about it falling into the hands of a patrol officer.

There has been no news on that front. To be more precise, I havent heard of any
further details on the matter.

The voice coming from the robe was dark. It was like an empty echo flowing out
of a hole in a graveyard that sent shivers down the spine.

That is something that I am very eager to get my hands on. It can be used to
make all kinds of threats.

Dont say something so stupid. If we kept that with us, it would only make us
look more suspicious. Others may think that we had planned for all of this to
happen. If we find the list, we will hide it in a safe location and hand it over later
to Cocco Doll with an apology. Besides, its probably written in code that cant be
cracked by normal methods so its useless to us regardless.

At Zeros words, the lean man shrugged his shoulders as he spoke.

Anyways, Ill go in later and try to find out what happened to the list. If they
have it, its probably in a secret safe or something. With that said, this is pretty
amazing. How was this hole made? The weapon was it magic?

It was a fist.

Everyones eyes fell on Zero. He repeated himself, declaring that this imprint was
made by a fist.

A fist huh thats amazing~.

Foolish. This is nothing.

He cut off the womans admiration and, collecting his breath, Zero stabbed the
door with his fist. His hand became lodged in the door as if it was ripping through
paper. As Zero slowly pulled out his fist, leaving behind a same hole as the one
that Sebas had made.

Looking dumb-founded, the lean man opened his mouth.

You cant really use the boss as a comparison Well, the enemy had enough
skill to pierce through a steel reinforced door and defeat Succulent, even if hes
the weakest among the Six Arms. Im guessing we should consider him to be a
formidable foe, right?

What nonsense. Just because that guy lost doesnt mean that his opponent was
strong.

The one who had his hood pulled deeply over his head spoke in a voice filled with
ridicule.

If his illusions are seen through, then his battle strength falls greatly beneath
ours. He is strong when there is a clear difference in ability between him and his
opponent. But if its similar or he falls behind even slightly, then his defeat is
certain. You all should know this as well.

There was faint laughter. It was a laugh that agreed with his comment and at the
same time, one of contempt for someone whose skill was beneath them.

With that in mind, let me ask, what do we do? Are you going to take your hand
off the matter? I do not think that clashing will prove beneficial, considering the
losses.

Foolish.

Zeros voice was filled with an anger that he could not suppress.

If we dont kill the one who attacked this brothel and set an example, our value
will drop. From this point on, dont think about losses. All of Six Arms will step
forward and kill the invader Undying King Deibanock

The one wearing the robe held out his hand. The hand that did not belong to a
living person was firmly grasping an orb. The orb responded to the emotions of its
owner and exuded a strange aura.

Void Executioner Peshurian.

The one in full plate armor who had been silent until now beat his fist against his
chest and the loud sound of metal rang out.

Dancing Scimitar Edstrom.

With the ringing of the metal bangle around her arm, the woman wearing the
light silk gracefully bowed her head.

Thousand Kills Malmvist.

The lean man brought his heels together with a click.

And I, Battle Demon Zero!

As if in agreement, those around Zero all nodded their head.

First, we pay the bail on Succulent and the others who were arrested and gather
information. Once that is done arrange for people who know how to torture. We
will show the invader hell. He will greatly regret his foolishness!

Top Fire Month (Month 9), Day 3, 17:42

By the time Sebas had finished everything and was heading back to the mansion,
the sun had already begun to set.

Climb-kun protected the ones that were being held captive and Succulent and the
owner of the brothel were all arrested. It seems they will be quite busy so it
should buy a bit of time.

Then what was he to do with Tsuare? The best option was to take her somewhere
safe. However, as far as Sebas knew, only one place fit that description.

While worrying over it, Sebas arrived at the residence.

He stopped his hand as he was about to open the door. There was someone on
the other side close by. Although this presence belonged to Solution, he could not
understand why she was standing right in front of the entrance.

Was it an emergency?

Feeling uneasy, Sebas opened the door. What he saw next was so unexpected
that he grew rigid.

Welcome back. Sebas-sama.

It was Solution wearing her maid uniform.

A shiver ran down Sebas back.

While acting as the daughter of a merchant, in this house where a human whose
circumstances were unknown Tsuare existed, Solution was wearing her maid
uniform. Was it because the act was no longer necessary? Or did a reason that
required her to be in her maid uniform appear?

If it was the former, then it meant that something had happened to Tsuare. If it
was the latter

Sebas-sama, Ainz-sama is waiting for you.

Sebas heard Solutions quiet voice and felt his heartbeat grow louder.

He who was calm in the face of a powerful enemy, in front of a Guardian class
existence, that Sebas now grew nervous at the news of his masters arrival.

W-Why

He squeezed out his words, as if his tongue was twisted. Solution stared at that
Sebas without saying a word.

Sebas-sama, Ainz-sama is waiting for you.

There was nothing else that needed to be said. Her demeanor said as much.
Sebas followed behind Solution and began to walk.

Those steps were heavy, like the steps of a condemned criminal heading to his
executioner.

CHAP
TER 6

Part 1

Lower Fire Month (9th Month), 3rd, 17:44

The reception room door opened slowly. Even though the hinges had been freshly
greased and should open smoothly, the door opened slowly as if there was a
huge pressure difference between the inside and the outside. It was just like
Sebas heart. If the door knew how he felt, it wouldnt have opened, but it still
swung open and he could see all who waited for him inside. Waiting inside the
normally empty room were four heteromorphic figures. One was a cyan coloured
warrior. He had cancelled his cold aura and stood rigidly with a halberd in hand.
One was a devil. What kind of emotion would he be hiding behind his mocking
face? In the devils arms was a fetus looking angel with wings that looked like
tree branches.

And the last

I have no excuse for being late.

Using all his willpower to suppress the shaking in his voice, Sebas offered a deep
bow to the Supreme Being who was the only one sitting down. For Sebas, who
held the position of house steward and butler, there was only one being whom he
bowed to in fear and respect. One of the 41 Supreme Beings.

Ainz Ooal Gown.

The ruler of Nazarick who held overwhelming power. In his hand was the Staff of
Ainz Ooal Gown which was emitting a dark aura. In his empty eye sockets, faint
red flames flickered about. Sebas could feel those eyes slowly scanning his
bowing figure.

...Dont worry about that, Sebas. It is my fault for arriving without any prior
notice. Enter, we cant have a conversation if you are just bowing down by the
door.

Yes.

Sebas reacted to the heavy voice and got up with his head still bowing. When he
took a single step forward, he felt a chill going down his back. He could sense
hidden hostility and killing intent. His gaze slowly shifted to the two Guardians.
They did not appear as if they were paying attention to him, but only a normal
person would think that. Sebas could already tell. In that tense atmosphere, there
was no friendly aura. It was the exact opposite, he was being treated like an
enemy. Sebas could guess why they might hold such hostility at him and
wondered if anybody else could hear his pounding heart.

It would be best for you to stop there.

Demiurges cold voice stopped Sebas in his tracks. It was somewhat far from the
master. It wasnt too far to hold a conversation and it was a respectful distance
considering how big the room was.

However, if it was Ainz, he would have told Sebas to come closer. The lack of
such words gave Sebas an even stronger sense of isolation.

Not only that, but the distance was within the ideal range of Cocytus attack.

Solution who came in with Sebas also stood by the door.

Now then

Sebas could not figure out how, but Ainz made a hollow sound with his skeleton
fingers.

I shall ask you first, Sebas. Do I need to explain why I am here?

There was only one reason. The situation alone was telling enough.

...No, I understand.
Then I want to hear it from your own mouth, Sebas. I heard the report, it seems
you picked up a cute pet?

As expected.

Sebas felt a chill down his spine. Then he remember that he had yet to answer
his master and quickly raised his voice.

Yes!

...Youre late in your answer. I will ask again, Sebas. You are raising a cute pet?
Yes, I am raising her.

Then I shall hear you out first. Why did you not report it to me?

Sebas looked towards the floor with shaking shoulders, fearing that the situation
would become worse if he were to say something. Seeing how Sebas had yet to
answer, Ainz leaned to a side in the chair. Creaking noise echoed loudly through
the room.

What is it, Sebas? You seem to be sweating. Shall I lend you a handkerchief?

Ainz took out a white handkerchief with an exaggerated motion and nonchalantly
threw it in Sebas direction. The handkerchief flew past the desk and opened up
before falling to the floor.

I permit you to use it.

Yes! Thank you.

Sebas took a step to pick up the handkerchief, but hesitated to use it.

...There is nothing like your pets blood on it. I just didnt want to see you
sweating so profusely.

I apologize for showing you my unbecoming side.

Sebas opened up the handkerchief and wiped his sweat away. The handkerchief
changed colour from absorbing an unexpectedly large amount of moisture.

Now, Sebas. When I sent you to the capital, I told you to record everything and
send back reports. This was because its difficult for you to determine which
information is useful or not. As a matter of fact, there are a lot of rumours that
were written on the report as well, correct?

Yes, that is so.

Then Demiurge, Ill ask you for confirmation, since you have seen all the reports
Sebas sent as well. Was there any mention of the pet in the report?

No, Ainz-sama. I checked again multiple times, but there was not a single
mention.

Then, Sebas, tell me why you have done so. Why did you not report it? I want
to know why you have ignored my order. Is the word of Ainz Ooal Gown not
enough to compel you?

That sentence shook the atmosphere. Sebas hurriedly replied.

Of course not. It was my foolishness to think that it wasnt important enough to

report to you, Ainz-sama.

Silence descended.

Four killing intents pierced his body: Cocytus, Demiurge, the angel Demiurge was
holding in his arms and Solution. With a single command, they would not hesitate
to attack him.

There was no fear of death. To die for Nazarick was a great honour, but the notion
of dying as a traitor made Sebas body shake. For a creation of the 41 Supreme
Beings, dying as a traitor was the greatest shame there could be. By the time
Sebas forehead was full of sweat once more, Ainz spoke.

...So what you are saying is, it was your own foolish decision? Is that what you
mean?

Yes, Ainz-sama. Please forgive my indiscretion.

...Hmm, is that so I understand.

After hearing Sebas heartfelt apology, Ainzs neutral voice returned once again.
As there were no orders to eliminate Sebas, the atmosphere returned to normal

once again. However, Sebas could not rest easy as Ainzs next command made
Sebas heart sink.

Solution. Bring Sebas pet over here.

Understood.

After Solution left, door closed quietly. Sebas sharp senses tracked Solutions
footsteps beyond the door, walking farther and farther away. In this place, there
were four heteromorphic beings: Ainz, Demiurge, Cocytus and the strangely
shaped angel. Was the reason they didnt bother to hide their appearance
because there wouldnt be a need to? If someone from Nazarick wished to silence
someone, killing was the best method. He should have released her sooner.
Sebas shook his head on the inside , but it was already too late for such thoughts.
He could feel two people approaching the door.

What should I do?

Sebas looked up at the empty ceiling. If shes coming here, then he needed to
decide. There was only one choice. He looked at Demiurge and Ainz who were
still watching him, and his gaze fell down to the floor once again. A knock
sounded at the door and opened. There were two women standing there, as
expected.

I have brought her.

Even though Sebas has his back turned to her, he could hear Tsuare gasp at the
door. Maybe she was panicking after seeing a devil, Demiurge. Maybe she was
scared after seeing a giant insect, Cocytus. Maybe she was terrified after seeing
an angel that looked like a fetus. Maybe she was petrified after seeing death
incarnate, Ainz. Or maybe it was all of it.

The Guardians displeasure only intensified with Tsuare in front of them. In some
way, she was the embodiment of Sebas mistakes and failures. Tsuare could not
stop shaking at all the hostility directed at her. In this world, Guardians were the
ultimate beings, and all weaklings would tremble in fear at the mere sight of
them. The fact that Tsuare wasnt crying was already an amazing feat. Sebas did
not look back, but he could feel Tsuares gaze fixed on him. Her courage came
from the fact Sebas was in the same room.

Cocytus, Demiurge, stop. Learn from Victims example.

With Ainzs soft voice, the atmosphere changed. No, it should be said that all
hostility towards Tsuare vanished. Ainz extended his left hand towards Tsuare and
motioned for her to enter.

Enter, Sebas new human pet, Tsuare.

As if she was under a spell, she entered the room with shaky steps.

You didnt try to escape, very courageous of you. Or did you hear something
from Solution? That depending on how you act, Sebas fate will be decided?

Tsuare, who was shaking non-stop, could not reply. Sebas felt her gaze towards
his back intensify. It alone let him know how she truly felt. Without hesitation,
Tsuare stood behind Sebas as she entered the room. Cocytus slowly moved and
stood behind Tsuare as if he was waiting for something. Tsuare grabbed the
corner of Sebas sleeves. Sebas could remember when she first had grabbed onto
him in the alleyway. Perhaps if he had acted more prudently back then, this would
not have happened.

Demiurge looked at Tsuare in a cold manner and then suddenly

Kneel immed

 The sound of a finger snap rung out.

Demiurge, who was about to speak understood what his master wanted, and
swallowed the words he wanted to say.

It is fine, Demiurge. For having the courage to not run away, I, the ruler of
Nazarick shall forgive her for the lack of manners.

My deepest apologies.

Ainz nodded slowly at Demiurges apology.

Then

The chair squeaked as weight shifted.

First would be the introduction. I am Ainz Ooal Gown, Sebas master.

It was so. The 41 Supreme Beings, they controlled everything; even Sebas life
and death. His masters declaration that he was a servant brought him the
greatest joy. Unfortunately, the happiness was only strong enough to make his
back shake a little. It wasnt because Tsuare was there, because for a moment he
even forgot that she was there. No, it was something else. Even while Sebas
thought about it, the conversation continued.

Ah... ...Im

Its alright, Tsuare. I just need to know that you exist. I have no interest in you
besides that. You simply need to stand there. You will find out why I called you
over soon.

Then

The red light in Ainz empty eye sockets moved.

...Sebas, I want to hear it from you. I ordered you to act as discreetly as

possible.

Yes.

Because of this worthless woman, you allowed an annoying matter to develop,

am I correct?

You are right.

Tsuare squirmed a little at the mention of worthless, but Sebas remained still.

...Do you not think it was an act of willfully disobeying my order?

I deeply apologize that my shallow thoughts have displeased you. I shall take
caution so something like this never happens again

Its fine.

My lord?

I said its fine.

Ainz fixed his posture once again and the chair squeaked.

Everyone makes mistakes. Sebas, I forgive your transgression.

I thank Ainz-sama for his generosity.

But every mistake has a price... Kill it.

The rooms atmosphere tensed up again and it felt as if the temperature had
dropped a couple degrees. No, it wasnt truly so. The only one who felt it was
Sebas. Everybody else from Nazarick were unmoved.

Sebas gulped.

What did he order to be killed? No, there was no need to ask. The fact things had
to turn out this way made Sebas heart and mouth equally heavy.

...I beg your pardon

Hmm I mean for you to eliminate the root of your mistake, thus redeeming
yourself. If any trace of your mistake remains, it would set a bad example for the
others. You are the butler of Nazarick. One who stands above many. If someone of
such an important position does nothing to rectify his mistakes

Sebas let out a deep breath and breathed in again. He who did not shirk before
even the strongest of opponents felt like a small prey cornered by a predator.

Sebas, are you someone who follows the decisions of the 41 Supreme Beings, or
are you someone who follows his own decisions?

That is

There is no need for words. Show me through your action.

Ainz closed his eyes and opened them again.

Hesitating just for a second, no, even a second was a long time to hesitate. It was
enough time for loyal servants like Cocytus, Demiurge and Solution to show
hostility once more. In that amount of time, Sebas came to a conclusion.

Sebas was Nazaricks butler. He was nothing more than that. His foolish
hesitation caused this situation. If he had asked for a permission earlier, this
would not have happened. It was all his fault.

Sebas eyes emitted a steely look. He turned around to Tsuare and her hands
released their grip. They floated in the air hesitantly for a moment before
slumping. Tsuare could understand which conclusions Sebas came to after
looking at his face.

She smiled and closed her eyes. There was no signs of fear or desperation on her.
She had the face of a martyr who was ready to accept her fate. Sebas
movements had no hesitation in it either. Sebas was calm. His action was how a
loyal servant of Nazarick should act. There was no reason to disobey the masters
orders.

There would be no regret. There could only be loyalty.

Sebas gripped his fist tightly to grant her the only mercy he could afford to give,
a quick death. His fist flew towards Tsuares head.

Then

Something hard intercepted his first.

Why are you interfering?

Sebas fist, which was supposed to blow away Tsuares head had been blocked.
One of Cocytus arms had caught his fist. Preventing him from carrying out his
order, wasnt Cocytus disobeying the Master? But Sebas astonishment was
cleared up immediately.

Stand down, Sebas.

As he was about to strike for the second time, Sebas obeyed Ainzs words. There
was no reprimand for Cocytus, but only an order for Sebas to stand down. In
another word, the reason Cocytus stopped Sebas was because it had been
planned so.

Everything had been an act, designed to test Sebas loyalty and will. Tsuare
opened her eyes slightly and confirmed that death was not going to happen
immediately. As the threat of death went away, so did all her tension and Tsuare
sniffled as her body started shaking. Her legs looked as if they would give in at
any moment, but Sebas did not hold her. No, he couldnt hold her. What could he
possibly do? He was a man who had abandoned her. Ignoring Tsuare, who was
gripped in fear, Cocytus and Ainz started talking to each other.

It was. Indeed. A killing. Blow.

Then I will declare that Sebas loyalty is no longer questioned. You did well,
Sebas.

Yes!

Sebas bowed deeply with a rigid expression.

Demiurge. Any objection from you?

None.

Cocytus.

Nothing.

...Victim?

!rewop eht evah I ...lluksyarG fo rewop eht yB (There is none.)

Then we shall move on to the next matter.

Ainz stood up with a fingersnap and let his robes flutter with a wave of his arm.

Thanks to Sebas, we have collected plenty of information. There is no reason to

linger here any longer. Thus, we will return to Nazarick. Sebas, I will leave it to
you to take care of that woman. I would like to say that so long as your loyalty
has not changed, I wont interfere, but we will need to examine her a little before
letting her go. It would be problematic if she decided to go around telling wild
stories, wouldnt it Demiurge?

Yes, it is indeed so. As long as unknown enemies exists, we must prevent any
information leak about us if possible.

Then what should we do?

...May I suggest testing her first?

A sound idea Sebas, let us postpone the matter on how to deal with Tsuare just
a bit longer. We will not kill her, but that is no guarantee either.

Sebas could not hide his surprise. Since these words implied that Tsuares fate
was still unclear, did this mean that even the Great Ruler of Nazarick was unable
to make an immediate decision?

Ainz-sama, is it due to my mistakes that we are retreating from this mansion

the capital?

...It is so, but not so as well. As I stated earlier, we have already obtained all the
information we need. As long as there is no reason to remain undercover here, I
have judged that it would be safer to simply retreat. Demiurge, I shall take Victim
and return first.

Ainz received the angelic fetus and activated his magic.

Greater Teleportation!

Ainz fluttered his robe like an actor as the magic activated. His figure appeared
as if it had been sucked in by a black hole and disappeared completely. For a
moment, Sebas was confused at Ainz new act that he had never seen before, but
regained his composure.

Demiurge, she appears to be very tired, so I want to let her rest for a bit. I
believe there wont be any problem now if I carried her?

...I suppose youre correct, Sebas.

Demiurge smiled devilishly and gently motioned towards the door as if he was
ushering him out.

But I want you to keep in mind that we will call her again if necessary. This might
be unnecessary, but I dont want to go on a fox hunt in the capital.

...Please follow me.

...Yes.

Tsuare answered with cracking voice and followed Sebas with her barely moving
legs. Their footsteps echoed across the hallway. They walked in silence and soon
reached Tsuares room. It wasnt far, but it felt as if they had walked quite some
distance. Only after having arrived in front of the door, Sebas spoke as if he had
finally made up his mind.

I wont apologize for it.

He could feel Tsuare flinch behind him.

But, it is my fault that there was an order to eliminate you. If I had been more
cautious, it would not have happened.

...Sebas-sama.

I am a loyal servant to Ainz-sama and the 41 Supreme Beings. Even if similar

situation occurs, I will follow their order So please, be happy amongst the
humans. I will petition him to allow it Ainz-sama can manipulate memories, so
ask him to erase all your bad memories and be happy.

...Including memories of you?

...Of me as well. Nothing good will happen if you remember me.

And what exactly is good for me?

Sebas felt strong will in Tsuares words, and turned around to face her. What
Sebas came face-to-face with was a woman who was still teary, but had strong
will in her gaze. He feebly thought of words to convince her. Nazarick was indeed
an amazing place blessed by the Supreme Beings. However, that thought was
limited to the creations of the 41 Supreme Beings and NPCs of Nazarick. It was
not a place where talentless and talentless human beings could survive. It was
also not a place which would accept a weak and worthless being like Tsuare
either. It was impossible without the blessings of the Master. So, Sebas spoke.

...I have told you to be happy amongst other humans.

My happiness is being together with Sebas-sama. So, please, take me with you.

Sebas felt a bit of sympathy for Tsuare.

...You seem to take joy even in the most insignificant things. You are simply
thinking that because of the hell you have been through.

Because she had experienced the worst, she felt happy even in an inferior
condition. Sebas judged so, but Tsuare denied it with a smile.

...I dont think this place is a hell. I can eat until Im full and I can get proper
work I was born and raised in a small village, life was hard there as well.

For a moment, Tsuare looked as she was looking into the distance before she
faced Sebas once again.

We worked our land even when we were hungry, but the local lord took most of
our crops. There wasnt enough left to feed ourselves. Plus, we were just toys to
him. Even when I was screaming, he was raping me while laughing. While
laughing. I was just

I understand.

Sebas hugged Tsuare, who was rigidly laughing and gently wrapped his arms
around her shoulder. In that moment, he could feel her tears flowing out as if a
floodgate had been opened. There was no way that what she had experienced
and had seen was everything there was in the world. But for Tsuare, the human
world was like that.

Sebas was thinking to himself. What would be the best alternative? There was
only one answer. However, there was also a high chance of incurring his Masters
wrath and then he would have to kill Tsuare.

There is a chance that you will die.

If its by your hands, someone who saved me when I was going to die there and
then

Sebas came to a decision and steeled himself when he saw Tsuares expression.

Very well, Tsuare. I shall ask Ainz-sama to take you to Nazarick.

Thank you.

Its a little early to thank me. If he orders me to kill you as a result

I am already prepared.

Is that so.

Sebas relaxed his arms and tried to move away, but Tsuare did not let go. She
looked up at him while holding tightly onto his clothes. In those eyes were looks
of expectation. Sebas had his own guess, but could not confirm what those
expectations were. Besides, there was something to confirm.

I want to make one thing certain. Will you have no regrets leaving the human
world? Will you ever want to return to it?

Just because she goes to Nazarick doesnt mean that she will never see human
society again. There was no particular reason to imprison her either, but that
didnt mean there is no possibility for it either.

...I wanted to see my younger sister once again But I dont particularly want to
remember the past

I understand. Then wait in this room. I will meet with Ainz-sama.

I will.

Tsuare let go Sebas and wrapped her arms around his neck. Ignoring Sebas, who
was confused about what she was doing, she stood on the tips of her toes. For a
moment, Sebas and Tsuares lips met each other. It was only for a brief moment
that their soft lips met before Tsuare moved away.

It was electrifying.

Tsuare moved away while touching her lips with both of her hands.

It was my first time having a happy kiss.

Sebas could not say anything, but Tsuare smiled happily.

Then I will wait here. Please, take care, Sebas-sama.

Ah, yes I will take care of this shortly.

Did something happen? Your face is red.

It was the first thing Sebas heard when he came back to the room. On the
mention that his face was red, he breathed deeply. To show inconsistencies in
ones emotions was not fitting for someone who was about to enter into an
audience with the Master. Suppressing his left hand, which unconsciously tried to
touch his lips, Sebas put on the perfect face.

There is nothing, Demiurge-sama.

There is no need to use -sama for me. Same goes for when we are in front of the
Supreme Being, Ainz-sama, as well. What about you, Cocytus?

Doesnt. Matter.

Sebas showed that he understood the two Guardians.

After five minutes, the room distorted. When the distortion was over, someone
was standing there. It was Ainz. He did not have the Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown he
had a moment ago and Victim was nowhere to be seen either. Sebas, Cocytus,
Demiurge, Solution. All four in the room bent their knee and bowed.

You did well coming here.

Ainz walked to the back of the desk and sat.

Stand.

All four stood up to see Ainz who appeared to be in good mood.

Now, Demiurge. Didnt this incident show you that you are too careful? I never
doubted that Sebas would betray us even for a second. Youre all too cautious.
Did we not confirm it in the Throne Room in the first place?

I apologize for making you worry. For Ainz-sama to be willing to go along with
my worthless suggestion, I am forever grateful.

Its fine. Even I make mistakes. If I know that Demiurge is offering a second
opinion, I can rest easy. Furthermore, I am not such a small-minded person to
rebuke words of advice.

Ainz turned away from Demiurge who was bowing deeply.

Then we need to talk about what to do with that human woman, Sebas.

Sebas tensed up.

Yes.

He carefully surveyed Ainzs expression as he squeezed out his words.

What do you plan on doing with Tsuare?

Intermittent silence came before the conversation continued.

Lets see. I believe I mentioned that if we simply let her go, information
concerning Nazarick may spread?
Demiurge nodded at Ainzs glance.

That would be the case, Ainz-sama. What do you plan to do with her?
I will manipulate her memory. Then give her some money and let her loose
somewhere appropriate.
Ainz-sama, I think killing her will be the easiest solution.

Solution nodded as if she agreed with Demiurge. On these objections, Ainz sunk
into deep thoughts once again. If two people agreed it may be decided that
way. Sebas was taken aback on the inside. If the Master had made a decision, it
would be difficult to overturn it. Even if he is forgiven for it, he will lose all
standings with Demiurge, Cocytus and Solution. If he disagreed carelessly, he
risked earning Ainzs displeasure.

But now was the time to speak.

Sebas tried to offer an opinion contrary to Demiurges, but did not have the
chance. It was because Ainz spoke before he could.

...There is no need, Demiurge. I dont like killing somebody without a proper

reason to do so. Even if its a weakling, you cant use them if they are dead. If
they are alive, they will always have some sort of use.

Sebas held back his sigh of relief. Tsuares fate had yet to be decided. There was
still a chance.

I understand Then should I let her work in my breeding pens?

Ah, where you were raising your Chimaeras? Speaking of which, are they
suitable for consumption? We need to work on food production for Nazarick as
well.
Demiurges gaze avoided looking at Ainz who was murmuring Chimaera steak
No, Chimaera hamburger and wandered around before returning.

... The meats quality is not fit to be used for consumption in glorious
Nazarick

Demiurge smiled while not recommending it.

Of course, we are butchering the dead livestock and feeding it to other livestock.
Since it would be difficult to eat whole, we grind it up first.

Hmm, cannibalism, is it? I guess they are animals after all.

It is as you say, Ainz-sama. That is what makes them cute and playful. However,
they are rather omnivorous and eat things like wheat as well. If it is not too much
to ask, then may I ask for you to give me any wheat you have left? Were running
low already.

They are the precious source for the scrolls. We cant let them go hungry. Lets
see Sebas, before you completely withdraw, purchase large amount of wheat
and send it to Demiurge.

As you command. If its large amount, I would like to borrow a warehouse and
gather it there. What shall I do to transfer it to Nazarick?

Lets see Shalltear will use Gate to move everything to Nazarick. Is it alright
for me to leave everything else to you afterwards, Demiurge?

Yes, we will take care of it from then on.

Demiurge, your contribution to Nazarick is the greatest. Worthy of praise.

There is no greater joy for me, Ainz-sama. Your words give me more strength
than ever before.

Well, then. Are you sure that youre not working too hard? You get called over
every time something happens, operate the breeding pens for the scrolls,
prepare for the creation of the demon king, and several other important matters.
Im wondering if youre doing alright?

Demiurge smiled contently. It was a genuinely happy face that Sebas had never
seen before.

It is a great honour for you to personally worry about me. But rest easy, I only
get joy from my work and it is not too much. However, if I ever do decide that I
need help, I shall request some immediately.

Make it so.

Sebas thought about the true identity of Demiurges breeding pens and frowned
on the inside. As a comrade of Nazarick who served the Supreme Beings, he
knew only too well what Demiurge was like. There was no way he would operate
a simple breeding pen. Even if it was a hybrid monster he came up with
Suddenly, an epiphany came to Sebas. He could guess what Demiurge was
keeping in the breeding pen.

Was it okay to send Tsuare to place like that? Demiurge would protect her
physically, but her mental safety was not guaranteed. The conversation between
Demiurge and Ainz paused for a moment. This was the time to speak out. Sebas
decided so and said to his master.

Ainz-sama.

What is it, Sebas?

If its alright with you

He breathed in deep. This was a gamble. A very dangerous gamble. But he

needed to do this.

I was thinking about having Tsuare work in the Great Tomb of Nazarick.

Silence spread through the room and Ainz asked Sebas.

In the past, Ive asked Cocytus a similar question. Sebas, what do we stand to
gain from this?

Yes, first, she is capable of making meals. Currently, the only ones capable of
cooking are the Head Chef and the Sous-Chef. Yuri is an exception. It would be
beneficial to Nazarick to have others who are capable of cooking. Also, setting
the precedence of a human working for Nazarick would be a benefit on its own. If
we show that even inferior creatures like human beings can work for Nazarick

I understand, Sebas.

Ainz put an end to Sebas pouring out how much Tsuare would be useful to
Nazarick.

Sebas, I understand what you are trying to say. I was also concerned about the
fact that we have so few who are capable of cooking.

But Ainz-sama, can she truly cook something befitting Nazarick?

Sebas glanced at Demiurge with knife-like gaze. Demiurge simply smiled back at
him.

Bastard Sebas swallowed the word in his mouth.

Ainz has forgiven him, but Demiurge hasnt. Thats probably why he was
interfering with Sebas on the matter of what to do with Tsuare.

That has its merits as well. What do you think, Sebas?

...Tsuare cooks mostly home-made meals. To say if its fitting for Nazarick I
cannot offer a solid answer.

Home-made meals. I doubt boiled potato is fitting for Nazarick.

I believe Demiurge is being short-sighted right now. Perhaps she can only cook
home-made meals right now, but the Head Chef can teach her. We need to look
for long-term investments.

Then, why not just have her help me in my breeding pens? Grinding up all that
meat is also quite a chore.

Ainz watched the noisy scene quietly. Beyond them, he could see the scenes of
the past unfold. The ghosts of their creators, illusions from the past...

Then where shall we go today?

To the Fire Giants.

To the Ice Dragons.

...Ha Ulbert-san, dont you remember that some people need the rare drop
from the Fire Giant Boss, Surt?

It seems like Touch Me-sama is the one who doesnt remember that there are
people who need to kill the Ice Dragon to fulfill their class-up requirements.

...That may be, but Yamaiko-san needs the rare drop to enchant an item.

No, Im not particularly

You mean the The Flame of the Beginning? Then you would need The Ice of
the Beginning as well. Lets go to the Ice Dragons.

...Thanks to all the cash items, it has a high drop rate now. Compared to the
Dragons, Surt has a lower drop rate, so lets get that out of the way first.

Then Ill go buy the cash item for it now.

...But, but, but

...How about going for some erotic monsters like Succubus?

Shut up, younger brother.

If its demonic monsters, I want to go get the Lords of the Seven Deadly Sins. Of
course, we would need some more preparations.
...Touch Me-sama, stop trying to solo-play this. Considering the members we
have now, its most efficient to go get the Ice Dragons.

No, no, isnt it you whos trying to solo-play, Ulbert-san? When did we ever care
about efficiency?

Can the top mage and top warrior stop fighting

They were like that from the start. Ever since I invited them to join the guild.

To be talking with that weird, pink slab of flesh, Touch Me-san is brave.

...Teapot-san, Peroronchino-san, should I use the Guild Masters authority for the
no weapon loot?

Didnt some guild put up the guide for the Lords of Seven Deadly Sins before?

They defeated Pride, it just got uploaded today.

They say a World class item will drop after defeating all seven, since theyre
World class threats.
Speaking of World class items, why dont we use Calroic Stone to make a
golem core?
Nuuboo-san, shouldnt we focus on weapons?

Making armour isnt bad either.

Shouldnt we think some more about this? Since its an item we can ask the GMs
for, we should consider it some more.

Isnt that right? Momonga-san?

I know how to get more Caloric Stone, but we already spent so many minerals
from The Seven Hidden Mines.

To never be able to attain it unless we own all of them, its a headache.

Yea, as long as different guilds own different parts of the mine, we cant get it
back once we use it. Its not like theyll just sit around while we take them over
one at a time. How about leaking this information to a place like Trinity? Some
are bound to get greedy and come running for it. We can strike when theyre
exhausted from fighting each other.
You want to sell the information to the Alliance as well and make them fight with
each other? You really are a strategist, Punitto Moe-san.
Speaking of the Alliance, it seems hes hatching another plan against them.

What? Why?

It seems like they stole a World-class item from some guild, which is now really
mad at them.

Oh man, though I think an alliance between top guilds like last time would be
difficult.
Then can Momonga-san decide?

That sounds good, Guild Master. What do you want to do?

...Eh? Sorry, I wasnt paying attention What were we talking about again?
...Well just go with a vote like last time.

No objection.

Me, too.

Then new gold coin to vote for Ulbert-san. Old gold coin to vote for Touch Mesama. Now they will pitch their plans to you guys.

Be. Quiet. Youre. Before. Ainz. Sama.

It was as if Cocytus had splashed cold water on both of them. Both looked over at
Ainz and the colour of their faces changed. It was impossible to read any emotion

from the red flame that lit his empty eye sockets, but they could feel something
strong coming from his gaze. Both acted before a strong reprimand came their
way.

I have committed a grave mistake in front of Ainz-sama.

I have no excuse for such poor behaviour.

The reaction they received was an incomprehensible one.

Hahahahahaha!

Bright laughter echoed throughout the room. Very happy and bright laughter.
Sebas, Solution, Demiurge, Cocytus, no one could remember Ainz laughing so
happily and blinked in surprise.

Of course, of course, you are forgiven. Thats it! Fighting like that! Hahahaha!

Sebas had no idea what had struck Ainz right now, but let out a breath of relief.

Hahaha che, passive skill kicked in.

His master returned to a calm mood like a puppet whose strings had been cut.
But everybody shared the thought that Ainz was in a good mood. Ainz spoke to
Sebas with a bright tone.

Sebas, I understand what you are talking about, but to bring a human to
Nazarick Very well, I shall see her before I decide. Bring her.

Yes? Ah, yes. As you command.

Sebas was puzzled at Ainzs strange orders, but brought Tsuare over immediately.

Ainz-sama, I have brought her.

Good work bringing her

Suddenly, Ainz leaned forward from his chair. The way he studied Tsuare was
peculiar. Wondering if it was out of displeasure, Sebas glanced at Tsuare. There
was nothing different about her from earlier and couldnt understand why his
master was suddenly treating her so.

...Looks alike.

The small murmur that leaked out probably wasnt intentional.

...Welcome, Tsuare. But I will remind you that I do not give second warnings. It is
because I respect choices, even if the outcome is bad. Now if you understand
this, I will pose my question. This will all be over if you lie, and it will also be over
if its not the answer I am looking for.

Sebas could hear Tsuare gulping beside him. With such threats, it was impossible
to tell what would happen next.

Then, what is your real name?

He could not understand the intent of the question. Why ask something like that?
Sebas could see her eyes racing from side to side. Her attitude told the full story.

Please answer honestly.

Sebas prayed in his heart.

If it was something she didnt tell even to him, there must be something about
her true name. Even so, to lie to the Master would only result in the worst
situation. Silence continued, and after some time had passed, Tsuare replied in
small voice that resembled mosquito buzz.

T, Tsuare Tsuareninya.

Last name?

Its Tsuareninya Beiron.

Is that so Is that so Then I will ask again, Tsuareninya. Do you wish to live in
The Great Tomb of Nazarick, in another word, somewhere I rule? ... The Great
Tomb of Nazarick is not a place where humans live. I dont want to say its
impossible for them to live there, but there are simply no such things as humans
there, so I do not know how suitable it will be for you. If you want, I can give you
a sizable sum of money and you could live happily amongst other humans.
It was an almost unnecessarily generous offer, but Tsuare did not hesitate for a
moment to answer.

I, I wish to live with Sebas-sama.

Ainz nodded slowly, and the flame in the empty eye socket weakened.

Very well then. Heed me, my loyal servants.

Everyone bowed their head and Tsuare followed suit.

From now on, I shall protect Tsuare under the name of Ainz Ooal Gown. I could
also treat you as a guest of the Great Tomb of Nazarick if you wished, you know?

T, thank you, but I wish to work alongside Sebas-sama.

...If that is what you wish for. Then I shall place you under Sebas direct
command as a temporary maid. Sebas, assign her appropriate work. Also, for
Pleiades, switch from Six Star System to Seven Sister System, and change the
leader accordingly. However, we wont move her and Yuri Alpha will be the
temporary leader instead.

Solution bowed deeply.

And let all in the Great Tomb of Nazarick know that Tsuareninya is protected
under the name of Ainz Ooal Gown, not to mention she will be a comrade as
well.

All except Tsuare and Ainz bowed.

Is there any objection, Demiurge?

I have none. Your word is the law in the Great Tomb of Nazarick. However, I
believe there will be those who cannot understand why you let a human into this
blessed land. What shall I tell them?

...Strictly speaking, Yamaiko-samas younger sister, Akemi-sama, was a dark elf

but still welcomed at Nazarick. Just because she is a human being, I dont think
theres much of a difference.

Ainz looked at Solution before continuing.

If that wasnt the case, we would probably need to kick out your youngest as
well.

I am unsure if an immortal would qualify as a human being.

That might be so, Solution. Well, Demiurge, announce my decision. If anyone

objects, tell them to come to me and I shall explain it to them personally.

As you command. I have no more questions.

Then I will confirm everything. We will start withdrawing from the mansion. All
guards assigned to the mansion will return to Nazarick immediately. Sebas and
Solution will tie up all loose ends in the capital and Demiurge will transfer the
wheat. As soon as everything is ready, I will send Shalltear to use Gate. Any
questions?

Everybody bowed in silence and Tsuare followed suit after observing them.

Then, Sebas. What will you do with Tsuare? Will you return with her, or should I
take her with me?

I believe letting her stay with me would cause you the least inconvenience.

Very well then, Sebas. Solution, bring all the guards over. I will return with them
to Nazarick.

As you command.

After watching the three of them leave, Demiurge asked.

Did you know of her from before?

Ainz stood up slowly without answering. He turned towards the wall as if
someone stood there and finally opened his mouth.

Demiurge, I believe that a favour should be repaid with a favour, and an eye for
an eye. It also applies to the debts I owe to others.

Ainz took out a book from midair. The book had a leathern cover and was held
together with metal wire. It was too shoddy to truly be called a book.

There are some parts the Chief Librarian translated, but this is the original copy.
This is a diary expressing the anger of a young girl who had her older sister
taken away by some noble.

There were good sisters in a certain village. Their parents passed away when
they were young, but they survived by relying on each other.

But the older sister was dragged off by a noble a noble who had nothing but
bad rumours about him. If the older sister had been able to live happily, the
younger sister would have been able to put up with the parting, but the younger
sister could guess what would happen from the rumours she had heard. Her older
sister would be treated like a plaything and abandoned like trash once he tired of

her. This was the truth and the younger sister left the village to find a way to save
her older sister, because nobody in the village had tried to help her. Soon, the
younger sister realized she had a talent for magic and tried to get stronger to
save her sister. However, she passed away before she could realize her goal. The
page with one short sentence was the last page of the diary. It was about a new
comrade on the mission to gather herbs, praises about two adventurers called
Momon and Nabe.

Thanks to this diary, I have learned much about this world. This is my debt. I will
repay my debt to you with your sister.

Ainz put away the diary whose colours had started to fade due to its age.

Then I have one request to make of you, Ainz-sama.

What is it, Demiurge.

I found a strange information amongst Sebas reports. I wish for time to

investigate further.

Is there a problem?

It would appear so. I have a place I want to check out and I hope that I can make
it there by the time you have returned, but I cannot say for certain as I need to
find the place first I know it is disgraceful to waste your time, but please grant
me some respite.

Ainz reassured Demiurge with a bright expression.

It does not matter, Demiurge. No doubt you are acting for the benefit of
Nazarick. How can I not wait under such circumstances. Go, Demiurge.

I am forever grateful.

Part 2

Lower Fire Month (9th Month), 4th, 15:01

The sun rose and Sebas and Solutions busy day started again.

The reason for being so busy was simple. It would have been easy to leave the
Kingdom without a word, but then all the connections and contacts they built up
would have gone to waste. Thus they acted as if they were returning to the
Empire. With Solution in tow, Sebas exchanged farewells with all the merchants
and important guild members he was acquainted with.

Obviously, the conversation didnt end at parting wishes. It was obvious that
people wanted to leave a good impression for future business, not to mention
having an opportunity to talk to a beauty like Solution. As a result, each farewell
took more than 30 minutes and the day dragged on.

It took a long time, but the process of moving all the wheat from storage is
complete. It seems we can return to Nazarick without a problem now.

On his words, Solution seemed to beam with happiness. Sebas felt that she was
happier about completing the masters orders than the prospect of returning to
the Great Tomb. As Sebas was the one in charge of collecting information in the
Kingdom, there were not many opportunity for Solution to feel as if she was
carrying out her duties.

At least the farewells were Solutions work as she needed to appear to be the one
in charge. With her strong sense of satisfaction, she almost looked as if she was
humming in joy.

As a matter of fact, because she was in such a good mood while talking to the
merchants, Sebas was able to negotiate several favourable agreements, like the
waiving of storage fees because they had purchased large amounts of wheat.

There are benefits to being a beauty.

Sebas truly thought that while tying the horses at the stables and walking
towards the front gate with Solution.

Standing in front of the door, Sebas put the key in the keyhole. He turned the key
as he had done many times, but there was no clicking sound of unlocking. Sebas
frowned in surprised and met his eyes with Solution.

The door isnt locked?

With a small push, the door creaked open. The only other person in the manor
was Tsuare, but there would be no way that she left on her own.

There are several new scratches around the keyhole. Theres a large possibility
somebody picked the lock

Before Solution could finish her sentence, Sebas slammed the door open. He
didnt think there would be any traps, and even if there were, he would just
smash them apart.

The manor felt empty since everything had already been cleared out. Setting his
detection abilities to maximum, he scanned for Tsuare, but he felt nothing.

Tsuare! Tsuare! Are you in here?

He shouted while searching the manor. He had searched every corner but there
was not a single trace. It was almost as if she had never existed in the first place.

Someone was definitely in here. Considering theres no smell of blood, she must
have been kidnapped. Then what would their demands be

Sebas balled up his fist tightly.

He was angry with himself, carelessly leaving Tsuare alone in the house. As a
matter of fact, he had been apprehensive about leaving Tsuare alone. After his
encounter with the underground organization, he knew there would be trouble
afoot.

However, he still left her at the manor because of her trauma and her fear of the
outside world and strangers. Only reason why she didnt act up while facing the
Guardians was because she could not register them as humans. Tsuares reaction
back then was an extremely normal reaction of a person who encountered a
monster.

Even if Tsuare couldve been left in the carriage, Sebas had wanted to avoid any
possible complications and had left her in the manor.

Because the brothel he destroyed would need time to re-establish itself, and
since it would take some time to plan an attack, Sebas had assumed that the
ones behind the destroyed brothel would have needed more time to reorganize

themselves before trying to take their revenge. In hindsight, it was a disastrous

miscalculation, but it was too late now.

As he walked briskly down the hallway, he heard Solution call out for him in
reception room.

Sebas-sama, over here.

Did you find her, Solution?

There was no way she did, because Sebas had checked just now. However with
hope, he stepped inside the room to see Solution holding a piece of parchment.

Something seems to be written on

Please, allow me.

Even before Solution could finish he snatched the parchment from her. Using the
magic item to read the content, he crumpled the parchment in anger.

Kidnapped. I will follow them and rescue her.

It seems like a wise course of action.

Sebas eyes widened as he did not expect Solution to agree.

However, Ainz-sama ordered us to return to Nazarick. Shouldnt that be

prioritized?

But he did not say without Tsuare.

Sebas-sama If you act on your own again, it will be a bigger incident this time.
Plus, how are you going to find them?

They conveniently left the time and place for a meetup. It seems like they
belong to the criminal group that owned the brothel I destroyed.

I see. However I still need to send a report to Ainz-sama before you leave. If you
had not touched the brothel in the first place, this would not have happened.
That goes against Ainz-samas order of being covert. If Sebas-sama acts out
again, it will mean you disobeyed him once again Also, did you forget Ainzsamas words earlier?

It was a poignant reply, especially considering who had guaranteed to protect

Tsuare.

Please report to Ainz-sama that she has been kidnapped and that you are
awaiting instructions.

Part 3

Lower Fire Month (9th Month), 4th, 15:15

Hmm hmmm hmmm~

Humming along pleasantly, Albedo threaded the needle. She pushed the needle
through, and pulled it out. After repeating this step hundreds of times, she had
sewn a black cloth on top of the white figure. Next, she stuffed the white figure
and it took on somewhat of more circular shape. Looking at the nearly completed
doll, Albedo smiled softly. It was a gentle smile of a goddess full of mercy and
love.

Alright! Ainz-samas head is complete!

She clenched her fist in satisfaction and petted her handmade doll head with the
appearance of a skull. Small pieces of cloth were sewed on it to become eyes and
mouth, which gave it an overall cute look. If Ainz saw it, he would definitely have
been embarrassed.

Then next is the body

She gently sat the skull plushie on a corner of her desk and stood up to grab
another spool of white thread.

This was Albedos room. Originally her room was the Throne Room, so she had
nothing in the way of a private chamber. However, Ainz assigned her the
common room the 41 Supreme Beings used so that her work as Overseer of the
Guardians would not be affected. Just like Ainzs room, Albedos room was large.
Albedo didnt have many belongings with her, so the room looked rather desolate
and empty. After two months of her stay though, it was a different story.

One of the reasons for this was the dressing room she was about to open.

It was a room full of Ainz. She had hand made them all by herself. The dolls were
in the shape of Ainz and had different poses; some were full-body pillows, some
were miniature plushies. This was Albedos top secret space and not even the
maids who came to clean the room were allowed to peek inside. It was dubbed
the Harem Room.

Ku-hu-hu-hu

Albedo hopped around while letting out a strange noises. Then she flapped her
wings by her waist and flew straight into Ainz cushion at an incredible speed. It
was similar to a rugby tackle. Still hugging the cushion, she rolled around the
floor. Because there were countless other Ainz on the floor, it did not hurt.
Holding herself in the middle of three Ainz cushions, she laughed creepily.

Ku-hu-hu-hu-hu, the newest cushion I made from Ainz-samas sheets In

another word, Im sleeping with him indirectly. Ku-hu-hu-hu

Albedo buried her face in the cushion and sniffed furiously.

There is no smell.

It was a very sad voice. If someone heard it, they would probably have felt bad
for her as well. Because Ainz was an undead, he needed no sleep and his bones
had no particular odour to them. He washes his body to remove the dust or wash
the blood away, but his body did not excrete anything that could constitute a
smell.

Hm, hmm? This is perhaps Ainz-samas!

However, for a maiden in love like Albedo, it was possible to smell even the
faintest of Ainzs odour. Whether it was her own imagination or not was up to
debate.

Snort snort, sniff sniff

The way she buried her face in the cushion and sniffed it repeatedly was
resembling more of a pervert than the Overseer of the Guardians.

Ahh~ Im so happy.

As the Overseer of the Guardians, Albedo had many tasks to deal with. These
included stationing soldiers, constructing the defense network, checking
maintenance inside Nazarick, and anything that concerned the Throne Room.
There was enough workload to break a camels back.

So it was especially important for her to come in here to recharge and feel happy
again.

Ah, I want to see Ainz-sama again! See him again! See him aga~in! See him
again.

Albedo vented her jealousy of Narberal who went on a trip with Ainz while tightly
holding onto the cushion. At that moment

Albedo

She stood rigidly. She checked around her while shedding cold sweat before
realizing it was a voice carried via magic.

A, Ainz-sama! What do I owe the pleasure to?

I just heard from Sebas, no, from Solution with Message that the girl Sebas
picked up, Tsuare, has been kidnapped. Form an appropriate squad to support
Sebas.

Albedo remembered Tsuare when Ainz mentioned her. Ainz became Momon and
left for E-Rantel immediately, but Demiurge who remained had told the vague
details about her.

Please excuse my rudeness for questioning your great order, but is it worth
forming a squad just to save some worthless being like a human? If it involved
those who interfered with Shalltear I would understand, but

No, they probably have no connection with Shalltear. This time it seems to be a
criminal organization lurking in the Kingdom.

Then even more so

Albedo. I swore to protect Tsuare in the name of Ainz Ooal Gown. Do you
understand what this means?

The atmosphere changed from earlier. A burning sensation of rage could be felt
all around the room and Albedo could only make a choked up sound.

You understand! Right!! I swore to protect her with my own name! They
kidnapped her despite that. This is an insult to my name and everyone else in the
guild! There is no excuse, even if they didnt know.

The rage suddenly subsided at the end of the sentence. Because his emotional
threshold had been exceeded, the calming effect had activated.

... Im sorry. It seems I became too angry at those scumbags. Forgive me,
Albedo

Due to the masters remorseful voice, she could finally calm herself down enough
to speak. The Supreme Beings rage affected even Albedo. Even if it was not
directed towards her.

T, there is nothing for Ainz-sama to apologize about.

Albedo bowed deeply even though there was nobody standing in front of her.

... Then Ill entrust this to you, Albedo. Rescue Tsuare unharmed.

I shall do as you command! While rescuing her, I shall make sure to exterminate
the vermin who annoyed you!

Then Ill entrust this to you. Speaking of which, Demiurge should still be in
Nazarick to receive the wheat shipment. He will be the one in charge

I shall go myself

No, Albedo. You need to protect Nazarick. Send Demiurge. Make sure their
identity does not get revealed as well. I shall leave this matter in the Kingdom to
you and Demiurge. Be cautious.

I understand!

The Message ended and silence returned. Albedo slowly stood up and
proceeded to put the cushions away.

...But I really dont understand.

In Albedos eyes, there was an unnaturally rigid look. She looked towards a corner
of the room.

The reason she did not let any maids in the room was to make sure she could
monopolize her Ainz dolls and that nobody could touch them. But there was
another reason as well.

That was a flag with the emblem of Ainz Ooal Gown embroidered on it. The flag
which should have been visible as soon as someone entered the room, laid
crumpled in a corner of the floor. There was no sign of admiration or respect
towards it, only hatred and hostility.

Ainz Ooal Gown How boring.

In place of the flag of Ainz Ooal Gown, Albedo had raised a different gigantic flag
instead. A flag so large, it resembled an opera curtain.

This, Great Tomb of Nazarick is only yours. I, Albedo wish to only serve you. Ah
One day, I want to hear your great name once again

CHAPT
ER 7

Part 1

Lower Fire Month (9th Month) 3rd, 18:27

Brain stuck around until the guards Climb called for arrived. When he started to
head back to Gazefs house, the sun had already set and his stomach stung in
hunger.

...If I kept Stronoff hungry, Id feel bad.

He pushed open the doors as if it was his own house, but it was only because he
had permission from Gazef to do so.

As he started to walk towards the room Gazef loaned to him, Brain heard
footsteps heading towards him. He thought it was probably Gazef, and confirmed
it when the footsteps were heard coming downstairs.

Youre late Unglaus. Where did you go?

There was no hint of criticism in his voice. Seeing that Brain didnt reply and fell
into deep thought, Gazefs eyes beamed with curiosity.

If youre okay with it, do you want to tell me about it over a meal?

It was a true sight for sore eyes. Brain replied as he rubbed his stomach.

That sounds like an amazing idea. So, where to?

With a slightly surprised expression, Gazef guided him to the dining room.

Do the servants cook for you? Or do you cook the meals yourself?

Gazef smiled bitterly at the empty question.

No, Im quite terrible at cooking actually.

He continued after pondering a little.

Maybe the servants are getting old, since the food always seems underseasoned. After a day of hard work, you want to have something strong, but the
servants dont seem to be too understanding.

The Kingdoms mightiest Warrior Captain is forced to eat under-seasoned

healthy food?

Brain smiled as he teased Gazef, but Gazef replied tensely as always.

Unglaus, I would love to present you with the gourmet under-seasoned healthy
food of my home, but well have to do with food I bought from outside.

If it is so, I must thank you for being so considerate.

Seeing Brain smile, Gazef broke into a little laughter. However, his counter-attack
commenced.

But what about you, can you cook?

Gazefs sword of rebuttal missed and slice through thin air.

Nothing complex and only simple stuff. Its a big problem if you cant cook
during training trips or expeditions.

Nodding slowly, Gazef brought a little basket that was tucked away in a corner of
the dining room. The basket was big enough to fit a baby and a smell that
stimulated the nose and stomach wafted into the air.

The two men sat facing each other.

After taking out several dishes from the basket, they filled their glasses with wine
and raised them for a toast to each other. There was no particular reason they
shared a cheers and gulped down the wine in silence. Brain took two big gulps
before setting down the glass.

He let out a deep sigh and murmured with shaky heart.

"... Its been a long time since I had a drink.

Its the same with me. I havent had a meal in my house lately either.

"... The palace duties must be difficult.

Ever since I became the Warrior Captain, there seems to be always something.

Defending the royal family as well?

That too. As a matter of fact, thats the main duty.

After hearing Gazefs stories Brain could feel how puritan Gazef was. He could
afford to stray around from time to time, but he kept moving forward in a straight
line.
A person like this is sure to be hated by the nobles.

As if Brains assumptions were right, Gazefs stories barely contained any

mention of nobles. Despite being in a high position like Warrior Captain, most of
stories were about his life as a soldier or about the royal family. There were no
stories of some hoity-toity dance gala.

Changes were happening in neighboring countries such as the Empire, but in the
Kingdom a large wall of different status stood between the nobility and
commoners.

For Brain, this whole situation was hilarious.

He devoted all his time training to defeat Gazef, and he expected a fight to the
death the next time they met. Now, they sat drinking as friends. As if his
thoughts were read, Gazef smiled as well.

Their glasses clanged once again, but feeling a little drunk, they clinked too hard
and some wine spilled onto the table.

Try not to spill it onto the food.

It might taste better with some wine on them.

I dont know much about taste Unglaus, perhaps you are the same too?

Brain. Just call me Brain.

Alright, then I am Gazef.

Ok, Gazef.

They laughed and clanged the glass once more.

Gazefs stories were diverse and there were plenty of things Brain did not know
about. As the atmosphere heated up, Gazef asked shamelessly.

So Brain, just what happened to a man of your calibre?

As if treating an open wound, Gazef treaded carefully. His gauging of Brains

reaction was not to determine whether he was telling the truth, but out of
genuine concern.

Thanks.

Looking at Gazef blinking profusely from receiving a thanks out of nowhere, Brain
eased up as well. He took a moment to recollect himself before speaking.

"... I met a monster.

A monster? What kind?

Probably a vampire Called Shalltear Bloodfallen. The attack I devised to

defeat you was deflected by her with just a pinky finger.

He could see Gazefs eyes widen.

"...Is that so.

Gazef took a sip of his wine. Brain took a sip as well and recount the battle No,
the massacre that took place.

Of course, he did not mention anything about banditry. Gazef might already have
guessed how Brain used to live like. However, he didnt have the courage to tell
Gazef that he was the kind of man who had done anything in the name of getting
stronger.

Thankfully, there were no signs of suspicion in Gazefs eyes.

Will you believe me?

"...The world is big and wide. It wont be strange even if a monster like that
existed. Looking back in history, there were beings like Demon Gods and Dragon
Lords as well. But a monster like that its above my ability.

Yea. I dont know how strong you are now, so I wont speak irresponsibly, but I
will say its impossible for you to win against it. A monster like that is beyond our
realm of ability. Even if two of us fight together, we would only last 1 or 2 seconds
longer.

Hey, please say thats not so.

Gazef complained in joking tone, but Brain pleaded with all earnest.

Gazef, youre a Warrior Captain whos in charge of protecting the royals. Please
do not fight it if you ever run into it. Your life is valuable.

I thank you for your advice, but if that monster called Shalltear tries to attack
the King, I need to stall for time even if it costs me my life.

Even stalling for time would be impossible unless that monster decided to toy
around with Gazef. However, if it was Gazef... he felt Gazef might be able to do it.
Even if for just a few more seconds.

Shalltear. Shalltear Bloodfallen is it.

Gazef nodded heavily after asking about its description once again.

Alright, after were both sober, do you mind telling me about it once again? It
seems wise to collect as much information about it as possible.

Even if you do collect the information, Im not sure if anything can be done
about it.

If a storm is coming, then we need to prepare for it. Plus, who knows if other
wiser people have a good idea.

That would be the best case.

I have several acquaintances who are adamantium ranked adventurers. Perhaps

they might have couple ideas. So, Brain, what will you do now?

Brain frowned at the question. What should he do from now on. His gaze slowly
wandered to his Katana he laid beside a small table.

It was a lingering regret.

It was all a lingering regret. No matter how hard he tried from now on, he could
never defeat that monster. The dream of being the strongest was already
shattered. His life had been a waste. He couldnt live with his head in the clouds
anymore.

It was a wild dream of a child

What should I do Perhaps I should go back to farming.

He was originally a farmer. He could barely remember, but he remembered the

basics of farming from a corner of his head. Everything else was swordsmanship.
To put it nicely, he lived his life with a single goal.

That doesnt sound so bad but, will you consider serving the Kingdom along
with me?

It was not a bad proposal. He could never win against a monster like Shalltear,
but as a human he considered himself to be among the stronger ones. However...

Im not really used to working as a team. Im not very good at grovelling either.

Do you think I do a lot of grovelling?

Ah, Im sorry. I didnt mean to imply that you do. Its just that I imagine all of the
people who work in the palace to be like that... Gazef, your idea isnt bad at all.
Fighting for someone else Ah! Speaking of which, I met a boy called Climb.

Climb? Are you referring to a boy with hoarse voice?

When Brain affirmed Gazefs voice rose in pitch out of surprise.

You met Climb? Hes the Princess bodyguard, so I didnt think he would leave
her side that far
I saw him while he was training in the city.

Training in the city Hes not very talented so it would be impossible for him to
be stronger than he is now. What remains for him would be to improve his
physical strength. Was it that kind of training? If not, then I should give him a
little word of advice.

Hmmm, with the sword he is talentless. But in some ways, he was superior to
me.

Gazef made an expression for Brain to stop joking.

Of course, the difference between Brain and Climb was absolute, and aptitude
could not be compared. However, in front of the truly strong, Brain realized it was
like comparing how fast snails could race each other. Above all, having the heart
to stand against the killing intent of people like Sebas must be praised highly.

The broken me would have ran away. But if it was Climb, he would never run
away with the person hes supposed to protect behind him. Someone like him
might be good enough to cut the tip of that monsters pinkie.

Gazef had curious expression on his face, but Brain remained silent. Instead, he
told the story of the assault on one of the brothels run by the Eight Fingers.

Is that so with Climb.

If you think inconvenient things will happen to you, its okay to just kick me out.
Now that I think about it, it would be a problem for you if somebody who dealt
with the underground world goes in and out of your household.

No, its no problem at all. As a matter of fact, I welcome it wholeheartedly.

Theyre scum who dirty the Kingdom. I would have liked to stand at the front as
you smashed into that place, if it was possible.
Are the Eight Fingers that harmful to the Kingdom?

Its quite disgusting. They control most of the Kingdoms underworld. With the
money they earn, they buy out the nobles and exploit the commoners as well.
Even if we try to crush them, the nobles theyve bought out always interfere. If
we want to strike, well need to hit the hidden facilities spontaneously like you
did, Brain. Even then, they hold more power than average nobles, so if we fail,
the repercussions will be huge.

Between the hammer and the anvil.

Yea. It would be good to deal them some blows like you did. Unfortunately, its
not that easy.

What about invoking the Royaltys authority?

Itd be impossible due to the opposing Noble factions. The real problem though,
is that they have bought out people in both factions.

Heavy atmosphere surrounded the two as they drank and ate silently.

Part 2

Lower Fire Month (9th Month), 4th, 17:01

The members of Blue Rose visited the castle early in the morning. All of them
carried a large sack and every time they touched the floor, metallic sounds
echoed from within. It was their equipment. Because they were entering the
Royal Castle, it would be problematic to walk around fully armed to say the least.

Released from the burden of having to lug everything around, everybody

stretched their shoulders and arms. The leader, Lakyus Alvein Dale Aindra
watched Renner with envious stares.

So your duty as princess starts now?

Renner did not have much political power, but still had jobs to do as a princess.

Dont worry, I can put them off a little bit.

My, my.

Lakyus made a mischievous face. Renner followed suit, but went back to her
serious expression once more.

Lakyus, as soon as youre prepared, I want you to carry out what we talked
about.

Why? From what I heard yesterday, werent we going to attack one at a time in
absolute secrecy?

Evileye, the mask wearing mage style magic caster asked.

She did not take off her mask even though she was in the royal palace. The only
reason such suspicious attire was permitted was due to the fact of her being an
adamantium ranked adventurer, the peak of humanity's finest. Also, the fact that
the leader of the group, Lakyus, was nobility helped out as well.

Actually, an unforeseen problem came up last night, so we need to adjust our

plans accordingly. Evileye-san, yesterday.

Renner told them about the attack on the brothel last night. The congratulatory
gazes from the Blue Rose made Climb stand even more rigid in embarrassment.

Truthfully, it was not Climb, but the two people who were with him who had truly
saved those girls who were suffering in the brothel. Climb didnt feel as if he had
done anything praiseworthy. In fact, Climb was glad he was not reprimanded and
felt somewhat relieved that the plan wasnt completely ruined by his actions.

Youve done well, cherry boy.

Gagaran is correct. Capturing one of the Eight Fingers... is a great achievement.

...Undying King Deibaanku, Void Executioner Peysilian, Dancing Scimitar

Edstrom, Thousand Kills Malmvist, Devil of Illusions Succulent and the leader,
Battle Demon Zero.

Tia started listing the names.

Deibaanku is undead. Its said Peysilian can attack enemies that are quite a
distance away. Edstrom uses weapons with special magic and Malmvist is a lone
wolf that specializes in lunging. We already have Succulent, so let's ignore him.

Lastly, a brawler who specializes in unarmed combat, Zero. They are all at least
adamantium ranked.

Yeah. Having even a single one of them captured is a huge advantage for us.

You did well, Climb. But meeting and acting together with Brain Unglaus, youre
really lucky.

Climb agreed on that point.

Ha, taking down Succulent with a single strike. They say he fought neck and
neck with the strongest warrior in the Kingdom, Gazef Stronoff. It seems hes as
good as they say. But personally, Im more interested in the old man Brain
claimed he couldnt win against.

I didnt ask for Sebas-samas residence.

"...Hmm, Climb, maybe he was wary of you and didnt teach you. Or maybe you
werent quick enough and couldnt ask him Which is it?

It was both, Evileye-sama. Perhaps if I asked, he might have told me, but its
true I didnt want him to get involved further.

"...Youre more diligent than I thought.

Yeah.

The twin sisters praised Climb.

But to never have heard of someone like that before, its incomprehensible

Starting with Evileye, everyones suspicion of Sebas only rose. Climb tried to
divert the situation by making a rebuttal, but Lakyus gathered everybodys
attention by clapping.

Now, now, lets leave that subject for later date. If not for him, we wouldnt have
known the location of the brothel nor got a hold of Cocco Doll. Plus, Climb is
indebted to him as well.

You are correct, Lakyus. So, Princess. Does changing the plan mean we are
changing the place of attack as well?

Yes, Evileye-san. We will take all of them down tonight, in one fell swoop. If we
take our time, it would only give the initiative to our enemy.

Silence filled the atmosphere.

The only one participating in the plan was Blue Rose. Lacking the manpower, the
plan was to attack one place at a time.

Hey, Princess-san, didnt you say we didnt have enough people? Or did you find
someone overnight? We couldnt even hire any other adventurers.

Ever since the creation of the Adventurers Guild, its motto was to defend
humanity from other threats. So there was an unofficial rule that the Guilds would
never take part in inter-human conflicts. If not, the Guilds couldnt co-operate
with each other in different countries.

There could be someone who was willing to do this kind of work if they asked
around in the guild, but the guild had their own ways of applying pressure to
enforce the unofficial rule. Punishments ranged from issuing a simple warning to
being blacklisted from all requests and in the worst case scenario, expulsion from
the Adventurers Guild. The adventurers who were kicked out of the guild and
went on to take illegal requests were called workers. According to rumours, the
Adventurers Guild even hired assassins to eliminate the worst of them.

Although Blue Rose was breaking the unofficial rule to fight against a human
organization, Eight Fingers, it was being tolerated due to the fact that they were
adamantium ranked adventurers.

Even if we do bring in other people, utilizing the guards would be foolhardy. They
already have their people inside the guards. Maybe for the final clean-up stages,
but otherwise it would be risky.

Same with any of the nobles household guards. Who knows which one of them
is one of their cronies.

The only ones we can trust are Gazef Stronoff and his warriors, no Im not sure
if we can trust even his warriors.

Its so hard to come up with a contingency plan because we do not know their
true strength. But if this goes on, the entire Kingdom will rot away. Well just have
to do our best under the circumstances.

Renner nodded at Lakyus complaints.

Invasions from the Empire, an internal power struggle and now corruption as well.
Climb could almost see golden sunlight radiating from the Princess in her efforts
to tackle these issues no matter how bleak everything seemed. He truly thought
that she would unite the Kingdom and bring happiness to its people, and he once
again strengthened his loyalty to her.

All those who thought that she was just a pretty decoration, especially the
nobles, angered Climb. But the angelic voice of Renner dispelled all his anger and
he concentrated on the conversation once again.

Its just as you said. We will borrow the strength from a trustworthy noble.

You know one, Princess?

Yes, Evileye-san. I do not know many, but there is one trustworthy noble.

Eeeh? Whos that Renner? I think you already know it, but if theyre not
trustworthy, then its meaningless. Theres also no guarantee that theyll send
enough of their soldiers over either.

I have that covered. It will be alright. Well also enlist the help of the Warrior
Captain.

Ah, the Warrior Captain.

If its the Warrior Captain, we can trust him. If the Eight Fingers already got to
him, then theres no saving this Kingdom.

Then Climb, call over Marquis Raeven immediately. We had a discussion earlier,
so he should still be in the capitol.

The Marquis? I also saw him with the Prince earlier

Marquis Raevan indeed met every criteria they had set out, with the exception of
trustworthiness.

He was one of six Great Nobles and his wealth could not be matched by any of
the other nobles. However there was no evidence that the Eight Fingers had not
already gotten to him yet. As a matter of fact, his wealth could have been
attributed to working with the Eight Fingers. However, Climb quickly abandoned
such thoughts. If Renner, his most respected master and the wisest woman, said
so, then he would trust Marquis Raeven.

But unlike Climb, the rest of Blue Rose frowned at the name.

Oi, oi, Princess. Are you sure we can trust him?

Rumors say Marquis Raeven is a turncoat.

A spineless man whos constantly switching sides from the Kings faction to the
Nobles faction, who would do anything for a profit, even if it was for the Eight
Fingers.

I dont want the information to be leaked from there, Princess.

Amidst the negative opinions, Lakyus clapped loudly.

"...Everyone stop. Hey Renner, Marquis Raeven doesnt have a good reputation.
Can we trust him?

Its not an absolute guarantee. I also think he has been receiving a certain
amount of bribes from the Eight Fingers.

Huh?

Everybody had confused expression, but those who had their own suspicion
asked.

Diverting their attention with false information?

Used for assassinations. Give false information to focus the security elsewhere.

Renner shook her head at the former assassins words.

Tina-san, Tia-san, thats not it. Even if he accepts money from the Eight Fingers,
it doesnt necessarily mean he wants to co-operate with them. Marquis Raevan
was a better man than I thought Climb, go get Marquis Raevan. Hell meet with
you immediately if you tell him that you destroyed one of the brothels and have
captured the head of Eight Fingers slave traders.

Climb looked outside to check where the sun was. As it was still bright with
morning light, it was still too early to request an audience. However, since great
nobles were not the easiest people to have an audience with, it would be better
to start early.

Should we even talk about the head of the slave traders? I think it might be best
to keep it a secret

Since even a great noble wouldnt refuse a personal invitation from the Princess,
Climb thought it would be best to reserve that fact as a card Renner could use.

If we want to make him our ally, we must show our hand as well. Its the best
way to prove to the Marquis that we trust him.

Climb nodded and bowed respectfully.

I shall bring over Marquis Raeven as soon as possible per your orders.

Thank you, Climb. Now, since that will take time, would anyone like some red
tea?

Lower Fire Month (9th Month), 4th, 9:37

The Blue Roses already knew. Even if Marquis Raeven came, it would be after
midday. Great Nobles held meetings with other nobles in the morning. It would be
a different story if the King summoned him, but Renner was still powerless.

Obviously, this would be a lower priority for the Marquis. So when Climb returned
early, they wondered if he had been turned back at the gate. However, when
they saw the two men standing behind Climb, they could not hide their surprise.

One was Marquis Raeven. His appearance could be described nothing less than
immaculate. He wore a doublet made from a beasts, or probably a monsters,
high-quality fur, woven with golden threads. Around the buttons and the sleeves,
intricate patterns were sewn in, and from the way it reflected light, there were
many pea-sized jewels embedded in there. Clothing of the highest class worn
only during important occasions, it truly suited him as one of the six Great
Nobles.

The next person was a rather chubby man.

Renner looked at him with surprised expression.

Older brother.

Oi, my younger sister from another mother. You look as healthy as ever Oh, if
this is the daughter of the Alvein family, then is she the famous Blue Rose? To see
Adamantium ranked adventurers here.

The man who entered without knocking was the second Prince, Zanack Barleon
Igana Ryle Vaiself. As Lakyus showed signs of respect to the royalty, he spoke in a
relaxed manner.

I came because it sounded like an interesting discussion.

At your service, Princess Renner.

Thank you for coming, Marquis Raeven. Please raise your head.

Renner stood up to greet her older brother who was higher in the line of
succession before speaking. As Marquis Raeven raised his head, he had a thin
smile on his face. It was a truly creepy smile and made others feel
uncomfortable, but other kinds of smiles would not fit him well.

Would there be a problem in sending the others to another room?

As you say, older brother. Lakyus, Climb, would you mind waiting for me in the
other room?

Alright.

Lakyus accepted without a complaint and motioned her comrades to the other
room. They would prepare without delay in the other room. The Blue Rose and
Climb bowed their heads and disappeared into another room. After watching
them leave, Renner guided the two to the table.

Please, sit.

Of course, Princess Renner.

Alright, my dear sister.

One person sat down with class and the other simply plopped himself down.
Renner poured a cup of red tea and pushed it towards Marquis Raeven.

Its an honour to have the princess pour it personally for me.

Im sorry that its only lukewarm.

Hmmm, is there none for me?

Zanack looked towards both of them with disappointed face.

My, my... I thought older brother disliked teas.

Yea, I dont like weird water dyed with tea leaves, but having nothing to drink
feels lacking.

Should I tell the maids to bring something over? Would you prefer liqueur?

Doesnt matter if its red tea. No need to tip off the maids.

If we act today, maids wont have the chance to send information back to their
family.

Should we not be careful? Womens tongues are very loose. Especially the maids
that work in the palace. Theyre faster than they look.

With a smile, Renner poured a cup of red tea and placed it in front of Zanack.

Hmmm Youve already tested the maids information network, havent you.

What might you be talking about?

Well, it doesnt matter.

Zanack replied curtly and sipped the red tea before sticking out his tongue at the
bitter taste.

But, Princess Renner, what is the matter this early on? Of course, I am always
prepared to answer your call.

Thank you, Marquis Raeven. We dont have much time so I will be frank. I wish
to borrow your wisdom.

With a light cough, she spoke earnestly. Marquis Raevens eyes widened and had
light of surprise in them. However, those eyes returned to normal once he calmed
down again.

My wisdom. If its a problem that you cannot solve Im not sure if I can be of
any help.

I dont believe so, Marquis Raeven. After all, concerning matters within the
palace, there is no one more talented than you.

Marquis Raeven and the Prince shared a glance.

Renner almost never participated in the power struggles. However, what did she
mean by matters within the palace? Marquis Raeven chuckled. When you are
lacking in information, it is better to gather more rather than guess and come to
a wrong conclusion.

So how may I help you?

I wish for you, the hidden leader of the Royalty Faction, no, the one who controls
the Royalty Faction from the shadows, to lend me your household troops.

"...What?

Marquis Raeven made an expression as if there had been a magical explosion

right in front of him. Anybody would have been surprised if they were here. After
all, Marquis Raeven was not a man who easily changed his expression. However,
he could only react like this. If it was any other noble, he would have laughed it
over. But this was a long concealed truth.

Marquis Raeven had for a long time been considered a rat who would go between
the two factions as it suited him, but in reality he commanded the Royalty Faction
and prevented civil war from breaking out. If the man called Marquis Raeven had
not existed, the Kingdom would probably have already collapsed. On the side,
Zanack held his breath.

He already knew Renner was incredibly smart, a monster with the shape of
human. But without anyone to act as her hands and feet, she was in a way

imprisoned in the palace. How did she come to that conclusion? In the entire
Kingdom, Zanack had been the only one to deduce that. Both people immediately
thought that she might be bluffing, but abandoned the thought immediately.
From Renners tone, nobody could imagine that she is lying. Both were constantly
dealing with people who were full of lies, and they were still unable to determine
if she was lying or not. Renner ignored the flabbergasted Marquis and continued
her story leisurely.

"...Perhaps I need to confirm it with the other great nobles in the Royalty Faction,
but Marquis Volumlashu is leaking information to the Empire. If so

Wha, what?

Wait a second!

Even louder than Zanacks cracked voice, Marquis Raeven raised his voice.

Marquis Volumlashu

You know, dont you? Thats why you were making sure that the Marquise didnt
get access to too much information.

Both men looked at Renner with their mouth gaping open.

Renner had murmured this with the same unchanging expression, daring them to
prove her wrong.

You, what

Forgetting even her title as princess, Marquis Raeven was in state of panic.

Marquis Volumlashu was one of the six Great Nobles and only Raeven and Zanack
knew that he was an informant. The only reason Marquis Raeven had tolerated
that traitor was to maintain the power balance between the factions.

Thus, he concealed this fact to the Noble Faction and made sure that not too
much information flowed towards the Empire. He had accomplished this in

complete secrecy thus far. Zanack only knew of this because the Marquis had told
him. Then how did this little bird in a cage manage to deduce this answer. Just
the mere thought of how she had achieved that gave Zanack goosebumps.

How did you learn all that

It gets mentioned here and there. Maids also speak of it sometimes.

How trustworthy would the maids stories be, Marquis Raeven still could not
believe it. Especially if his past memories served him right, he could understand
what she meant by deducing it from what maids were talking about. In a way,
this woman in front of him had sifted through piles of garbage to piece together a
jewel.

a monster.

A comparison truly worthy of women such as Renner flowed out his lips. Despite
hearing a rude comment, Renner simply smiled. Marquis Raeven abandoned all
thoughts he previously harbored.

She was worthy of being treated as an equal. His memory had indeed been true.

"...Very well, everything I know, I shall be sharing with you. Is this fine with you,
my Prince?

After confirming that Zanack had approved, Marquis Raeven sat straight up,
facing Renner head on. His attitude was similar to Gazef facing an opponent.

However, I would like to speak to the real Princess Renner.

What do you mean by real?

Renner asked as if question was strange.

In the past, I saw a girl. A girl with powers of observation that I could not even
hope to match, a girl who spoke of things so complex, I could not comprehend. Of

course when I had finally figured out the meaning and the value of those words, a
long time had already passed.

Marquis Raevens soliloquy continued in silence.

"...A girl who spoke something incomprehensible, thats how I evaluated her.
Even though I only thought of her like that, it felt as if I was facing a dangerous
person.

A dangerous person?

Renner asked quietly.

Yes. Because it had been so brief, I simply thought it had been just my
imagination. But I had truly felt that. Empty eyes that were thinking nothing of
the world and holding only contempt for other humans.

Marquis Raevens shoulders shuddered in response to the chilly atmosphere that

filled the room.

By the time I saw that girl again, her aura matched that of any other girl of her
age. So I thought I was mistaken back then I truly wish to ask you, Princess. I
wish to know if my suspicion that you have deceived us so far is true or not.

Two pairs of eyes collided with each other. It was as if two snakes were tangled in
a fight to the death. Then suddenly, light from Renners eyes disappeared.
Marquis Raeven made a nostalgic smile as if he had just witnessed a scenery
from his distant memory.

Ah to think it had been that long

Zanack shed cold sweat at the scene of his sister turning into an ugly and
dangerous monster that still had a smile on her face. He had already had a clue
what kind of hideous true self was lying beneath that beautiful face. His
assumption that she wanted to grasp power and destroy the Kingdom had been
incorrect, but she was still a cancerous being of a completely different level.

Of course, Princess Renner. Those are the same eyes I had seen in the past.
Youve been putting on quite an act ever since then.

Not quite, Marquis Raeven. There was no acting, I was simply satisfied.

"...Your personal guard, Climb Is he who youre talking about?

Yes, its all thanks to Climb.

For that boy to have something in him to change you I thought him a mere
child Just what is he to you, Princess?

You mean Climb?

Renners gaze wandered through the air. How much was he worth. What kind of
words would truly express his value.

Renner Thiere Chardelon Ryle Vaiself

If her existence could be summed up in one word, it would be golden. The word
referred to her beauty. However, few knew that she possessed an ability which
would make her beauty pale in comparison. Her intelligence, observational skills,
comprehension, creativity, leadership, and every other aspect concerning
rulership was overdeveloped.

If described in one word, it would be genius.

It could only be said to be a gift from god. Her thoughts, which could only be
described as divine inspiration, were all created from combing through and
observing countless information. Even if one searched all across the continent, no
one could come close to her abilities. Even amongst the beings that transcended
humanity, there were few who could compare to her.

Even in Nazarick, only Albedo, who oversees all servants and guardians, and
Demiurge, who possesses fiendish wisdom and expertise in all things concerning
rulership, could truly match her. Humans always make decision from their own
point of view. In that sense, she could be described as strange or weird. However
she had one fault. She could never understand why others did not know what she
knew. If there was a someone who was on equal terms with her, they might have

recognized her for the genius she was. If it had been so, results might have been
different.

But this was not the case.

The evaluation she received was that of a young girl who annoyed others
because she only spoke of incomprehensible things. Because she was a cute girl,
there was not too much hatred for her and she received a fair amount of love as
well, but the fact that nobody really understood what she said had a huge effect
on her mental development, and slowly twisted the girl over time.

It could be said that she was lonely because she was a genius. Without anyone by
her side who could understand her, her stress only increased to the point where
she was unable to eat anything without regurgitating it. Nobody thought the
Princess, who was only getting weaker and weaker, would survive. She might,
indeed, not have without her puppy, and even if she did survive, a demon lord
would have been born instead. A demon lord who could only look at things in
terms of numbers, and forced sacrifice upon the few for the good of the many.

It was truly a simple change. While she was going out for a stroll with the guards
on one rainy night, she picked up a puppy. The puppy whose life was saved
thanks to its master showed something in its eyes for her. It was a heavy set of
eyes. The girl certainly felt it. The look of admiration in all its purity.

She was used to looks of indifference. She was used to looks of disdain. She was
used to looks of doting. However, she could not understand that gaze. That
truthful gaze was a target of hatred, panic, happiness, unknown sensations and
a human.

Just like herself, she saw a human in him.

The puppy she picked up became a boy, and then a man. Whether he was a
puppy or a boy or a man, that same pure gaze stared at her. However, that gaze
was no longer painful. Because of that gaze, she could converse with others with
some semblance of a normal person. She could interact with those ugly and filthy
lesser beings. And now, Renners world was complete with Climb just being in it.

Climb Yes, it is so. If I could be joined with Climb Hmm, perhaps if I chain him
up so he cant go anywhere, I will be happy.

The atmosphere froze. It was a given that Zanack could not, but Marquis Raeven
also could not hide his consternation. They had expected to hear sweet words
filled with romantic fantasy befitting a beautiful young lady, but this was beyond
their imagination. If she spoke of unfulfilled love due to difference in status, it
would be understandable. But that statement was outrageous to say the least.

Is is that so. This is your true face. What should I say when you were young,
it always felt like something was strange about you, but now I know youre not
normal.

Is that so, older brother? I thought there was nothing strange about it.

Then why not raise it, Princess? They wouldnt interfere... No, it would be
impossible without an accomplice.

Yes, it would indeed be difficult to do while putting up a front as Princess Plus,

there is no use if its done by force. His gaze, I want to chain him up completely
and raise him like a dog.

There are few people who would be happy listening to others fetishes. Marquis
Raeven especially wanted to take several steps back after hearing Renners
desires.

To talk about raising him like a dog Does that mean you dont truly love him?

Renner looked at the Marquis as if she was staring at an idiot.

Of course I love him. I simply really like his eyes. Him tied up like a dog as well.

Im sorry, my dear younger sister, but thats not love.

Love comes in all shapes and sizes.

"...I apologize, but I cannot understand it at all.

I have no particular desire to be understood, but if you understand that I truly

love him, thats good enough for me.

Strange. He knew she would be different, but this is too different. Theyre
currently talking about something that can change the fate of the Kingdom, yet
they spoke of the Princess loving a mere common soldier. This was the more
incredible conversation in many ways.

Princess, if that is your personal preference

Its not a personal preference. It is pure love.

Marquis Raeven did not want to make a rebuttal against Renners reprimanding
tone.

Yes, love Sure. But for the Princess to wish to be married with Climb At this
stage

Impossible. Do you also think that would be the only consequence? Even a
whisper of this, and you would be sent off to marry someone immediately.
Probably someone from the nobles faction as well, considering that they have
the ear of our eldest brother.

Of course, older brother. If eldest brother inherits the throne, it would probably
be the first thing he does. I think all talks about it have already concluded. There
are nobles who always look at me as if I am theirs.
I already knew that the Noble Faction was offering their support in exchange for
the marriage, Princess.

But dont you think Climb is pushing it too far? ...Even if he receives a title,
Baron would be the most he can achieve. Even if he does receive a higher title as
a special case, marriage would still be out of the question.

I know that myself, older brother. It would be impossible with the Kingdoms
current situation.

Zanack smiled at himself. This could be a useful opportunity.

Why dont we make a trade then? If I become the King, Ill marry you and Climb
myself.

I accept.

Really? There is no going back on your word.

Is there any reason for me to reject it? Its a gamble with the highest chance of
winning. Ever since you came into my room with Marquis Raeven, I wanted to talk
to you about it.

"...You mean you already predicted everything?

Zanack smiled bitterly, but his thoughts and expression did not match. He knew
she was smarter than him, but he never guessed he would have been dancing on
top of her palm the whole time. Logically, Renner didnt need to tell them about
her plans and thoughts. But if it was to draw out the proposition from him, it was
understandable. Zanack hurled all sorts of insults at her inside his head. She truly
was a monster.

And older brother no, Marquis Raeven. I have one request for you.

What would that be, Princess?

I believe you have a child, Marquis Raeven.

Yes, he just became five.

Marquis Raeven barely held his face from becoming relaxed just by thinking
about his lovely son. He wanted to brag everything about him, but saw Zanacks
wary face and held back.

Please make him my fiance.

Never! I will never hand him over to someone like you.

Marquis Raeven screamed out. However, looking at Zanack narrowing his eyes
and Renner smiling the same as ever, his face reddened at his outburst.

I have no excuses, your highnesses! I was just caught off guard

Marquis coughed once before looking at Renner again.

Your highness, excuse me, but can you tell me the reason?

You would already know.

Look, younger sister. If you mentioned the subject

You would marry my child, and actually make a child with Climb. My child would
have a child with whomever he actually wants and that child would be his
legitimate heir and you would go around pretending to be the mother. Is that
what you are suggesting? Its truly not a bad suggestion. Her highness can have
a child with whoever she wants, and our house would be connected with the royal
family, even if its all a lie.
I have no interest in titles or bloodlines. If you would just let me inherit a
reasonable amount of wealth for my child, I wont try to take over your household
or anything.

I trust you on that.

...If its someone like Marquis Raeven, even father will be unable to stop it. The
Marquis marries into the royal family, you can be with someone you love and I
gain an additional supporter. Nobody loses anything, and if anyone betrays the
others, all of us will go down together Its a perfect plan. But is this the kind of
proposal you should be making to me?

My, my, I already promised that I am going to help you. Plus, I think learning
about this later would be even worse.

Zanack could not answer because Renner was right. As long as they held on to
each others weakness, it was an irrefutable proposal. Even if she was a little off
in the head, a person with her abilities would be vital in ruling the Kingdom.

Then your highnesses, I think its enough talk about ourselves I heard you had
a run in with the Eight Fingers? Even arresting the head of Slave Trade Branch.

Yes, it is just as Climb said. Thats why I want to launch an assault before they
go underground. I managed to obtain information about the Eight Fingers
hideouts around the Kingdom, so we will strike today. But there is one problem,
we do not have sufficient manpower, so I was hoping you would be able to lend
us your strength.

Zanack and Marquis Raeven looked at each other. The first to speak was Zanack.

Then wheres the place?

Renner passed around the translated message she intercepted.

Has this information been verified?

Of course, Marquis. I requested Lakyus to investigate it. I just received a report

that it is indeed a hideout for the Eight Fingers. The problem is that the territory
belongs to another noble.

Calling it a policing act would be stretching it. If one moved troops inside another
nobles territory, it would be same thing as picking a fight with him.

But I dont expect any problems from it. Once we find the evidence that it is
linked to the Eight Fingers, we can apply pressure on that noble.

Even if we dont find the evidence, we can use that letter. Seems like everything
is lining up.

Three people smiled at each other, but there were no warmth in those smile.

My sister, I have a small request as well.

Zanack looked around. It was the first time he checked if there was anyone else
around in the room. It meant that this was truly the important and secretive
information.

Truthfully, our older brother has been receiving some money from the Eight
Fingers as well. I wanted to use this as leverage against him, so I went ahead and
investigated if they had a safe house in the capitol. It seems they indeed do. I
want to squeeze this place into the hit list as well.

Its fine. This is the time to clean them out once and for all, and if we miss this
chance, who knows if it will come once again. By the way, which Department is it
operated by?

The Drugs Trade Branch.

Then its in a bit of danger zone. A couple of days ago Lakyus attacked one of
the villages harvesting the drugs. If we dont act quickly, they might flee.

What? Marquis Raeven, so can you act immediately?

It would be difficult. I have my own list of nobles who might not be with the Eight
Fingers. Even then, the only nobles we can completely trust are about two. I need
some time to convince them. Theres also one other problem.

What is it, Marquis Raeven?

It might not be enough with just my household troops.

Certain strong adventurers can sometimes take on an army alone. There were
several theories why so many Adventurers were stronger than an average human
being. The most likely theory was that when the body is in danger, the brain kicks
into overdrive, producing effects similar to accelerated healing and ability boosts.
Other theories included blessings from the gods, absorbing mana from monsters,
but the common factor in all theories was that there is a sharp increase in
mental, physical and magical abilities. This effect is more likely to occur when
facing a strong opponent, so adventurers who have met all sorts of monsters
would likely be stronger.

Against opponents like that, simple soldiers stood no chance.

But if its your personal guards, wouldnt it be enough?

Marquis Raeven swayed his head at Zanacks question.

Indeed, they are all retired adventurers who were ranked higher than mithril, but
the enemy is even stronger. The Six Arms of the Eight Fingers. Every single one
of them is able to stand toe-to-toe with an adamantium ranked adventurers. If
they appear, it will become very dangerous. Though it would be a different story
if only one shows up and we can overwhelm that person with numbers.

A-Adamantium

Zanacks stuttering was understandable. The peak of adventurers, the

adamantium ranked, were strong enough to take on thousands of men alone.

Then well ask Lakyus that each member of Blue Rose take on one place. I doubt
more than two of the Six Arms will be at each place.

...Isnt Blue Rose a five member party? The opponent has a total of six
members, is it really wise to split our forces like this? There is no guarantee they
will be in the capital either.

We want to get them all in one strike, but it will be difficult.

Renners intercepted message mentioned seven different places. Including

Zanacks location, the total came to eight. However, there wasnt enough
manpower to spread it so thin.

Its a shame that well have to leave three places untouched but there is no
other way.

How about sending those who finished their attack immediately onto the next
three locations?

That seems to be the best option, your highness. However, freely moving
soldiers about in the capitol will be a problem. How will we solve this?

Ill try to talk it over with father. Worst case, well have to give it up. Perhaps Im
being too greedy

A knock sounded at the door.

Hes here.

Normally it was a maids job to get the door, but since there was none, Marquis
Raeven stood up to grab the door. However Renner motioned him to stop and
opened the door herself. After confirming who was there, Renner looked towards
the two men with happy face.

He is the one who will help us with the sixth place.

Despite being uncomfortable, the man who came in guided by Renner was the
Royal Warrior Captain, Gazef Stronoff.

Part 3

Lower Fire Month (9th Month), 4th, 21:00

Climb held a black mass in his hand. It wiggled ever so slightly. The black mass
was solid, but took on the shape of an extremely soft object that was being pulled
by gravity. Climb smashed the strange looking bead against his armour. The bead
burst against Climbs white armour with liquidy noise and splashed black spots all
over Climbs armour.

Some would have suspected that there was black ink inside the bead. The effect
of the bead did not end there. The black spots started wiggling and then started
to spread throughout his armour, covering the surface with black substance. In
mere seconds Climbs shining white armour turned pitch black.

The bead Climb used was a magical item called Magic Dyes. High class magic
items would often confer additional heat or cold resistance but what Climb used
could only change colours. The reason he used this item was obviously because
of his flashy white armour.

Lakyus called the leaders of every group and Climb went over to her. The one
who stood in middle was a female warrior with all sorts of equipment. First in
sight was the famous magical sword Kilineiram. The sword was about the size of
a bastard sword and was sheathed, so he could not take a look at the famed
blade which supposedly reminded the observer of the nights pitch darkness.
Even just the grip was beautiful. Inside the black sapphire that was embedded
into the pommel was a brightly burning flame. The armour she wore radiated in a
way that implied it could not have been made with materials any lesser than
platinum and gold. It was an armour with unicorns carved all over it and it was
said that only virgins can wear them and that it would never tarnish the Virgin
Snow.

Compared to her ornate and flashy armour, her cloak seemed to be made from
simple grey materials. This item was called Cloak of Rat Speed and increased
movement speed, agility and evasion. It was an unimaginably powerful magical
item, considering its appearance. She didnt seem to have activated her famous
magic item Floating Swords yet. The reason why Lakyus still had her flashy gear
on was because she could disguise them at any time with her own magic.

Those who stood beside her were all faces he already knew. The members of Blue
Rose, and Gazef Stronoff. Standing side-by-side with them, Climb could only think
that he did not fit in there.

Lakyus explained the plan for attacking the Eight Fingers eight buildings.
However, since there were only seven groups, the plan was revised so that as
soon as a group finished subduing a place, the leader of that group and Marquis
Raevens personal guards all former adventurers who had been ranked above
mithril would rush to the last target and the remainders would mop up their
originally assigned place. The goal was to neutralize and capture everyone if
possible, but killing them if they resisted was authorized as well. Lakyus
continued and warned everyone.

Your opponent is the force controlling the underworld. There might be traps or
unexpectedly strong opponents. Never let your guard down.

Climbs body shuddered. It was not because of fear, but due to the crucial role he
had been assigned. Compared to the other groups leaders, Climbs skills and
abilities were extremely lacking. The only reason he had been assigned as one
was because he was not an average soldier, and his personal helper would
support him. Even the Marquis Raevens only team of former orichalcum ranked
adventurers had been assigned to him. Under these circumstances it had been
impossible for him to refuse.

Plus, the moment he realized why he had been chosen as a group leader, he
could not simply sit around. Blue Rose, Marquis Raeven, Gazef Stronoff, and in
case of something went wrong, Prince Zanack, too. There was nobody who
represented Renner. Thus, by making Climb one of the group leaders, she wanted
to show that she had a large part in the plan as well.

It seems to be the work of Prince Zanack and Marquis Raeven, but why would
they do that?

The reason was a mystery to Climb. However, the mission of spreading the
knowledge that Princess Renner was working hard for the people of the Kingdom
gave him strength.

The little pep talk finished and everyone dispersed. When he went back to his
group, the man who stood at the front of the group spoke with relaxed voice.

Are you ready?

That man was Brain Unglaus, deputy leader of Climbs group and his personal
helper who had been brought by Gazef.

The members are all ready. On commanders words, well move out immediately.
Were going to be taking this route. Our friend over there helped to choose.

There was a red line navigating through the streets on the map of the capital
Brain handed over. After taking a look at the map, Climb looked at the man Brain
was pointing at. It was one of the men from the former oricalchum ranked team.
As if recognizing Climbs gaze, he waved his hand in greeting.

Climb slightly bowed his head towards the man who was much older than him.
Normally it would be frowned upon if a groups leader bowed his head to another
member of the group, but since Climb, who had no real strength to speak of, was
the leader, he would need the help of others rather than personally stand at the
forefront of the assault. While they were sharing a conversation, a humongous
person approached Climb and spoke.

Oi, cherry boy.

He had hoped she wouldnt call him that. While Climb was desperately thinking
that in his head, he felt how the gazes towards him changed. He was glad none
were of disdain. Some of them were like the gazes of adults watching a child, and
some were of strong camaraderie.

What is it, Gagaran-sama?

Compared from the inn, she was covered with first class magical items. Her red
full plate mail had spikes and eye like decoration around the chest area. It was
her famous armour, Gaze Bane. Her gauntlets were little different and had
snake decorations wrapping around them. It was an ancient relic that accelerated
regeneration, the Gauntlets of Kerykerion. Around the waist was a war pick
called Fel Iron and the luxurious red cape befitting royalty was called Crimson
Guardian. Inside the armour, where people couldnt see, were the Vest of
Resistance, the Dragontooth Amulet, the Belt of Greater Power, Wing Boost,
the Circlet Twister and even the rings had been imbued with magic.

This was the gear of one of Kingdoms greatest warriors, Gagaran. Every single
one of them was expensive enough to make ones eyes pop. The only reason she
could afford such equipment was because she was an adamantium ranked
adventurer. Evileye, Tina and Tia also wore equipment that could be recognized
as highest tier with a single glance.

Nothing much, I just wanted to feel up the cherry boys ass some more.

She probably meant that she was worried for him, but he really wished she would
stop calling him that. He could take off a nickname like that if he wanted to in one
of those stores, but he did not want to. Deep inside, Climb shed a tear, but
Gagaran watched Brain with hawk-like eyes.

Brain Unglaus. The man who fought toe-to-toe with the Royal Warrior Captain
Those stories werent a lie nor an exaggeration.

Blue Roses warrior Gagaran. You certainly are strong. Truly fitting for a warrior
of an adamantium ranked party. So, do I pass?

Climb looked towards Brain as if asking what he meant by passing. Brain

shrugged and told Climb what Gagaran truly meant.

She came by to see if I am someone trustworthy enough to be entrusted with

you.

Is that true?

What are you talking about Why would I care what happens to you. It was just
that it would be a shame if cherry boy died, so I came to see if you wanted to
take care of it. Still, I can see that its no coincidence you caught the Devil of
Illusions. A strong battle spirit. I can feel it even without sparring with you. If it
was you, it would have been easy.

Gee, thanks. I can see the rumours about you were true as well. But its best to
be on your guard. In this world, there are monsters strong enough to kill us
instantaneously.

Oh-ho, youre one of the careful types. Men like you arent bad either. You might
not be a cherry boy, but how about it?
No thanks. I think itll explode from the pressure.

Climb didnt need to ask what would explode.

Thats a shame. Well then, be careful Climb.

Gagaran waved goodbye and strode away. Watching her walk away, Brain
murmured.

Shes a kind woman. Wouldnt have guessed, considering her appearance.

Gagaran-san No, all the members of Blue Rose are like that. Evileye-san may
also appear mean, but even shes a kind person.

A magic caster wearing a mask Speaking of which, this Ainz Ooal Gown fellow
that Gazef mentioned was wearing a mask as well. Is that the latest fashion trend
among magic casters? Hmmm? It seems were starting to move out.

It seems so. If we want to coordinate the time with groups that are going farther
away, its about time.

The two men could see a group that was already quite some distance ahead.
Climb looked around to see if he could find a certain woman, but of course he
could not find her. She would be with Prince Zanack about now. He knew how
much work Renner had to do, yet wondered if his little sensation of sadness was
due to his selfishness.

Then shall we go, Climb?

"...Yes! Right away.

Climb commanded his group to start moving. Group leader Climb, deputy leader
Brain Unglaus, four former orichalcum ranked adventurers, 20 soldiers from
Marquis Raevens household troops, as well as several high class clerics that
Marquis Raeven knew and people that Magicians Guild secretly lent out came to
total of 32. In the dark of night, they departed silently.

Part 4

Lower Fire Month (9th Month), 4th, 20:31

For him to send this kind of force I must thank Ainz-sama properly.

It was Sebas first words after looking at around those gathered in the mansion.
With Demiurge as their leader, the Floor Guardians Shalltear and Mare, as well as
Pleiades Solution and Entoma were present. There were also several of
Demiurges high level subordinates, the Evil Lords. It was a truly powerful force.
One may even say it was overkill.

Especially for Guardians who compete for first place in strength to come

As per Ainz-samas orders, I, Demiurge will take command Is there an

objection, Sebas?

Of course not.

Then I shall get this out of the way so there is no misunderstanding between us.
Ainz-sama did order us to rescue Tsuare, but the reason we have committed such
strength is to punish these ignorant Eight Fingers who committed a grave sin
against the Supreme Being.
I know that very well. Rescuing Tsuare is only a secondary objective.

That is correct. I doubt this Tsuare has resistance against revival magic, so the
only reason I will try to rescue her alive is due to your suggestion.

It was not a pleasant tone.

Even so, if shes already dead, there will a bit of a problem in finding her. If I was
the enemy, I would throw her chopped off head at the idiots that come wandering
in.

I thought you were more likely to show them a scene of you torturing the
hostage as an example, Demiurge.

A very logical conclusion. To tie up the would-be rescuers and torture the
hostage in front of their very eyes Just imagining it makes my heart race.

And what exactly is it that would make your heart race?

Sebas hid his anger underneath his smile. Though, if its Demiurge, he would see
through the smile. It was a thin act before him.

All of it, Sebas. All of it.

Demiurges slit-like pupils emitted a cold gaze.

Of course, if it was me, I would even scheme for the rescuer to escape with the
hostage, and the moment they believe they have escaped, I would turn the
tables around. The greater their hope, the greater their despair.

That sounds like fun. If we get an opportunity, I would like to try that out as
well.

B-but if they really escape, w-wouldnt it be dangerous?

Demiurge and Shalltear laughed.

Mare, that was a funny joke you made. Of course we would ensure they cant
actually get away. Well, if they ever do, they would deserve praise.

Demiurge, did you already obtain the necessary information to destroy the Eight
Fingers?

Of course, Sebas. I have all the necessary information.

Sebas was honestly surprised. The time Demiurge had spent in the capital was
extremely short, but for him to have gathered information this fast... Sebas did
not want to imagine what kind of method Demiurge used. The only thing he was
certain about was that if Demiurge was acting on the Masters orders, he would
not mess around.

Now about the locations, there are quite a few, but all that remains is to attack
them. If possible, try to capture those who looks like they have useful
information, and make sure to remind these Eight Fingers of their wrongdoing

Demiurge suddenly stopped, glancing at Sebas before he continued.

That they dared to sully the most graceful and magnificent name of Ainz Ooal
Gown. If we want to pay them back proportionally to the insult they have done to
us, we will need to extract more information as well. Any objections?

N, no!

They need to pay for their rudeness toward Ainz-sama with death.

Of course, theres no objection.

The two Guardians and the butler replied. The Pleiades and the Evil Lords simply
bowed without saying a word.

Good, then Sebas. Can you tell me of the location they called you out to? I need
to confirm if its one of the locations I have learned of.

When Sebas spoke the address, Demiurge smiled.

Should I be happy that its a match or be saddened that there is one less place
to attack. It is one of the places Ive scouted out. I shall leave that place to you.

Thank you. But there is a chance she may be injured. I wish to bring someone
who can use healing magic.

To save her is the wish of Ainz-sama as well Solution, since you have superior
detection abilities, I wanted to leave you as a reserve, but can you support
Sebas?

As you command, Demiurge-sama.

But, Demiurge, about the humans inside that building who kidnapped Tsuare

If you leave any of the scum that tried to trample on Ainz-samas words alive, Ill
kill you myself this time.
No need to worry Demiurge. I will exterminate them.

I wanted to say this for a long time cant you two be more friendly with each
other?
Sebas could see Demiurge making an ambiguous expression from the corner of
his eyes. He imagined that he probably made a similar expression. The more he
thought about why he didnt like Demiurge so much, the stranger it became. He
was perfectly fine with Shalltear, who shared similar hobbies with Demiurge, but
Demiurge annoyed him whenever they talked to each other. Even so, to quarrel
with Demiurge right before the mission would be like spitting on the kindness of
the Supreme Beings. Sebas deeply apologized to his master inside his heart and
bowed towards Demiurge.

I apologize for showing you rudeness even though you came to correct my
mistakes.

...Well, it doesnt matter. For now Is it going to be alright for you to evacuate
Tsuare immediately to Nazarick after you rescue her?

Of course. Are all the preparations made to receive her?

No problem~. On that point, we prepared accordingly~.

Sebas nodded his head to Entoma who spoke sweetly.

Any other questions? No? Then well divide the members into seven groups and
decide where each group will attack. Of course, Sebas and Solution are already
assigned, but first thing to beware of Shalltear!

Demiurges tone suddenly became strong, surprising Shalltear.

What, what is it, Demiurge?

Please wait in the back as reserve, since you lose all control when youre
drenched in blood. If you go out of control killing useless flies, it will be a
problem.

It-, its alright! If I use Spuit Lance to suck it all in, the chances of that happening
would be very small!

Its still a no. We need to be careful with this and need to avoid the risks as
much as possible. Also Sebas, Ill apologize beforehand. Rescuing Tsuare and
punishing the Eight Fingers is just stage one of this plan. However, I cannot tell
you anything about the entire plan or stage two, because the moment you return
to Nazarick after accomplishing stage one, you are no longer part of the plan. To
avoid any information leaks, we need to keep it on a strict need-to-know basis.

I understand. Then I will prepare immediately.

Once Sebas left the room, Demiurge continued.

Alright, first, I will relay the important information. Concentrate and make sure
you do not miss anything. Entoma, you can make illusions, correct? Then please
use them as I instruct you.

Roger~

After listening to all the details from Demiurge, Entoma created an illusion in an
empty space. Demiurge was fully satisfied with the illusion as well.

I forbid you to kill this person. In the worst case, you are permitted to injure him
if necessary but think of it as fundamentally not allowed. Especially you,
Shalltear.

You dont need to keep reminding me.

Shalltear puffed up her cheeks at being repeatedly mentioned and Mare smiled
bitterly.

U-umm. I-is it ok not to, uh, tell Sebas?

It should be alright. Considering his personality, he isnt someone who would

randomly hurt people but just in case, will you take care of this in an
emergency, Solution?

Yes, as you command.

Demiurge nodded satisfactorily.

The last part of the plan was linked to someone who would bring huge benefits to
Nazarick. If there is a mistake, then there was a chance that the ultimate goal of
world domination, which the Supreme Being Ainz Ooal Gown has not said aloud,
could be delayed. The moment the master said I entrust everything to you,
mistakes could no longer be tolerated.

Despite having received direct orders from Albedo; Shalltear, Cocytus and Sebas
have made mistakes one after the other. If this continued, the very abilities of the
Guardians and the other stronger members created by the supreme beings would
be questioned. Of course, the master did not show displeasure at their failure,
and Cocytus failure seemed to have been part of the plan, but they cannot keep
relying on his goodwill.

We must prove how useful the Guardians are to Ainz-sama by succeeding with
this plan.

Was there any use for foolish subordinates that cannot perform their duty in a
satisfying way?

And if the final remaining being were to disappear due to disappointment...

The mere thought made Demiurge freeze in fear.

Failure is not an option. We must show a result that will wipe away all the
previous failures.

With certainty in his heart, Demiurge looked around to everyone.

And dont forget, the people who brainwashed Shalltear may be waiting for an
opportunity to strike. Nobody will desert their post without permission. If youre
deemed suspicious by myself or any other Guardians, raise your two arms or
their equivalent as a proof of your loyalty. Do not act in a suspicious manner. If
you do, we may kill you immediately for the safety of the plan. Any questions?

Uh, I just asked a question, but can I ask another one?

Demiurge gave Mare a gentle smile and motioned him to go ahead.

Ah, yea. S-Sebas doesnt have a World-class item like us. Will he be alright?

As Ainz-sama foresaw, he is to be the bait. If the enemy falls for it, then it would
be great. Albedo is watching from the Throne Room in case the enemy falls for
the bait. Also, for those who cannot use Message, do not act independently. I
will watch over the entire operation, so come to me instead. In case of an
emergency or if for some reason you cant contact me, I have already told Mare
everything about the plan and he will act as the Second-in-Command.

Wha What about myself?

Sorry Shalltear, but like I said, I cant trust you completely, so youre in the
reserve. Haaa... your uncontrollable bloodlust can be quite a concern.

I got it, I got it, alright!!!

As soon as stage one is finished, we will enter stage two immediately. Ill explain
it to you now. This is the real deal, so pay atten What is it?

A Shadow Demon wiggled out of Demiurges shadow and whispered new

information into his ears.

Is that so? Its certainly last minute, but cant be helped.

It was a truly annoying matter but something that could not be ignored.

Mare, this is a new information. We have a new Eight Fingers hideout to attack.
Im sorry, but I will need you to head there instead. You might not have enough
manpower, but I will send Entoma as support.

Y, yes, um, please leave it to me!

Good answer. Well talk about the details later, but for now let me explain
Operation Gehenna while everybody is here. This is the most important plan well
execute in the Kingdom, so pay attention.

CHAPT
ER 8

Part 1

Lower Fire Month (9th Month), 4th, 21:51

In the Kingdom, it was normal to sleep when the sun went down, because
keeping the lamp lit would cost money. In countrysides, where most were poor,
such practice was the norm. However, cities were the polar opposite of the
countryside. Especially around downtown, all sorts of stores and people were
active like nocturnal animals. The place Climb was heading to was a little
different. Instead of a brightly lit and bustling street, it was an alleyway
swallowed in darkness.

Climb walked along the silent street without any lamps. The reason he could
navigate the dark street was thanks to his Helm of Dark Vision. The maximum
range was 15 meters, but the view beyond the slit of the helm was that of
midday. Furthermore, unlike plate mails made of iron, mithril-made plate mails
didnt rattle as much. Unless someone with extremely good hearing or an
extremely skilled rogue was paying attention, nobody could even guess that
Climb was walking around fully armoured.

The scouts were ready.

They saw their target when they came out of the alley. Tall walls surrounded the
perimeter as if to separate the inside from the outside. It resembled a fortress or
a prison. What kind of illegal activities might be going in there? He thought of all
the dark activities that might be going on inside. The magical light placed on
either side of the door failed to drive away the darkness that seemed be seeping
out from the building. He could not see the building that was described in the
plan from the outside.

Thats it. Theres no doubt.

Climb murmured while crouching down to hide himself, and a voice replied from
beside him.

It seems so, leader. The atmosphere fits as well. Ill go scout it out.

It was the voice of one of the former orichalcum ranked adventurers who had
rogue class skills. Brain spoke instead of Climb.

Be careful. There are warriors that can detect invisibility.

Of course, they are the Eight Fingers after all. I plan on acting as if theres a
rogue or magic caster of my level. Well, wish me luck, both of you.

With that, the presence beside him faded. He could not hear anything, but a
rogue of similar caliber might have heard the footsteps headed towards the
mansion.

The only ones left were Climb and Brain.

The reason they left everybody else behind was because they werent used to
acting stealthily. Full plate armours were loud and would have tipped off their
location. Since a battle could occur any minute, they couldnt take off the armour
to approach either.

So those two came instead.

Both were warriors, so they couldnt imitate a rogue. However, for Climb, thanks
to the magic imbued in his armour and for Brain who could use martial arts in the
dark, it was possible to act in darkness. From here on, it was up to the
professionals. There was a reason the two of them got this close despite the
danger: If the rogue was detected, they had to decide quickly if their group would
attack or retreat. Now it was time for them to wait and see. Still, they had no idea
what was unfolding inside. As time passed, only negative thoughts plagued them.

Will he be alright?

Brain replied to Climbs concern.

I dont know... but we can only trust him. He is a former orichalcum ranked
adventurer after all.

I suppose. Hes quite experienced, I guess.

They lost track of how long they were waiting. Then suddenly, Brain reached for
his katana. Following Brains example, Climb reached for his sword as well and
heard the panicked voice of a man from beside him.

Wait, wait. Its me, Im back.

It was the rogue who went out as scout.

Ah, its you. You came close but didnt do anything... Were you testing whether I
could really sense you with my martial arts or not?

Yea, Im sorry about that. To test the renowned Brain Unglaus, its my fault.

Its ok. If our situations were reversed, I might have done the same. Either way,
can you tell us whats inside?

Climb could feel the rush of air and felt someone sitting down beside him. He
looked to his side and saw nobody, but could feel the strange sensation of a faint
presence being there.

It seems like that place was set up as some sort of training ground. The
courtyard was set up just like one. I had a brief look through the building and
there were a lot of rooms. I think we can safely say that this is a building owned
by the Security Branch of the Eight Fingers. There were couple of areas with
security so heavy that I couldnt risk approaching. Also, theres some bad news,
leader.

The tone of his words changed the mood to a very tense atmosphere.

These are the important points. There are prison cells in the building and a
womans imprisoned in there. Also, there are people who match the description
of the Six Arms in the compound as well.

Even if the woman was unforeseen, they already calculated for the presence of
Six Arms. So what was the problem? Brains question cleared Climbs curiosity.

How many? Considering you said people, there must be more than one.

Five of them. Since we already have Devil of Illusions, it probably means

everyone else is gathered there.

In another word, this was an impregnable fortress. The worst possible location.
But

This may be bad for us, but better for the others. If theyre all gathered here,
that means the other locations will be that much easier.

It was the silver lining in this worst situation.

Then what will we do leader?

There is nothing to do. This place will be impossible to take down. We will
retreat.

Will that be alright, Climb?

No, not really, but do we have a choice? If all of the Six Arms are gathered here,
then this must be one of the two important places and we cant even check if it
is. But considering the difference in strength, its inevitable.

That is true.
Then should I go in again to see if I can grab any documents before we
withdraw?

No, its too dangerous. It would be best to retreat while they still dont know
were here. What do you think?

Yea, I agree. Then what will we do now? Go to the other locations and help them
out?

That would be the best choice. Can you inform the others whore waiting then?
Well wait here and see if anybody comes after us.
I guess there is no harm in being careful. Ill leave it to you then.
The still invisible rogue intentionally made walking sound to reassure Climb that
he was headed to where rest of the group was waiting.

...Nobody seems to be chasing him, Climb.

Then shall we join up with the rest and move on to the next location?

Yea huh? Look over there, Climb.

When he turned around, he could see the person he met yesterday approaching
the building they were surveying.

Thats Sebas-sama? Why is he...

...Its hard to think this is a coincidence... What is going on? Is he one of them?
I dont think thats the case. I doubt you really think that either.

That is true. Maybe if he was someone whos really good at acting, but I doubt
hes someone like that.

We should call him

As soon as he said that, Sebas looked directly at the two of them. Climb and Brain
were hidden in the shadows quite some distance away to survey the building.
They wouldnt be easy to spot. It could have been a coincidence that he looked in
their direction, but Climb didnt think that was the case.

Sebas came walking at brisk pace.

It was at an incredible speed. Whenever they blinked, he had closed an incredible

distance as if he was teleporting. Even though he was just walking normally, he

moved at a speed that the brain refused to register. Then he came into the
alleyway. To be more precise, he nearly flew over the heads of the two men
hiding by the alleyway entrance.

My. To see both of you here, what a coincidence. So what is your business here?

No, thats something we should be asking you. We were planning on launching

an assault on that building, which is owned by Eight Fingers.

...Are there only two of you?

No, there are more behind us.

Climb asked Sebas who was murmuring.

What are you doing here, Sebas-sama? Do you have business in that
building...?

Yes, to be honest, the woman I told you about yesterday was kidnapped and is
being held in that building. They called me out, so here I am.

Is that so?! Speaking of which, our comrade who scouted ahead said there is a
woman in there as well.

...Where is he?

He should be coming back soon... Ah, just in time.

The former adventurer returned with his invisibility worn off. He was wary of the
old man with a gentlemanly aura which did not fit the situation.

This is Sebas-sama. He helped us capture Devil of Illusions yesterday. He

seems to be acquainted with the woman you spoke of earlier. Hes someone we
can trust, dont worry too much.

The rogue nodded as sign of understanding and talked extensively about the
information he had gathered, starting with the woman. Sebas spoke with a
grateful voice after listening to everything.

Is that so, I understand. Thank you, it will be easier to rescue her now.

Dont worry about it, old man. By the way, everybody is ready to withdraw...

The rogue glanced at Sebas as if feeling sorry for having to retreat and leaving
him alone despite knowing that someone Sebas knew was being held hostage.

Sebas-sama. The strongest of Eight Fingers, called the Six Arms are gathered
here... Can you take care of them all?

The rogue frowned at Climbs question. Climb also understood what the rogue
might be thinking. The Six Arms were foes matching adamantium ranked
adventurers in strength. It would be impossible to win against five of them.
However, ignoring such doubts, Sebas replied lightly.

If its five people like that Succulent fellow yesterday, there shouldnt be a
problem.

The rogue blinked for a moment before taking Brain and Climb aside and asked
them while looking at Sebas with pitiful eyes.

...Leader, is that man crazy?

Anyone who listened to Sebas just now would agree. Especially if they knew
about the abilities of an adamantium ranked adventurer. But Climb, who had
witnessed Sebas abilities, knew there was no overconfidence in that statement.

No, he is that strong.

The rogue looked at Climb as if he were looking at a madman.

Brain thinks so as well.

What?! Unglaus, you as well?

Brain smiled bitterly as he nodded at the rogue.

Thats right. Even if Gazef and I fight against him at the same time, we wouldnt
be able to win.

I, is that... No, if its true, thats incredible...

The rogue still looked at Sebas with disbelief, but could only trust what they were
saying.

If we are requesting help from Sebas-sama... It might be inconvenient, but can

you tell Sebas-sama about the Six Arms?

The only time Sebas broke his gentlemanly aura was when he heard one of the
Six Arms nickname.

Did you say Undying King Deibanock... Its an unduly nickname for a foolish
creature.

Besides that murmur, the information exchange finished without a hitch. Climb
asked then.

So, Sebas-sama... Is it possible for you to help us out?

Of course. I came to rescue Tsuare anyways. I shall take care of the Six Arms.

In that case, Sebas-sama will rush in from the front and we will infiltrate secretly
in order to rescue Tsuare-san. Im sorry to leave all the fighting to you, Sebassama...

Thats fine. It would be favourable for me too, since you would be able to rescue
her while theyre distracted and they wont be able to drag her off through a
secret escape route.

I understand. I will rescue Tsuare-san no matter what. Then who would you like
to be accompanied with? I dont think itll be a good idea to go in with everyone
like it was planned...

Hmm... If we need to infiltrate, it would be best to be as quiet as possible. Then

after we rescue her, we might have to fight our way out. If thats the case...

The rogue looked at Climb and Brain.

If he could use invisibility magic infinitely, it might be different story... but I think
going with only the three of us would be the best.

Is it alright for me to go with you?

Of course, leader. My warrior comrades arent really fit for infiltration because
theyre too stiff in their armour.

I understand, then we will infiltrate with the people here.

Itd be good if our magic caster could cast noise cancelling magic, too... Well, if
its for 3 people, Ill ask him to cast invisibility magic.

Invisibility...

Climb spoke in worried tone.

Even if everybody goes invisible, my helm can activate invisibility detection

once per day... but what about everyone else? If everyone cant see each other
and gets lost, it will be a problem.

Dont worry Climb, I have a magic item that can detect invisibility. Even though
its a one use only, Ill be fine.

No need to worry about me. Theres no way I can miss the leader and Unglaus
footsteps.

Then we will be able to communicate fine. We will give Sebas-sama some time
before infiltrating.

Ill be in your care.

Climb and Brain were flustered at Sebas, who lowered his head. They didnt do
anything to deserve a bow from someone like Sebas. They were basically using
him like they did at the brothel yesterday.

No, we are the ones who should be thanking you. Since we came to attack this
place, we are very grateful that you are taking care of the Six Arms.

In that case I suppose we are even.

They could not find any hint of negativeness in Sebas bright smile. Climb stood
up feeling relieved.

Then we will retreat and come back after magic is cast on us.

Part 2
Lower Fire Month (9th Month), 4th, 22:15

Sebas gave himself a generous amount of time to arrive, so he was several

minutes ahead of the instructed time on the parchment. Though he was early, he
stood in front of the gate.

It was a fence styled gate so he could see inside, but because of the trees, his
line of sight was obscured.

Hmph, you came on time.

With coarse voice, a man appeared from in between the trees. Of course Sebas
knew that man was there the whole time because he had activated a skill that
detected all life forms within a certain radius. He couldnt physically see him, and
since it would be dangerous to rely on this skill alone, he only used it under
special circumstances.

Over here. Follow me.

Following the mans guide through the door, Sebas walked on the little pathway
through the garden. For a garden owned by an underground organization like
Eight Fingers, it did not have gloomy feelings about it. The trees were trimmed
cleanly and he could tell they must have a fairly talented gardener. Following the
pathway, there was large clearing resembling a training ground. Numerous
torches dotted the ground and red flames danced about everywhere. There were
roughly 30 people, mostly men and a few women, who were all smiling. It was
the smile given by those accustomed to violence who could never imagine
themselves losing. Sebas looked around the clearing. He could not find anyone
who could present a proper challenge but he found the Six Arms he heard about
from Climbs comrade.

One wore a hooded robe. It was dyed black and the edge was sewn with red
thread as if it were imitating a flame. He could not see inside the hood, but the
aura was not that of a living being. The nickname Undying was not a simple
word play, but because it was an undead.

The lone woman among the Six Arms was dressed lightly in thin silk. She had
countless golden bangles on her wrists and ankles and they made a metallic
sound every time she moved. On her waist hung six scimitars. The man beside
her was flashy. He was dressed like a matador and held a rapier whose blade
looked as if it grew out of a rose. It even smelled like a rose.

The last man was covered in unremarkable full plate armour and kept his sword
in the sheath. A total of four people their leader, Zero, was nowhere to be
seen. Perhaps he was waiting his turn elsewhere. When the four of them stepped
forward, their minions moved to surround Sebas.

Old man, I heard you are quite strong. You defeated them all with just a single
strike?

We had to secure our place within the Eight Fingers with our skills alone. It will
be dangerous for us if we lose here. Succulent? He was an idiot to lose in front of
the head of Slave Trade branch, even if that branch is now fallen.

So I have one question for you. Succulent said he lost to Brain Unglaus, but was
he actually defeated by you and simply did not admit to it?

Well, I never fought with him directly. I only exchanged greetings with him in the
mansion and he was unconscious the next time I saw him.

Well, I guess it was only natural that he lost. If the opponent was the renowned
Brain Unglaus, theres no way he could have won.

Especially if he became stronger since the duel and is on same level as Gazef
Stronoff, Succulents loss was a given.

But its not something that can be forgiven. Well take care of Unglaus and that
shitty princess underling later. But you old man, who instigated this whole
annoyance, you will die first.

We will break you. If we couldnt, it would put us in a bad spot.

Look over there.
The Six Arms spoke one by one and pointed to third floor of the building.

There are several high-ranking people over there. Theyve gathered to see us kill
you nice and slow.

Is someone called Zero there as well?

Well, maybe.

The four smiled mockingly as if they were looking at a weakling. Sebas pointed
towards the building and then lowered his hand. The Six Arms wondered what he
was doing.

What is that? You picking a fight?

Dont worry about it. So, where is she?

Who are you talking about?

The reply came with a smile that was clearly looking down at him. Sebas replied
sternly.

Shes the women you kidnapped from the mansion, Tsuare.

What if I say we killed her?

Are you guys truly that generous?

Hahaha! Correct answer. Were not that generous. Shes going to be a gift for
Cocco Doll. We have her wrapped up nice and tight.

I see...

Sebas felt one of the four suddenly looking towards a specific place in the
building. The only thing that mattered was that it wasnt the place where he had
been told Tsuare would be. Even so, he only needed to confirm it afterwards.

Since everyones gathered here, come all at once. Itd be waste of time and
bothersome if Zero escapes.

...This old man doesnt mince words.

Are you that confident youll easily take out the underlings? It seems youve
never met a truly strong opponent.

Those are indeed wise words. I wish to return those words back to you... but may
I ask about something? Why do you think I am weaker than Brain?

Stupid question. When you become as strong as us, youll be able to sense how
strong your opponent is. And you, old man, are nowhere near us.
With the exception of Deibanock, the other two agreed.

Is that so...

Sebas could also approximately estimate the enemys strength by their Ki, but it
was difficult to estimate ones strength when it was hidden by skill or magic.

So well give you a chance. Well fight one at a time, so

I am strong.

Sebas motioned for them to come at him.

Like I said previously, dont do something annoying like fighting me one at a

time. If all of you come at once, you might last 10 seconds.

Dont look down on us, human.

Deibanocks shoulders shook.

Taking you easy? No, you are the ones whore taking me easy. My name is
Sebas. The one who gave me my name is the strongest warrior. The master I
serve is a Supreme Being... but, I can see its no use talking about him to lower
creatures such as yourselves. I grow tired of talking. Lets finish this.

Sebas took a step forward. It was towards the creature with the nickname that
displeased Sebas the most.

Undying King Deibanock.

Its true identity was a naturally spawned elder lich. Undead normally spawned in
places where many people died and they tended to hold a deep hatred towards
living beings and focused on killing them. However, a few undead with sentience
suppressed their hatred towards living beings and formed relations with them.
Deibanock was one such undead. The objective of his unnatural life was to
master magic he couldnt use when he first spawned and to attain different skills
beyond magic as well.

If there were similar undead, it might have been a different story. Actually, there
was a secret society that only consisted of undead magic casters, but
unfortunately, Deibanock never had the chance to meet any of them.

And so, he sought wealth in order to learn more magic.

In the beginning, he killed travelers on the road and took their money, but after
losing to adventurers who were sent as a punitive force, he realized the
foolishness of such actions and looked for new ways to acquire money. So he hid
his true identity to join a mercenary company, but after it was noticed that he
could cast Fireball continuously, his identity as an undead was discovered and
he had to run away.

It was Zero who approached him after he had just lost a way to make money.

He introduced someone who would teach Deibanock some magic and offered a
reasonable amount of money in exchange for working under him. It was the kind
of help Deibanock never expected. If he continued strengthening his magical
power, there was a possibility that an immortal being like him would one day
possess enough strength to destroy all life. Zero would have been sponsoring
someone who posed threat to humanity in the future.

However

Sebas approached him like a storm, curled his fingers into a fist and punched.
Without giving him time to dodge or defend, Sebas smashed Deibanocks head
into pieces. His unnatural life was extinguished before he could understand what
kind of wrath he had wrought. Sebas spat with spiteful effort that wasnt like him.

There is only one being who can use that title. The one who stands above all.
How dare some lesser undead like you use it.

While Sebas shook his right fist as if to dust off the bone pieces, Deibanocks
body disintegrated and the numerous magic items he had been wearing
scattered in every direction. Amongst the crowd frozen with panic, only the Six
Arms moved. Without experiencing a lot of carnage befitting for true veterans,
they would not have been able to react. This was something praiseworthy as it
proved that their reputation of being able to stand toe-to-toe with adamantium
ranked adventurers was not just a baseless rumour.

Sebas next opponent was the woman.

Dancing Scimitar Edstrom.

The scimitars had Dance magic imbued into them. Just like the name, the
weapons moved as if they were dancing and attacked automatically, increasing
the number of attacks several folds. But since the magic only allowed for simple
patterns. It was not suitable to use as a main weapon. It was only useful for
surprise attacks or support, and it would only annoy the opponent if she was
fighting someone of equal skill. Because weapons could only be imbued with a
single spell, it was common sense to use better magic than Dance. For example,
Gagaran from Blue Rose only used magic that increased the attack power of her
weapons.

However, for Edstrom, there was no magic more suitable than Dance. Usually,
this spell was activated when the owner of the weapon used their mind to give it
orders, but it was impossible to command a floating weapon to do anything other
than simple movements if one was in the middle of a fight with their life on the
line.

But she was different.

It was as if there was an invisible warrior there, one who could control the
weapon with natural movements equal to her own. The reason for that was the
strange way her brain was wired, she possessed two abilities instead of a talent.

One ability was an almost abnormal spatial awareness, and the other was to use
her hands independently from each other to perform different actions at the
same time. Some people were able to do this despite never having learnt to do
so, but she was much more proficient at this and her brain was so much more
flexible that it almost appeared as if she had two brains. If she only possessed
one of these abilities, she wouldnt be able to handle her swords as freely, so the
fact that she possessed both of them could only be described as a miracle.

Amongst all the nine million citizens within the Kingdom, there was probably no
other person who possessed both abilities. Carrying out her will, the swords left
their sheaths and floated in the air. She only needed to focus on defending. The
other five swords would be the ones attacking. This was the sword prison; a
prison where death was certain.

But

Even before the scimitars could attack, Sebas closed the distance and swiped
with a chop at incredible speed. Sebas hand enhanced with Ki was sharper than
any blade and her head flew instantaneously. Blood spurted from her neck and
her body collapsed a moment later. However, the five scimitars were still floating
in the air. Sebas chop had been so precise and quick, she did not feel her death.
There probably wasnt any pain either. Following her will, the five dancing
scimitars thrust towards Sebas. Ignoring them, Sebas stood straight and spoke
towards the detached head in a praiseful tone.

To fight even after losing your head... I applaud your fighting spirit.

Her lips opened and closed. What was he talking about? She couldnt understand,
but as if feeling something from his words, her eyes looked around and found her
headless corpse. Its a lie. Its an illusion. Theres no way I can lose. I didnt lose.
The reason why I cant move is probably because someone used magic. Someone
say something. When she accepted the truth, her face contorted in despair. Her
mouth opened and closed once more and the swords that were tracking Sebas
fell to the ground. They showed no signs of ever moving again.

Lets go together. The two of us can take him!

The scream came from the man wearing the full plate armour, who could barely
suppress his panic. The armour couldnt protect him from fear. He realized not
just with his body, but also with all his heart, that everything Sebas had said had
been the truth, and that this was someone he should have never turned into an
enemy.

T-t-take m-my Dimensional Slash!

He intrinsically knew that he would die. He knew that he could never win against
Sebas. The reason he didnt try to run away was because he knew he would be
dead within a few steps. If he fights, he will die, and if he runs, he will die. Since
both were not an option, his attitude showed that he was a warrior nonetheless.

Sebas squinted his eyes. It was first time he thought he would need to be wary of
an opponent. Sebas creator, the world champion Touch Me, had an ultimate
skill which could tear the very fabric of space and time. There was no way his
opponent would be able to use that kind of attack, but even a cheap knock-off
would be able to damage Sebas.

Void Executioner Peysilian.

He received his nickname for the magical ability of drawing his sword from a one
meter long sheath and being able to strike an opponent up to three meters away,
but it was not an attack that really cut across the void.

The secret lay in the sword.

There was a kind of sword called Urumi. It was a longsword made of a soft metal
which bent and flailed easily. What he had was a sword shaved to such an
extreme thinness, that it was more apt to call him the Thin Executioner.
Perhaps a more accurate description would be that of a long and thin metallic
whip. He earned his nickname by whipping out his sword at high speed and
slaughtering the opponent with just a flash of light.

Compared to the other Six Arms, it was much closer to a trick than a skill, but the
fact he could handle such a difficult weapon was proof that he was a highly
skilled warrior. Even the one called the strongest warrior, Gazef Stronoff, wouldnt
be able to handle this weapon as proficiently as Peysilian. However, the real
strength lay in the fact it didnt matter whether the opponent saw through the
weapon. The scariest thing about the whip was its extremely fast speed. It was
difficult, or rather impossible, to dodge simply by looking. A strike executed with
super-high speed. For a human being who had no answer for it, it would have
appeared to be a strike cutting across void.

But

The edge of the sword, the super speed strike was stopped between two fingers.
He did so in such a natural movement, it was as if he was picking up something
he had dropped earlier. Sebas looked at the metallic object between his fingers
and raised a brow.

What is this... You were talking about slashing through dimensions...

Shawk!

With a strange bird like shout, a rapier flew towards him.

Thousand Kills Malmvist.

His main weapon, Rose Thorn had two terrifying enchantments imbued onto it.
First was Grinding Flesh. The moment the rapier came into contact with skin, it
would tear the flesh around it apart. If the sword pierced skin, it would leave an
even more massive wound with the flesh torn about. The second was Master
Assassin. It was an enchantment that would turn even a minor scratch into a
serious wound.

These abilities alone would be quite destructive, but there was one more secret.
This time, it wasnt magic, but poison. The tip of Rose Thorn was coated with an
especially potent poison, a mix of several deadly poisons. Malmvist was originally
more of an assassin than a warrior, so he fought like one as well. It was the kind
of logic that if one was fighting to kill, it was best to kill the opponent quickly and
efficiently, no matter the method. The result was a weapon that could kill an
opponent with even a scratch.

If one didnt plan for it, one would be easily killed, whether it was Gazef Stronoff
or Brain Unglaus.

But that was also his weakness.

Because of his mindset that he would win if he could just scratch an opponent,
Malmvists skill with sword was rather lacking. However, his skill in lunging was
real and if only lunges were judged, it would be stronger than Gazef Stronoffs
strike. In other word, the Kingdoms strongest lunge. Additionally, his numerous
martial arts could even match the former Black Scripture member, Clementine.

But

Sebas did not dodge. He did not need to dodge.

...!

Malmvist, who had just lunged with all his might was lost for words. He saw the
tip of his weapon, which could kill anyone with just a scratch, being held back by
Sebas finger. That was correct. Sebas had blocked the tip of the rapier with his
finger.

...H-how did you?

Blinking profusely, Malmvist could only moan after confirming it was neither an
illusion nor a dream. That was all he could do. Common sense said that it was
impossible. There was no way Sebas could stop a lunge that was powerful
enough to pierce steel. His experience screamed out it was impossible, but reality
told a different story. Even with all his strength, Malmvist could not push the old
mans finger at all.

The Rose Thorn was bending. He tried to pull away so he could lunge at a
different place, but Sebas held it firmly between his thumb and index finger. He
could not move his sword at all. It was as if an immovable mountain stood there.
When Malmvist looked at his comrade, he was pulling at his sword with all his
might as well. In the middle of it all, a steely voice rang out.

Then, here I come.

A moment later, Peysilians head burst into pieces.

It was an attack that was rare to be seen from Sebas. Until now he attacked with
finesse, but this strike was a thoughtless attack born out of anger.

He shifted his gaze towards his right fist, which had easily pierced through the
head, sending pieces of it flying.

His white glove was dyed with blood and had a pungent metallic smell.

That was unseeming of me...

Sebas took his fingers off the rapier and removed the blood soaked glove. The
moment it fell to the stone floor, Malmvist quickly snatched the glove with his
rapier.

Malmvist might have taken pride in his comet-like speed, but for Sebas, it was
laughably slow. There were several ways for him to take the glove back, including
smashing the rapier and blowing away Malmvists head, but unable to
understand what his opponent was doing, Sebas asked with genuine curiosity.

Just... what might you be doing?

This is it!!! This is the magical item that makes you stronger right?
It was a regular glove made of white linen.

A cracking voice, foam at the corners of his mouth and bloodshot eyes. Malmvist
had already descended halfway into madness. He was trying to rationalize the
unbelievable sights he had witnessed.

You only need to admit that I am stronger than you are. What a troublesome
person... If you wish to, keep thinking so.

Sebas swung his fist towards the man who was laughing like a madman. After
Malmvists head flew off and his body collapsed, silence descended. Sebas
quickly blew on his fist as if there was a speck of dust. There was not a single
scratch on his fingers where he had used Iron Skin.

If I hadnt been so wary of some fake attack like Void Executioner, it would
have been over in five seconds, but to last twenty seconds against me, I applaud
you.

Sebas pointed at the building where people would have been watching this grisly
scene and gave an order to the hidden predator.

Solution, they might have important information, so please capture them alive.
Now...

He looked at the panicking minions surrounding him with cold eyes.

Ten seconds for all of you.

Part 3

Lower Fire Month (9th Month), 4th, 22:13

Climb briskly walked along the empty hallway. Even though they had Invisibility
magic cast on them, thanks to his helmet, he could see the two people with him.
Because of his helm, he even thought at one point that they didnt have
invisibility magic cast on them. However if he looked carefully, the fact the
colours were blurry confirmed that was not the case. Though they needed to be
careful not to make noise, they couldnt afford to slow down.

They needed to rescue the woman while Sebas was distracting the others. Even if
Sebas was stronger than Gazef Stronoff and Brain Unglaus combined, the
opponents were the Six Arms, foes who could stand toe to toe with adamantium
ranked adventurers. If they decided to simply swarm Sebas, things could get
dicey. Thats why they needed to rescue the woman quickly and escape with
Sebas.

After turning several corners and descending a floor, the rogue who was in front
stopped.

Sorry to stop so suddenly, leader. Were here. Just around the corner is the jail
and theres a woman being held in there.

It was probably a coincidence, but the moment the rogue spoke, the spell
granting them invisibility passed its time limit and the outlines of the three
became clearer again. On the rogues signal, Climb peeked around the corner and
saw a dark hallway with large barred rooms side by side.

...Nothing else here, just like my reconnaissance earlier.

There were no other prisoners or guards. It was too suspicious to be explained

with just carelessness. It was almost like bait. But come to think about it, who
would dare infiltrate the building while the strongest of the Eight Fingers, the Six
Arms, were gathered there. Without other factors such as Sebas distracting
everyone, Climb would not have come here. The Six Arms might have thought so
as well. Those were the factors working out for Climbs group, but they had to be
on guard.

Lets get this over quick.

Feeling some sort of camaraderie after being through danger together, Brain
asked the rogue with familiarity.

Can I ask something? Whats that double door over there for?

When he turned his gaze to innermost part, there was a large door just like Brain
said.

Ah From my experience, this is more like a holding pen rather than a jail.
Behind that door... would be some sort of fighting pit.

Speaking of which, I can smell the odour of animals coming from those rooms. I
heard that in the Empire, they make monsters fight against each other in a
fighting pit...

Climb smelled the air following Brains example. He smelled beasts, carnivores, to
be more precise.

Brain murmured to himself.

But are they using it for training purposes, or for public executions? If there are
other uses, Id rather not think about it. Maybe it was for a show as well. Ah, I
talked about something useless. Shall we go?

Climb nodded at Brains suggestion and the rogue agreed as well. With the rogue
at the front, Climb and Brain followed. After arriving at one of the inner jail cells,
the rogue checked the door. Climb took out one of the bells from the pouch, rang
it, and with the power of magic, the noise of something unlocking could be heard.
The rogue looked disappointed, but since they didnt have much time Climb
hoped he would understand.

Are you Tsuare-san?

Climb asked the woman inside. The woman who was lying on the floor stood up.
She wore the clothes of a maid, and her appearance matched Sebas description.
Considering she hadnt had the time to change since her kidnapping, this was
definitely her. Climb felt a bit of relief. Their first objective was complete. Now
was the time for the next objective; to escape with her.

We were told to rescue you by Sebas-sama. Please come here.

Tsuare nodded at Climb. Tsuare made an astonished expression when she saw
Brain and the rogue after coming out of the jail cell. Her gaze stayed especially
long on Brain.

This door the one in the same direction as the fighting pit doesnt have any
noise coming from behind it, but going through a place where weve never been
before is too dangerous. Its best to go back the way we came.

Climb and Brain agreed. Considering they were both warriors, they thought it
best to leave such a decision to the expert. Climb looked down at Tsuares feet
and confirmed that she was wearing shoes. Running wouldnt be a problem.

Then lets go before the enemy comes around.

Understood. Ill take the lead again, but since we dont have invisibility magic
this time, Ill be more careful. Dont miss my signals.

I understa... what is it, Brain?

Hmm? ...Nothing. Its probably nothing, Climb.

Brain frowned but said nothing more. He kept staring at Tsuare, but Climb could
find nothing wrong with her. She only appeared like a regular maid who had been
kidnapped.

Ready? Then well head out.

The rogue went ahead, followed by Climb, then Brain and Tsuare, who went last.
Racing past the cell doors, the rogue slowed down near the corner in order to
scout the way ahead, but someone appeared from around the corner as if they
were leisurely taking a stroll and blocked the rogues path. They had anticipated
some sort of opposition, but it was hard to react to something as sudden as this.
Climb froze at the sudden turn of events, but the rogue showed a reaction worthy
of a former orichalcum ranked adventurer. He drew his dagger and ran forward
with killing intent.

Crash!

With a loud noise, the rogue flew back. It was as if he had been rammed by a
bull. It was a coincidence, but Climb caught his fall. If the rogue had fallen on the
floor without any way to soften the landing, he would have taken massive
damage, but luckily Climb and the Rogue hit the floor together when they were
thrown back. His mind immediately went to the rogue who was groaning in pain,
but he had to pay his attention to the man who suddenly appeared. That man

was bound to be the enemy. Climb suddenly realized the mans name in a flash
and shouted in astonishment.

Zero!

This man was part of Six Arms, the leader of the Security branch and the most
powerful man in the Eight Fingers.

...Thats right, kiddo. Youre that whores slave. Hmph, for ants to crawl all the
way in here. If you leave honey as the bait, they seem to crawl out from
everywhere. Truly disgusting.

Zero only glanced at Climb and the rogue who was sprawled on the floor, but his
real focus was on Brain. He was studying him by scanning up and down to gauge
how strong of a warrior Brain really was. Climb thanked the fact that the truly
powerful man paid no attention to him and checked the rogues condition.

Are you alright? Do you have any healing method?

Climb spoke quietly so Zero would not notice, but there was no reply, only a pain
filled groan. Surprisingly, there was a fist shaped dent in the armor around the
chest. It showcased how strong Zeros strike truly was. The rogue regained
conscious after several shakes and Climb patted around his waist at the rogues
request.

I remember your face. Brain Unglaus, someone who fought toe to toe with Gazef
Stronoff. Theres no weakness in your stance. Seems like you went through some
training after the tournament? I can understand now. The reason why Succulent
lost was probably because he fought you straight on. His opponent was too
strong. I think Ill need to forgive his loss. Originally, I would kill anyone who
makes me lose face, but I am generous. Ill make an exception for someone of
your skill and swordsmanship. Kneel to me and swear to be my subordinate. If
you do that, I will help you achieve whatever you want.

Is the pay alright?

Oh-ho... Interested...?
Well, theres no harm in thinking about it. Since I won against Succulent, I
expect some good treatment.

Hahaha! You are greedy. To talk about money before begging for your life. You
cant take money with you to your grave.

So, what are you saying? You cant pay me a good amount? Seems youre poorer
than you look. Or are you pocketing everything yourself?

What?

Cracking sounds came from Zeros fist.

Seems like your mouth is the only thing thats working right, Unglaus. There are
lots of swordsman whore better at talking than fighting, are you one of them? Or
did you get overconfident after defeating Succulent? Then I should apologize
about the fact that you are feeling so satisfied after defeating the weakest of the
Six Arms.

Brain shrugged his shoulder as if to show off. He was probably stalling for time for
Climb and the injured rogue. So why was Zero playing along with this? Was it due
to his confidence that he could win even against all three of them? Or was there
something else?

Huh?

When Climb paid attention to his surroundings, he saw Tsuare slowly creeping
towards Brain. If she wanted to be protected, it would have been better to move
behind Climb and the rogue. There was no reason to brave danger to stand
behind someone who was facing off against Zero. Brain looked behind him once.
It was a subtle movement, but his gaze went towards Tsuare and it was not a
friendly look either. No, it was more like he was facing an enemy.

Huh? Why there? Did he look this way? No, that wasnt it.

Something was happening. Climb stood up with an uneasy feeling.

Hmph, it seems like the ant finally stood up. Stalled for enough time? Then lets
hear what you truly think. No, there is no need for words. Kneel or dont, there is
only one choice. Now Unglaus, make your decision.

Brain snorted at Zero.

That was all.

Then die!

He put his left hand forward and pulled back his right hand to make a fist. He
lowered his centre of gravity and stood steady. The way his muscles expanded,
one would almost expect to hear the sound of ripping flesh. If one had to describe
Zero right now with a simple description, he would be like a boulder, no, a mad
bull. Brain also lowered his stance. It was similar to Zero, but also completely
different. If Zero was like a rapid stream, then Brain was similar to calm and clear
flowing water. If Zero was offense, Brain was defense.

I told them not to kill the old man, but they are very lively. They might overdo it
and kill him. That would put me in a difficult spot, because Im supposed to kill
that old man as an example for what happens to people who dare oppose us.

Zeros face crinkled with anger. It was as if his face was proof that rage could turn
a person ugly.

Unglaus, your death will be proof that I am the strongest. Your grave will serve
as a reminder for anyone foolish enough to challenge the Six Arms! As for that
whores slave, Ill decorate his head and send it to her.

Enough killing intent flooded the hallway to make Climbs body shake. However,
compared to what he felt from Sebas yesterday, it was nothing. Climb turned
sharply and Zero showed the tiniest bit of concern at that.

Is that it? Alright. Zero, Ill take you on. Climb, take care of the one behind me!

The only person who didnt understand was Climb. The rogue threw a dart at
Tsuare without hesitation, and the dart thrown by the former orichalcum ranked
adventurer was sharp and fast.

Yet Tsuare was somehow able to dodge the dart almost effortlessly. From Sebas
description, Tsuare was just a simple maid. Her movement just now was too agile
for this to be a coincidence.

Was I already seen through?

The appearance was that of Tsuare, but the voice was that of Devil of Illusions
Succulent.

The reason why you didnt say anything to someone who came to rescue you
was because your voice would give it away, right? But if you try to stand behind
someone, anybody would be suspicious. Even before that I was a bit hesitant,
considering the possibility that she was either being mind-controlled or that
someone was disguising as her.

With that, Brain revealed Succulents trick while focusing on Zero.

I also noticed something about the way you were running, but I couldnt get any
solid proof even until the very end... I have to admit youre quite good. No
wonder, even though I was injured, you were able to avoid my dart without
saying anything.

The rogue stopped talking and gave Succulent a grateful expression.

Zero tsked.

Hmph... Succulent, it seems your little tricks were seen through. In that case the
time for tricks is over. Now is the time where everything will be decided by
strength! ... Succulent, take care of those two. You can do that much, right?
O, of course, boss.

Tsuares figure melted away and Succulent appeared. He was still wearing a
maids clothing. Succulent understood what Zero meant very well and stared at
Climb.

We meet again, kiddo.

His voice was strangely tense, considering the fact that he had won against Climb
yesterday. Eight Fingers was not a forgiving organization, and no further failures
would be tolerated. Succulents back was against the wall and he could not afford
to give any quarter.

Was Eight Fingers capable of releasing someone imprisoned directly under the
orders of the Royal Princess??

Climb felt the extent of the Eight Fingers influence as he gripped his sword.

...I cant lose this time.

Yesterday, Brain defeated him with a single strike but since both Zero and
Succulent were present, it would be difficult for Brain to face against two of the
Six Arms at once. Climb also couldnt rely on Brain winning against Zero and
focus only on stalling for time. He knew Succulent was better than he was. With
some half-assed resolve, he would just lose again like yesterday.

This time he will win.

Climb resolved himself to not back away and stepped towards Succulent.

Dont worry, dont worry~. Ill help you out.

The rogue spoke from behind him. The light tone was probably intended to
prevent Climb from tensing up too much. He was thankful for the support, but the
rogue had received a strike from Zero and still hadnt fully recovered even after
using a potion. He was also not sure how well the rogue would be able to support
someone he had never fought side by side with before.

The rogue smiled as if he read what Climb was thinking.

Dont worry, I usually fill the support role. Ill show you a way of fighting other
than clashing with blades.

Thank you.

The rogue had vast experience. Climb didnt need to accommodate him, instead
the rogue would support where Climb was lacking. Climb only needed to fight
Succulent with all his strength. When he steeled his determination and turned
around, Succulent was making clones like last time. There were several
Succulents, and Climb couldnt tell which was the real one. A bitter taste spread
through his mouth. The moment the two of them slowly edged towards each
other, an opened pouch flew from behind Climb towards Succulent.

This is how rogues fight!

The pouch exploded beneath Succulents feet and powder spread everywhere.
Succulent covered his mouth to guard against poison, but this wasnt poison, it
was a magic item.

Its the Powder of Will O Wisp.

The effect was immediate. Out of the five Succulents, only one had some milky,
white light about him.

Succulent realized this and his eyes opened wide.

The Powder of Will O Wisp was intended to be used against stealthy opponents
like rogues or someone using invisibility magic. It only reacted to living beings.

Since Multiple Vision copied the main body, even if one threw ink on it, it would
be reflected immediately amongst the clones. Unless someone was really good at
distinguishing, it was very hard to discern the true body. However, the effects
from magic items were not reflected in the clones. If it was a high class spell, it
would be able to deceive even magic items, but someone like Succulent, who
trained to be an Illusionist and Fencer at the same time, couldnt cast that kind of
magic.

Climbs sword came swinging towards Succulents true body.

Damn it.

Succulent leaped away, avoiding the attack. It was a splendid dodge, however
the maids clothing became messy as the result.

They exchanged ten more blows just like that.

The one on the offensive was Climb. This wasnt an intentional trick of Succulent,
but the pure difference in their abilities. There was no way a person could
suddenly become extremely strong over the course of a day, so nothing should
have changed from yesterday. However, there were always exceptions. Climb had
simply gotten stronger and Succulent became weaker.

First of all, unlike yesterday, Climb had his armour, shield, sword and other
accessories with him this time. His stamina and defense had increased and he
could use his usual fighting style. On the other hand, all of Succulents magical
items had been taken away when he was arrested, and he was also wearing the
cumbersome attire of a maid right now.

Because of their changed equipment, the difference between them became

smaller, but that was not all.

One reason was that Climb already knew how Succulent fought. Another was that
there was a rogue supporting him. Thanks to the items the rogue was using,
Succulents illusion magic was useless. It was as if they were ready to face
Succulent.

The rogue had actually collected information on the Six Arms and had prepared
to face every single one. The fact he was prepared for even the imprisoned

Succulent was amazing. Only someone with a truly meticulous personality could
prepare for all that.

Damn it!

Even before the fight was fully underway, Succulent let out a frustrated scream.

The one in his sight was the rogue, but Climb always moved to block Succulents
path towards his target. He could not allow Succulent to attack him, and being
shielded by Climb, the rogue started to taunt Succulent.

Oi, oi. Dont make such a scary face. Youre supposed to be a member of Six
Arms, someone who can stand toe to toe with adamantium ranked adventurers.
This kind of handicap should be easy for you.

Succulents face crinkled with rage. The scratches from earlier exchanges bled,
making his face even uglier.

Bastard!

With a loud curse, Succulent posed to cast his magic. Normally, a warrior like
Climb would charge to disrupt the casting, but this time he didnt. While trading
more than ten blows with Succulent, he had started to trust the rogue to do the
right thing at the right moment.

A bottle flew from behind Climb and shattered at Succulents feet. He could see
coloured smoke spreading everywhere.

Guh! Cough, cough

Succulent coughed in pain.

The rogue had interrupted the casting with an alchemical item, which effects
became immediately apparent.

If he had specialized as a magic caster, this kind of disruption would have been
nothing, but because he had trained to be a warrior alongside magic caster, even
a minor disruption broke his concentration, causing him to waste his mana.

Climb rushed at the distracted Succulent with all his might. It was not the
continuation of the fight so far. It was the kind of advance that was filled with the
determination to not take a single step back. Depending on the observer, some
would say it was a premature move in a bid for a fast victory. But Climbs warrior
instincts screamed.

This moment would determine the end of the duel.

It was true that Climb and the rogue had been on the offensive so far, but there
was no guarantee that they could keep their advantage. The items the rogue was
throwing were bound to run out eventually, so he had to finish this while they still
held the upper hand.

What Climb activated was an original martial art he learned yesterday.

This skill didnt have a name yet, but if he were to give it a name right now, he
would call Limit Breaker: Mind. The effect was to remove all limits imposed on
the body by the brain, and as a result all his abilities would increase by a level,
including his physical ones.

The downside was that if he used it for an extended period of time, it would
cause physical fatigue and muscle tearing, but if he didnt try to finish the fight
quickly, even if he had to use this kind of method, he would not be able to win
against Succulent.

As the martial art activated, he could feel something in his mind click and
change.

He screamed out all the emotions that were swirling inside of him, and panic
spread on Succulents face as if he had realised something Perhaps he felt fear
and astonishment, but in any case, this wasnt a face that someone who could
stand toe to toe with an adamantium ranked adventurer would show to someone
below his level.

Climb swung his sword down but it was blocked. To block a longsword with just a
dagger without any help from magic was truly praiseworthy. However to force a
skilled fencer like Succulent who specialized in dodging to block, Climbs strike
was also commendable.

Despite that, the attack didnt end here. Climb followed through with a kick.

As Succulent tried to protect his stomach, his face crinkled.

Arrrrggghhhh!

Succulents face paled and he staggered back while pulling back his waist.

The rogue stepped out of Climbs shadow.

He had kicked Succulent between the legs with an iron boot, and even though
Climb wore a protective pad, he could still feel an imaginary pain traveling down
to his feet.

After that, Climb dealt him a final blow!

Blood spattered and Succulent collapsed on the floor. He did not let his guard
down and stood wary. He especially paid attention so nothing could approach the
rogue and confirmed that it was not an illusion.

This was a huge victory. Even if it was two against one, this victory meant a lot.
Climb looked towards Brain. He wondered if he could help, but quickly abandoned
the thought.

That fight was on a different level altogether.

The sound was different as well. Even though it was a katana clashing with a fist,
metallic sounds rang out. Their fight showed no signs of ending. The katana and
fists were clashing against each other without time for breath.

The one who especially attracted attention was Zero. His strikes were carving the
wall and left marks as if it was made out of soft clay.

Damn... They said high-level monks have fists of steel, but that bastards well
beyond that. Hes at least mithril, no orichalcum.

The rogue who stood beside him murmured. During a solid minute of trading
blows, in a fight where Climb wouldve been killed immediately, neither took a
single scratch. Zero showed signs of earnest respect on his face.

Unglaus... Youre better than I thought. Youre the first one who blocked my
attacks like this.

Brain had equal signs of respect on his face.

You, too... This is my second time seeing a monk of this calibre.

Oh-ho?

Zero made a curious face.

To think there was another monk on the same level as me. Never heard of him.
Whats his name? Since I cant hear it when youre dead.

Hes probably coming here as we speak. After defeating your Six Arms.

Zero frowned before smiling.

Heh, you mean that old man? Unfortunately, my four trusty subordinates will be
welcoming him. They might not be as strong as me, but theyre much stronger
than Succulent. Theres no way he can come here.

Is that so? I can see him coming around the corner any minute now.

Oooh, Im so scared. I guess in that case I should fight more seriously.

Climbs eyes opened wide on that word. If Zero was holding back during an
exchange with these kinds of blows, what would his true strength be like? He was
also amazed that Brain showed no signs of surprise.

Both of them werent fighting with their full strength? This really is a battle
between men who could rival humanitys finest, the adamantium ranked
adventurers!

That would be best, Zero. Those two over there are done, so I dont need to drag
this out. Youre going to lose here, Zero.

Brain sheathed his Katana and slowly lowered his stance. It was the same stance
as yesterday, where he took down Succulent with a single strike. Before Climb
could even wonder if Brain could take down Zero with a single strike, Zero
jumped back. He had easily jumped a distance that was well beyond the limit of
ordinary human strength.

Edstrom can make a barrier with her swords, but you seem to have a different
kind of a barrier. If I stepped in carelessly, I would be cut in half.

He couldnt completely figure out Brains original martial arts, but to be able to
guess what kind of skill it was showed that Zeros ability as a warrior was truly
superior.

But... Its a skill you cant use without taking a stance first.

Zero thrust his fist in midair. It might have seemed like a meaningless move, but
Brains body shook from shockwave made by the fist.

I can win by just attacking you from a distance like this. Or do you have a way to
cut someone who is far away?

No, I dont.

Brain answered honestly.

If you fight like that, then all I need to do is not take that stance.

Zero asked Brain quietly in an atmosphere almost not befitting him, in deep and
calm state.

Brain Unglaus, is that your trump card?

Of course. Its my trump card that has only been defeated... once.

How boring. If its already been defeated, then this will be the second time.

Zero slowly pulled his fist back and took a stance.

I will break you head on. Ill destroy that little skill of yours and win. First Ill win
against you, Brain Unglaus and one day Ill make Gazef Stronoff kneel before me.
Then I will be the Kingdoms strongest.

If you think you can try using me as the first stepping stone for your ambition,
youre going to slip. You really must have nothing to do, Zero.

Talking really is the only thing youre good at... No, since you got this far, thats
not strictly true. However, realize the fact that I am better than you in your grave.
That it was foolish to challenge Zero-sama! Here I come!

Zeros upper body had tattoos of various animals, which were emitting a faint
light. Comparatively, Brain did not move. He simply waited like a statue. Climb
could feel he was about to feel massive amount of released power from both
people.

A place where nobody could interrupt and raw power collided with raw power.

And suddenly a voice that was out of place could be heard:

So this is the place where everybody gathered.

Everyone was surprised and turned around to look at the intruder. Even Zero and
Brain, who could not afford to take their eyes off each other, did so. An old man
was standing there, it was Sebas. Someone Zero wouldve never expected to be
here had appeared.

What? What happened? The Six Arms should be taking care of you... Did you
sneak past them?

Sebas shook his head.

No. All your comrades has been defeated.

...Dont speak nonsense. They might be weaker than me, but theyre still the Six
Arms. Theres no way you can come here unscathed after facing them.

Surprise often accompanies the truth.

Sebas-sama! The Tsuare here was a fake! It was Succulent disguising himself
with an illusion. We need to rescue her now!

Ah, thank you for worrying about her, Climb, but there is no need to be
concerned. I already rescued her. She was in a different part of the building.

Sebas looked over his shoulder and Climb followed his gaze to find a woman
covered in a blanket near the entrance.

Ah!

Climb quickly looked down at Succulent. His maid clothing was ripped in places
and soaked in blood. There was no way to hand that over, nor would the
receiving party want it.

Theres no need to worry about it, Climb. Its just regular maid dress, so its
disposable.

Climb felt relief and Sebas who was smiling bitterly.

Oi, oi, oi. To just chatter on while ignoring me... You sure are gutsy.

Zero, who couldnt move carelessly due to Brain in front of him barely moved
from his spot to look at Sebas with a hate filled expression.

Old man, Ill ask again. What happened to my subordinates?

I killed them all.

It was a casual tone, as if one was picking a flower, but it was also filled with
coldness.

N, no way! You think Ill believe you?

Sebas smiled at Zeros scream. Sebas laugh without a single hint of hostility felt
only truthful.

...Brain Unglaus. Well postpone our match a little bit. I need to show this old
man the power of Six Arms.

Alright. Just try not to get destroyed so fast. Well, not that Ill have my turn
anyways.

Shut up! ...Old man, youll pay for your lies with your life.

Sebas smiled bitterly, but the man who proclaimed himself as the strongest
couldnt stand that smile Zeros tattoos gave off a faint glow.

The head of the Security branch and leader of the Six Arms, Battle Demon Zero.

If men like Gazef Stronoff and Brain Unglaus fought with him unarmed, they
would die in an instant. Even if they were armed, the outcome of the match
would be unclear.

One of the classes he had attained was Shamanic Adept. This class borrowed
the strength of animal spirits and enhanced ones physical abilities. There was a
limit to how often one could use this skill a day, but it raised the users abilities to
that of a beast. For a physically superior animal to use a human beings martial
arts, it was a truly fearsome combination.

Zero activated his skills. Usually he only activated one to conserve his strength,
but he realized that Sebas was quite a strong opponent.

Though he didnt really believe that Sebas defeated four of the Six Arms by
himself, considering that he had broken through the front, there was bound to be

someone else with him. Most likely Blue Rose. Until he could gather more detailed
information, all he could do was destroy Sebas with all his strength and postpone
his duel with Brain Unglaus.

He would need to show overwhelming strength to the onlookers before taking off.
He determined this would be the best course of action and prepared his strongest
skill accordingly.

Panther on the legs, falcon on the back, rhino on the arms, buffalo on the chest,
lion on the head; he activated them all. He felt explosive power surging through
him. He was almost worried about his body swelling up and exploding.

Gyyyyaaaaaahhhhh!!!

Shouting out the power building in him, he took a step forward.

The attack of strongest of the Six Arms, Zero. It was a straightforward punch. No
feints, no tricks, just a pure, straight punch. But the strength behind it was
immense. Not only his skills as a Shamanic Adept, but also his other skills as
Monk, as well as his magic items enhanced the strength and destructiveness of
his fist.

It was so fast that even Zero had a hard time controlling it. The fact it was a
straightforward punch with all his strength made it a usable skill. He had no
hesitation in showing his ultimate strike. This skill was simple, but invincible.

He had confidence that no trickery could stop it. Zero felt a sensation of
superiority above others as he rapidly stepped forward with a sensation of being
pulled back.

Watc

Somebody shouted.

But it was too late.

In a blink of an eye, the fist carrying extreme power and weight had already
arrived in front of Sebas and still kept propelling itself forward. Zero could only
laugh at Sebas who was still standing there stiffly. He would regret fighting the
strongest of the Six Arms.

Hrmph.

The fist found its mark on Sebas undefended stomach. It was a perfect strike.

With an explosive aftershock, Sebas body flew back like a ragdoll. He hit the floor,
but the strike was powerful enough to make his body keep bouncing back on the
floor. It was an immediate death. No, it would only be natural for it to be so.

All of his internal organs would have turned into a liquid by now. The outside was
the only thing that kept its semblance of a human. This was Zeros strongest skill.
A demonic skill that was true embodiment of phrase, single strike kill.

Or at least thats what was supposed to happen.

Sebas stood his ground and did not budge even a bit. He had taken Zeros fist,
with all the strength in it, with just the muscles in his abdomen. It was an
unbelievable sight to anyone; a scene defying all common sense.

The difference of strength between their appearances was absolute, but the
result was the complete opposite.

The one who could not believe this the most was Zero. There was no creature
that could receive his ultimate attack and survive. This had been the case so far.
However, with a result like this, he did not even realise that something black had
passed right in front of his eyes.

Sebas leg rose high into the sky. It passed by Zeros nose with fluid motion. Then
the leg came crashing down.

A heel drop kick.

That was the name of the skill, but the speed and strength behind the kick was
abnormal.

...Who are you.

Zero murmured and Sebas lips curled at the edge.

Terrifying crunching and cracking sounds spread everywhere. Zeros head was
smashed, his neck and spine broke as if he had been crushed by an object
weighing several hundreds of kilograms, and Zeros body kneeled.

The hallway was wrapped in silence.

The atmosphere could only be described as stupor. Sebas moved his feet as if
avoiding blood from Zeros smashed head and dusted the place where Zeros fist
had struck.

Phew, that was dangerous. I would have died if not for your warning.
He was lying! What warning?

The three men, and perhaps Tsuare as well, did not speak out loud, but all
shouted that in their minds.

I survived, thanks to you, Climb-kun.

ouh... Ah, yes...

Climb who could only mouth the last words of watch out received Sebas thanks
rigidly. He did not know what to say due to the mental shock.

It seems I was just a tiny bit stronger.

Sebas showed a tiny bit of space between two fingers. He probably meant the
distance between the fingers was the difference between him and Zero, but there
was no one who would agree.

Tiny bit my ass.

Just like before, everyone thought this on the inside.

Either way, since we rescued her, it would be best to retreat.

Uh, no, about the Six Arms... did you really?

Yes, I killed them all. They were too many and strong opponents. I regret I was
not able to give them any quarter.

Is, is that so. It was inevitable, please dont dwell too much on it.

All three of their gaze immediately shifted to Zeros corpse. They could not even
suggest that it was a lie.

T-then we should call in the soldiers to search rest of the building.

The soldiers were originally there to search the building. The fact they could
clean out a stronghold with Sebas was an incredible stroke of luck. If Sebas
statement was true, and it probably was the truth, there would also be the
additional bonus of having destroyed Eight Fingers most powerful fighting force.

The only real minus was not being able to capture Zero, but they had calculated
they would not be able to arrest him in the first place, so there was no real loss.
Anyone who argued about the result would be a fool.

Climb spoke with an excited voice and Brain nodded as if it was the correct
decision, but there was someone who stood with rigid expression.

What is it, Sebas-sama?

N-no. Its nothing. Theres just something that doesnt sit well with me... But
before that, it seems the air in here is not a good one. Would you mind stepping
outside with me?

Yes, of course.

Looking at Zeros corpse and Tsuare, everybody agreed with Sebas. Sebas
approached Tsuare who was near a jail cell door and held her in a princess carry.
Her white feet, which didnt have a lot of meat between their bones and their

skin, kicked at the air for a bit and they could see Tsuares thin arms grabbing
Sebas.

They could feel that the relationship between the two of them wasnt just that of
a butler and a maid.

You should stop prying into their personal life. Its not befitting you Climb. It
doesnt matter what their relationship is.

Then lets go.

Climb spoke and headed out first.

The other three followed. They could start the investigation after Sebas had left
and there wasnt much chance that someone would jump out and attack Sebas,
who had both his hands full. He was tense for a moment, but there was no need
to.

The building, which had been bustling with activity when they first infiltrated,
showed no sign of anyone being there. Logically speaking, there wouldnt be
anyone brave enough to challenge Sebas when he had just taken down Six Arms.
Chances were that most of them had fled, and if that had been the case he hoped
the group outside would capture anyone who tried to run.

Climbs shoulder felt lighter with a sensation of relief.

However, someone tapped Climbs shoulder. It was the rogue. He was looking at
completely different direction and his expression was similar to the one he had
made when Sebas defeated Zero with a single strike. Following his gaze, Climbs
eyes also widened when he saw it.

A wall of flame?

Climb nodded at Brains whisper. If a house was burning, then flames would be a
natural occurrence, but if it was a regular flame, Climb wouldnt have been so
surprised. However, a gigantic wall of flame over 30 meters tall had sprouted and
was surrounding part of the capital. Lengthwise, it would be well over several
kilometers long.

What do you think that might be?

Three people snapped out of it when they heard Sebas curious, but relaxed
voice.

What should we do, leader? That looks like the warehouse district. Which group
was in charge of that location?

The leader of Blue Rose, Alvein-sama... Well consider this an emergency, cancel
all plans and retreat to the royal castle. Well follow the orders from high-up
afterwards.

That seems like the best course of action... Ah, for Sebas-sama...

Ill be taking Tsuare to a safe place, so that nothing like this can ever happen
again.

I understand, Sebas-sama. Thank you for yesterday and today.

There is no need to worry about it. Our goals just happened to have coincided... I
shall repay the debt for helping me rescue Tsuare one day. Now then, please
excuse me.

CHAPT
ER 9

Part 1

Lower Fire Month (9th Month), 4th Day, 21:10

Because of her thirst, the woman woke up and opened her eyes.

She slowly moved on an especially large bed and reached out for the water jug
placed next to the bed, but failed to touch anything.

Then she recalled that no water jug had been placed next to the bed earlier
today, and involuntarily clicked her tongue.

Oooh

She yawned. Like an elderly person, she was accustomed to sleeping and waking
up early, therefore having been asleep for just one hour was certainly not enough
rest.

Swallowing, she placed her hand on her throat, and only got down from the bed
when she felt the saliva going down her throat. Taking a thick bath towel placed
on one side of the bedcover, she wrapped it around her naked body, put on a pair
of slippers and walked outside.

This mansion was the main base within the Capital and was the property of
Hilma, head of the drug traders. Logically speaking, the ten or so people
positioned within this mansion ought to be quite busy, but it was eerily silent, as
if nobody was around.

Hilma was surprised as she walked along the corridor. If all the nobles had left,
then sooner or later this mansion would be quiet. Even still, wasnt it a little too
quiet?

In this mansion, calling out to the nobles would definitely elicit a response.

Speaking of nobles, even if they were the eldest son and wanted to succeed the
family, this would usually happen rather late in their lives, when they were
roughly thirty years old.

Prior to this, they were given allowance to spend as they wished, by their fathers
who were the head of their families. Because they were already married adults
with children, they were invited to this mansion for their entertainment.

Wine, women, drugs. Flattering compliments were spoken into their ears.
Conversing with other nobles in the same situation resulted in them building
closer relationships with each other. In doing this, they enjoyed themselves and
established connections at the same time.

Once that noble took over the family, it was time for the harvest. If the noble
tried to stand up against them, they would be given the stick. On the other hand,
if the noble was willing to support them, they would be given the carrot. Like this,
the circles of nobility were slowly being infiltrated.

She walked along the silent corridor to find some water to drink.

In fact, she didnt despise silence, she even preferred it over noisiness. Her
entertaining personality when nobles were noisily forming friendships was only a
facade. However, the atmosphere right now was simply too unnatural. This
silence cast a chilling sensation, causing her to feel as if she was the only person
in the mansion.

...What happened?

The guards could not have left this place without saying a single word. If there
really was an abnormal situation that happened, shouting would immediately
give away her own position, which would be a really bad turn of events.
Hypothetically, if she were to return to her room and hide under the covers, what
then? Doing that would be too passive.

It was necessary to take action when the situation called for it, otherwise one
would be devoured like prey. This was her belief and she had been able to climb
all the way from being a high-class prostitute to her current position because she
strongly adhered to this way of thinking.

Looking around the corridor she could see that apparently nobody was present,
and she quickly ran to get out of this place.

She trusted her own sixth sense, and the place she ran towards was a hidden
room which only she knew about. That room contained many magic items,
precious gems and escape passages. Although this place was the headquarters
within the capital, there were still many other bases distributed all around the
city. It looked like it was about time to flee to one of them.

Proceeding forward while trying her best to be silent, she suddenly noticed
something was wrong.

What, what is this?

She involuntarily gave off a soft groan when she saw a strange phenomenon
outside of the window.

The thin glass was covered in ivy, completely blocking the sunlight from outside.
No matter how hard she tried, it was impossible to open the window even for a
small crack.

She frantically looked at the other windows along the corridor. All of them were
covered with thick ivy.

W-what the? J-just who

Before she slept, the scene had definitely been different. In the short span of only
an hour, it had become like this. It had to be the result of somebodys magic.

But, who exactly? What was his objective?

She had absolutely no clue, but knew that the situation was incredibly dangerous
right now.

Dammit!

Swearing as she trotted along, she did not even care if her bath robe had come
undone. No matter what, it was imperative to get inside the small secret room.

Arriving at the stairs, she looked downwards. It was deathly silent.

She gingerly walked down the stairs, making use of the rays of light that seeped
in from the tiny gaps amongst the ivy. Thanks to the thick carpets laid on the
stair, she was able to descend without a single noise. She was immensely
grateful for this.

It was only when she arrived at the floor below that she was stunned with
surprise.

There was a figure standing in the corridor, staring at her. The figure itself
seemed to melt into the darkness, but it wasnt like the way thieves hid
themselves in the shadows. It was because the figures skin itself had a dark
complexion, being a dark elf with heterochromatic eyes that shone in the
darkness.

The dark elf stepped out of the dark. She wore a young girls clothing. In her hand
she held a dark staff, and her eyes were looking directly at Hilma.

Behind this mysterious young girl was the hidden room.

She recalled the layout of the mansion as she made her decision, and edged
closer whilst trembling in fear.

Some nobles must have brought it in as a play-thing, in that case whatever

happens to it does not matter.

However she immediately discarded this wishful thought.

It appeared that Cocco Doll had already been captured. In order to avoid any
unfavourable consequences from future power struggles, she had long since
prepared escape routes to safe houses. As such, the subordinates in this mansion
would never bring in irrelevant people without making some form of report.

Hey, ojou-chan.

When a sound was uttered, Hilma frowned in surprise.

As a high-class prostitute, she had come across all types of people. Experience
told her that the one she saw before her was not a young girl, but a boy.

The clothes were luxurious, the type which most people could not get their hands
on. They were high-class goods that even Hilma could not obtain.

The dark elves had always been living in the forests, but now one with an
unknown gender had appeared inside the Kingdom, wearing unusually luxurious
clothing.

Had the surrounding atmosphere not been so abnormal, she would have assumed
she was looking at a slave of a noble, one meant for their peculiar desires.

...You, what are you doing here?

The other person was completely unguarded, and slowly got closer to her.

O-oba-san, are you the most important person in this mansion?

Even if she was called an oba-san, she was not unhappy in the slightest. For such
a young elf, her age must certainly be at the point to be appropriately called obasan.

No

She was about to say this, but suddenly, she got an extremely bad feeling.

She had tremendous trust in her own intuition. Compared to her common sense,
she trusted her intuition even more and had therefore been able to survive up to
this point. Common sense could betray her, but her intuition would never do so.

Yes. Yes that is so. I am the most important person in this mansion.

I-is that so. Thats great.

The boy smiled. Hilma heart ignited with a fiery desire, as if she had the urge to
defile a beautiful object. It was that kind of pure smile.

U-uhh, thats not what I heard from the people here.

As if in response to the boys words, the nearby window opened. There stood a
young girl in a maid costume, her body wafting with the smell of blood instead of
perfume.

Hilma covered her mouth with her hands, holding back a cry of despair.

The maid held a man's arm in her lovely hand. The arms shoulder muscles were
visible as if it had been ripped from the shoulder.

W-What!

E~eh, that, it seems like someone wants to attack this mansion. We need to
finish everything before they get here. So I brought her with me.

Please dont mind me. It has been a while since I have been this full, and I am
really satisfied right now.

The mouth did not move, but still emitted a noise. It was an extremely surprising
matter, but Hilma still had other things she wanted to ask. Especially about what
exactly the maid had been eating, since it caused her body to shake non-stop.
Hoping it was different from her expectation, Hilma asked:

T-then, m-me too? You also want to eat me?

Ah? Ah, not so. Oba-san is different.

It was not reassuring. Her intuition warned that a worse fate awaited her.

Then, young man, would you like to come here for a bit of pleasure?

The cloth covering her slowly slid off, revealing her shoulders.

This was the body she took pride in. As a high-class prostitute, all those that she
serviced were upper-class nobles. Therefore she had devoted all her efforts to
shed excess fat, maintaining her attractiveness. No matter how honest the
person was, they would be unable to take their eyes off her; Even a small child
would be aroused. She had tremendous self-confidence in this aspect.

However, no emotions could be seen in the juveniles eyes.

That also means to say that my attractiveness is not as great as the maid on the
side! Even if I myself had changed business, Im still a professional. Even if it is
an emotionless person, it is still possible to induce raging desire! I can do this!

Moving sinuously like a snake, she showed off her graceful body while advancing
slowly, getting closer in an unsuspecting manner.

However, she could not detect the boys lust.

That was why it was necessary to use other means. Her hand slowly moved,
moving past the boys neck and then activated a magic item Vipers Tattoo.

The snake tattoo drawn on both hands suddenly materialised, with the snake
raising its sickle-like fangs to bite into the boys body. Anyone who was bitten by
this powerful neurotoxic snake would immediately spasm before departing this
world. For Hilma who lacked combat ability, this was her killer move.

However the boy nimbly grabbed the incredibly fast poisonous snake with one
hand and crushed it without hesitation.

The viper tattoo slowly returned to Hilmas wrist. Because the materialised entity
was killed, it would take roughly one days time in order to recover. During this
period it was impossible to activate it again.

Having taken action yet unable to achieve the result she had envisaged, Hilma
was caught in the worst possible situation and couldnt help but retreat slowly.
What terrified her the most was the fact that despite the chain of events that had
transpired, the boys expression had not changed even once. Even when he was
attacked, neither anxiety nor hostility could be seen.

Ah, ah, then, lets get moving.

Where to?

In the moment that Hilda harboured this doubt, a surge of excruciating pain came
from her knee. It was so severe that she could not even stand up, and helplessly
fell onto the floor.

Aaaaaahhhhhhh!!

She issued a pained shout; the pain was enough to make her sweat heavily. She
unwillingly glanced at her knee and immediately regretted doing so.

Her left foot was twisted in the opposite direction, the bone visibly exposed as it
had pierced her flesh.

As Hilma cried, she also thought about using her hand to press down on the
painful area, but she hesitated, afraid.

The boy grabbed Hilmas hair and dragged her outside.

An observer of this scene would not be able to tell that she was being dragged
along with a powerful force. His strength was immense, even causing many hairs
to be yanked out, yet he paid no attention to this.

No! No! Please stop!

The boy glanced at the wailing Hilma, but did not halt his pace for even a second.

Quickly! Well get in trouble if we dont hurry up!

Part 2

Lower Fire Month (9th Month) 4th Day, 22:20

After assaulting the mansion, Entoma Vasilissa Zeta walked out through the main
door.

She picked up a piece of paper that was lying next to her feet, crumpled it into a
ball and threw it towards the mansion.

The original plan was to sweep the mansion clean of humans, then retrieve
important books and valuable items before retreating. Like fleeting birds, they
were to leave no trace that they had been there, and since time was tight, they
would only take what they could. However, in the end the house had been left
completely empty, as if it had been cleared out by thieves.

Nonetheless, this was also completely fine because Demiurge, the one who had
sent Entoma and Mare here, mentioned that this was a possibility. But then again,
the overall time spent here had exceeded their estimations by far.

Together with the other demons, Mare and her should have departed much
earlier. Mare had taken the most important person of this mansion and went
ahead to the rendezvous point. Because there was still enough time, the lowerclass demons brought along a mountain of stolen goods and were preparing for
everybody to evacuate.

That should have been the case, but then they discovered an underground
storage which was completely packed with stolen goods and illegal drugs during
their retreat.

The appropriation work was therefore slowed down.

Firstly, the underground area was divided into many rooms, with valuable items
and many cheap goods piled together, making it incredibly difficult to search
through. It was basically like finding a specific tree in the middle of a forest. Even
if it were Entoma and the demons, they could not possibly relocate all of the
items, as such it was necessary to locate the desired tree within the forest.

If the woman taken away by Mare had still been here, this problem would have
been dealt with early on, but it was already too late for that.

Entoma and the demons stuffed the goods which they deemed to be trash to one
side of the room. Even for demons who had far more strength than humans, this
was rather cumbersome work. But thanks to this method and their efforts, they
were able to successfully take away all of the items that had value.

As the person responsible, Entoma, who stayed to the end, had the refreshed
expression one would have at the completion of an assignment. She looked at the
night sky, using her hand to wipe off her sweat. Although she did not secrete a
single drop of sweat, that was how she felt.

Ha. Everybody move the items away then~

Obeying Entomas command, huge insects the size of a man carrying large
amounts of cargo on their backs flew into the night sky. These giant beetles were
all summoned through her entomomancer ability.

Their wings gave off a heavy and low vibrating sound, and then the insects flew
in a straight line formation towards their destination.

After personally sending off the insects transporting the heavy goods, Entoma
pondered as she looked at the object she held in one hand.

Ah, must resist eating. I must, I must.

With a bop sound, she gently knocked herself on the head, and brought the
severed hand of a man to the area below her chin. The mans hand then
disappeared with a chomp chomp chomp sound as Entomas throat continuously
moved. Her expression was extremely cute, but the smell of blood had also
slowly spread out.

Womens fat is soft and the meat tastes delicious. Childrens fat is thin, and the
meat tastes great as well. But, ah, the best is of course the textured meat of
men.

She nimbly avoided the bones as she ate, then threw the rest of the hand into the
mansion.

Thank you for the meal!

She bowed in the direction of the mansion, and, in order not to be late, she began
to head off to her destination in accordance with her orders. However she had not
taken many steps when a nearby sound made her stop.

Yo. It is a beautiful night, is it not?

...Tonight is a beautiful night indeed, but I gather it isnt so wonderful for you?

It was unclear whether the one who slowly revealed herself was a man or a
woman. Although it felt like she was a woman, her physique was that of a man.

You, what are you doing here?

Taking a walk.

...You, what was it that you ate so eagerly just now??

Meat.

...Human meat?

The manwomans voice was as cold as ice, yet Entoma was not fazed at all. She
didnt care what kind of emotions humans harboured against her. If they dared to
interfere, they would be crushed; If they did not, they would be ignored. If she
were hungry, they would be caught for food. For Entoma, this was all their
existence amounted to.

Slowly, the manwoman lifted her war pick. After seeing this action, Entoma spoke
in a troubled voice for the first time.

Then, have we met before?

The manwoman had an incredulous expression, and thought to herself Could

that be?, but did not voice this out loud.

I am here because of work. Having you as my opponent will be troublesome, and

moreover my stomach is full right now.

...Please excuse me. I am one of the Kingdoms top-class adventurers. Upon

encountering a man-eating monster, I cannot allow you to get away. Your
continued existence in the human world is a problem.

Ah, so troublesome. But you are strong. In that case Ill turn you into preserved
food.

For the first time Entoma looked straight at the manwoman.

She couldnt help thinking that this was a powerful warrior.

Mm, yes, definitely very strong.

Entoma was not a pure warrior, so she had no means to assess the strength of
her opponent. However, she did not consider the other side to be stronger than
herself.

Oriyaaa!

The manwoman darted over, and sent her war pick crashing downwards.

Entoma elegantly dodged the attack. But a follow-up attack immediately pursued
her, with the war pick making a significant change in direction mid-swing,
heading straight for Entoma. This movement was not a smooth blow relying on
centrifugal force, but was instead a move purely based on an illogical amount of
brute force.

Once again Entoma flashed out of the way, and activated her special ability.

Ah!? Do you only know how to run?

The war pick began rotating, creating a large vortex of wind which circulated
above the manwomans head, ruffling her hair.

Heh, do you like to spin things around and make woosh woosh sounds?

The manwoman clicked her tongue in response to this jeering. When Entoma
once again activated her skill, the hammer swung downwards from above. With
some difficulty she managed to dodge and the war pick buried itself deeply into
the ground after missing its target.

Entoma laughed at her using the same move. Her expression did not change, and
the mocking gesture exposed their difference in strength.

That manwoman caught onto the overwhelmingly powerful Entomas

carelessness.

Get crushed!

Having the spiked war pick as the epicentre, the surrounding ground began to
collapse, or rather, the rocks scattered. It was like an earthquake had occurred.
For the first time, Entoma was unable to maintain a leisurely posture, but the
effect of the opponents magic item did not collapse everything.

Entoma saw the opponent uproot the sunken war pick.

She could not help getting annoyed.

She cursed her own carelessness.

Avoiding that previous attack had been incredibly easy. Humans would find it very
difficult to escape the earth-shattering shock waves because the collapse of the
surrounding ground would result in a loss of balance. However Entoma was a
battle maid and all the magic items she possessed were high-class. This degree
of destruction was insignificant to her.

However, there was one problem.

While avoiding the flying debris, the maid outfit she wore had become dirty.

Could such a matter be forgiven? This was high-class clothing bestowed to

Entoma by the Supreme Beings.

So it ends here then.

Hostility hidden under the mask of Entomas face emerged.

It ends here.

Kill.

She embraced murderous intent, not the type of emotion that humans had when
toying with insects. The war pick swung heavily towards Entoma.

Entoma thoughtlessly raised her left hand to block the hammer. Since she was
not at the level of the Floor Guardians, simply using her left hand to block the
hammer could not possibly leave her unscathed.

Then, at the moment of contact, the sound that rang out was not metal hitting
flesh but rather the sound of metal colliding with a hard object.

A shield was attached to Entomas left hand. This was not an exaggerated
metaphor. An eight legged insect had attached itself to Entomas wrist.

Wh-what is this!

You see, Im an entomomancer. So I can summon and use them at my will.

She stretched out her right hand and an insect flew out from the darkness. A long
bug resembling a broadsword attached itself to the back of Entomas right hand.

These are blade insect and armoured insect. I originally did not plan to kill you,
but you cannot be forgiven!

Entoma took a step forward and thrust out her blade.

The manwomans armour cracked and blood spewed out, but this was far from
being a fatal wound. She was completely unable to avoid Entomas serious blow
but had only suffered a minor injury.

She had just declared herself to be a highest-class warrior of the Kingdom, and
this was not an exaggeration. At her level, there were no longer any adversaries.

Although Entoma was not purely a warrior like Yuri, she was still a battle maid
and possessed a strength far out of reach for humans.

She once again launched a slash, causing blood to spew and staining her cheeks.

This time the attack caused a wound much larger than the previous one, and was
no longer a minor injury.

Your movements changed! Is this the real you?!

Manwoman roared again, swinging the war pick heavily downwards. However
Entomas armoured beetle repelled the hammer. The powerful impact travelled
across the manwomans entire body, rendering her unable to take a single step
even with her full strength. As she struggled to move, her pride ignited fierce
anger within her.

The manwoman mustered the burning rage within her, smoothly launching a
combination of strikes. Her attacks raged like a violent tornado. The terrifying
aspect of this was that it was created through the application of martial arts
unique to this world. However, Entoma wielded her armoured beetle and blade
insect with extreme proficiency, and was completely uninjured by this fifteencombo attack.

Entoma did not know that the previous attack was Blue Rose Gagarans slaying
move which utilised many kinds of martial arts at the same time a Super
Combo. Each surging strike had the weight of her full strength. It was capable of
even breaking the martial art Fortress, and only a small number of geniuses

could use the defensive skill Invulnerable Fortress which could resist this attack.
However Entoma had only relied on her naturally grown muscles to block.

This was because of the level gap between the two individuals, and also due to
the absolutely overwhelming disparity between the two races physical
capabilities.

Desperation emerged in her opponents eyes, but Entoma felt nothing. She only
wished to kill the opponent.

"Fuuuu~"

The manwoman gasped for air as if she had just surfaced from underwater and
stopped her flurry of attacks. The blade insect on Entomas right hand drew back
like a bow and flew towards the manwomans chest like an arrow.

The target was Gagarans chest. The war pick rose in the air, but was as slow as a
turtle. Entomas attack pierced Gagarans chest before she could respond to it.

Or so it was supposed to.

The sword cut through the air. Since the blade insect lost its target, it flew into
the night.

With a fuu, Entoma turned her gaze to search for the intruder that had caused
the interruption.

In the distance there was a girl clothed in black. Behind her was the heavily
breathing manwoman.

Im sorry, Tia. I thought I was done for.

Surprisingly, it seems that the blood flowing through Gagaran really is red~

You rascal! Youve seen me injured many times before!

I even thought you would bleed green blood. Power Up!

Rather than Powerup that would be more like a race change!

Class change then!

Hearing their relaxed conversation, Entoma could not help but feel anxious. As a
powerful adversary herself, it was necessary to clearly demonstrate the
difference in strength at a glance whilst at the same time quickly defining her
own position.

Well, its about time to end this. Did you say your farewells?

For the first time, Entoma assumed a fighting posture. The manwoman
Gagaran was not a frightening adversary; the problem was the newcomer
Tia. If her clothing was not that of an assassin, then it was that of a ninja. The
pre-requisite of that job class was level sixty.

If she really was a ninja, then even Entoma would not be able to obtain an easy
victory. Now was not the time to be saying Ending this fight by holding back on
full strength!

Spider Talisman!

Entomas movements were even faster than the opponent as she activated the
four pieces of talisman held in her right hand.

The moment the talisman fell onto the ground, it turned into an enormous spider.

The level of this spell was equivalent to a 3rd tier Summon Monster spell,
because the creature summoned was not a powerful monster, but would already
be a great help in testing the opponents true strength. Furthermore it would
allow her to buy some time to prepare for battle.

Although insect-made weapons were powerful, they had many weaknesses. One
was that the weapon summoning consumed a large amount of time.

Shadow Clone.

Just as Tias ninjutsu skill activated, her image shimmered and another Tia
appeared in the original spot.

All this time Entoma had been wary of Tia. Clones from the Shadow Clone skill
had roughly one quarter of the original bodys battle power, but only the
shadows evading ability was determined by the amount of magic power granted
to it by the main body, nothing more. This shadow might be a strong opponent
for the talisman spider, but for Entoma it was a piece of cake.

However, the real problem was how well the original body was capable of
fighting. Entoma summoned her killer weapon steel projectile insects. At the
same time, she attached a talisman to herself and began to strengthen her
ability.

Steel projectile insects flew out from an unknown spot and densely covered her
left wrist.

These were three centimetre long insects that had a metallic shine, with a
triangle-shaped body and razor sharp tip. Its appearance was very similar to that
of a bullet. As for this insects use, of course, was consistent with its bullet-like
form.

In order to avoid the talisman spiders attacks, the shadow clone had to use its
full strength, and the main body had to join the fight alongside the clone. After a
long while of battling like this, they only managed to kill one talisman spider, so it
seemed that her level was not any higher than Entomas. If this was the case,
even if the battle against Gagaran were to resume, victory would still be certain.

Looks like its all as I had predicted.

No mercy. Using overwhelming strength to bring about a speedy victory.

The heaviness on her left hand brought satisfaction to Entoma and she pointed
directly at Tia.

Entomas left wrist was several times thicker than normal because of the bugs
covering it. Following her movement, all of the insects began to move in unison

from her wrist, rushing into the sky. Gathering into groups, the insects wings
gave off a sound similar to an automatic gun. Even the ally talisman spider which
was within firing range was ruthlessly mowed down, and within a moment, a total
of one hundred and fifty insects made their way towards Tia.

A single insect was enough to puncture steel, and these one hundred and fifty
insects could even pierce through a gigantic tree. In the face of this deadly
barrage of bullets, Tia activated her ninjutsu.

Immovable Adamantine Shield!

A large shield radiating with multiple colours appeared in front of Tia. This
radiance was enough to split apart the large dark hexagonal shield, creating a
collision with the insect swarm. In an instant, the shield shattered with a crisp
sound, but also at this moment the insect bulletstorm stagnated, and Tia who
was standing behind was uninjured.

Entoma couldnt resist but metaphorically click her tongue even though she
didnt actually possess one. Forcing her opponents to reveal their hidden trump
cards one by one would eventually illuminate the path to victory. Although her
current attacks were being dealt with for now, the moment her attack pierces
through, they would be swept away like a flood from a broken dyke.

She used the blade insect to deflect the incoming kunai and the insect shield was
then used to defend against Gagarans blow which came from above. It was an
exceptionally mighty blow which descended from above, causing significant
damage to the armored bug which screeched out in pain.

Her eyes should have been blinded because of the dazzling light given off by the
adamantite shield, and therefore it should have been impossible to defend
against Gagarans surprise attack. However Entomas eyes were not affected by
something of this degree. Her field of vision was wider than that of humans, and
was able to cover the direction of this attack.

At the same moment that she determined this pursuing attack to be incredibly
dangerous, her body glided away as if she was on top of a lake seemingly
without even moving her feet, her body had already pulled a considerable
distance away from Gagaran. Although Gagaran possessed a large physique, her
movements were lithe and she had almost completely recovered from her
wounds. She stood beside Tia, crushing the steel bullet insects which made
bursting sounds, as she spoke in a cold voice:

This isnt good; Im not sure if we can win against her. What was that just now?
Wasnt our timing perfect? She was obviously unable to see in this direction, yet
was still able to block.

A wide field of vision perhaps?

Rather than that, it seems more plausible that there are other reasons though.
She has insect abilities, so it seems more likely that she used some kind of
special sensory magic Speaking of which, she possesses an overwhelming
advantage. Why didnt she attack us while we were talking?

Only a true predator would go for the kill after determining the opponents true
strength.

So thats it. Shes waiting to see the true extent of our strength, very different to
our chibi-chan. This cautious fellow really is a troublesome.

To be made light of by mere humans to such an extent is really distasteful. Well,

there are other reasons but Hora, come forth. In that case these insects arent
needed anymore.

The insects attached to Entomas right wrist dropped to the ground one after
another, and disappeared into the darkness with a rustling noise.

In place of that... Come forth.

An insect as long as a centipede slowly wrapped around her wrist. Its body length
was over ten metres long, the front end had abnormally sharp teeth and its eyes
were still closed.

This was the strongest insect that she, an entomomancer, could summon the
thousand whips insect.

Entoma put strength in both her legs. She had already figured out the attack
speed, offensive ability, defensive ability, evasive ability and movement speed of
the two humans before her. Although she was not too certain about Tias ability
to adapt to new situations, it was not enough to frighten her.

Ah.

Entoma used her hand to touch her chin, which was covered in transparent sticky
fluid.

Earlier, my stomach was definitely full. After a bit of exercise, its beginning to
squeeze in hunger.

Stuck on her hand was her saliva. This was the clearest evidence that she craved
humans as her prey.

Humans were her favourite food. Until this moment, she had only been able to
feast on vegetable fritters in order to satisfy her desires, but of course she did not
come to hate the Supreme Being because of this. Furthermore, she was given
permission to eat one of the human wrists which had been severed during the
healing experiments, taken from a man who had been nabbed from a random
village. She thought of this as a personal sign of great kindness from Ainz-sama.

For Entoma who had been restraining herself all along, the elite humans in front
of her were food of the highest quality. She could not simply discard them without
taking a single bite first!

The two persons who were bathed in Entomas ravenous gaze could not help but
shudder. This was not the timid reaction of facing a powerful enemys murderous
intent, but rather the naturally-occurring psychological aversion of being seen as
a living creatures predatorial target. And this made them shiver involuntarily.

Aaaaaaaaaahhhh!

Her high-pitched screech was as fast as the sound of a snapping styrofoam

board. This was the first time that Entoma had initiated an attack since the
beginning of the battle. As a predator in the act of capturing her prey, she
charged directly at an incredibly fast speed.

She used the insect shield to block six consecutively launched kunai, and drew
close to her targets.

When she saw Gagaran swinging her weapon and stepping forward to stand as
the vanguard, Entoma had already decided which opponent she would deprive of
their combat ability first.

Her right hand brandished a whip. If it were a long whip, the speed of the whips
end would be relatively slow. This was to be expected even if it was used by
Entoma who possessed superhuman strength. However this was only logical if
what was brandished was an ordinary whip.

The being that was waved around was the most powerful insect the
entomomancer Entoma could summon

Originally it was supposed to be a whip with the rough shape of an arc, but it
turned out to shoot out at an unimaginable angle. This whip was like an extension
of Entomas hand, and bent in an S shape, before it launched at Gagaran with the
speed of lightning.

It was a living creature at the same time as it was a weapon, and struck in an
unnatural way for a weapon. Even greatly experienced adventurers had never
heard of this, let alone experienced facing it before. When seeing it for the first
time, not knowing what to do was the natural reaction.

But the fact they could dodge it proved they were indeed adamantite
adventurers.

The insect whip was about to hit the side of Gagarans body, however she
stumbled to avoid the attack.

Be careful!

Accompanying Tias loud yell, Gagaran was blown upwards. This was Tias
ninjutsu skill Bursting Flame Column. The seemingly self-imploding explosion
and flames encircled the two, and the thousand whips insect, which had done a
one-eighty degree change in direction from behind Gagaran, only managed to
strike the spot where her head had been.

If it hadnt been for this almost suicidal move, there was no doubt that Gagarans
head would have been pierced by the thousand whips insect. It was a great
dodge. However, Entomas attack wasnt finished. As if it was being pulled by

strings, the thousand whips insect attacked from angles that were hard to defend
against, changing constantly as it took cheap shots at Gagaran.

At the same time, Entoma threw a talisman at Tia a thunderbird talisman.

In mid-air, the talisman turned into a small bird that emitted bluish-white
electricity, and sprang towards Tia.

If there were two opponents, let one of them be taken care of by the insects. This
was where the strengths of entomomancers lay.

There was an explosion of lightning, and the blue-white radiance spread in all
directions. What emerged were Tia, who was enduring her pain, and Gagaran,
who was having a hard time fending off the thousand whips insect.

Dammit! This insect is really annoying!

Gagarans head was pushed against her war pick, and her body was wrapped up
by the ten meter long insect in a way that rendered her unable to move.

Tia took a step forward and stabbed with her magic dagger. The strike collided
with Entomas insect shield and let out a fierce metallic sound.

Flurry of thunderbird talismans~

Entoma held a number of talismans in her left hand and tossed them outwards.
The talismans turned into many thunderbirds which were smaller than the
previous one. They rushed towards Tia, who proceeded to conceal herself. Unable
to find their target, the small birds flew in the direction behind Tia.

Tia suddenly appeared behind Entoma from a shadow out of her line of sight. This
was an ability which utilised shadows to traverse short distances. However
Entoma had already noticed this because some insects antennae could sense
the surrounding airflow. This was a powerful sensing ability which Entoma
possessed.

She tossed the remaining few steel bullet insects at Tia who emerged from the
shadow.

Ku...!

A pained groan came from the shadow and the smell of fresh blood wafted in the
air. Facing Tia, who was bloodied but still held the will to fight, Entoma initiated
her follow-up attack.

Scattering explosion talisman!

Even more powerful explosions than before appeared in front of Tia, lighting up
the dark night. Against Tia who had been blown away and fallen on the floor,
Entoma once again threw a sharp cutting talisman and a rushing wind talisman.
Tia was covered in blood and didnt even have the time to get up before she was
sliced again, blown away and thrown on the ground.

Tia! You insect bitch!

The condemning voice came from Gagaran, who was wound tightly into a ball by
the whip insect.

Their original plan was that while Gagaran used her brute strength to restrain the
whip insect, Tia would seize the opportunity to launch a surprise attack on
Entomas main body.

Entoma ridiculed this under her mask.

Such foolish beings. As a battle maid of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, triumphing
over humans of this level was only to be expected. The best option for them
should have been ignoring the fact she was eating human flesh and running away
with all their strength. It was only because they had made the incorrect choice,
that this scenario had unfolded.

...Although the order is different to what I had envisaged, so be it, nothing more
could be done. Well then, which one should I eat first? Developed muscles must
taste extremely delicious ne~

Entoma once again summoned an insect, but not the type that had ferocious
combat capability. The long syringe needle on its body contained sedatives.

Entoma held the insect and briskly walked over to Tia.

It looked like she could bring home some local specialties as souvenirs. There
were many in the Great Tomb of Nazarick who relished in capturing humans for
food.

They would certainly like this present very much.

Eh? What?

Entomas superior intuition warned her of an elongated cold object flying in her
direction from above her head and she rapidly sprung a distance away. At the
same time, a lengthy weapon pierced the spot Entoma had just occupied.

It was like a crystal lance used by knights, but that was not an ordinary item. Not
the slightest crack could be seen on the crystal lance which had managed to
crush rocks.

Is that magic?

The spirit system magic caster Entoma felt something from this lance.
Youre correct. This is the 4th tier spell Crystal Lance!

The one replying to Entomas question was the person who slowly descended to
the rocks shattered by the lance. It was a young girl with a boyish voice, whose
physique was small and who wore a mask and a robe.

Yet another enemy, Entoma couldnt help muttering. Another intruder had
appeared in the middle of capturing delicious prey. It was truly cruel that she still
had to endure the temptations of delicious food.

Shall we end it here?

...Who are you? I can forgive you if you immediately leave this place. Children
are very soft, and I like that, but they never have enough meat on them. Ill play
with you next time, after I eat these two.

So thats what you are; a man-eating monster right? Even wearing a maid outfit,
what kind of joke are you trying to pull? Whod want some bloody smelling
monster like you around them?

wHAT arE yOu SAYInG?! bItCH!

Without pausing to think, Entoma let out her real voice, then immediately
clamped down on her own throat.

The insult was enough to make her lose her composure and she could never
forgive this young girls words. It was not because of primal predator urges, but
because she was in an extremely bad mood right now, that she wanted to tear
apart the woman before her into pieces.

What did this woman say?! To me, a battle maid, which is a high-level existence
within the Great Tomb of Nazarick!?

Anger spilled out from the bottom of her heart.

ILL kiLL yOu!

She could not help but to shout with her real voice, but restrained herself from
puffing up in the back.

Evileye!

Tia shouted out the masked girls name. Entoma spoke towards the enemy whom
she was already determined to exterminate with her full might:

I was wondering what you were up to...my, my, doing your lesson 1 huh. It looks
like you were assessing the difference in strength between you and your
opponents. You must be thinking that this one is stronger than the ones before...
but still weaker than me, right.

Hearing Entomas provocation, Evileye could not hold back shouting out:

So my companions really were under your care? You monster. Come, allow me
to give you a taste of being the victim of abuse.

Entoma had no idea that a fierce rage was burning under the mask of her
opponent.

Entoma, who was seriously wound up with the intention to kill, ran forward. In her
mind dominated by hatred, the other two persons had already become
annoyances on the same level as pebbles by the roadside.

She actually said that nobody would enjoy my company!?

The same words repeated over and over again in her mind.

At the same time, the insect whip began to move. Entoma left about one-metre,
and formed the rest into a large sphere. Of course Gagaran was in the core part
of this shape.

Die alongside your companions, you unpleasant woman!

She swung the thousand whips insect down like a hammer.

Hmph. What a boring attack.

Evileye remained relaxed.

Reverse Gravity.

Entoma resisted the magic, but the insect whip lost its gravitational weight and
floated upwards.

If the equipment user had successfully resisted, the equipment would likewise be
resistant. However in the case of insect weapons, it was not the equipment user
but rather the insects themselves which had to do the resisting.

Since it was like this, even if Entoma would not be affected, it would still influence
the insect weapon. This was one of the shortcomings, although the insects could
attack autonomously.

Even if it was Entoma, she needed to discard her original plan when facing
magics like this.

Sensing Entomas intention, the insect whip gracefully removed itself from
Gagaran. With the speed of a retracting measuring tape, it had formed a tenmetre long insect whip stance. While this was happening, Evileye gave directions
to Gagaran who was still tumbling on the ground.

Gagaran! Get out of the way! Go and quickly tend to Tias wounds! If you
already used up your gauntlets power, then use a recovery potion!

The injured humans had recovered. If it was only that, then there would be no
problem. The fact that the two people were Entomas enemies had not changed,
but considering the words of the magic caster in front of her, the situation was
different.

Evileye and Entoma were on the same level. If they were to help the magic
caster, the situation would become unfavourable.

This time, Entoma decided to make use of her ultimate trump card which she was
reluctant to use.

She had already used it to eliminate all enemies inside the mansion with a single
breath, leaving behind two more instances when she could use it.

That was the breath given off by carnivorous flies, fly breath.

Such breath wasnt emitted for the sake of eating the meat, but flies would
embed their maggot offsprings into the flesh. The maggots would continue to
inflict damage from inside of the victims body. Even more terrifying was the next
step, where a large swarm of flies would emerge from the corpse, then

indiscriminately attack other beings inside the area of effect, with the exception
of the ability user.

Entoma widened her throat. Her true mouth which did the speaking was in fact
her lower jaw. To others, it was a terrifying sight, as if her jaw had slip apart.

From there she spat out swarm of flies.

You! Could that power be associated with the demon gods! In that case!

Evileye, who was retaliating released a white mist.

Although using cold gas to counter the attack was an extremely clever move, to
completely nullify the effects was very difficult. The most appropriate magic to
use would have been explosive magic to roast the entire swarm of flies.

Her opponent had made a mistake.

Entomas mind had already visualised a scenario where Evileye was devoured by
the maggots, but the counter-magic used was far beyond her expectations.

All of the flies coated in the white mist fell out of the air, then the mist engulfed
Entoma. In that moment, Entoma felt unbearably intense pain.

Uwaaaaaaahhhh!

The entomomancer maids face steamed as if acid had been splash on it.

At first the objective had been to nullify the opponents gas spittle, and they
hadnt expected that it would even reveal the enemys true face

Hey, hey, could this be our chance?

Gagaran who had assumed a fighting stance with her war pick and searched for
an opportunity to decisively end the fight. If she had realistically estimated her
opponents strength, it was necessary to end the fight in one fell swoop.

Gagaran did not pursue with an attack because the ten-metre long giant insect
whip began to move violently, not permitting her to get any closer. However, this
was nothing but the spasming of a defeated person.

This...what kind of magic is it?

Evileye replied to Entomas question.

Insecticide magic Vermin Bane. Two hundred years ago there was an insect
demon god, and this magic was developed for the purpose of repelling the
insects used by that individual. Well, its an original magic I came up with.

Hey! It should be harmless for us right?

Harmless indeed. It is especially effective on insects, but doesnt cause the

slightest harm to other organisms.

...Her face has melted.

Tia, that is her true face Huh! No, thats not the face!

As Evileye shouted out, the maids entire face fell off, like a scene where the
facial skin had been stripped off and dropped onto the ground. There was a
difference though. The facial skin which fell onto the ground had many insect legs
on the backside.

That cant be its a mask shaped insect

kAHoooOOoH!

The maids throat exposed itself. A single crack appeared in the seemingly hard
throat, and a large liquid chunk of matter fell out. It looked like vomit, but the
biggest distinction from that was the fact that this object was still crawling on the
ground.

What the

This really was startling, even for Evileye who was stunned by surprise. It was the
first time she had seen such a sight in her long existence.

Lip insect.

Tia exclaimed towards the mucus-covered leech-like creature which had fallen on
the stone-paved road.

An insect which consumes human vocal chords and imitate the voice of its
victims.

The front end of the flesh coloured leech had a section which looked like a
humans lips. With an ah, ah, it gave out the maids cute voice.

In full gaze of everybody, the maids hands which covered her face slowly
lowered, revealing an appearance that was exactly the same as an insects.

The frightful appearance made the Blue Rose members involuntarily take a step
backwards. Although they had already experienced terror when the mask insect
fell off due to the insecticide magic, this sight ignited their fear again.

A monster from beyond this world had invaded. They couldnt help but feel a
shadow cast over this world.

yoU ACTUallY, YoU actUally Dare

The rigid voice difficult to listen to.

Didnt her voice become rather cute? Personally, I rather like this voice.

Gagarans hostility was on the verge of eruption. She was the most humane
member of the Blue Rose. She was filled with an emotion as she prayed for the
soul of the young girl who was sacrificed to give the mouth-lip insect a voice and
clenched her weapon even tighter.

hOw dArE YoU MeRe hUmAnS AaAaAhHhHh!

In previous battles she had always fought her enemy with ease. However at this
moment she didnt have such a leisurely spirit.

Well, there was no longer any need to hold back. Time to commence a fierce
attack.

The real battle starts now! Neither of you two should relax! Prepare to launch
even more fierce attacks than before!

Evileye cautioned the other two, but they had already predicted this before she
had spoken. To ready their resolve for a fight to the death!

The insect maids back suddenly burst out, and four spider legs extended from
beneath her clothing. This posture looked as if her back had sprouted new legs.

With these newborn feet, she jumped extremely high. For anyone looking, they
would have drawn the conclusion that this was the effect of flight magic.

From above, the monster spat carnivorous flies at the people.

Clicking her tongue, Evileye casted Vermin Bane once more.

OnLy To yOu GuYs! i WIlL Show YOu WhaT TRUe TERrOR MEAnS! aftER KIlliNG
YOu GuYS i WiLl TUrN You AlL into COrpse DoLLs!

As soon as they had reached the ground, the carnivorous flies were completely
obliterated. The insect maid used her compound eyes to glare at Evileyes true
face. Indeed, only Evileye was comparable in strength to this monster. If Evileye
were to lose, then needless to say victory would be impossible, and both Gagaran
and Tia would be massacred. However, it would be foolish to just focus on one
thing.

Gagarans spiked war pick came from the side.

Even if Evileye had an advantage, they could not afford to waste opportunities
against such a powerful opponent.

She knew that it was very probable that she would suffer serious injuries if she
was intercepted. That was why she chose to fight alongside her companions.
Evileye smiled at them from under her mask. If she were to be unmasked, others
would definitely make fun of her smile.

The monster which was about to evade Gagarans strike suddenly stopped
moving. That was because of Tias ninjutsu skill, Immobility Binding Paralysis.
The monster had a high level of resistance, more like a nullifying ability, so it was
impossible to seal its movements completely. However creating an opening even
for a brief moment would be sufficient support for Gagaran.

The monster spat out white silk enhanced with Powerful Strike from her mouth.
There was enough to dye Gagarans upper body white.

Gagaran found it difficult to break out from the rigid and adhesive spider silk by
herself. Her attack was interrupted, and she staggered as she retreated. In
contrast, the monster came towards her.

Crystal Lance!

Although it had embedded deep in Entoma, she did not appear to be in huge
amount of pain. She calmly summoned insects which appeared from the
darkness and gathered densely on her wrist in a bulging mass.

Vermin Bane!

The white gas blew over and the insects fell one by one. The monster
involuntarily let out an excruciating cry of pain.

The mouth in the equivalent place of a humans lower jaw spat out the same kind
of spider silk towards Evileye as it did to Gagaran.

If I used magic to block this, it would simply be a waste of magic power. Since I
can nullify any restraining magic. I can probably take this shot wait, this isn't

In a panic, Evileye activated her magic. Yes indeed silky material was spat out,
but compared to the ones which were shot towards Gagaran, these threads
exuded a rigid radiance.

Crystal Wall!

The crystal barrier in front of her split apart as if it had been cut apart by a sharp
blade, and shattered into nothingness.

Is that a slashing spider web!?

A present for you!

The black wire mesh Tia threw expanded in mid-air, but failed to envelop the
monster. Entoma simply passed through it like a phantom.

Sure enough, shes immune to any obstructing techniques!

Bah! Combat formation time!

In order to maintain a distance from the battle maid who was closing in on her,
Gagaran, kicked with the intention of pushing away her opponent.

Her boot collided with the maid, creating an astonishing metallic sound.

Gagaran retreated while focusing on maintaining the distance whilst joining up

with the rest of the Blue Rose members. They gathered while paying careful
attention for any area of effect attack.

"ChIKu, cHIkU, tHesE AtTAcks ...... So AnNOyiNg!!"

Whilst observing the maids jaw mouth which was muttering non-stop, Gagaran
whispered to Evileye:

Did you hear that sound just now? Her maid costume is just as hard as my
armor; truly unbelievable.

It must be woven together with sturdy metal wires. Considering how thin it is, its
hardness must be far above that.

Adamantite looks like it is far above that too.

Oh, so its not just at the same level? The equipment is of such an unimaginably
high quality that my earth magic is not of much use. Shes probably wearing
equipment that reduces magic damage, too. Specialized attacks probably wont
affect her that much..

That means?

Tias doubt made Evileye smile under her mask.

Well finish this head on with overwhelming fire power.

Thats easier said than done, isnt it? How do we pull it off? We are done for if we
dont act soon. It also uses talismans to strengthen itself.

Everybody use your own most powerful technique! Im going to use the
insecticide magic.

...Thats easy to understand. Well, lets go for our final strike.

Although they said they would strike with overwhelming firepower in a single
strike, in reality it was not that simple.

In general Evileye used Sand Field: One or Region Petrification to hinder the
enemy, and support the warriors, but these methods would not work against that
maid.

If they wanted to inflict damage, it would best to leave it to warriors like Gagaran
to inflict physical damage. Evileye only needed to come up with contingency plan
in case this strategy did not work. She had always believed focusing purely on
attack magic was wrong, but the situation called for a desperate measure,

Magic casters that rely purely on magic to attack are second rate. This is what I
personally think, but this time I will have to compromise.

Evileye began to adjust herself to the magic she was about to use.

Even though Shard Buck Shots was the most effective method of attack, but her
teammates would also be caught in the area of effect. The mana consumption of
her original spell, Vermin Bane was extremely large and was best reserved for
when the opponent was about to summon insects. This meant that right now the
most appropriate kind of skill to use was the hated acid-type magic.

The three exchanged a brief glance, confirming that their preparations were
complete, and attacked together.

Evileye used Acid Splash as her main attack whereas Tia, who had weaker
firepower, mainly relied on her supporting items. Gagaran continuously activated
martial arts, executing an unending barrage of attacks.

After a while, the tide of battle began to shift.

The opponent was indeed incredibly strong. Many types of spider webs, talismanbased magic attacks and summoned insects were launched in her offensive
attack. Not to mention that her magic items were more powerful than those
possessed by the members of Blue Rose.

Eventhough the number of consumables like recovery potions were starting to

run out, the insect maid steadily began to retreat.

If one was to ask what had caused the tide of battle to shift in her favour, Evileye
would puff out her chest and reply Companions!

There was no doubt that Gagaran, Tia and Evileye were of an inferior race
compared to this monster, but they still created opportunities nonetheless. Being
able to attack and recover at the same time created a favourable situation.

In particular, having the means to do self-recovery and having supporting

recovery through teammates was an enormous advantage. Gradually the
situation became certain.

As long as we dont screw up, we can beat her like this!

Part 3

Lower Fire Month (9th Month) 4th Day, 22:27

The outcome of the battle.

Finally, the insect maid collapsed to the ground like a marionette whose strings
had been cut.

Evileyes mana consumption had been severe, and her consumables were almost
depleted. From an economic standpoint, she was in a serious amount of debt.

Weve won!

Gagaran who was covered in wounds declared their victory with heavy breaths.
Not a single recovery potion was left, and she had external injuries, but her
physical stamina was still holding up.

Stab her throat.

Yes.

Evileye agreed with Tias suggestion. The dying insect maid was still alive, as
evidenced by the maid making chirping Yeeh yeeh sounds.

In this situation where it had already lost its ability to fight, the safest and most
secure thing to do was to kill it without hesitation.

Tia who had taken up her sword and gone forward suddenly froze. Before Evileye
could even ask What is it?, she already knew the reason for why she had
stopped her movements.

How about we end this right here.

Unbelievably, and without anyone knowing when he had appeared, a man stood
in front of the insect maid.

He wore strange clothing which had never been seen before. In Evileyes
knowledge, this was a set of garments which was worn in the south - a full suit.
He also wore a mask which made it impossible to see his face.

However he was not human. A tail sprouted from his waist.

Hey, a relative of Evileye?

You idiot! Evileye hesitated. His dominating presence hit her as if her entire body
had been struck by lightning. If she were to look at her right hand, she would
discover that it was covered in sweat.

Are you alright? Leave the rest to me. You go back first to recuperate.

He ignored the armed Blue Rose members standing in front of him and spoke in a
kind tone to the insect maid. Although he was the enemy, he gave others a good
impression of himself. However, Evileye knew that this wasnt the case.

The tingling sense of fear reached the tip of her very toes, and this feeling was
very real.

With her survival instincts screaming at her, she held her breath then spoke with
a grim determination to Gagaran and Tia who were standing to one side.

...Escape! ...Fools, ignore the fact that I am here and listen quietly. That is an
overwhelmingly powerful existence. A monster amongst monsters. No matter
what happens behind you, use your full strength to escape.

...Then what about you?

Gagaran asked with a bitter voice.

Dont worry about that. I will drag this out until you escape, then immediately
use Teleport to get out of here.

Not knowing what she had done, the injured insect maid which was not supposed
to be able to move unsteadily stood up. She was not seen using any healing
magic, nor did it seem like she had consumed any item.

Out of nowhere an insect appeared which attached itself to the insect maids
back. Leaving behind a few yeeh yeeh sounds, she flew away into the night.

Helplessly watching her escape, Evileye was unable to take any action because of
this man standing in front of her. The other two were the same, with their
foreheads drenched in sweat and their bodies petrified, unable to move.

After watching the maid depart, the man turned towards Evileye.

Having lived for over two-hundred and fifty years, she had come across powerful
beings of all sorts. Even so, the aura he gave out was exceptional. No, this was a
nauseating and revolting maliciousness which, compared to others, was at an
impossible level.

As a powerful being, he should be at the same level as the Platinum Dragon Lord
right? Because he is far too powerful, it is already unclear which is stronger.

Youve waited long enough. Now then, since time is tight, shall we begin right
away?

Quick! Escape!!!

Evileye cried out.

The two turned around and fled like wild dogs. There was no way that they did
not feel guilty about leaving a companion behind. It was precisely because of this
guilt that they had only chosen to escape immediately after Evileye had finished
speaking. Trust! If it was Evileye, anything could be done. If it was Evileye, escape
should be possible!

However this thought was immediately overturned.

Firstly, dont leave during introductions. Its not that painful, let me block your
transfer,
Dimensional Lock. Giving a greeting before departing is the proper etiquette,
and delightful.

This was a skill which could only be used by the highest ranking devils or angels,
and had the area effect of preventing anyone in the surrounding from using
transfer magic. Evileye and her teams retreating strategy was rendered useless.

However this was not the main problem. They knew since the beginning that the
best strategy would be to leave someone behind as rearguard, and that it was
impossible for that person to return alive.

Death is also natural. The young survive whereas the elderly die. That is the
proper course of nature.

With a life experience of more than two hundred years, the girl bid her farewell as
she provoked the opponent in front of her which she stood no chance against.

Now then, ladies first. But if you plan to do nothing, allow me to make my
attack.

A terrifying amount of murderous intent spewed out from between his words.
Evileye mentally collected herself, expelling the sense of dread from inside of her.

I am Evileye. A woman of legends. No matter how strong the enemy is fight!

Such kind intentions, then I shall act pre-emptively! Eat this! Maximize Magic:
Shard Buck Shots!

She used the spell she was proud of from the outstart. Many crystals smaller than
the size of a fist shot out in a scattered pattern.

These were crystal fragments with sharp front ends. Originally it would be used in
close-quarter combat to inflict enormous harm, but it was unclear how to get
close to this archdevil in front of them.

Although she had hardened her resolve, she still held herself back a bit. Evileye
mocked herself. The enemys strength was unknown, so fighting cautiously was
only natural.

The masked devil opened his arms wide in a welcoming gesture. The hail of
crystal bullets arrived in front of him and the magic spell disappeared. The
magic disappeared so fast that it was as if it had never existed.

Is that a racial talent, magic invalidation!? Or is it because the difference in

strength is actually this large!?

If there was a significant gap in strength, magic would easily be rendered

ineffective.

Ignoring Evileye who had made a mistake on her first move, the man elegantly
stretched his arms out sideways in a stance similar to that of a commander and
acted:

Hellfire Wall.

The heatwave pounced in a direction behind her. The incredulous Evileye

frantically looked backwards.

With a swishing noise, the night combusted and black flames which could not
possibly exist burned.

They surrounded the fleeing Gagaran and Tia who struggled momentarily before
gradually falling onto the ground like garbage. The flames disappeared as if they
had been an illusion all along, and the two had already stopped moving and
breathing. She strongly suppressed her own desire to immediately rush over to
check their conditions. Evileye deeply understood the meaning behind the phrase
not daring to believe, yet impossible to deny reality. That was a fatal injury. With

a single strike, her companions, with whom she had gone through thick and thin,
had been slaughtered.

She gritted her teeth, not letting herself make any sorrowful sounds.

I merely tried to stop them with all my strength, but they were weaker than I
had imagined and died from flames of that degree. Please accept my remorse.

As if he was apologetic from the bottom of his heart, the man bowed deeply. Such
an attitude made Evileye unable to suppress her own emotions.

What could possibly be the reason for him to disregard Evileye, who was the
opponent in front of him that launched an attack, and instead strike at the two
persons behind her? Escape was indeed one of the reasons, but in addition to
that there was another.

He knew clearly just how big the difference strength between us was, and knew
that I posed no threat to him whatsoever. But in reality he did not even regard
the person in front of him to be the enemy.

Since they were fleeing in front of him, he killed them first. The train of thought
was just that simple.

...So difficult. Dying from such a degree of injury, I cant use you as the standard
of measure... Why would you team up with those that are weaker? If you didnt
do this, wouldnt you be able to challenge even higher-level areas?

You! You! You! You are not permitted to say this!!! Waaaaaaahhhhhhh!

This was not a cry of sorrow but a howl of anger. Full of hatred and shouting
loudly, Evileye ran forward. It would be more accurate to say that she used magic

power to glide through the air. Injecting magic into her fist, she accumulated
invalidation and difficult resistance melee magic.

The devil raised his hand to receive the blow.

Aspect of the Devil: Archdemons Wrist.

The devils wrist expanded multiple times and the enlarged arm hung down until
it reached the ground. That cracking noise was not because it was inflated with
air, but because it had turned into an extremely hard lethal weapon.

With the lethal weapon blocking the front, Evileyes advance was stopped. Her
heart wavered for a moment, but immediately she hardened her resolve to seize
this opportunity!

The enormous wrist closed in on Evileye. With a speed beyond imagination, it was
like a huge wall stretching endlessly within sight. As it was unavoidable, Evileye
made a split-second decision and activated her defensive magic.

Translocation Damage!

Darkness covered her sight at the same time as she was sent flying by a strong
impact, making her disorientated and not knowing where she was. Her body was
thrown onto the stone-paved road and bounced up like a ball before being sent
flying by another impact.

But there was no damage.

Evileye activated the magic Flight and flew up in an awkward and unnatural
posture.

She had not been injured, but if she had not used a spell that turned physical
damage into mana loss, she would have already been dead.

Enhanced Maximize Magic: Crystal Dagger!

A larger crystal dagger than the one before appeared in mid-air and shot out!
This sword did purely physical damage and could not be resisted. On top of this,
by further applying special magic skills, it was able to easily break through
defences.

Without evading, the devil took the attack head on. Although he had received
magic with the greatest damage output, not the slightest effect could be seen on
the devil.

...No injury even when defense shattering magic was applied? ...It is a superior
devil exceeding imagination No, even greater than the demon king! It should
be the Demon God King right?

Although a king wasnt necessarily stronger than everything else, it was common
sense in this world that having this as part of the name meant that it was the
strongest of the race. Humans were basically the only ones where the weak could
proclaim themselves as king.

Aspect of the Devil: Razor Sharp Claw.

The devils claws elongated, stretching beyond eighty centimetres. Evileye could
not help feeling that these claws were unstoppable and could tear anything in the
world apart.

I cant retrieve those twos corpses and get away. Even if others arrived, they
would not be strong enough to face this person. I can at least move away from
the battlefield and make it easier for others to discover their corpses...

The corners of Evileyes mouth curled upwards.

The worst scenario would be allowing Lakyus, who was able to use revival magic,
to meet this devil. That could never be allowed to happen.

Im coming!

Just as Evileye was bracing herself to charge forward a sharp sound rang out as
something fell in between the two of them.

Unable to withstand the weight, cracks appeared on the stone paved road and
dust billowed about.

There, with his body bent over because of the impact of landing, stood a single
warrior.

The serene moonlight reflected off the dark armour, causing it to flash with a
dazzling beautiful radiance. A cloak, as red as a burning flame, billowed in the
night air. Both hands were separately grasping gigantic swords which shone with
an incredible brilliant light.

Slowly, the dark warrior stood up. His body build was tall, about the same height
as the devil. However that divine radiance made the devil retract his body, and
Evileye caught a glimpse of the powerful demon turn fearful at the moment that
the dark warrior had appeared. That expression was as if he had seen something
beyond his imagination.

In the silence, Evileye heard the sound of saliva being gulped. This sound was
from the devil. The devil which had exceeded Evileyes imagination was holding
in its breath in front of this burly warrior.

A cold, penetrating voice pierced through the darkness.

Lets see who is my enemy?

INTERM
SSON

A room that befits the extravagant description.

The red carpet that covered the entire room was so soft you could feel your feet
sinking into it. Two chairs were placed inside the room, made from high quality
wood carved in the style of French Rococo, the black chairs gleaming in a way
unique to treated leather.

The man on the chair stretched his legs and laid back into his seat.

A pretty face. If someone sketched his appearance perfectly, that would be how
others think of him.

His blonde hair reflected the magical illumination, just like the shine of the stars.
His clear purple eyes were like amethysts, tempting the people who looked at
him.

However, people who actually saw him in person would have a different
impression other than a pretty face. Basked in his aura of a natural leader that
had nothing to do with his face, no one would have a different impression.

And that, was one of a ruler.

He was Jircniv Rune Farlord el Nix.

The reigning emperor at the age of 22, feared by the aristocrats and respected by
the citizens, the most talented emperor of all times. He was also the one who
purged the nobles within the Empire, a man feared by the neighbouring country
as the Bloody Emperor.

There were four other men aside from Jircniv in the room, but all of them stood as
still as statues .

Jircniv shifted his eyes away from the paper he had been reading and gazed into
the distance. As if there was a blackboard before him, he started writing his
thoughts on it.

Jircniv exhaled with his nose shortly after. That was either a mocking or curious
noise.

The information he received from the Kingdom was something that made him
show such an attitude.
At that moment

Without any knocking, the door opened.

This impudent action made the servants lower their stance and watch the door
with hostility. But after confirming the identity of the one entering, they lowered
their guard.

The one entering was an old man half their height with a long white beard. He
still had a full head of snow white hair.

His age was shown on his face as wrinkles, and the light of wisdom could be seen
in his eyes. On his neck was a necklace made with numerous crystal balls.

On his dried up fingers were several plain rings. The loose white robe he wore
was made from a very soft material.

This was the image of a magic caster for those who were ignorant.

It would be hard to accomplish.

The old man walking slowly into the room said this with a liveliness that didnt
match his appearance. Jircniv simply shifted his curious gaze.

What is the matter, gramps?

I investigated, and discovered that it is impossible.

What do you mean?

... Your Imperial Majesty, magic has to follow the laws of this world too.
Researching knowledge

Ahh, I get it, I get it. Jircniv waved his hands disinterestedly.

Your lecture is too long, gramps. Instead, can you get straight to the point?

... If the man named Ainz Ooal Gown does really exist, and he possesses magic
items or the ability to avoid detection, then we can presume that he is a mage of
a similar or higher level than me.

With the exception of the emperor and the old man, the tension in the room
raised several notches.

To be on par with the highest tier magic caster in the history of the Empire, Triarts Fluder Paradyne, they couldnt believe their ears.

I see now, is that why you are so happy, old man?

Of course. It has been more than two hundred years since I last saw an arcane
magic caster who was my equal, or more powerful than me..
You met one two hundred years ago?

The words driven by the curiosity of the Emperor threw the thoughts of the top
court magician to the distant past.

That'd be so. One of the thirteen heroes from the legends, necromancer Rigrit
Bers Caurau, a great figure. She was probably the best of the thirteen heroes.

But right now, is gramps more powerful than she was as an arcane magic
caster?
Fluders eyes seemed to be lost as if he was glancing into the distance.

Well I have already reached a higher plane than her Though I dont have
hard evidence. There are no right answers in the law of magic.
In contrast to his movement of stroking his beard while speaking, his words were
full of confidence. He then raised an eyebrow.

Are you hoping that Ainz Ooal Gown has that kind of value?

Jircniv smiled and chose a piece of paper from the few scattered on the couch,
and stretched his hand over.

He felt baffled, but Fluder still caught and scanned the paper.

Oh.

That was the entirety of Fluders comment. But his sage-like appearance changed
drastically. A fire burned brightly in his eyes, like those of a famished beast.

I see, so thats what this Ainz Ooal Gown, whom your Imperial Majesty is looking
for, has done? This is really intriguing. They could probably hold their own against
the special unit of the Theocracy with just the two of them Hmm. I want to
meet him and discuss about magic with him.

On the paper was detailed what Gazef Stronoff said before the king, it even
included the comments of the official taking down the minutes.

Your Imperial Majesty, who did you dispatch to that village?

I didnt go that far. It is too obvious to send people over.

...Send my disciple No, if this report is true, we should try to build a cordial
relationship if possible.

Thats the idea, gramps. If he is a man we can put under our control, I will
welcome him to the Empire.

That will be for the best. In order to glimpse into the abyss of magic, all sorts of
knowledge are needed. If possible, I would like to meet a pioneer.

His voice was filled with desire.

Jircniv knew very well what Fluder desired.

Fluder wanted to peer into the abyss of magic. In order to do so, he wished to
seek for a master who'd be more advanced than him.

As for the ones behind, they could take the road which in most instances, was
paved by Fluder and travel through it.

By taking the path that suits you better in a more efficient manner, one could
develop their own talent without any wastage.

However, this wasnt permitted for Fluder who walked alone at the very front. As
he had to tread in the dark, he wasted too much unnecessary effort in his
studies. If he could develop his talent without any waste, Fluder would be an
even more powerful magic caster.

In order to do so, Fluder thirsted for someone who could guide him. There was a
limit to ones talent, he didnt want to waste anymore effort.

Fluder nurtured his disciples in the hopes of finding someone who could surpass
him, and then pull him ahead. Unfortunately, this has yet to happen.

This was the only wish Jircniv could never grant Fluder, so he changed the topic.
Also, I want to collect information on the Adamantite adventurers that appeared
in E-Rantel. Could you help me?
Of course, your Imperial Majesty.

CHAPT
ER 10

Part 1

Month of Descending Fire, 4th Day, 22:31

High above the royal capital, a group of people flew like shooting stars through
the night sky. Two of them were magic casters sustaining a flight spell, and the
two others were their passengers.

One of the latter two, was a man in a suit of jet-black full plate armor, carrying
two massive swords on his back, while the other was a ponytailed beauty. It went
without saying that they were Ainz and Narberal.

That morning, the two of them had accepted a quest from the E-Rantel
Adventurer's Guild for an unprecedented amount of money. The client was
Marquis Raeven. On the surface, it appeared that the Marquis wished to hire
adventurers to enhance his estate's security in the wake of the recent
disturbances, whose causes were unknown.

Ainz knew that that wasn't the whole of the matter, and that he would find out
more during the progress of the quest.

The reason was because they wanted to suppress the group known as the Eight
Fingers, and they hoped Momon would fight alongside them, against the
strongest members of the enemy, the Six Arms.

Ainz could not find any reason to reject this quest.

Normally, adventurers had an unspoken policy of staying out of national matters.

In order not to drive off Ainz or rather, Momon the Black they had gone to

the trouble of preparing a proper quest to serve as a cover, and aimed to attract
him with a truly lavish reward.

After some thought, Ainz accepted the quest under a pretense of reluctance, in
order not to make himself seem like a crass bargainer. The catch was that he had
to make his way to the capital with all due haste.

In YGGDRASIL, there were waypoints that could be used to teleport from city to
city, but in this new world, there were no such things. Teleportation magic was a
5th tier spell, which Momon and Nabe should not be able to use, and travelling
overland by horseback would take an entire day.

What was to be done, then? The answer was simple, provided by the magic
casters of Marquis Raeven.

They used accelerated flight spells in combination with the Floating Board spell,
and together they took Ainz and Nabe with them to the capital at great speeds.
How did they do this? The answer was very simple. Ainz and Nabe sat on the
floating disk, which reduced their effective weight, so carrying the two of them
would not slow them down appreciably. In this way, they had rushed straight to
the capital all day long until now. However, even with this trick, time was still
very tight, and they had already fallen behind schedule. Because of this, Ainz was
slightly worried. If he arrived and was told he was no longer needed, what
reward, if any, could he collect?

Though Ainz had been drawn by the unprecedented reward, it was doubtful that
the requester would be willing to pay out to someone who had done nothing.

Ainz sighed quietly. He sounded like he was praying, like an employee with a poor
performance review hoping against hope for some kind of bonus.

No matter what, he had to earn this bounty. He had already decided how he
would spend it.

As these thoughts ran through his head, Ainz saw the capital for the first time
from the sky at night. He regretted that he could not take his time to enjoy the
view. The capital was dark, and it didn't seem like a bustling city at all. Even so, it
was a fascinating experience for Ainz, whose eyes could see clearly in the
darkness.

Watching quietly from above, Ainz eyes spotted an interesting sight; a light in
the distance.

Though nothing much happened at first, when he saw the rising black flames, he
realised that this was an emergency situation.

"Wait! Look! There's a glow of spellcasting, over there!"

"Indeed... it does look like... some kind of magic..."

The magic caster that had followed the pointing of Ainz finger didn't seem to
think much of it. A normal person would have had trouble making out the glow
through the darkness and the distance, much less analyze it.

"What's wrong? Is this sort of thing commonplace in the capital? Or are these
fireworks to welcome me?"

The magic caster didn't laugh at the joke. Indeed, the expression on his face was
very serious.

"That was one of the eight locations we were supposed to attack"

"I see. I thought we'd arrived too late, but it looks like we'll be doing some work
after all."

"Understood, we will head towards that location."

"Stop. It looks like there's a pretty high-level magic caster present. If you're
pulled into this, don't you think you might lose your life?"

Then what are we supposed to do? Ainz looked away from the magic caster's
conflicted expression and turned to Narberal.

"Nabe, use Fly and take me in closer to there. On my mark, drop me right on top
of them."

"Certainly."

Month of Descending Fire, 4th Day, 22:33

To Evileye, who was on the brink of life and death, the black warriors question
seemed utterly ridiculous. However, she immediately changed her mind. When
you thought about it, both of them seemed very suspicious. After all, it was a
confrontation between two masked figures and it wasn't unthinkable that they
might be seen as conspirators fighting among themselves.

Then, hoping that she'd correctly deduced the identity of the black warrior,
Evileye cried out.

"Dark hero! I am Evileye of Blue Rose, and I appeal to you as a fellow adamantite
ranked adventurer! Please, aid me!"

The moment she made her plea, Evileye realized that she had made a mistake.

That was the difference in the fighting strength between herself and the enemy.
Even with the help of Momon the Black, a fellow adamantite ranked adventurer,
what could they do? The demon facing Evileye was one she could not hope to
defeat, even with his help. It would be like going from a scrap of paper to two
either way, they would both be scattered by the raging storm before them.

If he accepted Evileye's request, she would be directly responsible for his death.
What she should have done was to tell him to flee, and if possible, take the
bodies of her comrades with him.

But

"I understand".

The man stood before the demon, hiding Evileye behind his back.

Evileye held her breath.

In the moment that he stood before her, she mistook him for a massive, sturdy
wall, the kind that would defend a city. A sense of security and relief filled her to
the depths of her heart.

And the demon confronting them actually bowed his head, as though he were a
commoner showing due deference to a nobleman. It couldn't possibly be respect,
he must have been mocking him. Was the demon merely playing games?

"My, my, such an honor you pay us this night. Might I inquire as to your noble
name? This one is known as Jaldabaoth."

Jaldabaoth? She heard the surprised voice of the man underneath the jet-black
helm, followed by the mumbled "weird name".

She didn't think it was weird. In fact, Evileye had no idea what to think of it. She
knew quite a bit about the lore of demons and other infernal beings, but next to
nothing about this name.

"Jaldabaoth, is it? I understand. My name is Momon, and like she said, I am an

adamantite ranked adventurer."

Though bathed in Jaldabaoth's demoralizing presence, the warrior of darkness

Momon carried on as though he hadn't noticed it at all.

So thats what hes doing, Evileye thought with approval. In order to draw his
opponent out and learn from him, Momon exercised his iron discipline and kept
his emotions from showing. It was clear why the man called Momon was
recognized as a first-rate adventurer.

Evileye, who was ashamed of how easily her emotions had taken control of her,
moved into the shadow of Momon's crimson cape in order not to distract the two
of them from their exchange of words.

Even though Momon seemed willing enough to assist, she had the feeling that
she would be getting in the way.

Momon and Jaldabaoth didn't bother acknowledging Evileye's presence. In the

moment that she moved, they began a duel of wits, each seeking the secrets of
the other.

"Ah, I see. May I then inquire as to the reason you have graced us with your
presence this evening?"

"It's for a quest. A certain noble hired us to defend his estate... but when I passed
by and saw this battle, I thought it was an emergency, and naturally I jumped in."

Said noble was Marquis Raeven, who had requested the presence of adamantite
ranked adventurers in the capital, heedless to the risk of running afoul of the
unwritten adventurer's policy of not getting involved in politics. One could tell he
was desperately in need of the manpower to deal with the Eight Fingers.

"And what's your objective?"

"A mighty item capable of beckoning us to this plane has found its way to this
city. We are here in order to retrieve it, of course."

"And what if we gave it to you? Wouldn't that solve the problem?"

"Unfortunately, that would be impossible. There can only ever be hostility

between us."

"What kind of conclusion is that? De- Jaldabaoth, must we be enemies?"

"That is precisely so."

Evileye tilted her head at the surreal sight before her. Rather than a battle of wits,
they were just sharing information. How did that even make sense?

"Well, I understand, for the most part. In that case... you do realize that I will
defeat you here?"

Momon spread both his hands, and the greatswords which were like an extension
of his arms seemed to shine.

"That... would be inconvenient. Do permit me to put up a bit of resistance."

"Then here I come."

He stepped no, that wasn't right. The Momon standing in front of her had
vanished. He was engaged in an intense melee with Jaldabaoth.

It had developed into a struggle that Evileye could not describe with words.

The after-images of countless swords, parried and countered by the extended

claws of Jaldabaoth.

"Incredible..."

There were many ways to render praise, but at this moment, Evileye, who was
entranced by the dazzling swordplay before her, could only offer up that single
word. It exceeded the blows of all the swordsmen in her memory. It seemed as
though he would slice through the night and evil in one blow.

She felt like the princess in the songs of the bards. And the dark warrior before
her seemed like a knight come to her rescue.

An electric current ran up her spine from between her legs, and Evileye's petite
frame shuddered.

The heart of hers that had been still for over 150 years seemed to beat quickly
once more.

Placing her hands on her breast, she found that of course there was no
movement there. Even so, it felt real enough to her.

"...Please win, Momon-sama."

Evileye clasped her hands together in fervent prayer, hoping that her knight
would triumph over the fearsome devil before her.

Whoosh! Jaldabaoth was blown a good distance away, with a sound that didn't
seem like it could have come from a body of flesh and blood. Though he
remained on his feet, he was still skidding over the cobblestoned floor at a rate
that would swiftly wear out the soles of his shoes. After several dozen meters, he
finally came to a halt, and dusted himself off.

"Truly spectacular. Crossing blows with a genius warrior like yourself might have
been a mistake on my part."

With a great wham, Momon stabbed his sword deep into the stone beneath him,
and used his free hand to pluck a chunk of stone from his head, before answering
plainly.

"Enough with the pleasantries. You're hiding your power too, aren't you?"

It seemed almost unbelievable that neither party was going all-out despite the
scope of this battle.

Could he be a God-kin?
The offspring of the beings known as "Players" were people who might awaken
incredible power from within themselves. The Slane Theocracy called these
people demigods. Or, more precisely, they were the ones who carried the
bloodline of the Six Gods within their veins. If they had the blood of others, they
would be termed differently.

It seemed very likely that this Momon was of the bloodline of a Player. Or
rather, it would be better to say that no human could have possessed such
power.

"My my, it seems I couldnt hide it from you after all. As expected of the one
called Momon."

"Indeed, Jaldabaoth, my name is Momon after all."

"Very well, then. Here I come. Aspect of the Devil: Tentacle Wings."

Wings sprouted from Jaldabaoth's back, but the feathers covering them were
abnormally long, evoking the appearance of tentacles. He spoke evenly to
Momon, who remained on his guard.

"You are strong. There is no doubt that your might exceeds my own. Though it is
not exactly to my tastes, permit me the use of this method. While your own
defense is formidable, can the same be said of the small fry behind you? How will
you deal with that, then? Perhaps you should focus on defending her, no?"

With that, he cast forth a hail of feathers. Their tips were razor-sharp, capable of
slicing cleanly through muscle and bone.

Evileye was defenseless in the face of this onslaught. She had no more mana to
cast Crystal Wall. All she could do was wait and hope for a miracle.

But as it turned out, Evileye had been underestimating the dark warrior.

As the sound of metal rang out, Evileye looked up, and saw a stout shield
standing before her.

The shattered remains of the feathers were scattered everywhere. Even though
they were capable of shredding a human being to pieces, it was still a beautiful
sight.

"It's good that you're all right."

That man's calm voice. His arm, swinging his sword at incredible speed. His
breathing was measured and his tone was calm, even as he furiously deflected
the feathers coming at them.

"Ah... ah... Ah! Your shoulder! Are you okay?"

Momon's pauldron had a feather stuck in it. Because it had been cloven in half
mid-flight, it had lost its penetrating power. It looked like a decoration on his
armor.

"That's nothing. Attacks of this level aren't even worthy of consideration. Rather, I
am glad that you're all right."

He chuckled.

Evileye felt her heart lurch with a badump. Her face was hot under her mask,
which felt like it was going to scald her.

"Marvellous! For defending her without letting her sustain so much as a scratch, I,
Jaldabaoth, offer you my heartiest congratulations. Truly, a marvellous display."

"Like I said, enough with the pleasantries. Tell me, Jaldabaoth, why are you
pulling away?"

With that, Momon scooped up Evileye in one arm and hugged her close to him.

"!"

Her unmoving heart felt like it was going to burst from her mouth. In her mind,
the stupid stories of the stupid bards kept pounding through her brain, over and
over again. Especially the ones where the knight carried the princess while doing
battle. Any sensible person would realize that carrying a burden while fighting a
strong enemy was nothing but foolishness.

But

Evileye's heart fell. She imagined she was a princess being carried aloft, but the
truth was...

"This is..."

She was being carried like a sack of potatoes under his arm. Although, that was
actually the best way to do it. Compared to a mature adult woman, Evileye was
small and light. In order to maintain his center of gravity, it made perfect sense
for Momon to carry her like this.

She knew she had no grounds to complain, and her heart still burned with the
anger of seeing her companions murdered. She knew full well this wasn't the
time for such foolishness. Even so, there was no way to fully quell the
unhappiness inside her heart.

Maybe if she had hugged him of her own accord, it might have made things
easier for him. But she wasn't confident she could hang on to him by herself if he
chose to fight at those breakneck speeds again, so she kept quiet.

Evileye once again watched the battle unfolding between Momon and Jaldabaoth.
The distance between the two of them had widened further than before, but for
the top-class warrior and the super-class demon, it seemed little more than an
extra step for both of them.

"Then, shall we continue?"

"No, I believe that will be all for now. Like I said earlier, my objective is not to
defeat you. Now, we will turn part of the capital into a purgatory. Once we have
established the breach, rest assured that I shall certainly send you to the
underworld atop a pyre of infernal flame."

With that, Jaldabaoth turned and vanished. His movements didnt seem hurried,
but in moments the distance between them had lengthened, and he faded into
the night.

"No. No, this is not good, Momon-sama, if we don't pursue him"

As Jaldabaoth vanished from sight, Evileye was starting to panic, but Momon
shook his head.

"I can't do that. He was retreating in order to carry out his plan. If I pursued him,
he would fight with his full power. And if he did that..."

Momon didn't have to finish the sentence for Evileye to understand.

If he gets serious, you'll get caught in his attacks and die. Something to that
effect. But even if they stayed put, that despicable fiend would surely use attacks
that would hit Evileye anyway.

The fact that Momon was defending Evileye proved that Evileye had value as a
hostage.

She hated herself, who couldnt assist Momon, who was protecting her, and the
fact that she was nothing but a burden to him. To think she'd said such highsounding things to Climb.

"Then, Nabe. What do you think we should do?"

In response, a woman descended slowly from the sky. The dark hero Momon's
team included the magic caster known as the Beautiful Princess. At the time,
Evileye had laughed at the vanity of such a nickname, but now, with the real
person in front of her, she found herself holding her breath.

She was too beautiful. A foreigner... with looks like that, she must have come
from the south. Evileye kept watching her, unable to look away.

"Momon-sa san. Why don't we head to the residence of the nobleman who
hired us, as originally planned?"

"Should we ignore Jaldabaoth? Isn't stopping that fellow's plans the whole reason
why I'm here?"

"Perhaps, but we should still obtain the permission of the client. That seems most
important."

"That is true."

"In light of that, I suggest tossing that oversized mosquito aside."

"Hm? Ah, forgive me, I was worried you might have been hit by that attack just
now."

Momon slowly lowered Evileye to the ground.

"No please, don't mind me. I understood your intentions."

Evileye bowed deeply to Momon.

"Thank you very much for all your help. Allow me to reintroduce myself. I am
Evileye, of the adamantite ranked adventuring party Blue Rose."

"No need to be so formal, I am Momon, an adamantite-ranked adventurer like

yourself. The magic caster here is my companion, Nabe. So what will you do after
this? Are those two your companions? If you need someone to carry them for you,
it shouldn't be a problem."

He pointed to Gagaran and Tia.

"I am deeply grateful for your offer, but there is no need. Our colleagues should
be arriving soon. Perhaps they can cast the resurrection spell upon them here.

"Resurrection spells... you can use them?"

"Ah... ah, yes. Our team leader Lakyus can bring the dead back to life."

"Is that so? Then... if I may ask, from how far away can one cast a resurrection
spell?"

"What do you mean?"

"That is to say, lets say you wanted to resurrect these two. Assuming you cast
your spell in the Empire, where would they resurrect? In the Empire, or where
their bodies lie?"

Why? Why was he so interested in resurrection magic? Curiosity, perhaps. People

who could use the 5th tier of divine magic were very rare, so it wasnt unusual to
be interested in this topic. Or perhaps someone important to him had died. In
that case, Evileyes reply would be cruel to him. She could only pray that was not
the case.

Im not too clear on the details, but I heard Lakyus needs to be very close by in
order to cast the resurrection spell. So, with regard to Momon-samas question, it
would be impossible to cast the spell from the Empire.

Mmm. Then, another question; after resurrection, would the two of them be able
to fight immediately?

It would be impossible, Evileye replied.

The spell Lakyus cast was the 5th-tier magic Raise Dead. The raising would
drain tremendous amounts of life force. Without exception, adventurers ranked
iron and lower would be reduced to ash if it was cast on them. Adamantite ranked
adventurers could be revived without a problem, but the resurrection would drain
so much life energy from them that they would not be able to move, and
recovering this life energy would take a long time.

If Jaldabaoth was right, not only were they still in danger, but they would also be
deprived of a great amount of fighting strength.

...no, under these conditions, nobody can fight Jaldabaoth besides the great man
in front of me. Resurrecting the two of them would do nothing to alter the
circumstances. It would be wiser for them to focus on recovery after their revival.

I see I think I have the general idea now. If possible, I think I would like to meet
Lady Lakyus. Would it be possible for me to wait here with you?

"Wha! W-w-w-why do you want to see Lakyus?!"

Before she could recover her composure, Evileyes words had already left her
mouth. She didn't understand the reason why herself. In the instant she heard
Momon saying that he wanted to see Lakyus, her heart was filled with
resentment. It even shocked herself, and her outburst had alarmed Momon too.

Within her mask, her face began reddening with shame, and she was glad that
the cloak covered up the tips of her ears which were also turning red.

"I... I was hoping to ask about revival magic, and also to meet with the leader of
Blue Rose, who are fellow adventurers of the same rank as myself, and who are
my seniors besides. That, and Jaldabaoth might be gone, but there's no
guarantee he will not return. Is that so displeasing?"

"N-no, it's not like that... ah, I'm sorry I shouted at you."

The resentment in her chest vanished the moment she heard Jaldabaoth's name;
she knew they had to be on guard against him.

Thinking carefully on what had already been said... I should have seen that
coming. As for looking out for Jaldabaoth's return... That implies he wants to
protect me? Fufu...

"Then, while we wait, do you mind if I ask about what happened before?"

"Before that, I need to take care of my comrades' bodies. I can't just leave them
here. There's no problem with moving them, is there?"

Of course there was no problem. With that, Evileye went over to the bodies.

She'd thought they would have been burned beyond recognition, but it seemed
that the devil's flames had only burned the soul rather than the flesh. The
corpses were immaculate. After closing their eyes and crossing their arms over
their chests, Evileye withdrew a Shroud of Sleep from her pack, and began
wrapping Tia up in it.

"What is this?"

"This is a magic item that stops the decay and rigor mortis of a body when
wrapped around it. It's very useful for those who use resurrection spells."

While this was so, Momon noticed during Evileye's reply that she was struggling
to wrap up Gagaran's bulky frame, so he decided to lend a hand by lifting up her

body with his incredible arm strength. When the bodies were wrapped up, Evileye
solemnly clasped her palms together, praying for the souls of the dead and for
Lakyus to revive them.

"Thank you for your help."

"Think nothing of it. As I was asking earlier, could you tell me what exactly
happened here?"

Evileye nodded, and began recounting the events that had come to pass. What
she knew, what they'd planned to do, and the story of their encounter with the
insect maid and the battle where Jaldabaoth had made his entrance.

As she spoke of how she had nearly finished off the insect maid, a change came
over Momon and Nabe, who had been quietly listening to her story up until now.

"Then, did you kill her?"

His words were neutral, but the anger behind them was unmistakable.

Evileye was alarmed. Why would he be upset about killing Jaldabaoths maid? But
she decided to finish telling the story.

"No, we didn't kill her. Jaldabaoth appeared before we could do that.

"...Is that so? I see, I see."

The anger vanished, and Evileye wondered if he had even been angry in the first
place. But, the silent Nabe's hard eyes were still filled with simmering wrath. It
was difficult to tell if she disdained everyone in this way.

Momon coughed, and asked, "Then... if you hadn't tried to kill the insect maid, do
you think Jaldabaoth would have attacked you?"

Evileye instantly realized why Momon had been angry. The insect maid had been
neutral, and for all she knew, the two of them attacking her might have been the
trigger for the current events.

It was only natural for adventurers to avoid unnecessary battles. If a group of

high level adventurers didn't know this, it would disgrace the name of
adamantite-ranked adventurers, and even Momon himself. That should be the
reason why he was upset. Even so, Evileye couldn't fully agree with that line of
reasoning.

"Jaldabaoth said that he would turn the capital into an inferno. A maid following
someone like that couldn't possibly be a normal person. I believe the decision my
colleagues made to fight her was the correct course of action."

That was the one thing she couldn't compromise on. That maid had been
stronger than Gagaran and Tia. Knowing this, they had still fought on there had
to be a reason for that. She had to believe that her comrades had had a good
reason for what they did.

The defensive Evileye and the silent Momon looked at each other, as though
peering through her mask and his helmet. Although neither could see each
other's face, Evileye was certain that she was staring into Momon's eyes.

In the end, Momon was the first to give in.

"Mmm. Ah. I see. You were right. I apologize."

He lowered his head to her. That shocked Evileye. Even though her belief in her
comrades was firm, she still couldn't make her savior humble himself like that.

"Ah! Please, raise your head! Such a wonderful person like you should...
Ueeeeee?"

As she realised what she had just said, Evileye let out a pathetic yelp.

While it was true that Momon was an outstanding individual, when you thought
about it, using the word "wonderful" to describe him was...

Evileye squealed in her heart.

Aaaaah! I can't help it, he's too damn cool! Is it wrong for me to feel like a girl
again, just once in hundreds of years? After all, he's a mighty warrior who's
stronger than me...

Given the way Evileye was looking at Momon like a lovestruck schoolgirl, if he felt
embarrassed and said so, that meant she still had a chance. If not, her chances
would be miniscule.

Evileye's body had stopped developing at the age of twelve. As such, she
possessed none of the parts that men wanted to see. Whether it came to
inducing the fires of lust in others, or satisfying said lust, it would have been very
difficult for her. Of course, a certain subset of men would have been very
attracted to her, but they were a minority. With a beauty like Nabe nearby, her
chances seemed even slimmer.

As Evileye gathered her courage to look at him, she found that Momon and Nabe
were looking at the night sky instead.

She didn't quite know what they were doing at first, but when she remembered
how she had wailed just now, it came to her. The two of them had taken her cry
as a warning.

No, it's not~

With nothing to say, the feeling drove her to the brink of tears.

"...maybe you were mistaken? There's nothing there," Momon said as he scanned
the surrounding sky.

"M-mistake, it was a mistake. I'm truly sorry."

"Ah, think nothing of it. It's better to be mistaken than ambushed."

Nabe returned her sword to her back, as Momon replied to Evileye with one sword
in hand.

His gentleness left Evileye speechless. In that moment, the edge of her vision lit
up. The color wasn't the pure white of magic, but a malevolent red, the color of a
roaring blaze.

"Momon-san, look over there."

As Nabe said this, the two of them turned to look at the crimson radiance.
Evileye's eyes widened, for she knew what had caused the fire.

"What? That's..."

The crimson fire spat tongues of flame toward the sky, as though it aimed to burn
down the heavens. It was easily more than thirty meters high, and she could
hardly imagine how wide it was several hundred meters, maybe more.

The wall of flame swayed like a veil, and encircled the city like a girdle.

Evileye, who had been shocked senseless by the sight, heard a soft male voice in
her ear.

"Flames of Gehenna?"

As though her neck was on springs, she snapped her head to the side to face
Momon.

"That, that, what, what is that? Momon, do you know what that huge wall of
flame is?"

Momon's shoulders trembled slightly as he replied, with an uncharacteristic lack

of confidence.

"Eh? Ah... no, no, I can't be very sure about that. Can I tell you again after I
confirm the details?"

"That... that's all right..."

"I need to discuss something with Nabe, please excuse us."

"Eh, can't I come along too?"

"Ah, no, it's a personal thing. Please, excuse us."

It was so basic, so obvious that Evileye felt ashamed for even asking in the first
place. Her wandering eyes settled on the woman known as the Beautiful Princess.

On her face was a triumphant smile.

She might have been mistaken, but then again, she might not. It was only natural
for a woman to feel superior to all other women when a great man paid special
attention to her.

Evileye was unable to suppress the strange feeling boiling up inside her. It was an
anger that disgusted her; the flames of jealousy.

He's not just strong, he also knows things even I don't... I won't ever meet a man
like him again.

Human females were naturally attracted to the strong. When threatened by a

powerful outside force, it triggered their natural instinct to join with a strong male
and bear his children, receiving protection for herself and her offspring. Of
course, not all women would select a man in this manner. Personality, looks,
many factors could lead to love. Even so, there was a very strong inclination to
look for strength in a partner.

Evileye looked down on such women.

It's foolish to want to be protected because you're weak. Instead, all you need to
do is become strong, and you won't need anyone to protect you. That should be
the way.

But if she let a man like this go, would she ever meet anyone else who could
satisfy her so completely like he could?

Evileye would not age, but Momon would surely grow old and die before her. And
no matter how hard she tried, Evileye would never be able to bear Momon's
children. Decades later, she would be lonely again. Still, she thought it might be
good to live as a woman for once in her life.

Another woman can have the child. The most important thing is love. I certainly
won't begrudge him a mistress or two.

"Then, please wait here for a while. I apologize for... Evileye?"

"Hm? Ahh, I'm sorry. I was thinking about something myself, things to discuss
with my party. I'll wait here, then."

Truth to be told, she didn't want to part with him. But she also didn't want to hang
around the woman to whom she had wholeheartedly admitted defeat.

Of course, she couldn't say such a thing.

Nobody wanted a woman who was too clingy. Men were creatures who wanted to
flee the more you tried to tie them down.

She recalled the idle chatter in the tavern. At that time, she'd laughed it off,
because she had thought it had nothing to do with her.

What a waste. Even trivia like that had its uses. I should have listened closely...
but would it be too late to start now? Will I have time to learn how to be a
woman?

As she watched the receding shapes of the two adventurers, Evileye's head
started filling with wild thoughts.

She knew now wasn't the time for idle fantasies, but she knew too little about
what was going on, let alone how to proceed, and so she didn't do anything. Even
so, Evileye would be going into a battle in which she might perish. In that event,
she might as well sigh and earnestly consider something else to prevent her
dwelling on it.

...it's a fact.

She didn't know what her body was good for, if it couldn't bear children, but it
was an avenue that was still worth thinking about.

...haaa. Defeating Jaldabaoth and making a future...

The blaze in Evileye's heart roared up, as though challenging Jaldabaoth within
the wall of fire.

The only one who can beat you is Momon-sama. Then, I will dispose of the trash
around you. This time, if the maid shows herself, I will kill her. I was once the
cursed being known as Landfall! Don't look down on me, Jaldabaoth!

"I don't think she'll be able to hear us here."

"It would be very difficult to listen in on us from so far away."

"Even so, we should still be prepared."

Ainz activated a cash item. It had the power to prevent eavesdropping, but it felt
like a waste because it was a one-use item. However, he had no choice.

"Then, Nabe, I think I've seen through Demiurge's plan for the most part.
However, the more complex the machine, the more easily it breaks down. The
same applies to schemes. We must avoid acting like we've won and not
confirming the facts just because we seem to have the upper hand. Do you
understand?"

"I see... as expected of our lord and master, a peerless existence."

Narberal's praise came from the bottom of her heart, and Ainz acknowledged it
with a regal nod of his head. It was as though he were saying that everything was
going according to plan.

This was not the case.

He felt as though he was going to drown in the lake that his non-existent cold
sweat was forming.

He couldn't even grasp the meaning behind Demiurge's scheme. Ainz had simply
gone into the battle with the foolish notion of showing off his battle skills in a
stylish display at the capital.

The shock of learning that his opponent was Demiurge had shattered his
composure utterly. Only the emotion control override possessed by all undead
had kept him calm.

After that he thought he would just be fighting the Eight Fingers just going by his
orders, but then he learned that he would be doing battle with adamantite-ranked
adventurers. Because he didn't know what was going on at all, Ainz had nearly
given up on thinking things through.

Speaking thoughtlessly under these conditions would sound entirely unnatural.

Ainz knew that it was extremely dangerous to pretend understanding when one
was actually ignorant. Perhaps it might have been wiser to reveal his lack of
knowledge, but under the circumstances, it was ill-advised. A Supreme Being
worthy of loyalty would have to demonstrate a fitting amount of foreknowledge.

If a superior especially one of a CEO's level proved himself to be too

incompetent, his subordinates would lose their trust in him.

Therefore, he had frantically racked his non-existent brain cells to produce the
aphorism he had just spouted.

Perhaps Narberal was too honest, or the words he spoke had been unexpectedly
meaningful. Narberal's eyes were filled with respect. As such, Ainz made a
request of her under the pretense of ordering her.

"Mmm. Then, in order to ensure the success of Demiurge's operation, make

contact with him. I will not do it personally because that woman might still be
watching. And right now, I cannot use magic. Hu... that Evileye hadn't let her
guard down for a single moment. I don't have proof, but I'm sure she's already
suspecting me.

"How could that be? There's no such thing. Perhaps there's another reason she's
looking so closely at you."

Ainz looked at Narberal while trying not to make it obvious that he was staring at
her.

"That has to be the reason. I roughly understand how that woman thinks. I
believe revealing my anger when we discussed Entoma was a fatal mistake.
Perhaps I should have just killed her off back then?"

There was no answer to give.

When he had heard Entoma had nearly been killed, Ainzs anger had flared up.
Although it had been suppressed in an instant like all intense emotions, in that
instant that he had been filled with murderous rage. It was a miracle that he
hadn't promptly chopped off Evileye's head with his sword.

He had suppressed his killing intent and not acted on his anger because earlier,
he had concluded that killing Evileye would have been counterproductive. At long
last he had found an introduction to someone who could use resurrection magic
and they were in a position to benefit from it. Ruining this would be too much of a
waste.

Perhaps I've grown, and learned to control myself.

If it wasn't because of Shalltear's brainwashing, it's possible that he would have

ignored the potential gains to Nazarick and killed Evileye. The Great Tomb of
Nazarick and the NPCs created by his former friends were treasures that Ainz
wanted to protect. He would not forgive any attempt to harm them, but he also
had to consider what was most important and which choices to make to attain it.
That was maturity.

Ainz reflected that his capacity had grown to match his experience, and the
illusion of the face underneath his helmet smiled to itself.

At this rate, theres no doubt that he would be able to become a true ruler of the
Great Tomb of Nazarick. Or rather, he hoped to reach that stage.

Before that, I have to avoid disappointing people or suffering great setbacks itll
be very hard on me

Is that so? As expected of Ainz-sama, you completely saw through that woman.
Such vision could only belong to one destined for the throne.

Enough with the pleasantries, Narberal. More accurately, it was my mistake

which led to her suspicion.

Ainz waved Narberal off in a gesture that also hid his embarrassment. Then, in a
steely voice, he issued his command.

Lets go, Narberal. Go and discover all the details of this scheme, and then tell
me about them. Also, tell Albedo that if this drags on, we will have to join in
clearing up Jaldabaoths mess.

Narberal bowed and cast a spell.

Inside his heart, Ainz rejoiced. He had not lied to Narberal. Ainz current state as
a Perfect Warrior meant that he could not use magic. Thus, using Narberal to
relay messages from Demiurge was only logical. But there was another reason,
one that he could not say out loud.

In order to better pretend that he had already seen through Demiurge's plans,
and not let Albedo and Demiurge suspect anything, he had to minimize contact
with them.

If he assigned Narberal to do it, it would be like playing a game of telephone, and

some of the information might end up distorted. However, he would rather take
that gamble than risk damaging his image as the supreme ruler of the Great
Underground Tomb of Nazarick.

Ainz slowly made his way back to Evileye.

While Narberal was talking to Demiurge, it would be up to him to draw her

attention.

"Really now... it'd be good if we could somehow get through this. Speaking of
which, I wonder what the face of a child with such power looks like under the
mask...

Part 2
Month of Descending Fire (9th Month) 5th Day 00:47

Though it was in the middle of the night, a corner of the royal city was lit up by
torches as though it were broad daylight. A somewhat cramped room was packed
full of men and women. They were all dressed in battle gear, but there was no
unifying theme among them.

They were all adventurers within the capital who had responded to the hasty
summons of the palace. Orichalcum and mithril-ranked adventurers
notwithstanding, even lowly iron and copper-ranked adventurers were present for
this.

The more senior adventurers had already realized that the reason outsiders like
themselves had been permitted into the palace was in order to take care of the
problems plaguing the capital. Some of these adventurers had already begun
guessing at their employer upon seeing the youth in white armor standing at
attention in the corner. Even fewer of these adventurers had any idea of the true
identity of the katana-bearing man who stood beside the youth.

The great door to the chamber suddenly opened, and what appeared was a band
of women, causing a stir.

Every one of them was known to the adventurers within the Kingdom.

At their head was the leader of the adamantite ranked adventuring party "Blue
Rose", Lakyus Alvein dale Aindra.

Close behind her was the Golden Princess Renner, along with the leader of the
Adventurer's Guild in the capital. Then there was Evileye of Blue Rose and one of
the twins. And at the back was the strongest warrior of the Kingdom, Gazef
Stronoff.

As the group stood before the gathered adventurers, the youth in white armor
unrolled the scroll in his hands, and pasted it onto the wall behind him.

It was a detailed map of the royal capital.

The first to speak was a woman in her forties, a former member of a mithril
ranked adventuring party whose eyes were still filled with vitality.

"Ladies and gentlemen, to begin with, I'd like to thank you for being able to be
present for this emergency meeting."

After the room had quietened down, she continued to address the adventurers
with an earnest expression on her face.

"Normally, the Adventurer's Guild would never interfere in national affairs."

Every eye turned to the members of Blue Rose, but they remained silent. After
all, eyes could not speak like the mouth could.

"However, this is an exceptional case. The Adventurer's Guild has decided to

cooperate fully with the Kingdom, in order to quickly resolve the problems facing
us. The princess will relate the details to us, so I pray you will be quiet and
listen."

The Princess slowly advanced, flanked by the members of Blue Rose and Gazef
Stronoff.

"I am Renner Theiere Chardelon ryle Vaiself, and I am deeply grateful that
everyone here was able to respond to the extraordinary summons issued
tonight."

She bowed demurely to them, and several sighs of affection rose from the
adventurers as they saw the delicate sight before them.

"Normally, I would render duly deserved praise upon all of you, but as time is of
the essence, let us arrive presently to the point. This night, a portion of the
capital"

Here the princess raised a finger to a part of the map the northeast corner
and drew a circle around it.

"a portion of the capital was surrounded by a wall of fire. The flames are more
than thirty meters in height, and I am certain you have all seen them."

Most of the adventurers nodded in agreement, while some went to the palace
windows to look outside. The high walls surrounding the palace meant that they

couldn't see the wall of fire directly, but the reflected light from the flames
stained the sky red, and that they could see.

"This flame ought to be an illusion of some sort, because touching it does not
cause harm. According to those who have contacted it, the fire does not have
heat, or impede movement. Moving past the firewall should not pose a problem
either."

At this, the lower-ranked adventurers breathed sighs of relief.

"The perpetrator of this incident is known as Jaldabaoth, a powerful demon. Blue

Rose has already confirmed that there are low-ranking demons on the other side
of the firewall. They seem to be acting entirely on orders from their superiors."

Lakyus nodded to Renner as she said that.

"...strike at the head and the body will die... does that mean all we have to do is
defeat Jaldabaoth?"

Renner turned to acknowledge the speaker, an adventurer with a mithril plate

upon his neck.

"That might be an oversimplification, but fundamentally, that is true. However,

what I wish to ask of all of you is to defeat this devil's plot. We have information
that suggests that he is here to seize a certain magic item which is on its way to
the capital."

That news sparked a disturbance among the adventurers. They had finally
realized that the region encircled by the firewall included the warehouses and
shophouses that made up the capital's economic heart.

"...how did you come by this information?"

"It was stated by Jaldabaoth himself."

"Then don't you think there's a high chance this information could be false?"

"Certainly, it is not out of the question. However, I believe it to be accurate. The

enemy has not made any movements ever since they set up the wall of fire. More
importantly, if what Jaldabaoth says is true, then inaction will mean that all we
can do is watch the worst-case scenario unfolding before our eyes. Therefore, we
must seize the initiative."

"How strong is that Jaldabaoth you mentioned? I don't remember hearing or

reading about him. It would help us if you could tell us his difficulty level."

Lakyus stepped forward with a stern expression on her face.

"My colleague Evileye is the one who is most familiar with Jaldabaoth's strength,
but we do not know the specifics yet. We will update you later."

Difficulty ranking was how adventurers rated the monsters they encountered. The
higher the number, the stronger the opponent. However, it was an unspoken rule
that one should not rely too heavily on difficulty rankings, because it would lead
to nasty surprises. The strength of monsters varied even within their own species
and at best, a difficulty ranking was an educated guess. Thus, it was not a value
that was frequently used. However, it was a simple way to explain things to a
group like this.

"I shall speak of what I know as my group's representative. My comrades

encountered an insect maid believed to be one of Jaldabaoth's followers and
defeated her, only for Jaldabaoth to appear and engage us in battle..."

The absence of Gagaran the warrior and Tia the rogue had already been noticed
by the adventurers present. Lakyus looked around at the adventurers in the
room.

"They were killed by Jaldabaoth."

"With a single blow."

Chaos broke out with Evileye's statement. Adamantite-ranked adventurers, the

pinnacle of humanity, living legends. It was unthinkable that they could be killed,
let alone in a single blow.

"Do not be afraid!"

Evileye shouted as though she would disperse the fear in the air with her voice.

"Certainly, Jaldabaoth is powerful. I can vouch for this, having faced him with
nothing to show for it but defeat. That is a monster that no ordinary human can
defeat. Even if every person here gathered to fight him, we would simply be
defeated as a group. But there is no need to worry. There is a man who can do
battle evenly with Jaldabaoth!"

Amidst the commotion, some of the brighter adventurers looked to a certain

place to a certain adventurer.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I believe you know this man. From the third adamantite
ranked adventuring team that was recently founded in E-Rantel of the Kingdom
indeed, it is him"

Evileye pointed her finger at the pair of adventurers, and the eyes of the entire
room went with her.

"The leader of Darkness, the Dark Hero Momon-dono!"

One was encased in night-black plate armor and wearing a helmet that he
refused to remove even indoors, while the other was a world-class beauty. The
two of them instantly became the center of everyone's attention. Exclamations of
awe and wonder filled the room as they realised the celebrities they had in their
midst.

Momon shifted his adamantite plate from within the folds of his crimson cape to
where everyone could see it.

"Quickly, Momon-san, please come to the front of the room."

In contrast to Evileye's excitement, Momon simply raised a hand in reply, and

whispered a few words in Narberal's ear.

"Momon-san says there is no need for a lengthy introduction. We should begin

the briefing quickly."

"Well, that is a shame. Then, let us make haste, as Momon-sama suggests.

Evileye, may I continue the briefing?"

"Cough, uh, apologies, Princess Renner, please, continue."

Even though her mask concealed her face, one could tell how Evileye felt from
the disappointed tone of her voice.

"As Evileye said, we have a warrior who can stand against Jaldabaoth. Everyone,
please rest assured that we are not picking a fight we cannot win. Then, I shall
explain the details of the operation."

Renner sketched a line on the map.

"To begin with, I would like you to act as our bow."

"A bow?" came a doubtful voice, "Not a shield?"

"A shield will not help us win. To begin with, I wish to form the adventurers up into
a battle line, followed closely by a line of guards. Behind them will be the support
line of priests and magic casters. In this way, we will advance into the enemy
stronghold. At this point, if the enemy does not engage us, then we will have the
adventurers advance into the enemy headquarters and suppress the area. If we
are attacked, we will first determine if we can repel the attack. If possible, we will
advance. If not, then I must ask the adventurers to retreat while drawing off the
enemy. In the meantime, I must ask the guards to hold off the enemy as long as
possible. If the adventurers must retreat, then they must head here."

She pointed to the support line of the magic casters.

"You will heal here, and from there we will see about mounting another attack."

"Hang on! Does this mean... the guards will be fighting on our behalf?"

The guards had very low fighting strength. It seemed impossible for any amount
of them to substitute for an adventurer in combat.

Just as Renner was about to reply, another adventurer spoke up.

"Another thing, there's a fatal flaw in this plan. While retreating, our formation
will stretch out, and our defensive power will weaken as a result. What if the
demons attack the capital in the meantime? Even a low-ranking demon is far
more powerful than an average human. Won't there be a lot of needless
sacrifices? Instead, why don't we use Fly to penetrate the enemy formation in
one movement?"

"I have considered this method as well, but is it not true that demons count many
flyers among their numbers?"

The gathered adventurers recalled tales of flying demons and nodded to Renner.
Even low-ranking demons had wings, and many could fly.

"The usual application of Fly will only serve to draw the eyes of the enemy to
ourselves. I had considered starting at a high altitude, then suddenly plunging to
the ground and using the buildings of the city to block the enemy's vision while
we assaulted them at high speed from cover... but there is another matter to
discuss before this. You mentioned earlier that when retreating, the battle lines
would spread, and the defense would weaken. The same applies to our enemy. So
for this battle, we are not a shield, but a bow."

Shouts of approval came up from the adventurers.

"Ladies and gentlemen, you will be the bow of our Kingdom, drawn and loosed, to
pierce our foe straight through the heart. Just as the adventurers will spread out,
so will the enemy as they follow us. This also means the enemy's defense will
weaken. Between a relaxed and a closed formation, I am certain it is easier to
break through a relaxed formation. The purpose for forming you up into a line like

this is to lure the enemy into weakening themselves. And finally, acting as the
arrow will be Momon-sama here. When he sees the enemy lines open up, he will
make a low-altitude flying assault to break through them."

"...how about Red Drop? Even if they are adamantite ranked adventurers, I don't
see how two people can break through by themselves. To be safe, don't we need
someone to screen them before they reach Jaldabaoth?"

"At the moment, they are performing a task within the Republic. We have already
used Message to inform them of the situation, but returning will still them take
half a day. By that time, it would be too late. So this time round, we are not
counting their strength into our plans."

"Then how about Blue Rose? Will they be going in with Momon-san?"

"...Our battle strength has been greatly depleted with the loss of two of our
members. Tina and I will join the battle line and fight. Evileye will be doing
something else."

"...I will be accompanying Momon-sama... Momon-san as he makes his entry, so I

have been focusing on restoring my mana up until now."

"Then let me ask another question. I'd like to ask the Warrior Captain something.
What about the nobles' house troops and warriors? Blue Rose has already lost
two members. You should be taking their place in battle. Couldn't you lead those
troops into battle, and let Blue Rose handle the task of clearing the path for
Momon-san?"

"Answer us!"

"The house troops are responsible for protecting their masters' estates, and the
soldiers look to the defense of the capital. And the warriors I lead are tasked with
defending the royal family."

"So you're saying the great Gazef Stronoff doesn't dare set foot on the
battlefield?"

"Indeed, that is so. My duty is to stay in the capital and protect the members of
the royal family."

The air had changed. It was filled with hostility and frustration. Gazef's words
were correct, but even if they understood them on a logical level, it was still
unacceptable on an emotional level. The ones who earned their coin in blood
were the adventurers, and they were already prepared to sell their lives dearly in
the coming battle. The nobles and royalty should have been the same way.
Having taken the money of the masses, they should be rushing to their rescue
instead of holing up safe in their castles. Especially since they were taking the
Kingdom's strongest man as their bodyguard. What the hell?

Hostility against the nobles and the royalty filled the air. Gazef took a step back.
He understood that at this point, anything he said would only sound like an
excuse.

Therefore, the one who spoke for him was Lakyus.

"Everyone, I understand you are not happy with his arrangement. But before that,
I would advise you to keep one thing in mind. The one paying to gather you all
here is not the royal family, but Princess Renner herself, out of her own private
finances. The one who brought Momon-san here was Marquis Raeven. He is not
here tonight because he is on guard against any demons which might be
dispersed in the capital. Certainly, I am as unhappy with the nobles and royals as
you are, but I would like you to consider that not all of them are cut from the
same cloth."

The room calmed down somewhat as Lakyus finished her piece. Everyone was
trying to control the anger they didn't want to show to Renner.

"...and there is one more thing. Before we fire the arrow, we must perform one
more task. Climb!"

"Yes, Princess!"

His energetic voice drew everyone's attention to the boy in the white armor.

"Although it is a very dangerous task, I must still entrust you with it. When we
enter the enemy stronghold, there might be survivors. Please rescue them."

Murmured whispers rose up from the adventurers. "Impossible", "it's too much",
that sort of thing. Entering the heart of the enemy formation and looking for

survivors wasn't so much dangerous as outright suicidal. And escorting powerless

civilians back out through a war zone was practically impossible.

Still, Climb answered immediately.

"Yes, your majesty! I will stake my life to accomplish any task you ask of me!"

Everyone looked at Climb as though he were mad.

"...Princess, Climb is just one man, and there might be some risk. Will you permit
me to accompany him?"

"Will that be all right, Brain Unglaus-sama?"

That name raised another commotion from the adventurers. The name of Brain
Unglaus was one which nobody who valued strength would ever forget.

"Ah, it's no problem for me."

"Then I will be counting on you. May I now ask the various party leaders to step
forward?"

As he watched the adventurers at the head of the room, Ainz was doing some
work of his own.

That is to say, he was making introductions.

People who looked like they were second-in-command for their adventuring
parties were coming up to Ainz in twos and threes to speak to him.

Their lines followed similar patterns from announcing their party names, admiring
his equipment, hoping to meet him again and sharing stories of their adventures.
It was similar to how one might exchange business cards at work, but while
business cards had physical forms, verbal introductions would only linger as
memories.

A good memory was an important skill for a leader. Ainz let his mind wander as
he committed every person he met to memory.

The important thing was to remember the party name and what rank they were.
And of course, he would only pay attention to the higher-ranking adventurers.
Iron and copper-ranked adventurers came to greet him too, but they lived in
different worlds, and so forgetting them was not an issue. It was like how a
department head would not bother remembering the salarymen of a small
company he visited.

Even so, Momon didn't make it obvious that he was taking them lightly. He shook
hands with all comers, gave them reassuring pats on the shoulder, laughed at
their stupid jokes, and returned the praise he received.

Someone had even taken their gloves off to shake hands with him, with him in
gauntlets and all. It must be a matter of rank, Momon thought as he looked at the
back of the person who had just said hello.

What a crazy color...

His hair was a shocking pink.

It wasn't uncommon for adventurers to paint their gear in garish colors, but this
was the first time he had seen someone dye their hair in such a lurid shade.

Adventurers in the capital really were a different thing altogether. Just because
there were so many people in the capital, that didn't mean you had to go so far
just to stand out.

Well, it doesn't seem like there's any taboos or stigma associated with dying your
hair...

During Ainz life as a salaryman, pink hair would have been considered strange,
but in this world, even kids could dye their hair.

He forced himself to depart the topic of hair, and instead looked at the line of
adventurers in front of him. It reminded him of the queuing instinct of the
Japanese. Then, he turned his focus to Narberal who stood behind him.

Ainz had never once registered a party name, but the party called Darkness had
one more member, the slim beauty who now stood behind him.

The massed adventurers did not dare speak to her because the sheer hostility
which she radiated was prickling their skin. That, and they had come to meet and
greet Ainz, which would be more beneficial to them.

In the end, adventuring society is just like working life...

After all, they were all social constructs of humanity. It only made sense that
there would be similarities between them.

Around the time where Ainz hand would have started getting sore from shaking
if he had been a human, the stream of adventurers approaching began dwindling
down. Sensing an opportunity, Evileye approached, cutting in front of the person
who was going to shake Ainz hand. They couldn't complain, though. The
adventurers had made their introductions in order of rank, from highest to lowest.
Being at the tail end of the line, the ones remaining were the novices, and they
certainly couldn't say anything against the adamantite-ranked Evileye.

"The introductions should be pretty much over, could you come over here for a
bit?"

Ainz glanced at her through the slit of his closed helm, and then he spied Gazef
from the corner of his vision. If he was still there, that could only mean one thing.

"Nabe, take my place and meet them. I'll come over after I finish up here."

The nearby listeners' eyes went wide.

"I'm very sorry, but the ones who queued up came first."

Ainz turned from Evileye and continued speaking to the adventurers who had
come to see him.

If Ainz were speaking to the boss of a small company and was called over by the
boss of an international corporation, he would naturally go over to the latter. It
wasn't favoritism or discrimination, but rather, common sense. If he stuck to his

guns and ignored the call, he would be seen as a selfish leader who couldn't see
the big picture. As a salaryman, sometimes you had to put aside your own
thinking and act for the greater benefit of the company.

That was what it meant to be a cog in a machine.

However, this time was different.

I shouldn't speak to Gazef. Even if it's just for a moment, and even if it's been two
months ago so he shouldn't remember... if he does, I'll be trapped. But there's no
getting around it. Although I feel uneasy, I should probably let Nabe take it on
first, and then lower my voice a little before speaking to him.

...I've been speaking for quite a while, so if he hasn't heard it by now he probably
never will. Still, I'd better be careful.

"Quick, Nabe. Go over to them."

"Understood."

Taking his eyes off Nabe, who was walking over to the princess, Ainz took his
helmet off as well. He felt the eyes of the entire room focusing on him. He cricked
his neck, and then put the helmet back on. Originally, he'd planned to spice up
the act by wiping his sweat off, but Ainz face was an illusion, and if he didn't
do it right, his hand would end up passing through it instead. So, he decided to
end it with the neck-crick instead.

That was the plan, to satisfy Gazef's curiosity by letting him see Momon's face.

Hopefully after Narberal goes over, they'll forget about coming over to talk to
me...

Ainz prayed so in his heart while he turned back to the adventurers who were
seeking him.

"What a surprise, are you used to this already?"

It was Evileye's voice. She was still hanging around. Why couldn't she have been
a good girl and gone over with Narberal? Of course, he didn't reveal his irritation.
In fact, to avoid suspicion, he replied to her in a gentle voice.

"Oh, it wasn't anything special."

This was nothing for anyone who had worked in a company before.

"Hardly. I think it's the best attitude to have for leading a party."

How annoying. Stop cutting in when Im making introductions.

The words burned in Ainz heart, but he had to swallow them. If he lashed out at
her now, the effort he put into not killing her would have been wasted. He split
his attention as though he were performing a simple task, and made the
appropriate noises to someone who had come to see him. The other party also
knew that Momon was being called away, so they wrapped things up in two or
three sentences.

After the line of adventurers had dispersed, a quick look revealed that Gazef was
gone. He suppressed the urge to burst into dance, and instead spoke calmly to
Evileye.

"The legendary Warrior Captain seems to have left... oh dear. I think I spent too
much time with the others. My apologies."

"Mmm? What do you know, he's gone. He's a busy person, it makes sense that he
couldn't stay. Although, it does seem quite rude that he didn't even say a word of
thanks to our ace, Momon-sama, who's going to protect the capital. How rude.
Let me get him for you."

"Wait. Wait!"

He'd accidentally raised his voice. Ainz continued in a more even tone.

"No, it won't be a problem. Really, don't worry about it. I'm only here because
Marquis Raeven hired me, anyway. Protecting the capital is simply business.
Nothing that the Warrior Captain should praise me for."

"Is that so... I've been feeling that Momon-sama was a generous man."

Ainz thought he was being mocked, and he looked closely at Evileye. But he
couldn't read her face, covered by her mask as it was.

I can't trust anyone who wears a mask after all... what a pain. Still, why does she
wear the mask? It must be some kind of magic item...

It was at this moment that Ainz realized his mistake, and he scrambled to
examine his surroundings. The mood of the room hadn't changed, and nobody
had reacted with fear and hostility toward the adamantite adventurer Momon.

Illusions in YGGDRASIL were just a trivial way to change an item's appearance,

but in this world, illusion magic was real. In that case, it wouldn't be unusual for
items that pierced illusions to exist... In E-Rantel, nobody saw through it, and
after I heard from the Magician's Guild leader that one needed experience to see
through them, I got careless... there are also quite a few orichalcum ranked
adventurers here, what a blunder...

Ainz surveyed the room again.

Nobody's on their guard, I guess my secret's still safe... from now on, I won't
remove my helmet in the capital unless I have to. Someone might have a talent
for seeing through illusions.

"...Evileye-san,"

"Please, call me Evileye. Momon-sama is my savior, you need not be so formal

with me."

Ainz was only being polite. But if that was how she wanted it, he had no reason to
refuse.

"Then, Evileye, let's go over there..."

"Of course!"

It was an extremely delighted reply. Not knowing what he had done to please her
so, Ainz allowed himself to be dragged by Evileye toward the princess.

The adventurers started talking again as they saw the group heading toward the
other room Renner and her underlings, along with the two adamantite ranked
adventurers.

Naturally, the central topic was Momon, the top-ranked adventurer.

"I heard the rumors from E-Rantel, but the real thing was beyond my
expectations."

"Not just him, right? I've seen Red Drop too, and I got the same feeling from
them. He seems perfect in just about every way. I guess being adamantite-ranked
isn't just about strength."

The one addressing the two mithril ranked adventurers was one with a platinum
plate on his chain.

"Is that so? Still, he was summoned by the princess and still took his time to say
hello to novice adventurers. Someone like that can't possibly exist, right?"

"It certainly surprised me."

Murmurs of approval came from the adventurers around them.

During a mission like this where parties had to work with each other, it was only
sensible to make introductions, in order to secure assistance and support for each
other. One would certainly prefer to aid someone they knew rather than a
stranger. However, the only ones who could even begin to help an adamantite
ranked adventurer were all ranked mithril and above. As such, greeting a fresh
adventurer could be said to be a waste of time. Which meant that Momon wasn't
thinking of benefit for himself, but just wanted to deepen his friendship with
others.

"Normally, you'd expect him to go over to the princess while his partner attended
to the novices, right?"

"Ah, yes, that's what most people would normally do. It's what I'd do. You guys
too, right?"

"Same here... this may sound kind of bad, but maybe he doesn't understand this
sort of thing. Does he have his priorities straight?"

Those words could certainly be seen as an insult, but the man speaking them did
not have a single iota of malice on his face.

"Maybe he does. Maybe his priorities are just different."

As though waiting for this, the man who had spoken earlier replied quickly.

"Then there's nobody better than him. I mean, look at him, he's adamantiteranked and yet he treats the freshest copper-plates like they were battle buddies.
Look at their faces."

"They totally worship him now."

True enough, the novice adventurers had a look on their faces like a kid who had
just met their idol.

"Heh, yeah, if he treated me like that, I'd be his. I'd even give him my ass."

"Get lost, who the hell would want your nasty ass? He's got a beauty on his
team."

"Yeah, he does. You think they've done it?"

"Of course they have, if not why would they form a team by themselves?"

"I heard it's not like that..."

The fourth man to interrupt had an orichalcum plate on his neck.

"You seem to be quite well-informed, with your rumors from E-Rantel. The
strength of those two is unreal. Maybe it's because nobody else can keep up with
them?"

"...have you been spying on us all this time?"

"Hahaha! Don't say that, you didn't care who was listening, did you?"

"Heh, well, I guess," the first adventurer said.

The Adventurer's Guildmaster clapped her hands to get everyone's attention.

"The operation starts in one hour, so we'll be moving out shortly. Because we
don't have much time, please relay the message to any of your party members
who aren't here. In any event, once we leave the palace, just stick with me.

Month of Descending Fire (9th Month) 5th Day 1:12

They were gathered in the other room to make the final preparations for the
operation. They considered when to break through, what to do when the enemy
showed up in force, and how to deal with the possible complications which might
arise. But in the end, they simply had too little information to make any concrete
plans and the final conclusion was that they had to go with the flow.

The youth in white armor who had been listening quietly thus far suddenly broke
his silence.

Forgive me, Princess,

What is it?

I know another person who could become an arrow for this formation. He is a
man with overwhelming fighting power. Would it be all right to ask for his aid?
One arrow is good, but two would be better, and if they helped each other, I am
sure they could defeat any demon that showed itself, no matter how powerful it
was.

Whats this, Climb? Are you saying the Momon-sama I recommended isnt
enough?

Evileyes words had a razor-sharp edge to them. Climbs eyes trembled with fear.

No, no, of course not. That was never my intention"

Momon-sama is the strongest warrior in existence. I daresay that rather than

helping him, the man you recommended would be nothing more than a
handicap.

The katana-wielding warrior, Brain, stepped in to defend Climb.

That might not be so. I too have seen the person Climb speaks of. His strength is
extraordinary. He felled Zero, strongest of the Six Arms, in one blow.

You are Brain Unglaus? The one who serves her Highness on the
recommendation of Gazef Stronoff and Climb?

I serve Gazef, but before I am officially sworn in, I stay by the Princess side.

That you are much stronger than Climb is known to me, but even that isnt a
guarantee of the mans strength. And besides, didnt you lose to that old hag?

...Ara, didnt you lose to her too? My apologies, Mr. Unglaus.

Uuuu Evileye whimpered as Lakyus scolded her.

It, it wasnt just her, you all were there too,

After you lost, you said you lost to Rigrit, not the rest of us.

You still remember that, Tina?

Between the laughing Tina and the crying Evileye, the mood in the room had
lightened up considerably.

At this point, Ainz asked a question.

He sounds very interesting. What kind of person is he?

Climb proudly stated the mans name.

His name is Sebas.

...hm? Seibath? The name sounded familiar to Ainz. Was it merely a

coincidence?

...what is his personality like?

After Climbs explanation, Ainz nodded.

Isnt that Sebas himself?!

How had he come into contact with Climb? What kind of relationship did they
have? Was Climb one of Sebas contacts? Ainz had only skimmed the reports
Sebas submitted, and he hadnt bothered remembering any of the people he
mentioned.

It couldnt be helped, I was too busy

Ainz anxiety only grew as he made that flimsy excuse to himself.

In any case, this boy was a valuable contact that Sebas had made. If he were
disposed of too early, it would be a waste of Sebas hard work. And carelessly
casting away the work of ones underlings was something a superior should avoid
at all costs.

It would be better to aid this boy here, and indirectly praise Sebas.

I have not done battle with this Sebas before, so I cannot say which of us would
be stronger.

Of course Momon-san is stronger than him! Narberal stated in a voice brimming

with confidence. Evileye quietly nodded in agreement.

Ainz couldnt help but pat Narberal on the head.

"Well, if my companion says so, then there must be some truth to the
observations of both sides. I believe he should be able to stand on equal footing
with me."

"That was a surprisingly mature response. Unlike my companion... not only does
she lack height but she is deficient in adaptability too."

"All right, all right, let's not embarrass ourselves in public. That's an order from
the party leader. If there's nothing else to discuss, why don't we go pay Tia and
Gagaran a visit?"

"Sounds like a plan."

The two of them had died and been revived. Although he had not seen the
resurrection itself, he had heard all about it from others.

"Speaking of which, is it possible to use the energy of darkness to attack demons

and the like?"

"...The energy of darkness?"

Evileyes uncertain question drew a surprised response from Lakyus. She seemed
to find the concept unthinkable.

"Ah, I heard from Gagaran, if you released the full power of the Demonic Sword
Kilineyram, it could be powerful enough to destroy the entire country."

Lakyus' eyes went wide.

"Th-that can wait till later! There's something else to discuss, right?""

A demonic sword? Hang on, I think I've heard of this weapon before... not in
YGGDRASIL, but this world... got it! The Demonic Sword Kilineyram, said to be
able to radiate the power of darkness. Although... destroying an entire country? It
sounds like an exaggeration, but it might have a power that comes close enough.

Ainz concluded that her red face was caused by anger and panic that her own
trump card had been suddenly revealed.

Just as everyone's attention turned to Lakyus, there was a knocking on the door,
and two men entered shortly after.

"Onii-sama, and Marquis Raeven,"

At Renner's words, everyone bowed their heads in respect.

This was the second time Ainz had met these two men. The first time was not
long ago, when they had entered the capital. They had changed the terms of the
quest he had been hired for. Instead of the Eight Fingers, he would be fighting
against Jaldabaoth, and he would be working together with the gathered
adventurers of the capital.

After the simple greeting, Ainz and the others were about to step outside because
the princess wanted to address the two nobles. Most of the details of the battle
plan had already been decided. Searching for Sebas had been abandoned due to
a lack of time and manpower. All that was left was to wait for on-site orders.

"Then, everyone, I beseech all the gods to allow everyone here to come back
alive and victorious... our hopes rest on all of you, or rather, on Momon-san. May
fortune favor you."

After listening to Renner pray with her head bowed low, Ainz and the others
quietly exited the room. The only ones left were Raeven and the second prince
Zanack Valurean Igana ryle Vaiself and Renner.

The moment Climb left the room, Renner's expression changed, her green eyes
freezing over like a lake in winter. Zanack shivered as he watched the change in
her.

"We overheard the details in the secret room..."

That room was designed for eavesdropping, and the two of them had been
listening from in there.

"There's one question you didn't answer. Why did you have to form the guards up
into a battle line. Are they sacrifices?"

Guards were very weak. Even the lowliest of adventurers was more than a match
for them. If they were attacked, the only reasonable response for them was to be
massacred.

"Bait."

That word was what they had expected.

"The adventurers said so too; Jaldabaoth's army of low-ranked demons cannot be

allowed to run free in the capital. Then, if they gorge themselves on the guards
staked out as bait for them, certainly they will eventually kill their fill and be
sated on slaughter, no?" Renner smiled.

It was almost impossible to settle things with fancy words and high-sounding
ideals in this world. Everything one did had a price. Nobody understood that more
clearly than the ones in power, whose responsibility was to limit the necessary
sacrifices as much as possible.

From that point of view, Renner was the ideal bureaucrat.

However, humans were creatures of emotion, and the emotion they would feel
when hearing of this plan was revulsion.

"Surely there must be a better way? Some way that doesn't involve sacrificing all
the guards?"

"If there were, surely Prince Zanack would have mentioned one by now, no?"

Zanack fell silent.

It was true, he did not have a better plan than Renner's. He had ideas, certainly,
but they were either impractical or impossible with the resources available. At the
moment, all he could do was acknowledge that Renner's plan was the best of a
bad lot.

Raeven shifted his gaze from the prince when he quieted himself, and then he
voiced his own objections.

"Then, permit me to seek clarification. Why give Climb such a dangerous task?"

"For the same reason why Onii-sama and Marquis Raeven's men are patrolling
the city."

Zanack had been making his rounds in the capital, putting on the act of the
prince who cared for his people. After that, he had also begun spreading the
rumors that the crown prince had been hiding in the safety of the royal castle.
This would make himself look good and diminish his brother who was his rival.

Did that mean Renner was doing the same thing sending her subordinate on a
dangerous mission of mercy in order to make herself look good?

But then, when one thought about how Renner had revealed her obsession over
Climb yesterday, something was definitely wrong here.

Sensing his doubt, Renner carried on.

"Of course, Climb has a chance of dying. In that event, Lakyus will use a
resurrection spell on him. It won't be cheap, of course, but an expense like these
won't be a problem. And after he's been resurrected, Climb will be weakened
from a loss of life energy. During that time, I will take care of him. I'm sure

nobody will object to me caring for a person who died and was resurrected for
following my orders."

"I see. That is certainly reasonable. You plan to deepen his affection for you."

"is there a chance Lakyus might die as well?"

"That is a valid concern," Renner said to Raeven, whose head was lowered. "But
one that has been planned for. During the dangerous period of the sortie, there
will be additional people in place to protect her. The guildmaster does not want a
person who can resurrect the dead to be killed, so she agreed without
hesitation.

"It seems everything is within your calculations, little sister."

Yes, his radiant, laughing sister. Zanack trembled in his boots.

Beside him, Raeven also fought to suppress the chill that ran down his spine.

CHAP
TER
11

Part 1

Month of Descending Fire (9th Month), 5th Day, 02:30

The flickering flames of the barrier had no heat at all, making it seem like an
illusion. The adventurers standing at the front exchanged glances with their
parties, and then they gathered their courage and plunged boldly through the
firewall.

Even though the supporting priests from the temples had already cast spells of
fire protection on them, they still held their breath, for fear that their lungs would
be burned

...even though they already said the flames wouldn't cause any physical harm.

That thought ran through Lakyus' head as she watched the wall of fire from the
rear of the formation.

Still, it was too soon to celebrate the fact that the flames were harmless. If they
were not meant to cause injury, then there must have been another reason for
Jaldabaoth to conjure them. That was what she had to puzzle out.

If I can't figure it out, there's no point wasting energy on it. Who was it who said
that I should be using my head for better things... Evileye, or Uncle?

The barrier of magical flames was like an illusion, offering no resistance and
bearing no heat, and just like that, she was through.

Lakyus looked around at the worried faces of the adventurers who were stepping
through the barrier.

The plan had called for the formation of a defensive line, but forming a neat line
of battle in the middle of a city was very difficult. Therefore, they had used four
parties of orichalcum ranked adventurers as the linchpins of the formation,
assigning each of the adventurers to one of them. Someone looking down from
above would see something like a beast with all four legs spread.

Since they were the cores of the formation, it was only natural that the
orichalcum-ranked adventurers would become the leaders. But right now, they
were filled with unease and tension. Lakyus hoped that they could hide their fear
and inspire courage in the others around them.

Should I take to the front after all?

Certainly, if an adamantite ranked adventurer like herself stood at their head,

morale would surely increase. But right now, Lakyus had no reliable allies by her
side. Even if she was adamantite ranked, a lone Blue Rose was less effective than
an orichalcum-ranked party. As such, she had handed command of the vanguard
to them.

Even if they trusted me, running in and making a fuss would only fill them with
unease. But... ah, I should just go to the front and see what happens.

With that, Lakyus stepped through the wall of fire.

A freshly silenced world spread ahead of them. The streets were the same as
those of any other in the capital, if you overlooked the fact that there was no
presence of human life and many of the residences had been destroyed.

"What happened to the residents? Are they hiding? Theres no smell of blood.

Impossible. Look, the doors have been broken down. I fear the people might
have been taken somewhere."

"We need to be wary of demons lurking within the houses, should we do a roomto-room search? That will take a lot of time."

"It'll be safer to contact Lakyus-san and wait for further instructions, right?"

"Then, let's hurry up and"

"There'll no need for that."

Straightening up by reflex at the sound of the voice, the speaking adventurers

turned to look behind them. They stared in goggle-eyed surprise at Lakyus, who
had just arrived.

"The iron and copper-ranked adventurers will stay behind to search the houses.
One mithril-ranked team will remain behind to supervise. The people behind will
spread out into the formation and advance. Any objections?"

The shaking heads said there were none.

"Then, let us advance."

Lakyus walked in line with the orichalcum-ranked adventurers. An uncomfortable

silence settled around them. It was hard to believe that there had been life here
until this evening.

"...speaking of which, Momon-san will be alright, wont he?"

Lakyus understood how uneasy they were with pinning all their hopes on Momon.

"He'll be fine. Evileye herself admitted that he was even stronger than her. The
real problem is the one that fought him to a standstill, the enemy leader,
Jaldabaoth. How strong is he, anyway..."

The nearby adventurers heard this and their faces drooped in despair.

"Ah, sorry, don't worry about it. We just need to do what we've been assigned to
do, that's all."

"Aye, that's true. It makes me jealous as hell to admit it, but I guess each of us
has been tasked to do what we're most suited for. In that case, everyone,
forward!"

Standing at the head of the group, together with the orichalcum-ranked

adventurers, Lakyus stepped forward

Her hand gripped the Demonic Sword Kilineyram. Its surface was like a stretch of
night sky, speckled with sparkling stars.

They had not walked for long before the sound of a distant explosion carried over
softly from the distance. The ones who trembled were the lower ranked
adventurers. The ones who prepared for battle were the middle ranked
adventurers. The ones who scanned their surroundings were the upper ranked
adventurers. And the ones who looked straight ahead were the highest ranking
adventurers. Amidst this sea of reactions, Lakyus stared out into the distance
with a piercing gaze.

"The party on that side has entered combat."

Probably not Tina's group.

"If they've been moving in at the same rate as ourselves, we ought to be

encountering enemy resistance soon."

"...What about from above?"

"We have scouts in place, and none of them have reported anything so far."

"That's good. Demons have a lot of flying-type creatures among their numbers. If
they spread out in the capital, it would be pretty bad. So we need to draw their
attention to the ground where we are now."

"Which means that the plan is essentially unchanged."

"That's right... hm, what's that, did you hear something?"

"Aye, I hear it. Dogs barking. Hey, what's that?"

The arcane magic caster answered the question.

"I haven't confirmed it with my eyes yet, but I think it's a hellhound. Its special
ability is fiery breath. I think it has a difficulty ranking of fifteen or so."

"Difficulty... yeah, speaking of which, what rank were Jaldabaoth and the insect
maid?"

Lakyus was lost as to how she should answer. If she was honest, it would most
likely shatter their resolve, but if they went into battle with a false impression of
the enemy because she lied to them, it would be just as disastrous. She agonized
about it for a while before deciding to tell the truth.

"...150."

"Aye?"

Everyone who heard Lakyus' voice had the same reaction.

"The insect maid's difficulty ranking was at least 150. Jaldabaoth himself is
estimated at 200 or more."

"Hah?!"

Everyone aside from Lakyus was speechless. That much was expected. Even the
highest-ranking orichalcum adventurers would only rate around 80 on the
difficulty rankings. Although one could still triumph over a foe ranked roughly 15
points over oneself, trying to do the same with an enemy ranked almost twice as
high as oneself was nothing short of laughable. And then

"Wait a minute! Are you saying Momon-san is going to fight that difficulty 200
monster by himself?"

"Exactly. That's why I said we'd just be getting in the way."

"But that's not the same... you said 200? Are you kidding me? Are all adamantite
ranked adventurers that strong?"

"If only. Even were ranked around 90 at best."

"Then... then how the hell are we even supposed to win?!"

The adventurers looked around, holding their breath.

Lakyus had not lied, but neither had she told them the whole truth. Although
Lakyus herself was rated at ninety, Evileye was over one hundred and fifty, which
was how she had come to the conclusion about the insect maid and Jaldabaoth.
And that was also why Evileye was not part of this defensive line.

In order to quickly recover her expended mana, she had chosen to meditate and
rest. After that, she had followed Momon to where Jaldabaoth was, in order to
provide support so Momon could battle Jaldabaoth one-on-one. Their fear was
that they would encounter the insect maid again.

While Lakyus was lost in thought, she felt the depressive mood around her
prickling on her skin. Everyone's morale had plummeted, and there were
murmurs about abandoning the whole thing and fleeing the capital.

As she had predicted, everyone was feeling demoralized. Lakyus knew because
the first time she heard Evileye talk about their battle, she had felt the same way
herself.

"You heard Evileye, right? Momon-san is the kind of man who can fight evenly
with Jaldabaoth. Because of that, we're trusting everything to Momon-san, and
instead we're going to do what we can do."

"B-but if Jaldabaoth is fighting Momon-san, then what if the insect maid appears
here?"

"Leave that to us, Blue Rose. Evileye has a special item that allows her to teleport
over to us. She's got a way of dealing with the insect maid, so she can overcome
that difficulty gap and beat her."

That brought a wave of cheers from the adventurers. It seemed that their fighting
spirit was restored.

Just in the nick of time

The roars of beasts came from the way ahead, along with the sound of footsteps.

"They're coming. We'll build our defensive line here. The people on the flying
disks above will drop into the side roads. Leave the main road to me!"

The beasts were on the main road. Though they looked like large dogs, their eyes
were filled with an infernal intelligence, and in place of drool, flames leaked from
their maws.

There were fifteen of these hellhounds here. Standing before them was Lakyus,
who gripped the demonic sword Kilineyram with both hands.

"You petty demons, don't you dare look down on me."

With a prayer to the water god on her lips, Lakyus clove the leaping hellhound in
half with a single strike. The floating swords surrounding her acted as shields,
blocking the attacks of the hellhounds from her flanks. She kicked away another
one that was snapping at her ankles.

Lakyus was handling six hellhounds by herself, and the rest went on to attack the
other adventurers. The weaker ones took them on one at a time, while the
stronger ones handled multiple hellhounds at once. In this way, they whittled
down the numbers facing them. By the time Lakyus had slain all six of hers, the
others were done as well.

"Tend to the wounded!"

"No problem, Lakyus-san!"

Of course, they hadn't gotten through untouched, but the injuries weren't severe.
Considering they had to conserve their mana, it was quite an auspicious start.

"People on the sides, I say again! Advance 50 meters and hold!"

The cry to advance echoed from both sides. Holding her sword, Lakyus went forth
as well.

Month of Descending Fire (9th Month), 5th Day, 02:41

Three men ran down the dark and narrow alleyways. Nobody else was there with
them.

These three men were Climb, Brain, and the former orichalcum ranked thief that
had accompanied them during their attack against Zero's base.

The adventurers working for Marquis Raeven were all patrolling the capitals
streets in order to hunt down any demons who broke through the containment
line. Climb had only managed to obtain the services of the thief because
according to Marquis Raeven, the man himself had asked to help Climb out. That
was to repay the kindness Climb had shown by blocking Zero's attack on him and
for healing him. In addition, Raeven wanted to repay the favor he owed to
Renner.

Thanks to the thief's choice of routes, they had not encountered a single demon
so far. They might not even have made it here without him.

Although they had some confidence in facing demons who relied purely on
strength and speed, they would be done for if any demons who could use special
abilities showed up. Given that this team was a largely mundane one that lived
and died by their steel, they would have a hard time defending against attacks
that weren't purely physical in nature.

Their acquaintance had only been a brief one, but because of this, the thief
understood that Climb and Brain were sorely deficient in this department, which
was why he had joined this pair of clearly suicidal men.

Brain silently thanked him as he ran on, hunkering down to reduce the size of his
silhouette. Gradually, the style of the surrounding buildings began to change; the
amount of non-residential buildings began to increase. It seemed they were
nearing their objective.

"I have to ask, why are we headed for the warehouses?"

Climb answered the thief, who was inspecting their surroundings.

"Renner-sama mentioned that if they were rounding people up and taking them
prisoner, they would need a big space to control and imprison all of them. With
that in mind, it would be easier to separate families and lock them up in several
big warehouses instead."

"I see. If the families are split up, they'll think they're all being taken hostage and
be less likely to flee. If that's the case, we have to hurry... well. Even if we double
back on our original route, we still need to pick a safe path."

"Thanks. We're counting on you."

There was more to do after the rescue. While thinking about how they would
make it out of there, one thing that stood out as absolutely important was a safe
axis of retreat. The choice of route was crucial, especially since they would be
moving a lot of people.

But how long could this streak of luck last? Brain wondered.

This mission was essentially ordering Climb to die.

Since the other side was rounding up the civilians, that meant they had a plan for
them. In turn, that meant they would be watching them closely. And according to
what he had heard, the enemy leader Jaldabaoth was a being who could kill
adamantite ranked adventurers in seconds. Any sentries he placed would be
formidable indeed.

Brain's attention turned to Climb by his side.

He had worn his white armor to let people know that he was Renner's knight.
Currently, he was stroking his gauntlet... or rather, the ring he wore on the ring
finger underneath it.

Gazef himself had given him that ring.

It was something he had obtained from an ancient granny who used to be part of
Blue Rose. According to the legends, it was an extremely rare item born of
ancient magic, that could raise a warrior's powers beyond its limits.

You must return alive. Brain recalled Gazef's face as he said that.

Gazef had not shown any particular emotion at that time. No anger, sorrow, or
despair. He understood that as a warrior in service to a lord, there would
eventually come a time when he would be ordered into a battle that would result
in his death. However, in order to aid Climb without being physically present, he
had lent him the ring.

Brain had been following the thief's hand signals when he suddenly sensed a
presence. Looking up, his line of sight followed the building in that instant,
Brain felt an impact that seemed to stop his heart.

On the edge of a roof of a nearby warehouse was judging by her height and
body type a girl with long, blonde hair. She wore a dress made of pure white
fabric that had been elaborately embroidered, and under the hem he could see
that she wore a pair of high heels which sparkled like diamonds. Combined with
her extravagant array of rings, jewelry and other necklaces, it made one think
that she was some nobles daughter, or a wealthy heiress of some sort.

Her beautiful figure, illuminated by the wall of fire, contrasted sharply with her
bone-white mask, yet, her mystique was not diminished in the slightest. And in
contrast to her striking appearance, her presence was far too subdued, as though
she were nothing more than a wraith in an oversaturated world.

Her clothes and the color of her hair were completely different from that time.
Back then, she might have been said to have been born of the night, but this
time, she seemed to have descended from the moon. But even so, there was no
doubt that they were the same person. The image Brain had seared into his soul
from before layered itself over the person he was looking at now.

He was sure of it. Under the mask of the young girl above him was the face of
that monster Shalltear Bloodfallen. It seemed that she had not noticed them
yet, but if it was truly that same monster standing before him, then no matter
how far apart they were, they would be instantly killed if she discovered them.
Was there a way they could flee without being detected?

There was none.

When Brain realised this, he felt as if he was putting a foot on cracked ice. He
was suddenly aware of the oily, disgusting sweat oozing out of his pores.

Brain signaled to Climb and the thief, indicating he had something to say. Sensing
that he had spotted something, the two of them halted and held their breaths.

What now? What can I do to get out of this? If we fight her, we'll be killed for sure.
Even if we tried to run, we'd be chased down and killed anyway. Back then I used
an escape tunnel, but there aren't any here now. But why is she here? Is she
looking for me?

Brain smiled bitterly at that last thought.

If that were the case, then there was only one solution to this problem.

"Climb-kun, I'll go buy us some time. Use it to flee."

After that, Brain looked to the thief, and bowed his head.

"I'll leave him to you."

Without wasting any time on second thoughts, Brain immediately leapt up the
building where Shalltear was, hoisting himself up in a single motion. Although he
did not have the climbing skills of a thief, the building was only two stories high,
and a warrior's arm strength could easily scale it. On the roof, Shalltear remained
where he had first seen her.

Brain's heart pounded mightily. He was scared, terrified beyond the capacity for
rational thought. The memories of his desperate flight from her reappeared in his
mind. In spite of that, he was still able to muster up the courage to face her headon.

"...is something the matter?"

The ice-cold woman's voice called out, only slightly muffled by the mask she
wore.

Doesn't she recognize me? What's this, some kind of game?

The best course of action now should be to pretend he didnt know her and
observe her responses. With that in mind, Brain raised his voice and answered
her.

Im here because I saw a strange woman on a rooftop. What are you doing in the
capital?

And why, pray tell, must I answer you? Perhaps you could tell me what a human
is doing in this area. Are you the only one who has infiltrated this far?

His heartbeat sped up and increased in intensity. Although he didnt know where
Climb was, he knew he could not let his eyes leave hers. In order to confuse her,
he raised his voice and continued speaking.

"Are you looking for someone else? Not me?"

"And why would I seek you out in particular?"

"This is the second time we've crossed paths. From the start, I've been unable to
forget your beautiful face."

Shalltear reached out her hand, and lightly stroked her mask.

"...do you have the wrong person, perhaps?"

Brain was at a loss for words. He wanted to ask if he'd gotten the right person,
but he immediately abandoned that idea. It was her. There could be no other.

...so she's saying, I can't be bothered to remember a puny ant?

If she wasn't taunting him, if Shalltear truly did not remember, then that must
mean she did not have even the slightest bit of interest in him. For an
overwhelmingly powerful being like Shalltear, that was not arrogance or
overestimating one's abilities.

"No... my apologies. Maybe... perhaps. Yes, this is the first time we've met."

"Is it, really? Well, even if you understand that now, it makes no difference.
Perhaps it would be safer to just kill you off. Do you wish to live? To die? If you
genuflect before me and lick my shoes, it might please me enough to change my
mind."

"Sorry, but I think I'll pass on that."

Brain settled down into a sword-drawing stance as he slowed his breathing. The
technique he was using was, of course, Field. Needless to say, though, Brain
knew it was useless against Shalltear.

"Haaaa..."

The dumbfounded Shalltear gently shook her head.

"You don't understand the difference in strength between us, do you? How
annoying..."

Actually, I do understand, Brain thought as he looked at her.

Shalltear scared him so badly he wanted to throw up. That much he understood.
But knowing this, why hadn't he fled yet?

The corner of his mouth turned up as he thought about this question.

If his heart was a lake, then it was perfectly still and calm. Even in the face of a
being that made him want to flee at all costs, he still managed to retain his
composure. This serenity was quite unnerving.

Shalltear stalked forward again. It was like a repeat of the last time, and surely
the outcome would be Brain's utter defeat. The sum total of his life's work, his
effort and dedication and dreams, would be shattered with the contemptuous
ease of a child breaking a toy.

That's right. That's how it'll be.

He was terrified.

Up till now, he had been through countless battles, wagering his life on the edge
of his blade. Suddenly admitting his fear of death now would be very
embarrassing. This battle felt like he was throwing himself off a cliff. Even if could
muster up the determination to die in battle, he could not prepare himself to
commit suicide.

The thing was, the feeling of abject terror that he'd carried with him, from the
bandit hideout all the way to the capital, was mysteriously absent.

Brain recalled the back of a certain young man.

He was a youth who was far, far weaker than him. Who had, even in the midst of
a roaring torrent of murderous intent, stood firm, despite his body trembling like
jelly.

And then, Brain laughed.

The old man had said that sometimes humans could display unexpected power,
but Brain knew that it was impossible for him.

He was not like that youth, who would give everything he had for the princess he
served, and he was not like Gazef who could offer his body and life for king and
country. Those two could do it, but not him. Brain was a selfish man who could
only think of doing as he desired.

Even if that's the case... huh. Maybe this is how I square things with him, by
buying him time to flee.

Taking one step at a time, Shalltear raised her left pinky finger, approaching at an
unnaturally slow pace.

Was it because his heightened perceptions made it seem as though time had
slowed down for everyone but him, or was it because Shalltear really was moving
that slowly, to prolong his fear? It felt like both were the case, and he smiled
ruefully.

Well, that's just how she is.

Even though they had only met for a total of a few minutes, Brain felt like he
understood her better than any other woman he had ever met.

Two more steps, huh... two steps before she enters the range of my sword...

He wanted to run, but more than that, he didnt want to let go of the weapon in
his hands. His whole life had been spent holding a sword. Perhaps it was fitting
that it should end the same way.

Brain had found his answer. With that in his mind, he followed Shalltear's
silhouette with his eyes.

"Live by the sword... die by the sword?"

In that moment, Brain's mind cleared. The enemy was a distant existence, and
his thoughts were sharpened into a single razor's edge.

Brain used Instant Flash. It was a martial art that no human opponent could
detect, let alone defend against.

Even so, he could not touch the monster before him, not even if he stacked the
Field and Instant Flash techniques.

At that level, his opponent could still stop it between her fingers. Therefore, Brain
added one more technique to the mix.

The face of Gazef Stronoff rose before his eyes.

If not for him, I would never have ended up here.

He had thought that way at first, but after his various encounters in the capital,
he had changed his mind.

Brain now felt nothing but camaraderie for his greatest nemesis no, his rival.
He had accepted that he would die here and now.

Perhaps it's too late... but thank you, my greatest enemy and dearest friend.

With that, his heart turned calm. Without confusion, he allowed himself to let go.
Even the shame of the past had vanished.

"Aaaaaaaaa!"

Brain cried out like some sort of strange bird. It came from the depths of his soul,
carrying the full power of his being.

He executed an incredibly high-speed Instant Flash, aiming it based on the

information gained from the use of his Field. But it didn't stop there from the
Instant Flash, he continued into another move.

That move was

Four simultaneous sword strikes.

That was Gazef Stronoff's technique, the very same one that had defeated Brain
Unglaus at the martial arts tournament where they had first fought. It was a
move that Brain had admired, even as he told himself he was only learning and
imitating it in order to fully understand his opponent. It was a technique that he
had sealed away with his hatred and resentment.

But now, in this moment, freed of all self-doubt and restraint, Brain used it
without hesitation.

"Fourfold Slash of Light!"

In truth, the Fourfold Slash of Light had a massive weakness.

Executing four simultaneous attacks would place a massive burden on the body,
and it would cause the attacks to scatter in different directions. Because this

technique's accuracy was low, even its creator Gazef only used it when
surrounded by multiple opponents.

Although the Fourfold Slash of Light did not make as many attacks as the Sixfold
Slash of Light, it was easier to direct all the attacks toward the same opponent.
Even so, getting them all to connect was still quite unlikely.

This wild attack should not be able to strike Shalltear Bloodfallen. Brain was very
clear on that.

But Brain possessed a martial art that Gazef did not. It was a support technique
that provided an incredible power-up within its radius Field.

The four wild swings were corrected mid-flight by the superhuman precision of
Field, following the path Brain had visualized for them. All four blows struck
home with complete accuracy at super-speed.

Even a hero one who had surpassed all other humans would have had
trouble blocking that attack. Mortals, wrought of weak flesh and bones, would not
be able to even muster up the stamina to defend against it. This was a strike that
had transcended the realm of mortal ability.

But Shalltear Bloodfallen was well above humanity herself, standing in a league
of her own that nobody could ever hope to exceed. To someone like her, those
four simultaneous strikes were little more than a snail taking a stroll in the sun.

"Hmph."

Shalltear snorted at him as his left hand moved faster than the eye could see. A
sound of metallic clashing rang out through the night air. What had happened
was that the simultaneous deflection of the four strikes had blended into a single
sound.

All four blows had been repelled, leaving her untouched.

Shalltear shrugged her shoulders, laughing under her mask. It wasn't directed at
the foolish warrior before her eyes, but rather at herself for having played along
with him thus far.

But then, in the next moment, Shalltear's eyes went wide.

Right now, if someone had converted their ability into data and compared them,
he would undoubtedly be cheering for Brain. It was a miracle, like the sun rising
from the west, a sight that would fill people with awe and respect.

"...eh?"

Before her eyes, the nail of her left pinky finger had been shortened. It was a tiny
flaw less than a centimeter in length.

Shalltear considered the current situation. The place which had been cut was the
same place which had been used to repel all the strikes.

Come to think of it, those four strikes had been executed in two pairs, one above
and one below. They had intersected on the spot where Shalltear had intercepted
the attacks.

"...were you aiming for this?"

"Kuh Ahahahaha!"

Suddenly, the man in front of her began laughing. Is he insane? Shalltear

wondered. But it did not feel that way. More likely, he was laughing heartily over
the fact that he had managed to slice off the tip of her fingernail, but she did not
understand. So what if he managed to do it?

Shalltears nails and teeth were like natural weapons, so using specialized
weapon-destruction techniques to sunder them was technically possible.
However, they would simply grow back with the application of healing magic, and
in comparison to manufactured weapons of a similar class, they were far more
resistant to harm. They were on the same level as Divine class magic weapons
like the Spuit Lance.

As such, Shalltear could not understand the reason for this man's laughter.

Cutting off a fragment of her fingernail would not change anything. Shalltear
looked at the other four fingers of her left hand. Even if the nail of the little finger
was shaved down a little, it would still be enough to tear a human body to pieces.

"...so, cutting it off means you pass, then?"

The man's eyes went round, and his jubilation intensified.

"I'm very grateful to you for such praise. My sword... my life was not spent in
vain, after all. At the end, I still managed to make some progress toward the
peak!"

That was not praise, however. Shalltear was just mocking him.

However, she could tell that his feelings were honest. In other words, the man
was truly rejoicing about being able to clip a fingernail.

Did he have a few screws loose? Come to think of it, he had spouted a pack of
rubbish when they had first met. All in all, it made her feel uneasy, so she had
better kill him quickly. With that in mind, Shalltear stepped forward and

and Demiurge's call to battle came through.

Shalltear knew what that meant. Despite herself, she looked over to the distance,
but she could not sense a presence.

"Is that the effect of Master's ring?"

One of the rings that Ainz wore would completely conceal him from all kinds of
divination-type magic. It was normally issued to all the guardians, but it could
also erase the presence of the ruler of the Great Tomb of Nazarick.

With a sense of regret for not being able to sense her master, Shalltear turned
her head back, and found that the human with a screw loose in his head had
vanished.

Ah! I completely forgot about that strange fellow!

After a quick look around, Shalltear discovered that the man had turned his back
on her and was busy jumping down into an alley. He must have made his move
while she was distracted.

There's no way a mere mortal could escape unscathed from me.

If she used magic to slow down the flow of time, she could catch up to him before
he even hit the ground. Without hesitation, Shalltear cast her spell.

"Time Accelerator!"

The air felt thick and viscous as Shalltear moved through it at incredible speeds,
heading toward the place the man would land. As she descended, she observed
his posture as he leapt down with glacial slowness. Although she could not harm
him directly while the spell was in effect, she could still set up an ambush and
make other preparations.

Just as well. I'll open my arms to receive him as he falls. Surely a human like him
will be overjoyed to be embraced by a beauty like myself.

The corner of Shalltear's mouth quirked up as she thought of the expression that
she could see on his face. As she landed on the ground, just before the spell
ended, she sensed another presence close by.

What's this?

It was a young man in a suit of pure white plate armor with a roguish-looking
companion.

Brain landed in the alley and looked back up, but Shalltear was no longer there.

She didn't pursue me? No, that's not right, what if she wants me to lead her to
the others, like last time?

He had not planned to flee at first. His thoughts had been that it would be easier
to buy time for Climb and the rest by escaping to lower ground.

Brain's every action had been to let Climb escape. It was because of that that he
had put on this entire show of running away.

But as he ran, he discovered something that should not have been. That
something was Climb and the thief, who were waving to him.

How could this

Brain's mind filled with emotion intense anger and frustration.

His face distorted by wrath, he charged toward the two of them, grabbed them by
the collar and kept running. This was obviously slower than just running by
himself, but Brain was not calm enough to have considered that.

After they had run for some distance, and after checking repeatedly behind him
to make sure that Shalltear had not caught up with them, he slammed Climb
against a nearby wall. Because Brain had not thought to control his strength,
Climb practically bounced off it.

"Why? Why didn't you run?!"

Although his emotions were on the verge of overflowing, Brain still had enough
presence of mind to keep himself from shouting out loud.

"That... that was..."

Brain grabbed hold of Climb again.

"That was what?! Were you worried about me?! I clearly told you two to escape!"

"Wait, wait, wait, wait, I don't know what happened, but back then, you just said
some stuff and ran off. The fault isn't Climb-kun's alone!"

After hearing the thief's words, Brain began to calm down. It was true that he
hadn't explained anything at all. He forced himself to take deep breaths.

"...forgive me, Climb-kun. I seem to have gone a little mad."

"Ah, no, you must forgive me too, for not heeding your words."

"No, I was the one at fault, and I am truly sorry. Things just... happened."

"Hey, Unglaus-san, what happened? We may not have known each other very
long, but just now, you seemed like a completely different person, like a novice
who just picked up the sword."

"Stopping here is very dangerous. I'll tell you once we move. Let's just say I met a
monster who could give Sebas-san a run for his money."

The three of them moved on warily. It might have been sheer luck that they had
not met Jaldabaoth's underlings while they were fleeing, but counting on that luck
to continue would only end badly.

"Then... you're unhurt, so it must have been a complete victory, right? Or no,
you settled it with words?"

"Not so. It was with the sword... I cut her fingernail off."

Brain was filled with glee as he said it. There was no mistake about it he, Brain
Unglaus, had clipped the nail of the monster Shalltear Bloodfallen.

"I cut her fingernail off," Brain repeated. He was trying his best to control the
overflowing joy that welled up from the depths of his heart, but even so, he was
practically trembling with emotion.

"I... I see. Cutting a fingernail off... I guess doing it with a sword is pretty
impressive..."

The thief shook his head and trembled slightly.

"...that nail belonged to someone who could rival Sebas-sama. Don't you think
she must have been very strong?"

"Is that so? As expected of Brain Unglaus..."

Brain struggled to contain his girlish excitement as he was showered in praise. He

shook his head to clear these foolish ideas from it.

"Climb-kun, no, Climb. After seeing Sebas-sama you should know, right? There
are people stronger than me everywhere. Even someone like Momon the Black
has probably reached Sebas-sama's level too. So keep this in mind, when I tell
you to run, run. Even if you try and help, you'll just get in the way. Please promise
me, next time, don't question what I say and just do it."

"I... I understand."

"Then that's good. You're serving the Princess, right? Because of that, you could
endure Sebas-sama's killing intent, right? Then make sure you keep your
priorities straight."

Brain patted Climb on the shoulder, and looked back at the direction from which
they had fled.

Why? Why hasn't she pursued me yet? Is there some reason? I totally didn't
expect her to show up here. Could it be, it was because of the warehouse district?

Brain recalled Renner's words.

Could it be that she was looking for the same item as Jaldabaoth? If that's the
case, wouldn't that make her one of Jaldabaoth's agents?

Since a monster like Shalltear had shown up, the only sensible thing to do would
be to abandon the mission and flee right away, but would Climb be able to do
that? Since he had already heard Brain's lecture, he would probably listen to
Brain and escape.

Would that really be a good thing?

It was obviously good to be concerned for Climb's safety, but people sometimes
chose to put their lives in danger for the sake of something else, and being
ordered by Renner on this suicide mission was such an occasion.

Brain did not know what kind of life Climb had lived before he earned his name,
or how he had served the Golden Princess afterward. Even so, Brain did not think
it would be wise to unnecessarily interfere with Climb's determination to carry out
Renner's orders.

Brain pulled the thief over, and spoke to him after making sure Climb couldn't see
or hear them talk.

"Hey, do you think it was a good idea to bring Climb here? Wouldn't it be better
to make sure he went home safe rather than completing the mission?"

"...You're a big old softy, aren't you?"

"Enough with that nonsense. And considering you're the one who volunteered to
be the emergency stand-in for this suicide mission, I think you're the bigger
softy."

The thief laughed nervously, and then looked at the confused youth who was
facing them.

"How shall I put it... seeing a kid like him fight so hard made me remember the
days when I was still young, even if it was just for a while. I think I understand
how you feel about this too. Even so..."

The thief's eyes shone with a sharp and brilliant conviction.

"It was the path he chose. We have no right to force him off it."

Brain sighed.

"I'm interested in that brat too. I'm pretty certain how he feels about the princess,
judging by the look in his eye and the way he reacts when put in danger. Hell of a

kid, isn't he? He's honest and brash. Because of that... he's like a thief who's set
his eyes on the Kingdom's most valuable treasure."

"Thats right. He might still die, but at least he'll have chosen it."

With that, Brain made up his mind.

"Then, we'd best get a move on. Don't know when Shalltear might catch up with
us."

Part 2
Month of Descending Fire (9th Month), 5th Day, 03:38

The adventurers from the palace retreated past the barricade to the rear. The
guards they passed through had been ordered to hold the line until the
adventurers' wounds could be healed.

Once the adventurers had passed through the opening in the barricade, it was
immediately filled up again with planks and other debris.

Nobody else remained in front of the barricade. This meant that this was the
frontline.

Looking back, the guards could see the ragged adventurers as they limped
towards the rear. Fresh claw and scorch marks adorned their armor, as did the
sprays of fresh blood.

Further behind that was the wall of fire burning in the background. They had
penetrated roughly 150 meters into enemy territory. Indeed, judging by the dread
that the once-familiar capital had inspired in them, it felt like a foreboding, alien
world; enemy territory indeed.

The adventurers had spent time looting the surrounding houses and tearing parts
of them down to form a barricade. The guards had thought it would be an useful
obstacle, but now it seemed puny and insignificant. It felt like it would crumble at
the first sign of serious resistance.

"It's okay. The demons haven't pursued the adventurers. The enemy hasn't
chosen to attack, they're just making a strong defense. No problems. They won't
attack."

Someone else was repeating these words again. They were meant to mask his
anxiety and embodied his wish to return home alive. He repeated his prayer to
his god.

There were forty-five men manning the barricade. They carried spears and wore
leather armor. Among these was a man in a helmet, Bona Ingray. He was one of
the many guard captains mobilized tonight.

Though he had the title of captain, in truth he was no different than the other
guards. His physique was nothing special, nor was his mind particularly sharp.
The younger guards were stronger and faster than him. He had made it to this
position simply because he had served as a guard until he was forty, and because
there was nobody else to fill it.

His face turned pale, and his hands gripped his spear so tightly the edges of his
fingers turned white. Looking closely, one could see that his legs were trembling.
His gaze was fixed forward solely because he did not want to see something
horrible. His entirely unreliable posture only increased the guards' unease further.

Then again, it was to be expected, considering this was the first time their lives
would actually be on the line in a battle.

The Kingdom fought with the Empire every year, sending troops to Kattse Plain.
But the guards were tasked with the protection of the city, and thus they were
not dispatched to the frontlines. Because of this, the position of city guard was
coveted by those citizens who did not want to fight against the Empire. But now

They had had ample experience dealing with squabbles between drunken
peasants, but there had never been a case where they had to fight to the death.
Because of that, their fear grew even further. The only reason they did not break
and flee was because they knew running away would be an unforgivable sin.

Even if they were somehow absolved, they would still be guilty of not protecting
the city properly. That was the sole reason why they had not been sent to the
front. If they failed in doing that, then they would surely be forced into the
frontlines during the next war with the Empire.

"I'm going to quit my job as a guard if I make it through this in one piece."

Bona grumbled to himself quietly, and many of the people around him agreed.

"Do you still remember what the adventurers said?"

"Are we talking about what to do if we encounter hellhounds, great hellhounds,

gazer devils and demon swarms?"

"That's right. Does anyone know anything about fighting demons? Especially their
weak points, what they're bad at, that sort of thing."

Nobody answered; they were too busy looking at each other.

Bona's expression conveyed how useless he thought they were without having to
say a word. When he saw dissatisfaction on some of the others' faces, he looked
away and slammed the butt of his spear into the ground.

"Damn it! Can't those adventurers explain better?"

The adventurers who had shared their knowledge with the guards had been
heavily wounded and were falling back as fast as they could. Just telling them the
name of the enemy was all they could do, let alone telling them how they looked
like, or how to fight them.

However, it would be too harsh on the adventurers to solely blame them for this
situation. There was no proper communication between the guards and the
adventurers, and as a result the amount of information being shared was low. In
fact, forming the defense line out of guards who didn't know anything could be
blamed on the senior guards as well. Also, not all guards were uninformed about
the demons. Under different circumstances, some of them might have learned
something about the enemy.

One such platoon of guards had sent some of their members to help the
adventurers retreating past them, and had learned a lot in the process.

This group, however, had not done so because their leader was frozen with fear
and had not even turned to look at the retreating adventurers, and he certainly

did not want to decrease the amount of troops guarding the barricade by
assisting the adventurers.

"They're paid more than us to do the same job! They should fight harder! Until
they die!"

Several men nodded as Bona shouted.

"Our lives are at risk too! Those guys shouldn't be running off and leaving it all to
us!"

Bona called out to the nearby guards. Those further away stared coldly at him,
while the ones closer to him yelled out their displeasure with the adventurers as
well.

"They're here!"

At the sound of the lookouts' voices, Bona looked like he'd been choked.

Everyone's eyes filled with the shapes of the demons loping towards them from
the shadowed street.

At their head was a demon that looked like a cross between a man and a frog. Its
skin was a jaundiced yellow, gleaming with a sticky, shiny coating. It was covered
in huge lumps all over, which looked like human faces pressed out against the
skin from the inside.

A mouth that could swallow a man in one gulp gaped open, and an abnormally
long tongue began tasting the air.

Around it, the hellhounds followed, as though waiting for their prey.

After that were demons which looked like a human being that had been skinned
and its exposed musculature painted with some kind of black, tarry liquid.

There were fifty of the hounds, one swollen-bodied demon covered in faces, and
six of the flayed demons.

"There's too many!" Bona cried like the tolling of a bell. "We can't hold them!
Run!"

"Dammit!" came the angry retort. "Shut the hell up!"

Ignoring Bona's wails of despair, the guards looked to their comrades, tension
knotting up their faces.

"Listen up! All you need to do is stick them with the pointy end! Our job isn't to
kill them! It's to buy time! It's not hard! We're all going to make it!"

We're going to make it. Some people repeated it, and then it was taken up by
others.

"Hell yeah! Let's go!"

Even the guards with terrified faces grabbed their spears and got into their ranks.

"You come join us too!"

Someone grabbed Bona and dragged him to his place. There was no time for
playing around.

The demonic beasts howled, and began tearing down the barricade at an
incredible speed. The guards' spears stabbed out at them from between the everwidening gaps in the barricade.

The pained wails of the hellhounds rose up from all around them. Those demonic
beasts that had not been stabbed hastily fled the barricade. They howled
mournfully as they paced around the barricade, as though assessing the
situation.

Some of the more collected guards thrust their spears through the gaps at the
nearer hellhounds, which drove them away.

Slowly, the faces of the guards began to cheer up.

The grins of the demons in the back were disgusting, and the guards were still
uneasy because they didn't know what the demons would do. However, letting
time pass like this was still good. After all, their job was not to defeat the demons.

"Wh-what the?!" a lone guard cried out as he watched what was happening in
front of him.

The enemy had formed into a neat line, beyond the reach of the thrusting spears.

This was completely different from the wild assault just now. The guards began
growing uneasy. If they knew what the hellhounds were up to, maybe they could
have changed their formation or done something about it. As it was, all they
could do was thrust their spears between the gaps.

But just when they thought that was all they would have to do, the demonic
beasts opened their maws, so widely that it looked as though they were
dislocated. The red within their throats was not flesh, but fire.

Jets of crimson flame shot out in unison at the barricade, engulfing the entire
thing in flames. The guards' eyes could see nothing but the fire.

Although the fire was intense, it still could not burn down the barricades within a
few seconds. This didn't make much difference to the guards on the other side,
though.

Screams broke out all around. Some had their eyes burned up, others had their
lungs and gullets scorched because they inhaled the flames. In the end, all of
them fell like flies. The only guards to survive were the ones at the sides, because
the ones in the center were no longer breathing after being consumed by the
flame.

"W-we're doomed!"

The words nobody wanted to say escaped from Bona's mouth. His movements
thereafter were remarkably fast, as he threw down his spear and discarded his
helmet, all to let him flee faster.

The remaining guards were stunned. They had considered retreating, of course,
but none of them had embraced the idea as completely as him.

Bona ran away with a speed that was hard for human beings to describe. The
surviving guards looked on slack-jawed as Bona's back faded into the distance.

However, his flight was abruptly halted by a demon falling out of the sky.

The swollen-bodied demon flew without wings, and landed squarely on Bona's
back, making a croaking noise as it did. Bona cried out in pain. Though it could
have killed him easily, the demon did not do so. However, in light of what it did
afterward, it was definitely not out of mercy.

The demon opened its mouth and swallowed Bona whole. Its distended belly
hardly changed even as it ingested him no, there was a new swelling, with a
human face on it.

Though it was hard to tell, it looked like it belonged to Bona.

Even though the sound of the barricade being torn down reached their ears, the
guards did not move. So much for being an obstacle; against demons, it was little
more than a pile of matchsticks.

The demons who broke through the barricade encircled the guards. A strangled
cry came up from them, for they knew they would certainly die here.

It was answered by the laughter of the demons, mocking the guards' foolishness.

One of the guards looked to the sky, praying for his god to save him.

What answered him was something else entirely.

He saw a group of strange-looking people flying through the air. Two of them were
supporting a third, who was wearing jet-black plate armor. He was wrapped in a
crimson cape and carrying a gigantic sword in each hand.

"Throw me."

Though they seemed far away, the voice carried clearly over the distance.

The two flying supporters released their grip. The dark warrior picked up speed,
as though he had been pushed forward by some force from behind, tracing a
trajectory downward that ended in the middle of the road. He skidded across the
ground as though there were no friction, only managing to brake after chopping
off the head of a hellhound in passing.

Both sides paused to watch this outrageously dramatic entry. The silence was
deafening.

"I am the adventurer Momon. Fall back. I'll take over."

At first, the soldiers were unable to comprehend what the warrior of darkness had
just said to them. Then, the howls of several hellhounds brought them back to
reality. He was the savior that they needed.

"Hellhounds... that's all of them? Even twice the number wouldn't be enough!"

The hellhounds sprang at the dark warrior Momon from all sides. In seconds they
had enveloped him, forming a cordon from which there was no escape.

Even if one tried to parry them with a sword, he would be torn apart by the
surrounding hellhounds. Even if one tried to kill the attackers directly, he would
still be mauled to death by the rest of the beasts. Being hit by a leaping hound's
charge would break one's balance and leave him unable to defend against the
attacks that would follow.

This was a brutal strategy that leveraged on superior numbers to win.

The anguish on the face of the guards was only natural, but none of them knew
what true power was.

The gigantic swords slashed and killed, displacing air in their wake.

Everyone present was speechless.

That was a single attack. A normal person would only have been able to bring
one hound down at most. However, just as the sword-wielder was no mere
human, that stroke was not something a mere human could do. That single blow
cleaved through four of the seemingly invincible hellhounds that the guards had
no hope of defeating. Momon turned with the momentum of his swing, though he
had slightly lost his balance because he had used all his strength. There were still
other hellhounds left, and now it seemed impossible for him to avoid their
attacks.

Even though he wore a suit of sturdy plate armor, the hellhounds had sharp
teeth, and claws that could rend steel. And there would be no way to survive
unscathed after being attacked by that many hellhounds.

In the guards' eyes, they imagined their would-be savior taking countless wounds
before them.

However, that was far too presumptuous.

Momon did not try to force himself back into balance, but turned with the
momentum. The crimson cape fluttered, like a cyclone of fire. With graceful steps
that almost looked like dancing, Momon stepped lightly upon the ground, while
his swords spun in a horizontal sweep from left to right, roaring as they went.

The remaining hellhounds were cut apart, their bodies flung far into the distance
by the power of his swings. Any hellhounds who could still move were long gone.

"Just... just two hits?"

The murmuring from one guard represented the words in their hearts. Or rather,
after seeing the majesty of this display, they had nothing else to say.

"Next up... Devourers and Gazer Devils, huh. How boring."

After muttering to himself, Momon strode over to the demons. There was no
caution or wariness in his footsteps, as though he were walking through a park.
Normally, the guards would have called out to him to stop, but after seeing his
prowess, nobody could even think of doing that.

The only thing mere mortals could do was watch the back of a great warrior as he
went to work.

Unable to bear the encroaching pressure that came from the man approaching
him so casually, the red-eyed demon roared and leapt at him.

One flash.

The dismembered parts of the corpse flew in all directions.

Momon had not broken his stride for even a single second. He continued walking,
as though the red-eyed demon had never existed, with an ease like he was alone
in the wilderness.

"...Incredible..."

As though reacting to the guards' words, the Devourer opened its maw. It was like
the jaws of those snakes which could open up and swallow their prey whole. In its
depths, one could see the flickers of fires within. The tormented expressions
intensified on the faces pressed out from the inside of its body, and theirs were
the screams of souls condemned to a fate worse than death.

The Devourer could consume the souls of its victims to produce a wail that would
terrify and kill any living creature.

However, before that, Bona and the Devourer's head were both chopped off.

The thrown sword fell on their heads and lodged deeply into the earth.

"There's no problem if you kill it before it can wail."

With that, Momon walked over and wrenched his sword out of the corpse.

In just over ten seconds, he had exterminated the demons the guards thought
were impossible to beat.

The guards cried out. It was the joyous sound of men who had been granted a
miraculous reprieve from death.

Though bathed in praise, Momon took no notice of it and instead spoke calmly to
the guards.

"...After this, I will be moving to lead the adventurers' counterattack. You fellows
need to hold the line for just a little longer. Well, I guess since I've already taken
these guys out, the next wave wont be coming so soon. Nabe, Evileye, you can
come get me now."

The two magic casters descended from the sky to pick Momon up. As he rose into
the air, Momon turned to say one last thing to the guards.

"I'm going to take out the enemy leader. Until then, please protect the civilians
behind you. I'm counting on you guys."

As they watched Momon fly from the area, the guards sighed.

If a hero like that put his trust in them, then there would be no complaints at all
about defending this area with their lives.

"Oi! Get the roadblocks up! We need to get ready to stop the enemy's advance!
Worry about what happens when it gets torn down later!"

Month of Descending Fire (9th Month), 5th Day, 03:44

Lakyus stood at the head of the assault team that was formed of mithril and
orichalcum ranked adventurers. Tina was by her side too, and together they
advanced.

Before she set out, Lakyus had heavily considered her position. Anyone who
could use resurrection magic should not be on the frontlines. However, Lakyus'
absence would lead to a huge drop in fighting power. Since the priority was to get
Momon safely to Jaldabaoth, it stood to reason that Lakyus should not stay in the
back.

They avoided the route Momon had taken, instead choosing to take one that led
them to a location which had a barricade manned by guards. All they saw on the
way there were streets painted in blood, with chunks of shredded meat scattered
everywhere. Of course, the barricade had been destroyed so thoroughly that
there was no sign it had ever existed to begin with.

In order not to make too much noise, the adventurers formed up into a group and
crept ahead. However, after only about thirty meters of movement, they turned a
corner and were beset by demons.

At the start of the battle, the adventurers, with their high fighting ability, enjoyed
an overwhelming advantage in combat, but gradually, the balance of power
began to shift. This was because their opponents had a numerical advantage that
overwhelmed the adventurers' prowess in single combat. Their numbers were so
great that it seemed as though every demon in the area had converged on them.

"Hold fast! Keep fighting!"

Lakyus called out while activating her group support magic. Of course, none of
the adventurers would retreat. They knew how important this battle was.

In contrast with Evileye's task, which was to eliminate the trash that tried to get
in Momon's way, their task was to put pressure on the demons and keep them
from spreading out.

In that sense, fighting so many demons head-on was, in a way, Momon's greatest
support. The longer they fought here, the higher Momon's chances of victory
would be.

Warcries and the clashing of steel blended together, and the sound of spells
being cast and special abilities being used like flame breath burning up human
bodies blended together in a chaotic mix.

After Lakyus confirmed the situation, her face contorted. The words of a certain
adventurer stuck in her mind.

"The demons have become stronger."

Could it be that they had opened the door to the demon world, and summoned
even more powerful demons? Was the wall of fire the boundary between this
world and the next? What would happen if they let things progress over time?
Even if they defeated Jaldabaoth, could they restore the capital to peace? Would
this all be for nothing?

"Theres no point thinking about this!"

As she shouted it out, Lakyus' countless worries dispersed.

If she did nothing, she would never understand. For that reason, Lakyus drew her
sword.

"Shoot!"

One of the Floating Swords hovering at her shoulders rose up and shot out at her
command. With a speed that split the air, it pierced a leaping hellhound right
through the mouth, destroying it without leaving so much as a corpse behind.

Looking around, Lakyus realised they had been surrounded. The advance which
had just begun had halted, and since they were encircled by multiple layers of
the enemy, there was no chance of relief. There was nothing to do but fight.

The vanguard cast aside their broken weapons and drew their spares. The magic
casters who had run out of mana used their scrolls or wands to cast their spells
instead. They were running on fumes.

The outer ring of adventurers were orichalcum ranked, while the mithril ranked
defended the wounded in the middle and the magic casters who had run out of
mana.

This is bad... if this keeps up, we'll be worn down and defeated. Are we once
again unable to defeat Jaldabaoth?

A cry rang out, and as Lakyus turned her head, she saw a warrior who had been
knocked down by a demon.

"Slash!"

Before Lakyus could move, Tina was charging at the demon, filling the gap that
had been formed.

The fallen warrior was carried off by other adventurers. It was good that he was
still alive, but the situation was still very bad. The fact that nobody was casting
healing spells was a clear sign that the mana of the priests who used divine
magic was completely depleted.

We have to fall back.

If their lines were broken, they would be routed in an instant. Lakyus could not let
them die like this. She considered what might happen if Momon were to be
defeated, and realised that she would have to be very careful about it.

Retreating while completely worn out would be extremely difficult. It would be

better to fall back while they still had the strength to do so.

"Fall"

Just as Lakyus was about to give the command to retreat, she gasped as a new
demon descended from the sky.

It was roughly three meters tall, and its muscular body was covered in scales that
looked like crawling insects. It had a tail that resembled a snake.

Its head was a flaming skull, and its eyes were beacons of blazing white fire in
empty black sockets.

In its mighty arms, it held a gigantic maul.

It spread the bat-like wings on its back. With a flap of its wings, it sent a wave of
freezing air cascading forth, and a wave of soul-shattering terror accompanied it.
Although they had fear-resistance magic cast and thus did not panic, this was a
clear demonstration of the power of this demon, which was stronger than any
they had encountered so far.

Sweat flowed like a river.

"This is bad."

With ample mana and the adventuring parties at full strength, they would
probably have been able to beat it. If they could just learn more about their
opponent and fight it later, they would definitely have triumphed, but right now,
none of these conditions were present. Evileye, who was very knowledgeable and
could use powerful magic, was not here. Gagaran, who could defend against her
opponents' blows and immediately press the advantage to counterattack, was
not here. Tia, who could deftly evade her enemies' attacks and attack them with
her ninjutsu, was not here either. The only ones here were two tired people.

She looked over to Tina, who nodded to show that she was ready to die here.
Lakyus closed both her hands around the hilt of Kilineyram and began walking
toward the demon. At this moment, a nearby orichalcum-ranked adventurer
grabbed her shoulder and shouted.

"We'll hold him back! You should escape!"

Seeing the look of surprise on Lakyus' face, he continued speaking.

"If you're alive, you can use resurrection magic. Because of that, we can't let you
fight it, if only because the rest of us are counting on you to revive us!"

A smile filled with masculine charm appeared on the adventurers face. It was a
smile that suited an orichalcum-ranked adventurer like him. The adventurers
around him nodded in unison.

When one thought calmly about it, they were right. Rather than prepare herself
to die, she should prepare herself to live, so she could extend a lifeline to the
ones who would fall in battle.

"The material components for a resurrection spell are very expensive. You'd best
sell your lives dearly!"

"Hey, didn't you say you wanted to be the pride of the princess or something?"

"Let the damn nobles pay for it! They've certainly got the coin!"

And just like that, as though they were going for a picnic, several adventurers
peeled off from the huddled group. There was no discussion, not even a glance in
each others' eyes they simply walked out in perfect synchronization to stand
before the demon.

Seeing the carefree way in which they went to their deaths, Lakyus bit her lip and
turned away.

"Break out with all your strength! As long as you can walk away in the end it'll be
fine!"

With that, Lakyus charged the demonic hordes, raising Kilineyram in her hands.
She trusted her defense entirely to her armor and her magic. Abandoning the
nearly-broken defensive line, she prepared to carve a crimson road through the
demons.

It felt like she was being ripped to shreds, her flesh pierced by daggers, forcing
Lakyus to grit her teeth against the pain that assailed her. From a detached point
of view, she knew that her body was nearing its limits, so she cast a silent
healing spell. Although Lakyus absolutely had to survive this encounter, she could
not do it without exerting herself to her utmost.

"Haaaaaaa!"

Lakyus channelled most of her remaining mana into Kilineyram. The stars in its
body began to shine with an unearthly radiance, and the body of the blade
swelled up as well.

Super skill! Dark Blade Mega Impact!

With a horizontal sweep, black power flowed out in a vast, slashing wave. The
lower ranking demons were reduced to sightless atoms by the explosive burst of
non-elemental energy.

Strictly speaking, calling the attack was not necessary, but if it worked, it worked.
However

"Still... not... enough?!"

Lakyus' tired eyes could only see a veritable wall of low-tier demons. Although
she had just blown away so many of them in one stroke, the breach she made
had been immediately filled back up.

Could she break through? Lakyus' unease began growing again. Kilineyram had
returned to its original dimensions.

At this moment, Lakyus saw behind the demons a flash of metal, the roar of a
man's voice.

Sixfold Slash of Light!

The six simultaneous cuts cleaved the demon hordes apart.

"Sixfold Slash of Light! Pace of the Wind! Hooooh!"

Once more, seven demons were slashed through like a hot knife through butter.
That sharpness made her think of Razor's Edge, the sword that could cut through
anything, and it scared the demons senseless.

"Kill them all!"

In time with his wrathful cry, a hedge of spears bristled out from behind Gazef.

There was no mistaking the glint of that metal. Countless spears stabbed out
from behind Gazef. Those were the palace guard knights and troops. A force of
hundreds of soldiers that looked like they were going to flood the alley.

Seeing that they were outnumbered more than two to one, the demon hordes
encirclement began to waver.

Shouts of joy rang out, and the ragged adventurers began to retreat, covered by
the soldiers.

"Why what is Stronoff-sama doing here?"

Wasnt he supposed to stay behind to protect the palace and the royal family? As
though in response to Lakyus' words, his face turned in another direction.

Lakyus' line of sight followed his, and her eyes widened. There were four priests
and four arcane magic casters protecting an old man. Upon his head was the
crown which only one person in the kingdom was permitted to bear. His body was
clothed in sturdy armor.

King Ranpossa III.

This was a supremely dangerous move.

Although his body was protected by plate armor, some demons' attacks could
easily pierce steel. Also, even if he were protected, area-effect spells that
overwhelmed his protectors could still harm the king. And the king was still an
ordinary person, so he would probably die if struck by some magic. Even if
resurrection spells could be used on him, the king would surely be unable to bear
the life force drain it would cause.

"His Majesty so declared are you to protect this lifeless city, or me? There can
only be one answer to that. To guard the King's body is my duty. That being the
case, this is a battlefield where we must fight! Charge!"

The soldiers let out an earthshaking cry, and thundered forward.

Force clashed against force, but just when everyone thought the tide had turned,
the body of an orichalcum ranked adventurer flew through the air, hitting a
nearby wall and leaving a bright red splatter mark.

"OOOOOOHHHHHHH!"

As though saying, "come get some", the giant demons body halted the soldiers
in their tracks.

There were monsters which could not be beaten by mere numbers alone.

"Stronoff-sama! Give me a hand!"

"Of course."

The voice that followed Gazef's answer made Lakyus' eyes go wide.

"Hang on. Don't you need an awesome fighter backing you up?"

"And an excellent ninja-to-be as well."

There was no mistaking these voices. Still, Lakyus called out in surprise, still
barely able to believe her ears.

"Gagaran! Tia!"

The two of them slowly stepped out in front of her. They were fully armed and
ready for battle.

"Hey. I've gotten stiff from all this sleeping around, so I asked Stronoff-san to
bring me along."

"Ready to fight."

It shouldn't be like this. She already told them they were forbidden to fight right
after being resurrected. Normally, one would need to get complete bed rest and
even then they would still feel drained. Even so, they knew how important this
battle was, which was why they had joined the fight.

Getting everyone back together was the biggest boost she could receive.

Lakyus prayed with all her heart.

She prayed that Momon would defeat Jaldabaoth, and get rid of the demons in
the capital.

"I see him."

Looking ahead, one could see the masked demon standing in the center of the
plaza, making no attempt to hide himself. Although she could not see the forms
of other demons, Evileye was not foolish enough to think that they were not
there.

Having noticed them approaching, Jaldabaoth turned and bowed elegantly. There
could only be one meaning behind this.

"A trap... what now, Momon-sama?"

"It doesn't matter what awaits us. We just have to smash it all."

"Just so."

Momon's tone no longer had its original seriousness and formality, which was
probably because their travel together had made them more familiar with each
other. With this in mind, Evileye began switching to a more casual way of
speaking as well. If she kept concealing her true self, when they started going out
seriously, they would probably break up right away. So even though revealing her
true self might have been too early, taking a more casual tone would probably be
a good idea, Evileye thought.

"It seems it's starting right on schedule."

From behind, the sound of drums and battlecries rang out. In order to ensure
Momon could fight Jaldabaoth one-on-one, the troops would begin their attack.
This was the only chance they would have. As such, there was no other way to
save the capital other than by defeating Jaldabaoth.

"Ahh, that seems to be the case. It would appear that its time for the final battle.
Momon-sama... leave the other enemies to myself and Nabe. Momon-sama
should focus all his attention on fighting Jaldabaoth."

"Understood. In that case, since you've come this far with me, when I defeat
Jaldabaoth and return in triumph, can I hope that you will stand by my side?
Please work with Nabe on this, for I hope the three of us can return together."

"Understood, Momon-san."

The three of them landed in front of Jaldabaoth. Evileye looked around, and from
a house adjoining the plaza, a maid appeared.

She wore a mask like the last time she saw her, with a fixed expression. But
Evileye could feel the hatred directed at her.

There's probably more than one of them.

Jaldabaoth already knew who was stronger between herself and the insect maid.
Now that their side also had Nabe, a magic caster who might be able to rival him
in power, there was no way he would join the battle alone. Was he planning to
swamp them in demons, or was there another subordinate of a comparable level
waiting in the wings? Both possibilities made Evileye break out in a cold sweat.

After that maid, more people in masks similar to his appeared.

They were all wearing different kinds of maid uniforms.

And they numbered...

"...Four of them?!"

There were a total of five people with fighting power comparable to herself. Two
against five would be far too great a difference in power. The battle seemed
unwinnable from the very start.

"Damn it! I underestimated Jaldabaoth's forces!"

If this kept up, they would be overwhelmed by sheer numbers, and then the
maids would go on to interfere in Momon and Jaldabaoth's duel.

In an evenly-matched battle, even a little bit of support could make the difference
between victory and defeat, just like that battle with the insect maid.

"Then I will leave the five of them to you."

Saying that, Momon grasped his swords in his hands, striding naturally toward
Jaldabaoth. As his mighty back receded from her, Evileye's heart filled with
sadness. If only she could lose herself in that flowing red cape of his, it would
clear away all her unease and frustration.

Evileye rebuked the part of her that wanted to reach out a hand to him.

She had originally come here with the determination to die. Even if her
opponents were stronger than expected, she could not do anything as shameful
as beg for help. And Momon's earlier words were clearly a sign of how much he
trusted her. A man like him would never be so callous or cruel.

Come to think of it, he definitely said something from behind his back. If it was
Evileye and Nabe, they would definitely be able to hold the enemy back until I
won, something like that.

A fire blazed up from within the depths of Evileye's heart.

"Then here I come, De... demon!"

Momon roared, and slashed at Jaldabaoth. A fierce battle started. In order to keep
the other two from being drawn in, Momon pressured Jaldabaoth, slowly forcing
him away.

"Then, I'll take three and you take two, how about that?"

"Are you sure? I'm alright with three people too."

"Hmph," Nabe smirked.

"You take two, I'll take three."

Evileye felt she had a better grasp on Nabe's personality, and smiled.

To be more precise, Evileye's impression of Nabe as a rival was improving, as a

fellow mage who could stand by Momon's side.

Really, if it was just Momon and Nabe, I could just take off my ring and reveal my
true form... Well, first I need to go back alive.

"You're so stubborn. All right, I get it. I'll take care of these two quickly, and then
come to support you. Fight like you want to live what?"

Evileye had the feeling that everyone present all five maids and Nabe were
all looking at her. As though they had already planned out everything in advance,
something seemed out of place.

"No, there's nothing."

After that cold answer, Nabe took the first step to the side.

"Then, although I said I would handle three of them, our opponents will be the
one deciding who they will send at us."

The ones who were lured out were the insect maid, the twin-braided maid, and
the drill-haired maid. The ones who stayed with Evileye were the maid with the
bunned-up hair and the long-haired maid.

"My name is Alpha. This is Delta. We shall be your opponents."

"Are you now? This is all quite formal. My name is Evileye. I shall defeat the two
of you!"

Evileye had not intended to prolong the fight with conversation. Had she thought
that way, her opponents might have picked up on it and killed her instantly. She
had to be patient.

"Is that so? How scary."

Evileye's first move was to activate her ace in the hole. It was a special ability
that would cause the negative energy flowing through her body to overload, and
infuse every attack she made with negative status effects.

"Here I come!"

With a cry, Evileye began her spell.

Month of Descending Fire (9th Month), 5th Day, 03:59

"Don't look down on me."

The negative energy-infused crystals sprayed out at the running maid, Alpha.
This was a bludgeoning and piercing physical attack, and the negative energy
would drain her life force.

At least, it should have. However, Alpha kept running, with no sign that she had
been hit at all.

"Kuh!"

Evileye took to the sky. Close combat was a very bad idea for an arcane magic
caster. Putting more distance between them would increase her chances of
victory.

As she floated into the sky, something bounced away before her eyes. It must
have been an attack deflected by her Crystal Wall, but at the same time, the
sparkling light wrapping her body began dimming rapidly.

Although it could neutralize fairly powerful attacks, she would be lucky if the only
things they threw at her were things the Crystal Wall could negate by itself. The
Crystal Wall would only work against attacks below a certain level, and it was
completely useless for anything more.

"Again?!"

The one using ranged weapons was the maid in the rear, Delta. She had fired on
Evileye when she was flying earlier.

"Hah!"

Alpha entered a stance, and lunged at Evileye. It made her click her tongue.

Normally, Evileye wouldn't even take anyone coming at her with their bare fists
seriously, but that was only the arrogance she felt toward the insignificant beings
who had always been beneath her. Shortly after fighting with Alpha, she was
keenly aware of that. Alpha was truly a fearsome opponent. Every time she tried
to open a gap between them, her opponent would come in swinging, several
times faster than herself. If she took a direct hit without the protection of her
barriers, she would be destroyed.

If she was still with Gagaran and Tia, she would not have been so careless. Now,
Evileye felt like she was walking on a tightrope.

The most annoying thing was their flawless coordination. Teamwork could greatly
increase the fighting power of adventurers. Right now, the two of them were
giving her an object lesson in jolly cooperation.

"How can demons work together so well... what the hell!"

I have no right to say that, Evileye thought. The others in her party were human,
but she was one of the undead.

A gang sound rang out, and the protective Crystal Wall grew ever thinner. One
more hit and it would be pierced.

Evileye cursed, trying to get away from Alpha, who was intent on chasing her
down and beating her up. Although Evileye's body was superior to a normal
human by virtue of being a vampire, Alpha's body was even more so. The only
reason why Alpha had not caught her already was entirely because of her flight
spell.

Using magic required focus, during which the body could not move. As a result,
having to constantly back away was very difficult. Movement would disrupt one's
sense of balance and make concentration difficult. This was why magic casters

stood still to cast their spells. Because of this, Evileye had chosen to use Flight
to maintain a distance without disrupting her concentration, and thus fight a
mobile battle. That was nothing special by itself; any magic caster who could use
Flight had mastered that tactic. How well they did it was a matter of talent, but
as a vampire, Evileye had the natural ability to fly and 250 years of experience to
master it in.

Even so, it took effort to escape from Alpha. And although she could kite one
opponent in circles in the large plaza, there were two opponents.

Another gang sound rang out, and the barrier protecting her was completely
destroyed.

It was hard to believe anything could break the Crystal Wall in three hits, but
there was nothing to be done about it.

Sand Field All!

Sand particles dispersed throughout the surroundings. Although Delta was too far
away to reach, Alpha was completely caught in the area. Because it would affect
one's comrades too, this spell was useless in a group fight. Any opponent within
its area would be immobilized, as well as being blinded, silenced and dazed. On
top of that, because of Evileye's trump card, the sand was infused with negative
energy that would drain life force.

This 5th tier spell was her own creation. It was one of the strongest cards Evileye
had up her sleeve.

However, Alpha did not slow down, nor did she look like she was hurt at all.

"But how?!"

Was she immune to immobilization and negative energy?

"You deserve praise for that! What a splendid set of resistances!"

Alpha's answer was to vanish. As though she had performed a short-range

teleport, she materialized in front of Evileye and kicked her in the face.

Her mask cracked with a mekii sound as Evileye was flung far away.

She bounced off the floor with a dang, dang before she managed to recover,
groggily shaking her head.

"Crystal Wall!"

Alpha's fist collided with the suddenly-materialized crystal wall, producing a

thunderous crash. Cracks spread where Alpha had struck it, as though it had
been hit by a wrecking ball.

"...Hmph!"

Another "dang" rang out, and as Alpha's foot struck the ground, she transmitted
her inner force into the cracks in Evileye's wall, and it crumbled before her eyes.

"Is this Charged Energy Release?!"

At this moment, while trying to clear some distance, Evileye felt a great tremor
run through the earth. She did not know where it came from, but her instinct told
her that it was the aftershocks of the battle of those two.

"Are they still fighting... no, most likely their fight has reached its climax. That
means... I have to buy more time!"

As she said that, Evileye charged at the attacking Alpha.

She just needed a little bit longer. She had to drag this fight out. With that in
mind, Evileye fully prepared herself for death, and carried out her kamikaze
attack.

Alpha's hands were moving in circles in preparation to receive Evileye. She stood
tall, like an invulnerable fortress, but even seeing this, Evileye did not stop

Month of Descending Fire (9th Month), 5th Day, 03:53

While Ainz and Jaldabaoth struggled with each other, they crashed into a house.
The door shattered as Ainz drove Jaldabaoth into it, scattering splinters
everywhere. The interior was dark and cramped, unsuited for Ainz to swing his
sword.

Ignoring Jaldabaoth, Ainz rose to his feet and walked off. Jaldabaoth got up as
well and followed him. They entered another room, with a small table, two chairs,
and Mare.

Mare pulled up a chair for Ainz to sit. Then, with Ainz's permission, Jaldabaoth
removed his mask, revealing Demiurges face.

"Firstly, is this room secure?" Ainz asked.

"There is no problem. The words spoken here are for our ears alone."

"Is that so... Well, then. First off, I have a favor to ask of you. Do not harm the
guards I passed on the way here. While this place is fairly distant from E-Rantel,
helping people in distress is good publicity."

"Understood. Will it be acceptable to transmit orders by telepathy?"

"Go ahead. In the meantime, tell me about your plan."

Even though Demiurge had already explained the plan to Narberal via Message,
she had not told him anything about it yet. He was forced to remain silent and
not express his displeasure in order to make sure the plan wasnt ruined, but in
his heart he was worried about it.

"Very well. This operation has four main objectives"

"Ho... I only counted three. Four, you say?"

Demiurge smiled. It was a smile of smug satisfaction.

"I feel as though I have gotten the better of Ainz-sama for once."

Ainz magnanimously waved his hand. Of course, he did not even know what the
first three were, but Demiurge's words still made him uneasy all over.

"You've always been one step ahead. I've got a long way to go."

"What are you saying, my liege? Truly, you are too humble."

"No, really forget it. Then, tell me about these objectives."

"Indeed. To begin with, the objective of attacking the warehouse district was to
secure the wealth and goods within and transport them to Nazarick. To facilitate
this, I had Shalltear open Gates in front of the warehouses, and let Pandora's
Actor handle the matter of transportation."

This was a very profitable objective indeed. Ainz silently praised Demiurge from
the bottom of his heart.

Losing so much wealth would make life in the capital more difficult in the future,
but at this point in time, Ainz had no way of knowing that. Right now, all he felt
was relief that the problem of funds was solved for the moment.

"The second is to cover up our involvement in our attacks on the hideouts of the
Eight Fingers in the area. As you have no doubt surmised, a direct attack on the
Eight Fingers' hideout would arouse suspicion. If we are unlucky, it might even
lead to the exposure of Sebas and his contacts. As such, we expanded the area of
operations in order to make others think our true aims lay elsewhere."

That is to say, it was like throwing torn-off branches in the forest to hide them.

"But can you do this? What will you use to throw them off the scent?"

"Please take a look at this, my liege."

Demiurge gestured, and Mare brought in a bag, which he opened. Inside was a
statue of a demon. Each of the demon' six arms were grasped a different kind of
jewel. A strange, pulsing light radiated from within.

"These jewels are imbued with the spell known as Armageddon Evil.

The 10th tier spell Armageddon Evil was one that summoned a demon army.
Although it could summon a massive amount of troops, they were not very
powerful. And if angels were hard to control, demons were even worse, with their
tendency to go berserk at the worst possible moments, making it a very difficult
spell to use. The normal usage capitalized on the fact that the summoned
demons were not allies by default, so they could serve as live sacrifices for
certain rituals and other special abilities.

Much like how Shalltear used her Spuit Lance to kill her own summoned minions,
this magic existed for a similar purpose.

"Though this item was created by Ulbert-sama, I feel it would be best used here."

From the perspective of this world, it would make sense that an item like this
would draw Jaldabaoth's attention.

Ainz recalled the past.

It was about a friend called Ulbert, back when the Guild's power was at its peak.

Originally, there had been a World class item which could summon an unlimited
number of demons that would eventually consume the entire world. Although
that would cause a huge disturbance, Ulbert had been overjoyed when he heard
about it and strove to create an item to imitate it. But when it turned out the item
could not cast six spells simultaneously, he lost interest in it and gave up.

It was plain to see that Demiurge was reluctant to give up a possession like this.
That was because it was a relic of his creator.

Ainz reached his hand into a pocket dimension, and withdrew a certain item.

"Demiurge, there is no need to use that. Take this as a substitute."

The device Ainz withdrew looked similar to the demon statue Demiurge had
prepared. However, its hands only held three gems, and it looked cruder in
general.

"This was also a device made by Ulbert-san. Because it was a prototype, he

wanted to dispose of it, but I thought that it was too much of a waste and kept it.
How about using this instead?"

"How how could I expend the treasures of Ainz-sama for my own schemes?"

"Is that how you see it? Very well, then. Demiurge, this is yours. Use it as you see
fit. However, don't you think Ulbert-san might be embarrassed that his failed
experiment was still around?"

"This is... how can I express my gratitude to you for gifting me with such a
wondrous magic item?"

Demiurge rose from his chair and knelt on the floor. Mare, seeing him, frantically
knelt down beside him.

"Enough, Demiurge. Do you not have something else to do? Think of this as a
token of my appreciation for your loyalty."

"We Guardians were created by the Supreme Beings. As such, until the very
moment of our extinction, we shall be utterly loyal to them. Even so, Ainz-sama
has not only bestowed his mercy and care upon us in abundance, he has even
given into my keeping such a valuable treasure... as for this Demiurge, though he
has already sworn his complete and undying loyalty to Ainz-sama, permit me to
once more offer my loyal service unto you!"

"Ah... erm, well, then, I shall look forward to your loyal service. Now, now, stand
up. Demiurge. You had something else to say, no?"

"Ah, indeed I did! My sincerest apologies!"

Demiurge sat back down, and Mare returned to his standby position.

"Then, as I said earlier, Jaldabaoth targeted the hideouts of the Eight Fingers, and
then proceeded to take control of the Kingdom's financial district. Seizing the
resources of the warehouses was also an aim. Naturally, this device created by
Ulbert-sama will be found in one of the hideouts' coffers."

"That much is clear now. And what about the third objective?"

"Yes. I have already transported roughly half the humans within this firewall into
Nazarick. There are many uses they can be put to, and the blame for this will fall
squarely on the demon Jaldabaoth."

So that was what he was up to, Ainz thought, but he still had some questions.
Was there a benefit to letting Jaldabaoth's villainy grow? Rather, instead of
inventing the character of Jaldabaoth, wouldn't it have been better to let some
other demon do it?

"...so you intend to build infamy, then?"

"That is correct. The intention is to place Jaldabaoth upon the throne of the
Demon King."

"Now I see. So accomplishing my order was part of your plan, then?"

Ainz looked at Demiurge, who was bowing low to acknowledge that that was the
case. He remembered the order he had given. Then again, he had given several
of them, and this was probably to give rise to the Demon King.

"This touches on the fourth objective, which was to use the Holy Kingdom as a
proving ground for this incident."

At that moment, Ainz understood. He asked a question which had been weighing
on his mind.

"Come to think of it, were these demons summoned from Nazarick?"

"How could I? I would not dream of doing so without Ainz-sama's leave!"

"Hm? Given that I entrusted the task to you, and you received Albedos
permission, I thought you would have used the forces of Nazarick..."

"No, my lord. Those were merely the summons of my Evil Lords. After a day has
passed, they can be called forth again. The strength of Nazarick will remain
untouched."

"Is that so... I see why there are so many demons without memories in Nazarick.
No matter, I understand. Then, another question, you said you sent every human
here to Nazarick. That was regardless of whether they were male, female, young
or old, correct?"

Ainz was vaguely upset by the way Demiurge could so easily and casually answer
in the affirmative.

Humans were irrelevant. Perhaps Ainz had once been a human, but this body he
had now felt no sympathy or closeness to them. It was as though they were a
whole other species that could be casually kicked out of the way with one foot.
He would slaughter any number of humans for the benefit of the Great
Underground Tomb of Nazarick. Even then, killing children still upset him. This
was a vestige of the man who had once been Suzuki Satoru.

Ainz took a deep breath, despite having no lungs.

"Demiurge. If a person has not given offense to myself or the Great Underground
Tomb of Nazarick, they shall be slain swiftly and without suffering."

Demiurge bowed deeply, without saying a word.

Ainz Ooal Gown's priority was to ensure the stability and loyalty of his
subordinates.

Since they had brought children back with them, releasing them safely would
mean the details of Nazarick would escape with them. While it might be possible
to raise them into zealots who were slavishly loyal to Nazarick, there were very
few benefits to such a plan at the moment. As such, this was the greatest mercy
he could give them.

"Then, are we done here?"

"There are two more matters for your consideration. Firstly, Mare has given us an
excellent opportunity."

Ainz turned his vision toward Mare, the nervous, fidgety boy.

"And that would be?"

"At the moment, we are still in the training phase, so the exact degree of success
is debatable. I shall elaborate further when we return to Nazarick. Secondly, from
my observations of the situation thus far, I can safely conclude that the ones who
brainwashed Shalltear have no connection with the Kingdom."

"I understand. Then, I look forward to receiving your help soon."

"It will be gladly given. During our battle afterwards, please feel free to defeat
me. I would do anything for Ainz-sama."

"I see. Then, before I drive you off, could you damage my armor? It will be more
convincing if I bear the signs of a hard fight."

"That is to say, you will remove it, and then I will damage it? It is unthinkable for
one such as myself to dare raise a hand against Ainz-sama"

"What happens if I remove it and it's so badly damaged that I can't put it back
on? During the Shalltear incident, I had a smith create flaws in the armor before
putting it on. If I took it off here and you beat it out of shape, I would probably be
unable to wear it again."

Ainz laughed softly. The guardians before him, not understanding why, took on
expressions of puzzlement.

"Th-then, Ainz-sama? I-isn't th-that armor m-made by magic?"

"That is not correct. This armor was not created from magic. I can see how you
would think that way given that I, as a magic caster, am wearing it so naturally.

But the truth is, I cast a warrior transformation spell and put it on. During the
break before we travelled to the capital, I sent a Message to Albedo to have her
begin future preparations. It seems it was the right choice."

Sustaining the transformation spell and other magic would both lower mana and
mana recovery rates to zero. Even though he could dispel the transformation if
there was an emergency and use magic, he would be starting out from a
depleted state. However, in this case it had been the right thing to do. Without it,
the first battle with Demiurge might have been much more troublesome.

Demiurge's already narrow eyes narrowed even further when he heard Ainz's
response. "As expected of Ainz-sama, everything dances within the palm of your
hand. To think I would dare to match wits with such a great person... I should
have expected nothing less of yourself."

As Demiurge chuckled to himself, Ainz back ran with sweat that wasn't there.

"Then, shall we begin? Demiurge, I'll leave the battle damage to you."

"Assuredly. Mare, send the signal. It will be an earthquake, like the last time."

Month of Descending Fire (9th Month), 5th Day, 03:56

"Take my lightning!"

The lightning spell lashed out, striking one of the maids.

"Guwaaaa-su~"

The maid making the incredibly fake cry of pain was blown away like she was
jumping by herself, until she vanished into the distance.

"Eiiiii~"

The drill-haired maid threw her knives. They travelled in a lazy arc and struck
Nabe's body.

"Kyaa"

As Nabe let out a deadpan cry of pain, she followed after the maid that had been
blown away. Entoma was pursuing her silently.

They landed in the alley, forming a straight line. Ahead of Narberal was the maid
with the two braids. Behind was Entoma and the drill-haired maid. This was a
classic pincer attack, but there was no tension at all. Then again, how could there
be? Back then, there had been the pretense of a fight, but now even that had
completely evaporated, and the mood was like a group of schoolgirls chatting in a
cafe.

"So anyways, this place's been warded against spying by Nigredo-san. It should
be okay now~"

"Is that so? Then... it's been a while, Lupu~."

The two-braided maid Lupusregina Beta laughed under her mask.

"It really has been awhile su~ this is the first time we've met since Nar-chan
started running around with Ainz-sama."

"I did return to Nazarick from time to time, but during those times, you were at
the village."

"Oh well~ you know how it is, these things just happen. Come to think of it, I
haven't seen you in a while, Sol-chan~"

"The same. However, your way of speaking..."

"Oya? Sol-chan and Yuri-nee-san were concerned about the same thing su~. But
it's okay~ I'll be careful. En-chans the same way su~"

"That's good... speaking of which, why is Entoma so quiet?"

"Ah... En-chan doesn't seem to want to talk right now~"

tHat lItTle bRaT ToOk mY VoicE!

"I see."

Narberal nodded to her. Entoma hated her original voice, so she tried to use it as
little as possible.

i WAnT To lEt HeR fEeL wHaT iTS LikE!

Even though her true face was covered by a mask bug, her murderous intent and
anger were still overflowing in her direction.

"You know that is impossible. Since she is travelling with Ainz-sama, it will ruin his
reputation if she doesn't come back alive with him."

Entoma wasn't happy with what Narberal said, but she kept quiet. It was obvious
which to pick between her master's good name and her own desires. Every battle
maid knew this.

"That little lady was quite strong. What is her name?"

"I have no interest in the names of oversized mosquitoes. Although, I think her
name was Evil-something."

"How mean~ Didn't you guys come together as comrades?"

Narberal frowned at her companion's words, so Solution answered for her.

"...that would probably be Blue Rose's Evileye. Sebas-sama wrote as much in one
of his reports."

"Ah, that sounds right."

Narberal was sure that Solution had the correct name.

"Nar-chan, are you pretending to be retarded? Are you all right?"

"Can you all actually remember human names?"

"That is no problem for me. I might end up needing to know them during the
course of my duties. I took care to commit a few important names to memory."

"No probs here su~ actually, you could say I get along pretty well with humans,
yanno?"

No pRObLEMs HErE.

Narberal was slightly shocked when she discovered that she was alone among
her fellow maids. Just as she was considering whether to pay more attention to
names, the sound of an explosion rang forth. Because buildings blocked visibility
out of the corner, they could not tell what had caused it.

"Ah, they must be getting serious over there."

"Well, it's Yuri-nee-san and Shizu~ they're always serious. But if the fight's not
over yet, that means they haven't used their real strength yet."

If iT wAs Up tO Me I WoUlD fIgHt hER tO tHe DeATh!

"Evileye is quite strong. By levels alone, she might not be an opponent Yuri-neesan or Shizu could beat."

A shadow passed over the face of the battle maids for the first time. Only
Narberal was different. She was confident.

"It will be fine."

As everyone's attention turned to her, she continued, "Evileye and myself are
both elementalists. We are arcane magic casters that specialize in the use of a
particular element. Although this means our attack power increases greatly, it
also means that outside of our area of expertise, we are quite weak."

"Earth-type, then... there should also be acid, poison or gravity, right? Why
crystals?"

"It must be a further specialization within earth-type elementalism. Her crystal

magic must be quite strong."

"Bludgeoning and piercing physical attack magic... I do not understand..."

If it were up to me, how would I kill Evileye? While the four of them were
pondering this question, the earth shook. There was a slight difference between
that and the shaking of the earth caused by a great impact.

ThiS EArtHqUAke mUSt HaVE BEEn caUsEd By MaRE-sAMA. thEn, ShALl WE

moVE On to tHE nEXt stAGe?

"Was that a signal?"

"That is correct, Narberal. Then, is it alright if we hurt you a little? It will not look
good unless we rough you up a bit."

"I'll try not to hit you too hard, so forgive me su~"

"There's nothing to be done about it. It's work, after all."

Month of Descending Fire (9th Month), 5th Day, 03:57

"Calm down! Please, calm down!"

Climb tried not to raise his voice too high as he called out to the people.
However, the warehouse had been packed with a lot of agitated people, so his
current volume was completely insufficient to get them to quiet down.

"My child"

"My wife was taken"

"Mama, Papa"

Male, female, young and old voices all blended together, washing over Climb like
a wave. He could no longer make out what they were saying any more.

Climb had found the three hundred people here at great risk to himself, and they
were the only residents he had managed to find. The people locked in this small
warehouse had no idea what was going on outside, and all they could do was
whine about how their family members had been taken elsewhere.

It was a very natural response to the current circumstances, but it was also a
very dangerous one.

Even though they had not encountered any demons on their way here, that did
not mean that there were no demons present. In fact, they had already seen the
silhouettes of the demons several times in the alleys they passed through on
their way here. If they heard the cries coming from this warehouse, then the
arrival of the demons would only be a matter of time.

"You are the only ones we've found so far"

"Where's my wife? Go find her!"

"That"

Perhaps if he raised his voice he might be able to shout them down. Climb, as a
warrior, was far stronger than any mere city guard. If he roared at the man, he
could easily seize the hearts of everyone present. But Climb did not do this.

Climb was the ambassador of the princess. He was here because Renner had
seen fit to put her trust in him. If he used methods that terrorized the citizens and
made them dislike him, that might easily spill over to Renner as well. With that in
mind, Climb found it impossible to work himself up to using harsh methods on
them.

"Hey, answer us"

"My kid's still young"

"Papa! Mama!"

"Shut up, all of you!"

It felt like the air in the warehouse had suddenly blown all the voices away.
Brain's uncontrollable shout the anger of a first-rate warrior had devoured
the hearts of all the weaklings present.

"The lot of you are chattering like chickens just because he kept quiet. We're in
the territory of these guys, and there's no way to guarantee your safety. If you
don't move quietly, the demons will come and they'll kill every last one of you. If
you understand, shut your mouths."

Brain surveyed the now-silent warehouse, then looked straight at Climb. The
citizens who were closing in wilted under his volcanic gaze and backed away.

"Now then, Climb. Time for you to make a decision."

Climb was largely sure what decision he had to make. However, he had no
confidence that it would be a wise one.

"It's hard to say, then? Never mind, I'll do it. First things first, you lot had best get
it into your heads, the next time someone speaks when I do, I'll kill him on the
spot. I can't even be sure you lot are all humans."

Brain exposed a little of his katana, and the reflected light seemed almost
blinding.

"I'm sure you lot are wondering what I'm on about, but take a look at the person
next to you. Are you sure all the people here are humans?"

The captives looked at each other in shock.

"Listen up. We saw a lot of demons on the way here. Some with wings, some with
tails. Some even looked like people without skin. There were a lot of those. The
ones roaming outside might be those guys... you should have seen them on the
way in, right?

Everyone Brain turned his attention to nodded, their faces pale.

"Then, who can guarantee that there aren't any demons among you? No skinless
demons wearing someone else's skin?

They weren't allowed to speak, but there was still a disturbance. They looked at
each other with suspicious eyes, and then began adjusting their positions. The
warehouse was small, but not small enough that everyone had to squeeze. There
was enough space for everyone to avoid contact with everyone else.

"Relax. If any demons make it here, we'll kill them. As long as you understand
where we're coming from, it'll be alright." As the mood seemed to relax, Brain
capitalized on it and continued, "But, if the demons from outside come in like an
avalanche, then I can't make that guarantee. Don't you think, if a demon
infiltrated in here, wouldn't he want to loudly shout that there were intruders? Do
you see what I mean by killing anyone who made noise? Oh sure, some of you
will think, "but I'm human, why are you killing me?" but the rest of us won't know
that. So for the sake of protecting everyone here, anyone who makes a noise that
draws the demons will die."

Once again, he bathed everyone in the killing intent brimming from his eyes.

"Looks like you get it. First up, we've searched a few warehouses before this one.
However, not only did we not find anyone, all these warehouses were empty.
Taking the area surrounded by the firewall into consideration, even if this is a
warehouse district there should be more than ten thousand people here. Since

there's only three hundred here, that means there ought to be at least thirty
three warehouses like this, right?"

Brain took a deep breath.

"So that's the problem. Why haven't we found anyone else besides you? Maybe
it's just bad luck. After all, we were avoiding the areas where the demons were on
alert. But... do you think anyone could accept that? Most likely they were
transported from the warehouse district to somewhere else. Don't panic! We have
no idea where they've been taken. But anywhere the demons take them can't be
good."

Those who understood raised their heads, and there was also the sound of
sobbing.

"And you lot were slated to be taken away by the demons. That means for now,
you've avoided a nasty fate. But remember, we're still in the middle of the
demons' territory. If you're not careful and don't move quickly and quietly, you'll
be killed while fleeing. Hey, you, you look like you have a question. I'll allow you
to speak."

The man who had the katana pointed at him asked his question in a frightened,
small voice.

"What if we stay here?"

"Then you'll be taken away. And it'll be by those guys whom you know very well
are demons, to wherever kind of hell these demons come from."

"I"

Brain glared at him, and the woman who had raised her voice cut it out
immediately.

"I allow you to speak."

"...My child is only three years old. If I stay here, and go to the same place as
him..."

"Really now. I have no interest in helping anyone who doesn't want to run. But
this guy is different. Just so you know, if your son's been taken to another
warehouse, there's the chance he'll be rescued by another team. If you want to
ignore that and stay, then I won't stop you. A kid without his mom can live by
himself, but I haven't seen anyone take care of their kid to this extent."

Brain spoke coldly to the disheartened civilians.

"Then I'll say it one more time. If you stay here, you'll be taken away by the
demons. If you accept this and want to stay, I won't stop you. After all, when you
leave this warehouse, there's a chance you might get killed in a demonic attack
while fleeing."

Climb had to interrupt here. Since Brain had said this much, it was necessary.

"But, we will defend anyone who wants to flee."

"I don't like troublesome things, but I'm doing it because of this knight of
Renner's. So I'll protect you lot. We'll move out in a few minutes. Staying or
leaving is your choice. If you want to discuss your freedom softly, that's your
choice as well. Do as you like."

There was no discussion. This was because they were uneasy that their neighbors
might be demons but because many of them were hoping that their relatives
would be rescued by another team and they would be reunited.

There shouldn't be another team. We checked so many warehouses, and only a

couple weren't empty.

Brain decided not to think too much on the matter, instead gripping his sword
and glaring fiercely at the captives, making sure that none of them made too
much noise. Climb walked over to Brain, and spoke softly.

"Thank you, Brain-san. You did what I couldn't do for myself."

"Don't worry about it, all that crap was stuff that someone like you, who serves
Renner, couldn't say. But for a mercenary like me, it shouldn't cause any
problems in the future. Just think of me as a whip."

"Even so, I'm still grateful."

"It'll get troublesome if we get stuck in an endless loop. I get it, I'll accept your
thanks. Hm? That fellow's back."

The thief entered Brain's field of vision. He should have been keeping watch on
the outside and remaining on standby. Since he wasn't coming back in a hurry,
that meant it wasn't a dangerous situation.

"What happened?"

"Ah, no, Unglaus-san. The demons don't look like they're coming over yet. But
like you said, it's only a matter of time."

"That it is. Who knows, this might be their final objective. Did you take a look
around outside? What was that earthquake just now?"

"I have no idea. Maybe the ground caved in and demons came crawling out of the
earth?"

"Don't say that sort of thing, thats the worst-case scenario..."

"Sorry, sorry, Climb-kun."

"Then, let's get ready to move."

Just as Brain was about to order the citizens around, there was a sound of
something landing outside the warehouse.

The warehouse quietened immediately. The thief stuck close to the doors to
carefully check out the outside. His hand began moving in signs. They formed the
shapes that the three of them had decided meant "demon". Following that, he
signalled, "a strong one".

Climb and Brain exchanged looks. Then they quietly moved to where the thief
was.

They saw a demon outside. It was completely different from the ones they had
encountered before. It gave off the feeling of tremendous power.

Its body was nearly three meters tall, and it had bat wings upon its back. Its head
was a goat skull, and in its hands it held a large hammer.

The demon turned its gaze to the warehouse, and Climb's concealed party felt its
eyesight on them. Had it used magic to sense them? It was definitely waiting for
them to show themselves.

"That guy looks really strong..."

"No doubt about it."

Brain muttered, and the thief answered. Climb nodded his head in agreement.

Climb quietly watched Brain. He had angered him during that encounter with
Shalltear. As such, if Brain told Climb to flee, Climb fully intended to obey.

"...Climb, fight by my side."

"Yes!"

Climb answered in a soft yet earnest voice.

"Will it be all right?"

"Ah, just look at that guy. He must have fled from a fight. He's covered in wounds.
If he were unhurt, I don't think all of us together could beat him. But now, if we
can charge him simultaneously, we might be able to win in one blow."

I'm counting on you, Brain said as he patted Climb's shoulder.

Climb nodded his head vigorously, and activated his ring's power. This ring, made
by the Dragon Lords using Wild Magic, contained a spell that could temporarily
increase a warrior's strength. If the strongest man in the Kingdom Gazef Stronoff
used it, he could step into the realm of heroes, but Climb had not reached that
state yet. Even in combination with his martial art Limit Breaker Mind, he
could not even touch the bottoms of Brain's feet. However, it would still grant
Climb the power of a mithril ranked warrior.

"All right, let's go."

Brain, who was leading the way, was stopped by the thief.

"Unglaus-san"

"Shouldn't you call me Brain? You're older than me, calling me -san or whatever
makes me uncomfortable."

"...then, Brain. What should I do?"

"Just stay here, Lockmeyer. That guy might think we're just a decoy."

"...I'll come to help you if you're in danger."

"Then I'll count on you. Come on, Climb-kun. Although you probably know by
now... don't get cocky."

"Yes sir!"

Month of Descending Fire (9th Month), 5th Day, 04:03

"Kuh!"

Evileye grunted as she took a hit to the belly. Although she was largely
insensitive to pain, her sense of touch from her days as a human being was not
completely gone yet. If she was attacked, she would definitely feel it.

In the brief window when her concentration was broken, Evileye ate another hit
from Alpha.

The explosive force of the blow knocked the air out of Evileye, and sent her
flying.

Evileye's objective was to draw the battle out. As such, she could not use the
strategy of converting physical damage to mana damage. Without mana, Evileye
would be unable to fight. This meant she would have to expend her HP and mana
evenly.

Her mud-stained body was dragged back up into the air by the Flight spell.

At this moment, Evileye saw Nabe, who had been knocked flying by her own
opponents.

She looked like she had been beaten up pretty badly too. Evileye flew over to her.
The enemy did not follow were they waiting for us to join up before killing us
together?

"Oh, it's you."

Evileye had been planning to help up the fallen Nabe, but she stood back up
immediately and spoke coldly.

Although her injury-covered body looked like she had been in the fight of her life,
something felt wrong about her. There was no fear of death, or rather, she
believed that Momon could defeat Jaldabaoth before she died.

Goes for me too, Evileye thought.

"Can you still fight?"

"Of course. No problem."

That had been a stupid question.

Speaking of which... this woman has exceeded humanity as well. Could she be a
God-kin too?

She had suffered assorted injuries and her clothes were stained by blood, but
none of the wounds were lethal. For all she knew, Evileye might have been more
badly hurt.

Compared to Evileye who had only two opponents, being able to perform this well
against three opponents... though Evileye was loath to admit it, she had to admit
that Nabe was better than her.

"You look like a mess."

"Not exactly."

Evileye laughed at the reply, which was so much like Nabe.

Although the mask covered Evileyes expression, Nabe could still feel that the air
had changed, and surprise showed on her face.

"No, I was thinking that that reply was just like you."

"...Was it now. So, what will we do now?"

"What can we do? How can we draw this battle out?"

Evileye turned a sharp look at the five enemies. Apart from the insect maid
whose killing intent stabbed at her like a lance, the others didn't radiate any
hostility at all, though from their attitudes they seemed pretty confident of killing
them both easily.

"Your enemies are there too."

"Looks like were out of options. If the numbers were even we might have a
chance to win. But if they're on the same level as us and there's more of them,
then we'll lose for sure."

"How about running? If you turned around and fled, they might not pursue."

"If you want to do that, I'll cover you from the rear."

Dissatisfaction twisted Nabes otherwise prim face. Although even if she made a
sinister expression, it would not detract from her beauty in the slightest, Evileye
thought in with a rather out-of-place sense of appreciation for a rival.

Suddenly, a person was blown through the air as a building collapsed. He

bounced several times on the floor, tumbling head over heels before grinding to a
halt.

Evileye did not need to breathe, but she still held her breath.

For a moment, she thought it might be Momon who was sent flying, but that was
not the case. It was Jaldabaoth.

Seeing Jaldabaoth unsteady on his feet, Evileye got excited. It was obvious who
had wounded him so badly and knocked him back so far.

Evileye's vision spotted the warrior standing where the body had come flying
from.

The jet-black armor was heavily damaged, making it clear just how intense their
duel had been. Even so, the man standing there did not waver in the slightest,
showing Momon's clear superiority in comparison to Jaldabaoth, who was getting
to his feet.

Evileye's body was filled with joy, and she tightly clenched her fists.

Momon slowly lowered his swords, and spoke to the rising Jaldabaoth.

"Well, that was fun. How shall I put it... it felt real. I could feel myself really
battling with you. So this is what it feels like to be the vanguard... in the past, I
used to overpower all my opponents in melee combat, so I didn't feel anything,
but now I feel like a berserker. So, bringing out your full power shouldn't be a
problem for you, no?"

Telling one's opponent to use their full strength was a grave insult. Thinking
about this, Evileye shook her head. Perhaps this was Momon's true desire.

A strong man like Momon rarely had the opportunity to go all-out. Most of the
time his opponents would be slaughtered before he could get serious. A man like
him would be overjoyed if he got the chance to face an opponent that required
his full strength.

"Then, please allow me to do so."

Jaldabaoth had probably understood it as an insult, and so he repaid it with

exaggerated, sarcastic politeness.

As she watched him, Evileye was filled with the pride of knowing that she
understood Momon better than Jaldabaoth.

"Then, I shall come at you seriously."

"Bring it, Jaldabaoth."

With those words as the signal, the two of them clashed in the middle of the
plaza.

Their exchange was like a replay of the time Evileye had first met Momon. His
high-speed, consecutive attacks were deflected by extended claws. Since they
could parry his greatswords, the hardness of those claws must be beyond human
understanding.

Momon leapt back in a grand, soaring arc. His jumping strength made her think
that he might have been using the Flight spell. In the moment where her view of
Momon was blocked by his spinning swords, she saw him produce a spear from
nothing, from the corner of her eye.

It was a crimson spear whose point was like a cyclone of fire. Momon hurled it at
Jaldabaoth. So fast did it fly that all she saw was its crimson trail seared into her
vision as it headed for Jaldabaoth.

"Aspect of the Demon: Hellfire Mantle."

As the spear struck, a roaring flame blazed up from the ground, and a massive
shockwave erupted from Jaldabaoth.

Kuh!

In order not to be blown away by the titanic displacement of air, Evileye crouched
down and tried to weather the storm. Fortunately, because she wore her mask,
she was able to keep her eyes open during the tempest.

Looking ahead, she saw Momon raising his swords, which stood unwavering in
the wildly-blowing wind. Then, as though he was going to cleave the air in two as
well. He charged at Jaldabaoth once more.

Jaldabaoth was ready to receive the attack, his body wreathed in flames, and the
spear from earlier lodged in the ground by his feet.

As Momon swung down on him, Jaldabaoth caught the sword with both hands.
Smoke rose from his palms, and the metal between his fingers started to melt.

So, youre able to melt a weapon like this the ability has gotten stronger.

Since it was a blade favored by Momon, an adventurer of the highest caliber, it

must have been made of an amazing material indeed.

But that was not important. What was important was that Jaldabaoth could spit
flames that could melt steel, and that Momon could still talk casually to him
despite being so close to the deadly flames.

These two are incredible.

Evileye was terrified. She already knew how strong the two of them were, but her
body was still trembling uncontrollably.

It is as you have surmised. The fire-type damage was strengthened by a special

ability.

On closer observation, the flames wreathing Jaldabaoth had a blackish tinge to

them.

Hellfire, is it?!

Just so. Even a being protected with fire immunity will not escape unscathed,
dont you think?

For the first time in their battle, Momon took a step back in retreat, but
Jaldabaoth would not permit it.

This time is was Jaldabaoths turn to close the gap, launching a flurry of blows at
Momon. That attack could have slain a human being in an instant, but Momon
parried them all with his gigantic sword.

While engaged in close combat that was slowly melting his armor, Momon once
again reached into nothingness and drew forth a strange weapon.

"Frost Pain Modified Icy Burst!"

A wave of frigid air rushed forth from the weapon, dropping the surrounding
temperature instantly. Although it seemed as though the cold could even freeze
fire, Jaldabaoths hellfire burned hotter than normal flames. Still, for a moment,
the heat was suppressed.

Jaldabaoths surprised exclamation reached Evileyes ears.

What was that? It was like the spear from just now.

Since I cant use magic, I made up for it with elemental weapons. Although this
was a copy of Frost Pain made as an experiment well, I should count myself

lucky it turned out stronger than the original. Granted, its a tool that lets me use
a high-level spell three times a day, but without the special abilities to power it
up, it should be nothing to you.

The dialogue between the two of them beggared belief.

They were supposed to be engaged in an intense struggle for their lives, but the
mood felt like they were merely confirming each others' strength in an easy and
relaxed manner.

Evileye recalled something Gagaran had said once. When warriors put their lives
on the line, sometimes they would be able to fully grasp the thoughts of their
opponent, and it would create a feeling as though they were close friends who
had known each other for a long time.

At that time, she had wondered what she was talking about. But now

"Maybe she had a point after all."

Evileye was starting to become jealous of the closeness between them.

The man in the jet-black armor, which had lost its shine due to its melted surface,
and the demon whose tuxedo had been shredded by countless sword blows.

The two of them who had dueled each other in a domain beyond the grasp of
humanity seemed like old friends to Evileye.

"Your puissance is unparalleled."

"Indeed, so is yours, Jaldabaoth."

"In that case, might I make a proposition?"

Momon raised his chin to Jaldabaoth, as though telling him to carry on.

"If I concede this battle and the victory to yourself, perhaps we can both take a
step back from the edge? Or rather, to be more precise, I will withdraw myself
from this incident, and I hope you will cease your pursuit of myself."

"Are you kidding me!"

Evileye's cry was fueled by intense emotion. For someone who had filled the
capital with this much chaos and death, a plea for mercy and forgiveness was
nothing short of shameless.

However, a calm voice accepted Jaldabaoth's proposal.

"It's all right."

Under her mask, Evileye stared goggle-eyed at Momon. She could not understand
why Momon, who was in such a superior position, was accepting Jaldabaoth's
terms.

Sensing Evileye's confusion, Demiurge shrugged his shoulders. Much as she

hated to admit it, he looked quite stylish while he did.

"It baffles me why Momon-san would bring an air-headed woman like yourself
along. A moment's consideration should reveal why Momon-san accepted my
proposition."

Turning to Evileye, Jaldabaoth continued speaking.

"In order to bring Momon-san here, and to keep others from interfering with our
battle, you committed a lot of your friends and allies to the fight, did you not? Did
you really think they would be enough to keep the demons from intruding into
this conflict?"

Evileye felt as though she had been impaled through the spine with an icicle.

"The demon army is always waiting for a chance to assault the capital."

It was the worst-case scenario.

Although Marquis Raeven was patrolling inside the capital with his troops, she
honestly could not believe he could deal with all the demons Jaldabaoth had in
store. A similar conclusion awaited if the demons started taking hostages from
throughout the city.

But if they defeated Jaldabaoth here

"Even if you kill me, do you think they will vanish? I have but to give a single
mental command and my infernal hordes will immediately begin rampaging
through the city. Granted, their numbers might be somewhat diminished... but
how many casualties do you think they will cause in the time it takes to kill
them?"

"But then, how do we know that you'll actually keep your promise?"

If Jaldabaoth continued fighting with Momon, he had no guarantee of actually

winning. That being the case, why not withdraw all his troops and beg off from
the pursuit? If not well, then if he died, he was going to take everyone else with
him. Something like that.

However, with the capital's population as hostages, their circumstances were not
even.

It was a truly manipulative and cunning offer.

I see, Evileye thought, her opinion of Momon rising even further up. He had
grudgingly accepted Jaldabaoth's proposal because he had already foreseen this
development. Indeed, he had no other choice.

"Then, since this outsider has accepted it as well, I will begin my withdrawal,
though it is a shame I could not recover my objective. I pray we will never meet
again."

"Same here, Jaldabaoth."

Jaldabaoth smiled under his mask, and then gathered the maids around before
they vanished via Greater Teleport.

"They're gone..."

Evileye floated in the sky, her eyes looking to where the wall of fire had been.
Nothing was left; only a slightly livelier patch of the night skyline.

The curtains were drawn on this disturbance. But what had been born of today's
sacrifices?

The fact remained that Jaldabaoth existed, a demon with power surpassing the
Demon Gods by far. And against him stood Momon, a top-ranked warrior. What
would the world make of these two once the word spread, and how would the
world change after that?

Evileye shook her head to scatter the thoughts which had blended into a big pile
inside it. She would consider these things slowly, in the future.

There was something far more important than this. Evileye landed on the ground
and opened her arms.

"Uwaaaaaaaaaaaah!"

With a joyous cry, Evileye broke into a run. Although her Flight spell's duration
had not yet expired, this was a situation which called for running.

Evileye ran toward Momon. Perhaps out of surprise, Momon took a ready stance
with his swords. Ignoring this, Evileye leapt through the air toward him. Since she
had been running at full tilt, it felt like she had hit a wall. But because of her
vampiric physiology and endurance, no harm was done.

And so, Evileye tackle-hugged Momon.

"You did it! You won! You won! As expected of Momon-sama!"

"I... uh... do you mind, I'd like some space here."

Momon spoke calmly to Evileye, who was hugging him like a koala. Maybe he was
embarrassed.

I win as long as I hug him.

Evileye was banking on a piece of trivia she had heard of in the past. Some men
would use members the opposite sex to bleed off tension after a battle. She was
hoping that Momon would be such a man, and that he would pick her for that
duty.

Evileye glimpsed at nabel who was glaring at her.

First girl wins.

Although Evileye was grinding her soft body against Momon, his armor meant
that he probably didn't feel anything, and if she bumped a wound, it would hurt.

"Ah... forgive me, Nabe, hold my swords."

Realizing that this was just wasting her strength, Evileye let go, falling from the
tree that was Momon.

Well, that's true. I should keep an eye out for a good opportunity next time. Now
that Jaldabaoth's seen Momon-sama's power, there's no way he'll break his part
of the bargain. But even so, there's still fighting, and people left hanging... ah,
pursuing my own desires will be bad in so many ways.

The battle for the capital had ended.

But her battle as a woman had just begun.

Evileye, who was thinking of her next move, turned at the sound of ringing steel.

Before her was a group of people. They were adventurers and soldiers and-

"Is that the Warrior Captain? With everyone else?"

Beside Gazef Stronoff were Lakyus and Tina. Gagaran and Tia were there too.
Everyone was covered in grime, a testament to the vicious battles they had
fought to get here. They looked around at the aftermath of the intense battle that
had taken place here, and then, with an intake of breath, they all looked to
Momon.

Sensing the meaning of that gesture, Evileye whispered to him.

"Momon-sama, lead us in a cry of victory."

But Momon did not do so. Just as Evileye was starting to get suspicious, she
heard a still, small voice.

"I'm feeling a bit shy right now."

The surprisingly human reaction from the superhuman warrior made Evileye
laugh out loud.

"...but, doesn't that honor belong to the one who did the most for us? Don't let
this chance go by."

Momon gripped his sword tightly and thrust it toward the sky.

"UOOOOOOOOOOOOHH!"
In the next moment, everyone in the plaza raised their fists to the sky, shouting
in celebration of their victory. In everyone's mouths was the name of Momon, the
hero who had saved the nation.

EPILO
GUE

Month of Descending Fire (9th Month), 6th Day, 08:45

The maids were formed up in neat lines in front of Sebas. There were 41 of them
in total, and all of them were homunculi. At their head stood the dog-headed
chief maid, Pestonya S. Wanko. Thus the domestic maid staff of Nazarick was
assembled.

"Everyone, this is Nazarick's newest maid."

"My name is Tsuareninya, pleased to meet you."

The head maid greeted Tsuare, whose head was bowed low, as a representative
of everyone else.

After speaking with the maids, Tsuare had not shown any signs of fear.

Apart from the stitching that ran down the middle of her face, Pestonya had kind
eyes and a gentle expression. Additionally, the maids behind her were all human,
without any frightening facial features.

Even so, judging by Tsuare's condition, it seemed her fear of others would never
truly vanish. Although she looked like she was getting along well with others, she
knew exactly what kind of situation she was in, and she was trying to distract
herself from it by forcing herself to work hard.

If I don't watch her carefully, she might break.

While Sebas was pondering these questions, the meet and greet session ended,
and one of the maids brought her outside. Along the way, Tsuare turned to look at
Sebas. Sebas nodded to her, and she nodded by way of reply, before turning
away and leaving.

"Sebas-sama, how much training will that human need-wan?"

"Train her until she qualifies to be a maid of Nazarick. However, she is a mere
human, so when you train her, please don't push her beyond her limits."

"Understood-wan."

Pestonya's dog-like face tilted, revealing her canines. Although her expression
made her look like a beast whose prey had escaped, her eyes were still filled with
warmth.

"I think that for her, being a maid is just a first step."

"What do you mean?"

Pestonya answered Sebas, who had not quite grasped her meaning and was
wondering what she was talking about.

"...wan. That is to say, I meant she would probably retire after marriage-wan."

"What?!"

As Sebas' face seized up, Pestonya's gentle laughter echoed throughout the ninth
floor of the Great Tomb of Nazarick.

Month of Descending Fire (9th Month), 7th Day, 16:51

After making sure there were no guests present and that the time was right,
Climb opened the doors to Renners chambers.

The princess sat in her usual place, her room dyed red by the rays of the setting
sun. They illuminated her like a spotlight.

Welcome, Climb.

That gentle beauty calmed Climbs pounding heart, and he felt as though he had
been healed. Climb tugged down on his relaxed face, and went over to Renners
side.

Come, have a seat, Climb.

There is no need, Renner-sama. I have to help with the cleanup of the demon
attack in a while.

Renners eyes sparkled. She had originally given that order, so replying this way
seemed to be the correct answer.

Climbs next task was to take over the security detail responsible for protecting
the Magicians Association.

This was because of a certain item.

Although the whole picture of the demon invasion had not been fully revealed
yet, a very disturbing magic item had been found in a warehouse. The Magicians
Association was still analyzing and investigating it, but considering the fact that it
had been imbued with abnormally powerful magic and the information Jaldabaoth
had let slip, it seemed likely that it was the item he had been searching.

As a result, the Magicians Association had gathered strong veterans. Until they
decided how to properly dispose of it, they had to have teams of adventurers
protecting them at all times. Naturally, Climb had been one of the people
selected for the task.

Its so annoying, we cant punish the members of the Eight Fingers who brought
this item to the capital

Even though he stood in front of Renner, Climb could not fully suppress the
irritation in his heart.

The magic item which had led to the tragedy in the capital had been found in a
warehouse that was positively linked to the smuggling division of the Eight
Fingers. That being the case, they should have immediately moved to destroy
them. However there was a crucial reason why they could not do so, and only a
few people knew about it.

They had started searching for the item because Jaldabaoth had leaked the
information about it. That was Renners opinion. However, Jaldabaoth might have
been counting on the humans to find the object his troops could not, which was
why that information had gotten out in the first place.

Since everyone understood the implications of that leak, they had suppressed all
information about the artifact, and as such it could no longer be used as a reason
to attack the Eight Fingers.

You should be working with the Warrior-Captain, right? I see, then everything
should be fine. How about the people you helped? You should have been busy
protecting the palace, but you must have stepped outside for a bit, no?

Climb's heart lurched as Renner unleashed that bombshell on him.

"Y-yes. Everyone hopes to express their gratitude to Renner-sama."

"How wonderful. Then I must go to meet them."

"You can't!"

As soon as the shout left his mouth, Climb immediately realized that he had
screwed up very badly. He lowered his head and began speaking rapidly, as
though trying to cover up all his previous words.

"Everyone is still busy and I believe the presence of Renner-sama will distract
everyone from their hard work and although it demeans Renner-sama's
generosity I hope that you will understand my meaning."

As he raised his head, Climb wondered if his mistress' beautiful face would be
creased by unhappiness, or a childish pout that did not suit her age. However,
the expression Climb saw was neither of these.

She smiled.

It wasn't a simple turning up of the corners of her mouth, but an actual, full-faced
smile.

Climb had seen Renner smile many times. If he cast his mind back to a time
when he was happiest, it would be seeing that smile on her face after she had
picked him up. However, her smile right now was somewhat different from her
smile back then.

Before he could realise the answer, her expression returned to the faint smile she
always wore.

"...there's nothing to be done about it, then."

Climb suppressed a sigh of relief as Renner accepted his explanation.

The truth was that he had just fed his mistress a pack of lies. Climb had not heard
a single grateful word from the citizens he had met. On the contrary, they had
heaped blame and scorn on him. Why did you only save us, and so on.

They had taken their anger at the loss of their families, at the loss of their
wealth and poured out the bowl of their wrath upon Climb.

Climb had borne this resentment because those people had nobody else to
blame, and out of a sense of guilt for not fulfilling Renners commands perfectly.

Even so, it hurt to hear those words, especially after he had battled that mighty
demon in order to save them.

The demon they had encountered at the warehouse was on a completely

different level from any of the others. It could have beaten Brain Unglaus with
strength to spare, and it was only because of its many wounds that they had
been victorious. If that demon had appeared before them in a fresh, undamaged
state, they would certainly have been defeated. After hearing how powerful it
was from Lakyus, he was silently grateful that they had somehow managed to
triumph over it.

And after that, the only thanks he had received were the aforementioned
complaints. Although he told himself that he had become used to it, the words
still cut deeply into him.

In truth, it would have been fine if Climb had struck out at those people with
malicious intent. Nobody would say anything if Climb returned the insults he had
received in his position as the Princess' personal knight, but if he did that, then
Renner's position would be in danger. If their hatred turned toward the princess
and led to them slandering her, he would be powerless to draw his sword against
them.

"Now then, Climb. I have... unpleasant news. Listen carefully."

Climb closed his eyes for several seconds, then opened them again.

"The women you and Sebas-san worked together to save from the brothel... were
murdered."

Unable to comprehend what Renner had just said, his mouth worked open and
closed while he gasped out some sounds that might have been mistaken for
speech.

"How... but how... how could that have happened..."

Come to think of it, the women should have been hidden in a waiting room and
then sent on to Renner's properties.

"That was a miscalculation on my part. I wanted to hire adventurers as guards,

but due to the disturbance, they had all been employed by others. So I had to use
mercenaries instead..."

Renner shook her head, as though saying it had all been her fault.

"Th-that's not true! It's definitely not Renner-sama's fault! It's the ones who
attacked them who're to blame!"

"No! If I had been more careful, if I had considered things more closely... that the
disturbance would have weakened security in the capital, if I had let them escape
when I sensed danger, it wouldn't have turned out like this! If Climb had been
there, maybe it wouldn't have turned out like this. And even the adventurers who
recommended the mercenaries were shocked..."

The beginnings of tears began filling the corners of Renner's eyes.

Climb's chest ached as though his heart had been crushed. Perhaps it might have
been a mistake on Renner's part, but she had made the best of a bad situation.
Then, who was to blame?

"Renner-sama did nothing wrong!"

Hearing Climb's forceful declaration, Renner, who had been moved deeply by
Climb, rose and hugged him tightly.

To calm her down, Climb reached a hand behind her back no. That would be
dangerous.

"But, how did the information..."

"I have no idea. The capital's security was weakest during the disturbance;
maybe it got out during that time? They should have been transferred
immediately..."

He could not rule that out. It might have been that the attackers had followed the
places and people protected by Climb until they found their way to the hiding
place.

"Where were the bodies found?"

"In the poor districts of the capital, but I don't know the details myself."

"What about the corpses?"

"They've been buried. What of them?"

"I wanted to examine the wounds, see what kind of clues I could find."

"...Climb, that's enough. They've been violated enough. At least let them rest in
peace."

"...Understood."

Renner's kindness touched Climb to the bottom of his heart. Certainly, her words
had merit. He felt ashamed for not being considerate of her feelings, and the
urge to find out the truth grew within him.

"Please don't take it too hard. This is definitely not Climb's... ah, I see we've
exchanged positions."

Renner smiled. Though her eyes were still red, there were no more tears in them.

"Yes, we have."

Climb's stoic expression broke, and he smiled.

"Forgive me for keeping you. Then, Climb, you'll have to work hard now."

Though he felt a pang of longing for the warmth that had left his chest, he
immediately interrupted his desire.

Month of Descending Fire (9th Month), 10th Day, 09:08

Today was an auspicious day for journeys, with no clouds hanging in the azure
skies above.

The crimson cape blew freely in the wind, behind the man in jet-black armor.
Evileye asked a question of him.

"Will you return?"

It was a strange question, but Evileye had had a strange feeling. Adventurers
were said to have no roots, but some adventurers made certain cities into their
base, much like Blue Rose. For Momon, his base would be E-Rantel.

"I, I mean, there's a lot of people who'd want to go with..."

Evileye couldn't believe she was making such blubbery, simpering noises. She
reflected that she was hardly a lovesick schoolgirl mooning over her beloved, but
just the word "love" threw her mind into turmoil.

"...Don't worry about it."

That was his answer.

It was a cold one, Evileye thought.

With no idea what else to say, the wind blew strongly between the two of them.

The man who had been waiting for this silence spoke.

Evileye felt that this was hardly the proper way for a farewell between a man and
a woman, but they were not alone here. Behind Momon was Nabe, and behind
Evileye were the members of Blue Rose. And then there were the magic casters
who would send Momon back to E-Rantel.

"You did us a great favor."

Momon nodded in response to Raeven's thanks.

"His Majesty wished to convey his gratitude to you in person, but..."

During the disturbance in the capital, Momon had become a household name
throughout the capital. After all, he was the dark hero who had challenged the
archfiend Jaldabaoth to single combat, and soundly defeated him. It was only
natural that the king would want to express his gratitude in person. If things went
well, he might even receive a lordship. However, Momon had rejected that last
offer and refused to meet.

That attitude wasn't right.

The nobles, who valued their reputations, felt that it was nothing short of
arrogance for this nameless peasant to behave so before the King, whose
position was above their own.

Whispers began to circulate that Momon was snubbing the King.

There were also those who were outraged that a mere adventurer could be so
disrespectful.

A portion of the nobles went on to say that Momon had made a mistake by not
dealing the final blow to Jaldabaoth, and letting him flee instead, but since
Momon had the backing of Raeven, they kept their mouths shut.

"Momon-san was in my employ, so if you challenge him, you challenge me,"

Raeven had said, in menacing tones.

And Momon himself had added, "I simply accepted a request as an adventurer,
and completed it. It is nothing worthy of a king's personal attention, and to be
honest, every adventurer who took part in this battle should receive accolades as
well." That had appeased the nobles, and the whispers died down.

But the flames had not been extinguished yet. Some raised their voices to
criticize Momon, for the nobles felt they had been insulted.

Evileye recalled what Lakyus, a noble herself, had said to her.

Without Momon, the disturbance in the capital would not have been resolved,
and it would not be difficult to imagine the scale of the damage that would have
been caused. However, the only ones who had come to see Momon off were the
members of Blue Rose and Marquis Raeven, because Momon was in a difficult
position.

During this incident, the ones who had received high praise were the
adventurers, the King, the second prince, and Marquis Raeven. Meanwhile, public
opinion of the nobles was less positive.

Of course, the nobles begged to differ. The capital was under the direct
jurisdiction of the king, and as land-owners themselves, while it would have made
sense to send troops to assist the capital, they had no obligation to do so. In fact,
considering that their own holdings might have been attacked by the demons, it
was far more sensible for them to protect their own property instead.

During this incident, the noble faction, which favored their own defense,
maintained that the King's announcement of his identity was a mistake and
stemmed from arrogance. Meanwhile, the royal faction strongly asserted that the
King should have hidden in a safe place and not gone to the frontlines. In this
way, the power struggle between both parties intensified.

And the residents of the royal capital who had no stake in this struggle were
unhappy. "Why did these puffed-up nobles only care about protecting themselves
and not us?"

As such, their respect for the ones who had actually fought for them grew, and
criticism continued accumulating for the already disliked nobles. It turned into a
vicious cycle, and in the end, the nobles ended up blaming the adventurers for it.

"In the end, they were simply hired battle maniacs who fought until they died,"
and so on.

And in this incident, Momon, the most highly-regarded of the Kingdom's

adamantite-ranked adventurers, became a target. As a result, it was only obvious
that none of the nobles would come to send him off. Even if some of them were
friendly to him, they would be in a difficult spot because of the power struggle.

The whole reason that Raeven was able to be here was because he fluttered back
and forth between factions like a bat.

"This is a letter of appreciation from the King, the second prince, and the third
princess. And this is a plaque exempting you from all taxes on the land of the
Kingdom. And also, the shortsword bestowed by the King. Please accept them."

As a noble, Lakyus could not help but sigh, and Evileye knew exactly why.

Being awarded a shortsword by the king had the same meaning as being
presented with a medal as a knight or winning battle spoils as a noble. In the

intense power struggles, the gift of the shortsword would cause a lot of trouble if
the nobles found out about it. Even so, all she could say was that the King's gift
of the shortsword was a brilliant move.

And here I thought the King was a pitiful nobody who didn't dare rock the boat.
My opinion of him has gone up quite a bit.

Momon accepted the shortsword in a nonchalant manner and handed it to Nabe,

who stood behind him.

"No, giving it as praise would be sufficient, but wouldn't the nobles have
something to say about this?" Evileye said quietly.

From the nobles' point of view, someone with charisma and power becoming a
noble would not be a laughing matter. It would be especially troublesome if a
warrior mightier than Gazef Stronoff joined the royal faction. As such, if the king
decided he wanted to award Momon a lordship, the nobles would use the gift of
the shortsword as an excuse to criticize him. Although the King was the one who
awarded the shortsword, it was too great a gift even as praise.

The nobles would not take it lying down.

Evileye mused this out loud, but was denied by the person next to her.

"...You're too naive, Evileye."

"Naive. The royal faction is a step ahead this time."

"Why?"

"...Because that shortsword is something awarded to nobles and knights."

"So in future, when the need comes to promote Momon-san, they can use the
shortsword to shut the nobles up. It would never be awarded to commoners, you
do know that, right? A lordship's been set aside for him, or at least that's what
they're insinuating."

"I see... To think you put so much thought into it."

"Of course."

"Don't look down on assas don't look down on ninjas."

"Then we should be going, Marquis Raeven. Thank you for everything."

"You're welcome. I hope we will continue our cordial relationship in future."

"I feel the same way too. And to Blue Rose, my fellow adamantite ranked
adventurers, I hope we will be able to remain in close contact. I'll be counting on
you if anything happens."

"We should be saying that, Momon-san. After seeing Momon-san's power, we are
almost ashamed to call ourselves adamantite-ranked adventurers like yourself,
but we will do our best to catch up with you. Looking forward to working with you
again."

Lakyus and Momon nodded to each other.

And then, Evileye felt Momon's gaze turning to her. That was not a mistake. The
proof was that Momon had seemed to be on the verge of saying something, then
stopping halfway, before starting up again and cutting himself off once more.

Evileye felt her unbeating heart pound in her chest.

If Momon asked her to become his companion, Evileye would definitely accept. It
would be a betrayal of her comrades with whom she went through thick and thin,
but even so, Evileye wanted to be true to her own heart.

As though confused, Momon continued starting and stopping several times before
he finally exhaled and turned around. The crimson cape swirled with his
movement.

Seeing his back slowly recede, Gagaran teased Evileye.

"You've been dumped."

"No, that's not right. He's just that kind of man."

Momon mounted the Floating Boardcreated by Raeven's magic caster and

slowly floated up, but Evileye did not turn her eyes from him for a single moment.

"I wonder when we'll meet again?"

"It would be good if it was a simple and relaxed quest, instead of a big
disturbance like this."

"That might be difficult."

"Exactly."

Blue Rose's members agreed on that.

If adamantite ranked adventurers met for a job, it would definitely be because of

something big.

"Then a normal meeting should be fine, right? Evileye knows teleportation magic.
Going to E-Rantel shouldn't be such a bad thing. Speaking of which, wouldn't
going with Momon kill two birds with one stone? Being protected by him would
also mean you wouldn't have to worry about danger when moving around."

Evileye was shocked speechless, staring at Gagaran. Although she was wearing
her mask, her comical expression shone through from her attitude.

"Hey, didn't you realize it? Long-distance relationships don't end well... or are you
two not going out yet?"

Gagaran looked to the sky, and Evileye's gaze turned to the heavens as well. In
the distance, she saw the receding figure of Momon.

"Uwaaaaaaaaaaa!"

Evileye's wail of despair was like an angry cry, and Blue Rose laughed around her.

Month of Descending Fire (9th Month), 10th Day, 18:45

This emergency meeting of the Eight Fingers had been unusual from the start. To
begin with, not everyone was here. One of the missing people was Cocco Doll,
but everyone knew he had already been arrested, so he was not a part of things.
The problem was that the other missing person was Zero.

Everyone knew he was no traitor. That just made things worse.

From the information they had gathered, Zero's death had been confirmed. On
the same day, the subordinates he had sent on the mission of "killing anyone and
everyone who insulted us" had also been massacred.

The losses had been too great. Although the subordinates he dispatched had
been expendable, the death of Zero, Eight Fingers strongest man and chief of
security, was not one they could simply ignore.

Every department here competed with each other, but they still belonged to the
same organization. This loss would have repercussions for all of them.

Debate sprang up among them.

What should they do about the vacancy left by Zero's death? What about Cocco
Doll?

Under normal circumstances they would have simply recommended one of their
people to that position, but there was a reason they could not do that.

That would be because of the demonic invasion of the capital. The fallout from
that incident was not a pretty sight. While their hideouts had been attacked on

the very same day, one loss stood heads and shoulders above all the others. It
was a particular nightmare for the Smuggling Division's chief.

Many of their storehouses had been plundered, and after checking the remaining
storehouses that had not been raided, more than half of their contraband had
gone missing.

"In any case, until we manage to recover, we need to work together."

"Haven't we always been doing that so far?"

"Enough with that nonsense. This time, we really need to cooperate. I think we
should shift our activities out of the capital. What say you?"

"No. On the contrary, I think now is when we should be working in the capital.
Now is the time to get the new captain of the guard into our pocket. If we flee
from here, that would mean we're giving up on the capital and the gains within."

"Mmm. That's certainly a possibility. However, with our security department

with our fighting strength in tatters, wouldn't it be dangerous to move around in
the capital?"

The five division heads puzzled over the problem, then addressed the one head
who had not said a single thing thus far.

"Hilma, what do you think?"

The woman's body shuddered.

This was a reaction she had never shown before in previous meetings.

The black circles under her eyes were impossible to hide with makeup, and she
had the air of the walking dead about her.

"What's wrong? I heard your mansion was attacked too... but you managed to get
away in your hidden escape tunnel, right? Did you see something that scared
you?"

All the other section chiefs had their guards standing behind them, but Hilma had
none.

"..."

"Well, what is it?"

As Hilma's mouth opened, so did the door to the meeting room.

"All right! That's enough for now!"

The cheery voice was followed by a dark elf boy entering the room, who was in
turn followed by a nervous-looking dark elf girl.

Everyone present was stunned.

If they had been adults, perhaps they might have had a different reaction, but in
front of their eyes were a pair of children who were totally out of place in a room
like this. The leaders were still frantically trying to figure out if they were
enemies.

"Then, all of you will now become our great Lords servants~"

From their silence, they probably didn't get what he was saying at all, so the boy
repeated himself.

"My esteemed colleague has concluded that rather than taking control of the
country's leadership, it would be more effective to simply take control of all of
you. So we will forgive your various sins and allow you to become our servants...
hm, slaves? Puppets? Ah well, who cares? In any case, congratulations!"

The dark elf boy began clapping, followed shortly by his nervous sister, who
clasped her staff under her arm to applaud as well.

"Con-congratu"

"The hell you say?!"

The leaders were still trying to figure out if they were enemies or allies. It was too
soon to conclude that they were enemies, but life in the underworld had taught
them to stop thinking so hard, look out for their own safety, and worry about
killing their enemies later.

They didn't understand the dark elves' true intentions, but since the other side
had so blatantly crashed this meeting, that probably meant that they could
suppress everyone here. If that was the case, even the best bodyguards each
section chief could hire would probably be unable to beat them. Given that no
enemy would be so stupid to barge in if there was even the slightest possibility of
losing, it would seem that escaping safely would be a higher priority in this case.

Every division head would use their own guards as shields without hesitation.
Everyone had the same idea, and began moving to carry it out.

However, they were far too late.

The first thing the chiefs realised as they tried to stand up was that they could
not move.

"Ah? Oghhaaah? Ahhhhhhh?!"

Their bodies were completely immobile, and even their tongues were unable to
move. Drool ran down the sides of their mouths.

The boy who had just breathed out began to laugh.

"Then, we'll take everyone to the happy fun place~"

"Y-yes. P-please come along."

Hilma's body started shaking violently.

"W-wait! Not me, right? I helped you, didn't I?!"

As they realised who had betrayed them, the men all turned their gazes to the
only woman present.

"Please! I'm begging you! I can't take it! I can't take it any more!"

"Hmmm~ what're you talking about?"

"I, I think she means being taken to Kyouhukou's room, where her organs were
being constantly devoured from the inside."

The dark elf boy's face twisted into an eww~ sort of expression.

Hilma must have remembered something. She hugged herself tightly, both hands
clutching herself, her body shuddering violently. One hand covered her mouth
while the tears flowed freely from her eyes. From the greenish hue of her face,
she looked like she was about to vomit.

"A-and"

"Stop. We healed all her wounds with magic. So its only natural that shes a good
girl. Although, it's a rare thing that we didn't get to kill her..."

"Mm, mm. There's a lot of corpses already, and we still need her to run the
organization."

"I see. Well then, auntie, good luck~ If you betray us again, we'll lock you up
longer in the Black Capsule~"

"Eeeeee!"

Hilma nodded vigorously, while still green in the face. That was plainly the look of
someone whose will to resist had been utterly broken, and would obey any orders
given without hesitation.

"Anyways, before we know they're going to do as they're told, you can take your
time with them. OK?"

"G-got it! Leave it to me! We can definitely make something useful of them!"

From Hilma's desperate, pathetic gestures of submission, the men realized that
they too would experience the torments that would mold them into something
like her, and turned pale.

"Then, I've already brought a few of my boys down to help you out. Make good
use of them. There's a few more you absolutely can't kill or fight, I'll explain
later.

The dark elf boy was all smiles.

"Now then, we've done half the work of taking over this country. But... what was
Demiurge saying about planting the seeds of a kingdom... ah, who cares. Next
up, some other place!"

VOLUME 6

PROL
OGUE

On the 10th floor of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, in the innermost sanctum
excitement was quietly overflowing the area in front of the throne, where forty
banners hung on two sides.

Without any words being spoken, the beings that gathered in the room neatly
formed up in a ceremonial fashion with one hand to their chest, knelt towards the
throne with their heads lowered, displaying their complete loyalty.

Not only were the floor guardians present, the other NPCs created by the fortyone Supreme Beings, as well as their servants were also gathered. The total
number gathered easily surpassed 200. This was the second time the throne
room was filled with this many servants since the transfer.

However, different from before, the servants gathered this time were among the
strongest within Nazarick, with the average level being over eighty.

The subordinates that were accompanying Shalltear were all high-level undeads
instead of the typical vampire brides. In addition, Mare even brought along the
two level ninety dragons, both of which have never ventured outside before, to
the throne room. The two dragons were ultra-rare creatures that were obtained
from the cash shop Gachapon.

Among the carefully selected servants, some still managed to stand out. The
most obvious example was the group of one hundred level forty undeads. They
were lined up in a different block from the other two hundred servants.

Typically, lower leveled servants were placed near the rear end of the assembly
without exception, where the treatment they receive was proportional to their
level. However, this specific group of one hundred undead were personally
created by the supreme ruler of the Great Tomb of Nazarick Ainz Ooal Gown. As
such, their status was different.

Even though every creature that was present in the room was one of Ainzs
subordinates and a loyal retainer of the guild "Ainz Ooal Gown", differences in
status still existed. Of course, the ones at the top were the NPCs created by the
Supreme Beings, with the NPCs that were appointed as Floor Guardians ranking
above all others.

Ranked below the NPCs were the POPs, in other words, monsters that are
automatically spawned by the Mercenary System from within YGGDRASILthe

servants. The status of the servants was based on their level and job class, and
not the floor they had spawned from.

In that case, how should they rank the undead that were created by Ainz?

This was the question that bothered the Overseer of the Floor GuardiansAlbedo
the most. Should she treat them the same as other the NPCs?

When asked, Ainz had simply smiled softly and shrugged it off by saying he
wouldnt care even if Albedo placed them at the very back.

Although the number of undead Ainz could summon per day was limited, the
spells to create undead creatures did not require anything besides mana and a
corpse. Compared to the high level servants that require YGGDRASIL gold or real
money in order to spawn, it was obvious which were more valuable to Ainz, given
that the only requirement for creating undead were corpses.

However, this was only from Ainzs point of view, which was completely different
from what his subordinates thought. Moved by her masters generosity, Albedo
responded with an "understood". However, regardless of how much she tried, the
resulting formation was mismatched. Albedo started to become troubled.

After spending all her brain power, Albedo ended up placing the undead behind
the NPCs and in front of the POP spawned servants.

While all this was happening, Ainz silently observed the entire process from the
highest position within the room. With the posture of a mighty ruler, Ainzs
presence loomed over the throne room, filling his subjects with awe. To the
people who were present, Ainzs every decree carried the weight of a God.

"To begin, I would like to thank Sebas and Solution for the effort they put in for
the past month in intelligence gathering. You have done well."

Seeing the two bowing deeply, Ainz nodded his head in satisfaction. However, the
real problem for Ainz had just begun. It was extremely difficult for an average
salary man like Ainz to play the role of a ruler. Seeing the faces of countless
subordinates radiating with respect and love simply made the pressure even
more overbearing.

Ainz felt as if his stomach was aching and his heart beating extremely fast, even
though these organs should not exist in an undead made of nothing but bones.
However, this feeling only lasted for a fraction of a moment. Even though just
seconds ago Ainz was filled with the feeling of wanting to immediately run away,
the special condition of being an undead forcefully compelled him to calm down
again.

In the end, Ainz managed to continue putting on the airs of a respected ruler.

"The two of you, come before me."

Both Sebas and Solution stood up at the same time and walked towards the steps
in front of the throne as if they had practised it beforehand. Once they reached
where Albedo stood, the two of them got back on their knees and bowed once
more.

"Raise your heads. For your outstanding performances, the two of you shall
receive my praise as well as reward."
Ainz then shifted his sight to Sebas and said.
"Sebas, although you previously pleaded for Tsuares life, the reason that I
decided to protect her is because of a personal debt as a show of gratitude to
someone else. It has nothing to do with the accomplishment of your previous
work, as such I will still permit you to ask for a reward. Well then, let us hear your
wish!"

By giving rewards to servants that had performed well in their assigned tasks,
Ainz hoped to provide an incentive to motivate others to perform better. As such,
Ainz used the experiences he gained in the human society to create the current
scene for all to witness. This was also part of the reason as to why he allowed so
many subordinates to enter the throne room.

However, the current situation also came with many risks. In front of his
subordinates, Ainz had to maintain the posture and attitude of a ruler who was
capable of leadership. For an average salaryman like Ainz, this was very difficult
to maintain. Even so, as the last remaining member of the Great Tomb of
Nazarick, he had to overcome this challenge.

I cannot betray the hopes and expectations of the NPCs who have displayed so
much loyalty to me.

Just as Ainz resolved his determination, Sebas mustache quivered.

"Offering my complete devotion to Ainz-sama is the sole reason for my existence,

I have no need for"

As I thought, these subordinates of mine possess way too much loyalty. This
makes the pressure all the more harder to bear.

"That is enough, I understand your feelings. However, good work still needs to be
rewarded. This is something that I as a master should do. Know that sometimes
the lack of ambition in the subordinates can make their master unhappy."

"Ah! Please accept my apologies, Ainz-sama. In that case..." After several

seconds of thinking, Sebas said, "I would like to ask for clothing and everyday
living goods for Tsuare, who was kindly placed under my care by Ainz-sama."

"...I can provide clothes from my personal collection. Will that be fine?"

In YGGDRASIL, the cosmetic skins released were only available in limited

quantities. If one missed out on them, it would be extremely difficult to acquire
them. As such, players tended to buy up any new cosmetic item that looked
halfway decent. This was the same for Ainz and his comrades. Because the guild
had female members as well as many female NPCs, Ainz would often purchase
skins regardless of whether they were meant for males or females, as long as
they looked good. Sometimes he would give them to members who missed out
on the sale, but that rarely happened.

The guild member who created Shalltear, Peroronchino, also shared the same
inclination as Ainz, and had once said "Buying skins is like buying fap material.
Regardless of whether youll use it or not, its always better to have a copy stored
somewhere."

Because of this, Ainz ended up with wardrobe after wardrobe filled with
untouched clothes. Even if he turned them into crafting materials it would still be
a waste. Might as well try to make the best out of them by giving some to Tsuare.
Now that Ainz thought back on this, the clothing from YGGDRASIL were all rather
excessive in design, but there should at least be a few that were suitable for
Tsuare to wear.

"No, that is too much. Tsuare has already received so much kindness from Ainzsama, giving her Ainz-samas clothes would be too much to ask."

"Is that so? ...In that case, what should I do with the clothes..."

For Ainz, who had never purchased womens clothing before, this was
troublesome. What if he was misunderstood as having a lewd fetish? His
reputation within the female circles of the Great Tomb of Nazarick would
definitely drop.

"How about we leave this matter to Narberal? A small problem like this should not
require the personal attention of Nazaricks supreme ruler Ainz-sama."
Sebas spoke as if sensing Ainzs discomfort.

"...Are you fine with this, Narberal?"

Reacting to the command, one of the motionless NPCs who stood in front of Ainz
nodded her head deeply.

"Very well. Sebas, this task has been given to Narberal. However..." Ainz grinned,
"I am also fine if you treat this as a date and take Tsuare to the capital to shop for
clothes."

Ainz had already heard of the relationship between Sebas and Tsuare. Although
they havent reached a physical relationship yet, it would definitely happen soon.
That was what Ainz was told by Demiurge.

Demiurge, huh. Why did he suggest that forming a physical relationship between
Sebas and Tsuare is a good thing? Well, I guess he was congratulating his coworker on finding a girlfriend. Maybe they have a better relationship than I
thought? Things didnt seem so good between them in the Kingdom, but I guess
it was understandable considering the circumstances. It makes me relieved.
Continually fighting like those two isn't healthy at all."

The reason for the conflict between the guildmembers Touch Me and Ulbert was
due to something outside of YGGDRASIL. In other words, Ulberts jealousy
towards Touch Me was due to real world reasons.

The relationship between the two became tense ever since the quarrel they had
that one time Maybe that was the cause of everything.

If it was the Ainz of now, perhaps he could have understood the reason for the
quarrel back then. While reminiscing the past, a sudden voice from Sebas startled
Ainz and he hastily came back from the reminiscent state.

"Is that pos-possible? If that is the case, I would like to take Tsuare along to the
capital."

Its not like I want to purposely sabotage their relationship just because I am
single.

When the two of them arrive at Re-Estize for their date, should I follow along
wearing the Mask of Envy? It was just a childish thought.

"That is fine Sebas. Next, Solution, tell me the reward that you want."

"I would be very happy if I could receive a few humans. If possible, I want them
to be alive. And I would be even happier if the humans I get are pure."

The faces of the human captives appeared briefly in Ainzs mind. The majority of
the captives that were alive were members of "Eight Fingers", the type of people
that disgusted Ainz the most. Among them, the useful ones had already been
tortured, and any useful information they had was already extracted. The
remaining humans were currently being protected by the ones under
confinement.

I cant use them. Pestonya and Nigredo risked going against my orders in order to
save them.

"Very well. I shall reward you with a few live humans. However, they wont be
pure. Do forgive me for not being able to fulfill the complete requirements of your
wish."

"Please do not apologize, Ainz-sama. I know that my achievements are still

lacking, so I am satisfied with what is given." Solution said with her head deeply
bowing.

Ainz nodded with the bearing of a ruler to Solution.

"...Is that so? My thanks. The two of you may return to your positions. Next is
Entoma. Come before me.

Similar to Sebas and Solution, Entoma came in front of Ainz and knelt down.

"Well then, Entoma."

"YeS!"

Such a difficult to understand voice, Ainz smiled bitterly.

"Looks like your voice still hasnt recovered."

The insect that Entoma used as her voice box could not be spawned from POP.
However, it was possible to use items from YGGDRASIL to summon them. There
were still a few of these insects in Entomas room, so she could get her voice
back anytime she liked. The reason why she had not done it yet was because of
her personal grudge.

"Is mY vOicE tOo HoaRSe? If sO I wiLL iMmeDiAtEly go aNd FiX it."

"That is fine. I do not dislike your voice."

"ThAnK yOu vErY mUch!"

"For continuing the duty you were assigned despite your injuries, youve done
well. However, it is not enough to receive the same level of reward as the two
from before. Now, is there something you want?"

Rewards should not be so generously handed out. Otherwise it would lower the
importance of a reward and defeat the whole purpose.

Keeping this in mind, Ainz judged that Entomas achievements were still lacking
for a proper reward. However, getting injured and not receiving anything at all
would be too pitiful.

Is this the so called Purple Heart? Im not too familiar with military stuff. If that
person was here he would be able to explain it to me better.
[TL-Note: In case you have no idea what Purple Heart is: Link.]

Ainz suddenly thought about the guild member who was a military otaku.

"In tHAt cAse ...AInZ-sAma, iF tHe cHanCe to kiLL tHat bRaTty giRL sHows uP,
pLeASe leT me kNow. I wANt heR to alSo eXpeRIenCe tHe fEeLing of loSiNg heR
voICe."

Realizing that Entoma was referring to Evileye, the mage girl that wore a strange
mask, Ainz gave his consent.

"Understood. When the time comes, I will let you know. Return to your position,
Entoma."

Watching Entoma head back to her original spot, Ainz began speaking once more
"Now, let us move on to the next agenda."

No objection was raised. However, for Ainz, this wasnt necessarily a good thing.

As the absolute ruler of Nazarick, even if Ainz said something that was white is
black, no one would object. The silence from before might mean that no one
objected, however, it did not mean that the actions Ainz took were necessarily
correct.

Should I create separate divisions such as the Board of Audit?

The first thing he should do is create a department that assessed the contribution
of each individual in Nazarick and the appropriate rewards for them. But this
would run into the problem that Sebas showed earlier. Every NPC in Nazarick
pledged their loyalty to Ainz as a matter of fact and considered service without
compensation to be a natural thing. It would be difficult for them to determine
what sort of incentive would be appropriate, and ultimately the decision would go
to Ainz.

As an organization, the overall course of action and goals need to be made

clear ...In the end, I left all the problems for Albedo to solve, and now everything
is coming back to bite me. This has already exceeded the limits of ordinary
people. Haa, looks like the experiences I gained in society after living for this long
has no uses at all.

Ainz, or rather, Suzuki Satoru, who was originally on the receiving side, ended up
having to deal with these problems and the pressure of being the one assigning
the rewards. It would have been better to think about these things in Ainzs own
bed, which for some reason smelled really good.

"I will now make it clear on the future directions that Nazarick will take.
Demiurge, come to my side."

The possessor of the highest intelligence in Nazarick walked towards the throne,
and stood on the opposite side of Albedo.

"The overseer of the floor guardians of Nazarick, Albedo, and the highest intellect
in Nazarick, Demiurge, I order the two of you to explain our plans. The plans that
were made in the beginning are halfway into fruition, and now is the time for
everyone to hear the overall directions that Nazarick will take. If anyone present
have a different opinion, raise your hand. I will grant you permission to speak."

The most important of Ainz goal was to preserve the existence of Nazarick. No,
in the worst case scenario, even if he had to abandon Nazarick, Ainz would still
be fine with it as long as the NPCs created by his past comrades were safe.

The second most important goal was to make the name Ainz Ooal Gown known
throughout the world. This was in the slight hope that if any of Ainzs past
comrades were in this world, they would be able to reunite. However, the chance
of this becoming true was extremely low.

The third was to strengthen Nazarick. This goal should probably deserve more
importance than the previous one. It is true that after coming to this world, Ainz
felt that the Great Tomb of Nazarick would never fall and that "Ainz Ooal Gown"
was the strongest organization in existence. However, as long as the entity that
tried to mind control Shalltear still existed, partaking in too many public actions
will be dangerous. Especially when facing against an unknown number of World
class items, the possibility that an unknown guild is involved was quite high. That
was why raising the overall power of Nazarick was the correct action to take.

The current status was that after incorporating the lizardmen into Nazarick, Ainz
has been continuously creating undead in order to strengthen Nazaricks military
power. However, he needed do something more.

The fourth goal was to create an effective intelligence network but this had been
lowered in priority after the recent turn of events.

Ainz had thought about the priority of these goals and ordered them as such.
However, as an ordinary person, this was the best that he could do, and he could
not know if there were any flaws in his thinking.

This was why Ainz wanted to borrow the brainpower of Albedo and Demiurge,
who were very intelligent. If it concerned only ordinary things, Ainz was fine with
borrowing their wisdom. In such case, there was no need for Ainz to put himself
on stage and risk embarrassing himself in front of everybody.

However, that way of thinking was incorrect.

As the master, as the Ainz Ooal Gown the NPCs believed him to be, he needed
this kind of stage to show that he indeed was a Supreme Being; a truly wise sage
that none would even dare to predict.

"The two of you, speak loudly so everyone can hear. Everyone in this room are
elites that were selected by their Floor Guardians. It is necessary for them to
understand the plans we have made for the future. To the ones below, listen
well."

Thats right. This was the desperate measure that Ainz had chosen to take. The
larger scaled version of the "pretend I understand, but in case others didnt,
Demiurge shall once more explain it" plan. Just like before, Ainz only need to put
up the pretense of being fully aware and wait for an explanation.

"Demiurge, for those who are in the dark, explain the current situation to them.
Make sure to make it easy to understand. First begin with the explanation of the
actions we took against the Kingdom."

"Understood." Demiurge replied as he then turned towards the assembly to begin

his explanation.

That was what Ainz wanted to hear. For someone as intelligent as Demiurge,
there must have been a purpose for the events to have occurred in that particular
manner. However, after much thinking, the feeling that Ainz got was that
somehow, they ended up doing unnecessary things.

"First, in the Kingdom, I was able to successfully reduce the authority of those in
power with the help of Mare, Neuronist, and Kyouhukou. We can now begin to
slowly infiltrate their ranks until the Kingdom comes under our full control."

"...Eh?"
A small sound escaped from Ainzs mouth. Why do we need to take control of the
Kingdom? It seemed as if the explanation was different from what Ainz heard last
time. Wasnt it in order to secure a steady income or to better acquire
intelligence?

While Ainz was deep in thought, Demiurge stopped speaking and turned his head
towards him. For once, Ainz was glad that his undead body would not let him
sweat, and turned to Demiurge.

"Is there a problem, Demiurge?"

"No, it was just that I had the feeling that Ainz-sama wished to say something."

"Ah, is that so? You must have been mistaken. Continue. Let everyone know the
reason behind taking control of the Kingdom."

"Yes. Now then, everyone, I hope none of you here are foolish enough to not
know that by taking control of the Kingdom, we will be able to move closer
towards the true wish of Ainz-sama, which is world domination."

Ainz quickly studied the faces of everyone present in the room. From the looks of
things, it seemed like everyone knew about this.

Except for Ainz himself.

"...World domination?"

Just what is this?! When did it become like this? Of course Ainz couldnt say these
thoughts out loud.

Ainz once again tried to use as much of his brain power as possible to quickly
make sense of things. It was unbelievable, hard to accept. How did it become like
this? Originally they were supposed to be quietly taking actions in the
background, avoid making too many enemies, raise the fame of Ainz Ooal Gown
and then reunite with past comrades. It was supposed to be just to realize these
cute little wishes.

However, now it ended up being

Why is it world domination? Just how in the hell did this happen?

Although Ainz really wanted to deny the statement, he lacked the courage to do
so.

Both the NPCs and the servants all displayed the expression which said "there
was no need to ask". It is as if everyone had already accepted that this was the
final objective of Ainz. Suddenly it seemed as if a lonely wind blew past the
throne that Ainz sat on.

Ainz Ooal Gown was the absolute ruler of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, a peerless
existence. After spending so much effort to create this kind of image, if it was
broken here by Ainz himself, who knows what would happen. Would he end up
becoming as pitiful as an idol without a single paparazzi, who lost all of her fan
base, and could not sell her albums. The fate of Ainz would probably be even
worse than that. Ainz had already managed to imagine these things in his head.

Were too invested in this plan to stop now

However, after carefully thinking things through, world domination didnt sound
as bad as it seemed.

It wouldn't be as easy as it was in games, and for an ordinary person like Ainz,
the path to world domination seemed like an impossible road to travel. However,
fame could be obtainedmost likely infamyand this seems like the perfect
method to gain it.

The problem would be, if Ainzs past comrades were to find out about it what
would their reaction be? If the time comes, Ill just have to honestly admit that I
wasnt able to successfully manage Nazarick and apologize, Ainz thought.

And theres also the unknown enemy that brainwashed Shalltear. I can always
make up some excuses... Ill be forgiven Right?

After finding his resolve, Ainz turned towards Demiurge and said. "Oh, so you
remembered."

"Of course. If it is words spoken by Ainz-sama, this Demiurge will never forget. "

"Is that so It was the conversation from that time right?"

"That is correct."

"...At that time?"

"That is correct."

"Ah, that time I am pleased, Demiurge."

"Thank you very much."

"However, world domination is hard to achieve."

"It is as you say."

"In that case How do you think we should proceed?"

Ainz felt like praising himself for managing to keep his voice steady throughout
the whole thing.

"What we have currently achieved will be the starting point for our future plans. I
have a proposal. I believe it is time for Nazarick to publicly come out onto the
global stage. If we keep things as it is, it will become more and more difficult for
us to operate, should the entities that brainwashed Shalltear continue to remain
hidden in the dark."

"...It is as you say."

That cant be correct, right? Ainz had thought that by remaining hidden, it would
be safer. How did Demiurge arrive at his conclusion?

"I also agree, Ainz-sama. By becoming a known organization, there would be

more options available to us, for example through correspondences or
negotiations. It wont be like what we are doing right now, searching for clues in
the dark. This is what I think."

After hearing Albedos opinion, Ainz was able to finally accept it in his heart, and
responded with "I see."

Compared with the things at the moment, it is indeed much more attractive to be
able to take part in larger, more public scaled operations.

"By controlling the Kingdom from behind the scene, we can avoid making
Nazarick stand out. However, I do not like the idea of making us a part of another
country."

Demiurge shook his head at Albedos question.

"Of course not, Albedo. I too do not wish for that. Also, from the reports that we
have gathered, the current Kingdom holds no charm, apart from a single person.
It is the same as other countries. I believe that to place our organization as part
of a country is foolish."

"And why is that?"

"If we belong to a country, our actions will become restricted. If the beings that
attacked Shalltear are an organization, we will most likely lose the initiative. As
such Ainz-sama."

Demiurge looked towards Ainz as he made his proposal.

"I propose we form an independent nation called the Great Tomb of Nazarick."

CHAP
TER 1

Part 1

The capital of the Baharuth Empire, Arwintar, was located slightly to the west
from the center of the empire. The Imperial Palace, home to the reigning
monarch with the nickname Blood EmperorJircniv Rune Farlord el Nixstood in
the heart of the city. Surrounding the palace were the universities, the magic
academy, various administrative offices and other important facilities which
spread out from the center of the capital in a radial fashion. Truly, it was a city
worthy to be called the heart of the Empire.

Although it had less inhabitants than Re-Estize, the capital of the Kingdom, the
Empire's capital was much grander in comparison. Not only this, due to many
years of reform, the Empire was currently experiencing the largest surge of
development ever recorded in history. New things were constantly being
introduced to society, which increased the opportunities for merchants to explore
new markets. A constant influx of goods and talents had since been seen in the
Empire's capital. For the citizens living in the capital, it was truly a time of hope
and opportunity.

Within this noisy and lively city, Ainz walked with Narberal by his side.

Under different circumstances, Ainz would probably have wanted to spend some
time to explore the city, like a country bumpkin coming to a metropolis for the
first time. After all, there were many differences between the Empire and the
Kingdom.

However, Ainz didn't have the leisure to look around right now.

His movements were gradually starting to reflect his thoughts, slowly becoming
more and more erratic over time.

The feelings enveloping him from within could be described with a single word
Unpleasant.

The more Ainz thought about the purpose behind this visit to the Empire, which
had been planned by Demiurge, the more he frowned, despite the face being an
illusion.

For Ainz Ooal Gown, the absolute ruler of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, the word
"endure" should not be in his vocabulary. There should be no need to suppress his

emotions. Ainz's words should be absolute, where white would become black if he
declared so. There was no reason for things to be otherwise.

Yet the current situation still ended up this way because Ainz couldn't find a valid
excuse to dismiss Demiurge's proposal.

The overall objective wasshowcasing the strength of Nazarick. It was very easy
to understand Demiurge's plan, and the results would also be immediate. On the
other hand, what Ainz didn't like was that it felt as if he was about to throw mud
on the things carefully built by his past comrades.

However, to reject such an amazingly thought out plan just because of his
personal emotions would be a shame. Also, Ainz didn't want others to think that
he lacked the magnanimity to accept proposals made by another individual.

To dismiss the current plan without suggesting any alternatives was something
that Ainz, not as the supreme ruler but as a member of society, felt was
unacceptable.

Ainz repeated the things he thought previously once more in order to calm down.
There was a need to cool his head. Between logic and emotions, choosing to go
with logic should be the correct choice. Even though those who were driven by
their emotions would sometimes achieve extraordinary results, most of the time
they were simply irrational. Not only that...

"...It's simply too late to back out now! Kaaa!"

Ainz inhaled and exhaled deeply using his non-existent lungs. And showed no
concerns to the city guards and townspeople that cast odd glances in his
direction as they walked by.

Due to Ainz's naturally tall and awe-inspiring figure, he was already the center of
attention. This became even more so after he was exalted as a hero. Not
attracting any attention would be strange. Because of this, Ainz had gotten used
to ignoring people's gaze, even more so after he started riding Hamusuke.

After taking multiple deep breaths, Ainz was finally able to reduce the feeling of
unpleasantness to a minimum. Only then did he notice the amount of effort that
his subordinate, Narberal, had to make in order to keep up with him.

"My bad, I might have walked a bit too fast."

The walking pace required in order to cover the same amount of distance
between the footsteps of a man wearing full body armor such as Ainz and the
robe wearing Narberal was completely different. Although it wasn't too hard for
Narberal to keep up due to her physical capabilities, but as a man, there was still
a need to apologize for not being considerate of his walking pace.

"No, I do not have any complaints."

"Is that so..."

Ainz couldn't figure out whether the reply was a typical response that servants
gave their masters or if Narberal really didn't mind. While slowing down his pace,
Ainz searched for a topic to discuss.

Ainz felt somewhat embarrassed for the unapproachable atmosphere he had

been radiating moments ago. As such, in an attempt to improve the current
awkward mood, Ainz desperately tried to think of a topic to discuss. However,
nothing good came to mind.

He thought about meaningless conversation starters that salespeople often used,

such as talking about the weather. Talking about sports was also a good choice,
but one had to find out which teams the other person rooted for first.

Considering whether or not to start that kind of conversation, Ainz started

mumbling deep in his heart.

Why do I need to be this considerate to someone like Narberal, who is just a

subordinate? Well, since it turned out this way, I might as well use this
opportunity to practice master-servant dialogue. That being said, it must befit the
status of a ruler. What do people with absolute power talk about with their
subordinates/servants?

Thinking back on the everyday conversations that took place in Ainz's old
company, something like that should be fine, right?

Ainz was the supreme overlord of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, not some senior
executive of a company. If a comparison had to be made, he would be more like a
company president or a CEO.

No, it's still a bit different from a president... Speaking of which, what's the
conversation like between the King and Gazef Stronoff? It would be useful as a
reference.

Even if that was the case, they had already gotten to this point. If they went on
like this, the mood between them would end up too heavy to bear. Ainz ended up
forcefully opening his mouth.

"...Narberal ...What do you think of this voice?"

Ainz pointed to his voice box, or more accurately, pointed to the place where his
vocal cords should be. He pressed down on the area where his throat should have
been with his gauntlets. He expected only the metallic sensation of his gauntlets,
however, there was an elastic feeling, giving out an uncanny impression that his
throat really existed.

"Truthfully, I don't think this voice is good. Although it doesn't sound strange, I
still think the usual voice of Momon-sa...san sounds better. While I understand
there is a reason behind doing this, I admit preferring to hear your old voice."

"Is that so? I quite like this voice... Neuronist selected it from amongst fifty
people. There's an indescribable charm to it."

Suddenly, thinking back to the time when Ainz listened to a recording of his
voice, he quietly muttered something and calmed the sudden turmoil in his head.

"Is that so? However, I still think Momon-san's original voice sounded better."

"I am grateful to hear that, Narberal. Speaking of which, I had no idea that I could
also equip this..."

Unsure whether Narberal's response was merely courtesy or her real thoughts,
Ainz once more reached towards his neck, feeling the creature that was attached
to his throatthe Lip Bugwriggling.

Normal people would definitely find it itchy.

Is it that I simply didn't know, or did the rules somehow change? Lacking
information on these kind of things could also pose certain dangers in the future.
Not only about this world, but the knowledge from YGGDRASIL also needs to be
relearned.

The game YGGDRASIL was designed with the intention of letting players enjoy
exploring the unknown. Because of this, there was a need to test a variety of
different things, which resulted in the development company investing huge
amounts of resources to in order to create the system.
As such, the players were able to encounter a completely unknown world.

Not even mentioning the lack of information on the maps given at the start,
dungeon related knowledge as well as information on mining, cooking, monster
breeding e.t.c... everything was unknown to the players. It was the kind of world
where players were forced to discover things for themselves. To make it clearer,
even things such as what could be equipped and what couldn't required the trial
and error of the players themselves.
Although there were raid and information websites, the data posted on these
sites was already well known, or information that simply wasn't credible.
YGGDRASIL was a game designed for its players to explore. Gaining knowledge
was like finding treasure. There was no benefit in informing other players for free.

Hence, the only information that could be trusted came from within one's own
guild, or from trades made with other reliable guilds. Everything else was simply
useless third-rate information.

There was also a period where the forums were flooded with suspicious threads
that began with "I'm planning on leaving my guild, so I will release all their
information".

Well, there was most likely some real information released amongst those

There once existed a guild called "Three Burning Eyes".

It was formed by the owners of a site which charged its members a fee each time
for accessing information, and specialized in sending spies to join other, higherranking guilds in order to steal information and other such dubious acts. The
Gaming Administration did not punish such deeds and it was quietly accepted as

a means of acquiring intelligence. However, the guilds who had been stolen from
were much less forgiving.

What happened was that those guilds formed an alliance and attacked "Three
Burning Eyes". After capturing the respawn point inside the guild's base and the
respawn points of the temple in the surrounding streets, the alliance began to PK
the guild members from "Three Burning Eyes", and when they resurrected, PKed
them again, not letting even a single one go. They kept this up until "Three
Burning Eyes" disbanded and all its members scattered.

And in the end, the most memorable part was when they made their information
site free to access. How nostalgic, Ainz thought.

Well, there were definitely no spies in Ainz Ooal Gown... However, if it wasn't for
that incident, maybe we would have had more members

Because of that incident, the recruitment process for Ainz Ooal Gown had been
halted, and the guild was formed with 41 members, which was the minimum
number required for a guild to be considered as high tier.

During the final years of YGGDRASIL, the chances of reliable information being
made public on the web was rather high. However, the only time that Ainz really
focused his attention on information sites was during the golden period where
"Ainz Ooal Gown" was at its peak. The amount of useful information was really
limited at that time.

My knowledge of the game most likely peaked at that time. Although I still paid
attention to the announcements made by the Game Administration... this world
likely contains YGGDRASIL players apart from myself, thus I need to also consider
the risk posed from having less knowledge than them.

Through the captured members of Eight Fingers, Nazarick was able to acquire lots
of useful intelligence. However, that information largely pertained to the Kingdom
and the Empire. There was very little regarding the Theocracy, the Holy Kingdom
and the Republic. There was a need to further improve intelligence gathering.

"What a pain, I thought so much about it, but in the end I still feel troubled. It's
time to switch to a more light hearted topic."

In order to change the conversation, Ainz mildly looked around his surroundings.

"Speaking of which, the Empire seems quite lively."

"Is that so? I felt the same way in E-Rantel."

In response to Narberal's words, Ainz glanced around once more.

"The streets are full of life and the peoples eyes are bright. It's a sign that people
believe they're living well."

Although Narberal responded from behind with "As expected of Momon-san", Ainz
was a bit embarrassed by his own words and didn't reply. It was only a slight
feeling that Ainz had about the people on the streets, and whether it was true or
not, Ainz still did not have confidence in what his eyes saw.

It's not as though I was following Pandora's Actor's lead... "it's a sign of
something. To think I could say these words out loud without shame... It's like
I've turned into a poet or something.

Because he had been expected to act like a hero back in the royal capital, Ainz
had gotten into a hero's mindset, and it was apparently starting to become a
habit.

The face beneath Ainz's helmet showed an expression of slight embarrassment

of course it was impossible for a skull to turn redand then Ainz saw the hotel
Fluder had described to him.

Even from a distance, one could tell that the imperial capital's best hotel was far
more luxurious than its counterpart in E-Rantel. That was one way of describing
it, but that impression was only based on the level of facilities and the difference
in style. One could say the high-class hotels of the Kingdom were steeped in
history while those of the Empire were recently-opened, and if you asked which
was better, everyone would have different opinions.

"Although I'm not sure if I want to go in or not, but the atmosphere does seem
pretty nice."

Ainz gently touched the adamantite plate that hung in front of his chest and
headed towards the entrance.

Similar to E-Rantel, athletic soldiers in leather armor were standing guard at the
entrances and exits. As Ainz and Narberal approached, the guards turned
questioning glances to them. However, after focusing on a single point, they
hurriedly looked away with wide eyes.

"A-Are they the real deal? I think they are the real deal, judging from the
equipment they have... "

Hearing the whispers that came from his comrade, the other security guard tried
his best to stand still and hide his nervousness. However, as they closed the
distance, his tension was obvious, but he was nonetheless capable of speaking
politely.

"My apologies, adamantite-rank adventurer-sama. I'm very sorry for the

inconvenience, but may I please see your identification?"

As Ainz handed over his plate and asked, "Does this hotel only accept members?"

"Yes, in order to maintain the reputation of this hotel, we only accept regular
members or those with referrals. However, adamantite-rank adventurers are an
exception to that rule."

Wiping both hands with his sleeves, the other security guard carefully took the
identification plate that Ainz handed over as if he was afraid of breaking it.
Turning it over, he read out the words carved on the back.

"Darkness' Momon-sama?"

"That's right."

"Verification complete! Thank you for giving me the chance to hold an

Adamantite plate!"

His attitude when returning the plate was still as careful as before. The plate that
served as proof of an adventurer's status was made using the same type of metal
that corresponded to the rank of the adventurer. Even though the plate was fairly
small, the cost of making an adamantite plate was astronomical. While the plate
might be extremely hard to break, the possibility of accidentally losing it was still

there. For someone like the security guard of a hotel, the thought of having to
compensate for the loss of an adamantite plate was simply unbearable. The
security guards had heard of many stories where adamantite plates had being
lost before. Such as when trying to return the plate, a Crane-Parrota type of
birdwould fly by and snatch it up. Stories like these weren't told to make people
pay more attention, but were actual events which had happened before.

A look of relief bloomed across the faces of the two security guards once Ainz
took back his identification plate.

"Now then, may we enter?"

"Yes, Momon-sama. Please allow me to lead the way."

"Is that so? We'll be under your care then."

Tipping wasn't a thing in the Kingdom. Hopefully it was the same in the Empire.
Ainz couldn't help but think about these kinds of things while being shown in.

After walking through a spacious lobby with marble-like floor tiles, they reached
the reception counter.

"Announcing the arrival of the adamantite-ranked adventurer Momon-sama and

company."

Sitting behind the reception counter was a man with the appearance of having
received a proper upbringing. After being acknowledged, the guard turned
towards Ainz and bowed respectfully before heading back to his post.

"Welcome, Momon-sama. For choosing to grace us with your presence during

your visit to the Empire, I wish to express our very deep gratitude."

The receptionist bowed deeply towards Ainz.

"No, please don't worry about it, for now I wish to stay for one night."

"Understood. To begin, please sign here at the guest register."

Ainz smiled underneath his helmet. Having practiced writing down his name
using the language of the Kingdom countless times, he flawlessly signed the
paper after picking up a pen.

"Thank you very much. Now what kind of room would you prefer?"

For Ainz, all rooms were the same whether they were cheap or luxurious.
However, as usual, he had an appearance to maintain.

It's not like I have a need to eat food, even if the accommodation didn't include
complimentary meal I'd be fine with it.

Ainz suddenly thought about the foods that existed in this world.

A green-colored juice which smelled irresistibly sweet and delicious, a pinkcolored food that looked like scrambled egg, carefully sliced cooked meat covered
in a bluish liquid which made the meat look more tender and juicy. Every one of
those mentioned dishes stimulated Ainz's curiosity, but unfortunately he wasn't
able to eat them.

...Libido, appetite, and the desire for sleep. Despite the numerous benefits of
having an undead body, many other important things were lost. How unfortunate.
But on the other hand, the possibility of becoming immersed in bodily desires
would be too high if I regained my human body.

Having imagined being in bed with Albedo, Ainz ended up tilting his head.

A boss that sexually harasses female employeesthat was the image that
appeared last in Ainz's head after his earlier imagination.

Even though Albedo proclaimed her love to me... how complicated. If only I didn't
mess with the... oh!

"Sorry for the delay. Any room that is fitting of our status would do. ...By the way,
is it fine for us to pay using the Kingdom's currency?"

"That is not a problem. The exchange rate is one to one to begin with."

"Is that so? I will leave it in your hands then."

"Certainly. I shall begin preparing a room suitable for Momon-sama. In the

meantime, please take a rest in our lounge."

Ainz saw that the arrangement of the chairs in the lounge were separated into
small groups where the distance between each group was quite far apart. More
than fifty seats luxurious enough for high ranking officials were available. Just the
appearance alone made the chairs seem extremely comfortable. There were
even minstrels softly playing music in the background.

"Everything in the lounge, including food and drinks, are complimentary services,
please put yourself at ease and enjoy them."

In any world, as long as a certain amount of money was put in, corresponding
amount of service would be returned. Even so, the services being returned here
did not please Ainz at all.

"Understood. Come, Nabe."

Ainz entered the lounge with Narberal and chose the nearest chairs to sit down
on.

There were a few other guests also resting in the lounge. The majority of them
were adventurers. If high ranking adventurers could complete quests that paid
generous rewards, their living standard would naturally increase as well and they
could afford to live in hotels like this.

Regardless of where they were, be it the Kingdom capital or E-Rantel, all

adventurers led the same lifestyle.

Ainz made sure that the adamantite plate hanging around his neck was visible for
the others to see, so that they would become the topic of conversation amongst
the guests at the hotel. It wasn't a bad thing to raise one's profile through this
method.

While being conscious of the attention he was getting, Ainz opened the menu
that was next to him.

Can't read it

Ainz slowly flicked through the menu, even though he couldn't read, to prevent
others from finding out.

Even though Ainz brought along the item that had previously been lent to Sebas
which allowed one to read any language, in the current situation, it would be
weird to suddenly take it out and use it.

"Sebas and Tsuare..."

The image of Sebas along with Tsuare popped up in Ainz's mind when thinking
about whether or not to use the item.

"Is something wrong with that woman?"

"Ah, no, it's not a big deal. I was wondering about how she is adjusting."

Although Ainz had handed everything to Sebas, he still had the obligation to
ensure Tsuare's wellbeing since he made the promise to protect her.

"I don't think there's any problem. At the moment... because the head maid is
currently under house arrest, Sebas-sama is personally teaching her the skills
needed as a maid. After she has learned an adequate amount of proper etiquette,
she will then study cooking and a few other types of work. We plan on teaching
her a bit of everything until we discover what work she is most suitable for."

"Is that so? Well then, it should be fine leaving it to Sebas. Also, it's about time to
release those two from house arrest Albedos temper should have cooled off by
now."

Narberal lowered her head without saying a word.

Noticing that their conversation had ended, a waiter quietly walked towards
them.

"Have the two of you decided on what to order?"

"I'll have iced Makyatia. What do you want, Nabe?"

"I want the same."

"It's okay to order something that you like."

"No, I want to have the same drink. Oh, and also, I want milk to be added to
mine."

"Certainly."

Having received the orders, the waiter bowed deeply, and left quietly.

Makyatia was a drink that looked similar to latte, and Ainz often saw it in ERantel. It smelled like latte as well. However, since latte and coffee also existed in
this world there must be some difference. Nevertheless, Ainz would never find
out because he could not consume any food or drinks. He had previously
experimented by attempting to eat and drink, but the only results were that
everything spilled out from below his chin without tasting anything. Not a single
benefit was found.

The reason why Ainz chose this drink was because it was only served in highclass establishments. It was probably the most suitable choice for the current
setting.

While wiping away non-existent sweat, Ainz thought of the most pointless
question to ask.

"Nabe... what does Makyatia taste like?"

Knowing that Narberal had tried the drink before, Ainz curiously asked her.

Narberal made an expression that showed that she was thinking. It was the kind
of expression one would make such as when being asked what does coffee tastes
like by someone who has never tried it once in their life.

"Hmmm... If I had to describe it, I would say it tastes similar to Shakerato. Except
it leaves behind an aftertaste of condensed milk."

"...Is that so? Sounds delicious."

Never heard of a drink called Shakerato before. Is this perhaps a type of drink
that only exists in this world? The possibility of that seems high.

"It's not bad. Only so-so." Narberal replied.

Just as Ainz responded to Narberal with a "Hmmm", the drinks that were ordered
arrived.

"Don't mind me and drink up. Otherwise it'll be weird if neither of us touched our
drinks."

Having becoming accustomed to wearing his helmet all day long, Ainz did not
notice the unnaturalness of not removing his helmet despite drinks being served
in front of him.

"Thank you."

"It's fine if you drink mine as well. Anyway, listen up. For the time being, the plan
is to first tour the capital in the next two days. I've heard that the amount of
goods they sell at the central market is unbelievable. It's definitely worth taking a
look. Also, they sell magic items in the center area of the northern market and
adventurers frequent that place."

This information was acquired from the captured members of "Eight Fingers".
Although most of the reports received were related to the black markets, Ainz
didn't have any plans on visiting them. He only knew of it from glancing at the
reports provided.

"The third day is to visit the Adventurer's Guild. If possible, I would like to make
connections with some of the adamantite adventurers of the Empire, if not, then
let's simply complete our current tasks and head home. Overall it should take
around seven days. Do you have any other suggestions?"

Narberal, who stopped drinking halfway, listened in silence and shook her head.

Part 2

The capital of the Empire, often regarded as the manifestation of the Empire's
power, contained many aspects which surprised people. One of them was
something which the majority of travelers that arrived at the capital were amazed
ofthat every road in the capital was covered by bricks and stones.

Amongst the surrounding countrieseven within the technologically more

advanced Theocracythe thought of having to cover the roads of an entire city in
stones would make most cower. Of course it wasn't possible to do the same for
every city within the Empire, but the fact that the capital of the Empire was
capable of achieving this further reinforced its might. It was something which
often made the diplomats from other countries sigh.

Especially the design of the roads; when one walked on them, one would
immediately be able to appreciate their elegance and practicality.

Unlike the typical roads seen elsewhere, the roads in the capital were segregated
into separate lanes where the ones in the center were the driveways for carriages
and the lanes on the two sides were the sidewalks for pedestrians.

To ensure safety, the sidewalks were raised higher from the ground and were
protected by a fence. At night, street lights which were placed in sets on the side
of the roads lit up, powered by magic. Furthermore, platoons of knights regularly
patrolled the streets to ensure the peace.

On one of these roads within the Empire's capital, a young man could be seen
humming and smiling as he strolled leisurely on the sidewalk. The man was
maybe 170 cm in height, and looked around twenty years old. With blonde hair,
blue eyes, and a healthy skin color that suggested he had regularly been exposed
to sunlight, the man's features could only be described as common throughout
the Empire.

He was not the pretty boy type. If put in a group of ten people, the man would
definitely not stand out. However, an indescribable charm radiated from him
which seemed to attract other people. It might be because of the invigorating
smile on his face, or his confident way of walking.

With every step he took, a metallic jingling which sounded like it was caused by
the friction of chains could be heard from beneath his. Knowledgeable observers
would realise that it was the noise made from wearing chainmail.

Two swords hung from his waist. From their length, they seemed to be short
swords. Parts of the handles were completely covered by the hand guard, with
the blades hidden in the sheaths. One could tell that they were definitely not
cheap. And finally, a mace and a yoroidoshi were stored behind his waist.
[TL-Note: A Yoroidoshi () is a variant of the tanto and lit. an armor piercer.
For more information, click here.]

Possessing two weapons was considered normal for this world. However, it was
quite uncommon to see someone with weapons which could be used to slash,
pierce, and make bludgeoning attacks.

To an average person, the man would seem like an adventurer. However, the
well-informed ones would be able to tell that he was a worker simply from the
fact that adventurers were required to wear metallic plates around their necks.
Worker. This word was used to describe people who left the career path of an
Adventurer.

The work given to adventurers was directly provided by the Adventurer's Guild,
where the content and difficulty of the tasks were thoroughly investigated
beforehand. Only the ones that were deemed suitable were assigned to
adventurers and had corresponding ranks according to the difficulty of the task.
In other words, work that were deemed inappropriate such as ones that might
endanger the safety of the public, or the law-breaking kind of work like
investigating the plant materials used in the creation of narcotics. Those kind of
requests would be instantly rejected by the Adventurer's Guild.

Also, work that might damage the ecological balance of an area was also
rejected. For example, the Adventurer's Guild would never issue requests
involving the removal of monsters that play certain roles in an ecosystem. This
was due to fear that the removal of the monster might trigger the collapse of the
ecological balance in an area, which might result in hordes of other monsters
leaving their habitats and causing damage to human settlements. However, if
said monster left its habitat by itself and entered human territory, it would be
treated as a separate matter entirely.

In other words, adventurers were friends of justice.

However, the world did not operate on that principle alone.

Regardless of how one described things, there were people who were willing to
take on high-risk work simply for the reward. There also existed the kind of
people that simply enjoyed slaying monsters.

These people, when compared against the adventurers that stood in the light,
preferred to stay in the darkness. The "dropouts" amongst the adventurers. That
was what some people called them.

However, not all workers were the kind of people that were previously mentioned.

Hypothetically speaking, if a young village boy was heavily injured and an

adventurer group that was capable of performing healing magic happened to
pass by, were they allowed to cast the spells to save the boy?

The answer was no.

There was a rule that strictly forbade adventurers from using healing magic on
the common people unless a certain fee was paid to the adventurers.

This was because the common usage of healing magic was restricted by the
temples, where patients were required to come to the temples and pay a certain
fee in order to receive healing. If the adventurers ignored this system and freely
went around healing people, the temples would become unable to feed
themselves.

For this reason, the temples had strongly pressured the Adventurer's Guild into
enforcing this regulation.

If adventurers were unable to obey the rules, then they could opt to become a
worker.

Although this made the temples seem like the bad guys, this was not without
good reason. Due to the influence of magic on the daily lives of people, magic
could be considered as another political tool for power. In order for the temples to

provide benefits to the people without becoming controlled by politics, the only
source of income they could receive would be from the people. In exchange, the
temples provided healing, cleansing of the undead, as well as researching and
developing new healing spells.

If the adventurers ignored the regulations and used their healing spells freely, the
temples would be forced to become more secular, and their initial ideologies
would become corrupted.

As such, there were always two sides to a story. Without light, there would be no
shadow. The existence of workers could be described in the same way. For
money, they were willing to ignore regulations and often make a mess of things,
however, there were also cases where they had brought benefits to the people,
such as the creation of cheaper medicine.

Having said that, this was the kind of profession this man hadHekkeran Termite.

"Hmm... what to buy?"

There were simply too many magical items Hekkeran wanted. For the time being,
he should probably focus on defensive items first. After that, there was one more
that he wanted due to special reasons.

"First I should deposit the money... the rest will be used to buy the magic items
needed for adventuring. Eh? Got the order wrong. First buy the items, and then
deposit the rest."
Hekkeran scratched his head.

If it's like that

"As the vanguard, I need to have more magic resistance, maybe it's time for me
to take out my savings as well. No, if for some reason I still need to rely on
subjugating undead from Kattse Plains to make a living, it might be better for me
to buy items which make me more resistant to poison, paralysis and sickness."

Magic items were highly valued in this world. Especially the ones that were useful
during battle were highly sought after by adventurers. If it was a first-rate item,
then he would simply give up on buying it.

For the time being, the items on his mind were not the extremely expensive ones.
However, it would still require years of saving in order for an average person to
purchase them. That was why he was taking his time to properly think things
through.

His relaxed face, which couldn't contain the smile behind his excitement suddenly
became tense the moment he sighted a group of knights currently standing by
the side of the road.

The group composed of light and heavy-armored knights were standing guard at
a road junction. Due to the Temple of the Four Great Gods being in the vicinity,
the amount of patrols in this area was considerably high. Although these knights
wouldn't just suddenly start questioning normal people who were simply passing
by, Hekkeran could still feel the gaze of the knights gathering on the weapons
that he was carrying.

It might be alright for adventurers, but for workers like Hekkeran that had no
backing from any organizations or persons of influence, it simply wasn't wise to
get into conflicts with knights tasked with protecting the Empire.

As he had hoped, Hekkeran walked by without incident. After checking his face
with the list of wanted criminals and not finding any match, the knights made no
further movement.
Having made past the territory of the temple, he finally relaxed and set his sights
further ahead. A huge building came into view, and along with it, the sound of
cheering, battle and the thirst for blood.

That unique building was the Grand Arena, which only existed in the capital of
the Empire. It was also one of the most iconic buildings in the capital.

For Hekkeran, who had seen enough blood spilled during work and had no
interest in gambling, the arena was a place which held no meaning to him.
However, to the populace of the capital it was one of their most important
sources of entertainment. Even from where he was walking, the cheering could
be heard. It seemed the arena was completely packed today as well.

"Is it the finals? The excitement is really high."

In the past, Hekkeran had brought his worker team to the arena, where they had
to fight continuous hordes of monsters. Because monsters did not accept

surrenders, losing would result in death. Of course, it wasn't like casualties didn't
occur during battle between humans.

On a typical day in the arena, it was very rare to not see a single person die. If
something like that did actually happen, the pressure exerted by the audience
was strong enough to kill someone, since the events with many deaths were very
popular.

Among these events, the one with the highest casualty rate was therefore the
most popular one, the Grand Combat Tournament.

Hekkeran shrugged.

He had absolutely no interest in seeing such bloodthirsty scenes taking place,

and had no desire to visit that place. However, events that happened in the arena
were hot topics that people often talked about, so there were always reasons to
go.

I'm not planning on entering today, but when I get back I should probably ask for
the highlights. It seems like the matches that took place today are quite exciting.

While trying to memorize the plans that he made, Hekkeran started walking
towards an area that contained variety of shops. Soon after, he saw the familiar
sign which said "The Singing Apple Pavilion".

The shop was said to have started with the gathering of bards who built their
instruments using the wood of apple trees, but now it was a bar and an inn. From
outside, the shop seemed a bit outdated, but the interior was surprisingly tidy
and in good condition. It kept the cold out. The floor was kept well polished. The
quality of the shop was actually quite high but not overly expensive. To Hekkeran
and his comrades, no in fact, to the majority of the workers, this shop was
regarded as the best inn without a doubt.

Although it can't be compared to the top-class hotels in the Empire, those type of
hotels were better suited to the adventurers who stood on the public stage.

Firstly, the work given to the workers usually required discretion. Eye-catching
hotels in public places weren't convenient at all for the kinds of people that
required the services of workers. But at the same time, they couldn't always meet
in shady locations and conduct their business there.

Next would be the need for multiple teams of workers to stay in the same spot at
the same time. Therefore inns like "The Singing Apple Pavilion", which were much
more discreet and where guests could discuss things in private, were ideal
locations that met the clients' needs. Due to the fact that workers did not have
the support of an organization like the Adventurer's Guild, the clients were
required to search for worker teams themselves. It would be very troublesome for
everyone if the workers stayed in different places.

Furthermore, from the perspective of the workers, staying near each other
brought about a sense of camaraderie, as well as the benefit of avoiding
conflicting jobs that would cause unnecessary bloodshed. And last but not least
which would also be the most important reasonthe food here was really nice.

While thinking about tonight's dinner, Hekkeran opened the door to the inns. If it
was his favorite pork stew, he would be very happy. Having these kind of
thoughts as he entered, the words that he heard were not the typical "Welcome
back" or "Good work" which he expected but

"I've already said! I don't know!"

"No, no, even if you say that..."

"It's not like Im that girl's guardian or her relative. It's impossible for me to tell
you where she is."

"Aren't you comrades? I can't simply take I don't know' as an answer and leave.
This is my job after all."

On the first floor of the inn, in the center of the dining area, a man and a woman
stared at each other.

Hekkeran knew that woman well.

Though her eyes radiated an intense ferocity, the feature that stood out the most
were the pair of ears which were far longer than those of a normal human. That
said, her ears were still only about half as long as those of typical elves. That's
right, her race was half-elf.

Elves tended to be slimmer when compared with humans. It seemed like the
woman here had also inherited this trait. Her whole body was very slim. Be it the
area around her chest or her waist, there were no visible curves on her body. She
was as flat as a board. From afar, it wouldn't be surprising if people mistook her
for a man.

Clad in neat leather armor, without the typical bow and arrow on her, the only
weapon she had right now was the short dagger on her waist.

Her name was Imina, and she was one of Hekkeran's comrades.

However, Hekkeran was unfamiliar with the man currently arguing with Imina.

Although he appeared to be groveling in front of Imina by lowering his head, not

a single shred of sincerity could be seen in his eyes. In fact, the feeling present
there was disgust. At least for now, it appeared that he was trying to keep things
civil.

The man's arms and chest were packed with muscles. His appearance alone
could force anyone standing in front of him to give him what he wanted. While he
didn't seem like the type of person who relied on violence to get things done,
Imina was still capable of handling him if he did.

Even though Imina didn't appear to be very strong, deep in her body dwelled a
strength that was enough to take care of thugs who only relied on their muscles.

"Didn't I already say so from the very beginning?"

Noticing that Imina's voice was starting to become strained with emotion,
Hekkeran hurriedly interjected.

"What's wrong, Imina?"

Hearing the sound of a familiar voice, Imina turned her head and was surprised
when seeing Hekkeran.

For a ranger like Imina, who excelled in perception and awareness of her
surroundings, not noticing Hekkeran's approach showed just how distracted she
had been earlier.

"...Who the heck are you?" asked the man who was viewed as an intruder by
Hekkeran.

Having met his gaze, Hekkeran felt that the atmosphere between them was on
the verge of coming to blows. However, for someone like Hekkeran, who had
survived countless life and death situations, the gaze was nothing compared to
the intense stares of ferocious monsters.

"...That's our team's leader."

"...Oooh, so this is the renowned Hekkeran Termite-san."

Hekkeran was disgusted by the sudden change of attitude.

Even though Hekkeran didn't knew the purpose behind the man's visit, if he came
all the way to what was considered by Hekkeran's team to be their stronghold
the innthe chances of him not recognizing Hekkeran were non-existent.

Perhaps the harshness in the argument from before was to measure the extent of
what Hekkeran was capable of. If Hekkeran displayed even a slightest hint of
weakness, the man probably would have proceeded to use intimidation next.

Amongst workers or adventurers, there were always those who were capable of
slaying monsters but rather timid towards humans. Even then, the most they
would do would be to take a step back, but if things were pushed too far, it would
definitely end in a bloodbath.

Even though we just met, he's already like this... This guy... is definitely the type I
cant stand.

While it was true that this was one of the commonly used methods for
negotiation, it was a method Hekkeran didnt like. He would much more prefer it
if the other party got directly to the point instead of going about in circles.

"...Could you be a little quieter, please? This is an inn, and you're disturbing other
guests. I'd be much happier if you could do that."

Although he was saying that, not a single guest could be seen nearby. Just where
did all the people go? It wasn't as though they hid themselves away, the guests
of this inn were already quite used to this kind of talk because the majority of
them were also workers in the first place.

However, it was truly a rare occurrence for this place to be devoid of people.

Hekkeran glared at the man using a strength on par with mithril-ranked

adventurers. As though confronted by a monster, the man wilted.

"I-I I'm very sorry. I did not intend to do that initially."

After managing to calm his voice down, the man attempted to speak once more.
However, he instantly became quiet again when he saw Hekkeran's glare. Judging
from his reaction, it was clear that the man was used to this kind of work, where
violence was a common occurrence.

What's a guy like this doing in here?

Although the type of work that Hekkeran's team did was under-the-table
business, he didn't recognize this man, and Hekkeran had no idea why he had
been sent here. He simply didn't fit the profile of someone who came bearing
requests.

It bothered Hekkeran, and he ended up weakening his gaze and asked the man
directly.

"...Just why on Earth are you here?"

"About that, I'm looking for a person that Termite-san also knows, Furt-san."

Hearing the name Furt, the image of a person appeared in Hekkeran's mind.

Even so, was hard to imagine that she would have any connections with this man.
That was Hekkeran's conclusion.

"Arche? Did something happen to her?"

"Arche... Ah! That's why. I got confused just then, but we're both talking about
Furt-san here, Arche Eeb Rile Furt-san."

"And!? Did something happen to Arche?"

"No, no, I only wish to discuss something with her... The content of the discussion
is private, that's why I wanted to know when she would return."

"As if I would know that." Hekkeran replied sharply.

For someone who was never direct when speaking, the man was briefly stunned
by Hekkeran's words.

"If that's the case, the conversation is over."

"I-It can't be helped then. If that's the case, I'll have to wait here."

"Get lost."

Hekkeran gestured to the entrance of the inn with his chin. Hekkeran's attitude
shut the other man up once more.

"I will make it clear, I don't like you at all. I simply can't tolerate guys like you
within my sight."

"But this is the tavern area, I should be able to..."

"Ah, that's right, isn't it? This area is indeed the tavern. But don't forget this is
also the place where drunks get into fights," Hekkeran smiled at the man. "But
you don't have to worry. Relax, even if you become gravely injured, we have a

priest here whos capable of using healing magic to heal you. As long as you pay
the right price, that is."

"It can't be helped that we have to charge you extra. Otherwise the temples
would become very annoyed. We definitely don't want to attract any assassins
sent by the temples," said Imina. A grin was visible on her face. "Well, at the least
we'll give you a discount. Remember to thank me for that, won't you?"

"And that's what's going to happen."

"If you plan on threa"

The words coming from the man halted midway, because he saw the dramatic
change on Hekkeran's face.

Hekkeran took a step forward, all the way until the distance between their faces
was a fist away.

"Hah?! Threats? Who's making threats? Is it such a big surprise that bars have
fights? What the hell, I give you good advice for living a long and healthy life and
you say I'm making threats? Are you trying to start a fight?"

Hekkeran's current appearance was something only people who had faced death
could possess.

Confronted with the pressure coming from Hekkeran, the man took a step back.
He clicked his tongue for a bit and then reluctantly walked towards the entrance.
Although he wanted to hide the fact that he was frightened, one look at his back
was all it took to confirm it. As he reached the entrance, the man turned his and
shouted at Hekkeran and Imina one last time.

"Tell that brat from the Furt family! Tell her the deadline is approaching!"

"Hah?!"

Hearing the iron in Hekkeran's reply, the man quickly scurried away.

As soon as the man disappeared, Hekkeran's expression quickly returned to

normal. The change was sudden enough that onlookers might have thought that
the entire scene had been nothing but an act. And then, Imina started clapping,
as though he had really pulled off a great performance.

"So, what that all about?"

"I don't know. He only told me as much as he told you."

"Damn, I should have listened more before getting rid of him."

Hekkeran held his head in defeat.

"Just wait and hear it from Arche once she gets back."

"...But, it isn't good to pry too deeply into things."

"Well, even though what you said is correct, you're still the leader. Do your best!"

"In that case, I will use my authority as the leader to order you to ask her about
it. It would be much better if a fellow woman like you were to ask her about it,
don't you think?"

"Come on, give me a break, I don't want to ask either."

The two of them smiled bitterly at each other.

There were a few rules in common between adventurers and workers, where
certain things were simply not done. The first would be to uncover a teammate's
past. The second would be to display excessive desire.

In the case of the second rule, to some extent, excessive desire was unavoidable
due to the fact that many people chose to be workers for personal gains.
However, even that had a limit. Too much desire could cause a team to lose its
coherence. For example, it was difficult to trust teammates who were constantly
grumbling about money. Letting teammates watch your back during dangerous
moments was a fundamental part of teamwork and unity. As such, all teams

needed a minimum level of trust between each other. But how much could you
trust someone who was known to be greedy when you take on a high-risk, highreward job?

Currently, it seemed like there were problems relating to Arche, which would
affect her reliability. That simply wasn't a matter which could be easily
overlooked.

During the course of their jobs, they would be putting their lives in each other's
hands. As such they couldn't afford to have even a trace of doubt in their
teammates.

Hekkeran shook his head, while displaying his reluctance on his face.

"Looks like it can't be helped, then. I'll have to ask when she comes back."

"I'm counting on you~."

Hekkeran narrowed his eyes at Imina, who was smiling and waving her hand, and
said, "Don't think you can get away. You also need to come talk to her with me,
yo."

"Eh, ehhh..." Although Imina clearly wanted to refuse, she gave up as soon as she
saw the determination on Hekkeran's face. "Oh well, it can't be helped. Hopefully
it isn't anything big..."

"Anyway, where did Arche go?"

"Eh? Ah, she's gathering the information behind that job."

"Aren't Rob and I in charge of that?"

After returning from Kattse Plains, they received a new commission, with pretty
good terms for the nature of the work concerned. As such, they began the
preparations for taking the job.

Originally it should have been Roberdyck, who was best suited for this sort of
thing, to research the background of the commissioner as well as the
compensation. Hekkeran was to head to the Empire's Administrative office to
collect the payment for their undead subjugationall work related to eliminating
undead on the Kattse Plains was treated as government work by the Empireand
at the same time, use alternative methods to gather similar information as
Roberdyck.

Imina and Arche should have waited at the inn.

"It wasn't just that. Rob needed help investigating the history and conditions
around the area of operations."

Hekkeran nodded his head, as a look of understanding dawned on him. Although

Arche had dropped out of the Imperial Magic Academy, she probably still had
some contacts there. She was probably more suited at gathering academicrelated information and she could also visit the Magician's Guild to collect
additional material.

"So that's why she went along. Rob is also quite knowledgeable, and has
connections to the temples. Anyway, how did it go?"

Hekkeran made a sound as he sat down into a chair, and spoke up.

"Although the request was only offered to workers, the content of the job isn't
anything bad. The reason why they chose to hire workers this time around is
probably because the location of the job is somewhere adventurers can't go.
However, just like the client said before, it seems like they've made contact with
other teams as well."

"Are we really working with other teams? Even if it is said that the ruins they
discovered appear to be untouched, for them to be willing to invest this much
without any definite gains seems a bit..."

That Greenham guyfrom one of the other teams that were contactedwas
saying the same thing. But in the end, 'Heavy Masher' seems to be planning to
accept the request. If we don't decide by tomorrow, things might become
troublesome."

So far Hekkeran's team had only listened to the contents of the request, and they
had yet to accept it. Although they promised to give the client a reply by
tomorrow, if they were going to accept, they would have to start preparing
immediately.

"And then, at this important juncture something else comes up Are the two
somehow connected?"

"We can't rule out that it was done by another team that wanted to make a
fortune with this, but I think we should still wait and listen to Arche's explanation
before deciding. If it really is some scheme started by another team, do we back
out or carry on?"

"Of course we continue. If they plan on starting a fight, then we just need to keep
whacking them until none of them dares to mess with us again, till we knock all
their teeth out."

"That sounds quite excessive."

Although Imina seemed overly harsh on the outside, Hekkeran also thought her
approach to solving this problem was a good one.

While it wasn't too big of a deal to be looked down upon, their reputation would
also drop if they backed out. Losing reputation was something that those in the
worker profession wished to avoid.

At the same time a fiery determination burned within Hekkeran's eyes, a squeaky
sound of doors opening came from the entrance. The figures of two people
walked into the inn.

"We're home!"

"We have returned!"

The first voice was somewhat whiny and belonged to a girl, followed shortly by
the voice of a man whose eyes were filled with righteousness. The momentary
pause came from the hesitancy of covering up the soft voice of his female
companion.

The girl that first walked in was not too thin. The words young beauty would
describe her the best.

With an appearance between fifteen to seventeen years old, the girl possessed a
face with delicate features and shoulder long hair. Hers was an elegant beauty,
but every now and then, she also gave the impression of being a lifeless doll.

Her hands grasped an iron staff that was around the same height as herself. The
surface of the staff was covered with symbols and runes that could have been
words or pictures. The girl wore a loose robe, and under that, sturdy clothes
which offered quite a bit of protection. She was obviously a magic caster.

The man was wearing full body armoralthough he had taken the helmet off
and over the armor was a surcoat embroidered with the symbol of a crest. A
morningstar hung from his waist, and a necklace bearing the same crest as his
surcoat laid around his neck.

With a neatly arranged hairstyle and a well-trimmed beard, the man gave off a
hearty impression. Appearance-wise, his age seemed to be around 30.

These two were the comrades that Hekkeran and Imina were waiting for, Arche
Eeb Rile Furt and Roberdyck Goltron.

"Ooh, welcome back!"

Could this be described as good timing or bad timing? Hekkeran thought while
turning around to greet the two with a hard voice

"Whats wrong? Did something happen to the two of you?"

Roberdyck used a tone that did not display any seniority to the two of them. One
of the reasons was due to personal choice, the other was because of the mutual
equality between workers.

"Th-there's no problem."

"Tha-that's right. Just as Hekkeran said."

Arche and Roberdyck both watched as the two of them waved their hands in
denial.

"Umm, speaking of which, this isn't a good place to talk, how about we go over
there?"
Being done with joking around, a serious expression appeared on Hekkeran's face
as he pointed towards a circular table at the back of the tavern area.

"Before that, err. About the drinksOi, Imina. Where did the owner go?"

"...Out shopping. I'm watching over the place for him."

"Is that so? Then what should we do? Is it fine for me to casually take out a bottle
or two?"

"I'm fine with not drinking."

"Ah, I'm also fine, thanks."

"...Is that so? In that case... then let's start the meeting of Foresight'."

The relaxed expression on every member's face vanished. At the same time, they
leaned their weight onto the table, bringing everyone closer together. Although
there weren't any other guests at the moment, this sort of behavior had become
an old habit that was hard to break.

"First, I would like to confirm the content of the commission."

Once he made sure that he had everyone's attention, Hekkeran continued. His
tone and expression were completely different from before. As the leader of the
team, it was necessary for him to act serious and maintain dignity when the
situation called for it. That was only expected of a leader.

"The client this time is Earl Femel. The content of the request is to survey some
ruinsmost likely an underground tombdiscovered within the territory of the
Kingdom. The compensation consists of a down payment of 200, followed by
another 150 after completion. The quality of the contract and the total amount

offered as reward is extremely high this time around. Not to mention that there's
going to be a bonus at the end based on the results of the investigation. All
magic items discovered during the investigation will belong to the Earl; however,
the person that discovers them will receive an additional bonus of half the market
price of the magic item. As for things like gems and precious metals, artworks
and other treasures, after their value is verified, half the amount will be given to
the discoverer. Also, they've made contact with other worker teams as well.
Based on how events might unfold, it's most likely going to become a joint
operationalright, I think I've said enough."

After sharing the information he obtained with Arche and Roberdyck, Hekkeran
returned to the content of the commission.

"The maximum duration is three days. The aim is mainly to explore the inside of
the tomb. The important part to note is, it's suspected that we might encounter
monsters during the investigation, but the type of monsters that we might
encounter are currently unknown. From the looks of thing, this commission really
seems to be just a simple investigation."

It was very common for monsters to use abandoned ruins at the outskirts of
human civilisation as their lairs. As such, the "survey" tasks given to workers tend
to be regarded as a reconnaissance by fire.

"The most important aspect about this commission is that it seems like the tomb
is unexplored."
The moment that was said, the atmosphere surrounding the group changed.

Two hundred years ago, during the time of the Demon Gods' unrest, many
kingdoms perished. It wasn't just human kingdoms that were destroyed,
countries composed of demi-humans and other heteromorphic species perished
as well. The ruins of these civilizations often contained many priceless treasures
the possibility of finding magic items was also high.

Finding these treasures was a dream shared by both adventurers and workers
alike.

As such, unexplored ruins were something that adventurers and workers all
wished to find. And suddenly, here it was, right in front of their eyes.

Having confirmed the excitement within the eyes of his comrades, Hekkeran
passed the ball to the two that went out for intelligence gathering.

"Finally, the provisions required for the trip to and from the site will all be
covered by the Earl. That is all the information that I've gathered. Next, Arche,
Roberdyck, tell us the findings of your investigation."

"In that case, I'll start. Earl Femel's standing within the palace isn't very good.
There are rumors that the Blood Emperor is giving him the cold shoulder. Also,
from what I've gathered, it seems that he isn't in need of money."

"Regarding the ruins discovered within the territory of the Kingdom, both Archesan and I have tried researching the past history of recorded civilizations. So far,
we are unable to find any records of ancient cities being built near the site of the
ruins. If it indeed is a tomb, we should have been able to find clues left behind in
books... Truthfully speaking, I can't figure out why there would be a tomb built at
that location. Only a few small villages exist near the area, perhaps it would be
better to search for information there?"

"It can't be helped. We've been ordered to keep this operation has secret as
possible. The client wishes for as few witnesses as possible, in other words, we
shouldn't be making any unnecessary movements."

"Of course, that region belongs to the Kingdom. If things gets exposed, we
might end up becoming enemies of the Kingdom and the Vaiself family."

Exploring the ruins discovered in a different country, this kind of borderline illegal
work was the reason why workers were selected instead of adventurers.

"So in other words, what we're doing is just plain old dirty work?"

"Although it can be seen that way, there's still a slight delicate issue."

"That's right. If the Empire's workers are caught inside the Kingdom, the Earl will
definitely get dragged down along with us."

"Which brings us to the main question."

"Where did this information on the discovery of the ruin come from?"

"Yeah. No matter how I think about it, it's strange."

"Is that so? Isn't it fairly close to the Great Forest of Tob? Perhaps it was
discovered during logging."

"Weird. Take a look at this." Arche opened up the map and pointed towards a
circular spot. "Although the details aren't very clear, but spots like this..."
Sweeping her tiny finger along the map, Arche indicated their objective.

"There's also a village here. However its size is really small. Perhaps it's better
to describe it as a hamlet. I don't believe a village like that is capable of creating
such large clearings within the forest."

"That's correct. The chances of these clearings being excavated by such a small
village is highly unlikely. Especially if the forest is inhabited by many dangerous
monsters... It's much more likely to think that it was done as a government
project, but I can't see any reason why the Kingdom would want to excavate that
part of the forest. In the end, we're still lacking information.

The four of them became more troubled after this. Should they accept the
request or not?

Unlike adventurers, who had the backing of an entire guild, it was absolutely
necessary for workers to properly investigate all details regarding the offered
work before deciding. First, they had to thoroughly investigate the client's
background and his connections, then the work location. Finally, based on the
details gathered from the description of the job, a decision is made on whether or
not to accept it.

Even after having done all of that, sometimes it still wasn't enough. If one wasn't
capable of doing this, then they should quit being a worker. No matter how good
the payment for the job might be, it would be better to reject it if you couldn't
wash away the dirt that ended up staining your hands.

"...I've confirmed the payment already, this was given for the initial deposit"

Hekkeran placed a metallic plate on top of the table. The surface of the plate was
inscribed with countless different small glyphs and runes. Although he was given
the plate, he would have to return it if they decided to reject the commission.

"I've already checked it with the Imperial Bank. The sum has already been
credited to my account, it can be converted into cash any time."

The metallic plate was a type of guarantee that was used by banks within the
Empire, in a similar role as a cheque.

In order to prevent counterfeits, the plates were made with great care and
delicacy. Although it the creation process was extremely long, and would
definitely incur additional fees for people to use, the advantages still far
outweighed the drawbacks.

In other countries, this sort of thing was usually handled by the Adventurer's
Guild; however the metallic plates used in the Empire were guaranteed by the
government itself.

"From the looks of things, it doesn't seem like a trap... well, I knew they were
dead serious the moment they paid the deposit."

If it was a trap, there shouldn't have been a need to pay such large deposit.
However, it might just have been made to let people think this way, although
Hekkeran didn't believe that he had somehow offended the nobleman enough to
merit a trap specifically to target him.

"I"

"Stop. Imina, I haven't finished yet. Please, keep your thoughts a little more
flexible."

"Yes, yes. Let's hear them then. About this job that's offered to us... it seems that
they're quite pressed for time, however, there are still points I don't agree with.
For example, hiring multiple worker teams, what do you make of this?"

Just as Imina pointed out, considering the amount of time it took to contact
multiple teams, it would have made more sense to pick the first team that agreed
and rush to the tombs location, considering that jobs like this required great
haste.

"I'm not sure either. To begin with, I don't understand why they're trying to rush
this. I also didn't receive any information on any emergency situations happening
to the Earl. It's not as if there are any events or ceremonies coming up in the next
few days. The only thing I can think of is that they're afraid the ruins might get
discovered by the Kingdom. Hiring multiple teams might just be to raise the
success rate?"

"About that, Hekkeran. Did you hear anything from Greenham?"

"There's not much to be said. I only went and asked if they were also contacted,
but it seems that they were also coveting for information regarding this
commission. It was hard enough not to reveal anything to them."

Hekkeran shrugged helplessly.

"If that's the case, then perhaps there's a third party whos also aiming for the
ruins?"

"That's definitely a possibility. If that's true then it would explain why so many
workers are being hired. Oh that's right, it seems that something big happened
recently in the Kingdom. However, it doesn't seem to have anything to do with
the area close to E-Rantel..."

"Let's hear more of this, Rob."

Due to the lack of accurate information, Roberdyck could only explain what he
heard in bits and pieces. Since most of the details relating to the incident were
pieced together from rumors, the overall picture that was painted at the end
wasn't very clear or reliable.

"Hmm, we can't say for sure if the incident is related in any ways. However, I still
think what Arche said is the most likely situation. Rob also agrees."

"If that's the case then hiring multiple worker teams, and considering that the
job location is within the territory of the Kingdom, is it possible that we're likely to
end up clashing with Kingdom adventurers that were sent to explore the ruins? If
it's like that then there's no point in collecting further information inside the
Empire."

"The other thing to watch out for is an ambush made by the teams of other hired
workers. I definitely don't want to lose my life just as we reach our goal."

"We also need to watch out for ambush made by adventurers. Although speaking
of this, I'd much more prefer it if it was done by adventurers. At least we can try
to negotiate with them and it wouldn't be as treacherous as one set by other
workers."

"If it's done by workers, then things will most likely end in blood."

"What should we do, leader?"

The overall issues had been raised and discussed, and each member's opinions
had also been voiced. What was left were a few remaining speculations before
coming to a conclusion.

"Before deciding, I have one thing to say... I think there's a need for everyone to
hear this."
Hekkeran sighed deeply, and Imina, who sat beside Hekkeran, momentarily held
her breath.

"Arche, a strange man came and said he wanted to see you."

Hearing this, an eyebrow went up on Arche's usually expressionless face. Seeing

this reaction, Hekkeran understood that Arche knew the man.

"What did that guy say at the end? ...What was it again?"

Hekkeran blatantly asked Imina. What he received in return was a stare which
said "what the heck are you saying?". However, after realizing that Hekkeran had
really forgotten, Imina replied in a tired voice.

"'Tell the brat from the Furt family. Tell her the deadline is coming!'"

"Yep, something like that."

Being thrown into the spotlight, Arche took a deep breath and said with a heavy
voice.

"I'm in debt."

"Debt?!"

Hekkeran exclaimed in surprise. Of course, it wasnt just Hekkeran alone, Imina

and Roberdyck also had shocked expressions. Since there were no ranks within
their team, the income was shared equally. And thinking back on the amount
they've earned so far, the notion of being in debt was ridiculous.

"How much do you owe?"

"Three hundred gold coins." Hearing the reply from Arche, the three of them
glanced at each other once more.

The amount that was owed was something that normal people wouldnt even be
able to dream about. It was something that even workers of their level wouldn't
be able to earn in one go. Although the deposit for their current given request
was three hundred and fifty gold coins, that amount was for the entire team. After
subtracting the cost of maintenance as well as buying necessary equipment and
items, the amount left for each member was only around sixty gold coins.

Furthermore, their team was counted among the top of the worker profession.
Using the same set of criteria as assessing adventurers, they would be equivalent
to the mithril rank. Even at their level, they couldn't earn that much in a go. That
showed just how much of a debt it was.

Arches face began to cloud up as she felt the doubtful gazes of her companions
on her.

She naturally wanted to avoid this conversation. However, if she didn't answer it
now, it wouldn't be a surprise if she ended up being expelled from the team.

After a brief moment of consideration, Arche finally opened her mouth.

"...Since my family considers it a huge disgrace, I never told this to anyone, but...
the Blood Emperor revoked my family's nobility status."

The Blood EmperorJircniv Rune Farlord el Nix. Renowned for staining his hands
with blood.

Due to certain events that took place, the previous Emperor was forced to retire.
Soon afterwards, what used to be one of the Five Great Families of the Empire,
the family of the Blood Emperor's mother, was accused of assassinating the
Emperor and eradicated. Things turned sour after that, where the brothers of the
Blood Emperor died one after another. During that time, it was as if the winds
that blew within the city carried death itself, and near the end, even his mother
got caught in it and perished.

Of course, there was opposition during this period. However, this opposition was
meaningless to the Blood Emperor, who already controlled the Empires knights
during his time as the crown prince. Using overwhelming military force, every
aristocrat that was capable of opposing him was cut down like wheat before the
scythe. The only ones who remained were those who pledged their allegiance to
the Emperor from the bottom of their hearts, and thus it ended with the complete
centralisation of power in him.

However, the Blood Emperor didn't just stop there. Many leftover aristocrats soon
had their nobility revoked due to incompetence. Instead, capable commoners
were given the chance to rise in status.

All in all, there were two main points that surprised people the most. First was
that the national power of the Empire did not drop a single bit during the mass
removal of aristocrats. Second was that the Emperor who had achieved all of this
was only a boy one or two years past the age of ten.

It wasn't rare to see families that lost their nobility status. However

"Even now my parents still live the same lifestyle as before. Of course we can't
afford the cost. That's why my parents ended up borrowing money from shady
places."

Hearing this, the three of them glanced around at each other.

Although the three of them hid it well, feelings of anxiousness, irritation,

unpleasantness and anger passed between them.

"I have confidence in my magic abilities. I wish to join." These words had been
said by a slender child holding a staff taller than herself.

The image of a small child with an expressionless face, who was holding her staff
with both hands while standing before them, suddenly came back into the minds
of Hekkeran and the others. Later, the image of their stunned faces after they
saw the display of Arche's strength in magic came into view in their heads,
resounding with nostalgia.

In the two years that went by, after experiencing numerous adventures and
having survived adventures where even one wrong move would result in death,
the money that they had gained was quite a considerable amount. However,
Arche's equipment had hardly changed since the beginning.

The reason for that was finally made known.

"Is that for real? Should I go and have a proper 'talk' with them?"

"I think it's about time for your parents to hear the voice of God. No, no, perhaps
they should meet the fists of God before that."

"I don't think their ears haven't been pierced yet, maybe I should start making
holes in them."

"Please calm down. It's already gotten to this stage, what I want to say is,
depending on the situation I plan on taking my sisters away from my parents."

"You have sisters?"

Seeing Arche nod her head, the three of them looked at each other once more.
Although they didn't say it out loud, but deep down in their hearts they started to
feel that it might be better to give up on this particular request.

It was true that workers had a higher income than adventurers. However, the
amount of danger they faced was also much higher. Although they tried their

best at making sure the work they took on was as safe as possible, the chances
of encountering situations outside their calculations was still quite high.

A single slip might result in a tragedy for her sisters. However, it was pointless to
keep thinking along these lines.

"Is that so? ...Then let's put this topic on hold for now. We will let you handle your
current problem... Anyway, back to our main discussion topic, do we accept the
offered commission or not?"

Having said this, Hekkeran cast a cold gaze at Arche.

"Arche, I don't want to make it sound bad but you don't get a say in this."

"Thats fine. For someone whos in need of money, I can understand that my
vote would be compromised because of my debt issue."

That was what they meant by being blinded by greed.

"Truthfully, I had thought that I might end up becoming removed from this
team."

"What are you saying? After having a magic caster as skilled as you join our
team, it would be a huge loss for us to simply let you go."

This statement wasn't meant to provide any comfort. It was the truth.

Arche's innate talent. A pair of eyes blessed with miracles, had helped out
Hekkeran's team multiple times in the past.

If a name had to be given to Arche's innate talent, the 'All-Seeing Eyes' would
probably be the most suitable words to describe it.

Arcane magic casters were constantly surrounded by an invisible aura which

wrapped around their body. However, Arche's innate talent allowed her to see it
directly. Not only that, she was even able to see which tiers of magic the
opponent was capable of using.

The advantage of being able to gauge the power level of opponents went without
saying.

There was only one other person that Hekkeran knew of within the Empire that
also possessed this ability. And that person was the Empire's highest ranked
magic casterFluder Paradyne.

Although their eyes were the only things they had in common, it showed how
gifted Arche was, since she was comparable to Fluder.

"To think that the Magic Academy would let such a talented child go."

"Exactly. To be capable of using the same tier of magic as me at such a young

age is simply unbelievable. Perhaps it's possible for Arche to reach the 6th tier in
the future."

"I think that would be quite difficult to achieve. However, I would be happy if
the possibility exists."

Just as the previously broken atmosphere was about to recover, Hekkeran

clapped his hands. Everyone's attention once more focused on the topic at hand.

"Now now, about the current request, do we accept or not?Roberdyck."

"I have no objections."

"Imina?"

"Why not go with it? This is the type of work I've always wanted to do."

The work given to workers usually wasn't trivial stuff. Only a few days ago, they
were still on the Kattse Plains exterminating undead. Work like that was quite
different compared to what was offered now.

"In that case"

"If it's for my sake, please don't. Even if we refuse the offer this time I still have
other ways."

The three of them glanced at each other, and a smile then appeared on Imina's
face.

"No way. If you think about it, the request this time isn't the typical shady work.
The reward is also really generous. Right, Rob?"

"That's how it is. It isn't for your sake at all. There's probably lots of undiscovered
items within the ruins. Isn't it so, Hekkeran?"

"There you have it, Arche. Though it's regrettable that we can't make it known
that we're the first explorers of the ruins."

"My deepest gratitude."

Seeing Arche lowering her head, the three of them looked at each other and
smiled.

"Well then, Arche and I will go and convert the plate into cash. The two of you go
and prepare the necessary items for this adventure."

The items necessary for an adventure could include things like rope or oil, as well
as certain magic items. For someone with a meticulous personality like
Roberdyck, and Imina possessing the skills of a thief, this sort of work was perfect
for them. On the other hand, one could say that Hekkeran was simply unsuited
for tasks like his.

"Alright everyone, let's begin! ...Arche."

Turning towards Arche who was tilting her head with a baffled description,
Hekkeran finally said out loud what he wanted to say before.

"The income from this commission isn't enough to cover your debt."

"No problem. This much should be enough to extend the deadline by some
time."

"You can borrow the rest from us."

"That's right. You can always pay us back later using the income earned from
future jobs."

Of course it wouldn't be given for free since 'Foresight' members are all equal.

"Hold on to it for now. I've already returned most of what my irresponsible

parents borrowed. But give me some time to consider things through."

"That's fine. Take your time."

The four of them looked at each other one last time before heading off to
complete what they were tasked to do.

Part 3

In a certain high-class residential district within the Empire's capital, that

occupied a vast area of land. Since long ago, rows of luxurious mansions have
been built on this land, erected in the style of the past. Walking by these
mansions would bring out a feeling of historical nostalgia. One could certainly
guess that the type of residents that live here were most likely aristocrats.

The mansions of aristocrats were a sign of their status. One could see it as a
waste of money, but if not extravagantly decorated, they would likely become
subjects of ridicule.

Furniture, jewelry, clothing, mansion, courtyardall of these things needed to be

maintained in order for one to have status amongst the upper class of society. For
aristocrats, who were continuously establishing connections and cliques, it was
necessary to display their wealth. Living in a plain mansion was enough reason to
be ridiculed and looked down upon. Because of this, aristocrats that were
interested in politics and power had to constantly decorate their bodies and
holdings. Realistically speaking, this was similar to the display of strength
between military forces. It was a privilege reserved for the powerful.

These were the things one would see when looking around.

Even within the capital this area was one of the most well-regulated districts,
where everything was nice and quiet. However, if you observed carefully, the
quietness could be a bit unnerving. This was due to the lack of human presence.

In truth, the majority of these mansions were unoccupied and empty. Due to the
events set in motion by the Blood Emperor, the majority of their owners ended up
being unable to sustain the expenditures of living in this district.

Among these empty mansions, there were still a few that were being used. Unlike
before, the gardening was kept very rough and there were no longer servants
waiting outside.

It was in one of those mansions that Arche's family lived. She was welcomed
home by her parents, who bore the proper appearance of typical nobles with the
rightful bearings and fancy clothes.

"Ooh, welcome home Arche."

"Welcome back."

Before properly replying, Arche turned to look at a delicately crafted piece of

glasswork which had been carefully carved into the shape of a cup. It radiated an
air of great expense.

Arche's face twitched due to having never seen it before.

"This is?"

"Oh, this is Artist Jan's"

"I'm not asking that kind of question. This is something we didn't have before,
why do we have it now?"

"That's because it was purchased just this morning."

That was her fathers casual reply, using the same tone as if he was saying
something like Good morning. Hearing this, Arche's body started shaking.

"How much?"

"Hmm... I think it only cost around 15 gold coins. Cheap, isn't it?"

Arche drooped her shoulders in despair. She had originally planned on using the
deposit from
her current job to pay off a part of the debt, and now she found that it had risen
even more.

"Why did you buy it?"

"As aristocrats, if we can't even purchase things like this, we'll become the
laughingstock of everyone."

Hearing the prideful laugh coming from her father, anger started to shine through
Arche's eyes.

"We're no longer aristocrats."

Arche's father's expression hardened at the sound of those words and his face
turned completely red.

"That's wrong!"

Arche's father forcefully slammed his hand against the table. Due to the
sturdiness of the table, the glasswork was not affected by the blow. Although
Arche wouldn't have minded if it broke, her father probably wouldn't have felt any
regret. It only costed fifteen gold coins, thats what her father would think.

"As long as that piece of shit upstart dies, our family can instantly gain back its
status! Members of our family have been nobles of the Empire for over a hundred
years. It is absolutely unforgivable to end our line. This is an investment for our
revival! Also, this display of power is to show that fool that we haven't given up!"

How foolish.

That was Arche's opinion of her father, who was currently out of breath due to his
anger. The "fool" probably referred to the Blood Emperor. For someone like him,
Arche's family wasn't even worth consideration. If they really planned on
regaining their nobility, this definitely wasn't the method to use.

Being trapped in their own small world, they wouldn't be able to see what was
happening outside.

Arche helplessly shook her head.

"The two of you stop fighting."

Seeing her laid-back mother, Arche decided to call it quits with her father.

Shortly afterwards, her mother stood up and passed a small vial to Arche.

"Arche. This is perfume, bought just for you."

"How much?"

"Three gold coins."

"Is that so... thank you."

While calculating in her heart the eighteen gold coins that got wasted, Arche said
her thanks to her mother. After accepting the tiny vial that contained a very small
quantity of perfume, she placed it into her bag.

It was hard for Arche to look at her mother with such a cold gaze. At least
perfumes and makeup had more practical uses than glasswork.

Properly dressing oneself up and attending high-class parties were a means for
nobles to mingle together and make connections. If one considered marriage,
pregnancy and childbirth to be a woman's happiness, then it was important for
daughters of nobility to decorate themselves, at least from a noble's point of
view.

However, even if that was the case, in their current situation, Arche's simply
couldnt afford to be this wasteful. Also, three gold coins were enough to feed a
normal family for a whole month.

"I've said this countless times already, keep spending to a minimum. Only buy
what you really need."

"Exactly, that's what I said! This was necessary!"

Feeling tired of arguing, Arche simply stared at the flushed face of her father.
Having to continuously remind them of such simple things was becoming too
much for her. She could only blame herself for all of this. If she had used force to
resolve these things in the beginning, it wouldn't have ended up this way. Also,
she wouldn't have brought trouble to 'Foresight'.

"I'm no longer going to send money home. I will take my sisters with me and
live elsewhere."

Hearing the quiet words spoken by Arche, her father started to heat up once
more. What unnerved her father the most was probably the loss of her income,
Arche thought indifferently.

Just who do you think it was that raised you from birth to now?

"I've already repaid my obligations."

Arche forcefully ended the conversation. The amount of income she had earned
so far, while not ridiculously high, was still quite a considerable sum. That money
had been earned during the adventures she took with her comrades, and should
have been used to strengthen herself just like the rest of her teammates had
done.

Seeing how she never updated her equipment, what would her comrades think?

Not having strong equipment would mean she was the weakest member of the
team.

However, the members of 'Foresight' never said a thing to her about it. Arche had
been spoiled too much by this already.

Arche stared intensely. Having received the full burst of Arche's gaze, her father
caved in and looked away. For someone who had gone through life and death
situations, there was no reason for Arche to lose to a bumbling aristocrat of a
father.

Arche glanced once more at her speechless father and left the room.

Walking out of the room, Arche sighed in relief.

"Ojou-sama."

"What's wrong, James?"

James had been the butler to Arche's family for a long time now. A tense
expression was visible on his wrinkled face. That face had been seen very often
since her familys fall from grace.

"Although I don't wish to say such things to ojou-sama but..."

Arche raised her hand and interrupted the speech. After considering that it wasn't
a butler's right to say certain things, James distanced himself away.

Arche took out a small bag and opened it. Various different lights sparkled from
within. The majority of the lights were silver, followed by bronze. The least
amount were gold.

"This much should be enough right?"

Having been handed the bag, James looked inside and finally relaxed his face.

"Salary, as well as the interest for the merchants... I think I should be able to
solve the rest. Ojou-sama."

"That's good."

Arche finally managed to relax. Although it was the bare minimum amount, but at
the end it was just enough to scrape by.

"You weren't able to stop father from buying it?"

"It couldn't be helped. The seller came with nobles acquainted with us. Although I
did remind the old master multiple times..."

"I see."

The two of them sighed.

"Just a small question. How much do I need to prepare in order to clear

everything away?"

James widened his eyes, and then returned a sad smile. Perhaps the reason why
there wasn't any movements in his eye was because he had already seen it
coming.

"Certainly. Once I finish calculating it, I will bring it in."

"I'll be relying on you then."

At that moment, the sound of running was be heard within the corridor. Even
without looking up, Arche knew who it was.

Softening her face, Arche turned around just in time to see a shadow running
towards her and leaping at her without slowing down.

The figure that had leapt into Arche's embrace had a height of less than one
meter. Her age was around five years old, with eyes similar to Arche's. While
hugging Arche, this girl raised her face and displayed an expression of
dissatisfaction with her pink cheeks bulging.

"Way too hard."

This wasn't directed at Arche's flat chest.

Arch was wearing clothes made for adventuring. The area around the chest and
abdomen had been reinforced with hard leather to improve its defensive
properties. Running into it would definitely feel like running into a hard surface.

"Are you okay?"

She touched the girl's cheek while stroking her head.

"Mm, I'm fine. Onee-sama."

Seeing the happy face made by her sister, Arche started to smile.

"...I shall leave the two of you be, then" Arche expressed her thanks towards the
butler that did not wish to disturb the two of them, and then turned around to
once more stroke her sister's head.

"Ulei... when in the hall..."

Arche suddenly stopped speaking halfway. She was about to say that it was
inelegant for daughters of nobility to run inside the house, but after having told
her father that they were no longer nobles, scoldings like these were no longer
needed.

During this period, Arche's hand did not stop once, though the girl whose hair had
already become a complete mess did not mind at all and continue to laugh.

Arche looked around her surroundings, and confirmed that one other person
wasn't here.

"Where's Kuude?"

"Inside her room!"

"Is that so... there are a few things that I wish to speak with the two of you, let's
go together."

"Mm."

Protecting the cheerful smiles of her sisters was Arche's responsibility. Holding
Ulei's hand, a warm feeling quickly grew inside Arche. Ulei's small hands were
something that even Arche's hands could fully cover.

"Onee-sama's hand is really hard."

Arche looked at her other hand. Due to injuries received from numerous
adventures, these hardened hands could no longer be called hands befitting an
ojou-sama from a noble family. However, she had no regrets. These hands were
proof that she was living her life together with friendsher comrades in
'Foresight'.

"But I still really like it!"

With her hand tightly grasped by her both of her sister's, Arche smiled and said;

"Thanks."

As usual, the North Market of the Empire's Capital was full of energy. However,
the number of customers that frequented the North Market was a lot less when
compared to the central market, due to the specialisation of the sold products. As
such, it wasn't difficult to navigate through the less crowded streets.

Seeing the usual atmosphere surrounding the market, Hekkeran and Roberdyck
relaxed their shoulders and started browsing.

The reason why they were able to relax their guards was because they were at
the northern marketit was probably one of the safest districts within the capital.

"Well then, Hekkeran. What do we need to buy?"

"First would be healing items. We'll need to stock up on those Wands of Cure
light wounds. Depending on the situation, we might also need some Wands of
Cure moderate wounds... Don't select any that have a low number of uses. From
what I've heard, our target location is a tomb, we might need to use them on the
undead. After that, we need to stock up on items that counter undead creatures,
poisons and diseases. We also need to have counter-measures against negative
energy and undead without physical form... Items that have unlimited usage are
too expensive, so it might be better to also stock up on scrolls inscribed with
magic as well."

Wands were a type of item that could hold multiple charges of a single spell. The
user could keep casting the spell until the number of charges were used up. As
such, when compared to scrolls that could only be used once, wands were much
more valuable for certain applications, such as healing.

"Is that so? I had thought that we were here to buy gifts, and you wanted my
advice."

"Gifts?"

"... Don't worry about it, Hekkeran. Let's start searching for what we need."

"...Oh, okay."

The stores within the northern market were all open-air markets, neatly arranged
and filled with items for people passing by to see.

The items on display were typically placed on single sheets. One sheet per item.
However, the majority of the items on sale at each store were only mediumquality goods. New or unknown items were rare sights here.

The majority of the vendors here seemed to be capable of handling themselves

well. They either possessed powerful looking weapons or were dressed like magic
casters. Compared to typical merchants, these looked like seasoned warriors.

At first glance these vendors looked out of place, but they really were the owners
of their respective stores, even if it was only for the current day. During other
times, they would usually be working as adventurers or workers. In other words,
the actual profession of the vendors were similar to that of Hekkeran's and
Roberdyck's.

They usually sold equipment or items they no longer needed, or whatever they
found during their adventures. When compared to selling to merchants who
specialized in magic items or to the Magician Association, finding their own
customers could eliminate having to pay processing fees and thus lower the price
of their items. The amount saved from this was larger than the fees one had to
pay to set up their own store.

Due to this reason, adventurers and workers like Hekkeran frequented the
northern markets first in order to look for bargains. Some even came everyday if
they had the time.

And lastly, this was the main reason why the crime rate in the north market was
low. Who would be crazy enough to cause a ruckus in a district full of combat
veterans?

After spending some time looking around, the faces on the two of them were
neither gloomy nor glad.

"Found anything?"

"Nothing."

Since the merchandise on sale were mostly unwanted goods, it was hard for
Hekkeran and others to find the items they needed. Although these items might
be suitable for Adventurers or inexperienced workers that were lower ranked, for
the two of themeven when taking their companions into considerationthere
simply wasn't anything useful.
"How regrettable. As I thought, it would have been faster if we had gone to the
usual place to buy them."

"I only came here hoping to find bargains. It can't be helped if we can't find
anything. Well, this is only the first step for us to start saving."
"Savings huh... Hekkeran, what do you think we should do?"
"Having only said this much and you already caught on, are you a super high
ranked magic caster or something? ... It's obviously about Arche."
"You already know about that."
"Well, from what's already been said I can sort of tell."
"Then you know what I wanted to say right?"
"...That this might be our last adventure, right?"
"Please don't say such phrases that might jinx us." Roberdyck laughed bitterly.
"Although it looks to be that way. If Arche-san says she will take her sisters under
her care, it looks like our adventures in the future won't be as easy anymore."
"Just as you said. Although one would still need to work, but it doesn't need to be
only from adventuring."
"It'll be easy for her to find another job. She's a third tier magic caster after all.
Familyalthough we don't know how many sisters she has, she should be fine if
she only needs to look after three or four people."
"Ah, I think so too. That's why she probably made this decision."
"And now the problem is at our end. In case our wizard Arche leaves the team,
what shall we do about our next member?"

"If only a third tier magic caster would suddenly fall from the sky."
"Please try and separate your dreams from reality... If we were adventurers, then
the Guild would help solving our problem... We'll need to rely on luck if we need
to search for one ourselves."
The two of them looked at each other and sighed.
Losing a comrade. Being unable to keep up. Or being the only person in the team
with powers that stand out. These were the typical reasons for an adventurer or
worker to leave their team. These situations weren't uncommon. It was rare for a
team to have kept the same members from the beginning to the end. In typical
cases, a team would have had changed its members at least two to three times.
It was the same for Hekkeran, Roberdyck and Imina.
Although having said this, arcane magic casters were hard to findespecially
those capable of using 3rd tier magic. For workers that were currently
companionless, the quality of their character was an entirely separate issue that
also needed to be addressed.
"How about training a 2nd tier magic caster?"
"Let's make that our last resort. Id wish to avoid that if possible."

"It's also really troublesome when choosing new members. The majority of those
who become workers tend to have messed up personalities. If we chose wrong,
things could get very messy, such as accidentally picking up a battle maniac."
"...Thinking back on this, we've been quite lucky haven't we?"
"It's quite a rare case for the whole team to be composed of only those who
desire money. Well, Arche's case is a bit different."
"Back when Arche-san first approached us, we were just thinking about how to fill
in the vacancy for the last member."
Roberdyck stared at the distance reminiscing about the past. Hekkeran felt he
was thinking the same thing.
"I can still remember what I was drinking at that time... The timing of Arche-san's
arrival was so great that I started to think the formation of our team was brought
on by God's will."
"Heh, that's amazing. I can only remember vaguely. What were you drinking?"
"Water."
"Isn't that the same as usual then? ... Looks like you really don't drink alcohol at
all. Although it'll be annoying if you also start drinking like Imina."
"It can't be helped. I'm a non-drinker Though I have to admit Imina-san's
drinking habit really is a bit scary."
"Well, Rob, a single cup is enough to turn your face red, then blue and then finally
white. I'm still wondering what would have happened at that time if we didn't use
magic to remove the poison."
"Someone else would probably be standing here instead. It's not like people
haven't died from alcohol poisoning before." Roberdyck shrugged as he said.
"Getting back on topic, what do we do about Arche-san's situation? Are we going
to end up disbanding?"
"... If we really can't find a replacement then that will have to happen. It's simply
too dangerous for three people to go adventuring... maybe we'll have to go back
to being adventurers again?"
"I just can't go along with the regulations set by the Temples. If it has to be that
way then I'd rather retire."
"Retire, huh... That's not a bad thought."
"I still have the savings we earned, I'll look for a job where I can help other people
or protect the weak. It's also not bad to just be a farmer in some flourishing
village while studying the teachings of God. What about you Hekkeran?"
"Hmm, just what should I do?"
Roberdyck's mouth twitched.
"...Is that something you can just decide on your own?"
It took some time for Hekkeran to fully process what Roberdyck had said. After
finally comprehending, he raised his head.

"Naa!"
"Kuku..." It was a wicked laugh, "you thought I hadn't noticed?"
"Aah. Aah. Aah! Aah! No, it wasn't something that I was trying to hide. You see,
the timing... Is that what you were talking about? The gift."
"Who's giving it to who?"
"Hey, Rob! Look over there!"
In the direction that Hekkeran pointed, two people were currently viewing
merchandise that was on display beneath a pretty pavilion.
One of them was a warrior clad in pure black armor, with a crimson cape behind
his back and carrying a gigantic sword.
"Such an abrupt change of topic... well, it doesn't matter. I'll just have to find out
more later on. Hmm, such stunning equipment. If the wearer has matching skills,
then he would be quite a remarkable warrior. Is it someone that we know, who
managed to upgrade their equipment?"

"I'm not too sure, but at least I don't think they're from the capital. For example,
see that woman hiding over there? I've never seen her face before."
"The angle from where I'm at is bad. How does she compare against Imina-san?"
"Please don't ask me that. I can't possibly answer that! ... Honestly speaking,
the woman over there is really pretty."
"Imina-san is quite a beauty too. For even her lover to be saying this... So that's
how it is, these two are either travelers or travelling adventurers. Perhaps they've
decided to relocate to the capital."
"However, they're looking at magic household items, isn't that rather weird?"
Underneath the pretty pavilion, rows of magic items were neatly arranged.
However, unlike the magic items used by adventurers and workers, the ones on
display were for everyday usage. Examples were containers that kept their inside
temperature cold, basically acting like a refrigerator that prevents food from
deteriorating. Or fan-like items, capable of blowing wind.
These types of magic items had largely been proposed by a minotaur hailed as
"The Boastful Sage" two hundred years ago.
Even though he had proposed the creation of many items, he had been unable to
explain why these items needed to be in this particular shape or how they
worked, so in the end this warrior was unable to create them and ended up with
such a title.

However, his skills as a warrior had been beyond first-class, and left behind the
legend that one swing of his axe was capable of creating tornados and splitting
the earth. He was also well known for raising the status of humans within the

Great Minotaur Nation from a species that was treated as food to slaves used for
labor.
It was quite a rare sight to see adventurers, who tended to live in inns, looking at
magic household items that were thought up by this demi-human, and had no
uses for adventuring.
"It's not that weird. The Empire's magical knowledge is quite advanced. It's also
cheaper than in other countries. Maybe they're thinking that even after taking the
return cost into account, it's cheaper to buy them there?"
"Ah, so that's why. I see. That's a way of thinking I didn't consider before."
"It's true that from our point of view their actions seems strange, but it's not so
weird if you keep in mind that they're travellers.
"Ah, that's right. If I think of it this way then I definitely can understand."
The armor clad warrior was carefully inspecting the magic items. Opening them,
then closing, picking them up, turning them around. To the point of making the
merchant's head sweat.
"We should be just as serious as them when searching for magic items."

"Yeah."

CHAP
TER 2

Part 1

Several worker teams had already gathered on the Earls territory before dawn.
The last team to arrive was Hekkerans 'Foresight'. In total, eighteen people were
present. The workers gathered for this job were considered to be among the
cream of their profession in the capital.
The worker teams maintained a distance between each other as they sized each
other up. When the four members of 'Foresight' finally arrived, they were
welcomed by the collective stares of the other worker teams. This scene could
almost be considered spectacular in its own way.
"Ah, somehow I feel like Ive seen all these faces somewhere before. Such as
Beetle-san over there, didnt I see him recently at Kattse Plains?"

"Eh? Did I not mention this in the hotel? Greenhams team also accepted this
request Did I really not say this? Somehow I feel like Ive said this before In
any case, the worker teams that are gathered today all possess considerable
fame within the capital! Lets have a round of applause for the deep pockets of
the client."
"I think Ill pass on that. Anyways, the ones over there are the team leaders,
right?"
In the area between the separated teams, three people had gathered in the
center, exchanging information.
"Greenham should be over there, it seems. No doubt about it. Well then, time to
go and greet them."
"Tch! Urgh, that guy is also there? Ah, I see. Then, the elf girls over there are
Hmph, that guy is absolutely the worst. Die, you piece of shit."
Imina practically spat that last sentence out. Although she kept her voice down, it
still worried Hekkeran and the others enough that they had to quickly check their
surroundings to see if anyone else had noticed.
"Imina-san!"
"I know, I know, Rob. Hes going to be a colleague for this job However, I really
dont want to see that guys face."
"I dont like it either."
"Well, if I had to pick between like and hate, I also dislike him. Even so, you still
need to consider the situation."
Hekkeran, who broke into the conversation between Imina, who was showing a
vexed face, and Roberdyck, helplessly shrugged.
"Oi, oi, you still have to greet him afterwards, so dont think about unpleasant
thoughts, or theyll show on your face, okay?"

"Do your best, leader."

Hekkeran frowned in response to Roberdycks encouragement, as though saying
"dont poke into other peoples businesses", and then walked towards the group
of three.

The first person that greeted Hekkeran was a worker who wore a steel-blue suit of
full plate armor. The design of the armor was oddly rounded, almost spherical.
Due to the especially large pauldrons, the man wearing the armor appeared more
like an upright beetle than a human.
However, after seeing that the helmet had a horn-like design which stuck out
from the forehead, it became obvious that the armor was intended to look this
way.
However, one thing that wasnt intentional was the length of the mans legs.
They were very short. The sight of him wearing the armor was like a real
rhinoceros beetle that had been forced to stand upright by children who were
playing around. To put it in kinder terms, short legs like those of dwarves gave
more stability. It was one of the traits which suited a warrior.
"Just as I had foreseen, thou also came, Hekkeran."
"Yo, Greenham. I thought the request wasnt too bad so we came."
Hekkeran raised his hand as a gesture at the remaining two leaders in a casual
manner. The two of them responded back without any unpleasantness. Although
Hekkeran was the youngest and least experienced of the four of them here, his
skills as a worker were on the same level as them.
"About your side" Hekkeran said, after glancing over to Greenhams team and
quickly counting them. "Theres five of you. What happened to the rest?"
"Resting, recovering from fatigue. Due to our previous work being of similar
nature, some of our members had to stay behind to help with the transportation
and repair of damaged goods."
This man, Greenham, was the leader of 'Heavy Masher', a worker team
comprising of fourteen members.
Having more members definitely had its advantages, such as having more
options available in choosing how to handle each request. In particular, it
provided the flexibility of being able to select the best suited members for each
different request.
However, it was not without its disadvantages, such as receiving less income due
to having to split the payment between more people, or running into more
conflicts due to disagreements between members, which made it more difficult
for them as a team to take fast action.
When taking into consideration the personalities of typical workers, it wouldnt be
unusual at all for a team to just suddenly disband. Being able to maintain full
control over such a large team of workers demonstrated just how strong
Greenhams management and leadership skills were.

"Fuuhn, how tiring. How about supporting us so you can earn enough not to
disappoint the comrades you left behind?"
"Thy suggestion is foolish. After we finish this job, bonuses will be given based on
the leaders performance. As unfortunate as it is, the best performance will
naturally belong to me."
"Oi oi, spare me already. Its fine to speak like you normally do."
Greenham simply grinned. Sensing that he had no intention of stopping,
Hekkeran shrugged and turned towards the other man.
"I think its the first time weve met face-to-face."
Hekkeran stretched his hand out, with a "pleased to meet you" intention. The
other man grasped it and shook back. He had a very strong grip.
He moved his eyes and stared directly at Hekkeran.
"'Foresight', Ive heard a lot about you."
It was a voice that sounded as clear as a bell, which matched very well with his
appearance.
"Likewise, 'Tenmu'."

The genius swordsman that was undefeated in the arena, there wasnt a single
worker who wouldnt recognize who he was. This mans 'Tenmu', was in a sense a
team composed purely of himself. Part of it was the reason why Imina made her
previous unpleasant face.
"The sword genius whos said to be a match for the Kingdoms strongest, Gazef
Stronoff. Its reassuring to have your squad with us."
"Thank you. However, I think its about time for it to be said the other way
around. That man should only be referred to as being able to match up to this
Eruya Uzruth. "
"Oh. So good with words."
Eruya smiled faintly, fully displaying his arrogance. Seeing this smile, the
unpleasant feelings concealed inside Hekkeran almost surfaced again.
"Well then, well be relying on you inside the ruins."
"Of course. Leave it to me. Itll be great if there are monsters that can put up a
decent fight inside the ruins."
Eruya said as he tapped on the weapon hanging by his waist, producing a pon
pon sound.
"Its completely unknown what kind of monsters might exist inside. Perhaps well
even run into dragons?"
"That would be quite scary. Monsters such as dragons would definitely put up a
hell-of-a fight. However, victory would still be mine."

Putting up a is that so? smile, Hekkeran was the last one to react due to
forcefully having to suppress his other emotions.
Taking only the skills with a sword into account, there were rumors that Eruya
could even win against orichalcum ranked adventurers. Considering this point,
there was some basis behind his boasting. Having confidence was a good thing,
since it was also important for workers to showcase their abilities and appeal to
their clients.
However, there should be a limit to just how much one can boast.
The worlds strongest race, Dragons.
Masters of the sky, capable of producing powerful breaths, with scales that were
near impenetrable, and possessing a physical prowess that was superior by far.
As they age, they even became able to use magic. Having a life span that
humans simply couldnt compare with, the wisdoms that they accumulate would
humble even sages.
They were the kind of existences often described in legends, whether as evil
villains or as beings that aided the heroes. Just like in the tales of the Thirteen
Heroes, the last opponent in their adventures was a dragon known as the 'Dragon
God'. In many stories, dragons tended to be the final opponents of heroes.

Even though these existences were only used as an example during

conversations, but to still be able to act this arrogantly was rather surprising. No
matter how one interpreted it, Eruyas words seemed like a joke. However he
could tell that Eruya was completely serious just from the looks in his eyes. Just
how self-conceited could he be?
It was still uncertain what kind of monsters would be in the ruins. Eruyas sense
of judgement would definitely be a hindrance to the overall operation of things.
Its probably best to stay away from him.

It would be convenient if he was to perish by himself, but it would still be

troublesome if the overall formation became broken. A faint smile appeared on
Hekkerans face as he reached his conclusion, and adjusted his attitude towards
Eruya, towards the direction of discard after use.
"Over there must be the members of 'Foresight'. Oya"
The look of his eyes when he saw Imina was filled with prejudice and disdain.
There were rumors that Eruya hailed from Slane Theocracy, where humans were
considered the most superior race. As an alleged citizen of the Theocracy, he had
the tendency to treat those with mixed blood as lower-class humans.
For a man like that to see a half-elf such as Imina to be participating as an equal
simply did not make him any happier.

Its because of this that the rumors end up becoming so credible However,
people from the Theocracy should have a baptismal name, although theres also
been rumors that hes forsaken it.
Hekkeran considered this deep in his heart, and said out loud just in case.
"Oi, oi, dont be so hostile to my comrade, okay?"
"Of course. Well be comrades for the same work this time. Ill definitely be
cooperative."
"I will take your word for it."
Perhaps the powerful wild child Eruya matured, but Hekkeran was still afraid that
he would run amok. In short, he could feel the mental instability of Eruya.
Hekkeran couldnt relax even after giving the warning, thats how unpleasant the
atmosphere was.

"Ay, trust me. Anyway, returning to the previous topic, I dont mind letting
someone else take leadership during this trip. As long as there are no special
cases, Ill follow the orders given. If we encounter battle, I dont mind taking the
frontlines. Ill let you guys witness my blade skills."
"Yes yes, understood."
"Well then, Ill be returning to my team then. If there are any problems just call
me."
Eruya bowed, and walked off.
Hekkerans face slightly twitched after seeing a number of women following
Eruya. However, showing ones emotions here was simply unacceptable. It was
not uncommon for situations to suddenly turn unfavorable after ones emotions
were exposed. As the leader of a team, this kind of behavior would be
unacceptable.
Hekkeran suppressed his emotions, and removed all facial expressions.
Looking away from what he considered as trash, he greeted the final person.
"Hello, elder. I see youre still healthy and well."
"Hoi, Hekkeran. Youre also looking well."
The sounds produced from the words said were due to the loss of frontal teeth.
Parupatra 'Green Leaf' Ogrion.
Also known as the Origin, he wore armor that looked as if it were brimming with
lights reflected from green leaves wet from the morning dew. The armor wasnt
made from metal, but rather from the scales of a Green Dragon. Parupatras team
was able to successfully hunt a dragon. Of course, from the size of the scales one
could tell that it wasnt that powerful. However, even then a dragon of that size
was still an existence that posed a severe threat to adventurers and workers
alike.

Furthermore, Parupatra was over eighty years old.

Typically, in this line of work, the majority of people would have retired by their
early forties, sometimes even before forty. There were very few adventurers
above the age of fifty. As harsh as it may seem, for a profession which is
constantly surrounded by death, its hard to ignore the decline in ones physical
abilities.
In fact, even as a special case, when compared to his peak, the time when he
was at Orichalcum rank, his skills had dropped considerably. Even so, Parupatra
still hadnt left the front lines.
Many people within the industry respected Parupatra for continuing to adventure
despite his advanced age.
"Fumuu. However, that guy seems a bit dangerous."

The wrinkled face of Parupatra became tense as he spoke in a hushed voice.

Hekkeran also agreed.
"Thats right. It doesnt matter if he ends up killing himself, but itll be bad if we
end up getting dragged down with him."
"Indeed, its true that guy is really strong, but his overconfidence could endanger
the rest of us. Hes like a walking hazard."
Greenham also chipped in with a whispered "So troublesome to deal with". After
seeing Eruyas attitude, almost none of the workers would think otherwise.
"Also, just how strong is that guy anyways? I havent been to the arena recently."
"Does thee not know? I however, dodoes elder also know?"
"Ive only heard about it but never witnessed in person. I might be able to find
out more if I ask my comrades. In the end, how do we define the threshold for
strong? If we use Gazef Stronoff as the reference point, from what this old man
currently know of for example, ah thats right where would we place the Four
Knights of the Empire?"
"The knights titled 'Heavy Explosion', 'Unmovable', 'Lightning', and 'Violent Wind'
huh Thats quite difficult to judge. Although its true that when compared
against that man, the Kingdoms Warrior Captain, the Four Knights are slightly
weaker. However, the time of Gazef Stronoff being the strongest is already over.
The passage of time have finally triggered the arrival of stronger beings,
signaling the birth of a new era."

"Are you talking about Uzruth? Is he really that strong? Besides, Ive never
witnessed the actual strength of the Empires Four Knights in person The
strongest that Ive seen so far would be the captain of the Mithril Imperial Guards
under the direct command of the Emperor. Hes also quite strong maybe on the
same level as the Four Knights?"

"From what this old man knows so far, the strongest amongst all would be the
Dragon Lords from the Republic. Those arent something that humans can go up
against."
"I did hear that there were five or seven of them Opps, lets first get back to
putting a rough estimate on the strength of Uzruth. Lets limit it to just the
swordsmen among humans for now."
"If were doing it this way then well have to exclude the swordsmen from the
Argrand Republic since theyre mostly composed of demi-humans. Itll be the
same for the Warrior King of the arena. Whats left would be the Valkyrie Knight of
the Holy Kingdom who wields the Sacred Blade, but that means well only be
comparing sword skills in the end."

For workers, gathering information on those who were strong could be extremely
important for the completion of requests. Because if they ever ended up as
opponents that needed to be faced during a request, one could quickly decide
how to proceed. Beyond this, its also natural for those who live by their swords
to collect this kind of information.
That was what was happening right now. Originally, it was supposed to be a
discussion on just how strong Uzruth really was, yet it was slowly turning into an
information exchange of those who were strong. It was almost becoming like an
argument between children where phrases like ''that guy is so strong!'' could be
heard.
''While the overall skill level of those in the Slane Theocracy is quite high, Ive yet
to hear of any particularly prominent ones. Anyways, even if there are, we wont
be including divine magic casters here right?''
''Doesnt the Kingdom also have a female warrior that is of the highest
adventuring rank? How good is she?''
''Ah, that 'Boob-less Big Chest'. Shes quite strong indeed. However, I heard that
she lost to the Warrior Captain during the tournament.''
''I seem to recall that she had almost beaten an adventurer to death for calling
her that. Hya, hya, hya... Such a scary woman!''
''At the pace were going, its getting more and more difficult to name more. Lets
see, the one referred to as the Dark Knight of the City Alliance, Serabright the
'Flash' from the adamantite rank adventuring team 'Crystal Tear' and Optics the
'Crimson' from the worker team 'Great Blaze of the Crimson Lotus', both from the
Draconic Kingdom. Also, hailing from the Kingdom Brain Unglaus.''

The conversation stopped for the first time.

''Brain Unglaus? Who the heck is that?''
Parupatra inconceivability asked Greenham in a surprised manner.
''Does elder not know? Hes also a famous swordsman of the Kingdom how
about thee?''

Hekkeran shook his head. It was a name that he did not know.
''I see, thou knew it not''

Unable to hide his disappointment, Greenham used an unreliable tone as he tried

to recall what he knew.
"Although this was from before, back during the time when I entered the
tournament held by the Kingdom, he was the opponent I faced during the
quarter-finals. The me of that time couldnt even reach his ankles."
"Wasnt that the tournament where Gazef Stronoff also participated in?"
"Thats right. The result was that Brain Unglaus lost to Gazef Stronoff. However, a
match between the strong can truly be described as spectacular. It was almost
like a perfect textbook play for swordsmen, how they deflected and parried each
slash, how they decided the angle of ones swing based on the given situation at
hand et cetera. Those can only be described as eye openers truly showing you
the depth of swordplay."
For a man like Greenham to be saying this, it definitely showed just how skilled
that Brain Unglaus must have been in order to be able to fight evenly against the
strongest warrior known in the Kingdom. His skills would definitely be first class.
Hekkeran sighed. It appeared that there were still plenty of strong guys out there
that he didnt know of.
"Fumuu Well then, between Unglaus and Uzruth, which one would be stronger?
Tell us your thoughts."

"Uzruth." Greenham answered "If compared against the Unglaus of that time then
the winner definitely would be that guy. It was only recently that I watched some
of his battles in the arena, so Im sure of it."
"So in other words, Uzruth would have been able to match evenly against the
Kingdoms Warrior Captain of back then? Is he really that strong!? Otto!"
Due to over excitement, Hekkeran accidently raised his voice and had to
suppress himself.
"I see. Unglaus huh. Looks like I was able to gain a bit more information about the
Kingdom Oh thats right, have you guys heard? Doesnt the Kingdom now have
its third adamantite ranked adventurer team?"
"Of course, Ive already heard, elder."
"Ah, sorry. I havent heard."
"Hekkeran Thou ignorance could bring much harm to thy team. "
"I already know that. However, its really difficult to gather information on those
of the same profession as us within the Kingdom. Its also a waste of money."
"Hya hya hya. So courageous. This old man does not dislike that!"

"Elder, I wish to hear thy opinion on this. Ive heard lots of rumours about Momon
from Darkness, but some of them are just ridiculously outrageous. For example,
being able to successfully subjugate a Gigant Basilisk with only two members and
without the support of any healers."
"Uwah, arent those simply false rumors?"

Even for adamantite adventurers, to be able to defeat such a strong opponent

like the Gigant Basilisk with only two people was simply near impossible.
"Does thou also agree, Hekkeran? The more information I gather, the more
dubious the whole thing seems. Even regarding the information on the event that
happened within the Kingdoms capital, the rumors were that they defeated a
demon with a difficulty rating of over 200 in just one hit. In my opinion, it seems
more likely that the Kingdoms Adventurer Guild deliberately spread wrong
rumors out of personal interests, just to gain additional adamantite ranked
adventurers.

"Thats possible. The appearance of new high ranking adventurers is definitely an

amazing thing. However, would the Guild really do something like this? Theyre
very strict on certain things, thats why theyre called a guild."
"In that regard, its a bit different in each city depending on the Guildmaster
whos in charge. Back when this old man was still an adventurer, the Guildmaster
that was in charge of my city was the absolute worst. I ended up punching him
straight in the face. Hya hya hya! Ive been a worker ever since that incident."
Parupatra laughed happily.
The story behind why Parupatra became a worker was extremely well known. It
might be reasonable to say that there shouldnt be any workers within the
Empires capital that didnt knew it. This was something that was often brought
up by Parupatra after he gets drunk.
"Having said this much, I dont think its likely that the Guild would do this kind of
stuff."
"In that case, you think its true then?"
"Its hard to believe. Even when I try to think about it rationally, a difficulty rating
of 200 its already hard enough to imagine just how terrifyingly strong that
would be, to be able to defeat that kind of opponent in just one hit is simply
impossible. Even if that was possible the probability would have to be extremely
low. Could it be that the event happened more like this, a super high difficulty
rating demon appeared and countless teams tried to subjugate it, and the final
blow was delivered by the 'Darkness'?"
"If you say it like that, then it sounds a lot more believable."
"I think its possible. It wouldnt be that strange for someone within the
adamantite rank to be that strong. The skill range between adamantite rank
adventurers can be extremely big."

"So Hekkeran and I are of the same opinion, but elder thinks it really happened as
told, is that right?"
"Hya hya hya. I do think of it that way."
"Seeing in person beats hearing a hundred tales. Now I want to meet him at least
once yet at the same time I dont."
Just as the two of them were about to agree to what Hekkeran had said, the
sound of someone getting hit, followed by the cries of a woman, interrupted their
conversation.
The workers that were present quickly focused their attention on the source of
the disturbance. Some had already drawn their weapons and entered their battle
state.
The source of the screamcoming in front of Eruya, one of Eruyas female
companions was laying on the ground. Considering the situation, it seemed that
Eruya was the one that had sent her flying. His face was distorted with rage,
while a fearful expression could be seen on the woman as she begged for his
forgiveness.
While desperately trying to suppress the feelings that fluctuated within his chest,
the first thought that flashed in Hekkerans mind was, his comradehe hurriedly
cast a glance at Imina.
Having made up his mind, Hekkeran eliminated the expressions on his face and
remained where he was. However, the pressure that was emitted from Hekkeran
suggested that if anything further happens, he would definitely be the first to
strike out.
Hurriedly, Hekkeran signaled to Roberdyck and Arche, instructing them to stop
Imina from taking any independent actions.
Personally, Hekkeran felt the same way as Imina. However, right now he didnt
have the right to meddle in other teams affairs. Of course, if he really wanted to,
there was nothing stopping him from taking action. It was just that he would then
be required to take responsibility. Because of reasons like this, the other teams
also didnt show any signs of wanting to be involved and simply expressed their
disgust.
In the end, Imina was finally able to come to her senses, and suppressed her
emotions. She made a rude gesture towards Eruyas back and spat on the
ground.
"It seems he can only match his swords skills with the Kingdoms Warrior
Captain. It would be great if he could also match his personality, but thats just
asking for too much. Well then, lets just end the useless chattering here."
"I agree. Since Hekkeran has already arrived, its time to decide on the most
important thing."
"Since that guy has already backed out from this its just between the three of us,
but who will take the overall command of this operation?"
Suddenly everything became quiet.

There were four worker teams here. The amount of combat potential from the
combined four teams could already be considered as something remarkable,
however if not properly commanded, much of it would be wasted. No matter how
many arms one might possess, if one was unable to make use of them in
harmony, its no better off than having just a single arm.
Managing multiple teams with a diverse range of personalities was already a
difficult enough task to accomplish, to do so without receiving any complaints
was even harder. Mistakes that occurred when giving commands could directly
result in failure. And if the leader prioritized his own team first, then he could
even end up being the target of everyones resentment.
To make it clearer, its a responsibility that requires ability, yet comes with more
demerits than merits.

Knowing this, the leaders quietly waited while studying each others expressions.
After nearly one minute of silence, the tired Hekkeran made a suggestion.
"Honestly, I think its better not to do it this way."
"This will only delay the problem. What if it gets messy once the battle starts?"
"I propose we dost take turns. This way dissatisfaction can be kept to a
minimum. We can also discuss this further after we arrive at the ruins."
"Ah"
"Thats right."
Thus Greenhams proposal was accepted by both Hekkeran and Parupatra.
"In that case, lets use the arrival order to determine the turns."
"What do we do with Uzruths 'Tenmu'?"
"It doesnt matter even if we skip that guys turn. After all, he isnt capable of
leading in the first place."
"I can only agree, elder. In that case, the first one to take leadership will be me,
'Heavy Masher', the one who proposed this system."
"Well be in your care then, Greenham."
"Ill be relying on you, young one."
"Understood. However, the likelihood of us encountering dangerous monsters
inside the Empires territory is almost zero. Its only when we are in the Kingdom,
near the Great Forest, that problems may occur."

"Ah, we should have reversed the order."

The two of them quietly laughed as Hekkeran face palmed himself when he
stated that. However, they laughter quickly stopped when they noticed a man
was walking towards them.

Light finally started to shine within the Earls courtyard when his butler made his
appearance. Walking with his back straight and tightened, the butler walked in a
manner which reflected the standing of those who served the Earl.
Arriving in front of the workers, the butler stopped and bowed. Although no-one
returned his bow, the butler didnt seem to mind and started speaking.
"Time is up. On behalf of the earl, I would like to express his gratitude to
everyone here who accepted our Houses request. There will be two
representatives from our House who will be coming along for this trip. Including
the adventurers hired for the security of the carriages and a few other things, all
together there will be six additional people. The destination is the unexplored
ruins located near the border of the Kingdomfrom the structure it appears to be
a tomb. The designated period for investigation is three days. Additional bonuses
will be given out after the Master has confirmed the received goods discovered
from the ruin. Are there any questions?"
The details that were given by the butler were almost the same as the initial
request. The only new information was that adventurers would be guarding the
carriages.
Many were interested in the details about the chosen travel route, but as
workers, one quickly learned to differentiate between which questions were
allowed to be asked and which werent. It was clear that this was something the
Earl did not plan to reveal, otherwise it would have already been made public.
If it was a clean request, they would have hired adventurers instead. Since it was
dirty work, the requestor obviously wouldnt reveal everything. Some things were
simply safer not to know.
"Well then, I will be leading everyone to the carriages we have prepared."
Without saying any words, the entire group followed the butler.
Hekkerans 'Foresight' was at the very back of the group.
"That eru-shit, hes much better off dead. How about it? Should we do it?"
Unable to tolerate Eruya any further, Imina whispered this to Hekkeran.
"Although Ive heard plenty of rumors before, but seeing it really shows just how
despicable that man is."
"Absolutely the worst."

The remaining two members also couldnt hide their disdain.

To 'Foresight', this type of opinion came naturally. Since theyve already made the
woman Imina into their comrade, the things that Eruya did were unforgivable.
In Eruyas team, except for himself, every other member was female. They were
also elves.
If it was just that, then Imina and the others wouldnt be expressing as much
contempt. However, they did have their reasons as to why they considered Eruya
as the lowest of the lowest lowlife.

The female elf members only possessed the bare minimum of equipment, their
clothes were made from the plainest fabrics available, without any defensive
capabilities. Furthermore, their short-cut hair revealed the stumps which showed
the remains of what had been the distinctive long ears that elves normally
possessed.
The reason why they, Eruyas team members, were in this state, was because
they were slaves bought from the Slane Theocracy.
Slavery also once existed within the Empire, but during the previous Emperors
rule, many things were changed. Although they were still referred to as slaves,
the meaning became completely different. However, nothing had changed for the
demi-human slaves such as the ones fighting inside the arena.
The elf slaves that belonged to Eruya also fell under this category.
The Baharuth Empire, Re-Estize Kingdom, and Slane Theocracy, the percentage
of human citizens living in these three countries could almost be calculated as
100%. Compared to other countries, these three clearly displayed more disdain
towards non-human races. Because of this, even those who were half human
like Iminahad experienced difficulties.
The only exception were the dwarves. The Azellerisia mountains spanned the
border between the Baharuth Empire and the Kingdom of Re-Estize, and inside
these mountains existed the Dwarven Kingdom. As long as the Empire still
maintained trade relations with the Dwarven Kingdom, the rights of Dwarves
were protected.

"I do feel sorry for these elves, but right now isnt the time to save them."
Imina sighed deeply, deep inside she was aware of that, but her feelings simply
couldnt be let go so easily.
"Lets go."

As Imina began to walk ahead, Hekkeran and others hastened their pace to catch
up. What they saw once they caught up to the main group made their eyes widen
in surprise.
Two carriages had been prepared for the journey to the ruins. There was also a
group of people surrounding the carriages. They must be the adventurers that
had been mentioned before. The plates hanging from their necks were all
brimming with a golden radiance.
However, what had surprised them wasnt the carriages nor the adventurers, but
rather the horses.
"Sleipnirs."
The sound of surprise could also be heard from amongst the other workers.
With four pairs of legs, Sleipnirs were much larger in size compared to normal
horses. Due to their superior muscle strength, endurance and mobility, Sleipnirs

were regarded as the most versatile type of magical beast for travelling across
lands.
Of course, the cost for one was also astronomical, enough to match the price for
five or more battle horses. Even for aristocrats, it was uncommon for one to
possess them.
Each carriage was pulled by two Sleipnirs. When taking into account the
possibility of losing these horses during the adventure, the people that were
aware of their worth couldnt help but appreciate the generosity of the Earl. Or
maybe he simply feared that normal horses wouldnt have enough strength to
pull all the treasures that would be found sleeping inside the ruins.
The others must have thought of this as well. The sound of people swallowing
their saliva could be heard.
"Please make use of the carriages provided. Provisions have already been placed
inside. For the safety of the carriages, as well as the security of the camp sites,
we especially hired adventurers. Also, please be aware that theyve signed an
agreement stating that they will not enter the ruins."
Suddenly thinking ahead, Hekkeran left his comrades and headed towards
Greenham.
"My bad, Greenham. Theres something that I wish to discuss."
"Whats wrong? What do you wish to talk about?"
"Its about the pairing for the carriages, can you help me not being in the same
carriage as 'Tenmu'?"
"En? Ah, I see. Thou unease is understood. Its reasons to do with your
companion right? In that case our team will pair with 'Tenmu' instead."
"Sorry about this, youve helped me a lot."

"Dont worry about it, were all in it together as companions during this job. It
would be bad if something happens before we even start the investigation. If"
"Is it really okay for us to be relying on these gold ranked adventurers? What do
we do if the campsite was overrun before we come back? Or if monsters manage
to break through the security perimeter of the campsite?!"
Suddenly, a voice as loud and clear as a burning fireball could be heard by
everyone, causing Hekkeran and Greenham to turn their focus elsewhere.
Eruyas words were directed towards the butler. However, he didnt bother
concealing his voice. It was as if time suddenly froze, the movements of the
adventurers who were moving the luggage stopped on cue.
Naturally, for those who are aiming towards the top, it was obvious that the path
became longer and steeper the further one travelled along it. Although it didnt
matter how far one could reach at the end, the effort required to get to where
they were now wasnt something that could be achieved easily. Their feelings
after hearing what Eruya had said could only be described as unpleasant.

The profession of an adventurer was a highly competitive one, to have ones

ability doubtedespecially by the commissionercould heavily impact their
future career. It would then be necessary to display their strength.
Regardless of whether they were an adventurer or a worker, to be able to
fearlessly dish out these words, the speaker must at least be at a powerful
enough position which allows them to get away with it. As such, Eruya did not
seem to mind the current atmosphere at all, and continued on.
"Well, I have to admit theyre at least good enough to qualify as luggage lackeys,
but when it comes to keeping everything safe, Im not so sure."
Give me a break, please. It wouldnt be good at all if things turn ugly. Those guys
are also restraining themselves due to already being hired
The workers currently present were all as strong as mithril ranked adventurers. In
other words, stronger than those adventurers. However, there were still certain
things that one should definitely not say, based on the given circumstances.
Can someone give him a beating so he can shut up?
The atmosphere amongst the workers also started to tense up as the majority of
them began to glare at Eruya in disapproval. Looking around, Hekkeran hurriedly
rushed to the side of Imina. It wouldnt be good if blood started spewing.
However, the person that made the next move wasnt a worker.
"You must be Uzruth-sama. I do not believe there will be any problems."
"Is that under the assumption that we will also help in securing the campsite??
If its like that then I can still accept your reply."
"Thats not it. Its just that we requested the aid of someone stronger than those
of you presentMomon-san."
As if responding towards the words spoken moments ago, a warrior clad in full
plate mail stepped out from one of the carriages. Due to the helmet he was
wearing, his face could not be seen.
"Please allow me to introduce everyone. Reaching the rank of adamantite with
the power of only two people, the adventurer Momon-san from the 'Darkness'. His
teammate Nabe is also present. With these two to protect the campsite, this
arrangement I hope everyone is satisfied?"
The atmosphere suddenly became completely different. To adventurers and
workers, the one standing in front of them was one who had reached the peak of
their profession. Under the presence of the strongest, every worker, regardless of
who it was, kept quiet.
Seeing how the workers reacted to the appearance of an adventurer of the
highest rank, the mood of the other adventurers improved. An affectionate smile
emerged on the face of the leader of the adventurer team as he conversed with
the warrior in black.
"Please let us handle the rest. In the meanwhile, could Momon-san continue the
exchanges with the workers? Also, please take over the role of leadership and
advise us on the security plans for the rest of the trip."

"Understood. Although I am still lacking, if your team have no problems with it, I
will accept. However, I will still be relying on you guys as the main security force.
Your team contains more people. It will be more convenient for us to assist
instead."
"No! What are you talking about!? Youre not lacking at all! Doing it that way will
drag Momon-san"
"No, your team will still be tasked with the main security. Do make use of us. Now
then, Nabe."
Having ended the conversation there with a voice which carried the hint of a faint
smile, Momon walked down the stairs from the carriage. The person following
behind Momon was a woman of astonishing beauty.
Usually, when a beautiful woman appears, there would always be some kind of
commotion. However, things became very different if the level of beauty was
overwhelming. In the presence of a truly beautiful woman, the only thing one
could do was have their eyes stolen.
"Hekkeran. That person"
"Aye, Rob. I was thinking the same thing. We saw her at the North Market. Over
there Momon of the 'Darkness'. Having only one companion. If its like that, it
seems like the rumor of defeating a Gigant Basilisk wasnt as big of an
exaggeration as I had initially thought."
"Giga! About that, is that true?"
"Seems like it. Theres also a rumor that they defeated a demon with a difficulty
rating of over 200 using a single attack. I heard this from Greenham."
"That cant be real right? A difficulty of over 200 is beyond the limit of human
capabilities. That isnt a territory humans could ever reach Could it be that you
misheard 100 as 200?"
"Even if its like that, it would still be amazing. Yet somehow I get the feeling that
it really did happen like it was said in the rumors. At least, thats how I feel."
Even though it was only a brief moment of conversation with the gold ranked
adventurer, the personality of Momon seemed to have been made clear. It was
consistent with what the people expected of adamantite ranked adventurers. The
impression given off by Momon was that of a likeable man.
"Before we begin the exchange theres something I wish to hear from you
guys."
Momons voice wasnt particularly loud. However, the impression that one
received when hearing the sound of his voice was that of majestic grandeur.
"Why have you decided to go to the ruins? Because youve accepted the request?
However, different to how the Guild could sometimes force adventurers to take a
request, theres nothing preventing you from rejecting this request. What was the
reason for deciding to go?"
The workers exchanged glances at each other, hesitating on who should respond.
In the end, the first to speak up was someone from Parupatras Team.

"Thats, obviously because of money."

The perfect answer to the question. There was no other greater reason. The
reason why the workers hesitated when answering wasnt because the question
was hard, but rather, they were trying to determine the true meaning behind why
Momon had asked such an obvious question.
After confirming that was the accepted answer from all of the workers, Momon
continued to ask.
"In other words, the reward offered from this request is enough for you guys to
risk your life for?"
"Thats right. The amount offered was enough to entice all of us. Also, bonuses
will also be given if we discover additional treasures from the ruins. Is that not
enough for us to bet our lives on?"
The one who responded was Greenham.
"I see. So this was the final decision you guys have made. Understood. Looks
like Ive asked a pointless question. Please forgive me."
"What you asked wasnt anything particularly offensive Please dont mind."
"Hya hya hya. Looks like you are done with the questions. In that case, could this
old man also ask something?"
"Please go ahead, senior."
"Ive heard much rumors about you. Whether theyre true or not, this old man
wishes to find out for himself."
"I see. Seeing in person beats hearing a hundred tales huh? Alright. Im fine with
it. Then allow me to, no, allow us as the security guards to demonstrate our
worth. In what manner would you wish to do this by?"
"About that, obviously its to have you face off against an opponent right?"
Everyone present suddenly focused their attention towards
"Of course, itll have to be the one who proposed it. This old man himself."
"What? So senior wishes to choose himself? I will apologize first then, but Im
not a man who is used to showing mercy when fighting. Although I may not have
the intentions of wanting to cause injuries, I do not have enough confidence that I
can properly control my strengthare you still fine with this?"
"Hya hya hya hya! As expected of adamantite level! This old man has already
decided on taking the risk. I will not blame you if anything happens."
A faint laughter could be heard from underneath Momons helmet.
"Thats expected, senior. This is the difference in in battle strengthIm strong.
Stronger than every one of you present. Thats why Im adamantite ranked."
Overwhelming conceit, and the attitude as if looking down from above. However,
not a single bit of unpleasantness was felt by the workers present. This was
obviously due to the impressive pressure emitted from this man named Momon.
The words that were spoken came out at the same time along with the

overwhelming pressure which gave off the feeling of staring into death itself, thus
the words felt as if they contained the power of persuasion.
"How amazing."
"Aye, really amazing."
Most of the people in the audience couldnt help but let out their voice due to the
emitted pressure.
There are many women that fall for strong and powerful men. In terms of respect
and admiration, many men are also fascinated by the strength of the strong. Like
that of moth attracted to flames, to the people living in this world of blood and
steel, although theyre aware that they would burn if they get too close, they still
couldnt help but get pulled in by the irresistible charm.
"Hya hya hya! Looks like there wont be anyone here objecting to you being
adamantite ranked! Although Ive said it this way, since its a rare opportunity, I
will still carry on knowing that I will lose. The carriages over here are in the way.
Can we use the empty area over there instead, butler?"
Having received the permission from the butler, Parupatra took the lead and went
over to the empty courtyard. All of the workers followed. The adventurers and the
butler also came.
"Judging from what Elder had said, it seems like we wont be able to witness
much."
"That man seems really strong."

"Uun, not just strong, more like outrageously strong. It feels as if hes stronger
than any of the other adamantite rank adventuring teams in the Empire."
"That does seem like it. The adventuring team 'Silver Canary' is adamantite
ranked only because its members are composed of people with rare professions.
Although they possess strange abilities, their actual strength isnt quite up there
yet. 'Eight Ripples' made it to where they are mainly due to relying on their
numbers and spectacular teamwork."
'Silver Canary' is a team lead by a Bard who has reached the heroic tier, with its
members consisting of those of strange professions. 'Eight Ripples' was founded
by nine members. Due to the amount of members it has, theyve often been
regarded as a team were the strength of its individual members are not yet at the
adamantite level. However, if its about teamwork, they have been known to
excel beyond what other adamantite teams could achieve.
Nevertheless, no matter which, theyve all been regarded as having achieved the
impossible feat of ascending into the realm of adamantite.
Whispers of such discussions could be heard from the team members from
behind.
This wasnt just from those three along. If listened carefully, many things could
be heard. The most commonly heard topic was how long Parupatra could last,
things like that. There wasnt a single person that believes he could defeat

Momon. This is primarily due to, although only for a short period of time, the
pressure emitted by the man known as Momon was undoubtedly something that
only those at adamantite rank could have emitted.
Walking up towards the side of Hekkeran while deep in thoughts, the metallic
sound that resonated made it obvious as to who it was.
"What does Greenham think of the upcoming fight between the two?"
"Although I feel bad to say this, but I just cant see how Elder can win. At this
point, whats left is simply to see to what extend Elder can take it to, thats all.
Does thee plan on going next after Elder?"
"No way, please give me a break. What about you?"
"I will also give up. Ill be satisfied with just witnessing the strength of a superior
warrior. However, I hope to be able to receive some guidance on the sword during
this trip."
"Im also thinking about doing that Oh!"
Arriving at the courtyard, Momon and Parupatra began to back away from each
other as they started readying their stance.
The stares made by Parupatra were definitely not something that an ordinary old
man was capable of making, theyre definitely the eyes of a warrior whos used to
combat.
The atmosphere gradually changed to one filled with killing intent, the
peacefulness surrounding the courtyard no longer exists.
A sense of anxiety could be felt by the audience who were watching as they
started to feel the sweat build up from the tension.
"Ah-re, not good. Elder seems to be completely serious."
Greenham who was standing by Hekkerans side unconsciously exposed his true
self.
"Against an opponent of adamantite level, its understandable for him to go at it
as if his life is on the line"
While replying, Hekkeran shifted his line of sight towards the warrior in black
through a manner as if putting himself in the same perspective as the elder, and
gasped.
He couldnt feel a single thing from Momon.
Both of his hands where lowered by his sides without showing any signs of taking
any defensive actions, meeting the killing pressure head on as if it was nothing. It
was completely as if facing off against a harmless child holding a sword, that kind
of feeling.
"Ahriya! Amazing! In front of that kind of killing intent and not showing any signs
of reaction. Its not possible that he hasnt noticed the killing intent emitted,
could it be that hes reached the very peak of the warrior, the ultimate mental
state of nothingness!?"

"Swordless Heart? Or has his mental state reached the Realm of Cloud and
Water? To be able to stand so fearless like that when theres that much of a
difference between the weapons of the two, he must really be confident of his
skills really, how terrifying. "
The spear that Parupatra was holding was a magic item made from the tooth of a
Dragon, whereas the weapon that Momon was holding was a wooden staff
borrowed earlier from one of the adventurers. No matter how you look at it, it
definitely wasnt imbued with any kind of magic. Weapons imbued with magic
could increases its sharpness, boost the ability of the user, and can provide
various additional effects. Just from comparison of the weapons alone, Parupatra
has an overwhelming advantage.

"No, I dont think so. Although its true that theres a strong difference in terms of
weapons, however Momon-sans armor in terms of its magical properties should
be above that of Elders. Also, the additional magic items equipped should be
better as well. The overall difference isnt big, Momon-san should hold the
advantage."
"I think thats a bit early to come to a conclusion? Ive heard that the amount of
the magic items that Elder possesses far surpasses what most adamantite rank
adventurers could possibly have. Elder has been adventuring for a long period of
time, and have completed countless requests. If we consider just the amount of
payment hes received, no-one in the Empire has more than him!"
"No, no, wait up"
"The one that should wait should be"
Just as the two were still discussing, the tension within the courtyard had reached
all-time high, with the sparks of battle finally starting to appear.
"Well then, lets go!?"
"Theres still important things that needs to be done after this. Dont make it too
hard for yourself and come at me, senior"
Without even finishing the sentence, Parupatra charged towards Momon in a
speed that most people wouldnt imagine an eighty year old could possibly be
capable of. Smooth and with strength, he completed the action with such fluidity
that his opponent Momon hasnt even raised the staff in his hands yet.
"Dragon Fang Thrust!"
Towards the sudden use of martial art technique by Parupatra from the very start
of the fight, Hekkeran widened his eyes in surprise.
A consecutive two-hit piercing attack with the spear bending as if like that of the
tooth of a dragon. It further has an added homing effect, this technique deals
additional damage based on the attribute imbued by the user and the result of
the homing. Using Piercing Strike as the base, this technique was something
that Parupatra created 40 years ago. A well-balanced technique known by many,
even now a lot of people are still studying it.

Within the Dragon Fang Thrust, Parupatra further layered an additional Blue
Dragon Fang Thrust on top, which deals extra lightning damage.
Just what is he thinking of, that old man! Even though we have healing magic
here but who really goes all out like that?
The effect of the used martial arts technique was one that would cause
considerable amount of lightning damage even when suffering a minor graze. It is
most suited against opponents wearing armor made of metal. Choosing to use it
shows just how serious Parupatra is.
However, for an attack that was known to be troublesome to deal with for those
wearing metal armor, Momon easily avoided it like it was nothing. His actions
made it seem as if he was wearing armor as light as feather. The sluggish
movements that normally should have been caused from when wearing full body
armor did not show at all. What made it even more surprising was that instead of
making any excessive movements such as leaping backwards, Momon was able
to evade the incoming attack standing still with minimum effort.
"Impossible! Just how good can his kinetic vision and physical capability be?"
"Gale Acceleration!"
Parupatra responded immediately with another martial-arts technique.
That old fart is going way over the top! Has his brains already fossilized?
"Dragon Fang Thrust!"
Using the same technique as before, Parupatra once more strikes towards
Momon. The blade of his spear was brimming with a white layer of coldness
which came from the White Dragon Fang Thrust used time.
A four hit consecutive attack that doesnt give the opponent any breathing room

A commotion could be heard from amongst the audience watching.

Of course. Even an attack like that wasnt able to land a single hit or scratch on
Momons armor.
Parupatra quickly leaped away to create a distance from Momon. Sweat started
to build up on his forehead. It wasnt from exhausting his stamina, but rather
from the sheer amount of mental pressure he received during the face off against
death.
"Amazing!"
"Stronger than Hekkeran."
"Obviously, Arche. Dont use me as a comparison. What youre seeing there is the
highest of the adventurers. The absolute peak of everything. The power of an
adamantite rank adventurer."
"Well then, looks like its my turn to attack."

Momon slowly held up his staff, readying a pose. In contrast, Parupatra rested his
spear onto his shoulder, relaxing his stance. His will to fight no longer exists, his
posture was that of giving up on the battle.
"Magnificent. I give up, I resign. Forget about winning, this old man cant even
put a scratch to your armor."
"Is that so."
Towards Parupatra who announced his loss, the majority of the audience gave off
a "uooooh" sound as they sighed. It was without a doubt, a complete
overwhelming victory by Momon. As if it was an adult playing around with a child.
Discussions such as just which martial-arts schools footwork technique it
belonged to that was used by Momon? started to appear, as the overly excited
audience began to share around their thoughts. Not caring about these things,
Hekkeran and Greenham walked towards Parupatra who was busy wiping away
his sweat while conversing with Momon.
"Already done, senior?"
It feels as if the atmosphere and speaking tone suddenly changed.
"I had thought you wanted to display your real ability."
"hya hya hya. That would be too much for an elderly like me. What Ive shown
is already my real ability, Momon-dono."
"Ah, my apologies for being disrespectful."
"No need to apologize. However, I am quite sad about it. Also, you dont need to
be so modest with your words. What we old timers respect is strength, not whos
lived for longer. To be treated with so much respect by someone as
overwhelmingly strong as you just doesnt make me feel good."
"I see. So be it then. However, to just end it here like this without letting me
even take a swing leaves a bad aftertaste for me. If theres going to be a next
time, Ill be the one to start. Well then, I will have to get back to moving the
luggages."

"There are other people already working on it. You shouldnt need to be doing
that right?"
"I do not think so. No matter what kind of status I have, when assigned a task I
must still properly finish it."
Having said that, Momon turned around and headed back towards the carriages.
Following behind him was the woman possessing peerless beauty. Hekkeran and
Greenham whose path crossed by couldnt help but have their eyes glued
towards them once more.
Entranced by the silhouette of the larger than lifes back of Momon.
"Hya hya, youre making the face of a man wanting to ask questions."
"Elder, what was your thoughts on this?"

The wrinkled face of Parupatra started to distort, as if wanting to smile bitterly.

"Very strong. No, that should be as expected due to being adamantite ranked.
However, I never imagined to what extent that was. I had the feeling that no
matter how I attack, I will never be able to hit from the moment we clashed."
Hekkeran had the exact same feeling. Every single attack of his would probably
be evaded by that man named Momon, and then the counterattack would come.
Even if through using the best trick attack he could think of and managing to land
a hit, the image of it being repelled by that armor couldnt help but appear in
Hekkerans mind. Parupatra who experienced it firsthand must have received an
even stronger impression.
"So thats adamantite rank huh?"
"Thats right. Thats the so called adamantite level. A realm where only few can
ever reach. Aahh, truly magnificently stunning. A height that you cant reach out
and touch Well, are you guys satisfied from witnessing this?"
"Without a doubt! Thanks to being the bystander, I was able to see the whole
thing in detail. If I was the one fighting, I would never be able to calmly observe
everything. Personally, although I have to apologize for saying this to Elder, but I
really wanted to see the Momon-dono that was readying his attack."
"That wouldnt have been possible. Momon-dono never had the intention to
attack in the first place. He didnt even display any battle spirit. Most likely, it was
just as he had said, he wasnt used to holding back on an attack. If he really did
attack, Elder most likely would have lost his life."
If it is like that then that would be quite arrogant indeed. Elder Parupatra is also a
warrior of considerable strength, a veteran that should not be underestimated.
However, it was exactly because having achieved it showed just how strong
adamantite rank adventurers truly are.
"That cant be helped. Theres a huge difference in strength between this old man
and that person. Although at first I was quite unhappy about it, but to be able to
evade all of these attacks like that, theres nothing that I can say about that."
Thats what it is to be strong.
Choosing a weapon that he wasnt used to using, where the weight and balance
was completely different shows just how much confidence he had in his own
abilities. The difference between the two was just that big.
With a final sentence of "so tiring, so tiring", Parupatra turned and walked away.
Towards the direction of the carriages.
Towards the back of Parupatras figure that is gradually getting further and
further away, Hekkeran heard the following words.
"Even during my prime I was unable to reach that level, so that is adamantite
rank huh too distant to ever reach."
Parupatras figure seemed much smaller when compared to that of Momons,
which gave off an overwhelming pressure.

"So thats the highest rank adamantite."

"Aah. Truly amazing."
Only the sound of agreement could be heard to the words that were said by the
two.

Part 2

On a stone paved road in Arwintar, a carriage sped by like the wind.

The creature pulling the luxurious carriage was an eight-legged beast, Sleipnir.
Two skilled-looking warriors were seated on the front platform, at the roof of the
carriage. The place where the luggage was usually stored had been modified to
seat a group of four magic casters and archers, who were watching the
surrounding with wary eyes.

It could be described as a mobile stronghold traveling under high security in

broad daylight. And of course, the one riding inside was of a fittingly high status.

Just by looking at the emblem on the side of the carriage that composed of three
staffs overlapping, those who were cultured would be able to tell who was seated
inside the carriage and who the carriage belonged to. As such, the knights
standing guard did not make any sound.

There were three men inside the carriage. All of them wore robes and dressed like
magic casters.

Although all three were famous figures within the Empire, even among them
there was a clear difference in their attitude and status. The white haired elderly
man clearly had the highest status among them.

Similar to how Gazef Stronoff was renowned as a warrior, there was no magic
caster more well known than this man. This elderly man was the most powerful
magic caster in the Empire, Tri Arts Fluder Paradyne.

Opposite Fluder were two of his disciples, both of whom could use magic up to
the 4th tier.

As though he could no longer endure the heavy atmosphere after setting off from
the Imperial capital, one of the disciple sheepishly said:

Master, what should we do about his Imperial Majestys orders?

Silence took over the carriage once again. The moment they thought that was
the case, Fluder answered in a deep and calm voice.

If his Imperial Majesty wishes, we as his vassals can only carry out his orders
and begin investigation. However, it is too risky to investigate through magical
means. Should we start by studying the archives or conducting a demon
summoning? In the end, we still need to gather information.

Are you saying that even you do not know, Master?

Fluder closed his eyes and opened them several seconds later.

My knowledge is lacking. I do not know about the powerful demon Jaldabaoth.

About one month ago, a group of demons assaulted the royal capital of the
Kingdom. According to the intelligence they gathered, the commander Jaldabaoth
and his maid servants were horrifying beings from another plane of existence.

Because of the demon crisis, the annual invasion against the Kingdom wasnt
launched this year. Thinking normally, the Empire should have taken advantage
and attacked the Kingdom while they were exhausted from the demon invasion.

However, there were two reasons why the Empire waged war against the
Kingdom.

The first reason was to exhaust the resources of the Kingdom. Unlike the Empire
that formed standing armies, the Kingdom conscripted their soldiers. Hence, the
Kingdom would lose in terms of quality every time the Empire mobilized its
forces, so they had to make it up with quantity of troops. That was the reason
why they picked the harvesting seasons to wage war. The farmers would be
conscripted and unable to harvest their crops, which was a long term plan to sap
the resources of the Kingdom.

The other reason was to weaken the power of the nobles within the Empire.
Imposing special taxes on the nobles who opposed the Emperor during the war
and drain them of their money. If they refused, they would be purged on
suspicion of treason. In the end, the only difference was tightening the noose on
their neck or killing them for expressing a wrong idea.

As those were the reasons, the Kingdom which was already spent from the battle
could be left alone that was the conclusion of Emperor Jircniv. He had pulled out
the fangs of most of the nobles anyway.

However, there was still one problem.

Where was Jaldabaoth now, the one who committed atrocities befitting the title of
a demon? And what kind of existence was this being that created that unrest?

It was only natural for the order to investigate Jaldabaoth to fall on Fluder, the
most outstanding magic caster in the Empire.

And the one who defeated Jaldabaoth, Dark Hero Momon and his team mate
Beautiful Princess Nabe. How fascinating. And the mysterious magic caster Ainz
Ooal Gown. Are all the hidden heroes starting to make their move? Maybe a fierce
battle similar to the fight against the demon god two hundred years ago will
happen once again.

... Will that happen?

I have no idea. But only a fool would make preparations after the fact. Being
ready before it happens is the action of a wise man.

The carriage finally reached its destination.

The vast territory was surrounded by thick and high walls with several
watchtowers overlooking it, guarding against dangers coming from both outside
and inside. Multiple chosen knightsfrom the elite 1st Knight Order that was the
best out of the eight Knight Orders of the Empireformed mixed teams with
magic casters and made regular patrols.

Up in the sky were the personal guards under the direct jurisdiction of the
Emperor, imperial air guards mounted on flying beasts, and even high level
magic casters using flight magic.

This was the symbol of the Empires might, and the place where past emperors
had invested the most efforts in, the Magic Ministry.

Production of magic equipment for the knights, development of new spells,

raising the standard of living through magic experiments, the essence of the
Empires magic knowledge were all here. And the man who was overall in charge
although someone else was the minister of magicwas Fluder.

The carriage moved through the territory, and finally stopped before the
innermost tower.

One common thing about the various buildings they passed by was the large
number of people entering and exiting. However, there was hardly anyone going
in and out of this tower. In contrast, the security at the entrance was beyond that
of the other buildings.

First was how the security knights looked. They were not from the 1st Knight
Order that could be seen everywhere in the vicinity.

They wore full plate armor imbued with magic, holding magic shields and had
magic weapons hanging at their waist. Their crimson capes, sewn with the
emblem of the Empire, were magical as well.

The imbued magic might not be that powerful, but such equipment was not
something normal knights were outfitted with even in the Empire.

These elite knights were the Imperial Earth Guards under the direct command of
the Emperor.

The magic casters beside them were equally formidable. They were veterans and
proficient in battles, emitting an aura that could rival veteran warriors.

And there were more. Four 2.5m tall Stone Golems guarded the entrance. With no
need for food and rest and never lazing off, they were most suited for security.

This place, which had a security system that was on par with that protecting the
emperor, only allowed entry to magic casters who had reached the latter half of
their tier three magic studies, those with special circumstances, and magic
casters proficient in research.

After responding to the most respectful salutes of the Knights and magic caster
with a gentle wave, he entered the tower. He reached the top of a bowl shaped
space after going through a straight passage. Many magic casters were working
hastily. The highest ranking magic caster rushed hurriedly to Fluder.

Did something happen?

Nothing to report, Master.

After gulping, the disciple squeezed out an answer that bore both good and bad
tidings.

Fluder nodded with a complicated expression as he looked at the thirty disciples

he personally trained known as the chosen thirty disciples. The most renowned
one was his deputy in charge of this place.

Is that so, so we couldnt link it to natural occurrence?

Yes master. We couldnt link it to the existence of the lowest tier of undead,
skeleton. Right now we are conducting experiments by placing it beside corpses
to see if zombies will be raised naturally.

Hmmm...

Fluder stroked his long beard as he watched the scene developing before him.

There were dozens of skeletons performing farm work.

Raising hoes and swinging it down. The movements of all the skeletons were
perfectly in sync. If one were to look from the side, they would only see one
skeleton moving.

The movement was synchronized too perfectly that it looked just like a tactical
RPG. This was the true nature of the grand project the Empire was conducting in
secret. Using undead as labourers.

The undead had no need for nourishment or rest, and would not become tired.
Low tier undead werent sentient, so they could only perform tasks as ordered
and couldnt do anything complicated. However, if there was someone giving
instructions from the side, the problem would be solved.

Deploying the undead to the farms would yield great benefits. Such as the
reduction in manpower cost and the drop in the prices of farm produce.
Farmlands could be expanded and injuries and death to humans could be
prevented. It wasnt too much to say this was a grandiose project.

There were similar proposals that used summoned monsters or created Golems
as manpower, but after considering the cost, efficiency and optimization, the use
of undead was the best choice.

But those who opposed itespecially the group led by priests, were of the
opinion that using the undead that were the manifestation of the hatred of life,
was corrupting the souls of the dead.

It was different when you look at it from the viewpoint of the religious.

Even if the undead were risen from the corpses of criminals, according to
religious teachings, the sins of the criminal were absolved the moment they were
executed, and turning them into undead was desecration. It would be hard to
convince those who thought that way.

If they were facing troubles with food with many dying from famine, it would be
easier to persuade them. However, the food supply of the Empire was ample and
there were no problems in terms of labourers too.

And that was the reason why the priests opposed this project.

But the goal of this project was the strengthening of the Empires military might.
By leaving the production line to the undead and freeing up the manpower for
other areas, it would eventually lead to a larger pool of people from which
excellent knights could be drawn.

What was left was the unease of the human labourers over job security, and the
doubt over the obedience of the undead. Also, in places with a large number of
undead, the balance between the dead and the living might crumble, leading to
the creation of an even more powerful undead. It was an obvious source of
unease for people who listened to the sermons of the priests.

This facility existed in order to conduct experiments and dispel such unease.

The underlying reason is still not clear, huh?

Yes, my humble apologies, Master.

Why do the undead rise naturally. Finding out the underlying reason was
important for the future.

The place said to be covered in fog throughout the year and only cleared up
when the Kingdom and Empire clash in battle, a cursed place known as Kattse
plains. Where some of the strongest undead, like the Skeletal Dragon which was
immune to all magic, appeared with incredibly high probability.

Although the Empire had plans of annexing the region around E-Rantel under its
rule, it was reluctant in taking the place where the undead rises at such a high
rate. Hence, they needed to figure out how long it took for an undead to rise,
which would definitely help in controlling them. It might even be possible to stop
the emergence of the undead once and for all.

Is that so, I understand.

Leaving his relieved deputy in charge aside, Fluder started walking around the
bowl shaped room.

When he reached the door on the opposite side, the number of disciples following
behind Fluder increased.

In front of the door opened by the Knight guarding it, the line of people continued
advancing. It was a passage like before, but the presence of humans was
gradually drained away. The air smelled like dust and the light seemed to be
losing the fight against the darkness.

The passage with the disturbing aura extended straight ahead and connected to
a staircase that spiraled down. As they passed through the doors along the way,
the time between the clatter of boots which echoed in the tower was rather short.
They only went five levels below ground. However, the heavy atmosphere made
it seem longer.

The reason wasnt simply because they were underground. This was evidenced
by the tense expressions of everyone including Fluder due to their nervousness.

At the lowest level, everyones faces were twisted, the tension was so high it was
no surprise to say that they were ready for battle.

Everyone was focusing on a set of heavy doors. It was a door that seemed to be
separating another world. To keep it from being destroyed or opened easily, it
was fortified with several physical and magical defenses. It was a door that must
never be breached.

The numerous sets of heavy doors they passed on their way here was telling of
the danger in this place. Those doors were meant to buy time if something
dangerous were to happen here, and also had the underlying meaning of
segregating this area.

Fluder warned his disciples with a stiff voice.

Do not be careless.

The warning was short and simple, which was telling of how terrifying it was.

The magic caster who followed him nodded deeply. Fluder repeated his warning
every time he came here. Even though they knew what was in there, their
expression didnt ease.

Sealed in here was the ultimate undead. If it was unleashed, there was no
question a horrible tragedy would befall the Empire.

Several people started casting protection spells. It wasnt just physical defense
spells, but also mental protection magic too. After ample preparation time, Fluder
looked at his disciples once again to gauge their resolve.

After nodding, he chanted the unsealing spell.

With the power of the spell, the heavy door opened slowly with a gong.

Something akin to cold air spilled out from the dark interior, and several of the
disciples tightened their shoulders due to the cold. Even with magic items to
protect against the environment, the hatred for life from the thing inside was
enough to send a chill down their spine.

The sound of someone gulping was exceptionally loud.

Lets go.

In response to Fluders voice, the disciples made multiple magic illumination

lights, driving away the darkness within the room. The receding darkness seemed
to be hiding outside the light, making the surrounding even darker thats how it
felt.

With Fluder taking the lead, the group walked towards the room where the aura
of death lingered.

Part of the reason was its narrowness, and the room was illuminated immediately
by the magical lights.

What lay within was a giant pillar that reaches the ceiling. That tombstone-like
object was very prominent. However, there was something bound by chains that
drew even more attention.

It was completely bound by chains that were thicker than a thumb. The ends of
the chains were secured by boulders, and large cast iron balls were tied to each
of its limbs.

It was impossible for any being to move under such a situation. These excessive
restrains reflected how wary they were of this opponent. That was why some of
the group were still uneasy despite seeing the thick chains. They were certain
that this being could shatter all his bonds and gain freedom easily.

It had the appearance of knight wearing black full plate armour. But it was very
different compared to the equipment of men.

The first prominent feature was its massive body. Its height was easily over two
meters.
Next would be its black full plate armour. On it was engraving that reminded
people of blood vessels, and spikes that symbolized violence were everywhere.
Demon-like horns sprouted from its helmet, and the face could be clearly seen.
Inside the helmet was a rotten face. The hollow eye sockets glowed bright red
from its hatred of the living and its thirst for carnage.

That was not a living being, but something dead. That was the only way it was
possible for it to radiate such hatred for the living.

Death Knight.

One of the disciples who had come here for the first time mumbled the name of
the legendary undead. Having been relegated to the realm of legends, the name
of this undead was not well known.

The red glow in the eyes of the Death Knight glimmered, its gaze seemed to be
licking the magic casters before it. No, the instantaneous action shouldnt be
noticeable at all. However, the aura that made them tremble gave the magic
casters the illusion it was looking at them.

The ones accompanying them could at least use 3rd tier magic, a group of elites.
But right now, they couldnt stop their teeth from rattling.

Even with the mental protection spells in place, the fear didnt stop welling up.
The fact that no one had attempted to run away showed that the magic was still
effective.

Control your will. A weak soul will be greeted with death.

Fluder warned as he approached the Death Knight. In response, the Death Knight
unleashed its bloodlust and exerted strength through its limbs.

The chain creaked as if they were moaning, but its body only moved slightly.

Fluder reached out towards the Death Knight.

Magical light drove back the darkness, and the sound of Fluder chanting magic
echoed. A modified version of Summon Undead 6th Tier, Fluders original magic.

Obey.

The magic was castAs though it was melting into the surroundings, Fluders soft
voice withered away.

In contrast, the eyes of the Death Knight were still filled with the hatred of the
living. Anyone could tell the spell was a failure.

... We still cant control it, huh.

Fluders voice was filled with regret. Even after five years, he could not establish
control over this undead.

This monster was discovered in the Kattse Plains where the undead roamed.

One squad of the Empires knight encountered and engaged it as part of their
purging mission even though they had never seen this type of undead before.
They realized this was out of their league seconds later. The faces of the Empire
Knights, known for their discipline and strength, were filled with terror and
despair.

An overwhelming one sided fightthe opponent was too strong.

After mowing down dozens of knights like grass, the knights realized the extent of
their ability and started to retreat.

And of course, they couldnt leave a monster like that alone. Especially after they
witness the killed knights turning into undead ghouls, it was easy to imagine the
damage spreading if they gave their opponent time.

After a series of debate, the top leaders of the Empire decided to send in their
ace the greatest combat unit of the Empire, Fluder and his disciples.

And the result was the capture of the Death Knight, with Fluder and his team
obtaining victory. However, Fluder only won because the Death Knight did not
have any way of countering flight magic. By utilizing carpet bombingrepeatedly
throwing Fire Ball from above to weaken the Death Knights movement and
defeat it. Captivated by its power, Fluder captured and transported it to this
place.

Right now, it was bound by multiple spells, magic items and methodsThey
invested in all sorts of way to dominate the undead just because Fluder wanted
to control this Death Knight.

What a pity If I can control it, I will surpass that magic caster and become the
greatest ever in history.

Surpassing one of the thirteen heroes, the necromancer Rigrit Bers Coural.
Surpass her by leaps and bounds.

Actually, Fluder wasnt obsessed with the pursuit of power. What he was after
was to peer into the abyss of magic. This was just a process towards his ultimate
goal.

However, his disciples didnt know and consoled him.

I think Master has already surpassed that hero.

Thats right. The thirteen heroes are a relic of the past. They couldnt win
against Master who is at the cutting edge of new magic techniques.

I feel that Master had already surpassed the thirteen heroes too. If Master could
control the Death Knight, the Empire would gain the greatest fighting power.

They say the power of one could not defeat the power of many, but that is just
because the power of that individual is still too weak. This Death Knight is truly
the strongest being.

No one could see Fluders wry smile since he was standing at the very front. Only
the eyes of the Death Knight saw it.

Even Master couldnt dominate this Death Knight. Just how powerful is he?

That remains unknown. Theoretically, it could be dominated. Do anyone have

any idea what are we lacking?

After some time, the answer was still silence.

The undead could be dominated through magic, but the only one that succeeded
in doing so was one of the thirteen heroes. Fluder was powerful enough to
dominate undead that were rather high in level. He was powerful enough that he
might just be able to dominate the Death Knight before him.

However, that was just in theory, dominating the undead requires a rather
complicated process. Basically, the control and destruction of the undead should
be done by priests that use the power of god. By using magic in place of the
power of god, it was natural for all sorts of problem to arise.

... I dont mean to offend Master

One of the disciples spoke in a heavy manner, and Fluder gestured for him to
continue.

Maybe Master isnt powerful enough? This Death Knight might had been
summoned by magic of the 7th tier that might exist
That is a good observation.

I heard the adventurers use numbers to gauge the difficulty level of monsters.
How about using that?

But their gauge is very vague, I heard that the age and size of the monsters will
render the numbers meaningless.

Another disciple spoke.

Other than unknown monsters, there is nothing clearer and simpler than that.
And that is accumulation of the experiences of the adventurers, it shouldnt be
too far off.

Wouldnt that be meaningless to a legendary monster like the Death Knight?

By the way Master, does the secret book chronicling countless monsters
mentioned such a monster?

No. Fluder stroked his beard. Leaving the complete Eryuentiu aside, the
version open to the public is useless.

One disciples asked another a question. Their voices were soft, but it seemed
loud in the quiet room.

What is Eryuentiu?

Isnt that the name of a city?

I heard about that. But what a queer name.

Ahh I looked it up once, it means the tree in the center of the world in an
ancient tongue.

Warning the disciples who were speaking casually, Fluder knocked his staff on the
ground. This was a place imprisoning a legendary level undead, not somewhere
you could let down your guard.

Obeying the warning, the master of the room, silence returned. The only sound
was the squirming of the Death Knight as it tried to break out of its bonds.

Regrettably, there is nothing else we can do here. At least for today. Lets go.
Yes Master.

After receiving several relieved replies, Fluder who was before the Death Knight
started moving.

Even Fluder had a different pace between his arrival and departure. With the
pressure of the Death Knights gaze on his back, he unconsciously sped up. It was
the same for the disciples.

Fluder who was walking in front remembered what one of his disciples
mentioned.

Eryuentiu.

As the capital of the nation founded by the Eight Greed Kings, it was the last city
that remained. At the same time, it was a city guarded by thirty guards equipped
with overpowered magic weapons.

If he had a magic item from the Eight Greed Kings, Fluder was sure his magic
skills would rise by another level. It would never fall into the hands of others, the
only exception being the few items the thirteen heroes were permitted to take
with them.

A dark flame flickered in Fluders heart.

The thirteen heroes. Heroes of the past. Fluder was someone who could rival
them, but they received permission while he didnt. He didnt understand what he
was lacking.

Fluder waved away the flickering flame and consoled himself. His current status
and what he had achieved was on par with the accomplishments of the thirteen
heroes. No, in the hearts of the magic casters of the Empire, Fluder had
surpassed them in status.

But the dark flames of jealousy couldnt be extinguished so easily. He was not
jealous of their power, talent or strength, but of their chance to peek into the
abyss of magic before him.

Fluder was the best magic caster. This was a fact acknowledged by everybody,
and the only ones that could be compared to him were the thirteen heroes of the
past. However, he couldnt dominate the Death Knight, and could only use
according to rumours 6th tier out of the ten tiers of magic.
He was far from reaching the abyss of magic.

Fluder was old.

He was a mental spell magic caster using one of the system of the Wizardrybased class Forbidden Arts. By using spells that were taboo, he stopped his

aging. Of course, it was a complicated spell considering Fluders level of training.

But he forced it through by using a combination of ritual and spells.

However, his method of making the impossible possible had a flaw. Fluder, who
shouldnt be aging anymore after casting the spell perfectly, could still feel
himself aging slowly.

It was still manageable for now, but with the passage of time, his end will come
one day.

Thats right. Fluder would die before seeing the abyss of magic.
If someone else had done so before him, he might be able to arrive at this stage
earlier. But with the lack of predecessors, he had to pave his own path.

Fluder looked at the disciples around him.

The ones walking on the path paved by the figure known as Fluder.

With fuel added to the flames of jealousy, the fire burned brighter.

He, the most talented one of everyone present, how much time had he taken to
reach the stage his disciples were at? No, without even thinking about it, he was
definitely older than those disciples of his. Someone who was taught and the
pioneer who paved the way, that was how wide the difference was.

Why didnt he have a master?

Fluder tried changing his way of thinking.

That was fine too. Leaving his name in the history books as a pioneer. The
magic casters who reached new heights after Fluder would need to thank Fluder
for their achievements. His disciples were his treasures. If there was just one
person who become greater than I am, it would be attributed to my power

As he thought about that, Fluder remembered a disciple he once had. If it was

that girl, how far could she go?

Arche Eeb Rile Furt.

An excellent child. Learning 2nd tier magic at such a tender age and so close to
the realm of the 3rd tier. If she had continued, it was possible that she would
eventually reach Fluders realm one day. But in the end, she gave up being a
disciple

Back then, he had only thought how foolish and disappointing it was.

Such a pity.

Maybe he allowed a big catch to get away.

Where is that child now? He thought about searching for her. If she could use 3rd
tier spells, it was possible to guarantee a certain level of status for her.

That might be so, but he had a job to do right now.

Fluder uttered the code word and the heavy door opened.

After coming out, the disciples around him took deep breaths with the same
frequency. The air where the aura of the Death Knight lingered was too heavy. If
they did not do this, it would be unbearable.

Master!

A low, rough voice sounded out. That was one of his disciples, a renowned
adventurer. Due to his experience, he had been appointed the deputy director of
the security within the Magic Ministry.

... What is the matter? Is something wrong?

No, nothing is wrong, just that some adamantite ranked adventurers were
requesting an audience with Master.

Fluder looked at that man strangely.

They hadnt made any appointments. As the finest magic caster in the Empire,
Fluder had all sorts of duties on top of his research, and was a very busy man. If
someone sought an audience out of the blue, he could only shake his head. Only
the Emperor could see Fluder as he pleased.

That might be so, but it was too early to reject them. Adamantite level
adventurers were heroes, not people that could be simply ignored. That was the
same for Fluder. They were one of the few sources he could obtain rare artifacts
from, so he couldnt treat them lightly.

Is it an honoured visit from the Silver Canaries? Or esteemed guests from

Eight Ripples?

He stated the name of the two adamantite ranked adventuring partiers within the
Empire.

But the disciple shook his head.

No, it is a two man team known as Darkness. They showed their adamantite
plate as proof.

What!?

The famous adventurers team Darkness from the Kingdom. With just the two of
them, they had accomplished numerous hero level tasks. They had even taken on
Jaldabaoth during the Royal Capitals crisis and defeated him.

Why were such figures visiting him? He had several questions, but the idea of
discussing magic with the high-tier magic caster Beautiful Princess made him
threw his doubts away.

However, as a vassal of the Emperor, he still remembered the task assigned to

him by his liege Jircniv.

He would ask about that after his meeting with them. As he thought about that,
Fluder said to his disciple:

Please show our guests in. I will be right there after tidying up.

Part 3

Ah, there really are ruins here, that surprised me. I didnt think they were
bluffing when they offered that kind of payment, but its still hard to believe there
are ruins to be explored in the middle of the plains.

His comrades watching the ruins agreed with Hekkerans monologue.

Although the ruins appeared to be a cemetery, the ground seemed be sinking

slightly into the earth, as if the entire area was depressed inwards, giving the
impression like that of a basin.

The reason it was unexplored was probably because of the grasslands all around
it. There was nothing like the relics of an ancient city to draw the eyes of
adventurers to it. Another thing was the existence of several knolls in the vicinity
that appeared to be hiding the existence of the ruins, making it hard to notice.
Although the roof of the building in the middle protruded just a little, it couldnt
be seen if you didnt view it from this spot.

Some of the earth surrounding the ruins fell off, revealing part of the walls. That
was why the ruins were discovered. That was what the representatives of each
team concluded.

That seems about right. By the way, Im getting a little excited. The possibility of
uncovering amazing things by exploring the ruins are really high.

Who knows? Well, there are no problems with this place. At least there arent
any dangerous monsters. Rather, what made me uneasy was the place the client
marked out as the base camp.

Setting up camp was the best choice for a place like the plains.

The site was enclosed by hills and couldnt be seen from a distance. If they paid
attention to the usage of lights, it would be difficult to notice their presence.

And that was whyit seemed scary.

But really, why did our client know of a place like this?

The best guess would be that this area was the most suitable spot for setting up
camp, and the ruins were spotted by the client when they made camp. That
made the most sense.

However, that gave rise to new questions. Why were they were setting up camp
in such a far off place? Furthermore, it was a noble from the Empire camping
within the territory of the Kingdom.

I heard theres a large underground organization in the Kingdom. I think its

called Eight Fingers. They seem to be a troublesome bunch.

They seem to have secret dealings with the Empire. They possess substantial
power within the Kingdom, but it would be problematic to investigate further. I
heard someone complain from my thieves contacts.

Imina pressed down on her hair that was being blown by the wind and Arche
followed suit. Roberdyck mumbled.

I heard something about drugs. Those are good if used appropriately. However,
the people who turn it into a way to enslave the weak, are really off putting.

He couldnt help raising his voice a little.

After all, Roberdyck had become a worker in order to help the weak.

This has nothing to do with the request this time, so lets stop the baseless
assumptions. Anyway, Arches investigation concluded that the client is fine,
right?

Arche mumbled that the investigation might not have been thorough enough to
dig up anything carefully hidden, but acknowledged.

Everyone, you all understand right?

Of course. I wont say it before the other teams. After all, the workers might
have accepted secret request from the Eight Fingers. The other teams might be
related to that organization, but we cant make baseless accusations. At least,
not before this request is completed.

I dont know how much blood and tears our moneys been stained with.

No matter how dirty it is, money is money and we have to live off it.

After glancing at Roberdyck, Arche breathed in deeply to cool herself off.

Sorry, I said something rude.

No, I am the one who almost blurted out something impolite, I beg your pardon.

Please dont mind me. You didnt say anything after all. Please keep it in your
heart. I value money more than my conscience, but Arche raised her hand to
emphasize what she was going to say next. I wont let my comrades do anything
unethical. Ive already witnessed several people die because of their greed.

I believe you, Arche.

Arche nodded and no one said anything else. They could communicate their
thoughts without words. It was because they had quarreled like this several times
before, that they had come to trust each other.

So what do you think? My gut feeling is that the possibility of that cemetery
being under the control of something is high.

Hekkeran stared at the grass that had been neatly trimmed. The statues of
angels and goddesses could only be described as beautiful, and were obviously
maintained regularly.

On the other hand, the trees sprouting everywhere gave it a gloomy atmosphere.

The arrangement of the cemetery wasnt orderly, but scattered messily like the
teeth of an ugly witch, which contrasted strongly with the cleanliness of this
place.

Something was taking care of this area. And it was not a normal being. An
ominous chill gnawed at their stomachs.

Hekkeran waved away the chill and focused on the gigantic structure. There were
four crypts at each point of the compass, with a large and elegant crypt sitting
right in the middle. The eight warrior statues around the crypts were large, giving
off a menacing feeling to anyone who came near and desecrated the crypt would
be executed.

The landscape around here is very well kept. I dont even see any moss.
Someone is performing his duties seriously here, but what kind of person is he?

All the teamsexcept Tenmuthought it was strange when they read the request
description.

Now that they were here and confirmed that there was nothing but plains around
the area, it didnt make sense for a cemetery to be built here.

The first thing would be the cemeterys location. Building such a luxurious
cemetery in such a far off place was baffling. It was too inconvenient.
If this was not a place to mourn the dead but to monument to immortalize the
legend of great man, it would be understandable. That had been done before
after all.

However, if that was the case, it felt unnatural for the historical facts and legends
pertaining to the tomb to be lost. After comparing the research of all the teams,
nothing related had been found, meaning there was a high chance it had been
scrubbed from the history books.

That was too unnatural.

The feeling that something was out of place here stuck in their throats, becoming
the reason why they were furrowing their brows.

If there is someone here, it could become a grave matter. What should we do

then?

... It would be annoying to drag innocent people into this.

The team representatives discussed this earlier. There are no records of ruins
situated around this area. Since the nearest village is far away, the possibility
that normal people are living here are low. Most likely, theyre either illegal
squatters or monsters. But from the lack of footprints, they probably dont require
food, or they can provide for themselves from within the ruins. We have
insufficient intelligence on hand, speculating further would lock ourselves into a
fixed perspective and limit our minds. So lets stop the speculations here.
Normally, the discovery of ruins would be reported to the administration of the
country through the Adventurers Guild. The discoverer was granted a limited
amount of time to explore it. Due to this rule, in ruins not discovered by a
national body or an Adventurers Guild, killing illegal squatters was tolerated.

This was in accordance to the policy of better one thousand innocents die than to
let one guilty man go free.

It might be an overly brutal policy, but humans were fragile beings in this world.
Thats why it was troubling for unknown things to build a nest near humans.

In fact, twenty years ago, a group known as Zuranon occupied a ruin and
conducted horrifying experiments, which led to catastrophic results. The
information about this was scant, but a small city was destroyed.

This was a rule to prevent something like that from happening again.

Well, it should be undead as usual. If this place is occupied by the undead, it will
be bad if we dont wipe them out and drive away the negative energy with holy
power.

It is worse than you think. If we leave the undead alone, there is a chance of a
more powerful undead rising. That is the reason why there are powerful undead
in ruins.

If an abandoned golem is carrying out the last order of its master and tidying the
place up, that would be a godsend. One less thing to worry about. What is the
plan after that?

I think Hekkeran should have gone in my stead.

Dont worry about it. The other leaders didnt go either right? Send the best
person for the job, right?

Arche sighed in response to the winking Hekkeran.

Anyways, once night falls, all the teams will move together. We will go in from
the four sides and gather at the large crypt in the center.

I see, we will be spotted easily if we do it in broad daylight.

Thats true.

They had a clear view of the surrounding and saw no signs of surveillance or
travelers. It didn't seem to be a problem to invade it now, but they should
prepare for the unexpected. Moving in the dark was safer.

Although the operation began at nightfall, they might be able to gain further
information by continuing to observe the ruins. They had limited time to
complete their job, but the time used here would be well spent, at least according
to the brains of the operation.

It wouldnt have been a surprise if they had spent several days observing the
site.

Wouldnt it be safer to scout the place with invisibility?

We considered that, but there is a chance things might get hairy anyway, so
we might as well do it together. Even in the worst case scenario, we will at least
find out something.

There were numerous ways to detect invisibility, which was why it was not a
perfect spell. If the workers approached after using magic and were detected by
the security of the ruins, the level of security of the opponent will rise even if

they dont know who the intruders might be. If they screw it up, they might not
be able to infiltrate the place for days.

To avoid that from happening, they came up with the plan to move in at the same
time.

Hekkeran nodded to express his understanding. There were flaws, but the plan
was still balanced between the risk taken and the chance of completing the
mission.

I hope they give us some time to rest.

Is that so. Darkness and Screaming Whip will take care of security. To play it
safe, we will take turns staying alert. We will go in the order we arrived at the
Earls home, two hours each.

Got it, so we are going last.

Thats right. We will take the stage at the very end.

Arche turned her head and shrugged after saying that.

Thank you for your hard work.

Roberdyck nodded at Arche.

How tiring. It took so long because that scumbag suggested invading via brute
force. It took a lot of effort to convince him. He really doesnt know what
coordination means.

Ahh, that sword genius-san

Calling him a shitty bastard would be enough.

In the face of Iminas murderous words, Hekkeran smiled wryly and changed the
topic.

Well then, lets go back to camp and wait for our turn.

Agreed. It probably wont rain for the time being, but it would be too late to
prepare if it does. Imina-san, youre up next, dont keep showing that scary face.

Okay, ah, how infuriating. I really feel like stabbing him. Lets set up camp far
away from them.
It is fine as long as it is around the assigned spot.

To be honest, it wasnt fine, but it would be worse if they were too close to each
other and started quarrelling.

Turning their backs to the ruins, the four of them started walking.

But the more I think about it, the more baffling it is. I dont understand why
the Earl would give out such a request.
As they turned back because of those words, they found Arche had stopped to
stare at the ruins.

I couldnt find the background or the period these ruins were built. They seemed
to have suddenly popped up. The statues resemble the period before the Demon
God Uprising, but have a more eastern feel about them. And the cross shaped
tombstones I dont understand it at all.

After listening to Arches mumbling, Hekkeran suppressed his smile and

excitement with great effort.

Which means the chance of finding something just as interesting is high,

correct?

Thats correct. There must be frightening things inside.

... There will probably be horrifying undead inside, everyone.

Uwah~, how scary.

Too fake, Hekkeran. That doesnt sound like me at all. And imitating my voice
is creepy.

Ah, sorry about that.

Butit will be interesting.

Yup. Why does this cemetery exist? Who is entombed here? It stimulates my
curiosity and thirst for knowledge.

I agree. Discovering the unknown is exciting.

And finally money. It would be great if there is plenty of it.

Hekkeran was satisfied by the smiles of his companions. There were times they
did dirty work for money, but that wasnt something they could talk about
happily. Doing adventurer-like jobs suited them better.

Arche might not join in their adventures after gaining custody of her sisters. It
would definitely take time to find another member to replace Arche, and more
time was needed to adjust their team work. It was necessary to choose jobs that
had lower difficulty.

This might be the last and hardest job they would take as a team.

From now on Like adventurers it would be nice to explore the unknown by

taking on requests to adventure

Hekkeran looked towards the sky that extended everywhere.

As the night enveloped the world, the workers came out from their well hidden
low tents. For secretive individuals like themselves, it was time to go to work.
The adventurers began preparing food.

After lighting the kindling, which was a white solid material, coal was added into
the flames. The light from the flames were concealed by the effect of Darkness.
Darkness concealed the brightness, but not the fire itself. In the darkness, the
flame boiled water extracted from the Infinite Waterskin.

The boiling water was poured into wooden bowls. The travel rations placed inside
lost its shape and became fragrant soup. After adding in hard bread, this was the
food that was served to all.

The rest was up to their personal preference.

Although the bowl only had yellow soupwhich workers liked for its nutrition and
storage life, some people added in thin slices of meat or condiments, they drank
it as it was.

Everyone stopped after having a bowl. Considering the job ahead, this amount
was too little.
However, eating something too heavy would definitely affect the mission. Eating
nothing would be too dangerous too. No one knew when they could eat again.

The emergency food supply was also limited, since bringing too much would
affect their agility too. There was a need to gauge it precisely.

After handing the empty bowls to the adventurers, the workers put on their
backpacks.

As the adventurers watched on, the workers started moving together. The
adventurers were in charge of the base camps security and would not be taking
part in the infiltration of the ruins.

After climbing over the hill, they spread out around the ruins. They had already
prepared countermeasures if they were discovered during this phase.

A lot of people wore full plate armour, so their movement would be slow and the
noise would make covert operation impossible, but that had already been taken
into account. For people who could use magic, it was possible to overcome such
trivial matters.

First, they would use Silence, a spell that negated noise within a certain area.
Both the sound of armour and footsteps would not be heard.

Next would be Invisibility, which rendered the target undetectable by normal

vision.

As a precaution, an ambusher with the Silence, Invisibility and even the Hawk
Eye spell cast on him was watching the surroundings from the sky. To quickly
deal with problems, he was armed with special arrows that had numbing effects.

After these two preparation phases, the groups reached their destination.

Here was where it officially began.

They descended from the hill onto the ruins several meters below. After exploring
the surface, they would meet up at the large crypt in the center. And they needed
to do so within the effective time of invisibility.
To minimize the chance of unexpected things happening, there was a need to
follow each others footsteps. However, it would be difficult to tell everyones
position when it was dark and everyone was invisible.

There was already a way to handle this.

A strange stick 30cm in length suddenly appeared on the ground. It floated in the
air as though someone invisible was holding it up, and emitted a faint light after
it was bent.

This special sticka glow stickwas made in a way that the special alchemical
fluids would mix when it was bent and emit light. It was dropped because the
effect of invisibility also included all the items the user was carried. In order to be
visible to others, it had to leave the users possession.

After flickering for a moment, the stick that had accomplished its purpose was
destroyed. The glowing alchemical fluid splashed onto the ground, and was gone
without a trace after touching the earth.

In such a way, all the teams signaled that they were ready.

It was too far to see the other teams, but four ropes dropped down from the
surface of the Great Tomb of Nazarick at the same time. The ropes had knots tied
at fixed interval for easy scaling.

The end of the rope was connected to a piton knocked into the ground, with the
other end swaying slightly.

If there was someone who could see through invisibility magic, they would be
able to spot people climbing down the ropes.

Even someone like Arche who focused more on magic training and knowledge
instead of agility could accomplish that. Or rather, workers and adventurers
needed to go through strength training to complete such tasks.
Thanks to their accumulated training and the effectiveness of the knots, none of
the workers fell, and all landed in the cemetery safely.

The first objective of each team were the smaller crypts.

As the duration of invisibility expired, all the members could now be seen. The
teams headed toward the crypt they had been assigned to.

Crouching down and keeping close to the tombstones, trees and statues, they ran
in the dim cemetery. Silence was still in effect so they didnt make any noise.
The warriors wearing full plate armour also did their best to hide themselves.
Several shadows moved across the ground.

When the leader of Heavy Masher, Greenham came near to the crypt, his eyes
widened slightly. It was more extravagant than he had imagined.

Even though they referred to this as a smaller crypt, it was only relative to the
large crypt in the center. Up close, its size and majestic architecture could be
clearly seen.

The white stone walls were smoothly polished. Although a lot of time must have
passed since its construction, there was no sign of any damage from the wind
and the rain.

Beyond a flight of three steps made of marble was a thick metal door. The door
was polished so well that there were no rust at all. Even the black steel was
shining.
It was clear how carefully they were maintaining the building.
Which meant that it was confirmed that the cemetery was occupied.

While Greenham came to this conclusion, his thief comrade went in and slowly
investigated, starting from the stairs.

Greenham received a signal to back awaynecessary because of Silenceand

retreated slowly. This was to avoid area-effect traps.

The thief searched patiently for traps. It couldnt be helped even if he was feeling
impatient.

Souls resided within the body of men, and when that body begin to rot, the soul
would be summoned away by the will of the gods. That was why the dead had to
be buried immediately, with underground burial as the norm, but it was slightly
different for those with special status such as the nobles.

If the dead were buried immediately, they would need to dig the corpse up to
confirm that the body was decomposing. To see the evidence of the
decomposition, the corpse would be set aside for a period of time before burying
it. However, the corpse would not be placed in the nobles home.

What they would use would be the crypt at the cemetery. After placing the bodies
there for a period of time, the priest will judge if the body was rotting and the
soul had been summoned by god before burying it.

The place where the corpses were laid was the communal space of the crypt. This
spacious area had several stone platforms where the bodies lay in state. The
scene of several rotting corpses lying in a row was creepy, but that was natural
from the common sense of this world.

Things were different for great nobles who had authority and wealth. Instead of
the communal crypt, they could use a family crypt passed down from their
ancestors. The room where those with authority were summoned by god and
their final resting placesuch crypts that were owned and passed down the
family were also a symbol of power.

It was normal to find household appliances and treasures as well. This meant the
crypts were a treasure vault for tomb raiders. And so, it was also a place built
with dangerous traps to deter intruders.

That was definitely more so for such an extravagant crypt. Greenhams thief
teammate checked the place carefully.

After the thief completed some of the checks and went to the door, the sound
suddenly came back.

The duration of Silence was over. It was just the right time. The thief came
before the door noiselessly and investigated earnestly. Finally, he placed
something like a stethoscope and listened.

After several seconds, the thief turned his head Greenham and his other
teammates and shook his head.
Which meant there is nothing.

The thief himself thought it was strange and tilted his head.
It was a mystery why it wasnt locked, but since the thief couldnt detect anything
else, it would be the vanguards turn next.

Greenham went to the front and the thief reached for the door. Behind them was
a warrior with a shield.
Greenham pushed the door handle down and opened the door slowly. Maybe it
was well oiled or perhaps the caretaker of this place did his job seriously, but the
heavy door opened easily despite its appearance.

The warrior who was ready for action stood between Greenham and the door,
raising his shield to defend against sudden attack or traps.

However, there wasnt anything like an arrow being shot over. The iron door was
completely open and a deep darkness appeared before the Heavy Mashers.

Continual Light.

The arcane magic caster summoned a magic light. The brightness of the magic
light could be roughly adjusted. The crypt was illuminated. With another spell, the
weapon of the warrior was shining too.

What the light was shining on was a room that could be easily mistaken for the
chambers of a noble.

In the center of the room was a stone coffin normally seen in a temple. It was
2.5m long and engraved with intrinsic carvings. Four alabaster statues carved
into the shape of fully armed and armored warriors, with swords and shields over
full plate armor, stood at each corner.

And so

Hmm, does this emblem match anything in your memory?

Erm, I dont know.

Hanging on the wall was a banner with golden edges, bearing an emblem no one
had seen before. The Kingdom might be a foreign nation, but the thief and magic
caster had memorized plenty of the emblems of nobles and royalties. Since they
couldnt identify it, it was safe to assume it was foreign in nature.

Could it be some nobles before the founding of the Kingdom?

You mean this is from more than two hundred years ago?

Many countries were destroyed by the demon gods two hundred years ago,
nations with more than two hundred years of history were few. The Kingdom,
Holy Kingdom, Republic and Empire were all founded within the past two hundred
years.

If that is true, why is it preserved so well after such a long time. What is it made
of?
It should be casted with preservation magic right? Maybe it was repaired by
magic.

By the way leader. You can stop that strange way of speaking now, cant you?
We are the only ones here.

Hmmm Greenham frowned, and then relaxed. Ahh, thats so tiring. All that
thou and art stuff, how stupid.

It must be hard on you. Like he said, it is fine if we are alone right?

Nah, I cant do that, that stiff way of speaking makes me look like a capable
worker. Its troublesome to change midway aint it? Dont you all know my policy
while on the job?

Greenham answered his comrades wry smile with a wry smile of his own.

Greenham was originally the third son of a farmer working in the Kingdom.
Like the saying goes, if many people split the farm lands, after several
generations, the land each person could inherit would gradually grow smaller.
The farm produce each family could harvest would also decrease. Thats why the
eldest son would inherit the land, the second son could work together as a
helper, but the third son onwards would be nothing but trouble. It was normal for
them to move to the city to seek a livelihood.

However, Greenham was blessed with a good body, and it worked out well in the
end. But he was just a farmer and the education he had as the reserve of the
reserve was as good as nothing. That went for reading, writing and etiquette.

It was true that workers focused on ability and the execution of the assigned task,
not etiquette. However, it wasnt good for him as a leader.
He worked hard on it, but unlike the talent he had with his body, he wasnt gifted
in such a way and it was barely passable. Greenham kept his position as leader
because he was highly regarded in all other aspects. But in order to not
embarrass his comrades, Greenham started speaking in that strange manner.

This quirky way of speaking is normal as a way to advertise my team. That was
what he wanted the clients to think.

Despite that, people would still look down on him. However, that kind of image
would still be better than a dim-witted farmer.

Alright, break time is over. Were moving out, lads.

Greenham announced and everyone started moving without complaint.

First was the thief who cautiously entered the crypt to search for traps.

The rest of the group placed a thick metal bar between the doors so it would not
be closed completely even if there was a mechanism which shut the door. To
avoid light from spilling out, the door was half closed. While the thief cautiously
inspected the room, Greenham and the others did not let down their guard. The
use of light couldnt be helped. It was entirely possible that they might be
spotted.

While Greenham and the rest of the team were crouching and watching the
surroundings, the thief came to the space below the banner and observed it for a
moment. After making up his mind, he reached for the banner, and pulled back
nervously the moment he touched it.

There is no problem here, everyone come in.

The thief turned his head back towards Greenham and the others as he pointed
at the banner.

... This is really valuable, made from cloth-of-gold.

Haaahhh!? Cloth-of-gold? Leaving this here just like that, is there something
wrong with their head?

All of them gasped in surprise. Everyone gathered under the banner and took
turns touching it. That cold material under their fingers was definitely metallic.

From how grand it looked, the appraisal of the thief should be correct. From this
size, weight and artistic value, it must be worth a fortune.

Our client won this one. Although our, or rather the full payment for the four
teams hasn't been collected yet, but there are definitely loads of treasure here.

Do we take it with us right now?

Greenham answered the thiefs query.

This is too big. And heavy. Lets take it later, any objections?

No. It will be hard to move with this in tow. As for the result of the inspection,
there are no traps or hidden doors.

... Well then, please.

Greenham nodded at the mage an arcane magic caster. His companion replied
by casting a spell.

Detect Magic I cant detect any magical traps either. We can dismiss the
possibility of anyone hiding with concealment magic.
... The inspection is almost done, lets head for the main target.

Their gaze fell on the stone coffin in the middle of the room.

The thief spent a lot of time investigating and concluded that there were no
traps.

Greenham and the warrior nodded at each other and began the task of opening
the stone coffin. It was rather big and should be very heavy, but it was lighter
than they thought. They used too much strength and almost lost their balance.

The stone coffins cover opened, revealing numerous sparkling lights from within.

Gold, silver and gems of various colours, numerous sparkling accessories. And
more than a hundred gold coins scattered all over.

They were expecting something good after seeing the banner, but Greenham still
grinned from ear to ear at this sight. The thief who was observing carefully picked
up one of the items inside a gold necklace.

It was an impeccable piece of jewelry. It seemed to be a simple gold necklace at

first glance, but on close inspection, the chains had fine engravings on it.

... A conservative estimate would be one hundred gold coins. With the right
buyer, one hundred fifty would be possible.

The reaction to the thiefs appraisals were different. Some of them whistled while
others smiled. One common point was the joy and flames of greed burning in
their eyes.

Just the half we can get will be a bonus of fifty gold. Ten gold each, thats a scary
amount of additional payout.

That is really Maybe these ruins are a treasure trove.

Incredible. This is so incredibly amazing.

Really. It would be a pity to just leave the treasure here. Lets put it to good
use.

As he spoke, the wizard picked out a ring with a large ruby on it and kissed the
gemstone.
Thats huge

The priest stuck his hands in, picking up the coins and letting it slip through his
fingers.
The crisp sound of gold coins clinking against each other were heard.

I have never seen such gold coins before. Which time period and country are
they from?

Using his knife to lightly nick the surface of the gold coin, the thief said with a
sigh:
This is pure gold. Just the weight is double the norm, the value would probably
be higher, considering the aesthetic value.

This is reallyKukuku

Laughter leaked out from the group who couldnt help smiling.
Just dividing the loot here would not be a small amount.
All of you, thank your gods later. Lets take what we can and head to the main
objective. Our share will be taken if we are late.

Ho!

Greenham received a spirited reply, filled with excitement and fervour.

Part 4

The grand crypt situated in the center of the ruins. Giant statues of warriors that
looked like they might come alive any moment surrounded the grand crypt like
knights defending their king. Hekkeran who was hiding himself at the feet of the
warrior statue stare in the direction of one of the smaller crypt.

After a short while, Hekkeran noticed five men running from the smaller crypt.
They moved fast but still managed to conceal themselves, watching like paranoid
for anyone spying on them or any strange things happening. Finally, after
confirming the group coming this way was fine, Hekkeran sighed in relief.

He gave the signal to hide in the shadows of the giant statues, and was noticed
by Greenham, who rushed towards him.
You sure are late Greenham.
Thank you for waiting for us this long.

We didnt decide on a time to meet up so it is fine. Instead of that, lets change

location and decide what to do next.
Hekkeran crouched and lead the way cautiously.

A few steps later, Greenham asked.

Just want to ask, did your team discover any treasure?

Unable to hide his excitement and remembering how he felt just now, his mouth
curved into a mouth and he said:

Of course, a full load. Elder said the same thing.

You all too huh. Coming to this cemetery was the right move.
Thats true. I am grateful to the great men buried here.

Hmm. That might be so, but since we discovered so much treasures, should we
consider the possibility that there are more with the master of the tomb?

Well, I bet there are more.

Hmmhow much are you betting?

Great. I will find more later and I can get a tidy sum from you too. This is the
best. Ah, the problem is both sides are betting on the same thing.

Both men didnt make a sound as the corner of their mouth rises.
This is true. By the way, what is that?

In front of Greenham, besides the feet of a giant statue was something like a
stone tablet.

That?

Hekkeran didnt stop, which gave Greenham his answer. The words written on it
was something the first three teams that arrive before him had never seen
before. They held on to the faint hope that Greenhams team might know about
it.

Something like a stone tablet, engraved with what might be words.

Why are you being so vague about this?

It is an unknown language. Not the national language of the Kingdom nor

Empire, or even the ancient languages around the region. It might not be human
language. But I can read the number 2.0 here.

Numbers? Thinking about it with common sense, it should be the year this place
was built. But the number is too small.

Arche thinks it might be a password for something in the ruins Well, just keep
it in a corner of your mind.

Right, lets do that.

After passing through the giant statues, climbing up the long and narrow tilted
platform formed by the stone coffin, what they see is an open entrance.

The stench of the dead.

Ahhh. It is, I smell that often from the thick fog of Kattse plain.

Greenham agreed with Hekkeran with a soft voice.

It wasnt a strong stench that stimulate the chest fiery, but the smell of the
undead accompanied by the cold found in the cemetery.

This might be a beautiful cemetery, but there was definitely undead here.

The group steeled themselves went in and saw a vast space within. Numerous
stone platform are placed to the left and right, on the other side was the stairs
leading down. The door below was opened wide. An uneasy air was flowing from
within.

This way.

With Hekkeran leading the way, Greenham and the others went down the stairs.

At the bottom of the stairs was a burial chamber with a door on the other side.
Aside from that, no other doors could be seen.

On topit was narrower than the crypt, but there was plenty of space.
Hekkerans team Foresight, Eruyas Tenmu and Parupatras team were all here.

Well then, what should we do next? Our plan was to spread out and gather
information, any new ideas after having searched the crypts?

After speaking, Hekkeran glanced at everyone gathered.

There didnt seem to be any more new ideas. Was it greed or merely a reflection?
It wasnt clear, but everyones eyes were lively. Inside the cemetery, everyone
seemed to be filled with excitement and couldnt wait to go in.

A suggestion, my team will check for hidden doors and search outside.

That was their leaders words, but his members seemed unhappy about it.
It was because of the treasures they saw. They couldnt agree completely with
the opinion of their experienced leader. They were probably imagining a
mountain of treasure flying away before their eyes.

What do you say? We did investigate the surface, but not too thoroughly. There
is a chance of the smaller crypts having hidden passages right? Isnt the
cemetery worth investigating?
Elder has a point. I heard from the song of a bard how a safe passage to the
center of the Sasasharu Ruins was just one step away from the entrance.

Ah, Greenham. We checked this place, but there are unfortunately no hidden
passages.
That is great. As compensation for my team taking this lesser job, how about
giving me a cut of the things you found in this level. Yup, how about 10% from
each team? And tomorrow, let my team have the priority if you find something in
the level below?

This proposal, I have no objections.

The first to speak was Greenham. Hekkeran agreed a moment later.

Good, we are all agreed then! What about you Uzruth?

I am against it, but since it is just 10%, then so be it.

The elder didnt mind and smiled in response to the sarcastic voice. In the end, it
was Eruya who failed in his trolling who gave an annoyed look.

Ah, Elder. Can I ask you for a favour since you are on the way. We found a
banner made from precious metal in the crypt we searched, but didnt take it as
it is not convenient. Could we trouble you to take it back?

I agree with Hekkeran. It might be a hassle, but could you help us carry it out?

In that case, take mine too.

Eruya gestured with his chin to one of the elves, and the large piece of cloth she
was carrying on her back was placed onto the ground.

Understood. Aside from these, is there anything else you need me to safekeep
or transport?

There was no answer to Parupatras question.

Very well! As proposed, my team will search the top. Be careful you all. It is fine
if you leave something valuable for me.

Haha, we can leave a couple of monsters for you, but there wont be a single
coin left behind for you.

After a round of laughter, Hekkeran asked the others: Shall we go?

The suggestion was accepted immediately. They took the first step forward. With
the shine of greed and anticipation in their eyes, into the unknown ruinsthey
took the first step into the underground tomb.

The door deep within was opened and there was only one path leading deeper in.
As they expected, it was kept clean and tidy.

Things like rust and moss wasnt found on the stone passage, there were some
indents on the wall with human shaped figures wrapped in burial clothing placed
inside. There wasnt the unique scent of corpse here. Instead, there was a cold air
and smell of the undead.

There were flickering bluish white light on the ceiling a fixed distance from each
other. But as the distance was rather large, there was some darkness along the
way. The light allowed them to move freely, but just dim enough that they might
miss something. It would feel dangerous if they had an alternate source of
lighting.

Rob. Any undead reaction from that corpse?

No, nothing.

Arche thanked Rob and walked towards the corpse in the body bag, cutting open
with her knife. After seeing her actions, the other team also sent out one or two
members to investigate the corpse inside the body bag.

... From this height and built, the possibility of this being human is high. A full
grown man.

It is not wearing clothes, so it is hard to tell what time period this ruins is from.

But this ruins is filled with mysteries. The architecture, burial method and time
period are all unknown. Maybe it is something from six hundred years ago.

If that is true, this will be a historical find.

For people doing research, this might be a topic worth discussing, but they are
here to do a job.
After receiving the cold stares from Hekkeran and Greenham, they hastily
announced the investigation result The time period and background of the ruins
is still a mystery.

Understood. Shall we move on? Personally, I want to kill some monsters.

Agreeing with the dissatisfied Eruya, the group moved ahead but stopped shortly.

Their stances were ready to draw their weapon.

Sounds of bones creaking ahead could be heard.

Due to the illumination from the ceiling, they could see the figure of the undead
ahead.
After closing the distance and identifying the opponents, the workers was shaken
as if they were seeing something incredible and discussed softly.
Isnt that too

Hey, are you for real

Eh? Is there only skeletons?

The moment someone finally blurt out the name of the monster, the group
couldnt endure it anymore and burst out into laughter.

Hey hey hey!! Isnt sending skeletons a gone case? We have many people here
alright?

The appearance of skeletal monsters look roughly the same, so it was hard to tell
what type they were.

However, it was easy to judge that these were normal skeletons from the air they
gave off.

Even if these are scouts, they should send out stronger monsters I got it!
There are either no monsters controlling this cemetery, or they are too
incompetent to tell how strong we are. Or they are morons who didnt even know
they had been infiltrated!

They couldnt stop laughing.

Eh, it is impossible for skeletons. Or maybe all the treasures in this ruins are
placed at the crypt on the surface?

That will be terrible.

For workers who were on par with mithril adventurers, skeletons were too weak.
And they numbered fewer than the workers.

In front of the six skeletons, they looked at each other thinking about who should
go.
I dont want to.

Eruya declared. It was easy to understand how he felt.

Then I shall go.

Greenham said and walked to the front.

The weak mind of the skeleton seemed to be thinking about something. They
were probably thinking about overwhelming the lone warrior. Or maybe they were
considering something else.

The skeletons attacked together and

They were easily shattered by the swinging shield and axe.

It only took several seconds. Maybe shorter.

Smashing the six skeletons and stepping on their remains, Greenham sighed as if
he was tired. It wasnt fatigue from the battle, but the fact that the first battle in
this great ruins was the too weak, the lowest tier undead skeleton.

How brittle, just skeletons after all. That may be so, but it would be foolish to be
careless. Keep the possibility that powerful undead might pop out and advance
with great caution!

They straightened their faces after hearing Greenhams words and moved on
towards the depths of the ruins. Their heart was filled with the anticipation of the
treasures lying ahead.

Yare yare, so they left huh.

They did. They might be workers, but we are working on the same team now, so
we are colleagues for this job. It will be great if they return safely Momon-san,
what do you think?

All of them will die.

Ainz replied with a deep voice, stunning the leader of the adventurer team.

Oh no, I said my thoughts out loud

Eh, oh, I mean being mentally prepared for that possibility. This is an unknown
ruins this time. There is no telling what danger they will run into. Holding on to
high hopes will only result in huge disappointment.
I see, so its like that Sorry for making you worry.

... I was wringing it, and he agreed with me? Well, that works great for me.
The team leader lowered his head like this because he blindly thought the words
of the adamantite rank man as right.

Ainz effort his response filled with good intentions and friendly attitude during
the journey to Nazarick paid off.

So as we planned, I will take a break first.

Ainz headed towards his which was of course shared with Nabel tent. As it
was a certain distance away, some people postulated it was to keep others from
hearing moans. Or rather, that was what they heard from the leader just now.

Compared to the workers, he felt more camaraderie with Momon who was also an
adventurer and shared the information he got from the workers freely.

Ainz and Nabel closed the entrance of the tent after going in. They peeked out
just in case and no one seemed to be watching them. In fact, there were people
who intentionally made a show of not caring.

... Even though they said this is a love nest, not denying it outright was probably
the right move. They dont suspect anything even though our tents are further
away, they dont pay attention here or come near here.

There were downsides too, but the benefits outweigh the cons.

Ainz removed his helmet and revealed his skeletal face.

Well then, Nabe No, Narberal. I will return to Nazarick now and send Pandoras
Actor to replace me as planned. If something happens in the meantime, resolve it
by yourself.

By your command, Ainz-sama.

Erm. Contact me if there is anything.

Ainz dispel the magic that created the armor and sword, and the weight of the
helmet disappeared in his hands. The sense of liberty from taking off the armour
made Ainz utter ah in relief, although it wasnt that hard on him. It was the
same reason why he was rotating his shoulders that wasnt stiff at all. Such
actions are the remnants of his time as a human.

... Yare yare.

The remnants of human emotions were troublesome sometimes.

If he could handle all the situations calmly, the situation might be different now.
However, if he lost all remnants of his human emotions, he wouldnt love the
Grand Tomb of Nazarick as much as he does now. The longing the human Suzuki
Satoru had for his friends will probably disappear as well.

While Ainz was smiling wryly, he cast his magic. Thoughts about his remnants of
humanity was gone from the back of his mind. Ainz wasnt a talented human who
could focus on two or three things at a time. He need to drop everything aside
from what he was considering.

His magic was Greater Teleportation.

As he was wearing a ring, Ainz made it through the barrier of the Grand Tomb of
Nazarick, all the way to the entrance of the Throne Room.

Welcome back, Ainz-sama.

Moments later, a beautiful female voice welcomed his return.

I am back, Albedo.

The lady who bowed deeply raised her head, a blossoming smile appeared on her
beautiful face. She looked straight at Ainzas if she couldnt see anything else.

Ughh...

Seeing the golden pupils filled with beams of love, he couldnt help feeling
goosebumps all over. But he couldnt adopt an attitude unbefitting that of Ainz
Ooal Gown, the ruler of the Grand Tomb of Nazarick.

Ainz suppressed the feeling that became weak during the short moment of
silence, and coughed fakely.

Just as planned, the invaders are here. No, maybe they are already in. How is
the preparation to welcome them?

The preparations are done. The guests will definitely be delighted.

I see Albedo. I look forward to seeing their elation.

He walked to the heart of the Grand Tomb of Nazarick, the Throne Room. Albedo
followed him one step behind.

Albedo had only one order regarding the invaders this time. That was to conduct
a practical test for the performance of her defense system.

Where to place POP in Nazarick and the combination of monsters were done by
his past guild mates, and must be done really well. But given the current
situation, it was hard to say that a better setup doesnt exist.

It is thus necessary to inspect the defense system. And they could do that now.

... The invaders are fragile, so of course they cant test everything. But let us
pray we can learn something from this.

I understand. I promise that I will not let you down, Ainz-sama.

Good. As you already know, avoid using traps that cost money like spraying
poisonous gas or sudden flood of the undead, try to use POP and traps with serfs.
Any problems?

In response to Albedos smile, Ainz nodded.

Very well, in the mean time, let us enjoy ourselves. What are the other Floor
Guardians doing?

Yes. The moment Ainz-sama returned, I have instructed them to gather. Will it be
fine to grant them entry according to the order they arrive?

Granted. The more people there are, the merrier.

Before the throne that Ainz was sitting down in were numerous things that looked
like TV screens floating in the air. Each one of them displayed a different part of
Nazarick. Albedo who was controlling it to show Ainz what he wanted to see.

Next would be Albedo displaying her control over the defense net. Ainz wasnt
sure what the changes between now and before were though.

To make full use of this training, I have to learn something from the displayed
images. If there is a sharing session after this, it will be bad.

Ainz was the absolute ruler of the Grand Tomb of Nazarick. How could such a man
not understand anything about the defense system compared to his subordinate?

Just in case, I have to ask. There are no chances of triggering Ariadne, correct?

Ainz opened his console and controlled the cursor, checking for problems as he
asked.

I dont think there is a chance of that happening. However, I want to confirm

whether Ariadne will be triggered if the invaders are locked up?

Ainz remembered the Yggdrasil Q&A he read in the past, no, the update logs
explanation by the developers.

There shouldnt be that should be so I think thats how it was.

Even though that was the case in Yggdrasil, but in this world, there was no
guarantee that rule still applies. Even the existence of Ariadne itself was not
confirmed.

What would happen if we were to manipulate the humans into doing so

themselves?

There might be a chance it wont activate, but considering the losses if it does, it
would be too scary so I never tested it.

Ariadne system.

A system that checks the validity of a created base.

There was a simple way of creating an invincible fortress. By sealing the

entrance, no one would be able to get in. Just burying the entire Grand Tomb of
Nazarick underground would be enough. But as a game, this was not allowed.

In order to stop one from making such a base, the Ariadne surveillance system
existed.

There must be a path that leads from the entrance to the heart of the base. Other
things Ariadne inspects were the distance one could travel inside, how many
doors, rules on base constructions were set in detail.

Dungeons that violates the rules will be flagged by the Yggdrasil system and
fined. The Guild funds will be deducted gradually at a visible rate.

For Nazarick, such problems were solved by the 5th and 6th levels They had to
pay a lot to widen the dungeon to maintain it.

Ainz controlled one of the monitor which displayed the figures of the workers.

Tch! Well then, it is finally time for them to show up. They made me wait really
long.

Seeing the images of the stronghold he made with his comrades being sullied by
the dirt filled feet of the invaders, the feeling of unhappiness hit Ainz. Although
his emotions would be suppressed if it exceed a certain threshold, but it couldnt
completely keep his burning anxiety down.

Albedo. Dont allow anyone of them to escape.

Of course. Please enjoy watching the fate of the thieves intruding into the
residence of the Supreme Beings. Also which guinea pig should we choose for
the experiment?

Ah, right. I sparred with this old man. I sparred with this man on the way too.
This team is not suitable for training. Lets dispose of these fellows first.
Ainz pointed with his finger at a monitor Albedo could see.