'As expected… Things went the way they did…'
Lelouch mused as he watched Gazef and his warriors' battle against the Archangel Flame summons through his scry.
It was a bloody battle. And while Gazef and his warriors did fight valiantly, they were soon pushed to the brink as more new angels kept coming after they killed one.
Even Gazef, who had overwhelmed multiple angels and bisected more with the help of his Martial Art skills, was soon pushed to the brink of death as blood dribbled out the side of his mouth.
Even so, the man known and admired by the people as the Warrior Captain of the Re-Estize Kingdom never fell.
The man who should've been powerless to stand was now standing proudly, his broadsword clenched tightly in his hands. The sheer mighty force of his presence forcing back the angels that have now surrounded him.
But… as expected, his sheer will could not kill all the angels summoned by the elite divine magic casters of the Sunlit Scriptures.
"...Angels, kill Gazef Stronoff."
Countless wings moved in response to that cold, cruel order from Nigun, the head of the Sunlit Scripture squad sent to kill the Warrior Captain.
Gazef steeled himself, preparing to charge forward, when suddenly, a voice came past him:
'Looks like it's about time to switch.'
The scenery before his eyes changed, and he was now no longer on the bloodsoaked plain. Instead, he was now in the corner of what looked like a simple village hut.
And instead of angels, he saw worried-looking villagers all around him.
"This… This is…"
"T-This is the warehouse that Ainz-sama had protected with his magic…"
"So you're the chief… Gown, Gown-dono does not seem to be here."
"No, he was here just a moment ago but he and his company, Zero, seems to have vanished without a trace. And in his place, you appeared, Warrior-Captain-dono."
'I see… so the voice in my head was…'
Gazef allowed himself to relax. And in that instant, strength quickly left his body, knowing he would have no part in what would come next.
He collapsed on the wooden floor, and the villagers quickly drew closer worriedly to try and help him.
The Six Scriptures. An enemy even he, the strongest warrior of the Re-Estize kingdom, could not hope to defeat.
Yet… he could not even begin to imagine that Ainz would lose.
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The anti-divination barrier had been set.
No eyes, except for those permitted such as that of the Mirror of Remote Viewing used by Yuuji and Aika, were allowed to witness the scene that would be happening here.
But none of this was noticed by the folks of the Theocracy.
Their attention was elsewhere… specifically, at the two figures on the plains who had not originally been there.
Nigun of the Slaine Theocracy's special operations unit — the Sunlight Scripture — looked at them with perturbation in his eyes.
One of them was dressed like an arcane magic caster. He wore an evil looking mask to hide his face, and a pair of iron gauntlets on his hands. He wore an expensive-looking black robe, suggesting he was a person of some status.
The other one was dressed in a long cape with a high collar, a luxurious black suit, and an ominous mask to hide his face as well.
They had no visible weapons on their person, but as a magic caster himself, he knew that being armless did not equal being harmless.
Gazef and his men were gone without a trace… In their places were these two mysterious figures. It seemed to be some kind of teleportation magic, but he had no idea what kind of spell had been used here.
Alerts blared within his mind, and Nigun immediately called the angels back, ordering them to form a defensive perimeter around them as they faced the mysterious magic casters.
Then, the larger built magic caster took a step forward.
"Pleased to meet you, gentlemen of the Slaine Theocracy. I am Ainz Ooal Gown. I would be glad if you could call me Ainz."
Despite the distance between them, the sound of howling afternoon wind that breezed past the plains carried his voice over clearly.
"The person behind me is called Zero. I would like to make a deal with you. Might I have a moment of your time?"
Nigun tried to search through his memories, his studies, and his long years of information gathering to attach some meaning to the name Ainz Ooal Gown. But it was futile.
It might be an alias. But he had no way of confirming or denying it. Trying to glean more information from him would be more productive. Thus, he raised his chin, indicating that Ainz should continue.
"Wonderful. Thank you for taking the time to listen to me. Then firstly, I would like to start by making one thing clear to you gentlemen. That would be – there is no way you can defeat me."
It was a declaration. A statement.
Nigun could clearly hear the absolute confidence in his voice. It wasn't a bluff or a boast. This was something he believed from the bottom of his heart.
He furrowed his brows.
"Ignorance is truly deplorable. You will pay the price for your foolishness, magic caster."
"...Really now. Do you really think that will happen? I observed your battle earlier with the warrior captain and his men. My presence here indicated that I am absolutely confident in my victory. After all, if I was not sure I could beat you, would it not be wiser for me to leave that man to die?"
He was right.
An arcane magic caster would be better suited to different kinds of confrontations.
Arcaners, sorcerers and wizards could only use light armor, so they would want to avoid melee combat, using [Fly] to repeatedly launch [Fireballs] and other such spells from afar. Yet Ainz had chosen to face them head-on. He must have a trick up his sleeve.
At his silence, Momonga chose to continue.
"Now, for the reason I am here. The truth is, I overheard your conversations with the Warrior Captain. What a lot of nerve you have…"
Ainz's tone changed suddenly, and he continued speaking as he looked at Nigun mockingly.
"To think you would dare say that you would massacre the villagers that I, Ainz Ooal Gown, took the time to personally rescue. I cannot think of anything that is more offensive than that."
Ainz's robe rippled in the wind. That same wind blew across Nigun and his company, sending chills down their spine.
"...Offensive? Huge words, magic caster. What of it?"
He was obviously frightened. But he did not change his mocking tone.
He was the commander of one of Slaine Theocracy's secret weapons, the Sunlight Scripture. How could he be afraid of a simple magic caster?
It was impossible.
Yet–
"I mentioned a deal earlier… These are the terms. You will either hand your lives over to me without resistance. Or willingly offer yourself, your body, your heart, and your soul to our cause. Whether you like it or not."
Ainz took a step forward.
It was a single step, but his body seemed to massively swell before their eyes. The immense pressure emanated from his sheer presence alone caused all of the Sunlight scripture to take a step back.
"Ahh…"
Cries of fear escaped their lips.
It was but a natural reaction when having come face to face with an unimaginable force. This was the first time Nigun had been faced with such might. Therefore, he did not rebuke his men for their fear.
A thrill of cold ran from the bottoms of Nigun's feet to the top of his head. He had felt this countless times in his struggles along the edge of life and death. It was a sign of impending doom.
"H-Have the angels charge him! Don't let him get close!"
Nigun's voice broke slightly as he shouted his orders. It sounded more like a scream.
It was not to raise his men's spirits. It was a cry of fear. Fear of the being he knew as Ainz Ooal Gown.
Two Archangel Flames flapped their wings of light in response to Nigun's command, and launched their attack.
The angels flew straight towards the hulking black figure, and stabbed him with their flaming swords.
Zero, who was standing behind him, should've done something to attack the charging angels to stop them in their tracks before reaching Ainz.
That is why all of the Sunlight Scriptures, who had been predicting that course of action and ready to retaliate, could not believe their eyes. It was not that anything happened.
On the contrary… Nothing happened.
Neither Ainz nor Zero did anything to block, dodge, cast a spell, or did anything to intercept it. Nothing happened.
Their shock quickly became mockery.
"How unsightly. To think he would scare us with a bluff."
Nigun sneered. But soon, a question came to mind.
Why… wasn't Ainz's corpse falling?
"...What are you doing? Call the angels back. He can't fall down with those swords stuck to him."
"B-But sir… W-We've already given the order…"
His subordinate's confused voice startled Nigun, and his eyes quickly shifted back to Ainz's figure.
Only then did he realized, the angels were flapping their wings vigorously… While they were not meant to express feelings, Nigun saw those angels flapping their wings in fear and desperation, like a butterfly trapped in a spider's web.
"...I told you, didn't I? There is no way you can defeat me. You should've listened and heed my warnings."
The calm voice resounded and reached Nigun and his men's ears. But none were able to comprehend the sight before them…
"Impossible…"
One of his subordinates muttered, giving voice to the words in Nigun's hearts.
No one could believe it. Judging from the angels' swords, they had to be fatal wounds. But he didn't even seem to be in pain.
That wasn't the only shocking thing.
Momonga was gripping the angels by the throat. And no matter how much they struggled, never let them go.
Angels summoned from magic had bodies created from their summoner's mana, so they were definitely not light. They weighed more than a grown man. In addition to the weight of their heavy plate armor, there was no way they could be lifted up by the throat so easily.
"There… There must be a trick…!"
"High-tier physical nullification. A passive skill that protects against the attacks of up to level 60 – In other words, only attacks above level 60 could harm me. Well, I guess this has gone long enough."
Holding an angel in each hand, Momonga slammed them both to the ground.
A thunderous crash echoed throughout the plains, and the earth trembled from the impact, creating two craters – A testament to his supernatural strength.
The angels died in an instant, dissipating back into countless dancing motes of light that soon vanished into the air, and the swords stuck in him vanished as well.
"Now then… Let me see your trump card."
"A-All angels, attack! H-Hurry!"
Nothing Ainz said registered in his mind. Everything simply went red and fear took deep roots in his heart the moment he saw Ainz stepped forward, causing him to quickly yell out his orders.
All archangel flames shot towards Momonga like bullets.
"No… Not this."
Nigun could hear the cool, calm voice of the monster attacked by the angels, but he did not care. Ainz was surrounded by so many angels that nobody could even see him. And yet, his voice did not carry even the slightest hint of worry.
It looked like he would be impaled by countless flaming swords. But Momonga's spell took effect before that.
"[Negative Burst]"
The air shuddered, and a wave of black radiance erupted from Ainz, like the negative image of a camera flash. It only lasted for an instant, and in that instant, all 40 angels had been annihilated.
"Im-Impossible…"
Nigun could not help but tremble… And only then did he recall the words of the Kingdom's strongest warrior, Gazef Stronoff.
That there was a man stronger than him in that village. That trying to kill the villagers he protects was impossible.
Only now did he understand the truth of those words.
"Zero… No, Lelouch-kun. I think this is enough. They're just as weak as we expected. Let's finish this before he uses the crystal. It's a one time use item. It'd be a waste. It'd be better if we bring it to Yuuji-kun so he can take a look at it and study it. Maybe, he could replicate how to make it."
"Agreed."
Nigun froze…
He could not understand what they're saying… But one thing did caught his attention.
How did they know about the crystal…?
Come to think of it, Ainz said to show him his trump card. Could it be that… he was referring to the Sealing Crystal? The trump card his homeland had given him. A sealing crystal containing a seventh-tier spell capable of summoning the strongest angel, Dominion Authority.
No… That's impossible… H-How could he know…?
Finally, the man in the jet-black mask called Zero walked forward.
Then, he waved his hand, and a small opening appeared on his mask, revealing a crimson eye.
"Lelouch Lamperouge commands you. Obey me. All of you."
With enhanced eyesight, Lelouch could see all of their eyes through the small, rectangular holes on their headdress.
The power of absolute obedience took hold on the consciousness of every single member of the Sunlight Scripture.
Any kind of magic resistance, magic items, or talent they had did not matter before the absolute power of a king.
Enhanced by the magic power of his newly acquired form, the power perfected geass was absolute in this new world.
All members of the sunlight scripture froze for a moment…
Then, with a soldier's discipline, all of them dropped onto one knee, their heads bowed down, placed a hand on their left chest, and declared in unison:
""Yes, my lord!""
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