940 b N.
"This is it. I finally found it."
In his hands was a strange crystal. It was not huge, but exactly the size to hold it in one hand. The light was not reflecting off the crystal, but being sucked into it. As if it was alive. Its color was of a soft violet, and it was rectangular in form. It was most interesting to Ainz, as it was everything he was hoping for.
"Fuel, this crystal is fuel."
Ainz looked at the crater below him, realizing it was almost the size of a whole village. It was there where nobody would see it, and that is on the dark side of the moon. A place filled with riches of many materials that were transported by countless asteroids. And now everything belonged to the glorious Overlord. One that would cherish these gifts from space very much.
"I appraised it, and it is just as I thought. This crystal is a source of energy, one that can be used for almost everything. Just what I needed, but just wasn't looking for."
He thanked luck for such a find. If he wasn't wandering the deserts of the moon to think about his next moves, he would have never found it. But now the mass of crystals was all his own, as nobody was near to claim it. At least, that was what he expected.
"I could use this to strengthen myself more, or I could save it up. These crystals could come in handy to create a passage for dead souls to my realm. When I got one, that is. Everything for the future. But now, I have to somehow mine these crystal from the moon…"
Should he use undead or another summon? How could he farm something most efficiently without having to worry about any problems?
"I got it. I will use golems, elder liches, and sorts of demons. Together, they could maximize the outcome and potentially run this facility on the moon without my interference. Perfect."
As most monsters were summoned and ready to work, he commanded the construction of a great mine, just aside from the crystal giant. And a gate would be used as transportation, fueled by the same crystals that would be mined there.
The summons obeyed immediately and made their way into the crater. Ainz watched with curiosity how his minions slowly made preparations for the structure. Golems didn't have any problems, and neither did the elder liches and demons with the low amount of gravity. As if they already were prepared.
"I could surely let them do their work. What could possibly go wrong?"
The Overlord had to challenge fate for yet another time. And because something wasn't pleased with the Overlord mining its precious crystals, it got furious. Nothing could stop it now.
"What is that?"
A cloud of dust rushed toward Ainz, and it got closer every second. Whatever made such dust only by running must be something massive. It must have sensed the newcomers and came to defend its territory. Like any other apex predator would do.
"Well, someone isn't pleased with our appearance. I guess it must be dealt with quickly."
Suddenly, the giant dust cloud stopped, casually descending back onto the surface of the moon. Slowly, the giant beast appeared in the settling atmosphere. It was as big as one would think. At least the size of two trees stacked on another or one huge tree. It had something in common with dragons, that it had scales, ones that had the same color as the moon crystals.
"Something tells me this thing must be the guardian of these crystals, as it is simply one, but alive! His corpse would surely be most valuable to my research."
On four legs and a tail, it slowly crawled to Ainz, gaining speed every second. Its head was almost not noticeable as it was merged with its long neck. Just like any other lizard, but bigger and scarier.
It roared, and yet a sound appeared in Ainz his head. As if this creature was a native of space and could speak with no need for oxygen.
"I take that as an aggressive action."
The creature closed in on the Overlord, yet his claws only touched the moon. Ainz had quickly teleported into the sky, or rather into space just about 10 meters above the creature, and quickly used one of his favorite spells.
[Grasp Heart]
The creature was immediately stunned, and as Ainz tried to crush its heart, he couldn't.
"Is it immune to instant death attacks?!"
The creature jumped into the air, yet the Overlord did the same move, teleporting even higher. Now from 20 meters away, he tried again.
[Soul Drain]
The spell did its purpose, yet it was not linking with the creature. So the Overlords theories were right.
"So this thing IS immune to instant death spells and similar ones. Then I have to deal with it the hard way."
[Maximize Magic: Vermillion Nova]
The region where the creature landed bursted into white plasma, and everything in its diameter should be destroyed. Yet when the light settled, the creature still stood there, unharmed by any spell Ainz used against it.
"Can I even hurt it? What is this thing?"
The creature jumped again, but this time it shot some of its scales toward the undead lord, hindering him from teleporting higher.
"And this thing is also learning my moves?! I have to be careful."
Ainz didn't move, but simply used a spell he thought would turn the tide of the battle.
[Penetrate Maximize Magic: Thousand Time Lance]
In an instant, many invisible lances pierced the charging beast, cutting through time and space itself.
"Not many are immune to time spells. And it seems not even you."
The creature, missing most of its body, fell lifeless on the gray surface of the moon. It seemed its death was too quick for such a great creature to die. Yet, facing such a foe was a death wish itself. But how would it know that? Years of loneliness made it lose most of its instincts. But when it needed them the most, it was already too late.
"Finally, it's dead. Never thought I would meet something immune to magic. I was almost ready to summon some undead. But what if I…"
The Overlords' hands disappeared in black goo that seemingly came from nothing. The liquid slowly dropped onto the dead beast, enveloping it completely. The process only took seconds, and the beast was fully made undead. The appearance changed little, but one could see that it wasn't living anymore.
"Did it keep its magic immunity? How should I check? Mmh..."
The beast, now fully undead, stood before its lord. The lizard-like creature was as tall as any dragon, yet it was missing the wings to count as one. Its glowing purple scales slowly lost their color and turned dark, showing the effects of being undead. It bowed its head towards its new master, being completely loyal to his new lord from now on.
"[Magic Arrow]"
Ainz released the spell, aiming it at the newly transformed undead. The magic arrow made its way to the creature, yet on contact, it did no damage at all. So the Overlords' theory was, once again right.
"It kept at least some of its magic immunity. This is good. It's fantastic."
Ainz pointed to the side of the creature, and suddenly a gate appeared accordingly to his movements. "Traverse through that gate." The creature did as he commanded, and entered the gate without question, disappearing from the moon to an unknown location only known to Ainz.
"Now that I think of it, I will need more space for my undead troops. And I will need quantity. Ah, yes. Back to the same idea. Everything leads to gather dead souls. Then their souls will be turned into undead the moment they enter my realm. But that is all for the future. Now I will have to do some things to make that even happen."
The time of a new era will come. One where the Ainz Ooal Gown will be known everywhere around the world. Yet, this time still has to come.
"[Gate]"
A portal appeared before Ainz. The Overlord entered the gate, showing up in a dark room with no light. Yet, Ainz could see just fine.
"I see you have gained some sort of consciousness. It is good to see that you are prospering. And when the time comes, you will join me and finally leave that pod. But for now, you still have to stay there. So you can prosper further until you are ready. Then you will be my right hand, the one that will enforce my will soon enough. But you will have much to learn. And I will teach you accordingly. As your mentor… Now, if you excuse me, I have to leave you once again. Goodbye."
The creature was once again all alone in this godforsaken room. It wanted to leave, yet its strength was not enough to break free. But when the time would come, nothing would stop him.
To be continued