Neia's subordinates obeyed her instructions and moved swiftly into action.
"Your Majesty!"
After giving her orders, Neia turned back and saw that the Sorcerer King's eyes were on his hands, while he had used a flight spell to rise to somewhere around the level of Neia's head.
"Your Majesty! Let me go with you!"
Perhaps he was startled by Neia's shout, but the Sorcerer King suddenly closed his hand and a quiet sound came from within.
"Hmm… well, all right."
The Sorcerer King cast a flying spell on Neia as well. In that moment, she realized the greatness of magic as she learned what it was to fly.
Neia and the Sorcerer King moved as though they were skimming along the ground. They did not leave the surface except to soar over crowds of people, who had descended into chaos, because they could not get a grip on the situation.
The reason for that was because flying in the air without cover made them very obvious, and if there were demons about, they might be subjected to attack spells from all directions.
Neia bit her lip in unhappiness, feeling like she was being a burden. Whatever spells the demons used, they could not possibly pose a problem for the Sorcerer King. She could not help but think that he had chosen to go the long way around instead of flying directly to his destination because she was around.
Eventually, they reached their destination ― the headquarters, which also doubled as Caspond's chambers.
The two paladins at the door had their hands full trying to manage the people jammed up near the door.
"Miss Baraja, we'll go in from above."
"Yes!"
After seeing that it would be a little difficult to enter from the front door, the two of them floated up and arrived at the balcony. Just then, the window facing them opened up.
"Your Majesty! Thank you for coming."
It was a paladin.
"Are the others here yet?"
"No, Your Majesty. The priests are assembling. Vice-Captain Montagnés is off to liberate a prison camp and isn't expected to return today. Right now, only Captain Custodio and Prince Caspond are present."
"Is that so? Still, it's good that the two of them are here. Lead the way."
"Yes!"
After the paladin led them to Caspond's room, they could hear a loud discussion through the door. It seemed quite chaotic.
The paladin opened the door for them, and over a dozen pairs of bloodshot eyes greeted them.
"Sorry I'm late. We're out of time, so what plans were you discussing just now?"
Everyone glanced at each other, and Caspond spoke up on their behalf.
"We have not spotted Jaldabaoth yet. Your Majesty, could this fire have been made by a magic item or a demon other than Jaldabaoth?"
"I am unsure. After all, even I could not do such a thing."
The others were shaken. The Sorcerer King employed magic that beggared the imagination. How powerful must Jaldabaoth be if he could use a spell that even the Sorcerer King could not?
"In that case, what effects does that fire have? Blue Rose said that they managed to pass through it, then surely normal people can do so as well, right?"
After saying so, Remedios turned to look straight at the Sorcerer King.
"That won't be a problem. As for its effects, demons standing inside the fire benefit from improved attributes, negative-karma spells will do slightly more damage, item drop rates will increase, and many others. But according to the results from the investigation team, none of those were in effect. Still, whether it does anything else remains to be seen."
"Which means we can freely move in and out of it, right?"
"Hm? Didn't I say that at the beginning?"
"In that case, we ought to evacuate as long as there are no demi-humans or demons around, and then form up into units there. After all, I heard that demons appeared within the area surrounded by the fire when it was last seen in the Kingdom. Let's go with that plan of action, everyone."
After giving the paladins their orders, he asked the Sorcerer King again, "Can you use your magic to pinpoint Jaldabaoth's location, Your Majesty?"
"If I could, I wouldn't need to stay in this city now, would I?"
"You have a point."
Just as the Sorcerer King was dealing with one question after another, everyone heard an ominous creaking.
It started out quietly enough, and then it steadily grew to drown out the clamor in the room. One by one, they all quieted down, and finally, the only sound in the silence was the creaking.
Everyone looked around uneasily. Just then, Neia noticed something odd on the outside wall of the building and exclaimed an "Ah―"
A crack appeared on the wall, and as everyone watched, it began to spread. The wall bulged, and then—
"Get away!"
Just as Remedios shouted, the Sorcerer King stood in front of Neia.
The wall broke apart with a mighty crash. Bricks flew through the room like a spray of shotgun pellets. Groans filled the air; they came from those people who had been hit by the fast-moving masonry.
If the Sorcerer King had not shielded Neia with his body, Neia might have ended up wailing on the ground with them.
"Th-Thank you―"
The Sorcerer King held up his hand to stop Neia before she could thank him, and then he pointed at the smoke-spewing gap in the wall to draw her attention there.
There was a gigantic silhouette there, the color of a roaring blaze.
"―Thank you for the warm welcome, humans."
It was a deep and powerful voice.
As though cutting through the smoke, that being slowly leaned in through the hole in the wall and entered the room.
It was ― a demon.
Due to his vast size, he had to bend down in order to barely fit inside the room.
His posture looked a little stupid, but now was definitely not the time for laughter. Her throat could not work properly; she wanted to swallow the saliva pooling in her mouth, but it stuck there instead.
This was an overwhelming mass of power.
Neia had never been very good at judging the strength of her foes relative to herself, but she understood that she could not win against him even with tens of thousands of Neias. She was swallowed by a wave of power comparable to the Sorcerer King after removing his ring, and she could not move a muscle.
It was then that she realized who she was facing.
That, that's Jaldabaoth… the Demon Emperor Jaldabaoth…
His face was filled with wrath, his wings were red, and his burning arms ― he seemed to be holding something in one hand, and Neia could not help but doubt her eyes.
That was ― though she dared not believe it ― a lower body. It emanated a vile stench, one of advanced decay.
"Kyaaaaahh!"
It was a shout ― no, a scream. It was a sound that only one who had burst the shackles on their emotions and fallen into madness would make. It came from behind Neia.
Neia's back shuddered. The person making that sound was Remedios.
Remedios raised her holy sword high and charged straight at Jaldabaoth, not caring about her own defense.
This was too rash. Even Neia, who was not skilled with swords, felt that it was a foolish charge.
"―Get lost."
Those weighty, quiet words were accompanied by the sound of splashing. At the same time, Remedios flew in a straight line and crashed into a wall. Her impact was so loud it seemed as though the entire building would collapse. After that, Remedios ― who had been swatted aside like a fly ― collapsed limply from the wall.
It would seem Jaldabaoth had sent Remedios flying with the object that looked like a human's lower body.
Neia would have surely died if she had taken that hit. But as expected of the country's strongest paladin, her life did not seem to be in danger.
In its place, a revolting odor began to spread through the air.
The room was filled with chunks of meat from the decayed lower body that Jaldabaoth had used to strike Remedios.
"Ahh… what a mess. I sincerely apologize for getting the room dirty. Of course, it would not have ended up like this if that woman had not charged at me without thinking ― well, that's just an excuse. Please forgive me."
Jaldabaoth slowly bowed his head. He seemed genuinely apologetic, but that only made everyone else more afraid.
And then, he casually dumped what he was holding ― something that looked like the charred remains of a human ankle ― to the ground.
"My my, I guess I got a little too carried away while swinging it around and the top half flew off somewhere. It's a dirty little thing, so I've been looking for a chance to dispose of it… but in the end I managed to make good use of her. Am I not a kind demon? She must be thanking me from the afterlife."
Jaldabaoth muttered to himself.
"Ahhhhhhhhhh!"
Remedios touched herself as she wailed in anguish, fresh blood streaming from the corner of her mouth. No, she was collecting the chunks of meat that were stuck to her. What was she doing? Has she lost her mind? Neia wondered.
No, there was a meaning to her bizarre actions.
Don't tell me, that corpse was… how could this be…?
Although the lower body had tattered bits of what looked like armor stuck to it, it should have belonged to a woman. In that case, she could imagine two people that it could have been.
If that was really the case…
"What a lovely sound," Jaldabaoth waved his hand like a conductor. "In that case, I believe this is the first time we have met, Sorcerer King Ainz Ooal Gowndono ― or perhaps -sama would be a better form of address?"
"It doesn't matter. Now then, I trust you're here for a showdown with me?"
"Indeed. No number of weaklings will make a difference."
"I concur on that point. I have no intention of generating meaningless deaths."
Still sniffling, Remedios looked towards the Sorcerer King.
"Your Majesty, you are strong. Stronger even than Momon. I hope you will allow me to adopt a strategy that will guarantee my victory."
Jaldabaoth raised his hand, and a head poked itself through the hole.
It was a woman wearing a mask and a maid's outfit. There were two of them, in fact.
"I trust you will not call me despicable?"
"―Uh, hm. Well, this is… mhm… uh… um."
The Sorcerer King was starting to get worried. No, that was only to be expected.
Nobody could have expected Jaldabaoth to arrive with his maid demons in tow. However—
That's probably not the case. The Sorcerer King is wise, and he must have anticipated this. In that case, why is he like this? Could it be that it's because we're here? Perhaps he's not confident of protecting us all as well, which is why he's worried!
"Your Majesty, please do not worry about us."
"Eh?"
The Sorcerer King made a tiny exclamation of surprise.
Neia knew very well that the maid demons were beings who could kill everyone in this room, and they were so powerful that she could not be at ease even if someone told her not to worry. Compared to someone on the Sorcerer King's level, Neia and the others, probably including Remedios, were little more than valueless pawns.
However ― she would rather die than get in his way.
She had once heard that the Sorcerer King's subordinates were prepared to die if they became hostages. While the Sorcerer King said it had disturbed him, Neia could finally understand how his subordinates had felt. They did not want to become a burden to the person they respected.
"Hahaha! Do not worry, humans. I will slowly torture you all to death afterwards. We will be waiting in the fountain at the center of town. Of course, you may flee if you wish, Sorcerer King."
"I take those words and return them to you, Jaldabaoth."
The Sorcerer King and Jaldabaoth stared each other down.
After that, Jaldabaoth turned ― and Remedios jumped up, her holy sword in hand, and rushed at him.
The weakly glowing holy sword looked like a band of flowing light.
"Dieeeeee!"
And then, she stabbed it into Jaldabaoth's back.
"What? This is… Are you satisfied?"
―It was a cold, flat voice.
"Why… why… after taking a strike from the holy sword… you should be evil…"
Remedios's back looked far too tiny and insignificant in comparison.
"I have no idea what to make of that. Why? What do you mean by why? It felt like a little prick. Is that enough for you? If you're done, would you mind getting out of the way? I don't intend to kill you here. That comes after I kill the Sorcerer King."
Jaldabaoth paid no heed to Remedios and spread his enormous, fiery wings.
He flapped them, and Remedios collapsed to the ground.
Jaldabaoth ignore her as she lay on the ground and took off. The maid demons followed him.
"…Then I'll be going too. You should go take shelter so you don't get caught up in the fighting. While I don't think it'll be a problem, I hope you'll understand if this city ends up demolished."
"Your Majesty, will you be alright?"
Caspond rose from where he had dived for cover to avoid the debris flying about the room. His eyes looked at Remedios, who looked utterly defeated and could not rise to her feet.
"It'll be fine ― I can't say that for sure, but there ought to be a chance. It would have been very troublesome if he'd brought the demi-humans along as shields. Looks like he's still underestimating me, and this is also a chance to bring the maid demons into my fold."
"It'll be fine. It's okay. My sister is still here. Kelart is still here. As long as she's around, Calca-sama might…"
Remedios smacked her face as she muttered to herself, and then she forcefully rose to her feet.
"Sorcerer King! I'll go too! Lend me a weapon that can harm him! I'll become your sword for the time being!"
The Sorcerer King looked at Remedios, her eyes bloodshot and filled with hate, and then shook his head.
"…Forget about it. You would only get in the way."
"What did you say?!"
"Do you not understand? I speak of the disparity in strength. Or do you mean to say you understand it, but refuse to accept it? Simply put ― you are a burden."
Remedios glared at the Sorcerer King like he was her nemesis.
The Sorcerer King's words were very harsh, but they were also true. Or rather, they were hard to accept precisely because they were true.
"Captain Custodio! I have another task for you. Evacuate these people outside the city!"
Caspond gave the order in a stern, commanding tone.
"The original plan was to let His Majesty handle Jaldabaoth. You agreed to that too, didn't you?"
"…Ahh, I know," Remedios bit her lip, and then she forced out her next words.
"You must kill that bastard."
"Understood."
"―Paladins, carefully gather the remains of that body. Don't leave a single piece behind."
"Captain… that body is…"
The paladin had an idea of what was going on, and ventured his question in a trembling voice. Remedios replied in a tone that seemed to be telling him not to ask any more.
"Don't forget that there might be demonic trickery at work."
Remedios left without looking back. Several paladins followed her, with halffrightened looks on their faces.
"Your Majesty, I sincerely apologize for the way she treated you… May I apologize on her behalf?" Caspond lowered his head. "Please, I beg your forgiveness."
"…I accept your apology. Now then, hurry up and evacuate. If he has to wait too long, he might decide to go back on his word. I'll be heading off first to buy time, but I hope you understand that I can only give you about thirty minutes."
"I understand. Everyone hear that? Get moving!"
Several priests and paladins moved out with Caspond.
The only people left in the room were the Sorcerer King and Neia, as well as several paladins and priests who were stuffing the remains of a certain someone's body into a bag. In that case—
"Your Majesty, may I come with you?!"
There were gasps of awe and sudden intakes of air from all around her. But Neia ignored those irrelevant people. She took off her visor and looked straight at the Sorcerer King.
"…Umu. I cannot. He may have said all that just now, but he's a demon. If pressed, he will reveal his true nature and use you as a hostage."
"But if that happens, Your Majesty will kill me without hesitation, will you not?"
"When you say that with such a serious look on your face, you make me sound like a cruel person. Well, if I can't save you, I'll discard you. I'll hit you with an attack spell as well."
"In that case―"
"―I! I am not doing this because I want to kill hostages, you know?"
"Ah! Forgive me…"
That was how it was. He would do it because it was the best choice available.
If there were a better alternative, this merciful man would surely choose that
instead. Thus, not letting Neia accompany him was because it was the best of the best alternatives.
"But… Your Majesty, you have used many spells and even your magic items and mana in order to free this city. As a magic caster, surely you must be weakened now. Will that be alright?"
"Mhm! Indeed, it might be dangerous, but I came here to defeat Jaldabaoth. Fortunately, he came to find me instead. Now I'll destroy him and claim the maid demons… ugh, saying that I want the maids makes me sound like a dirty old man, hm…"
Neia smiled bitterly at the Sorcerer King, who could still make a lame joke at a time like this. She wanted to speak, but the Sorcerer King cut her off with a raise of his hand.
"Besides, I'll be a laughingstock if I run away here."
The Sorcerer King shrugged, like he was kidding. Neia sensed that he was not being serious, and so she raised her voice.
"Your Majesty! If they want to laugh, let them! I humbly submit that you should only fight him in top condition! Also, you came here to battle Jaldabaoth, but you ended up using a vast amount of mana and strength on the behalf of the Holy Kingdom. That's not what you agreed to in the beginning. If we say that, the people of my country will…"
"Indeed, that is true. But humans are creatures who only believe what they want to believe. Even if you spread the word, nobody would take it to heart, Miss Baraja."
"That…! In that case, I can be a witness! And…"
Neia looked out the corner of her eye at the paladins and priests listening to their conversation. Surely they would be willing to be witnesses.
"…Neia Baraja. I thank you, but there is no need for that. I will not change my intention to fight Jaldabaoth."
"This ― why is that?"
"Simple. It is because it is a promise I have made as a king."
Neia had nothing to say. There was nothing she could say in response to that.
A commoner like herself could not possibly say anything that could change the mind of a King.
There were murmurs of admiration around her. Indeed, this great and proud person was none other than His Majesty the Sorcerer King Ainz Ooal Gown.
Neia was filled with pride for the king that she held in such high esteem.
"Your Majesty, I know this is deeply disrespectful, but if you feel there is danger, I beg you to flee."
Perhaps mentioning the possibility of his loss might make him unhappy, but even so she still had to say it.
"…But of course. It is a fool who fights without preparing a means of escape. Even if you lose one battle, you can make good use of the information gained in the next one. It doesn't matter if you lose the first battle."
"I expected nothing less of you, Your Majesty."
An extreme interpretation of that was that if his aim was to defeat Jaldabaoth, then all he needed was to be victorious in the end. Neia was excited by this line of thinking, which was not a warrior's mindset, but that of a king.
"Then I'll be heading out."
***
Ainz walked toward the place Jaldabaoth had indicated. Along the way, he used [Message] to order the two Hanzos who had followed him to check for tails and if anyone was observing from afar.
After receiving a negative report on both those items, Ainz had originally intended to terminate the transmission immediately, but then he received a somewhat confused report that there were members of the Pleiades present.
Ainz acknowledged it and ended the [Message].
…We didn't find any other Players or World Class Item holders this time round either. I keep thinking they ought to have shown themselves by now… but if they don't exist, how do you explain what happened to Shalltear? Was it some kind of coincidence?
It should have been the effect of a World Class Item, right? Or was it the work of some Talent?
The fact that nothing had turned up despite going to these lengths made the whole thing feel like a trap for him. For all he knew, the opposition was waiting for him to lower his guard before striking.
Honestly… well, it doesn't matter. Careful planning for the future won't be wasted.
Therefore, Ainz contacted the other Hanzo teams with [Message] to verify their readiness and that his orders had been received.
All right, preparations are complete. The next part is simple, I just need to follow Demiurge's playbook. Even if I make a mistake, I can always say "I was just testing you" and so on.
That was good.
Ainz was moved by how light his tread was. This the first time he had felt so relaxed since coming to this world, and it was like floating through the sky.
Soon, Ainz came to an average-sized square.
This had originally been a fountain that regularly sprayed water for the citizens' leisure. However, water no longer flowed through here after the demihumans had wrecked it. There were no plans to restore it for the time being, and the surroundings looked very austere.
A demon stood proudly there.
It was a huge demon with burning wings and two crimson, brawny fists.
This was the Evil Lord of Wrath from Nazarick. However, what stood here was merely a monster that Demiurge had called up with his Evil Lord Summons.
It could only be used once every fifty hours, but it could be freely controlled for a time. Nazarick would not be diminished even if it were killed.
It was level 84.
As a physical-attacker type Evil Lord, it had a very high HP total.
Of all the special abilities that Evil Lords possessed, the most dangerous one was the ability to summon another Evil Lord which was lower level than themselves. However, summoned monsters could not in turn summon more monsters. Therefore, the Evil Lord of Wrath that Demiurge had summoned could not summon another Evil Lord.
If this Evil Lord had been created or made, then it could summon additional creatures. For instance, the Evil Lord of Sloth would often summon pack after pack of demons and undead, making them very hard to deal with.
In addition, one troublesome point about the Evil Lord of Wrath was that it was very hard to manage its hate.
The Evil Lord of Wrath built aggro more easily than other Evil Lords. He had heard tanks say that the most aggravating thing about dealing with multiple Evil Lords at once was how to keep the Evil Lord of Wrath from going off-target.
In addition, it had the special ability of doing more damage and gaining more defense the higher its hate value became. Still, that was not too frightening. The only thing that Ainz had to be worried about was its ability called [Soul-Bought Miracle], which produced unknown effects.
The Evil Lord could cast the following spells:
Tenth-tier spells: [Meteor Fall], [Time Stop], [Field of Unclean].
Ninth-tier spells: [Greater Rejection], [Vermillion Nova].
Eighth-tier spells: [Distort Moral], [Insanity], [Astral Smite], [Wave of Pain].
Seventh-tier spells: [Napalm], [Hellflame], [Greater Word of Curse],
[Greater Teleportation], [Blasphemy].
Sixth-tier spells: [Flamewing], [Wall of Hell].
Third-tier spells: [Fireball], [Slow].
While the exact number of spells that monsters could use varied with their level and type, it was typically around 8. However, high-level monsters like Dragons, Demons, and Angels were an exception.
Still, as a pure warrior type, the Evil Lord of Wrath's spells were not particularly fearsome.
It had no skills to strengthen its spells, and its magic-related stats were very low. While the Evil Lord's attack spells were of the fire element and thus targeted a weakness of the undead, there was no need for him to be wary. Its mind-affecting spells were also useless against the undead, and Ainz's karma values were negative to begin with, so spells like [Distort Moral] were a waste of time.
Since Ainz's karma value was negative, Angels were harder for him to deal with than Demons.
As he contemplated his opposition's data, Ainz glanced at the two maids behind the Evil Lord. He would think about them later.
"Now then, have you been told?"
"But of course, Ainz-sama."
Hearing that weighty voice made Suzuki Satoru smile unconsciously from inside Ainz's heart. That was because this demon ― and all the monsters of Nazarick ― were designed in accordance with their image.
Those voices were probably what the developers or their creators had envisioned for them. In that case, who had come up with the adorable voice that Lip Bugs had before consuming any vocal cords? Or did the whole seiyuu-inyour-mind thing that Peroroncino was talking about really exist?
No, that was impossible.
Pandora's Actor was a good example. He was a being who did not feel like he reflected what his creator had in mind. And then there was the fact that even a being without vocal cords like Ainz could speak. All he could say was that magical worlds were truly astounding.
"If you're addressing me with that name and in that tone, I take it the surroundings are clear?"
"Indeed."
"Then I will ask you the most important question of all. Are you truly prepared to fight with the intent of killing me?"
"Yes, I was ordered to do so."
.
Ainz nodded as he heard the Evil Lord's reply.
One thing that had made Ainz uneasy in the past was a lack of strong opponents to fight. Ever since the battle with Shalltear, Ainz had been worrying about not having chances to fight with all his strength.
After training and gaining experience in close combat, he could skillfully move his body as Momonga and fight as a warrior of roughly level 33.
However, the question of how he would fare in higher-level combat still remained.
He should have conducted combat training against high-level opponents.
Unfortunately, he had not had the chance to encounter such high-level monsters until now.
That was why he had ordered Demiurge to command the summoned Evil Lord to kill Ainz.
He would defeat this powerful foe who wanted to kill him, and thus strengthen himself.
That had been easier said than done. The two of them had been strongly opposed to the idea and persuading them had taken a lot of time. One could not fault a mentally exhausted Ainz from thinking, "I thought we agreed that my word was law…"
In the end, after countless concessions and conditions, the stage had been set for this life-and-death battle.
A chill coursed through his body as he considered that he might die. It was a completely different sensation from what he had felt during the battle with Shalltear, because this was an unnecessary battle.
However—
While I had a lot of PVP experience in Yggdrasil, I realized in the battle against Shalltear that this world is not a game. If the time comes when I must face off against a level 100 Player with a great deal of real combat experience, I won't be able to win without an equivalent amount of experience. I know that cowardice leads to defeat.
Ainz was very glad that he was undead and could suppress the fear he might have felt at the prospect of death. If he were still human, he would probably have called it off by now.
"Now then, Yuri," Ainz said to the maids behind the Evil Lord. "Since you and Lupusregina are here, does that mean you will be fighting me together with the Evil Lord? Are the others not here?"
He saw no sign of Solution, Entoma, or CZ. They must have been off doing work elsewhere.
"We are the only two who have come here. We sisters will challenge you together with the Evil Lord of Wrath. The reason is because Albedo-sama feels that allowing the people of this country to witness the maid demons is not a bad thing. In addition, the Evil Lord of Wrath alone might not be enough to satisfy your request, Ainz-sama."
It was true that a single level 80ish Evil Lord would be hard-pressed to stand against Ainz. However, even the addition of Yuri and Lupusregina did not make it a very powerful opponent.
That said, troublesome factors can become bad news. Suffering because I underestimated my opponent would be foolish. I'd best stay on my guard.
"In addition, Albedo-sama ordered us to check something with you, Ainzsama. Are you really alright with the condition that you will not leave Nazarick for the coming year if you are defeated?"
"Ah, that was one of the conditions Albedo insisted on before agreeing to this bout. If I lose, I will spend the next year working hard within the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick, with Albedo, in the same room… aren't you going to verify the conditions that Demiurge mentioned?"
Ainz looked at the Evil Lord, but it said nothing. It probably felt that there was no need to check.
"Thank you very much."
Yuri bowed.
Now there would be no margin for him to change the plan. As he thought of how dire the situation was, Ainz could not help but sweat internally.
It would be easy enough to kill Yuri and the others due to the tremendous disparity in their respective strength, but Ainz Ooal Gown would never allow that. Killing an NPC for the sake of training was utterly ridiculous.
In other words—
I have to kill the Evil Lord without harming Yuri and Lupusregina.
Ainz could not help laughing. This would be one hell of a challenge. Still, there would make for good training.
"Is something wrong, Ainz-sama?"
"No, it's nothing, don't worry about it."
"Also, Cocytus-sama requested that we record this battle so everyone in Nazarick can learn from it. Do you mind?"
While he did not want to do so because he felt it was embarrassing, recording battles was very common in Yggdrasil. With that in mind, he ought to accept that request.
"Still, recording the battle proceedings will trigger interference from the antidivination offensive barriers. Shall I lower it?"
"Surely you mean divination-detecting spells, do you not, Ainz-sama? And not the linked offensive spell model?"
"Ah, yes, that's the one. After all, if it were the latter, it would be bad if someone from Nazarick were trying to find my position and triggered it."
If he deployed the linked offensive spell barrier, as he had used to in the past, any member of Nazarick trying to cast a divination on Ainz would be very badly hurt. While he used to cast that spell all the time because friendly fire was off, doing so now would be dangerous.
Of course, the denizens of Nazarick would not be hurt by the offensive barrier, given that they were protected by a World Class Item, but the defense would incur a cost in gold coins. If things went badly, expenses like that would be more painful for him.
"Then there's no need to worry ~su."
"No, I'd best deactivate it. Besides, offensive barriers disappear once they activate and have to be reset. In that case, I might as well just deactivate it from the start and have some peace of mind."
"I see ~su, then I'll leave it to you ~su."
Ainz deactivated his offensive barrier.
"Alright ― then let's begin the combat recording. Whose point of view are you using? I don't mind if it's mine, you know?"
"I think I was supposed to do the recording ~su."
In truth, Ainz was fine with anything. Anyone's perspective would have been alright.
In addition, the memories of sparring with his friends were coming back to him, and Ainz began to enjoy himself.
Simulated battles with his friends were a fundamental part of devising new techniques and using new equipment.
He had often sparred with Touch Me, but those battles did not count and had not been entered in Ainz's PVP record.
Since Ainz had never won even once, his win rate would have dropped if they had been recorded. He had never taken it seriously, simply treating it as "training" since he knew he could not win. Ainz always emphasized that.
"Shall we begin, then? You need to prepare yourself to kill me. Of course, I won't kill you."
"No, actually, it's alright if you kill us."
Before Ainz could say that he did not want to do so, Yuri stated the reason.
"Ainz-sama, we are not the actual members of the Pleiades. All of us are Greater Doppelgangers."
"What?! What did you say?"
"We are musicians of the Erich String Orchestra under Chacmool-sama of the Five Worsts. By Albedo-sama's order, we have transformed into members of the Pleiades."
"―Is that so?"
He looked at them several more times, but Ainz could not tell the difference between them and the Yuri and Lupusregina which he knew. He could not help but wonder if this was a lie they were telling so he could kill them without worries during the fight.
Perhaps one of them was fake. He had once heard that the best lies were those that had a little bit of the truth sprinkled into it.
Ainz could not see through the Doppelgangers' disguise. There was a spell that could dispel the Doppelgangers' shapeshifting, but using that spell would keep them from transforming again for a period of time due to the spell's effect. In that case, having them transform into the Pleiades would be meaningless. It would be a different matter if Ainz had learned lower-tier spells but— No—
"Hm, it does seem like Lupusregina is speaking differently from normal. What's going on?"
Lupusregina's face went blank for a moment.
"Is that strange, Ainz-sama?"
The Greater Doppelganger pretending to be Lupusregina changed its way of speaking. That was probably its usual speech pattern.
"Ah, those aren't the usual expressions she uses."
"But Lupusregina-sama always spoke like that in front of us…"
When a Doppelganger impersonated someone, it was more difficult for people closer to the target to see through their disguise. That was because they used a form of telepathy during their shapeshifting to read the surface thoughts of the people they were speaking to and those around them in order to extract information related to the target they were impersonating and then apply it to their impersonation act ― at least, that was what their entry in the monster encyclopedia said.
According to Pandora's Actor, that ability had become real in this world.
However, that was simply to discern the possible reactions that the impersonated subject might have, and it did not read minds or search through memories.
In addition, since this ability was a form of psychic attack, it was useless on Ainz and other undead creatures. One could also simply resist it if the level difference was great enough. That was probably why it could not discern Lupusregina's possible reactions from Ainz and had given the game away.
Incidentally, it was more likely that Doppelgangers would out themselves when facing multiple people, because each of them would have a different impression of the target.
Umu. Why did Lupu always add a ~su at the end of her sentences in front of them?
Ahh, I see, so it was to make them sound out of place. Perhaps she was trying to help me. What a cute little rascal she is…
"…Hm? My apologies. I have another question that is unrelated to combat. While Albedo has given you an order, who would have priority if I were to tell you to abandon that order?
"Naturally, the words of the Supreme One would have priority, Ainz-sama. However, I must sincerely apologize that we will obey orders from our summoner, Kurayami no Shirabe-sama, above all else."
"…Hm? Who's that?"
Was there an NPC like that? As the question grew in his heart, the flames in Ainz's eyes flared as he heard Doppel-Yuri's answer.
"That would be Temperance-sama."
"Eh? Temperance-san? Kurayami? Ahhh… well, that does work as a physical description… but still, Kurayami no Shirabe?"
"Yes. Temperance-sama once asked to be addressed that way, so Chacmoolsama instructed us to do so as well."
"…After I return to Nazarick, I would like to hear all about this. Kurayami no Shirabe, huh!"
This was the first time he had ever heard him refer to himself that way.
Ainz could not help laughing as he learned that a former friend had referred to himself that way in a place where nobody else knew. This was truly a cunning trap, set to decrease his fighting spirit.
Ahh, no, no. I mustn't fall for Kurayami no Shirabe-san's trap! Fu, fufu…
Though he knew it was not the right time to do so, he recalled the guild member in question.
How had he looked and felt when he had given that name?
Ainz narrowed his eyes as he reminisced about his friend from the past, and then he saw a surprised look on the face of Doppel-Yuri as it tilted its head. Ainz sensed that he had become careless and pulled himself together.
He could remember his old friends later. Right now, he ought to analyze the Doppelganger's words.
After this, I'd like to question all the vassals and NPCs about the sides of themselves that they've been hiding. Fufufu ― now then! Another question comes to mind…
In the absence of a direct order, vassals like Doppelgangers would obey the NPC in charge of them. In that case, what would happen if a certain NPC wanted to kill Ainz and gathered many high-level vassals and ordered them to attack Ainz with their strongest moves? Of course, this would happen while Ainz was unable to detect or stop them.
Would they carry out that order? Or would they disobey it?
"…You're also ready to come at me like you want to kill me, is that it?"
"Yes. Those are the orders I have received, and I have determined that I also have your permission, Ainz-sama."
Doppel-Yuri's answer made Ainz wrinkle his ― nonexistent ― brows.
…Isn't this dangerous? It's probably best to see exactly where the boundary lies.
If even Ainz could think of this, then Albedo had most likely verified it herself,
Still, he ought to make sure, just in case. He could not let a hole in security go unpatched.
"…Indeed. I permit you to use your full abilities to kill me in this battle. Then swear on the name of Ainz Ooal Gown once more. Can you swear that what you said about your true identities just now was the truth?"
"Yes. This we do swear, upon the names of all the Supreme Beings."
Yuri and Lupusregina transformed their hands into alien-looking objects.
"―Ah!"
"What? What is it, Doppel-Yuri?"
"Ainz-sama, there is one thing I forgot. Our equipment was borrowed from the Pleiades. Therefore, can we trouble you to recover them for us if we are killed?"
Doppelgangers could even copy the clothing and equipment of their targets if they wanted to. However, they could only duplicate appearances, and not the equipment's abilities. Since they would gain no benefits from the gear, when fighting a magic caster like Ainz, the difference between them would be like that between heaven and earth. Therefore, they had no choice but to borrow the real thing from the originals.
Greater Doppelgangers can imitate people of up to level 60. However, unlike the NPCs, they can only copy up to 90% of the originals' abilities. Even if they possess gear from the Pleiades, there's no need to be worried… is there? In that case, killing them would be too much of a waste. After all, they're mercenary vassals, which means summoning them cost money ― as I thought, I should just leave them powerless. Do I need to put that into the rules after all?
"Alright! I will add one more rule. Once you Greater Doppelgangers are near death, you are out. I will monitor your health with [Life Essence]. You can hide your HP totals, right?" After Yuri replied in the affirmative, Ainz nodded. "Then suppress that ability for a while. If I judge that you'll die after a light hit, I will call your name and rule you out. In that case, you will count as dead. Leave the battle area immediately. In addition, the same thing applies to the Evil Lord of Wrath. If I declare victory, the combat will end. Do you understand?"
The Evil Lord of Wrath and the two Doppelgangers indicated that they understood.
"Very well. Then we'll start when the coin hits the ground… about twenty-five minutes has passed, so I guess they won't complain even if we start."
Ainz cast [Life Essence] and then took out a gold coin. Of course, this was not a Yggdrasil gold coin, but a trading gold coin used in this world.
"Will you not buff yourself?"
"Making time to buff yourself is also part of combat training."
After replying thus to Doppel-Lupusregina, Ainz backed away from them, then flicked the coin up with his thumb so it landed between the two of them.
As the coin hit the ground, Ainz jumped back, then threw his hands out and shouted:
"Absolute Immunity Barrier!"
He saw the Evil Lord and the two Doppelgangers freeze up for a moment.
However, the Evil Lord and Doppel-Yuri immediately rushed in.
That was it. That was the right answer.
Ainz's previous actions were meaningless. There was no ability called Absolute Immunity Barrier in Yggdrasil ― or at least, there should not have been, as far as Ainz knew. Still, Ainz had shouted that name not simply to fake them out, but also for a different reason.
Ah― it feels like they're a little slow. Could it be that they think something was done to them and they've become a little timid now? Well, that's what happens when you wonder if you've fallen into the enemy's trap.
Their movements were restricted by the uneasiness that came from the fact that such a technique might actually exist in this world. One could say that this feint had succeeded because there were still unknown things out there.
Of course, that was not simply because of the unknown. A good example was Ainz's ability to create undead.
In Yggdrasil, there was no such thing as using a corpse as a medium to ignore the duration on created undead. This aberration had only sprung up after coming to this world. One could imagine that there were many other such changes that had happened in the process of coming to this world from the game. No, only a fool would not think about such things.
In other words, making decisions with Yggdrasil knowledge alone was very dangerous.
I ought to discuss this with Albedo… and the others, Cocytus included.
Ainz cast a silent [Fly] spell and began thinking as he retreated to the rear while keeping a fixed distance from his pursuers.
Albedo said destroying the Kingdom would take about two years of preparation.
Should I collect information until then? Expanding one's nation means expanding contact with the outside… I ought to throw these questions at Albedo and Demiurge and get their opinions. Hm ― illusions seem to be surprisingly powerful, it might be very bad if we don't watch out for them. It feels like you could do a lot with them if you were smart. If I meet a skilled illusionist, I should probably treat them well in order to recruit them. Fluder ― whoa!
The Evil Lord had outpaced Ainz's [Fly] spell on foot. Unfortunately, flying was not that fast.
"!!"
After taking a punch from the Evil Lord's maul-like fist, Ainz felt pain ―
though it was immediately suppressed. Though he had felt the same way during the fight with Shalltear, he was once again thankful for this body of his that could suppress his pain. Ainz could fight thanks to it.
After that, the Evil Lord pursued Ainz ― who had been knocked flying ― and closed the distance to him.
To Ainz, this was the worst possible thing they could have done.
Yuri has circled around behind me. They're using a pincer attack of two people who can do bludgeoning damage, which is my weakness. Meanwhile, Lupusregina is keeping her distance and casting spells… hm, that's a buff. Good grief, this is the best way to deal with magic casters. Is this because of the Evil Lord's combat AI? Or is it because it's choosing moves from the mind of its summoner, Demiurge? Well, that's fine.
If they would not let him keep his distance, then he would simply have to make his own space.
"[Greater Teleportation]."
His field of vision immediately opened up, and the city spread below him.
Under normal circumstances, he would not have been able to teleport to an unknown destination, but it would be alright as long as it was within line of sight.
Having teleported one kilometer above the ground without any hesitation whatsoever, Ainz cast another spell.
It was [Body of Effulgent Beryl].
This spell was exceptionally effective because Yuri and the Evil Lord both did bludgeoning damage.
"Of course, that's not all there is to it," Ainz muttered as he looked to the ground. "…If Bukubukuchagama-san or Variable Talisman-san were here, the backliners wouldn't be getting beaten up."
When playing as a party, skilled aggro managers like tanks would not make mistakes like allowing the magic casters in the backline to be attacked.
During the time when they had stopped playing the game ― when Ainz had gone out to earn the money for Nazarick's upkeep by himself, he had used mercenary NPCs to allow him to act with impunity. The only time he had truly fought alone was the battle with Shalltear. Perhaps that was why he could not help complaining.
They were quite some distance apart, so he had no idea where the Evil Lord was, but he had a rough idea of the square's location. While carpet bombing the area with attack spells was a valid tactic, that would be pointless. One could say that the objective this time round was to win in a full-powered contest with the opposition.
"[Widen Magic – Delay Teleportation]!"
Come to think of it, I used to get pissed off by the mercenary NPCs' poor management of aggro. That was probably the devs' way of saying "please group up with other Players" or something.
He then confirmed that something large was going to teleport above him, within the area of the [Delay Teleportation] spell ― the Evil Lord. Thanks to the effect of the [Delay Teleportation], it would take a while before it appeared in the real world. In other words, it meant that these two weak enemies which had lost their strongest shield were completely exposed before him.
In order to weaken the enemy's fighting strength, he ought to defeat the weaker two first. Ainz let gravity claim him, and then accelerated further with
[Fly].
The added speed of the freefall meant that he was moving quite fast. The air struck Ainz's face and flowed past him. At the same time, Ainz opened his eyes and observed the square.
"Though I think hiding in a house would have been better…"
Ainz muttered quietly and then selected Lupusregina ― who was proudly standing in the middle of the square ― as his target.
Yuri was some distance away. While she could see him, she did not look like she was prepared to intercept him. Leaving a healer alone was quite frustrating, but Yuri had made the right decision considering that she had to be wary of areaof-effect spells.
Ainz ground to a halt as he skidded across the ground ― in truth, he would not have been hurt even if he had crashed straight into it ― and cast a spell.
Ainz chose one of the most destructive tenth-tier spells in his arsenal,[Reality Slash]. At the same time, he used a special ability to maximize the spell. While he could have tripled the spell or something similar to do a great deal of damage, it would be very dangerous while he did not know how much damage the Doppelgangers had taken. He had to avoid the possibility of killing them by accident.
"[Maximize Magic―"
As he raised his hand, his hand was struck and damaged, and the spell fizzled.
The mana spent on casting the spell was wasted.
What? Interfering with a spell through a ranged attack? Is it some kind of special ability?
Perhaps it was because he was undead, or because he was a veteran Player, but his confusion only lasted for a moment. Ainz immediately analyzed the attack he had received.
Neither the Evil Lord nor Yuri nor Lupusregina possessed abilities like this.
Perhaps it's the World Class Item holder who brainwashed Shalltear―
And if the Hanzos missed him―
If it was a ranged weapon user―
If it was her, she could use a special ability to interfere with spells―
"―I fell for it!"
Ainz shouted as he found the answer.
Although Yuri closed in and delivered a punch, Ainz had already enhanced his defense with a spell, so he did not need to be so wary of her. After all, there was something more important than that.
The whole thing was a trap from the start! No, Yuri ― I see! "Here" was referring to the square! That was why the Hanzos said "the Pleiades" were present! Dammit! I was wondering why they said "all of us" when it was just the two of them!
All the points of data made a beautiful line.
CZ was attacking now.
It was not just Yuri and Lupusregina who were present. CZ was also on the battlefield. In all likelihood, Solution and Entoma were here too. All the DoppelPleiades were present in the city.
No, no, I need to calm down. Doppel-CZ was just lucky. It was easy enough for me to resist that because of the level difference between us. She won't be so lucky ― well, unlucky for me ― next time.
"[Greater Word of Curse]!"
The Evil Lord had finally caught up and cast a spell, but Ainz resisted it without any problems. It was only threatening in close combat, so all he had to do was keep his distance.
Ainz ignored the Evil Lord above him and ignored Yuri, who had only done minimal damage to him from the start. He lunged straight at Lupusregina.
In that moment―
Countless Bullet Bugs flew over from the side. There was no doubt that it was Entoma.
He did not even need to use his [High-Tier Physical Immunity]to stop it. That was because non-magical ranged attacks could not harm Ainz.
Perhaps if it was a weapon carried by the Pleiades, Ainz's immunity would have been defeated thanks to the massive amount of data within them. The best example of that was CZ and Yuri's attacks from just now. However, certain skills were calculated based on the user's level. Entoma was a prime example, since she possessed many of these user level-based attacks.
Entoma was only around level 50, so her attacks did not bother Ainz at all. In addition, if all damage from an attack was nullified, none of the rider effects would take place either.
Therefore, he could ignore it.
. Ainz did not even spare Entoma a glance as he moved in to finish off the healer, but just then, Solution erupted from her ambush point in front of Lupusregina. It would have been a futile gesture if she was facing an area-ofeffect attack, but that was the only way to protect the healer.
However, Solution had made a fatal mistake. Ainz was a magic caster and did not need to close in to attack. All he needed to do was cast attack spells from a distance. He had to think about why she would charge out from in front of Lupusregina.
Ainz had only one aim.
He wanted to expose the enemy and reveal whatever card they had up their sleeve.
Narberal's not around?
He did not understand. She was not among the maid demons who had attacked the Royal Capital. However, one could not rule her out if all the Pleiades were present. It was possible that they were saving their ace in the hole for the last moment. Still, since he knew what kind of hand the opposition had, there was no reason to continue fighting in the middle of the enemy.
"[Greater Teleportation]."
CZ did not interrupt his spell, and he managed to teleport under a roof within line of sight.
I need to remember what Yuri and the others can do. Who should I kill first?
―Lupusregina, the healer. While I need to be very careful of CZ… I have no idea where she is… so I'll let the others go first. The Evil Lord will take the most time, so I'll save him for last.
He saw Lupusregina casting a spell on Solution. Had they not pursued Ainz because drawing out the battle was not a problem for them? No, it was because they understood that since Ainz could move at will with [Greater Teleportation], they could be easily scattered and individually defeated. After all, Ainz was hoping for that too.
It did not matter if they saw through him.
All he had to do was harass them with ranged spells and then take them out one by one. While CZ the ranged combat specialist was present, she would eventually expose herself if she attacked continuously. Therefore, she would only attack at critical moments. In that case, she would not be so frightening. Or rather―
"I didn't see her, so let me guess, you're standing in for Narberal."
Ainz muttered to himself as he watched the Evil Lord land.
"Haha, you've become fat, Narberal. Shall we call you Gorilla-beral now? And your element's changed greatly too. Well ― this is interesting. If the DoppelPleiades are my opponents―" Ainz flourished his cape. Of course, there was no meaning to it; he simply wanted to show off in a kingly way. "Then I ought to get a little serious."
Don't die~
"[Twin Maximize Magic – Reali―"
Just as Ainz was about to cast a spell at Lupusregina, another bullet hit Ainz's arm and interrupted his spell.
"―Hah?"
Impossible!
Even if she had succeeded once by luck, she could not have interrupted his spell twice in a row. CZ was far lower level than Ainz.
Could he have been unlucky enough to fail his resistance check twice in a row?
How unlikely were those odds? Or perhaps this was not bad luck, but certainty ― for instance, if his opponent was not CZ at all?
The Evil Lord of Wrath spread his fiery wings and closed in on Ainz. Yuri came in from the right, and Entoma flew in from the left in a roundabout fashion.
What's going on? Why is this happening? Is this some change that occurred after coming to this world? Or did Garnet-san give CZ something? Or is it not CZ? What did Yuri say just now? They're sisters, but they're Doppel… Pando ― ahhhh!
The Evil Lord had closed the distance and then cocked his hand back, preparing to deliver a haymaker.
Dammit! I hate people like that who just rush straight in and start punching! If you're a substitute for Narberal, then attack with magic! You damn Gorilla!
Well, if the Evil Lord had really cast a spell on Ainz, he would have resisted it, so it would have been boring anyway.
Ainz did not hesitate; he stepped in before his enemy could fully close the distance.
The Evil Lord had guessed that Ainz would flee, so his movements slowed by a beat. Behind him was Yuri, who was probably planning to flank Ainz with the Evil Lord.
The strike from the flaming fist ― was a feint, which was why Ainz had managed to evade it by stepping into the range of the blow.
The arms whistled past his ears, and the wind in its wake sounded like a scream.
A pure magic caster had evaded the attack of a warrior-type monster.
While he thought that this would be impossible if he were still a Yggdrasil Player, this was not due to luck. As mentioned before, the Evil Lord had not expected Ainz to step into the attack, so he had not used his full force. And then there was another point, which was that this was the result of his training.
Ainz had practiced this method of evading his opponent by closing in with them several hundred times with Cocytus. About one in every ten times, if Cocytus was not attacking in earnest, he could completely slip past them.
Cocytus did say that a good warrior would never make such incredibly flashy and telegraphed attacks, so I shouldn't get careless… but it's pretty useful in an actual fight, isn't it?
And so, Ainz placed his bony hand on the Evil Lord's sturdy chest.
And then he cast a touch spell.
While most spells had an effective range, some spells had a range that was practically zero. Such spells needed direct contact with the target to be cast, so only people with levels in spellcaster and warrior classes could use them well. It was because they were so inconvenient that they were more powerful than spells of a similar tier, being roughly a tier more effective.
Ainz's specialty was necromancy, and this was an eighth-tier spell from that field, [Maximize Magic – Energy Drain]. It was a spell that drained the opponent's levels and granted various benefits depending on the number of levels drained. Naturally, this spell had also been maximized.
He beat the Evil Lord's spell resistance and drained his levels. Thanks to that, he recovered almost all the damage Yuri had inflicted. That said, the healing provided by this spell was only supplementary in nature.
Ainz's parameters were all temporarily enhanced, and he received a special buff which would fade in a short time. In turn, the Evil Lord had received a leveldown debuff which could not be removed by the passage of time.
This time, it was the Evil Lord who backed away.
His wrathful visage was tinted by something else.
Was it surprise, or was it admiration?
Ainz wanted to praise himself for successfully evading that blow too. That said, he had managed it because his opposition had been far too cocky. Just like how a magic trick became boring once you pointed out the gimmick, this move would probably not work a second time.
"Well, however good a plan is, only an idiot would use it more than once. Isn't that right ― Pleiades! Aureole Omega!"
That was how it was.
He was fighting five Doppelgangers, the Evil Lord of Wrath and a level 100 NPC.
Is Albedo trying to make me lose? I didn't think she'd even use Aureole.
Aureole Omega was the lastborn of the Pleiades Seven Sisters. She was an Area Guardian of the Eighth Floor and a level 100 NPC specialized in commander-type classes. As a commander, she could issue orders which buffed her allies. CZ must have been able to beat their level difference thanks to that.
While he had no idea what kind of special ability Aureole had used, if one looked at party roles such as physical attacker, magical attacker, healer and so on, then she would be a wild card ― an all-rounder. It was hardly strange that she would be able to do anything.
What exactly could Punitto Moe-san do?
Ainz never went head-to-head with his opponents during PVP so Ainz had little experience in dealing with commander-type opponents.
She could not have left the Eighth Floor and come here without my permission. That would mean that she must have buffed the Doppelgangers before they came here. That would mean she probably didn't buff them too carefully — or no, is there a Doppelganger of Aureole here?
―No. There was no time to think about such pointless things. Only one thing mattered. Could they completely shut down Ainz's spellcasting, and could they keep it up forever?
There were two kinds of special abilities in Yggdrasil. One kind had a cooldown period after use. The other had a limited number of uses within a certain period.
There were also combinations of the two.
In general, the more powerful the ability, the longer the cooldown or the fewer times it could be used. Ainz's trump card ― [The Goal of All Life is Death]
― which could only be used once every 100 hours was just such an ability.
In that case, which type did CZ's ability to interrupt Ainz's spellcasting belong to?
That move just now was very handy, but it did not seem to have a long cooldown time. That would mean it was the use-limited type. However, he could not tell how long it would take for her to recover her uses. All he could do was hope that she could not recover them during the course of the battle after they were depleted.
―Though I think I ought to save my tenth-tier spells for when they've been depleted…
Ainz quickly verified the positions of the Pleiades and the Evil Lord. The Evil Lord was in front of him. Yuri was behind Ainz ― and preparing to slug him.
While her Ki-enhanced attacks could even shatter steel, they were of little concern in the face of Ainz's levels. After reconfirming that the Evil Lord was the real danger, he turned his attention to the others.
Entoma was inside a house on the left side of the square. Lupusregina was in the square. Solution stood in front of her, like she was protecting her. CZ's location was unknown.
While not knowing a sniper's position was the worst possible scenario, the fact that the enemy was now dispersed was the best case for him.
Ainz snorted.
Though he knew that now was hardly a time to laugh, he could not resist the mirth welling up inside him.
Now this is interesting!
"Alright, now get out of my face. [Maximize Magic – Nuclear Blast]!"
"!!"
Before Ainz's eyes, the space between him and the Evil Lord flashed and swelled, consuming everything in an instant. Yuri was surprised, but that was only to be expected, because Ainz had been caught in it as well.
Using the ninth-tier spell [Nuclear Blast] as an attack was a questionable choice. It did composite damage ― half fire, half bludgeoning ― and it was one of the weaker ninth-tier spells in terms of damage.
Considering the Evil Lord of Wrath was immune to fire, this spell should not have even been considered for use. Even so, Ainz had his reasons for using this spell.
First of all, it had a very large area of effect. It was superior to almost all other spells in that respect. In addition, this spell also generated all kinds of negative status effects such as poisoning, blindness, deafness, and so on, but anything of the Evil Lord's level would be able to resist it with their raw statistics alone and the Pleiades' equipment ought to have made them immune to all these effects.
The main reason he had chosen this spell was because it also possessed a very powerful knockback effect.
Of course, Ainz would also be damaged by this spell. While friendly fire was off in Yggdrasil and so using a spell this recklessly would not be a problem, right now he would be hurting himself. Even if his magical defense was very high, there was no need for him to go out of the way to take damage to cast his spell.
Rather than act like a suicide bomber, he ought to have chosen another spell.
However, Ainz had already worked it out.
If he expended the [Body of Effulgent Beryl] spell to stop all the bludgeoning damage, the fire-elemental damage would also be negated, which would mean he would not be harmed. In addition, all those negative statuses were ineffective on the undead.
In other words, Ainz was undamaged by the spell.
If he completely resisted its damage, the knockback would not take effect either, and so Ainz was the only one left standing in the heart of the explosion.
"Hahah."
Ainz laughed. The feeling of everything going as planned was very refreshing, after all.
Ainz's aim was to blow the enemy away and tear the enemy formation to shreds.
For a moment, Ainz briefly imagined the guild members who had taught him various things ― including this tactic.
Both the earlier simulated battle and even this battle where failure meant death reminded Ainz of Yggdrasil, which made him strangely happy.
I've wondered about this before, but I don't think I'm a battle maniac…
"Come, it's not over yet. The battle's just beginning. I'll show you the strength that I nurtured with everyone."
Unleashing the fury of that ninth-tier spell meant that the surrounding buildings had all been swept away, and there was much more space all of a sudden.
That could not be helped. After all, this city had outlived its usefulness.
He could have widened the spell to try and catch CZ in the blast. However, Ainz was worried about the problems that might result from destroying too much of the city, so he had not done so. For all he knew, it might have been a mistake.
Forget it, let's leave it at that. What's left is―
Ainz looked in Lupusregina's direction. The enemy envelopment was in shambles.
Even with Aureole's buffs, they could not avoid the knockback, and Ainz could see the enemy hurriedly getting to their feet.
"That's about all the damage [Nuclear Blast] ought to be able to do, so―"
Ainz flew towards Lupusregina and cast [Reality Slash].
This time, he was not interrupted by CZ, and Lupusregina's body spurted a fountain of blood.
"[Widen Magic – Sharks Cyclone]."
An extra-large cyclone came into existence behind him, swallowing up Yuri and the Evil Lord. This was both to obscure Yuri and the Evil Lord's vision and also to buy Ainz time. In truth, Ainz had planned to create a cyclone before the [Nuclear Blast] to block their vision and then get rid of Yuri first, but after considering that the Evil Lord could probably break out of the spell easily, he decided not to go with that plan. Instead, he had decided to use it when the enemy was confused.
Ainz heard the sound of displaced stones as he saw Entoma push a pillar off herself while rising to her feet.
He had no idea where CZ was even now. Ideally, she would be pinned under a fallen house.
"He's coming here! Stop him!"
Solution shouted from her place in front of Lupusregina, but her voice could not reach the ears of Yuri and the Evil Lord, who were inside the cyclone. Yuri in particular was shifting desperately within the cyclone to avoid being blown away. While certain classes could use spells or special abilities to teleport or go incorporeal and thus escape the cyclone easily, she did not seem to possess such abilities.
And that would mean Yuri had focused on strengthening other things―
After reviewing this battle, they ought to understand what gear they need to have and what preparations they need to make, right? No, that's not it…
If they were the true Pleiades, they might have been able to deal with this better. They were simply Doppelgangers copying the Pleiades' abilities, after all.
It only made sense that they would lose out to the real deal in terms of combat skills.
As Ainz closed the distance and prepared to cast[Reality Slash], bugs fell from the sky one after the other. They were large transport insects with no combat ability. The objective of this action was simply to block Ainz's line of sight.
Such a use would not be possible in Yggdrasil. Even so, Entoma ― though actually a Doppelganger ― could use them in this way. Ainz gave thanks in his heart as he incanted a spell.
"[Greater Teleportation]."
After teleporting into the air and avoiding the rain of bugs, Ainz cast
[Twin Maximize Magic – Reality Slash].
Even if CZ had Ainz in his sights, the fact that her target had suddenly teleported into the air meant that she would lose him. After all, the weakness of the humanoid body was its inability to follow sudden up and down movement with the eyes.
That said, if he were facing an experienced shooter like Peroroncino, for example, they would be able to anticipate their opponent's movements, even in the vertical plane. Therefore, it was possible that one could not even escape with teleportation magic.
Peroroncino-san's aiming would have been like locking on to his target… CZ, you need to work hard to get on his level…
As he basked in the nostalgia, Ainz shouted:
"Lupusregina, out!"
Having to fight while keeping an eye on the HP of his opponents was very difficult. One could even call it a handicap. Therefore, if he was asked if Lupusregina's HP was really depleted, Ainz would not be able to reply with any confidence. Even so, he had to avoid any chance of killing Lupusregina because of a moment's carelessness.
She's a Doppelganger, so not only is she weaker than the original, but her HP isn't the same as the original Lupusregina's. Alright, now that I've taken out the enemy's magic caster, it's time to be a real bastard. [Perfect Unknowable].
While there were ways to discover Ainz after he had cast [Perfect Unknowable], without the aid of magic items, the only member of the Pleiades who could do it was Lupusregina, and the Evil Lord ought to be unable to detect him too. Therefore, it would probably be safe to say that they had no way to deal with this underhanded means of attack.
Since I've taken out the enemy healer, I should go search for CZ. Don't tell me she's burning up consumable items?
Personally, Ainz could not forgive wasting the wealth of Nazarick on a battle like this.
"Where is he?"
"He's gone! Is he using [Invisibility]?"
"I can find him if he's invisible! But he's not there!"
"Is this some other kind of invisibility?"
He could hear their confusion.
"You idiots! He's using [Perfect Unknowable]!"
"Lupusregina! You're cheating!" Ainz shouted, but thanks to [Perfect Unknowable], others could not hear him.
Ainz scratched his head.
The Evil Lord and Yuri seemed to have broken out of the cyclone, and they were now looking all around for Ainz. While the best option would have been to drop another [Nuclear Blast] on them, that might end up killing Lupusregina, so Ainz abandoned that notion. Instead, he descended and kept tabs on Yuri's position at the same time. After that, he compared the amount of HP Yuri was missing to that of the others, and verified that in addition to the bludgeoning damage, she had also taken fire damage from the earlier magical attack―
"[Triplet Maximize Magic – Vermilion Nova]!"
Ainz used the highest-level ― Super-Tier magic notwithstanding ― single target fire-element attack spell that he knew on Yuri.
It was only to be expected that there would be tenth-tier spells that could do fire-element damage.
For instance,[Stream of Lava],[Uriel], and the like. However, the use of those presented problems for Ainz.
First off, Ainz could not cast [Stream of Lava]. It was a divine spell which was only usable by a druid like Mare.
[Uriel], on the other hand, was a spell that could be learned by a magic caster of any type as long as the requirements to learn it were met, but it only did its listed damage when cast by a magic caster with a maxed-out positive karma value. Its damage decreased as one's karma value decreased, and for someone like Ainz, it would do less damage than a first-tier spell.
Therefore, this spell was Ainz's only choice when it came to usability.
Yuri's health dropped drastically.
"[Perfect Unknowable]."
"He disappeared again!"
"That's unfair!"
"If only Ainz-sama would fight us fair and square!"
No, no, you're in the wrong for not even thinking of a way around this.
"And besides, I have no idea where CZ is! You three never said anything about who was taking part in this battle! Now who's being unfair?!"
Ainz shouted, even though he knew the opposition could not hear him.
After coming to his senses, the Evil Lord charged at the place Ainz had been.
"Too bad, I'm not there anymore~"
Ainz had begun moving, so he was no longer there. However, he would still be within the area of effect if the Evil Lord decided to cast area-of-effect spells, but just as Ainz thought that, the Evil Lord suddenly changed direction and came straight at Ainz.
"Hah?"
Was he not invisible? That question was soon pounded out of existence by the pain he felt.
The Evil Lord sent Ainz flying back. Since he was much more serious than just now, Ainz found it hard to defend against or evade the attack. No, Ainz had been too relaxed ― he had not even thought of evading.
Fortunately, the [Fly] spell helped control his posture and spared him the ignominy of rolling across the ground. It was just like how it had been during the battle with Shalltear.
The Evil Lord jumped over, hot on Ainz's heels, and his line of sight was most definitely tracking Ainz's flight path.
…The Evil Lord of Wrath shouldn't have the ability to see through it… Ah, he used it! His trump card, [Soul-Bought Miracle]!
Inspired by stories of selling one's soul to the devil to fulfill one's wishes, this ability was truly miraculous. While he was not sure how the procedure worked, once one used this ability, one could use any one spell of under the eighth tier once.
Normally, when Evil Lords used this ability, they would almost always use healing spells ― that was an unwritten rule. However, this time he had probably used a spell to see through [Perfect Unknowable].
Ainz silently gave thanks that the Evil Lord had used the ability of which he was the most wary, even as he felt the pressing need to formulate a new battle plan.
As the Evil Lord closed in and punched him again, Ainz began to get worried.
While there was quite a large level difference between the two and he still had some room for laxity, he could not simply allow himself to continue getting beaten up like this.
"Cheh. Here, have some back. [Triplet Maximize Magic – Call Greater Thunder]."
High-level demons had very high elemental resistances. While their exact resistances varied between type, electricity was one of the more effective energy types against them. After taking three hits of a maximized-damage elemental attack spell, the Evil Lord's body trembled.
Ainz cast another spell.
"[Perfect Unknowable]."
"Cheeeeeap! Ainz-sama, you're so cheeeeeeap!"
"Ahhh, seriously!"
Entoma stomped in frustration, while Lupusregina rolled around on the ground. Solution was the only one who was surveying her surroundings with a razor-sharp gaze.
In theory, each individual mercenary vassal should have been identical, yet they had developed divergent personalities like this. Was it because they had copied the relationships between the members of the Pleiades? Or had their personalities changed over time? The Evil Lord before Ainz followed his movements closely and shouted:
"Here! Use area-of-effect attacks here, hit me with it too!"
Entoma did not hesitate, but breathed a black cloud from her mouth. It was her trump card, her [Fly Breath].
However, it was useless against Ainz, because that move did piercing damage.
In addition, Ainz was a skeleton; what would the flies eat? In the end, it only served to annoy the Evil Lord.
"Hey! It didn't work on him! It only works on me!"
"Eh?!"
Being able to copy an ability and use it well were two different things altogether. Surely the real Entoma would not have made such an amateur mistake.
"I don't have any area-of-effect attacks, how about you, Yuri-nee?"
"I've got this!"
Yuri gathered light between her palms.
The [Kibakushou] was a technique that acted as an anti-individual attack when it touched the enemy, but which became a spreading shockwave if it did not make contact. Naturally, as an attack intended for direct contact, it became very weak when dispersed. Since monks were a class focused on fighting individuals, they had very few area-of-effect attacks ― practically none, in fact ― therefore one could say that it was completely useless.
"There! He moved!"
"Here?"
Yuri launched her area-of-effect [Kibakushou] at the location where Ainz had been. Ainz wrinkled his brow ― despite having no brow ― as he saw this and reached a hand out.
"…No, no, you should have prioritized healing."
Yuri could have healed herself with her Ki.
After making his jab at Yuri, Ainz cast his spell. Needless to say, it was a spell that he already knew to be effective.
"[Twin Maximize Magic – Vermilion Nova]."
Having cast an attack spell, Ainz came into view. He looked at Yuri, who was wreathed in flames, and made a cold pronouncement.
"Yuri, out ―[Perfect Unknowable]."
Now then, things will get bad if I don't look for CZ in earnest. Having made that decision, Ainz began making a big detour as he kept an eye on the Evil Lord.
-x-X-x-
.