'There's no way for me to win against Cocytus in a fair match, but this is just to entertain the twins. This armor, however, may twist the odds just a little.'
"This should be just the right distance, Cocytus. You know I can't cast spells like this, so don't go too hard on me." The Overlord gave off a light chuckle in the end.
"Nonsense. Lord. Ainz. I. Am. Sure. With. Enough. Training. You. Could. Surpass. Me. Even. Without. Spells."
'I'm not lying, Cocytus! Don't think so highly of me when I don't even have Warrior skills!'
"Fine, I hope I can meet your expectations one day. Aura! Announce the time the match starts."
The Overlord and the Vermin Lord stood on opposite ends of the arena, the dark elf twins eagerly awaiting for the first move. Aura nodded at Ainz's proposal and picked up her bow, 'To Your Heart──' and aimed up high.
As soon as she releases the string, the flying lightning will begin the fight.
Twelve seconds
Mare lifted his head up, trying not to let his excitement show so much.
Nine seconds
Aura held her breath, listening to her increasing heartbeat
Six seconds
Cocytus exhaled a wave of frost, tightening his hold on 'Decapitation Fang'.
Three.
Two.
One.
"Start!"
The lightning struck out.
'Alright Ainz, just follow what you learned!'
"[Piercing Icicles]!"
Cocytus raised his two unoccupied arms while still holding a defensive position with his halberd.
'So that's how it is. My win condition is getting close to him.'
Ainz had the advantage against the frozen daggers heading in his direction as he released his stance, almost perfectly mimicking what he learned and practiced from Clementine.
'Piercing and Ice damage won't do much for me, but I still need to keep my guard up!'
The Overlord dashed forth, letting the World-Champion armor tank the hitpoints he couldn't wave through. Facing such an unstoppable object like Cocytus, he had to think how to approach the fight from the two sides.
'If I was Cocytus, I would summon [Acalantha] to hold me off while trying to stagger me with his combo skills. He would just need to catch me off-guard once to finish me off with one of his execution strikes, and I'd be dead. Of course, I would be using my summons in a real fight, so I guess I'll just have to fight like a warrior from this world!'
Cocytus took a step forward, possibly gauging for an opening in his lord's attack. When Ainz was at the right distance for a dash, he began another assault.
"[Self-Enhancement], [Cutting Wind]!"
A wave of slicing air reminiscent of [Reality Slash] shot towards Ainz. Tanking the hit even with his resistances could be risky, as the enhancement ability could cause a stagger, but…
'I'm too close to him now! If I try to dodge towards him he will sweep at me or try to hold me up with his Halberd, I have to strike now!'
Ainz took a lunge upwards, charging a triumphant strike instead of shooting straight forward. The [Cutting Wind] hit his legs, but he still held enough momentum to dive towards his target.
Clash!
Ainz held his body still in the air, Cocytus raised the halberd just in time to parry the massive scimitar, sending sparks of electricity around the two level 100 beings!
The Twins couldn't contain their excitement any more, Aura stood up from the crowd seats and began cheering on for Lord Ainz, swinging her arms up in excitement, while Mare watched intently waiting for Cocytus' response. He knew with all reason the Vermin Lord is one of the strongest warriors of the Tomb, but deep inside, he knew better.
'Lord Ainz's strength goes beyond all degrees of reason, after all.'
The Overlord and the Vermin Lord stared each other down, both maintaining this parry. Cocytus was ready to pull his other blade to continue his strikes, but Ainz held his assault forward.
"Now! [Ability Release]!"
"Graaagh!"
Cocytus groaned in real pain as the divine lightning erupted from the Overlord's blade, it coursed from it to his own halberd, continuing dealing damage until it reached below the crust of his exoskeleton.
'It will be a while before the cooldown for this recharges, I need to finish him off now!"
Ainz held the scimitar back in a powerful swing, readying a sword thrust to cut through Cocytus defenses. It was his best shot at landing a winning blow.
But the Vermin Lord refused to give in.
"[Ice Pillar]!"
A wall of mythical-grade permafrost ice erupted between the sword strike and the frozen god. The sword was strong enough to cut through it, but not shatter it completely. Ainz was wide open right now.
'Crap, this is not good!'
He tried to pull the sword back but his struggles were futile as Cocytus was already following up the strike.
"[Acalanātha Strike]" Invoking the wrath of the god of fury, Cocytus swung his halberd with the might of a meteor strike, shattering the barrier instantly and making contact with the Overlord. Even the World-Champion armor wasn't strong enough to withstand the full-force of the assault, wrecking Ainz with enough blunt force to give significant damage.
Before Ainz could even recover, Cocytus continued.
"[Ice Pillar]!" Below where Ainz would have landed, another massive pillar of frost emerged, punching and carrying the Overlord to the skies of the arena. Ainz would be hard pressed to counteract another blow if Cocytus continued.
'Wow, has he been training behind my back too?'
The Overlord barely managed to land still, back to relatively the same position he was when the battle started. Cocytus returned to his defensive stance, leaving Ainz very out of options for his current get-up.
Ainz finally sighed, holding the scimitar to the ground like Touch-Me would often do in his poses.
"You've done amazingly, Cocytus! I'm afraid there's not much I can do to continue this battle now, it would only lead to the same outcome." Ainz clapped his bony hands as he praised him.
'It's the truth. Even if I wait him out until the [Ability Release] cooldown ends, we would just be doing the same dance every clash we struck."
"Your. Words. Honor. Me. Lord. Ainz. You. Fought. With. Admirable. Strength." The Insect Lord exhaled after responding with nothing but truth and pride. He was the pinnacle of honor.
"I have to commend you for using [Ice Pillar] offensively, I didn't account for the possibility of using a defensive move like that. You have truly impressed me." Ainz's praise was genuine. 'The bludgeoning from those pillars hit for a lot, too…'
"My. Lord. Your. Attacks. Were. The. Thing. That. Pushed. Me. To. Think. That. Way. I. Don't. Think. I. Took. So. Much. Damage. In. This. World. As. With. That. Strike. You. Delivered. I. Am. Truly. Honored. To. Fight. You. In. Your. Peak."
"Yeah Lord Ainz, that was amazing!" A whistle in the wind could be heard as Aura leaped from the grandstand to the middle of the arena, Mare following timidly behind. "You hit Cocytus like lightning!"
"T-That's true! It w-was very impressive, Ainz-Sama!"
"Ho-oh, I am glad to have put up a good show for you! It couldn't have been done without Cocytus too."
"It. Was. A. Fantastic. Match."
The Overlord finally gave a sigh of relief. It had been a while since he last trained with Cocytus, but this was the closest he had to a real match in this form. 'Learning to move and fight like a warrior is one thing, but the lack of abilities really puts me in a handicap…'
"Well, it's about time I change out from this, I wouldn't want Touch-Me to get too jealous I'm getting fame from his armor."
"W-Wait, Lord Ainz!" Aura suddenly jumped and held her arms up for the Overlord, trying to call his attention.
"Humm? What is it?"
Before Ainz could think further, Mare too had walked up below him and looked him up with expectant eyes.
"Ah, I see how it is. You must want to see it from up close." The Overlord scooped up the twins and let them sit in the broad shoulders of the armor, much to their content.
"Wow! I didn't think I'd ever be so close to this. You're amazing for being able to wear this, Ainz-Sama!"
"S-Sis is saying the truth. You really are the strongest, Ainz-Sama!"
Ainz gave a hearty chuckle. "If you say so, I guess I'll have to agree with it." He would walk around the Amphitheater for a while, just letting the twins have a bit more fun before he left the floor.
Cocytus just exhaled another satisfied breath of frost as he watched the trio wander off. Maybe his lord would let him carry his child on his shoulders one day, but for now, he was content with writing to heart the tale of the most important battle he fought yet.
'Did I do well, Yamaiko-San? I hope seeing the Twins happy like this is enough for you...'