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4 Late Fire Moon (September) 10:31 PM
Around 1,300 feet above the royal capital… A party was flying across the sky, blending in with the stars. There were two casters who had used Fly, and directly behind them sat two others being pulled for a total of four.
One of the seated ones was a man wearing raven-black armor with large swords on his back. The other was a beautiful woman with a ponytail. It went without saying that it was Ainz and Narberal.
Early that morning, the two of them had been requested by name at the E-Rantel adventurers’ guild and taken on a job with the promise of an unprecedented reward. The client was Marquis Raeven. The official job was to guard the man’s house for a few days because it seemed like some kind of emergency was going to happen in the kingdom.
Ainz knew there was more to it than the “official” story because he’d heard the rest at the time of the request.
According to that discussion, the marquis was sending some soldiers to capture the facility of an underworld organization called the Eight Fingers, and he wanted Momon to fight as a member of that unit. In particular, he wanted him to handle the strongest enemies, known as the Six Arms.
Ainz couldn’t think of any reason to refuse the request.
In order to remain neutral, adventurers didn’t normally participate in country-level affairs. That was the unwritten rule. But Ainz appreciated that the man had prepared an official request so as to not cause trouble for the dark hero Momon despite the rule breaking, and more than anything, the compensation was droolworthy.
Ainz thought maybe he could take advantage of this windfall and relax a bit, so he negotiated up his fee while taking great care not to appear indecent, desperately hiding how attractive he found the job, and made a show of hesitancy but eventually accepted the request.
The only problem was that he had been asked to head for the royal capital with the utmost urgency.
In Yggdrasil, there had been teleportation stations here and there that would take players between different cities and countries, but in this world, there was nothing like that. On top of that, teleportation magic started at tier five, so according to the story Ainz had concocted for them, they couldn’t use it. They would never have made it within a day traveling by horse.
So how would they go? The ones who provided the answer to that question were casters who worked for Marquis Raeven.
They were able to bring Ainz and Narberal to the capital at high speed by combining a special flight spell that consumed more MP than usual with Floating Board.
How did they use that combination? It’s simple. Where the pair of adventurers was sitting tells the whole story.
They were atop the translucent platform created by Floating Board. Since the spell absorbed their weight, the casters could pull them without losing speed. That was how they’d come to the capital in a straight shot. The timing had still been unrealistic, though, and they arrived far later than planned.
So Ainz was a bit worried. Would they show up and learn their services were no longer necessary? Would they receive their compensation?
He’d been lured by the exceptionally huge reward, so of course the client wouldn’t want to pay such a sum to someone who hadn’t done any work. Ainz didn’t want to count his chickens before they’d hatched.
He sighed discreetly and prayed to something. He felt just like an employee of a company that wasn’t performing well would feel about their bonus.
May I please be paid my fee in full? I already know how I’m going to spend it.
Besides that, he was enjoying his first look at the capital, as well as the ride through the night. Unfortunately, it wasn’t really possible to enjoy a lit-up night view. Most of the capital was shrouded in darkness; there was not a pocket of cheer to be seen. Still, for Ainz, who could see in the dark, the experience satisfied his curiosity to some extent.
Taking in the scene with bizarre earnestness, he happened to catch sight of an unusual sparkle in a certain area.
He didn’t understand what was happening at first, but when the black flames climbed into the air, he recognized it as an emergency.
“Wait! Look at that! There it is again. Something’s flashing over there. Seems like magic.”
“…That does…seem to be magic…” The caster didn’t seem very confident when he looked in the direction Ainz was pointing, probably due to the distance and the fact that it was nighttime. For a normal human, it was difficult to tell.
“Huh? Is this sort of thing a daily occurrence in the capital? Or are you guys setting off fireworks to welcome us?”
The caster replied to Ainz’s joke with a straight face. “That location is one of the Eight Fingers bases we’re supposed to be raiding.”
“I see… I didn’t think we’d make it in time, but it looks like I’ll be able to be of some use after all.”
“Understood. I’ll take you that way.”
“Stop. It seems like someone is using some high-tier magic down there. If you guys get caught in the cross fire, you’ll be killed.”
Ainz looked away from the caster, whose face said, Then what are we supposed to do? and turned to Narberal. “Nabe, use Fly and carry me. Once we get close, I’ll give you a signal and you can drop me.”
“Understood.”
4 Late Fire Moon (September) 10:33 PM
From where Evileye stood, at the limits of her life, the black warrior’s question seemed idiotic, but she quickly reevaluated the situation. Considering how they were dressed, both sides should have appeared equally suspicious. It was a confrontation between two people who wore masks to hide their faces.
If she were in his position, it wouldn’t have been strange to go against her.
Evileye had an idea who the black warrior was and called out. “Dark Hero! I’m Evileye of the Blue Roses! I ask you as a fellow adamantite-rank adventurer, please help me!”
She realized her mistake as soon as she had shouted—her opponent’s advantage. Even if the adamantite-rank adventurer Momon helped her, what good would that do? Even for Evileye, victory was doubtful against this unfathomably powerful demon. He could join her, but it would only be like two pieces of paper standing to fight instead of one. Surely the gale-force wind would mow them down.
All her request could do was rob the life of this man who’d come to rescue her. What she should have shouted was a warning to flee. If she was going to have the impudence to request something of him, it should have been to gather the bodies of her fallen comrades and run away.
However—
“Got it.”
The man gave Evileye cover and confronted the demon.
Evileye gasped.
The moment he moved to protect her, it felt like an enormous rampart had appeared before her. Her heart filled with relief and calm.
The opposing demon slowly lowered his head. It was the deep, respectful bow a manservant might use toward a noble. There was no way he honestly felt respect, so it must have been feigned politeness, a demon’s sarcasm.
“Well, well, how good of you to come. First, may I ask your name? I am Jaldabaoth.”
Evileye heard the man’s voice murmur dubiously, “Jaldabaoth?” from beneath his raven-black helmet. And then, “That’s a weird name.”
She didn’t think it was strange, but she sifted through her knowledge of demons, and she wasn’t sure she had ever heard it before.
“Jaldabaoth? Okay. I’m Momon. As she mentioned earlier, I’m an adamantite-rank adventurer.”
Though the demon Jaldabaoth’s demeanor was unpleasant, the dark warrior Momon carried on the conversation with no change in attitude.
Aha! It was a glimpse of what a first-rate adventurer this man Momon was, how he was broad-minded enough to swallow any open contempt for his opponent in the name of extracting intelligence from him. Evileye was impressed.
At the same time, embarrassed by her rising emotions, she hid behind the edge of Momon’s crimson cape so as not to disru
pt the pair’s conversation.
She intended to help Momon fight, but she had a feeling she might get in his way.
The two of them didn’t appear to be paying attention to her at all, and their breathtaking battle of information continued while she changed positions.
“I see. And might I inquire as to what brings you here?”
“A request. I was summoned by a noble on the pretext of guarding his home, but…I noticed your fight here as I was flying over the capital. I realized there was some emergency and came down.”
The noble must have been Marquis Raeven. So he’s summoned an adamantite-rank adventurer to the capital now? She guessed that he meant to have Momon participate in the struggle against the Eight Fingers as much as he could without breaking the adventurers’ guild’s unwritten law of nonintervention in human matters.
“What’s your objective?”
“It seems a magic item with the power to summon and control our kind has ended up in this city. I’ve come to collect it.”
“So if we offer you the item, the problem will be solved?”
“No, that won’t be possible. I’m afraid that, as enemies, we must do battle.”
“That’s your conclusion, De— Jaldabaoth? There’s no path forward but as enemies?”
“No, as you say, we must be adversaries.”
Evileye felt like something was off and cocked her head.
Rather than waging an information battle, they seemed to be simply exchanging intelligence, but she decided that couldn’t be true.
“I think I’ve got the general picture. In that case, I’ll go ahead and defeat you. You don’t have a problem with that, right?” Momon slowly spread his arms. The huge swords, extensions of himself, gleamed.
“Oh, but I do. I’ll go ahead and resist.”
“Here I come!”
He charged. No, it was more correct to say that she had the feeling he charged. At some point, Momon, who had been standing in front of her, was clashing with Jaldabaoth.
The level of combat was such that Evileye couldn’t even describe what was happening.
Momon’s blades flashed innumerable times, and Jaldabaoth deflected them with his long nails.
“Amazing…”
There were any number of words she could have chosen for an accolade, but seeing his glittering sword, she chose the one that was simplest and most honest.
His slices surpassed those of any warrior in her memory. He was like a warrior who slashed through evil and the darkness enveloping the world right along with it.
She even fancied that she had become one of the princesses from the songs of the bards. The image of a dashing knight coming to save her overlapped with the dark warrior before her.
Something like an electric shock passed through the muscles between her legs, and she trembled slightly.
She sensed that her heart, static these two hundred and fifty years, had leaped.
She put a hand to her small chest, but just as she thought, like that time before, there was no movement. Still, it couldn’t have been her imagination.
“…You can do it, Sir Momon.” She folded her hands to make a wish—that her knight would claim victory over the terrible demon.
With a ker-bang that sounded nothing like an impact on flesh, Jaldabaoth was knocked way back. He didn’t fall but slid over the cobblestones in a way that suggested the soles of his shoes were worn down. After retreating several yards, he brushed the dirt from his clothes.
“Magnificent. It may be that my one mistake was facing a genius warrior like you.”
Momon thrust the sword in one of his hands into the cobblestones with a ker-shing. He rotated his arm to work out the knots in his neck and replied in an even tone, “Spare me the flattery. You’re probably still concealing plenty of power.”
Evileye’s eyes bulged.
The idea that they hadn’t been fighting all out was far beyond common sense.
“Is he a…demigod?”
Now and then, one among those with blood of the beings known as Players awakened to immense power. In the theocracy, they were known as demigods. No, to be more accurate, someone recognized to have blood of one of the six great gods was a demigod, and there was another word for someone who had other Player blood. In any case, there was a chance Momon had Player blood—without it, there was no way a person could possess so much power.
“No, no, I can’t win against you, Lo— Mr. Momon, was it?”
“That’s right, Jaldabaoth. My name is Momon.”
“Understood. Then here I come! Demon Aspect: Tentacle Wings!”
Wings grew out of Jaldabaoth’s back. Instead of feathers covering them, however, there were flat, abnormally long tentacles. He spoke kindly to Momon, who was on guard in a fighting stance.
“You are strong. Truly strong. I have no doubt you are stronger than me. So although I’d rather not, I’m going to resort to this. I’m sure you can protect yourself if you switch to defense, but in that case, you had better give up on saving the small fry behind you. I suggest taking care of yourself.”
The moment he finished speaking, the flat, thin tentacles stretched forward with the force of projectiles. The tips were extremely sharp and could probably pierce human flesh and bone alike with no trouble.
Although Evileye saw the wings closing in around her at high speed, there was nothing she could do. She didn’t even have enough magical energy left to create a barrier with something like Crystal Wall. All she could do was duck and hope for a stroke of luck.
The next moment, however, she learned that she had still underestimated the dark warrior.
After hearing a hard clang, she looked up and saw a solid shield.
The feather tentacles, cut to ribbons, fell to the ground. They might have been able to slice up humans, but in this state, they were so beautiful.
“I’m glad you’re safe.”
The man’s unconcerned voice… It sounded so normal, it was hard to believe he had just swung his one-handed sword fast enough to intercept all the approaching feather tentacles. He wasn’t even out of breath.
“A-ah! Ahhh! Your shoulder! Are you okay?!”
One of the ribbons was sticking to Momon’s shoulder. It had been severed afterward, so it hung limply, almost like a decoration on his armor.
“I’m fine. This is nothing to worry about. More importantly, I’m relieved that you seem all right.” He laughed a bit.
Evileye sensed her heart beat once more in her breast. Her face was awfully hot. It felt like her mask was heating up.
“Magnificent. That you were able to keep her perfectly safe from harm is simply… I, Jaldabaoth, offer you my humble praise. You are truly magnificent.”
“Cut out the brownnosing. More importantly, Jaldabaoth…why are you so far away?”
As Momon spoke, he reached out toward Evileye and scooped her up.
“!”
Her unbeating heart practically leaped out of her chest. The bards’ stories she’d always ridiculed were playing over and over in her head. She recalled in particular the scenes where the knights fought while carrying a princess in one arm. Common sense said that when facing a powerful enemy, taking along such a burden was idiotic. And yet—
I’m sorry, bards of the world! A real knight does carry a princess of a tender age while fighting to protect her! Omigosh! What’s going on? I’m so embarrassed!
But Evileye’s delight swiftly fizzled. Her dream was to be cradled. But in reality—
“This is…”
—he held her like a piece of luggage, tucked under his left arm. No, surely this was the correct way to do it. Evileye was a bit smaller than the average adult woman. From a balance standpoint, too, the core was the most stable part of the body, so this made the most sense.
She knew she was in no position to complain. In fact, she was still full of hatred that her friends had been killed. She knew full well she didn’t have time to think about these silly things. Still, she couldn’t
completely suppress the discontent that rose in a corner of her mind.
Evileye wondered if it wouldn’t be easier on him if she clung to him as well, but she wasn’t confident that she could hang on if they got caught up in anther high-speed exchange like what she’d witnessed before, so she didn’t say anything.
Another bout seemed ready to begin, and she looked at Jaldabaoth and Momon. There was more space between them than before, but for a warrior at the limits of possibility and a super-high-level demon, it was probably only a step.
“I think it’s about time we got started?”
“No, I will take the liberty of withdrawing. As I mentioned before, our objective is not to defeat you. I shall soon wrap part of the royal capital in flames. If you insist on intruding, I guarantee the fires of purgatory will send you to the next world.”
With that, Jaldabaoth turned his back and ran away. Although he didn’t seem to be sprinting, the distance between them increased rapidly, and he melted into the night almost immediately.
“O-oh no, Sir Momon. Hurry, we have to slay him!” Evileye gasped in a panic before they lost sight of him, but Momon shook his head.
“We can’t. He chose retreat to execute his plan. If we chased him, he’d probably start to fight in earnest. And then…”
Momon went silent, but Evileye knew the rest. And then you’ll get caught up in the battle and die. That was probably what he was going to say. Even if he had left her here and gone after him, that nasty demon would have threatened her as well with his attacks.
Momon had protected her earlier, so her value as a hostage was clear.
Unable to be of any use to the man who had saved her life, she berated herself. I talked so high and mighty to Climb, but this is all I’m capable of? Despicable.
“Okay, Nabe. What do you think we should do now?”
As if in answer to his question, a woman floated slowly down out of the sky. Evileye knew he had a caster with the nickname Beautiful Princess on his team. In her head, she’d once laughed, Isn’t that name embarrassing? Upon seeing her, however, her breath caught.
She was so lovely. Evileye couldn’t help but stare—she must have had foreign blood from a southern country in her.
The Men of the Kingdom Part II Page 17
