In the pitch-black night, the once stone-paved ground was now covered with corpses. A constant stream of blood flowed along the gutters into the sewers. The pungent smell of blood filled the air, and incessant wails echoed through the night sky.
Suddenly!
In front of a dilapidated house on the street, a girl dressed in a flamboyant, bright red Gothic dress stopped. A faint smile adorned her delicate and lovely face as she pushed open the old wooden door.
“Excuse me, may I come in?”
After saying that, Shalltear gracefully stepped into the room. The dimly lit, old room didn't have much furniture; it could be described as bare. However, Shalltear didn't care at all, maintaining the smile on her face as she walked to the wooden bed in the corner of the room.
Her petite body crouched down slightly, and she gently reached out to pull back the bed sheet. Lowering her head, she looked under the bed. In the darkness, two pairs of eyes filled with fear stared intently at her.
“Hello there.”
Looking at the terrified gazes of the two people under the bed, Shalltear's lips curled slightly, and she waved at them in greeting.
Across from her, the two hiding under the bed were also taken aback by Shalltear's sudden greeting. Especially when they saw Shalltear's exquisite face and friendly smile, the two little ones subconsciously relaxed a little.
Crack!
Suddenly, a crisp sound like bones colliding came from the doorway. The two little ones hiding under the bed instantly became tense. In Shalltear's surprised gaze, the older of the two children actually reached out and grabbed her arm, forcefully tugging her towards the bed, trying to pull her in.
However, how could the strength of ordinary humans move Shalltear, who was a True Ancestor of vampires? No matter how hard the figure under the bed pulled, Shalltear remained motionless, squatting there.
“Come in quickly, or you'll be killed by those monsters outside!”
“Sister, come in quickly, it's dangerous outside!”
At this moment, the girl inside, seeing that she couldn't pull Shalltear in, said softly, suppressing her voice. At the same time, the hand dragging Shalltear's arm became even more forceful. A childlike voice also urged Shalltear, even risking her little head from under the bed, smiling at Shalltear to show that they were good people.
“Then can you tell me, sister, why are you hiding here?”
Shalltear looked at the young, dirty little face in front of her, her crimson pupils carrying a strange light as she asked. At the same time, she secretly ordered the undead creatures approaching to leave.
“Of course, it's because there are monsters outside, everyone is dead, and we don't want to die.”
Faced with Shalltear's question, the young and innocent little one spoke seriously. Especially when she thought of the scene she had seen before hiding, a bully who used to bully them was easily torn apart by those monsters, and his shrill screams could be heard several streets away.
“I don't want to die like that, it hurts too much, I'm afraid of pain.”
Saying this, the innocent little one even looked at Shalltear with a solemn expression, and then used a small hand to vividly describe the scene she had seen before, she didn't want to become like that.
“So that's how it is, so you're hiding here?”
“Yes, yes, so sister, you come in quickly too, otherwise those monsters will come.”
The little one nodded vigorously, and then skillfully retracted her little head under the bed, shrinking her small body into the corner again, forcibly squeezing out a space that could accommodate Shalltear in the already small space.
“What a lovely child.”
Suddenly, a dignified voice filled the dim room, and then a tall figure walked in. A hideous and terrifying skull face looked at Shalltear with a hint of a smile. The newcomer was none other than Ainz Ooal Gown, the Supreme Being of the Great Tomb of Nazarick.
Just a few minutes ago, Ainz Ooal Gown suddenly noticed that Shalltear's aura had been lingering in a certain location in the royal capital, and after a few minutes, there was no sign of movement at all. Instantly, Ainz Ooal Gown imagined a series of situations in his mind where Shalltear encountered danger.
He hurriedly brought several World Items and rushed over, but he didn't expect to see such a scene when he walked in.
“Ainz-sama, why are you here?”
Shalltear turned her head and looked curiously at the suddenly appearing Ainz-sama. According to the original plan, shouldn't Ainz-sama have already gone to the royal palace of this kingdom to check the place where the demonic aura that attacked Ainz-sama remained, and by the way, eliminate the last royal princess of this kingdom, Renner?
“Ahem... cough... well... this time is an important moment for the Great Tomb of Nazarick to announce its existence to the world. As one of the Floor Guardians, Shalltear, you must also be present, so I came to pick you up.”
Faced with Shalltear's question, Ainz Ooal Gown looked around guiltily, and then learned something he had seen in a book, forcibly pretending to be serious as he started to spout nonsense to Shalltear.
After all, Ainz Ooal Gown couldn't tell Shalltear that he had sensed that her aura hadn't moved for several minutes, so he directly brought several World Items and came, and by the way, he had ambushed tens of thousands of undead troops and three Floor Guardians outside.
Thinking that letting Shalltear know that he had done such a thing would definitely cause a misunderstanding of the image of the great and supreme Supreme Being in her heart, so in order to protect Shalltear's heart, Ainz Ooal Gown started to make up nonsense on the spot.
“So that's how it is, as expected of Ainz-sama, whose wisdom is as endless as the abyss, I understand!”
But before Shalltear could reply, Demiurge, who was lying in ambush outside, couldn't help but jump out after hearing Ainz Ooal Gown's words. His face was full of excitement and admiration as he looked at Ainz Ooal Gown. Looking at that serious and steady expression, coupled with what Ainz-sama had said before.
At this moment, Demiurge completely understood that all of this was in Ainz-sama's plan. Compared to Ainz-sama, his little wisdom was simply not worth mentioning. He truly deserved to be the great Supreme Being.
“Ah... uh... um, Demiurge, you're right, it's good that you understand.”
Ainz Ooal Gown looked at Demiurge in front of him expressionlessly and nodded, as if he finally understood what he meant, but in reality, Ainz Ooal Gown's mind was full of who am I, what did I say, what did you understand?
“As expected of the great Supreme Being, sure enough, you must have understood this matter long ago.”
Across from him, Demiurge, after receiving affirmation from Ainz Ooal Gown, raised his hand and pushed his glasses with a confident smile. His cold and cruel gaze inadvertently glanced at the old wooden bed in the corner of the room, as if he saw the two humans hiding under the bed trembling at this moment.
Sure enough, his plan must have been seen through by Ainz-sama, whose wisdom is like the sea, but he didn't say it, just silently watched him.
Thinking of this, Demiurge felt his entire demon was energized, and a motivated heart drove him to stride forward and directly overturn the wooden bed, exposing the two human girls hiding underneath.
“Ainz-sama, please look, this is my recent achievement.”
As he spoke, Demiurge gently waved his hand, completely immobilizing the two girls' bodies, then sent them flying in front of Ainz Ooal Gown. Their only mobile eyes were filled with fear as they looked at the terrifying and dreadful Supreme Undead before them.
However, the youngest of the two was still looking at Shalltear behind Ainz Ooal Gown with worried eyes, repeatedly gesturing for Shalltear to run away. The innocent little one hadn't realized that the beautiful, princess-like older sister in her eyes was actually one of the monsters, and a high-ranking boss-level one at that.
“Demiurge, well done.”
“Yes!”
Looking at the two girls suspended in mid-air, Ainz Ooal Gown was completely baffled by what Demiurge was doing, unable to understand what Demiurge wanted to say, but he still forced himself to pretend he understood and praised Demiurge.
“Demiurge, what exactly do you want to do?”
Shalltear, who had been utterly confused since the beginning, stepped forward and curiously looked at Demiurge, then carefully scrutinized the two humans in front of her, unable to see anything noteworthy about them.
As for sympathy, Shalltear, being a monster, simply didn't possess such a thing. Playing with the two little girls for a few minutes earlier was just out of curiosity and amusement, like how humans find young piglets cute, but it doesn't stop them from eating delicious cooked pork chops.
“Of course, it's to make these two-legged sheep contribute everything they have to the Great Tomb of Nazarick.”
Demiurge pushed up his glasses and spoke with a smile. He had deliberately left these two humans alive, otherwise, with the undead's keen senses towards the living, how could these two hiding under the bed have survived until now?
Moreover, there were many others like these two in the royal capital at this moment, and Demiurge did this to make these humans he deliberately spared wait in endless despair and fear until they reached their limit and died.
As for why Demiurge did this, it was simply because he discovered that humans who died in despair and fear, when used to make magical items, inherently contained a large amount of curses and negative energy, making them a very good material.
“Well done, Demiurge.”
At this moment, Ainz Ooal Gown, finally understanding what Demiurge wanted to do, couldn't help but internally criticize Demiurge for being so cruel, truly a genuine demon, but that was all. As for stopping Demiurge's plan...
Sorry, Ainz Ooal Gown never had such an idea. After all, what Demiurge was doing was beneficial to the Great Tomb of Nazarick, and as long as it was beneficial to the Great Tomb of Nazarick, Ainz Ooal Gown had absolutely no reason to stop it.
“By the way, Demiurge, will letting them die without pain affect the quality of the materials?”
The next moment, Ainz Ooal Gown remembered what the young girl in front of him had said to Shalltear when he entered the room earlier, turned his head to look at Shalltear behind him, then raised his hand and gently stroked the little one's head, asking.
“It doesn't affect it too much. After all, before death, their bodies and souls were already filled with endless fear and despair. Whether they are in pain before death is no longer important.”
“Well, then, as the ruler of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, Ainz Ooal Gown, I grant them mercy. Demiurge, let them die without pain.”
After speaking, a gentle smile appeared on Ainz Ooal Gown's hideous skull face. As a response to the two humans' kind actions towards Shalltear earlier, he had to reciprocate. As a reward, he would grant them a painless death, which was already the greatest mercy for Ainz Ooal Gown, who was the Supreme Undead.
“Yes! Ainz-sama.”
Demiurge pushed up his glasses and nodded with a smile. He would absolutely obey the orders of the great Supreme Beings, especially those of Ainz-sama, whose wisdom far surpassed his own.
“Then, it's time to go to the royal palace.”
After receiving Demiurge's reply, Ainz Ooal Gown strode towards the outside. After leaving the room, Ainz Ooal Gown raised his head and looked into the distance, where the royal palace, the symbol of this kingdom's power center, was located, and where the remnants of the demons who attacked him were also present.
Clap!
Suddenly, the sound of a wooden door closing came from behind Ainz Ooal Gown. Shalltear and Demiurge silently walked to his side. At this moment, Ainz Ooal Gown noticed the traces of blood remaining on Shalltear's fingertips.
“Let's go.”
With Ainz Ooal Gown's order, the two guardians hiding in the shadows, Albedo and Cocytus, emerged and began to advance towards the royal palace. At the back of the group, Shalltear turned her head to look at the dilapidated wooden house behind her. As an act of mercy, she had personally ended the lives of the two humans just now, without any pain throughout the entire process.
“Demiurge, also remember to clean up all the spoils of war afterward. As victors, we have a responsibility to completely dispose of them without wasting a single bit.”
“Yes, Ainz-sama.”
Demiurge nodded with a smile. He had already completed the allocation of all the spoils of war, ensuring that there would be no waste. The skin would be used as material for making magic scrolls, the meat would become nourishment for the Horror's offspring, the internal organs would be... In short, there would be absolutely no waste.
At the same time, in the highest room of the royal palace, Yusa and Princess Renner were still silently standing there. Whether it was the undead under Ainz Ooal Gown invading the royal capital, killing and slaughtering the residents of the royal capital, or the many guards and nobles and residents who had fled to the royal palace, indulging themselves in a final frenzy under the fear of death, resulting in large-scale infighting.
They were all silently watching all of this, without any intention of stopping it, as if they were just recorders documenting everything.
“Yusa-sama, Renner-sama, it's time to leave.”
At this moment, the shadows in the corner of the room began to distort, and a member of Eight Fingers who had become a deviant walked out from within, kneeling on the ground and slowly speaking to the backs of the two.
“Yes, also, is the thing I asked you to prepare ready?”
“It's already been brought.”
As he spoke, the Eight Fingers member reached into the darkness, and then two figures were dragged out from within. Upon closer inspection, it could be seen that both their clothing and appearance were exactly the same as Princess Renner and Climb.
