The first thing Ainz noticed was the sky.
It was vast, open, and bathed in a vivid shade of orange, filled with long, drifting clouds caught in the warm light of dusk. A second ago, he had been sitting upon his throne deep within the underground tombs of Nazarick. Now, cool wild grass pressed against his bare, bony feet, and the rich, crisp scent of autumn leaves filled the air. Towering above him—so colossal that he had to tilt his skull far back to even glimpse its distant canopy—was an enormous tree glowing with a soft, pulsing green fire.
The second thing he noticed was that four total strangers were staring right at him.
The third was that one of them stood in front of a giant glowing egg made of cracked, crystalline stone. She had long white hair, striking red eyes, swept-back golden horns, and a magnificent pair of snow-white feathered wings. Dressed in ornate combat robes, she looked for all the world like the final boss of an endgame raid.
Who is that? Ainz thought, his mind racing into immediate overload. Why does she look so immensely powerful? Where on earth is this?
Before the panic could completely overwhelm him, the green, cool wave of his emotional suppression rolled through his mind, instantly flattening the spike of terror into a cold, eerie stillness. He straightened his spine, let his dark, oppressive aura flare around his body in a slow, rolling cloud of purplish-black fog, and lifted his chin with regal composure.
At his shoulder, Albedo had already reacted. Her dark, feathery wings unfolded with a sharp snap, and she raised her long, gleaming halberd. "Lord Ainz," she purred in a low, dangerous voice that dripped with malice. "Intruders. Shall I eliminate them immediately?"
"Lord Ainz, grant me the honor," Shalltear added, stepping forward with her blood-red spear leveled directly at the white-winged woman. "I shall skewer them all before they can draw another breath."
"No," Ainz said.
It came out far too softly—barely a raspy whisper. The four strangers across the clearing frowned, shifting their stances. His two Floor Guardians froze instantly in place.
Oh no, Ainz thought, a cold sweat failing to manifest on his bare skull. I said it too quietly! Now they think this is part of some grand, complex scheme!
He was entirely right. Albedo's golden eyes widened in utter admiration. "Of course," she murmured reverently. "Lord Ainz wishes to observe their capabilities first."
I do NOT wish to observe, Ainz screamed internally. I wish to turn around, go home to Nazarick, and sit down on a very soft chair!
Across the clearing, the winged woman watched the dark aura roiling around the skeleton, then glanced down at the frost spreading under her feet, and finally looked him dead in the eye-sockets.
"That's a nice effect," Leah said, her voice smooth and unbothered. "Is it a passive?"
A passive.
She had used the word "passive."
Ainz's skull practically creaked with shock. Nobody in this strange world used terms like that. It was gamer slang—a specific word you only knew if you had spent a massive, unhealthy portion of your youth staring at a glowing monitor and reading patch notes.
She's like me, Ainz realized, his mind reeling.
And right behind that realization, a second, far colder thought struck him:
She's like me, she looks incredibly high-level, and I have no idea what she wants.
Leah, meanwhile, had learned long ago in her own gaming days that a top-tier player never lets an opponent see her sweat. So she stood perfectly still in the amber light of the clearing, the cracked Philosopher's Egg glowing behind her back like a miniature sun, using every available second to gauge the terrifying skeletal figure in the ornate black robes.
"Appraisal," she muttered under her breath, activating her assessment UI.
A simple semi-transparent window popped up before her eyes, displaying three stark question marks:
???
She blinked, cast it again, and got the exact same result.
"Lyla," Leah said quietly, without moving her head an inch. "Can you read his stats?"
"No," Lyla replied from behind her. Her voice had completely lost its usual playful, teasing edge. "All I get are question marks. In all my time playing, I've never seen that happen."
"Neither have I," Leah admitted.
"Oh, that's so cool!" Blanc whispered, bouncing on her toes with wide eyes. "A real skeleton boss! He's like a super-skeleton king!"
"Blanc," Lyla warned sharply, "please be quiet right now."
"Sorry..."
[Link] Sugaru: Boss. The two heavily armed figures beside him are also completely beyond my measure. If this escalates into a fight, I may not be able to guarantee your protection. But I will fight to my last breath.
[Link] Leah: Understood. Stay behind me. Do not engage under any circumstances unless I give the word.
[Link] Sugaru: As you command, Boss.
Leah took mental stock of the situation the way she always did prior to an endgame encounter, noting three critical details.
First, the skeleton’s guards were exceptionally well-trained. The succubus held her halberd with flawless, lethal form, and the silver-haired vampire hadn't twitched a muscle without a direct command.
Second, the skeleton had already cast a spell. A subtle, translucent shimmer of magic lingering like heat haze around his bony hand.
He's pre-buffing, Leah thought, her jaw tightening. He expects an immediate engagement.
Third—and this was the detail that made her pulse spike—his passive aura was making her skin crawl. She had spent weeks becoming the Queen of Destruction, a boss-level entity that made entire guilds scatter. She knew what a high-level presence felt like. His was worse.
He's stronger than me, she realized grimly. He's significantly stronger than me. If this goes wrong, we're all dead.
She did not know that the faint magic shimmering around his hand was actually a nervous twitch. She did not know that the skeletal Overlord across the grass was staring at her and panicking internally, repeating: Please don't attack me, please don't attack me...
So Leah did what any veteran player facing an unknown raid boss would do: she assumed the worst and immediately prepared her defenses. She activated [Dark Carapace], converting any incoming LP damage into MP consumption. Next, she raised [Dark Aegis], letting a thin, humming barrier of dark purple force envelop her frame. Finally, she flared her white wings wide, lifted her chin, and spoke in her most commanding, regal tone.
"I am Leah, the Queen of Destruction," her voice echoed across the clearing. "This forest is under my domain. State your name and your purpose here!"
Behind her, Blanc whispered softly, "Oh good, she's doing her epic boss voice."
"Hush, Blanc!" Lyla hissed back.
It might have ended right then and there. Two powerful players using high-level bluffing tactics, exchanging formal warnings, coming to a peaceful understanding, and going their separate ways.
It did not end there, entirely because of Blanc.
"Hi!" Blanc yelled, stepping right out from behind Leah with a massive, friendly beam. She waved enthusiastically at the tall skeleton in the black robes. "Wow, you look so awesome! I'm Blanc! I used to be a skeleton too, before I got reborn! Do you want to meet Burgundy?"
"Blanc, don't move!" Lyla warned sharply, reaching out to grab her shoulder.
"He's super friendly, I promise!"
"Blanc!"
It was far too late. Behind Blanc, the ground rumbled as a mound of bleached white bones exploded out of the grass. A massive, three-headed skeletal construct with grinning animal skulls and a clattering spine lumbered forward with jovial energy. Puffs of bone-dust flew from its jaws as it happily thrust all three of its terrifying skulls directly into the face of the Overlord of Nazarick.
Shalltear, who had been practically vibrating while waiting for any excuse to strike, instantly seized the moment.
"You dare approach Lord Ainz, you filthy mongrel?!" Shalltear screamed.
A crimson spear of concentrated blood-magic tore through the air, striking the earth a fraction of an inch from Burgundy's front leg. The ground detonated in a fountain of dirt and black smoke.
"Burgundy!" Blanc shrieked in horror. "Back, back, back!"
Leah moved purely on instinct. Having already activated her defensive buffs, she threw herself directly between the incoming trajectory and the fleeing bone-beast. A second crimson spear shot from Shalltear's hand, slamming into Leah's [Dark Aegis] with the deafening crack of shattering glass. The magical shockwave shattered her force field and blasted her backward across the grass.
She hit the earth, rolled fluidly, and popped back up on one knee. In her right hand, a [Dark Blade] materialized—a jagged, curved broadsword of solid dark energy that locked away a chunk of her maximum MP while summoned.
It's fine, Leah thought, gritting her teeth against the sting. It's a fair trade. I have the mana pool to burn.
"You attacked my friend," she said, her voice dropping into a deadly, quiet register.
"You dared threaten my Lord!" Shalltear spat back, her eyes glowing crimson.
"I did no such thing!"
"Your hideous beast stepped forward to devour him!"
"It's a pet!" Leah snapped.
"Then keep your beast on a short leash!"
Behind the argument, standing stock-still on the grass, Ainz was screaming at the absolute top of his lungs inside his own mind: Somebody say something! Please! Say 'stop'! Say 'let's talk'! Say ANYTHING!
Before he could utter a sound, the green wave rolled through his mind once more, flattening his rising hysteria into absolute, terrifying apathy. He remained standing like a towering black monolith.
"A test of raw strength," Albedo whispered from beside him, her face flushed with absolute awe. "How profoundly brilliant, Lord Ainz. You wish to ascertain whether this impudent stranger is worthy to stand in your presence."
I wish NOTHING of the kind! Ainz screamed silently.
At that moment, Demiurge stepped out from a lingering spatial rift behind them. Adjusting his silver-rimmed glasses with a slender finger, he surveyed the scene and added smoothly, "A masterstroke, my Lord. By observing her combat capabilities, we shall gauge the depth of her resolve."
Ainz opened his mouth, desperately trying to construct a sentence that would halt the madness.
"…Let it be so," he heard his own voice rumble, deep, dark, and utterly composed.
NO! WHY DID MY VOICE DO THAT?!
Across the clearing, Lyla was the first to react to the escalating threat.
"Lealea," she said softly, stepping up alongside her white-winged sister. "Don't do this."
"I'm not starting a war," Leah said through gritted teeth.
"You are about to," Lyla countered. "I can see the tension in your shoulders."
"They struck first!"
"Because Blanc ran up to a level-100 looking skeleton boss with a three-headed skeleton pet and yelled 'Meet Burgundy!'" Lyla pointed out flatly. "Use your brain!"
It was a completely valid point, and Leah knew it. She slowly relaxed her white-knuckled grip on the dark energy blade and looked toward the giant skeleton standing on the grassy mound. He hadn't moved an inch. The cold, red pinpricks of fire in his hollow eye sockets were locked onto her, completely unreadable.
"I'm so sorry..." Blanc whimpered in a tiny, heartbroken voice. "I just wanted everyone to be friends..."
"We know, sweetie," Lyla said, gently patting her head.
[Link] Sugaru: Boss. I can reach Rokillean in a matter of minutes. I can summon a vanguard of a thousand megathairos to this position before sunset.
[Link] Leah: Not yet, Sugaru. If we summon an army, they'll respond with an army. Right now, it's just a personal dispute.
[Link] Sugaru: Then my blade is yours.
[Link] Leah: Thank you.
Leah stood up to her full height, her white wings spreading out in a grand display of power as she met the Overlord's gaze.
"Very well!" Leah called out, her voice echoing off the ancient trees. "A formal duel! One on one! First to yield or fall! No outside interference from either side!"
"That is acceptable," Ainz boomed back, his dark voice carrying the weight of an absolute monarch.
That is NOT ACCEPTABLE! Ainz shrieked internally, his emotional suppressor immediately triggering again with a bright green flash. Why did I agree to that?! Why do I keep saying these things?!