A/N; So, as a heads up, this chapter is written in a third-person omniscient narrator's perspective rather than a character's. Very amateurish, I know, to just change writing style like that in the middle of the story, but this chapter is rather… dynamic, with lots of simultaneously moving characters and actions that a first-person limited POV can't hope to accommodate, for obvious reasons. So I hope you won't find it too jarring. Though, on the other hand, I suspect some of you may actually prefer it to the first-person POV's thus far lol.

words in bold and italics indicate a character's exact thoughts.

I release this update with a knot of excitement and anxiety in my stomach, as I feel this chapter offers no middle-ground to stand on; you will either love it or hate it.

But in the end, it doesn't really matter; because this is my story, and you're just along for the ride :p

Enjoy...


Chapter 18

"The Sovereign of Light"

Noon.

Donning all of her equipment, Jade stepped out of her chamber. Moments after waking up, she had received a [Message] from Coctyus, asking if she would like to spar down on the 5th floor.

She saw no reason to refuse; it might be fun to let loose for once, she thought.

This would be her first 'real' battle since coming to the New World. During the short time she spent in the Baharuth empire, she never came upon anything even remotely challenging; she quickly realized, with a strange mix of relief and disappointment, as Ainz had, that the difference in power between herself and the beings of the New World was irreconcilably vast.

Still, though, a sparring match would hardly offer the adrenaline rush she yearned for - but it would have to suffice. No, she thought to herself, internally retracting her statement; to say it would merely 'suffice' would be a gross underestimation of Cocytus' ability.

She knew from their brief crossing of blades yesterday that he would offer some fierce resistance.

Though perhaps just as challenging as the fight itself would be, there was actually getting to the 5th floor, as she was still unfamiliar with Nazarick's layout. Even though Suzuki had tried his best to describe it while they were leaving the bathhouse the other day, it was simply too convoluted to digest without a visual aid of some sort.

Oh well, she figured with a smile; she would simply have him escort her there for today.

And speak of the devil, as she rounded the corner of the hall which fed into the throne room, there he was, sitting statue-still upon the recently-polished throne. She took a moment to study him, his blank expression, in silence, as he had not yet noticed her, before giggling amusedly;

"Hey, Suzuki! What're you doing?"

The Overlord's head swivelled languidly to face her; only after his eyes settled on her for a few moments did he blink and shake his head slightly, suggesting he had been lost in thought, as Jade had suspected. He shifted forward in his seat.

"Ah, you're awake; I was waiting for you, in fact," he declared matter-of-factly with a tired smile.

"Waiting for me..? Er, not for too long, I hope…" she added sheepishly, now embarrassed that she had slept for so long.

"Ah, no, I was not waiting for very long; don't worry about it. Yesterday was very... eventful after all, haha..." he paused for a moment before continuing; "so it's understandable that you needed the extra rest, which is why I refrained from waking you up," he explained empathetically, scratching at his left cheek bashfully.

Jade's heart sank with guilt; despite what he said, she was now sure that he had been waiting for her, in all likelihood, all morning. He was just that kind of a person, she supposed.

"I see… well anyway, sorry to have kept you waiting…" she reiterated, hesitating for a moment, on whether or not to tell him about her impending duel with Cocytus.

'Hey sorry to have kept you waiting all morning; anyway, I need to get going now because I already have plans, bye!'

Surely to say such a thing, even more tactfully, would seem awfully rude; especially after she and Suzuki had agreed last night to pick up their conversation in the morning.

Ainz cocked his head to the side and raised a hand to his chin;

"What's with that look? Come: it would be inconsiderate of us to make Cocytus wait any longer," he chided, rising from his throne while smoothing out his robe.

"Y-you know about that?" Jade asked incredulously.

Ainz looked up at her with a dumbfounded expression;

"Of course; I am the Supreme Overlord of Nazarick, after all. My guardians tell me everything," he explained.

"R-right… and you don't mind?" she inquired tentatively.

"Hmm? You mean about the duel? Of course not, why would I mind?"

Jade bit her lower lip, realizing she had dug herself into a bit of a hole. Any explanation she gave to justify her feeling the need to apologize could easily be misconstrued to imply she thought poorly of Ainz; that he was clingy and lonely. Of course, she didn't actually think that was the case at all.

Fortunately, Ainz, seeming to recognize her dilemma before she had to vocalize it, clicked his tongue knowingly;

"I am not so solipsistic as to demand 100% of your time, Jade. Quite the contrary, in fact; I'm pleased you're already taking the time to befriend the guardians," he admitted with a light chuckle.

Jade breathed a sigh of relief; at least this awkward part of the conversation was over.

Then, wanting to reestablish the lighthearted dynamic they had begun to cultivate the other day, she quickly added; "but if you're coming, Suzuki, does that mean you intend to fight? Surely you don't think you can beat me one-on-one, hmmm?" she jeered goadingly.

Expecting a witty reply, as sarcastic banter seemed to be the foundation of their relationship, she was very surprised to receive a serious reply, as the Overlord visibly stiffened in his tracks to look her directly in the eyes;

"The name Ainz-Ooal Gown has never - and will never - know defeat," he replied confidently, seeming slightly agitated.

Before she could say anything more, he grabbed hold of her hand and exclaimed;

"[Greater Teleportation]!"

Jade closed her eyes reactively as the world around her melted away. Feeling a chill against her eyelids, she opened her eyes.

"Wow…" she exclaimed breathlessly, twirling around in place to admire the snow-white landscape which seemed to extend endlessly in every direction around her.

"This whole place is inside Nazarick? This is incredible…" she continued in awe, taking a moment to catch a particularly large snowflake in the palm of her hand.

She took a deep breath, relishing in the refreshing prickle of the winter air which served to invigorate both body and mind.

She couldn't help but wonder, in this tranquil moment, if perhaps it had been a mistake to have played Yggdrasil as a lone-wolf.

The truth was, she simply did not have many friends and seemed terrible at making new ones, so she never bothered to try and join a group. But if she had known what she was missing out on - that a guild could offer so much more than just a group of people to go on quests with - Jade had no doubt she would've pushed herself to party-up with other players.

She sighed wistfully and closed her eyes, lamenting what seemed to her now as a lonely past.

"... I'm. Glad. My. Home. Is. To. Your. Liking." a gruff voice suddenly called out.

Her eyes fluttered open, squinting until she finally noticed the speaker - Cocytus, standing perfectly still about ten metres away in front of a heap of snow. Perhaps it was a trick of the eyes induced by the environment's stark whiteness, but the insect guardian's exoskeleton seemed much paler than it did the other day, so much so that he was veritably camouflaged.

"Ah, Cocytus, I didn't even notice you there!" Lenora exclaimed with a grin; "how are you doing?"

"... Fine." the guardian replied dryly after a peculiar silence.

What's the matter? He seems agitated...

"Alright, both of you take a moment to prepare yourselves and then I'll count you down," Ainz suggested dismissively, and Lenora looked to him in bewilderment, surprised that he, as intuitive as he had proven himself to be thus far, did not pick up on - or did not bother to investigate - Cocytus' strange behaviour.

She threw a skeptical look back towards the icy guardian, but he did not reciprocate; rather, it seemed he was doing his utmost to avoid her gaze entirely.

Wuuuuuuong!

Reaching out to his sides, he withdrew three weapons from his inventory, bringing him to a total of four, one in each hand.

The icy-bitted halberd, [Decapitation Fang].

The long and slender katana, [God Slaying Emperor Blade].

A great axe wreathed in black flames, [Shadow Soul Drinker].

And a cumbersome looking lance with electricity that arced all the way from the handle down the length of its 4-foot, cone-like blade: [Ravaging Thunder Impaler].

It seemed apparent that he intended to go all-out from the very beginning. Of course, Jade was not opposed to this; but at the same time, she couldn't help but think it was strange. At a time when it was not made clear whether she was a friend or foe of Nazarick, Cocytus had still only retaliated against her with two weapons; so now it seemed odd that, at the very beginning of a sparring match, he would wield four right from the get-go. She had immediately pegged him as a proud warrior who wholeheartedly enjoyed fighting; someone who derived no pleasure or honour from attempting to crush his opponent right from the beginning, and instead preferred to take his time and squeeze his opponent for all they were worth.

And she knew, with absolute certainty, that her original assessment of him was correct. So why? And why did he still refuse to meet her gaze?

Yes, something was definitely wrong. Lenora could feel it in her bones - her divine senses were screaming, warning her of some unforeseeable danger. But what could it be? She was perfectly safe here with Suzuki, right? She tried to berate herself, convince herself that she was just being paranoid; that her hands were only trembling and sweating in nervous anticipation for her first real battle. Yes, that must be the reason for her uneasiness - just pre-fight jitters.

She eyed the great axe, [Shadow Soul Drinker], and forced a playful smirk on her face;

"You've even armed yourself with a dark-element weapon, Cocytus, my innate weakness... how dirty of you," she teased.

Of course, every competent fighter knew that a duel began long before the participants found themselves face-to-face; preparing the right equipment to counter your opponent was an intrinsic component of battle. It was nothing to scorn, and certainly nothing to apologize for.

By all rights, as candid as Cocytus often was, he should've reproached her immediately for such a ridiculous comment, even if it was only a joke. That's what Jade hoped he would do, anyway.

But he did not.

"...Forgive. Me." he said instead, simply, sounding distinctly and unwarrantably forlorn, even going so far as to dip his head towards her apologetically. In fact, he almost sounded guilty - a realization which sent alarm bells ringing in the paladin's head.

Jade looked expectantly at Ainz. Surely he must notice something was off now.

"Hmm? What's the matter, Lenora? Are you ready to begin?" he mused innocently.

Now she was sure of it; they're both acting strange...

"Ainz, I'm beginning to think it would be better if we did this another day… I get the impression Cocytus is not in the right mindset to fight…" she trailed off hesitantly, watching Ainz very attentively, gauging his reaction.

"Nonsense!" Ainz exclaimed with a smile - seeming very plastic to Jade - before turning to address the 5th floor's guardian; "Cocytus, is something the matter?"

The icy warrior's mandibles clicked together;

"No… Everything. Is. Fine." he replied, before finally turning to the paladin for the first time since she arrived;

"Forgive. Me. I. Was. Simply. Lost. In. Thought. Thinking. Of. A. Strategy. But. I. Am. Prepared. Now." he assured, and though Jade could not discern the veracity of his explanation, his voice sounded much more confident than before.

One thing was certain; he had made up his mind about something.

Suddenly, Lenora felt a hand clasp her shoulder, stirring her from her uneasy contemplation.

"See?" Ainz said to her; "he's fine. I know it's a bit chilly here, but don't tell me you're just getting cold feet and looking for an excuse, hmm? If you can't beat Cocytus, then you would have no chance of defeating me…" he trailed off with an arrogantly exaggerated shrug.

She met his eyes; and slowly, they both smiled.

She knew she shouldn't fall for such an obvious trick, an appeal to her pride, when her gut still told her something was off; but just then, for the first time today, Suzuki sounded very much like himself.

And that was just enough of a reassurance to, against her instinct's obstinance, cast away her doubts;

"You wish! I'll defeat him, and then you right after; so you'd best prepare yourself!" she warned with a grin.

Ainz laughed heartily;

"I'll look forward to it; making you eat your words, that is," he added before walking away to a safe distance.

Ainz came to a stop, about twenty meters to the side and directly between the two combatants -

Cocytus, [Ruler of the Frozen Glacier]; he who boasted the highest physical damage output among all entities in Nazarick when wielding weapons.

And Lenora, the [Second Hand of God]; the fleet-footed, unwavering Sovereign of Light.

Ainz raised one hand high into the air.

One final gust of wind howled excitedly over the plains, after which the entire floor itself seemed to hold its breath.

Jade swallowed the lump in her throat before drawing in a long, shaky breath to quell the tumultuous mix of nerves and excitement inside her stomach.

Cocytus, raising all four weapons in an imposing display, exhaled a cloud of freezing vapour.

Ainz took a moment to look at each of them; they each nodded towards him, indicating they were ready.

And with a downward slice of the Overlord's hand, cutting through the palpable tension in the air, the match had begun.

...Nothing happened. Both insect and angel remained statue-still, sizing the other up. They were not familiar with the other enough to rush in and throw caution to the wind.

At first glance, Ainz thought to himself; someone might think Lenora held the overwhelming advantage here. But a closer analysis would reveal that this is not necessarily the case...

Cocytus was like a glass cannon - though his exoskeleton was substantially weaker than most players' divine-class equipment, he was the very incarnation of the adage "the best defense is a good offense". He was a four-armed monster of pure damage output that would lash out at anything that came within range with a relentless assault of devastating attacks. Though he was not fast or mobile by any means, he stood as both an unstoppable force and an immovable object. A single misstep or miscalculation made within striking distance could spell defeat for anyone who stood against Cocytus as he was now, serious and determined to win.

Lenora, on the other hand, was a rush-down player; she excelled, with high mobility and attack power, at getting in close to opponents and blitzing their health down. This made her especially effective against glass-cannons who relied on ranged skills and abilities, like mages or archers.

Despite this theoretical edge, though, she was actually at a disadvantage against Cocytus, who specialized - thanks to having four arms - in keeping his opponents at bay while offering no opportunities for them to get in any closer than he allowed. As soon as Lenora got within range of his attacks, she would immediately be forced on the defensive, and Cocytus, as skilled as he was, would easily control the rhythm of the battle.

Worst of all, as Cocytus wasn't undead and his karma alignment was actually positive, albeit only slightly, her offensive paladin skills and holy magic would do little against him; so she could not reliably outrange him and force him to compromise his impregnable defence in order to approach her.

In other words, all Lenora could really do was stay close, trust in her abilities, and wait for an opportunity to present itself.

Ainz watched on patiently, his heart racing.

Finally, the staring contest had come to a tacitly understood end as both warriors drew in a deep breath at the same time.

Krakoom!

Lenora made the first move, surging forward at a velocity that fully-reflected a level one-hundred player who almost had their agility stat maxed out.

As she soared through the air, luminous white wings of magic protruded from her back; she unsheathed her blade, [Revelation], and its razor-sharp edge crackled with electricity.

In an instant, she was within range of the icy warrior - and like a proximity-activated automaton, Cocytus whirred to life.

Expelling an icy breath of exertion, the katana, axe, and lance whistled through the air towards the incoming attacker at wildly unpredictable angles.

With a flick of her wrist, Lenora deflected the first blade to reach her; [Revelation] scraped against the [God Slaying Emperor Blade] in a dazzling display of blue sparks, charring the very air around them.

Krssssssssscht!

Next came the axe, [Shadow Soul Drinker], scraping against and fissuring the icy ground like the bow of an icebreaker boat ploughing through an arctic sheet of ice, before lifting off in an upward arc.

With a dip of a wing and a twist of her body, the paladin narrowly evaded the huge crescent-shaped blade; she caught her reflection in its dark lustre for a split millisecond as it whizzed by, too quickly for her to even feel the lick of its flames.

But she had no time to let out a sigh of relief, for then came the lance in a vicious thrust, perfectly aimed at where she had dodged to - he had predicted her movement.

"[Storm. Thrust]!" Cocytus bellowed as the tip of his lance sparked with power that easily matched the paladin's own sword.

Lenora was surprised to see an electric-element skill coming from the guardian - she had obviously expected ice, and perhaps water or wind.

But she had not equipped anything to defend against the lightning element.

"[Ephemeral Divinity!]" the paladin cried at the last second, activating a limited-use skill that could negate the next physical attack that struck her.

The Lance struck the centre of her breastplate, and its thunder exploded out, conductively arced over her armour from head-to-toe. She gritted her teeth as the electricity, surprisingly powerful, stung her entire body and seemed to boil her blood.

But the blade itself - the brunt of the damage - had been stopped, as it struck an invisible barrier that flickered at the point of impact.

With her own blade, Lenora pushed the lance - pressed innocuously against her chest - away and pushed in closer. In her peripheral vision, she caught [God Slaying Emperor Blade] slicing its way towards her again; she ducked under it as though she were playing high-stakes limbo. Rather than right herself up again, she stuck her hand out behind her to push off of and spring acrobatically into the air, just in time to avoid a sweeping blow of the great axe. Flipping through the air over Cocytus' head, she landed behind him and, spinning in place, thrust her sword at his exposed back.

"[Absolving Strike]!" She roared.

"Hmm." Cocytus hummed disapprovingly

-!

She had been careless and completely forgot about Cocytus' natural weapon.

His tail lashed out like a lunging python, and its crystalline tip smashed directly into her gut from her blind side, knocking her back like a swatted fly.

She crashed into the ground with earth-quaking force and gasped as the air was evicted from her lungs.

"A. Crucial. Oversight. " Cocytus assured.

Before she could even clamour back to her feet, Lenora was forced to dive haphazardly to the right as a large shadow streaked down upon her - and her heart skipped a beat in response to the thunderous crash of [Shadow Soul Drinker] as it slammed into the spot she had been in a fraction of a second ago, leaving a crater of spider-web fissures where it struck.

Ice shards like shrapnel pelted her back mid-roll, and by some miracle, she managed to orient her blade in time to block a lumberjack-like swing of [Decapitation Fang] as she emerged from her roll. Her whole body flinched stiffly from the impact.

"Not. Good. Enough." Cocytus roared stoically.

Though her body was that of the Sovereign of Light's, she nevertheless had the nerves of a teenage girl. With each blow she dodged or blocked by a harrowing margin, her heart nearly leapt from its chest.

She scrambled back to her feet, her face now drenched in cold sweat.

She heard the whistle of the next attack long before she saw it and reactively leaned back just in time for the [Ravaging Thunder Impaler] to skewer the space she had been standing in.

She tried to jump back to catch her breath, but Cocytus wouldn't let her; each time she tried to retreat, he would respond with a thrust that demanded she divert her movement laterally instead. To Cocytus' precarious rhythm she danced, dodging each strike by a mere hairsbreadth.

Even for someone as agile as Lenora, dodging four weapons was proving to be as challenging as one might expect. She had no chance to get any counters in - and Cocytus was in no rush to end things. He pressured her calmly, expertly, merely waiting for her to make a mistake, a single slip-up in her movement.

I NEED some space! a voice screamed in the back of her mind, as she began to feel, with each passing second, like she was suffocating; she was nearly at her wit's end under the oppressive onslaught.

Desperately, she activated one of her rings, [Ring of Respite], which held the power of the 7th-tier spell [Repulse]; a white sphere of light exploded from the silver band's gemstone, and while it did not succeed in blowing Cocytus away because of his knockback resistance, it was enough to make him stagger just long enough for the paladin to cast a higher-tier spell;

"[Sanctuary Wall]!"

Having now erected a durable barrier, she leapt back; found her footing, regained her composure.

"[Believing is Seeing]. [Ethereal Slip]" she whispered breathlessly, casting the only two self-buffing spells she knew - one that enhanced all five senses to improve one's reaction speed, and the other that boosted her movement speed. Truthfully, she should've cast these much sooner, but due to an arrogance for which hindsight made her feel very stupid now, she did not. She had grossly overestimated her own abilities, at least in terms of mental disposition.

Just as she had finished chanting, Cocytus had carved through the 9th tier spell.

He paused after taking a step to assess her newly imbued form, glowing blue.

He clicked his mandibles in wary acknowledgement.

Lenora could not help but smile in relief at his apparent apprehension; it gave her a moment to collect her thoughts, and bolstered her confidence.

Slowly but steadily, her body was adapting to the explosive demands of combat; her senses were sharpening, her nerves were steeling, and her mind was becoming more in tune with her body. I can win this; Cocytus must have realized this too, or why else would be hesitating now?

And so with the very same cockiness she had just rebuked herself for having when going into the fight, she launched forward like a shooting star.

This is my chance, she thought to herself, as she tunnel-visioned for an attack; she had to make this count before he could adapt to her new speed.

Her extended blade acted as a windbreaker, accelerating her towards her target.

But this was exactly what the icy guardian was waiting for. Patience was a virtue, and one that, Cocytus quickly realized, his opponent did not possess. He knew that if he feigned uncertainty, she would recklessly charge him in an attempt to seize the opportunity.

"[Cutting Whirlwind]" Cocytus bellowed; slicing his katana parallel to the ground, he shot a wide crescent of condensed wind out. The razor-sharp beam flew into the wide-eyed Sovereign like a bullet, knocking her sword to the side and greatly slowing her momentum.

"[Execute]!" Coctyus roared, immediately following up his attack with a swing of his halberd, as though he were chopping wood, as Lenora tumbled into range.

frantically, Lenora wound her blade back for a moment while gathering mana within its tip.

"[Righteous Riposte]!" She chanted as quickly as possible, hoping to counter with a skill of her own.

But it was too late.

the halberd's fang bit into her shoulder with the force of an avalanche - she felt it sink through her armour, far enough that she could feel the cold metal against her bare skin

The force drove her to one knee and she gritted her teeth; somehow, she had managed to raise her blade to hook the under-curve of the halberd's tip in time to impede it from completely tearing into her flesh. Her crippled shoulder flared excruciatingly under the pressure of Cocytus' strength; if she had the pain tolerance of a human body, she would have instantly blacked out. She slowly began to rise to her feet, pushing up with all her might until, finally, she managed to knock Cocytus' arm away.

But one could not get away with devoting so much time and energy to one weapon when there were three others to deal with.

Fwoooooshk!

Lenora was promptly lifted off her feet and sent hurdling away as [Shadow Soul Drinker] struck her in the ribs; she whistled through the air, unable to orient herself as the attack had also clipped one of her wings, before she slammed into the ground, bounced, flipped, and skidded until she managed, with miraculous timing, to strike her sword into the ground, putting the proverbial brakes on her tumble.

Laying prone, she took a deep breath, and the expansion of her lungs brought with it an agonizing pain that wracked her entire body.

She winced and brought a hand to clutch at her side, the epicentre of it all - a web of cracks had formed in her armour, through which a trickle of viscous yellow fluid - her blood, 'ichor' - oozed out like molten gold. She retched and drew in a raspy breath, which reinvigorated the pain.

Peculiarly, she felt the wound getting hotter by the second, and soon her whole body began to swelter as though the inside of her armour had become a furnace.

That was what happened to those who were maimed by the dark flames of [Shadow Soul Drinker]. It left a curse that insidiously ate away at one's mana and health over time, and it was proportionally more effective the higher the afflicted's karma alignment was.

What made such a thing particularly dangerous was that it was a curse; most low-level status ailment cures and dispels - the ones that people from any class could easily learn without having to divert too many skill points from their main branches - did not mitigate the effects of curses.

In other words, if a lone warrior ever found themselves struck by [Shadow Soul Drinker], their fate was typically sealed as it was very unlikely that they would have bothered investing enough points into sorcery/support classes to be able to learn spells that could negate curses. Of course, there were some classes or races which made one impervious to a myriad of curses, such as high-level shaman, draconic, or certain warlock classes - but Lenora did not possess such an innate immunity.

She did, however, have a spell which could counter curses - as her build was that of a warrior-mage hybrid, she had happened to learn such a spell along the way. Most hybrid builds were widely considered invalid because they often resulted in a character that was only half-effective in either class and ultimately impotent; but through careful allocation of points and the discovery of unique classes like [Sovereign of Light], she had managed to make it work.

"[Divine Cleansing]," she whispered hoarsely.

A pale-green light washed over her, immediately soothing her pain. The skill did not replenish her health, however, nor did it stem the bleeding - but at least she could breathe again.

She had lost about 30% of her health. Yet despite having incurred so much damage without inflicting any in return, Jade's resolve did not waver. Everything until now had just been a learning experience; she had acted stupidly and paid the price for it.

The next battle sequence would go in her favour; of that she was certain.

Determined to start things off fresh, she raised a hand in preparation to invoke a healing spell.

"... Forgive. Me." she suddenly heard Cocytus say in a low tone that made her words catch in her throat.

He slowly marched towards her, weapons lowered unthreateningly at his sides.

She was about to reply, thinking that he meant to say sorry for delivering such a fierce blow; but something made her stop.

It was his portentous tone, which seemed to imply a different reason for his impromptu apology: as if he was apologizing for something that had not yet transpired.

A chill ran down her spine.

Cocytus came to a sudden stop, his mandibles clicking anxiously, instilling within Jade that same sense of inexplicable dread from earlier, except even stronger now, sending her stomach and mind aflutter.

Something was wrong.

She shot a sideways glance to Ainz, but he offered nothing more than a slight tilt of his head - apparently as perplexed as she was.

She retrained her eyes on the icy guardian;

"Cocytus... what's wrong..?" she forced the words out, stumbling briefly over the clump in her throat.

"..."

Without warning, he drew in a deep breath, and a moment later his mandibles spread far apart; at the back of his throat, a blue-white light began to manifest, growing rapidly in intensity.

-!

"[Frost. Breath]" the guardian spat out gruffly.

A beam of ice and wind shot out from his maw a moment later.

Seeing that it was aimed slightly towards her left, Lenora nimbly jumped to the right.

"Hey!" the paladin cried indignantly, thinking that was a very dirty tactic - to act so ominously and then attack without warning.

But she had no time to fully express her frustration.

"[Concussive Blow]".

A fruity voice boomed from behind her.

Lenora whirled around in surprise, just in time for a gloved fist to slam into her face.

The meteoric impact sent a tremendous shockwave to ripple through her entire body and rock the floor beneath her feet. Her left cheekbone caved in like drywall and her nose snapped to a crude angle; an explosion of her own blood filled her vision.

A moment later, as if the knockback of the attack had had a delay, she was blown back, sent to careen into a large prism of ice that jutted out from the ground behind her.

The wind was knocked out of her as she ricocheted off of it and crumpled face-first to the ground. Even now, her brain still rattled violently within her skull from the attack, and she briefly considered that it might just sever itself from her spine.

Through the mess of tears and blood which now soaked her face, she slowly raised her head towards the direction she had been launched from.

"S-sebas..?" she stammered incredulously.

There was no mistaking it, even with her blurred vision; it was him. The butler stood, wordless and statue-still, with his fist still extended from when he had struck her - the white of his glove was stained with her blood. A shadow of guilt loomed over his wizened face, and he refused to meet her gaze.

Lenora's mind could not even begin to fathom the reason for his sneak attack, but one thing she knew for sure was that she needed to heal, pronto. She raised her hand again and prepared an incantation, though it took her concussed brain a moment to remember one.

But again, she could not get the words out in time, as something stabbed into her back from above, delivering a pain so acute that all the Sovereign could do was open her mouth in a silent yelp as her vision darkened nauseously for a moment.

Then, slowly, she felt herself get lifted up.

She dangled in the air like a puppet that was grasped by a single string on its back, as her limp feet twitched searchingly for the ground. She felt her strength getting sucked away, out of her body. Her whole torso felt cold. Everything was numb now.

With a great deal of effort, she glanced down and struggled to focus her faltering vision.

When she finally managed to blink away the blurriness, a wave of panic overwhelmed her delirious brain; protruding from her gut was the tip of a lance which had skewered her all the way through from behind. She watched, in morbid and incredulous mesmerization, as it dripped with a generous amount of her ichor.

Cocytus..?

No, it was not. She could still make out his form in her peripheral vision.

"Ara? My my, what delicious lifeforce you have!" a high-pitched voice giggled from behind.

Lenora, in her incoherent state, vaguely sensed herself being shifted to the right - a brief windup, before the vampire promptly swung her [Spuit Lance] to the left, cruelly flinging the ragdoll-like angel from its tip. A copious amount of blood spurted from the exit wound, splattering against the ground beneath her airborne body.

The Sovereign of Light struck the ground, bouncing only once before sliding pitifully across the ice, leaving a solid stripe of gold in her wake. She eventually came to a stop after bumping into something rigid. She retched, oozing blood from her mouth, which pooled against the side of her face, seeping beneath her cheek which was pressed firmly against the ground. Luckily, her body was so numb now that all the pain she felt had been reduced to nothing more than a dull throb.

She languidly rolled her eyes up to see what she had hit.

Looming over her was Ainz Ooal Gown.

"Su...zu...ki… h...hel..p…" she stammered hoarsely, extending a hand to desperately grope at the hem of his robe.

And then, to her horror, Suzuki looked down, right into her rapidly-dimming eyes, and smiled - the evilest sneer she had ever seen. It curdled her blood.

With a kick of his foot, he knocked her outstretched hand away.

This... has to be a nightmare, she convinced herself in that instant, staring up into the inhumanly psychotic eyes of Suzuki. There's no way it could actually be him - the same man who had cried, broken down in tears of joy, upon seeing her for the first time. The same man she had accidentally groped in the bath just yesterday, and who tried to play it off even as his face grew redder than her own hair. The same man who she had joked, laughed, and cried alongside for hours and hours.

She couldn't reconcile the image of that Suzuki with the creature standing above her now; it was surreal. it COULDN'T be real.

But the pain she felt, in body and in heart, was very, very real.

"W...why..?" Jade sobbed miserably.

What is happening?! This… this isn't right! We were supposed to leave this world and return to Earth together! Was everything just a lie..? Was he actually some sort of sociopath this entire time?

Tears began trickling from her eyes, blurring her vision even more; they were not the secretions of the Sovereign of Light, but rather the bitter droplets of a sixteen-year-old girl, burdened with the overwhelming fear of imminent death. The carpet of life had been forcefully yanked out from under her.

I don't… I don't want to die! I can't! I didn't ask to come to this world! I was only playing a game! It was all just a game!

I need to get back home! Back to my family! I need to finish my degree and then find a way to transport humanity to another planet and begin anew! Where my family, me, and everyone else can live long and prosper, having learned from the past! Where I can grow old and live a normal life!

I just want to live a normal life!

But now..!

She clenched her fists in frustration, slamming them weakly into the ground.

She broke down, whimpering, blubbering, grovelling at the Overlord's foot, choking on the liquid gold that filled her mouth.

She wouldn't get to see her family again. Never again would she be able to sit down at the kitchen table and drink tea; gossiping, joking, and laughing with her mother.

Never again would she be able to go to a football game with her dad, or go out stargazing with him on their roof when she couldn't sleep. Though she frequently experienced bouts of insomnia, her father had the uncanny ability to lull her to sleep within minutes of them laying down on the roof, as she rested on his chest and listened to him quietly point out every constellation that graced the sky. Jade never had an eye for them, but her father seemed to know them all and was even able to roughly point out where certain constellations would be visible on the sable canvas if there was no light pollution.

She would never hear her mother or father's proud voices, feel their embraces, or the kisses they would always plant softly in her hair as they congratulated her for acing yet another exam - all of which were rewards far more gratifying than the grades themselves.

And then there was her younger sister, Liz. (She was only two minutes younger than Jade, as they were fraternal twins - but Jade always loved to lord her one-hundred-and-twenty extra seconds of life experience over her). The two of them never really seemed to get along - 90% of the time when Liz approached her, it was to insult, brag, or pester. The other 9% of the time, it was to ask for help with homework.

But the other 1% of the time made up for it; those tender moments of sisterhood that would remind Jade of their bond, and make her forget the other 99%.

Whenever Liz would come home, hysterical, over some guy at school or over some other situation that required guidance or consolation, she would never seek solace in her parents - it was her 'older' sister whom she would visit: to hug, kiss, and vent to.

And Jade would sit patiently, listen, and advise to the best of her abilities every time - challenging though it was at some times because Liz seemed to fall for a different boy at every gust of the wind. Through thick and thin, Jade was always there for Liz, as a source of validation and wisdom - because that's what an older sister ought to be. And, along the same vein, Liz was there when Jade needed her as well; when she felt like blowing her brains out from studying and needed a break, Liz was always there to cheer her up. And though Liz couldn't understand most of the concepts, she was always willing to sit and listen to Jade when the latter needed a wall to bounce her ideas off of, to get her thoughts rolling.

"Just remember, my brilliant elder sister," Liz would remind dramatically after such a session; "when you're rich and famous off of your gizmos and doohickeys, don't forget all the times I helped you out; sauce me a couple million pounds here and there, will you?" she would always joke.

And at the recollection of that line, Jade smiled wistfully- a crack in her bloody visage, which promptly crumpled into a deep frown, as she began to think of something else; or rather, all that she would miss out on in life.

She wouldn't get to fulfill her lifelong dream of saving humanity.

She wouldn't get to meet the love of her life.

She won't ever get the chance to hold her children in her arms - she had always wanted two, a boy and a girl, whom she would name Siegfried and Isabelle, respectively, in honour of her best friend and late grandfather.

She'd never get hear their first words, or watch them take their first steps.

She wouldn't be able to celebrate their birthdays, or watch them grow.

She'd never enjoy the quaint pleasure of teaching them to read, ride a bike, help with their homework, or scold them for the most banal transgressions, as every mother must - just as her own mother had.

She wouldn't get to cry at their graduation, as she knew she inevitably would, which would obviously embarrass them to the point where they'd be forced to pretend like they didn't know who that mess-of-a-woman in the front row was.

She wouldn't get the chance to watch them learn to love and marry, and she wouldn't get to embrace the wild bundles of warmth that would be her grandchildren, whom she would most certainly spoil rotten.

All these prospects flooded through her mind, leaked out, stained her cheeks.

Why? Why, Suzuki! Why!?

The more her vision darkened, the more a desperate anger smouldered within her, taking the edge off the sensory-numbing cold. She clenched her eyes, gritted her teeth, pushed back the snatching claws of death from her heart, and murmured her resolve;

"[Day...Of…Reckoning]

FOOOOOOOOM!

A blinding pillar of light crashed down from the heavens, imbuing the Sovereign of Light with the potential to reclaim her right to a future.

She rose on shaky legs, enveloped in a warm light. She could feel the power overflowing, churning within her, warming her soul - the pain dissipated, the bleeding stopped, her strength was replenished.

She had 60 seconds to turn the tide. 60 seconds to change her fate. 60 seconds to ensure that she does not lose everything.

She had not lost hope.

Wa-tch!

But before she could even move she felt something coil around her neck, tighten swiftly, and crush her windpipe. It squeezed a thick clot of blood from her throat, and the brilliance of her radiant cloak flickered to mitigate the damage.

She looked down and clawed at the noose-like whip constricting her neck - pure black, covered in metallic thorns. She could feel them digging into the flesh of her throat, and even through her gauntlets - she traced the weapon back, several metres, and at the other end was an androgynous dark elf, with her feet planted firmly in the ground, pulling back with all her might.

With as much strength as she could muster, the Sovereign of Light swung her sword down on top of the whip; it bounced off harmlessly, failing to even leave a scratch on the divine-class material.

She then tried to slip her fingers between her neck and the whip - but it was too tight.

Desperately, she raised a gauntlet towards Aura, struggled to steady it, and opened her mouth.

"S-shallty!" The dark elf cried through gritted teeth, yanking even harder in an attempt to silence the incoming spell.

using what little oxygen she had left, Lenora managed to choke out;

"[Dual cast… Absolute… Smite]!"

[Absolute Smite], the far superior version of [Smite], was a 10th tier spell, which, thanks to [Day of Reckoning], could be cast in rapid succession.

It ignored magical defence completely - any creature who had a negative karma rating and was directly struck by it would perish immediately, with very few exceptions.

Two concentrated beams of divine energy shot from Lenora's palm, streaking towards the dark-elf like arrows.

"[Impure Shockwave Shield]" Shalltear chanted, suddenly leaping in front of the 6th floor's guardian. Swinging her lance back and forth, the crimson valkyrie emitted two blood-red waves that rippled through the air, clashed with the [Absolute Smites], and devoured their light.

Lenora's eyes widened in surprise. What sort of skill was that? She had never heard of it before. In that case, it must be a rare, limited-use skill. Banking on that fact, she raised her gauntlet again. Her face had become tomato-red.

"If you would be so kind as to refrain from using such obnoxiously bright techniques, it would be greatly appreciated; my eyes are beginning to hurt…" a sultry tone whispered from behind her.

Spliiiish!

Lenora winced as her heel exploded with pain; her Achilles tendon had been severed cleanly, raked by a pair of demonic claws. Though it took only a moment for [Day of Reckoning's] light to heal the wound, it was not before the Sovereign had crumpled to one knee.

Now that she had lost her footing, Aura pulled, bringing this tug-of-war to its preordained conclusion.

"Mare, go ahead," Demiurge ordered casually, producing a handkerchief from the pocket of his suit to wipe the ichor off his claw.

"R-right…" the effeminate druid stammered, raising his staff high into the air. Lenora tried to raise a hand towards the elf but a boot stomped it down, grinding her fingers underfoot.

Demiurge crouched, bending down to her ear;

"Just lay down and allow yourself to be put down like the leashed dog that you are," he hissed coldly, and Lenora could hear the smile in his voice.

"[Mother Nature Reclaims All]!" Mare cried, slamming the end of his staff into the ground. A chasm-like fissure snaked its way towards Lenora, from which thick verdant roots sprouted, wrapped around the prone Sovereign, and completely enveloped every part of her except for her face in a cocoon.

More and more, a seemingly endless amount of vine-like roots unfurled from the ground to wrap, bind, crush, and drain its target.

From Lenora's back, from one of an incalculable number of vines, a tree began to sprout; higher and higher, spurred on by the immense amount of energy its roots were absorbing from the cocoon, the Sovereign's magical power and lifeforce.

As quickly as [Day of Reckoning] could supply, Mother Nature consumed, insatiably. The tree had already grown twenty feet tall, sporting a thick canopy of leaves and fruit-bearing branches.

Under its weight and the suffocating constriction of the vines, Lenora felt about ready to implode. She tried, with all her strength, to push her limbs outwards, but she could not budge, not even an inch. She was completely immobilized.

"W-wow…" Mare gasped in awe, craning his head back; "I-I've never made such a big tree from this skill before!" he exclaimed with a smile.

"Congratulations, Mare. I'm not much of a nature enthusiast myself, but even I must acknowledge its beauty…" Demiurge sneered, glowering at the wriggling paladin at his feet. Aura patted her brother on the back with a wide grin.

On the other hand, Sebas and Cocytus stood off to the side in silence, grimly watching the scene unfold;

they had, after all, acted only out of necessity; a need to eliminate something that threatened to take away their Supreme Ruler, their only reason for living. For that reason, and nothing less, the two of them could forsake their souls - the altruistic desire to help the innocent, and the pride of an honourable warrior, respectively. Shamefully, they watched on, refusing to partake in the other guardians' cruel joking.

Only 30 seconds remained of [Day of Reckoning].

Lenora had no choice but to use THAT move.

[Consecrated Oblivion] - her ultimate move, available only during [Day of Reckoning's] activation. In exchange for 25% of her max HP, and at the price of ending [DoR] early, regardless of how much time was left on the ability, the Sovereign of Light could expel a tremendous blast out from her body; an undeterrable, unblockable shockwave of divine energy that would 'purify' everything within a one-hundred-metre radius. 'Purify', in this case, meant the complete and indiscriminate [Erasure] of anything within the ability's area of effect. It would affect friend and foe alike, everyone except the Sovereign of Light herself. What made the skill so impressive was the fact that [Erasure] was not considered the same affliction as [Death] or even [True Death] - it was even more potent, and thus could not be mitigated by the same countermeasures.

Because [Erasure] was such a rare power, afforded only to players who attained one of the [Sovereign] or [Monarch] classes - of which there could only be one for each magical element - it could be assumed that the guardians of Nazarick had nothing to defend against it. At least she hoped.

She thanked God that, by some forgetful whim, she had accidentally neglected to mention her trump card to Ainz the other night.

She focused [DoR]'s energy within her, condensed it in her chest, let its power multiply.

Her HP was at 30% and dropping rapidly. She would have to unleash it now or the ability's health-cost would kill her.

Suzuki…

She clenched her eyes shut, forcing out a single salty tear from each as she shook her head.

Why did it come to this..?

[Consecrated Oblivion], she whispered inside her head, as her voice could no longer produce sound.

But it was enough for some God, whichever God, to hear and answer her plea.

She felt her whole body grow warm, similarly to how [Shadow Soul Drinker] had left her, as exactly 25% of her health melted away.

Subjected to the vampiric tree, she was now at 4% health.

But it didn't matter - the spell had gone through.

It was done.

She felt the uncomfortable heat subside as [DoR] deactivated.

At any moment, [Consecrated Oblivion] would set everything around her ablaze in a sacred purging, until nothing remained of Nazarick's guardians or its Ruler.

And though it was terrible, this is what needed to be done; in order for her to see her family again and realize her dreams, Nazarick had to fall. She wished only that she could have gotten an explanation out of Ainz...

Forgive me, Suzuki..!

A second passed. And then another. And then another.

Jade held her breath, and with each tick of the imaginary clock within her mind, her panic swelled exponentially. What happened?! Where was the explosion?!

She could no longer feel the power within her - it had been completely spent.

So why?!

She began to whimper again, muffled by the vines which covered her mouth.

"Hey, the tree suddenly grew like 10 more feet in the blink of an eye, d'ya think she tried to do something?" Aura suggested, squinting up towards the peak of the monolithic tree above Lenora.

"I would think she must have tried to use an ability of some sort as a last-ditch effort to break free… but, well, it seems it had too long of a cast time, and [Mother Nature Reclaims All] was able to extract the energy she was gathering before it could be put to use," Ainz deduced.

Shalltear clicked her tongue disdainfully;

"How pitiful… truthfully, I expected more from her. Oh well, I was getting bored of her light shows anyway," she concluded smugly.

"Yes, well, the advantage of numbers and the element of surprise cannot be discounted. She had no chance," Ainz mused triumphantly.

The guardians all nodded in agreement.

Coming from Suzuki's own mouth, the explanation stung all the more - she couldn't believe it.

She was broken. Tears rolled silently from her unblinking eyes; and down these salty streams, so too flowed out her hope.

Gone was the indomitable Sovereign of Light; back was the teenage girl, Jade Willows.

She watched in hollow despair as Shalltear Bloodfallen strutted towards her, nonchalantly, yawning extravagantly.

And then the fear of death consumed her, overwhelming the numb stupor like a sudden splash of cold water to the face.

Jade trembled, squirmed, more and more vigorously as the Victorian-esque executioner came ever closer.

But it was all in vain. She had nothing left, no way to break free.

But there has to be something! Anything!

3% HP.

Her mind raced, futilely, obstinately clinging to a hope that was no longer there, as her eyes fixed upon the [Spuit Lance's] point.

When her mind finally blanked despairingly, she looked to Ainz.

Please! she tried to scream; Suzuki, stop this! Stop! Don't! I… I Don't want to die!

"Oh… you poor thing, you look like you're suffering…" Shalltear went on with a pitiful click of her tongue, finally coming to a stop just in front of her prey; "don't worry… I am not so cruel as to refrain from euthanizing a doomed animal…" she whispered soothingly.

she raised her lance high, pointing its tip condemningly towards the Sovereign's head.

"Didn't I tell you before, Lenora?" Ainz suddenly asked; "Ainz Ooal Gown has never, and will never know defeat. The second you threatened to take Ainz-sama away, you pitted yourself against the entirety of Nazarick, and your fate was sealed; tell me, how does it feel to have been crushed so brilliantly, so absolutely, by the ones you were so quick to trust?" he inquired sadistically.

She had no time to answer, as the Overlord waved his hand - obediently, the [Spuit Lance] stabbed downwards.

All out of ideas, hope, strength, and tears, Jade shut her eyes in broken resignation.

2% HP.

An image of her family flashed through her petrified mind; she wanted nothing more than to have a chance to at least say goodbye to them, for the sake of closure if nothing else. What was happening on Earth, anyway? Did they know what was happening to her..? What became of her real body on Earth, anyway? Did her family think she had been dead all this time..?

She hoped so.

Mum… Dad..! I'm sorry..!

Kr-spulch!

Silence.

The tree stopped growing.

0% HP.

Shalltear removed her lance from the girl's skull, a smile etching its way onto her face - and Demiurge's as well - as they both fondly admired the spectacular splattering of gold-soaked grey matter which decorated the ground at their feet.

Cocytus expelled a sorrowful blast of frost before quietly turning around and walking towards his home without looking back. He was ashamed to have even felt compelled to see her death through to the end. For his own sake, he told himself it was not because of some morbid curiosity, rather it was his duty - no, his self-prescribed punishment - to witness his opponent's demise until the end.

With a similar feeling, Sebas dipped his head slightly lower, his heart aching; he whispered an apology to his creator, an utterance which was lost in the 5th floor's wind before it had even escaped his lips.

And then, finally, Albedo, the orchestrator of this macabre catastrophe, stepped out from behind Ainz;

"Well done everyone. That went much better than anticipated," she said with a self-satisfied grin.

"It went too well, to be honest," Shalltear snorted as she began to perfunctorily examine her nails; "like I said, I was hoping to get a little more out of her…"

"B-but… this means Ainz-sama is going to stay with us now, right?" Mare ventured worriedly.

Albedo walked over to the druid and placed a hand on his head;

"Of course, thanks to you, Mare," the succubus said with a honey-sweet smile.

Mare giggled under her touch, sighed in relief.

Albedo turned back around to face Ainz;

"Pandora's Actor… is everything else in order?" she asked cryptically.

"Of course, Albedo-saaaaaaaan!" Ainz replied, pirouetting over to the paladin's corpse.

The overseer shuddered euphorically; she was so elated, in fact, that not even Pandora's Actor's grating voice could force the smile off her face. There was nothing to get between her and Ainz-sama now. He would stay here in Nazarick, forever, now that the temptress was rotting away in the afterlife. She figured, giddily, that she would be there, always at Ainz-sama's side, to console him as he mourned this girl's death; and she would entice him to vent his emotions, sexually. She grew moist down below just thinking about it.

"Then, there's only one thing left to do…" the succubus trailed off for a moment, biting her lower lip.

She eyed all the guardians one by one;

"Does everyone remember the story? Not a word of this gets out to Ainz-sama, understand?" she asserted gravely; "or Ainz-sama might still leave us yet," she added, looking pointedly towards Mare and Aura.

Everyone nodded in agreement. Demiurge and Albedo had, after all, drilled all the information into their heads earlier that morning.

The overseer raised a finger to her temple; she took a deep breath to calm her arousal and prepare the most distraught voice she could muster;

"[Message]

yes, Ainz-sama… I... I don't know what happened, but... it would seem Lenora has killed herself".