Otherworldly Peculiarities (Part 2/2)
Rose was undergoing repairs after a particularly brutal battle when she felt the strange phenomena wash over the dungeon.
It occurred in only an instant, but she could tell that something was different. It was her job as the Dungeon's caretaker to know these kinds of things.
Quickly getting up from the maintenance table, she ran out the door into the main room of the Demon Lord's chambers.
Nothing seems out of the ordinary, but I should check just to be sure…
Normally passage to the surface from the thirteenth floor would require working your way back up the other floors, but one of the perks of Rose's job circumvented such a problem.
The teleportation core within her was only usable within the dungeon, but it allowed her instantaneous access to the entrance.
Closing her eyes, she disappeared in a flash.
"This… is most peculiar."
Rose was audibly surprised upon arriving at the entrance, as the usual surrounding desert had been replaced with thick forest.
Is it illusion magic? Plants created with magic? No… the entire biosphere is different from before.
Somehow the entire dungeon has been transported… again?
Rose had a sudden realization at this fact, something that shook her to her very wiring.
Does this mean Diablo… my master… is gone?
She was on the verge of tears when another thought crossed her mind. One that instilled her with hope.
Diablo came back for me before, I know he will do it again!
Wiping her eyes, the Magimatic maid teleported back to the thirteenth floor.
"I'll wait for Diablo, no matter how long it takes!"
Rose made her declaration of faith as she resumed her position on the maintenance table, disengaging her systems.
…
Diablo felt a wave of relief wash over him. Rose was right where he left her before he got sent to this world.
"It's great to see you're still with us, Rose."
He extended his hand towards her, but instead of taking it, she was staring bullets at the giant hamster lumbering behind him.
"Master, what is this overgrown rodent that you've brought into your sacred domain?"
Gyahhh! I forgot she can be so scary towards those she thinks are close to me… I should clear this up before it gets out of hand…
"Th-This one is known as Hamusuke, previously the Wise King of the forest. Master defeated me easily in combat and spared my life, so now I will serve him for as long as I live."
Diablo could see Rose's eye twitch when Hamusuke called him master.
"I have made many exceptions for the company that Diablo keeps, but Rose is the only one who can call him master!
Hamusuke nearly fainted from the killing intent that Rose shot her way.
Before she could get her hands on the terrified hamster though, Diablo stepped between them.
"Rose, please. You know how important you are to me, and while Hamusuke isn't particularly strong, her role as the Wise King of the forest could prove useful going forward."
The scowl on the magimatic maid's face didn't falter, but her killing intent shrunk to a reasonable level, causing Hamusuke and Diablo to sigh in relief.
"Fine, but no more master talk out of the giant rat."
These repeated verbal jabs were clearly having an effect on Hamusuke, as she had her head hung in shame, but Diablo was just glad things didn't escalate to a physical level.
"Very well, as long as you two can get along. Anyways, Rose, has anything happened to the dungeon since I was last here?"
In response, the dungeon administrator motioned for them to follow as she walked down the hall towards the Demon Lord's throne.
Behind the throne was a large door that began slowly opening inwards, revealing a void that seemed to stretch on endlessly. Stone pedestals dotted the entire room in rows and columns, each with an item on display.
This space was Diablo's《Warehouse》, the place that houses all of his treasures from Cross Reverie.
"It's good to see that all of my items are intact. What is it you were going to show me, Rose?"
She continued walking towards two pedestals that he could have sworn were previously empty.
"I'm not sure as to how it happened, but the transfer process that the dungeon underwent seemed to have some sort of restorative properties."
Restorative properties? What could she mean by that? I don't recall anything in the dungeon that needed to be 'restored'...
However, as they approached the two particular pedestals, the pieces of the puzzle clicked in Diablo's mind.
"That equipment, is it my 《Curtain of Dark Clouds》 and 《Ebony Abyss》?!"
Both of these items had been destroyed barring a few scraps when he burned them to save Horn from hypothermia.
"According to my analysis, they are the exact same items that you previously wore."
Diablo was shocked to see his EX rank equipment in pristine condition. They should have been unsalvageable, but with the same power that brought him and his dungeon to this world, were somehow repaired.
My 《Gigantes Mail》 is sufficient enough compared to the 《Ebony Abyss》, however it might be worth switching my mantle…
The 《Call of Darkness》 that he currently wore was EX equipment as well, and came with all the standard benefits, but its special ability of instilling the 《Fear》 status affliction on his enemies was somewhat lacking for his current predicament. It wouldn't do him any good if he came across an opponent high enough in level that they could resist the debuff.
"This is truly astonishing, but I must take it as providence of my power as the Demon Lord! Rose, I'll be swapping out for the 《Curtain of Dark Clouds》"
The 《Curtain of Dark Clouds》 carried an ability that had already saved him once since becoming Diablo. Not only did it grant him massive resistance to all bad statuses including instant death, if he were to receive an attack that would reduce his HP to zero, it would be left at one instead.
He learned the effectiveness of this ability firsthand when he survived being stabbed in the heart by a certain trifling paladin.
Being in a new, unknown world, he wanted every level of protection he could get.
"I shall prepare your equipment immediately, master. By the way, there was one other significant change that came with the dungeons transfer."
"Something else?"
"Yes, the 《Large Black Dragon》 that previously guarded the the twelfth floor has been restored as well,"
The 《Large Black Dragon》had served as the final line of defense before reaching the Demon Lord's quarters. When Diablo and his group cleared the dungeon in pursuit of the 《White Cow Statue》, the dragon with "Super Aggressive" settings was slain by Diablo and Rose when he refused to recognize his master.
"I hope he learned his lesson from last time, but nonetheless he'll offer a useful level of protection should the Dungeon ever become under siege."
As Rose nodded silently and prepared Diablo's equipment, he was left wondering about the intricacies of this whole situation.
I can't wrap my head around this restoration mechanic, but honestly, with all the otherworldly stuff that keeps happening to me, all I can do is just roll with the punches…
…
Equipped with new gear, and reunited with one of his companions, Diablo was ready to continue his journey to E-Rantel.
Due to his lack of knowledge on the proceedings of the city, he decided to leave Hamusuke in the Demon Lord's quarters for the time being.
Using her teleportation core, Rose brought them to the entrance of the dungeon.
Diablo stared at the chimera statue that Rose had disengaged before they teleported.
Is it a good idea to leave this thing on all the time? I feel like it's more likely to piss someone off than provide any actual protection…
He was quickly torn from his line of thinking as Rose had stopped walking just in front of him, and began to pull her double-headed sword off her back.
The weapon she brandished had chainsaw-like blades on both ends, each one covered in smaller blades that shone in beams of light. It clashed greatly with the medieval-style world they found themselves in.
There's only one reason Rose would pull out her weapon now…
Confirming his suspicions, Rose shouted into the surrounding area.
"You might as well come out now, I'm not moving until you show yourselves!"
A moment of silence followed as Diablo began drawing his 《Tonnerre Empereur》 from underneath his mantle.
I can't feel the presence of any enemies, but Rose's sensory skills far surpass my own… Gah! Who would be waiting for us outside the dungeon?
After what felt like an eternity, four humanoid shapes began to rise out of the shadows of the surrounding trees.
What the heck are those things? They're dressed in complete ninja attire and I can't get any magical reading on them… I suppose it's to be expected with a stealth type enemy…
However, before Diablo could make his usual proclamation of battle, Rose spoke up.
"As the Overseer of this dungeon, I'll take care of the intruders myself!"
Reaching towards her back, Rose grabbed hold of and readied herself with her weapon, a magnificent double-headed blade that glowed unnaturally along its edges.
Diablo kept his guard up and eyes trained on the newly appeared ninja enemies, but he decided to leave the rest to Rose.
A fight like this is better suited for her, anyways…
The black-clad figures did not respond to their provocations. Instead, they suddenly moved towards Rose with such speed that Diablo almost had trouble keeping his eyes on them.
Still, he wasn't worried. The being that stood between him and the ninjas was a level 150 warrior. Although he didn't doubt that there could be monsters in this world strong enough to give him or Rose a run for their money, he could tell that she'd be able to handle herself.
As the ninjas approached in a dizzying pattern, they left behind after-images as they ran, making the task of tracking their movement that much more difficult.
Phasing in and out of sight, the ninja began throwing a barrage of shuriken towards Rose. The soft glow resonating from each shuriken blade meant they were enchanted as well, guaranteeing more damage on contact.
Despite this, Rose moved and handled her weapon with such grace that she managed to deflect or dodge all of the enchanted shuriken that were thrown her way.
Seeing that their projectile volley was useless, the ninja began to close in on her with blinding speed.
Using the same precision as before, Rose negated their barrage of kicks and punches with her double headed blade. She even got in a few effective counterattacks, greatly wounding two of the attackers.
However, while Rose was busy countering the ninjas in front of her, Diablo felt his senses scream at him to defend himself out of nowhere.
From his own shadow, a fifth ninja identical to the others jumped out at Diablo and slashed him across the back.
If it wasn't for the fast reaction time that came with his high level body, the blow he took most likely would've been a fatal one.
"What?!"
Shouting out in pain, he quickly transformed his staff into its sword form, 《Tonnerre Empereur• Libéré》.
The attacking ninja hastily flipped backwards in retreat, seeing the now battle ready Diablo.
Despite him having dodged the full force of the attack, the ninja had managed to open up a sizable gash on his back. For Diablo though, this was nothing but a nuisance, as the autohealing effect of the 《Disorted Crown》 that he wore had already begun to activate.
This guy managed to output enough damage in that attack to overcome the threshold of the 《Supreme Ruler's Bangle》... If he can negate its damage cutting effect, these ninja have to be high level, almost certainly past the limits of the races…
While Diablo was calculating the strength of these strange new enemies, he almost failed to notice Rose's killing intent roar in intensity out of nowhere.
"You… you inferior beings! To have the audacity to leave a wound upon my master, you must have long since resigned your fate!"
Her usual delicate features were contorted in rage as she threw her weapon blade first into the ground.
We had agreed before setting out that she would keep her 《Magimatic Sol》and 《Asterismos》as hidden trump cards, but there's no stopping her now…
From a space behind her back where there was previously nothing, two gigantic arms appeared, each tearing a hole in space itself in the process.
The giant arms were covered in what resembled plate armor, but the hinges at the joints gave away its true nature. Pipes ran down their length like arteries, and letters and symbols that one would find in a magic circle were carved all throughout as well. The symbols shined all the way down to the fingers of each armored hand, as if they were distributing energy.
Gripped in one of the hands of Rose's 《Magimatic Sol》 was a massive double headed sword that was almost identical to her own. The main difference between the two being that just one of the blades of 《Asterismos》 was as long as Rose was tall.
The ninja that surrounded them grew visibly distressed at the sight of the weapon that looked like it came from another world entirely.
Nonetheless, they still had a mission to carry out, and death in battle was far preferable to returning to their master in failure.
The four ninja had formed a semicircle around Rose, using their speed and agility to shift positions in order to potentially confuse their opponent.
Against almost any other foe in this world, their tactic would have worked. Yet when they made their synchronized attack on the magimatic maid, her response was swift, and deadly.
"《Krios》!"
Calling out the name of one of the constellations, the 《Magimatic Sol》 made a quick sideswipe with 《Asterismos》.
It's blinding speed was unbecoming given its massive size, and the ninja were unable to form a counter in the little time they had.
Before they could even register their fate, the four 「Hanzo」 summons of the Great Tomb of Nazarick were bisected by the shining blade of 《Asterismos》.
After witnessing the gruesome demise of his comrades, the remaining ninja opposite Diablo began to flee towards the treeline.
However, by the time he had turned his back on his opponent, he was done for.
"Why don't you stick around? 《Freeze Zone》!"
Diablo cast his magic, and the area immediately surrounding the ninja froze instantaneously, encapsulating him in ice.
Given his opponent's high level, Diablo knew the frozen status effect wouldn't last long, yet he accounted for this with his followup spell.
"《Demon Squeeze》!"
With the activation of his second spell, the highest form of 《Dark Press》, a swarm of jet black ivy began to grow from beneath Diablo and then shoot towards the still frozen ninja.
As the ivy tangled around the block of ice, it shattered, briefly freeing the ninja before he was bound by the swarming black ivy.
Let's see if I can get any information from this guy before things go south again… Then again it wouldn't surprise me if he keeps quiet, Rose did just butcher his companions…
Approaching the entrapped ninja, Diablo could see the hatred in his eyes. However, this rage didn't seem to be over the loss of his comrades, it was more visceral.
He didn't realize it at the time, but the ninja before him felt a twist of emotions. Hatred towards those who would stand in the way of his master's plans, and contempt for himself and his fellow 「Hanzos」 that had proved so useless.
I can't even use my 「Message」scroll to relay information about these two to Lady Albedo…
As if fate had read his thoughts, he suddenly felt the emerging presence of another voice in his mind.
"「Hanzo」! What happened to your fellow summons? I felt their connections disappear, and considering I didn't receive a message from you immediately I had to assume the worst."
The voice of Lady Albedo resonated clearly in his mind, still managing to soothe him despite her harsh tone.
He knew his captors weren't going to accept the silent treatment forever though, so he cut right to the chase.
"The demon known as Diablo is a formidable foe as we already knew, however it wasn't his destructive power that wiped out the other 「Hanzos」..."
Albedo remained silent, so the 「Hanzo」 took that as his queue to continue.
"He's accompanied by a warrior-type servant, surprisingly dressed as a maid, similar to the Pleiades. Although the similarities end there, as her attack power far surpasses any of the battle maids, barring Aureole most likely. It's just a hypothesis, but considering how she was able to bypass the innate physical resticances of high level summons like myself, as well as see through our stealth movement, she may very well be level 100 like yourself and the other floor guardians."
There was once again a brief silence, but Albedo knew she had to get as much information as she could about these inferior beings, so she continued with her 「Message」 spell.
"What about their weapons? Their armor? Did you see anything that could potentially further or hinder the goals of Nazarick?"
The 「Hanzo」 gulped.
Even though he was an incredibly high level mercenary summon, and possessed resistances to fear and pain, the black ivy binding him had begun to progressively grow tighter.
Tack on the frantic line of questioning he was hearing from his summoner, someone as fearsome as Lady Albedo, and one could understand the despair bubbling up in his heart.
"The demon made some slight alterations to his gear, most likely either divine or legendary class like the rest of his equipment. The abilities of said equipment are still unfortunately unknown. His servant, however, wields a strange dual sided blade of light that was able to keep the other 「Hanzos」at bay even with a coordinated attack,
The Guardian Overseer knew there was more to the story. Her summon still had yet to explain how his comrades had perished so suddenly in a four versus one battle.
"Continue."
"Yes, of course master. Regrettably, I underestimated the demon's combat speed, and he managed to avoid the attempt I made on his life, although narrowly so. This also showed that he has some level of passive regeneration, as the flesh wound that I landed on him had begun healing over almost immediately."
With a small but growing crunching sound, the ivy that bound the 「Hanzo」 constricted to a point where his bones began to give out under the massive force.
"I likely don't have much longer, Lady Albedo, but I will make sure my life doesn't serve as a hindrance to Lord Ainz. After I attacked the demon, his servant became overcome with rage. She threw her already marvelous weapon blade first into the dirt, and then pulled her main weapon… out of thin air…"
Albedo appreciated the efforts of her 「Hanzo」 to some extent, but she was being overcome with a growing irritation as she learned of his and his fellow summons' massive tactical miscalculations.
"What is it? Tell me what you saw, now!"
As she gave her final order to her summon, a certain demon was becoming increasingly annoyed as well.
"Who sent you to attack the Demon Lord in his own domain? Only someone utterly stupid would ever order such a transgression!"
Diablo was done waiting out the still silent ninja that he had captured, as he felt himself subconsciously increasing the pressure of the spell. The resulting sickening crunching noises brought his actions to his attention, but by then it was too late.
In his last moments of life, the 「Hanzo」 uttered a curse towards the frowning Demon Lord.
"You insolent low-class demon, how dare you insult the vision… of the supreme one, Lord Ainz Ooal Gown…"
"Ainz Ooal Gown?"
Diablo's inquisition was met with silence as the ninja's body ragdolled and crumpled to the forest floor, released from the grips of the dissipating 《Demon Squeeze》.
Well, I guess a name is better than nothing… but Ainz Ooal Gown? They're definitely not a top player from Cross Reverie, nor an NPC character, unless they were part of some unimplemented aspect of the game like Rose, but the possibility is almost zero…
The most likely explanation is that I've come up on the radar of a powerful being native to this world… but what could I have done to anger them? I haven't even been here a week and there's already a conspiracy brewing against me!
Although the situation Diablo found himself in was far from ideal, he couldn't help but feel excited at the prospect of a proper challenger waiting over the horizon. He had experienced many life or death battles during his time being Diablo, yet he still longed for the ultimate fight of cunning battle-intellect and prestige that was befitting of his role as the one true Demon Lord.
Not that my title means anything now in this world, but I still have my perfect record of PVP challenges that I need to defend…
He looked over at Rose, who had recalled 《Asterismos》 and her 《Magimatic Sol》 into whatever space they reside in.
"You don't think this was overkill, right Rose?"
Picking up her dual bladed sword, the magimatic maid cast a cold look of disgust at the corpse of the ninja.
"I would expect nothing less for any being that slights you, let alone one that was slimy enough to attack you by surprise."
Diablo couldn't help but shudder with the realization of how serious she was. He had always calmed her down in the past, ordering her if he had to, when she took offence towards something his allies did.
When the people before us are truly a threat though, she won't hesitate at all… I guess that's both a blessing and a curse…
"Anyways, this is even more reason to get to E-Rantel. Not only do we have to inquire about the adventurer's guild, we now have a name that's worth looking into as well."
"Ainz Ooal Gown… This name comes up nowhere in my data banks. It's no matter though, anyone who makes an attempt on master's life deserves immediate termination, the details can come later."
Well at least she's confident…
"While I agree with your tenacity, you have to remember that this enemy likely has information on us, and we know next to nothing about him. He and whatever organization he leads have the home field advantage, so we have to be careful with every step we take."
Rose's previous face of disgust quickly shifted to one of regretful shock as she took in the wisdom of her master.
"I-I should have considered such a scenario. My faulty programming is not sufficient to adequately serve you, please punish me in any way you see fit master, preferably physically."
Diablo's heart skipped a beat upon hearing this comment. There's no way he could forget Rose's masochistic tendencies whenever she requested a punishment, even for the slightest mistakes.
"Uh-uh- banish the thought, Rose! I-I could never expect for you to fully see into the abyss that is a Demon Lord's mind!"
I think I navigated that well enough with the Demon Lord persona… if she was gonna see through me there then she would've realized I was acting all the way back when I first found her…
"As you wish, Diablo."
She said this with a hint of disappointment in her voice that Diablo easily picked up on, but there was nothing he could add to the subject without making the situation more awkward.
"Before we head out again, I'd like for you to bring Hamusuke to the surface. He serves a better purpose monitoring the area around the dungeon while we're gone."
"Also…"
He looked her up and down. The maid outfit she wore fit and suited her perfectly, but he realized her revealing outfit may not be customary in the city they were travelling to.
"Pick out a robe or covering of your choosing from the vault. I just want to minimize any attention we may draw to ourselves in the city."
Rose frowned at this proposal, but given the lesson she had just received on looking at the bigger picture, she had no choice but to unenthusiastically accept.
"I will carry your orders out at once."
After giving her confirmation, Rose activated her teleportation core and disappeared to the bottommost level of the dungeon.
Finally alone, Diablo let out a deep sigh and bent over with his hands on his knees.
Rose is about as strong of an ally as I can have, but I can't help but feel anxious over bringing her into a foriegn city…
…
The Guardian Overseer Albedo slammed her fists down on the desk in front of her in frustration, almost breaking it in half from failing to control her strength.
"L-lady Albedo! Is everything alright!?"
The maid currently attending to her let out a shout of concern, but Albedo immediately regained her composure, as expected of her position.
"I'm perfectly fine, but would you be so kind as to show yourself out for a few minutes? I have a matter of utmost secrecy I need to discuss with Lord Ainz."
Startled by Albedo's sudden shift in mood, the maid nodded and quickly backed out the door, closing it behind her.
"「Message」."
A few seconds after activating the 「Message」 spell, Albedo felt the connection go through, although she was hesitant to break the news.
"Lord Ainz? Can you hear me?"
"I hear you loud and clear, Albedo. I imagine you have a report for me regarding the 「Hanzo」tracking mission?"
She froze upon hearing her master's voice, almost making her forget everything she had to report.
However, she couldn't let herself off the hook that easily. Someone had to break the bad news to the supreme one.
"You knew my intentions immediately, something I'd expect only from the man I love!"
There was a brief silence followed by a cough as if Ainz was clearing a throat that he didn't have.
"Hm, uh, yes, of course. Please, tell me the report."
"At once, Lord Ainz."
…
The Overlord of the Great Tomb of Nazarick sat on the side of a simple bed in an equally plain room, still processing the information he had just received from Albedo's report.
His bleach-white skull that he held in his gauntleted hands was heavily contrasted by the raven black plate armor that covered the rest of his body.
This was far from his normal attire, but at the moment he was masquerading as Momon, an adventurer new to E-Rantel, with Narberal from the Pleiades as his partner.
She was sitting silently on the bed opposite Ainz, as she waited for her master, now adventurer partner, to explain the contents of the message he'd just received from Albedo.
"Well, Nabe, you are aware of the individual that interfered in our plans for Carne village, and I've just received an update on the tracking detail that was sent to tail him."
Narberal continued to stare in silence, eagerly listening to Ainz' words.
"Apparently we underestimated him, or at least any potential allies he may have. He came out of the pyramid building with a female servant of some kind, funnily enough dressed as a maid like you normally are yourself,"
"Hmph, most likely a poor imitation of the real thing,"
"As much as I hate to admit it, it was her that detected and decimated almost all the 「Hanzos」, taking no damage herself. What's even worse, the last 「Hanzo」 died before he could relay thorough information on the weapon she used to make quick work of them, so we have a big hole in our data on her."
It was hard for her to take in, but since it was the word of her master, Narbarel had to accept that this enemy was likely stronger than her.
"Even so, there's still no way they serve as a threat to someone as powerful as a supreme being."
Ainz rubbed his chin upon hearing her response. He was confident in his PVP abilities, but he had to operate under the belief that every enemy was stronger than him until he had evidence otherwise.
Currently, all evidence on these two individuals points to them being a potential threat to Nazarick's operatives in the field…
"Even if they don't serve a direct threat to myself, they are variables that could hinder our plans going forward. We know they are most likely en route to E-Rantel, so it's easy to assume they plan on becoming adventurers like us. What their motives are, your guess is as good as mine."
Ainz stood up from the bed, and reconjured his helmet over his exposed skull.
"No matter what their plans are, it just means we have to work twice as hard to establish ourselves in this city."
Although, who knows? Maybe some proper rivals will serve a purpose in being crushed to increase the acclaim of the adventurer Momon…
…