Aura hummed happily while she walked the hallways of Nazarick's second floor on her way to the first, which would then lead her to the surface. "Mo-mon-ga-sa-ma is back, Momonga-sama is back~ eheheh… And he's not mad… This is like, the best day in… A long time! Right, Mare?"
"Y-y-yes… h-he's scary, as I t-thought… b-but he's… erm… nicer than I thought…" Mare shook marginally less and Aura blew a raspberry at him while having her thumbs against her the sides of her temple and waving her fingers at the cross-dressing boy.
"You need to find more self-confidence, Mare-kun! Elsewise you'll just cause embarrassment for us and our creator when you stammer at Momonga-sama!" Aura pointed her finger at Mare while having her free hand on her hip and thrust forward to a headstrong stance.
Mare, in response, slinked further behind his staff. "I-I'll try… I guess…"
Aura blinked a bit as something seemed to shake a bit, causing the dust of the hallways to loosen and billow a bit… Before something massive broke through the ceiling of the hallway.
"Eeeep!" Aura jumped to the side and grabbed Mare by her long elf-ear to drag him out of the harm's way. "W-what the heck is that?!"
The pair ran along the hallway as the massive, needle-linke fanged maw seemed to penetrate the stone masonry of the second level of Nazarick like how a knife would cut through butter.
"Hey! That's cheating! Blatant cheating! Hacking!" Aura screamed behind herself as she dragged Mare along, and saw that the massive creature wasn't so much advancing through Nazarick like an invader, but rather it was burrowing straight through like some sort of fleshy fish-drill. "Not cool! Grr!"
The massive creature which was now halfway through the second floor didn't answer to Aura's indignant squeaks, and instead continued to burrow in an animalistic frenzy.
"Mare! Support me!" Aura brought out her lash as the pair managed to get enough distance between themselves and the massive invader that they could fight properly, and she whipped the monster across the skin as it burrowed down- Even if it was more akin to whipping a wall of flesh that had blocked the hallway as the creature was burrowing deeper into the Great Tomb by the second, resembling a huge organic drill penetrating the floors..
The whiplash landed on some sort of hexagonal barrier that drew most of the strength of the blow, so instead of raking the creature to the bone the whip-lash only caused small gashes to the creature's fin- Something that was less than a papercut on the massive monster.
"Ugh- A barrier? Fine, then how about… this!" Aura breathed in deep and breathed out a violet mist that seeped through the corridor, wafting out to stain the flesh of the massive creature.
The creature was utterly unaffected by Aura's pheromone-mist, which would have allowed her to enslave just about any animal as it was one of her major class-specific skills as Beast Master. "W-what? It's not an animal? Or…"
Aura narrowed her eyes as she saw that while the massive creature was frantically twitching it's way through the floor, it was occasionally helped by flashes of an odd hexagonal rainbow-coloured barrier that seemed to help it cut through the solid matter as if it was a drill. "So it's not just some dumb animal, but a high-tier catch… In other words, we have to weaken it first! Mare!"
"G-got it! [Nature's Barrier]!" Mare slammed the end of her staff against the hallway, causing a thick swarm of roots to extend forwards and tie itself around the creature.
The roots managed to wrap the creature's fins, albeit at the last possible moment as it was almost entirely through the Second Floor of Nazarick already.
A few seconds later the odd hexagonal barrier came up again and the vibration of the creature combined with the barrier mulched the roots into pulp, like how it had turned stone to mud. "I-it got away?!"
"Aaaargh! Momonga-sama is going to be so angry at us!" Aura held the sides of her temple while she jumped on the spot. "He totally knew this was going to happen! 'Go out and fetch some local animals outside Nazarick'-he said, so he totally expected me to tame that thing! Mare!"
"Y-yes?"
"We need to capture that thing or else Momonga-sama is going to be disappointed and leave us again!" Aura shook Mare a bit from the shoulders, causing the dark elf twin clad in girl's clothes to pale so much that he looked like a regular elf for a moment.
"Right- u-um… S-should we tell anyone else that w-we didn't catch that thing?" Mare blanched a bit. "Albedo-sama is going to be so angry… A-and Momonga-sama is going to be scary…"
"Ermm…" Aura's determined expression faltered a bit. "S-Shalltear will hold that beastie at the end of the third floor, so it should be alright, yeah? We can just catch up on it. W-we don't have to tell anyone that we screwed up, right?"
"R-Right…"
"Yeah- Letsgo!" Aura pat Mare's shoulder and instantly bolted for the massive gaping hole in the center of the second floor of Nazarick, visible through the partially crumbled and cut-in-half hallway, and she jumped into the sinkhole.
"Weeee!" Aura's voice turned echoey as she disappeared from sight into the darkness.
Mare shuffled back and forth nervously as he looked at the dark, imposing sink-hole, gulped as he thought about the landing, and finally jumped after Aura. While keeping the front of his skirt down with his free hand and legs tightly locked together. 'E-e-e-embarrassing…'
.
.
.
.
Shalltear sighed while she paced around in her 'Raid Battle Arena', or a vampire gothic-themed arena complete with a coffin that she used for sleeping.
She wasn't exactly sure why her creator, Peroroncino, had decided that her 'bedroom' was a combat arena, but she was sure that it was incredibly kinky to have a fight to the death in there.
Shalltear had even overheard her creator speak to himself of such things as 'death by snoo-snoo', which was a skill that apparently required a bedroom, but unfortunately her creator had disappeared before she could learn that specific skill and thus the true power of the bedroom-combat arena had not yet been unlocked.
'If I try hard enough, perhaps it'll unlock by itself… Then… Momonga-sama will choose to stay with us, maybe… Demiurge's and Albedo's foolish plans almost cost us everything.' Shalltear bit her lip in annoyance while she paced around her coffin, clad in her gothic lolita getup that her creator had chosen to be her style. The pacing caused her dress-cage to swish from side-to-side like an unbalanced lamp, but she didn't care. 'Lord Momonga 'dismissed us to our duties', which means 'to our combat positions' as our tasks as Floor Guardians' is to repel invaders in our respective levels… And with that talk about covering the mausoleum from view, and slaving attack-beasts… There's no doubt about it. There is an attack coming our way, and Lord Momonga has only returned to see how we'll serve the Great Tomb, and how we'll be able to serve Him. In other words, this is a test of our skill, dedication, and worthiness. Demiurge and Albedo failed in their tests as strategic leaders of the Tomb, and Albedo only managed to succeed in her other given task of finding our lord due to dumb luck and Sebas's help… And now is the time to test our fighting elements.'
Shalltear's pacing only increased in fervor while she thought. 'The fact Nazarick's defenses are down because of unpaid upkeep must also be part of Lord Momonga's test. To see how we adapt to changing circumstances by hamstringing our strongest abilities. Otherwise He would have instantly paid the upkeep once reaching the Tomb. I didn't say anything to the other Floor Guardians because Lord Momonga didn't say anything specific either, he must be expecting us to come to this conclusion by ourselves… That soot-haired cow must have realized this also, as well as Demiurge…'
'...But was seeing our cooperation also part of the plan?! To see if we'd communicate with one another and cooperate, or if we'd let eachother down?' Shalltear grabbed her head and let out a small, desperate whine. "Momonga-samaa… Please spare meee.. My head can't take more of this, your plans are too deep for me…"
She thought about the problem for a while… Before she reached for to her ear and sent a [Message] to the other Floor Guardians, asking for their help. Even though confessing to others that she had no clue about the deep thoughts of the sole remaining Supreme Being wounded her pride greatly. 'However, if this is a test of our capability and loyalty, surely it makes sense to ask for help… Right?'
"Hm. That. Does. Make. Sense." Cocyotus's voice was ponderous even through the 'mental conference call' that Shalltear set up with the [Message], and it was clear that the insectoid warrior's brains were as overloaded as Shalltear's after she had explained her case. "I. Did. Not. Consider. That. However. In. Retrospect. It. Makes. Perfect. Sense. Specifically. As. He. Spoke. About. Preparing. For. Battle. As. Warriors."
"...I thought this was obvious, however I believe that this was an individual test of our wits as well. Haa. In which case Shalltear's message to us would have already failed that… But Shalltear's idea of joining our forces may bear merit, if testing our cooperation is the true plan of the Supreme Being." Demiurge sighed into the conference call. 'I have hypothesized seventeen sub-plans within his grand plan, however in truth I am quite puzzled as to his true objectives. Which, in turn, doesn't surprise me- The thoughts of the greatest of the Supreme Beings are truly unfathomable."
"..." A faint rumbling came through the message, making Shalltear conclude that the Floor Guardian of Fourth Floor, Gargantua, was agreeing with her- At least, as far as the magical golem-construct could, as it was by no means a genius of wit.
"Solche weisheit! As expected of Shalltear!" A thoroughly dramatic voice of the Guardian of the Treasure agreed, albeit Shalltear had to clean her ear a bit afterwards as the creature's tone caused her to cringe a bit for some reason.
"...Ehehe… w-well…" Aura's voice was a bit faint and there were undertones of struggling in there. "The thing is… I actually ran into the intruders Shalltear spoke of- They're here already."
"What?! Hm. This is worrying indeed. Our Lord ordered you outside, Aura, so I'll assume you ran into them at the entrance? How are the defenses faring on the First floor?" Demiurge sounded a bit shaken. "Albedo, where are you?"
"I was preparing for the Ninth Floor's defenses- I'll head to the Throne of Kings." Albedo's voice sounded strained. "Lord Momonga has gone somewhere- Ah. He must be looking at us from the side, observing how we'll do when we're left to lead ourselves-"
"Sorry, hafta interrupt you Albedo- First floor has been bulldozed, same with Second Floor. Mare! Can you not restrain it at all?!" Aura's voice cut over the other Floor Guardians in the call.
"N-no! It's too slippery! And scary! E-eeek!" Mare sounded like he was in quite the panic.
"-Shalltear. Get ready, it's going to come to you in a few moments. If we weaken it enough I can- Ow!" Aura's voice disappeared from the conference call, yet Mare's remained.
"A-Aura! No!" Mare sounded quite panicked before his voice disappeared as well.
A cracking sound came from somewhere nearby and Shalltear instantly dove into her coffin, ready for a 'Boss Introduction Action', or a flashy and show-offy way of exiting her coffin once intruders would breach the Third Floor and enter her boss-arena, through which the invaders could then reach the Fourth Floor- Assuming the invaders managed to defeat her.
"The enemies are here. I'll hold them- And Lord Momonga shall know that neither my heart nor my power wavers! Unlike you, Albedo!" Shalltear declared into the conference call before terminating the [Message], albeit she managed to hear Albedo's indignant squeak before that.
'The intruders are strong. Even so, I'm a bit surprised at how fast the invaders have penetrated the first two layers- I haven't received notifications of the breach yet, which means the Area Guardians on the First and Second Floor must be still alive, as I'm the Floor Guardian of the first three Floors… err… actually, how exactly did the invaders get to Third Floor without killing the Area Guardians? They hold the keys needed to open the doors to their respective levels…' Shalltear thought in puzzlement as something let a massive cracking sound outside her coffin, and she mentally prepared herself for her trial-by-fire. Or rather, second trial-by-fire as she had been defeated in combat once before, during a massive raid by hostile Supreme Beings that pierced deep into Nazarick.
"Alright… You can do this, Shalltear Bloodfallen." Shalltear slapped her cheeks a bit inside the coffin, albeit she couldn't exactly bring them to blush that way due to the fact she was a vampire.
Shalltear felt something heavy impact somewhere nearby, and she opened the coffin with much fanfare while standing up on straight legs, as if carried by ethereal winds, her deep crimson-glowing eyes closed until she'd be upright and ready to open them in dramatic fashion… And she opened her eyes towards her arena-gate while performing a slight, mocking curtsy towards the coming champions who'd test her might.
Shalltear blinked as she didn't see anyone at the gates.
Only, there were a lot of sharp teeth all around her all of a sudden, as if something was about to take a bite from directly above.
"Eh?" Shalltear let a small, puzzled sound before a pair of massive jaws carrying thousands of tree-trunk sized teeth snapped shut around her, chomping down the entire arena alongside the vampire and her coffin in one bite.
.
.
The Sixth Angel, Gaghiel, the Roaring Beast of God, swallowed, and continued its digging through the den of abominations towards its goal- A goal that was so close its stench was practically overpowering the scent of dying, rotten structures that surrounded the Angel's massive body as it swam down with the help of it's AT-field, piercing through rock, stone and reality.
.
.
Momonga sighed heavily.
"Master?" Yuri Alpha adjusted her glasses while she stood beside Momonga, with Shizu on Momonga's other side.
"It's nothing. I'm merely… Preparing myself mentally. Think nothing of it." Momonga handwaved to distract himself. "Erm… Old memories and so forth. You understand, yes?"
"O-of course, my apologies for disturbing your contemplations, master." Yuri bowed deep towards Momonga, making him feel more than a bit bothered over the reverence the NPC's showed towards him.
'Having servants and maids… It feels a bit, I don't know, waste for them to dedicate their lives to Nazarick, as they are no longer just dumb NPC's but people…' Momonga thought to distract himself from the terror of the coming encounter with his creation. 'I wonder… Should I be offering them a salary and days off? Or am I thinking of them as human because of their appearance? What would happen if I gave them days off and arranged some transportation to Tokyo-3 to spend their free time and money? It should be okay since NERV has a lot of control over that area so any incidents would be easy to sweep under the rug… But would that make the NPC's more vulnerable to being compromised by foreign agents, if they thought about themselves too and thus had some goals other than Nazarick? Would they become vulnerable to bribes?'
Momonga turned his mind back to the task at hand as he had started to feel slimy over his train of thoughts. 'Right.'
"Let's go. Wear these." Momonga handed the two maids [Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown], as having that guild-item was the only way to access the Treasury through the item's ability to teleport anywhere in Nazarick. "Follow me."
The ring's teleportation activated, and the trio were deposited in a room that was stylized after a CEO's office, complete with a redwood desk and coffers overflowing with gold, jewels and treasures… And behind the desk was a creature.
Momonga's mouth fell open as he looked at a yellow-clad creature that was not the one he was expecting. "Y-Yamaiko-san? You… You came here with me?"
Momonga realized that his voice had turned faint, fragile and hopeful, and coughed as he realized that such a vulnerability might compromise his legimacy with the NPC's behind him- Only for Yuri Alpha to dive in front of him.
"Momonga-sama! This is not Yamaiko-sama! It is an impostor! I would recognize my creator anywhere- This is not him!"
"Suspicious." Shizu agreed after she looked at Yuri for a brief second, then at Momonga's reaction, and finally lifted her autorifle to point at the yellow-clad, top-hat wearing ten-feet tall muscular humanoid creature that was armed with a pair of massive red gauntlets.
"...Hm." Momonga's [Emotion Suppression] activated and brought his mind to a state of peace after a surge of emotions, allowing him to think rationally.
The creature that looked like Yamaiko took a step towards Momonga, and then another, causing the floor to shake under its footsteps as the creature picked up speed like a steam train heading for a head-on collision at full force, and causing the rasping sound of heavy chains to engulf the whole office-room.
Yuri brought up her own gauntlets and braced for impact, while her Brawler-class specific defensive measures activated to form a green circle under her feet and making her nearly impossible to bulge from her spot-
"...Pandora's Actor. That's enough." Momonga raised his hand. "Your disguise is well-made, you have my congratulations."
The huge humanoid creature's footsteps halted as it jumped to the air… Only, its shape and size changed midway through the jump so that when it landed, it was clad in khaki-coloured officer's uniform complete with plethora of unnecessary belt-buckles and an officer's cap balancing precariously on the man-shaped creature's smooth head.
Pandora's Actor slid forwards on his knees on the floor from the momentum, until he came to a stop mere five feet from Momonga, Yuri and Shizu, the NPC's arms raised to a rapturous embrace of seemingly nothing above him as if he was giving praise to a god for a miracle.
Momonga felt something inside his head crumble as he looked at his NPC's face, Pandora's Actor's face, which was not so much a human's face but rather more akin to an upturned egg with three black holes poked in to represent eyes and mouth.
"W-w-welcome baaaack to the Great Tomb of Nazarick, oh my eternal masterrrrr! I am eternally glaaaaad, mein fuhr-" Pandora's Actor's voice was over-acted to a massive degree, akin to a drama teacher demonstrating the class a performance on 'being too corny', which was further reinforced by the creature performing a showy swirl complete with a dramatic billow of the officer's overcoat that he had draped over one of his shoulders.
"Please don't speak in German." Momonga halted his creation instantly as the backlash from seeing the results of his cringy youth and reminder of what he had considered 'cool' some ten years ago came to torment him once more, even if he had [Emotion Suppression] to keep him somewhat sane from it. 'I knew it… If Pandora's Actor and Asuka meet, I will die. if I see that, hear from that, or even know that it has happened, I'm going to curl up so hard that I'll turn into a ouroboros and disappear into a singularity of my own cringing… I need to be careful.'
"Yes! My lord!" Pandora made a twirl while getting up and struck a mysterious pose while reaching to tip his officer's cap as if it was a fedora. "Well met to thee as well, o fair and beautiful ladies Yuri and Shizu! Your radiant beauty brings my eyes to life!"
Momonga stared at Pandora's Actor a bit.
And then he turned his head slowly to take a look at Yuri's expression, which was lifeless and glazed over while her glasses seemed to have cracked. And Shizu seemed to be just staring right through Pandora's Actor as if she was looking at something utterly worthless.
"Uwah. Lame." Shizu put her autorifle away while somehow making the mechanical motion convey the idea of her target being unworthy of even being shot.
Pandora's Actor noticed both reactions and coughed blood while making a motion of holding his chest as if he was mortally wounded, before reaching up to swipe his cap from his head and put it against his chest.
The creature then bowed deep towards Momonga. "How may I serve my lord and master this fine night?"
'Ah, right. It's starting to get late…' Momonga distracted himself for a brief moment with time before coughing. "I'd like to access the Exchange Box. I believe that it's time to pay the upkeep for Nazarick."
Pandora's Actor looked at Momonga for a brief while, and then sweated a bit. "M-my lord, we… ahem, hm, yes of course."
'Huh?' Momonga blinked internally at the odd change in Pandora's Actor's behavior. "Is something wrong?"
The NPC seemed to freeze for a while… before he made a small motion as if to convey that it was extremely uncertain. "Erm… Well… About that…"
"Please tell me if something's wrong, or if you need help with something." Momonga was feeling more than a bit paranoid over Pandora's Actor's sudden change in behavior. He even glanced at Shizu to see if she had any idea about unknown counter-measures being tripped, as Momonga knew that the Treasury was chock-full of traps of all sorts to ensure no-one would be able to steal from it.
Shizu merely stared at Pandora's Actor with her usual emotionless look, making Momonga wonder if something else was going on.
"Ahem, don't worry, my glooorious master! We can take care of everything!" Pandora's Actor reached to dry his smooth head with a rag after it had suddenly become streaked with sweat. "Everything is under control, we're… Ahem, dealing with it."
'Eh?' Momonga blinked at Pandora's Actor's words. "...Is that so. What might this 'it' be then?"
Pandora's Actor's sweating became even more intense for a moment, all the while Momonga started to sweat internally as well as he got a feeling he had said something odd… Before Pandora's Actor coughed to his fist. "The invasion of the Great Tomb."
Momonga stared at the NPC for a while. '...What?'
"Aura was a bit too late and the enemy got past First and Second Floors, but Shalltear is blocking the enemy at Third Floor." Pandora's Actor explained while Momonga's mouth opened slowly.
'...Wait, was I- Did NERV follow me somehow?! Or- Or is it someone else? If SEELE got their hands on Entoma's body, and they must have known about the attacks on the local populace, did they find Nazarick?' Momonga almost asked Pandora's Actor about the enemy, before he paused to think. And to thank his [Emotion Suppression] for stabilizing himself as the conflicting thoughts of utter confusion, sudden fear and disbelief all clashed spectacularly inside his mind. "Wait- You said that the First and Second Floors have already been penetrated?!"
"...Yes, my lord. That is indeed so, to our great shame." Pandora's Actor seemed quite confused while he struck a contemplating pose, clearly sensing that something was up with Momonga's behavior. "However! Rest assured Momonga-sama! We'll survive this trial with flying colors and the banner of the Legacy of the Supreme Beings held high!"
'Right, crap, he's catching onto me. And if we're invaded when the upkeep hasn't been paid… Not good.' Momonga grabbed himself by the neck, metaphorically speaking, and lifted himself back to the moment. "In that case, I'll watch your progress closely. Please do not disappoint me. Tell me, have you found out anything about the enemy you face? Moreover, the fact you've lost two floors already is a signal enough that I've wasted too much time in getting our defenses up. Stand aside."
"We have not discovered the enemy's capabilities, Momonga-sama. Shalltear will likely tell us about the nature of our enemy, or Albedo when she takes the seat of the Throne of Kings as the Guardian Overseer, as is her role whenever our lord doesn't take command of the defense." Pandora's Actor took the cap from his head and bowed to Momonga. "If… If our lord finds that our performance has been subpar, that we have failed and the handicap needs to be removed… Then we shall accept this decision in shame. If that is indeed what is going on."
'Wait what? They thought that- Ah.' Momonga felt like putting his hands on the nearby wall and whacking his head against it a couple of times in frustration. However, doing so would thoroughly compromise his image in the eyes of the NPC's, so he restrained himself from disgracing himself in front of them. 'Ghuh. So the NPC's thought that I was testing them or something when the upkeep wasn't paid?! Who does that?! Wait, if- Dammit, if I pay it now the NPC's will think that they have failed me and thus would probably think I'd get rid of them, which might prompt them to overthrow me before that'd happen… But if I don't pay the upkeep, Nazarick will suffer- The legacy of my friends… Rrrgh!'
Momonga thanked [Emotion Suppression] once more as it allowed him to calm himself and rise over the mist of frustration, rage and paranoia that threatened to overtake his thoughts.
"I see. In that case… I'll wait for now. But if the Third Floor is penetrated, I'll pay the upkeep. Consider that a line in your test. And if the- wait." Momonga paused as he realized that Pandora's Actor had offered him a free get-out-of-jail-free card with his last sentence, yet Momonga had missed it in his surge of paranoia. 'Umu! 'If that is indeed what is going on'- Pandora's Actor knows! He gave me a way out- But I doubled down! This is bad- No way, I wrote that Pandora's Actor had a sharp mind behind a mask of corny acting, so it must have manifested as real talent here… In other words- Does he know? Does Pandora's Actor know that I'm just a random dumb salaryman behind this bony avatar, no-one special?! If that's the case…'
"My lord?" Pandora's Actor seemed genuinely concerned as he took a wide-legged parade-rest stance with his hands behind his back. "Please, allow us a moment longer. We'll- ah."
Pandora's Actor's already pallid complexion turned utterly white, as did his clothes, as if all color had drained of his very being. "...I've received a message from Albedo, stating that the Third Floor has been penetrated and the intruder is in the Fourth Floor. However, Shalltear is still alive."
"I see. In that case… stand aside. This test is now concluded." Momonga made a small motion to move, causing Pandora's Actor to clink his heels together into a parade salute, complete with him taking his cap off and putting it against his chest with his very being conveying the aura of a defeated soldier in disgrace.
Momonga meanwhile was trying his best to not break down into a paranoid mess, nor flame to a raging fury over the audacity of someone daring to invade the Great Tomb- The sole legacy left behind by his friends. But holding calm was difficult for him as the conflicting emotions kept waging inside his head, only to be brought down time and time again by [Emotion Suppression] flaring up like an unreliable car engine belching fire from its exhaust. 'Hrgh… There will not be a gentle death waiting for whoever dares to strike at our legacy, at our home… Hm. However, this is quite an effective test of the capabilities of Nazarick's defenses against local threats. And when it is done, I'll have the invader's skin rend from their flesh and rubbed in salt, and… Hm. I should probably send a probe towards Gendo, if the opponent here is SEELE. He'll probably have an idea about their whereabouts. And their suffering will be the stuff of legends- Hm. I should be careful…'
Momonga closed his eyes, or rather made the undead equivalent emotion of doing so which robbed him of sight for a moment- A moment which he used in a desperate attempt to collect his thoughts from the rage, planning and paranoia.
The four of them- Shizu, Yuri, Momonga and Pandora's Actor filed into a small room in the Treasury that was utterly utilitarian in it's ascetics and function despite the rest of the 'hidden floor' being utterly overflowing with treasury, and after a while, Momonga had paid the upkeep of Nazarick in full for the month.
'Haa. I need to experiment with the Exchange Box once this is over- We can't keep Nazarick in its topmost upkeep state for long. We'd run dry in a decade or so… But if I decrease the funding on POP monsters and effects I compromise the defense of the Tomb… Although, some environmental conditions like air-conditioning on the Ninth Floor could be removed, and perhaps…' Momonga thought for a brief moment about the eventual problem they'd face with money if they couldn't source local goods to exchange for YGGDRASIL gold-tokens… Before he snapped out of it, remembering that they were under much more pressing attack, and had no time for reminiscing or worrying about finances. "Alright. Good. I'll be heading to the Ninth Floor. Keep up the good work, Pandora's Actor."
"Thank you, Momonga-sama." Pandora's Actor bowed deep to Momonga. "I thoroughly apologize for our lacking prowess in the field of battle."
"You were not the one who failed." Momonga handwaved… Before he froze up as he realized that by dismissing Pandora's Actor's apologies for a sin not his own, he accidentally tossed Shalltear under the bus as the 'failed one'. "Er, please don't tell Shalltear that."
"I shall not." Pandora's Actor seemed unusually serious, and Momonga thanked his skeletal body's inability to sweat once more as he got a seriously uncomfortable feeling that Pandora's Actor knew much more than he let on.
'He's seriously dangerous! I need to stay on guard… A moment's lapse and I'll be ganged up on…' Momonga felt his paranoia peak once more before it was suppressed, and he nodded to Pandora's Actor before teleporting off with the help of [Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown]. 'I need to figure out just what is going on…'
.
.
The 'ceiling' of the Fourth Floor of the Great Tomb of Nazarick let dangerous-sounding cracks as if something large was burrowing its way through the stone and magic.
The burrowing had been quick at the start, but suddenly the sounds quieted greatly as if the material it was burrowing through had turned much stronger all of a sudden… But as the creature had been mostly through the ceiling already, the rest gave way easily enough.
The titan-sized, pelican-beaked fish-like creature fell from the hole it had made in the ceiling of the Fourth Floor… And landed into a huge, still lake that was large enough for the creature to be able to move normally, albeit the lake was not quite deep enough for the invader to submerge completely.
"Wheee!" Aura wheezed half from the impact and half from the exhilaration of the thrill of the ride as she straddled the invading creature's tail-fin… At least until the creature splashed its tail against the surface of the water, causing the combination of the slap and the impact to loosen Aura's grip and she flew off the creature's back. "Mare?! Mare, are you alright?!"
"Pwhuaa!" Mare's head popped above the water, and the dark elf boy looked utterly miserable. "C-C-Coooold! W-w-water s-s-so cold… [Water Walk]!"
The twins popped back above the water as the spell took hold and turned the water under their feet into solid 'footing'.
"I can feel my strength surging… Don't tell me, Momonga-sama concluded the experiment and paid the upkeep? Haa… We totally failed." Aura sighed but cheered right afterwards as she could still at least capture her target and achieve partial success in their trial. "Right, round two!"
"Let's go, you big ruddy overgrown tuna!" Aura pointed her finger at the creature that had invaded the Great Tomb… except, the fishy thing kept its bullheaded advance towards the Fifth Floor's entrance without caring about Aura's challenge. "Rude! Right- Go, Great Sea Serpent!"
Aura opened a rift in the air and opened it wide, allowing her to draw from her zoo of animal 'allies' and commanded a large boa-like dragonid creature roughly as large as a house to surge forth at the fish-monster… Only, the fishy invader was knocked from the lake and into the air all of a sudden, accompanied by a massive splash as something huge moved just below the water's surface.
A gigantic, rock-like fist extended from below the water, and soon afterwards the rest of the mountain-like titan that had been submerged in the Fourth Floor emerged from below the waves, crumbling the ancient city underneath the waves as the submerged city had been 'built' above the huge titan.
Aura let out a 'muuh' sound from disappointment that she wouldn't get a chance to shine and amend her failure, but she took a step back nonetheless and ordered the Sea Serpent to fall back as well.
After all, the enemy had trapsided into the Fourth Floor- The Floor that was guarded by the Strongest Golem- Gargantua.
"Right- Report. Aura, you're mostly alright if Throne of Kings reports correctly, can you confirm? Mare, too. Shalltear is somewhere in the Third Floor, right? Is she with you two? How did the enemy get past the defenses?" A calm, deep and concerned-sounding voice entered Aura's head, causing her to freeze utterly still while all color drained from her face.
"M-Momonga-sama! T-the situation is under control, don't worry, we just had a…. Small oopsie." Aura stammed into the message that echoed inside her head, and from the shaking of Mare, the same message was echoing inside his head as well.
"Kyaaah! Tentacles! Ew! Gross!" A girlish voice came into the conversation, causing Aura to blench a bit as she realized that Shalltear had been connected to the 'Message' as well.
"Shalltear- What is going on?" Momonga's voice was quite concerned, making Aura sigh a bit as she had a hunch as to what had happened.
"I got swallowed by the enemy, I think! There's tentacles here! Gross! Ew! My armor is keeping my body intact and unsullied, but my dignity as a vampire is gone!" Shalltear sounded quite indignant.
"I thought you'd like that sort o' thing." Aura commented a bit dryly as she looked to the distance where the massive enemy rammed its equally massive body against Gargantua, and Gargantua reached to grab the fishy monster's beak-like mouth and lift it from the sea… And then piledrived the invading monster to the lake-floor.
Mare seemed a bit pale as he stared at the show-wrestling match between two gigantic monsters, while he was also holding his staff up to cast a barrier that kept the waves resulting from the kaiju-battle from throwing the twins all over the place.
"The tentacles don't belong to Lord Momonga so I hate them!" Shalltear squaked in mortal indignance, prompting a deep sigh from Aura… As well as one from Momonga.
"Ahem. At any rate… The Throne of King's interface shows that the invader is one 'Gaghiel' of unknown 'level'. Could you describe it?" Momonga's voice echoed in Aura's head, making her wonder what exactly was going on.
'Eeh? Surely Momonga-sama knows what it looks like- Ah.' Aura felt her face turn red from embarrassment and shame. '...Don't tell me he thinks we fled and hid, and didn't even get a look at the enemy while it bulldozed its way through the first three levels… Haa… Of course. How else would the enemy just run through us with so little effort, specifically when my class would allow me to more or less hard-counter any 'beasts'... He must think that we're utterly useless…'
"I am thoroughly sorry for this display. We didn't take things seriously enough and were too late in getting to the surface. This is all my fault." Aura spoke into the Message, causing Mare to shake his head in panic.
"N-no! It's my fault too! I wasn't able to… I wasn't able to h-hold it, it was too big and scary and… S-sorry… P-please don't hate us…" Mare's voice disappeared into sob-filled whimpers, and Aura moved to hug her brother a bit to reassure him.
"U-umu. It's quite alright. We'll talk later about that. For now, describe the enemy." Momonga's voice sounded a bit surprised, but stabilized instantly afterwards.
"It's this big, ruddy fish-like thing, and Gargantua is currently using it as a stress toy… Er, ouch, that might have hurt…" Aura let a small hiss between her teeth as Gargantua had grabbed the fish-like monster by the tail and had whacked it against one of the stone buildings that had come to the surface of the lake during the struggle, akin to how a fisherman would whack a fresh fish against a rock to kill it.
The blow landed… But instead of going limp, the creature, Gaghiel, bounced up towards Gargantua from the impact like a spring being tossed to the ground and managed to get it's huge jaws around Gargantua's other arm- And then start to deathroll like a crocodile, pulling the massive golem under the water while causing a small tsunami.
"Uuh… It's not going too well. Gargantua's not really in trouble, and is holding the enemy, but that thing doesn't seem to want to die. Oh, it's got a mask of some kind on top of its head, and…" Aura described the invader while the two monsters struggled in the distance.
"Do you see a red, round crystal? That's its weak spot, and would confirm that our enemy is one of the local 'invaders'- An Angel. At least, 'local' Angel, not the holy-damage dealing winged creatures that you associate with the word. I described those 'Angels' to you during our meeting just earlier- And that I've been fighting them alongside NERV for a while, if you recall. If that thing is an Angel, it's likely to be nearly invulnerable to damage elsewhere, or at least highly resistant. Last few ones I've faced have been like that at least." Momonga seemed to detect the uncertainty in Aura's voice, and gave them hints as to how to defeat the enemy. Aura felt her face turn more red as the feeling of having failed and needing for someone to 'hold her hand' caused her more than a bit of shame.
"Hey- I think I saw something like that… There was some sort of orb in this thing's throat- If only I got my hands free from- Grr! Let go of me!" Shalltear's voice turned from indignant shrieks to angry and frustrated growls. "The weak spot is inside its throat! But I can't reach it!"
"Got it! I'll take care of it!" Aura nodded and dropped the call in order to dash forwards. "Mare! Try to hold it still- Gargantua-san! Open that thing's mouth!"
Gargantua let out a growl that was like an avalanche of stone and rock, and it reached to stop Gagriel's charge just before the massive Angel could pierce through the Golem's chest with its beak- Yet the Golem had lost huge chunks of it's rock-armor in the struggle prior, and it was clearly starting to slow down due to losing huge chunks of itself while the Angel didn't seem to be bothered by the prolonged struggle even if it had been wounded in numerous places- And the reason for the Angel's vigor became evident as Aura looked sharper at the invading creature's wounds and discovered that it was regenerating at quite high speed.
The two monsters struggled for a while… Before Gargantua managed to lodge its building-sized 'hands' into the Angel's mouth and grasp its upper and lower jaws, and begin to pull them apart with the Angel struggling equally hard to keep its mouth closed for once.
Huge waves erupted as the monster splashed against the water, and Gargantua's arms shook visibly as the Angel tried to clasp its jaws shut… But Gargantua managed to get its arm fully into the Angel's maw as the Angel turned sideways, ripping the maw wide open for a moment.
"Hm? Ah- Aura, Mare, Shalltear. Brace for impact- You're getting reinforcements, it seems. Or… Hopefully reinforcements. Umu… Right- Change in orders: Fall back for now and keep your distance." Momonga's voice caused Aura to halt her charge as she had caught a glimpse of the red orb deep in the Angel's maw, and had been intending to charge right in and start whipping the orb- However, the Angel managed to snap it's jaws shut while Aura paused, causing Gargantua to lose a few fingers in the process. "I'll get back to you soon. Lay low and try to stay out of combat- If things go awry I'll need you two to stay in full health so you can intervene."
The Message faded just in time for Aura's senses to pick up something big approaching quickly, and she dodged with all her might while grabbing Mare by the back of his dress and dragging the boy with her as he had frozen utterly still from fright.
Something fell from the wide hole that the Angel had bored into the ceiling and through the Floors above… And it landed with a huge impact in the lake of the Fourth Floor, causing a small tsunami to form and toss the dark elf twins further away from the center of the battlefield as Mare hadn't managed to re-form his wave-blocking barrier.
"RRHOOOOOOAAAAA!" A huge, violet and green-colored monstrosity in humanoid form that was almost twice as tall as Gargantua, yet much slimmer and clad in bizarre angular armor, roared its challenge to the air as it stood up after falling through the hole in the ceiling and landing in the lake of the Fourth Floor.
Aura stared at the violet-clad monster while lying flat on the surface of the water thanks to the wave that had resulted from the massive creature landing having knocked her off her feet and the water-walking spell still affecting her.
Mare stared at the odd creature as well and hid behind his staff as something seemed to fall from above again- And two additional impacts rocked the Fourth Floor again, sending a pair of waves that caused Aura and Mare to get flung to the air briefly.
"Wheeeee!" Aura couldn't resist the urge to giggle at the feeling while Mare whimpered and covered the front of his skirt as the pair fell back down against the surface of the water, this time landing on their feet.
Aura put her hands on her hips as she saw that the violet-and-green titan had been joined by a bright red-one and bluish-white one, each of the titans looking distinctively different from one another yet sharing features like the odd socket-thing in their back that connected to a long cable that hung from the huge ceiling-hole bored by the Angel.
Aura tried to trace the cable to its source with her eyes and peered into the hole that was left behind by the Angel, and realized that the hole and the cable must have led all the way to the surface. 'Is that like a safety rope so those titans can climb back?'
The initial Titan roared once more, reached for its shoulder pylon and drew a huge knife which started to glow white-hot almost instantly, and it charged the Angel.
Aura sat down on the water, reached into her inventory… And pulled out a bag of nuts and dried fruits.
Mare stared at Aura for a while, stared at the trio of Titans, all of which now charged towards Gargantua and the Angel, hesitated for a while… Before sitting beside Aura as he remembered the orders the Supreme One had given them.
Aura gave Mare a bag of snacks as well as the twins looked at the armed wrestling match of titanic creatures in the distance.
.
.
"...M-Momonga-sama, how am I supposed to fall back…" Shalltear whined while she tried to crawl out of the huge creature that had utterly disregarded the rules of her 'fighting arena' and had gulped her down in one bite, but she failed to escape as the swarm of tentacles in the creature's guts kept stabbing at her with their barbed tips and kept her down, and kept her from using her Pipette Lance in such claustrophobically small space.
While she could easily shred the appendages with her nails alone, she was acutely aware that her lord and master would be looking at her, so she couldn't afford to start slashing indiscriminately at the tentacles as that would likely cause them to bleed on her. Which would activate her blood-frenzied state, and make her look thoroughly unappealing when her lord's eyes were on her. 'I just… Need one opening… If Momonga-sama sees me in that frenzied state when I'm supposed to be the exemplar vampiric valkyrie, or sees me in that disgraceful state at all, I'd roll over and suffer Final Death from shame alone… '
A meaty stabbing sound came from somewhere nearby, causing the tentacles to freeze for a while… Before a huge white-hot blade stabbed through a nearby fleshy wall and almost skewered Shalltear.
She managed to dodge the blade, if barely, but the tentacles were not so fortunate and were cut.
And thus, Shalltear was free to move once more.
However, the blood of the tentacles splashed all over Shalltear.
And then Shalltear saw only red.