Weiss saw as Nicholas paused to glare at the monster ahead of them, and saw Momon freeze as the group ran into the 'ice warrior' that Nicholas had warned them about.
"...Momon. Take Weiss and run to that portal. I'll stay behind and-" Nicholas spoke while not letting his stern look stray from the insect warrior for a moment.
"Grampa- no!" Weiss felt her heart skip a beat as she realized that her grandfather intended to sacrifice himself.
The man had proposed such a thing once before, when the ice-warrior was first discussed, but Weiss had been too preoccupied to think much of it- But now the reality of the situation was glaring right at her.
She didn't want to part with her grandfather so soon, not when he could still be saved… And Weiss grasped at the back of the old man's butler-suit that he wore for some reason. "Grampa… Please, we can help! You don't have to do this! We can all get out together!"
"...Weiss. It's alright. It's the duty of the old to pave way for the young. Momon- Take care of her." Nicholas turned his head just slightly towards the pair, but didn't let his eyes wander off the sword-carrying insect.
"...I'll keep her safe. You have my word." Momon seemed to shake out of it, even if he was clearly shell-shocked and disoriented. "That is, umu, are you sure that… If…"
"I am. Go." Nicholas nodded slightly… And then he sprang forward like an arrow.
The insect-like warrior sprang forth with equal speed, and drew its sword in a swift slashing move.
The grandfatherly man's gloved fist slammed on the insect warrior's blade with enough force to send a shockwave all around the hallway, knocking Weiss backwards and causing her to stumble until she crashed against Momon's chest.
"Momon! We have to help grandpa!" Weiss threw her prim and proper way of talking to the trash can and turned to beg Momon to help Nicholas fight.
She had seen Momon's power and capability, so she was certain that Momon could help… But Momon seemed incredibly distracted and shaky.
"I… There's something that I need to… Ahem…" Momon seemed uncertain, and then composed himself. "Umu- I… First things first, we need to get… umu…"
Weiss saw what was going on and slapped Momon's helmet, even if it hurt her palm since the man was quite heavily armored and Weiss's Aura had not regenerated to even half of it's normal capacity. "Snap out of it! We have to move! Grampa-"
"Umu- I…" Momon shook his head. "Weiss. I'll open the portal somehow, so make your way through it- I have to… I'll stay behind- There's some things that I must take care of-"
Weiss shook Momon again, even if shaking the fully armored knight was no easy task. "Idiot! We'll fight together, and we'll all go back together! I won't let you sacrifice yourself either!"
Momon seemed to rear back from the words, or perhaps the motion was due to the shockwave that resulted from the ice-clad insect warrior hitting Nicholas in the midsection with a bat in the background, and causing the old man to fly off and hit a wall with enough force to probably convert a regular person into a puddle of jelly.
However Nicholas Schnee was a war-hero, a legend amongst men, and Weiss was not at all surprised to see him land on his feet after falling from the wall, then dust himself off with calm and collected moves, and finally turn his head just slightly. "Momon. I cannot hold this creature back for long. You must move- Your worry for my safety does you credit and your honor is unquestionable, but you must save yourself… hm?"
Nicholas paused, as did Momon and the ice-insect as the monster turned its eyes towards Momon.
Weiss stared wide-eyed as Momon took a slightly shaky step forwards.
"Is… Is this truly what you have decided?" Momon asked the insect with a strange tone of voice.
"Yes. You. will. not. pass." The insect breathed out a freezing mist that made Weiss feel as if she had been submerged into icy water, even though the mist had mostly dispersed by the time it washed over her.
"I… I see." Momon seemed a bit distraught, and although Weiss commended the fact Momon could consider talking it out with his enemy, she felt as if the time for talking had long passed.
"Enough. talk. Defend. yourself." The insect's eyes flashed, and it charged.
Momon pulled both of his blades in front of himself, and only barely blocked the furious two-handed swing from the ice-covered warrior.
There was a cracking sound as the large katana-like blade bit into Momon's paired greatswords… And then cut into them.
"No!" Weiss moved and stabbed the insect past Momon's flank, aiming to strike the insect in the waist while it was busy cutting through Momon's block.
The insect slashed down with one of its two free arms.
Weiss felt sharp pain in her wrist as the insect slashed at the heavy, borrowed dagger that Weiss wielded and knocked it out of her hand, and almost snapped her wrist with the force of the strike.
"OW- oww!" Weiss stumbled back while cradling her aching wrist. 'Dammit… It can't end like this… Please… Anyone… Help!'
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Ainz was feeling extremely worried as he took a step backwards and discarded the broken greatswords, leaving him unarmed for now.
The fact Cocytus had stood in front of him, against him, while speaking of Demiurge's orders, had caused his paranoia to go from 'full alert' to 'abort mission' level- But luckily enough the paranoia had been so extreme that it had triggered [Emotion Suppression] and had been quelled.
That left him with a problem, however.
'Should I try to send Cocytus a [Message] asking what he is doing? Would he think that I am a fallible or incapable leader if I have to ask him specifically? What did Demiurge tell Cocytus?!' Ainz felt terrified internally. 'Demiurge might have managed to undo Albedo's transformation, and Albedo told everything to Demiurge, and the two of them decided that I'm no longer worthy of leading Nazarick… And sent Cocytus to remove me?!'
The fact Cocytus had the highest level of magical resistance out of all NPC's in Nazarick further solidified the theory, specifically as even though Shalltear would be the best at 'hard countering' Ainz's build, Cocytus would have the intelligence to back up his skills. Unlike Shalltear, who had somewhat… less developed sense of battle tactics.
However, at the same time, Sebas had stuck to Ainz's side… And now that Emotion Suppression allowed Ainz a moment of clarity in thinking, he realized that if Cocytus had intended to slice Ainz into pieces, he'd likely have directed his attacks directly at Ainz since he was at a severe disadvantage at close quarters against Cocytus, regardless if he had [Perfect Warrior] or not.
Thus, Ainz was currently in a state of utter bewilderment as to Cocytus's presence, his words, and his intention- And while he could just ask what was going on, doing so would risk his credibility.
Moreover, Weiss had been disarmed and was staring goggle-eyed at the duel between Sebas and Cocytus.
Ainz was screaming internally in terror, while [Emotion Suppression] was jumping rope with his emotional state.
However, as Ainz came to terms with battling Cocytus in front of the 'entrance' to the Eighth Floor, beside which was the teleporter gate, the hallway exploded in darkness and violet flame.
"Huha… Kuhahahahaha!" A booming, ancient voice echoed in the hallway.
A dark, robe-clad figure appeared from a swirling darkness of the Teleportation Gate.
Ainz stared at Pandora's Actor, who was still clothed as 'Ainz Ooal Gown', and who had taken a stance next to Cocytus.
"You have made far, hero! However, you will not escape this place- This place will be your Tomb!" Pandora's Actor pointed the bony finger of his disguise at Ainz.
Cocytus paused to stare at Pandora's Actor.
Sebas blinked while remaining in a combat-stance towards Cocytus.
Weiss quietly grabbed the dagger that Cocytus had knocked out of her hand.
Ainz felt thoroughly spooked, unbalanced, tilted, and utterly done-for like a protein bar left in the microwave cooker for a full hour.
'I… Even he…' Ainz felt as if Pandora's Actor had dealt a mortal wound to him with the chuuni shout and bad insider-pun just now. '...Et tu, brutus?'
"...Go. I'll hold them back. Go now." Sebas spoke to Ainz.
"You… if… but…" Ainz felt thoroughly devastated and was only capable of stammering in response.
However…
Pandora's Actor tilted his head to the side. And then to the other side.
The doppelganger who was disguised in Ainz's necromancer-gear set looked once at Ainz, and then looked at Cocytus, who was holding the [God-Slaying Emperor Blade] and was looking at Sebas and Ainz.
Pandora's Actor then stared at Ainz, Sebas, and Weiss.
Ainz quaked in internal terror and indecision while appearing dauntless on the outside, glad that his 'Momon' helmet covered his expression, or the lack thereof considering that his face was that of a skeleton.
Weiss slowly moved behind Sebas for cover.
The disguised Treasure Guardian seemed to realize something and he put his hand on Cocytus's shoulder.
"Ha, you thought that I would send my chaaampion fighter to deal with maggots like you?! Foolish!" Pandora's Actor pointed his hand at Sebas. "Arrogant! Face your doom in the hands of my undead minions!"
A pair of Death Knights materialized between Pandora's Actor and Cocytus, and Pandora's Actor pulled Cocytus into a [Gate] that sprang into existence behind the disguised Treasury Guardian.
'...What?' Ainz paused mentally as Pandora's Actor did something that he hadn't expected of the NPC. '...He… but Cocytus was… Is this part of Demiurge's plan?'
"Hmph!" Sebas's eyes flashed red and he slammed his fist on the Death Knight's face, sending the now-headless undead reeling back.
The headless undead slashed with it's sword, and Sebas dodged the strike in order to kick the other, still unharmed Death Knight in it's shield, causing the Knight's shield to disintegrate and open up the pair of undead for a killing blow- Death Knights could not be slain in one hit, but only reduced to 1 health so that the next attack slew them.
Weiss lunged forward from behind Sebas and stabbed the headless Death Knight at the same time as Sebas punched the shield-shattered Death Knight.
The pair of Death Knights disappeared into wisps of smoke.
Ainz stayed frozen during the whole, if brief, fight.
'...What? What?' Ainz's head ran abuzz with questions about what Pandora's Actor had just done, why he had done that, and what Demiurge was after.
However, he could not begin his investigation while the situation was still incredibly volatile- Not to mention, Ainz felt so much terror over the possibility of Demiurge betraying him that he subconsciously lunged at any possible distraction to postpone the inevitability of confronting the demon. '...I still have [Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown] with me, so if the worst comes to worst… no, that… It won't come to that, it can't…'
"The road seems clear. We must move." Sebas looked around with alert eyes. "Momon? Momon!"
Weiss turned to look behind herself, her eyes opened in terror, and she dashed towards Ainz. "Momon! Dodge!"
Ainz realized that a [Necroswarm Giant] had appeared behind him.
…And then he flew.
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Weiss watched in terror as a gigantic undead monster punched Momon from behind, sending the man flying off and crashing him against Nicholas, toppling both of them over.
The monster was a horrifying vaguely blob-like monstrosity that was made of hundreds of human bodies, desiccated and torn-apart, and arranged into flowing mass that was utterly nightmarish.
Weiss screamed in terror as the monstrosity reached for her and Nicholas while Momon was picking himself up from the floor.
Nicholas punched the air, sending a shockwave that caused a large circular hole in the monster… And the hole lurched closed almost instantly afterwards.
"This monster is beyond our ability. We must flee." Nicholas noted while the elder gentleman was as calm and controlled as ever. "Momon, take Weiss. That portal leads out- That skeletal monstrosity just now came from the outside."
Momon rose up with robotic movements, and before Weiss realized it, he had lifted her into a princess carry.
"Dolt! I can walk on my own!" Weiss protested instantly while she tied her arms around Momon's neck, as her legs had started to shake quite a bit after seeing the utterly deranged and almost undead-like monstrosity.
"U-umu…" Momon didn't seem to even register Weiss's words as he dove headfirst into the portal
Weiss caught a brief glimpse of some kind of apocalyptic battle between a seemingly unending swarm of Grimm and equally endless swarm of the undead similar to the one that Nicholas and Weiss had slain just earlier, but before she could properly analyze the sight, Momon had dove into another portal… And the pair emerged into a woodland shrub that was bathed in the light of the setting sun.
"Haai. Mission accomplished." A laconic voice greeted the two and Weiss glanced around, and spotted Shizu who was lying on her stomach with her rifle resting on a bipod in front of her- Except that Weiss was certain that the rifle had been far shorter and bulkier the last time she had seen the orange-haired girl wield the weapon.
However, all of that was secondary to Weiss's actual concern. "Momon! We must go back- Grandpa! He-"
"Hrmph!" A grunt came from behind the two and Weiss glanced behind herself to see that Nicholas jumped out from the swirling energy-portal, and landed on the grass.
The elderly man swiped the front of his suit of dust and took a calm, yet steel-hard pose that made Weiss instantly think of Klein, the butler of the Schnee manor in Atlas, except that while Klein was somewhat overweight and carried himself with relaxed stance even while he was 'at the ready', Nicholas's pose was like it was sculpted out of steel and granite.
"It seems that I made it out, but it was a close one." Nicholas commented while he placed one of his hands behind his back and displayed just a tiny space between his forefinger and thumb with the other.
Weiss stared goggle-eyed at the man.
So did Momon.
Shizu stood up and saluted Nicholas, for some reason.
"U-umu, yes, um…" Momon looked quite shaken. "The… pieces, yes? Something like that?"
"White King Piece acquired, Lord Momon." Shizu instantly produced a White King piece.
"Umu… good, and the black piece?" Momon's voice was somewhat faint.
Shizu pointed at a tower in the distance… And Weiss squinted in the direction to see that a medivac airlift was being carried out from the tower.
A number of stretchers were laid out on the grass cliff that bordered the tower, and the stretchers- and the students that were on them- were being hauled into the Bullhead air-transports and were flown out from the Emerald Forest.
"The Piece could not be moved in accordance with the rules, therefore I have secured the area by taking down the approaching st-" Shizu spoke with an emotionless tone, but her posture practically radiated pride. However, she stopped speaking halfway through her sentence as Momon seemed to twitch violently.
The camouflaged, orange-haired girl scrunched her eyebrows as Momon stared at the girl while the black knight was utterly unmoving.
"...And I have taken down the Grimm that approached!" Shizu ended her speech roughly two minutes after letting her sentence trail off.
"Aha." Weiss was a bit flabbergasted. "What happened? Why are there students being evacuated via medivac?"
"The students… fell over and became unconscious." Shizu stared at Momon for a while before speaking.
"They… fell over and became unconscious?" Weiss felt as her head began to spin from the sheer absurdity of the past few hours. "Hunter-students? With Aura?"
"The contact with the floor carried sufficient energy, and there were Grimm involved." Shizu looked completely serious and didn't elaborate further.
"Yes, umu…" Momon shambled forwards like a zombie while he still had Weiss in a princess-carry. "We should get the Piece and then get out, yes?"
Weiss stared at Momon a bit… And then began to laugh.
Her laughter was a wide-eyed and insane as she heard Momon spoke of something as mundane as completing their entrance exam to Beacon, as if the insane roller coaster just now had not happened, and as if the two of them had not seen horrors beyond even the worst examples given by her Grimm pre-studies books before accidentally running into Weiss's long-dead grandfather in a butler-suit… Who was currently placing a cold towel on Weiss's forehead.
"Thank you." Weiss paused her laughter with some effort to thank her grampa, who bowed just slightly.
"Umu, umu…" Momon just shambled forwards.
Shizu picked her rifle up, and the rifle let out a 'clank clank clank' sound and transformed itself into an assault rifle with way too many magazines sticking out of it, and the orange-haired girl followed the group with parade footsteps.
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'Wait, Shizu was shooting at the students?! And she was detected?! Did the professors figure everything out?! Is my cover blown?! Is Demiurge trying to overthrow me?! Did Albedo stop being a mouse?! Is Cocytus playing along or did he turncoat after all?! What is Pandora's Actor trying to do?! Umu…' Ainz felt as if his stomach was aching, even though he didn't have one.
He had just barely managed to stop Shizu from reporting her doings aloud, which would have been bad considering that Weiss was present. However, the silent [Message] asking for the full story with zero redactions and a quick visual check-up of the area told a whole nother story than what Ainz had thought had taken place from Shizu's earlier messages.
'Shizu grabbed a piece, left the other to the tower, and then started sniping students and Grimm who approached the pedestals?! Doesn't that make Shizu the aggressor and definitely at fault for the whole thing?! If she was discovered… Would Beacon expel her?!' Ainz thought with a cycle of paranoia, worry, and terror taking the foreground in his thoughts depending on when [Emotion Suppression] activated or not. 'It'd be fine if she was just expelled or not accepted in, but if she draws attention to herself then Ozpin might start looking deeper into my cover too… Between losing that negotiation with Ozpin as 'Ainz Ooal Gown', and possibly losing the chance to figure out more about Grimm and the Hunter illuminati, I'd get set back to square one… Except with me drawing the eyes of the Hunter Illuminati already… And with the Schnee Dust Company after Nazarick's blood since 'Ainz Ooal Gown' technically kidnapped Weiss…'
'...Umu, actually… ' Ainz glanced at Sebas. '...Weiss confused Sebas for someone that she knew? 'Uncle Nicholas'? I first thought that 'Uncle Nicholas' meant 'Nicholas Arc', but… umu, that probably isn't the case… But if that was the case, if I accidentally kidnapped and killed the father of a CEO of a megacorp, then Nazarick is finished… However, Nicholas didn't seem that old, and Sebas and Nicholas Arc didn't look that much like each other either…'
Thus, Ainz felt somewhat confident to just assume that Weiss had just taken Sebas for her grandfather due to resemblance, and not that Ainz had accidentally condemned Nazarick to destruction by corporate kill-teams… Yet, at least. 'If Weiss has Sebas confused as Nicholas Schnee then I could probably play into that, and place Sebas into Schnee Dust Corporation… Actually, that might be a really good move if Sebas can keep up the cover-story and maybe claim amnesia or something…'
Ainz nonetheless felt incredibly queasy over sending any NPC that had been created by his friends alone off to a mission, specifically after the disasters that had fallen over Cocytus and Albedo.
It looked as if Weiss could read Ainz's worry and hesitancy through his body language, as the girl poked Ainz's temple, or rather, the temple of his 'Momon'-disguise helmet.
Ainz looked down at the girl who had a faint blush on her cheeks.
"I can walk on my own, thank you." Weiss had a somewhat sharp tone of voice as she spoke and after Ainz put her down. The girl then dusted off the deep blue-gothic clothes that Ainz had given to her. "...Ahem. Grandfather, how did you end up in that, hm, place? You… We all thought you dead, and… please forgive me for saying this, but everything seems incredibly bizarre and nonsensical at the moment."
"Hm…" Sebas rubbed his chin thoughtfully while sending Ainz a covert glance, and then a silent [Message]. "My lord, how should I respond?"
"...Can you act as Weiss's grandfather if you claim amnesia? Nicholas Schnee?" Ainz asked very carefully via silent [Message] as well. He decided to focus on the present before he'd go insane due to his paranoia over the events that had just taken place in Nazarick.
"I do not know how this 'Nicholas Schnee' acted, or how he spoke. My acting is likely to be inadequate to fool a person with extensive knowledge of 'Nicholas Schnee', however I shall give it my all if Lord Ainz requests it." Sebas's response was immediate.
"Try to do so. Claim amnesia and make up a story." Ainz tossed the responsibility of making a believable backstory to Sebas, as even though Ainz could probably come up with something, he also knew that if he came up with a mediocre backstory for Sebas's new disguise and someone saw through it, he'd lose even more credibility in front of Nazarick's NPC's- And his credibility was already close to rock bottom after the recent setbacks.
Weiss just tilted her head at the seeming staring contest between Sebas and Ainz.
"Ahem. Yes, as for how I survived and how I ended up in that place…" Sebas coughed and then began to speak while the group walked towards the tower.
Weiss listened intently.
Ainz listened nervously.
Shizu was playing an old neo-colony marching song on low volume while marching with parade footsteps.
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"I. do. not. understand." Cocytus clicked while he sheathed his sword in Nazarick's Throne Room, which was only few doors away from where the battle had taken place between Cocytus, Sebas, Lord Ainz, and the strange white-haired girl… Yet Pandora's Actor had used [Gate], and the [Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown] that lord Ainz had given to the Treasury Guardian, to move the pair to the throne room.
"I find myself asking the same thing. I wonder, perhaps I miscalculated something that Pandora's Actor deduced?" Demiurge adjusted his glasses while sending a glance at Pandora's Actor, who had dropped his disguise and resumed his normal 'military uniform' appearance.
"Indeeeed, I wondered why Cocytus and Sebas were present, as Lord Aaaainz-samaaaa had only requested myself and Aura to perform the role of 'OpFor' for this exercise!" Pandora's Actor sang out while performing a pirouette with his hand against his chest and other up in the air.
Cocytus's mandibles clicked together as he stopped himself from pointing out that 'Lord' and '-sama' would mean the same thing in the sentence, as Pandora's Actor would have known and thus chose to use the words deliberately.
Thus the insect warrior waited in quiet solace for the two, or three, of the most intelligent NPC's of Nazarick to speak.
The only reason Cocytus was somewhat discounting Albedo from the conversation was because the succubus, and Shalltear beside her, were sitting on the throne room's floor and were brooding quite heavily while also being tied-up with thick cords of rope- Presumably to stop the pair of women from chasing after Lord Ainz and the mysterious white-haired woman that the lord had brought to Nazarick for unknown purposes.
Cocytus turned his head towards Pandora's Actor as the military-uniformed doppelganger finished his ballerina-like spin and came to a cross-legged end-pose, flipped his uniform cap a bit forward so it cast a dreadful shadow on the man's smooth 'face', and pointed one of his smooth yet spider's leg-like fingers at Demiurge.
"Indeed, I would like to ask why Demiurge has chosen to act as OpFor without Lorrd AIINNZZZ's blessing?" Pandora's Actor accused.
Demiurge lifted his eyebrow in surprise. "I deduced my role from the actions of Lord Ainz…"
"Yet! I saw that Lord Ainz saw through Demiurge-san's interference, and was, I must say, quite worried!" Pandora's Actor pointed out, cutting Demiurge off mid-speech which was enough for Cocytus to realize that Pandora's Actor was… disappointed. "A created doth knows one's creator, and I must say- Lord Ainz realized what you were planning, Demiurge, and he did not approve!"
Demiurge froze still.
"Yet! He chose to go along with the act, as… after all…" Pandora's Actor lowered his cap while striking a solemn posture. "...Lord Ainz is a compassionate, gentle lord for these foolish servants. Indeed, it seems that Demiurge's plans may perhaps have ended in disaster, as Lord Ainz was very deliberate in telling Aura and myself to use only expendable monsters to hinder Lord Ainz, and to thrust danger unto the damsel that he brought with him- Yet not so that she would die from it!"
"I…" Demiurge seemed to be quite shocked, but collected himself with lightning speed. "I see. I presumed too much, and assumed my feeble intellect could deduce Lord Ainz's plan to such an extent that I could provide assistance in it. I fear that I fell upon the same trap that I accused Cocytus of falling into."
Demiurge turned towards Cocytus, and bowed deep from the waist. "I humbly beg your forgiveness, Cocytus. I see now that your words were wise, and that when I was tested, I too failed Lord Ainz."
"You. are. of. course. forgiven. Demiurge." Cocytus clicked out. "However. I. must. confess. that. I. do. not. follow. How. has. Demiurge. failed. Lord. Ainz? Why. was. I. denied. a. warrior's. death, Pandora's Actor?"
"Hm…" Pandora's Actor struck a deliberately mysterious pose while turning his back towards both Demiurge and Cocytus. Then the doppelganger slightly turned his head back towards them, and raised a single, overly long finger. "Simply put, Lord Ainz saw through Demiurge's plan, realized that it would interfere with his plan, but decided to alter his plan greatly to accommodate Demiurge's plan… Simply because he did not wish to hurt Demiurge's nor Cocytus's feelings, even if doing so caused Lord Ainz great pain- After all, Lord Ainz specifically requested 'expendable' NPC's to be used in opposition, and Cocytus is not one such being. Ergo, Lord Ainz did not wish to see Cocytus die or suffer, but by Cocytus's own request, Lord Ainz would have bequeathed such things to Cocytus- Even if it would pain Lord Ainz to see it so!"
"I…" Cocytus's eyes started to water up as he realized both that Lord Ainz must have still cared for him- The warrior had seen Lord Ainz's hesitation when he acted as 'Momon', but Cocytus had believed Lord Ainz's hesitation to be entirely acted-out and not genuine.
However, since Pandora's Actor would be closest to Lord Ainz due to the privileged position of being Lord Ainz's personal creation, Cocytus knew that the doppelganger would know Lord Ainz's reactions better than Cocytus ever could. And if Pandora's Actor stated that Lord Ainz's reactions were genuine…
Thick streams of tears flowed down Cocytus's eyes in an instant and the warrior fell to his knees as he realized that Lord Ainz had approached Cocytus, despite his foolishness, and asked him if he was ready to face his death, and if it was truly what he wished- And that Cocytus had foolishly agreed, unknowing how much pain such a declaration would inflict on the gentle lord.
Yet at the same time, Cocytus saw that Lord Ainz clearly knew of the warrior's soul and his yearning of the honor of redemption, and was ready to grant death to Cocytus to free him from his guilt- Even despite the pain that it caused Lord Ainz. And that Cocytus would have asked such a thing while knowing, yet not realizing, that such a thing was not necessary, as Lord Ainz had already forgiven Cocytus by telling him to stay and hold position in the Throne Room- In the prestigious position of defending the very Throne of Kings, the Throne of the the Supreme Beings.
"U- Uwah. Wah." Cocytus's realization of his own blindness and Lord Ainz's incredible compassion were too much for the warrior, and he fell on his arms while crying thick streams of clear tears that instantly froze into crystalline shards of ice that clinked against the hard stone of the Throne Room's floor.
Meanwhile Demiurge was holding back tears as well as the demon realized from Pandora's Actor's words that Lord Ainz had seen through Demiurge's plan, and even though Lord Ainz knew that Demiurge's plan to aid Lord Ainz had interfered with Lord Ainz's original plan, Lord Ainz had altered his plan to go along with Demiurge's plan because Lord Ainz hadn't wished to cause Demiurge shame and pain by contacting him and telling Demiurge to stop and just do what he was told to do- Which was to stay and guard the Throne of Kings, and be ready to assist should Lord Ainz request it- Which was something that Lord Ainz had not done yet Demiurge had presumed otherwise.
In other words, Demiurge realized that he had fallen into the trap of his own cunning, and had thought himself intelligent enough to see through Lord Ainz's unfathomable plans and be able to assist in them without directly asking Lord Ainz- And Lord Ainz had taught Demiurge a cruel lesson of the dangers of arrogance.
After all, to cause Lord Ainz emotional pain and to force the Supreme Being to alter his own plans to accommodate for Demiurge's foolishness, was a crime beyond the punishment of death or eternal torture, and Demiurge realized that he was guilty of both due to his arrogance and misplaced faith in his own feeble intelligence- And just as Cocytus had stated before, Demiurge had been too arrogant to see his own mistake before it came back like the barb of a whip and bit him in his own face.
Demiurge felt incredible sorrow and shame in his failure, and felt the instinctive need to send Lord Ainz a [Message] and apologize profusely for his failure, and then throw himself into the Pure Ice Lake of the Fifth Floor to suffer the torment of blessed water- Which was a trap that had been deemed necessary by the Supreme Beings should Nazarick be invaded by evil-karma Supreme Beings.
However, the demon reigned his shame and sorrow with the speed of a professional lawyer, and instead corrected his tie to hide his shakiness while he came to terms with his own lacking wit in comparison to Lord Ainz's brilliance.
Pandora's Actor was still facing away from the two Floor Guardians, and was striking a wide-legged pose while the officer's cape on his shoulders fluttered gently in a nonexistent breeze.
The Treasury Guardian seemed to know Demiurge's and Cocytus's thoughts, however, as he turned his head just slightly. "Have you two reaaaaalized your shame?"
"Indeed. I must confess- My arrogance in comparing my intellect and plans to the Supreme Being's stings me greatly. I shall redouble my efforts, and redouble them again to better myself in Lord Ainz's eyes…" Demiurge adjusted his glasses out of habit. "And thus, I ask you, Pandora's Actor, if I should approach and apologize to Lord Ainz for my foolishness?"
"Lord Ainz surely knows alread. After all, he must have deduced what would be said here the moment I took Cocytus back." Pandora's Actor was unusually serious with his words- Even though he spun around with a dramatic flare and dracula-like swish of the cape to talk face-to-face with the two Floor Guardians. "Lord Ainz has moved out of Nazarick, ergo his plan now continue uninterrupted- And I suspect that Lord Ainz will call upon us again. In preparation, weeee should now seeek to steel our hearts and minds to fulfill whatever Lord Aaaaaainz-samaaa requests of us next!"
Demiurge sighed, as he had suspected as much- After all, Lord Ainz would have deduced Demiurge's reaction to the news that Pandora's Actor would bring, and Lord Ainz would know what Pandora's Actor would say as the two shared an unique bond of a creator and created.
In other words, Demiurge knew that Lord Ainz knew that Demiurge knew that Demiurge had failed, and by not saying anything, Lord Ainz allowed Demiurge to suffer the shame of his failure in silence, yet allowed Demiurge to retain his dignity instead of needing to be verbally told of his failure by Lord Ainz personally- Which would have been something that would have destroyed Demiurge utterly.
"...Lord Ainz truly is amazing." Demiurge finally breathed out. "I am in awe of his wisdom, compassion and kindness that he shows to us, despite the way some of us have failed him."
"Lord. Ainz. is. the. Supreme. Being. who. Stayed." Cocytus clicked out while cleaning his frozen tears from the floor so that they wouldn't stain the Throne Room floor after melting. "He. cares. for. us. more. than. anyone. I. feel. great. shame. for. failing. him. and. allowing. my. pride. and. honor. to. become. Lord. Ainz's. burden."
"Yet, I doubt Lord Ainz would enjoy seeing us wallow in our wretchedness, based on the words of Pandora's Actor- Not when there is work to be done. Come, my friend. As this 'Weiss' has left Nazarick alongside our lord and Sebas, our orders to defend the Throne Room have run their course." Demiurge offered his hand to Cocytus. "We still have Lord Ainz's orders regarding the defense of Nazarick."
"Aye. Let. us. see. to. it." Cocytus rose to his feet with newfound strength and determination and nodded severely to Demiurge.
The two Floor Guardians departed the Throne Room, leaving Pandora's Actor alone with Shalltear and Albedo- The latter two of whom were still grumbling while being tied up.
Pandora's Actor glanced at the two women who were clearly under the psychological condition that Lord Peroroncino had documented as 'the clam jam'- And fortunately Lord Peroroncino had documented an item specifically for such a circumstance.
The Treasury Guardian rolled his sleeves up, teleported out, teleported back into the Throne Room, and brought forth an Artifact that Lord Peroroncino had documented in advance for such a scenario.
Pandora's Actor poured the bucketful of icy water on the two fuming women.