BEE DOO BEE DOO! important notice, please read the author's note at the very end of the chapter. It's actually important this time. Anyhow sorry for the delay, I'll explain what happened at the end of the chap. Please do enjoy, and tell me what you thought.
Oh btw, I am sorry for the weird diversion that was the last chap, but some world-building had to be done. I know we all love our bone daddy, but there will be some chaps like it in the future, but I'll make sure to make them better, as even I'll admit that I didn't especially like the last chap. Anyhow, like I said, enjoy the chap.
"Again!" A high-pitched voice echoed out across the shade-ridden forest.
As soon as the command was issued, nearly a dozen arrows flew towards their target, each like a snake pouncing on the poor prey it had set its predatory eyes on.
Tink
It was useless… Each and every arrow fell to the floor, either chipped or splintered. None were strong enough to pierce the limitless defenses of their target's safeguard. The monstrous being lowered its tower shield and chuckled.
The woman who had ordered the release of the innumerable volley clicked her tongue in annoyance. Seeing her usually calm and collected visage crumble, the men around her tightened their grip on their weapons.
'Why won't you just die!' she screamed in her head. This was her squad's third attempt at breaking the monster's seemingly endless defenses, 'No matter what we try, its damn shield keeps getting in our way!' She charged at the beast in a silky-smooth manner. Claymore raised high, she tried to brute force her way forwards. Each and every try was to no avail.
Cling! Clank! Clongk!
A block, a deflect… A parry.
The skeletal being rushed forward. It lowered its core and twisted its blade onwards. It tried to deliver a swift blow to the head, but the human's underlings interfered.
"Rarghhhh!" A measly human blocked its overwhelming and unrelenting advance. Of course, he wasn't strong enough to overcome it, no, there was no man capable of such a feat present. The pathetic excuse for a human was sent flying, he crashed against the ground alongside a crunchy crshk.
'Damn it… I already sent Greg back towards Mondstadt, so we just have to survive until backup arrives… Still, this thing… It's playing with us!' Her eyebrows furrowed in disgust, 'You bastard!'
"Captain Eula-" The aforementioned woman shifted her gaze for a mere second, "-our quivers are running low on arr-" The man's mouth was plugged before he could even finish his sentence. His body flew past his comrades and crashed onto a nearby oak tree. Blood oozed out of his nose and onto the ground. The crimson liquid swirled within his airway and his head pulsated with the smell of copper and the taste of iron.
Sadly -and to the despair of others, he was still alive, -with all his might, he tried to pull the astonishingly large blade out of his mouth. He was losing strength, so the effort seemed futile. His friends rushed to his side, trying to either comfort him or assist him in his endeavor. Muffled screams of panic and confusion filled the void between the human squad and the undead skeleton.
When all seemed lost, the blade disappeared from his mouth as if it was never there. The weapon's sudden disappearance revealed a large wound that spanned from one side of his face to the other. (It resembled a certain Scripture member's sly grin.)
"Garghhthgh!" The man screamed into the wilderness, the large flap of skin that was once his mouth and throat flapped around like a thick slice of sliced ham. His pitiful screams were cut short as the wound began to necrotize. His eyes rolled up to the epitome of his head before he fell to the ground, like a puppet whose strings had been cut.
Eula's pupils contracted in both fear and disgust. When they first found the abomination it had been surrounded by an untold amount of Hilichurl corpses. Some were cleaved in half, others were stabbed by its freakishly-long flamberge. Then there were those that Eula wished she'd never seen.
They'd been patrolling the area around the collapsed Colosseum by order of the Acting Grandmaster when they heard a loud commotion within the forest's expanse. The scout within Eula's unit informed her of an apparent monster within the forest's depths. The man hadn't seen it, but a merchant on his way to Mondstadt had passed through the trees and mentioned something along the lines of a swarm of unusual-looking Hilichurls.
Eula sent a small squad of 5 soldiers to clear the infestation but grew worried when they didn't return. After debating with her second in command, she gave the orders to divert from their predestined course. That had been nearly an hour ago. They'd been fighting against this undead behemoth for longer than her now-clouded mind could remember.
She was confident that with more men and the proper preparations, she could give the monster a swift death. Unfortunately for her, the skeletal knight had other plans. This squad, the Cobalt Templar, consisted of 140 men, 40 archers, and 10 specially trained soldiers. Eula had taken over two dozen. It was standard procedure to take at least 20 men in each scouting mission.
This odd addition to the system had been issued by the Acting Grandmaster after the sudden emergence of abyssal monsters in the surrounding territories, 'I can't believe I thought of it as useless and inefficient… I need to place more trust in Grandmaster Jean. Archons, Kaeya's gonna have my ass if he hears of this…' Eula looked around, under a quarter of her expedition's squad remained.
'Damn, you!' She lunged at the skeletal knight, her blade carrying the full force of her incoming attack.
The Death Knight grinned madly. It lowered its body and raised its shield in front of it, welcoming the incoming charge with metaphorical open arms. This very scene had already taken place about a minute ago, so the undead summon was prepared for what was about to come next.
The human would feint an all-out attack from the side just to target its right arm. He'd simply parry it and knock her weapon out of her hands. His master was soon to arrive, and it'd be a pittance if he didn't deal with such lowly humans before that.
He prepared its flamberge for the incoming onslaught.
"[Icetide Vortex]!" There was no feint. The woman's claymore struck true and clashed against its shield, but it did not end there. Three pillar-sized icicles rained down from above before the Death Knight could properly block them. The undead raised its flamberge into the air in a smooth and careful motion. It cut two of the three icicles in a precise slash, toppling them onto the ground.
It then reached toward the heavens in an attempt to grasp the last one.
Eula gasped as she realized what it was going to do, "Watch out!" She screamed at her subordinates. The Death Knight ground up the icicle into smaller chunks, as one would with soybeans or chickpeas before throwing them at her squad.
Many of Eula's men dropped their swords in pure, all-enveloping fear. Some tried to run away, whilst some tried to cover their heads. Still, none escaped the incoming attack.
Eula's heart jumped out of her chest as she witnessed her friends get turned into minced meat. It was as if they'd been pierced by hundreds of arrows. Everywhere she looked, she could see blood gushing out, the eyeballs, the nose, the ears, the chest, the knees, the legs, the neck… everywhere.
The Death Knight used this opportunity given to it by fear itself to deliver the killing blow. As if it were using a stiletto, it lunged at Eula. The whistling the blade emitted notified the human in front of it of its devious plan.
Eula fended off the incoming attack not a second too late. Whilst the blade itself ran past the side of her face, the negative energy laced upon it scorched her porcelain-white skin. The sweat dripping down her forehead evaporated thanks to the dark miasma and the calm and collected look on her face vanished alongside it. 'This abomination will continue to butcher us if things stay like this. How annoying. Where the hell did this monster even come from?!'
Eula raised her blade and pointed it at the monster before her. "You despicable beast! I shall reap vengeance onto you for the grave crime of ever going up against the Knights of Favonius!"
She wished to exude an aura of confidence as she had always done so in the past, which in turn, always inspired her men. Yet right now, her emotions were currently betraying her ideals. They reminded her that she could not save any of her men that fell in today's horrifying battle, tears threatened to burst out of her eyes.
The Death Knight cocked its head in both confusion and amusement. It seemed to be sorting something out within its empty head. Then, after a second of thought, it lowered its shield to the ground. It laughed in the way that human men would scream and writhe in pain. It opened its arms and welcomed any sort of advance the human girl would use in a vain attempt to win the battle.
'Oh?' Eula raised an eyebrow. In normal circumstances, she would've thought her opponent was humoring her. Perhaps it wanted to fight on equal terms, but no, Eula knew that such a foul beast was incapable of either honor or chivalry. Whenever she stared into its eyes she could only see what could be described as a malice-ridden void. The likelier outcome was that it was mocking her. It viewed her as nothing more than a stepping stone in its way. She was merely another 'pathetic human' who it had to kill.
Still, something irked her, why was it entertaining her? 'It knows I can't beat it, so it's giving me a handicap! Son of a bitch!...' Eula spit out the saliva piling up within her mouth, 'Still… I doubt it can kill me in a single hit. If I concentrate hard enough I can match its speed, so I should be able to hold it off until reinforcements arrive.'
She pressed her hand against her lower jaw and pushed. A resounding crack emanated around her surroundings. All of Eula's stress usually piled up in her jaw, so an occasional push was necessary, 'We should retreat before that… No… This thing won't let us get away. A single wrong move and we're all dead,' She turned her head towards her reanimated teammates, 'At least those of us that remain…'
Eula lowered her shoulders and sighed. She tried to speak up, but the sharp tingling sensation in her tongue drowned her out, 'Tsk, how pathetic,' Taking note of her pressing anxieties, Eula took a deep breath. She cleared up her throat before speaking up in a clattanoious and raspy voice, "Please, take care of the zombies while I focus my full attention on this monster. I don't want them interfering." Eula couldn't bring herself to kill the men that she once called brothers, so she left that task up to her subordinates, 'And I call myself Captain… I should be the one taking responsibility, yet here I am…'' she let out a pathetic, short-lived chuckle. "-You undead bastard!. Don't think that you're coming out of this unscathed. [Glacial Illumination]!" A fiery scowl that could vaporize her deadly shards of ice prowled its way into her face. The feelings of sorrow within her turned into the building blocks of her now-present rage.
The Captain of the Reconnaissance Company plunged her claymore into the ground, causing a vast amount of mist to scatter onto the surroundings. Like a bacterial infection flaring all throughout the body, ice blanketed everything it came into contact with. It glued the monstrous figure before her into place, its feet encased in layer upon layer of ice.
Still, it stood as proudly as it had done so before. It cackled, seeing the human's sad and pathetic attempt of stopping it. The Death Knight drove its flamberge onto the ground in the same manner that Eula had done just a moment ago, trying to release its left foot from the ground. The Death Knight then looked around, searching for the human captain.
The woman had escaped from his sight as a result of the boundless haze.
"Hyyargh!"
The Death Knight turned around, finally spotting the blue-haired woman. It raised its left arm in order to either block or parry the incoming attack, but was stopped when ten preposterously thick pillars of frost shot out of the ground.
Like tentacles, they writhed and squirmed until they enveloped the undead's legs. Then, like a mantle being pulled away from a table, the Death Knight fell to the ground. Its balance had been spirited away. The sizable monster tried to cut its way to freedom, but the Captain of the Reconnaissance Company managed to carve a sizable wound upon its head.
The monster's grip on its long, death-oozing flamberge loosened.
Eula's shoulders dropped. A long, worn-out sigh escaped her lips. She turned her gaze to her remaining teammates. Stefan, Klaus, and Hans were on the brink of exhaustion. Each had two or more of their now-undead comrades atop them, so Eula decided to assist them.
However, before she could help her subordinates, a piercing shriek was sent in her direction, "Captain Eula, watch out!" One of her men reached out in her direction, this was a mistake. One of the undead he'd been fighting a minute prior dug its teeth into his neck.
Eula was about to pounce on the remaining monster when a sharp, jangling numbness began to spread from one side of her body onto the other. Eula looked down to see the blade of her "defeated" enemy protruding from her left shoulder. Dark liquid began to pour down into the wound.
Confusion plagued her mind, 'W-What?' She felt no pain or discomfort, merely bewilderment, and warmth. She tried to back away, but the monster rose up from its grave and yanked.
Eula shrieked as the wavy flamberge continued with its brutal tearing of her inner flesh and bones. The Death Knight's movements mirrored the delicacy and caution a chef would show whilst preparing a fish filet. There were no jagged movements in the monster's tortuous attack. Then, as if deciding to end the woman's torture, the Death Knight finished what it started.
Eula dropped her claymore, her arm falling alongside it. A large *Clang* rang out as the blade impacted the thin layer of ice below. The metallic cacophony was only drowned out by the screaming and squealing of the human captain.
300 Meters Away, 2 Minutes Prior
"As I was saying, that's Eula, Captain of the Knight's Reconnaissance Company -ah, thank you," Lisa kindly accepted the cup of frosty water Ainz offered her.
"Of course," The aforementioned skeleton turned towards the Mirror of Remote Viewing he had placed before them a minute earlier, it was zoomed in specifically on the fight between the Death Knight and Eula, 'Interesting… She's able to infuse her weapon with Ice… Not only that, but she's able to manipulate the element to a certain degree. The work of a Vision, perhaps?'
"Oh no! She seems to be in trouble!" Paimon turned to Ainz, "Do something, Ainz!" The little fairy began to hit her companion with her small and stubby fists. Paimon looked genuinely concerned, beads of sweat were pouring down her forehead and her left hand seemed to tremble, but Ainz paid it no mind.
"I've already instructed the Death Knight to keep her alive, she'll be alright," The undead Overlord comforted his companion with the least amount of possible interest, 'Still… to survive this long against a Death Knight is impressive!' Ainz placed one of his bony hands upon his chin, 'Skeletons are immune to any cold and ice-related attacks, yet, she uses her abilities in various unpredictable ways that manage to surprise even me. Such versatility should be applauded.'
'Still, I'm mildly disappointed. I expected something akin to a challenge when I showed up. She may be able to oppose a Death Knight, but she's definitely below level 45… Man… I even buffed myself thinking I'd fight something similar to Stormterror… -What am I saying? That oversized lizard was weaker than Helheim's first boss! ' Sighh 'I'm so ashamed… I guess I summoned a Doom Lord for nothing…'
Ainz turned his gaze toward the crowned skeleton to his left.
'No! There are more important matters at hand, Suzuki! If that Eula girl ends up dead, it'd create a clusterfuck of a situation! The knights would probably turn their backs on me and force me out of Mondstadt!' Ainz wasn't worried about being overpowered -at least not by the knights he'd already met, rather, he was afraid of the social implications, 'I wouldn't be able to show my face around anymore!' Bone Daddy's anxiety was beginning to spiral out of control when a certain feeling of serenity enveloped him, 'Ahhh, emotional suppressor, my good and faithful friend.'
'Hmmm… Resurrection is an option, but I'm not willing to use a Wand of Resurrection or Holy Summon on her. I may have thousands, but limited resources are still limited resources!'
"A…!"
"A…z!'!
"Ainz!"
"Huh?" The aforementioned Ainz turned towards the screaming fairy beside him. "Apologies, Paimon, what were you saying?"
Paimon's face scrunched up into a tiny mass of confusion, irritation, and annoyance, "Geez, you can't just zone out like that, Paimon was getting worried! In any case, look! It looks like Eula's about to defeat that ugly thing!" The tiny fairy now resembled something akin to a dog who'd been eagerly waiting for her master's arrival from work.
"Oh my…" An invisible smile perched itself atop Ainz's skeletal face, "Seems like the fight is over," He focused in on the scene before him, the Knight of Favonius had the Death Knight in quite an unfortunate position. Bound and chained onto pillars upon pillars of ill-created ice, it had no way of breaking out. Still, something irked the undead Overlord, 'Death Knights are highly resistant to slashing damage, so how was the Death Knight incapacitated so easily? And immobilized by frost bindings no less… Unless… Oh crap!' Ainz clicked his invisible tongue, 'I should've been more specific with my orders, shit.'
"Ainz? What's wrong?" Lisa's field of vision narrowed as Ainz stood up from his obsidian seat with haste, '...Is he worried about that summon of his? Will he try and finish Eula off? Is he mad that she beat it?' A plague of worrying thoughts crept their way into the librarian's mind. She tried to question the Overlord before her, but she received no answer.
Before she could react, Ainz seized her by the waist and held her close. Flustering her with his sudden actions, she tried to break free from his grasp, but his undead strength was too much to overpower. His bony fingers clutched her tight, yet strangely enough, she didn't feel any sort of pain or discomfort.
"Ainz?! Could you calm down and tell Paimon what's going on!?" Paimon was cut off as a result of Ainz throwing her inside his robes. It took longer than expected for the tiny fairy to pop out her head from his robes and find some sunlight again.
"There's no time! [Greater Teleportation]!" Ainz screamed before he and his friend disappeared from the nowempty grasslands.
Lisa hugged her witch hat close as she was afraid the sudden gust of air would blow it away. Ainz, Paimon, and Lisa didn't appear beside the blue-haired knight. Instead, their feet were met with an empty abyss. Ainz's grip on her tightened, she wasn't sure why… that is until she looked down. The vast forest they'd seen through the once delicate mirror now resembled something akin to a large patch of endless broccoli, "Kyaaaa!" Lisa's heart sank into a bottomless well. She wiggled her legs, thinking she'd fall, but Ainz's lone arm was enough to hold her up.
"[Fly]!" Ainz cast this simple spell before letting go of the knight's librarian. The witch wiggled around like a newly-born child for a few seconds before finally calming down.
'I've seen this exact scene play out in movies before! I won't let this happen to me!' Ainz flew towards the downed Eula at speeds that would surpass even the fastest min-maxed players. Like an inbound missile, he darted towards the ground,'[DEATH KNIGHT-]' He crashed against the ground with perfect form. His summon had just finished ripping into and mutilating the female knight. The guttural sounds of flesh against metal swarmed his inner ears at uncomfortable levels.
The undead was still bound to the icy pillars below it, yet its arm had managed to break free. Although it wasn't capable of showing emotions, Ainz could tell that the Death Knight was enjoying itself. That was something that he needed to take care of, '[-SEIZE THIS IMMEDIATELY!]' He commanded through their mental communication line. Somewhere along his descent, Ainz had begun to release his killing intent onto the surroundings. The sheer amount exuding from his undead body petrified the nearby trees.
Every hair on Lisa's body stood up the moment she got closer to her city's savior. A small bead of sweat poured down her forehead and a chilling sensation slid down her spine.
The undead monster who'd managed to take out nearly all of Eula's squad turned to face its forever master. Even an undead such as the Death Knight experienced the unbridled fear of death once it caught wind of Ainz's anger. It bent the knee and lowered its head. Its fingers trembled, and though the negative energy flowing out of Ainz was healing it, it did nothing but instill a harrowing fright within it.
'Dammit! I should've been more specific with my orders. What else can I expect from a Death Knight, honestly…' Ainz looked up towards the sky -where his comrades lie- and sighed. Although he wanted to pummel the Death Knight until certain death, he knew the fault ultimately lay with himself, 'The thing had no way of knowing the Knights of Favonius and I had partnered up. Furthermore, I only instructed it to keep her alive, I suppose she's not currently dying as a result of a direct attack… But still! God!' He massaged his temples before finally speaking up, "What a mess…"
"By the Archons! Eula!" Lisa's pupils dilated in agitation. She rushed to her friend's side before Ainz could do anything. When she last saw her friend through the magic mirror, she'd been fine. Now here she was, laying on the ground, unconscious with one of her arms missing, "Ainz-" She turned towards her friend with a look of both disgust and anger, "-do something!"
Ainz flinched at Lisa's frustrated tone, still, he obeyed, "[Life Essence]."
"Hmm…"
'She'll be easy enough to deal with. She's still alive, and her HP was already low as a stat, so a low-tier healing potion should work,' Ainz then turned towards the woman's subordinates, 'Those that are merely dead will be easy enough to deal with, but I'll need to use [True Resurrection] for the zombies…'
Ainz opened his {Inventory} and pulled out a Minor Healing Potion. He opened the cork of the crystalline bottle and kneeled beside Eula while raising her head with one bony hand. Ainz was about to pour the crimson liquid into her mouth and down her throat when a certain curiosity entered his mind. He paid no attention to Lisa's malice-coated stare, instead, he guided the bottle onto Eula's wound, 'The very fact the negative energy hasn't killed her is already praiseworthy. Now, let's see if this works,' Ainz tilted the bottle, letting the cold liquid simmer atop Eula's injury.
Before he could comprehend, Eula's arm regenerated at lightning speed, 'Damn was that fast… I didn't even get to analyze the process!' Ainz's emotions began to flare up, 'Sighhh, At least she's alright. Good to know potions don't have to be digested,' The undead Overlord nodded to himself in proper satisfaction, an experiment well done.-
A shallow breath escaped Lisa's lips, "?" She cleared the blinding droplets that plagued her eyes, then, and only then, did the spark within the windows of her soul light up once again. The witch rose to her friend's side in a matter of seconds, she clutched her close and inspected every inch of her newly-restored arm. The Reconnaissance Company's Captain had yet to reawaken, yet Lisa could tell she was alright as her jagged breathing had returned to its previously rhythmic state.
'Hmmm… Lisa seems preoccupied enough,' Ainz shifted his gaze onto the living corpses around him, 'It'll be easy enough to deal with those who are still alive.'
Ainz turned his gaze towards the endless heavens above, 'What should I do? Do I have any time-dependent solutions for this?' Ainz began to go through each and every cabinet of information stored within his nonexistent brain, 'Last I checked, [Pantheon]'s little squad does include a priest… But I don't want to waste a super-tier spell on these guys…' Ainz froze as an invisible smile was plastered on his face, 'Aha! I can just use them! They may have been useless in Yggdrasil thanks to Yaimako's presence, but here… Here they could actually be -well you know… Useful! How could I've forgotten them…'
Undead with the ability to heal the living. How stupid. Why would a necromancer need such a thing? Such a summon would be nothing but an insult to those who writhe and swim in the darkness. -At least that's what chuuni Ainz thought. Yggdrasil's developers took pleasure in seeing their player base suffer, no matter the reason or purpose. There had been a multitude of updates where they added dozens of features whose sole objective was to make the game harder and utterly unenjoyable -at least to the majority.
The addition of the Forsaken, an undead summon tree which excelled purely in holy magic, was one such update. A variant of undead capable of using holy magic, such a thing was unheard of when it came to None-Playable-Entities and the extremely rare NPC found every now and then. Most players poked fun at such a comedic concept, Ainz included. Yet he had to admit that the Forsaken Deaconesses, the weakest of the Forsaken, assisted him and his friends more than once during his 'noob' days. Although the future leader of Ainz Ooal Gown grew fond of this specific summon tree, the Forsaken eventually became remnants of his days previous to the infamous guild of Helheim.
The Forsaken were as weak as level 10 mages when it came to most offensive spells cast even by the most unspecialized and common magic casters. Their attack and agility were subpar, and their adaptability in most situations was quite laughable. Yet they were seen as powerhouses when it came to resurrection and holy spells of the defensive and support variations.
The Forsaken were eventually outshined by a variety of other summons, but to those who either roleplayed or sought out specific builds, they were invaluable. Similarly to Death Knights or Death Warriors, the Forsaken possessed special abilities that gave them quite the use, as niche as it was.
'All things considered, they were useless in a prolonged battle, too difficult to use and infuriating to keep alive, but here… Here they may actually be useful! Not only will they allow me to sweep this whole incident under the rug, but I may be able to use them later… Who knows how common resurrection magic is here, but from what I've seen, I may be able to make a quick buck, if those Archons haven't monopolized the market for resurrection at least…' Ainz began scheming and plotting his future endeavors but returned back to reality when one of the zombies began to approach Lisa and the unconscious Eula.
"Why can't I ever seem to enjoy things? [Mass Hold Species]," Everything seized its movement. The undead crawling towards his new companion stopped, like a hyper-realistic statue, it lay there, as still as a tower of rocks in a windless evening.
Ainz looked around, over a dozen dead humans and an untold amount of Hilichurl corpses plagued his surroundings, each body neatly rested above the battle-scarred soil, like flowers atop an ever-expanding field, "Hmm… Alright, let's do this [Summon Mid-Tier Undead: Forsaken Cardinal]!" Ainz raised his hand in an exaggerated manner. Although he said otherwise, a certain aspect of his younger self's chuuni would always remain within him.
Lisa tore her vision away from her comrade as a result of the blinding light manifesting before her undead friend. Once it dimmed, it led the way to reveal a slender skeletal figure in illustrious, ornate, holy white robes. The being's shining blue orbs darted toward her. It tilted its head in a slow and drawn-out fashion, '...Is it… Looking at me?' Lisa asked herself.
Before the witch could ask any questions, Ainz raised his voice, "Cardinal-" The Overlord turned his gaze towards the newly-present being, "-Revive those who have fallen in battle, and those who've been turned… I assume you know what to do, right?"
"Very well, oh wise master," The solemn skeleton nodded its head. It raised its arms high above its head in a prayerful motion, "Oh, those who have fallen… Join us in this holy land. A land blessed by the Supreme Being's divine presence. You've been given a second chance to join the living once more! So Arise, and serve faithfully! [Mass True Resurrection]!" The undead clergyman uttered these words through a gentle yet fierce filter as he spoke with unmistakable glee.
Soon, all those who had been killed as a result of the various torturous methods of the Death Knight were in perfect condition. Worn-out armor plates and ripped pieces of clothing magically repaired themselves after the skeleton's cheery chants. The charred and rotting remains of those who had been tainted by the Death Knight's skill were soon to return to their previous, more appealing nature.
The Cardinal gracefully approached those whose skin had turned a ghastly white. He was careful in his advance, as he could see the fright in their eyes. He assumed that memories of their horrifying deaths had made their way back into their minds, as they were quick to scream and howl into the evening sky, "Hush, do not raise your voices. Any sudden action might undo the gift the Supreme Being has graced you with," The undead tried to soothe those who'd just returned to life… Yet to no one's surprise -except the undead clergyman in question- it didn't go exactly as planned.
Some tried to back away, whilst others tried to scream their lungs out, 'Is this the afterlife!?', 'Am I in the Abyss!?', These were the thoughts that filled the minds of the exhausted soldiers, "Please, rest and regain your strength. You're in no shape to serve the Supreme One. Try to get some sleep while you can," The gentle-minded priest turned his head towards Ainz, "Oh, Mightiest Lord of the Eternal Tomb! I beg of you: please grant these kind souls a pleasant slumber. It is my belief that they are too overwhelmed with happiness to think clearly, please grant them this singular boon," he dropped to the ground in a transparent show of fealty.
Ainz cocked his head in confusion, '...Is he asking me to put them to sleep? I mean… Sure… but is there a reason to do so? Meh, I'll just ask him later, better just go with the flow,' He Looked over the Forsaken Cardinal with meager indifference, "Very well, I shall grant you this one wish," Ainz hurriedly cast [Sandman's Sand] upon the soldiers before any of them could make a bigger scene, 'I'll have to tell whoever will be in charge of these men to give 'em a rough beating once they're back on their feet… After all, [Sandman's Sand] isn't exactly… well… easy to dispel…'
Both Paimon and Lisa stood as still as a couple of statues during this entire display. Not even the wisdom of their combined knowledge could comprehend what the newly-appeared undead before them did, 'Is… Is this some sort of prank? There's no way that thing just brought Eula's subordinates back to life. Not even Lesser Lord Kusanali nor her predecessor, Greater Lord Rukkhadevata possess the knowledge to enact resurrection! Just… How…? I've seen Ainz's unprecedented powers on display time and time again, yet he keeps taking it up a notch each time…'
Lisa's mind went blank with disbelief as she tried to comprehend the events happening before her, 'I-I… I give up… Ainz having the power to bring people back from the dead means that he is the most powerful entity in the entirety of Teyvat… If word of this gets out, he'll have a bounty on his head -or skull I guess… I wouldn't be surprised if people would offer him their entire life possessions in exchange for a single use of his power… I'm going to need a gallon of tea and a lengthy vacation after this…' Lisa closed her eyes and laid her head atop Eula's unconscious body. Her mind needed a few minutes -or maybe even a few decades- to cool down and process what just happened.
"You just keep showing us new tricks, huh?" Paimon languidly floated toward her undead companion, "It'd be pretty handy if you let us know what you're capable of ahead of time!" She clobbled Ainz on the head a few times in annoyance, "Paimon doesn't know where you're from, but resurrection isn't exactly a day-to-day thing here! What will you do if word gets out that you can do this willy-nilly?!"
"R-Right," Ainz pulled out some sort of wrapper from his inventory and handed it to the fairy atop his gown, "That is exactly why the word won't get out, understood?" Ainz felt the small wrapped candy being snatched away from his hands, 'No one else is conscious, so if anyone asks what happened, I'll just make up some bullshit, yes yes, sounds smart! But… don't the gods of these lands know how to resurrect others? Could they be perhaps keeping it a secret? I should ask that bard next time about this...sigh...Alright, time for the awkward part.'
"Lisa-" Ainz turned his body towards the electro witch, "-I sincerely apologize for this incident-" The Overlord turned off his brain and let his salaryman persona take over, "-This only happened through a mistake on my part, the Death Knight would've never gone through with such violence if I had given it more direct, and more specific, orders. Please rest assured that nothing of the like will occur in the future. Allow me to pay any and all expenses required as a result of this grievous occurrence," Although the apology sounded as if it was spoken merely out of courtesy, Ainz meant each and every word spoken.
"Uh-huh, yeah, sure." The librarian's mind was full of null thoughts, so she didn't notice Ainz's expression of regret.
With his job done, the Cardinal bowed in front of Ainz, "Your Will has been done, my lord. All knights have been healed and resurrected to their previously pristine states. My class' skill has also prevented the death of those who were too low level."
Ainz nodded before responding, "Umu, thank you Cardinal, you have done a most excellent job. That will be all for now," Ainz turned away, which prevented him from seeing his summon's exaggerated physical response.
The skeleton shuddered and rattled in unbridled ecstasy. If he still had his former body of flesh and blood, tears of joy would've burst from his hollow eyes, 'To be praised by the Supreme Being, surely, there's no greater honor!'
Ainz approached Paimon and Lisa, 'Looks like I dodged a bullet, all the knights seem to be in good condition. Still, my worries lie with their commander… I hope it'll be different from getting an earful from a superior. Oh God, what is Jean going to sa-' Ainz's emotional suppressor enveloped his mind before his thoughts could spiral out of control, -Hm… All in due time, it's probable she'll back me up, no?... Maybe… Hopefully… Either way, I should ready an apology gift, those always make the situation better.'
Ainz put the matter aside and concentrated on the two women -and the silver fairy- before him, "Are you alright?" He turned towards Eula, "Will she need another healing potion?"
The aforementioned Lisa was quick to answer, "She's fine, just unconscious… Some rest will do her well. If we're done here, we should return back to Mondsadt," She pressed her arm against the ground in an attempt to stand up.
"Shall we take the knights into the Headquarters? Even after being resurrected or healed, they are most definitely exhausted" Ainz said as he pointed at the unconscious knights.
Lisa looked at him with a blank stare and nodded before replying, "You're right, it's best to take them to the infirmary," Lisa sighed once more before her usual attitude returned. She gave Ainz a smile, "Ainz, would you be a dearie and help us find a way to bring them back with us~?"
Ainz nodded, "Why of course, it's the least I can do," The Overlord went on to summon some Skeleton Warriors. The undead minions lifted the unconscious soldiers off the ground before placing them on their backs. The low-level soldiers were strong enough to carry the Knights of Favonius, yet they were forced to leave their weapons behind, as the warriors' hands were full.
"And up we go, hup!" Ainz went out of his way to carry Eula. After settling the human captain in a bridal-style hold, the undead lord opened a Gate, "I haven't been to the infirmary, so I can't teleport us there, but this should lead us to the building's lobby," Ainz instructed his summons to pass through the portal whilst explaining this very fact to Lisa.
"Hm?" Lisa stopped dusting off her outfit and turned towards Ainz, "Oh, that's fine, love. -Actually, I should hurry, I'll have to explain the situation to the knights there, I'm worried about how they'll react if I don't… You know, it's not often that undead swarm Headquarters with our comrades atop their backs~."
Paimon interjected before Ainz could reply, "Let's just hurry up, Paimon's still hungry, Paimon didn't get to finish her meal after all!" The minute fairy made her way toward Ainz's left pauldron, "And away we go!" Paimon raised her arm and pointed towards the swirling portal.
The Knight's Cavalry Captain, Kaeya, had been instructed by the Acting Grandmaster to gather some history books from the nearby library, 'Couldn't Jean ask someone else? I mean, I understand, most of the knights are busy rebuilding, but I doubt there isn't a pair of hands willing to gather a bunch of old books for the big boss herself… *sigh* that skeleton dude can go toe to toe with a member of the Four Winds, yet he can't assist us here? It'd be pretty handy if he could lend us some of those skeletons under his command… Wait a minute, that isn't a bad idea… I'll make sure to bring that up during our next meeting,' Kaeya was about to enter Lisa's domain when a certain portal opened up on his left.
'Speak of the Abyss and it'll show itself to you they say…'
"Ah, Kaeya, what a surprise," Lisa greeted her fellow knight in a dismissive manner, "If you'll excuse me, I have some matters to attend to," Lisa made her way past him, which left the blue-haired captain more stunned than he already was, the skeletons carrying what seem to be his fellow knights behind the librarian didn't exactly make the situation better.
"Good evening, Kaeya, I hope the city's restoration project has been treating you well," Ainz mirrored the witch's actions by swiftly moving past the Cavalry Captain with the unconscious Eula in his arms
"...Huh?"
"If you need us, we'll be in the infirmary."
The cardinal -who swiftly followed his lord's every step, closed the door to the sectioned-off hospital after Ainz went inside, "Have a good day, sir."
"...Eh?"
"There," Ainz muttered after canceling most of his summons present as the knights were laid atop the beds nearby, "I shall leave my Forsa-"
The back entrance to the infirmary opened before Ainz could finish his sentence, "The cathedral is stock-full of injured people, Stormterror really left a grievous mark… Such a horrifying attack… It's surprising that more people weren't injured, or Archons forbid, dead," A nurse absentmindedly said to the woman behind her.
"Yeah… Still, from what I hear, they've run out of space. I wouldn't be amazed if Grandmaster Jean requested us to step in. You should prepare for a surge of patients, I have a gut feeling we'll see a whole lot of injured people here real soon…" The second nurse then turned toward the unconscious patients atop the hospital beds and then toward Ainz and Lisa, "-Yeah… I'm going to leave this to you, Delilah, I'll call up the others for you, but I'm not dealing with this right now," She closed the door after letting the first nurse step through.
"Uhhh… G-Greetings, Lady Lisa!" Delilah then spun to face Ainz, "-A-And I assume you're Sir Gown… R-Right?" The young lady's voice faltered after spotting the towering skeleton before her, "Is there anything I m-may assist you with? -Apart from these unfortunate folk, I mean..." Delilah managed to spew out these words despite her fear. Her eyes swayed towards the resting men after some struggle only to see them in a seemingly perfect condition.
"Quite so," Ainz began to say, "These valiant knights have just returned from quite a gruesome battle. I have healed their wounds, but I fear that they must rest for a fair while, they must be exhausted," Ainz said all of this whilst placing Eula atop the nearest vacant bed.
Delilah turned her gaze towards Lisa, a subtle way to ask for reassurance.
Her superior merely nodded in response.
"Hey, Ainz! Paimon's tired of waiting! Can we get going already?" Although the fairy sounded quite done with the situation, she still closed in on Eula's position, wanting to check if the Knight Captain was truly ok before heading off.
'How voracious can a single individual be? She already ate enough to feed the entire group of orphans that plagued my neighborhood… How can she fit all that food inside of her?' Ainz sighed before locking his flaming orbs onto Paimon, "I should've never taken you with me, I swear… Even though I have a nigh-unlimited amount of gold in my inventory, I feel that I'll eventually go broke if you stay by my side…"
Before Paimon could reply to her companion's comment, Lisa began to laugh at the two. They turned to look at the librarian, an inquisitive aura plagued their stare. She was quick to respond to the unspoken question. "It's nothing dears, it was simply that such banter was enough to uplift my mood, especially after such a… gnarly experience, so thank you, sweeties~. And Paimon, please, go enjoy the rest of your food, I'll stay here and watch over Eula and the knights, have faith in my abilities as a knight and as a librarian."
'And… How exactly does that correlate to the situation at hand? Are you gonna sit here and have books checked out whilst waiting for her to wake up? Ainz thought that it'd be better for such thoughts to remain… well… thoughts, "Very well, like I was saying, I'll leave my Forsaken Cardinal with you in case any further healing is needed."
"Thank you, we'll make the best use of his abilities if they are ever needed," Delilah pitched in.
Having been affirmed by the singular nurse, Ainz -with Paimon now resting atop his left pauldron, teleported back to Good Hunter.
…
*BAMM*
"Ainz, where the hell have you been!? We've just received notice that Eula and her group of scouts have been atta-" Jean looked around the now-full infirmary, "Um...Where's Ainz?" She asked Lisa, who walked closer to a nearby stool while giggling at the Acting Grandmaster.
"Oh my, how comedic~ You just missed him, in fact." She pointed out, "He and Paimon just left for Good Hunter. They would've still been here if you came in a few seconds earlier," The witch covered her mouth in an attempt to hide the cheeky grin that remained on her face, "But please, come in… I have a report about the events that just unfolded, I'm sure you'll want to listen," She motioned for the rest of Jean's entourage to sit.
The young elf behind the Grandmaster was quick to jump onto Lisa's lap. The Cavalry Captain swiftly took up the seat opposite of the witch, which left Jean to take over the only other chair available in the room.
…
"So…he had them…r-resurrected?… A-are you sure? Isn't it possible that he healed them before they actually died? Maybe they just passed out…" Jean placed her hand on her head.
"Master Jean is right, resurrection is simply not possible," Kaeya chimed in, "Not even the Archons can do that."
Lisa sighed, "Normally, I'd be on your guys' side, but I witnessed it with my own eyes! Here," She locked her finger onto the robed skeleton clergyman that stood at the very end of the room, "This… gentleman is the one responsible. Could you please be as kind as to explain to them what happened, Cardinal?" Lisa tried to be as cordial as possible whilst asking this one favor.
"Hm? Why of course, my good lady. I, one of Lord Ainz Ooal Gown's most loyal servants, specialize in holy magic, especially resurrection magic. And I have been specifically summoned by my master for that sole purpose. Anyhow, what Lady Lisa says is in fact, true. I was summoned by the Supreme Being with the mission of resurrecting the fallen knights, which as you can see, went according to plan," The undead minion gave a stout bow before fixing his gaze upon the other knights in the room.
"...Right… Still, I'll only believe it after I see it, we can't just take these claims and state them as fact… Even if they come from one such as you, Lisa…" Kaeya shook his head in disappointment.
"You know what, my throat is getting a tiny bit sore. Kaeya, could you be a dearie and fetch me some tea~?" Lisa's stare conveyed a hint of annoyance, yet her voice was sickly sweet.
"Oh? Since when was I demoted to your errand boy?" The aforementioned Kaeya raised an eyebrow at the librarian in a challenging manner. However, a certain clueless Spark Knight quickly added in her two cents to the conversation.
"Oh, oh! Klee wants some cookies! Could you get some for me?"
Kaeya's eyes twitched for a split second before sighing in acceptance, "I guess I can leave for just a minute, I'll be in a hurry, so please forgive me if I add a bit of extra cinnamon to your tea, Lisa."
"Thank you~ Oh, and that's fine… I do love my cinnamon…" Lisa's sly grin only managed to irritate Kaeya more.
"Master Jean-" Klee spoke up once more after her 'errand boy' left the room, "Isn't it a good thing that Mister Ainz brought those knights back? Klee doesn't understand what happened or what this 're-zur-ecting' thingy is, but isn't it good that Mister Ainz brought them back safe and sound? I know he's a spooky skeleton, but he's a good spooky skeleton!" The Spark Knight's innocent tone helped alleviate the Grandmaster's confusion about the situation.
Jean's face was enveloped by a meager smile, "You're right Klee, he brought them safely back to us, and that's what matters. As absurd as the situation is, we can't really fault him… We should've sent a message out to all the troops beyond Mondstadt's walls… On the other side of the coin… I can't really blame Eula either, I'm sure we'd all have a similar reaction if we were to face the monster you described," She focused her attention on Lisa once more, "I knew our new ally was bound to cause some chaos… I just hope I can keep a reign on things whilst he is around…"
"Oh? Do you really think anyone can keep him in check?" Lisa laughed, "He's already managed to beat Dvalin and save one of our most precious knights in the short amount of time he's been here. I have a feeling that things will only escalate from here on out… by a wide margin to be precise."
"Lisa!"
The witch turned her curious gaze towards the door.
"I was so worried! I heard that Eula got into some trouble, I went to look for you and Ainz but couldn't find you any- Eula!" The knight's one and only Outrider hurried toward the unconscious woman, "Is she ok?" Amber asked with worry.
"She'll be fine," Lisa answered, "You have Ainz to thank for that, if it weren't for him, I doubt she'd be at our side."
"You always praise that skeleton whenever you have the chance," Kaeya interrupted as he returned whilst carrying a small tray of cookies and tea, such a sight earned a small giggle from the librarian and a joyful cheer from the young knight
"So… where exactly is Ainz anyway?" Amber asked.
"Ainz went with Paimon to Good Hunter after helping me put the knights in their beds, it seems the little cutie hasn't yet had her fill of food and pestered Ainz to accompany her."
"Is that small fairy some sort of Raid Boss? I've never seen Lord Ainz so exhausted," The Cardinal chimed in with caution.
"Hm? I don't know what a 'raid boss' is, but I understand. The stark contrast between Paimon and Ainz is quite amusing," Lisa giggled, "It's no wonder she tires him out so much, dearie is just putting up with her demands at this point…"
*Knock Knock*
"Come in," Jean paused the conversation.
"We've come to assist Delilah with the new patients, we're at your service, my ladies," Five nurses entered the room in swift action.
"Why am I always forgotten," Kaeya placed his head on his hands while closing his only functioning eye in dramatic exasperation.
One of the younger nurses was quick to reassure the Cavalry Captain after hearing his words, unaware that he did so in a joking manner only
"Thanks for coming," Lisa gathered their attention with this single comment as her voice began to carry an authoritative tone to it, "I want you all to monitor all of the patient's vitals. I also want you to examine each and every part of their bodies for any injuries or bruises. Lastly, you must notify me immediately the moment one of them wakes up. Am I understood?"
The nurses were stunned at Lisa's sudden change in demeanor but replied immediately with certain conviction, "Yes ma'am!"
"By the way, now that you're back from your little excursion, you should prepare for the next council meeting," Kaeya pointed out, "This one will be rather important, as we'll be further discussing the reconstruction efforts within the city, and although I hate to admit it, your presence would be rather beneficial. There are also some ideas I would like to suggest during the meeting as well," He continued.
"Great… Things just keep getting worse and worse," Lisa said before guzzling down the rest of her tea, her eyes squinting in scrutiny, "You know, there is a limit on how much cinnamon you should put inside a cup of tea, I swear, how hard can it be to prepare something as simple as this~?"
The Cavalry Captain's only reply to the librarian's disgust was an exaggerated shrug of the shoulders as he uttered a word that annoyed her even more, "Heh."
OMG I AM SO SORRY FOR TAKING THIS LONG. I didn't expect a hiatus of like 3 months, but exam season came up and I literally didn't have time to work on the chap. It didn't help that I began to feel burnt out, yeah, I know, it's only been 9 chapters, but I don't have the stamina of some of the freaks here who can write 50k word chapters (I'm looking at you Zir, you freak of nature).
ANYHOW IMPORTANT NOTICE!
I NEED PEOPLE WHO ARE FAMILIAR WITH STAR WARS THE CLONE WARS. IF YOU ARE, PLEASE REACH OUT TO MY DISCORD. I'LL NEED ALL THE HELP I CAN GET FOR A SOON-TO-BE PROJECT.
(DISCORD IS: IceAndShadow) Discord changed the naming system and so it doesn't have numbers anymore