[Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick: 9th Floor - Royal Suite]
One of the rooms situated on the 9th floor of Nazarick which was positioned closest to the corridor was originally a bedroom but was modified later on into an office suitable for working in.
For nearly 100 years now, this room has remained unchanged for the most part; in the middle, there was an exceptional desk worthy of an emperor, and just beside it was a smaller yet still exquisite desk that served as the working place of the one who held the title of Guardian Overseer of the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick, a desk that was currently in use by the said overseer.
During the last couple of weeks things have been quite hectic, to say the least. From preparing to receive - and if need be, contain and/or destroy - one or more players, their potential NPCs, and securing any dangerous items in their possession, to ascertain their dominion over the populace should the hypothetical player(s) find a way to sneak under their nose and scheme annoying revolts against them.
However, all these preparations are only worth anything in the scenario where the player(s) arrive on lands under the control of the empire.
It's true that they can coerce any allied nation into revealing the location of a player, should the Yggdrasil beings arrive under said allies' lands, but everyone in Nazarick is painfully aware that there is absolutely nothing that they could do in the event where the player(s) arrive on lands outside of the empire's control.
To be specific, the lands under the control of the individual known as the king of kings - who gave himself the title of Ba'al and is the absolute sovereign of the Sarrukh Theocracy - rules over a territory so vast that he requires no small amount of loyal satraps to rule portions of said theocracy in his name, in a similar fashion to how the sorcerer emperor requires lesser kings and princes to directly rule the territories outside of Nazarick's immediate grasp.
That said, when the sheer amount of lands under the sorcerer emperor is compared to the number of lands under the king of kings, the emperor still has more territory under his control, so from a statistical perspective, there were more chances that a player arrives in the empire than in the theocracy, but that was hardly a guarantee.
- That worthless maggot...if only it weren't for him, and his even more worthless vermin servants!
The guardian overseer was barely containing her anger, for even a casual mental mention of Ba'al was more than enough to make her blood boil, to make all the Nazarick NPC's blood boil. After all, if it weren't for the mere existence of the king of kings in the new world, then Nazarick - and by extension the sorcerer emperor Ainz Ooal Gown - would already be the uncontested ruler of the world at this point. But no, that luminous son of a bitch just had to descend into the new world the same moment that they did, but on the opposite end of the supercontinent instead.
- If only that maggot and his nest arrived nearby our glorious Nazarick instead, my merciful master would have had no qualms against unleashing our full might!
But because that 'maggot' and his base arrived instead in the southeastern portion of the supercontinent - literally a world apart from where Nazarick arrived - said individual had the same amount of time to expand his dominion that the emperor had. And thus, by the time the sorcerer emperor and the king of kings crossed paths amidst their respective expansion campaigns, tensions on each side were something that neither monarch could avoid.
She was willing to indulge herself in the flames of her wrath for a bit, but the sound of knocks on the door interrupted the overseer's train of thought.
"May I come in?"
"Yes, you may."
The one who opened the door was none other than the head of the intelligence division of the sorcerer empire, the floor guardian of the 7th floor of Nazarick.
His face, however, didn't have his usual devilish smile. No, his face was the very definition of grim.
"I suppose the reports from our scouts in enemy territory weren't good?"
"...this is worst-case scenario." Said the archdevil as he used his fingers to move his glasses closer to his face.
Worst case scenario, also known as the scenario where the player who arrives in this wave not only lands outside the empire's area of influence but also sides with the rival of the supreme being of Nazarick, the aforementioned king of kings.
Because not a single NPC in Nazarick knew about the low-level player known as Rhemurus, they assume - for the time being, at least - that the player who arrived in the Sarrukh Theocracy at the exact same moment that Rhemurus arrived in the council state is the only player who arrived this wave.
The overseer for her part simply stopped the paperwork she was doing and placed her arms in a thinking position.
"Lord Ainz did tell us to prepare for this scenario, but to actually have this scenario in front of us."
Now the scouts in theocracy lands simply stated in their reports that the new player wasn't hostile to the king of kings, which in the hardwired minds of the floor guardians was already a bad thing in and of itself because at the very least they hoped that the new player would be antagonistic to the Ba'al.
If a relationship starts on a neutral ground, then the possibility of becoming amicable allies is very high, and the king of kings was no stranger to the art of persuasion.
Of course, there was no hard guarantee that the new player will become a loyal servant of the hated rival, mainly because players can be quite prideful creatures at the end of the day, but if the worst-case scenario already happened once, who says it can't happen again twice in a row?
"If things keep going like this, I simply hope that our master finally reconsiders the rightful use of the 8th floor hierarchy."
The only reason the Ba'al and his theocracy weren't annihilated at this point was that the sorcerer emperor has actively forbidden the deployment of the hierarchy, a decision that has several layers behind it and was properly explained several times to the guardians, but said guardians still believe with all their hearts that their master should reconsider.
Even if the hierarchy does destroy their empire in the crossfire because of the lack of friendly fire rules, they can always rebuild. Even if the name of Ainz Ooal Gown is sullied by the utter destruction left behind by the cataclysm created under his name, they can always rewrite history as they please.
Anything is better than allowing the 'maggot' who offended them to exist longer.
[Manthor Hills]
- The Kamen Rider pose, the Sailor Moon pose. There's no mistaking it, the sorcerer empire is a place with player influence, which can only mean that the sorcerer emperor Ainz Ooal Gown is indeed a player, just like me.
Had he seen those two poses separately at different times rather than together at the same time, Rhemurus would've assumed they were just another form of cosmic coincidence. But now there was no doubt in his mind anymore.
Of course, even though he was alerted by the poses, as a newbie in the new world he was still extremely ignorant about plenty of important things, so he just simply had no way of ever being able to figure out the fact that those two guests from the sorcerer empire were more than what they seemed, or that the only reason they made those poses was to attract his attention towards them.
- If only I could chat with them, I'm curious about what this empire under the rulership of Momonga is like.
But who was he to demand an audience with important guests from an empire? A nobody, that's who.
The two guests were already speaking with the leaders of each racial team anyways, so Rhemurus will have to conform with looking at the guests from the empire from a distance.
And after 10 minutes or so of lively chatter, the high marshal Barakazmith told everyone to prepare themselves for the opening ceremony.
It was basically a somewhat long but still heartfelt speech about how the hunting games were a grim reminder of the war against the evil deities, the pain they left behind, but how despite all that the people united to help each other in everyone's greatest hour of need and came out stronger than ever.
When it seemed like the speech was about to conclude, Rhemurus reached for his bag and took out a wooden helm that he commissioned from a carpenter back in Breizen. Since even the cheapest helmets had a price of 10 electrum coins or so, the player decided to look for a smith that could instead craft a helmet out of hardwood, or at least something somewhat resembling a helmet.
Said carpenter only made it as complex as Rhemurus could afford, but it was still infinitely better than hunting bulettes with a naked scalp. And this helmet also had the added benefit of somewhat hiding his pure-white hair as well, which the strange-looking human saw as a definite plus.
- I wish I could've also been able to afford a mask of sorts, that way nobody would have to look at my ghostly face and reddish eyes.
"-and so with nothing more to be said, let this year's hunting games begin!"
The finishing sentence from the high marshal brought the player back from his brooding mind and into the real world, alerting him that the real danger will now begin.
"Don't worry new guy, we're all in this together." He heard a female voice behind him which turned out to be Iaome, the high druidess whom with he spoke with the night before.
"You're willing to help me out there? I really thank you, and I promise to pay back the kindness you're showing me."
"Hey, don't mention it. I likewise needed some help the first time I joined these games, but once you get the hang of it and are smart about it, these hunts can be quite fun!"
Before Rhemurus could give a reply, the voice of the high marshal once again was heard throughout the entire hills.
"Are you all ready!?"
After giving a quick peek to all the nearly 300 participants, the Shield Dragon Lord turned around towards the bulette grounds and cast a summoning spell of sorts.
The tier magic circle manifesting from the high marshal's talon was incredibly massive, and while he wasn't certain what specific tier he used for his summoning spell, Rhemurus did notice a notoriously large amount of creatures being called forth, creatures that looked something like oversized greyhounds with dull black fur and eyes that glowed a cherry red.
- The high marshal, he just summoned a small army of yeth hounds!
Yeth hounds were level 15 monsters that had [Fly] as a skill that was perpetually active, which made them quite annoying to deal with at lower levels.
However, what shocked Rhemurus the most was the fact that yeth hounds were always nocturnal predators that hated the sun so much that they would never ever step out of their lairs during the daytime, even if it meant their death.
- No, wait, that's what the yeth hounds of Yggdrasil are like. What reason do I have to assume that the yeth hounds of this world are exactly the same?
Slowly but steadily, the player was finally coming to the realization that this world didn't share that many things in common with Yggdrasil, despite the incredible amounts of similarities.
But in any case, the yeth hounds summoned by the high marshal flew towards the bulette grounds which - because of the bulettes' nature of living inside endless networks of tunnels - looked somewhat like giant meerkat burrows. The yeth hounds flew straight inside the tunnels, and after two seconds of silence, a wave of mighty howls could be heard throughout the entire Manthor Hills.
That is their signature ability called [Bay], a supernatural skill that makes the barks and howls of yeth hounds so terrifying that anyone who hears it in a 300 feet radius becomes mad with panic.
Not long after, the ground began to shake ever so violently, and soon enough the land vomited a legion of bulettes, like insects after their nest was disturbed.
The high marshal spread his gigantic wings and took flight, and with a powerful roar he proclaimed; "The hunt begins!"
"Come on, move it!"
"Stay behind me, everyone!"
"Let's go!"
"Show these beasts what for!"
"Ah haha!"
"This will be fun!"
"Bring those scaly hides back home, boys!"
"Hey, wait for me!"
All participants of all teams began to run towards the bulettes as if they had been held tight by a leash until now. Such an overwhelming sight that Rhemurus could barely process what was going on, but he began to run as well nonetheless.
"Oh! The first kill belongs to the abeil team! Good job!"
Barakazmith wasn't only the one overseeing the games, but it appeared like he was also the commentator that kept everyone informed of what was happening in real time.
- What? Someone already killed a bulette!? That was fast!
"Let's not fall behind!" Said Lord Othollo to the human team, charging ahead forward toward the beasts in front of the human team akin to the champion of some epic tale.
He was covered in glittering scale armor and held a bronze greatsword as his weapon of choice, a sword that seemed to weigh as much as a wooden stick in his hands as he swatted through bulettes as if their bodies were butter.
Nearby, Lord Arioch was casting [Mage Armor] and [Shield], the basic 1st-tier protective spells that all low-level arcane mages rely on, then proceeded to cast the 2nd-tier spells [Bull's Strength], [Cat's Grace], and [Bear's Endurance] to boost his physical attributes and hit points beyond their limits. His preparations complete, he grabbed the enchanted quarterstaff that was hanging from a leather belt on his back and cast the 1st-tier arcane spell [Blades of Fire] to engulf his staff in magical flames.
Meanwhile, the other sibling of Lord Othollo, Lady Iaome, cast the 2nd-tier druid spells [Barkskin] for extra defense on top of her ironwood breastplate and [Flame Weapon] to coat her shortspear on fire. She then cast yet another 2nd-tier spell called [Animalistic Power] to summon a nimbus of green light that increased all her physical attributes with a single spell that gave her a slightly feral appearance.
The last noteworthy individual Rhemurus noticed was Ommarra - the fiance of Arioch - who cast the 1st-tier arcane spell [Expeditious Retreat], but the spell she cast was enhanced with the metamagic skill known as [Extend Magic] which doubles the duration of the spell buffed with it. A pair of shortsorts seemed to appear out of nowhere in her hands, and she likewise cast [Blades of Fire] like her fiance did to engulf her weapons in flames.
Rhemurus for his own part had no fancy preparations of any sort, so he felt extremely inadequate in the current situation he was in, but he kept running forwards anyway.
"And the dark dwarf team takes the lead with over 50 confirmed kills! Will they win this year just like they did the year before?"
Barakazmith kept updating everyone with his thunderous voice, urging the other teams to up their efforts lest they let the undefeated champions of the hunting games - the dark dwarves - win yet again.
- Just what can I do? Everyone else around me just keeps swinging their weapons, throwing their projectiles, slinging their spells. Should I just jump into a bulette's path and see how it goes?
That sounded like borderline suicide. Even if not a single bulette in these hills was anywhere near level 45, they were obviously not creatures a level 2 human would have many chances of surviving against. Rhemurus didn't even know if his puny strength would allow him to even make a dent in a single bulette, so he can't even exploit this new world-only mechanic as he is now.
- I suppose...my only choice now is to drop my charade, and use the power I know the best!
At that moment, Rhemurus was getting ready to take off his wooden armor and spam [Magic Arrow] against as many bulettes as possible until his MP reserves dried up. The [Magic Arrow] spell was made by the [Force] element, an element notorious for its ability to bypass most defenses bar a complete immunity to magic, so even if the damage he could inflict would be mediocre, it should be enough to get the EXP from the bulettes' deaths.
However, just as stopped in his tracks and was about to do just that, a wounded bulette literally fell from the sky and right in front of him, a bulette so wounded that it was literally just one strike away from death.
- What? When? How? Why?
He stopped for a second trying to comprehend just what the fuck was going on, but he was getting tired of trying to make sense of the crazed events around him, so he just gave up and said "Ah screw this!" as he took up his scimitar and shoved it right into the most lethal wound he saw in the bulette's body, landing his very first monster kill in this world.
- Even if it was handed to me, I will take it! Only an idiot wouldn't take any and all advantages possible, fair play is something only the absolute strongest can afford!
There's no shame in cheating as long as you can get away with it, that's what Yggdrasil...no, that's what life on Earth taught him.
And at that moment, Rhemurus felt a strange sensation inside him. It wasn't the surge he felt back when he leveled-up, rather it was more like a sensation of being filled with the premonition that there will be a surge soon.
- So this...this is what getting EXP feels like! I never actually noticed because I never got any new EXP until now, but it feels quite fulfilling.
The only bad thing is that no console interface means that he has no way of knowing exactly just how much EXP he has nor how much is needed to reach the next level, but it's still better than nothing.
So with renewed vigor, Rhemurus began to actively run towards the first bulette he saw, made the biggest jump he could, and made a downward cut with all the strength he could muster to see just how much damage he could inflict.
Even the weakest bulette of Yggdrasil wouldn't even get a scratch from a low-class steel blade, but these bulettes are not Yggdrasil monsters, so the scimitar did succeed in cracking the scales of the particular bulette the player targeted, even if just a little. The resulting damage - if calculated through a computer - would be just one digit, the very definition of laughable, but that minuscule amount of damage was enough.
The targeted bulette, annoyed by the weak human attempting to harm it, gave him a powerful tail slam which pushed Rhemurus back a few feet - a slam that did hurt him a bit despite using his light shield to block some of the damage - and kept running in a frenzy.
Said bulette then proceeded to get slaughtered by a member of the kobold team who used a powerful spear strike to off the creature with just one hit.
"Put more of your back into it next time! This is my kill now!" Screamed the kobold to the player before said kobold carried on with the hunt.
And he felt it again-
- Here it is, the surge!
That feeling came back, Rhemurus was leveling up!
- Can I get [World Disaster]? Oh please give me [World Disaster]! I could be at such ease with that job class in this world!
But after the surge passed, he looked into his internal spell console and saw three more spells, a total of nine spells split between three arcane and six divine.
Rhemurus is now a level 3 human.
- Oh...so I guess I couldn't get [World Disaster] after all. Figures, with a luck like mine.
[World Disaster], despite being the job class with the highest magical firepower, was actually an example of what was known as a 'system-less' magic class.
Basically, each level in that job class does indeed increase your magic stats tremendously and your overall caster level, but you don't actually progress in spell progression at all. This means; you don't get a single new spell from any level in [World Disaster], regardless of which system of tier magic you use.
Combine that with the terrible, virtually nonexistent MP pool increase, and world disasters being mostly divine casters like clerics and druids made perfect sense, for those were the spellcasters that dabbled the most in melee combat and didn't rely solely on their magic. Arcane world disasters were the ones that needed to be protected the most by their parties, hence why most of them belonged to the Mercenary Magicians guild. And spiritual world disasters did exist, but those were quite rare.
But alas, it shouldn't matter that much because Rhemurus did learn just now that he can consciously guide his build progression without a console, which is massive.
He opened his left hand and tried out one of his new spells.
"[Produce Flame]"
And there it was, one of the brand new druid spells in his arsenal.
- Sweeeeeeeeet.
He hurled the newly created flame towards a running bulette he saw in the distance, another flame appeared on his hand and he did the same again, aiming at a different bulette this time.
Since he only has 2 effective druid levels so far, [Produce Flame] will only be active for two minutes, so Rhemurus has to make those minutes count and inflict damage on as many bulettes as possible, for the slaughter of the monsters 'marked' by the player will be more EXP to him, and hopefully, that will be enough to help him reach level 4 before the day ends.
- To avoid any potential complications, I will just prepare myself to obtain another druid level. This time I will consciously wish for the [Hide from Animals], [Longstrider], and [Pass without Trace] spells.
[Hide from Animals] was pretty self-explanatory as it prevents any animal or magical beast from seeing, hearing, or smelling the druid and/or anyone who the druid wards with this spell. Not even extraordinary or supernatural sensory capabilities like blindsense, blindsight, nor tremorsense can detect or locate the warded individual.
The effect however always ends when said warded individual makes an attack, either with weapon or with spell.
[Longstrider] increases the base land speed of the caster by 30%, but it has no effect on other forms of movement like burrowing, climbing, flying, or swimming.
And [Pass without Trace] allows the caster to move through any type of terrain and leave neither footprints nor scent behind. Only an expert tracker with decent magical ability would be able to pick up a trace.
Rhemurus is choosing those specific spells because they will make it easier for him to sneak up and wound the bulettes with his scimitar, thus saving his still-limited MP reserves with the more mana-expensive attack spells.
"Heeeeeey, little Rhemurus! That a new spell you got there!? You're on fire!"
He heard Ommarra playfully cheer for him in the distance, but he paid no heed, he just needs to keep hurting as many monsters as possible before the first day of the hunting games ended.
[At that very moment]
Nomom, one of the guests from the sorcerer empire, was swinging his flashy greatsword with incredible swagger, chowing down bulette after bulette as if his blade was swinging through mere air.
In order to not appear too suspicious, Ainz decided to not use [Perfect Warrior] and also refused to use any type of gear that increased his physical stats, so as of now he was someone on par with a level 33 warrior.
Phenia - Keno - for her own part was using spells to shoot down the bulettes from a distance, limiting herself to spells no higher than 4th-tier in order to not rouse more attention than they intend to.
Understandably, those two were still making quite the impression on the council state citizens regardless.
"And our guests from the empire aren't so behind! Quite the amazing spectacle!"
The high marshal was told beforehand that the guests were quite exceptional individuals, and he now wholeheartedly agrees.
Even so, the actual reason said guests arrived was hardly just to show off how amazing they are.
" [ Yo Ainzy, I have been looking at the human team, but I'm not sure if there's anyone in particular who appears out of place. ] "
Even if only Rhemurus' hair was mostly hidden, his sickly pale face and orange eyes were still quite visible. However, the first day of the hunting games involved the killing of as many bulettes as possible from near the surface level, so everywhere was a chaotic frenzy where it would be impossible to make out the physical features of a single individual who was also in the constant move. Hence why neither Keno nor Ainz have been able to spot the only member of the human team that literally looks out of place.
" [ It's all right Keno, we did consider the possibility of Rhemurus actively hiding from us after we silently told him that we know about Earth. ] "
" [ I still can't believe your kind gave their world a name as mundane as 'Earth'. But even so, maybe we could put more effort into finding Rhemurus so we can show him that he has no reason to fear us? ] "
One of the plans that Keno proposed was to somehow create a situation where Rhemurus would be heroically saved by Nomom from the Sorcerer Empire, thus creating the first step of a long-term plan that would start with a deep-seated friendship and would culminate in the new player learning that his heroic friend was, in fact, the sorcerer emperor Ainz Ooal Gown all along!
When Ainz heard this plan, he had to consciously put in the effort to not start bursting into laughter. That fantasy scenario was just so incredibly cliché, literally any player would be in alert mode, making Rhemurus even more suspicious.
No, if they actually find out who among the human team was the player - assuming the player even joined them in the first place - all they should do is just take note of his physical appearance for future reference. Even if Rhemurus just happened to customize his avatar with the same reddish hair, fair skin, and green eyes that all humans of the council state have, there should be enough differences in facial features and skull structure.
" [ If we do try harder to find him, we should keep in mind that he saw our poses, so he could be on guard against us. We don't know if he has a good relationship with the other humans, but if he does, we should also assume that the human team may help him conceal himself if he feels threatened by us. ] "
" [ Whatever happens, I just hope Rhemurus doesn't end up like poor Riku, that would be so unfair. ] "
As a fellow player, Ainz really meant it with all his heart when he replied with " [ I hope so too. ] "
" [ Though, if you ask me, the only suspicious individual in the human team is someone who I don't think is the player, Ainzy. ] "
" [ Huh? And why is that? Who is it? ] "
" [ An older human, I'm pretty sure he's an arcane mage just like me. I see him use [Mage Hand] to pick up some bulettes, use an enhanced [Magic Arrow] spell to severely wound them, and then drop them right on the floor. Why doesn't he just shoot them down from a distance like I'm doing? ] "
" [ An older human? If he's an arcane mage, then he's most likely the leader of the human city. ] "
A human leader whose name he forgot. However, that does sound a bit suspicious, wasting mana with unnecessary spells like that.
Unless, that is, the human leader was purposely attacking bulettes that way for a specific reason.
- Mmm...could it be...?
[20 minutes later]
"Now only two-thirds of the first wave of bulettes remain! As expected, the dark dwarf team has the lead with 157 confirmed kills! The kir-lanan team is an unexpected close second with 128 confirmed kills! Not bad for their first time participating in the hunting games!"
After hearing from the high marshal how many bulettes remain, everyone upped their efforts to try and catch up to the dark dwarves.
Everyone except for Rhemurus, who remained just as rabid when he finally reached level 4 and was now trying so hard to reach level 5. He was borderline psychotic, even.
The new movement and concealment spells he gained from his third druid level did help him sneak up to some bulettes, but since some bulettes are faster and stronger than others, his hit-and-run tactic wasn't as danger-free as he originally expected.
Lord Othollo in particular already had to expend two high-tier healing spells on Rhemurus, both times chastising him for his recklessness.
"If you can't stop trying to kill yourself, then I will tell my father to just take you out of the games!" is what he was told, so Rhemurus is now playing it a bit safer, though was still desperate.
- Come on, Tanaka. Focus! I need to strike more bulettes! More!
It was also at that very moment when yet another wounded bulette fell in front of him, to which he just swiftly killed with his scimitar.
He didn't know that Erodel was helping him grind from behind the scenes, but he didn't care. EXP was EXP, a precious rarity in the new world.
Also, right after slaying the bulette he finally felt the level-up surge again. If it was the one he just killed, or if a bulette he already marked was killed by someone else right at that very moment, it didn't matter.
With his fourth druid level, the spells he wanted to get were [Hawkeye], [Snake's Swiftness], and [Omen of Peril].
[Hawkeye] gave the user the ability to see accurately at long distances, increasing the range increment of ranged weapons by 50% and it also increases the user's perceptive abilities on top.
[Snake's Swiftness] allowed the caster to make an extra melee or ranged attack at such high speeds that it seemed like two attacks were unleashed simultaneously.
[Omen of Peril] was a divination spell that roughly measured the danger level of any creature that the druid laid eyes on. Obviously based on relation to the caster's own current level, the danger level of the creatures seen ranged between Safety for creatures weaker than the caster, Peril for creatures roughly similar to the caster, and Great Danger for creatures much stronger than the caster.
- Alright, now let's go for level 6.
Rhemurus was exhausted, both physically and mentally, not to mention that his MP bar was empty which meant that he couldn't even try any of the new spells he just got, and these games were so extreme that there were no breaks until the wave of bulettes were all dead, but he couldn't stop.
The movement and camouflage spells he cast on himself before were still active, so he just needed to keep pushing forward, at least until the duration of those spells ran out.
And push forward he did, for what remained of the first day of the hunting games Rhemurus just kept attacking randomly at every bulette he saw, he didn't even bother to verify if he struck the same monster more than once, he just took advantage of the fact that his increased level also increased his physical stats, even if just a bit, for druids were also good at close combat, so if he could finish off a bulette himself, he did.
Eventually, the first wave of bulettes were all slain, which meant that the first day of the games was officially over.
"Great hunt! Amazing performance, everyone! Let us go back to the tent grounds to take a good rest!"
With the Shield Dragon Lord officially concluding the first day, all members from all teams took a breath and began to walk back into the tents, but still didn't allow themselves to relax, for they were still on bulette grounds.
Rhemurus for his part was so dead tired and dirty that he truly resembled an undead being of sorts now; the wooden armor was damaged, his reddish eyes looked empty, he was out of breath, his legs could barely support his body weight, holding his scimitar and light wooden shield on his hands felt like such a draining chore, he had to put in extra effort to try not stagger while walking, but to no avail.
Despite all that, the player felt a small sense of accomplishment, because as of now, he was now a level 9 human, he succeeded in gaining seven levels from this first day of the hunting games.
From his fifth druid level, he obtained the following spells:
[Climbing Tree] creates a 1-foot-diameter tree to grow in any place that the druid designates as long as it's soft terrain like dirt, soil, or sand. It can grow as high as 10 feet - a little more than 3 meters - per caster level and has branches that are evenly spaced and perfect for climbing.
[Wood Woose] summons a translucent, green nature spirit that can be commanded to perform simple tasks like build a campfire, gather herbs, feed an animal companion, catch fish, and pretty much anything that doesn't involve complex reasoning or technological knowledge. The spirit is weaker than even a level 1 fey, however, so it can't do tasks that require a lot of physical strength and its power never increases with the caster's own.
[Impeding Stones] makes any surface made out of stone, bricks, hard dirt, or similar material crack and shift in its foundations, making anyone moving in it prone to trip. Even if you manage to maintain your balance, you can only move at half speed, and because the stones continuously shift, any spellcaster in it is prone to have any spell fail because of difficulty to concentrate.
From the sixth level, he got the following:
[Spore Field] causes the ground to become thick with spore-ridden fungus. Anyone who steps on that terrain bursts several mushrooms, causing their choking spores to fill the air and anyone who breathes it becomes sickened with the poison.
[Beastland Ferocity] unleashes the savage will to survive inherent in all living beings, allowing it to fight without any penalty to physical stats even while disabled or severely wounded.
[Path of Frost] creates a pathway or area of slippery ice on the ground, which has the added effect of inflicting slight cold damage on anyone who steps on it. It can't be cast on the surface of water or any liquid, however.
From the seventh druid level, he got these spells:
[Waste Strider] allows the caster to move through extreme environments like deserts or tundra at regular speed without any form of hindrance from said environment, though it doesn't give immunity from the extreme heat or cold, hence why [Endure Elements] must always be cast alongside this spell.
[Blockade] allows a piece of wood as small as three inches to rapidly grow in size and weight as big as 5 feet - roughly 1.5 meters - in diameter and as heavy as 2,000 pounds.
[Sandblast] fires a hail of extremely hot sand from the druid's fingers, dealing fire damage to any creature caught in the semicircular burst of sand. It also has a small chance of stunning the ones caught in it.
And the eighth level in druid gave him the ability to learn 2nd-tier spells at last, which were the following:
[Barkskin] toughens up a creature's skin, granting a natural armor bonus that benefits even those without a thick hide and increases with the druid's caster level as well.
[Animalistic Power] imbues a creature with an aspect of the natural world, increasing the recipient's strength, speed, and HP simultaneously.
And [Flame Weapon] sets a melee weapon ablaze, dealing fire damage on top of any regular damage the weapon makes by default.
Yes, these 2nd-tier spells are the exact same ones that Lady Iaome used for the hunting games, because they are THAT good!
So in total, as of now, Rhemurus had 27 spells split between 3 arcane spells and 24 divine spells.
- I have the bare minimum spells requirement to join the watch now...
But as he was starting to silently celebrate, his legs gave up and he fell to the ground. Or at least, he would have, if not for the arrival of the orc chieftain who ran towards him with incredible speed and caught him before hitting the floor.
"Hey there, take it easy."
"...Lord...Tsadok..."
"These are your first hunting games, no? There is no shame in feeling tired after the first day."
Tsadok helped the human get back to his feet.
"What is shameful, however, is trying to hoard all the weight on your own shoulders, knowing that you have capable companions willing to share the weight with you."
"...huh...?"
"I saw you, Rhemurus. Slinging spheres of fire like a maniac, swinging that blade of yours like a wild beast. You fought as if you were the only one on the battlefield, but you weren't."
For his part, Rhemurus didn't respond to that. Partly because he felt like his body was going to collapse at any moment, but mostly because Tsadok was telling the truth, and he knew that no excuse would justify the behavior he showed back there.
"Was that the way fights were like in your homeland? Did your compatriots have no concept of teamwork? Were you never part of a team before?"
"...I...actually...I indeed was...Lord Tsadok..."
How could he forget? All those amazing adventures he had with his fellows in the Mercenary Magicians guild. Yet ever since he arrived in this world, Tanaka has felt an emptying sense of solitude that gave him not only the impression that he was alone, but that he had to be alone all the time, for some reason.
Tsadok for his part didn't reprimand the player. Rather, it appeared like he was willing to show some sympathy towards him.
"Look, I can't begin to imagine what it's like to be separated from your brothers and sisters in arms, and I can't imagine how isolated you must feel as a result, either. And I'm not telling you to forget the comrades you had back in your homeland, I'm simply telling you that their memory shouldn't stop you from finding new comrades to share your burdens with."
Now that he heard those words, it finally clicked in Rhemurus' mind was a complete idiot he was. Had he actively tried to work in tandem with the rest of the human team, then he may have gained even more EXP than he did, and they already believe that his primordial druid circle or whatever demanded that he killed things to become a better druid, so they would have helped him if he asked.
Even if they demanded some sort of payment afterward, he would've saved up and paid, now that he's a 2nd-tier spellcaster it would be easier to find employment somewhere.
"...you know what...Lord Tsadok...you are right...I've been such a fool..."
"Hey, better to recognize your mistakes late than never, right? Cheer up, there are two more days left of the hunting games-"
- What? The games aren't over!?
"-you can start bonding with your teammates for what remains of the day, and you can sleep on what you can do from the next day forward."
- Oh, so the games will continue the next day. That's a relief, I can take a good sleep to recharge my MP bar.
When the mana reserves are depleted, the fastest way to recharge them is to rest for around eight hours or so. But if you're awake and engaging in physical activity, then it takes around 12 hours for an empty MP bar to refill.
That is what Rhemurus found out during his personal experiments after purposely depleting his MP several times by spamming the harmless spells in his arsenal.
"I thank you for putting me back on the right track, Lord Tsadok. I can walk by myself from here, and I hope to repay the kindness you've shown me one day."
"You owe me nothing, Rhemurus. For as long as these games last, humans and orcs are rivals. If you wish to repay me, give us good competition."
"I will, we will."
"I'll hold you to that. Have a good night."
With nothing left to say, Tsadok turned back and walked towards the tents of the orc team, while Rhemurus with a renewed spirit picked up the sword and shield that he had dropped and then walked slowly but steadily towards the tents of the human team.
"Look, there he is!" Exclaimed one of the humans after noticing Rhemurus walking towards them.
"Here's the lone wolf! Did you enjoy pretending you were alone out there?"
After Arioch said that, most of the humans began to laugh in a teasing way, while others simply gave the player a disapproving but still friendly stare.
"My little brother is an ass, but he's right. You shouldn't have fought in a way that made it seem like you were eager to go out in a blaze of glory. Come, we just started to make some food, you should rest."
Othollo was harsh on the hunting fields, but now he was very kind towards Rhemurus.
As the high priest, it was his duty to look after the well-being of others, so being supportive towards his fellows was just to be expected, regardless if they are citizens or not.
So there he was, the refugee who walked like a zombie toward his tent. Once inside he let his scimitar and light wooden shield fall to the ground before allowing the rest of his body to just drop into the pallet, his mind drifting into sweet unconsciousness while his heavy eyes finally closed for now.
[...]
"That was quite the amazing spectacle, you good folk from the empire are really amazing."
Now that the first day was officially over, the high marshal was in cordial conversation with the two guests that joined the hunting games.
"Not as amazing as the good citizens of this country. I seriously believe that the sorcerer emperor could learn a thing or two about the council state." Replied Nomom, talking about himself in the third person.
"Are you sure you don't want me to point your kills? I believe you and your comrade could rank quite high at the finals."
"Thank you, marshal, but no need. This is an event for the council state people, and we have no right to steal the spotlight that way."
While Nomom and Barakazmith were talking, Phenia returned from looking at the surrounding area with her [Fly] spell.
"There you are, Phenia. Found anything unusual?"
"I saw some dark dwarves trying to rouse any bulettes that may still be below ground, but they eventually gave up and went to their little fort. Oh, and some yuan-ti brat almost slithered inside a burrow, but his peers smacked some sense into him and dragged him towards their tents."
"Ha, the usual." Replied the Shield Dragon Lord, a big smile painted on his reptilian face.
"So if you will excuse us, honorable high marshal. Phenia and I need to take a break."
"Of course, I also need to keep watch at the bulette grounds. We never know if an unexpected wave will rise after the first one is eliminated."
Having excused themselves, Nomom and Phenia walked towards their own tents which were quite a distance away from the other teams, they even had a separate tent each to avoid the impression that they were scheming something.
Once inside, they immediately began to privately converse with each other through [Message], for as members of the undead neither needed to rest at all.
" [ And so, you saw anything in the human team, Keno? ] "
" [ Hmm...I saw a human that was so tired he fell to his knees, but one of the orcs picked him up and apparently gave him some sort of pep talk. Couldn't actually listen to what they said, they were too far away. ] "
" [ Well, I did hear from the councilors I spoke with that the orcs and humans of this country get along pretty well. ] "
" [ Huh, now that I think back to it, I didn't notice his facial features very well. He was wearing this ridiculous wooden pot on his head and his face was covered with sweat and grime. Sorry, Ainzy. ] "
" [ Don't worry about that, we have two days left. If Rhemurus is here, he's sure to make some noise...I can feel it. ] "
Ainz couldn't explain it in words, but he could feel it. Regardless if the human player wanted to give attention to himself or not, no player that needs to level-up would resist the urge to show off, whether to demand a bigger challenge or to fight a creature that is obviously too big for everyone else.
- Don't worry, Rhemurus, I only want to help you. You'll see, I have big plans for you.
Very, very big plans indeed.