Overlord Volume 9 - The Magic Caster of Destroy

follow up, he was interrupted by the attacks targeting his vitals coming from
both sides.

With that in mind, Jugem decided to forgo avoiding the blows.
The attacks were aimed at the unarmored parts of his body and they cut him
open.
Rather than pain, all Jugem felt was heat oozing out of two points on his body.
Jugem grit his teeth, and activated his special skill. His sword changed
direction, striking at the soldier that slashed at him from the side.
“[Goblin Blow]!”
The mighty stroke cleaved through the weak spots of the soldier’s chainmail
and dealt a grievous wound to the flesh beneath. In this moment, the soldier
started twitching.
This was the magic power of the greatsword ― poison. However, it would
seem his opponent had partially resisted it and it had not taken him out of the
fight.
Jugem was not distracted, but he still failed to avoid the sword blow that came
from behind him.
Although his breastplate meant that his wound was not serious, his body
groaned from the sword thrust.
“Shit!”
“That’s our line! You got Bike!”
“Bike, fall back. Get behind him!”
During the wild melee, there were more opponents than just these four. Some
had tried to attack Jugem and had been cut apart the moment they entered his
range. Judging by their poor equipment, they were probably conscripted
farmers.
Even so, there were a lot of them. Being outnumbered was truly unfair.
“Get back! This Goblin is strong! Fall back! We’ll take care of him. You lot go
deal with the villagers behind him!”
“You think I’ll let you?!”
Jugem snarled at the conscripts and swung his sword. Intimidated by him,
they backed away.
The heat he was feeling in his body was slowly turning to pain.
There was one lesson in a warrior’s training which was more important than
swordplay, and that was to endure pain. Another secret was to tell how much
damage he had taken, which was how he would know when to flee.

He sensed that he could still fight, but he knew that he was pushing his limits.
It was anyone’s guess how long he could hold out.

Another brave warrior of Carne Village met his end in the corner of Jugem’s
eye, the earth drinking up his blood.

They had never had a chance to begin with, but now their defeat was
inevitable.

Even so, he still had to buy time for Enri and the others to flee. He could not
allow himself to die until then.

―My objective is the enemy camp.
―I’ll head there by myself.
Perhaps he had seen Jugem’s resolve, but the soldier in front of him stiffened
up.
In that moment, Jugem gripped his sword, preparing himself for a charge. A
great clamor washed over the battlefield. Jugem looked where his opponent’s
eyes were pointing, and he could not look away.
That was because from the side of Carne Village―

●

―The reason was simple. Its true power was not simply a matter of
summoning 19 Goblins.

In Yggdrasil, this item had been unable to reveal its true value and was
discarded as a trash drop.

However, in this New World, this item was about to unleash its true power.
Let us go over the name of the item once more.
“Horn of the Goblin General.”
Its true power, revealed only when three conditions were met, was―

3

The powerful, rhythmic sound of drums came from the side of the village,
filling the entire battlefield. All the eyes which went to the source of the sound
went wide in the next instant. That was because an army of over 5000 people
was moving in lockstep formation, advancing in time with the beat of the drums.

At first, both Prince Barbro’s forces and the defenders of Carne Village
thought that they were reinforcements from Barbro’s side, the sole difference
being whether or not they had expected such backup. However, the forms of the
new troops immediately told them that it was not the case.

The members of that army were all Goblins.
The demi-humans known as Goblins were smaller than human beings, only
about the size of a child. However, their presence made them seem twice as large
as they actually were.
In addition, they were sheathed in gleaming steel. They bore potent, brightly
polished weapons and armor, the equipment a warrior ought to have.
These were not peasant levies. This was an army of true warriors.
“Now! Anyone who’s still alive, run like hell! They’re reinforcements!
Reinforcements have come! Run to them!”
Jugem shouted at the top of his voice.
Their identities were a mystery. He did not know if they were friend, foe, or a
completely unrelated third party. Telling the surviving defenders to flee in their
direction because they were of the same species was not the right thing to do.
He should have told them to run back into the village.
However, Jugem had a feeling which one might call sympathy. He had the
feeling that he shared the same master as those people. He had the feeling that
they would take him and his friends in, and protect everyone.

The surviving citizens of Carne Village fled toward the Goblin Army without
hesitation.

The encirclement was beginning to crumble. The Royal Army knew that they
ought to pursue, but their movements were slow. That was only to be expected.
There was a highly regimented army out there. Approaching it carelessly was
dangerous.

There were two reasons why they let them flee.
The first was because they felt that it would be better to consolidate and form
up rather than mount a pursuit. Their drums were pounding a signal to fall back.
The second was because they were afraid that they would suffer a terrible
revenge for killing members of the same species as that army.
The Goblins happily accepted Jugem and the others as they ran over to them.
Jugem and the rest entered through gaps in their relaxed formation. After
everyone had entered, they immediately closed ranks once more, like a door
shutting.
Jugem looked around at his exhausted comrades, who were collapsed on the
ground. Nobody had made it out unscathed, and many people had promptly
passed out upon reaching safety.
He looked around, and it was tragic. The number of Goblins, Ogres and
villagers had decreased.
“Still, more than half of them survived… we’re lucky. Cona!”
He called the name of the only person among the Goblins who could use
healing magic, the priest Cona. However, Cona shook his head, indicating that
he had exhausted his healing magic in that battle.
“Then let’s do whatever first aid we can—”
Just as Jugem was about to shout, he saw a Goblin in a turban, carrying a scarf,
and stroking his whiskers.
Given his attitude, he was most likely a central figure in the Goblin Army.
“Ho ho ho ho. You must be General Enri’s retinue. I am the Goblin Strategist,
responsible for commanding the Goblin Army. Now that we have arrived,
nobody will harm you gentlemen any further. Please be at ease. Our medical
corps will attend to you forthwith.”
The Goblin Strategist waved his fan, and a squad of brawny Goblins ran up
with boards in hand.
“Come, come, everyone, please lie on these boards and we will ferry you off.
Now that we have come, it would be a shame if any more of you were to lose

your lives.”
The casualties were carried off one after the other.
“You have been hurt too. Come, we shall take you to our chirurgeons for

treatment—”
No, I’m sorry. I feel bad about declining your kindness, but can you please tell

me what’s going on? I’m still alright.”
Jugem’s attitude did not look like he was acting tough. After verifying that,

the Goblin Strategist nodded, and began speaking.
“I expected nothing less of the leader of General Enri’s retinue. What do you

wish to — ho ho ho. No, I already know. General Enri is in a command tent in
the rear. She will surely be glad to see that you are fine.”

“Is that so? Then that’s good.”
Jugem let out a soul-deep sigh of relief. In fact, he was so relieved that the
strength fled his body as well, and his knees nearly buckled under him. However,
as a predecessor, he could not let his successors see that unsightly side of
himself.
“Right. I’ll go see her, then. Besides, I doubt there’ll be anything left for us to
do in the upcoming battle.”
“Ho ho ho ho. Thank you for yielding the field to us newcomers.”
“As if. It’s nothing much. It’s the job of the seniors to pass the torch on to
their juniors… thank you.”
“Ho ho ho. Then, we must display our prowess to our seniors. That being the
case — all that remains for us is to achieve victory. Order the heavy infantry
forward.”

●

“What the hell is that?! Dammit, we were so close!”
Barbro’s eyes went wide as he surveyed the interlopers who had ruined
everything.
Nothing had gone as he had planned. Why was he deadlocked with a Goblin
Army at a tiny village like this? He was so frustrated that he wanted to claw at
his hair.
If this were an Imperial Army detachment, he would gladly order his men to
fight. However, these were Goblins. Even if he won, who would praise him?

“My Prince! Please allow the men to fall back!”
He glared angrily at the knight addressing him.
Rationally speaking, they ought to fall back now. While he did not know what
such a large Goblin host was doing here, as long as he brought the information
back, it ought to count as achieving something.
However, running away with his tail between his legs without so much as
fighting them would surely lead to him earning the hateful moniker of “the
Prince who fled from Goblins.”
And if he lost, then he would be the Prince who was beaten by Goblins. The
topic-starved nobles would surely spread it all around and make it public
knowledge. The people who had not seen the battle with their own eyes would
not care how strong the Goblins before him were. They would only be concerned
by how amusing it sounded.
Within his heart, Barbro cursed those nobles who mocked him from safety.
“…Denied. Keep fighting.”
“Your Highness! Please observe their equipment and their regimented
formation! They must surely be elite troops who are the equal or superior of the
Goblins from just now! Our side is largely composed of peasant levies; our
chances of victory are slim. I beg you to order a retreat!”
Barbro knew that as well, even if the other party did not say anything.
However, there was no other way to protect his good name than by fighting. All
he could do now was pray that those Goblins were just for show.
“You fool! Do I have to tell you how dangerous it is to let those troops be?!
Right now, the Royal Army is making their way to the Katze Plains! What do you
plan to do if that army attacks E-Rantel while they’re undermanned?!”
“Un-understood.”
They would cross blades with the enemy once. If they were as tough as their
appearances suggested, he would fall back immediately. The battle with the
Empire was the truly important thing, and Barbro did not want to be defeated
here. He was at least calm enough to think of that.
The soldiers formed up into ranks before Barbro. As though matching their
movements, the Goblins began their advance.
The enemy had taken a long snake formation, which was three layers deep.
Barbro’s forces had adopted a crane wing formation instead. They had not
used the fish-scale formation because they wanted to make effective use of their
powerful cavalry, and the enemy formation was poor at handling flanking

attacks.
The leading edge of the Goblin formation was composed of their heavy

infantry, carrying greatshields that were tall enough to cover themselves. Their
immaculate battle line was like a wall bearing down on them, and it placed great
pressure on Barbro.

The hand holding the reins of his horse were slippery with sweat under his
gauntlets, and it felt disgusting.

When the spear-wielding levies made contact with the shield-bearing heavy
infantry, his troops would block the enemy advance, effectively treading on the
serpent’s head, and then the cavalry would charge from the flanks.

The levies clashed with the heavy infantry.
And then, the loud voices of the Goblins reached Barbro’s ears.
“We are the subordinates of her Excellency, General Enri — the Goblin Heavy
Infantry! Do not insult us by thinking we will be halted by this much!”
Rather than harboring doubts about this General Enri person, Barbro was
focused on how his forces’ formation was buckling under the contact.
The levies were being pushed back by the enemy shields. Naturally, when they
were pushed back, they collided with their comrades behind them, and their
formation began to collapse.
The cavalry on both flanks hurriedly sprang into action. The right wing was
slightly quicker to move, and they aimed to attack from the side. However,
cavalry in gleaming silver emerged from the enemy flank — riding white wolves
in place of horses — seventeen riders in all, sprinting forth to intercept them.
“We are the subordinates of her Excellency, General Enri — the Goblin Paladin
Corps! We pledge our loyalty to her Excellency!”
From the left flank came a horde of magical beasts that looked like wolves,
who raced across the land. There were Goblins mounted on them. Leading the
way was a winged wolf, and the Goblin mounted on its back shouted loud enough
to drown out the wails of the levies and reach Barbro’s ears.
“We are the subordinates of her Excellency, General Enri — the Goblin Beast Rider
Corps! Here we come!”
As the cavalry were bogged down in melee, Barbro heard the sound of strings
twanging, one after the other.
He saw dozens of arrows falling from the sky like rain, peppering the chaotic
battlefield. Barbro wanted to see who was shooting, and surveyed the enemy
formation.

They were in the enemy’s second rank. There he saw a group of Goblin dressed
in bright red, wielding huge bows. There was a clear difference between the sizes
of the left and right sides of their bodies, and their bodies tilted noticeably with
every step they took. One of them was particularly eye-catching and carried an
extra-large bow. He opened his mouth:

“We are the subordinates of her Excellency, General Enri — the Goblin
Longbowmen Corps! Know that there is no escape for you!”

That was not the end of the enemy’s long-ranged attacks. The enemy’s third
rank discharged several spells, which detonated within the Royal Army’s
formation, some distance ahead of Barbro. Great flashes of light accompanied
the blossoming of crimson flowers, and the petals of scorching flame drove a
shockwave before them, the repeated explosions flinging the peasant levies
away.

The spellcasters were a group of whose faces were veiled by their lowered
hoods. Each of them carried a long staff, which gleamed with a mysterious
radiance.

The person at their head pulled back his hood, revealing a face covered in
wrinkles.

“We are the subordinates of her Excellency, General Enri — the Goblin Magic
Support Corps. Be it strengthening, weakening, or attack magic, we wield them all with
the same proficiency.”

They were not the only unit casting spells. Barbro shifted his eyes to the side
of the Magic Support Corps, and he saw a similar-looking unit there. Although
they were only a team of five people, each of their faces was filled with an
absolute confidence. Before them stood the one with the boldest smile of all,
and he shouted with all his might:

“We are the subordinates of her Excellency, General Enri — the Goblin Arcane
Artillery Squad! We who specialize in area-of-effect spells are the most potent attackers
of the Goblin Army!”

“Your Highness!”
The knight returned to Barbro’s side. He knew what the man was going to say
with just a look at the shocked expression on his face. With magic casters in their
ranks, the enemy was even more dangerous now.
“We’ve had it! We can’t hold them! It’s only a matter of time before the enemy
reaches us! We need to retreat!”
He could not deny him now. Even if Barbro ordered everyone to stay and fight,

the nobles who came with him would climb over each other to flee. Even if he
somehow compelled them all to fight, they would resent him and become future
enemies.

“Do it. Also, order the Baron to run first.”
Barbro wanted to be the first to flee, but if he did that, it was not hard to
imagine how he would be labeled as a coward who was number one at running
from Goblins. That being the case, he would let the Baron bear that shame
instead.
“Understood!”
Just as the knight began barking orders to his subordinates beside him—
“—There’s no escape.”
An unfamiliar voice came from right beside him, and for the first time, Barbro
felt that his life was actually in danger.
His retinue drew their swords and surveyed their surroundings, and they saw
a group of black-clothed people emerge from the shadows. Their faces were
covered with cloth, but their eyes gleamed with a keen light.
“We are the subordinates of her Excellency, General Enri — the Goblin Assassin
Squad. We lurk in the shadows, and this is the last time you will see us.”
There was one more person.
He emerged like he had been drawn out; he wore a red cap and steel boots.
The way he carried a long scythe made him look like the Grim Reaper.
“I am a subordinate of her Excellency, General Enri — one of the thirteen Redcaps
who serve as her bodyguard. Well, I guess there’s nothing left for me to do.”
“Protect his Highness! Sound the retreat!”
“Pathetic.”
To Barbro’s eyes, it seemed as though the shadows were moving.
Everything above the knight’s neck disappeared in an instant, and his blood
spurted like a geyser.
Barbro realized what he was looking at, and he immediately spurred his horse
into a gallop. There was no longer any time to worry about the order in which to
run. Right now, he was treading the edge of life and death.
Behind him, he heard, “We are the subordinates of her Excellency, General Enri
— the Goblin Musician Squad!” accompanied by the sound of pounding drums,
and it grated on his ears.

●

“…Is it really alright to let him run?”
“The Strategist-dono ordered it. If the prince’s head is taken, they’ll scour the
land to find where it fell.”
“Hmph, but of course. If General Enri fell to the enemy, I wouldn’t stop killing
until they were all dead either. Well, that’s the Strategist-dono for you. He sees
the big picture. Is that why he didn’t order us to wipe them all out?”
“Precisely. We need to let them take their prince back to their city. I’m not
happy about it either. I want to make them pay for attacking General Enri’s
village… I guess that’s how it is, Redcap-dono. We’ll begin cleaning up the
corpses, then.”
“Indeed. We need to recover the bodies of the brave warriors who fought by
our seniors’ side too.

4

The plains were brightly lit by the moon, and in their midst was a military field
camp. No, there were no tents here or a wooden palisade, so it was doubtful
whether it actually qualified as a camp. It would be more accurate to say that
there was a military unit on the grass.

Just about everyone was lying on the ground, immobile from fatigue.
The winter air was cold enough to dye their exhaled breath white, but the fact
that they could sleep in conditions like these without bedrolls or the like was a
sign of how tired they really were. Amidst all these people, who had collapsed
like puppets whose strings had been cut, one man was walking.
He was the general of the defeated army, Barbro.
Should he feel lucky that he had survived, or should he complain because he
had met such a powerful foe?
The Goblin Army that had appeared at Carne Village had been a powerful foe
— no, his forces had been no match for them at all. With just a single contact
with the enemy, Barbro’s forces had been crushed in an instant, and he had no
choice but to flee in defeat. His soldiers had been killed so fast it was as though
they had melted away.
What exactly were those Goblins?
Barbro wanted to figure that out too.
The possibilities which came to mind were that they were the army of a huge
nation of Goblins within the Great Forest of Tob. That was the easiest
explanation to accept when one considered that they had encountered them
south of the Forest. The other nobles who had survived with him seemed to have
reached the same conclusion too, and they had said so several times to console
themselves during their flight here.

Some said that their luck had been bad.
Some said that the army they encountered was composed of their elite troops.
Some said that just bringing back news on those Goblins would be a great
effort.
“Are they idiots…”
Barbro clenched his fists tightly.
Defeat was defeat. It was true that the Goblins had been strong. Anyone who
fought them would have understood why there had been no hope for Barbro.
However, those who knew nothing would simply think that Barbro was the
prince who had been beaten by Goblins. He would surely become the butt of
many jokes.
“Dammit! Dammit! Dammit!
A fire burned in his belly. That was the reason why Barbro could not sleep,
despite being as tired as the soldiers.
Once he closed his eyes, he could hear the insults and mocking laughter that
would surely await him after he returned to the Royal Palace.
For Barbro, the war was over. In his present state, there was no way he could
hustle to the Katze Plains and take part in the battle against the Empire.
Just then — he felt a presence. It did not come from the men lying on the
ground, but from the direction they had fled from.
Were they fleeing soldiers who had caught up with them, or a Goblin pursuit
force?
His heart filled with terror, Barbro shifted his line of sight, and in the next
moment, his face filled with puzzlement.
That person had probably noticed Barbro. They raised a hand in a casual
greeting.
“Hai~”
He had no idea when they had appeared in the middle of these plains. Not far
away — 20 meters at the most — stood a ravishing beauty, with a smile on her
face that could only be described as innocent. If this were a city, Barbro would
surely stare at her. However, this was the middle of a plain. There were no
villages around.
The strangest thing was the clothes she wore — they looked like a maid’s
outfit.
If she were an armed and armored woman, he might have guessed that she
was an adventurer. However, this was not possible.

Is she a monster?
That thought rose through his mind. Certain monsters were very beautiful.
Fairies, for example. However, he could not make sense of the maid uniform.
“Hello ~su. I came to play with you ~su. Can I bother you for a bit?”
Judging by her question, she was clearly taking him for a fool.
“Who’re you?!”
He reached for the sword at his waist as he questioned her.
That question was utterly meaningless. However, he had nothing else to say.
Her existence was so ridiculous that he did not even know where to start asking.
“I’m Lupusregina ~su. One of the maids who work for Ainz-sama ~su.”
The peculiar woman waved again as she greeted him. The meaning of what
she — Lupusregina — said gradually began to filter through his mind.
“What… what did you say?”
Barbro was so shocked that he forgot to wake the nearby soldiers.
“No, no, don’t worry about that for now — that must have been really hard
on you ~su. Still, that really was unfair ~su. A huge army of Goblins like that’s on
the level of cheating ~su. I saw them from behind the humans and En-chan and
it made me cry out in surprise ~su. I didn’t expect so many Goblins would come
out~ hahahaha!”
Lupusregina laughed in an incredibly fake way.
She was clearly trying to pick a fight, but Barbro could no longer hold his
feelings back.
“So why are you here?!”
He could hear several people behind him reacting to his shout.
Still, if this woman wanted to attack him, then her actions were far too
bizarre. There was no need for her to appear before them. Or was this part of a
plan to draw away their attention? Perhaps she intended to launch an ambush
while everyone was listening to her.
No — as the First Prince, he knew he was very valuable.
If he was lucky, he could negotiate. If he was unlucky, he would be a hostage.
However, negotiating with them might be too much to ask for. He might end
up becoming a prisoner of war.
Barbro felt the throne draw further and further away from him.
That said, the people who should have been punished were the higher-ups in
the Kingdom who did not know that there were so many Goblins within that
village before sending him there.

If he became a prisoner of war, he ought to have a chance to meet Ainz Ooal
Gown. Perhaps he could trade him a quarter of the Kingdom in exchange for his
help to make himself King.

Perhaps this was actually a blessing in disguise.
Barbro pondered that possibility.
“Well well, there’s only one reason I came here ~su.”
Lupusregina paused for a single breath, and then announced:
“I came to kill all of you ~su.”
Barbro blinked several times, and then he shouted:
“Hahh?! What the hell are you saying? Do you know who I am? I’m the First
Prince of the Re-Estize Kingdom, Barbro Andrean Ield Ryle Vaiself!”
“Oh, so you’re a human, then ~su. What’s the difference ~su? To us, you
humans are equally worthless ~su. Ah, but you’re a prince ~su.”
“In that case… I see! You mean to say you’ll kill everyone except me, right? I
don’t think that’s a good idea. You need to take us prisoner and let someone live
to bring the news back to Father, otherwise things will be difficult in the
upcoming negotiations.”
Lupusregina tilted her head in surprise.
“No, no, what are you saying ~su? Shall I repeat myself again ~su? I came to
kill all of you~su. Since I came to kill all of you, I’ll kill each and every one of you
~su. Are you particularly stupid ~su? Ah~ well, that does make you a rarity, but
it’s not like I want that ~su.”
“What are you babbling about?! Don’t you know how valuable I am? I’m the
First Prince! Why are you thinking of killing me?! Normally, you’d take me
hostage and demand a ransom, no?! Using me as a negotiation tool holds more
merit than killing me, right?!”
“…My my, what a troublesome person you are.”
Lupusregina grinned in a discomfiting manner. Then, she spoke gently and
kindly, like she was explaining things to a child.
“You are not necessary to the plans of the matchless one, Ainz Ooal Gown-
sama, and so I will kill you. Do you understand?”
Barbro was speechless.
He understood that Lupusregina was not joking or trying to probe his reaction
with a threat.
He swallowed unconsciously.
“…You’re serious? You’re seriously going to kill me…”

“Ah, that’s a nice expression on your face ~su. You’ve jumped a great deal in
my internal ranking ~su.”

“Then—”
Barbro was trying to smile with a twitching face, but Lupusregina’s face went
blank in the next moment as she said:
“Ainz-sama ordered me to exterminate all of you. Therefore I will not let any
of you return alive.”
She immediately resumed her half-joking expression.
“So’s anyway, I was thinking for a long time, about what opponents you’d have
fun with. In the end, I found the best playmates for a bunch of people who got
their asses kicked by Goblins ~su!”
With a “jajajajan~” she raised a hand. A horde of shadowy shapes emerged
from behind her, out of what seemed to be thin air.
“These are the Redcaps that I had summoned for me ~su!”
There were 30 of them.
The Goblins which revealed themselves resembled the army from back then,
their bodies twisted and evil.
All of them wore bright red caps and steel boots upon their feet. They carried
hatchets which glowed blue in the moonlight.
“Enemy attack! What the hell are you doing! Wake up! Take up your arms!
The enemy is upon us!”
Barbro’s bellowing woke the soldiers from their slumber. They bolted upright,
and then stared at the enemy under the blinding moonlight.
“—They’re level 43, so really, they’re kind of overkill for you, but the library
didn’t have any weaker Goblins ~su.”
Screams filled the air.
The survivors of that hellish battle with the Goblin Army could not possibly
muster up the fighting spirit to stand against more Goblinoids.
They did not draw their swords, but scattered in all directions, running for
dear life.
“Don’t run! Fight! Fight! Fight! Hurry up and protect me!”
Not a single soldier listened to Barbro’s orders. The nobles ran for their
horses as well.
“Ahahaha! This is wonderful! You actually think you can escape on a plain like
this! Ahh, this is fun! This is the best! I love it!”
Lupusregina’s mocking laughter mirrored what Barbro was thinking.

There was only one way to survive. He had to defeat his enemies.
“So there’s people who think mounting up is going to help… Would you kindly
chop off their legs for me ~su?”
With a shrill cry of delight at the impending slaughter, the Redcaps sprang
into action.
They were like wild beasts.
They ran amidst the fleeing masses.
And then — there was a scream.
It came from one of the nobles who was trying to escape on horseback.
It was followed by several more screams.
“There’s fewer people now, so playtime’s been shortened too… well, that can’t
be helped ~su. On my part, I’m going to have all kinds of fun ~su. I might not
have the abilities Sol-chan has, but I can show you a trick or two ~su~”
Lupusregina walked toward Barbro, who had his sword drawn. It was as
though she was taking a walk through a field.
The smile which split her beautiful face like a fissure chilled Barbro’s heart
with fear.

●

It was only after 30 minutes that Barbro received Lupusregina’s permission
to die.

Chapter 4 Massacre

Chapter 4 | Massacre

1

The two armies formed their battle lines along the gentle slopes of the
crimson plains, staring each other down.

The awe-inspiring army of the Kingdom was 245,000 men strong, divided into
a left wing of 70,000 men, a right wing of 70,000 men, and a central column of
105,000 men, skillfully encamped throughout three hills. However, this
encampment was not ringed by wooden fences, but formed of a gigantic mass of
troops.

The foremost five ranks of infantry carried two-handed pikes, each one easily
over six meters long, and they were formed up into a spear line into a spear line.

Their job was to substitute for an anti-cavalry fence in order to counter the
heavy cavalry that comprised the core of the Empire’s fighting strength. They
did not use actual anti-cavalry palisades for a simple reason; protecting that
many people would require a ridiculous amount of wood. For a large army, it was
better to make good use of a spear line.

Although this formation was quite solid and presented many problems for any
attackers, it had its weaknesses as well.

Since the formation was dense and the weapons carried were very heavy, it

was all they could do just to stay in place and prevent enemy charges. As such,
they lacked the ability to react quickly to enemy maneuvers, and if the Empire
used bowmen or magic, their losses would be heavy.

Then again, not much more was expected from mere peasants. All that was
required was that they deflect the first charge of the enemy.

On the other side, the Empire had 60,000 men.
Their numbers were vastly inferior to those of the Kingdom.
However, the Imperial knights were relaxed, without so much as a hint of fear.
They did not feel they would lose at all.
This confidence came from knowing their own personal strength.
Even so, it was a simple fact that there was a vast disparity in the military
power of both sides. Although it would not be a problem if they could fight
forever without fatigue, they were only human. Once they got tired, even the
difference in their individual abilities would eventually be caught up to.
The Kingdom also had one more advantage, a large one.
That was the value of each individual.
Most of the Kingdom’s troops were composed of peasant levies. In contrast,
the Empire fielded professional soldiers called knights. A peasant was simply
expected to hold a weapon, while each Imperial knight was carefully trained.
Every loss by the Empire was more keenly felt than a similar loss by the
Kingdom. The Empire simply could not afford to squander their knights in
foolish offensives or wars of attrition.
Therefore, a pitched battle on open terrain like this was to the Kingdom’s
advantage.
Because of this, the battles fought between the Empire and the Kingdom were
typically minor skirmishes.
The Empire’s objective would be accomplished simply by pulling the
Kingdom’s serfs onto the battlefield. There was no need to waste valuable
human resources, and the Kingdom knew this as well.
This scripted pageantry was what passed for “war” between the Empire and
the Kingdom.
Even if that magic caster called Ainz Ooal Gown took part, it would still end in a
minor skirmish. That was what most of the Kingdom’s nobles thought. After all,
the Empire’s knights were not just a military force, but a police force as well.
They were the people who protected the safety of the Empire. Needless losses
to them would threaten the Empire’s stability.

And so, the nobles awaited the Empire’s next move.
By tradition, the Imperial forces would parade before the Kingdom’s troops,
and then fall back. The Kingdom would then sound a victory cry.
This was how it had always been.
However—
The Imperial army did not move.
There had remained still ever since they had deployed from the fortress-like
castrum and arrayed themselves before the Kingdom’s forces. It was as though
they were waiting for the Kingdom to make the first move, or for something else.
“They’re not moving. What’s going on?”
This was at the headquarters where the King was. It was located behind a host
of 105,000 men.
Marquis Raeven stood beside Gazef, speaking quietly as he surveyed the
motionless Imperial knights from the safest place he could find, an observation
point atop a hill that was slightly higher than the others.
If the Empire did not move, then neither could the Kingdom.
An attack by the Kingdom now would be extremely foolish, given that they
had already formed their spear line. Once the nobles had tried a pre-emptive
attack on the Empire. However, the attackers had been slaughtered in short
order, and the Kingdom had suffered significant losses as a result.
Ever since, the Kingdom’s preferred tactic against the Empire had been to
form a spear line and prepare to receive a charge. Since the enemy was willing
to retreat, there was no need for risky forays.
“All right, then. looks like they’re waiting for us…”
“The final declarations have been made, so they should be joining battle
soon… Warrior-Captain― Gazef-dono, do you have an idea on what the Empire
might be waiting for?”
Thirty minutes ago, representatives from both armies had begun negotiations
in the central area between them. Granted, that was simply a statement of
unacceptable conditions from both sides that was more of a stage play than
actual arbitration. Its true purpose was to show that each side was
compassionate and willing to avert war until the last moment.
Of course, negotiations would break down, and that would be the signal for
the fighting to begin.
If they were following the example of previous years, the Imperial Army
should have begun moving out immediately. However, this was not the case.

They remained stationary.
“I have no idea. Do you know anything about this?”
“As if. I’m not too familiar with military matters. I usually let my subordinates

handle those.”
“Somehow, the idea that the wise Marquis would know nothing about his

enemy sounds like a lie.”
“A lie… I did not expect you to be that direct, Gazef-dono.”
“Did I give you offense? I apologize if I did.”
“Hahaha, no, none was taken. You’re much friendlier now than you were back

then.”
Gazef’s brow furrowed, as he sensed the barbs in those words.
“Hahaha. Take it for what it is. It’s a fact that I’m no general and that’s not a

lie. It just so happens that one of my subordinates is a good leader of men, so I
left military matters to him.”

“Could it be… one of the former adventurers working for you, the ones who
became famous during the demonic disturbance in the capital?”

“Ah… no. They’re over there.”
Raven pointed to a group of five men standing together.
Although they were all well into their middle age, and their strength was not
what it used to be, they had been orichalcum-ranked adventurers in their prime,
and there was something about the way they carried themselves that made Gazef
feel that he could not take them lightly.
“They will be my bodyguards during the battle.”
“With men like these protecting you, Marquis Raeven, I’m sure you will have
no problems returning safely to the Royal Capital… well, as long as they don’t
confront that great magic caster. Oops, I almost forgot; what about your
strategist?”
“I don’t think you’ll know him since he’s a commoner from my domain, Gazef-
dono. When a Goblin horde attacked his village, he beat them off with a group
of villagers half their size, and thus he came to my attention. Ever since, I’ve
entrusted him with the command of my house troops and various other tasks.
The big surprise is that he’s never once lost a battle. I also gave him a high-
ranking position as my aide.”
“I’d like to see this commander that you praise so highly, Marquis Raeven. If
he’s really everything you say he is, we might do well to give him command of
the Kingdom’s armed forces.”

“If you gave it to him… gave him complete command of the military, and the
Royal Army moved together under his command, we might be able to fight a
battle which makes our neighbors sit up and say, ‘The army of the Re-Estize
Kingdom is not to be underestimated’…”

Gazef exchanged a look with Raeven, sighed, and then smiled tiredly.
“The nobles would never allow a commoner to rise to such a station. It’s
nothing more than idle fantasy at the moment.”
“Certainly not while the nobles are divided into their factions.”
The Empire organized its legions by appointing a general over each one, under
whom served division commanders, brigade commanders, and other officers, all
in strict regimentation.
In contrast, the Kingdom’s armies were composed of the house troops and
levies each of the Kingdom’s nobles could muster. The King was the overall
commander, but each host would act as they or their faction saw fit.
Simply put, it was a rag-tag bunch of misfits.
Although Gazef had the title of Warrior-Captain, in the end, he was only the
commander of the warrior band which was directly loyal to the King, and he had
no authority to give orders to the nobles. While it was possible for the King to
order the nobles to listen to Gazef, the nobles had always disdained Gazef the
commoner, and doing so would sow the seeds of future grudges. The King was
aware of this, and so he ordered that Gazef would do no such thing.
The two of them considered their places in the Kingdom, and sighed heavily.
Then, they exchanged looks, and laughed.
This conversation should have been had elsewhere, not on the eve of the clash
of swords and the spilling of blood.
“Even if we return home alive, there’ll still be a battlefield waiting there…”
“Isn’t that what being a noble’s all about?”
“After this is over, I’ll petition the King to raise you to nobility. It angers me
that someone who calls himself the King’s sword doesn’t engage with noble
society as eagerly as he should.”
Although Raeven looked like he was joking, Gazef could tell from the light in
his eyes that his anger was sincere.
When someone skilled at hiding their feelings revealed them to oneself, it
would be a cause for celebration. However, it was a different matter if it was not
a positive emotion. Gazef quickly changed the subject.
“…Let’s leave that aside for now. Why don’t we bring that strategist-dono of

yours over, and hear his opinion… ah, calling him over will be difficult.”
“After all, I entrusted him with my base camp. I don’t dare move him

unnecessarily while we don’t know what the Empire’s up to.”
Although the nobles had all pledged to work together for the Kingdom, in the

end, Raeven’s holdings were still his top priority. It was only natural that he
would refuse.

“Haaaah… it’s the same thing as always, but I dislike the tension in the air.
While I don’t actually want the Empire to attack us, they should hurry up and do
it if they’re going to and spare us the anxiety of waiting.”

Gazef could sense the unease from the Kingdom’s army. As he tried to see
where it was coming from, he furrowed his eyebrows.

“…I see. When you think about it, this might be an Imperial strategy to get us
anxious before they make their move. It’s difficult to coordinate and control so
many soldiers, so even the slightest flinch in any unit could be magnified into a
great disruption at the end. A large group is difficult to attack, but once the
individuals break from the pack and run, they’ll be easily hunted down and killed.
It’s the same principle animals use for hunting.”

A surprised Raeven followed Gazef’s line of sight to the worried-looking
troops on the left flank, and then realization dawned on his face.

“That… looks like they’re rotating the troops on the inside to the front line.”
“We wouldn’t have to worry if they were just reorganizing their formation…”
“That’s Marquis Boullope’s flag. Looks like the left wing’s commander is
moving himself to the front.”
The Kingdom placed the Noble Faction on both wings, while those of the
Royal Faction were concentrated in the middle.
King Ramposa III was the overall commander of the central column, while
Marquis Boullope commanded the left wing.
“Moving one’s command to the head of the formation is quite strange. Do you
see, Gazef-dono? The Marquis is moving those elite troops who are directly loyal
to himself. His plan is to distinguish himself in combat against the individually
powerful Imperial knights, under the eyes and ears of the gathered nobles. That
way he’ll make a reputation for himself as the lord of the strongest unit in the
Kingdom.”
Raeven cast a challenging look to Gazef. Will you let someone else gain greater
glory than your beloved warrior band? it seemed to say.
Gazef did not take the bait.

“The warrior band’s duty is to protect the King. We won’t move without the
King’s direct command, even if the Empire sounds the charge. There is no
greater duty for us than ensuring the safe return of the King to the capital.”

Gazef tapped the sword at his waist.
“Still, it’s possible that I might deploy by myself to blunt the enemy’s attack.”
“That’s one of the four treasures of the Kingdom, Razor Edge… ah, I see.”
Marquis Raeven stepped back, and studied Gazef from top to bottom.
The Gauntlets of Vitality, which negated fatigue. The Amulet of Immortality,
which let him regenerate his wounds. The Guardian Armor, crafted of the
hardest metal known to man (adamantite), and enchanted with magic that
deflected lethal blows. And finally, Razor Edge, a magic sword crafted in pursuit
of absolute sharpness, which could carve through enchanted armor like the
proverbial hot knife through butter.
“Now that you’re fully equipped with all these treasures, you are the
Kingdom’s greatest treasure. I heard once that the Kingdom actually had five
treasures, but it seems they had all been gathered from the start.”
Gazef blushed as he was compared to those treasures, even though he knew it
was just flattery.
“Ah, give me a break, Marquis Raeven. The King is far greater than I am. His
Majesty knew what it would mean to entrust these things to a commoner like
me, but he did it anyway.”
“That’s a reasonable opinion. Honestly speaking, I once thought that it was
foolish to announce that he’d be handing them over to a commoner (you). All
that would accomplish was to make more people leave the Royal Faction.
However, now that I’m standing beside you on the battlefield, I can’t help but
think that it was a masterful move. You really are too selfish.”
“If only I could live up to your expectations…”
Gazef looked out at the serried ranks of the Imperial knights.
He did not think there were any strong opponents in the Empire besides “Tri-
Arts” Fluder Paradyne. Now that he was equipped like this, he even dared harbor
the faint hope that he might be able to defeat Fluder.
On the other hand, he did not feel like he had any chance of defeating Ainz
Ooal Gown.
He could not even imagine the possibility.
No matter how hard he tried to think positive and consider how things might
go in his favor, the only thought that came to mind was of himself being instantly

slain by the mysterious magic caster.
“What’s wrong?”
“No-nothing…”
He knew he was the greatest warrior in the Kingdom. Allowing himself to

appear weak would only lower the army’s morale.
“Ah, no… I was just feeling sorry for Prince Barbro…”
“Feeling sorry?… Could it be… I see. Is that so? Gazef-dono, you also feel… I

see.”
“What are you trying to say?”
“I mean, don’t tell me you feel that the King sent the prince to Carne Village

so he could not distinguish himself…?”
“Is that not the case?”
Raeven smiled thinly.
“Mhm, far from it. I feel that his Majesty has truly placed his trust in you,

Gazef-dono.”
Marquis Raeven decided to explain when he saw that Gazef did not

understand at all.
“Given that the King’s most trusted Warrior-Captain was supremely wary of

the opponent called Ainz Ooal Gown, it was only to be expected that the King
would be on guard against him as well. The King did not want to risk his beloved
son in battle with an unknown quantity like that, so he wanted to send him to a
safe place, even if he would only be able to make some minor accomplishments
there… Although, to be honest, the old me would have been upset by the way the
King was only concerned with his son when so many other people had sent their
children to the battlefield.”

Raeven smiled in a fatherly manner.
“Of course, I understand why he did such a thing now. I’d have done the same
to ensure my son’s well-being.”
“Ah, Marquis. That’s a very fatherly thing to say.”
Raeven smiled. Gazef felt that it was quite unlike him, which was itself a fairly
rude thought, yet his smile was equal parts kind, happy and proud.
“Well, I am a father, after all. I promised my son that, after this battle’s over,
I’m going to play with him as much as he wants, like a normal father. Ah — we’ve
gone off topic. Let’s leave things at that. Although… it seems Prince Barbro
doesn’t quite understand the King’s point of view. It feels a little sad how the
father can’t get his feelings across to his son.”

Gazef agonized about how to answer him. It was hard for him, who had no
children of his own, to put himself into that mindset.

“Right, right. By the way, is it possible that they might launch a sneak attack
on E-Rantel with a separate force? Although it would be frowned upon, they
might do anything to win.”

Gazef thought that the topic change was incredibly forced, but to his surprise,
Raeven ran with it.

“It’s not an easy matter to attack E-Rantel, defended as it is by its three layers
of curtain walls. Even if the remaining two legions of the Empire mobilized in
full, it would be a difficult task for them. My strategist also says the enemy
wouldn’t do such a thing.”

“Is it? What if they had flying beasts, or a secret legion of some kind?”
“It’s still not possible. Ultimately, it’s very difficult to take control of a city
with a small number of men… Speaking of which, Gazef-dono. Do you know the
conditions required to completely dominate E-Rantel?”
Gazef shook his head.
“One needs to face the Kingdom in open battle and gain an overwhelming
victory. If the aggressors barely manage to triumph, governing the conquered
populace will be extremely difficult. The citizens won’t respond well to the
invaders and there’ll definitely be a resistance movement. So even if the Empire
used a separate force to attack E-Rantel, as long as our soldiers are untouched,
they’ll immediately to take back the city. As such, the Empire needs a total
victory. With that, the citizens will be frightened to the point they can’t even
think of resisting, and they won’t be able to mobilize troops.”
The important thing was that the Empire had to win here. In addition, they
had to achieve a victory so complete and absolute that none of the surrounding
nations — in particular the Kingdom, which could instantly deploy its troops to
take the city back — would dare think of making a move.
Suddenly, Gazef had the feeling that he had put all the pieces of the puzzle
together. However, the picture they formed was beyond his comprehension.
A vaguely distasteful feeling tormented Gazef.
“What’s wrong, Gazef-dono?
“No…”
Gazef wanted to tell Raeven about the scattered pieces of the puzzle that he
had managed to sweep together in his head. He believed that Raeven, with his
superior intellect, could extract insights from them that he could not. However,

at that moment, the Marquis’ eye turned back to the Imperial formation.
“Gazef-dono. It seems they’re making their move.”
The Imperial army parted in two, to make a path. As Gazef was wondering if

they were planning to attack the left and right wings of the Kingdom’s army, he
saw an unfamiliar flag rising into the air.

It was a flag that Gazef had never seen before, adorned with a bizarre crest
that belonged to neither the Kingdom nor the Empire. The group nearing the
flag advanced.

All eyes were on that company.
And then… Gazef’s heart ran cold with terror. Raeven, who was standing
beside him and saw the same thing he did, swallowed loudly. Knowing that he
was not alone in his feelings, bitterness began rising at the back of his mouth,
and his heart pounded madly.
It was a bizarre army.
What appeared was a group of roughly 500 riders. It seemed entirely
insignificant compared to the two armies facing each other down.
However, those troops were highly abnormal. They seemed to radiate an
oppressive air that he could feel even from so far away.
It stirred up Gazef’s memories from his time in Carne Village. There had been
a knight-shaped monster back then, which Ainz said he had created. There were
roughly 200 of them now, warriors bearing massive shields and clad in spiked
armor.
The rest were similarly inhuman soldiers, but they wore leather armor, and
they were armed with axes, pikes, crossbows or similar weapons.
If the former were knights, then the latter could be called warriors.
But whatever they were, they were not humans. They were monsters, down
to the marrow of their bones.
And then, those monsters rode monsters of their own. Said creatures were
beasts of bone, with flickering mist in place of their flesh and blood. The fog
sparkled everywhere, pus yellow and emerald green.
Goosebumps sprouted all over his body.
This was bad.
This was very bad.
It was a vague statement, but Gazef simply did not have the words to describe
the situation more clearly than this.
“…So the Empire has enlisted monsters into their ranks, it seems. This is quite

surprising. It’s made me break out in goosebumps.”
“…No. No, Marquis Raeven. That’s not the case. What the Marquis feels now…

what fills your body with said goosebumps… is definitely not surprise.”
“Then what would that be?”
Seeing that Raeven was completely baffled, Gazef answered curtly.
“It’s the fear of death. It’s triggered your basic survival instinct.”
Turning his eyes from the visibly shaken Raeven, Gazef looked at the Imperial

Army.
“The horses are shying. Even these trained, hardened warhorses are so

frightened they can’t move.”
“…What are they? A secret division of the Empire?”
“…Impossible. Those monsters are not things that humans can control or

use!”
Gazef knew nothing about the true identity of these monsters, but his

warrior’s instinct supplied enough information for him to speak conclusively.
“There’s no doubt about it… they must be the knights of Ainz Ooal Gown!”
“Is that!… Is that the army of the magic caster you feared?!”
“Marquis Raeven! Please gather the former adventurers immediately! Ask

them what’s our best move! They’ve fought many monsters in the past and
survived; please ask them to share their wisdom with us!”

“Un—”
He probably wanted to reply that he understood, but his bodyguards were
faster than that, and had already moved up to protect him. However, that was
only expected. They had sensed the power of this threat before Gazef had.
“Marquis Raeven!”
The formerly orichalcum-ranked adventurers rode over on horseback.
“Did you see it? Do you feel it?”
At the head of the adventurers was their leader, the paladin of the Fire God,
Boris Axelson.
Within his voice was a thrill of fear he could not hide.
Raeven could not speak. Gazef understood why.
There was a note of fright in the voice of a formerly orichalcum-ranked
adventurer, in a place defended by such a vast army.
Gazef felt that this was no longer time for etiquette, and asked:
“—Tell me! What is that? No need to greet me! Please tell me everything you
know, all of you!!”

Boris clutched the holy symbol that dangled around his neck. It was a gesture
of warding.

“…We can’t be sure, but we believe the creatures they ride are legendary
monsters known as Soul Eaters. They’re said to be undead creatures that hunger
for the souls of the living. According to legend, they once appeared in the middle
of the continent, in a city of the Beastmen Kingdoms.”

“Then… how many casualties were there?”
The words Boris spoke sounded unnaturally quiet.
“—100,000.”
The breath caught in Gazef’s throat.
“…They say three Soul Eaters appeared, and they destroyed the city. 95% of
the populace, over 100,000 people, died as a result. The city was abandoned, and
it was called the Silent City.”
A heavy silence fell on the group.
“…And there’s 500 of them out there?”
Nobody could muster up the strength to answer Raeven.
Gazef forced his words out to break the silence.
“Like I said earlier, I find it hard to believe the Empire could subdue monsters
of that level with their own power. Even that mighty magic caster, Fluder
Paradyne, shouldn’t be able to do it. That means—”
He did not need to finish his sentence. Marquis Raeven understood.
“Is… is that the power of Ainz Ooal Gown? Then, then… what manner of
creatures are riding on those monsters’ backs?”
“That…”
The adventurers looked nervously to each other.
“—We don’t know. The only thing we’re certain of is that they must be very
dangerous. No, I apologize, I shouldn’t be using such vague terms as dangerous.
However, I can think of no other words to describe what we are facing now.”
“Then, then what should we do? Gazef-dono?”
In response to Raeven’s panicked question, Gazef replied tersely and clearly.
“Retreat.”
They already knew that the enemy had prepared an awe-inspiring force. With
that in mind, what else could they do but run?
“Advise the King to order a retrea—”
Gazef could not finish his sentence.
That was because a masked magic caster stood at the head of the enemy. At

his right was a short person in a hooded robe. At his left stood one of the
Empire’s Four Knights.

Even at this distance, Gazef could not have mistaken that man for anyone else.
“…Gown-dono.”
“Is that the mighty magic caster, Ainz Ooal Gown?!”
“Is he the one who summoned the Soul Eaters? Him? Marquis Raeven, we—”
The fearless warrior of countless battles swallowed heavily, and continued in
a lowered voice.
“—What the hell are we fighting here?!”
Ainz waved his arm. In response, a magic circle sprang into existence, roughly
ten meters in radius and shaped like a dome. It was centered on him. The people
on his left and right were engulfed by it, but they seemed fine. It would seem the
magic circle did not harm allies.
This fantastic sight drew everyone’s attention, even if they knew this was an
emergency situation.
The magic circle glowed bluish-white, and translucent symbols appeared
across its length and breadth. The sigils changed with kaleidoscopic speed,
shifting between runes and letters that nobody had ever seen before.
The Kingdom’s troops gasped out in surprise. There was no fear or tension in
their voices, like they were watching a beautiful show. However, the ones with
keener instincts started looking around themselves in obvious discomfort.
“I’m returning to my unit. There’s no more time to waste. Ainz Ooal Gown’s
power is immeasurable. Doing battle with him was a mistake from the start.
What we need to do now is minimize the number of casualties, and at the same
time we need to get back to E-Rantel as fast as we can. Gazef-dono, please
protect his Majesty. After that, retreat without delay!”
The calm which Raeven had managed to cling to until recently was all gone
now.
“Aye! Although I don’t trust my abilities that much, but I will definitely
protect his Majesty’s person. Also, don’t think about an orderly retreat—”
“Of course. We’ll retreat as fast as we can… no, we’ll flee like rabbits.”
“Then, I wish you well, Marquis Raeven!”
“The same, Gazef-dono!”
The two men who stood at the pinnacle of the Kingdom’s military might and
strategic thought hurriedly flew into action. However—
—It was all too late.

●

Nobody’s there.
After Ainz deployed his magic circle, that was what he had thought.
There were no Players in the Kingdom.
Yggdrasil’s Super-Tier magic was incredibly powerful.
Because of that, during a large-scale battle, bringing down a person who could
cast Super-Tier spells first was a basic tactic.
One could hamper one’s opponents in many ways. Teleportation assaults, for
instance. Bombardment from atop a magic carpet. Pinpoint shooting from
extreme range. There were countless methods to accomplish that aim.
However, no attacks like these came toward Ainz. In turn, that proved that
there were no Yggdrasil Players present.
Under his mask, Ainz smiled, a fact which went unseen by anyone. Of course,
his skeletal face could not form a smile.
The bitter smile, laced with faint traces of joy, highlighted the feelings in
Ainz’s heart.
“So I don’t need to serve as bait, then?”
His joy came from the fact that he had not met any Players from Yggdrasil.
Ainz could not be counted as the greatest among the Players of Yggdrasil.
There were others who were better than he was, and his odds of survival against
stronger Players were not good. While playing, Ainz’s strength had stemmed
from his knowledge. Although he won often in PVP combat, those were
consecutive victories after forfeiting the first round of a match.
Ainz was surprisingly skilled at using the information he had gathered.
Conversely, his chances of defeat were also very high if he fought an opponent
he had never encountered before.
Ainz was fully aware of his abilities, and was deeply grateful that he had not
encountered a powerful enemy that he knew nothing about.
But at the same time, he also felt a hint of regret.
He regretted the fact that he could not find the one who had brainwashed
Shalltear among his enemies, people who were related to a possessor of a World
Class item.
Hatred, thick and cloying, pooled at the bottom of Ainz’s heart. Although his

strong emotions were suppressed, the weaker ones persisted within him.
Ainz opened his hand, and within it was a miniature hourglass.
If he used a cash item, he could immediately cast the Super-Tier spell. The

reason why he had not done this was because he was serving as bait to verify the
existence of any possible Players from Yggdrasil. However, if there were none,
then there was no need to wait out the long casting time for the spell. Having to
stand immobile in the middle of a magic circle was quite uncool.

During the battle with Shalltear, he did not have that luxury.
Against the lizardmen, he had not used an attack spell.
Then—
“This will be fun. Ah, it’s going to be fun.”
—What exactly would a Super-Tier attack spell do against the armies of the
Kingdom?
Although it was not a particularly strong spell in Yggdrasil, what effects would
it have in this world?
Suddenly, Ainz knotted his nonexistent brows.
Many people were about to die, but he did not feel any pity for them, and it
somewhat frightened him. He did not even feel cruel, like someone trampling
ants to death. In truth — in truth, he felt nothing at all.
There was only the desire to see the results of his actions. And of course, the
benefits he would reap for himself — for the Great Underground Tomb of
Nazarick.
Ainz clenched his fist.
The particles of sand leaking from the shattered hourglass moved against the
wind and flowed into the magic circle surrounding Ainz.
And then — the Super-Tier spell activated instantly.
“[Tribute to the Black Bounty – Iä Shub-Niggurath]!”
A black wind blew, racing past the Kingdom’s army, which had just finished
changing its formation.
No, there was no physical wind blowing. Neither the scattered weeds growing
on the plains or the hairs on the heads of the Kingdom’s soldiers had been
touched.
There were 70,000 men in the left wing of the Kingdom’s army.
Every single one of them was slain in an instant.

2

What on earth happened?
Nobody could answer immediately.
Every living creature that comprised the left wing of the Kingdom’s army —
not just humans, but their horses too— had suddenly collapsed to the ground
like puppets whose strings had been cut.
The ones who realized the answer first were the Imperial troops, ranged
against them.
It took a while for the human mind to properly parse the events that had just
transpired before their eyes. So after a short delay, shouts of panic rose into the
air, becoming a great wave that engulfed the entire Imperial Army.
Certainly, they knew Ainz Ooal Gown was going to cast a spell after he had
deployed his magic circle.
However — who could have possibly anticipated this?
Who could have guessed that he would cast such a horrific spell?
Who could have imagined that he had cast a spell which could slaughter
70,000 people — a number greater than the entire Imperial army— in an
instant?
The Imperial knights doubted their eyes, even as they prayed to whatever gods
they believed in.
They prayed that the people of the Kingdom were not dead.
They prayed that such terrible magic did not exist in this world.
Of course, as they took in the truth before their eyes —that not a single person
had stood back up from where they fell— they were fully aware that it was
nothing but wishful thinking.
Even so, there was no way they could accept it. There was no way they could

accept this as reality.
The man hailed as one of the strongest in the Empire, one of the Four Knights,

Nimble, could only grind his teeth in naked terror and stare dumbly at the
suddenly depopulated left wing of the Kingdom’s army.

Nobody stood back up. That was a reality which was far, far too horrible to
accept.

No, the awful truth could not be described with just these simple words.
Ainz Ooal Gown — this magic caster, all by himself — was a monster who
could take the nations forged by men and obliterate them in the way that a child
would kick down a sandcastle.
That was a reality which was beyond the ability of any words to describe.
The panic enveloping the Imperial Army gradually vanished like draining
water. In the end, everyone simply fell silent, unable to speak.
Yet, a strange noise rose up among the silence of the Imperial army’s
formation. The noise was born of many sounds blending together into a great
clamor. It was the sound of every single knight gnashing their teeth.
This was the terror born of realizing that the Empire, where they and their
families lived, now stood on the edge of extinction, just like the Kingdom.
This was an understanding that if they dared to raise their hands against Ainz
Ooal Gown, that same awful magic might end up being turned on themselves—
Under these circumstances, Nimble suddenly thought of something. What
kind of expression did a magic caster like this —who could work a sorcery that
could slaughter the living in quantities that beggared mortal comprehension—
what kind of expression did he have?
Without moving his face, he spied on the monster standing beside him, Ainz
Ooal Gown, but all he saw was indifference.
How can this be? How can this be possible? How can someone like him… like this…
be so calm? Even after taking 70,000 lives?! Granted, the battlefield is a place of death.
The weak losing their lives is only to be expected. But even so, shouldn’t he feel
something in his heart after killing so many people?!!
Regret or guilt would be the natural response. If he felt joy or excitement, that
might even be understandable, abnormal as such a reaction might be.
However —
Is this indifference some sort of defensive reaction to protect his heart? No, this, this
must be familiar scenery for a monster like him! There’s no sadistic joy or pity in his
heart like when a human being crushes ants!! What… what is this?!!! Why is this

happening? Why does someone like this exist in the world?!!!!
“—Is something the matter?”
“Aieee!”
The words sounded like a spike of cold steel driven into him. Nimble’s

response to the question was a stupid-sounding cry.
“No-nothing’s wrong. That, that spell just now, it was magnificent.”
Nimble gave silent thanks that he was still able to speak. More than that —

the fact that he could praise Ainz under such circumstances was nothing short
of laudable.

“Ha ha ha—”
Nimble’s desperate compliment was answered by faint laughter.
“Have, have I given offense?”
“No, none at all. You said that spell just now was magnificent, right?”
“Y-yes.”
Was that worth laughing at? Sweat flowed down Nimble’s forehead like a river.
After seeing the dreadful consequences of angering this person, he had no
intention of incurring his ire.
“Please, be at ease. Although… I must say, my spell is not complete yet. Now
is when the real show begins. After all, when one makes an offering to the Black
Goddess of the Bountiful Harvest, she will reciprocate with a gift of her
offspring. Those cute, adorable children…”
That was right.
And just as ripened fruit would fall to the earth in the fullness of time —

●

The Imperial knights were the first to see it.
It was expected that the knights, watching from afar, from a safe distance,
would see it first. Because they felt safe, they dared to peer outside from the
narrow slits in their helmets.
After the storm of death had claimed the lives of the Kingdom’s soldiers,
something appeared in the sky; a repulsive black sphere which seemed to pollute
the world with its very presence.
Then, who on the Kingdom’s side saw it? It was most likely the troops of the
right wing, who had no direct line of sight to what had happened on the other

side. They sensed that something abnormal was going on, but they did not know
what exactly had happened, and as they looked around to find out what was
going on, they saw it.

As though their eyes were being guided there, the soldiers beside them
noticed it. In this way, everyone on the Katze Plains, who had gathered to wage
war, ended up staring silently at the sphere floating in the sky.

The sphere —which resembled nothing so much as a hole in the heavens—
was like an opened spiderweb; once one caught sight of it, one could not pull
away.

The black sphere slowly grew larger.
Be it fighting or fleeing, no human could engage in any meaningful thought or
activity. All they could do was stare dumbly.
And eventually — the ripened fruit fell.

●

In a thoroughly natural fashion, the falling sphere broke apart when it touched
the earth.

It burst like a water balloon striking the ground, or perhaps like an overripe
fruit doing the same.

It was full of something that spread out from the point of impact. It was
something like coal tar. It absorbed the light, like a wave of infinitely expanding
black stickiness, and it swallowed the corpses of the dead Kingdom soldiers.

Informed by a strange instinct, nobody thought it would end there.
They had a premonition — this was only the beginning.
Indeed — this was the beginning of their despair.

●

Suddenly, a vast tree grew from the black tar that covered the earth.
No, that was nothing as pleasant as a tree.
At first, there was only one of them, but then it multiplied. Two, three, five,
ten… these objects waved in the absence of the wind. What was grew there…
were tentacles.
“MEEEEEEHHHH!!”

Suddenly, they heard the adorable bleating of a goat. It was not just one goat.
It was as though a herd of goats had appeared out of nowhere.

As though drawn by the sound, the coal tar writhed up, and it seemed to vomit
forth something.

It was something that was far too strange, too unnatural.
It was 10 meters in height. If one added the length of the tentacles, that figure
became unclear.
At a glance, it resembled some sort of turnip. In place of leaves, it had
numberless black tentacles, and its thick root portion was a slab of meat covered
in frightening lumps. Below that were five legs, like those of a goat’s, tipped with
black hooves.
Fissures appeared on the root-like portion of its anatomy — a thick slab of
meat covered in lumps — as it peeled and split open in multiple places at once.
And then—
“MEEEEEEHHHH!!”
The adorable bleating of goats rang forth from those fissures. They were
gaping maws that oozed sticky drool.
There were five of them.
They displayed their hideous bodies to everyone on the Katze Plains.

●

The Dark Young of the Black Goat.
These monsters appeared in proportion to the number of deaths caused by
the Super-Tier spell [Tribute to the Black Bounty – Iä Shub-Niggurath]. Though
they did not possess any powerful special abilities, they were outstandingly
resilient.
Moreover, they were all over level 90.
In other words, this would become a storm of carnage.

●





Besides the adorable bleating of goats, so sickeningly sweet and cute that it
made people want to vomit, there were no other sounds. That was because
nobody could speak, unwilling to believe or accept that the events unfolding in
front of their eyes were truly happening. Over 300,000 —or if you counted only
the living, 235,000— people were gathered here, and none of them could say
anything.

Amidst all this, Ainz laughed heartily.
“Marvelous. This is a new record. In all of history, I might be the only one who
ever managed to call forth five at once. Remarkable. I must give my thanks to
everyone who died here today.”
Under normal circumstances, being able to call forth one of the Dark Young
was not bad. Being able to bring out two was a rarity.
And now, there were five.
Just like a player who was celebrating over beating his own high score, Ainz
was overjoyed by the fact that he had set this new record. So what if tens of
thousands of people had died for it?
“Although… it would be better if there were more… is five the upper limit?
Wouldn’t it be quite amazing if I managed to max it out?”
“Congratulations! As expected of Ainz-sama!”
Ainz smiled under his mask as Mare praised him.
“Thank you, Mare.”
After that, Ainz turned to look at Nimble, which startled the poor man. His
face was somewhere between tears and laughter as he praised Ainz as well.
“Con-congratulations.”
“You’re welcome.”
Ainz was in a good mood as he made his reply.
The sincere emotion on Nimble’s face moved Ainz’s heart.
Then, he remembered his days as a Player in Yggdrasil, of how he had been
similarly moved when he had first seen the casting of [Tribute to the Black
Bounty – Iä Shub-Niggurath].”
Flashy or powerful spells can shake the hearts of the masses. Well, that was only to
be expected of one of Yggdrasil’s most popular spells. When I said I was going to cast
it, Albedo and Demiurge couldn’t stop lavishing praise on me.

●

A gachigachi sound rose from the ranks of the Imperial army.
It was the sound of armor clattering against itself.
The soldiers were trembling, but who could laugh at them?
The Sorcerer King had laughed cheerfully after casting such a horrific
summoning spell, and nobody could hear it and not break out in goosebumps.
Every Imperial knight present was thinking the same thing.
They wished that the wrath of Ainz Ooal Gown would not fall upon them.
It looked more like a prayer to the gods.

●

As the soldiers pleaded sincerely behind his back, Ainz began the next phase.
He felt that he had already done enough, but he was in high spirits, and felt that
it might be better to kill a little more to be sure.

This time round, his goal was to proclaim the might of Ainz Ooal Gown, a
practitioner of Super-Tier magic, to the gathered nations.

That objective had been achieved. However, letting these minions fade away
would be a shame.

Indeed, it would be too much of a waste.
Ainz snorted.
If he had a tongue, he would be licking his lips in anticipation.
This was a joy he could not feel in Yggdrasil, the joy of being able to
simultaneously direct five Dark Young.
“—Ah, let’s give it a try. Overrun them, my darling lambs.”
As they received the command of their summoner Ainz, the Dark Young began
to move slowly.
Their five goat legs moved in a bizarre gait as they segued into swift motion.
It was not so much graceful as energetic, and perhaps one might smile to see it.
As long as they did not come for you.
Their vast bodies moved lightly, and the five Dark Young broke into a run as
they hurtled towards the Kingdom’s army.
“Ah, right, there’s three — no, four people you can’t kill. I absolutely forbid
you to harm them.”

As he recalled the three people that Demiurge wished to be spared, Ainz sent
out a mental command to the Dark Young.

●

“Is this a dream?”
A soldier from the Royal Army muttered to himself, far from the inhuman
monsters. Of course, he received no answer. Everyone’s eyes were fixed on the
scene unfolding before them, and they had lost the power of speech. It was as if
their souls had been snatched away.
“Hey, this is a dream, right? I must be dreaming, right?”
“Ahh. This is a fucking nightmare.”
The second time the question was asked, someone managed to answer. But
their voices sounded like they wanted to run away from reality.
Impossible.
I don’t want to believe this.
Thoughts like these spread through the infantry. Even as the lumbering
shapes grew steadily larger — even as the inhuman beings approached them,
they still did not want to accept that this was reality.
If they were simple monsters, perhaps they might have been able to gather up
the courage to raise their weapons. However, the monsters which had appeared
after an entire wing of the army — a full 70,000 people — had been slaughtered
in an instant could not possibly be simple monsters. It was like watching an
advancing hurricane, and nobody could muster up the courage to brave the
storm.
The gigantic, bizarre beings galloped nimbly on their thick stubby legs,
charging at incredible speeds.
“Get your spears up!”
A voice rang out.
That shrill, high-pitched scream came from the mouth of a noble. His eyes
were bloodshot and foam flecked the corners of his mouth.
“Spears up! Get your spears up!! Get your spears up if you want to live!!!”
Although he had already gone mad from fear and it was hard to understand
what he was saying, the soldiers still managed to make out the order “Spears
up,” and they knew it was probably the best command he could have given.

Acting on reflex, the soldiers raised and set their spears, forming a braced
spear line.

They planted the butts firmly on the ground, so their opponents’ speed would
only harm themselves when they charged into the hedge of points.

Although this formation was nigh-unbreakable by Imperial knights, the
Kingdom soldiers wondered — in some small, detached corner of their minds
which still held onto calmness — what good they could possibly do with the tiny
spears they were grasping. Even so, they knew it was their only chance of
salvation.

Given the speed at which those bizarre creatures approached, escape would
probably be impossible. Even if they ran with all their strength, they would still
be squashed flat from behind.

They prayed that the monsters would not come for them, even as they braced
for their charge.

The monsters — which should have been very small in the distance — closed
the gap with frightening speed.

As they grew larger, and the earth began shaking under their thunderous
hoofbeats, the soldiers’ hearts began pounding madly. Then, as their hearts felt
like they would burst in their chests, the enormous silhouettes were upon them.

It was like a dump truck smashing into a swarm of rats.
The soldiers of the Royal Army raised countless spears in trembling hands.
But what use were they against the massive, solid bodies of the Dark Young? The
spears snapped like toothpicks without so much as scratching the Dark Young.
The massive bodies of the Dark Young trampled the Royal Army underfoot.
Splinters from countless shattered spears flew through the air.
Although they crushed the meaningless resistance that did not even count as
resistance, the Dark Young of the Black Goat were merciful in their own way.
There was no pain.
There was no time for their victims to feel pain before they were squashed flat
under the titanic weight of the Dark Young’s charge.
The spear-wielding soldiers did not even have time to realize that the pikes
they were holding had been pulverized by those massive bodies. All they saw
were black shadows falling over them.
They screamed and they screamed and they screamed.
Gobbets of meat flew through the air. They had not come from just one or
two people, but tens, hundreds of victims. They were stamped flat by the

enormous hooves, and thrown— no, flung away by the waving tentacles.
Be they patricians or plebeians, now they were all the same chunks of bloody

flesh.
Some of them had families in their villages. Some had friends left behind.

Some had people waiting for them. Once they were ground into the mud, none
of that mattered any more.

The Dark Young treated everyone the same way, bestowing death upon them
all.

Surely they must have been satisfied after crushing countless humans
underfoot, but they showed no signs of stopping.

The Dark Young began to run.
They ran on. They did not stop while in the midst of the Kingdom’s forces,
simply running on.
“Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!”
“Abbaaaaaaahhhhhh!!”
“Stoooooooooooooop!”
“Save meeeeeeeeeee!’
“Noooooooooooooooo!”
“Uwaaaaaaaaaaaaahh!”
The screams rose up every time those gigantic hooves came down. It blended
with the sound of humans pulping under the Dark Young’s mighty legs, and the
sound as they playfully batted humans away with their tentacles.
A sound which men had never heard before went on and on without end.
Trampled.
What better word was there to describe this scene?
Several people desperately thrust their pikes forward. The Dark Young, whose
bodies were massive and who had no intention to evade the attacks, were hit
solidly by the points. However, the pikes could not pierce deeply enough to cause
harm to their slab-like bodies. They were masses of iron-hard muscle sheathed
by thick, rubbery skin.
The Dark Young did not mock their futile resistance, but simply charged
forward.
Before the soldiers realized that their fatal resolve was meaningless, the Dark
Young had already reached the centermost portion of the Kingdom’s army.
“Run away! Run away!”
They heard the shouts from the distance. In response, all the soldiers began

to flee. It was exactly like a swarm of spiders scattering in all directions.
But of course, the Dark Young were much faster than human beings.
Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat.

Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat.
Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat.
Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat.
Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat.
Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat.
Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat.
Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat.
Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat.

The sounds of humans being crushed to death and turned into chunks of meat
went on and on.

●

As though they had arrived in a barren wasteland, three of the monsters
crossed the center column of the army drawing near the right wing amidst sprays
of blood and gore. In moments, they would be upon Raeven’s troops.

“Retreat! Retreat!”
The way Raeven shouted these orders was closer to a wail.
They could not fight those monsters.
They should not throw their lives away for no reason.
As they heard Raeven’s words, the surrounding soldiers threw down their
arms and fled in a panic.
Of course, since there were just too many people, it was impossible for them
to move freely.
At first he had signaled an orderly retreat. His was because he was wary of an
attack from behind, but now he realized that the time he had wasted in doing
that was a big mistake.
“Ainz Ooal Gown, what kind of creature, what kind of magic caster are you?!”
He had underestimated him. No, he had not done so on purpose.
After taking Gazef Stronoff’s words into consideration, he had viewed him as
an enemy of the highest caliber imaginable. However, all he could say now was
that he had still underestimated the man’s abilities.

His imagination simply had not been enough.
Who on earth could have predicted that Ainz Ooal Gown was so powerful?
Who could have known that such power existed in this world?
Seeing the ever-approaching, ever-expanding silhouettes of the monsters,
Marquis Raeven shouted orders at the troops surrounding him.
“This isn’t a battlefield anymore, it’s a killing floor! Just run!”
“My lord!” a knight said as he removed his helmet. “The King! What about the
King?”
“You idiot! There’s no time for that! My lord! It’s coming right for us!”
As they looked in the direction of the shouts, the monsters had already begun
trampling the fleeing men, and the crushing of the right wing had begun.
Although it seemed as though they were charging toward them in a straight line,
they were not aiming for Raeven so much as trampling wherever they wanted.
In truth, the other Dark Young were far away from where Raeven was.
“Where’s the King?!”
“He’s there!”
He saw the royal flag in the direction where the soldier was pointing, but a
Dark Young was already bearing down on it.
Raeven hesitated. What could he do if he went to help? However, if King
Ramposa III was lost here, the entire country might come apart.
However—
“Leave it to Gazef-dono!”
Raeven had faith in Gazef.
He was a warrior worthy of praise from the King. Although even he would still
be unable to defeat those black goat monsters, at the very least, he could bring
the king safely out of this hellscape.
“Marquis Raeven! The situation is bad! Please retreat with all haste!”
The voice of the formerly orichalcum-ranked adventurers, the subordinates
he most trusted, wiped away Raeven’s hesitation.
“—My lord!”
It was less of a shout than a scream. Raeven bellowed a reply.
“I know, let’s run!”
Things being what they were, with the monsters at such close range, there was
no point disguising it with fancy words like “retreat.”
“Please leave the task of rallying the men to me! My lord, you need to get out
of here now, and head for E-Rantel!”

The shout came from a sleepy-eyed man. Although he looked unremarkable,
Raeven could not have entrusted his command to a better person.

“I’ll leave it to you! Use my name as you see fit! I’ll bear the consequences!”
The sound of hooves was very near. Marquis Raeven was so afraid that he did
not dare turn around to see how close they were, and his fear led him to stick his
spurs into his horse’s flanks with all his might. However, the horse did not move.
Even when he kicked it with more force, it still did not move. It flattened its ears
against its head and stayed still.
At that moment, amidst the chaos, a group of horses kicked their way through
a horde of fleeing people. The men on their backs clung tightly to their horses’
bodies, seemingly ignoring the reins that dangled loosely.
Ironically enough, the trained warhorses were frozen in panic, while the
untrained horses were running wild in terror.
“To think training would have the reverse effect!”
In the first place, horses were timid animals. It was only after training that
they could be considered fearless warhorses. However, it was precisely because
of this training that they could not move. Their minds were already overloaded,
but they had not forgotten their training.
“Forgive me! [Lion’s Heart]!”
The priest of the Wind God, Yorlan Dixgort, cast a spell of fear resistance on
the horse. The calmed horse whinnied loudly.
“Marquis Raeven! We’ll lead the way!”
“Please do!”
With the voices of his subordinates wishing him well echoing at his back,
Raeven spurred his horse into wild motion, escorted by the former adventurers.
Riding a horse through a violent mob that had lost their discipline in the chaos
was very difficult. However, it was possible because they had once been
orichalcum-ranked adventurers, who stood close to the pinnacle of humanity.
The group skillfully threaded between the flow of humanity.
“That magic caster’s a monster! How can someone like him be allowed to exist
in the world?!”
Raeven cursed Ainz as his horse jerked up and down in its top-speed gallop.
“Dammit! We have to do something! I need to think of some way to protect
our world — our future!”
Fear was probably the reason why he was subconsciously mumbling to
himself. If he did not say anything, if he did not distract his mind, that intelligent

brain of his would probably sketch horrific nightmares of the danger
approaching him.

When he returned, he would need to sit down with the Prince (Zanac) and the
Princess (Renner) and draw up some form of countermeasure against that
incomparable magic caster.

If this went on, all of humanity would be conquered — no, that was still
alright. In the worst case, all of humanity might become toys for Ainz Ooal
Gown, to be tormented until the ends of their lives.

The sound of a tongue clicking carried over the sounds of the horse’s hooves.
“Not good! My lord, please guide your horse to the right! It’s caught up with
us!”
“How did it find us without eyes?!” Lockmeyer the thief shouted. “Lund! Do
you have any magic for this?”
“Of course not! Do you think any spells would work against that monster,
Lock?”
“Even so, how will we know if we don’t try—”
“Stop! Don’t do anything until you have to! It might just be advancing in the
same direction as us! Marquis Raeven! Move in front of us! We’ll form up single
file!”
Their voices were trembling.
In accordance with the instructions, Raeven moved his horse to the pole
position. Then, he turned his horse toward the direction where less people were
fleeing.
The cry of a Dark Young came from nearby, and it felt like it was going to
squash his pounding heart in his chest.
“MEEEEEEEEEHHHH!”
—It was close.
The sweat poured off Marquis Raeven’s head like a waterfall. He was so afraid
that he did not dare turn around, but he could sense the air behind him getting
warmer and warmer.
And then, he heard it again—
“MEEEEEEHHHH!!”
“Son of a bitch! No good! It was coming this way all along! …Everyone!
Prepare yourselves!”
The magic casters responded to the shouts of the leader Boris with their
spells.

“[Reinforce Armor]!”
“[Lesser Strength]!”
“Good! Then, my lord! Let us receive the enemy’s attack! Do not look back
under any circumstances and continue riding!”
There was only one thing he could say to the adventurers, who had conquered
their fear.
“…I’m counting on you!”
“Understood! Let’s go!”
“Ohhhhh!”
He could hear the horses of the former adventurers drawing away from him.
Raeven lowered his head, doing his best to minimize wind resistance.
Although he did not know how much time they could buy, he knew he had to run
as hard as he could without looking back — returning alive would be the only
way to repay their loyalty.
“I’ll blow you away! [Fireball]!!”
“[Invulnerable Fortress]!”
As he rode away on the back of the wildly-galloping horse, Raeven thought he
could hear the sound of the former adventurers joining battle, even through the
wind whipping past his face.
And then — within two seconds he could not hear the former adventurers
anymore.
What he did hear was the sound of an enormous hoof falling.
His heart lurched in his chest.
As he saw the shadow from his lowered field of vision, Raeven did his best to
hold back a scream.
He realized there was a massive shadow beneath his feet — his body carried
by the speeding horse — and that a long and thick tentacle was reaching out for
him.
“No…”
The horse ran like it had gone mad. It was faster than Raeven had ever ridden
it. It might have been the fastest it had ever gone. Even so, the mighty shadow
still stretched out across the earth.
“I don’t want this!”
He screamed. He had not expected himself to scream, and so loudly.
Warmth spread through his crotch.
Raeven forced his eyes open, and without looking back, he forced the horse

forward.
He could not die yet. It did not matter what happened to the country. If it was

to fall, then let it fall.
If taking up arms against Ainz Ooal Gown meant death, then he was willing

to abandon this country and flee.
He had been an idiot.
Truly, he had been an idiot.
Coming to this battlefield was truly foolish.
Since he knew how powerful Ainz Ooal Gown was, he should have stayed in

the Royal Capital no matter the cost.
He would not think of the Kingdom’s future anymore.
“I don’t want this!”
He could not die yet.
He could not die while his son was still so young. And… he could not leave his

beloved wife alone by dying.
“I don—”
Raeven imagined the form of his son before him.
My lovely boy.
A tiny little life had been born. It slowly grew up. It got sick. Back then, he had

made a huge fuss because of that. The image of himself running around half-
mad, bellowing orders, while his wife sat there in silence was deeply
embarrassing.

His hands were soft and his cheeks were rosy. When he grew into a youth, he
would be the talk of the Kingdom. He believed his son’s abilities would surpass
his own. He could already see traces of that from time to time.

His wife kept saying that any parent would think the best of their child, but
he did not think that was the case.

Raeven was deeply grateful to his wife, who had bore his beloved son.
However, he rarely said so because it embarrassed him.

It was time for a second child.
If he had not come to this battlefield, he might have been able to hold their
hands—
“…Eh?”
The sound of the hooves had stopped.
Driven more by curiosity than courage, Raeven turned around. All he saw was
the Dark Young standing motionless, as though frozen in place.