Final Preparations

Hades watched helplessly as Albedo deflected an iron ball launched by a soldier, sending it straight back to shatter the man's skull. Blood splattered everywhere, and a fountain of gore erupted from the soldier's neck.

As expected, these guys aren't holding back just because they've arrived in the real world, Hades thought to himself.

Regardless of how these natives slaughtered one another, they were not natives themselves; they were people from a civilized world who possessed the strength to crush these soldiers, yet Momonga simply allowed his NPC to carry out the killings.

Hades could not believe that Momonga still failed to grasp the strength of these people even now. With their power, they could easily have captured these men instead of simply taking their lives.

"Typical of a guild notorious for its villainy. Even after arriving in the real world, they don't treat murder as anything of consequence."

Hades believed that even if one had to kill in a moment of necessity, such a decision should only be made after careful consideration. Although this other world likely possessed a medieval level of civilization where killing might be commonplace, he had adhered to the moral values of a civilized world for nearly thirty years.

It was impossible for him to change his mindset overnight. The reason he hadn't directly raided the house where Momonga was staying was precisely because he feared harming the villagers.

However, Momonga seemed to have no such concerns at all. Hades had confirmed within just a few hours that this was the real world, and Momonga surely could not have failed to realize it as well.

Yet, watching Momonga still resort to reckless killing—when he could have resolved the situation without it given his strength—Hades felt a sense of relief for his decision not to leave. Otherwise, given the twisted values of the members of Ainz Ooal Gown, they would certainly have turned on him in the future.

"Albedo, you should know that kind of weapon cannot harm me. It was unnecessary," Momonga said to Albedo in a slightly reproachful tone.

"Please wait, Ainz-sama. To fight against the Supreme Being, one must at least possess a certain level of combat capability. An attack like that iron ball was simply too disrespectful."

Albedo was furious; the rat-like attack made her blood boil. Such a move felt like an insult to the great Supreme Being.

"If you put it that way, then Nigun and his men don't even qualify to fight, do they?" Momonga felt comforted by Albedo's protective behavior, his voice carrying a hint of ease.

Just as Momonga and Albedo were speaking, Nigun suddenly reached out and pointed at them. With a tone that sounded confident yet tinged with panic, he commanded the angel at his side.

"Dominion Authority! Go! Kill them!"

The Dominion Authority was an angel clad in full plate armor, holding a massive morning star in one hand and a shield in the other. It was an angelic monster summoned by Nigun using fourth-tier summoning magic.

Its strength surpassed that of the Archangel Flame, and the reason it had not been deployed until now was due to its special skill: as long as it remained stationary, it increased the defense of all allies within its field of vision.

However, Nigun could no longer afford to worry about such things. The fact that he had issued such an order proved he was at his wit's end. He hoped the Dominion Authority could eliminate these two; this was an angel comparable to the "Hero" level.

"Stand down, Albedo!" Momonga commanded upon seeing this.

Albedo had no choice but to retreat behind Momonga, glaring intensely at the group opposite them. She swore that as soon as Ainz-sama gave the word, she would end the lives of these rats in the most brutal way possible.

The Dominion Authority's attack arrived quickly. Momonga raised his left hand, encased in a metal gauntlet, to meet it. The massive morning star descended with unparalleled force.

Yet, no matter how powerful the momentum, the gap in strength was insurmountable. Momonga withstood the angel's successive attacks as if they were nothing.

When the Dominion Authority swung its morning star at Momonga once more, he caught the weapon, which was larger than his own body. All movement from the Dominion Authority ceased abruptly, as if it had been frozen in time.

"Oh my, oh my... I suppose it's my turn to counterattack now." No expression could be read on Momonga's skeletal face, but judging by his tone, one could guess he was likely wearing a mocking look.

But just as Momonga prepared to cast the spell "Hell Flame," he was startled to find he could not activate it. He froze in confusion, and a sense of foreboding washed over him.

The enemies opposite Momonga seemed to have been locked in a single moment, unable to move.

"Time Accelerator"

"Guard"

"Concentrated"

"Aegis"

"Rouse"

"Eclosion"

"Conceal Life"

"Bless of Magic Caster"

"Greater Full Potential"

"Greater Resistance"

"False Data: Life"

"False Data: Mana"

"Resistance from Natural Weapons"

"Greater Hardening"

"Greater Luck"

"Paranormal Intuition"

"Sensor Boost"

"Sanctuary Protection"

"Indomitability"

"Mantle of Chaos"

"Power of Gaia"

"Perfect Unknowable."

"Delay Magic: Regenerator."

"Delay Magic: Iron Body."

"Delay Magic: Armor."

Hades methodically cast various buffs upon himself. Many of these buffs were focused on strengthening a Warrior, offering limited utility to a Magic Caster.

He had no intention of relying on magic to decide the outcome; instead, he chose to engage in melee combat as a Warrior. In fact, this was the only way to kill Momonga with minimal cost.

As a pure Magic Caster, Momonga possessed a fragile body. Without any preparation, a single combo from a top-tier Warrior could instantly kill him.

And Momonga was a pure Magic Caster, through and through, without a single impurity.

When those 1,500 players attacked the Great Tomb of Nazarick, Hades had been killed by Momonga's special skill, "The Goal of All Life is Death."

He had not recognized the skill at the time, but after making inquiries, he obtained the answer from his guild member, Ulbert Alain Odle.

"The Goal of All Life is Death" was a skill possessed by the special class "Eclipse," which was unlocked by specializing in necromantic magic classes.

Ulbert Alain Odle knew this because his character build was identical to Momonga's. It was not uncommon for identical character builds to appear in YGGDRASIL.

This contradicted the official claim that identical character builds would not exist, but it could not stop the exchange of information among players. Once a hidden class was discovered, there would always be people who followed suit and imitated it.

Hades did not know if Ulbert Alain Odle had imitated public information or discovered it by chance, but it provided Hades with a great advantage.

Hades had conducted detailed research into Ulbert Alain Odle's class and skills. While there might be differences in magic, the fundamental signature abilities would not be far apart.

As for character stats, that would depend on equipment, though Hades estimated them to be at the level of a full set of divine-class items.

During that period, he had stuck to Ulbert Alain Odle's side whenever he had the chance. Because of this opportunity, Hades, who had previously been a non-entity in the guild, managed to get along well with several key guild members.

Hades's choice of an Undead as the vessel for the "Seed of the World Tree" was also driven by his desire to study Momonga.

Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated.