Abyss of Sin

Momonga's heart tightened at her words. Had she discovered an enemy of the Slane Theocracy, and was she asking him to step in because Demiurge couldn't handle it?

Well, if this had happened before he got involved in the conflicts between the great nations, he would have tried to befriend them. But if they pushed him too far, he would fight to the death to protect Nazarick, which he and his companions had built together.

Sigh. He'd better hear what Demiurge had to say first.

"What is it?" Momonga asked.

"This concerns the task you assigned me. It has now been completed. I have not disappointed you, and at last I have found a clue. However, I am incapable of fully revealing it on my own. I will need to borrow Lord Ainz's magic. Please come with me, Lord Ainz," Demiurge said.

"Well, all right." Momonga nodded. At last, he would find out what Demiurge had been working on.

The girl struggled to open her eyes. She stared at the dim room, her mind completely blank. If there was one word to describe her current state, it was nothingness.

She knew nothing. She didn't know where she was or why she was there.

"Ugh..."

A sudden, excruciating pain jolted her mind. She tried to recall what little she could of her memories, but it was futile. She couldn't remember a thing. The only thing she could recall was fear.

But what was she afraid of? She didn't know. She didn't even know her own name. Her instinct to survive kept her from dwelling on such questions, though, and instead she began to examine her surroundings and her own condition.

Mm...

She was completely naked...

She couldn't move...

Blood...

It was blood...

She had wounds. Was she injured...?

No...

These wounds weren't enough to cause such agony. The source of the pain was...

The girl struggled to turn her head. In the dim light, she saw that her arm was bound in chains, and a thick iron nail had been driven through her forearm...

She was fastened securely to a cross and couldn't move...

So that was it...

The girl finally began to understand her situation, but that wasn't enough. She still hadn't found the source of the agony...

Her gaze followed the arm nailed to the wooden frame...

Suddenly, the girl froze. Her arm ended just above the wrist. There was nothing there...

So that was it...

It was gone...

Fear swept over her. Intelligent beings instinctively feared the loss of their limbs...

The girl looked at her other arm. It was the same. Where her hand should have been, there was nothing...

As her mind cleared and the fog lifted, she felt two more bursts of searing pain. She looked down and saw that her legs had been crossed and nailed tightly to the frame...

But that wasn't the source of the agony, either. Her gaze continued downward, and her heart pounded violently. Just like her hands, her feet were gone...

"Hah... hah... hah..."

The girl wanted to scream in terror, but her throat was racked with pain, and she couldn't make a sound.

Still, her labored breathing didn't seem to be in vain. Soon, footsteps sounded outside the iron door, and then it was flung open.

The girl looked toward it as if she'd spotted a lifeline. But in an instant, an even deeper terror consumed her, so intense that she forgot the agonizing pain.

"Are you awake? I was really worried about you. Luckily, I managed to treat your wounds."

The newcomer spoke in a coy, shy girl's voice, though it was somewhat hoarse.

"That's wonderful. You seem to be in pretty good spirits. If you died, I wouldn't know what to do. I'm sure it would make that Lord angry. Are you hungry? I prepared a sumptuous meal for you."

If you ignored the six swollen tentacles clinging to the newcomer's head, the obese body squeezed into a black straitjacket, the row of sharp fangs in her round mouth, and the tube-like appendage that occasionally emerged from it...

You might really have thought she was a lovely young lady.

Neuronist Painkill held a tray in her hands. Delicate wisps of steam rose from the food in the light.

The girl was so horrified by Nilost's appearance that she'd forgotten her pain, but the aroma wafting from the tray teased her nose. Despite her fear, her stomach gave an untimely growl.

"Oh my, it looks like you really are hungry. I was worried that I'd brought this over too soon and you might not want to eat. Well, that's wonderful. Mm... but you probably aren't able to eat by yourself, so I'll feed you."

Nilost approached the cross and held the tray in front of the girl. With her other hand, she picked up a fragrant piece of cooked meat and brought it to the girl's lips.

The girl was so tempted by the aroma that she briefly forgot her situation. Her hunger overpowered the pain, and she took a small bite of the food offered by the terrifying monster.

It melted in her mouth, tender and delicious. The girl had never eaten anything so good. She couldn't remember her past, but she felt certain she'd never tasted anything like this before.

"Hehehe..." Nilost's rolls of fat quivered as she laughed. She covered her fanged mouth with one hand and spoke with a coy air. "It seems you really like my cooking. But I can't take too much credit for my culinary skills. I think it's probably because the ingredients came from your own body, so they suit your taste so well. Hehehe..."

"???"

The girl froze at those words. She had no idea what the monster meant. She stopped chewing and stared blankly at the tray...

"Ugh... urgh..."

The girl wished she could turn her stomach inside out and purge what she'd just eaten, but after retching for a long time, nothing came up.

"Eh? You don't like it?" Nilost sounded a little displeased, then immediately spoke in a flustered, apologetic tone. "I'm sorry. I didn't realize you'd find it so unpleasant. Why don't you tell me which part of your body you'd like to eat? I'll be sure to satisfy you."

The girl struggled desperately, but she was firmly pinned in place by the nails. Her efforts were futile, and the movement only made her wounds hurt more.

"Well, if you won't tell me, I'll just choose for myself." Nilost tossed aside the tray. The food scattered across the floor, and among it lay some of the parts missing from the girl's body.

But just as Nilost was about to act, she suddenly froze. Then she stepped aside.

Two people appeared in the room.

"Lord Ainz, welcome. It is an honor to have you here." Nilost knelt before Momonga, who had suddenly appeared.

"Mm, there's no need for that. Get up." Momonga nodded, then looked toward the girl bound to the cross. Her face was filthy, but how could he forget someone he'd met not long ago?

"Enri..."