The Earthquake Scripture Captain who was not just the captain of his Scripture, but also one of the generals of the nation's armies and responsible for organizing the defense of the realm and its major cities.
The Firefly Scripture Captain who was in charge of purging. Unlike the Sunlight Scripture, which was responsible for eradicating demi-humans and other troublesome groups, its job was to enforce the church's policies in secret and quietly do away with anyone who would protest against them or who tried to spread a different religion inside their nation.
And the Black Scripture Captain, Sylvan, who was in charge of missions which had the highest difficulty and required the highest level of skill to accomplish. The final trump card against evil which was allowed to use the secret weapons left behind by the Six Great Gods.
Even if we send all of them would it be enough?
Archon could not help but ponder this question. Each of these men was an indispensable asset to their nation that was worth his weight in Adamantite, the cost of which would still be lower than that of training men of even similar caliber. If they did decided to send these men and their units and it turned out to be an ambush the result could spell the end of their nation even if the Sorcerer King did not press further.
"Ordoro, you too must agree that we have been played with by this Sorcerer King from the very beginning. The use of Fluder as an envoy to publically trap us in a net from which we cannot escape, the exposure of our meddling in the Kingdom, and now an open challenge against us with a deadline that gives us the advantage. A more obvious trap could not be made."
"Then tell me, oh oracle of the Six Archbishops, why bother with us in the first place? If I had the kind of power which he does I would not hesitate to simply destroy the country which bothered me and be done with it."
Not even slightly minding the glaring mocking from Ordoro, Ylianna interrupted, "I for one can think of two reasons. This Sorcerer King has shown that he is no fool who just destroys his enemies and conquers cities. The use of the Adventurer Momon in E-Rantel has shown that he always acts with the greatest strategic wit and makes the best use of his resources instead of just blowing everything apart with his magic. If he were to destroy us without reason than he would simply turn every nation around him into his enemy as there is no telling when they might be next."
"And once again, like I said he has the power to destroy entire armies with a thought. Whether we become allies or not will not change that numbers are ineffective against him. Whether we become enemies or not does not change our fate if we oppose him."
"You are mistaken. For one, it is not certain that he does have the capability of taking ALL of us on. Leaving the Baharuth Empire and the Re-Estize Kingdom aside, there are still the Roble Kingdom and the Angrand Council Alliance along with the Draconic Kingdom and even the other demi-human nations beyond that. Can we really be sure that his might is enough to defeat all these nations if banded together? Not even a Dragon lord would be capable of taking on the entire world."
"I suppose you do have a point… and what is the other reason?"
Ylianna looked at the magic crystal on the altar that Fluder had given back to the Theocracy as a 'gift'.
"I think that Gown is afraid, even if he does not show it. He's afraid of us, or rather our power. The fact that the crystal was used means that the angel was released and attacked and my suspicion is that it at least left an impression on him. Perhaps he only nearly won that fight and now wants to make sure that that crystal was our trump card."
What Ylianna said made sense. The high tier angel Dominion Authority, which was released from that crystal, was practically made to attack and destroy evil creatures. If it had the chance to unleash its full power then would even Ainz Ooal Gown come out unscathed?
"This challenge is a trap to lure out our trump card into the open and take over our nation without using simple brute force and terror as the foundation of ruling. No matter what, we cannot provide him with the opportunity to complete both of his objectives."
The other archbishops stared at Ylianna whilst considering her words. If any other nation were to offer these conditions they would consider it too strange and not even hesitate to refuse their proposal, but it was their fear of becoming the target of a monster like Ainz.
"Then there is only one choice. We must begin the evacuation of the city's VIPs and at least partially prepare our defenses to the possible extent. From now on we must ensure that the Black Scripture doesn't go out on any more missions until that monster is dealt with. And of course none of the three God-Kin are allowed to go out of the capital anymore without permission from at least an archbishop."
The other archbishops nodded at Ylianna's words. Considering the fact that the opponent could eradicate civilizations this was all that they could do. Their only hope of victory would have to be the Black Scripture and Kaire.
After sorting out the details and coming up with at least a partial plan, the Six Archbishops and the captains prepared to leave. They would all still have a mountains of things to do in order to do their part of protecting the nation.
Archon looked at Sylvan who was likewise preparing to move out and inform his comrades of the development.
"Sylvan-kun…"
Sylvan turned his head as he was halted by Archon before he could leave.
"Is there something you require of me, Tado-sama?"
"I was wondering if you would be willing to accompany me for a bit. There's something I want to tell you."
Sylvan pondered for a second. He, as the captain of the Black Scripture, had arguably the largest workload of the captains and would have plenty of things to take care of, but if Archon wanted to speak with him in private then it would be no trifling matter.
"Okay, if we can keep it short then that's not a problem for me."
.
….
.
After walking for a bit the two arrived at the private study of Archon inside of the Cathedral. It was a nice silent room with a good view of the city. No one would bother them here.
After arriving, Archon did not say anything as he first stopped to gaze outside the window as if making sure that no one was spying on them.
"So what do you wish to talk to me about? I assume you don't plan to tell me to secretly accept the challenge and head out towards the Charakuri Plains, do you?"
Archon displayed a slight grin as he responded without stopping to look out the window.
"Of course not. Although their reasoning is shallow, the archbishops are right for once. Even if it means total war and massive casualties, refusing to walk into such an obvious trap is still better than sending our best hope of victory to the grave."
Even if dozens of settlements would be swallowed up by Ainz Ooal Gown, there was no guarantee that if they sent out the Black Scripture and lost them due to an ambush or trap that their cites wouldn't still be burnt to the ground by that monster. An Undead did possess an intense hatred for the living, after all.
Archon continued staring out the window and watching the daily life of the citizens outside. An intense feeling of regret swept over him as he realized that this was never what he wanted in life. Why did such a catastrophe have to befall his nation when he was in charge?
"Hey, Sylvan-kun?"
He hesitated to continue, but then decided that it was for the better that Sylvan knew.
"…have you ever heard the story of how the six gods left our world?"
Sylvan looked up in surprise. This was a question that he didn't know how to answer at all. The gospels told that in a magnificent light the Six Gods ascended back into the divine realm that they came from, leaving behind their weapons and legacies that would protect humanity until the end of time.