"Then there's nobody better than him. I mean, look at him, he's adamantite-ranked and yet he treats the freshest copper-plates like they were battle buddies. Look at their faces."
"They totally worship him now."
True enough, the novice adventurers had a look on their faces like a kid who had just met their idol.
"Heh, yeah, if he treated me like that, I'd be his. I'd even give him my ass."
"Get lost, who the hell would want your nasty ass? He's got a beauty on his team."
"Yeah, he does. You think they've done it?"
"Of course they have, if not why would they form a team by themselves?"
"I heard it's not like that..."
The fourth man to interrupt had an orichalcum plate on his neck.
"You seem to be quite well-informed, with your rumors from E-Rantel. The strength of those two is unreal. Maybe it's because nobody else can keep up with them?"
"...have you been spying on us all this time?"
"Hahaha! Don't say that, you didn't care who was listening, did you?"
"Heh, well, I guess," the first adventurer said.
The Adventurer's Guildmaster clapped her hands to get everyone's attention.
"The operation starts in one hour, so we'll be moving out shortly. Because we don't have much time, please relay the message to any of your party members who aren't here. In any event, once we leave the palace, just stick with me.”
Lower Fire Month (9th Month), 5th Day 1:12
They were gathered in the other room to make the final preparations for the operation. They considered when to break through, what to do when the enemy showed up in force, and how to deal with the possible complications which might arise. But in the end, they simply had too little information to make any concrete plans and the final conclusion was that they had to go with the flow.
The youth in white armor who had been listening quietly thus far suddenly broke his silence.
“Forgive me, Princess,”
“What is it?”
“I know another person who could become an arrow for this formation. He is a man with overwhelming fighting power. Would it be all right to ask for his aid? One arrow is good, but two would be better, and if they helped each other, I am sure they could defeat any demon that showed itself, no matter how powerful it was.”
“What’s this, Climb? Are you saying the Momon-sama I recommended isn’t enough?”
Evileye’s words had a razor-sharp edge to them. Climb’s eyes trembled with fear.
“No, no, of course not. That was never my intention—"
“Momon-sama is the strongest warrior in existence. I daresay that rather than helping him, the man you recommended would be nothing more than a handicap.”
The katana-wielding warrior, Brain, stepped in to defend Climb.
“That might not be so. I too have seen the person Climb speaks of. His strength is extraordinary. He felled Zero, strongest of the Six Arms, in one blow.”
“You are Brain Unglaus? The one who serves her Highness on the recommendation of Gazef Stronoff and Climb?”
“I serve Gazef, but before I am officially sworn in, I stay by the Princess’ side.”
“That you are much stronger than Climb is known to me, but even that isn’t a guarantee of the man’s strength. And besides, didn’t you lose to that old hag?”
“...Ara, didn’t you lose to her too? My apologies, Mr. Unglaus.”
“Uuuu…” Evileye whimpered as Lakyus scolded her.
“It, it wasn’t just her, you all were there too,”
“After you lost, you said you lost to Rigrit, not the rest of us.”
“You still remember that, Tina?”
Between the laughing Tina and the crying Evileye, the mood in the room had lightened up considerably.
At this point, Ainz asked a question.
“He sounds very interesting. What kind of person is he?”
Climb proudly stated the man’s name.
“His name is Sebas.”
“...hm? Seibath?” The name sounded familiar to Ainz. Was it merely a coincidence?
“...what is his personality like?”
After Climb’s explanation, Ainz nodded.
Isn’t that Sebas himself?!
How had he come into contact with Climb? What kind of relationship did they have? Was Climb one of Sebas’ contacts? Ainz had only skimmed the reports Sebas submitted, and he hadn’t bothered remembering any of the people he mentioned.
It couldn’t be helped, I was too busy…
Ainz’ anxiety only grew as he made that flimsy excuse to himself.
In any case, this boy was a valuable contact that Sebas had made. If he were disposed of too early, it would be a waste of Sebas’ hard work. And carelessly casting away the work of one’s underlings was something a superior should avoid at all costs.
It would be better to aid this boy here, and indirectly praise Sebas.
“I have not done battle with this Sebas before, so I cannot say which of us would be stronger.”
“Of course Momon-san is stronger than him!” Narberal stated in a voice brimming with confidence. Evileye quietly nodded in agreement.
Ainz couldn’t help but pat Narberal on the head.
"Well, if my companion says so, then there must be some truth to the observations of both sides. I believe he should be able to stand on equal footing with me."
"That was a surprisingly mature response. Unlike my companion... not only does she lack height but she is deficient in adaptability too."
"All right, all right, let's not embarrass ourselves in public. That's an order from the party leader. If there's nothing else to discuss, why don't we go pay Tia and Gagaran a visit?"
"Sounds like a plan."
The two of them had died and been revived. Although he had not seen the resurrection itself, he had heard all about it from others.
"Speaking of which, is it possible to use the energy of darkness to attack demons and the like?"