Chapter 338: 336 The Three Great Guardians_2
"I hope so." Albedo shifted her head under her helmet and said, "Of course, personally, I’m quite hoping you’ll do something."
That way, she would have a reason to take action against Reiger.
"If you wish, after watching the battle, I could satisfy you." Reiger raised an eyebrow and looked at Albedo, "How about it? Care to try?"
"I wouldn’t dare..."
"Albedo."
Just as Albedo was about to agree, Demiurge interrupted her.
"Remember the command of Lord Ainz."
Hearing that, Albedo fell silent for a moment before audibly licking her lips.
Seeing this, Reiger actually lost interest.
"Let’s watch the battle." He then said, "It’s about to begin."
With Reiger’s words, Albedo and the others couldn’t help but turn their attention towards Ainz and Shalltear.
Over there, Ainz, who had moved in front of Shalltear, had indeed started to act.
"[Radiant Green Body]."
He began casting magic, starting with a tenth-tier defensive spell that let a verdant radiance seep out from his entire body.
[Radiant Green Body], a spell that could reduce blunt damage and even nullify a single instance of blunt damage, was of great strategic importance to Ainz, who, as a skeleton, was exceptionally fearful of blunt attacks.
Thus, the first spell Ainz cast was this one.
Despite this, Shalltear remained motionless, prompting Ainz to burst into laughter.
"As expected, as long as I don’t make an obvious attack and keep my distance, NPC’s won’t enter combat mode, just like in the game!"
"So, my apologies, Shalltear."
"Please remain as you are before the battle starts, and wait for me there!"
Having said that, Ainz began a series of classic actions.
"[Flight],[Blessing of the Magic Singer],[Infinite Barrier],[Magic Barrier·Holy],[Essence of Life],[High-level Full-resistance Enhancement],[Freedom],[False Data·Life],[See Through],[Supernatural Intuition],[High-level Resistance Enhancement],[Cloak of Chaos],[Indomitable],[Sensing Enhancement],[High-level Luck],[Magic Power Boost],[Dragon’s Strength],[High-level Hardening],[Heavenly Spirit Energy],[Absorb],[Penetration Enhancement],[High-level Magic Shield],[Essence of Magic Power],[Triple Enhancement·Explosive Landmine],[Triple Enhancement·Seal of High-order Magic],[Triple Maximum Boost·Magic Arrow]."
In front of Shalltear, Ainz haughtily began to stack buffs on himself, casting one spell after another that made his body continuously glow with magic.
After enveloping himself in layer upon layer of magic spells, Ainz spread his arms, allowing a huge dome-shaped, 3-dimensional magic array to unfold around him, spanning about ten meters in every direction.
This array was complex and dazzling, with layer upon layer and tier upon tier, forming an exquisitely intricate geometric structure that emitted white light while constantly changing patterns.
"Here it comes?"
Reiger’s spirits lifted at the sight.
This array was the intricate pattern that appeared when players cast super-tier magic.
Ainz, right before the battle started, had directly used super-tier magic, allowing the huge magic array to keep expanding.
After changing and expanding for a while, the light emanating from the magic array suddenly intensified.
"Super-tier magic!"
Ainz shouted.
"[Fallen Down]!"
In the world, the truly most powerful level of magic was officially invoked with Ainz’s shout.
"————"
In an instant, it seemed as though all color had been drained from the entire forest clearing.
Like a great sun rising from the center of the clearing, everything was whitewashed.
The superheated air from the intense heat source appeared amidst the whiteness, expanding and exploding, incinerating everything in the vicinity on the spot.
The scene was like a pillar of light descending from the sky and striking the earth, causing the whole forest to tremble.
And so, the hot air spread.
And so, a chunk of the earth was gouged out.
Apocalyptic scenes emerged, startling countless birds and beasts away from the forest.
Soon, the white world gradually disappeared, and the super-high temperature also swiftly receded.
Only at this time could the spectators finally see the devastation that the super-tier magic "Sky Fall" had wreaked upon the land.
It was a large circle with vastly different inside and outside scenery.
Outside the circle lay the forest, untouched and intact, unchanged by the calamity.
Inside the circle was a scorched black color, like the mouth of a volcano, emitting waves of heat and smoky fumes.
All the animals and plants had been completely incinerated.
In the charred land, aside from the carbonized roots of huge trees, there were several places where crystallization had occurred.
"Aaaaah—"
In the center of this scorched land, an out-of-place voice suddenly rang out.
It was the only vivid red figure that could maintain its existence and color in this blackened world.
"It hurts so much..."
Shalltear finally stopped standing still like a doll and started moving again as though brought back to life, reviving her vitality.
Smoke was wafting from her entire body.
She seemed to be bleeding profusely.
However, she had endured the super-tier magic and hadn’t died on the spot.
"It really hurts so much...!"
The vampire girl, who shouldn’t have been able to feel pain, shrieked as she turned her deep red eyes towards Ainz.
In the next moment, Shalltear’s body was clad in a full body armor that was as deep red as if soaked in fresh blood.
It was an armor that had a helmet shaped like a swan’s head with a hole for the face, two bird-like feathers jutting out from the sides, decorative wings hanging from chest to shoulders, and a skirted lower half.
This was Shalltear’s formal battle gear.
As a Guardian of the Nasalik Underground Tomb and a level 100 NPC, all of Shalltear’s gear was legendary and extraordinarily powerful.
Now, Shalltear had donned this gear and retrieved a divine artifact that had made a brief appearance during her battle with Reiger—the Spuit Lance.
This was Shalltear in true form, ready to give her all in battle.
"That’s too much, Lord Ainz."
Shalltear complained, speaking such words.
"To attack me with super-tier magic right from the start, as one of the Supreme Sovereigns, ruler of the Nasalik Underground Tomb, doesn’t that come off as tactless?"
Shalltear dared to utter such words of disrespect that she would never normally say, attracting angry glances from the Guardians standing by Reiger’s side.
Yet Ainz himself didn’t seem to care at all.
"Don’t say that, Shalltear, it’s just a little greeting," Ainz said nonchalantly, "I am someone who cares about face, too. If I have to go to battle personally, I have to ensure victory, otherwise, how can I continue to be your ruler?"
"Will you stop at nothing for victory? That’s so like you, Lord Ainz!" Whether it was admiration or sarcasm, Shalltear responded, "But, do you really think that will be enough to defeat me?"
In the face of Ainz, Shalltear exuded an unshakeable confidence in victory.
Because she was well aware that in terms of strength, she surpassed Ainz.
Although Ainz was a player, the ruler of the Nasalik Underground Tomb and the former guild leader of "Ainz Ooal Gown," he was not particularly strong among max-level players, ranking somewhere in the upper-middle at best.
Shalltear, on the other hand, could almost be called the strongest Guardian in the Nasalik Underground Tomb, boasting a high win rate even against players.
In a battle against Shalltear, Ainz was very likely to lose.
Ainz himself was well aware of this.
But...
"One must try it to know," Ainz murmured and reached out towards Shalltear.
The great battle was about to begin.