Fwoosh—
Throne Room.
Once again, the Sorcerer King piled up mountains of gold in the great hall.
With a wave of the Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown, the gold melted into thick energy and reshaped into the four Floor Guardians and all members of the Pleiades.
This time, the material cost reached tens of billions—even Ainz felt a twinge of pain.
No matter how wealthy the guild was, losing four Guardians and the entire Pleiades at once was an enormous blow.
Reviving them without level loss demanded astronomical amounts of gold.
With such a powerful enemy at hand, he had no choice but to pay the price.
"We are deeply sorry!"
"It was our failure in battle that brought shame upon Lord Ainz's name!"
The moment he was revived, Demiurge knelt and bowed before Ainz.
The other three Guardians and battle maids followed suit.
"We failed the task you entrusted to us. Our sins are unforgivable!!"
"..."
"First, tell me what you encountered in there. Was the enemy wielding World-class items?"
The Sorcerer King asked.
This was a PvP battle.
Ainz was used to PvP by identifying the opponent's abilities first, then targeting their weaknesses.
But right now, he knew nothing of the enemy and could only hope to glean some useful intel through this costly revival.
"Lord Ainz, the one piloting that starship isn't an ordinary human—not from their strength, at least."
Demiurge chose his words carefully.
"We saw the enemy's commander. He looked human, but his subordinates were immensely powerful."
"In one-on-one fights, we were no match for them."
The Guardians described their experiences.
The more they said, the more ashamed they felt.
"A creature capable of one-shotting Shalltear?!"
Ainz was stunned.
He could understand the Pleiades and Soul Eaters being wiped out.
The battle maids were about Level 50—of course they'd suffer against max-level foes.
But Shalltear was one of Nazarick's strongest combat Guardians, even better than him in melee.
"Do you know what kind of magic they used?"
Ainz asked.
"We don't. We've never seen those kinds of abilities before."
"We sincerely apologize!!!"
Shalltear lowered her head repeatedly in shame.
She had no idea how Elma took her down in one move.
It was just humiliating.
"..."
Crack—
Ainz's joints popped as he clenched his fingers.
Buzz—
Buzz—
Green flashes of forced calm flickered over his body.
As the Overlord of Death, he had no heartbeat and lacked excessive emotions.
But now, Ainz genuinely felt fear.
Perhaps because part of Suzuki Satoru's soul still lingered, not fully merged with the skeletal body.
Fortunately, the forced calm skill didn't just suppress excitement and joy—it also neutralized fear and shock.
After a few pulses, Ainz returned to rational thought.
"Strange. I feel like I'm becoming less human."
He murmured softly.
A normal person would've been scared witless in this situation.
After a brief moment of panic, the forced calm brought him back to his usual cold, analytical self.
This emotional detachment might be one of the perks of being undead.
He began analyzing the situation seriously.
This was a life-and-death PvP war.
The enemy had directly declared war on him. Clearly, one side would be annihilated.
Surrender?
Ainz didn't see that as an option.
He would never hand over the Great Tomb of Nazarick—and the Guardians would never allow it.
Undead surrendering to humans? Unheard of.
Even knowing the enemy's strength far surpassed his own, the undead instincts within Ainz still made him subconsciously view humans as inferior beings.
"..."
Seeing Ainz deep in thought on the throne, the Guardians fell silent.
"If only we had done better, Lord Ainz wouldn't be so troubled..."
Demiurge continued overthinking.
"Lord Ainz, how should we deal with them?"
Shalltear looked up and asked.
"Tsk..."
The Sorcerer King couldn't decide.
Go on the offensive?
He had plenty of undead troops—Death Sorcerers, Death Knights, Soul Eaters, you name it.
He could form multiple undead armies and steamroll this world.
But how were these supposed to fight spaceships?
On the ground, they'd just end up as target practice.
The undead army had no countermeasures against starships hovering in the sky.
Magic and arrows couldn't even reach beyond the atmosphere.
The locals might think about rallying for one grand battle.
But Suzuki Satoru was still an Earthling in his past life—he had basic tactical awareness.
A sneak attack? That was out too.
Their crew was vastly more powerful. If the first raid failed, the enemy would be on alert.
Trying again would just be a suicide mission.
"Tch..."
After a long deliberation, the Sorcerer King finally stood up.
"Strengthen Nazarick's defenses to the maximum. If they invade, we'll stop them on every floor."
He gathered all of Nazarick's Guardians and elite forces.
In addition to the four recently revived, rarely seen figures like the Gashokukochuuou , Victim, Nigredo, and Rubedo were also called.
He led them to the Treasury.
A mysterious Guardian in a military coat greeted them.
"Lord Ainz, is it time to activate that?!"
Pandora's Actor struck a dramatic pose, earning a dark look from Ainz.
"Yes."
Ainz replied offhandedly.
He distributed their most treasured equipment and World-class items to the Guardians.
"This is the Billion Blades, Shalltear Bloodfallen—I bestow it upon you to defend Floors 1–3."
"This is the Hygieia's Chalice, Demiurge—I command you to guard Floor 7."
"Mare, Aura, since your Depiction of Nature and Society scroll was taken, here's another World-class item..."
Ainz selected the most powerful and precious gear from their vault and handed them to the Guardians, instructing each to defend their designated domain.
At the same time, he used a massive amount of resources to activate all the traps and mechanisms in Nazarick.
Illusions, mazes, ambush points—the works.
Since open battle and ambushes failed, they would switch to strategic defense.
The Great Tomb of Nazarick, cultivated by guild members over years, was filled with countless traps.
Invaders would have to start at Floor 1, face Shalltear and her minions, then progress layer by layer.
Floors 1–3: Shalltear. Floor 4: strongest weapon Gargantua. Floor 5: Cocytus. Floor 6: Dark Elf twins Mare and Aura.
Only after breaching nine floors would one reach the Throne Room on Floor 10.
Even during the worst invasion the guild had ever faced, the enemy only made it to Floor 8.
With Nazarick's structural advantage, Ainz believed he could fight back.
"I will give my all—even unto death, I won't let the enemy pass my domain."
The Guardians all bowed deeply, then returned to their respective territories.
"Mm..."
The Sorcerer King sat on the throne, surrounded by Albedo, the Pleiades, and elite undead summons.
Clutching the Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown, he selected the most suitable super-tier magic and cash-bought items.
He buffed himself dozens of times, ready to strike the moment enemies entered the Throne Room.
"Death is the end of all life... Black Hole... Hyper Boosted Magic: Reality Slash..."
"According to Demiurge's intel, the enemy is still biological. If they're living beings, then instant death magic should work..."
After two brief skirmishes, Ainz had concluded that only the strongest mechanics-based kill skills could deal with them.
He would use World-class items to erase their existence.
"Lord Ainz, can we really hold Nazarick?"
"It's a shame the other Supreme Beings have vanished, or else..."
Yuri Alpha asked hesitantly.
"We will win."
The Sorcerer King nodded.
He had made every preparation, gathered all of Nazarick's strength, and would use geography and gear advantages to repel the invaders.
From the moment they stepped into Nazarick, they would fall into a carefully crafted trap.
"Even if it costs us our lives, we will annihilate any enemy who dares invade Nazarick."
Albedo donned her armor, holding the World-class item Abyss of Hell, guarding the throne's flank.
"Then, send out scouts to check the enemy's movements..."
Just as the Sorcerer King was making further plans—
BOOM—!
The entire Throne Room trembled.
Chunks of rubble fell from the ceiling.
"??"
"An earthquake?"
The Sorcerer King was puzzled.
The Great Tomb of Nazarick was buried deep underground and shielded by numerous spells. Even an earthquake shouldn't reach this far down.
Then—
BOOM—!!
A deafening explosion followed by two stronger quakes.
"Eh eh eh?!"
The Pleiades could barely stay standing. Decorations fell from the walls and scattered across the floor.
"Lord Ainz!!!"
Shalltear's voice came through the communicator.
"The ships! The enemy ships are attacking us!!!"
BOOM!!!
The next blast drowned out her voice.
"Eh???"
The Sorcerer King froze.
On the holographic interface, alert after alert signaled Nazarick was under attack.
Then he realized—due to his habitual thinking—he'd forgotten something crucial.
Starships fought completely differently from adventurers.
They didn't bother with dungeons.
They hovered in the sky—and bombarded from extreme range.
This was a first.
After playing YGGDRASIL for so long, and defending against many invaders, this was the first time the Tomb was being bombarded by starships.
...
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
40 Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon:
Patreon.com/DaoOfHeaven