"Lord Ainz..." Demiurge pondered, then immediately understood the 'meaning behind the words' of the Supreme Lord. "As you've anticipated, the mastermind behind this incident should be the Baharuth Empire's Emperor."
Huh? Ainz was confused. He only felt this incident was strange, what did it have to do with the Baharuth Empire?
A somewhat naive Guardian, Shalltear, stepped forward. "Aren't those adventurers from the Re-Estize Kingdom? How could they be involved with the Baharuth Empire?"
"Hmph hmph," Demiurge chuckled softly. "Although those adventurers are indeed from the Re-Estize Kingdom, it's just a ruse. We have always strived to avoid the location of the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick being revealed. Apart from the Church of Destiny's sudden raid last time, we haven't found any signs of other people being active near Nazarick."
"So, these adventurers... or rather, the people who hired them, how did they get information about Nazarick's location?"
The Guardians pondered. Aura raised her hand, "Could it be that the Church of Destiny leaked the information? Those guys are truly disgusting and always oppose us."
That possibility couldn't be ruled out. The only ones who knew Nazarick's location for sure were the Church of Destiny and the Slane Theocracy.
"The information might be from them, but sending people to infiltrate is unlikely to be their doing," Demiurge nodded, then explained his deduction. "Since they have already raided Nazarick once, they know some of the situation here and no longer need to test or explore. Moreover, if they wanted to get something, they wouldn't have hired such weak adventurers."
"Therefore, the party trying to test us this time must be a power much weaker than the Church of Destiny. That only leaves two suspects: the Re-Estize Kingdom and the Baharuth Empire. Everyone knows the Re-Estize Kingdom's situation; they're in the midst of civil unrest and have no time. So, the only plausible culprit is the Baharuth Empire."
Aura and the others nodded, agreeing. After explaining the Guardians' doubts, Demiurge turned back to Ainz. "Lord Ainz, whether this operation was carried out by the Baharuth Empire is no longer important. We are now facing a serious problem. The location of the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick has been revealed repeatedly. We will face more scrutiny from the New World powers, and the Church of Destiny won't let us go. Their threat is also increasing."
"Now is not the time to be overly cautious. We must take the initiative and find a way out of this predicament."
"So, not a single one of them escaped?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
In the Baharuth Empire's study, the Bloody Emperor, Jircniv, leaned on a sofa. One foot was on the seat, one hand propped up his head, lost in thought as he listened to his secretary's report. He had heard about the location of the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick from the old man, Fluder. Although it was in the Re-Estize Kingdom, its location wasn't too far. Given the threat from Ainz Ooal Gown, he felt it was necessary to investigate.
To conceal his identity, he activated a Re-Estize Kingdom noble who had submitted to the Baharuth Empire to hire the adventurers. After the adventurers had left, the 'dirty gloves' had been discarded. If the exploration failed, Ainz Ooal Gown would definitely not be able to trace it back to the Baharuth Empire, but would rather conclude it was the work of the Church of Destiny or the Slane Theocracy who were hostile to them.
"Damn it, I didn't even expect Adamantite adventurers couldn't send a message back... How will the Baharuth Empire protect itself in the future?" Worry filled Jircniv's eyes. The Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick, led by Ainz Ooal Gown, was filled with terrifying monsters. From their activities in the Re-Estize Kingdom, it was clear that they were not law-abiding types and had great ambitions.
Because of the Church of Destiny, Ainz Ooal Gown had repeatedly failed in the Re-Estize Kingdom. Coupled with their base being so close to the Baharuth Empire, Jircniv wouldn't be surprised if these monsters suddenly attacked his empire.
"Asking for help from the Church of Destiny through the old man's connections..." Jircniv thought of his former teacher, Fluder Paradyne. The great magician was now under the command of the Church of Destiny, which had just raided Ainz Ooal Gown's lair. With their strength, protecting the Baharuth Empire should not be a problem.
Except...
"I'm afraid it's easy to invite the god, but difficult to send him away!" Jircniv sighed. The strength of the Church of Destiny was undoubted, but no one could predict what would happen if they were brought into the empire. The Re-Estize Kingdom was the best example. Although the Church of Destiny repeatedly thwarted Ainz's schemes, they were now a shadow quietly annexing the kingdom, making them hard to trust.
Forget it, we'll deal with that problem later.
Currently, Ainz Ooal Gown hadn't acted against the Baharuth Empire. Maybe things wouldn't get worse, and the empire still had time to think. Jircniv returned to his senses and gave instructions to his secretary, "Ronay, get some more magic scrolls from the old man's side, and increase the funds for the training of the Imperial Guards. It's never wrong to be prepared."
"Yes, Your Majesty!" The secretary quickly noted down the Emperor's decision.
Jircniv was about to review the daily reports when someone suddenly rushed in.
"Loren, what's wrong?" Jircniv asked, surprised. The young man in the magical robe was one of Fluder's best disciples, now the Head of the Baharuth Empire's Court of Mages.
Loren, with an urgent expression, handed over a letter in his hand. "Bad news, Your Majesty! The city of Kate Gospel is besieged by a large number of Undead and is in great danger!"
"What!?" Jircniv's face changed. He immediately stood up from the sofa. "When did this happen!?"