Overlord - Of Sin And Sanctity 18 War.

----- Jircniv' study - Baharuth empire -----

???: What do you suppose we should do if we fail to eliminate this threat in the upcoming battle milord?

???: Enec… Since I was just a young boy, I've had to plan my every actions just in order to survive. This is just another such situation. If the enemy is as strong or stronger than you, we offer him a position in the empire or pay as much as is required to abandon the tutelage of the kingdom's soldiers. If the enemy is weaker however, I must trouble Fluder to personally end our troubles… *Sigh* With all these monsters in the world, how can us little people have any security?

Enec: I believe the strength of the people to be their resilience myself, not their raw power Lord Jircniv.

Jircniv: You may be right, and at the end of the day, the Slane Theocracy is a human country, so we're unlikely to be wiped out by anything besides our fellow man. On a different note, has Fluder made any advancements on his... Project?

Nimble: That old frog hasn't done anything of note so far. Keh, if he wasn't training up the next generation of mages, I might actually start hoping he would die sooner with the amount of resources he's wasting on that- that thing.

Baziwood: Oi, don't talk about him like that, he's had amazing achievements all to the benefit of the empire, and when that monster comes around, our military power will skyrocket.

Nimble: IF you mean, he hasn't given us a single guarantee and he's spending precious materials worth ma.s.sive amounts of money like drops in a bucket. Many of my fellow counts are rather put off by his conduct and would happily remove him.

Leinas: Eh? If they still have that much power I guess Jircniv hasn't been thorough enough. I wonder how long it'll be before your family ends up like the rest of them…

Nimble: Kuh. We won't end up like the rest of them because no matter how little my family has, I'm one of the imperial knights at the same time. My status is more than enough to grant them the power and wealth they need to live comfortably.

Leinas: Aww, so under that prideful att.i.tude there's still a dutiful little boy working day in day out for his family huh? Your loss if you want to waste money on other people I guess.

Jircniv: Ahem! We shall return to discussing our plans for the upcoming battle now. Enec will command a team of paladins---

----- Re-estize kingdom - King's council -----

Boullope: So what if the empire decides to declare war on us? We have our new squadron of mages to fight them back with!

Blumrush: While I am generally inclined to disagree with Marquis Boullope, I too believe that there is much less to fear during this annual war than any prior. Not only do we have a total of 23 tier 3 mages in comparison to our original 4, we also have an incredibly strong individual capable of even the fifth tier of magic. We will certainly not suffer as many losses.

Raeven: NO! We cannot allow Ryker to display himself on the field of battle. Granted this would decrease the number of casualties temporarily, but if he falls, training of third tier mages will cease, and we will fall back into our original predicament.

Boullope: If we hit them hard and fast enough, that won't be a problem.

Urovana: You must be forgetting the old monster… If he were to personally intervene… Ryker could not hold a candle to him…

Xygat: Wrong.

Lytton: Oh? You have confidence you can win? Why is that?

Xygat: Hit me.

Blumrush: Alright then, if you're so confident. Gazef Stronoff. Hit Ryker with your strongest attack, the [Sixfold Slash of Light].

Gazef: Are you sure about this Ryker? You must have seen my attacks before.

Xygat: Mn.

At this, Gazef's expression turns serious, and the atmosphere tense. He gathers up his strength, uses a number of martial arts, and launches himself at blinding speed past Xygat. Every strike hits, but the outcome was only predicted by Xygat himself. Not a scratch, not a single blemish could be found on his body. The greatest strike, by the greatest swordsman, shrugged off nonchalantly. King Ramposa's eyes widened in shock and those of the n.o.ble faction in terror. A fortress-like existence 'almost' unparalleled… No-one forgot that when they first met him, even this t.i.tanic existence was a subordinate.

Count Lytton was the first to break the heavy silence caused by this event with a deep sigh.

Count Lytton: Well then, I don't have any reason to doubt him anymore.

Urovana: I can't see how you could, after such a display.

Raeven: I still believe it is unwise… Think about it carefully. A mage's destructive power is many times greater than a warrior's. This is an indisputable fact-

Xygat: No.

Raeven: I know you don't wish to see things this way, but the empire has flouris.h.i.+ng trade, a good economy! It would certainly not be a stretch to believe that they have a number of life-saving treasures, even if those treasures are required for a mage of the sixth tier, since while artifacts from the era of the thirteen heroes are rare, they do exist. Even if you don't acknowledge this fact, the empire can send many more mages to the field in a crisis than we can, and a formation by fourth tier mages could hinder him long enough for him to be wounded or killed by Paradyne..

Raeven: In conclusion, I will merely repeat that it be an action of great stupidity to risk the future of this kingdom's mages just because of one battle. It may be heartless, and cost the lives of many, but it is a sacrifice that must be made to save many more.

Urovana: You speak as if he'd be alone, as if it's guaranteed the old monster and all his students will be out there. Marquis Raeven. He'll have the entire army of the kingdom to fall back on in case of an emergency, and you should trust that, because the people should be able to trust you. Besides, if the army wasn't strong enough for even that, we would not have survived as long as we have.

Raeven: They WILL come out this time. This is because Ryker is a threat. They will have to deal with him before he helps the kingdom grow too strong. Also, it is not that I do not trust those in the army, it is merely that they cannot very well help in a battle between supreme mages.

Boullope: That's practically the same as not trusting them at all! Marquis Raeven, they lay down their very lives for our kingdom!

Pespea: If I may. Marquis Raeven does make a good point. However, we cannot afford to leave Ryker behind even in your given scenario. If they do strike us with their full force, there is not much else we can do other than weather the storm unless he is there, and given that these annual wars were obviously being used from the start to whittle down our defenses and leave us vulnerable as opposed to equals compared to them, I think it would be safe to a.s.sume that if push comes to shove… They would overrun us and carry on marching deeper into our territory. As such we require Ryker at the frontlines.

Count Lytton: No, thinking on it Marquis Raeven makes a good point. Wouldn't that just be suicide? If Ryker does indeed die, it doesn't matter whether we win or lose this battle, the empire can replenish their forces much more efficiently than we can. We would just be prolonging our demise.

Ramposa: Ryker may leave for the frontlines. It is not guaranteed that Fluder Paradyne can defeat him, and he is our only hope.

----- Nazarick - Albedo and Demiurge -----

Albedo: I will not allow this! We will not let Ainz-sama be harmed.

Demiurge: He will not be. Despite his claims, I believe Dabilosi-sama will be close by at the time. Not only that but as additional insurance Xygat will be within the ranks of the Kingdom, preventing any suspicious movement from his end. There is barely any margin of error.

Albedo: Oh really, you claim to see through the machinations of one of the supreme beings? They are called that for a reason. You cannot comprehend their thoughts.

Dabilosi: I cannot. However, I cannot see anything else happening, given the unwavering loyalty the two supreme beings have to each other.

Albedo: Very well. Is the Floating Diamond trade a.s.sociation under your thumb yet?

Demiurge: Must you remind me? It is running two days behind schedule. This is what happens when humans are involved. Even when operating to their fullest capability they still make countless basic errors that delay works.

Albedo: Clementine… Seems to be fitting in quite well.

Demiurge: Yes… She seems to have quite the relations.h.i.+p with Neuronist Painkill and the five worst.

Albedo: It does not surprise me. Despite her unique status and personality, you cannot change the fact that she is human. But, Demiurge, and this does not require an answer… If you had to choose between Ainz-sama and Dabilosi-sama… Which side would you be on?