Roaring Heroes Battle the Overlord (Ainz)

In the center of the arena, a tall lectern made of teak wood stood proudly. Atop the lectern, EeDeChi was as reluctant as a groom forced to marry Medusa herself.

Dangling from her chest were several shiny medals, honors personally bestowed by the old king. She faced the crowd, poised to deliver her inaugural speech as the Warrior Captain.

Below, among the audience, Brain looked up at EeDeChi with hope and admiration, while she returned his gaze with a look sharp enough to kill. Brain, intimidated, hung his head, puzzled by what he might have done wrong.

EeDeChi surveyed the crowd, standing ramrod straight, and cleared her throat before beginning:

"People, they don't know that they can't predict themselves. A person's fate, of course, relies on their own efforts, but historical currents must also be considered. I had no idea how, as an orichalcum-level adventurer, I got chosen as the Warrior Captain.

"So when Princess Renner spoke to me, saying 'The king has decided—you are to be the Warrior Captain,' I suggested she find someone more suitable. It wasn't false modesty; what was an adventurer like me doing in a royal palace?

"But then, Princess Renner said 'It's been decided by everyone.' Later, I recited the lines: 'Should there be a chance to benefit my country, I would do it with my life and death; how could I choose to embrace or avoid such a duty just because of my personal weal and woe?' And so, I arrived.

"In the capital, I've only done a little in these six months, roughly three things:

"One, I defeated the assassin known as 'Lord of Despair'; second, I protected Princess Renner from an assassination attempt; third, I competed in the Warrior Captain's tournament and became the Warrior Captain.

"If there's anything else I achieved, it was clearing out goblins in Sheep Horn. But these are minor; the main things are the three I just mentioned.

"I'm embarrassed to say, I've only done a little bit of work. Thank you, everyone."

After finishing her speech, EeDeChi gave a slight bow. A wave of enthusiastic applause erupted from the audience, the resonant and prolonged clapping shook the entire arena, refusing to subside.

Tears welled up in Princess Renner's eyes: "She has changed Re-Estize!"

… …

In a dimly lit room, the red candle light flickered. Albedo knocked on a gilded floor-length mirror before her.

The mirror's surface rippled like water, the waves erasing Albedo's reflection and revealing a devil wearing round glasses and a red-brown striped suit.

"What brings you to contact me so suddenly?" asked Demiurge from the mirror. He was speaking through this magical communication device with Albedo.

"Lord Ainz has approved—you can stamp the parchment produced in the Roble Holy Kingdom with the mark of the Sorcerer Kingdom," Albedo said, a gleam passing through her languid eyes. "Also, I have some interesting news to tell you."

"Interesting news?" Demiurge adjusted his glasses. "Is it about the results of selecting the Warrior Captain?"

"How did you know I was going to mention that?" Albedo was surprised by Demiurge's astuteness.

Demiurge smiled. "Based on the timing, today is the final battle for the Warrior Captain. And the ultimate winner is Brain Unglaus. You would only rush to inform me if Brain won, proving that you won the bet. Am I right?"

"No," Albedo shook her head with a smile, "we both lost the bet. The winner is EeDeChi."

"Her? The level one hundred adventurer?" Demiurge was taken aback, frowning as he pondered. "What exactly is her intention by doing this?"

Albedo pursed her lips. "We watch the dogfight; she jumps in and brawls with the dogs. She is not one of us; I suggest Lord Ainz strengthens the surveillance on her."

"No, it's not as simple as you think!" Demiurge said seriously. "You gave some items to Princess Renner, who then passed them on to Brain to boost his strength for the final match. EeDeChi, being in contact with Princess Renner, surely knew about this, so she stepped in and snatched the Warrior Captain title from Brain. By doing this, she was indirectly engaging with us, while also showing off her power by the way!"

"You make sense," Albedo nodded. "But why didn't she just support a regular person to enter the contest like we did? Could it be that she's too isolated and had to enter the fray herself?"

"I think that's highly likely... wait!" Demiurge suddenly stopped, his glasses flashing. "Ah! I've got it! That was close! I almost fell into EeDeChi's trap! She was deceiving us by stepping into the arena herself, making us believe she was alone. That would lead us to underestimate her, while ignoring the movements of her unknown allies in the shadows!"

Albedo was startled, her mouth agape, unable to find the right words for a moment.

Dimiugos spoke in a low, serious tone. "From now on, we need to play along, act like we believe EeDeChi is alone, and make her think we've fallen for her trick."

He wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead, adjusted his glasses, and a chilling smile appeared at the corner of his mouth. He muttered to himself, "EeDeChi, you're clever, but unfortunately, I'm cleverer. I've seen through your true intentions. In this round of wits, I'm the winner."

Albedo wanted to say "Aren't you overthinking this?" but she remembered how Ainz had once criticized her as "busty and brainless" and had praised Demiurge as one of the few subordinates who could keep up with his thinking. She decided to embrace Demiurge's viewpoint.

"Never let your guard down around an unknown, especially a level hundred potential enemy like EeDeChi," Demiurge said gravely.

"Don't worry, I'll keep a close watch on EeDeChi," Albedo nodded earnestly.

In the mirror, Demiurge was framed by a distorted and bizarre scene where tiny devil-like creatures jumped around, tugging at the grotesque beings in the picture, their chaotic screams eerily piercing, as the scent of evil and corruption seemed almost to leap from the mirror itself.

Albedo, glancing at the scene in the mirror, pointed at a creature with six human arms, six human legs, and three human heads, asking, "What is that thing?"

Demiurge glanced back and explained, "I'm conducting an experiment, fusing three two-legged sheep together with magic. This will allow me to harvest a larger area of intact skin and flesh, although I'm still encountering some issues with the merging of their consciousnesses."

In the capital of Re-Estize, within the royal palace and Princess Renner's bedroom, the magic-powered fireplace in the corner radiated light and heat, making the room warmer than spring itself.

Princess Renner wore a thin, powder-pink dress made of gauze, under which white lace stockings could be seen. The golden glow from the fireplace highlighted her, the gauze barely covering her delicate, snow-like skin, her well-developed breasts supported by a silk bandeau, with her pale cleavage clearly visible. The fragrance of youth about her was like a bud about to bloom.

She poured a glass of red wine and handed it to EeDeChi, who was dressed all in black. Her smile was bright and charming. "Congratulations on winning the title of Kingdom's Warrior Captain."

EeDeChi accepted the wine and drank it in one gulp, then gave a wry smile, "I didn't expect to win myself; it's quite the hassle, really."

Princess Renner's eyes sparkled curiously as she blushed slightly and leaned in close to EeDeChi, whispering like a lover, "I've heard rumors around town that you... swing both ways... is that true?"

"Why would you ask that all of a sudden?" EeDeChi blinked in surprise, "That's all rumors! If I catch anyone spreading them, I'll rip their tongue out!"

She patted Princess Renner's bare, fair shoulder, adding, "Remember, don't believe in rumors, don't spread them, and don't create them. Be a law-abiding citizen."

"By the way," EeDeChi looked around and asked with a hint of suspicion, "why did you ask me to come to your bedroom to talk?"

"Um… it's just the two of us here, a bit more private," Princess Renner's blush faded as she set down her wine glass and spoke earnestly, "No one ever expected the Kingdom's Warrior Captain to be a woman. This has never happened in the history of our tradition."

EeDeChi replied with pride, "Traditions are meant to be broken."

"Have you ever considered," Princess Renner mused, "why can't our country have a female king?"

"I think highly of you," EeDeChi encouraged, "do well, and maybe you'll be the first female king!"

Princess Renner nodded and said, "I'm working towards that. But there's a huge obstacle I can't overcome. As long as it exists, I can never become king. In a year or two, my father might grant me a remote piece of land and send me away from the capital, and we might never see each other again."

Her voice was melancholic, and her eyes shimmered with tears, invoking pity.

"What's the obstacle? Is a noble trying to assassinate you?" EeDeChi asked urgently. "As the Kingdom's Warrior Captain, I'll take care of him for you."

Princess Renner gently shook her head, "It's not a noble, but Prince Zanack, the first in line to the throne by both legal and traditional right. I can't compete with him."

EeDeChi scratched her head, "That… I can't really help you there, just take it slow."

"How great it would be if he would just step out of the competition for the throne." Princess Renner chose her words carefully, "I believe with your abilities, you could… make him leave."

EeDeChi furrowed her brows. Although her behavior was occasionally bizarre, thanks to some innate talent, her political instincts were sharper than a stray dog's.

She asked with a cold face, "Are you bringing up old stories again, wanting me to kill your brother?"

"Not necessarily kill…" Princess Renner was a bit flustered.

"I won't agree to that." EeDeChi slammed her wine glass down on the table, turned, and strode out of the bedroom, leaving the princess's chambers.

Princess Renner stood silently in front of the fireplace for a long time. She picked up a mink coat from the bed and draped it over herself, covering her shapely figure. Despite the heat from the fireplace, wearing just a thin dress was still cold in the winter.

After a while, the magical flames in the fireplace suddenly extinguished, and a stealthy girl in tight black clothing emerged from the fireplace and bowed to Princess Renner.

"Teia, any news?" the princess asked.

The stealthy girl replied, "Odys Malcon Waverly seems to be plotting against the new Warrior Captain. Should we warn EeDeChi?"

"No need," Princess Renner's gaze was profound, "Although the knife can't be used by me, if Odys wants to throw himself upon it, why should we stop him?"