The Dark Warrior

——would end up in a terrible state. There was no way that this woman, who

was a former member of the Black Scripture, didn't know exactly what would

happen if she did so.

After all, it was the task of the Black Scripture to send the mad Miko Princess to

the gods after the crown was removed, in order to allow the next Miko Princess

to ascend.

“But it can’t be helped. It was the only way to obtain this~ it wasn’t my fault, it

was the fault of the crown’s creator~.”

There was no way to safely remove the crown, except for destroying it.

The crown sealed the wearer’s self, turning the human itself into a high-level

magic item, there shouldn’t be anyone who’d be so wasteful and destroy

someone like that.

But there was this unhinged person.

“Hmmph, the thing I had to steal at the expense of betraying the Black Scripture

is trash. I should have taken the divine artifact left behind by the Six Gods.”

“Calling it trash is a bit——”

The man called out the woman who was posing and puffing her cheek out:

“But it is trash, right? Only one in 10,000 women can wear this item. It wil be

hard to find someone suitable outside a nation like the Silian Theocracy."

The Silian Theocracy was the only nation in the region with a population register.

Using the register, they were able to easily find somebody suitable to wear the

crown——a sacrifice.

If it wasn’t for this, it would be hard to find suitable candidates even with

Zuranon’s influence.

"It’s impossible to steal that divine artifact anyway~ It’s protected by the

strongest monster in the Black Scripture who went beyond the physical limits of

humans. The blood of the 6 Gods runs in its veins, an atavistic bastard~"

"Demigods... Are those guys that strong? I’ve only heard about them from you."

"Those guys are beyond the realm of being strong. You didn't know because the

information is classified~ if those who knew were interrogated using mind

control, it would be disastrous. It was said that if news leaked out, it would start

a war with the remaining forces of the true Dragon King. The Theocracy will be

affected and might even be destroyed, so I hope you can pretend you didn't

hear anything~"

"Sounds unbelievable."

"You only think so because you haven’t witnessed that power~ back on topic:

Kajit-Dale Badantel, as one of the 12 core members, wil you be willing to lend

me a hand?"

The woman finally changed her tone.

"Oh, showing your true colors in the end? The body double of the Empress of

Tears... and don't call me Dale, I don't use that name anymore."

"...Don't call me the body double of the Empress of Tears either okay? Call me

Clementine."

"... Clementine, what do you want me to help you with?"

"Isn't there an outstanding person with an innate talent in this city? That guy

might be able to wear this item~"

"... I see, it’s that rumored guy. But can't you kidnap one human by yourself?"

"Yes, you are right, but I want to create havoc when I take action too~"

"I see... And escape in the chaos..."

"I can help you with the ritual, what do you think? It's a great deal right~?"

The man——Kajit squinted his eyes, smiling sinisterly:

"That's wonderful, Clementine. If you are wil ing to assist, the festival of death wil be finished ahead of schedule. No problem, I wil do everything I can to aid

you."

Chapter 2 – Journey

Part 1

There were two routes from Re-Lantier to Carne Vil age if you travel by horse-

drawn carriage.

After going north, keep right by hugging the edge of the forest. Or go east then

turn north.

This time the former route was chosen.

Since there was a higher chance of encountering monsters along the edge of

the forest, taking this path was the wrong choice from a bodyguard’s perspective

Even so, everyone stil chose this route. This was done in order for Ainz to fulfil

his promise to Peter and hunt monsters. Although there was a lot more to lose

than to gain, they were stil able to choose this path without worries because

Momon and Nabel were there. In addition, Narberal demonstrating her ability to

cast tier 3 magic ‘Lightning’ when they left the city was a big factor

And technically they were not entering the forest. Rather, they were traveling

along the border between the forest and the plains, so the monsters they might

encounter wouldn't be too strong. With the ability of the group, they should be

able to manage. In addition, by taking this route, the monster encounters would

allow the members to verify each other’s combat prowess. With these points in

mind, they decided on this route.

The sun reached its zenith after they left Re-Lantier; they could see a dense,

primitive forest in the distance. The giant trees’ luscious branches and leaves

were dense to the extent that sunlight could not penetrate the forest. This

reduced visibility produced the il usion of being swallowed by darkness. The

gaps between the trees looked like gaping maws, waiting for prey to enter; the

eeriness made the party uneasy.

The group adopted a formation that surrounded the carriage as they advanced.