My family runs an adventurer's guild.

After seeing through the woman's true colors, Negan couldn't help but mutter a curse under his breath.

Then, to everyone's horror, after this female vampire appeared, a dozen or so other female vampires, or rather, vampire brides, dressed in the same way, rushed out of the underground space of the ruins and began to raise their hands toward the battlefield in the midst of the melee, indiscriminately unleashing attack magic!

In an instant, flames soared into the sky and explosions resounded throughout the entire cemetery. Whether it was the gargoyles, zombies, and skeletons of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, or the invading [Sunlight Codex] and the summoned angels, they were all utterly decimated and left in a pitiful state.

After the initial barrage of attacks, the vampire brides, with seductive laughter, pounced on the intruders.

Although their appearance is so beautiful and alluring, they bring death to people.

"...Fireball! Fireball! Fireball! Burn me to a crisp!!"

A mage from the [Sunlight Codex], seemingly to bolster his courage, unleashed a deafening roar while continuously firing fireballs at the approaching vampire bride. But she simply sidestepped, dodging the attacks with lightning speed.

The next moment, the poor magician seemed to feel a gust of wind sweep past his waist, a chill running through his abdomen, and then he found his vision blurring, his body falling uncontrollably to the ground...

—As the vampire bride swept past him, her sharp nails easily tore his body apart, ripping him open. Blood splattered everywhere, and his internal organs oozed out of the wound like tattered rags…and drops of blood dripped from the vampire bride’s nails.

The vampire brides attacked with such speed that the Sunlight Codex didn't even have time to react before a large number of casualties appeared. After slaughtering one wave, the remaining survivors seemed to wake from a dream and frantically deployed their angels to fight against the vampire brides.

However, this left the equally troublesome gargoyles without an opponent, resulting in another large number of deaths and injuries.

"...Damn it! There are so many vampires in the ruins? Retreat! Retreat now! Send the angels to intercept them!"

Seeing that with the appearance of a large number of vampires, more than half of his subordinates had been killed or wounded in an instant, it had become an impossible task to break into the ruins.

Left with no other option, Negan issued the order to withdraw from the battle, leading his remaining troops in a hasty retreat from the cemetery...

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

A few moments later, Ainz Ooal Gown, the ruler of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, the supreme being revered by all NPCs, the most powerful lich and show-off in the world, finally appeared in the surface cemetery of the Great Tomb with a large entourage of his followers.

Because this was the first battle he encountered after being transported to another world, and also his first work assignment after being hired by the new company (as understood by Ainz, a Japanese corporate slave), Ainz made meticulous preparations and arranged a perfect lineup in order to make everything as perfect as possible.

On one hand, he wore his best outfit, including rings, necklaces, gauntlets, boots, cloaks, coats, and crowns—all of which were exquisite artifacts, not only dazzling in appearance but also possessing extraordinary combat power.

On the other hand, Ainz also gathered most of his high-level combatants, including the vampire loli Shalltear, the demon steward Albedo, the dragon butler Sebastian, the dark elf twins Aura and Mare, the insect warrior Cocytus, the suit-wearing demon Demiurge, the crowned giant cockroach "Duke of Terror", and six battle maids from the Pleiades Maid Corps, etc., to fight together under their guild banner.

Behind these high-end combatants followed a large group of death knights and eight-limbed assassin bugs, serving as cannon fodder and grunts.

The only "beta tester" remaining in the Great Tomb of Nazarick, Miss Portia, accompanied the team as a war observer.

With such a formidable lineup, Ainz can confidently guarantee that even if twenty or thirty max-level players attack, he can utterly crush them!

However, it takes time to go from getting dressed up to summoning the guardian NPCs.

What's worse, Ainz, who looks fierce but is actually cowardly, is also a slow-paced person with mild decision-making difficulties.

As a result, when Ainz arrived at the surface entrance of the Great Tomb of Nazarick with such a large group of carefully selected subordinates, all he saw was a chaotic graveyard, blackened and uprooted turf, and piles of corpses lying haphazardly here and there...

Where have all the enemies who invaded the Great Tomb of Nazarick gone?

Why do I only see a few fresh dead bodies here?

Looking at the empty cemetery outside the cave entrance, Ainz, the Overlord, fully equipped with divine armor, was completely dumbfounded.

Looking back at Portia, the "war observer" with a strange, ambiguous expression, Ainz Ooal Gown's mood changed from bewilderment to anger.

—Only when the green light of [Forced Calm] shone on him again did Ainz Ooal Gown's thoughts return to normal.

Meanwhile, Shalltear, the vampire loli who guards the first to third floors of Nazarick, also learned about the enemy's situation from her servants and concubines, the vampire brides who had just fought against the Sunlight Codex, and then returned to report to Ainz.

(According to the creator's setting, the vampire loli Shalltear is a super sexy yuri lover who likes to play all kinds of erotic games, but she is not too keen on playing too hard. Apart from her loyalty and love for Ainz Ooal Gown, she has basically no interest in other men.)

Therefore, Shalltear generally doesn't seek out beautiful young girls as male lovers; she only takes beautiful young girls as concubines, that is, vampire brides.

Several of the combat maids in the Pleiades Maid Corps have become even more terrifying enthusiasts of human flesh cuisine.

"...What? The enemy that invaded the Great Tomb this time couldn't even get into the Great Tomb's interior. They barely managed to break through the undead that the Great Tomb naturally generated, and then they were blocked by the gargoyles in the cemetery? And then they were defeated by your vampire bride?"

Listening to Shalltear's battle report, Ainz was speechless for a moment, "...Such a weakling dares to invade our Great Tomb?"

He muttered to himself, then looked down at his divine armor and the group of powerful henchmen around him, feeling a deep sense of loss and frustration.

If that's the case, then why am I making such a solemn preparation for battle?

—Abomination's first attempt at showing off in another world was a complete failure!

Author's message

P.S.: I learned that Shoko Asahara, the leader of the Aum Shinrikyo cult, was finally executed yesterday (he was mentioned in the Holy Grail War volume of this book). How many years has it been?! The speed of executions in Japan is truly... speechless.

Chapter 129. Too many events to handle!

Although Ainz's first attempt to show off failed, the location of the Great Tomb of Nazarick has been confirmed.

Moreover, it was exposed to the Slane Theocracy, which adheres to the principle of "human supremacy"...

—Even after his failed attempt to show off, Ainz Ooal Gown dispatched his eight-limbed assassination squad from the Great Tomb of Nazarick to hunt down the fleeing remnants of the Sun's Codex on the plains, and they did indeed kill and capture some of them.

However, according to the information obtained from the interrogation, there should have been a total of 45 members of the Sunlight Scripture who were dispatched to this area to carry out the mission, but the number of corpses killed and prisoners captured was less than 30, and the commander Negan also escaped.

In other words, the news of the sudden appearance of the Great Tomb of Nazarick will surely be presented to the rulers of the Slane Theocracy soon.

Upon receiving news of the attack on the Great Tomb, the members of the "Totoro Town Adventurers' Game Company" were caught off guard by this sudden and unexpected turn of events, and were somewhat conflicted about their next course of action.

Even Phili and Lulutia, who knew the original OVERLORD storyline, were very troubled by this unexpected turn of events.

Unfortunately, the events were happening so frequently that the buffer time they had to respond was far too short.

Although the original story of Overlord may seem a bit slow and drawn out, that's just how readers feel.

In fact, the plot of the original OVERLORD manga is very tightly paced. The entire first season of the anime, consisting of twelve episodes, actually depicts events that occur within a span of less than a month. Various conflicts and events that could trigger a national crisis erupt all at once in a very short period of time.

Let's first organize the timeline of the original "Overlord" novel.

The first day after his transmigration was a buffer period. Ainz Ooal Gown surveyed the Great Tomb of Nazarick to assess the situation in his new lair.

On the second day after his journey, two battles broke out in Karn Village. Ainz Ooal Gown befriended Warrior Captain Gazef and annihilated the Theocracy's elite troops, the Sunlight Codex.

Over the next few days, Ainz registered as a new adventurer in the fortress city of Ye-Lantir under a false identity. He then joined the Black Sword adventurer party to escort the young apothecary Enfilea back to Carne Village, and incidentally defeated the Forest Wise King (the giant hamster), which he then took as his mount.

Then comes the "Funny Sister" kidnapping Enfilea, wiping out the Black Sword adventurer party, and the evil organization Chranon's executive, Kajit, unleashing a swarm of undead in the fortress city (which Ainz bravely defeats). Sebastian, the butler, goes to the royal capital to gather intelligence. Shalltear slaughters bandits and engages in a battle with the secret forces of the Theocracy, the Black Scripture. The Platinum Dragon King intervenes with a sneak attack, and Ainz confronts the "traitorous" Shalltear.

All of these complex events and changes occurred within a very short period of less than a month.

If compressed, the entire storyline of the first season of the anime could be completed in just half a month to a week.

Especially the last few events, which all happened on the same day.

Working backwards from this, what should the surrounding area of ​​the Great Tomb of Nazarick be like now?

First, Kajit, a key member of the evil organization [Zhilanong], has been accumulating zombies and skeletons in the cemetery of the fortress city of Ye-Lantir for many years. He only needs one key item, [The Sage's Crown], to hold the "Rite of Death" and trigger a cataclysmic undead calamity that will destroy the city.

Meanwhile, Clementine, the Slane Theocracy traitor known online as "Funny Sister," who carries the key item [The Sage's Crown], is currently on her way to the fortress city of Ye-Lantir, with the Theocracy's special forces [Wind and Flower Scripture] chasing after her.

And the Dark Scripture, which was previously sent by the Theocracy, should be traveling not far from the Great Tomb of Nazarick right now.

—Around the time of the descent of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, the priests of the Slane Theocracy foresaw a vague ominous sign, which they interpreted as the impending resurrection of the Destroyer Dragon King. They then ordered the Dark Scripture to carry the artifact to the location of the prophecy where the disaster might occur, in preparation for battle.

But in reality, this ominous prophecy foreshadowed the arrival of the Great Tomb of Nazarick. Moreover, the Dark Scripture failed to locate the Great Tomb of Nazarick correctly, and after encountering the rampaging Shalltear in the wilderness, it was defeated and retreated.

The two sides fought a chaotic battle shrouded in mystery, with no one able to figure it out, and the theocracy was ultimately defeated and forced to retreat.

In short, right now, a large number of high-level combatants from this world are gathering around the Great Tomb of Nazarick, or more precisely, around the fortress city of Ye-Rantir, eager to make a big splash. Furthermore, the Platinum Dragon Aspect is also watching from afar.

Faced with such a tangled and complex situation, no one knows how to deal with and manage it in order to ensure the greatest benefit.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

"...Wait a minute, although a series of earth-shattering events are about to happen near the Great Tomb of Nazarick, we are not the world police who maintain international peace and stability, so why should we meddle in so many other people's business?"

Seeing the bewildered expressions on everyone's faces, Phil couldn't help but say, "...Anyway, even if the server can't be opened for public beta in the short term, and players are used as cannon fodder in the national war, the existing combat power of the Great Tomb of Nazarick is enough to withstand the entire army of the Slane Theocracy, right?"

—According to the original setting of "Overlord", Ainz Ooal Gown truly used a max-level character to utterly crush the newbie village. Even if all the strong people and armies on the entire continent were gathered, it would be impossible to conquer the Great Tomb of Nazarick. At most, they could only force the guardians inside to stay inside.

"...I'm not worried about the safety of the Great Tomb of Nazarick! The key lies in the fortress city of Ye-Lantir!"

Miss Silver Dragon pointed to the map on the table, "...This is the only city near the Great Tomb of Nazarick, and it's also an important story location after the game launches! But if we don't intervene, this city will soon be turned into a city of death by the [Zhilanong] organization!"

"...Well...actually, even if we stayed in Carne Village, we could still stop the undead scourge from the fortress city!"

Phil yawned and said to his mistress, "...You see, according to the original story, Enferea, who lives in the fortress city of Ye-Lantir, will soon hire four adventurers from the Black Sword Adventurer Group to escort her to Cain Village to collect herbs and visit her lover Anri."

On the other hand, although Clementine had obtained the [Crown of the Sage], it was useless without a suitable wearer. The only qualified wearer in the entire fortress city of Ye-Lantir was Enfilea, but he had gone to the countryside before Clementine entered the city—without this young man, the [Crown of the Sage] could not be used. Without the [Crown of the Sage], the necromancer could not temporarily hold the [Rite of Death], thus preventing the undead scourge from spreading throughout the city.

"In that case, as long as we stay in Carne Village and find a way to detain Enferea, the fortress city will naturally be safe..."

“…Hmm, this idea seems good, but it seems it will take another two or three days for Enferea to receive the news and arrive in Carne Village from the city. What should we do in the meantime?” Miss Silver Dragon Lulutia asked Phili again.

"...In my opinion, let's take advantage of this time and go to the forest as originally planned to finish filming the promotional video starring Mr. Cuenca!"

Chapter 130, Searching for the Squeaky Star People

The day after the Battle of Kahn ended, the villagers, who had just learned a painful lesson, finally stopped fearing hardship and began to organize themselves to build fortifications—logging trees and piling up earth, digging trenches around the village, and erecting fences to protect the village.

Even if it's impossible to fortify the entire village, at least we should strengthen its defenses to some extent.

At least it can't be like before, where the villagers didn't even have time to react before the invading cavalry charged straight into the heart of the village.

—Speaking of which, the most basic reason why ancient people lived in clans was for safety, wasn't it?

If even safety cannot be guaranteed, then why should people live together instead of each household having its own farm?

Meanwhile, Phil and his group, the "Otherworld Closed Beta Player Adventure Team," did not interfere much and simply continued their adventure into the forest.

Near the village of Kahn, the forests are relatively sparse due to the villagers' years of logging for firewood, and the land is relatively dry due to abundant sunshine, making it a more accessible part of the woodland.

However, if you continue to venture into the Dobu Great Forest for about 100 meters, the scenery will gradually transform into a world resembling a green maze.

Phil and his companions hadn't gone far when they felt the temperature drop considerably, and the sunlight became much dimmer. This was because the leaves overhead were so dense that the sunlight couldn't penetrate much. At the same time, the surroundings seemed to be dominated by silence.

Apart from the soft rustling of the treetops and the occasional echoes of birds and animals, only the sound of their own footsteps resounded.

If an ordinary traveler were to enter such a forest with no landmarks, unable to even determine their direction, and with their view obstructed by towering trees and dense shrubs, they would likely feel involuntarily timid and uneasy.

However, for players who are naturally fearless and unafraid of death, they can only marvel at the magnificent sights created by nature.

"...Fresh air, a dark forest, a hidden realm waiting to be explored! Meow, this is the real adventure!"

Kunka, the old cat-man piloting the Tiger Man, couldn't help but say, "...It reminds me of my childhood as a stray, meow!"

"...Indeed, dealing with those cavalry yesterday should only be considered an ordinary battle, not a free and unrestrained adventure."

Ernest, the fake dragon owner, chimed in, "...After spending so much time in this smoky town, I sometimes crave a stroll in the wilderness!"

“…If there were any treasures or rare beasts, that would be even better, woof!” the kobold slave sorcerer Quark echoed.

"...Hey, can you guys be serious for once? We're not here for a spring outing or vacation, we're here to hunt!"

Seeing how relaxed these beta testers were, Phil couldn't stand it anymore. "...Putting everything else aside, we still don't know where the [Forest King] we're supposed to capture today is!"

"...Huh? Shouldn't this monster be lying comfortably on some rock, waiting for us to defeat it and clear the level?"

"...My dear mistress, don't tell me you really think this is an RPG game?"

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

The so-called wise king of the forest, well, in the eyes of an outsider, should probably be described as the cute king of the forest!

Although the natives of this world describe it as a terrifying monster, it is actually just a giant talking hamster.

Of course, to ordinary people, such a large hamster is indeed very powerful and ferocious.

In a one-on-one fight, only an outstanding warrior of Gazef's caliber among the natives could subdue it single-handedly. Otherwise, overwhelming it with sheer numbers and overwhelming it with a large number of lives would be necessary. If it were determined to escape, even an adventurer of the adamantite rank might not be able to kill it.

As a ferocious beast, killing people goes without saying, but this giant hamster may even have eaten people before.

However, once it encounters a truly strong opponent, this fluffy and adorable hamster will instantly awaken its talent for being cute, becoming very well-behaved and interesting, making it a great choice whether as a pillow or a pet.

Not to mention that this is a female hamster. If things go well, she might even give birth to a litter of even cuter baby hamsters!

—Then they can be sold to the most extravagant pay-to-win players and used as high-end mounts in the game!

That's why Firi wanted to bring it over to serve as the cute and mascot of the Great Tomb of Nazarick.

But... you have to find out where it is first!

—In real forest hunting, the difficulty of finding prey among the vast thickets is far greater than that of chasing and killing it.

Although the [Forest Wise King] is enormous, it is but a drop in the ocean compared to the vast Duwu Great Forest.

None of the beta testers present were hunters by trade—although the kobold warlock Quark had once been a bandit in the wilderness, he had been ambushing caravans, not hunting animals. Now, in an unfamiliar jungle and using a player account, it was a miracle that he could even remember his route and not get lost.

And so, they wandered around the Great Forest of Dowu for a long time, but still couldn't find the giant hamster known as the "Forest Wise King".