Labyrinth I

(Note: Apologies for the wait, this is the reworked version of Power Up. Basically the chapter is separated into many others.)

Chapter 11: Labyrinth I

Ainz POV

It has already been some time since Rimuru helped to make the Sorcerer Kingdom a recognized nation. The country is doing well, the entirety of Jistarv is under my control. Well, from what Rimuru told me, it is a former Demon Lord's territory, so I need permission from the other one to use it. However, as I already know that I will have the territory because Rimuru promised, and I trust him, I made plans for the Sorcerer Kingdom. The ruler of the place will be me, the highest executives will be the floors' guardians. The capital is Nazarick, a city is under construction around its walls for some citizens.

Anyhow, on today's agenda I have to do the paperwork Rimuru has sent me. It is for the country, apparently. Thus, I signed paper after paper until I arrived at an envelope that was inserted between two sheets. The envelope was fancy looking, there was a name handwritten on it: Ainz Ooal Gown. It was obvious, this envelope was for me, so I opened it and started to read what's on the paper in it. It was an invitation to Tempest, it invited me to come in 10 days. He also informed me that he wants me to come because he wants to make sure I can meet with the Demon Lords.

<<Wait, he wants me to meet them? Well, let's go and see.>>

"Please, prepare everything to depart toward Tempest in 8 days." I said, looking toward Albedo who was seated close by.

"Yes, Lord Ainz." she said, stood up, bowed and left.

3RD person POV

During these 8 days, Nazarick was preparing for Ainz departure toward Tempest. The skeleton was wondering what Rimuru prepared for him. He knew that the Demon Lords far surpasses level 100. However, he can't tell how much, he only saw two people fight, and it was not for long. Rimuru's barrier that blocked Albedo's attack and Adalman's spell that killed the adventurers. Many questions passed through Ainz's head, such as what does Rimuru mean by 'Meet the Demon Lords'. There is only one way to have the answers, and that is going to Tempest.

Only two days left before the date. It takes a day to travel there with the carriage from Nazarick, thus Ainz departed two days beforehand to make sure they arrived on time. The skeleton entered the carriage with Demiurge, the Arch-Devil, and Aura, the dark elf. He tasked Albedo to take care of the things during his absence. The carriage departed with an escort of seven Death Cavalier, as always, three at the left and three at the right and one leading.

*24 hours later*

The black and gold carriage just arrived at the gates of the city. The leading Death Cavalier informed the wall's guards of the situation, they verified the letter and let the group in. Entering Tempest, Ainz was in awe, he knew that they were moving to another city, but he didn't expect that. For him, it was almost like a dream, a place this beautiful, a place where there are no discrimination towards the heterotrophic race. It was a place like this one that he and his guild mates wished for.

Rimuru POV

{Ainz Ooal Gown is arriving in town.}

<<Already? Wasn't he coming tomorrow?>>

{Well he is here now…}

<<…>>

I was seated on the roof of the palace, watching over the city. However, with that information, I suppose I should receive my guests. It is still morning, so I can probably send him to do this thing now. Thus, I teleported in front of the castle's second wall and waited. After around an hour I saw a carriage arriving, it was guided by…

<<Gobta!? What is he doing there? Wasn't he supposed to be with Milim today?>>

{Milim rescheduled her training with him because she had work.}

<<Wait. Milim did something like that?>>

{Yes.}

<<That is somehow really mature of her…>>

Anyhow, the carriage arrived at the gate and I stepped forward. The black and gold vehicle stopped, and a certain undead with two of his subordinates exited.

"Welcome to the new capital of Tempest." I said.

"Greetings, Ruler of Monsters." the skeleton said.

<<Why formalities…>>

{Because you are both leaders of nations.}

<<I know, but I am not this formal with Gazel.>>

{…}

"Greetings indeed." I said and added "Let's go inside."

We then walked through the castle grounds, I could sense Ainz looking in all directions.

<<Does he think it's a trap or something?>>

{*sigh*}

Finally arrived at the palace's gate. The doors opened and we walked toward the office. I sat behind my desk, and they sat in front of me.

<<This chair again, huh…>>

Anyway, I started by explaining why I wanted him to come here. It wasn't a secret, I want him to meet the Demon Lords, and maybe join them. With my support it shouldn't be hard, but I still wonder if they will. So, I led Ainz and his group to the Labyrinth. It will be where Ainz is going to pass the next few days. He doesn't need to eat, but I still gave him an infinite revival bracelet, I don't want him to die there. I say this because I know he will, I already saw the result with someone else. I was about to ask his subordinates to wait for Ainz to return, but he beat me to the punch.

"Demiurge, Aura, please, wait with Rimuru until I return." he said.

"B-But–" one tried to say but got interrupted by the skeleton.

"I shall go alone. Rimuru, is it possible for them to watch?" he asked.

"Of course!" I said.

Then Ainz headed off, the reason I didn't unseal his power is that I still wonder if it is a good idea. What if he were to become evil and try to dominate the world? I already have my fill of that kind of person.

<<Ciel, should I unlock his abilities or not?>>

{*sigh*}

<<What?>>

{It is only now that you wonder?}

<<Yes, should I or not? What are the chances that he turns his back on me and becomes an enemy>>

{…}

<<… So?>>

{Well… If the individual named Ainz Ooal Gown is unseal, he has a 50% chance to become evil.}

<<What! Why didn't you tell me before?>>

{Because you wished to save his life.}

<<Well if I don't unseal him he won't die or something, so it's fine, right?>>

{…}

<<Right?>>

{…}

<<I don't like those silences, Ciel…>>

{… Master…}

<<You mean, if I don't unseal him he will die?>>

{Yes.}

<<How? Why? Is there another way to stop him from death?>>

{There is no other way than unsealing him.}

<<It's like this, huh. Either I unseal him and take the chance that he becomes evil, or I let him die. What great choices these are. But, is it the unsealing or something else that will make him evil?>>

{The answer is… unknown.}

<<Unknown? How come?>>

{The answer simply doesn't exist.}

<<Ok, ok, so is it possible to partially unseal him? What will happen if we do that?>>

{If a partial unseal is performed, the individual will… die.}

<<How?>>

{His soul will be crushed.}

<<Then how can totally unseal him save his life?>>

{(It's for the plot, of course.)}

<<I can't hear you when you whisper.>>

{The reason for that is simple, the world is trying to give skill to him. However, the system is acting like a shield protecting his soul from the change, thus not enabling him to gain these said skills. At some point, the world will dispose of the soul because it won't be compatible with its rules. In the situation that there is a partial release, the soul will receive the information, so the world won't dispose of the soul, but the system will, and for the same reasons the world would've, incompatibility.}

<<I see, then what about his subordinates and the others, like Luci★Fer?>>

{His subordinates' souls are only fragments of their creator's. When created, a small fragment of one's soul is put inside the creation. That is how the game used to be, however it was not intended, this was the only way your previous world's population found to create beings in sub-worlds called 'games' in which the creator could act as a god. So, the NPCs won't be affected, however if their creator were to gain skills, they would because they are linked by soul. As for the others, they have the same issue.}

<<That's a lot to take in, you know. Does that mean 'he' will suffer the same thing, too?>>

{Yes.}

<<Then why didn't you tell me so?>>

{Because 'he' will die of another cause before.}

<<And the others that are here?>>

{They are safe, for now.}

<<How come they are safe but not Ainz?>>

{The process is different depending on the person's soul. It can take more time for certain individuals and less for others.}

<<… ok, so can't we just change the world's rules?>>

{It is not possible.}

<<Why not, it shouldn't be that hard. I mean, I am recognized as god, no?>>

{(That is also for plot reasons...)}

<<I said I can't understand when you whisper!>>

{I said that it was because this kind of rule resides in the essence of the world, the only way to change that would be to destroy it and restart again. However, there are no save buttons here.}

<<Yeah, you sure that is what you said?>>

{Yes.}

<<Fine…>>

Anyhow, maybe I will unlock it. He is between A and A+ rank, maybe even close to Special A, perhaps he can join without even needing to power up. Well doing the labyrinth will help him gain experience anyway, and it makes for a good show.

3RD POV

(Note: I might have made up some decoration for the boss rooms.)

While Demiurge and Aura are escorted to the observatory room where they will be able to see their lord fight, Ainz is making his way throughout the floors. The two guardians sat on a couch around a table and were observing their ruler through a screen. The monsters are not really a challenge at this point. For him, it feels more like a warm-up. He already made his way to the 6th floor. Ainz wasn't taking the treasure chests that were laying here and there because Rimuru had asked him not to, he wouldn't need them anyway, His equipment was surely stronger, at least for the floors he will do.

Entering the 10th floor, Ainz arrived in the first boss's room. There were webs everywhere with a mass of it in the back of the room. All the webs were from a skill called -Steel Threads-, this not only enabled the boss to make his home, but it also was a great trap and protection. This place was where the B rank Black Spider resided. Monsters will become more of a challenge around B+ or even A- rank, the most challenging will be the A and higher rank monsters. Thus, the Black Spider isn't an easy kill, but it won't be the hardest fight either. After all, Rimuru classes Ainz between Hazard and Calamity class.

Anyhow, starting right off the bat, the spider sends -Sticky Threads- toward Ainz. The B rank monster felt invaded when the skeleton entered the room, after all the entire place was his home. Without much effort, Ainz dodged the projectiles and cast -Fireball-, a tier 3 magic, which the spider tried to avoid and lost two of its legs. Knowing that, the spider started to block the following -Fireball- with its -Sticky Threads-. Needing to find a way to distract the spider Ainz got an idea, he used another -Fireball-, but this time, at the webs around the room, which made them start to burn. Noticing that, the arachnid tried to stop the fire by shooting -Sticky Threads-, it didn't want his home to burn down. Taking that opportunity, Ainz reused -Fireball-, but this time towards the main enemy, who was distracted, which made it burn and cry in pain.

Ainz continued his little adventure in the labyrinth, he was now heading to the 20th floor. Once again, the 11th to 19th floors were mostly composed of traps. There were some D rank monsters that got in the way, but nothing as strong as the first boss. Now in front of the massive door leading to the boss room, Ainz opened it. The room was filled with dirt, it looked like an underground nest. This was accurate because this floor boss is none other than the B+ rank Evil Centipede.

Appearing out of nowhere, the centipede attacked Ainz with -Paralyzing Breath-, an ineffective move against someone with no laughs and -Poison Immunity-. The undead used -Fireball-, hoping to hit the enemy, but it fled in one of the many tunnels. Ainz started to walk in the tunnels, hoping to either find the door for the next floor and wait for the boss there or meet with the boss. When the latter happened, the centipede tried to attack the skeleton again, but this time it charged at him, trying to do a headbutt. Knowing that the insect is fast and that he wouldn't be able to cast a spell in time to attack it after dodging, Ainz cast the spell -Slow- when the centipede appeared. This spell does as its name suggests, it slows the target down. He dodged the slowed attack and cast -Lightning-. It simply shot a lightning bolt from the tip of Ainz's finger which pierced the centipede. The insect escaped again, but the next time it appeared Ainz did the same actions and killed it.

Now for the most annoying part of this room, finding the exit. After killing the boss, you need to make your way in the labyrinth's labyrinth and find the next floor's door that is hidden in the centipede's nest. However, Ainz has a spell to aid in this kind of situation. Using the -Lead of Yatagarasu- a 9th tier spell, a three-legged crow is summoned and leads the way toward the dungeon's core. In this case however, Ainz summoned it only to find the door which, in turn, will lead him to the dungeon's core, if he makes it through.

After a while turning corners and jumping in holes, Ainz arrived at the door. He opened it and entered the next floor. The skeleton noticed that the enemies were becoming stronger and stronger. He feared the moment when the monsters will be around A or more rank, however he doesn't know when that will happen. He doesn't even know the ranking system yet.

Thus, Ainz continued throughout the floors. It felt like old days for the skeleton, clearing dungeons like this, the only thing that misses is his friends. He hoped that they were somewhere, in this world. No, he knew that they were somewhere, after all, Rimuru said he had found Luci★Fer, but that he was no longer here. Thinking about those kinds of things Ainz ended up in an Airtight Room, which is only annoying, he already can't breathe, so now he exited the room the best he could. He continued and passed again through a Low Ceiling floor and a Darkness floor, but it was just inconvenient. He also ended up in six different monster rooms, including two on the 29th floor. The monster rooms are basically just rooms with many monsters. Area spells are quite effective there, such as -Iceball- and -Fireball-.

The undead arrived at the 30th floor boss's door. It was a massive door, like the others, and Ainz opened it. This room was different from the others, it was empty. It only looked like a giant, empty square. Well, there was something at the back of the room. It's an Ogre, B+ rank monster, he is there, with 5 other B rank monsters as subordinates.

Before starting the battle, Ainz summoned 10 Undead Knights. He knew he didn't really need them and that they may not be the strongest summons he could have chosen, but at least they are good as shields. He just wanted them to distract the 5 subordinates while he dealt with the main enemy. The skeleton knew that Ogres have great strength, so he used -Body of Effulgent Beryl-, it is a 10th tier spell that reduces heavy impacts attacks effectiveness. After this, he used -Perfect Warrior- to be able to use his black body armor with purple and golden markings. He also had his red cape in honor of Touch Me, a good friend of his. With this, he also had two large swords that could deal heavy damage. The skeleton was preoccupied, he thought that by doing so, his summons were going to disappear, but it didn't happen, I wonder why… Is it your fault?

Author POV

Somewhere, in a pitch-black dimension, beings were arguing.

"Why did you say that, idiot!" Being-1 said.

"I don't know, it just slipped!" Being-2 responded.

"She will be mad." Being-1 informed.

"I know, I know. But why do I have to narrate?" Being-2 demanded.

"Because, it was always like this. I play the villain, she and Master are the protagonists, and you narrate." Being-1 told Being-2.

"It's not fair. I want to play the villain too." Being-2 said before adding "I will ask her to change the roles and–"

"What. Are you crazy? She will kill you if you go close to Master while he sleeps." Being-1 said before stopping Being-2.

Arriving out of nowhere, Being-3 said in a cold voice "Stop slacking off, we need to finish this for him to wake up."

Being-1 and Being-2 tensed up "Y-Y-Yes ma'am." they said and Being-3 left.

"(See, you made her come here.)" Being-1 said.

"(Sorry, I'm sorry. Really, really sorry.)" Being-2 responded.

"(Let's just continue. We need to finish, so he can wake up.)" Being-1 said.

3RD POV

The fight started, the Death Knights were gone fighting the subordinates. Two undead for one subordinate was enough to deal with them or at least keep them occupied. Ainz with his two large swords dashed towards the boss and sliced through it. At least, he thought so, but the only thing that was caught was his arm. He is bleeding, but doesn't stop trying to hit Ainz. At one point the boss's fist hit the skeleton, which flew in the wall. Ainz wasn't greatly injured, thanks to his -Body of Effulgent Beryl-, but he still got the chock's knock back. The undead dashed again toward the ogre and tried to cut his head with no result because the monster dodged. Ainz swung his sword again to which the ogre dodged. The skeleton got hit another time and was sent flying on the wall again. However, this time he was heavily injured, but there was no time to recover. He continued to swing his sword towards the enemy and after some time, the ogre's head fell down on the ground followed by the body. At this point the Undead Knights had time to deal with the subordinates. The room is cleared, Ainz unsummoned the undead and headed to the next floor.

(Note: I hope you enjoyed it, do not forget to leave a review. Next chapter will probably arrive later than usual, sorry. I also reworked the Prologue.)

Next time: Notice

Approximately 3287 words.