The grind begins

Leinas opened her eyes. In a confused daze, she looked around finding her surroundings to be glowing in a white-gold light. Although it wasn't bright enough to force her eyes to close, it was blinding her from seeing anything else in this place. It was a strange feeling to be blinded while being able to see perfectly fine.

With her mind still in a daze and no clue how she got here or what her purpose of being in this place was, she started to wander. However, even after she traversed a considerable amount of distance the surroundings hadn't changed... No, it wasn't quite accurate that nothing had changed, the feeling inside her that there should be something she could see intensified.

In the beginning, it had been almost unnoticeable, but now every step she took the stronger she felt like this. It also increased the feeling that there was something wrong, that she was somewhere she shouldn't be... at least not yet. There was something she needed to remember, but she couldn't grasp what it was. 

It was when she encountered a thick fog that the surroundings seemed to change. She could see something beyond it. A shadow, a tiny dot in this eternity of white gold glowing emptiness. Without anywhere else to go, she took this as her target, fighting her way through the fog that tried to restrain her as it washed over her.

One half of her face was burning intensely when it was touched by this fog, but in her core, she couldn't feel any danger instead she felt some elation as if she knew what this sensation meant for her. Regardless of the little pain she felt, it seemed to be of momentous importance, so she preserved and continued on.

She wasn't sure how long it took her, but when her pale glowing hands pressed against the fog of light, she knew she had arrived. Her will filled her body with strength and she pushed against it. Initially, it felt like it was impossible to pass through, but as soon as her will reached its peak, it parted ways as if to accept her determination.

The moment she stepped through, her eyes widened as her gaze moved up before looking straight above her. A towering tree infused with divinity stood in front of her- no, to call it a tree wouldn't be quite accurate. There was only a trunk with its roots embedded into the ground. The crown or even branches of the tree had yet to form.

Despite its enormous size, the tree felt incomplete. The trunk just stopped where she would have expected it to have an all-encompassing crown to cover this existence. With a glance around, she took in this illusionary world. This place teemed with life, though like the tree there seemed to be something missing.

The animal life and the extended nature were slightly transparent, giving Leinas the feeling that it was there but inside another dimension, unreachable for her yet within her grasp. Despite this, it didn't disturb her as she felt like it was just in a metamorphosis like a caterpillar evolving into a butterfly. A natural development that shouldn't be fought or terrified of- quite the opposite she felt like she had the honor of witnessing such a sight.

This world that was filled with divinity showed her the birth of a world. There wasn't anything that could be described as more beautiful. As this thought crossed her mind an image appeared in her inner eye, a face that caused her heart to skip a beat. Even though the glowing tree and the angel's face should be inherently different, she couldn't help but feel as if these two things were strangely similar. 

Wind that seemed to be there while simultaneously not affecting her, started to blow through her. Even though it shouldn't be something she could feel or touch she took a deep breath, letting it fill her lungs while continuing to gaze at life's beauty. 

With everything she saw, she felt like she was on the cusp of grasping life's secret. As she took all this in, she started to remember her own life, what she had experienced up until she encountered him...

Heavy. That was the first thing Leinas thought as she woke up after a long dream that was already escaping her grasp. Her eyelids felt like the weight of the world rested on them. Despite her efforts, it took her several tries until she was able to open them before instantly regretting her decision.

The blinding light of the open window caused her to flinch away. Her hand raised to cover her face, blocking the light. "Oh, excuse me. I should have suspected that it might be too much after your little trip to the other side." A smooth voice called out before the light was covered by the curtains of the window.

Leinas dropped her hand before looking at the smiling man who killed her. For a moment, she didn't know exactly why, she just looked at him. There was no anger or fear for what he had done. Perhaps, it was the daze from coming back from the dead, or it was because she truly looked at him.

There were no expectations or hope that she had placed in him. Without any bias or hidden thoughts, she just looked at him, taking his appearance in. The almost nonexistent shimmer in his eyes seemed to reveal something deep inside him, something she felt familiar, but she couldn't grasp what it was.

After just staring at him for a moment, she finally realized something. Her hand rose to her face, touching her cheek, pushing and pulling at it before she looked at her clean hand. No pus staining her hand, and no pain assaulted her from touching the cursed half of her face. Completely stunned she looked at her palm and her trembling fingers as clear drops of tears fell on it.

"Th-thank y-you." She managed to squeeze out in between her sobs.

"Don't worry about it." He responded gently as his hand started drawing circles on her back, comforting her by giving rise to a warmth that she thought had died when her family and her fiance had abandoned her. The warmth of someone carrying for her. She couldn't keep the composure of a battle-hardened warrior any longer and hugged him as the tears flowed out of her. She pushed her face in his arms as would a daughter into the arms of her father after being hurt.

"Sh Sh. Everything is going to be alright." His hands brushed over her hair, causing her to feel secure and cared for like the evil world wouldn't be able to harm her with this person protecting her.

They stayed like this for a moment with neither of them saying a word. It was only when she had calmed down considerably and almost fell asleep when Lord Azazel spoke. 

"The curse that befell you stuck to your life force. Your life needed to end before the curse could be healed and I feared without the right amount of determination your soul wouldn't be able to withstand my cleansing." He explained in but a whisper which she was only able to hear because of their proximity. "I am sorry that I had to be so cruel to you, but this was the best way."

She instantly shook her head. "You don't have to apologize. Even if you had told me beforehand, I would have agreed to any of your methods. No matter what it would have been. Obviously, going about this as we had evidently worked and that is all that matters." She spoke sincerely as there was no length she wouldn't have gone to for her face to be healed.

He smiled wryly at her proclamation. "Well, I'm glad you think this way... So, how was it? My world?" As soon as he finished his words, it was like a door in her mind had been opened and everything she experienced in that strange illusionary realm came back to her. It was like his words gave her permission to remember.

"Your world?" She asked as she gazed at his face, remembering the familiarity she felt and the divinity that filled the very air and everything inside it. He nodded at her with a proud smile.

"Yep, it's my divine realm. I allowed your soul to rest in it after I cleansed it from the curse that tainted it." He explained.

"That's your realm...? Can I enter it again?" She asked in a hopeful tone. Now that she remembered her experience, she obviously wanted to experience it again. The world and its beauty that was supported by this enormous tree trunk.

"Whether you can enter is your choice. Your soul had already earned its right to enter again in case you die. Of course, if you want to enter my realm beforehand... Well, it's not impossible, but not as you are right now."

He didn't even finish when she sat up and grasped his hand into hers. "What can I do? What is asked of me, my lord?" She spoke with a fervor that would surprised her if it had been before her trip into this divine realm. However, not to mention the fanatics of his church, there was no one who could deny him after witnessing his glory.

"Ahh, well only beings of incredible strength, approaching the limit of their race would be able to enter it while remaining aware. The only other way would be to become one of my angels." He gave her a wry smile, clearly reluctant to reveal this information.

"How can I become your angel?" She asked without hesitation, making him widen his eyes.

"Are you aware of what you are asking? You don't even think what it means to become my angel-"

"There is no price too high." She followed up by getting out of the bed to kneel in front of him. "Please."

"By becoming my angel, your soul will belong to me for all eternity. You won't be able to deny me whatever I tell you and there is no going back. Even if you die, you will continue to serve me." He warned her with a serious look, trying his best to make her realize what the consequences would be.

"I don't mind serving you for the rest of time." Although he looked reluctant, his hand slowly approached her head.

"Are you sure about this?" He asked again.

"Yes, I have never been more sure about something in all my life." She answered from the depth of her heart. There was nothing more beautiful and if she didn't grasp to see it now, she would definitely regret it if the opportunity passed her. His hand rested on her head.

"Even if I asked you to give up your revenge? To let your family and ex-fiance live out their happy lives when you had been made to suffer?" These questions made her bite her lip for a moment as she seriously considered it, but after this moment passed, she was even more sure about this.

"It would wash away all my resentment." His hesitation seemed to lessen as his expression turned less hesitant. She knew there wasn't much more needed to convince him. "I would be happy to have you as my master."

"Is that so?" He asked with furrowed brows. "You don't even know me. We have only met me yesterday and I did kill you after all."

"I know you are a benevolent angel..." Not to mention the tales of his heroic deeds and his efforts to fight evil, "If you truly weren't a good person, you wouldn't have warned me of the consequences of giving you my soul. Azazel, you are truly good and worth standing by your side. A protector of the weak, a guardian of the innocent, and a symbol for good, hope, and justice shielding the rest of the world of Evil." As the words left her mouth, his hand froze and when she looked into his face, it wasn't the acceptance she had hoped to find.

Instead, his face grimaced as he looked at her, making her panic. "D-did I say something wrong?" She asked as dread pooled in her gut. 

"N-no, not really." He said as he retracted his hand from her head. "In fact, it was a good speech. 10 out of 10." He said absentmindedly before he stood up with a heavy sigh like he was trying to expel something that had been bothering him for a while. 

"T-then why?" She cried out while hugging his leg.

"Because I found my conscience." He spoke while turning away from her as if he wanted to avoid her gaze.

"P-please, I can't live without returning to that place." She pleaded, not wanting to let him go. Not wanting to miss out on the opportunity to return to that place or be beside his side.

With another sigh, he turned around and lightly tapped her forehead. "Like looking into the abyss, my divine realm isn't something a mortal at your level should remember. It will turn you insane, coupled with the death experience which sends the soul into an unforgettable journey of sensation, it will make you yearn for death." 

As he explained, she could feel the memories fading beyond her grasp. "N-no, please. I ca-" Her pleading stopped abruptly and in the next moment she loosened her grip on his leg. The divine aura around him was sucked in and even the glimmer that she was sure she had seen a moment before was dimmed until she couldn't see it anymore.

"I-I'm" She wasn't sure what she wanted to say as he stepped away from her. 

"Seriously, this is where I draw the line?" She heard him mutter and she wanted to speak up, wanted to express her desire to have him stay with her, but she couldn't force herself to speak up.

Although he looked like he was drawn- sculptured to perfection, it wasn't glowing like before. He wasn't irresistible despite his objective handsomeness not having taken a hit. 

However, his figure seemed lonely as if he was lamenting something he had lost, untouchable by anything around him like he was living in a different dimension aside from this world. No matter what she said, she had the feeling that no one could reach him at that moment.

He turned toward her. "You are healed of your curse. This was everything you had come to me, right?" He asked, making her nod her head reluctantly. "Then I will take my leave."

"W-what about-" She wanted to ask about something, but she wasn't sure what. Besides, he had already disappeared from the room. There was a sense of loss as she looked into the spot where he stood a moment ago.

With a shake of her head, she stood up. He had healed her of this curse. His job was already done and to ask more of him would be more than just selfish. Now it was her time, to get her revenge against those that had wronged her. With a deep breath, she contained the excitement that bubbled up inside her.

She clenched her fist, feeling the energy that filled her. A glance toward the mirror revealed the woman that she hadn't been able to see without shirking away from. A smile donned her face, though it faltered a moment later. She wasn't sure why, but she felt like she was missing something behind her.

There was also that warmth that still lingered in her chest. Did she truly develop a crush on the angel? He did save her and she definitely owed her, but would that warrant such feelings?

She shook her head again and tried not to think about it as she walked out of the room ready to take her revenge, to judge those that betrayed her. Unbeknownst to her she just missed the flash of illusionary wings appearing on her back before they disappeared as if they had never been there.

...

Goddamn. I placed my face into my hands. "That's so fucking dumb," I muttered in the comfort of my office before sighing as I leaned back, half slid down on the chair. If some NPC would see me right now, they would probably freak out.

Perhaps, they would think of me as an imposter as the prince wouldn't show such an unsightly side of him. I gazed at the ceiling wondering why I had to find a conscience right now. Why couldn't it happen after I turned her into my angel?

I guessed it didn't matter if I turned her or not. She wouldn't make that much of a difference anyway. What would another angel level 50 or 60 really accomplish when I was against Yggdrasil? I also didn't really need another woman to fuck even if she was fine...

Really, was that the only things I could think about? Probably, the only angel in this world, and the only thing he thought about was his own ass and who to fuck. At least, I could pat myself on the back by doing the absolute minimum by telling Nazarick not to burn down.

All the while, I was killing women, taking their sanity and fucking them... I shook my entire body. Alright, that's enough of that depressing mood. Not much won by sulking around. I just had to do it in the future that didn't make me feel like a mind-controlling manipulating monster.

Besides, I could ponder on how to live after I figured out how I could survive. With a wave of my hand, a book appeared in the air before falling onto the table. Like usual, there were swirling sigils moving over the edge of the book, and the rising and retracting aura it leaked in waves, gave it a living feeling. The Whispering Tome.

It had been a while since I last looked into it. There wasn't much need for it as I could just brute force my way through every obstacle the New World could throw at me with Chaos Magic, but against the World Tree, Yggdrasil, that wouldn't fly.

I needed more power, but what I needed more were alternatives, methods, and tricks. What better way to learn from the device that held the secret of numerous- infinite realities? The Whispering Tome held the knowledge of everything arcane and reality-bending powers. There was no arcane knowledge it didn't hold.

Of course, the difficulty was to find what I needed in the near-infinite possibilities, but fortunately, it wasn't just a book. It was My book. I was its purpose and would obey my will. So, I willed it to reveal what I needed. I needed knowledge which I could use with my current strength.

This was one of the limitations I had realized when I casually looked into the tome. It revealed every method even those that I couldn't use, things that were far beyond me. Even knowing some of the things had left me stunned for several minutes as I tried to process the information given.

Fortunately, when I turned the page it revealed to me knowledge ranging from the first to the Super Tier and slightly beyond. It needed to be as powerful as it could be, all the weak knowledge and those that couldn't help me against the World Tree could be left out. When I turned the page again, new spells, rituals, and methods revealed themselves, all on the level beyond the Super Tier.

World-class spells and other methods that even with my abundant talent and potential I could just barely grasp and use. I didn't need those that had prerequisites for materials that I didn't have at hand or couldn't acquire. Another turn of its pages revealed only a select few.

I couldn't help but be surprised. The two pages weren't completely filled with knowledge. I knew there weren't infinite techniques, spells, rituals, or other methods that could help me given the restrictions I thought of, but certainly more than these few.

One had to know that it held the knowledge of every arcane knowledge of every reality. Of course, I didn't know how many realities there were, but it had to be too numerous to give it any number. If that was the case, I had expected more options.

I shook my head. There was no point in thinking about it. Since the book revealed these things to me there shouldn't be any alternatives for me to use. A quick glance through a couple of dozen bullet points made it clear that it considered the Flora's Embrace Vial as well as my budding World Tree into consideration.

However, the methods depicted would take too long with the longest taking a couple of millennia to truly blossom. Even the ones that only took a few years or months were too long. I needed something immediate or near immediate- hmm?

Protective Immortal Array - Heavenly Verdant Repelling Array

A total of 108 spirit stones or equivalent ores are needed to set it up... I didn't expect to find xianxia stuff in here as I didn't think it would fall under arcane knowledge. Either way, I wouldn't complain, though where the hell would I find spirit stones, and what would be equivalent leveled ores?

The only thing I could think of was the 'Prismatic Ore' that the dwarves had, which was now occupied by those dragons. However, I was pretty sure that they weren't the Prismatic Ore that belonged to the highest ore of Yggdrasil, so it wasn't really an option, though it could serve as an early warning and locator.

After all, even if I used inferior ore it would still be needed to be broken. If Yggdrasil invaded this world from another continent I couldn't really do anything, but as long as it's this continent it should be fine. Mentally, I added a visit to the Dwarf Kingdom to my list as well as the few other methods that used the leylines of the continent to power some ritual that would hide this world from any perception.

Although most would need massive preparations and materials that I didn't have at the moment, with a few months of effort it could be done. I would give it to the others and let them think of the feasibility. After seeing that wuxia stuff was on the table, I had another objective in mind.

After all, I had regained my supposedly limitless potential and a heaven-defying innate talent through Pandora's Box. This description was tailored for some cultivation and since my book provided wuxia stuff, I figured it would also give me some growth-type techniques. If there was some sort of meditation that would help in growing my tree then I would gladly accept it.

Just as I was about to start sifting through this well of knowledge, a prayer reached me. "Huh, this actually worked," I muttered surprised as I felt Calca's prayer reach me. I listened in for a moment before groaning slightly.

I forgot that the other emissary of the Slane Theocracy was still waiting for an audience. Although they hadn't told her that I would see her, I did mention to Kelart and Calca that I would see Leinas and the woman from the Theocracy. With a sigh, I stored the book in my inventory. The grind would have to wait for a bit longer.

With the power of the Regal Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown, I teleported to the surface of the tomb. I took a step forward and was about to teleport to the Holy Kingdom when I stopped. With a frown, I glanced down at my hand.

The ring reflected the midday sun's rays. I rubbed my thumb over it, "What did I... Ah, yes. The woman from Slane Theocracy, growth-type technique/meditation, Dwarf Kingdom, and then setting up the Immortal Array. This is going to be a long day."