"This is our first meeting. Please take care of me."
King Ramposa III stared at the skeletal undead before him, a hint of surprise flashing across his face. It was clear he was a powerful and terrifying monster, yet he was currently behaving with extraordinary politeness, creating a striking contrast. A politeness that felt chilling.
However, this could merely be a disguise, a means to make people lower their guard against him, so we still cannot be too careless. He secretly admonished himself in his heart.
After a faint sigh to compose himself, King Ramposa III smiled amiably and replied to the other party, "You are too polite. Please, have a seat."
"Thank you."
The undead expressed his gratitude. The demon beside him respectfully pulled out a chair and helped him sit, marking the beginning of the official negotiations between a human king and a monster overlord. The atmosphere was tense, evaporating like mist.
As the guest and the instigator of this meeting, the undead spoke first. "Your Majesty, our Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick possesses the power to destroy an entire kingdom, but I personally do not wish to start a war easily. I hope to resolve this matter peacefully."
King Ramposa III nodded without comment. He knew that the other party had not yet revealed his true intentions, and this was merely a polite formality to begin negotiations, a fabricated opening.
As he suspected, the undead's next words were highly aggressive, tearing down the veil of politeness.
"Therefore, I wish to request Your Majesty to lead the entire kingdom to submit to our Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick and accept our rule. In this way, all civilians and nobles in the kingdom can be spared from disaster, and power can be transferred smoothly."
Ainz tilted his head slightly. "What do you think?"
The old king was silent for a moment, allowing both sides to compose themselves amidst the rising tension. Then, he replied in a calm yet unwavering tone, a steadfastness untouched by age, "Lord Ainz Ooal Gown, as the king of the Re-Estize Kingdom, I cannot agree to your request."
Upon hearing this answer, the undead's eyes flickered red and a thick black mist spewed from his body, as if he were slightly angered. An oppressive aura filled the area.
The old king's face immediately turned ashen. For he felt the terrifying aura emanating from the other party, as if a great stone pressed upon his chest, making it difficult to breathe.
Even an ordinary old man like him could feel that unrestrained hostility, not to mention Gazef Stronoff who stood guard beside him. Swiftly, Gazef immediately grasped his sword hilt with his right hand, even drawing his sword a fraction of an inch from its sheath—an expert swordsman's preemptive movement.
The demon standing beside the undead, Demiurge, noticed Gazef Stronoff's action and immediately spoke, his voice piercingly sharp, "Your Majesty King Ramposa III, it is unreasonable for your guard to draw his sword in the presence of my master. Kneel!"
The rebuke seemed aimed at only one person. The invisible magical force was channeled towards Gazef Stronoff, causing his body to fall uncontrollably to the ground, kneeling on one knee.
This visually impactful scene captured the attention of King Ramposa III and the hidden personnel around him, terrifying them. Without any physical action, just a few words, the kingdom's strongest warrior knelt without any resistance. Such an opponent was too frightening!
For a moment, the senior adventurers who received commissions from the Adventurer's Guild even considered retreating. Adventurers were a special group of people. They were not taxed or obligated to perform military service, and their sense of belonging to the country was very weak. This was natural—for them, survival was more important than honor.
"Lord Ainz Ooal Gown..."
Worried that something would happen to his loyal guard, King Ramposa III was about to beg for mercy, but his movement was halted by a wave of the undead's hand.
The undead slowly rose from his seat, raising one hand and saying in a cold, threatening tone, "Your Majesty, perhaps you lack self-awareness. It is easy for us in the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick to conquer an entire kingdom. Exactly like this!"
The bony palm pointed towards the sky.
King Ramposa III's attention was drawn by his action, and he unconsciously looked up into the air. His eyes widened in shock.
Several large meteorites burning with fire appeared out of thin air. As the undead waved his hand, these meteorites fell from the sky as fast as shooting stars, yet with deadly intent!
"Wrong!"
"Run!"
Frantic, impatient shouts suddenly erupted everywhere. The people uttering those shouts were none other than the professionals hiding in the Re-Estize Royal Capital and the courtyard corridors. When they realized the meteorites' attack trajectory targeted them, they all panicked and tried to flee the building.
However, they were still not fast enough.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Large meteorites carrying destructive power fell to the ground one by one. The Re-Estize Palace suffered such a horrifying attack that most of it was destroyed in the explosion in an instant. Dust and debris flew everywhere, followed by blazing fire.
When King Ramposa III turned, the crown on his head slipped off, blown away by the explosion's wind. With an expression of horror and disbelief on his face, he stared at the terrifying scene in awe.
Fortunately, he arranged for Prince Zanac and Princess Renner to escape the palace first, otherwise, they might have been buried in the blazing ruins. A thought of relief followed by guilt for thinking it amidst the disaster.
"Now you understand, don't you? No matter what preparations you make, everything is futile before us. We can destroy this city and other cities in this kingdom with ease, just like this."
"I will say this one last time, King Ramposa III, in the name of the Re-Estize Kingdom, submit to the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick, or the entire kingdom will suffer the same fate!"
Hearing the cruel voice of the undead from behind him, King Ramposa III turned with difficulty, and unconsciously opened his mouth as his mind faltered, no longer able to process the cruelty he had witnessed.
But he had no time to speak.
Almost at the moment the undead finished uttering his threat, a spear of silver-white energy, more than three meters long, shot across the night sky and struck him violently!
Ah!
The sudden attack of divine attribute caused the undead to shriek in pain, an unnatural scream for a creature of his kind, and fall back onto the chair behind him.
"Lord Ainz!"
After the demon guards beside him reacted, they immediately furiously attacked the assailants in the air, roars of rage filling the night. "Who are you? How dare you offend the Supreme One? This is a sin worthy of death!"
"Although he is an imposter, this is the only sentence I slightly agree with."
As soon as he finished speaking, the assailant in the air descended to the ground, directly in front of the elderly King Ramposa III.
King Ramposa III stared at the three people who appeared before him with astonishment, and couldn't help but glance at the master and servant at the other end of the conference table. Besides the presence of a young girl in a dress, the skeletal undead in a black robe and the humanoid demon in a red suit were dressed very similarly. Great confusion overwhelmed him.
"Your Majesty King Ramposa III, my name is Demiurge, and I am from the true Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick." Demiurge bowed respectfully to the old king, a faint, almost imperceptible smile gracing his lips. He then introduced Ainz beside him, explaining, "And this is none other than the true ruler of the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick, Ainz Ooal Gown!"
"This..."
The old king's gaze shifted back and forth between the two groups of people, appearing utterly bewildered. His logic felt shattered.
Demiurge struck while the iron was hot and turned to face the duo across from them. With a mocking smile on his face, he said, "You two and the organization behind you are impersonating the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick and Lord Ainz to commit crimes in the kingdom. Have you considered the consequences?"