Starting from Ainz Ooal Gown, simultaneously traveling through time

Chapter 181 Momonga Meets with the Guardians

An hour later.

The sixth level of the arena.

The flying squirrel stood in the center of the arena, surrounded by traces of the magic test: frozen ground, charred rocks, and remnants left by spatial distortion.

He had just tested his magic and also tried out the power of the Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown.

The conclusion reassured him somewhat; at least his strength remained.

No, it should be said that the power has become more real.

He raised his right hand, and a ball of black light appeared in his palm—a magical power known as "True Death."

In the game, it was just a string of code, a number that determined instant death, but now, he could feel the true aura of death contained within that black light.

All available magic can be used.

Those skills that used to require clicking on panel icons are now like they're etched into the depths of my soul; they appear naturally as soon as I think of them.

What's even more amazing is that the feeling is completely different.

It's not the kind of preset lighting effects and numerical values ​​found in games, but a real, warm, and tangible power. Flames are scorching, frost is cold, and lightning leaves a burnt smell when it strikes the air.

Previously, casting spells in games simply involved watching the special effects on the screen and waiting for the numbers to appear.

Now it's different. When he chants the incantation, he can feel the magic flowing through his body, the elements gathering around him, and the power surging out of his body, truly changing the world.

That feeling—it was wonderful.

But there's also bad news.

Most of the game's restrictions are still in place.

The cooldown time of magic, the number of times skills can be used, those rules that were strictly limited in the game, those settings that were once set up for balance, still firmly bind him now.

It's like having an invisible timer inside your body; once a skill has been used, you have to wait before you can use it again.

However, these limitations are no longer cold, hard numbers on the system panel, but have become a kind of instinctive "sense of lag" in the body, just like the body has memorized the way to exert force, but needs time to recover.

Part of it follows reality, while part of it retains the game's settings.

The flying squirrel silently made a mental note of this.

Unfortunately, he couldn't try out all the spells in front of Aura and Mare.

Two children sat in the stands by the arena, their four eyes fixed on him.

If he were to throw a fireball here, a lightning strike there, and then teleport back and forth like a circus performer—that would be too damaging to his image.

Momonga imagined the scene: he was like a novice player who had just learned a new skill, bombarding the open ground with all sorts of attacks, while the two guardians next to him had expressions that said, "What is Lord Momonga doing?"

As the ruler of Nazarick, he still had to maintain a certain air of authority.

I'll explore that in private later.

Momonga snapped out of his thoughts and turned his gaze to the guardians standing in the arena.

This was the first time they had stood before him as "living beings".

The sixth floor's guardians, Aura and Mare, are a pair of dark elf siblings created by the Bubble Teapot.

The older sister, Yaura, was wearing a light white vest and trousers with gold thread. Her short hair gave her a spirited look, and she had a carefree smile on her face. Although she was a girl, she was a "beautiful woman in men's clothing".

The younger brother, Ma Lei, huddled behind his sister, wearing a short skirt and white stockings, his head down, his fingers twisted together. He was clearly a boy, yet he was a "cross-dresser."

"Sister, Lord Momonga is watching us—" Mare whispered.

"What are you afraid of? It's not like you'll lose a piece of flesh just by looking." Yaula patted his younger brother's shoulder casually.

The flying squirrel silently looked away.

Bubble Teapot probably designed these two children with these personalities to fulfill her wish of "making her younger brother obedient," since her own brother Peroroncino never listened to her.

Speaking of Perorocino —

The flying squirrel looked to the other side.

Shalltear Bradfordren.

The guardians of the first to third floors are the True Ancestor Vampires.

She stood there, dressed in a gorgeous dress, with long silver hair and a face as delicate as a doll.

But something was off about those eyes; they were staring at him intently, with a look that sent chills down his spine.

The flying squirrel knew Peroroncino's quirks.

That guy was a hardcore fan of erotic games, and he stuffed all the weird settings he knew into Shalltear's body.

Now all those settings have become reality, becoming part of this vampire progenitor.

"Lord Momonga~" Shalltear winked at him.

The flying squirrel froze.

He pretended not to see it and turned his gaze to the other side.

Cocytes.

The fifth layer guardian, an insect warrior.

He was enormous, covered in hard armor, and stood there motionless like a statue, but his compound eyes revealed a warrior's unique determination.

He was created by Takemikazuchi, who gave him a personality purely based on "bushido" (the way of the samurai), loyalty, and...

Brave and steadfast in their beliefs, being around such a guardian shouldn't be too tiring.

The flying squirrel looked in another direction.

Demiurge.

The guardian of the seventh floor, a demon of the fiery hell.

He is Ulbert's creation. Ainz Ooal Gown doesn't know how Ulbert designed him back then, but Demiurge doesn't seem like a good person at all.

He stood in the shadows, a smile on his face that was hard to read; well, he didn't look like a good person.

And this guy has a quirk: he especially likes to guess what flying squirrels mean.

"I understand what Lord Momonga is thinking." "Lord Momonga is indeed far-sighted." "Everything is going according to Lord Momonga's plan."

Every time I hear something like that, I want to ask: What do you understand? I don't even know what I'm thinking.

Headache.

The flying squirrel turned its head to look straight ahead.

Albedo.

The guardian of the tenth throne room, and also the steward of Nazarick.

She is a work by The Jade Record, and her original character was described as "a despicable person," which is The Jade Record's original wording.

But at the last minute, Ainz Ooal Gown impulsively changed her setting, adding the line: "She is now deeply in love with Ainz Ooal Gown."

All Feishu wants now is to travel back a few hours and strangle his own impulsive self.

Albedo looked at him with the same adoring gaze a young girl in love would give her lover; that blatant affection made Ainz Ooal Gown feel incredibly uncomfortable.

That was a false emotion.

It was something he casually modified.

He couldn't respond, and didn't want to respond; he just wanted to hide.

Finally, there's Sebastian.

The ninth-floor guardian is a butler who manages the battle maids, other ordinary maids, and servants; his race is dragon-human.

The old gentleman-like butler stood at the very edge, his posture upright and his gaze steady.

He was created by Touchi, the most righteous man in that guild, so Sebastian is also the most righteous guardian.

To be honest, Ainz Ooal Gown has always felt that Sebastian and Nazarick are somewhat out of place.

This place is like a gathering place for villains, a stronghold of antagonists, but the butler turns out to be an old dragon man with an overflowing sense of justice.

But he couldn't say it aloud.

The remaining ones are Gargantua on the fourth floor and Victim on the eighth floor.

Gargantua is too big and not very intelligent, so calling him over would be useless. Victim is a special case and is not suitable to leave the eighth floor.

So the people present here today are these few.

The flying squirrel's gaze swept over them one by one.

These guardians still adhere to the game's rules and remain absolutely loyal to him.

But he wasn't sure how long this loyalty would last.

If one day they discover that he is actually just an ordinary office worker with no real skills or great wisdom, and just a lucky skeleton, will they still be as respectful as they are now?

Or, worse, they see through his true nature, deem him unworthy of their loyalty, and then—

The flying squirrel dared not think any further.

These questions have no answers now; we can only explore and test them gradually as we get to know each other in the future.

He pulled himself out of his thoughts. Although he had so much on his mind, to outsiders, he had only been silent for a few seconds.

Momonga's gaze swept over the guardians, finally settling on Sebastian.

He just sent Sebastian out to scout the surrounding area.

Now, Sebastian is back.

"Sebastian," he began.

Sebastian stepped forward and bowed.

"Lord Ainz, please allow me to explain in a timely manner."

His voice was steady and powerful, and his eyes revealed loyalty.

The flying squirrel nodded.

"Tell me, what changes have occurred in our surroundings?"

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