"I'm heading to Moya City this time to make up for the compensation payments to the fallen soldiers. The laws stipulate that when a soldier sacrifices their life, a certain amount of compensation is issued to their family and relatives based on their military merits. Since the compensation isn't much, this rule has been faithfully followed for nearly a hundred years."
EeDechi nodded. "That's a great system that benefits the nation and its people."
The one speaking with her was none other than the Re-Estize's third princess—Princess Renner. They were currently in a room in a two-story building, with shutters on all four walls. Bright sunlight was sliced into strips by the windows and cast onto the wooden floor, illuminating Renner's serious eyes.
Renner paused for a moment, then continued, "But a few years ago, in that war with the Sorcerer Kingdom, the Sorcerer King Ainz Ooal Gown slaughtered tens of thousands of our soldiers in a single day.
"Fortunately, the Sorcerer Kingdom didn't press the attack on our country, but with the current level of control the Sorcerer Kingdom has over us, it's pretty much the same as our Re-Estize submitting to them."
EeDechi replied, "There's no way around it. Humans in this world are just too weak."
Renner gave a bitter smile and went on, "The most direct impact of that war was that we ran out of compensation funds. If we paid out all the fallen soldiers' compensations right away, the treasury would be completely bankrupt.
"So some of the payments had to be delayed. I often think about how much better it would be if the Supreme Overlord Ainz Ooal Gown hadn't cast that terrible spell."
In truth, this wasn't Renner's real opinion. The war a few years ago, when the Sorcerer Kingdom nearly destroyed the Re-Estize, had been terrifying, but without that war, the crown prince wouldn't have died, the second prince would still be the nobles' favorite, and the great nobles' influence would remain deeply entrenched and unbreakable.
And she would receive a remote fiefdom, and when she reached a certain age, she'd marry a refined and handsome man of high status, amid blessings from everyone in the Re-Estize high and low. Then, just like the dozens of former princesses recorded in the Re-Estize's history books, she'd live out a happily ever after.
That was absolutely not what she wanted.
Fortunately, the Sorcerer Kingdom—that is, the Great Tomb of Nazarick—appeared out of thin air, changing everything with its unmatched power.
The military and political forces controlled by the traditional nobles were almost completely wiped out, the king's mind was on the brink of collapse, the crown prince died without an intact body, and for the first time, the line of succession to the throne was thrown into upheaval. A power vacuum emerged, and the rising nobles and merchants sprang into action.
These new forces put forward their spokesperson: the third princess, Renner. And Renner, with cunning, wisdom, and savvy that outshone her brothers several times over, along with her beauty and reputation for being wise and virtuous, gathered that power and held it tight in her fist.
Power is like a cellar-aged wine; one sip and you're hooked on its exquisite flavor, unable to pull away. For her own happiness, and to keep savoring the sweet taste of power, she'd give up anything except her own life and Climb's.
The Great Tomb of Nazarick, with its supreme might, had recently shown huge interest in EeDechi, the one she'd hired. Renner had no idea why. To her, EeDechi was just an adventurer who was a bit tougher on the defense side. And only orichalcum-level at that—nowhere near the top rank of adamantite.
She was on good terms with the Re-Estize's adamantite-level adventurer team, Blue Roses, so she knew full well what an orichalcum-level could do. But the Great Tomb of Nazarick seemed to prize EeDechi highly, so there had to be some hidden, deeper reason behind it.
Princess Renner quietly glanced at EeDechi and said, "If Ainz Ooal Gown hadn't invaded our country, I think the common folks' lives might be a bit better."
"Yeah," EeDechi agreed, "Ainz Ooal Gown is definitely a pain in the ass. He'll do anything just to show off. Actually, I'm scouting for some heavy hitters right now, to see if we can counter—"
The adventurer captain's words were interrupted before she could finish by a flurry of urgent knocks at the door. The moment the knocking ceased, the door swung open, revealing a blond figure clad in silver full plate armor.
The only one who could barge into the princess's room without her permission was her personal bodyguard, Climb.
Climb had already drawn his adamantite longsword, his face etched with sheer panic, "We've got trouble! Princess Renner, someone poisoned the midday rations—all the escorting knights are down!"
Renner's face turned grave as she asked, "What about Lakyus now..."
Whoosh! An adamantite shield-breaker arrow sliced through the sunlight from the shutters, whipping past her face, shattering a white porcelain vase on the table, and embedding itself in the floor.
Right after, all four shutters in the room exploded in a split second, the sunlight fading as an airtight hail of feathered arrows swarmed in like locusts!
Amid the arrow storm, a golden pendant on Renner's chest glowed, magic pouring out and instantly wrapping her in an egg-shaped shield. Climb swung his longsword, barreling through the thick barrage to reach the princess's side, countless razor-sharp arrowheads pinging and clanging off his full armor.
Renner seized Climb's wrist and yanked him into the magic shield. Then, both their eyes widened in alarm.
Because right next to them, a tornado was whirling into life.
In this room, even denser than the arrow rain was the sword wind whipped up by EeDechi slashing her giant sword. The arrows got caught up in the thick blade and swept away in the whirlwind. In that arrow storm like a plague of locusts sweeping through, not a single shaft could even graze EeDechi.
The sword shadows wove a bright net, and right in the middle, a colorful magic halo flared up, runes slowly spinning around EeDechi's outstretched left hand as a circular magic seal unfolded before the adventurer captain's palm.
Renner and Climb were totally stunned—this girl was swinging her giant sword single-handedly in an airtight whirlwind, and at the same time, her other hand was actually casting magic!
5th Tier Magic: Earthshatter!
Blinding white light exploded from the sword-dance tornado, booming like thunder and ripping apart everything in its path.
After the fierce glare and scorching gust faded, Renner barely pried her eyes open. The clear noon sunlight poured down on the three of them without a hitch, because half the little building—roof and all—had been blasted away...
Behind them, one last shutter still hung intact in its window frame. A red figure drifted in, seizing the moment while Renner was in shock, thrusting out a long blade straight at her.
...
In the dining hall, Barrett furrowed his brows tight, slowly squatting down as a ripping agony tore through his gut, making sweat beads the size of soybeans pour out all over his body. His forehead hair and eyebrows were drenched in sweat. His left hand shook as he pulled a bottle of magic potion—supposedly able to cure any poison—from his spatial ring, bit off the cork, and dumped the black pills into his mouth in one go.
At the center of the dining hall, a pure white holy light surged like a tidal wave, spreading out in every direction. The spotless glow swallowed up Barrett, and the brutal pain in his belly suddenly eased a ton—his knotted-up intestines felt like the tangles were coming undone, stretching back out smooth.
Someone in the dining hall had unleashed a blessing magic domain!
Luckily, the potion maker who'd always been full of hot air wasn't bullshitting this time when it counted—the antidote kicked in. Barrett's stomach gurgled and churned, like liquid sloshing around to rinse out his guts, gently unkinking the spasming intestines.
Under the combined punch of the blessing magic and the antidote potion, the gut-wrenching pain in his belly faded bit by bit until it was gone. Barrett gasped for air, pulling his longsword from the spatial ring and propping himself up with one hand on the hilt.
He stood up and got a clear look at the person in the middle of the dining hall who'd activated the blessing magic domain.