"Deloris, do you know why Lord Momonga called us here?" Aura asked as she leaned back, one eye half-closed, watching Momonga go about his business.
"Lord Momonga has his own reasons. How could a subordinate like me presume to guess at the Supreme One's thoughts?" Chu Lian had already decided to play the role of a loyal subordinate within Nazarick, so of course she wouldn't casually offer her own opinions about the Supreme Being.
"Ah, I was just curious, that's all. If Deloris doesn't want to say, I won't ask," Aura replied, waving it off. In truth, Aura both respected and feared Momonga deeply—her curiosity was simply born from wanting to understand more. Since Deloris wasn't talking, she decided not to pry further.
"Um, Deloris..." Mare spoke softly, as though wanting to say something, but before she could continue, the two bipedal dragons approached and positioned themselves protectively around the trio.
At that same moment, Momonga activated a spell. Two straw training dummies instantly burst into flames, the resulting surge of magic stirring up strong winds and heat that caused the arena's temperature to spike dramatically.
The flames coiled around the straw dummies for a few moments before transforming into a massive Fire Elemental. Seeing it, Momonga muttered in a low voice, "Primal Fire Elemental—level 85 and above, but not quite 90?"
The appearance of the Fire Elemental immediately drew Aura's and Mare's attention. They forgot all about asking Chu Lian anything and instead stared excitedly at the blazing spirit.
Seeing the Fire Elemental, whose presence was even more overwhelming than that of a dragon, Chu Lian felt a flicker of interest. She wanted to use her virtualization system to scan its data—but quickly restrained the impulse. Lowering her head, she quietly stepped back two paces, giving the others space and continuing to watch the scene unfold.
Now was not the time for her to act freely. Observing these people—their personalities and their abilities—would be far more useful in understanding how to deal with them in the future.
Even if they weren't enemies, knowing more about them meant greater safety for herself.
She had thought about using the system's information-detection feature on others before, but ever since what happened back in the Origin Land—when she was caught probing someone's data—she had learned her lesson.
For non-living entities, so long as they lacked sentience, she could still obtain basic data no matter their level.
But for powerful beings, especially those much stronger than her, any attempt to scan them could easily be detected. That would leave her at a huge disadvantage.
And since this Fire Elemental had been summoned by Momonga, who knew if there was a mental or sensory link between the two? If she were discovered probing its data, it could spell disaster. Regardless of her current identity, Momonga would undoubtedly become suspicious. She couldn't afford that risk—her mission came first.
As Aura and Mare, following Momonga's orders, began fighting the Primal Fire Elemental, Chu Lian silently observed their battle style. But after watching for a while, she realized there wasn't much to learn—it all played out just like the original storyline.
"Well, that makes sense," she thought. "They're both level-100 Heaven-tier beings fighting a newly ascended, early-Heaven-tier elemental. The strength gap is massive, and with two against one, it's only natural that neither is using their full power."
From what she knew, Aura was a whip-user and a beast tamer capable of commanding hundreds of monsters, with the strongest reaching level 80—and under her unique skill buffs, they could even fight at level 90 strength. Beyond that, she knew little else.
As for Mare, he specialized in earth and nature magic, the strongest spellcaster among the guardians, commanding two nearly level-90 dragons. Despite his timid demeanor, he was far from weak.
Yet in this fight, neither of them was going all out. Aura hadn't summoned her beast army, and Mare hadn't called his dragons—so the amount of useful data Chu Lian could gather was minimal.
Meanwhile, Momonga stood nearby, continuing to test the system's functions. He tried using message commands to contact a GM or other players but, as expected, failed. However, when he attempted to contact Sebas Tian, it unexpectedly went through.
Then, Momonga began questioning Sebas about the current location of the Great Tomb of Nazarick—whether there were any issues or anomalies. Sebas' reply, however, was far from encouraging. The information he provided made it clear that their situation was no longer a mere game. Momonga had truly crossed over into another world.
Chu Lian stood quietly by the side, listening obediently to their conversation while muttering inwardly, "As expected, he really is the cautious type. But in an unclear situation like this, that kind of personality might actually be the best thing possible. If it were me, I probably couldn't handle it so precisely."
As she pondered, Ayase, who had been silent since entering the Dungeon Space, finally spoke up in her mind. "Little Lian'er, I think if the chance arises, we could really consider conquering the Great Tomb of Nazarick someday. The people here have such diverse abilities—they could adapt to any battlefield. And their power levels are incredible."
"I know," Chu Lian replied in thought. "Once you break past level 51, you reach the Earth-tier. Anything above level 80 counts as Heaven-tier. That means there are several mid- to high-Heaven-tier powerhouses here, and hundreds of lower-Heaven-tier monsters. Their collective might is terrifying—probably unmatched even in the Otherside."
"No, don't underestimate the Otherside," Ayase corrected her. "The reason they've always lost to the Real World isn't due to lack of power—it's because of various restrictions preventing their strongest beings from appearing. If you put Nazarick's forces in the Otherside, they'd rank maybe around twentieth. But in the Real World, unless those ancient monsters make a move, they could easily rank within the top ten."
"Our world is that strong? Why didn't I know that? I always thought Heaven-tier beings were super rare."
"Heaven-tier entities are indeed rare," Ayase explained. "But any resource, no matter how rare, will multiply over time as long as it can reproduce. The longer the world exists, the more of them appear."
"You have to understand—higher-level lifeforms live much longer. That's a universal law in most worlds. On Earth, depending on their cultivation method or path, a practitioner's lifespan varies greatly."
"For example, martial cultivators who focus on the body live shorter lives than qi cultivators who focus on spiritual energy. But even they can live beyond six hundred years. Qi cultivators, on the other hand, can live for thousands of years. Unless they die in battle or willingly end their lives, they can live to the end of their natural lifespan—or even break through and reach the Outer Heavens."
"Our world sounds terrifyingly dangerous..." The information Ayase revealed left Chu Lian completely stunned. She'd known that the Otherside had invaded the Real World several times throughout history, only to be repelled each time. She had assumed that was because their strength was limited.
But according to Ayase, both sides—the Otherside and the Real World—had never fought with full power. Their conflicts seemed to be carried out under some kind of mutual understanding, only using a fraction of their true strength. What could they possibly be plotting?
The thought made Chu Lian shiver. The realization that Earth was such a dangerous place left her uneasy. In comparison, this seemingly perilous alternate world actually felt safer—at least she knew who the strongest beings were and where they stood. She wouldn't have to worry about some random unknown powerhouse appearing out of nowhere.
"Well, I wouldn't say it's dangerous," Ayase replied. "It's more like... there's potential danger. This world isn't exactly safe either. Even if you're currently on the protagonist's side, that doesn't mean you're invincible." She used this opportunity to stoke Chu Lian's motivation. After all, with her current strength, even though her combat power had barely broken through to Earth-tier due to several external boosts, she still wasn't truly powerful.
High damage didn't necessarily mean true strength. The dragon she had slain was proof of that—the absolute defense from the follow-up ability Head-Hug Squat Defense of Remilia-sama's Dignity, which she'd exchanged for 27,000 Integrity Points, had completely nullified the dragon's strongest attack.
That was the only reason Chu Lian had found an opening to counterattack and land the killing blow.
Every race and powerhouse had unique abilities—skills that couldn't be easily dodged or countered. Damage and destructive power weren't everything; they were simply one part of the bigger picture.
While chatting mentally with Ayase and thinking things through, Chu Lian still kept her attention on the events unfolding outside.
After finishing his experiment, Momonga, seeing that the Primal Fire Elemental had been defeated, happily approached his twin dark elves. "You both performed excellently," he said with deep satisfaction.
Hearing his praise, the twins smiled brightly. Aura beamed and replied, "Thank you for your praise, my lord. It's been a while since I've had such a workout." As she spoke, she reached behind her head to scratch it sheepishly, laughing in her usual carefree way.
"Hmm, you must be thirsty, right?" he said, extending his hand toward the Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown and pulling out a large white water jug. Pouring a cup for the somewhat dazed Aura and Mare, he handed it to them.
Perhaps thanks to his fleshless, skeletal face, Momonga didn't need to hide his expressions. Once his tone turned serious, a natural air of authority emerged—one that no one could ignore.
As the twins looked up at him, a faint sense of pressure filled their hearts. They had never expected their master to be this gentle, and their minds struggled to process the contrast.
Watching them drink the water, Momonga placed the jug back into his body. A purple-black rift opened within his skeletal frame, and the jug disappeared into his personal storage space.
"I always thought Lord Momonga was a frightening person..."
"Oh? Really?" he tilted his skull slightly, chuckling softly. "If that's the image I give off, I suppose that's fine too."
Aura immediately shook her head. "No, you're perfect just as you are now, my lord—absolutely perfect!"
Momonga chuckled again, then turned with his staff in hand and began walking toward the upper level. But just then, a violet-black portal appeared on one side of the arena. From it stepped a girl with long silver hair tied into a single ponytail, wearing a deep crimson gothic dress and holding a parasol. Her ample chest swayed with each step as she declared proudly, "Oh my, was I the first to arrive?"
Seeing her, Chu Lian instinctively glanced down at her own chest, then smirked smugly to herself. "A flat-chested vampire loli wearing fake boobs—how could she possibly compare to my real ones? How pitiful~ resorting to padding, oh hohoho..."
"Did you forget that this body isn't your real one, girl? Your actual body is just as flat as hers. Laughing at her like this—don't you think it's a bit hypocritical?" Ayase's amused voice echoed from the mental space as she sipped her wine, nearly choking on it from laughter.
Forget it—let the girl have her moment. After all, Chu Lian had long held a grudge about her chest size. Now that she finally had a chance to flaunt a more mature figure—at least compared to others her apparent age—there was no need to crush her enthusiasm so soon.