Night had fallen over the hotel.
On the second floor, the room had been tidied up, its air now carrying a faint trace of candle wax and polished wood.
The little Barghest lay sprawled on the floor, its slightly bulging belly a clear sign that it had just devoured another goblin corpse.
Sakeer stood by the window, gazing into the dimly lit alley and the buildings across the street.
There had been no movement from Eight Fingers' side—perhaps because he had only just arrived in Re-Estize today.
After all, it had been more than a month.
"I hope they take the initiative and come knocking," Sakeer muttered under his breath before shifting his gaze to the wooden table at the center of the room.
It was covered in crisp, white sheets of paper.
1,400 in total.
Each sheet was crafted using Second-Tier Magic: Papermaking.
Of course, he hadn't made them all at once—seven hundred had been produced in the Great Forest of Tob when he advanced his Papermaking Technique to the second level, while the remaining seven hundred were created at the Magician' Guild.
Now that he understood their true value as alchemy-grade materials for scroll-making, he had no intention of selling them since he's not short of money.
Instead, he had carefully brought them all back for experimentation
Before delving into his scroll-making research, Sakeer retrieved the Second-Tier "Angel Summoning" Scroll.
If not for Belori, acquiring a magic scroll of this level through conventional means would have been nearly impossible.
What's more, he hadn't spent a single coin on it.
The moment he had declined Belori's offer and presented the alchemy potion, the master had unexpectedly handed him the scroll, honoring his request without hesitation.
According to Belori, it was simply an exchange between two practitioners of magic.
Sakeer had a decent impression of the old master—at the very least, Belori was undeniably a generous man.
That said…
Sakeer had never believed in free lunches.
There was clearly something troublesome tied to this scroll. And not just a minor inconvenience—something significant.
He had no interest in getting tangled up in it.
His time was far too valuable for that.
Gripping the scroll tightly, Sakeer activated it.
A brilliant white light flared—
The parchment dissolved into countless particles of energy, vanishing into the air.
SWISH!
A pulse of mana reverberated through the room.
A towering figure materialized before him, suspended in midair.
Standing at nearly two meters, the summoned angel was clad in gleaming silver armor, its entire body encased—including its head, which was concealed beneath a smooth, helmet-like casing.
Behind it, a pair of radiant yellow wings unfurled, pulsing with celestial light.
In its grip, a silver spear shimmered ominously, its tip glowing with divine energy.
Second-Tier Summon— Angel Guardian!
Sakeer narrowed his eyes as he studied the celestial figure.
"It's not so much an angel… as it is a construct."
The sight of the hovering guardian left him feeling slightly unsettled.
In nearly every story he had ever read or watched, angels were depicted as living beings—divine and graceful.
Yet, the angels summoned in YGGDRASIL bore an uncanny resemblance to mechas, their rigid designs exuding an almost technological aesthetic.
Back when he had first seen them in anime, he had scoffed at the design.
Now, standing face to face with one in reality, he still found it odd—yet he couldn't deny that its presence exuded an aura of unshakable dominance.
Its sheer form alone made it clear: this was not an entity to be trifled with.
"Grrr!"
The little Barghest, startled by the sudden appearance of the celestial figure, immediately sprang to its feet.
It darted toward Sakeer's side, its small form tense, fangs bared in a low, wary growl.
Sakeer reached down, patting the creature's head reassuringly.
"Relax," he murmured.
The little dog huffed but remained cautious, never taking its eyes off the angel.
Ding!
Suddenly, a soft resonance echoed in Sakeer's mind.
A notification surfaced in his consciousness:
[Detected Magic: Second-Tier "Angel Summoning"]
[Required Faith-Class Casting Level: 8~14]
[Class Conditions Not Met...]
[Activating Unique Trait: "Genius"]
[Converting Class—"Divine Officer"]
[Conditions Met. Would you like to spend 1 Skill Point to learn this spell?]
Sakeer barely hesitated.
"Yes."
[Skill Points: 42 → 41]
As the knowledge of the spell fused into his being, Sakeer immediately turned his focus to the magic panel, eager to examine his newest ability—
Skill: Angel Summoning (Second Order)
Mana Cost: 10MP
Effect: Summons an Angel Guardian (Level 8–14).
Sakeer studied the skill description with a flicker of anticipation in his eyes.
Among the many tiers of magic, summoning spells—whether angelic or demonic—followed a clear progression system, ranging from First Order to Tenth Order.
With that in mind, he couldn't help but wonder—
Would "Angel Summoning" also have an upgrade indicator beside it?
He quickly scanned the skill panel.
Nothing…
His gaze darkened.
He checked again, his eyes sweeping over the text several times, but the result remained unchanged—no upgrade symbol.
A flicker of disappointment crossed his face.
"So that's how it is... Rank magic truly differs from the human-created life magic of this world."
"Angel Summoning."
Sakeer's voice was low but steady as he cast the spell.
Swish!
A brilliant cluster of glowing particles condensed in the air.
With a flash of radiant white light, a new Angel Guardian materialized in the room.
Now, two Angel warriors hovered silently before him, their luminous yellow wings casting an ethereal glow throughout the space.
Sakeer immediately noticed something.
Compared to the scroll-summoned Angel Guardian, this one felt distinctly stronger.
And this time, he could see its exact level.
[Angel Guardian – Level 14]
"A max-level Second Order Angel."
It was expected.
Typically, summoned creatures were one to two levels below their summoner. Moreover, most summoning spells only allowed a single creature to be active at a time—summoning another would cause the first to vanish.
Unless, of course, one specialized in summoning magic.
Sakeer's current level far exceeded the upper limit of Second Order Angel Summoning, so it was only natural that he had summoned the strongest possible variant.
Even so…
His disappointment deepened.
"If skill points can't be used to level up 'Angel Summoning'… then this magic isn't as useful to me as I'd hoped."
The strongest recorded Angel Summoning spell in this world was sealed within a Demon-Sealing Crystal.
Even the Slane Theocracy's famed Seventh Order Angel Summoning could only summon angels at Level 43–49.
In the eyes of the nations of this world, such a feat was catastrophic—a power capable of altering wars.
But in front of Ainz Ooal Gown?
"Nothing more than an inconvenience."
"Awo..."
The little Barghest, sensing Sakeer's unease, gently nuzzled against his leg.
Sakeer blinked, momentarily stunned.
"Didn't expect you to be the one comforting me."
A chuckle escaped him.
The train of thought was broken, but perhaps that was for the best.
He realized something—
He had been too focused on skill points.
Too reliant on them.
In a world as vast as this, magic followed rules.
And Angel Summoning was clearly structured with tiered advancements.
If he could freely learn the Second Order, then by that logic, higher ranks should also be attainable.
His caster level was already more than sufficient.
For the first time, Sakeer truly considered—
"Can I master advanced magic without relying on skill points?"
But how?
Magic in this world wasn't like the structured systems of YGGDRASIL.
Here, warriors honed their bodies to grow stronger, and spellcasters refined their mana.
So, for a Faith-based caster…
Was the key faith itself?
But therein lay the paradox.
Most divine magic users in this world worshipped the Six Great Gods.
Yet, those gods were not actual deities—they were simply players from the past.
Dead ones, at that.
So how could they grant divine power?
Similarly, take Shalltear Bloodfallen, a vampire from the Great Tomb of Nazarick.
By logic, she should revere the Progenitor Cain, the so-called ancestor of all vampires.
And yet—
"Ancestor Cain"was merely an old raid boss that Ainz's guild had once defeated.
Shalltear didn't worship him.
She was even ashamed of him.
And yet…
That hadn't stopped her from wielding Faith magic.
A dozen theories raced through Sakeer's mind.
Then, abruptly, he closed his eyes and assumed a meditative posture.
The room fell into silence.
Seconds turned to minutes.
The darkness outside deepened.
Then—
BOOM.
A surge of raw magic erupted from Sakeer's body.
His eyes snapped open.
"Third Order: Angel Summoning!"
A pulse of blinding white energy radiated from his form.
Bang!
The original Angel Guardian disintegrated into thousands of floating light particles.
Then—
The shimmering motes reassembled midair, reshaping into a new form.
Its silver armor remained, but the plating had become sleeker, more defined—imbued with an undeniable sense of power.
The once-bright yellow wings had transformed—shrinking slightly but now reinforced with additional armor plating.
A glowing red emblem pulsed ominously on its chest.
Even its eyes burned with an intense crimson glow.
And above its head—
A radiant yellow halo floated in place.
Finally, the weapon in its grasp shifted—
The silver spear vanished, replaced by a flaming lightsaber, radiating with the heat of divine fire.
Everything about this new angel exuded an overwhelming sense of battle-readiness.
[Third Order: Archangel Flame – Level 20]
Sakeer stared at the newly summoned angel, his thoughts racing.
(End of Chapter.)