"Lord Ainz."
Demiurge suddenly spoke from the side: "Please allow this subordinate to interject. Regarding the matter of the Roble Holy Kingdom, perhaps you would hear this one's humble opinion."
In that very instant just now, a cruel thought had flashed through Ainz's mind: to permanently prevent these humans from turning toward [Abundance], he considered simply wiping out the Holy Kingdom once and for all.
Even the relatively gentler approach would require slaughtering every last one of those "Disciples of Sanctus Medicus" within the Holy Kingdom.
But Demiurge's words pulled him slightly back from the murderous impulse. He raised his eyes toward the demon guardian beside him.
"…Go on, Demiurge. Feel free to speak."
"Yes! Lord Ainz, you also desire the Holy Kingdom, do you not? Now that the Holy Queen has led the ritual praying to the Pharmacist, why not use magic to impersonate [Abundance] and take His place?"
"Impersonate the Pharmacist of [Abundance]? Oh, that's quite the…"
…Quite the suicidal suggestion.
For a moment, Ainz felt as though Demiurge had violently shoved him toward a pit of fire, and he had the fleeting illusion that a general from the Xianzhou was already knocking at the doors of the Great Tomb. Still, he forcibly suppressed the urge to interrupt and raised a finger toward him.
"Continue."
"Yes! First, it is clear that the Holy Kingdom's prayer ritual has failed—the Pharmacist did not respond to them. Second, although we do not possess the power of the Pharmacist, we can still grant them long life through conversion into dependents. After all… what those humans seek is nothing more than immortality."
"Convert them into servants of the Great Tomb of Nazarick…? There are plenty of races with eternal lifespans, but their appearance…"
By human aesthetic standards, it could only be described as horrifying.
"No matter, Lord Ainz. We can simply tell them that this is 'mara-struck.'"
"Hm…"
The power gap between those humans and us is vast. A casual display of seventh-tier magic or higher should be enough to awe and intimidate them. Posing as an emissary of Abundance to manipulate the kingdom's upper echelons… it could work. The key point is that no true creatures of Abundance would ever be produced in the process, so it would not alert the Xianzhou forces that patrol the cosmos in pursuit of Abundance.
After standing even more upright, Demiurge looked straight at the master on the throne and delivered his conclusion.
"As long as we proceed in this manner, we can substantively take control of the Roble Holy Kingdom."
"…An intriguing proposal, Demiurge. I roughly understand your thinking, but what about the 'Plague of Longevity'?"
"That will not be necessary, Lord Ainz. The Plague of Longevity is a divine blessing meant to grant immortality to all citizens of the Xianzhou. The Holy Kingdom's prayer is merely for the longevity of a very small number of people at the top."
"…I see. Very well, then it's decided." Ainz's crimson eyes turned toward the light screen. "But one thing: do not let them hold any more prayer rituals. Otherwise…"
He absolutely did not want these humans to truly draw Abundance's gaze. The moment even the faintest trace of an Aeon's power descended upon this land—even the slightest sliver of Path power—could bring utter catastrophe to the Great Tomb of Nazarick.
"This subordinate understands, Lord Ainz."
——
["Whoa, this gift really went all out." March 7th was stunned.]
["Uh… of course. Since it is something so important, please refrain from using it casually for trivial matters or anything that would violate our covenant. Everyone understands that, right?" At the end, Jing Yuan still added this caution.]
["Many thanks for the General's generous consideration." Welt also expressed his gratitude.]
[Afterward, the General formally lifted the exile order on Dan Heng. From then on, he would be free to come and go on the Luofu as he pleased.]
[Having finished these arrangements, Jing Yuan supported his old waist and returned. The group could continue their activities on the Xianzhou or return to the Express to discuss their next destination.]
[However, March 7th naturally had no intention of going back. She found Stelle and said she wanted to go with her to ask Master Diviner Fu Xuan to use the Matrix of Prescience Ultima to divine the past.]
["Sure, I'll go with you then."]
[…]
[At the same time, in The Shackling Prison…]
["Tap, tap…"]
[Rakshasa's boot soles stepped on the bluestone slabs of the prison, each footfall echoing with an unsettling resonance.]
["Those who step into this place are either jailers or prisoners."]
[Jing Yuan stood with his hands behind his back, looking down from above at the blond man nearby, and spoke calmly: "Which one are you, sir?"]
["Hmph." Rakshasa's lips curved into a smile as his gaze flicked toward the Cloud Knights gathering behind him to surround him. Unhurried, he said: "Neither. This one is merely a lost traveler."]
["What an impressive show of force! Stellaron, Ambrosial Arbor, Disciples of Sanctus Medicus, Lord Ravager…" Jing Yuan slowly descended the stairs, passing by Rakshasa's side. "A series of threats came one after another, nearly succeeding in diverting everyone's attention and making us forget the seemingly irrelevant question—"]
[Before the words finished, the array blade had already condensed in Jing Yuan's palm. A flash of cold light like lightning, the blade tip rested precisely three inches from Rakshasa's throat.]
["The one who brought the Stellaron into the Xianzhou—what exactly are their intentions?"]
[In an instant, all the nearby Cloud Knights closed in, their blades pointing in unison at Rakshasa. Jing Yuan said coldly: "Surrender quietly, and I may grant you a swift end… abomination of the Pharmacist."]
[Rakshasa's lips still carried that calm, unruffled smile.]
["General, it is true that my power comes from Abundance." He suddenly raised both hands in that classic gesture, as if everything was already within his grasp.]
["…But like you, I too am an enemy of the Pharmacist."]
——
Honkai Impact 3rd.
"Heh heh…"
In the laboratory at Anti-Entropy headquarters, Welt pushed up the glasses on the bridge of his nose and suddenly let out a relieved laugh.
Especially that gesture of raising both hands high—it was all too familiar to him. Seeing it again made him feel a momentary daze: as if Otto had appeared inside the light screen, confronting Jing Yuan.
"As expected… even in a different world, this guy is absolutely no saint."
Seeing this scene, Welt suddenly recalled the gentle smile on Rakshasa's face back when he, Sushang, and Dan Heng were together at Cloudford. That line—"If you don't make a move soon, you're going to get hurt, you know?"—now sounded particularly grating.
Especially when little March was deducing things earlier; he had almost truly believed Rakshasa was a good person.
Welt removed his glasses and rubbed heavily at the Zhuanzhu acupoint. Although he had anticipated it, when the anticipation truly became reality… he felt not the slightest bit happy.
Tesla crossed her arms, pursed her lips, and snorted: "This Rakshasa guy has the exact same scheming vibe as Otto. But I'm really curious—will 'his' motivation this time still be Kallen?"
"I don't know. Perhaps." Welt shook his head with a sigh. "But one thing I know for certain about this man: no matter where he is, he will stop at nothing for the sake of his obsession."
"Still… at least this time, I hope someone can stop him."
——
[A piece of ice crystal landed on Jing Yuan's array blade. In an instant, chilling cold spread through The Shackling Prison; even breaths turned into white mist. The nearby Cloud Knights unconsciously tensed, their hands gripping their weapons trembling slightly.]
["Yes, Jing Yuan."]
[Jingliu's figure emerged from the darkness. Her white hair was like snow, her eyes covered by a black cloth. With every step she took, frost bloomed on the ground beneath her feet, as if even the air itself was about to freeze.]
["Do not interfere with us. The rebirth of the Ambrosial Arbor is an omen. It signals that the Xianzhou has arrived at the moment of choice on its Path."]
["Reignbow Arbiter, Abundance's Plague Ancestor, Destruction's Ember Ancestor… this is a chess game played between gods. If you do not stand on the winning side, you are the loser."]
[Jingliu slowly raised her head, sizing up the wary Jing Yuan before her. Her calm tone carried an indisputable chill.]
["And this time, we must put [Abundance] to death."]