"Sebas, effective immediately, Nazarick is entering full combat readiness. Have Albedo come fully armed."
"At the same time, notify Sephis and Shalltear as well. Have them report fully equipped."
"We'll head over first. Once they're ready, have the three Floor Guardians teleport directly to us."
Since this would be their first expedition into another world, after discussing it with Momonga and Herohero, the three of them decided to bring along three Class Guardians: Albedo to protect Momonga, Sephis to protect Naohara, and Shalltear to protect Herohero.
Although Naohara knew it wasn't strictly necessary, he still chose to call Sephis. After all, father and son needed to clear up their misunderstanding, and this was a good opportunity.
To be safe, Momonga and Herohero even equipped all of their World-Class Items.
As Momonga put it, if anything went wrong, they would immediately activate the Wheel of Good and Evil and Ragnarök to buy time to escape.
"Momonga-sama, are you certain we shouldn't wait for the three Floor Guardians to arrive before departing?"
Sebas asked with concern. To him, the Three Supreme Beings venturing out alone was simply too dangerous.
To be absolutely safe, it would be best to wait for the Guardians before setting off.
Although the slaughter reflected in the mirror made him uneasy, the safety of the Supreme Ones always came first.
"No need, Sebas. At most, it'll only take a few minutes."
"If something happens to us in that short time, then bringing the Guardians along wouldn't make any difference."
Momonga shook his head. In his view, if the three of them couldn't hold out for even a few minutes, then the Guardians being present wouldn't change the outcome.
"Let's go. If we delay any longer, those villagers will all be dead."
Naohara kept his eyes on the mirror. If they continued wasting time, no one would survive.
"Alright. I'll leave things here to you, Sebas."
After giving a few final instructions, Momonga moved to Naohara's side. By then, Herohero had finished speaking with Solution.
[Gate]
Momonga cast the 10th-Tier Magic Gate, and the three of them vanished instantly.
The once lively conference room fell silent, leaving only Sebas and Solution behind.
"I shall take my leave."
Sebas gave Solution a nod. Though she was merely a combat maid, her close relationship with the Supreme Ruler Herohero warranted proper respect.
Solution said nothing, only nodding calmly. After watching him depart, she began tidying up the room.
...
Nazarick's Eighth Floor.
Unlike the forested Sixth Floor, the Eighth Floor was a barren wilderness.
Jointly guarded by Sephis and Victim, it was known as the most heavily fortified domain in all of Nazarick.
At a glance, the endless wasteland appeared unremarkable, but it was packed with countless lethal traps. Any non-Nazarick player who entered—even a Level 100 being—would be killed instantly.
Once, more than a thousand top-tier players invaded Nazarick. They crushed every obstacle in their path and reached the Eighth Floor in a single sweep.
None of them left alive.
Victim, the Floor Guardian, activated an enormous area-wide curse through his own death, drastically lowering the players' resistances. Combined with the hidden, devastating traps, over a thousand players were permanently wiped out on the Eighth Floor.
That battle also brought Nazarick a vast haul of rare items, including Divine-class Items and powerful weapons and equipment.
Deep within the Eighth Floor, beside the Cherry Blossom Sanctuary, stood a massive structure.
Floating near its entrance was a small creature.
About one meter in size, it resembled an embryo with a tail, its body an unnaturally bright pink.
A halo hovered above its head, and a pair of shriveled, featherless wings extended from its back.
Victim—that was its name.
Though it appeared harmless, it was a key part of Nazarick's ultimate defensive line.
"Demiurge-sama suddenly came here, and Aura and Mare arrived not long before him."
"Sephis has looked awful ever since he returned. I just hope nothing's happened."
Victim fluttered anxiously back and forth at the doorway. As a fellow Guardian of the Eighth Floor, he was deeply worried about Sephis' current state.
He still clearly remembered the heavy atmosphere when Sephis and Aura met, and the fury on Demiurge's face when he arrived.
Since the four of them had said they needed to discuss something, Victim could only wait outside, helpless, silently praying that nothing would go wrong.
Inside the room, just as Victim had feared, the atmosphere was razor-sharp with tension.
Sephis, Mare, and Aura stood together, staring at the uninvited guest—Demiurge.
"So it's not just Sephis. Aura and Mare, you two are involved as well?"
Demiurge spoke coldly, his gaze sweeping over the three of them.
He had initially assumed this was Sephis' idea alone. Now it was obvious this had been planned for some time. All three Floor Guardians were part of it.
"So you know, Demiurge?"
Aura's usual liveliness was gone, replaced with a dark, guarded expression as she looked at him.
At the same time, Mare moved to the door and quietly blocked his path.
"I know it's unexpected, isn't it?"
"I truly never imagined that as Floor Guardians, you would dare to plot against the Supreme Ones. Who gave you the audacity?!"
Though he noticed Mare's movement, Demiurge paid it no mind. Instead, he fixed his gaze on the three of them and shouted.
He had never felt such rage before. In front of Naohara, he had restrained himself, but the moment he saw the three of them, his emotions erupted completely.
"You know too much, Demiurge."
Aura's expression darkened further at his roar. She leaned forward slightly, ready to strike at any moment.
They had to subdue him. Otherwise, none of them would walk away unscathed.
A magic circle began to form in Aura's hand, while Mare raised his staff.
This was the Eighth Floor. If the three of them coordinated properly and made use of the building's defensive magic, they could take him down without anyone noticing.
The only real trouble would be Victim outside.
"You two intend to fight me?"
Demiurge made no move. Instead, he questioned them, as if completely unconcerned about his situation.
"You're not going to resist?"
Aura stared at him in confusion. His apparent willingness to surrender unsettled her.
"And you, Sephis? Are you planning to kill me as well?"
Demiurge calmly shook his head, ignoring Aura's question and turning his gaze toward Sephis instead.
From beginning to end, Sephis had not spoken a single word. He had simply stood there in silence, watching the exchange among the three of them.
"Stop, Aura and Mare."
After locking eyes with Demiurge for a brief moment, Sephis spoke calmly to the two who were preparing to attack.
"But—"
Aura instinctively tried to object, only for Sephis's next sentence to make her abandon the thought entirely.
"This is Father-sama's command, isn't it, Demiurge?"
As he addressed Demiurge, Sephis also reminded Aura and Mare that Demiurge had come under Father-sama's orders.
He had already sensed something was off. Knowing Demiurge, if he had truly discovered their plot, he would never have come alone.
He would have brought the other Floor Guardians to surround and suppress them.
The only reason he would act this way was because of Father-sama's command. Only that could explain why Demiurge had kept everything quiet.
"It seems you're sharper than I thought, Sephis. But I still can't understand how you came up with such a treasonous plan."
With that tacit acknowledgment, the anger on Demiurge's face gradually faded. He looked at them in confusion as he spoke.
"This isn't Sephis's fault. I was the one who suggested it."
Aura stepped forward and spoke to Demiurge. Though she didn't fully grasp the situation, she understood one thing clearly: this was Father-sama's command.
Since Demiurge had come bearing Father-sama's orders, she could not attack him.
"No, it wasn't your fault. I misinterpreted the relationship between the Three Supreme Ones. My narrow view of what 'family' meant led me to such thoughts."
Sephis pulled Aura gently behind him, taking responsibility himself.
If he had realized sooner how Father-sama truly regarded the other two Supreme Ones, things would not have gone this far.
Family members teasing and joking with one another was perfectly normal. Why hadn't he thought of that before?
Sephis felt a deep pang of regret.
"Tell me in detail. Why did you come to harbor such treasonous thoughts?"
Demiurge fell silent for a moment before looking at the three of them with a solemn expression.
He needed to understand how they had arrived at this conclusion before deciding whether they were worthy of knowing the truth.
Although Naohara had vaguely hinted that this matter should not be made public, he still had to grasp the full course of events.
"I'll explain."
"It started when the three lords came to the Sixth Floor…"
The three exchanged glances. In the end, Aura stepped forward and began recounting what had happened.
As she spoke, Demiurge's expression gradually changed.
From grave to calm, then to thoughtful—until finally, it settled into sheer bewilderment.
He understood every word.
He just couldn't understand how their minds had worked that way.
"So this is the reason you intended to assassinate the Supreme Ones?"
Demiurge took a deep breath and covered his face with one hand, his voice heavy with exhaustion.
"Is there a problem?"
Aura and Mare looked at Demiurge as if to say, What now?
"From what you've said, I can clearly see the friendship and bond between the Three Supreme Ones. So why did your thoughts jump straight to testing and conspiracy?"
"Uh… maybe it's because Momonga and Herohero never show any expression. They don't exactly look like good people."
Aura scratched her head, answering somewhat uncertainly.
"I see. I'll treat this as though nothing ever happened. And the three of you—stop filling in the blanks with your imagination."
"And Sephis, Naohara is very concerned about you. He regrets what happened before. That's why he sent me to find you."
Having understood the entire situation, Demiurge let out a quiet sigh. Then he turned to Sephis and conveyed the Supreme One's will.
"Father-sama… cares about me?"
The cold indifference on Sephis's face vanished instantly. He teleported straight in front of Demiurge, his voice trembling with excitement.
"Yes. Otherwise, I wouldn't be here."
"That's great… Father-sama isn't angry with me. He still has a chance. He…"
After receiving confirmation, Sephis began murmuring to himself. The confusion and gloom that had weighed on his heart were swept away in an instant, and he seemed like himself again.
Though he hadn't shown it outwardly, the earlier incident had been gnawing at him the entire time. That conversation and reprimand had left him in constant unease.
"Aura, Mare—don't ever pass along half-understood matters to Sephis again. If Naohara hadn't anticipated this and protected you, you both know what the consequences would have been."
Demiurge warned them sternly. The two lowered their heads, faces flushed with shame. In truth, he had been inclined to throw them into prison—or even execute them outright. But as the children of a Supreme One, he had abandoned that thought.
"We understand."
Not only had they failed to help Father-sama, they had nearly caused a disaster. Aura and Mare felt terrible.
The tense atmosphere finally dissolved. With the misunderstanding cleared, the four of them returned to normal—at least on the surface.
"Is Sephis-sama here?"
A figure stepped through the doorway. Sebas scanned the room. Floating carefully beside him was a small figure—Victim.
Victim's eyes darted around, secretly observing everything inside. When he saw that nothing had happened, he quietly let out a sigh of relief.
"Sephis, I didn't stop Sebas because there was a Supreme One's order."
Drifting up to Sephis's ear, Victim explained in a hushed voice.
"It's fine. Thank you for standing guard for us, Victim."
Sephis gently patted his head and smiled.
"We're friends. There's no need to worry about something so small."
Victim's eyes curved into happy crescents, clearly pleased by the gratitude.
"Sebas, what orders do the Supreme Ones have?"
After chatting briefly with Victim, Sephis turned to Sebas and asked.
"The Three Supreme Ones have departed for the outside world. Momonga ordered me to inform you to go and ensure Naohara's safety."
"Albedo and Shalltear will accompany you."
Sebas spoke quickly, though he couldn't help glancing at Demiurge, Aura, and Mare with confusion. He didn't understand why the three of them were gathered here.
"What? Father-sama has gone to the outside world? No, I need to leave immediately."
"Thanks, Demiurge. Come visit when you have time."
"Aura, Mare—you too."
After making quick preparations and exchanging a few words, Sephis shot out of the room.
He moved so fast that the others couldn't help but stare in astonishment.
Those left behind exchanged looks. Demiurge glanced at Sebas, gave him a slight nod, and then walked out as well.
His objective was complete. He had nothing more to say to Sebas. This matter would remain buried in the depths of his memory, never to be revealed to anyone.
"I hope something like this never happens again. Otherwise, even if you are Naohara's—"
"We understand."
Demiurge's telepathic voice echoed in Aura and Mare's ears.
He could conceal this incident for Naohara's sake—but only once.