Sometimes, running away is not cowardice. Sometimes, it is simply a way to survive until the day of final victory.
Herohero believed that rather than sit around waiting for disaster to strike, they should first eliminate their immediate concerns and secure themselves an escape route.
The Great Tomb of Nazarick.
It was a Guild Base-type dungeon with a total recommended clear level of 80 or higher, and it had both advantages and disadvantages.
Its greatest advantage was its formidable defense. Nazarick might not have been the strongest when it came to attacking others, but when it came to defending its home turf, it was unquestionably the best in the game. After all, even an invasion force of 1,500 Players had failed to conquer it.
Furthermore, because Nazarick had been the first dungeon on the entire server with a recommended level of 80 or higher to be cleared on the very first attempt, the Guild had obtained the World-Class Item [Throne of Kings].
This item granted the entire Guild Base a World Guardian buff.
It could completely block magical reconnaissance from outside and protect everything within the Guild Base from the effects of other World-Class Items.
Even if the enemy used one of the [Twenty], or an effect designed to bypass defenses against information-type magic, it would still be useless.
It protected the Great Tomb of Nazarick from all outside interference, making it almost like a small, independent world of its own.
Its weakness, however, was equally obvious. It could not move. Nazarick was a fixed stronghold.
If an enemy came to attack, they could only remain where they were and fight back.
Herohero's idea was to solve that problem first.
For the time being, they could set aside the matter of the Devourer of the Nine Worlds and focus their efforts on conquering the Demon Plane.
The first objective was advancing the Guild Weapon.
Once the five World-Class Items known as [Caloric Stones] were fused into a single whole, they would undoubtedly develop entirely new abilities, perhaps even the ability to move the Guild Base itself.
The second objective was to turn the Demon Plane into an escape route.
If the Devourer of the Nine Worlds truly descended and they proved powerless to resist it, they could at least take Nazarick with them and flee to the Demon Plane for refuge.
Survival took precedence over everything else.
At worst, they could keep their heads down and build up their strength for a few thousand years. Once they were finally strong enough, they could come back and settle the score with Kuyō.
...
"Hmm, I think that works."
Momonga readily nodded. He had always been cautious by nature, so he strongly agreed with Herohero's proposal.
Thinking about running away before they had even met the enemy was admittedly a little embarrassing, but so what?
He was not so stubborn that pride would blind him. If circumstances truly demanded it, he would abandon Nazarick without hesitation.
The Guild was precious because it was the home he and his companions had created together.
It was not that the home came first, and the companions followed.
The companions came first. The home came afterward.
As long as Naohara, Herohero, and he remained together, anywhere the three of them stayed could be called Nazarick.
It was just like before their transmigration, when the game was approaching its Server Shutdown and he had invited the other two to play a different game with him.
[We can adventure together, level up together, and build our very own Nazarick all over again!]
Even now, he could not forget those words.
(P.S.: That's Chapter 14.)
The best feature any game could possibly offer was friends. What truly mattered was being able to play together with them.
Even after ten years, a hundred years, or even a thousand years, he would never forget that.
Undead, by their very nature, tended to possess certain obsessions.
Momonga was no exception. He had his obsession with magic and his obsession with protecting Nazarick.
And then there was his obsession with being willing to give up all of that for his companions.
Momonga silently looked at the two people before him.
As though sensing something, Naohara turned his head and met Momonga's gaze.
The two stared at each other for a moment before sharing a knowing smile.
"Then we'll go with Blackie's plan."
Communication between the three of them had always been simple.
Whenever two of them agreed on something, the remaining person would generally go along with it without much thought.
Conversely, if even one of them raised an objection, all three would discard the previous decision and discuss the matter again from that point until they reached a conclusion everyone could accept.
With Momonga having already expressed his support, Naohara made the final decision.
"So, my friend, you've been listening for quite a while. What do you think?"
The three of them then turned toward the side in unison.
At the dining table, the eavesdropping Minotaur Sage stiffened.
Tsk. He knew this was coming eventually.
"Um... I think what you're saying makes a lot of sense. Ahem. I'm investing in this project. That's right! I absolutely have to invest!"
Given his current situation, resistance was obviously out of the question. If he had dared to resist them, he would have done so back in the Roble Holy Kingdom.
Since he could not beat them, his only option was to find a way to join them.
For now, these three fellow countrymen did not seem to harbor any ill will toward him. Perhaps that had something to do with what he had done in the Roble Holy Kingdom.
And although the three of them had just rattled off a whole bunch of things, some of which he had not fully understood, there was one point he had definitely caught.
They seemed to have a way to escape from this world!
It was possible they were deceiving him, but given his current circumstances, there did not seem to be any reason for them to go to such unnecessary lengths.
The Minotaur Sage freely speculated about the Players' intentions.
Finally, he gritted his teeth, abruptly stood up, pulled an item from his backpack, and slapped it onto the table.
It was an emerald-green item shaped like a leaf.
Naohara activated his detection ability, and information about the item's name appeared.
World-Class Item, [Yggdrasil · Leaf].
"That was surprisingly decisive."
The Minotaur Sage's actions caught Naohara and the other two somewhat off guard.
They had originally intended to talk things through with him first.
Instead, he had proved unexpectedly cooperative and handed over his World-Class Item on his own initiative.
It seemed that allowing him to listen in earlier had worked rather well. It had saved them quite a bit of persuasion.
[Yggdrasil · Leaf]
World-Class Items were created from the leaves of the destroyed Yggdrasil. Given that fact, the name of the item before them was certainly as straightforward as it could get.
Naohara and the other two were no strangers to this particular World-Class Item.
Back during the game, the developers had stated that there were a total of 200 World-Class Items.
Aside from obtaining them by meeting certain requirements, such as defeating the [Lords of the Seven Deadly Sins], Players could also explore the game world and discover World-Class Items randomly scattered throughout it.
Of course, simply taking a World-Class Item from another Player by force was also an option.
If word got out that someone possessed a World-Class Item, there would inevitably be Players who came looking to steal it. Because of that, most owners kept their possession secret and did their best to prevent outsiders from finding out.
Nazarick had done the same.
That was until a Guild known as [Three Burning Eyes] appeared.
(P.S.: This is from the original novel's setting.)
This Guild had a particular passion for collecting information about World-Class Items.
Using information gathered through various means, they compiled details on 50 World-Class Items and posted everything on a wiki they had created themselves.
Naturally, this caused an enormous uproar.
Although it greatly expanded the Players' knowledge of World-Class Items, it also resulted in numerous lone-wolf Players who possessed such items being hunted down. Even Guild members who ventured outside were targeted.
Unsurprisingly, this enraged both the Players and Guilds that possessed World-Class Items.
In the end, several powerful Guilds joined forces and wiped out the [Three Burning Eyes].
Naohara and the other two had already known that the Minotaur Sage must possess a World-Class Item, since he could not have transmigrated without one.
They simply had not expected it to be this one.
***
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