Rubedo was faster than Cocytus, surging ahead to slam straight into EeDechi's giant sword.
Explosive sword energy detonated between them. Blood streamed down EeDechi's face, yet her fighting spirit only burned brighter, and she showed no sign of slowing as she traded brutal blows with Rubedo.
"Your sword," Rubedo parried EeDechi's blade, then flipped backward into the sky and gathered her power, "is actually blunt!"
"So what?" EeDechi roared, swinging her sword to knock aside Shalltear's thrusting Spuit Lance.
"A blunt sword can't kill anyone!" Rubedo bellowed. She raised her blade high overhead and brought it crashing down. EeDechi lifted her own sword to block, but the force drove her straight into the earth. The ground shattered open into a colossal crater, sand and stone exploding outward.
"Cough!" EeDechi spat another mouthful of blood. She knew she couldn't drag this out any longer—stay and she was dead. She had to escape!
Smoke and dust choked the sky above the battlefield. EeDechi suddenly burst from the crater and unleashed her Martial Art. She became a streak of black lightning, weaving through the ruins and fighting as she retreated.
"EeDechi's wearing some weird gear that blocks detection magic!" Ainz flew toward them at full speed, shouting orders to the level-100 guardians. "We have to rely on our senses! Stay sharp and don't let her slip away again!"
"Found her!"
Rubedo caught sight of EeDechi's dark silhouette. A savage grin spread across her face. She blurred into a high-speed afterimage and charged forward, swinging her ten-meter greatsword in a furious arc. "Take this! Crimson Explosive Slash!"
EeDechi barely managed to lift her sword in time to block. The crushing impact sent her flying like a baseball, her black silhouette punching straight through the outer wall of E-Rantel and slamming deep into the forest beyond the city.
"What the hell is wrong with you? Why'd you knock EeDechi that far?!" Cocytus glared at Rubedo.
"Tch. You're just jealous," Rubedo shot back with a glare of her own. "Jealous that your strength doesn't even come close to mine."
"Quiet, Rubedo!" Ainz snapped. "Stop arguing and go finish off EeDechi already!"
...
In the silent forest, EeDechi dropped to her knees, struggling for breath. Every inch of her body burned with pain. After battling several level-100 guardians at once, her stamina was almost completely spent.
She forced herself back to her feet and gripped her giant sword tight once more.
"Wait… something's off." EeDechi suddenly sensed it.
The sharp mental sting in her mind from [Super] Depiction of Nature and Society… had vanished. And the spot where she now stood seemed to be outside E-Rantel's sealed zone.
The World Item [Super] Depiction of Nature and Society was no longer sealing the area.
"Franco actually came through for once." EeDechi let out a relieved breath. Certain she had escaped, she spun on her heel and sprinted away from E-Rantel, plunging into the thick woods and vanishing in a flash.
The ground shook violently as several streaks of glowing light slammed into the earth, sending the towering trees crashing down in every direction.
"Find EeDechi now! That damn adventurer can't have gone far! We're still at the edge of Depiction of Nature and Society's extra-dimensional zone!" Ainz commanded his guardians, voice ringing with absolute certainty.
"Lord Ainz… Lord Ainz… I…"
Aura's trembling voice drifted down from the sky. For some reason her tone was thick with sobs, as if she were terrified of something.
"What is it? Report immediately!" Ainz snapped impatiently.
Aura's small face had gone deathly pale. She stammered, "Lord Ainz… my World Item [Super] Depiction of Nature and Society is gone… I… I had it hovering in the sky just a moment ago, but now I can't sense it at all…"
"Impossible!" Ainz's eyes widened in shock. He suddenly realized their current location was already far beyond E-Rantel's outskirts—they had completely left the range of Depiction of Nature and Society.
That meant the World Item [Super] Depiction of Nature and Society had been broken, and its ownership had been transferred!
"EEDECHI!!!"
Ainz threw his head back and let out a long, furious howl. Wild rage mixed with surging waves of magic exploded skyward, blasting a vast clearing right in the heart of the forest.
Rage consumed him, but there was nothing he could do. The helplessness burned deeper than any wound.
...
In the blink of an eye, EeDechi had already fled nearly ten thousand meters away. She kept running outward without stopping until her stamina finally ran dry. Exhausted, she forced herself onward through the thick mountain woods.
Once she was sure she had reached an uninhabited mountain range, EeDechi found a large rock and sat down. She slowly steadied her ragged breathing, then pulled a big bottle of water, white bread, and strips of dried beef from her spatial ring. Not caring whether any of it was cooked, she tore into it with huge bites, chewing and swallowing fast to restore her strength.
The countless wounds covering her body slowly closed under her powerful regeneration.
"Gotta find my teammates first," EeDechi sighed. "If only Barrett were here. Can't do without that guy when it comes to cooking." She tossed a piece of dry, tough salted mutton into her mouth, her cheeks bulging full.
By the time she finished eating, the sky had already gone dark. After killing a reckless Owlbear that didn't know any better, EeDechi rested her head on the soft, thick bearskin and sank into a deep sleep. While she slept, her body mended its hidden injuries and shook off the exhaustion from the day's fighting.
The next morning at dawn, EeDechi slowly woke up. She gave a long, satisfying stretch, feeling refreshed and full of energy.
She pulled out her map and studied it for a while. Without Barrett's rich wilderness experience, EeDechi had no idea exactly where she was.
After thinking it over, she decided to head south and figure things out one step at a time. First she would cross the Slane Theocracy, then make for the Eight Greed Kings desert. From the Vast Stellar Gate in the Eight Greed Kings desert, she would reach the City Alliance in the northeast of the continent.
An ordinary adventurer facing a setback this huge might have already crawled into a corner and shut down completely. But EeDechi was different. She wasn't discouraged in the slightest—she stayed optimistic through it all. That was probably the spirit of dauntless revolutionary optimism.
"Aetherial Secret Coffer, come!"
EeDechi silently chanted the spell. Moments later the Aetherial Secret Coffer smashed through the trees and flew straight to her feet.
She lifted the massive chest with one hand and strode forward with long, confident steps. If she couldn't find Franco and Barrett, EeDechi decided she would head to the City Alliance alone and repair the Apocalyptic Mourning Bell skyship by herself.
She wasn't worried about her two teammates. With their skills, even after leaving the adventurer party and avoiding the Sorcerer Kingdom's attention, they could still make a good life for themselves wherever they ended up.
"Oh right," EeDechi thought to herself. "Shalltear mentioned once that if someone successfully cracked the [Super] Depiction of Nature and Society, its ownership would transfer straight to the one who broke it." A grin spread across her face. "Looks like Franco just hit the jackpot."