At first, I didn't believe it.
A prisoner vanishing straight into thin air. No trace or residue of the magic responsible for the vanishing remained. I knew a lot of spells and skills, even new world techniques, and nothing could've pierced through Nazarick's defenses without setting off a few danger signals.
"Ainz-sama! Please punish me for this grave incompetence!"
Even world items, powerful as they were, still left some traces and signs of use. Demiurge was, for the first time, stumped. He didn't have any explanations for the sudden disappearance and was already offering himself for a supposedly just and deserved punishment.
"Ainz-sama! This incompetent guardian is in need for a massive correction!"
The prisoner, Naofumi Iwatani, was from a country called Japan. That was my country as well, but the way he described it, it seemed like Japan from the past. Not the Japan I knew. Demiurge had the entire conversation recorded, and then he gave me a summary of it.
Some of the terms that Naofumi described were alien to Demiurge. So Demiurge, with violent precision, squeezed as much context as he could about mundane things to the point where I had to intervene, considering Demiurge was asking about what a 'video game' was.
"Ainz-sama! I have already informed Neuronist of my failure! I shall take any extreme punishment for my incompetence!"
Naofumi was apparently the shield hero, tasked with saving this magical world, but the world hated him. Anyways, I lost interest in his past and history. I only wanted to know if they had any run-ins or affiliations with that Sung-bastard.
The answer was no. They had no affiliations nor any connections.
"Ainz-sama, please, punish me as you see fit. This kind of mistake shouldn't have happened, and I fully take the blame for my incompetence to carry out your orders and vision."
"I swear to god, Demiurge's worse than Albedo. My head is effing aching right now."
Demiurge pleaded while he was in a kowtow position. It was my first time seeing him talk with emotion other than sycophancy and religious-like devotion. I didn't want to punish him; I had him investigated for possible betrayals, but there wasn't anything conclusive.
Demiurge was simply a victim of some powerful ability.
The other prisoners remained quiet. They, too, were investigated, but they had nothing to do with it. All their unique abilities were logged and accounted for; they also knew better than to set something like escape.
I rubbed my bony head, feeling my emotional suppression trait kick in again. Nazarick was in a state of panic and emergency. All expensive dormant security measures were activated, and the guardians themselves were in a battle mode.
"Demiurge, please go back to tending the prisoners. You are more useful there; you've been investigated several times, and you were found to be innocent. Please go back to your station already."
"Ainz-sama. My incompetence remained. I allowed it to happen!"
"Demiurge! I won't say it again. Go back to your station. Take a break if you must, but do not present yourself to me like this again. What happened a few days ago was not your fault. You need to stop blaming yourself."
I was tired from it all. Very tired. At this point, the entire Nazarick and I were basically fueled with hate and abhorrence. We advanced, driven by unbridled hatred. All we wanted to do was right the wrongs that our enemies have inflicted on us.
All available resources were directed to the revanchist effort. All of us were out for blood.
If we achieve our vengeance. We are going to evacuate all assets from these thresholds and forget this whole place ever existed. I no longer see any valuable prospects in this place since it was littered with insurmountable dangers.
The more we try to hold on from this place, the more it will take from us. The guardians will likely balk at this idea of mine, but some will undoubtedly support me. Sebas was especially tired of this place.
Sebas, the head of the Pleiades, is clearly still suffering from some survivor's guilt. The concept was rather new to him and some of the guardians, and I helped them go through it. I had already gone through that kind of feeling when my mother died.
Anyways, to put it shortly, I want nothing out of this goddamned backrooms anymore. The question of the backroom prisoners was left to hang for now.
Anyways, on to the matter at hand. Albedo arrived and handed me a document. Surveillance documents and dossiers.
The disappearance of that prisoner was logged but slightly deprioritized for now. I am extremely certain that whatever it was, it had nothing to do with our current revanchist ambitions and bloodlust.
...
...
...
Demiurge, Albedo, Pandora's Actor, Sebas, and I were in the throne room. We were discussing the next possible steps. I gazed at the flags of my former comrades again. If the wish was successful, it was possible to visit the real world.
My world.
I wanted to save my former allies and guildmates. But before that, I sighed and glanced at the guardians who were currently discussing a certain city and its gathered intelligences.
A week ago, Demiurge had a breakthrough. He offered me a dozen precise phrasings designed to extract the best possible results from a wish. [ Wish Upon A Star ] was not a malevolent nor monkey pawed granter of wishes, but you do need to be precise.
The [ Shooting Star ] ring was ready and so was the best possible variation to let me open gateways to other worlds. There was only one reason for this kind of wish: the absolute total vengeance against Nazarick's biggest offenders.
Mercy shall not be granted to them.
They shall be subjected to eternal pain and torment.
And I will enjoy every single second of it.
Lupusregine Beta, Solution Epsilon, and Veta Vasilissa Zeta will be returned to the fold. They will become the loyal servants of Nazarick again, and I will not hesitate to use my [ Shooting Star ] ring again to bring them back.
Now then, an outright invasion would alert the offenders. Albedo and Pandora's Actor recommended prioritizing infiltration and intelligence gathering before launching an attack to destroy their world.
I didn't want destruction.
I didn't want a genocide, but my guardians were out for blood.
I suggested limiting the destruction of their current location. They accepted without question. Now, then, the city of Priestella. What a wonderful sight it was, based on the descriptions given. It was almost a shame to see it destroyed, almost.
(The next chapter is Nazarick finally going to another world.)