"Looks like aside from that World-Class Item, they didn't have any other backup plan."
Watching the Guardians leave one after another, Herohero finally let out a breath and turned to Naohara and Momonga.
"Haha, we really gave them a scare back there."
"Momonga, your spells [Suggestion] and [Maximize Emotion] worked beautifully."
With only the three of them left, Naohara loosened up, reached out, and gave Momonga a friendly pat on the shoulder as he laughed.
The mood shifted instantly, turning from eerie tension into easy laughter.
"Good. At least nothing went wrong."
Momonga waved a bony hand.
His feelings were complicated. The plan had gone off without a hitch, yet he couldn't shake a strange sense of emptiness.
They had pulled out a World-Class Item. They had even gathered the Guardians. He had been fully prepared for a hard-fought battle, and this was all it amounted to?
He had even been looking forward to fighting side by side with his friends, something that would really get the blood pumping.
He had already come up with a name for it, too: [The Great Tomb of Nazarick New World Blitz Operation!]
Seeing the sulky look on Momonga's face, Naohara thought for a moment, then produced a bag from thin air and handed it over.
"What's this?"
Momonga came back to himself and looked at the bag.
"An item I picked up in the New World. It's called the [Crown of Wisdom]. It's a magic item that doesn't exist in the game."
"The effect is… decent, I guess. More importantly, it's a good collector's piece," Naohara explained.
To be honest, he thought it was pretty weak. But since it was a magic item that didn't come from Yggdrasil, he figured Momonga would be interested, so he brought it out.
"A New World magic item?"
Momonga's eye-lights flared red. The gloom he'd been feeling vanished in an instant. He took the [Crown of Wisdom] out of the bag and began examining it with obvious interest.
Just as Naohara had expected, as a hoarder-type player, Momonga had a strong collector's streak. As long as it was something he had never seen before, he would want to add it to his collection, regardless of how useful it actually was.
He knew it probably wasn't worth much in practice, but if he didn't take it, he'd feel like he'd taken a huge loss.
"Speaking of which, I've got something for you two as well."
Herohero stepped closer. Floating above his pitch-black arm were two pale blue seeds, immediately drawing their attention.
"These are Talent Seeds I got from swallowing something earlier. They can help us awaken [Martial Art]. I've already tested them. They work."
Herohero sounded faintly pleased with himself.
From their earlier talk, he knew Naohara craved New World power so he could keep getting stronger, and [Martial Art] fit that perfectly. It wasn't much, but even a little added up.
Momonga, meanwhile, was also curious about this so-called warrior-exclusive power of the New World, so it would satisfy his desire to learn as well.
"Nicely done, Blackie. Now that's a pleasant surprise."
Naohara took the seed from Herohero and swallowed it on the spot.
Dragonoids had exceptional learning ability. Naohara had long memorized the knowledge behind Martial Arts. The only reason he couldn't use them before was that he lacked the final key.
Herohero's Talent Seed was that key.
A flash of light burst from his body as the Martial Arts [Ability Boost] and [Greater Ability Boost] activated.
Feeling the enhancement, completely different from magical buffs, Naohara flexed his dragon claws and carefully sensed the changes in his body. A faint smile appeared on his face.
His strength had indeed increased. Not by much, but enough.
Momonga also ran a quick test and confirmed that his attributes had risen. He felt quietly delighted.
Everyone knew Martial Arts and magic did not interfere with each other, which meant he could stack even more buffs.
That strange sense of security increased yet again.
"Thank you, Naohara, Herohero. I really like your gifts."
Momonga spoke sincerely. Whether it was the item Naohara gave him or the Talent Seed from Herohero, both made him genuinely happy.
Momonga treasured moments like this with his companions more than anything.
"It's nothing. We did dump most of Nazarick's work on you, after all."
"You're not some tool. We came to this New World together. Of course we support each other."
"If you're happy, we're happy. That's what matters."
Naohara shook his head lightly as he spoke. Herohero nodded vigorously in agreement.
"Naohara's right."
The three of them continued chatting and laughing. Naohara recounted stories of adventurers besieging cities of the undead. Herohero talked about wiping out bands of thieves. Momonga complained about the mountain of paperwork waiting for him in Nazarick.
Whenever the conversation hit an amusing point, the three would burst into laughter at the same time. The sight of a skeleton, a slime, and a Dragonoid laughing together was undeniably unsettling.
Although their races had changed, it had not driven a wedge between them. If anything, they cherished their friendship even more.
Before they knew it, they sensed the Guardians returning, and their casual conversation came to a stop.
...
In the end, the Black Scripture failed to escape. If they had managed to get away, that would have been the strange outcome.
One after another, the Guardians returned, each carrying unconscious members of the Black Scripture.
"That's… pretty brutal."
Looking at the mangled mass of flesh on the ground that could barely be recognized as once human, Naohara shot Shalltear a helpless glance.
The burly man known as [Myriad Barriers] was dead. He had been played to death by Shalltear.
Noticing Naohara's gaze, Shalltear's already uneasy expression turned even more pitiful, as though she were on the verge of tears.
"Was it [Blood Frenzy]?" Naohara asked softly.
"Yes, Naohara-sama."
Shalltear's petite body trembled slightly as she answered in a small voice.
"Peroroncino really did a number on that design."
Herohero shook his head and complained. The attack boost wasn't that impressive, but the negative side effects were piled high.
"Tabula Smaragdina shares some of the blame. Something about gap moe. And you know Peroroncino's personality. That's how it ended up like this."
Momonga added, making it clear it wasn't just one person's fault.
"Forget it. This isn't your fault, Shalltear. Still, try not to use [Blood Frenzy] if you can. You need to keep your instincts in check."
"Don't let your desires drown out your reason."
Naohara sighed and spoke gently.
He would never reprimand Shalltear over an outsider's death. Even if she had gone too far, that didn't change the fact that she was one of theirs.
"I understand."
Shalltear let out a breath of relief. She had braced herself for punishment, but nothing came.
Though relieved, she felt a faint hint of disappointment. She had even imagined being harshly disciplined by a Supreme Being.
Momonga and Herohero exchanged a glance and nodded. They had no objections to Naohara's decision. Their earlier comments had been meant to soften the situation for Shalltear.
Still, it had to be Naohara who said it.
From the Guardians' perspective, this was a failure to carry out a Supreme Being's order, a serious offense that warranted punishment.
Cocytus, in particular, clearly felt that way.
If Momonga or Herohero had tried to excuse Shalltear, Cocytus might have objected and insisted on further discipline. But when Naohara spoke, that was different.
In the eyes of the Guardians, Naohara was gentle and merciful. If he chose to forgive, even Cocytus would accept it.
Given Cocytus' personality, he might even feel moved and resolve to serve the Supreme Beings with even greater devotion.
"Now then, it's time to gather information."
Momonga looked down at the figures lying at their feet and stepped forward.
Next, they would begin extracting intelligence.