"Don't let her get away."
With a cold expression and voice, the young man ordered his companions.
"Use it on her."
As soon as these words left the young man's mouth, an old woman dressed in a cheongsam, looking out of place, stepped forward from behind the young man.
It was really the kind of sight that made one want to look away without a second thought.
In fact, the cheongsam worn by the old woman wasn't bad at all and could even be said to be quite beautiful and eye-catching. It was entirely silver-white, with golden thread embroidered in the shape of a five-clawed eastern dragon soaring toward the sky.
At first glance, the cheongsam looked like a rare and priceless work of art, and if worn by a beautiful woman, it would undoubtedly elevate her charm by several levels. Unfortunately, the one wearing this exquisite cheongsam wasn't a young, beautiful woman but an elderly woman with a face full of wrinkles.
Moreover, her feet, which were exposed outside the cheongsam, looked like burdock roots or dried sweet potatoes—shriveled and wrinkled, completely unsuitable for the elegant outfit, making anyone who looked at her want to frown.
Even Shalltear, who was on the brink of frenzy, seemed to feel the same way, causing her attention to waver slightly.
No choice.
He understood that the cheongsam was probably the most top-tier item he had ever seen, not just in this world but in all the worlds he had visited.
As a result, he subconsciously stepped forward a little to get a clearer look at the cheongsam, but his intense gaze and step forward, in the eyes of others, looked as though he was preparing to attack its owner or stop her from doing whatever she intended next.
Because of this, a figure suddenly appeared behind him.
"!!!"
Sensing someone behind him, Riezel's eyes sharpened, and he immediately whipped around, swinging a sword slash that moved faster than lightning.
*DING!*
Riezel's slash collided with a finely crafted platinum greatsword, which swung toward him as well, creating a loud, resonating metal clash that could easily stir up a shockwave as they collided violently.
*Whoosh!*
A gust of wind swept up, sending Riezel and the one wielding the platinum greatsword flying apart from each other.
Such a sudden movement from Riezel naturally caught Shalltear's attention.
"What?"
Shalltear, drawn by the noise, instinctively looked in Riezel's direction.
Unfortunately for her, this move was undoubtedly a mistake.
In her mind, perhaps Riezel was the one she needed to be more wary of, the one she needed to take more seriously, which was why she paid more attention to every one of his actions.
However, in the eyes of the people who were about to attack her, this was undeniably the perfect opportunity.
"Now!"
With the young man's command, the old woman formed an inexplicable gesture with her hands, causing her cheongsam to gradually glow as the light gathered on the golden-embroidered five-clawed eastern dragon.
In the next moment, the dragon flew out from the cheongsam, roaring as it darted toward Shalltear's direction.
"?!!!"
Shalltear had only just realized what happened, but it was already too late.
"AAAAAAHHHHHH—!!!"
In an instant, as the five-clawed eastern dragon struck Shalltear, her eyes widened before she let out a scream that sounded like a death rattle, a cry filled with agony and despair.
Riezel, who had been pushed back by the force of the platinum greatsword, saw this unfold, but compared to what had been happening with Shalltear, his focus was now on the figure standing before him.
It was a figure clad entirely in platinum metal armor, akin to a knight.
On the chest of the armor was a mysterious black mark, while four kinds of weapons floated around him, hovering in mid-air.
They were a platinum greatsword, a platinum spear, a platinum katana, and a platinum hammer, each glowing with a lustrous platinum sheen, their designs both imposing and exquisite.
It seemed as though he could control these weapons from a distance, much like how Rohm could control his shadow sword, making these finely crafted weapons hover and spin around him.
Radiating an aura of incredible power, this imposing platinum knight was undoubtedly the one who had suddenly appeared behind Riezel and sneak-attacked him.
Riezel, upon seeing the platinum knight, instantly recognized him.
"It's you?"
Riezel muttered, his expression turning to surprise.
Upon hearing Riezel's mutter, the platinum knight seemed equally surprised.
"You know me?"
Asking with a slightly surprised tone, the platinum knight's voice sounded distant, as if traveling from far away, distorted in some way.
"Something like that..." Riezel didn't deny it and squinted his eyes. "But that's not important. What's important is... what do you mean by this?"
He was, of course, referring to the attack just now.
Not immediately responding, the platinum knight observed Riezel carefully for a moment before finally replying.
"She is a very dangerous entity. Since they want to deal with her, I can't just stand by and let others stop them."
Needless to say, this explained why the platinum knight had appeared behind Riezel and attacked him.
Riezel's heart eased, though his expression remained calm.
"So, does this mean I'm up against you next?"
Riezel didn't explain his actions earlier and simply stared, asking the platinum knight with a faint smile—clearly eager to fight.
Upon hearing Riezel's question, just like before, the platinum knight didn't immediately reply but kept watching Riezel instead, studying his every move.
After a moment of silence, the platinum knight spoke again.
"Are you a player?"
As soon as this question was spoken, the air around them seemed to freeze.
If Ainz were here and heard the platinum knight's question, he would probably be shocked.
Such a tone and the way the question was asked implied that the platinum knight knew about YGGDRASIL and even understood that players from YGGDRASIL could end up in this world.
Riezel hadn't expected such a question, but he smiled slightly, looking at the platinum knight with an unreadable expression.
"I see... so, in your eyes, I look like a player, huh..."
Riezel's words made the air around them feel heavier as if it had solidified.
It couldn't be helped.
Whether or not he admitted to being a player, by saying that, he had essentially told everyone that he knew about the existence of YGGDRASIL and players.
Needless to say, this fact made the platinum knight even more suspicious of his identity.
"At least, the humans of this world don't have your level of power."
With a slightly distorted voice, the platinum knight spoke in a solemn tone.
"Over the past few centuries, not many beings from any race in this world have reached your level."
"As for humans, no one has come close to such a level."
"Except for one group—the Six Great Gods who established the Slane Theocracy."
What the platinum knight meant was simple.
He believed that Riezel's power was definitely not something a native human of this world could have. Forget humans, even among the strongest race, the dragon race, there were very few with power like his.
No human could ever possess that kind of power, was all the platinum knight was trying to say.
However, the platinum knight's words only made Riezel's expression turn into something between a smile and a smirk.
"You're clearly mistaken..." Riezel shook his head. "Weren't there humans among the Thirteen Heroes who reached this level?"
As soon as he heard this, the platinum knight instantly fell into a long silence before speaking again.
"No, they weren't as strong as you..."
It seemed that the platinum knight wanted to change the subject, as his tone shifted in the next moment.
"Someone with your level of power, if they were to do evil, would bring a serious disaster to this world."
Riezel naturally understood the platinum knight's meaning, which caused his smile to disappear.
"So, you want to confirm whether I'm a threat to this world? Is that what you're trying to say?"
Riezel's slightly indifferent question didn't cause the platinum knight to react much.
"Since you're human, I guess that's the one bit of luck in this situation. I'll just tell you that, to this world, players from YGGDRASIL are a dangerous and unstable factor. I just hope you'll think this through and not make the wrong choice..."
"Otherwise..."
Upon hearing this, Riezel smiled again.
"Otherwise, what?"
Riezel's question was met with a firm answer.
"Otherwise, I'll have to eliminate you."
As the platinum knight said this, there was no arrogance in his tone, no deliberate provocation or threat, just calm but resolute determination.
Surprisingly, it was Riezel who fell silent this time.
However, just when the platinum knight thought his warning had worked, Riezel suddenly made a move.
*BOOM!*
*Bzzz—!!!*
Suddenly, Riezel's entire body erupted with crackling lightning and thunder, turning him into a flash of lightning as he shot toward the platinum knight.
"What?!"
If the platinum knight's helmet had eyes, they would surely have shrunk to the size of a needlepoint by now.
Since the distance between them wasn't far, only about ten meters, with the explosive power and speed of Thunder Breathing, not even a second was needed for Riezel to erase the gap.
"Thunder Breathing - First Form..."
A lightning bolt streaked across the air, and before the platinum knight could react, it shot toward him like a sudden flash of lightning.
"Thunderclap and Flash!"
Following these words, the lightning bolt transformed into a blade of light, and before the platinum knight could defend himself, it already crashed into his chest.
*DING—!!!*
*BOOM!* *BOOM!* *BOOM!* *BOOM!*
*BOOOM—!!!*
With a shocking sound of two metals clashing, the platinum knight was sent flying, crashing through countless trees, kicking up clouds of dust, and finally smashing into the side of a cliff, shattering it into pieces.
"Ugh!"
Embedded in a wall of stone, the platinum knight let out a sound that was either from pain or frustration.
With a forceful struggle, the platinum knight broke through the cracked stone and stepped out. Although it seemed as though he wasn't injured, his dazzling platinum armor now bore a slash mark right on the chest.
*BOOM!*
With a thunderous sound, the lightning bolt continued to roar and streak through the forest, once again appearing in front of the platinum knight.
"Thunderclap and Flash - Sixfold!"
In the next instant, the lightning bolt ricocheted around the platinum knight, striking him with one slash after another.