"Wanna test my strength?"
Riezel calmly lifted his gaze and looked at Shalltear as he threw out the question.
"Then stop sending your summons to probe me. Come at me yourself, vampire."
As soon as these words, which sounded almost like a provocation, reached Shalltear's ears, she instinctively felt anger flare up, but soon, however, the memory of her previous failure forced her to suppress her anger, making her repeatedly remind herself to stay calm.
'Not good... if I lose my composure, there's a good chance my mind will be affected by Blood Frenzy...'
Even though Shalltear had no memory of what happened before and after she was mind-controlled, the analysis from Ainz suggested that part of the reason she fell so easily to the World Item used by the Black Scripture was Blood Frenzy, a special skill with a negative effect she possessed.
Under its influence, she lost a portion of her rationality, and thanks to that semi-berserk state, she let her guard down and was easily ambushed by the Black Scripture.
If not for that, with her strength, she could have avoided the World Item's influence by acting preemptively, and at worst, she could have escaped using teleportation magic like Greater Teleportation or Gate before being mind-controlled.
Unfortunately, because of Blood Frenzy, which caused her diminished reasoning, combined with her natural disposition of not being the type to think things through, and the shared trait of most heteromorphic races in the Great Tomb of Nazarick, which was to look down on humans and disregard races outside Nazarick, everything piled up and led to her failure.
As a result, she had repeatedly warned herself to stay calm, to think things through, and not let external factors influence her. No matter what happened, she couldn't afford another mission failure that would disappoint her lord.
With such a warning still fresh in her mind, she recalled the report Demiurge had sent her via 'Message' yesterday, telling her that Riezel had been spotted in the royal capital, delivering the information in a serious tone.
"If Riezel Brynhart really comes to you, delay him as much as possible and trap him on your side. If a fight becomes unavoidable, prioritize gathering intel about that man's strength."
In truth, those in the Great Tomb of Nazarick had long wanted to study Riezel, especially Ainz, who was constantly thinking about collecting information on Riezel—not just his origins but also his actual combat capabilities.
What kind of warrior was he?
What type of combat was he most skilled at?
Was he a close-combat expert, or did he excel in ranged combat?
If he was proficient in close combat, what kind of techniques did he use?
If he specialized in magic, which forms of magic was he most adept at?
All of these questions were things Ainz wanted to know urgently—and by extension, what everyone in the Great Tomb of Nazarick wanted to know.
Ainz was the type to act only after careful preparation, excelling at intelligence warfare. Even in a one-on-one duel, he would first gather as much information as possible about his opponent and then formulate a strategy to maximize his chances of victory.
For this reason, Ainz had long considered the idea of engaging Riezel early to discern his true abilities and prepare for the possibility of him becoming an enemy.
Now, this mission had conveniently fallen to Shalltear.
"Listen, this is a chance to redeem yourself. Even if you lose to that man, it's fine as long as you uncover his true strength."
Demiurge's serious words echoed clearly in Shalltear's mind.
"After all, your role there is just to be a cage and act as bait. Our prey is already approaching, and with Riezel Brynhart as an unexpected bonus, everything is in your hands, Shalltear."
Recalling Demiurge's words, Shalltear took a deep breath.
'I'll complete this mission, no matter what.'
With her determination set, Shalltear began chanting her magic.
"Regenerate."
"Power of Gaia."
"Greater Resistance."
"Magic Boost."
"Sensor Boost."
"Sanctuary Protection."
As Shalltear chanted one magic spell after another, waves of magical energy shimmered around her body, instantly enhancing her with multiple battle-effective magic spells that significantly boosted her abilities.
Seeing this, Riezel's eyes narrowed slightly, then he began to chant his magic as well.
"Body of Effulgent Beryl."
"Energy Immunity - Negative."
"Greater Full Potential."
"Magic Boost."
"Paranormal Intuition."
"Fly."
As Riezel chanted his magic, layers of magical energy radiated brightly around his body.
If the members of Blue Roses or Brain had been here to witness this moment, they would have been utterly shocked.
Why?
Because the magic spells that Riezel and Shalltear were casting at this moment almost entirely surpassed the 6th Tier, with the lowest tier among them being at least 7th Tier, and some even reaching the realm of 10th Tier—magic spells that were considered genuine miracles in this world, magic spells that could only be wielded by gods.
Yet Riezel and Shalltear were not only casting these high-tier magic spells one after another so effortlessly but were doing so with such ease and familiarity, as though this was the kind of magic they casually used in their everyday lives.
"Time Accelerator!"
Shalltear made the first move, activating time magic.
In the next second, her entire figure vanished from sight, stepping into a dimension where time flowed with a completely different viscosity.
"Time Stop!"
Riezel responded with time magic of his own without hesitation.
In an instant, the entire world seemed to freeze, and time itself had come to a complete halt.
Shalltear's form reappeared behind Riezel, her Spuit Lance thrusting forward—its tip only five centimeters away from piercing through his back.
Riezel reacted instantly, turning and drawing his sword.
*Swish!*
A lightning-infused slash tore through the air as if cutting through the frozen flow of time itself, allowing time to resume its natural course.
Of course, the resumption of time wasn't because Riezel had truly sliced through frozen time but due to the inherent limitation of time magic, where during its activation, one couldn't perform any attack.
By initiating an attack, Riezel automatically dispelled Time Stop, restoring the flow of time, causing both his weapon and Shalltear's to strike their respective targets simultaneously.
*Pu-chi!*
Riezel's slash tore across Shalltear's chest, making blood splatter from her front.
*BOOM!*
At the same time, Shalltear's Spuit Lance crashed into Riezel's body with a deafening impact.
However, despite their mutual attacks hitting their targets, the results were far from identical.
"AAARGH—!"
Shalltear let out a wail as her body was sent flying, blood spraying in the air.
*Zing—*
Meanwhile, a radiant green glow enveloped Riezel's body, completely nullifying the damage caused by Shalltear's Spuit Lance.
Needless to say, this was the effect of the 10th-Tier Magic, Body of Effulgent Beryl, which could reduce blunt damage for a period of time and completely negate one instance of blunt damage.
Even though Shalltear's Spuit Lance appeared to be a thrusting weapon, it actually carried blunt-attribute attacks, which allowed it to trigger the effects of Body of Effulgent Beryl.
Under such circumstances, Riezel avoided all damage, while Shalltear ended up wounded by his slash, blood spilling as she was forced back.
'My defensive magic didn't work?!'
Shalltear's face twisted in pain, her expression contorted by the torment.
Clearly, the magic she had used earlier, Greater Resistance and Sanctuary Protection, both had defensive effects.
Greater Resistance significantly reduced attribute-based damage, while Sanctuary Protection enhanced physical defense.
With both of these magic active, Riezel's slash, which seemed to carry a lightning attribute, should have been weakened significantly and then entirely blocked by the legendary-class armor Shalltear was wearing.
Yet, Riezel's slash still dealt considerable damage to Shalltear with ease.
How?
It was obviously because of the effect from Pioneer of the Sun, a skill that inflicted special damage against enemies with an evil nature.
Even though Shalltear had used magic to reduce the damage, the special damage effect from Pioneer of the Sun still ensured she was hurt. If not for the legendary-class armor she wore, which acted as a dampener, Riezel's slash could have gutted her on the spot.
"Thunder Breathing - Fifth Form - Heat Lightning!"
Riezel swung his sword again, releasing a slash crackling with lightning bolts and scorching heat, aiming it straight at Shalltear.
"Force Sanctuary!"
Shalltear immediately cast another defensive magic, summoning a white light barrier that rose from the ground and enveloped her.
*BOOM!*
In an instant, the blazing, lightning-like slash struck the white light barrier, causing a muffled explosion and making it tremble slightly before deflecting the attack.
'Tch, this magic again?'
Riezel instantly recognized the magic Shalltear used.
Back in the northern forests of E-Rantel, she had used this magic before to block many of Moon Breathing's attacks. Not only did this magic have a very high durability value, but as long as the durability wasn't reduced to zero, he couldn't break through to attack her no matter what.
Naturally, she couldn't attack him either.
Force Sanctuary was, after all, a defensive magic that completely separated the inside and outside into two isolated spaces, preventing any attacks from either side.
Shalltear's goal in using this magic was simple—to buy time to recover.
With the magic she had cast earlier, Regenerate, she could gradually restore her health points over time, as proven by how her body now glowed faintly with magical light while the wound on her chest was slowly healing.
In the past, Riezel might have wasted time repeatedly attacking to break through the protection of Force Sanctuary, but now, he wasn't about to give Shalltear that luxury.
"Magic Destruction."
Riezel reached out toward Shalltear and unleashed a new magic.
*PENG!*
In an instant, the white light barrier surrounding Shalltear shattered under the surge of Riezel's magical energy, disappearing without a trace.
"What?!"
Shalltear's expression shifted slightly.
Magic Destruction, as the name implied, nullified any magic-made objects, rendering them ineffective.
However, this magic still had a limitation—if the opponent's magic prowess surpassed the caster's, it wouldn't completely dispel their magic.
By how Riezel dispelled Shalltear's magic in an instant, leaving her powerless, it was clear that his magic prowess evidently exceeded hers.
"Maximize Magic - Brilliant Radiance."
Riezel immediately cast another magic, summoning a burst of holy light that descended from the sky, slamming into Shalltear.
It was holy-attribute magic, exceptionally effective against undead beings like Shalltear, capable of dealing massive damage. To maximize its power, Riezel had even fully enhanced the magic with Maximize Magic, pushing its damage to the limit.
Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned this time.
"Don't think holy-attribute attacks will work on me!"
Exclaiming this, Shalltear burst out of the holy light unscathed, her body showing no signs of damage before she quickly swung her Spuit Lance, sending it hurtling toward Riezel. It roared through the air with a deafening sonic boom before crashing into him.
*BOOM!*
Riezel was sent flying, his body skidding backward, but fortunately, he barely managed to stop himself in time, avoiding slamming into the wall.
"I see... so you're wearing a magic item that reduces damage from holy-attribute attacks, huh..." Riezel muttered calmly.
Using the Transparent World, he caught a faint glimpse of what was beneath Shalltear's armor—an activated item radiated a faint light, clearly the culprit providing her with enhanced defense against holy-attribute attacks.
"I'm undead, so of course, holy-attribute attacks are pretty bad for me. But seriously, did you think I'm a fool and wouldn't have some kind of countermeasure against that?"
Shalltear responded with a sneer, then coldly raised Spuit Lance.
In the next moment, Spuit Lance, with a tube-like section resembling a test vial in its center, suddenly rotated. It acted like a giant syringe, channeling power into Shalltear and causing her chest wound to begin healing at an accelerated pace.
It was none other than Spuit Lance's ability—absorbing a portion of the damage inflicted on enemies and converting it into healing for its wielder, restoring their health points. Under the influence of this divine-class item, even the special damage inflicted by Pioneer of the Sun was ultimately nullified, leaving Shalltear completely healed.
"Looks like we're back to square one, huh?"
Riezel, holding his sword in one hand and casually brushing the dust off his clothes with the other, spoke in a voice that sounded calm and nonchalant while his eyes sparkled with clear excitement.
Shalltear, who had been carefully observing Riezel, analyzing his movements, and gathering information on him, noticed this phenomenon, causing her heart to quiver slightly.
'Don't tell me he's... enjoying this fight?' Shalltear thought incredulously, her eyes widening.
Yes.
Riezel was indeed enjoying the fight—or more precisely, he was enjoying a fight against an evenly matched opponent.
"As I thought, fighting someone like you is way more fun. You know, it's been a long time since I felt this familiar thrill..."
Riezel continued with a slight smile as he began to walk slowly toward Shalltear, his sword firmly in hand.
"By the way, just curious... what's Nazarick up to? Causing chaos at the Slane Theocracy and then messing with the Re-Estize Kingdom's underworld... what's the goal here?"
"What's that lord of yours planning?"
"Or maybe... Nazarick has finally decided to step into the spotlight?"
Upon hearing Riezel's questions, Shalltear laughed, laughing with pride.
"How can the ruler of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, the Supreme Being, Lord Ainz Ooal Gown, ever be satisfied with the current state of things?"
"Sadly, someone like you, a mere human, can never understand what our great lord is thinking."
"In the end, the only thing you people can do is submit to our Supreme Being, bowing under the rule of Lord Ainz."
"For someone like you, that will be the greatest honor."
Speaking with pride and arrogance, Shalltear locked eyes with Riezel—their gazes clashed, sparking an intense rivalry.
In the next second, they both charged at each other simultaneously and continued their fight.