*BOOOM!*
A deafening roar continued to reverberate across the desolate wilderness of the Great Tomb of Nazarick's 8th Floor, refusing to die down even after all this time.
Listening to the tremors echoing through the air, the numerous heteromorphs gathered in the throne room on the 10th Floor no longer felt any shock but instead succumbed to a state of numbness.
It couldn't be helped.
"Albedo..."
Sitting upon the throne, Ainz spoke in a tone that, for an undead, should have been impossible—one laden with exhaustion.
"...I am here, Lord Ainz."
Albedo replied with a voice that carried a faint trace of fatigue, something that should not have been possible for a heteromorphic race like hers. Unlike when fighting Riezel, she had now removed her armor and bowed toward Ainz with a somewhat downcast expression.
Ainz, however, paid this no mind and instead asked a question.
"How long has it been?"
Ainz's question caused a complex expression to cross Albedo's face.
"It has been over a month now, Lord Ainz..." Albedo replied with a complex tone.
Even though the words that left Albedo's mouth were hard to believe, they were true—a reality.
Indeed, Riezel's battle on the 8th Floor had already lasted for over a month, or to be precise, he had been fighting for approximately 57 days.
During these 57 days, Riezel neither ate nor drank, nor did he rest or sleep, but focused on fighting Rubedo and the 8th Floor Hierarchy non-stop, without a single break, proving that his endurance and stamina were far beyond what any human should have been capable of.
It sounded utterly ridiculous and impossible, yet it had indeed happened.
Riezel had truly fought an all-out battle with Rubedo and the 8th Floor Hierarchy for over a month.
Naturally, Ainz and the others had also been watching the battle for over a month.
Had they not been heteromorphs or undead like Ainz and Shalltear, who neither tired nor required food or sleep, Riezel wouldn't have been the first to fall but would have been them.
Needless to say, this alone showed just how absurd the situation was.
"Over a month..."
Ainz let out a sigh, a mix of exhaustion and heartache.
'Keeping the 8th Floor active for over a month... How many resources has Nazarick burned through for this?'
As Ainz thought this, a sharp pain shot through his nonexistent heart.
It went without saying that he felt both mentally drained and emotionally pained, which was why he seemed so fatigued.
Of course, if even Ainz was like this, the others were no better off.
Even the heteromorph denizens of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, who were supposedly not easily worn out, had taken a toll on their mental states as they watched Riezel's unparalleled feats day after day for over a month, leaving each and every one of them feeling utterly exhausted.
In stark contrast, the figure of Riezel on the floating screen displayed a completely different energy.
Even though it was not exactly full of energy, not only were Riezel's eyes still gleaming faintly, but even after a month of bloody combat, his fighting spirit had not waned at all as he continued his relentless battle against Rubedo and the 8th Floor Hierarchy on the 8th Floor.
By now, neither Ainz nor the others felt shock or confusion over how Riezel had managed to endure for so long.
In their minds, Riezel had become the very embodiment of the term 'monster', so no matter how impossible his actions were, they could no longer bring themselves to be surprised.
In other words, they were already numb.
Now, only one thought remained in everyone's minds.
And that was—
'How long does he plan to keep fighting?'
It wasn't just Ainz and Albedo who questioned like this—even Shalltear and Demiurge found themselves numbly pondering this question.
Strangely, their instincts told them that if Riezel wanted to, he might just keep fighting indefinitely. Not just for over a month, maybe even for a year—he would probably keep going.
Of course, this wasn't some baseless assumption on their part.
Anyone who had seen Riezel in action all this time would inevitably come to the same conclusion.
He fought at full power without showing any signs of fatigue, no matter how long the battle went on, and there was no indication of him wearing down.
Not only did his combat power stay at its peak, but instead of diminishing over time, he also occasionally surpassed his limits, displaying strength far beyond his full capacity—his unwavering focus and high spirits only amplified his performance.
Injured?
He could instantly heal himself using magic.
Out of magical energy?
It didn't seem to apply to him in the slightest.
Needless to say, his stamina and magical energy seemed endless, allowing him to fight at full strength without interruption, so even if injured, he could effortlessly use magic to recover.
Up until this point, the biggest threat Rubedo and the 8th Floor Hierarchy posed to Riezel had been when they initially dealt him a fatal blow, forcing him to trigger the second ability of Divine Meloe to rewind his own time.
After that, Riezel seemed to have 'cheated', constantly casting a magic spell on himself that could avoid a fatal blow before letting loose, fighting recklessly, and ultimately battling Rubedo and the 8th Floor Hierarchy for over a month.
Tier Magic indeed contained magic spells that could nullify fatal blows, and Riezel luckily had mastered the magic spells in question.
For example, 10th-Tier Magic like 'Body of Effulgent Beryl', 'Body of Effulgent Heliodor', and 'Body of Effulgent Aquamarine' could grant immunity to a single instance of a physical attack of a corresponding attribute, even if it was fatal.
Besides them, there was also an 8th-Tier Magic used by druids called 'Aspect of Elemental' that could immunize the caster against abnormal statuses and nullify one fatal blow.
Similarly, among 9th-Tier Magic, there was a magic spell called 'Elemental Form' that provided the same kind of immunity as Aspect of Elemental.
After triggering the second ability of Divine Meloe, Riezel appeared to have learned from his mistakes and began using these magic spells consistently in battle, which kept him from suffering fatal blows or injuries that would leave him unable to fight, allowing him to continue without ever showing signs of defeat.
As for stamina and magical energy depletion?
For Riezel, these were completely negligible.
With development abilities like 'Healing Power' and 'Spirit Healing' at their highest rank, Riezel never worried about running out of stamina or magical energy.
Dia Fratel, an overpowered healing magic spell from the world of Danmachi, was also cast repeatedly from Riezel's hands as though it were cheap and limitless magic, continuously healing every minor and major injury on his body.
As for food and drink, Riezel had already resolved those issues.
One should know that this world not only had magic items that eliminated the need for eating or sleeping, but there were even magic spells capable of achieving the same effects.
Having survived in the Azerlisia Mountains for over a month, Riezel had long since equipped himself with the necessary means to remain in peak condition without food or rest when required.
With all this in place, Riezel could theoretically fight endlessly if he wanted to, and unless someone with overwhelming power crushed him outright, ignored all his countermeasures, and chopped off his head on the spot, he could just keep going.
Ainz seemed to realize the severity of this problem as he stared at the continuously depleting list of guild resources displayed on the nearby floating screen, which made the sharp pain in his heart grow even worse.
'Even after using several World Items, I still can't take him down... Damn it, if this were still a game, I'd totally be calling the GM to complain about this damn cheater...'
Over the past month, Ainz hadn't just been sitting around watching but had taken all sorts of actions to deal with Riezel.
He had released the members of Blue Roses and Brain, hoping it would make Riezel stop, but unfortunately, Riezel showed no signs of stopping and kept fighting.
He even brought all the Guardians along to the 8th Floor once, planning to combine everyone's strength to overwhelm Riezel, but that also ended in failure.
In the end, Ainz even took out some World Items from the treasury and used them on Riezel, which actually caused Riezel some trouble.
However, Riezel ultimately managed to resolve the crisis, withstand the power of the World Items, and survive until now.
At this point, not just Riezel but even the Great Tomb of Nazarick had thrown everything they had into this battle, yet neither side could take the other down, and the prolonged fight dragged on with no end in sight.
Given this, the only option left for Ainz was to use his last resort.
'Do I really have to use one of the Twenty?'
Among the World Items possessed by Ainz Ooal Gown, there was a category known as the 'Twenty', which consisted of World Items ranked within the top twenty of all World Items in YGGDRASIL, possessing unparalleled abilities and overwhelmingly powerful effects.
However, because of how absurdly strong their abilities were, they came with restrictions—once used, they would disappear.
For this reason, World Items within the Twenty were usually treated as the ultimate trump cards and final weapons. Even the top-tier player guilds wouldn't use them unless they were facing a crisis that could destroy their guild entirely.
Out of the eleven World Items in Ainz Ooal Gown's possession, two belonged to the Twenty.
Was it time to use them now?
'No, I can't.'
Ainz didn't even hesitate before rejecting the idea.
'Those are the strongest items that disappear after a single use. If we use them now, what will we do if the Great Tomb of Nazarick faces a truly hopeless crisis in the future?'
Unless an enemy managed to invade the 10th Floor, enter the throne room, and threaten to destroy the entire Great Tomb of Nazarick, Ainz would never use any of the Twenty.
In that case—
'It's time to have a proper talk.'
Ainz made up his mind and stood up from his throne.
===
"Hmm?"
On the desolate wilderness of the Great Tomb of Nazarick's 8th Floor, Riezel, whose body was already battered and covered in blood, had been about to charge at Rubedo and the 8th Floor Hierarchy when he suddenly froze in place.
It was because Rubedo and the 8th Floor Hierarchy had suddenly stopped moving and taken no further actions.
"What's going on...?"
Muttering softly, the transparent gleam in Riezel's eyes and his intense excitement gradually faded before a frown appeared on his face.
*Swish!*
Just then, numerous figures appeared all at once, gathering in front of Riezel.
"Riezel Brynhart."
Ainz, accompanied by several Floor and Area Guardians who were on high alert, spoke to Riezel in a deep, serious voice.
"Let's talk."
Upon hearing this, Riezel narrowed his eyes before finally lowering the sword he had been wielding for over a month.