Overlord of biblical proportions: Return of the Biblical God (25)

Pandora's Actor followed after Kiba, maintaining the young devil's walking speed without much trouble—after all, although devils surpassed humans in physical attributes, Kiba wasn't currently trying to get to the city as fast as possible. And Pandora's Actor himself, even without using the form granted by the Supreme Being, was capable of moving even faster. Therefore, their current didn't particularly bother or strain them.

Pandora's Actor and Kiba even exchanged a few conversations with each other as they moved forward—after all, Kiba saw no reason to be rude with his new acquaintance right off the bat. And Pandora's Actor, as a Greater Doppelganger capable of reading surface thoughts to perfect his disguise, easily maintained the dialogue of new acquaintances.

Of course, Kiba didn't plan on giving away any important information to Pandora’s Actor, but he required neither Kiba's consent nor even his effort to achieve such an objective. The fact that Kiba was nearby was enough for Pandora’s Actor.

Not that such a thing was necessary at this point.

During his time wearing the guise of Issei Hyoudou, Pandora’s Actor had already managed to thoroughly study both Kiba's mind and memories; all that’s left to learn about Kiba he could just as easily learn from any random guard of the Gremory estate.

But every extra facet of information that supported his current mask allowed the Pandora’s Actor to make his current disguise even stronger. After all, who knew when the fact that, out of a whole crowd of unfamiliar faces and devils, Kiba would recognize precisely him might come in handy for him?

Therefore, moving alongside Kiba, maintaining a pace most comfortable for both Kiba and the continued conversation, Pandora's Actor continued to chat and ask questions suitable for acquaintances. "So you're from the Gremory clan?"

"I’m a Knight of Rias... Lady Gremory, that is." Kiba nodded, his actions alongside his thoughts demonstrating his unfamiliarity with his master's new title, but quickly moved past the topic. 

"And you?"

"Third generation," Pandora’s Actor chose the most suitable cover for his new identity, one that suited his current behavior and future plans, all suggested to him by Kiba's own consciousness. 

"I went to the human world and moved here and there but mainly spent most of my time in the Underworld, working in a library in the Belphegor territory. But I heard about what happened and... I decided to check if I could help with anything."

The Pandora Actor's words struck Kiba's defenses from two sides simultaneously.

Pandora’s Actor had just uttered the mystical words capable of deflecting any suspicions from him—as a ‘third generation,' it meant that his grandparents were reincarnated devils who had  birthed a second generation, and the second generation led to him. 

A devil standing directly on the border between the human and devil worlds. The result of Ajuka Beelzebub's planning in his attempt to make up for the number of devils lost during the civil war through the rapid restoration of numbers via reincarnating mortals. 

Mortals, having reincarnated into devils, would begin naturally reproducing devils in subsequent years and would eventually lead to a third generation, one who definitely grew up in devil society but could very well have knowledge of their ancestors' world, that is, the human world. It was the perfect disguise that diverted suspicions from Pandora’s Actor in case he demonstrated familiarity with some human objects or practices that would otherwise be strange for devils who had spent their entire lives in the Underworld.

On the other hand, Pandora’s Actor had simultaneously struck at Kiba's mind with his words about being an insignificant worker from a completely different territory who had just arrived to the city to help the people affected by the fallen angel attack, as this immediately answered a whole slew of questions and shielded him from a multitude of potential problems.

Kiba knew of the Belphegor clan's existence and that they had territory, but other than the fact that their clan head had long dominated the Rating Games, he hadn't really heard anything about them due to the clan not participating in the grand political games of the Devil Faction. That meant Kiba couldn't possibly verify that Pandora’s Actor actually came from that territory, and at the same time, practically no one from his social circle could do so either. 

And even if they did investigate, who would care to note the existence of a lowly third-generation reincarnated devil? A demographic basically treated as third-class citizens, if not even worse?

It likewise explained why he didn't know where the city originally was, asking Kiba to help him get his bearings in the area.

But what was much more important was that Pandora's Actor had instantly earned Kiba's approval and trust simply by saying he had arrived to help the affected devils—it was enough to simply paint a pleasant picture that Pandora’s Actor was a ‘little guy trying to do something good that was within his power.' 

Almost instantly, all of Kiba's wariness against Pandora’s Actor immediately crumbled.

Not that Kiba was actively feeling any suspicions against Pandora’s Actor, plus no amount of wariness or defenses Kiba could build would be able to shield his mind against Pandora’s Actor. But, as Vater used to say, ‘it's better to have contingency plans and not use them than to find out you don't have any at the very last moment!’

"I see." Pandora’s Actor could visibly see Kiba’s expression softening as he looked at Pandora’s Actor. 

"What's your name, by the way?"

"I…rwin," Pandora’s Actor had instantly started to say, ‘Issei,’ but caught himself mid-thought, opting instead to default to his favorite German language. 

“Irwin Kreuzhalter.”

"Kreuzhalter?" Kiba raised an eyebrow but didn't ask questions or raise any suspicions. Reincarnated devils could originate from any country, which meant they could pass on any last name to their descendants, so encountering a German surname in the Underworld wasn't that unlikely. What was funnier was how his new acquaintance's surname translated.

"’Cross-bearer’?" Kiba snorted into his fist, then cleared his throat to hide his amusement. "My apologies, I just..."

"That's quite alright. I imagine that's precisely why Master Belphegor wanted to reincarnate my grandfather in the first place." Pandora’s Actor simply played along with Kiba's humor, chuckling himself as if he were sharing some kind of inside joke.

"By the way—ah, right, I’m Kiba Yuuto!" Kiba, suddenly remembering his manners a moment later, introduced himself and offered his hand for a handshake.

"A pleasure to meet you, Kiba," Pandora’s Actor smiled before asking a question that seemed perfectly normal for a first meeting in devil society. "You’ve said before that you're a Knight of the Gremory… How long has it been since you were reincarnated?"

For a moment, memories of the past surfaced in Kiba's mind—of the times when he wasn't yet Kiba—and Pandora’s Actor merely skimmed through them, once again noting how interesting the specimen before him was. The moment didn’t last, before Kiba forcefully suppressed them, pushing his memories to the background, and smiled instead. It was quite the plastic and obviously fake smile. 

"Spent practically my whole life like this, so about ten years."

Pandora’s Actor prepared to push a little harder into Kiba's mind, not overtly, of course, but simply by asking questions like, ‘Oh, how are you taking the Underworld? Is it much different from the human world?' All probing questions to delve a bit deeper into Kiba’s mind. 

But, sensing another mind approaching, he instead shifted his gaze forward. 

"Then I would think there's no point asking you how you like it here, hmm? Ah, it seems that someone would be joining us soon."

A moment later, Kiba also caught sight of the figure ahead—a petite, white-haired girl who sensed Kiba's approach and stopped, looking at him.

Kiba simply broke into a smile in response. "Koneko! I was just looking for you!"

"Doesn't seem like it," The Rook answered succintly before looking at Pandora’s Actor and narrowing her eyes slightly in suspicion. "And who's this?"

"Irwin Kreuzhalter," Pandora’s Actor instantly introduced himself before Kiba could. "I was a bit lost, and Kiba, learning that we’re heading the same way, just tagged along with him."

"Got it," Koneko replied just as briskly, instantly losing interest in Pandora’s Actor, turning to Kiba. "You're late."

"I lost track of time sparring with my teacher." Kiba smiled at the small Nekomata before him. 

"My apologies."

Koneko inspected Kiba for a time, as if she were coming to some internal decision before voicing it. "You owe me sweets."

"Would some Dango do?" Kiba smiled instantly.

"Three skewers," Koneko answered with absolute seriousness, then cast a measuring glance at Pandora’s Actor, assessing whether he might lay claim to her dango in the future.

Pandora’s Actor, taking this as his unseen cue to exit the scene, simply nodded measuringly towards the two before he looked ahead, as if he were gazing at the distant city. 

"Well, I can already see the city from here, so I won't hold you two up any longer. It was a pleasure meeting new acquaintances. Once again, thank you for helping me."

"No problem, anytime." Kiba just smiled in response and, looking at Koneko, nodded to her. 

"Shall we head out?"

Koneko immediately nodded in response before speeding ahead, letting Kiba match her pace, leaving their new acquaintance behind.

"Who was that?" After putting some distance between them, Koneko slid a glance at Kiba moving beside her.

"Just someone I had run into," Kiba brushed off the questioning. "He’d come from Belphegor territory, wanting to help, asked which way the city was, and just walked with me for a bit."

"Alright," Koneko nodded and immediately filed this information from her mind, choosing not to focus on a random devil and instead preferring to concentrate on something far more important. 

For example, dango. "Three skewers. The expensive ones."

"The very best." Kiba broke into a smile, a true one this time, as he followed after her.

Pandora's Actor, having waited a short while, set off after them; after all, they were headed in the same direction. Only this time hiding his own small smirk behind a perfectly neutral and even friendly expression.

The infiltration of devil territory occurred without any reaction or even attention from the devils.

Demiurge, having briefed Pandora's Actor for his mission, had relayed everything regarding the passive defenses of the paths into devil territory. Information gladly shared by the girl captured by Vater after observing what happens to those who didn't wish to share such information with Nazarick voluntarily. Not that Pandora’s Actor couldn’t bypass such paltry defenses, a far cry from Nazarick’s own, without the information.

But perfection demands such.

And so, after passing through the city’s perimeter without attracting any attention whatsoever from the normal Devils or from the enhanced security system and patrols, Pandora’s Actor had made it to the city. Now, he merely needed to find a random, solitary traveler not too far from the site of the Fallen Angels' attack so their disappearance could easily be written off.

Pandora’s Actor vanished into the crowd of other devils. He vanished with such reliability that even the close confidant of his current disguise couldn't identify Pandora’s Actor a step away.

Of course, Pandora’s Actor knew he shouldn't rely solely on one success—he could perfectly utilize only forty-five forms, and since forty-one of them were of the Supreme Beings, guises that he would never discard, it meant that he could only use four disguises at a time. Disguises that could stand against most methods of observation and detection.

Most, not all. So, if he were to encounter the Satans and attract their attention, unless he wished to rely on the guise of the Supreme Beings, his disguises wouldn’t last long. Especially against the like of Ajuka Astaroth.

Therefore, for him to continue his march of successes, he needed to remain low-key. But, seeing as the run-of-the-mill Devils, even some of the stronger ones, couldn’t see through his doppelganger ability, he could be certain that the first step of the plan was a success.

Now he actually needed to reach the intended Devil territory and offer his participation in helping the other devils. However, not with the noble goal of being an ‘everyday hero,’ as Kiba might have wished, but with the intent of carving out a place for himself within devil society and establishing a cover for his future actions. After all, in order to create his own base of support, he needed not only the information he could easily glean from the minds of the people around him, but also a defined place in this underworld that the devils around him would recognize as his own.

And then? Then the second phase of the plan would come into play.

Or rather, not ‘his’ plan—Pandora’s Actor was simply its most visible component, the ‘face’ of the secret plan, no matter how amusing such a designation might sound. The bulk of the burden of carrying out the plan lay on the shoulders of Demiurge and Albedo, while Pandora’s Actor was simply the active operative with broad autonomy to manage the plan directly on the ground.

And all of this, of course, was merely a part of the inexpressibly complex and massive plan of his great Vater.

Indeed, no one could say that his father lacked absolute understanding and control over every single detail of his own plan, a plan whose breadth extended so far into the future that the greatest minds of Nazarick could only bow their heads before the grandeur of his strategy.

Pandora’s Actor was about to open his mouth to voice his admiration for Lord Momonga's incredibly massive intellect before catching himself a moment later and snapping his mouth shut.

Indeed, he couldn't speak out in praise of his Vater right now, even knowing that there was no mind anywhere near him at the moment.

Why?

Because maintaining a conspiracy in secrecy is also very cool!

***

The news that Nazarick's agents had managed to secure, if not the direct support, then at least contact with the strongest being in the Khaos Brigade—and, if the gathered intelligence on the outside world was to be trusted, also one of the strongest beings in the entire world—was probably the best news Momonga had received in a long time. 

And it wasn't the only piece of good news!

Artifacts; rare creatures of this world—including a 'Nekoshou,' a rare subspecies of nekomata, of which there were no more than a dozen in the entire world according to the data; and the report that Demiurge and Albedo had secured the support of the yokai faction in Japan... all of this was magnificent news!

Why, then, was Ainz not feeling cheerful? Because his own involvement in this positive news was minimal.

Demiurge was doing something; Albedo was doing something; even Pandora’s Actor had gone off to do something ‘according to Lord Momonga's plan.’

Only Lord Momonga alone wasn't doing anything in said Lord Momonga's plan.

Instead, he was watching the newly minted angel, Miki Hyoudou, trying to use her wings for their intended purpose—and with fairly significant success. This was most likely due to the fact that this capability originated from the innate [Special Ability] of the Angel race, rather than any special talent from Miki. 

Perhaps that might be worth experimenting with? Grafting wings onto someone…

Not that he was actually planning to do so, but purely hypothetically, as an example.

Momonga's escape from prison, read; 'school,' had once again plunged him into that perpetual dilemma he was intimately familiar with since his days as an ordinary corporate worker: 

‘What can I do that isn't too difficult, won't break anything if I did mess up, and won't make me regret getting involved in the first place, to show that I’m working?’

Right now, his ‘students’ were studying magic without him needing to do anything. Nazarick was operating without him needing to help other than placing his stamp on reports that he doesn’t read. Even Miki was learning to fly without his assistance.

However, the cursed memories of his decision to attend school were still fresh in Momonga's mind—he definitely did not want a repeat of that disaster.

Furthermore, his attempt to simply gather information about exactly which god he was being mistaken for in this world had ultimately ended in an encounter with unknown adversaries anyway.

Basically, whatever Momonga got involved in eventually led him anywhere but where he actually wanted to go and ended in anything but what he wanted.

Yet Momonga didn't want to just sit on his hands and do nothing either. He needed to do 'something,' anything at all, really. But finding that ‘something’ was incredibly difficult when every attempt led him straight into another crisis requiring urgent resolution.

“And the main problem is that all my subordinates are much smarter and more capable than I am. I can't just go up to them and ask, 'So, what should I do?' without them assuming it's some sort of terrifying loyalty and intellect test!” Momonga threw his hands up in frustration before looking around the empty room, just in case one of his subordinates was listening. Finding nothing, like he had already determined before, he sat back down, calming down slightly as he mulled things over internally.

If Momonga started acting independently, he was bound to blunder into some incident or inadvertently wreck his subordinates' plans. Was it unwarranted paranoia? Perhaps, yes. But his history says otherwise—he couldn’t even go on a walk without having a strange encounter!

But if he just continued sitting still, not doing anything, he would eventually give up and start doing random things just to keep from losing his mind. And who knows what that would lead to.

This meant he needed to find an opportunity to busy himself with a task, but in such a way that he wasn't the one specifically deciding what to do... And preferably as far away from his subordinates as possible, so as not to ruin their grand designs.

But where could he possibly go? His subordinates had already cast their nets over most of the world, doing this and that for the ‘grand plan.’ While this was an extreme positive for Nazarick, as whatever it is they were doing, it was to the benefit of Nazarick in general, it certainly didn't help with his current predicament.

When he went to Europe, he ran into a fight, meaning that shifting geography barely helped him—and overall, Albedo and Demiurge had already spread their nets throughout the human world.

Going to the Underoworld? Pandora's Actor was already operating there, and a collision with his own ‘son’ was the absolute last thing Momonga needed. He doubted he could survive the outpouring of cringe.

The Chaos Brigade? Absolutely not.

The Heavens? Yeah, a god who didn't even know what kind of god he was supposed to be definitely shouldn't show his face in the Heavens.

Then a thought flashed through Momonga's mind, bringing him to a halt.

“Cocytus!”

That's right, Cocytus was currently running a campaign to conquer the various mythologies!

Of course, the primary phase of mythological conquests was already drawing to a close…

“Actually, maybe that would be a bad idea?”

If Momonga were to suddenly show up there, his subordinates would undoubtedly expect him to take command of the army. Moreover, there was a very real chance that Cocytus would inevitably assume Momonga was interfering because he felt Cocytus was failing in his duties.

And not only was Cocytus doing perfectly fine on his own, with Momonga possessing absolutely no clue how to actually command an army. Momonga would most likely have to desperately convince Cocytus that his commanding skills were fully satisfactory and that he absolutely, unequivocally did not need to commit ritual seppuku.

Even if he ultimately announced that he just came to ‘observe Cocytus's work’—who knew better than Momonga himself just how incredibly annoying it was to have management hovering over your shoulder, constantly supervising your every move?

In other words, Momonga couldn't interject himself into Cocytus's work. 

But that was the beauty of his idea. He didn't even need to do that!

What did Momonga actually need? Information about the gods—preferably something that would lead into him discovering what kind of god he was supposed to be—some sort of minor task that he couldn’t fuck up while being overseen by someone competent that wouldn’t actually bother him all that much, all while staying out of his subordinates' way.

And while Cocytus had managed to subjugate a multitude of the old mythologies, there were many others—to which Momonga himself, as supposedly being the Biblical God, had no direct relation to—that Cocytus had not touched due to their active status.

Which meant? Momonga could use them as his cover!

He could travel to one of these mythologies incognito, pass himself off as some low-ranking subordinate, learn how the gods and mythologies themselves operated from the inside, and explain to his subordinates that he was engaged in vital reconnaissance, all while going out of his way to avoid crossing paths with them!

Of course, this created potential problems in and of itself—he could perfectly well stumble into more unbelievable encounters for one, knowing his luck. However, if he headed into the realm of some minor mythology, the probability that a random fight or some other event would have world-spanning consequences would be significantly reduced, and thus the overall danger of such meetings would decrease as well!

Besides, if he ended up somewhere at the bottom of the chain of command, no one would expect too much from him. By observing the operations of a mythology from afar, he would finally understand how he was supposed to behave when presenting himself as God in his own domain!

However, he still couldn't just drop into a pantheon that he knew absolutely nothing about, so simply choosing the first one he came across was out of the question. Instead, he had to pick one about which he knew at least the basic lore.

Fortunately for Momonga, when he was sorting through Demiurge's reports—which meant quickly skimming them and hoping his eyes would catch onto something he could talk to Demiurge with—he actually found a very familiar term. One that is very near and dear to his heart!

Yggdrasil!

As it turned out, this wasn't just the name of the game in which Momonga, along with the rest of Ainz Ooal Gown, had once created Nazarick; it was also part of a real mythology! Or more accurately, not just any random mythology—Tabula Smaragdina had informed him that Yggdrasil was a real-world mythological concept in about the second sentence of their very first conversation—but a mythology that had an active, tangible presence in this world!

This meant Momonga could infiltrate the Norse, announce that he was off doing something crucial by regurgitating something random that Tabula had talked about—there were many of them, Tabula being a font of much arcane knowledge, and Momonga being a good listener, read; too much of a doormat to run away when Tabula got into one of their rants like the others did—and then spend his time observing the local gods, keeping himself occupied while being as far away from all his followers as possible!

Momonga almost threw his hands up in a joyous exclamation but caught himself just a fraction of a second before he did, settling for a dignified nod to himself instead. While he was sure that he was alone, he needed to keep his ‘dignified leader’ act even in private, lest he make a mistake while interacting with his subordinates.

Now he just needed to find a suitable opportunity for infiltration and make absolutely certain that he would in no way end up near any major, world-altering events within the Norse faction. But...

He couldn't possibly keep stumbling into unbelievable coincidences that he couldn't predict, right?!

His luck wasn’t that bad, right!?

“Yeah, everything would be fine. After all, what’s the worst that could happen?”

***

Albedo, setting the latest finished report aside, felt a light wave of internal satisfaction over a job well done for the glory of Lord Momonga. She noted the successful completion of yet another objective within the grand strategy provided by Lord Momonga and executed by his loyal followers.

Of course, Albedo, as a master of logistics, surpassed even Demiurge when it came to managing financial flows or constructing Nazarick's overall management chain in the outside world. However—with some displeasure—Albedo was forced to admit that when the issue concerned the exploitation of other factions, Demiurge exceeded her in sheer efficiency. Therefore, her current course of actions—interacting with the yokai of Japan—were perhaps not the most effective method of influencing the surrounding world.

And yet, even if her abilities as a Level 100, boosted with Nazarick's artifacts, completely removed any need for rest or distraction—to their great regret, not even the loyal servants of Lord Momonga could simultaneously spread their influence across the entire world and in all its spheres. They were forced to cooperate with one another in matters of overlapping expertise.

Yes, Demiurge could play the stock market with one hand and ensure the success of the infiltration into the Khaos Brigade with the others like Mare and Aura, but when a third, fourth, or fifth factor entered the equation, even Demiurge required assistance from the other denizens of Nazarick. Who were only too happy to demonstrate their loyalty to Lord Momonga through their absolute service, of course.

Thus, in matters of logistical support—finances, documentation, and interaction with external factions outside of Nazarick—Albedo was the one managing Nazarick's expanding influence, so long as it did not involve direct infiltration or manipulation of the faction itself. Albedo was neither a field agent nor a spymaster, though she could certainly perform both functions if needed; she was not the ‘best’ at them. Which is why, unless circumstances forced her hand, she would allow others, more suited to the task, to handle the matters, as Lord Momonga deserved only the best.

She was the invisible strategist, the architect providing the foundation that allowed agents and other tacticians to execute their parts of the mission.

However, even so, the agents and assistants of Nazarick were fulfilling their part of the work...

And so, when Albedo's gaze shifted to the next important piece of her plans, the sensation of an incoming [Message] connection in her mind elicited no outward reaction from her at all.

What did provoke a reaction from Albedo, however, was the fact that Demiurge didn't even bother greeting her before delivering the news: "[Lord Momonga has declared his decision to infiltrate the Norse Pantheon.]"

"[Demiurge, you didn't dare demand this of Lord Momonga, did you?!]" 

Albedo was instantly taken aback by this information, even somewhat angered at the temerity of Demiurge. 

The Norse Pantheon was an important element in their overall strategy, but no one would dare simply tell Lord Momonga that his personal action was required to execute Nazarick's plans. After all, Nazarick existed solely so that Lord Momonga would want for nothing. Approaching him with such a request meant a servant of Lord Momonga was admitting their own incompetence and failure and would, fittingly, be ready to embrace death as an unworthy follower.

"[Of course not!]" Demiurge responded instantly, some heat coming into his tone, a bit of true anger leaking out at the fact that Albedo would accuse him of such blasphemy. 

"[Do not even suggest such a thing, Albedo. Lord Momonga had come to me and then informed me of his decision just a moment ago.]"

A moment later, realizing the sheer simplicity and genius of the situation, Albedo's face broke into a smile, one so radiant it even reflected in the tone of her telepathic communication with Demiurge. "[Lord Momonga is truly astonishing.]"

Anticipating that Albedo and Demiurge's plans would involve exploiting various mythological factions was not difficult, but pinpointing the exact faction Nazarick's attention would focus on, being the fulcrum of their whole strategy, was significantly harder.

The Hindu faction boasted outstanding, mighty gods—the Trimurti—but this made them not only a highly valuable faction but also an extremely dangerous one. Low-level Nazarick agents could not be used to influence them, while the number of high-level agents within Nazarick itself was limited, and those few were already occupied with other endeavors.

The Irish and Egyptian mythologies were well-entrenched within their respective strongholds and therefore seemed like fairly suitable proving grounds for testing Nazarick's capabilities. Initially, Demiurge had even leaned specifically toward this option, having requested a logistical comparison of the two mythologies from Albedo as to which one would suit their purposes better. However, just this very morning, Aura had reported that a representative of the Norse mythology had independently made contact with the Khaos Brigade, pushing said faction to the forefront of candidates…

And neither Demiurge nor Albedo herself had managed to relay this information to Lord Momonga yet.

Which could mean only one thing…

"[We truly are but children before Lord Momonga.]" Albedo smiled, a hint of sadness gracing her features.

However, this sadness was not born of grief but from the realization, yet again, of just how small and simple their own plans and intellects were compared to the sheer genius of Lord Momonga, a being capable of peering and making plans countless ages into the future and calculating through an infinite number of variations.

"[Should we contact Lord Momonga?]" Demiurge asked a highly practical question. "[If our actions might somehow interfere with Lord Momonga's plans…]"

"[Do you honestly believe that any of our actions are capable of interfering with a Supreme Being’s own plan, Demiurge?]" Albedo rebuked his counterpart with a condescending smirk, causing Demiurge to instantly catch himself and fall silent.

"[Our goal is not to inform Lord Momonga of plans he has already foreseen, but rather to observe Lord Momonga's actions. Perhaps in doing so, we might grasp a sliver of Lord Momonga's genius by watching his countless stratagems unfold,]" Albedo continued softly. 

"[For now, let our plans proceed unchanged. Our greatest privilege lies in watching Lord Momonga transform our feeble efforts into a true masterpiece of brilliant thought.]"

A moment later, voicing his agreement, Demiurge severed the telepathic connection, leaving Albedo alone with her thoughts for a brief time.

"What a blessing it is to watch Lord Momonga at work." Albedo smiled and made a sign of the cross.

Their lot in life was to observe Lord Momonga's work and bear witness to his infallible genius.

Lord Momonga's lot, however, was to astound the entire world with his every brilliant move.