The robe Ainz was wearing seemed somewhat shabby. It contained none of the dangerous aura that his usual raven colored robe exuded.
Some sort of a measure against me? The possibility is quite high. But the battle won’t end at this rate if we just stare at each other. I’ll prepare for the long haul and heal myself…..
“「Regeneration」.”
Using a spell that was effective even on undead, Shalltear slowly began to heal the damage from the super magic. Against this Shalltear, Ainz finally started his attack. He cast the super gravity magic he had used previously.
“「Maximize Magic: Gravity Maelstrom」.”
As the black sphere flew towards her at high speed, the thought that she should put up a stone wall like before passed through her head. However, with that method, she couldn’t pressure her opponent. She had to go on the offensive in order to force him to use up more of his MP.
Shalltear’s decision was—
“—「Greater Teleportation」.”
Teleport to close the distance and aim for a melee battle.
Her field of vision warped, the change in surroundings that was supposed to occur immediately— felt slower.
Che!
Shalltear realized it was the effect from the spell that inhibited spatial transference, 「Delay Teleportation」.
The spot she was expecting to teleport to was where she would be able to reach Ainz with her Spuit Lance. However, she found that his figure was still a good distance away. Instead, in front of her eyes were three blinking photospheres— 「Drifting Master Mine」.
As the mines detected Shalltear and were about to detonate, she transformed into her Mist Form. This skill turned her body into mist and was well suited for a vampire. Despite describing it as such, she did not become a mist in the physical sense. It was more like the absence of a physical body, transforming into an Astral Body. This allowed her to completely avoid any attacks from the physical world— like the imminent three explosions.
“Not good enough!”
With a roar, Ainz cast 「Maximize Magic: Astral Smite」.
Her resistances slightly lowered by her transformation, the magic that was effective against ethereal bodies enveloped Shalltear.
With pain wracking her body, she released her Mist Form. Shalltear’s lips tore into a smile as she felt a string of sleek fluid trail down her body.
“Incredible! As expected of Ainz-sama!”
Her sincere admiration did not receive a response, only a look of suspicion.
“You don’t believe me? But I honestly thought that you are indeed the person deserving of my loyalty.”
As expected, a person skilled in magic combat.
However— the smile did not leave Shalltear’s lips. His magic had depleted considerably.
Of course, Shalltear’s health had also taken a hit. But her own loss was still within her calculations while Ainz’ MP loss exceeded it. Her profits had pulled plenty ahead. In other words, Shalltear was now that much closer to victory.
Now, how’s this?
Shalltear made her next move.
“「Force Sanctuary」.”
A white light enveloped Shalltear’s surroundings. A barrier created from holy energy. Although she herself could not attack, it was an absolute barrier that completely blocked the opponent’s attack.
On the other side of the light, the appearance of Ainz hastily preparing to launch his magic could be seen.
“That’s right. It’ll get dangerous for you if you don’t cast your magic quickly.”
At first glance, the battle up to that point would have seemed to be progressing in Ainz’ favor. Shalltear already understood the reason.
Ability— wrong.
Equipment— wrong.
Preparation— correct.
That’s right. This advantage was due to the many defensive spells Ainz had prepared beforehand. A magic caster’s strength varied greatly depending on how much he prepared before the battle. Of course, Shalltear was the same. That was why Ainz had immediately destroyed the defenses she had cast on her body. Like what she was doing now, he couldn’t afford to give Shalltear time to prepare her defenses.
In truth, Shalltear didn’t have the slightest intention of casting defensive magic. She wasn’t very good at them, after all. She merely wanted Ainz to waste more of his MP. That was why the scene of Ainz nervously preparing his spells made her laugh.
Arara, aren’t you playing too favorably in my hand, Ainz-sama? Anyway, why aren’t you using your scrolls, or your staff, or your wands? Are you trying to save them? Or maybe you’re panicking, or perhaps you know that they won’t work against me? Hmm~?
Ainz’ magic resistance was capable of completely nullifying all low and intermediate level magic, regardless of how strong of a magic caster his opponent was. On the other hand, Shalltear’s magic resistance depended on the strength or level of her opponent. A weak magic caster’s attack would be completely ineffective, even if it was a 10th level spell. However, against an incredibly powerful magic caster— in this case, Ainz— 1st level spells would be her limit.
Although the power of magic contained in items like scrolls varied to an extent based on the creator, they were normally adjusted to the lowest level. For this reason, there was a high chance that spells cast using a scroll would not be able to pierce through Shalltear’s magic resistance. It was the reason why Ainz was not using them.
As Shalltear calmly analyzed the situation, Ainz cast his magic.
“「Maximize Magic: Thousand Bone Lance」.”
Piercing through a wide area of earth with Ainz at its center, one thousand, two thousand — no, an uncountable number of bone spears exploded forth. The white spears scattered and crashed repeatedly into the magic barrier. And with the sound of breaking glass, Shalltear’s barrier began to shatter. The rubble that was scattering to the surroundings melted into thin air.
“Che!”
The barrier she had created using a big chunk of her mana was destroyed in a single attack. This was completely outside of her predictions. While feeling annoyed from this development, another attack flew at her.
“It isn’t over yet! 「Maximize Magic: Thousand Bone Lance」!”
“—「Greater Teleportation」.”
She chose a location in the air, outside the effective range of 「Delay Teleportation」.
“Did you think I will let you escape— 「Maximize Magic: Gravity Maelstrom」!”
Somehow, Ainz was able to predict Shalltear’s teleportation. As if he had grasped the timing of her reappearance, Ainz’ magic flew in her direction.
From his skillful battle, Shalltear almost felt like she was falling for him. The way he fought was impossible without a certain degree of experience.
“You still seem relaxed.”