Drake carefully opened his mouth.

"My Lord… are You speaking of… war?"

"Indeed."

With that single answer from Tiamat, the atmosphere in the hall shifted violently.

Every High Priest stiffened, eyes flashing with ferocious resolve.

At that declaration, Dragon High Priest Drake bared his sharp fangs, lightning crackling between his horns befitting a Thunder Dragon.

Lion's golden mane ignited with radiant brilliance, and the other High Priests likewise flared with fighting spirit—ready to leap into battle at a moment's notice.

It was a perfect war posture.

Had an enemy appeared at that very moment, every one of them would have charged forward without hesitation—ready to die, ready to kill.

"War, is it? A war!"

"So it comes to this after all."

"Hmph… as expected of my God."

"It has been far too long. This shall be entertaining."

"I agree."

Not a single one of their faces showed fear. If anything, they were excited.

200 years… no—counting even the era of Yggdrasil, it had been far longer since a true war was waged. Yet they all remembered it.

For them, war was not tragedy.

To them, war was a festival.

—Hey! War's incoming!

—What now? Another Villain Alliance attack? Maybe Dark Soul this time?

—Who cares who it is?! Smash them first, ask later!

Those memories of the golden era of Yggdrasil… before everyone left, when the world was bustling with life.

Back then, war was common. Sometimes enemies invaded the Zodiac Alliance, other times they were the ones striking first. And always, powerful NPCs fought at their side.

Having lived through those campaigns, they knew: war was exhilarating.

It was the ultimate collision of will, power, magic, and skill. A stage where nations gambled everything. Yes, some felt anger or sorrow—but all of them loved the struggle, the unity, the exhilaration of fighting as one.

Even if they died, even if they dropped loot, even if they lost levels—they laughed, they raged, they rebuilt, and they returned stronger. That cycle itself was joy.

Thus, the NPCs feared no war.

To them, the God's declaration of war—after His grand return—was another glorious festival they had waited centuries to experience.

Seeing their spirits burn so brightly, Tiamat smiled, satisfied.

"Yes. If war is necessary, then war it shall be."

"My Lord! Then allow me, Lion, to take the vanguard—!"

"Forgive me, but before that, I must speak."

The war-hungry Lion leapt up to volunteer, but Death High Priest Orochi stepped forward and cut him off.

Tiamat raised his hand, allowing Orochi to continue.

"Speak."

"This servant, Orochi, humbly warns thus: If our God has chosen war, then war must be done. However… acting immediately would be dangerous."

"Dangerous? Explain."

"Because there is not one threat to Shinshi… but likely several."

At Orochi's gesture, a translucent screen appeared before Tiamat's eyes. It was Shared Vision, a function that could be used anywhere in Yggdrasil—but in this world, it worked only inside the guild domain.

The screen played a scene from the sky—clearly someone flying. Tiamat wondered whose eyes he was seeing, but soon, all such thoughts vanished.

The camera passed over forests at high speed, then reached a vast plain.

And there—right in the middle of the meadow—stood something utterly out of place.

Tiamat narrowed his eyes.

"…What is that?"

"We believe it is an NPC from another guild. My Lord Tiamat, what is Your assessment?"

"Assessment, nothing… it's obvious."

Tiamat's eyes widened.

He knew that NPC. Not just the face—he knew the name, faction, and role.

Her full name: Shalltear Bloodfallen.

The violet dress with pink frills, the oversized purple ribbon, pale silvery hair, red eyes, and a doll-like pretty face—he recognized it all. She was one of the most famous NPCs of Ainz Ooal Gown.

Tiamat already understood that Ainz Ooal Gown had been transported to this world. The presence of Demiurge had confirmed that their guild NPCs came with them. And now Shalltear had appeared as well. That could only mean one thing:

Just like the 12 Zodiacs, their entire guild base may have transferred here.

Tiamat narrowed his eyes.

"My Lord… are You acquainted with that being?"

"I am. That NPC is Shalltear. Shalltear Bloodfallen."

"Shalltear… yes. That name appears in our intelligence reports. A Guardian of Ainz Ooal Gown. We concluded she ranks equivalent to a High Priest."

A Level 100 NPC—equal to a High Priest, or perhaps even stronger. Ainz Ooal Gown, though few in number, wielded such powerful builds and paid-to-win setups that they rivaled the strongest guilds in Yggdrasil. An NPC of that caliber was no trivial foe.

Not equal to their God, of course—but still a threat comparable to a High Priest.

"My Lord, we have learned of that being's movements from our ally."

"Ally? Who?"

"Platinum Dragon Lord—known by his true name, Tsaindoruks Vasion. Here, he is revered as the Platinum Dragon Lord. His strength is assessed to be on par with a High Priest. Shinshi has maintained friendly relations with him for many years. We address him as 'Cha', and we have granted him honors befitting a High Priest."

"…Ho."

Tiamat's expression shifted with interest.

A native of this world… with strength equal to a High Priest? That alone was intriguing—but what caught his attention even more was the word:

Dragon Lord.

Tiamat had slain one before—a so-called White Dragon Lord who called himself a king. But that creature was pitiful—barely level 50 at best. Strong for a dragon, but nowhere near Tiamat's class.

But a true Dragon Lord with High-Priest-level might?

Now that sparked genuine curiosity.

"Platinum Dragon Lord… yes. I wish to meet him, Ea."

—You already said that before, so we extended the invitation in advance. He is expected to arrive in a few days.

"Good."

A powerful being of this world. A dragon. Interesting on every level. He would definitely meet him—this time properly, not in anger or impulse.

Tiamat leaned forward.

"Then we will set that matter aside for now. You claimed there are multiple threats. Explain."

"Yes, this is why."

Orochi gestured, and the shared video window vanished—replaced by several images.

Tiamat immediately recognized that all the photos were taken in the same location—but the scene in each one was drastically different.

The first photo was of a crater in the middle of the plains. In the center stood Shalltear—now in full crimson battle armor instead of her usual dress—silent in the devastation.

The next photo showed the same plains transformed into a desert, stretching for hundreds of meters. A wasteland.

Tiamat's eyes narrowed sharply.

"…What is this?"

"Our ally—Cha—attempted to destroy the target, Shalltear Bloodfallen. However, she proved overwhelmingly strong. Cha was forced to retreat. Yet, instead of pursuing, the NPC returned to stand guard over that location. Days later, when our scouts arrived, Shalltear was gone—but the land was already desertified and saturated with massive amounts of death-attribute energy. Thus, we believe a third faction destroyed Shalltear."

It was a lot to take in.

The report could be summarized as follows: Shalltear was attacked, behaved abnormally, and by the time Shinshi investigated, she had vanished—leaving only traces of battle and lingering death-attribute magic.

But the situation was filled with contradictions. Unnatural behavior… lingering death-energy… the moment those details aligned in Tiamat's mind, a troubling possibility surfaced.

"Any other information?"

"Yes. Before Shalltear Bloodfallen's destruction, an adamantite-rank party—the fastest promotion on record—reported her as their sworn enemy to the Adventurer's Guild. Their name is Darkness. According to the report, the target's name was listed as Honyopenyoko, and they were preparing to subjugate her with an 8th-Tier Magic Sealing Crystal. The members of Darkness are: Momon and Nabe."

"…Ha?!"

Tiamat snapped his head up in shock.

The name Momon immediately called forth only one association: Momonga, Guildmaster of Ainz Ooal Gown. He didn't know who "Nabe" might be—perhaps a guild NPC, or a native companion—but that hardly mattered.

What mattered was the implication:

Momonga personally destroyed a level-100 guardian?

Why? For what reason? There was no logic in killing one's own supreme-tier NPC. If it were "rebellion," that would be absurd—because the 12 High Priests here had shown unwavering loyalty for two centuries. If Shinsi's NPCs remained absolutely loyal even after 200 years, then Ainz's NPCs would be no different.

So why?

Why would the guildmaster kill his own top guardian?

The more Tiamat thought about it, the less sense it made.

"My Lord… does something trouble you?"

"…No. Continue."

Though his expression shifted, Tiamat signaled for the report to proceed. Orochi nodded.

"Understood. From that, we have formed a hypothesis: we believe another guild-level faction has appeared in this world. Likely one that is now hostile to Ainz Ooal Gown."

"Another guild?"

"Yes. First, the deliberate destruction of Shalltear. Second, the unnaturally fast response and escalation. We lack full details, but… combined with the suspicious movement to seize the Re-Estize Kingdom—our former forward base—we believe this unknown force is attempting to secure a foothold in the New World with great speed."

"…Impressive deduction."

Tiamat exhaled.

With so little information, their reasoning was remarkably sharp. Orochi's settings did label him as a master of schemes—but seeing it with his own eyes, Tiamat realized the NPC's intelligence far surpassed the average Yggdrasil player.

So this is what happens when NPCs gain true intellect… they become even more capable than most players—and absolutely loyal on top of it.

He felt a profound reassurance.

"Then tell me—if I had not awakened—what course of action would you have taken?"

Orochi opened his mouth—

—but another voice cut in.

"I will answer that, My Lord."

Mary, the Sheep Priestess, rose to her feet. Orochi shot her a cold, serpentine glare, but she ignored it. Before their God, no High Priest would allow another to monopolize credit.

"Speak."

"If You had not returned, Shinshi was prepared to cease all external activity. We would withdraw entirely, seal our borders, and concentrate every military and administrative asset to defend against foreign threats."

"Reasonable," Tiamat nodded. A standard defensive doctrine. But another concern arose.

"But could Shinshi survive fully isolated?"

"By the grace of our God, yes. Shinshi is prosperous. External contact was only for gathering intelligence, searching for survivors from Yggdrasil—and, at times, for reconnaissance. Closed, we remain self-sufficient and secure."

—If I may add to that explanation, Master.

Ea's voice entered smoothly into Tiamat's mind.

E picked up where Mary left off.

– "At present, Shinshi is operating at full stability. The residential and production sectors on the 1st floor, the mines on the 2nd, the dungeons of the 3rd and 4th, the special residential wards on the 5th, and the Guild Hall on the 6th—all systems are fully functional. This is possible because our Production Units and Exchange Boxes continue generating Yggdrasil gold autonomously. Every citizen of Shinshi has been doing their utmost to maintain the guild's foundation, and as a result, we remain economically self-sufficient."

"Ah… those devices you mentioned before?"

– "Correct. Thanks to them, our coffers are plentiful."

Tiamat recalled the conversation he had shortly after waking—asking Ea for a full report on Shinshi's condition. Ea had explained then: the mines produce raw ore, the production facilities refine, harvest and mass-produce materials, and everything from grain to monster by-products is fed into the Exchange Box to generate gold. Through that method, Shinsi behaved like a perpetual motion engine, bypassing trivial concepts like mass conservation and thermodynamics.

– "However, there is one projected issue. Excluding the divine citizens, the standard populace has natural lifespans. In roughly the next 100 years, we estimate a 30% reduction in total manpower across Shinshi."

"Divine citizens… and royal citizens."

"Allow me to explain that part!"

Orochi stepped forward immediately. Mary glared sharply, annoyed that her explanation was stolen, but Orochi didn't care. He had spent years building this theory, and he would never let another take the credit. A faint, smug smile curved on his lips as he bowed.

"Divine citizens are those who have received the God's blessing—Your blessing. We felt Your gaze upon us even during Your slumber, and by that grace, we were freed from mortal lifespans. This eternal life… is all thanks to our great and glorious Lord!"

His fanatic devotion made even Tiamat's eyelids twitch. "Blessing," "grace," "eternity"… he's only a vassal, not a saint, Tiamat muttered internally. But eternal life itself—that caught his attention.

Dragons did not age, and did not die of time. They only grew stronger as centuries passed. Extending such traits to chosen followers was… understandable.

However, Tiamat knew the limitation firsthand: the number of vassals was fixed. Granting new divine status would require stripping it from someone else—a line Tiamat was not interested in crossing, at least not yet.

He set that problem aside for later.

"Ahem. So, Shinshi can stand on its own even if isolated. If I had not awakened, you would truly have sealed the borders?"

"Yes, my Lord."

"Then—cancel that plan."

The room froze.

Tiamat had already chosen.

Seclusion, defense, and patience—that was not his path.

The old Zodiac never hid. When war came, they crushed enemies outright, without hesitation, without mercy. Even now, only he remained… but that legacy could not be tarnished.

And besides—

They attacked first. They would pay in full. Even if the enemy was Ainz Ooal Gown.

Tiamat smiled. A cold, predatory smile.

"From this moment on, Shinshi will advance. Mobilize every resource we possess. Reopen external operations. Hunt down our enemy—Ainz Ooal Gown—and identify every last faction aligned against us. As Guildmaster, I issue this as a direct command."

""""""Understood!!!""""""

The Twelve High Priests bowed as one, eyes blazing with renewed purpose.

And that day—after nearly 170 years of silence, the City of God began to move once more.

***********"**********

If you want to read 10 advance chapters ahead.

Visit my patreon: patreon.com/Vanity01