Gald had arrived. Despite having one eye crushed, his massive frame still moved. If anything, he looked swollen with rage. His remaining left eye burned crimson, and both arms hammered the ground with fists that shattered stone. With each blow, rocks cracked and fragments flew. Yuto did not retreat. The moment he gripped the rapier, his body's sensation changed. Different from before. His feet felt light. Electricity coursed through his entire frame, and he could read the air's flow across the back of his hand. Gald's left eye movement, the sway of his center of gravity, the trajectory of the next punch—he understood it all one step ahead. The right fist came. Yuto twisted his upper body. The fist grazed past his ear. He stepped in immediately. A thrust through the opening—the form he'd drilled into his body countless times. The blade point went in a straight line to the back of Gald's right knee. *Zubaa.* Gald roared. His right knee buckled. But he didn't fall. He swung his left arm up. Yuto was already moving. The left knee. Same form. Same angle. *Zubaa.* This time the left knee collapsed. Gald's massive frame swayed. Both knee tendons were severed. Yet he still tried to drag himself forward using only his arms against the ground. Right elbow. Left elbow. One thrust after another. Precise. Cutting only the tendons. *Doon.* Gald crumbled to the ground. All four limbs useless. Kneeling on the ground with both arms thrown out before him, he still raised only his face to glare at Yuto. One eye crushed, the other alone burning with hatred. "[serious]…It's over." Yuto pointed the rapier's tip at Gald's throat. His breathing was ragged. His broken ribs burned. His shoulder wound was hot. But his hand did not shake. "[serious]What was your objective? You called me the 'child of black mist.' What does that mean?" Gald spat blood. Red liquid dripped from the corner of his mouth, smearing in the light of the breaking dawn. Then—he laughed. "[sarcastic]…How should I know? We just do what we're told from above." "[serious]Who told you?" "[sarcastic]…I don't know that much." Gald's left eye narrowed slightly. The expression of someone who wanted to speak but didn't want to. "[cold]But remember this—" He paused for a breath. "[cold]The one who wants you is far more than just Nazarick's skeletons—" His voice cut off. Gald's skin split from the inside. Black mist seeped from the wound. The same color as the night of the transfer. The same mist. It erupted from Gald's entire body all at once, his massive frame blurred. His form collapsed. His outline melted away— In less than a second, he became ash. There was no sound. Only a pile of ash remained, and the dawn wind swept through the valley, scattering it slightly. Yuto couldn't move. He stood frozen in place, rapier still thrust forward. Far more than Nazarick's skeletons— The unfinished words spun endlessly in his mind. Far more what? Far stronger? Far more numerous? Far more—what? The evidence was gone. Gald's body, the rest of his words, all turned to ash together. Only this void remained. Morning light poured into the valley. The rock walls turned white. A bird sang somewhere. Yuto slowly lowered his rapier and stared at the pile of ash. --- The villagers returned a short time later. A figure appeared at the valley's entrance. The village elder stood at the front, followed by women, children, and men. Their faces were completely different from when they'd been evacuated. Then they'd been pale with fear. Now—the moment they saw Yuto, their faces twisted. The old man knelt. "[gentle]…You survived." "[serious]Is everyone safe?" "[gentle]Thanks to you. Every last one." Children ran over. They surrounded Yuto, looking up at his battered body with shining eyes, calling him "the sword's savior" over and over. One woman tugged at his tattered sleeve. "You're injured," she said, pulling cloth from her pack. As she began to wrap his wounds, her hand touched his. For just a moment, a different sensation returned to Yuto's mind. That night in the dungeon when a sword was thrust through the bars. The feel of that silver blade reaching through the iron grating. Sharutia's back. The way she'd disappeared without a word. He pushed it away immediately. He didn't even understand why. The village elder was bowing. The children were cheering. The people were smiling with relief. It was all real. But Yuto's mind remained beside that pile of ash. Far more than Nazarick— Every time he was praised, those words repeated in his head again. --- When the dawn light filled the valley, the air distorted. There was no sound. A single point in space wavered, and light particles scattered. Transfer magic—that dense magical aura of Nazarick. The villagers froze. One child grabbed his mother's sleeve. The old man took half a step back. The light faded. Two figures stood there. One was a skeleton 205 centimeters tall. A jet-black mantle swayed slightly in the morning breeze. Burning red magical eyes slowly surveyed the entire valley. The pile of ash. The bound scout. The wounded villagers. And finally—Yuto. Ainz Ooal Gown. The other was a woman with silver-long hair. Red eyes gazed quietly toward Yuto. Bat wings, folded, didn't move an inch. Sharutia Bradford. She stood diagonally behind Ainz, but—she was facing slightly away from Ainz's side, toward the same direction as Yuto. Yuto noticed that positioning for just a moment. Ainz opened his mouth. "[serious]I would hear the reason you left your cell." His voice was heavy. Emotion unreadable. Angry? Testing? Simply confirming? There was no way to tell. The villagers went completely rigid. Few here would know the skeleton was the Sorcerer King, but the air alone was enough. One child hid behind the old man's back. "[serious]Albedo's suggestion of espionage. We settle this here, black and white." Sharutia said nothing. --- Yuto sheathed his rapier. *Click*, the sound echoed through the valley. Then he walked toward Ainz. With his battered body, cradling broken ribs, straight ahead. The villagers parted. Ainz's magical eyes fixed on Yuto from the front. The gaze of the world's strongest being. He did not look away. "[serious]I didn't leave because I thought I could protect them. I left because I thought I had to." He didn't choose his words carefully. He simply spoke. "[serious]I can't prove whether I'm a spy or not. But—there's something Gald started to say before he turned to ash. I'll tell you everything." Ainz didn't move. He waited. "[serious]The one who wants you is far more than Nazarick's skeletons—and then it stopped. I couldn't hear the rest." Silence came. A long silence. Ainz's magical eyes narrowed—or seemed to. A skeleton has no expression, but the quality of his stillness changed. He was thinking. He was calculating. Sharutia moved slightly. One wing opened just a fraction, then closed again. Finally, Ainz spoke. "[cold]…Interesting." Just one word. "[serious]I permit your return. However, all future actions require my approval. Albedo's suspicions remain unresolved—but I acknowledge the value of this information." Yuto said nothing. He nodded. --- On the return to Nazarick. After the transfer magic, they walked through corridors. Ainz went ahead. Sharutia walked beside Yuto. For a while, neither spoke. Torches flickered along the stone hallway. Yuto's footsteps and Sharutia's footsteps echoed in turn. Sharutia spoke without turning her head. "[cold]You didn't die this time." Yuto thought for a moment before answering. "[serious]Next time, I won't." Sharutia said nothing. Yuto glanced at her profile. Her red eyes faced straight ahead. The same expressionless face as that night when she'd thrust the sword through the bars. But—there was no killing intent. For some reason, that was oddly reassuring. The words "far more than Nazarick" still lingered in his mind. The rest of what Gald had started to say remained unknown. Even Ainz's calculations seemed to stop for that moment. Something was moving. Something that wanted him was somewhere in this world. He gripped the rapier again. The silver-white blade reflected the hallway's torchlight, wavering. There's no choice but to do it. Yuto faced forward and continued walking.