Time passed, and the villagers calmed down, looking at Maylena with curiosity. The children surrounded her, laughing merrily, weaving a flower crown and decorating her head with it. Maylena, clapping her hands, played along with them, and the air was filled with joyful exclamations: "Hee-hee! Ha-ha-ha!" Such sincere laughter touched the villagers, but some, looking with pity at the "sick" lady, shook their heads, whispering:
"What a pity that such a beauty suffers from a disease of the mind…"
Gazef's knights, watching Maylena, began to whisper. One, clearing his throat, embarrassedly muttered:
"Maybe I should hit on her? She's a beauty, and with an illness, no one is perfect!"
His comrades cast strange glances. Another one hit him in the side and chuckled:
"You only want her sexy body, huh? You'll have some fun and then leave her. But," he nodded towards the house where Ainz and Gazef were leaving, "her protector will do the same to you as he did to those people," he pointed at the Death Knight looming over the prisoners.
The knight who had been dreaming about Maylena shuddered, his ardor fading. Not wanting to be impaled on the sword of that unknown thing. Ainz, approaching Maylena, tiredly touched his forehead, closed his eyes, and sighed heavily:
"Will you be serious at least a little? Please."
Momonga was clearly trying to reach her common sense, still trying to bring his friend back to the bright side of the force. Maylena, with a flower crown on her head, smiled:
"If I become serious, you won't like it." Then a massacre will begin, and the World Enemies, you know, would like to take a look at this world," her voice was playful, but with a hint of menace.
Ainz shuddered, his clothes sticking to his sweaty back. He swallowed and cleared his throat:
"This is… unnecessary. Have fun, do whatever you want, and I'll handle it."
"That's good!" Maylena sang, winking. "I'll stand aside and watch the fun!"
Ainz exhaled, deciding that it was useless to count on her. Suddenly, he received a mental message from Nazarick. Having retreated into the forest, he returned with a figure in black armor, whose silhouette was feminine. Maylena jumped up, exclaiming:
"Albedo, is that you?!"
The figure fidgeted slightly and replied,
"Yes, my lady. I am here to accompany the Overlord."
Ainz cleared his throat and corrected,
"Call me Ainz Ooal Gown."
Albedo nodded without asking any questions and reported,
"The spiders have surrounded the area. The riders are approaching the village and have already closed the circle. What are your orders, Overlord?"
Ainz frowned and rubbed his chin, glancing at Maylena, who was lazily leaning against a tree, snoring as if she were falling asleep. He sighed in annoyance and said,
"Albedo, accompany me. We will find out who they are and prepare cells for the prisoners in Nazarick."
Albedo nodded, conveying the order in her mind, and clarified,
"What should we do about Maylena?"
Ainz touched his forehead and replied tiredly:
"Leave her. Nothing will happen."
He and Albedo left, and Maylena opened her eye with a slight smile. She touched her face with her palm, grinned evilly and activated omniscience.
In front of her stood a woman with long blue hair braided into a braid, wearing a revealing outfit that barely covered her underwear. A huge hat shaded her face. She was doing something with concentration, but suddenly screamed, clutching her head:
"Aaah!"
The people in robes around her froze in shock. Maylena giggled, her laughter echoing ominously in their minds.
"Hehehe!"
Standing up, she dusted off her dress and opened a portal, stepping into a huge room that resembled a cathedral. The high vaulted ceilings were decorated with frescoes depicting the faces of gods, stained glass windows let in multi-colored light, and the marble floor sparkled. In the center stood an altar surrounded by golden statues. The people in cassocks froze when they saw Maylena. The woman in the hat, trembling, looked at the blood dripping from her ears.
One of the priests, angrily, shouted:
"Monster! Accept death in the name of the gods!"
The others picked up:
"Let's destroy the heretic!"
"She is desecrating the holy place!"
Maylena, singing a melody, surprised them. Suddenly, the head of one of the priests exploded, blood and brains stained the floor and fell on the hatter. She, trembling, looked at her bloody hands. The people froze, and Maylena grinned - her smile was devilish. One priest, realizing, muttered:
"This… is the devil's own grin…"
Another one took out a crystal and shouted:
"Activate the defense barriers immediately! Prepare the artifacts and prepare for battle!"
The priests chanted, the light surrounded them, but their artifacts burst, crumbling into dust. The barrier, which also activated, cracked like glass, shattering into millions of pieces. One of them, in despair, raised a cross:
"Activate the world item!"
The cross flared… and broke. The priest's hand was torn off, blood gushed out, and he screamed:
"Aaaah! Gods, no!"
Tears gushed from his eyes. He held his torn off hand with his other hand, his face sweaty, and stared at it in horror.
Maylena, whose shadow loomed over them, said boredly:
"Is that all?
Her voice, cold and serious, sent shivers down my spine. The rainbow rings in her eyes glowed orange, giving her a demonic appearance. The priests turned pale, their faces distorted with horror.
***
"Lalala~" Maylena sang, waltzing to herself in the hallway of the Slane Theocracy Cathedral. Her feet moved in time with the inaudible melody, and her smile shone with mischief. Screams of horror and pain were heard around:
"Aaah! No!" and "Help!"
Blood flowed down the walls, shadows and shadow hands mercilessly killed everyone in the building. The walls that were supposed to protect became a grave for the priests. One man, trying to escape, was picked up by a shadow and smashed against the wall with a crunch, his brains splashed onto the floor.
"Spare me, I beg you! Don't!" was grabbed by shadow hands. They stretched him out by his arms and legs, his eyes filled with tears and snot, but pleading did not help. The body exploded, blood spurted onto the floor, and the face froze in agony.
Maylena continued to dance, oblivious, until she noticed a group of people looking at her with determination despite their trembling hands. She chuckled,
Is this the Black Scripture?
They stopped, their gazes locked. The boldest, apparently the leader, stepped forward. His androgynous features - long black hair, sharp red eyes - stood out against the ornate armor. In his hands he held a simple-looking spear.
"Who are you?" he asked, pointing the spear at Maylena with determination. At any moment, when he is about to act, he wants to learn about his opponent, as well as get useful information.
She touched her lips with the tip of her finger, smiling cheerfully,
"How impolite! You didn't even introduce yourself!"
The group frowned, but the captain, checking her with his eyes, answered:
"I am the captain of the Black Scripture of the Slane Theocracy, its protector. And who are you, invading our lands?"
Maylena, taking the hem of her dress, moved her leg back and gracefully curtsied, bowing her head:
"Maylena, GM of Yggdrasil, Goddess of Chaos and Evil," she straightened up and smiled.
Her words caused confusion. The captain turned pale, his face distorted with shock. The others became wary, catching the words "Goddess", "Chaos" and "Evil". They prepared to attack, but the captain stopped them with a gesture, surprising his subordinates. Maylena watched with interest. He, swallowing, asked:
"How do you know Yggdrasil? And what does GM mean?"
He tries to get more information out of her, hoping deep down that she's just lying, and that it's not what he thinks, but just throwing dust in his eyes, trying to buy time for his attack.
Maylena, her eyes sparkling, giggled:
"Oh, there's someone who knows, right? Yggdrasil is just a game I helped create. And the GM? They're the ones who keep order, fix bugs, and manage the world of Yggdrasil."
The captain screamed, his legs shaking:
"Impossible! This is a lie!"
His face twisted in horror, clearly not believing her words, but if it was true, then their situation would be worse than ever.
The others, seeing his panic, froze in panic. If even their captain was terrified, then what would they be like? Maylena laughed, her voice echoing throughout the hall.
"Really? Didn't the people of Yggdrasil come to you? You call them players, huh? In your world, they became gods!"
Her words caught their attention. The captain narrowed his eyes, tense. Maylena continued.
"Your world let the players in. How many were there?" She paused, noticing the blonde girl in the group whispering.
"Really… The Six Great Gods, the Greed Kings, the Thirteen Heroes?"
Maylena clapped her hands.
"Bingo! Now you understand! They're all from my world, and now I'm here!" She spun around, drawing attention, and stopped. "What are you going to do?"
The captain gritted his teeth and shouted.
"If that's true, why are you here? What do you want?!"
"Good question, kid!" Maylena sang, but the atmosphere suddenly turned cold. Shadows surrounded her, only her rainbow eyes glowed orange in the darkness. Everyone flinched, retreating. She laughed hysterically:
"There is no reason! I am here to cause carnage and have fun!"
Her words cut off the conversation. The Black Scripture prepared for battle. The captain, making a swift dash, pointed his spear at Maylena. In flight, he aimed, but she, smiling, stopped the spear with two fingers.
BAM!
The sound wave spread, the air currents destroyed the walls and objects. The captain, unable to move the spear, looked into Maylena's mischievous eyes. Her gaze, full of amusement, gave him goosebumps and growing fear.
***
The Black Scripture captain, covered in sweat, could not tear the spear from Maylena's grip. His attack, which he put all his strength into, was stopped by two fingers. Looking at her demonic face, he trembled in horror. The rest of the group rushed to help: the vanguard rushed with weapons, the support mages began to cast buffs and offensive spells. Maylena, showing no fear, with a slight smile broke off the tip of the spear. The captain's eyes widened, but then he felt a sharp pain in his chest. His ribs crunched, his armor crumpled, and he flew back, crashing into the group. The vanguard dodged, but the blonde caught him, falling on his back. The captain coughed up blood and shook.
The vanguard, without stopping, rushed towards Maylena, but she disappeared from their sight. Their eyes widened in shock. The blows fell on empty space, causing a powerful explosion:
BANG!
The roar echoed, dust and dirt rose into the air, causing them to cough. A crater gaped where Maylena had been. They turned to see her, grinning. She ran a finger down her neck, causing them to fear. Two warriors' heads were torn from their bodies, blood gushed out, splattering the walls. The captain and the others paled, their minds reeling from the speed and ease with which she had killed their comrades.
The captain, wiping blood from his lips, stood up trembling. An old woman in a silver robe with a golden dragon on it stretched out her arms, activating the World Item "Castle and Country Fall" to subjugate Maylena's mind. Maylena just smirked, leaning against the wall and hugging herself as if waiting for a show. The dragon pattern on the robe began to glow, but suddenly the woman exploded. Blood, entrails, and brains sprayed onto the group, splattering their faces and clothes. Some couldn't take it anymore and vomited their lunch, while others froze in shock. The captain, wiping the blood from his face, looked at the place where only a pool of blood remained.
Maylena lazily examined her nails, cleaning off the dirt, and looked up, smirking:
"What is it? You look bad. Was this really your last hope? Weak."
Her words hurt them, her teeth gritted in anger. A girl with short light brown hair, orange eyes and purple glasses, in a school uniform with a black hair accessory, screamed:
"What kind of creature are you?!"
Maylena laughed evilly:
"I introduced myself, didn't I? And you still resist, it's so cute."
Suddenly, objects fell on the floor, causing surprise. The captain, seeing them, trembled, having learned from secret texts about legendary world artifacts that could change the world. He muttered:
"N-no… n-no…"
Maylena, parodying, sang:
"Yes, yes!" and laughed, throwing her head back:
"Ha-ha-ha!"
The captain, pale, could have gone gray from horror. The world objects, falling like trash, destroyed his worldview. Maylena, noticing his panic, asked playfully:
"What's wrong with your face, captain? Is that how you look at trash?
"T-trash?" he stuttered. "T-trash?!"
His voice trembled, his heart was ready to stop. Maylena, spreading her arms, added:
"Yes, trash. I create them on a whim, whenever I want."
The Black Scripture, even without knowing the full power of the artifacts, realized that the enemy was incomprehensibly strong. Maylena continued, purring:
"Don't worry, I'll kill you quickly, I won't make you suffer. You were protecting people, right?" She turned her predatory gaze to the two girls, the blonde and the one with glasses, who shuddered and backed away. "I won't kill you. I'll add you to my collection, like that hatter."
Her smile widened. The remnants of the Black Scripture stood before her, their hopes gone, their will to resist already extinguished.
***
Maylena dealt with the Black Scripture without any difficulty, adding new "flowers" of this world to her "collection". Mentally rubbing her paws, she trembled with anticipation, imagining how she would enjoy them in her chambers. Holding back her laughter, she walked along the empty corridors of the cathedral, where the screams of horror had long since died down. At the end of the path, she came across massive doors, near which a teenage girl was lazily leaning her back. Her heterochromic eyes - one white, the other black - and hair, half silver, half black, made her appearance mesmerizing. With one hand she covered her ears under her hair, with the other she concentratedly twisted a Rubik's cube.
Noticing Maylena, the girl frowned, meeting her smug grin. Their gazes locked, and Maylena was the first to break the silence, pulling out a flower from nowhere, its petals reflecting the two-tone color of her hair. With a graceful bow, she introduced herself:
"I am Maylena, the Goddess of Chaos and Evil. And who are you, my dear?"
The girl smiled slightly and replied:
"Antilene Heran Fouche. Nicknamed Certain Death."
Maylena giggled to herself:
Ah, Zesshi Zetsumei, finally meet? Fufufu!
Out loud, she continued:
"What a beautiful name! But your nickname—End of Death, End of Life—isn't it a bit rude for such a charming girl? How about Zesshi Zetsumei?"
Antilin raised her eyebrows in surprise and repeated, tasting the name:
"Zesshi Zetsumei… Sounds good. I like it."
Maylena clapped her hands and exclaimed:
"Wonderful!"
The atmosphere became warm, almost playful. But suddenly, Maylen raised her finger, and the sharp tip of her scythe appeared at her neck. A sadistic smile lit up Zesshi's face. Maylen, without flinching, purred:
"How impolite to attack, my dear. Were we not chatting so sweetly?"
The blade disappeared and Zesshi, straightening up, sang with a playful grin:
"Withstood my blow? Excellent! So you won't die so easily!"
She rushed at Maylen, swinging her scythe. Maylen dodged lazily, turning her head as if dancing. Zesshi's blows, sharp as a knife through butter, destroyed walls and objects, but did not hit the target. Zesshi, with a mad grin, enjoyed the fight, destroying everything around her. Maylena, blocking blows with her fingers, as if filing down a manicure, looked at her nails and muttered:
"You do a great manicure, honey. I like it."
Zesshi's lips curled and she frowned, giving her a murderous glare. Maylena giggled:
"So serious and gloomy? You need to relax!"
Zesshi replied with a playful tone:
"You're right. I'll relax once I've emptied your guts!"
With a mad glint in her eyes, she rushed forward. Maylena, spreading her arms as if inviting her, slightly surprised Zesshi. She, thinking that her opponent was thirsty for death herself, put all her strength into a blow to the neck. A sonic boom rang out:
BANG!
The walls of the cathedral collapsed, part of the building collapsed, revealing a dark sky with bright stars. Night had come into its own. People below ran like ants, screaming in panic:
"Alarm! Enemy in the cathedral!"
The dust settled and Zesshi looked at her scythe with a surprised expression. The blade was pressing into Maylena's skin without leaving even a scratch. Maylena sang with a mischievous smile:
"What's wrong with your face, Zesshi? You got it, didn't you?"
Maylena touched the blade with her finger, making a metallic ringing sound:
Ding!
Zesshi tried to pull the scythe away, but Maylena held it tightly. With a sharp movement, she pulled the weapon towards herself, catching Zesshi off guard. Before she could let go of the handle, Zesshi found herself in Maylena's arms, her face buried in her soft, firm breasts. She mentally noted their surprising softness, but then froze. Maylena, purring in her ear, stroked her hair:
"How sweet you are..."
Their idyll was interrupted by warriors in armor, surrounding them with weapons pointed. One, with anger and arrogance, shouted:
"Traitor! Demon! Repent of your sins and die in agony!"
A chorus of voices echoed:
"Kill the heretic! In the name of the gods!"
Maylena sang into Zesshi's ear and giggled:
"Is this really the one you're protecting?"
Zesshi looked up and met her gaze. Maylena's face was amused, while Zesshi looked up, her heterochromic eyes displeased. Her smaller stature made her feel vulnerable, and it clearly infuriated her.
Zesshi didn't care about the people running around like ants, whose heads, in her opinion, were empty, fit only to grease her scythe. But Maylena, with her carefree grin, infuriated her. Zesshi wanted to cut her down, to wipe that smile away, but she was caught in a death grip. In her mind, she screamed, "Damn it, I can't get away!"
For the first time, her attack didn't leave even a scratch, and it shocked her. A roar and a cloud of dust rose as magical attacks flew towards them, but they crashed against the transparent barrier around them. Maylena, noticing Zesshi's gaze, giggled:
"So persistent, aren't you? Decided to interrupt our fun!"
She leaned down to Zesshi's neck, her warm breath touching the skin, causing goosebumps. Zesshi, her eyes widened, squirmed, but Maylena's grip was iron. Inhaling the aroma, Maylena sang:
"The smell of lavender... I like it.
Zesshi, blazing with anger and embarrassment, exclaimed:
"What the hell are you talking about?"
Her eyelashes fluttered, her face flushed with closeness. Maylena, purring, continued:
"You are so cute. It was not for nothing that I came to this dirty place—you, flower, were worth it."
Zesshi, not understanding this crazy woman, opened her mouth, but was interrupted by Maylena's tongue, which penetrated her mouth. Zesshi's eyes widened, her mind exploded in shock. Maylena's tongue, like a snake, danced with hers, their lips merged in a furious kiss. Maylena did not slow down, but, noticing Zesshi's gasping face, reluctantly broke the kiss. Zesshi, breathing heavily, spat out saliva, clearing her throat. Maylena, feigning indignation, sang:
"What a waste! Don't spit it out!"
"You..." Zesshi growled, glaring at her.
Maylena frowned, noticing the crowd surrounding them. She sighed in annoyance and said,
"Enough. It's time to finish them off." Turning to Zesshi, she added mischievously, "I heard you're willing to be with someone stronger than you, huh? Fufufu! Then let me show off!
Zesshi, shocked, thought, "How did she know?!"
Maylena raised her finger, and black flames lit up on it. Zesshi froze. Maylena chanted,
"[Breath of the Underworld], 10th tier magic!"
Black flames shot into the sky, and a deafening roar was heard,
BOOM!
The ground shook as if an earthquake had struck. Knights fell, losing their balance. Zesshi also fell to the ground. One of the warriors, pointing to the sky, shouted:
"Look!"
The clouds gathered in a funnel, the sky was covered with black clouds. Rain began to fall, but instead of water, black drops fell, like mud. They devoured everything they touched. One knight, caught in a drop, screamed: "Aaah! No!"
His body was dissolving, flesh disappearing with terrifying cruelty. Mass cries filled the air:
"Help! Gods, save us!" and "Forgive us!"
Some prayed, but death did not spare. Blood covered the ground, heads and limbs separated, painting everything scarlet.
Maylena, purring, said to Zesshi:
"Look further, this is only the beginning."
Figures began to form from the black mud: demons that looked like centipedes, ants, chimeras with claws, wings and teeth, covered in blood and human heads. Maylena laughed and commanded:
"Destroy this country! Devour everything, leave nothing!"
The silence was replaced by the roar of demons:
"Grrraa! Rrr!"
The screams of people — men, women, children — echoed everywhere:
"No, please! Save me!" and "Mother!"
Zesshi, although accustomed to battles and death, trembled. Even her insane nature could not withstand such cruelty: monsters tore people apart, devouring them, separating the upper and lower parts of their bodies.
She shuddered when Maylena's hand touched her shoulder. She asked cheerfully:
"Well, how was it? Did you like the show?"
Zesshi, speechless, could not answer. Maylena, touching her face with the back of her hand, continued:
"This is all for you, to show my power. Do you want another show? I assure you, it will be no less fun."
Zesshi swallowed and nodded involuntarily, unable to resist. Maylena's smile grew wider, her eyes lit up with ominous anticipation.