It reminded me of NYC, which I had seen last time, giving me a sense of déjà vu. Not only déjà vu, but it was also unpleasant.
It felt as if I had been dropped into a corner of a ruined world.
"And what is this? It’s a modern city, but there are many signboards with strange characters, not just ours."
Was this some kind of parallel Earth?
It looked like a modern city with various elements mixed together.
But nothing seemed normal, as if it were on a ruined Earth.
The sky, in particular, was very red.
Since each island had different weather and climate, it was difficult to understand what this meant.
"Well, the weather’s certainly nice. A truly brutal landscape, I tell you."
I clicked my tongue and looked around.
It overlapped with the NYC I had seen before, but it wasn’t as despair-inducing.
At least there were no strange tentacles, liquids, or corpses. Moreover, I didn’t sense any monsters.
It was like a ghost town, an empty set from the beginning, with nothing in it.
I stroked Rin’s head. As Rin whinnied, I gave her an order.
"Just in case... Rin, you go to the second island."
"Kihing, Hiihihing!"
Rin immediately refused. But I persuaded her.
"You want to stay out of loyalty? I’ll call you if I need you, for sure. Don’t worry."
"Hiihing!"
Rin looked at me reluctantly before leaving. As always, she galloped away, her glossy black body gleaming.
First, I needed to examine this place.
Thud!
I flew through the Dawn. I flew higher to see if there was anything I needed to know.
"Hmm... huh?"
As I gradually gained altitude and flew, I looked down.
It was exhilarating to fly pleasantly through the clouds. But as soon as I looked down, my mind went blank.
"Holy shit...!"
I narrowed my eyes.
First, I saw a densely packed city with all sorts of infrastructure and buildings.
A towering wall, like a shell, surrounded the city.
The wall was thick and encircled, as if to protect from the outside.
And when I turned my gaze outward, I saw a long asphalt road.
Following it, I faintly saw another city surrounded by walls. There wasn’t just one or two cities.
Amidst the confusion, a helpful notification even popped up.
[You have arrived at the city ’Ainz’!]
[Would you like to make it your base?]
What would happen if I made it my base? For now, I looked around more.
Then I gasped.
Huge, sunken marks were visible around the city wall. Like meteorites had fallen.
"What are those...?"
Did meteorites suddenly fall like a shower? For that, the wall was intact. And the buildings, honestly, looked like they had been standing for millions of years, their materials aged and crumbling.
As I was pondering what those could be, Goddess materialized for a moment.
She stood beside me in her voluptuous form, frowning.
"This is not an environment I particularly favor."
"You don’t have to overexert yourself; you can go back inside."
"But it’s just the two of us...."
"Please tickle my eardrums from within me, hehe."
"Hmph, you lowly Debauched Hero! Still, you are the man I love♥"
She blushed and disappeared again.
"Powerful energy? Is it meteorites after all? Or something else?"
Could it possibly be related to Grant or the Outer Deities?
Goddess denied it.
My jaw dropped. Dimensional rifts, cities facing an apocalypse.
Only one thing came to mind. Just one.
"Ah, Gates? Huh, then this must be an island where Gates open the moment you make it a base!"
"Dimensional rifts open, and monsters pour out from them. We call such conduits Gates."
I continued forward, chatting. I whistled.
Because as soon as I learned the truth, notifications started appearing one after another, chwarreuk.
This unknown world is truly kind.
[This is Raid Island, an island composed of cities and undiscovered regions.]
[Gates appear at specific times! Their rank is determined based on the city currently set as your base!]
I let out a chuckle.
"Now I’ll even experience raids? No, is it defense first? Kyaa, how amazing, how amazing."
It felt like I was experiencing all sorts of things. I crossed my arms and felt the wind, and Goddess let out a laugh.
"Wouldn’t it be worth a try? Let’s try it first. I’m curious about the level!"
I immediately pointed at Ainz and shouted.
"Set Ainz as the base!"
[City ’Ainz’ has been designated as your base!]
[An E-rank Gate will appear immediately! We wish you good fortune!]
The ground began to shake severely. It looked precarious, as if the ground would collapse at any moment.
Then, I saw energy slowly gathering from the huge, sunken areas. Is this the start?
"Shall we see what level they are? Kukuk."
I looked around.
As if besieging the city, no less than ten Gates appeared from all directions.
SCREEEEEEEEEEEECH!
The Gates appeared with quite a loud noise.
The Gates themselves weren’t large, but a powerful energy wave could be felt.
Honestly, it was astonishing. To see something I only read about in novels in real life.
"No, holy shit. Even if the rank is low, ten Gates?! Are you kidding me?!"
This was going to be a hellish grind. I sighed and descended.
"No choice, I guess."
As soon as I reached the ground, I ran at the speed of light.
I ran at full power, targeting the closest Gate.
Monsters began to pour out. They were all E-rank monsters like gnolls, orcs, and goblins.
But there were many of them.
"Roughly, can I assume dozens of monsters pour out per Gate?"
Indeed, at this level, it wasn’t something E to D-rank Hunter wannabes could stop, by novel standards.
Before even considering the rank, the sheer number was too great. It wasn’t some Chink’s human wave tactics, you know.
"But all the Gates are orange?"
The Gates being orange was peculiar. Just as I wondered why.
[Caution! Orange Gates are volatile. They disappear after spewing out monsters.]
[Caution! Blue Gates are semi-permanent. They disappear only when their core is found and destroyed.]
[Monsters will break through the wall and target the base’s core. If the core is destroyed, you will lose the base permanently!]
『Mission』
◆City Defense
-Objective: Defend from Gates [0/10], Protect the city’s core
-Reward: Ownership of Ainz, Wall Level +1
"What a kind island. Thank you!"
With the mission appearing, it finally felt real. I was a Hunterrrrrrr!
I mercilessly slaughtered every monster I saw. I focused on the Gates closest to me first.
"I hope the wall holds up."
These guys weren’t idiots; they must have appeared with a purpose.
They would surely know what to do. They would also have a plan for the wall.
So, I had to eliminate them all before they could cross the wall and target the city’s core, which I didn’t even know about.
I swung Dawn joyfully, massacring monsters. Points steadily accumulated in small increments.
I wielded Dawn like a brutal butcher. Monsters that approached were pulverized by the mere wind pressure from my sword.
Well, I was at a transcendent level of existence and level 100, after all.
"Who would dare stop me! Come on, you fucking bastards!"
As I shouted, the monsters shrieked even louder and charged.
It was even better.
I blocked the Gates one by one. When I turned my head, three of the farthest ones remained.
"Those bastards, surely not?"
I saw monsters from the three Gates struggling.
They were trying to break the wall with sledgehammers or climb over it.
They tried to use their brains, but I wonder?
"How dare you?!"
There was no need to run. I aimed Dawn at the monsters and raised it high with all my might.
I imbued a little bit of ki into Dawn.
Dawn’s blade vibrated faintly, and a halo of light began to swirl around it.
"Dawn Guardiannnnn!!!"
Swoooosh!
Even the remaining monsters were all swept away by Dawn Guardian.
Just when I thought it was over.
"Hehe, gotcha!"
"Hmm?"
I turned around.
A gnoll, holding a dagger stained with green liquid, stabbed me in the chest.
Was it a poisoned dagger?
"...You’re the one who’s got caught."
Such an attack couldn’t possibly work on me. I spun around and shattered its head with a backspin blow.
With that, I dealt with all the mobs that had emerged from the Gates.
Just as I was about to catch my breath, the entire wall, including the city, emitted a brilliant light. As if it had received a blessing.
[Congratulations! You have defended the city ’Ainz’!]
[Mission Complete!]
[You have acquired ownership of this Sky Island!]
The corners of my mouth naturally turned up. With this, I had Get-to-daze! a part of the third island too!
But it seemed there was more to make my mouth twitch upwards.
[You can develop it using points, so please go to the core right now and find out more!]
"Core?"
I tilted my head. Could I develop the city?
I flew up on Dawn. The wall felt thicker than before.
If it had been a shabby, gray wall with scattered cracks before, now it looked like an ivory castle wall with no cracks. It was magnificent.
"Well, the first raid was successful."
Goddess was happy too, which made me glad. I unconsciously puffed out my chest but didn’t show it.
First, I flew over the city on Dawn.
"Where’s the core? Is it in the very center? Hmm."
I searched with keen eyes for any unusual buildings. Usually, places that allow development are like community service centers or city halls, aren’t they?
But my prediction was wrong.
As I looked around the city, there was a peculiar place that glowed faintly with a golden light. As if asking to be noticed.
"Oh?"
I approached it. It was a fountain that no longer spouted water.
The fountain itself was the city’s core.
Surprising. Usually, the core of a city is a large building or an important monument. This is fresh, isn’t it?
"Hoo, a fountain that can’t even spout water is the core? Let’s see...."
I approached, wondering if there was anything. But something translucent floated in the air. It wasn’t a notification.
"Huh? These functions...?"
My eyes widened.