Night I

The heavy atmosphere lingered long after Momonga and Hyper departed.

The aura of despair that had crushed the Floor Guardians to their knees slowly faded, leaving an oppressive silence in its wake. Even after the pressure vanished, none of the Guardians dared to raise their heads immediately, still overwhelmed by the overwhelming presence of their Supreme Beings.

Albedo was the first to rise, her pristine white dress slightly dirtied where her knees had touched the ground. She paid no mind to it, shaking off the dust from her wings before taking a deep breath.

The others hesitated, glancing at one another before finally standing as well. Their expressions remained cautious, betraying their internal turmoil after being so thoroughly dominated by Hypers's aura.

"That... that was terrifying, Nee-chan," Aura said, her voice still trembling. "I thought we were going to be crushed."

"Yeah, me too," Mare added, tugging nervously at his miniskirt.

Shalltear chuckled, though it was a nervous sound, her crimson eyes still wide with awe. "As expected of Momonga-sama… But Hyper-sama's wrath aura was no less terrifying."

The mere mention of Hyper Indexes' name drew a shudder from all present. The dark red aura of wrath that had radiated from him was suffocating in its intensity.

It was a passive skill [Wrath of God], like the skill [Aura of Despair] of momonga, this broke the mental fortitude of anyone below the level 99, and Hyper being a literal god made its effects on victims more gruesome.

Demiurge, standing still and thoughtful as ever, adjusted his glasses with a slight frown. His sister, Lilith, however, had a completely different reaction.

"Ah, my beloved Hyper-sama… How magnificent he looked in his anger! Such a powerful display," Lilith said dreamily, clasping her hands together as her eyes glazed over with admiration. "Imagine how grand our wedding will be… a union of me and my beloved Hyper-sama ."

Her voice dripped with adoration as she glanced upward, seemingly lost in a fantasy.

Without meaning to, Lilith's thoughts drifted, and she slipped into a daydream, one that had been coming to her more frequently since her interactions with Hyper had begun. In her mind, the hall was empty, save for the two of them. Hyper stood in front of her, his sharp eyes locking onto hers, but there was none of the warmth or camaraderie that might have existed between other Guardians. No, this was different.

Lilith imagined him approaching her slowly, his expression cold, calculated, looking at her like she was some mere object—exactly how she liked it.

He wasn't like the others, who might offer a kind word or a reassuring pat on the shoulder. Hyper didn't coddle. He didn't soften his gaze for anyone, especially not her. And somehow, that made her feel more alive than anything else, making her cheek flush in red.

Her pulse quickened as she imagined him standing over her, his voice low but commanding, as he spoke the words that echoed in her fantasies. "Lilith," he would say, his tone dismissive yet somehow filled with power. "You're nothing more than an object to me. Something to use, something to shape however I see fit for myself."

In her mind, Lilith's body trembled as she knelt before him, naked and bruised with his rough actions. The thought of submitting to his every whim, of being treated as less than an animal, filled her with a strange, exhilarating rush.

She didn't fully understand why, but it didn't matter. In these moments, when Hyper dominated her thoughts, she didn't need to understand. She only needed to feel.

She imagined him towering over her, his cold eyes looking down with indifference. "You exist solely for my pleasure," he would say, his voice sending shivers down her spine. The harshness of his words didn't hurt—it thrilled her.

There was something about the idea of being stripped of all individuality, of being reduced to nothing more than an instrument of his will, that made her heart race.

Lilith had never admitted to anyone—least of all herself—that these fantasies were anything but normal. She didn't consciously recognize the masochistic tendencies buried deep within her, yet every time her mind drifted to Hyper, it always went to the same place. The thought of being treated so cruelly, so coldly, was intoxicating, even if it should have been terrifying.

In her dream, she could see his gloved hand reaching out to grasp her chin, force fully tilting her head so that she had no choice but to meet his gaze.

"You belong to me," he would say, and the words would fill her with both fear and desire. She imagined herself nodding, unable to speak, her body trembling as she awaited his next command.

The fantasy was vivid, the sensation of being entirely under his control more real than anything she'd ever felt. She didn't want kindness, didn't crave affection in the traditional sense. In her mind, Hyper's cold indifference was the highest form of attention, the harshest form of love. The thought of being used by him, treated like nothing more than a tool—his tool—was almost too much to bear.

And yet, as her daydream deepened, a part of her still longed for it to be true. She imagined him treating her roughly, not out of cruelty, but because it was simply what he did. Hyperion wouldn't care about her feelings or her thoughts. He would only care about what she could do for him, how she could serve him. And somehow, in this twisted fantasy, that was all Lilith wanted.

A sharp voice cut through her thoughts, dragging her back to reality.

"Lilith?" It was Demiurge, his curious gaze lingering on her as he noticed her distant expression. She blinked, her cheeks flushing slightly as she realized she had been daydreaming right in front of the others. Thankfully, no one seemed to have noticed—except Demiurge, who raised an eyebrow but said nothing more.

Albedo's eye twitched violently at the mention of marriage, her nails digging into her palms as she clenched her fists. Shalltear's expression darkened too, her lips twitching as she fought the urge to snap at Lilith.

"Your wedding, huh? As if that will ever happen," Shalltear muttered under her breath, casting a venomous glance toward Lilith. 

Lilith, entirely oblivious to the jealousy surrounding her, continued with her daydreams, oblivious to how close she was to igniting a full-blown conflict with the other two women.

Demiurge sighed, shaking his head at his sister's antics. "Lilith, perhaps now is not the time for such... frivolous thoughts," he said calmly, turning to Cocytus, who stood nearby with his arms crossed, his icy gaze fixed on the ground.

"Speaking of which… it is fairly quiet around here. Shalltear, is something the matter?"

After Demiurge's question, everyone's eyes went to Shalltear. She was still on her knees.

"What. Is. Wrong. Shalltear?"

She lifted her head after she was called on again. The dazed look on her face would make people think that she had just been woken up.

"...What. Happened?"

"Ah, after being exposed to the Supreme one's awesome presence, I could not help but get excited… I fear my underwear has gone through a bit of a crisis…"

Silence.

Everyone looked at each other, unsure of what to say. The Guardians mused that Shalltear had, by far, the most fetishes among them, and that one of said fetishes was necrophilia. They facepalmed as they thought about this, although Mare didn't quite get it and was thoroughly confused. No, one of the Guardians was not content to simply shake her head and sigh.

That was Albedo.

The jealousy surging in her made Albedo come out and say:

"You slut."

Shalltear sensed Albedo's hostility as she heard those scornful words. Her lips curled in hostility, and she responded with a bewitching smile.

"What? Having Momonga-sama and Hyper-sama, the most beautiful of the Supreme Beings, bless us with his energy is a reward! Anyone who doesn't get wet from that must have something wrong in their head! Or could it be that you don't just look pure, but you don't have any fleshly desires at all, you big-mouthed gorilla!?"

"...You lamprey!"

The two of them glared at each other. The Guardians did not know if they would fight as a result of this, but the way they were looking at each other was very unsettling.

"My appearance was created by the Supreme Beings; are you unhappy with it?"

"Shouldn't that be my line?"

Shalltear slowly stood back up, and the two of them approached each other. Even so, their eyes remained locked. Eventually, the two of them came so close that they collided into each other.

"Don't think you've won just because you're the Guardian Overseer and can stay next to Momonga-sama. If you really think that way, I'll laugh my ass off."

"Hmph. That's correct. While you're stationed in a faraway place, I'll swoop in and achieve a complete victory."

"...What do you mean by 'a complete victory?' Teach me, Guardian Overseer-sama."

"As a slut, you should be fully aware of what that means."

Throughout their trade of verbal barbs, neither of them had turned their gaze from each other, meanwhile Lilith again went to dream something more questioning hearing albedo's double intended words.

They simply looked into each other's eyes with a blank expression on their faces.

With a pacha, Albedo unfurled her wings in a threat display. Black mist wreathed Shalltear as she responded in kind, unwilling to admit weakness.

"Ah — Aura, matters between women should be settled by a fellow woman. If anything happens I'll come to help, let me know when the time comes, all right?"

"Hey, wait, Demiurge! Are you planning to dump all of this on me?"

Demiurge simply waved lazily as he walked away from the feuding pair. Cocytus and Mare took a step back as well. Nobody wanted to get caught between them.

"Really, do they have to argue over this sort of thing?" mare asked innocently

"Personally, I would be quite interested in the result."

"What do you mean by 'the result,' Demiurge?"

"I refer to the increase in our fighting power, the future of Nazarick, and so on."

"D-Demiurge, what do you mean?"

"Hmm…"

"What do you think, Cocytus? The absence of the Supreme Beings… does it not trouble you?" Demiurge continued adjusting his glasses with a serious expression.

"Any great leader requires a successor, no? Momonga-sama and Hyper-sama may have stayed with us until the end, but if they loses interest in us one day, they may leave for another place like the rest of the Supreme Beings. Thus, there is a need for a successor to whom we can pledge our loyalty."

"I see. Then, which of us will be Momonga-sama's successor?" Albedo asked while Lilith was still in her thought with her cheeks getting redder and redder thinking how she would have to beg Hyper-sama to bless her with his divine seeds.

"How. Disrespectful. As. Guardians. We. Are. To. Serve. Momonga-sama. Faithfully. So. He. May. Stay. That. Is. What. We. Were. Made. For."

Demiurge turned to the interrupting Cocytus.

"Of course I understand that, Cocytus. But do you not wish to pledge your loyalty to Momonga-sama's heir?"

"Hmm… Of. Course. I. Would. Like. To. Swear. My. Allegiance. To. Momonga-sama's.Hyper-sama's. Heir…"

Cocytus began imagining himself running around with said heirs on each of his shoulders.

Then he began to imagine himself teaching them swordsmanship, drawing his blade to defend the Young Masters, and even hearing the full-grown Young Masters giving him orders.

"...Oh. How. Wonderful. What. A Glorious. Sight… Uncle… Uncle…"

Somewhat unable to bear it, Demiurge averted his eyes from Cocytus, who was fully into imagining himself as a cool old uncle, faithfully serving Momonga's heir.

"Well, that aside, I'm quite interested in knowing what our children can do for the strengthening of the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick. How about it, Mare, do you want to make a child?"

"Er, eh?"

"Still, you don't have a partner… if you discover any Humans, Dark Elves, Wood Elves, or similar species, would you kindly capture them for me?"

"Eh? Ehhhhh?"

After thinking for a bit, Mare nodded and said, "If, if it helps Hyper-sama... I'm willing to contribute. But how will I have children?"

"Well, I'll teach you about that when the time comes. But if you decide to try some breeding experiments on your own, Hyper-sama might scold you. After all, the operations of Nazarick are perfectly balanced."

"That, that's true. I've heard that all the underlings were created after careful calculation by one of the Supreme Beings… if we carelessly increase our numbers, we'll be scolded. I, I don't want to be scolded by Hyper-sama…" she said her eyes converting in fear thinking of Hyper-sama

"Of course, I don't want to be rebuked by the Supreme Beings either… if only I could set up a farm outside Nazarick…maybe I should ask Hyper-sama "

As Demiurge thought of this, he decided to mention the one thing nobody had teased him about:

"Ah yes, Mare, why are you dressed as a girl?"

Mare grabbed at his miniskirt to hide his legs after Demiurge asked his question.

"This was Bukubukuchagama-sama's decision. She said this was called a 'trap,' so it should have nothing to do with my gender."

"Oh, so this was Bukubukuchagama-sama's decision. Well then, those clothes should be fine on you… although, should all boys dress in that way?"

"I, I don't know about that."

The Forty Supreme Beings were no longer around, but even so, the mention of their names still compelled obedience. Or rather, in the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick, Mare was dressed as he should be, and nobody apart from another Supreme Being could change his wardrobe.

"...I wonder if I should talk to Momonga-sama about this. Perhaps all boys should be dressed like that. I say… Cocytus, it's time to wake up."

After hearing his colleague's words, Cocytus shook his head several times, a deeply satisfied smile on his face.

"Ah. What. A. Beautiful. Sight… Truly. it. Was. Everything. I. Have. Ever. Dreamed. Of."

"Is that so… well then, that's good.... Are Albedo and Shalltear still fighting?"

The feuding pair's eyes were slightly averted. However, the one that answered Demiurge was the tired-looking Aura, standing by the side.

"They're… done. Right now, they're arguing about…"

"The problem of who should be the first wife."

"It would be strange for the ruler of the Great Tomb of Nazarick to only have one wife. The question now is who is worthy of being Momonga-sama's first wife…"

"...While that is quite an interesting question, we should probably discuss that later. All right, Albedo, won't you give us our orders? There will be many things to do later on."

"Indeed, you're right. I need to issue orders soon. Shalltear, I'll discuss this matter with you at length soon enough. We'll need to spend some time on it."

"I have no objections, Albedo. No other matter is more worthy of our time."

"Very well. Then, let us move on to our plans for the future."