Kai hadn't expected the Storyline Character who had surpassed his timeline's limitations to request anything of him.
It was especially so for the Overlord.
This Ainz Ooal Gown, if Kai wasn't mistaken, was a Pillar Entity on par with Herpo the Foul.
Or, a touch stronger, perhaps.
A Character couldn't just leave one's Bubble, invade another, and upend the storyline, otherwise.
Ainz Ooal Gown's existence in the Fate Bubble itself signified that he was perhaps one of the strongest existences in the Overlord Bubble, other than the Bubble Entity itself.
For him to say that he had a request…
Kai followed his Lucky Intuitions and nodded, seeing a great opportunity in all this.
"You are evil," Ainz Ooal Gown began, carrying no derision in his voice. "But you are also strong. Very strong. Much stronger than I had expected you to be when we made a deal before…"
Ainz didn't know how exactly this Contestant had turned the tables.
For even him to not realize what had just happened during the heat of the battle, it indeed pointed toward a greater mystery related to the Contestant himself.
Calling him strong was an understatement, Ainz suddenly realized, especially when he remembered Orochimaru and… Yhwach, at the end of it.
Ainz had already considered this Holy Grail War to be the cruelest one based on the wars he had heard of. It was just that he had no interest in the Holy Grail itself. Not that he could win the War and wish upon the Grail, being a Storyline Character of a different Bubble. That was a privilege of Contestants and Fate Bubble's Characters, not his.
Yet, this man… had accomplished the unthinkable.
This man had won the Holy Grail War right under the nose of murderous ORT and scheming Zelretch.
So, yes.
Ainz didn't mind humbling himself to ask for a request, despite the Contestant being one of the most evil ones he had ever met in his life. That's how Chaos' Contestants lived mostly, he had learned. As long as he provided an opportunity, it wouldn't matter if one was evil or good; neither to them nor to him.
"May I know your name, friend?" Ainz asked.
Kai kept a stoic expression. Friend? This Ainz is shrewd. Deliberately giving me an advantage by letting me know that he needs my help, not the other way around? Despite knowing that I can, and will, manipulate this in my favor… Hmm… Interesting.
"My Code Name is Red," Kai said, rejecting Ainz's friendly gesture by not giving him his first name.
The Overlord didn't mind.
"If you were a Storyline Character," Ainz began, "then you would have the greatest potential to become someone like me. As a Contestant, it's impossible that you haven't made a name for yourself… even among your enemies."
That's quite a counter, Kai almost smirked. Is he threatening to reveal my actions here to the Primordial Tower?
Ainz Ooal Gown shook his head. "Alright, you win. Can we not exchange all these weird blows? I really do need your help… Red."
"You started it," Kai chuckled. "I am all ears."
"My timeline… No." Ainz corrected himself, not hiding anything. "My Bubble is being invaded by a Deep One."
Kai's brows rose this time. "… What about your Deep One?"
"You are looking at him."
That rang enormous alarm bells in Kai's mind, the Ad Infinitum calculating hundreds of possibilities. "… You — are not a Deep One."
Ainz nodded. "I was. Once," he explained. "But… I got bored. You know, how it is…"
No. I don't… Kai thought, shocked. This was the first time he had heard of this. Got bored?! "What do you mean you were once?"
"As I said, I got bored with the job…" Ainz repeated. "I wanted to experience the Multiverse. Go on adventures. Not all Deep Ones are on the same level, you know. And once you are a Deep One, then… that's it. You cannot keep adding onto your powers."
[…] The Ad Infinitum.
Kai held back his extreme shock at this sudden revelation that not even Death had shared with him. This was important, he knew. How? He needed some time and more clues to figure that out, though.
"So, I gave up on my uniqueness," Ainz continued. "To not divide my powers into many mes, I limited the division to Pillar Timelines only. I am the strongest of seven Ainz Ooal Gowns in my Bubble, and… also the one who knows all the secrets."
"… That's quite a tempting statement," Kai commented flatly.
"Thank you," Ainz Ooal Gown nodded. "I knew you would like my statement regarding Deep Ones not being able to get stronger. Anyway, the point is, I was out in the Multiverse, just chilling, when I learned that a Deep One had attacked the Bubble. I had left some defense mechanisms before going out. Also, it's not simple for a Deep One to take control of a Bubble, unlike an Outer One…"
Ainz Ooal Gown waited for Red to ask about an Outer One. But when he didn't get a response, he sighed and picked up where he'd left off. "Taking help from a Prophet from another Bubble, I learned that I would get the power to push this Deep One back in this timeline. I guessed it was the Jeweled Sword of Zelretch, but now… I am not so sure."
Kai stared at the Overlord for a while, and then… "Hahaha…"
Ainz Ooal Gown waited for Red to laugh it off, clenching his right hand's fingers into a ball under his sleeve.
"… You think I," Kai asked, "a Contestant who won a puny Holy Grail War from a Key Timeline, am the power you could use to push a fucking DEEP ONE back?!"
The Storyline Character looked at Kai for a while and… nodded.
"You will not need to fight against the Deep One Himself," Ainz said. "You will just need to hold back the advances from his forces…"
"… And you cannot do that?!" Kai smirked.
"I can… not," Ainz admitted. "Not without putting my people's lives on the line. I'd rather use you than gamble with my loved ones' fates…"
"Honesty?" Kai shot back. "You really thought you could buy my assistance with honesty?!"
Ainz Ooal Gown shook his head. "… I am not only the strongest in my Bubble in name, Red," he reminded. "I have the authority as well. Missions. Skills. Items. Followers… you will have all that a Contestant wants and needs."
Kai stared at the black crucifixes plunged deep into Ainz's eye sockets. "… Which Deep One?"
"The King in Black…" Ainz Ooal Gown said, jolting AI's processors. "… Knull!"
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