The moment Kai had called out Yhwach to request Him to bestow a Schrift upon him, he had known that he had crossed a line when it came to Zelretch.
From Zelretch's murderous glare during his very first meeting with Him to King Purple Mist mentioning the true state of the Contestants with His Blessing. From Zelretch's reaction to Yhwach's presence to Yhwach's reaction to Zelretch's…
It all suggested one thing.
Zelretch and The Banished One had crossed paths in the Fate Bubble, and… they weren't friends.
Kai had no choice but to go ahead with his plans then, despite the fear of attracting Zelretch's ire.
Now, Zelretch not only knew that Kai was related to The Banished One, but He also knew that the relationship between them was an intricate one.
However, Kai hadn't hinted at the truth without a reason.
Even then, he had already known that Zelretch would have no choice but to grant him the Blessing without killing him.
There were several reasons behind Kai's confidence.
First, Zelretch was a Deep One and had already promised Kai, entering a deal with the Contestant. If Red succeeded in preventing Angra Mainyu's incarnation on his own, then He would have to bestow the True Ancestor Blessing upon one of his followers.
Words meant something when one reached Kai's level.
They meant even more at the level of a Deep One, especially if that Deep One had a reputation to hold.
Still, this alone wouldn't have been enough for Zelretch to bestow the Blessing and then kill Kai anyway, effectively keeping His promise.
So, second, Kai had counted on help.
Not from the Grimoire's unfathomable Characters, as merely calling them out loosened the Seal on the Half-Deep One sealed within the book.
Kai had counted on the Timeline itself.
Within a timeline, there was no one more powerful than the Timeline itself.
Kai had plans to ask for Timeline's total subservience as a wish to the Holy Grail. He had changed his wish, but in its place, he had received something better.
A Magus Class!
Now, Kai enjoyed the same protection from the Timeline as the other storyline Characters did from foreign elements. As Zelretch didn't have any authority over this Key timeline, it made Him a foreign element compared to Kai, despite the latter being a Contestant.
It was similar to how Julius Novachrono of the Storm Pirates had bestowed a Standalone Title, Clover Kingdom's Citizen, upon Kai first before turning the Book into a Grimoire.
Without the Standalone Title, Kai couldn't have owned a Five-leaf Clover Grimoire, as known to the Black Clover Bubble. But, by gaining Clover Kingdom's Citizen, he had become entitled to the same rights as a storyline Character of timelines ruled by the Wizard King.
If even this was not enough, then before calling out Yhwach, Kai had called out Death the Artificer through the Cloak of Disguise he had on him. He hadn't needed its uniqueness after borrowing Illya and Berserker's fates, but the Cloak's truly terrifying ability was setting up a channel directly to a Deep One.
Now, Death must have already arrived outside the Fate Bubble.
Even Zelretch would think twice before becoming the reason to start an all-out Multiversal War.
Presently, there was a fourth reason.
Not as potent as the first three, as it was quite far, but still…
Kai's hands were behind his back as he waited for Zelretch to appear. As he brought them forward, he was already holding two items.
One was a red stone, the very space pulsating around it — the Philosopher's Stone!
The second looked like an ordinary ritualistic dagger, carrying a slot in its hilt — the Sword of Azoth!
Kai brought his hands together and… put the Philosopher's Stone into the dagger's slot.
Or… he tried to, before the Yellow Sign pulsed on his forehead and rejected the resulting creation.
This was what Ainz Ooal Gown had meant when he had told Kai that the true nature of the Sword of Azoth was that of a wand, instead of simply being a Mana-holding artifact.
The deal they had made was related to the core for this to-be wand, a process Kai was quite interested in.
However, Kai had been trying to fuse the Stone with the dagger, failing every time.
But the fourth reason behind his confidence wasn't these two items, but Ainz Ooal Gown himself — a former Deep One!
Knull… Kai narrowed his eyes. The King in Black.
He could still hear His laugh echoing with a Yellow Crystal within the Black Hole of Ad Infinitum. The moment Black had obtained Venom, Kai in the Harry Potter Bubble had heard Knull's words, shocking him to the core.
Ever since then, Kai had been trying to find the meaning behind those words and why a Deep One from the Marvel Bubble would call him… Yellow.
There were no coincidences when it came to figures like Knull, Kai knew.
It might be that Ainz Ooal Gown's coming to the Fate timeline was because of Knull's manipulations, making Kai go to Him. Or it could be something else.
Kai hadn't accepted the tempting offer to go to the Overlord Bubble off the bat, but he had asked for the Multiverse ID on one condition — Ainz Ooal Gown must help him against a Deep One once as well.
So, yes.
Kai didn't fear Zelretch's revenge.
Nor was he afraid of Him reneging on the promise.
So, as Zelretch appeared in front of him, Kai bent his waist, bowing as low as he could, as if he had never asked the Deep One to shut up while calling Him an old man.
"Thank you for sparing my life, Your Excellency," Kai said, keeping his waist bent. "No wonder they sing songs about you even in the distant Bubbles…"
Zelretch's face was blank, hate lingering on his lips.
He looked at Red, remembered what had happened in the Observatory, and… sighed.
"Bring her out," Zelretch said, looking at the sky. "Let's get over with it… before I change my mind."
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