Roaring Heroes Battle the Overlord (Ainz)

EeDeChi wandered aimlessly along a narrow forest path, sunlight filtering through the dense foliage and casting dappled shadows on the uneven, muddy trail.

It had been two months since EeDeChi was born from the Daoist altar and transported to this unfamiliar world. She had casually chosen the name "EeDeChi" for herself.

In these two months, EeDeChi had roughly figured out how this world operated and the various races' ways of life.

This was a fantasy world barely considered high magic, home to humans, elves, orcs, dragons, and other races. Humans had established many countries on this continent.

Of course, EeDeChi wasn't interested in the native inhabitants of this world. Her main goal in coming here was to deal with the protagonist of this world—a guy named Ainz Ooal Gown.

EeDeChi had been too rushed when she arrived, only knowing the name "Ainz Ooal Gown" and a place called the "Great Tomb of Nazarick." She was otherwise clueless.

Finding someone by name alone in a strange isekai world was quite a challenge, but Ainz Ooal Gown had already established a country. Located between the Baharuth Empire and the Re-Estize Kingdom, this country was called the Sorcerer Kingdom, and he styled himself the Sorcerer King.

Rumor had it that the Baharuth Empire had already submitted to the Sorcerer Kingdom, though EeDeChi hadn't gathered complete information. After all, for the people on the edge of the Baharuth Empire, who sat on the empire's throne made little difference. 

Ainz Ooal Gown was someone who acted very flamboyantly, or so EeDeChi judged him.

So, if EeDeChi wanted to find Ainz Ooal Gown and drag him off his throne for a beating, all she needed to do was head straight for the Sorcerer Kingdom. This was her plan—simple, straightforward, but definitely effective.

However, EeDeChi landed in a corner of the City Alliance when she arrived, which was on the other side of the Baharuth Empire. She would have to travel on foot across the entire Baharuth Empire to reach the Sorcerer Kingdom.

In this unfamiliar isekai world, everything costs money—food, lodging, travel. EeDeChi had to first think about her livelihood.

Fortunately, she was quite powerful, so she registered at the Adventurer's Guild and became an adventurer, taking on quests to earn a living.

In this world, supernatural powers are divided into three categories: Magic, Martial Arts, and Innate Talents. Magic is further divided into Arcane Magic, Spiritual Magic, Divine Magic, and other directions.

During her two months of adventuring, EeDeChi discovered she had a strong talent for Arcane Magic. She had already mastered three or four low-level attack spells.

However, since her magic was still at a low level, EeDeChi mainly relied on her greatsword strapped to her back, using ordinary attacks to defeat enemies.

Adventurers in this fantasy world deal with monsters, magical beasts, and unusual events, much like versatile mercenaries. They follow an unwritten rule of not involving themselves in mainstream human conflicts.

They were managed by a multinational loose organization—the Adventurer's Guild. To distinguish the strength of adventurers, the Guild issued metal tags representing their rank and power. The tags ranged from low to high as follows: Copper, Iron, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Mithril, Orichalcum, and Adamantite.

Although EeDeChi wasn't sure where her strength ranked in the entire isekai world, she hadn't lost a single battle in the two months she'd been fighting.

Whether it was a red-scaled subdragon that had the Baharuth Empire's knights in a bind or a rampaging demon boar that had the villagers fleeing in terror, she had defeated them all with ease. As a result, EeDeChi's adventurer rank had risen significantly, and she was now a Mithril-level adventurer.

…

Under the fiery red sunset, a brutal battle was unfolding on the grassy forest edge. More accurately, it was a one-sided massacre.

One side, identifiable by their gear and attire, was a cavalry patrol squad from a nearby town—eight men in total. Six had already fallen in pools of blood. The remaining two were badly injured, their half-armors in tatters, still struggling to hold on.

The attackers were the notorious "Black Scorpion" bandits! This gang was known for murder, kidnapping, and robbery, having committed dozens of crimes across the Baharuth Empire.

After moving into this border town, they committed several more crimes. When they encountered the Empire's patrol squad, they resorted to ruthless violence to avoid being caught.

The Baharuth Empire's cavalry was known for their excellent equipment and rigorous training, but the Black Scorpion bandits had a Magic Caster capable of using 4th Tier magic.

The cavalrymen's flesh and blood, even with the enhancement of Martial Arts, couldn't withstand the power of magic.

Cavalry captain Aaron swung his two-handed sword, activating his Martial Art—Fortress of the Faith, barely managing to deflect a thrown axe. He then twisted to the side and thrust his longsword through the damaged leather armor of an enemy, piercing the bandit's heart.

Killing one enemy didn't lighten his burden, as he saw his last comrade, the young George Wells, who had joined the cavalry patrol less than three months ago, struck by a fireball from the Magic Caster. George was engulfed in flames, turning into a burning human torch.

Screaming in agony, George twisted and charged at the Magic Caster, wildly swinging his steel sword, trying to take the caster down with him.

But the Magic Caster just sneered and flicked his fingers, sending George flying like a flaming human kite, never making another sound.

"Am I the only one left?" Aaron pulled his sword from the bandit's corpse, holding up his steel knight's sword now full of nicks and gaps, taking deep breaths to regain his strength. He stood straight, determined to die with the honor of a knight, but in a situation with such a vast disparity in strength, did his resolve even matter?

Around him, five or six bandits wielding one-handed broad swords and oak shields slowly closed in, while the Magic Caster leisurely put away his staff, preparing to watch the last man, Aaron, struggle to the death.

Suddenly, the sound of hooves—"clop clop clop, clop clop clop"—echoed from the other side of the forest, growing closer and then stopping in the clearing.

Both the bandits about to swarm in and Aaron, ready to fight to the death, were stunned. From the sound of the hooves, it seemed only one cavalryman was coming. Wasn't that like asking for trouble?

Everyone turned to look in the direction of the hoofbeats. Aaron saw it was not a lone cavalryman seeking death, but something even worse: a girl with short black hair.

The girl wore a black linen outfit, draped in a gray knit shawl, and carried a giant sword that was far too large for her petite frame.

The black-haired girl dismounted, clearly inexperienced with riding. The horse she was on was much taller than her, rearing and trying to flee. 

But she managed to use strength to hold the reins with one hand, tightly tying the frenzied brown horse, which was twisting its body, to a larch tree in the forest.

The newcomer was none other than the still-awakening EeDeChi.