1 : The Dawn Of Despair -

In the throne room, the Floor Guardians knelt in a silence so absolute it felt physical. Albedo’s wings twitched with a devotion that bordered on mania, while Demiurge’s eyes glinted with the cold thrill of a grand plan already in motion. They looked at Ainz and saw a god. Ainz looked at them and saw the ghosts of his friends—the NPCs they had built with love and eccentricity, now breathing, thinking, and ready to kill in his name.

"The preparations are complete," he murmured, his voice echoing with an artificial gravity that masked the lonely man inside. 1 : The Dawn of Despair

Here is a short story inspired by that ominous shift in tone: In the throne room, the Floor Guardians knelt