Chapter 12: Chapter 1 - Moving Forward
Her movements were swift and precise with a certain amount of catlike grace behind them. Her short, blonde, bob-cut style hair moved along with each strike while her blood-red eyes never left the target. Her lips, which were always twisted in a constant smirk, were plastered on the face of a woman who was seen as both physically and mentally unnatural.
This ferocious woman who could instill fear with her maniacal expressions was none other than Clementine, the Ninth Seat of the Black Scripture. Only a few could ever hope to defeat her in a battle and most of them were the Black Scripture members. Bordering the realm of heroes, she was at a peak of human abilities.
Dressed in an outfit that would be only described as overly daring for even the lowest of women, the two-part plate chest piece barely covered her breasts with only a thin line of black silk underneath giving any sense of decency. The tight high black socks were kept up with suspenders connected to her breastplate. One leg had a tight high plating while the other had one boot.
She was wearing black silk shorts that barely covered her private area with a small plate piece covering her crotch and two pieces of plate on her tights.
Only her arms were decently protected, being fully covered in the plate.
She had two stilettos in her hand and two strapped to the belt while on her back she carried a mace. After all, not all creatures bled and sometimes a blunt force was needed.
With swift motion, she spared no time in delivering the fatal blow. Her weapons would always be aiming for the critical weak points, and her unbelievable precision that would garner impressive results were something to surely fear in the perspective of her enemies.
Today though would not be her usual day of manslaughter.
Instead she was going through her morning practice; hitting wooden targets with her sharp stilettos. The target dummy had already sustained noticeable damage in the shoulder, knee, crotch, and eye areas.
No one was practicing near her. One would think men would use every opportunity to either flirt with or ogle at a beautiful woman like her, but her bloodthirsty and sadistic nature was far too known among the soldiers frequenting the scripture training grounds. Even her fellow Black Scripture members avoided her if they could, being in mutual agreement that Clementine was not the ideal conversational partner.
There were few nagging exceptions of course, like the captain of the scripture, whom she noticed approaching from the corner of her eye.
The man had long black hair and androgynous features. He was clad in ornate black plate armor with a rather simple spear strapped to his back.
With an expression that betrayed his anger, the young man approached his subordinate. Clementine stopped her practice, put the stilettos back in their sheaths, and turned to face him.
"Good morning, Captain." She greeted the man with a mock salute, clapping her plate boots together with a clang.
"Another good man is dead! You just couldn't stop yourself, could you!" Captain raised his voice, stopping just a meter away from her.
"He tried to rape me." Clementine let out a fake sniff to which the Captain responded with an unappreciative stare.
"And how many times did this excuse of yours actually made sense? Initially I believed you were attacked the first and second time, so there was some leeway I could work with when the cardinals first found out about it. But this is the seventh man this year! When are you going to stop treating this as a game, Ninth Seat?"
"Why do you worry about those peons anyway? It's not like they can't be replaced."
"People talk. These aren't just false rumors anymore. I'm well aware of the stories being spread about you leaving widows with small children behind. If we continue to let these stories fester, people will start losing faith in us and subsequently the cardinals as well!"
"Oh, and what are you gonna do about it?" Clementine stepped forward, pressing her body against his. "Bend me over your knee and spank me like a bad girl? A virgin boy like you must be drooling at the idea."
Instantly, she was pushed back with the young man's plate-clad hand around her neck.
"Oh, you like it rough?" She gasped while reaching for a stiletto. To her surprise, she had only grasped thin air.
All four of her sheaths were empty.
She tried to kick the captain between his legs but he effortlessly blocked her attempt while lifting her off the ground. She may have been a peak human but the captain was a Godkin; far exceeding the capabilities of mere humans.
"I have had enough of your despicable actions. This is your last warning!" Captain spoke while Clementine grabbed at his arm gasping for air. "You will write a full report of your actions and attend a disciplinary hearing. If you fail to do something as simple as that, I will put up a request with cardinals to remove you from the scripture and put you on trial for the murder of all those men. Do I make myself clear, Ninth Seat?"
He squeezed a bit harder, almost breaking her neck.
Having seemingly gotten the message through, he let her go at the very last second. Clementine fell to her knees, gasping for air.
After a few sharp breaths, she managed to hiss out a few words through her teeth.
"Perfectly… clear… Captain."
As the man walked off the perimeter, she slowly picked up the stilettos from the ground, carefully cleaning them and putting them back in their sheaths.
'That prick. Why does he have to be such an uptight bastard?'
It was quite clear that killing guards for her own entertainment was about to be put at an end. The fury displayed on the Captain of the Black Scripture made that fact obvious to even someone like her.
In the past she would easily be able to get away from severe punishment. Her own methods of handling things during Black Scripture operations were dubious, but nonetheless effective. A slap on her wrist during the hearing was usually the worst of it.
Clementine honestly doubted things would not change much. But she began to grow frustrated when she realized that her actions may be monitored from now on. She would be unable to get the chance to toy with hapless victims outside solo missions, which came far too sparingly for her to get her fix.
Clementine threw one last glance at Captain before he disappeared from her view.
'If only I could take that bastard down. I still don't understand why Godkins have to be uptight bastards, but life is just unfair, sometimes.'
She gritted her teeth and kicked the wooden target dummy between its legs with an audible crack, quickly followed by a series of vicious blows to the head. No regular man would survive such an attack, but Clementine liked to imagine the beat-up dummy as the Captain which soothed her anger somewhat.
After finishing the pointless assault on the unfeeling wooden figurine, she spat on the ground and looked around with gritted teeth.
'I need to leave. But they won't just let someone like me walk away.'
Clearly, a plan was needed.
Cold water was just what she needed now to think clearly. Clementine gave the dummy one last punch and walked towards the washing area. The small fenced-off area had a well that always provided fresh cold water, a long stool, and a table with towels, washcloths, and soap.
With practiced movements, she got out of her armor and put it in one of the boxes at the entrance.
'I should better control my anger.' Clementine looked at her now bluish fists. 'I need to pummel someone on my way out like that. Maybe that one guard who can't shut up about his sweetheart.'
Her mind was fully on the planning, not even registering the coldness of the washcloth on her fair skin.
'Finding my contact in the Zurrernorn cult would be a good place to start. If I could get them to cover my tracks, then there would be no need to worry about getting caught. But what to take? That half-elven bitch won't let me inside the vault for no reason. What else… oh, that's it. Miko princesses are poorly guarded. I will just snatch the crown and be gone before anyone sounds the alarm.'
Her face twisted into a sadistic smile. Executing the plan was a piece of cake. With her status, entering the Miko sanctuary was easy.
Dispatching a few guards took virtually no effort. The disparity in the power gap was so great that it felt like morning practice all over again.
Reaching the chamber of the Miko Princess of the Earth was not difficult either. She had memorized the regular in-and-out shifts of guards at various times throughout the day. All she needed to do was choose the perfect time where there were not that many guards in the chamber's first line of defense.
Not long after her quiet assassinations, Clementine reached the chamber of the Miko Princess of the Earth. Her eyes met with a cute little girl sitting on a bed, who wore a blank expression on her face. Meanwhile there was a woman in priest's garb who the Ninth Seat immediately ascertained to be the Miko Princess's caterer.
The caterer was immediately alarmed by Clementine's entry. Obviously both sides knew that she had not obtained permission from the cardinals themselves to enter this chamber, so the caterer grabbed a mace from her belt and stood up with a hostile expression on her face.
"Ninth Seat of the Black Scripture, correct? I did not recall you having ever obtained permission to enter these grounds. Until you do, this area is restricted even from you! If you do not exit this place right now, I will have to alert the authorities."
"Yeah, yeah, sorry. I'm in a bit of a rush, you see, so I can't exactly do that complicated stuff like getting permission~" Clementine said in a singsong voice.
Her gait turned into a light skip as the caterer could only stare in confusion as to what the Ninth Seat of the Black Scripture was doing.
"That, that doesn't give you any justification for waltzing down here and-"
With one swift movement, Clementine jammed the stiletto in the woman's left eye.
Her words were stopped with an audible gargle, and she briefly looked down to see a blade being shoved deep into where her left eye was. She was unable to process the rest of the events that followed afterwards as her remaining right eye just rolled upwards before her entire body collapsed.
The Miko Princess of the Earth didn't react to what was happening around her, and when Clementine approached her, she stared back with the same blank expression as before.
"What a sad and pathetic existence. Still, you could at least be of some use. You don't mind if I borrow this, little girl?"
The Ninth Seat gently took the delicate crown off the girl's head. Adorned with many small jewels, the artifact looked like a golden spider web full of morning dew.
The moment the crown was off her head, the girl whimpered, curling up in a fetal-like position. She started to rock back and forth, and Clementine reeled back at what started to smell like urine.
Judging by the dark spots around the nether regions of her clothing, she realized that the girl had soiled herself. Having seen this happen on multiple occasions with previous victims, Clementine did not look at this as an abnormal reaction.
And whatever pity she had for the Miko Princess, it was quickly quashed as her mind immediately shifted into gears. She had no time for being concerned about the girl's fate, now that the authorities would be alerted anytime soon.
Clementine quickly departed the chamber, making sure that no one was able to see her caught in the act. Time was of the essence now, and she needed to leave the capital before the cardinals realized what she had done.
X
Despite their high status, the six cardinals cleaned the meeting room themselves. This tradition was started long ago with no cardinal having ever suggested canceling this practice. After all, to take the position of a cardinal, second only to Pontifex Maximus who was the head of the state, meant to show the ultimate servitude to the Six Great Gods.
In fact, they didn't even receive a salary and led the lifestyle of simple monks. There was no place for greed and ambitions among the servants of Gods.
Every nook and cranny was properly dusted, and the candles and the tablecloth were replaced. The lack of natural light inside the room with only a few colored windows made the task only more difficult, but the cardinals were undeterred in their line of work. Cleanliness was always next to godliness, as one of the Gods had curtly put it.
Once the job was finished, all six took their places.
Bernadine, the Cardinal of Fire, was a woman in her fifties with a plump face and a motherly smile. She sat down in her chair and smoothened out the tablecloth in front of her.
Not long after, a shriveled old man sat next to the woman, and the both of them exchanged silent greetings. The new person swiftly took his seat and began observing the mood of other Cardinals.
Zinedine, the Cardinal of Water, was the oldest among his peers. At his advanced age, one may underestimate him based only on his fragile looks.
That, of course, would be a terrible mistake.
Zinedine took advantage of this seemingly weak display, and would always overpower them with his unrivaled intellect and highly trained deductive skills. His fighting prowess was by no means godly, but learning how to use them while learning about the other opponent was considered a supreme tactic in his perspective.
If one were to express more fight in their eyes rather than the sharpened gazes of the Cardinal of Water, then it would be none other than Dominic, the Cardinal of Wind.
He was a kindly-looking man, but the former member of Sunlight Scripture could switch from his friendly demeanor to the wrath of a raging wildfire before his unfortunate victim could even blink twice. Going out into the field of battle may not be a common practice for Dominic nowadays, but it would be equally unwise to fight the Cardinal of Earth in a war of words, with the rest of his colleagues having already learned from brutal experience.
Raymond, the Cardinal of Earth, was only in his mid-forties and the youngest Cardinal at the moment. Despite his youthful energy, he would always display a calm and reasonable demeanor. This quickly earned respect amongst his colleagues, knowing how admirable those traits could be in someone who would oversee the entirety of the Theocracy's scriptures.
The cardinals also took great heed of the fact that Raymond had once served as a member of the Black Scripture. Being in charge of overseeing all scriptures was more justified for a heavily experienced man such as him.
Yvon, the Cardinal of Light, looked over the room with his usual stern expression and fixed his monocle. As the most by-the-book member of the highest class of clergy, he wasn't casual even among his peers.
Maximilian, the Cardinal of Darkness, stood out the most among them.
With shoulder-length black hair and round glasses, he had three books floating near him. It would be easy to assume that they were religious texts or at least books about magic.
In reality, they were composed of not only the modern law of the Theocracy, but also written law that dated all the way back to the early days of the Theocracy. This was more of a preference to Maximilian, who adored reading ancient text in his spare time.
The last to join was Pontifex Maximus himself. As tradition went on, the leader of the nation abandoned their name upon taking the position and was addressed only by the title.
The elderly man entered the room and took his seat and announced. "We can start the meeting."
"I think we should start with the most pressing matter." Raymond started as he handed out the reports. "As of now, the entirety of the Sunlight Scripture is considered missing in action."
"Has the spy working from within Gazef's troop reported back?" Pontifex asked.
Just like everyone else, he had already heard some bits and pieces, but not the whole analysis of the situation. He started to read the report at a rapid pace while he listened to the Cardinals speak.
"Unfortunately the spy has not reported back within the expected timeframe. He could also not be contacted with an encrypted message spell, which likely points to the possibility that he was killed in action," Raymond said, returning to his seat.
"But we do agree that the disappearance of the Sunlight Scripture likely is due to them encountering players," Bernadine asked.
With her having a close relationship with Relzania, she was the first to get the Thousand Leagues Astrologer's report. Therefore the rest of the cardinals took greater heed to Bernadine's words in this situation.
Dominic was the first to voice his opinion on the matter, directing his colleagues' attention towards him.
"They could not have just deserted! And not only an absolutely overwhelming force would be needed to interrupt the operation, but enough to wipe out the whole Sunlight Scripture. This is becoming more insane as it is."
"I understand where you are going with this, Dominic. And I am well aware of your correspondence with some of the veteran members from the Sunlight Scripture, so do not think I am being so rash to conclusions," Raymond said, defusing the volatile air emanating from the Cardinal of Wind.
"I would have to agree," Zinedine spoke up in a calm and reserved tone. Raymond gestured for the Cardinal of Water to continue.
"You see, my analysis of the battle scene, coupled with the strange interference that prevented Astrologer from performing her duties during the battle, has led me to only one logical conclusion. Only a player could have done this. By what battle damage could be observed, it is clear that the Dominion Authority was summoned."
"Zinedine, have you considered other possibilities?" Pontifex asked, his tone betraying a hint of worry.
"A dragon could have been the culprit, but we have no reason to believe the Council State would get involved in human affairs." The old man gave a subtle shake of his head. "There is simply no benefit for him to do this, and the casualties coming from both sides could be catastrophic."
"It is too much of a coincidence to dismiss the possibility of the appearance of new players. There are two questions I would like to know if this is true, however. Are these new players belonging to the human race? And would they be interested in cooperation with the Theocracy and other human countries?" Raymond tapped the table.
"Naturally I would prefer for human players to sidle with our own interests, first," Dominic said matter-of-factly. Raymond heard a chorus of approving hums from the other cardinals, seemingly wishing for the same outcome.
"If I had to guess from what we know, they appeared just as the decoy force attacked the village and decided to punish our forces, since from their point of view, it looked like unjustified slaughter," Zinedine explained.
"This information brought before us has been indeed helpful. Regardless, throwing hypothetical scenarios back and forth will not bring us closer to our goal. We should continue to observe the situation for now before deciding upon what steps to take. If players indeed have arrived in our world once again, we should see what they do before making official contact. Is there any opposition to my proposal?" Pontifex asked.
With no one voicing their disagreement, he motioned for Raymond to move on to the next talking point.
"The next topic that requires immediate attention is the actions of the ninth seat of the Black Scripture, Clementine."
The moods of the cardinals soured a little, with Raymond looking somewhat apologetic. Having been a former member of the Black Scripture, he felt pity for its current members, who were most likely dealing with public uproar on Clementine's horrific actions.
"She was too unstable for her position. All we can blame is our own inaction. I did propose to put her on trial after the second incident." Maximilian remarked.
"Even a rabid dog has its uses. We all know why we kept her around, yes? There is no point dwelling on it." Yvon said dryly. "We should have kept her on a shorter leash and let her work out her… disgusting urges on prisoners. Raymond, I assume you plan to send the Windflower Scripture after her?"
"As much as I hate wasting resources on a deserter, we must retrieve the Crown of Wisdom at all costs. If not for the uncertain situation with the possible appearance of players, I would have proposed to send a few Black Scripture members after her. With help from Astrologer, a team from the Windflower Scripture should be enough to apprehend Clementine and retrieve said artifact. Considering the sensitive nature of her actions and the Ninth Seat's individual strength, I propose her immediate execution upon capture. I will not allow any more internal transgressions to occur within our own scriptures."
The proposal was agreed upon unanimously. A loose canon like Clementine could not be left on her own, even if she hadn't stolen a priceless artifact.
As the cardinals left the room one by one, only Yvon and Maximilian stayed behind. Since each represented the polar opposites of the Gods, one would think that they would get along the least. In actuality, public assumption was the opposite of their true relations.
"I see something troubles you, my friend." Maximilian started as he observed Yvon's stony expression. In the long years they knew each other he grew to know the stoic man all too well.
"I can't help but worry about the sign the Gods showed me during my last pilgrimage to the vault," Yvon replied hesitantly.
"If you don't want to speak your mind, that is understandable. All we see is meant for each of us alone cardinals, after all."
"I… I was guided towards that chapter…"
"That's…" Maximilian's face twisted in concern. "It can't be just a coincidence."
"I hope it is just a manifestation of my worries. Maybe it was a warning to be wary of what sort of players have arrived and be careful."
"My friend… I saw the Ruler of Death in my dreams. One that could make even my God tremble. He came to the earth engulfed in light, but brought death wherever he walked. Both fauna and flora were not spared by his heinous aura. I wrote these terrible thoughts off at first as well, but if we both had the same terrible premonition, then I dread to imagine what that could mean for Theocracy, or even humanity as a whole."
Maximilian put two fingers against his left temple and let out a long sigh.
"We always knew the possibility existed. We can only pray that it is nothing more than a warning. Those monsters wouldn't have saved humans at first sight, so surely they mustn't be the players that helped Gazef." Yvon took off his monocle and cleaned it with his handkerchief. "But if they are that deceptive, then we have no hope of saving humanity from their evil."
"I am of the same opinion. Beings as cruel as that would not have saved humans. We can only pray that our Gods will guide us through these turbulent times."
X
The conference room as of now felt far too big for just five players to hold a meeting. An agreement was made to use guest areas of their quarters on a rotation before another smaller conference room was made. Of course, the old one would be preserved as is for the memory's sake.
By all means, a meeting was needed to be held a few days ago. Due to the unexpected results of his first night with Albedo, however, it was postponed until Ainz had gotten enough rest. The rest of the ninth floor would have also gotten a chance to recuperate from the side effects of their union, so in the end the break was solidly justified from the beginning.
Today's place of gathering was Ainz's quarters.
He, as the host, obviously was there already, critically looking over the place. After Pandora's rampage through his living space and subsequent removal of anything he didn't need for personal use, the room looked a lot more spacious. The only new additions were the few items that Albedo had decided to add.
His girlfriend had taken a lot of initiative in decorating the space adding a few dressers for her use and scattering around a noticeable amount of plushies of her making. There also were a few pieces of artwork taken from the treasury.
'Looks like everything is in order.' He let out a relieved sigh.
The maid at the door, noticing Ainz's agitation, mimicked him and frantically looked for anything that would require her immediate attention.
Unlike Ainz, she didn't stop stressing about the nit-picky things. She stared at the spacious room as if trying to locate an invisible assassin hiding, ready to strike at a moment's notice.
But before she could get a stroke from worrying too much, a knock on the door rescued her. The moment she opened the door, Pero barged in and plopped down on the sofa.
"How's it hanging buddy? Waifu has not killed you yet?" He asked cheerfully.
"I'm fine," Ainz replied with a cough.
"So Albedo learned to control both the aura and energy draining?" His friend continued his assault.
The fact that a skeleton could not get red in the face was his saving grace once again. "Partly."
"Stop pestering Ainz, you perverted bird." Buku interrupted the questioning, arriving before the maid had managed to close the door and sat down next to her brother.
"That's rich coming from you, you hypocritical pile of goo. Maybe you should tell Momo how you pestered Albedo for details!" Pero raised his voice.
"We will talk about this later, snitch." Buku's increasingly lowering voice dragged the room's temperature with it.
'Why do both of them have to be like this?' Ainz lamented, feeling the emotional suppression doing its blessed work.
"Don't worry, boss. At least I don't give a rat's ass what you and your girl do in private." Ulbert was third to arrive.
"We only need to wait for Tabula to arrive and we can start." Ainz tried to divert the conversation away from his private life.
"Did someone tell him that we are having a meeting?" Buku asked, switching back to her higher pitch voice.
"Twice." Ulbert said, shaking his head. "I swear, we need to assign a babysitter to the guy or he will forget that anything outside of his laboratory exists."
"Just message him directly and tell him we'll cut his funding if he doesn't drag his ass here right now," Pero suggested.
"Good idea." Ulbert smirked.
A moment later, Tabula barged in. "I didn't forget!"
"Sure you didn't, pal. Maybe we should get you a girl who looks after you." Pero burst into laughter.
"That's… wait… but…" The brain eater's expression changed to deep confusion.
"Tabula, you alright?" Buku immediately picked up that the remark had deeply affected him.
"I… yes." Tabula waved her off and sat down. 'Did I have a wife on Earth? Why do I feel like I had someone but can't remember? Something is off. I will have to meditate upon it later.'
"Buddy, you seem off. Have you inhaled too much of the stuff you are brewing?" Pero dropped the teasing and asked in a much more concerned tone.
"No, I'm fine. There is something I need to look into later. Let's just start discussing the official business."
"Right. I guess let's start with what we should do with the invitation to appear before the king of Re-Estize. I didn't give a concrete answer when he contacted me, but we should not postpone it further than a month away." Ainz said.
"I can do it. Or do you want to head towards the location yourself?" Ulbert said, perking up.
"You?" Buku raised her brow, "Who wants to bet that it will end up with city walls decorated with people on pikes?"
"Or the city burned down." Pero chipped in.
"I am a refined gentleman. If they piss me off, I'll just curse some items on the way out and leave an army of shadow demons to haunt them." Ulbert scoffed at the taunts of his friends. "Besides, slow and methodical revenge is more fun. I would much prefer those elitist shits to watch their world crumble around them before putting them on pikes."
"Are you sure you can remain calm if they start to make unreasonable claims? If Carne is any indication how things are in this kingdom, I doubt we'll get as much as thanks for saving Gazef and the town." Ainz glanced at the demon.
Ulbert, after all, was embracing his new self the fastest, and discarded any human morals the first chance he got.
"I can follow the script just fine, thank you. I'll go be my charming self, get a better look at the nation's elite, and then we work from there. Who knows, maybe we can tear the whole country apart from within and show up as saviors afterward." Ulbert smirked. "I'm sure there will be at least a few willing to sell their own people for some bloodied coins."
"I guess you can take this one. I think I need a lot more practice before I can put up a convincing show." Ainz agreed to let Ulbert take charge for now.
"Oh, don't sell yourself short. When you don't overthink things, you are a natural leader. Look how good Carne went." Buku reminded him.
"Ahm… yes. What's next…? Oh, we do need to think about how we will set up a government. According to Aureole's observation, the forest near Carne does not seem to have any strong creatures but there are a lot of semi-intelligent ogre and goblin tribes. We could start building our empire there and practice how to run it."
"Demiurge already had drawn a plan on how to proceed. Obviously I scratched out some of his more extreme ideas," Ulbert added.
Both had discussed the idea the day before, mostly because Demiurge was far too eager to show off to his father and was drawing up various plans non-stop.
"Sure, why not. Starting with nonhumans is a good idea. Sis and I wanted to go explore a bit. Pose as adventurers maybe. See how things are from the ground up, so to speak." Pero instantly steered the conversation in the direction he wanted.
"We can set up our branches right away and then take a few weeks off right? I mean it's not like we need a ready-to-go army and assassin squads right away." Both siblings tried to sell the idea of them just going on an adventure.
"That does sound interesting." Ainz stroked his chin, keeping his excitement at the idea just below the suppression point. "I could join…"
"Not a fucking chance!" Ulbert rudely interrupted his daydreaming. "You are not running off and leaving me in charge."
"But…" Ainz tried to weakly protest.
"You are the ruler of the freaking Nazarick. You can't go on an adventure just like that. Remember that you sure as hell can't leave without your girlfriend and without her, the whole tomb will fall apart."
"But…" Ainz let out a frustrated sigh and looked down. "You are right."
"Don't be sad buddy. I'm sure Albedo will make up for it. You are a taken man now." Pero got up and patted his shoulder.
"How about we promise to let just you two have a vacation once things are set up? Pero and I don't plan to be gone for long." Buku flashed him a reassuring smile.
"Was there a reason for me to even attend this?" Tabula asked impatiently.
"You can torment those scripture members later. Or make some weird alchemical shit that gives you purple zits on your ass." Ulbert shot back.
"I am doing important work and…"
"Tabula, Ulbert, pointless bickering will lead us nowhere! I would not mind both of you presenting valid arguments, but I can see where this is going, and frankly none of us here have any time for that."
Ainz raised his voice to establish himself as the new speaker. Without realizing it right away, he accidentally channeled some of his energy into his voice, making the rest of his friends shudder. The brain eater and the demon stared at him, startled, with Ainz surprising himself as well.
'Did those words come to me as a reflex? Whatever the case, I got these two to finally quiet down. Maybe I should rely on my Overlord side more…'
Seeing that no one wanted to talk right now, Ainz took back the reins of the conversation. He ignored Pero and Buku letting out synchronized whistles as he began speaking.
"If you are in such a hurry, then tell me what you need from outside Nazarick and be on your way," Ainz said, putting his full attention towards Tabula.
"S-sure." Tabula scratched the back of his head with one of his tentacles. "I could use a local magician and alchemist to get a better insight into how things are done in the world we are in."
"We'll look out for one." Pero immediately responded.
"Great. Notify me if something important requires my attention." Tabula said and before anyone could get a word in, teleported away.
"We need to get him a secretary post haste. I don't want to organize his day for him, especially if he is supposed to actually be in charge of the science branch." Ulbert remarked.
"Agreed. But for now, we can let Tabula be. I'm sure his research will be beneficial for Nazarick." Ainz added in.
"Ehh, I'll just send a couple of Succubi to watch after him. I plan to test the limits of demon summoning anyway."
"Are you sure it is safe to summon demons en masse?" Ainz asked, glancing around. "No, wait… They're not being used for what I think they're being used for. Are they…?"
By the apologetic reactions of the siblings, it was clear that everyone, save for Ainz, was all for filling up the tomb with lust-oriented demons.
"Should be. Imps were just as loyal as naturally spawning ones. It's not like they could be of any threat to us. At best, they could reach level fifty so even hundreds combined shouldn't be able to repeat the stunt you and Albedo did." Ulbert grinned at the undead, knowing he just cornered his friend.
The crimson lights in Ainz's eyes disappeared momentarily before returning back with full force. He responded in as neutral of a voice as he could muster. "Carry on then."
The meeting was concluded and each had the next steps to take. Ainz watched his friends depart one by one and the maids and guards return to the room as they had left the moment players started to converse.
X
While the Supreme Beings held their meeting, the tomb's guardians had gathered for their own talk. Albedo, as one with quarters designed for a Supreme Being, had invited the rest.
Her living space was almost unused since she spent nights in Ainz's bed. In addition, most of her day-to-day clothing had found its place in her lover's quarters. Simply put, her own place was so infrequent that present circumstances made it better for her own quarters to be used as a gathering place for the most important servants of Nazarick.
As to not waste anyone's precious time, all of them arrived within a few minutes of one another.
Demiurge and Pandora took seats next to Albedo while Aura, Mare, Shalltear, and Aureole sat down opposite them. Cocytus and Sebas took smaller seats at each end of the sofas. The last two present were Nigredo and Rubedo, both choosing to stand. Gargantua was not included for rather obvious reasons and Victim chose to not participate.
While there was general friendliness among the group, Demiurge and Sebas glanced at each other with some animosity due to the imprint of their creators being at each other's throats constantly.
Shalltear and Albedo showed somewhat more civility, but the situation was not really better compared to the sharply dressed butler and devil. The vampire glared at Albedo with such intensity that it seemed she was attempting to set the succubus on fire.
"Shalltear. If you have something to say, now would be the best time," Albedo said, smirking at her.
The succubus was well aware that both her and Shalltear were gunning to be Ainz's bride. It was a little disappointing for Albedo to find out that she was only being referred to as a girlfriend, but it was nonetheless a humongous step in the right direction. In the end, she was a clear victor in the competition for Ainz, and Shalltear knew that very well.
"I have nothing to say to you. Lord Ainz will soon realize he has made a mistake and see how past you are in your prime, gorilla."
"It seems you are implying Lord Ainz makes mistakes, Shalltear," Demiurge intervened, sounding more inquisitive than upset.
The fiery competition between Shalltear and Albedo was something that Demiurge did not really care about other than the outcome of potential heirs he could one day serve. But he disliked the possibility of the vampire badmouthing the Supreme One's decisions, so Demiurge could not help himself but sound slightly annoyed.
Shalltear must have realized it too, feeling the change in the room's atmosphere. She clutched her mouth and whimpered in horror.
"I-I didn't mean it like that!"
Albedo glanced at the arch-demon with a raised eyebrow.
A figurative lightbulb then appeared above her head, and the succubus faced the frightened vampire, deciding to do the final blow to her fragile psyche.
"Now, now, Demiurge. There is no need to point fingers. I'm sure Shalltear misspoke and actually thinks Lord Ainz made a mistake by choosing me."
Seeing how masterfully Albedo won the war of words, she just sunk down into the couch and let out a low growl.
"This is why I hate getting into arguments. Let's just get on with whatever you want to talk about. I want to make another patrol round before the day ends."
"Of course. The reason I asked all of you to come today is for all of us to understand the goals of our creators, even those who are still absent."
Albedo quickly switched to a business-like demeanor as the words were already exiting her mouth before even giving herself a chance to think about them.
"I already discussed the topic with Demiurge, but in short, it seems the Supreme Beings have chosen the highly popular strategy to convert humans and other lesser beings into worshipers and build their empire with this fact in mind. We have already discussed this possibility beforehand, and Carne village was chosen to be the first test ground to see how this worship could be implemented among humans."
"Oh yeah. Mom told us something similar when I asked how things went in that human village. If they do worship the Supreme Ones, I guess we can tolerate them." Aura chipped in, garnering approving nods from the other floor guardians.
"IT IS ONLY NATURAL THAT EVERY LIVING CREATURE SHOULD WORSHIP THEM. BUT THE FACT REMAINS THAT HUMANS WERE ONCE THE ENEMIES OF THE SUPREME ONES. HOW ARE WE TO CONVERT THEM TO OUR BELIEFS WITHOUT CAUSING MASSIVE FRICTION?" Cocytus asked with a puff of cold air filling the room.
"Not everyone should or could be convinced, of course. As my Father explained, we should look at every sentient creature outside of Nazarick as though they were a blade of wheat in a massive field. Our job is to nurture the field for the Supreme Ones to harvest their adoration. All the ones that are not useful should be weeded out and used for other purposes." Demiurge explained with his usual half-smirk decorating his face.
"So we kill everyone who doesn't fall in line? Starting with those pathetic humans the Supreme Ones so graciously saved?" Shalltear asked as she sat up. 'If I can prove I am better than that old hag, Maybe Lord Ainz will change his mind. I should ask Daddy for advice.'
"There were only a few dozen of them. The killing of the first test subjects would serve no purpose." Pandora said and stood up, swinging his hand sideways, imitating his father. "I propose a careful observation under a supervisor from Nazarick. Ein Hund kann nicht nur durch negative konditionierung trainiert werden!"
"I am assuming that you are proposing to use mostly positive reinforcement? This dog analogy is something we could strive for. A well-trained dog would obey its master's every command and do so with utmost adoration."
"I would put those creatures closer to farm animals, but if such an approach works then we can at least try it out. I think I could send one of the Pleiades to observe the village under the guise of a protector." Albedo nodded in agreement with the proposal.
'If my beloved Lord Ainz wants to protect those pathetic creatures and turn them into worshipers, then it is my utmost duty to carry out his will. It's interesting how similar Pandora's thought process is to his father's. Maybe I should interact with him more often despite his eccentricities. I'm sure Lord Ainz added those traits for a reason.'
"You can't send Lupus. Da- Father has claimed her." Shalltear announced.
"Maybe Yuri? Big sis is kindest among my sisters." Aureole spoke up in a soft, barely audible voice.
"An excellent suggestion, Aureole. Yuri's undead nature would be helpful to observe human behavior with a passive detachment." Demiurge flashed the shy girl a smile. It was becoming clear to him that the Pleiade maid was uncomfortable being in a room filled with most of the floor guardians.
"Then it's settled. I'll send Yuri to observe Carne Village." Albedo nodded, noticing Aureole's discomfort as well. "If no one else has anything to add, you may return to your posts."
The guardians left the room one by one, with only Pandora staying behind. Once he and Albedo were alone in the room, he spoke up.
"I have an issue I would like to clarify with you."
"Oh?"
"Considering your relationship with Father, how should I address you from now on?" Pandora spoke in a much more neutral voice.
"I fail to understand where are you going with this," Albedo said, genuinely confused.
"Knowing my creator, he would likely make you his wife sooner than later. Should I address you as Stiefmutter?"
"Stiefmutter…? If I recall correctly, that must mean stepmo…" Albedo muttered trying to process what she just got asked. Her eyes popped up in surprise at the implications. "Are you out of your mind?! Even if Lord Momonga weds me you should never call me that!"
"Verstanden." Pandora saluted. "Lady Albedo it is." He promptly marched out, leaving Albedo on her own.
However, the succubus's fury subsided the moment she was alone. Her mind did a complete one eighty, and she was back to her dazed thoughts involving her and a certain undead.
'Wed me soon! Could it be that my beloved Ainz plans to marry me and me alone and has told his plans to his son?'
With a smile plastered on her face, she took out a brand new notebook from her inventory and wrote on its cover 'Wedding Plan.'
Bonus Story - Reasons for their Happiness.
A blonde boy repeated the same sword swing again and again. His arms were shaking. The overstrained muscles screamed in agony, begging him to stop the training, but he went on without mercy toward his own body.
He needed to push beyond his limits to repay the kindness his mistress had shown him. He wasn't of noble blood and by all means shouldn't be anywhere near the kind princess that rescued him years ago.
As a street urchin, he had lived in an abandoned house living off whatever scraps he could find and steal.
And just as his life hit the lowest point with him laying in the sidestreet, close to death by starvation, this angel approached him.
Princess Renner took him in and gave him a place to stay and a purpose. He became her most stalwart guardian. Her radiant smile never left the back of his mind, even during his rigorous training sessions.
After a few more swings, his hands shook so much that he had to stop. Climb put away the training sword and wiped off the sweat off his youthful determined face.
The walk through the castle went as usual, the stares filled with disdain, the whispers they thought he couldn't hear.
Unlike him, even the lowest of servants in the royal castle was of noble blood. The third and fourth daughters of nobles worked as maids while the youngest sons served as manservants, butlers and royal guards. They despised him for where he came from.
But it didn't matter to someone like Climb. As long as he could be at his mistress' side, he could withstand any ridicule.
Somewhere deep within, however, he knew that this happiness would not last. Sooner or later, the princess would be married off in typical royal fashion. He likely would be pushed away from her, becoming an outcast in society once again.
Returning to his small room in the servant area, he quickly wiped himself with a washcloth and put on the white armor he had spent hours polishing to a shine. In her infinite kindness, Princess had gotten an armor set from her close friend and gifted it to him.
With all adjustments done, he grabbed a small hand mirror and looked at his reflection for any flaws. His blue eyes scanned every part of the armor critically.
Satisfied with the result, Climb rushed off to Princess' quarters.
Once he entered the main area with a knock and an invite from his mistress to enter, his gaze once again fell on the princess who looked at him with a tilt of her head and then pouted.
"You trained too hard again! Climb, you can't push yourself like this."
Even with a pout, she was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen.
In fact, most of the kingdom considered her beauty unmatched by any other woman. With long golden hair and vibrant dark-blue eyes that radiated warmth, she was dressed in a long light blue dress that accentuated her beauty even more. On head she wore a small crown.
"S-sorry, your royal highness." Clim bowed deeply. 'She always knows.'
"Climb, you know you don't have to use those honorifics when it's just the two of us." She flashed him the same radiant smile.
The young man's heart skipped a beat and he nervously nodded. No matter how often they spent time together, he couldn't oblige her request and be more casual around her. Especially of late when his teenage body reacted to her presence a lot more than before. It was only her he could think about in his private time.
Renner approached him and inspected his shining plate armor critically. She leaned closer in and polished a spot on his chest with the boy freezing up like a statue. Even though he was rather short for his age, he was still marginally taller than the princess, making her lean down a bit as she inspected her handiwork.
"There. Flawless." She remarked.
When the boy could only nod in silence she broke into a bit more mischievous smile.
"Come sit with me." Renner motioned for the boy to join her at the small table. 'He is looking at me with those eyes again. My puppy gets so excited. You can't hide it from me, my dear Climb.'
Her bodyguard exhaled sharply and approached the table with wooden movements. He looked around nervously and then sat down.
Renner clamped her legs together and exhaled just as sharply. With an unchanging expression, she poured a cup of tea for him. 'One day you will be mine. Ohh, I can't wait for it already. I know you will be my first and only. I will have you, no matter what. I will burn this damn kingdom to the ground for us. Just a bit more time. Everything must be set just right.'
In the excitement, her mask almost slipped. He could not know her true self. Renner knew he would not understand that this facade of kindness was created just for him. In truth, he was the only one she cared about.
Born smarter than anyone around her, she found herself alienated from an early age as even the so-called educated nobles wrote off her ideas as just ramblings of a curious child. This alienation combined with the general neglect from her parents and siblings that came with being a royal shaped her into someone who couldn't connect with others and saw people as mere tools to be exploited for her own gains.
That is until she found an orphan boy that saw her as a savior.
It was his big loving eyes, his puppy stare that gave her something to look forward to. A day when they could be together. His love for her was undeniable. Especially of late when he was rapidly growing into manhood.
Obviously, as a princess, she could not dress more provocatively to excite Climb with her body, but there were other ways to achieve the same result.
A smile at the right time, a compliment. A light 'accidental' touch was enough to assure she was the only girl her puppy ever thought about.
'One day you will be mine and nothing in this world will stop me from having you.' She returned his loving gaze and brought the tea cup to her lips, taking a small sip.
Edited by Zirmeister
Proofreading by Visur Nyxan, Tophrel, Dtrackt, Sad_Smiles, SwissChocolatess, and Alassandro.
AN: Thank you for reading the story, and if you have caught up to the latest chapter, you can check out my other work or join my discord server (Link is in my profile) where additional chapters are available or if you are interested in becoming a beta reader.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone