THE PARTY OF STRANGERS

Arisa I

"Is that slavery? I read from one of the books at home that Egyptians used to build pyramids like this," the crimson-haired teenager asks as she points at the frost trolls building a statue of the Sorcerer King.

"Hestia, don't point. That's rude." The middle-aged bearded companion chides her, then turns to the Naga immigration officer and apologizes for his companion's rudeness.

Ryraryus, true to his work, replies "This old one does not know what Egyptians you compare His Majesty to. However, let me give you some sage advice I tell most necessary for all outsiders. Throwing any insults to his majesty's name would do you no good, even if that's not one's intention. It's not as grave a crime as declaring opposition. Regardless, if the wrong person were to hear you, the consequences could be..." the Naga closes his eyes as he searches for the right word.

"Permanent."

The middle-aged man nods gravely and smiles at the officer. "We'll take that advice to heart, thank you." He turns to his two companions; the crimson-haired teenager and a hulking suit of armor then back to the crimson-haired teen. "You heard that right?"

The armor nods.

"Yeeees." A boorish drawn-out reply.

Done with the inspections, the trio bid goodbye to the officer and entered the city.

"Hestia, it's not slavery. It's called ego." The suit of armor chimes playfully as it pokes her in the cheek.

"Hey Arisa, don't go teaching those things to the kid or we'll get in trouble." The middle-aged man chides. "We can't afford to be so carefree here yet." He gives her a stern look.

"What? The people can't possibly know what we're talking about dear. And besides, we can handle anyone that comes our way." The suit of armor retorts.

"That's the kind of attitude that gets people killed. Trust me."

"I want to eat." Hestia inserts on the middle.

The armor sighs, "We just unequipped the ring of sustenance. You can't be hungry so soon."

"We can eat once we find a room to stay the night. We'll also be discussing our plans once inside. In the meantime, keep your anti-divination rings. Don't want to run into trouble with anyone who can detect magic."

The man takes in the view. The streets have littered people, human, demi-human, and undead alike. It's nothing he'd ever seen since coming to this new world. "It's honestly a fresh sight. We no longer have to live so far from civilization here."

"Quite a sight eh no?" A young man wearing armor with a sword at his hip walks into the sightseeing party. "Judging by the worry on your face, you must be new." He offers a handshake. "The name's Colt by the way, an adventurer."

"Jean-Jacques. These are my companions Arisa and Hestia." He waves to his companions. Arisa making a bow as graceful as a steel suit of armor allows, while Hestia greets with a wide grin. "So is it true what I heard? The Sorcerer King supporting a brand new adventurer's guild here in E-Rantel."

"Ah yes. The higher ups are working on the specifics and implementation. Though if I am to be frank, I was scared at first. With His Majesty changing everything I know about the guild and all. I didn't know how I'll hold up compared to demihumans. I didn't know how to talk with them. I felt that if I said something they didn't like they might just eat me or something… But now that I've gotten to know them, they're really okay. Without His Majesty, I would probably still think that anything that isn't human is out to get us." Colts eyes looks to the horizon as if staring into a future with a vision of hope, friendship, and adventure.

This is a good sign.

As if just remembering the newcomers, Colt clears his throat. "But you probably didn't need to hear that," he shrinks.

"No, it's okay. Truth be told, to travelers, any talk of coming to the Sorcerous Kingdom had always been filled with controversy. There's just a lot of risk. It was reassuring to hear that the Sorcerer Kin—oh. That His Majesty had been good to his people at the least." He smiles a genuine smile. "Say, would you mind telling me about Momon? You know, the adamantite adventurer. There are some who say that he's a traitor who threw his lot with the undead and all. I would like to hear some insider's perspective."

Hearing the question, Colt's eyes widened. "Momo—Momon-san did nothing wrong! He stayed in E-Rantel to make sure that we citizens were safe. He listened to the people and brought our pleas to His Majesty. He is an admirable man, if it wasn't for his example I would've also left. To be called a traitor…" Colt grits his teeth and bites his lips. Then he sighs. "I guess I can kinda understand. If it weren't because of spending my time here I would've said the same… But still, it's all the more reason for those who know to spread the word." Colt makes a fist in his hand, filled with determination.

Jacques smiles, asking him further questions, directions, and adding some input of his own. Colt, young, helpful, and passionate as he is, answers his questions, corrects any misinformation Jacques may have come across on, and tells him even stories about his experiences in the Sorcerous Kingdom, what to do and not to do and all that.

Meanwhile in at least half a foot away…

"Ma, what's pa doing?" Hestia curiously points to Jacques and the person named Colt.

Her question is quickly answered with a sudden smack at the head by a steel-colored arm. "Don't point."

"sorry"

The armor draws the girl close, away from the two men. Arisa then lowers herself to Hestia so that her helmet are of the same height as her head. "Don't disturb your pa, he's gathering information." She raises a finger to the level of their lips and whispers "it's a really important thing right now."

Hestia nods in understanding.

After a few more minutes of conversation, they decided to part ways with Colt. Jacques leaves, satisfied.

"Did you use magic?" Arisa asks.

"An outsider asking a lot of questions makes sense this time. Besides, with Death Knights patrolling the city, who knows what other security they have hidden. They may have something to detect strong magic. It has its risks." Jacques explains. "There's an inn we could stay in past this market. It's also near the adventurer's guild so we may be able to find more information about Momon by hanging around the area. With the way things are now, we should be safe for the night."

"After we make sure that Ainz Ooal Gown isn't hostile, it should be safe to ask permission to live in its borders. We can also ask at the temple for their housing program, but let's put that on hold until we know we're safe."

The trio was walking through the market. A brown haired middle-aged man, a crimson haired teen, but what made them looked odd is that person in full-plate armor walking with them. But given the recent events and changes that has happened to E-Rantel, nobody pays them much heed but every so often a passing 'Momon-wannabe' comment is made. Arisa's head dropping slightly with each passing comment.

I am attracting too much attention. Sorry, Takao…

Making their way to a street, on the outskirts of the market with less people. Near enough the adventurer's guild to see but far enough away to not draw attention. Jacques stops. "Don't mind it, dear. I wouldn't have the courage to be here if it were not for you."

Jacques removes his glove and places his hand on the armor on the part where the stomach should've been. Caressing the empty armor as if a baby sleeps within it. "I can almost feel it. Our child."

There are times in life where you just get lost in the moment, on impulse, on emotions. Even in times when they shouldn't be. That is what Hestia, an npc, has learned throughout the years of watching the two before her. It's been like this a lot when they were first transported into this new world. And now even more so that Arisa is pregnant. She doesn't understand it then, and she doesn't understand it even now. Why do people get so emotional when it comes to a child? Even Jacques, the smart one cries in these conversations. She doesn't understand it. She just doesn't. Why bring it up now when we cannot afford to get too much attention? Dealing with these two can sometimes be hard.

Hestia casts a spell over the group.

「Illusion」

"Sorry… If I hadn't proposed revisiting our first date in Yggdrasil one last time we wouldn't-"

"Sssh. Ssssh." Jacques hushes Arisa to a whisper, so that others wouldn't look pass the illusion. "We've talked about this before. WE. TRIED. EVERYTHING… we can." His whispers are strained. "There's no way back…"

A solemn silence that drowns all of the hubbub in the market. Remembering the time when they first realized the fact that there's just no foreseeable way to go back to Earth.

There's no way back. Not a sign. Our kids. Our jobs. Earth. Our home. They're all gone. Probably forever.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry… I'm sorry for bringing it up. Let's not talk about it here. We can't break our cover now." The Arisa declares, calming down.

"Yes, we can't. Not until we know it's safe. Thanks, Hestia. That was quick thinking using illusio-"

"Don't thank me yet. Look." The crimson haired teen points towards the adventurer's guild. There are two people heading towards their way. One was a warrior clad in raven-black armor from head to toe. One was well kept middle aged man with a moustache, wearing armor fitting of an adventurer, one may go even further and describe him as majestic if he were not standing side-by-side with a legendary adamantite adventurer beside him.

It's Momon.

The group quickly gets their act together and Hestia dispels her illusion just before Momon arrives.

"Good afternoon, I'm afraid I have not seen your faces in these parts before. Are you perhaps looking to be adventurers?" The man clad in black armor inquires as he eyes the trio, offering a hand.

A demon from the shadow of Momon's extended arm moved unnoticed to Jacques.

"You must be Momon of Darkness. I have heard much of your exploits. It's an honor to meet you sir." Jacques face lights up with a smile then shakes his hands. "To answer the question, no. I'm afraid we are not. My companions and I are travelers looking for a place to stay the night." Once again, Jacques waves his hand toward his companions with an intentional step backward.

"Oh, is that so? My bad. As an apology, allow me to point you towards the nearest inn. It is near." Momon turns to the man beside him. "Ainzach, it seems you may have been right this time. I might have gotten a little too excited with the recent developments with the guild."

"Look at you, Momon-dono." He lets out an amused chuckle. "I must admit, it's looking like the adventurer's guild gonna have a bright future ahead. Little by little, adventurers had answered His Majesty's call for adventurers who actually venture into the unknown… But still, that's no reason to assume anyone with decent looking equipment would be asking to join."

"Just this morning, we've met one of them. A young and helpful adventurer had already given us directions to the inn." Jacques had the directions re-confirmed to honor Momon's apology and the trio went on their way.

"You've gotten really good with talking to strangers." Arisa comments.

"Spending a year being nobody to an unknown land does that to you."

"Sorry for being so useless."

They arrive at the inn.

It was a busy inn. Humans, dwarves, and even a couple of other demihuman species Jacques doesn't recognize populate the noisy bar. It was a place where travelers, workers, and fledgling adventurers stay. They wouldn't be out of place here. It was perfect. They rent two room, paying with coin made from the Baharuth Empire. With their business concluded, they promptly entered their room upstairs.

The room was small, with bunk beds enough to accommodate four. There are only two exits; the door from which they entered and a window into a dark alleyway. Ideally, a room adjacent to the main road is best but unfortunately it was already occupied. Jacques casts some spells just in case.

「Alarm」

「Rabbit Ear」

"Can I finally change my form?" The crimson haired teen sings as she jumps face down into the rough bed.

"Do as you wish."

"I think I'm gonna keep this look."

"Make up your mind."

"Save the chitchat for later. We need to talk about what we've learned so far. About Momon-"

"Momon already knows about us." Hestia declares as she props herself up from the bed, cutting off Jacques. "He is a doppelganger. Like me. But much more powerful." A serious questioning look come from the two. "It's my first time meeting another doppelganger, but it felt obvious to me. Instinctual, to be more precise."

"Perhaps it's an inherent racial skill? I read in the internet one time that doppelganger's aren't allowed to take the identity of another doppelganger… but that's kinda part of urban myths than Yggdrasil lore."

"That's not so far-fetched, actually. We're not exactly living with Yggdrasil here. Might as well work with what information we have." He looks at both his companions. "Still, this is bad. They learned of us far too soon."

"So, is Momon a player or an NPC?"

"At first I thought that he was a player since he is probably a demihuman under the helmet. But now that we learned he is a doppelganger, it may as well be both. So my theory that there are at least two players from Ainz Ooal Gown exists. Let's unpack all that we learned first and see if we can psychologically profile them. Al, I need you specially. Tell me about gamer things. Things an academic like me would miss."

She nods enthusiastically, seeing an opportunity for a gamer like her to be helpful for once.

Depending what type of person this Ainz Ooal Gown is… No. Depending on the state of the guild of Ainz Ooal Gown is in, the Sorcerous Kingdom can either be our salvation or our end.


AN: Aaaaah, there's a lot to set-up but it was fun to write. I hope it I did a well-enough job, I'm not used to writing fiction. A very special thank you for the feedback I received from the prologue, and as recommended, I wrote something a little longer. Feedback is greatly appreciated. Thank you all for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it.