Hostis Humani Generis
III: Afore
「You saved a village? Good work!」
「Thank you, Sycorax-san.」
Sycorax and Nereus had returned to the fleet after visiting Prospero in his tent for another spray of themselves and their baggage, dragging the soldiers behind them. She would have felt bad for them, but since they had been carrying torches and bales of firewood soaked in oil, she felt only anger. Revenge. Hunger too, since it was close to dinnertime and she had activated 「Prehensile Hair」to drag ten soldiers behind her, so the sight of them being dragged by her Nagini hair had also placed stress on her roots. It was worrying since her hair was already white, and she didn't need to be bald.
"Admiral." Nereus spoke up. "These soldiers and knights."
"Have them keelhauled to the Larch when it makes its rounds." Sycorax then held up a hand in frustration. "Belay that order. The knights, put them in the brig, have Intelligence Officer Sakuya interrogate them. The soldiers, keelhaul them on the Mahogany."
"The Mahogany is due for combat practice against the Pine and Spruce, Sycorax-sama. There is a chance of ramming. The presence of these soldiers might upset the ship's balance."
"That's the point, Nereus." Sycorax nodded. "Corn's village will become our foothold on the mainland. Smashing these soldiers and losing them in the seas will add to our reputation. The knights will provide information about this world."
"I understand. I will see to it."
Sycorax dismissed the others, deactivating her illusion before activating 「Message」to Momonga for their pre-dinner conversation. It resulted in the exchange that had opened this chapter.
「But I used the name of Ainz Ooal Gown,」Momonga added, with a touch of guilt. 「Is that... alright?」
「If we're discussing the possibility that there are players aside from ourselves, then invoking the guild's name would be more practical than invoking your own name, Momonga-san.」Sycorax smiled. 「Besides, you're fulfilling Touch Me-san's mission to save the weak.」
「That's not it, Sycorax-san. I took on the guild name. To my subordinates, I am Ainz Ooal Gown.」A long silence echoed.「I think being in these bodies have changed us. When I saw bloodshed, I... didn't feel faint. Or sick. Or hungry, or tired.」
「That's strange, I ate and drank well at lunch. Maybe it's because you're an Elder Lich right now.」Sycorax leant against the deck railings, watching the mists around the fleet and mentally calculating the expansion of space needed for the planned three-ship combat practice. 「Oh, right, I found my location. I'm at the northern coast of the Kingdom of Re-Estize, near a small fishing village that's close to Re-Uloguall.」
「Oh, me too. I'm close to Carne Village, which is close to E-Rantel.」
「...Momonga-san, that's inland. On the opposite end of the Kingdom.」
「「SHIT!」」both of them swore at once.
「I cannot leave the fleet, Momonga-san! We still need to build a base!」
「Neither can I leave Nazarick alone, Sycorax-san! We need supplies!」
「「Our choice of bases left us on the opposite end of the kingdom...」」They concluded together.
"Unknown ship entering port!" the rallying cry went up. "Unknown insignia! Cannons pointed at our direction!"
「Momonga-san, I've got a ship attacking here. Can we continue this later?」
「SHIP?! Oh, sure. Be careful!」
Cancelling the message, Sycorax drew out a piece of rope bearing three knots. "Those bastards... what's the status of dinner, men!?"
"Yes!" a sailor covered in scales saluted. "Cutty Sark-sama said that it would be onion and carrot soup, Penne Gorgonzola with bacon, and a fruit platter."
"Delicious. Then let's not be late for dinner." Sycorax licked her lips. "「Ligature」."
There were many classes available in YGGDRASIL, and seven or more were needed to reach level hundred. Since there was so much variety available, Sycorax had played the Sea Witch class, which had earned her derision for being nowhere near the seas. That, and the race she chose, had nearly caused her to be PK'ed until she had been saved by the nine who would found Ainz Ooal Gown. Well, at the time they were still being carried by Touch Me, but she had found friends.
Only, the friends didn't seem to want her around. Only Momonga had vouched for her, and even he didn't seem to have much power, though she did not blame him or them.
Sycorax swore to be their opposite in order, and had created her own naval-oriented build before founding Hostis Humani Generis. On top of her racial class, she had completed her Sea Witch class, mastered the Pirate class, and a few more before she had discovered what could the rarest, most situational class in YGGDRASIL. Completing that five-level class had cost her an eye in the world of YGGDRASIL, but in exchange...
Still, this lone ship did not merit the power she had attained. Her Sea Witch skills was enough. Such as「Ligature」, the spell which Sea Witches used to bind the winds to their purposes.
"Admiral." Nagato saluted as Sycorax approached the quarterdeck, where the ship's wheel stood. "Are we going to board the ship?"
"These guys interrupted dinner time. So, no. I will sink them. Have Nereus and his daughters on standby to retrieve the fallen loot and men adrift at sea."
"Aye, Admiral."
"Heave-ho," Sycorax smirked as she undid all three knots.
The winds erupted about them like a funnel. Clouds rolled across the mid-afternoon sun. Lightning flashed and thunder cracked overhead as the clouds congregated above its potential victim, much like the Barghests of the seas had singled out one ship and marked it for death at the behest of the sea.
The ship's bell rang the start of the first dog watch, solemn as a funeral dirge. Ting-ting, ting-ting, ting-ting, ting-ting.
Sycorax watched the hurricane erupt right on the ship, against a backdrop of lightning-lit clouds that spanned the horizon. The winds were so strong, lifting the waters like a corkscrew and sweeping a gale across the main deck of the Queen of the Night. Masts and sails crashed down into rising waves.
Ariel landed, grabbing the rigging of the mizzen mast to slow his descent. "Admiral, the ship is sunk. The captain was just seized, and is on his way."
"Captain?" Sycorax echoed. "Bring him here."
Ariel departed, flying into the mists around the fleet.
Soon, a black lump was tossed aboard over the port side of the deck railings. The lump was followed by Nereus hauling himself up, his clothes sopping wet and sticking to him, outlining his physique.
"The captain stayed on with his ship, or he tried. Her name was the Nazami Enec."
"Oh?" Sycorax commented as the lump stirred. "And the crew?"
"They abandoned ship, but my Division and daughters seized them."
"Good work, Nereus." Sycorax idly stood, waiting as the human in a tunic and a Roman helmet started to struggle out of the black cocoon, which she realised was part of a sail. "Do you have a name? A rank?"
The man stared at her.
"Ah, you must be thirsty. Bring some warm water."
A Fishman rating brought him a cup, which the soaked and bedraggled Roman legionnaire studied before drinking. "T- Thank you for saving me."
"Name and rank?"
"F- Femel arc Vers Envers, Captain of the man-of-war Nazami Enec. I serve in Knight Order of the Classis of the Baharuth Empire."
"Baharuth Empire?" Sycorax asked. "What's that?"
"The Empire lies on the other side of the Azerlisia Mountains, bordering the Kingdom of Re-Estize." explained Femel. "Having attacked our ships, His Majesty won't stand by!"
"How boring." Sycorax considered it. "But, an Empire means coastal settlements."
A hand climbed onto the railings, and a mermaid with a tail like a bluefin tuna clambered aboard with a salute. "Admiral. The Nereids returned with the loot. It looks like the ship was being used to transport demi-humans and heteromorphic races."
"They're the property of the Empire!" Femel spoke up, red rushing into his face. "If you do anything to them, His Majesty Jircniv Rune Farlord el Nix will not let you filthy pirates go!"
"You don't have the authority to determine anything." Nereus snapped. "Haven't you realised it yet?"
"What the hell are you people?" Femel's eyes bulged wide as he looked around. "M- Monsters!"
"We are pirates, and I am the captain, Sycorax." Sycorax replied.
Femel's reply was to draw a sword and dash towards her. Sycorax froze, watching the sharp blade approach her slowly, the man's speed possibly meaning that he was going to kill her.
Oh.
Sycorax still remained frozen when Femel was tackled and held down by two Golem ratings, shouting at her.
"Bitch! Monster!"
"Admiral?" Nereus was by her side in an instant. "Admiral, are you alright? It was my mistake, bringing him unchained. I will ensure that they are chained in the future."
"I..." I thought he would kill me. I thought I took down Maize... I'm at level 100, with all of my abilities and a fleet loyal to me. I was happy just to have this day.
If I died here... is it permanent?
"Associating with us, you must be filthy as well." Sycorax found herself talking. "Nereus, keelhaul him to the Heart of Oak."
"You know the consequences of destroying our warship, right?!" Femel bellowed. "Monster! Do you know what it means to attack us? You have declared war on the Baharuth Empire. His Majesty will execute you!"
"If he drowns within three hours, that is his luck." Sycorax ordered. "If not, bring him to Sakuya for enhanced interrogation."
"Are you listening to me?!" Femel broke out. "I am a knight! Release me, and I will not report this insolence to the Emperor!"
"If this Baharuth Empire has coastal settlements, it seems fair to eke out our reparations for ruining dinner from their holdings."
Nereus saluted. "Aye-aye."
"Don't ignore me!" Femel yelled. "「Body Strengthening」「Full Throttle」!"
While strong, the Fishman ratings had not expected a human to use magic. Femel easily broke from their hold, charging towards Sycorax again with his sword drawn. Evidently, the warrior was intending on decapitating the fleet with him as he slashed his way through.
"Sycorax-sama!" Nereus yelled.
A knuckled fist swung, punching Femel deep into the iced planks of the Queen of the Night. The ice cracked with his face, stained with blood. Teeth flew out, embedded into the crushed crystal of the ship.
Sycorax uncoiled the fist she had used to punch down the man. Her fingers were covered in blood, the brass knuckles equally stained, and she shrugged. "I don't care. I don't care if you are a great or just a simple person. I am a pirate." Sycorax hissed. "You injured my men. One more hour for every injury incurred."
"Hand... Admiral, your hand." Nereus turned to a rating. "Get the first-aid kit!"
"「Heal」." Sycorax watched her knuckles heal. "It's alright. If the slaves are alive, put them with the Rowan. Nereus, get this out of my sight."
Femel struggled, spitting out a tooth as he groaned, lying down. Contemptuously, Nereus took the man by one leg and dragged him over the deck with a splash. The First Division commander followed soon after, diving into the ocean. A horse's whinny followed, though Sycorax did not look down to see Femel being kicked and pushed by the transformed Kelpie.
"「Water」." Sycorax cast the spell, a fountain welling in her hand to wash aside most of the blood before tracing the jewelled collar around her neck. "「Fractal Rearrange」."
Under her gaze, the dented and cracked ice plank mended itself, becoming solid ice with the grains of wood etched into its surface that it had been. Aside from a tooth, there was no sign that her punch had down Femel and the plank.
Sycorax washed her brass knuckle, the blood faintly being diluted by the deck and frozen into the floor. "Is dinner prepared?"
「Momonga-san, today I found out what it's like to be afraid to die.」
「...eh?」
Dinner being concluded, Sycorax was currently in the ship's library, reading through a few books. Despite it being difficult and counter-productive, Sycorax had stored a few e-books into the guild library, amongst the image data of the cosy ship's library. The library was amalgamated with the war room and the navigation room next to the bridge, hence the shelves of e-books turned real books.
Now, an atlas that Corn forgot joined the ranks of the books as Sycorax chatted with Momonga, curled up in a low chair in the library. Beside her stood a Cobb-neck bottle, a sight that stood out in the setting of YGGDRASIL, and now stood out in the real world.
「Nothing, it's just that I might have attacked a warship.」
「Oh, that's what happened... eh?! EEEEHHH?!」
「Exactly.」
「No way, how did that happen?! We're strangers in this world!」
「But I'm a pirate. I don't know the rules of this world to begin with.」
「I'm at the other side of the Kingdom! I can't save you!」
「I'll be fine. But, I can't leave the fleet to search for you. Didn't you say that you met someone, Momonga-san?」
「I met Gazef Stronoff as Ainz Ooal Gown! I can't just tell someone to help me find a comrade!」
「But he owes you, right?」
「There are procedures as well!」
「What procedures? I don't know them.」
「Ah... Sycorax-san. My aim is to see if there are players of YGGDRASIL in this world. In order to do that, we must gain fame. So, I plan to submit myself and an NPC from Nazarick as adventurers under false names. Once I've built up that reputation, I plan to reveal myself and gain lots of fame.」
「Wouldn't it be easier for you to find the others if you just used your real name, Momonga-san? Assuming that we aren't the only two players around with guild bases and NPC helpers.」
「The mistrust to heteromorphic races is deep amongst the humans here.」
「About that, Momonga-san. If a skeleton hands you a drink and tells you to drink it without a context, the most common thought after seeing that skeleton kill someone is that they're after you too.」
「How could I know that? I thought it was like YGGDRASIL!」
「You have 「Create Undead」, you can send scouts. I have familiars I can send out, and I used them!」Sycorax rolled her eyes.
「Ainz Ooal Gown PK'ed players before. I- I don't want to be targeted. And the NPCs... they look up to me as their master. Everyday it's like... if I had a stomach, I think it'd be destroyed by gastric pain.」
Sycorax held back her sigh, trying to recall her own horrible days as a beginner in YGGDRASIL. Ten years of playing YGGDRASIL and holding down a job at the local library haunted her with the daily grind of her life, inter-spaced with reading the old tankobon volumes of Japan's most best-selling manga. Yet, she was somehow taking it a lot better than Momonga. 「It's our secret. Friends are there to tell your secrets to.」
「I... I changed Albedo's settings. It was the last day, I thought it would be over soon, and I found the settings by Tabula Smaragdina. She was so beautiful, and then I read her settings that she was a nymphomaniac. So... I overwrote it as being in love with Momonga.」
「What's wrong with that?」
「What's wrong? I dirtied Tabula Smaragdina-san's character! And Albedo loves me... actually, all the NPCs have such high standards for me, I can't say anything. It's like I was working at the entry level and then I was suddenly promoted to CEO, you know?!」
Sycorax curled a long of her bangs around her left pointer finger.「If I remember, it was something like that which made you the Guild-master. Ainz Ooal Gown... broke apart.」
「I worked hard!」
「You did, Momonga-san. You really worked hard,」Sycorax messaged. 「I know that, Momonga-san. You loved the guild so much, that you refused to join me in travelling the seas of YGGDRASIL. I was saved by you, too.」
You don't have the charisma of Touch Me, she didn't say. You're not a strong leader, she wanted to say. She did not say it, because she did not believe that a leader needed charisma or strength, though those were helpful. However, there were things that a leader needed that she believed were absolute.
「I'm worried, Momonga-san. I understand hiding your face, but is there further reason to discard your old name in this new, strange world? Or, do you not feel safe amongst the NPCs created by your comrades to protect the Great Tomb of Nazarick, and by extension you?」
「I trust them! But Sycorax-san... I'm scared.」
「Do you feel unsafe?」
「...Yes. Until three days ago I didn't even know them. I'm afraid of them rebelling. They hate humans, and I don't want to know what would happen if they found out- and somehow, I can't feel too much.」
You're so focused on being a hero and making yourself look good, that you've lost yourself and become a villain in the process.
「Let's try something together.」
「Eh?」
「You want to be Satoru Suzuki again, Momonga-san?」
「...not really.」
「That's fine. I think this world has untapped possibilities too. My guild-mates have scattered, and we may never meet again. My job is nothing to talk about either. I enjoyed today, though I thought my life was in danger. I shouldn't enjoy danger. It's not socially acceptable. But violence is a part of life here, I tell myself, and so I should adapt. I don't want to be Michiru Kaiō so much.」
「But Sycorax-san!」
「My fleet is composed of pirates as well. Amongst pirates, the risk of mutiny is strong. The only reason it is still maintained, is because I try to be a fair admiral. So, I am honest when I say that I do not believe you did anything bad. A person would wished to be loved, and I am sure that Albedo is a beautiful person to be loved by. Even if you are currently a pile of bones, I believe that you are worthy to be loved.」
「I- I... it's not creepy?」
「Momonga-san. I find creepy to be a boring label. I find you interesting, so how can you be boring?」
「Really?」
「Really. And to prove it, you... must. Tell. me. Right. Now.」
「I wish you were here with me, Sycorax-san!」
A long silence permeated the air, before Momonga's sheepish voice added, 「Sorry...」
「I have business to embark upon inland, anyway. I'll be setting out soon.」
「E- Eh? But, it must be troublesome-」
「You are my friend, Momonga-san. It might be trite in our world, but in this world friends can mean the difference of life and death. It's like trust in business, except this is a choice you made in your life, and I must make sure not to disappoint that choice. I am a pirate, and this is my conviction at stake. We will meet again.」
「But... but you don't know the land.」
「I'm a pirate. It'll be an adventure!」Sycorax took a swig of the Cobb-neck bottle with a satisfied sigh. 「Nagato's Ramune is good. I'll bring you a few bottles when I come over!」
「I can't drink, Sycorax-san!」
"Our fleet is currently stationed at this unnamed island undergoing maintenance," Sycorax began her explanation to the assembled commanders with Huginn and Muninn perched on either shoulder. "Ariel, Merry and Cutty Sark are busy with the various logistics of the auxiliary fleet. Phaeton and Bonny are maintaining the mist barrier. Our physical security is also overseen by Caliban. Nagato is coordinating the effort, and Nereus is monitoring below-surface."
The NPCs carried looks of confusion. "We know that, Admiral..."
"As head of the Intelligence division, I cannot fall behind as your Admiral." Sycorax steepled her fingers. "In short, I will be going to Re-Uloguall to carry out intelligence. Speak now."
Confusion morphed into outrage, and chairs were shoved back.
"Admiral, it is inadvisable!" Nagato was the first to protest. "We don't have much information, and we haven't even finished mapping the surrounding areas! How can the fleet's Admiral go by herself on this perilous mission?!"
"I hate to say it, but Nagato has a point. A fleet without an admiral is headless!" Nereus was the next to argue once Nagato had sat back down. "For what reason must our Admiral step out alone?!"
"Of course, I won't go alone." Sycorax clarified once Nereus had finished. "In the beginning, I was just planning to go there and poke around, but our neighbouring village mentioned something about Adventurers. Specifically, that there is an Adventurer's guild in Re-Uloguall. From what I have gathered, Adventurers are people like myself, who slay monsters for money. If that is possible, then it would not be strange as hopeful applicants bring their own weapons. It is still a good reason to stay away from the law of the land, even if I wasn't a pirate.
"Secondly, a city would give us more intelligence about how things are done. If it was a simple matter of walking up to people and asking them, then I would have brought Nereus. I choose Caliban. If necessary, we would reveal our true forms, but we absolutely need more intelligence. Questions?"
Nobody spoke, until Merry raised his hand and the commanders started. The shipwright and Seventh Division commander was so young-looking, that it almost beggared belief to have him at the table to speak.
"I think, if Admiral brought the salt that Cutty Sark produced as a pretext to the city, it would be more passable."
Sycorax thought for a moment. "Oh, right. Salt is worth its weight in gold here."
"But it requires time to prepare the salt."
"That's fine. I'll leave in... two days. Huginn, Muninn, fly to Re-Uloguall and report back to me." The two crows flew out of the porthole as she commanded. "Meeting dismissed. All commanders, back to position – except Caliban. We need to work out a cover story."
Critiquez, s'il vous plaît!