I messed up! I forgot to write and post this before part 10's events. Silly me. I'll post this now since it won't fit with the other parts I release but the next two parts will be ready tomorrow! Take this as an OVA of something. I messed up bad :X. Anyhow, apparently volume 13 releases on the 17th of February (I think). Would you like me to continue this volume 13 after the official release, write an original story, or write a spinoff of Overlord? Vote on this poll. The next two parts come out regardless of the result so don't worry.

.me/15083437 (put "strawpoll" behind that link)

Thank you for your patience! The release tmr will have 5k words. I promise :P

Edit: Don't trust reddit posts apparently. Pretty sure it's not Feb. 17th. But it would still be nice for some input on what I should do after the volume 13 releases! I read reviews and I'll check the strawpoll so either works. Thanks!

Ainz waited until Neia left to prepare the carriages before entering the Caspond's room. He slipped by her while invisible, not wishing to alert her of his visit.

When Ainz disabled his invisibility, Caspond perked up. "Your majesty! What brings you here?"

Ainz motioned for him to keep his voice low before moving closer. "I need to tell you something. A bit of advice as you will."

When Caspond heard this, a look of excitement overcame him. "I am blessed to receive this hono-"

Ainz cut him off with his hand. "This is why I need to tell you something. You are acting too careless."

"What do you mean your majesty?"

"You shouldn't be calling me your majesty and acting like my subordinate at any time when we're out here."

"Your majesty! To not address you by your title when I can would be treasonous. A prince calling a king, especially one of greater power than most kings, 'your majesty' should not be an issue of concern. "

"Yes. That is true… If I wasn't an undead king at least. You have to understand that the living do not view the undead kindly, king or no. It would be less conspicuous if you treated me worse than now."

Caspond widened his eyes in understanding as he heard this. "Your intelligence truly knows no bounds your maj-"

"Sorcerer King." Ainz interjected with some emphasis.

Caspond moved to bow his head for his mistake before he stopped himself. "I must thank you for your advice. I am not accustomed to how humans think."

"Yes, yes. That is fine. Now another piece of advice. You aren't acting as a king should act."

"What do you mean?"

"You are much to ruthless in your speak and actions."

"I am deeply sorry Sorcerer King, but I must ask if I can speak my mind. The material I was given to study portrayed kings as greedy, uncaring people whose power-thirsty tendencies allowed them to obtain power. And I, assuming that Caspond will soon be a king, assumed that he would behave like a king. Was I wrong?"

"That's-" Ainz paused. That's not really untrue is it? Most kings obtain power from killing their siblings. Throughout history, many kings were known as monsters. However, not all kings were like that… "What books were you given?"

"The very best books available! Volumes one to seven of The Complete History of Yggdrasil."

Ainz was filled with unexpected mirth as he realized what had happened. Demiurge had given the doppelganger "nonfiction" books from Yggdrasil. He had probably assumed that kings behaved similarly no matter the world, as long as they were still the same race. This would have been the correct assumption if Yggdrasil wasn't a game, but unfortunately, it was. Like most games, Yggdrasil needed some type of conflict to drive the story forward. In fact, Yggdrasil's story heavily relied on the fact that none of the NPC rulers had been any good at all. As such, all of the NPC rulers had been made defective in some way. Some were power-hungry, some were corrupt, and some were just purely insane. However, in a real world, having so many despicable kings rise to power would be extremely rare. Thus, though Demiurge's intelligence was almost unrivaled, he made a blunder due to the fact that he could not have known that Yggdrasil was a game and operated differently than real world situations. Ainz couldn't help but feel some elation at that fact that he had finally managed to surpass Demiurge's intelligence, however small the victory.

When this happiness was quickly suppressed much to Ainz's annoyance, he addressed the anxiously waiting doppelganger. "Listen. You have done well to have studied so thoroughly the information you were given. However, I must ask you to forget most of what you have learned. Not all kings are power-hungry corrupt individuals in this world. Unlike Yggdrasil, some kings are not completely insane or evil. Though there are many kings who are similar to how you describe them, there are some who are not. Caspond, though not a king yet, is reputed to the latter kind."

The doppelganger's face lit up in amazement as he listened attentively to Ainz. "To think that you have managed to accumulate such information in so short a time! Despite Yggdrasil's precedent, you have managed to cast aside any preconceptions and view this new world in a fresh perspective. Truly you are the wisest among us your maj-" He paused uncomfortably for a second as his feelings of respect clashed with his orders. "-Sorcerer King."

"Umu. Thank you for your praise, but I do not deserve such admiration. It was a simple enough thing to conclude."

"Your modesty knows no bounds Sorcerer King! If this was simple to conclude, then I must state that I am an imbecile."

At the repeated lavishing of praise, Ainz started to feel some embarrassment. "Do not berate yourself. It is not fitting for a king, which you must understand that you are for now." He held his hand up to stop any further acclamations as he said this. "Now, we must proceed. You understand what I am asking you to do, correct?"

"Yes Sorcerer King! I must rein back my aggression and behave more kindly to the humans."

"Alright. Neia told you where we're going, right?"

"Yes, though may I ask something?" Ainz nodded. "May I ask what our objective is at the Southern Kingdom? This does not follow Demiurge's plans so I assume you have once again managed to outclass Demiurge in his thinking!"

Ainz froze. Oh god. Did I mess up? I must have done something majorly different for him to be asking. He looked at the doppelganger, filled with excitement awaiting his answer. Why can't he just tell me the plan? Why does it have to be so complicated…

"We are to move there to win the favor of the nobles. Then we will move out to attack Demiurge after we-"

All of a sudden, the doppelganger interjected with a feverish eagerness. "I must ask you to stop your majesty! You do not need to waste any more time explaining to a fool like me!" His excitement got the better of him as he self-depreciated himself, forgetting Ainz's orders. "Even a buffoon like me can grasp the details of this wonderfu-no-magnificent plan with the clues you have given!"

-Eh?

The doppelganger shuddered in absolute awe. "How could we have been so foolish? A plan like this, so plainly in sight! We were blinded by our idiocy!"

My plan can't be that great can it? Maybe he has the wrong idea? Ainz briefly considered the idea of telling his plan in full before discarding the thought. If I'm in this deep already, might as well go deeper. Hopefully I can muddle through whatever plan he came up with.

"Yes. I see you understand. As expected from my servant. Now prepare yourself for this ordeal. I will be leaving."

"Yes, Sorcerer King!"

As Ainz walked out of the building, he sighed. What have I gotten myself into?