The early reports, from the periphery of their explored space, attracted a great deal of attention. A truly enormous spaceship had moved just outside of their furthest ring of automaton managed outposts, but then halted and began broadcasting in a large number of languages, containing a similar message, expressing a request to enter the territory, and if possible to establish diplomatic relations.

Recognizing several of these languages, and based on the phrasing used, a diplomatic response was drafted requesting appropriate diplomatic protocols. Well received, this "opened the floodgates" of what could be called the stodgiest possible diplomacy. Whoever they were, haste did not seem to fit in their vocabulary.

While their spaceship could obviously move at great speed, it proceeded at a relative snails' pace, halting at intervals. And it continued to broadcast all sorts of information, while fielding requests for more. It was soon explained that they served as a diplomatic corps of sorts for several sectors of space, many empires, kingdoms, and other forms of government, and were called the Obarodono. The size and power of the New World empire had been noted by others, so they had been asked to extend the offer of peaceful relations.

Their attitude was that information promoted peace, so they were more than happy to provide it. This included many maps of various territories in space, most of which were considerably far away, leaving great opportunity for potential expansion and colonization for the New World. Just the cultural guide of who was relatively nearby took a long time to digest, but knowing one's neighbors is important. Lots of realms, lots of independent worlds, some advanced, some more primitive.

For practical purposes, mostly administration, they asserted that there are limits to what can be comfortably managed. Raw materials, other than unique species, were only rarely worth any substantial trade. Of most interest were exotic culture novelties and technologies, but even they quickly lost their attraction. But Ainz, being a collector of information and artifacts wanted to know more, mostly about the space in which his empire operated.

So the diplomacy and information exchange plodded on. Meanwhile the Obarodono went to great lengths to assure the New World of their peaceful intentions, explaining their plans before they carried them out, and more than willing to step back if they offended. Eventually they halted their great ship, and departed a smaller vessel from within. Still large, it in turn gave up a smaller ship, and finally a ship solely for the diplomatic mission, still a great distance away from the New World.

Playing it carefully, Ainz ordered a landing facility built on the island of Underside, far away from any great habitations, and made it a scenic oasis in its vast desert, along with accommodations appropriate for such gatherings. Not knowing the appearance of the Obarodono, or their familiarity with undead, or any surreptitious purpose, Ainz decided to greet them with Pandora's Actor, appearing as an older human king, with Demiurge as his chief minister and Albedo as the ambassador. Ainz and many others, including the Second Organization, watched from afar and relayed instructions. The entourage was extensive, including many formidable races, and the reserves, in case of conflict, were very deadly ones.

By prior arrangement, their ship would land and rest for some hours before the Obarodono would disembark, to avoid any waiting by the host, and the New World inhabitants were encouraged to scan and inspect the ship as was their want, before and after. Special concern was given to the avoidance of pathogens or other such nuisances. Finally the appointed hour had arrived, and a gangway came forth from the lower part of the ship to a platform below.

The tension was palpable as the first of the Obarodono appeared at the top. Tall creatures, roughly humanoid in appearance, but with classical aspects of demons or devils, to include horns, long leathery wings and tails. "Strikingly handsome," Demiurge described them to Ainz. Their clothing was courtly and polite, but not overly decorous. After exchanging pleasantries, the group retired to a large and luxurious meeting area, equipped with lounge and dining area.

As tactfully as they could they said they understood the reticence to expose the New World leader to risk by appearing in person, instead sending a Doppelgänger, and hoped that in future an opportunity might present itself to have an actual meeting with him. It was duly noted that they could easily see through the proxy.

They also complemented Demiurge, looking dapper in his fine suit, as a handsome young arch-devil, with some of the younger females checking him out, but for the most part, they reserved the bulk of their attention to Albedo. They recognized her as a succubus, but so much more, truly what to them was a unique being, a hybrid of the highest angel and a dream monster, yet taking the form of a succubus. On meeting some of her children, diverse but all formidable, they were amazed by their power, character and grace. The enigmatic princesses of Ainz and Albedo chose not to attend.

Eventually the subject of undead was approached, and they showed neither surprise nor disdain of them, asserting that, to varying degrees, they were somewhat common elsewhere. Then a female Obarodono, in particular, took an interest in Albedo, and after a while, the two retired to a lounge for refreshments, both with the disarming intensity of diplomats or spies. After a rather sharp telepathic discussion between Ainz and Demiurge, the latter directed that Pandora's Actor should revert to his natural form. This was done mostly to free up the mind of Demiurge, who Pandora's Actor had used to maintain the sharp image of a human king, a now fruitless gesture. Demiurge did note, however, the reaction of the ever so slightly startled Obarodono, and wondered if it was more his uniform that was unexpected than his physical form.

The males then walked to a dining area. Sous-chef and his bar staff worked diligently to provide an assortment of New World beverages, while fortunately as part of former negotiations, they had learned of the Obarodono's preferences for food. Demiurge observed that while he was immune to poisons, so consumed several different beverage, remarking on their quality, while eating little, his guests seemed to have the useful skill of cast iron stomachs, practical for diplomats. They enjoyed everything, one of them remarking that space food was not as delightful as was fresh. Though they soon got down to business.

"I noticed in your region of space we have identified several unstable stars, which could eventually be problematic if one of them had a catastrophe. We do have a technology that can stabilize them, that we would be more than happy to give you. Feel free to reverse engineer it, as it is an important tool for protecting civilizations, an untold number of which have been annihilated in past because of such events."

For their part, Albedo and the female Obarodono, first discussed offspring, with Albedo being complemented on the number and impressive nature of her children present, featuring half-elven Arondigh and Asclepia, with none too subtle inquiries about Albedo's mate or mates, which she delicately parried. The female Obarodono confessed to being unmarried and childless, but hopeful. For her part, Albedo still had a strong interest in finding out if the Obarodono knew of the worlds of YGGDRASIL. She named them off for her: Niflheim, Muspelheim, Asgard, Midgard, Jotenheim, Vanaheim, Svatalheim, and Helheim. Especially Helheim. The female Obarodono sent an aide to research if they knew of such places.

Once it was clear that there was no imminent danger, for his part, Ainz had spent his time wondering what his appearance before the strangers should be. Demiurge had promised to make discreet inquiries to figure out what their expectations would be of that and of all manner of things, with extra caution if those questions concerned technology or military might. At his suggestion, there should be minimal or no evidence of automatons, and Ainz agreed.

Otherwise, their sources of intelligence provided no unexpected insights. The Second Organization found them to be alien enough to be a little unclear, but generally diplomatic, with less of the normal inhibitions, and more than average interest in what passed for the Obarodono religion or faith, based more in evolution than revolution. They later noted that some of the Obarodono seemed to be fantasizing a little about what it might be like to have offspring with such interesting beings.

Even Ainz of the future was not very helpful, with no red flags. He did recommend that the Micasa Foundation be kept informed, as they had proven useful over time, but he didn't see anything worth interference on his side, wanting to protect the timeline.

The Obarodono let slip that what had attracted their interest in the first place was the increasing use of gate technology in the sector, but when the "great plug of rock" was blasted into space, then accelerated away from the New World while slowly disintegrating, this got their attention. Demiurge did not mention the use of a Planetary Item to subdue the eruption of Hephaestus, nor the use of another to safely eliminate the threat, but still acknowledged that this was not a natural event.

Then the Obarodono volunteered that after some time if they were willing to swap that volcano control technology, they would be very happy to give a multitude of other technologies in exchange, because disarming volcanoes was something they had never been able to perfect. They seemingly had no idea of the incredible arsenal of Planetary Items, and their knowledge of magic was closer to New World than YGGDRASIL standards.

After a few days of food and drink and diplomacy, the assistant to the female Obarodono reported back. He even managed to indirectly praise himself for his extensive library and language research about the YGGDRASIL worlds question. This was made far more difficult because this region, including those worlds, were "frontiers", from their point of view, he said after searching for the most appropriate word, and most record keeping was done by civilizations far away.

He went on to explain that as well as the vast distances of space, that this was an ancient galaxy, where civilizations had come and gone like seconds of time over the course of an hour, politely converting to New World time for his audience. Records were not always kept, nor kept orderly, nor preserved propely. So the more studious scholars of several of their associated governments had created a means by which empires, kingdoms and other organizations could be catalogued, mostly for their own use, but also for visitors and historians, to bring at least some order to the field.

At this point in the discussion by the one aide, off to the side, Albedo's son, Arondigh, discreetly whispered to another aide of the female Obarodono, to ask that she quickly call for a short break, as they had information of great importance to give to her. Though unsaid, this had been an instruction given to them by Lord Ainz, their father, and this was a primary reason for their attendance. The aide then discreetly spoke to the female Obarodono, she nodded her head in agreement and, apologizing to all, called for a recess before her research aide's exposition.

Albedo, who had been paying rapt attention, seemed mildly disappointed, but agreed to the break.

Both Arondigh and Asclepia were able to meet the female Obarodono off to the side, to officially request that while the other worlds of YGGDRASIL were of interest, that if they had discovered the world of Helheim, that it be omitted from discussion, as it could have very dramatic and extremely negative consequences to "ambassador" Albedo, personally, and as such, her husband the emperor had ordered that she be denied such knowledge. They already knew of that world and its risks. Finally, being given telepathic information at the moment, their appreciation for this omission would be made with a personal audience by the emperor in the near future.

After rapidly calculating the situation, the female Obarodono agreed, met with her researcher aide, and then conferred with the male Obarodono meeting in the adjacent room.

Several of the YGGDRASIL worlds were indeed known. Asgard still had many ruins though it had been destroyed in some great war. Muspelheim remained overwhelmed by its lava seas. Jotenheim was very picturesque, with scant evidence of the giants that had dwelled there. Alfheim was likewise a verdant garden, with a breed of elves different from those in the New World entourage, yet were remembered as friendly and sophisticated. Svartalfheim was considerably harder to find, as the dwarves there preferred underground habitations. Niflheim was a fog and mist covered world of tall mountains and often frozen seas. Vanaheim was undiscovered, possibly cloaked from observation, as was likely, he said with a straight face, Helheim.

Then he gave something of an odd warning for the world of Midgard, which was known by many names, most of them disparaging, as a "world of death or dead souls". Somehow the balance between life and death had been greatly upset, with death so dominating that all life was extinguished, as such it had been blacklisted for avoidance by space travellers passing through the region, who had taken the warning to heart, perhaps embracing it as a superstition, enough so that its entire star system was given a wide berth. Such warnings were very uncommon.

While Albedo wished to pursue this further, she was advised by an assistant that Lord Ainz intended to soon make an appearance. And while she wished to protest on general principles, Ainz personally interceded with her telepathically, advising her that he would be cautious as always (which did not reassure her at all), but that he expected her to stay by his side, so that she could provide a barrier the instant any aggressive intent was seen (which did much to ease her mind), as well as introduce her to them as his Empress (which boosted her spirits considerably.)

He had finally chosen to arrive in his Overlord Lich form, yet with a moderate amount of Imperial decorum and fanfare (and eat your heart out, Touch Me, with some gimmicks you would have adored), through a magical gate in the diplomatic arena that was designed to look like a mechanical gate. And he was gratified to see the Obarodono aliens immediately join in bowing respectfully.

"All Hail Lord Ainz Ooal Gown, Emporer-Overlord of this and many other worlds, other Realms, Possessions and Territories, Father of Kings and Queens, Warriors, Scholars and Healers, Keeper of Peace and Prosperity, and Uniter of Races." (He had requested they omit several other parts of his usual title involving magic, life and death, and several other things.)

And beckoning her over, Ainz himself greeted Albedo as his Empress, and he added on the spur of the moment, his gifted ambassador-at-large. Albedo noted with a little satisfaction the surprise on the face of the female Obarodono, when she realized she had been comfortably chatting with an Empress with a far lower level of ritual decorum than was expected of a diplomat. But Albedo fully intended to pursue that familiarity with her interest with her in locating Helheim, yet the female Obarodono was now determined that she not know this.

After briefly apologizing for the difficulty in locating Helheim in their records, she tried to change the subject by asking that since part of Albedo was from the land of dreams, had she ever seen fit to visit it?

Albedo looked puzzled, so Obarodono said that prior to the development of gate technology, many civilizations had used the land of dreams as a ready means of communication over vast distances. While many cultures had attempted to map it, it had proven a daunting problem, because of its vastness. So most visitors remained in the more traveled parts. The female Obarodono said she had far less experience there than most, only the minimum required for her diplomatic rating.

Albedo explained that because she did not sleep, she did not dream, so was asked then why not go there in a waking dream? Seeing Albedo's continued puzzlement, the female Obarodono realized Albedo's complete unfamiliarity with the land of dreams, so then asked one of her aides over.

The aide was described to Albedo as a frequent dreamer, and the female Obarodono briefly said how through the use of a common magical item, a ring, and minimal practice, a dreaming body would be created that could visit the land of dreams in full consciousness, while the waking body continued on in full consciousness in the real world. At its return, the two parts would rejoin, and the person would have the clear memory of having done two different things at the same time. He agreed to demonstrate, and without even shutting his eyes, stared off into space, but after just a few moments, he came to. He mentioned that from his point of view he had been in the land of dreams for several days just then, time behaving much differently there.

"My apologies, but after getting my bearings, I made a few discreet inquiries about the Empress and Emperor, and was, how shall I put it, mobbed. Not just by dreamers who happened to be there, but by dream creatures who inhabit the land of dreams. And I met several beings from the other side of the land of dreams." This impressed the female Obarodono, who remarked that other side beings were usually very rare, as they came from a place beyond dreams, and could use the land of dreams to travel, but that this was a dangerous maneuver on their part, not something they would do casually.

"In any event, judging from the sheer volume of inquiries, the Obarodono diplomatic annex there agreed to create a temporary interest section for you, if you don't mind, until such time as you establish your own embassy, if you choose to do so. We will be glad to assist if you like, or can discontinue our efforts, if you would prefer we not."

"So, it seems, you are known and popular there," said the female Obarodono, before adding, as an afterthought, "perhaps too popular". She explained, that while wonderful for recreational purposes, the land of dreams lacked any formality, and as such it could be uncomfortable for polite people. It would be best to train some dreamers to relay queries to you like couriers, if they were of interest.

Saying they had brought a lot of such dream rings, as they often gave to children of those they visited as gifts, they would be more than happy to provide as many as Albedo liked.

With this, concluding ceremonies and mutual exchange of some gifts, the aliens departed, with the agreement to send a larger delegation next time, in a few hundred years, with a much greater mutual exchange. Until then, if they wished to communicate about much anything, to send someone by their annex, and they could arrange for another physical visit.

A few weeks later, under the cover of night, Albedo left Nazarick to pay a visit to an undistinguished building far away. With little notice, a junior assistant navigator on board the "Dark Star" had received notice of a serious injury in his family, so he had been transferred to a temporary ground assignment. En route to his new duty station he had disappeared. He was now a captive in that building, and was struggling to answer the questions put to him.

"Who ordered the logs of the Dark Star to be edited? Where is Helheim? What orders have you been given about Helheim?" He tried very hard to answer these questions, under great duress, though he had been off duty at the time. Eventually he was able to piece together a rough location for Helheim from the star charts. It was the last thing he ever did.