Chapter One: The Last Job
Some parts subjected to change, included the shows scenario and the FanFiction it self
Hello everyone! New series to start, if your reading this as it stands, it comes before chapter 4 of "How much is too much?" And that's a story for later. Anyway, Overlords a great anime, but...when Arche died, I went mad, like, I wanted to shoot the guy who thought of that.
ANYWAY...to cope with it, I researched some story's online and I came across a fanfic that was really good but stoped at 2 chapters, so I'm picking it up and adding my own spices to it.
OG FanFiction creator: wedgegeck
That being said, enjoy!
...
It was only by chance that Ainz happened to overhear the discussion. After his earlier questions, his conscience, such as it was these days, was clear; these workers had already agreed that the risk of their lives was balanced against the reward of this job. He had nothing to apologize for now.
As he walked over to see Nabe putting up their tent, however, he happened to catch a few words from a nearby worker team huddled around their campfire. If the girl had not been so emotional, perhaps her voice might not have even reached his excellent hearing. As it happened, though, he paused as he heard the girl's bitter voice.
"They're probably going to be sold into debt slavery by my worthless parents if I die here! Damn it, damn it, damn them—"
"Arche, you're not going to die here! You'll go back, take your little sisters away from them, and keep them safe. Then I promise that they'll have at least one good uncle and aunt to come by and visit." A soft, kind voice replied.
"Hey! Are you saying I'd be the bad uncle?" Ainz could hear the ham response, and sure enough there came a quick reply.
"Hekkeran, you're the one who jumped to that conclusion..."
The group chuckled, and the young girl dried her tears.
"Arche, when you get back you'll be sure to find a better way to get by. You've got a talent just like that Triad Caster Fluder Paradyne, right?" A deep gentlemanly voice said.
"Thanks, guys. I'm sorry." The girl sniffled. "It was just... worse than I expected when I saw them at... home. I'm sorry that my parents' stupidity had to get even you guys involved."
"Come on, we agreed to do this job. We're teammates, right?" The soft, woman's voice asked soothingly.
"Helping a friend in need... that's just common sense, Arche."
Ainz twitched as he heard the last remark, and saw the burly man reach out a hand to pat the blonde girl on the shoulder. He walked on to Nabe.
"Momon-sa—san, your quarters are now finished. Please excuse the delay."
"Don't bow, Nabe. It's fine."
"Thank you, Momon-san."
Ainz sighed, then shook his head. "I'll check the rest of the gear. I have a task for you, Nabe." He almost qualified "an important one," but then recalled who he was talking to.
The raven-haired maid straightened up and brought her full attention on him. "Command me, lord."
"Nabe!"
"Apologies, Momon...san."
"Nabe, I want you to invite one of the workers there to speak with you about magic. She is the blonde girl just there, her name is Arche. Walk over and introduce yourself. Ask politely for her to come to our tent for a conversation. I want to ask her a few questions." Inwardly, Ainz was hoping Nabe's tact was up to the task.
OL
Arche couldn't shake the feeling that this job was going to be different. Probably because it might be the last one she planned to take part in, it was assuming strange dimensions in her mind. She'd run with the chance of death on every one of Foresight's previous jobs, naturally, and had been fighting to escape from her parents' stupidity for years now, ever since she had had to walk away from the Imperial Magic Academy.
Her future had long ago been truncated by events beyond her control. In another world, she might have been a young, talented, attractive, noble magic caster, student of the greatest mage in the empire.
But this was not that world, and she was never going to be that girl. Instead, she was fighting for her life and the lives of Ureirika and Kuuderika. It had taken her a very long time to come to the understanding that her parents were good for nothing, in fact an active danger to her and her sisters. It was an unpleasant realization, that there was truly no one to save her. If she could just finish this last job, she could leave her parents behind for good, and save her sisters from whatever was going to happen when the creditors finally came calling.
She looked around at her teammates. Roberdyck was tending to the fire, occasionally glancing her way with poorly concealed worry. Hekkeran was busy teasing Imina, who was smiling softly. They were a good group; she was lucky to have found them.
The magic caster shivered. She truly hoped her bad feeling was misplaced.
Suddenly she felt a tap on her right shoulder. She turned quickly, surprised since she had heard nothing behind her at all.
Looking up, Arche saw the placid, staggeringly beautiful face of Darkness' magic caster, Nabe. Her companions paused, apparently having noticed her as well.
"Aphid, I am Nabe, of Darkness. I would like to speak with you. Please." The woman's voice was flat and her eyes showed no warmth at all.
"Ah, well, may I ask what you'd like to speak to me about?" Arche asked, a bit uncertain.
The members of Foresight eyed the visitor curiously.
"Magic."
Arche looked at Imina quizzically. The half-elf quirked an eyebrow, then shrugged.
"I'd be glad to speak with you, Ms. Nabe," she said politely as she stood up.
"Excellent. Come with me to m...Momon-san's tent. Please."
Somewhat mystified by the other woman's behavior, Arche nodded. "All right." She turned toward her friends. "I'll be back after while then."
"Have fun!" Hekkeran joked.
Nabe said nothing, and simply walked off. Arche followed quickly.
OL
Walking into the tent, Arche saw the huge figure of Momon, oddly enough still wearing full armor, sitting next to a small sideboard with what appeared to be snacks laid out.
"Welcome, Ms. Arche. I am Momon, of Darkness," the adventurer said as he stood to greet her.
"Ah, hello, sir, it's very good to meet you." Inwardly, Arche was a little concerned. It was hard to imagine that Nabe was entrapping her for some peculiar interest of Momon's, but why was he here to listen to their chat? Was she just being paranoid? A young girl, invited to a man's tent at night... she had already seen a demonstration of his tremendous strength...
Before she could dwell on it too much, Momon motioned for her to sit down. A moment later, he motioned Nabe to sit as well.
Arche reflected that the relationship between these adventurers seemed rather peculiar.
"Ms. Arche, my apologies for having Nabe invite you over here under false pretense. I actually wanted to speak with you myself."
Arche's eyes widened slightly, and she tensed. What exactly was this about?
"Ah, really? Well, may I ask what you wanted to talk about, Momon?" She felt a sudden coldness from Nabe, but the magic caster's expression hadn't visibly changed.
Momon cleared his throat. "I wanted to ask you something, to satisfy my curiosity about workers."
Workers, she thought, relieved. Then it was business, or just curiosity. This looked to be above board. Maybe she was just being paranoid.
"What would you like to know?" She asked with a little more warmth than before.
"It seems that you workers are willing to balance your lives against the possibility of financial gain. While I can understand that to an extent, I was wondering, first, whether you would accept a job like this if the place you were to plunder... belonged to someone."
She recoiled slightly at the suggestion. "Mr. Momon. I would never do such a thing. I... that is, all of Foresight. This job, as best as our research has shown, is to investigate a newly discovered ruin that is owned by no one and is unknown to history. There is absolutely no way we would take a job as thieves or brigands." Her tone was sharp, and Arche knew her face must look somewhat angry, but the question was quite offensive.
None of her friends would do such a thing. They were honorable people.
Realizing her feelings, Momon raised his hands. "I am sorry, truly. I just want to know what exactly motivates you. I am an adventurer myself, you see, and am unfamiliar with workers. I did not intend to give offense."
Mollified, Arche relaxed slightly. "My friends in Foresight are, while insufferable at times, good people. I can understand your concern, though. Not all workers are such... Well, I imagine that you noticed that swordsman with his elf slaves?"
"Yes," the adventurer replied. "It was not an appealing introduction to workers in general."
Arche sighed. "My teammate, Imina, is a half-elf. I have a high regard for all beings, not just humans. Although slavery is legal in the Baharuth Empire, there are those among us who find it immoral."
"Interesting," Momon said. "I appreciate that. I find the practice barbaric, myself."
The girl smiled slightly at this. She felt she had a better idea of the kind of man Momon was now. In this more relaxed frame of mind, she glanced over at Nabe.
The black-haired magic caster was still silent, and kept her gaze fixed on Arche. It was a little unnerving. Apart from his habit of wearing armor all day, Momon seemed pretty relatable. Nabe on the other hand was extremely rigid. There was just something about her...
That's when she noticed, or rather noticed that she did not notice anything. She'd been so out of sorts all day that it hadn't occurred to her before.
"Ms. Nabe, you asked me here to speak about magic, and you're known as the magic caster of Darkness. But why can I not sense any magic about you at all?" She asked before thinking.
She saw a moment of worry on Nabe's beautiful face, before it hardened.
Momon cut her off before she could speak. "Nabe, just a moment. Ms. Arche, can you see the flow of magic? Is it a talent?"
"Well," she glanced at Momon before replying. It wasn't like it was a secret anyway. Her talent (and her history) was pretty well-known around Arwintar between the Academy, the workers, and the adventurers. "Yes, I can. It is the same as that of my former master, Fluder Paradyne. The 'All-Seeing Eyes,' it is called."
While Arche started fixedly at Nabe, Ainz's mind was in a whirl. Fluder's former pupil, with the same exceptionally rare talent? He'd called her here to find out more about her, after Foresight's conversation had piqued his interest. Although he did not find himself feeling much about the fate of humans in general, individual humans could elicit his interest.
Ainz's thoughts went to the little Nemu Emmott girl, her older sister Enri, and Nfirea, then to Tsuare and her late sister. All those humans were quite valuable to him for various reasons. In fact, it was becoming apparent to him that talented human agents were very useful; there were only so many in Nazarick who could safely be dispatched, and then there was always the lurking threat of those who had enchanted Shalltear.
Demiurge and Albedo intended to found a kingdom for him, and he frankly knew nothing about how they were intending him to do this, but he did know for certain that he would be ruling over mostly humans. He had been upset by their plan to allow raiders to test Nazarick's defenses, and had refrained from speaking up about it... but maybe finding another useful human could be a hidden benefit, maybe even help him dodge Demiurge and Albedo's inevitable questions about what was to come next when he drew a wild card like this. Plus, no matter how influential and knowledgeable he was, Fluder was something of a basket case... having some more reasonable human agents in the Empire could prove to be very useful, depending on what Albedo and Demiurge revealed next.
It was worth a gamble. As usual, Ainz decided to wing it.
"Narberal Gamma, cast silence about the tent and remove your ring." He commanded.
Obligingly, Narberal stood, quietly cast the spell, and removed the ring. The moment she did so, Arche gaped and fell soundlessly out of her chair, her wide eyes never leaving Narberal's face.
"Impossible... impossible! How, how can you be this powerful? More powerful than my master? Magic of the seventh tier? Are you... are you a god of magic?" She wondered aloud. Then, at the moment she managed to bring herself to her knees, trembling, she heard a voice.
"Very well then."
Arche turned her attention from Nabe just in time to see Momon remove a gauntlet, exposing a skeletal hand. But the girl had no time to react to this extraordinary sight.
Because then he removed a ring from one of his fingers, and her vision whited out completely.
She nearly fainted, shaking in sheer terror at the unbelievable pressure she felt. She could not cry out, or even move. Every nerve was on fire as she felt the unimaginable mana present before her.
It was a long moment before the young girl could raise her eyes to see him. Momon had removed his helmet, showing only a bare skull with piercing red glowing pinpricks for eyes.
"What... who..." she stammered, gasping.
"I am Ainz Ooal Gown, master of the Great Tomb of Nazarick. The place you and your friends intend to invade and burglarize." Red eyes bored into her own and she found herself unable to move at all. Even her trembling had stopped.
Everyone is going to die.
The thought entered Arche's mind and she could think of nothing else.
"We're all going to die. We've drawn the ire of a god, and now he's going to kill us all." She thought
Arche did the only thing she could, went in her hands and knees and begged for mercy
"Please, I beg you Lord Gown! I swear to you I will not enter your Great Tomb! Had I had known of your existence before I would have never allowed myself or others to trespass your sacred grounds." The girl's voice trailed off.
She was crying now, but was unable to close her eyes. Arche felt hysteria rising in her breast but dared not scream. Anything that might offend this one before her, anything at all, had to be avoided.
Please give me a way out, some way, anything! Anyone, I just want to see my sisters again!
Then he spoke.
"I know this might be overwhelming to you, but I insist you try to calm yourself."
"O-of course" she did her best to ease her breathing
"Arche, what is your full name?"
"Im Arche Eeb Rile Furt, your majesty." For a brief moment she panicked, thinking she must know some more exalted form of address, but he responded before she could think of one.
"Oh, so your a noble?"
"No, not, not anymore, your majesty." She wondered whether she should elaborate, but again he replied.
"I heard you talk to your companions, Your parents are ruining your family with debt, and you fear for your sisters' fate should you fall. Is that right?"
A horrible choking sob came from the girl. He had cut her to the quick.
"My lord, please, yes, I, I love them, please, I will do anything..." Again she trailed off, crying now. What could she do? Her life would surely end this very night. Perhaps the being before her was just indulging its curiosity. Surely she was no more than an insect to such a one.
The tent was silent for a long moment.
"Arche Eeb Rile Furt. It is within my power to safeguard you and your sisters from all harm."
Hope blossomed within her and she struggled to stay in control of herself.
"My, my lord? I don't understand..."
"Raise your head and look at me."
Arche jolted upward and wiped her face quickly, then gazed at the figure before her. It was still blinding, but she was trying not to tremble.
"Arche, if you swear to serve me faithfully, I will reward that service by saving you and your sisters. They will never want for anything, and no one will harm them." He leaned forward slightly. "In exchange, you will give your absolute loyalty to the Great Tomb of Nazarick. Will you serve me willingly?"
There was no alternative presented, but Arche felt she could imagine what would happen if she refused. She was speaking to a god of magic. She had no bargaining position. She could only make one decision. It was fortunate that her noble upbringing had prepared her to be convincing.
"My lord, I swear myself to your service willingly, and I thank you for the opportunity to do so. I will do everything in my power to carry out your will."
The skeletal face did not change expression, but Arche felt as though he was pleased.
"Excellent. Now, Arche, you will prove your loyalty to me, and then we will see about your companions."
"Your majesty...
"Pardon me but Lord Ainz will suffice Arche, I am no king." He corrected
No, of course...Lord Ainz, they may not be as understanding as I am when it comes to your power." She explained
Ainz sat back, "One way or another, should they fail, if you follow my instructions, than your survival is guaranteed. After all, it's for your two little sisters benefit, not theirs, correct?"
Her heart jumped, "Allways, Lord Ainz"
OL
morning came, Arche had been peculiarly chatty, speaking happily over breakfast. In combination with the emotional display from last night, Imina was very worried about her young friend's emotional stability.
Heading into an unexplored tomb, though, was no time to start yammering about this. Arche was a professional; they all were. So she had put on her game face, strung her bow, and headed into the tomb behind Hekkeran.
When your everyday job was a life or death fight, caution was first, second, and third nature. Imina trusted her teammates to have her back, and she focused on watching theirs as the job began.
Now her worry about Arche had been obscured by the ludicrous series of battles they had faced, one after another, as they were no longer exploring, but rather trying to escape this infernal tomb.
Suddenly, though, things had changed. They had hit a teleport gate, from what Arche said, and now they were before the gateway to some strange arena.
"You know, the guy who runs this place may just be using those teleport gates as a leftover from whoever built these ruins. There's no reason to overestimate their power." Roberdyck's calm voice helped her focus.
"Yeah, who knows how old this place is?" Hekkeran added. "Let's not lose the plot just yet, ok?"
His voice was light as usual and served to break the tension. Imina appreciated it, as always. She could always count on Hekkeran.
"Well, any other ideas? I say we go forward. If we can talk to this guy there's always a chance."
Imina nodded her assent, and Roberdyck gave a thumbs up.
"Arche?" Imina said, noticing her teammate's silence.
"Right," the girl shook herself, but did not turn away from the corridor. "Just... don't get careless."
OL
When they entered the arena, there were too many amazing things to notice at once. Imina, for her part, saw the golems and the high stone walls, but the thing that caught her eye was the open sky. "We're outside?" She asked wonderingly.
Just then she saw a small figure fling itself from about six stories up, only to land flawlessly onto the arena ground level.
"Haaaa! Here they are, the foolish invaders of the Great Tomb of Nazarick! These four have been given a great privilege today, to meet the most supreme of Supreme Beings, Lord Ainz Ooal Gown! What will they say? How will they act? Will they live or die? Only our Lord knows!"
With the dark elf's words, the opposite arena gate rose to reveal three figures.
The group could not tear their gaze's away from them. The first was a skeleton bearing the most amazing staff they had ever seen, with piercing red lights where his eyes might once have been. Alongside this figure, slightly behind and to the right, walked the most beautiful dark-haired woman, she had horns on her head and wings coming from her lower back, but these only added to her attractiveness.
To the skeleton's left walked an extraordinarily beautiful girl that looked younger than Arche, dressed in a dark red gown with a matching bow.
When they stopped walking Imina shook her head as if in a daze, trying to make sense of this sight, then looked at her teammates. Hekkeran's customary grin was gone, leaving a serious, calculating expression in its place. Roberdyck looked grim, but ready to fight. And Arche...
Imina could not believe her eyes.
"Arche, come back!"
The girl was walking boldly toward the skeleton.
"What are you doing, Arche?" Hekkeran called out.
"Arche! Stop!" Roberdyck sounded almost frantic.
But none of them moved, because at that moment Arche, their ever-reliable magic caster, their little sister, the companion who had fought with them for years and never once complained, the young girl Imina recalled thinking had to be lying about being able to use third tier magic, was genuflecting.
She did not merely bow her head, but rather sank to her knees and placed her head and hands onto the sand of the arena floor.
"Your grace, Lord Ainz Ooal Gown, I have come with my companions as you ordered. Please, command me."
The voice Imina heard was Arche's, but she was having a hard time believing her own senses.
"You have done well, Arche Eeb Rile Furt. Raise your head." As she did so, he called out, "Shadow Demon, show yourself."
From Hekkeran's shadow, to his visible amazement, Imina saw a form black as pitch drag itself into view and fly quickly over to Ainz Ooal Gown.
"Lord Ainz," the black figure bowed.
"Has Arche spoken of me to her companions, or revealed in any way her knowledge of what was to befall these invaders?"
"She has not, my lord."
"Excellent. You are dismissed." He gestured the figure away with a regal motion of his hand, then turned back to look at the humans.
"You have upheld your vow, Arche. As I promised, you will have an opportunity to convince your fellows. Rise, and speak." At his imperious gesture, Arche stood, bowed once more, then turned to face her friends.
"Arche..." Imina did not know what to say. Both Hekkeran and Roberdyck were stunned into silence.
The girl met each of their eyes in turn.
"Imina, Hekkeran, Roberdyck. I met Lord Ainz Ooal Gown and observed his magical power. He is no mere magic caster. He is... a god of magic." She shook slightly, then continued. "I offered him my service, and he graciously permitted me to give you, my friends, the same chance. Please, accept this offer and swear fealty."
Roberdyck quickly retorted, "Arche, these monsters are the sole reason we exist! To rid them of gods glorious..."
"Roberdyck please." Arche spoke out "You can't even begin to fathom the power of his grace. Surrender yourselves, for your own good."
Ainz was pleased that she's taken her vows very seriously, she must hold her sisters above all else, a notion he understands completely.
Imina, while stunned, tagged in with Roberdyck,
"Arche, you've been with us for all these years, we've came here to help your sisters, and your devoting your life to the filth we have to deal with on a daily basis?"
Arches face turned white, she couldn't believe they would say that while amongst her new lord and by now, savior. The two occupants standing on either side of Ainz had huge killer energy coming from them, So he decided to step in
"Arche"
She turned and bowed accordingly
"Lord Ainz?"
He loves her dedication to remembering to show respect before acknowledging him.
"It would seem your friends do not have the capabilities of understanding the situation as you do." He declared
"I'm truly sorry for their disrespect sire. Please allow me to..."
"How dare you take Lord Ainz generosity into grant, know your place you sniveling curr!" The black haired Beauty to Ainz right addressed to her, causing Arche to flinch
Ainz jerked his hand up to her side, "Albedo, enough! A lesson is clearly to be had"
"My deepest apologies my lord." She bowed respectfully
Ainz looked back and Arche. "You swore your loyalty to me, with that said, if you were to kill your companions, in the decree of the sanctity of Nazarick, would you oblige without question?"
Arche took a deep inhale, "my lord, if anyone is to end their lives, I would be honored if I was the one to do it."
Shalltear, gave the young mage a glance, and made a sound of interest
"ARE YOU SERIOUS, ARCHE SNAP OUT OF IT! THEY HAVE YOUR MIND WARPED! HE'LL JUST KILL YOU LIKE THE REST OF THE ADVENTURES, HES CLEARLY LYING! FOR GODSAKE HES A WALKING SKELETON, WE FIGHT THEM ALL THE TIME." Hekkeran yelled in protest, Roberdyck and Imina spoke up in agreement
Arche felt the magic surge within Ainz through his ring, she knew fate was sealed
His eyes flared a deep crimson red before speaking,
"You come into my home, seeking to rob it of its treasures only to taint it with your blood, and here you stand at my mercy calling me a liar?! I allowed Arche here to spare your insignificant lives, but I see you are clearly not as intelligent in following her example. That being said, Arche..."
She raised her head, knowing her first test into gaining the Tomb of Nazarick's trust.
"Prove to me your word is sound. Your companions clearly lack your respect to Nazarick, what is your response?" He questioned
Arche stood up off her knees and faced the people she basically grew up with, the people that, in all honesty, treated her like some kind of messiah. Which in hindsight, caused her to feel uneasy as she didn't feel was worthy of such praise. Now, ultimately, she's in the spotlight, everyone waiting on her answer.
"I, Arche Eeb Rile Furt, will dispose you in the name of his grace." She said with sincerity scorching in her eyes
While Shallltear usually spat on the very thought of humans, this one definitely is starting to show her, though little, worth.
"Arche, do your hear yourself?! It's not you, these demons twist your mind! These are the creatures that stand against god!" Roberdyck tried to reason.
Arche knew she couldn't reason with them. They would never understand the power of her new king.
"God has no power here, this very room, is covered with an ancient, powerful barrier. No mortal, me included, will never even begin to grasp his power. You were given the chance as I have, now it's come to this."
Arche clutched her staff and began to cast when Ainz put his skeletal hand on her shoulder.
"My lord?" She again flinched thinking she did something wrong
"You clearly are outmatched if you try to take them 1 on 3, since your powers only slightly higher than just 1 of them. Here, to show them the error of their judgment, I give you this."
"Get your hands of her!" Imina shouted as she shot a thunder arrow towards Ainz but in a flash the arrow seemed to have disappeared out of sight
The humans, Arche included, didn't even see what happened to it.
"You should learn to wait until she is ready, insects" the pretty voice of the Victorian girl spoke. Twirling the arrow in her hand
"But, how is that possible? That was one of my strongest magical abilities!" Imina blurted out.
"That was? That kind of magic isn't even ranked on Nazaricks scale. Like you, It's too weak." The little woman explained simply.
"Amazing" Arche stated aloud.
"Now then" He picked off a red orb from his Golden, spiral staff and held it for a second, his own staff levitating on its own next to him
"Your staff" he held out his hand towards Arche
She didn't hesitate to give him her life long tool for channeling her abilities. The trio of adventures stood, unsure what exactly they should be doing right now.
Ainz felt the weight of the staff, which to him wasn't very much, but that would change.
On the top of the staff was a knot and so he placed the orb directly on the center of it. The orb bored straight into the oak wood of which it was made of.
Suddenly, cracks formed around where the orb was placed, and the staff began to change, it blackened as if it lit aflame, and the staff straitened itself about a foot taller then it was, the knot morphed itself so it made a sort of halo. The orb irradiated inside the center of the halo with a faint orange color. Making it look like an eye.
"There, this should make this process easy for you, cast your most powerful offensive attack." He commanded as he handed her staff back.
"Yes, lord Ainz" she croaked, not believing the energy that was emanating from her now upgraded staff. Once she had the staff in her hands, she felt it's magic seep into her. She felt like her magic was amplified by a thousand.
She turned to her targets, who had faces of disbelief.
"Arche?" Imina gasped out
Arche inhaled through her nose and aimed her staff, The eye of the staff lit up, as if waiting for the wielders command.
"Eradicate" she said in a tense fashion, the eye lit up and flipped over so it faced the adventurers, a big blast of power shot towards them, they couldn't even raise their defenses fast enough when the strike engulfed them, their body's burned beyond recognition. Death instantaneous.
Arches shuddered where she stood, she was looking for more of a fight from her part, but the power of the orb, made her end the battle with little effort, other than feeling weak from blasting a ton of mana in one go. If she could even consider it a battle at all.
Ainz was not only pleased, but actually surprised.
"You know Arche, to be honest, I expected you to be a little bit more hesitant to take your companions lives. You carried out your orders well and without question, do your sisters mean that much to you?"
Arche turned and took a knee, still recuperating after being drained in a single blast.
"They...mean everything...to me my lord, as much...as my pledge to serve you." She bowed her head. She felt the orb being striped away from the staff and back to Ainz, causing it to reshape back into its original form.
"Arche, I welcome you to Nazarick, now I will admit, this was your first test."
She looked up with confusion plastered on her face,
"For my faith, sire?"
"That was already cement, I meant how far we can take on your abilities, you can cast up to tier 3 magic?"
"That's correct" she answered
"The item you have received was a power enhancer, to be honest, I expected you to be more fatigued than this. Which interests me, just how far can you abilities go? Your 15 correct? It seems you have only begun to scratch the surface of your true potential."
Arche blushed, "My lord, I'm grateful, but I think you give me too much credit, I don't think I'd ever match up to even your tomb guardians."
Ainz walked forward "Non-sense, if your strength matches your will, than surely you could become a greater sorceress than what you are now."
"I understand my lord, and know I will push past my limits to strengthen myself." She promised
"Excellent, now as I promised, we will work on retrieving your sisters, additionally, as today was quite successful, and since you have more than proven your loyalty, I will work on reviving your friends."
Albedo, Shalltear and Arche, while thinking different thoughts, were surprised he had even made such consideration.
Albedo spoke out
"Lord Ainz? Please educate me, clearly out of the four of them...she paused for a moment, looking at the small blond woman..."Arche is the only one who's sworn her oath to you, let alone she's clearly the most useful."
Ainz hummed in understanding,
"That's true, yes. However, this is a reward for Arche for executing her tasks without hesitation. Is that not the value of Nazarick?"
"Yes, of course lord Ainz, we all do our best."
"Exacly, plus, would it not be beneficial to have more human agents to serve Nazarick?"
"I suppose my lord" she answered reluctantly
Ainz felt her answer more vague than not, but of course they sort of can't help it, it was in their programing.
"My lord? Arche meeped
"Hmm?"
"When they return, I take it there will be repercussions on my part to ensure their loyalty?"
"I favor you over them, so as long as your faith continues to lie with Nazarick, there will be no problems. But know when they return, they might be more...considerate about their choice's."
"I understand my lord" she tried to stand out of respect but couldn't due to her still recovering from releasing an ample amount of power.
"Easy Arche, you might not be able to move for a little while, for you that must have been a large toll on your strength.
"I'm ok my lord, I...well"
"It's ok if you need to rest Arche, after a day like today I'm sure you need plenty of it, Shallltear"
"Yes, my lord." She said with glee
"Have Arche rest in your quarters, keep an eye on her, tomorrow we will meet in the throne room"
Unbeknownst to him, Shallltear, was more than happy to oblige. Than usual that is.
"As you wish, Lord Ainz." She bowed respectfully
She graciously walked right up to Arche and gave her a look
She easily hoisted her up and carried her bridal style. One of her vampire brides picked up her staff. They made their way back to her quarters.
"Lord Ainz?" Albedo asked
"Yes?"
"You let Shalltear take her on purpose for a reason didn't you? Not that I really care of the fate of that Human."
Ainz did know what she was talking about, but, this could be good for her he thought, especially after all that's happened with her, she could make a new friend.
"Perhaps"
Ol
Arche and Shallltear were making their way through the dark corridors, Arche didn't really know what to say, so she began to say something to break the ice...
"Madam Shalltear, If you don't wish to continue carrying me, I'll try to walk"
Shalltear scoffed, "please, you weigh nothing to me, and don't call me Madam it makes me feel old, call me Mistress." She answered, looking a little more intimate in Arches eyes that she would like to admit.
"Of course, Mistress...so how long before we...
She couldn't finish as she felt her neck make contact with what felt like an eel.
She froze not sure what to make of it, she glanced her eyes over and saw the little vampires extra long tongue taste the sweat off her body.
"Uh...Um, Mistress?" She peeped out
"You know, I'm impressed you did as well as you did, for a Human that is. I took it your species were always, what's the word? Oh yeah, sentimental."
Ignoring the fact she just tasted her, she replied to her statement.
"I pledged myself to Lord Ainz, I just want to earn a safe living for my sisters, I'm willing to do absolutely anything for that to happen."
"Anything?" Shalltear echoed
Arche nodded her head
Shallltear grinned mischievously, "let's put that to the test."
Ol
Much to Arche's surprise, she was laying in the middle of Shallltears bed, which was weird for someone like her to have one, to Arche's knowledge she's a vampire.
She had been laying comfortably on her abundance of pillows, as she was literally instructed to "Make herself comfortable"
She removed her adventure armor leaving her in her leggings and undershirt, she doesn't have much in belongings since as one might assume, the adventures allways march into their jobs expecting it to be filled with any danger, so any day could be your last.
Arche was deep in thought, taking in the twilight colored room, until the main door slightly cracked ajar.
"Mistress?" She called out, but no answer.
Suddenly, as quick as lightning. A creature bursted though and pounced onto Arche.
She was scrapping her bearings up when she tried to assess what was going on.
"Did lord Ainz change his mind? Am I about to die?!" She thought
She looked up from her somewhat defensive position and saw it, a humanoid, thing.
It looked disfigured yet all features somehow were proportionate. After moments of nothing, Arche, while pinned from the waste down, looked at the major aspects of this creature.
It had light pink hair, much like Shallltear, in fact, the creatures magical aura was about the same, somehow.
"M-mis-mistress?" She asked
The creature looked down at her for a minute, before it flashed in front of her, and now above her, was Shallltear.
"I was hoping it take you longer. Way to kill the mood, Human." She sorta chastised.
"Oh...Uh...I'm sorry, mistress."
Shallltear sighed, "well anyway, that is what will happen if you ever turn your back on his merciful lord or Nazarick...
She lightly but firmly holds Arche under her chin to look her in the eyes.
"You break your vows, and you will die without a burial, understood?" Her iris's glow a deep red.
Arche gulped and nodded,
"Mistress I wouldn't even dream of it! My loyalty is under the laws of Lord Ainz, I swear." She tried to assure
Shalltear made a smile, "Just making that absolutely clear, but the good news is, as long as your faithful, good things are always guaranteed. For example..."
Shalltear lifted her head up so her neck presented itself to her, covered in nervous sweat, like she was planning.
Arche made some peeps here and there, trying to come up with words to ask...
"Shhh" The small girl insisted, right then, Arche felt her neck being tasted by her mistress, unable to take in just how sensational it felt. Inside it felt good, but she didn't know how to feel outside. At least, what was appropriate. Regardless, she felt her skin decide for her, with goosebumps.
"Mmm, i usually eat most the humans I make contact with, so excuse me while I taste the sweat of a pure blood." She explained
Shallltear felt the woman swallow hard from her statement
"Pure...blood?" She whispered
Arche heard her giggle, "Should I say Virgin Blood?"
Arche blushed hard, "oh...so you can tell."
"I smelled it when you first walked through the gate, it's a strong sense when it picks up, and your the youngest so I suppose it was quite clear. With that said, I have a proposal, if you're willing."
"Please...ask away, Mistress."
"Since tomorrow you'll be performing some exercises to test how far your abilities can go, like Lord Ainz has explained, you have so much untapped power he wishes to uncover. Once they have the results, lord Ainz will assess you, when he does, depending on the outcome, I want you to officially be my apprentice."
Arche blinked a couple times before responding,
"Mistress I, do I have to answer now? Wouldn't that require Lord Ainz's approval?"
Shalltear smirked, "if he did, would you accept? I assure you, the benefits are quite the incentive."
"Well, I wouldn't see why not, everyone's power here is far beyond my capabilities so, I would need guidance from someone, I suppose."
Shalltear smiled, "good"
Unexpectedly, she gave her a peck in the lips, a long one at that since their lips made contact for about 5 seconds, Arche blushed madly but did not protest, this little woman could have her dead in less than half a second if anything.
Once she parted she, as quick she came, was at the door in a matter of milliseconds,
"Good luck tomorrow, something tells me you won't disappoint"
With that the door closed, and Arche sat in the semi dark room, in silence.
She had her first kiss, with a Vampire, a lady vampire, who looked no older than her. At least in her human form. Arche stared at the ceiling thinking that fact.
"Is...she being nice to me already?" She thought, as she drifted off to slumber.
...
AN
Bro I hope I didn't butcher too much of the actual show but man, I already like the outcome better than the show, FUCK TH...sorry it's just every time I think about that it just boils me on the inside.
I work on part two but in the mean time, chapter four of HMITM, is arriving this weekend! So look out for that on my page, and if you haven't read it, stop by and give your thoughts! This is after all a mostly Batman related platform but special appearances will be made here and there.
Until next time!