Disclaimer: I do not own Overlord I just like it
Just like a priest I'll come clean with you valued readers: I should've had a time skip where Hynrich was technically at Carne Village for a few weeks to a month or two—it would've been more realistic as to why Enri asked him to do a question when we all know she is capable of steering a wagon to gather supplies herself. I won't change who goes on the journey but maybe someday I'll add more to that chapter so it feels more like it's been weeks he's been there instead of hours. Thank you :)
I_I_I_I
Brain Unglaus awoke in a early dark sky, the stars replaced with murky shadow sky and the dogs roaming through the streets scurrying to their stray homes. There were kids newest to be soldiers throwing flechette's at wooden walls.
Their fun with that tool was the only reason he didn't stay in his room sulking and searching the cabinet for liquor lethargically letting himself feel nothing until he was going into the woods; training for a battle he might not win.
Then—he heard a knock on his door.
"Mr. Unglaus."
"Great," he sighed, his head swimming because he was out of it. "More unwanted company."
After reaching for his bearings, his katana, he got up and opened the door. He was greeted by the unerringly steadfast—in loyalty not in speed like "Numeral ono"—wearing a brown sweater over a white shirt with the same cropped blond hair.
"Climb...what do I owe this unexpected surprise?"
There was a glint in his eyes of someone about to make a request—Brain was prepared.
"We've uncovered news regarding Ainz Ooal Gown. Lady Rhea says that Blue Roses are certain some new adventurer is going to find a weapon that might be able to kill him; all he needs is our help...all of us."
Brain was cathartic in thinking up a question about this so-called "way of defeating" the most evil debacle of all.
"Even those skeptical blowharts n the castle(s) think this way will end his tyranny?" Brain asked. Climb nodded. "Where were they when Gazef went to war and died...stupidly...wistfully pointlessly?"
Brain tried to sugar coat it the dangers of the vile being as who inhabited this world, but Climb was on the precipice of making a mistake that could get him killed and he couldn't lose another friend.
"When I sliced Shalltear's nail off...I thought I could train again and face her on her level without any enhancements, but I'm still far from reaching Gazef's level...and we are in constant war with beings that can crush him with one hand. I'm not saying it's bad to aspire to beat someone you know is stronger than you...it's just impossible to beat him."
Brain expected more of an explanation and convincing as to why he should join the king's army, but Climb stood up and left. Before he was completely gone, standing at the door barely open, he spoke:
"Your a good man, Brain. Your help would build confidence in all the men—for a better day."
After that speech that was heartfelt to say the least he wedged his katana on his doorway with a nonexistent door and started chin-ups with just his sheathed weapon.
...
The city had an uncanny resemblance at night to the night Jaldabaoth attempted to summon a horde of demons to build an army with. Reminiscing about that night reminded him of the ecstasy he felt facing Shalltear again, but also of Lockmeier.
Poor Lockmeier...after a toast to Gazef he was the next friend he toasted for his unerringly steadfast commitment in completing a job and for his wisdom.
"Can't think about how good friends died." Brain told himself. "I must finish what she started."
Brain sprinted with his left shoulder slumped and his hand grabbing his katana. While running he thought about the morning after he passed out escaping like a wounded dog only to be saved by Gazef. He said something then that only seemed to tumble out his mouth, but Brain saw it more vividly now.
He made it to the outskirts of the forest; everything so eerie in the face of the foliage. He took a few steps back, joggled with his legs a little, and dashed ahead.
He didn't slow down even when he veered after charging so fast to a tree his face almost split open. All the trees were adjacent, barely any space to run through, and Brain kept running recklessly around them without stopping. He saw the speed Ainz moved the day he killed Gazef and since then has been working on heightening his senses.
His vision was greater than 20/20 and his speed and stamina were nearly doubled. He made it to the other end where a dirt road was waiting for him—perfectly fine compared to when he vomited doing this and before that breaking a few bones running into a tree at full speed.
So many painful memories all for the sake of surpassing Gazef, avenging him, and protecting Climb. He saw an incandescent light down the road. Weeks of coming here and there's never been anyone else but him. Strolling into view were two figures...he could see clearly from the lamp squeezed down a pole.
There was a red haired girl at the reins and a big man obscuring his face with a hood. They strode down the wrong road idiotically nonchalant about the trouble they were in.
Like he thought, a light flickered on in the distance followed by multiple other lights. The more they flickered the more apparent their intentions were.
'Wonder if they never bothered me because they knew who I was . Because I was just a cicada in the night to them. Time to find out.'
...
Brita insisted they not take this path but the hobgoblin said they should.
"Your ineptitude in directions has led us to an ambush. Their 'trap' is to jump out and—"
Her brain just popped quiet when she heard the serene harmonious sound of the goblin playing his flute. She didn't know goblins could be so good with a flute, and she lived where they were denizens.
In the shadows a thief gleamed with a sadistic smirk with a knife in his mouth and his hand tightly pulling on a rope. He was going to swing forward and drop down. However, he was paralyzed, trembling when he heard a sound foreign and eerie...
"HssssHsss..."
He may've well been hearing the sound of a banshee—his neck was wrangled by something long and he was lifted so high he may as well been lynched.
Finally, he was let go. his neck snapped.
West from him were men privy from the action flicking their lamps on and off trying to get a flicker from their fellow thief but all they saw was a sprawled blurry shadow.
"Should we wait for him?" The smaller one asked.
"No." The other replied. "The convey is getting away. We'll have to move quickly if we're going to catch it."
Like monkey's they grabbed a vine, per person, and in synch they swung down. Swipe after swipe they flailed their weapons to look intimidating with their eyes flaring and their mouths open.
Suddenly, they saw a writhe of something long with fangs!
Brita was on her guard, bow and arrow at the nock ready to scare or wound any thief crazy enough to try to rob her and the goblin's convoy. She heard a faint whooshing sound, a crackle somewhere...where the leaves eclipsed the sky, and then things became quiet. That quiet feeling, the sereneness of night was replaced with startled panic when a body smacked down on the ground!
Brita flinched, still gripping her bow and arrow like her life depended on it, while the goblins' flute playing instilled great uneasiness.
Brain watching, saw the massive creature creating all this carnage: a jungle serpent dragon. The dragon was forest brown, yellow sclera's with tiny black pupils, it's whole body was a tail tangling around the trees, and there was another thing about it that made Brain's thoughts into a whirlwind and his face ashen...it's whole head had three other necks with mouth faces sticking out their tongues.
When Brita saw the creature, her eyebrows wrinkled into a frown.
"This thing..." she lost her train of thought for a moment when she shot a thief sneaking up on her. Nocked right in the right side of his jugular. "This is yours, isn't it?"
Hynrich continued playing; the tip of the serpents' tail dangling below while the three faces slowly descended into her 20/20 vision. Each head dangled close like cats creeping on mice with muffled vibrations from the heads to tail, swinging back and forth like a pendulum. And when heir lipless mouths were at Hynrich's face...they pecked him; two on the cheeks and one on his forehead.
Brain saw the lipless snakes surround the hooded man, but he saw it as them trying to eat him.
' The old me would cower from danger...not today.'
With herring footsteps he charged hand on sheath towards the three-headed beast.
Hynrich could see the bile charging at them just through the tiny gap from the jungle serpent's body to its motile right head. Instead of ordering his pet to kill him like he did with the thieves, he played on his flute again. The harmonious sound with a sad note mixed in commanded his snake to slither away...only as far as the tenebrous forest, and then he and she would be back at Nazarick with Aura.
Brain still charged only to be stopped by Brita standing on the caravan's plank and holding her arms out. Brain got the message; he stopped running and faced her.
"First you were attacked by thieves and now you face a Forest Serpent without even a scratch on you. You two are either very lucky or have a secret hidden in that load."
Brain looked at them steely at the ready with his special move. He would corral them before the hooded one could call back his serpent. To his bathos the red haired girl pulled away the tarp showing him nothing but blue pumpkins, flowers and potion vials.
"We were on an errand to pick this up. Now we are heading to our last stop for the rest. Is there anything else you'd wish to know?"
Brain was still unnerved, darting his eyes at the two of them and then their convoy. Letting the hooded ones abilities slide, he stepped off the road.
"Move along. Next time wait until morning before heading here; this is my time and place."
"Thank you." She said.
She steered the caravan forward. It seemed they would be making their good-byes—that changed when he climbed aboard.
He had a feeling:
'Running into bandits is bad luck, but wiping them out is something only a handful of people I've never heard of can do. I need to see more.'