Overlord
Pure Pure Pleiades
Episode One: The Scholar and the Alpha
Within the Ninth Floor of Nazarick, inside their own office, sat and brooded the overseer of the Floor Guardians, Albedo. She played with her fountain pen and twirled it between her fingers. She contemplated a new scheme within her dark, cunning mind. The reason why was due to one man; one vagrant scholar that she watched like a hawk towards an unruly, impertinent, and downright irritable hare…
"Lexicon… That perverse, chatty vagrant. It is just inconceivable that he is still breathing; let alone allowed to sully the sacred halls of Ainz-sama and the Supreme Being's home with his filthy footsteps! He is too damned curious to be anything less than a threat. He can be killed at any time, of course, but he seems to have some value for Ainz-sama to spare him for his insolence! Oh, Ainz-sama, your mercy is wasted on this fool! What could he know that would make him valuable enough to let live?"
Albedo almost broke her pen with her thumb in frustration. Before she could snap it in two, Albedo placed the pen on the table.
"Hmmm… Perhaps forcing him to divulge all that he knows won't be necessary. We can always probe his mind at our leisure. No, what I must do is fault the scholar to be inappropriate and unprofessional. He may act well mannered and genteel, but his lewd nature rests beneath the surface. If I can expose how much of a letcher he it to Ainz, then he'll be thrown into prison, where I will be recognized for my quick-thinking, and be rewarded by my beloved Ainz-Sama~! It'll be fool-proof! The question now is how will I do it…?"
A set of knocks on the door were heard. Albedo cleared her throat and calmed down before she sat back into her chair.
"Come in."
The door opened. One by one the Pleiades battle maids entered the Overseer's office: Yuri Alpha, Lupusregina Beta, Narberal Gamma, CZ2128 Delta, Solution Epsilon, and Entoma Vasilissa Zeta lined up before Albedo's desk and bowed. Yuri spoke first,
"Good morning, Lady Albedo. We are here to receive our new orders for today. What would you have us do?"
Albedo's smile turned into a thin grin on her face. She knew exactly what she wanted her battle maids to do.
"Very good Yuri. There is an important matter I must speak with you all about. It is our new "guest", Lexicon the vagrant scholar. Have you all met him already?"
"We have, my Lady. Each of us has spoken to him at least once."
"I'm sure his attitude and appearance hide something sinister, wouldn't you agree?"
The Pleiades tilted their head at Albedo's insinuation. Yuri Alpha spoke for them all when she asked,
"You believe he is insincere, Lady Albedo?"
"It's fine that you don't understand, my battle maids. I will enlighten you; this vagrant somehow showing up out of nowhere, finding our hidden location, and impressing our lord and master is highly suspicious. Worse, how he acts so polite and well-mannered seems too good to be true…"
Yuri interrupted, "Forgive me, Lady Albedo, but if this is true - and his true nature is hidden behind his proper behaviour - then what should we do about it?"
Narberal Gamma spoke then, "Would you have us kill him?"
CZ corrected, "That would be ill-advised. Lord Ainz would not wish for us to kill him. His usefulness has yet to be exhausted. Purpose: his knowledge of the New World has yet to be mined completely."
"That is correct, my dear CZ," Albedo affirmed, "But his freedom in the Great Tomb troubles me. I know, and admit, that my actions were deemed unacceptable to have imprisoned him immediately. But that was because of my instincts, and they are hardly ever wrong. The problem was I had imprisoned him before proving him a danger to Nazarick. That is where you come in. Ainz has assigned you six to escort and watch him during his desired tours of the Floors, yes?"
"Yes." They answered in unison.
"Then as your overseer I have a job for you. Your job is to find out how much of a perverse, letchers man he is. By doing so, Lord Ainz will see how inappropriate it is for the vagrant to explore our home. He will see that my incarceration of the scholar was correct, and so he will remain so in his appropriate place! Then, we shall learn everything that he knows at our own pace. Understand?"
"Yes, Lady Albedo." They responded.
"Very good. Yuri Alpha, you are the first to escort Lexicon. Test him, and find out the level of depravity this vagrant scholar hides. But no matter what happens, please know I don't make this order lightly. I am putting you at a great risk of your purity. I hope you can forgive me for such a demanding task…" ALbedo wiped her eyes of crocodile tears, sniffing away her "sadness".
"For you to show your genuine concern for our safety, Lady Albedo! It solidifies further our loyalty and devotion to you and Lord Ainz! We will not fail!" Yuri proclaimed, and the other maids saluted in unanimous agreement.
"Then go, my battle maids! For Lord Ainz and Nazarick!"
The battle maids hurried off. Albedo watched the door closed and giggled in excitement. 'Soon that insufferable intruder will be put where he belongs: a cold, iron cladded cage. Your days are numbed, Lexicon…'
Lexicon's quarters…
Lexicon was in the middle of another written report of his jobs in E-Rantel, along with some cursory notes of other matters and events. He was still untrusted to leave his room without an escort, or if Ainz summoned him to meet in person, in which case it'd be more suspicious if he didn't meet the overlord immediately. His only way out for a time was a small golden bell, which would summon one of the Pleiades. When he finished, Lexicon closed his book and leaned back into his chair.
"It's been awhile since I've left my room. I'll ring the bell and see who'll be my escort this time!" Lexicon rang the bell. A moment passed and then two knocks were heard from the door. Lexicon went to his door and opened it. Outside was Yuri Alpha, deputy leader of the Pleiades.
"Hello again, Ms. Alpha. Good to see you, as always."
She bowed her head, "Greetings Mr. Scholar. I will be chaperoning you today. Where would you like to go?"
"I was curious to know if Aura and Mare are around today?"
"They are. Aura and Mare are practicing in the 6th Floor Arena together. Would you like to see them?"
"Yes, I would."
"Follow me then."
Yuri lead Lexicon out of his room and to the 6th Floor. On arrival, they could both hear the twins fighting against their dragon kin warriors in a sparring match. Aura was displaying her high-level acrobatic skills while Mare used his magic to support her. Lexicon was curious as to why Mare never tried exercising his magic more but remembered the chaos and havoc he himself had to deal with before when he first arrived. Yuri approached the twin elves and bowed to them.
"Guardians Aura and Mare, a moment if you can spare one, please?"
Aura and Mare stopped what they were doing and walked to Yuri.
"How's it going, Yuri?" Aura asked.
"Ohayou, Yuri-san!" Mare greeted.
"Greetings to you both. Forgive my interruption, but our guest has grown curious about you both. I believe he wishes to converse with you."
Aura and Mare peered behind Yuri in opposite directions and immediately spotted Lexicon. The scholar smiled and waved to the two, but neither was too keen to see him so soon.
"Hey, bookworm! What do you want this time?"
"Aura, we shouldn't t-talk to him yet…"
"I wanted to see how you two practiced today. We can converse later if that's okay?"
"Well, you can just-!" Aura shouted, but then stopped. An idea popped into her head, followed by a sly grin on her face. She turned to Mare and whispered in her brother's ear.
'Okay, listen to Mare: we're gonna fight him, but we'll make a fool out of him and teach him not to mess with us! I'll take him on, while you sneak your magic in. Use that vine spell you know, got it?'
'O-Okay, nee-chan!'
They broke from their huddle and Aura looked back to Lexicon. She pointed a defiant finger to him and proclaimed, "Alright book-boy! You wanna see how we practice? Then we'll do you one better: you're gonna be our practice dummy; dummy!"
Lexicon shot a brow at her, "Oi! Who're you accusing of being a dummy now?"
"You, dummy! What, are you deaf too? Maybe you're not such a hot-shot scholar as you claim to be?"
"Hmph! Well, if you're going to be so rude about it, then this "practice dummy" won't be playing nice, then!" He mockingly rolled up his sleeve, but Yuri grabbed his arm and shot a glare of disapproval. The scholar looked back to her and said,
"I know what you're thinking, and I assure you it won't get out of hand. I'm not so foolish as to bring actual harm. I promise that I will behave myself, Ms. Alpha. Nothing will go wrong."
"Hmmm… Very well." Yuri let go of his arm and Lexicon approached the twins.
"So Aura, Mare, how do you want to fight?"
"We'll fight with our fists again - and no magic from either of us. Mare doesn't step into the fight, either. You'll be dealing with me, buster!"
"Y-You c-can do it, Onee-chan!"
"I accept those terms. Try to keep your cool this time, won't you?"
Aura huffed at him, and then the fought. As before, they clashed and traded blows to one another. While they were preoccupied, Mare used his magic unseen by the scholar.
'Vines.' He whispered. He tapped the end of his staff onto the ground, and a green glow shined from it. Plant vines wriggled and coiled through the dirt, and traveled beneath the arena floor. Lexicon had taken a step back, but then tripped. He back-flipped onto his feet and stood up. He looked to the floor and caught a glimpse of a green vine sinking back into the ground. He raised a brow and looked to Aura, who stuck her tongue out and pulled down her lower eye lid to mock him.
'Oh, I see.', he thought, 'You said nothing about Mare using magic, right? Well, you also said nothing about me countering that magic.' The scholar put his hand out from behind his back and whispered, 'Discord.' Magical sigils flashed outward in secret. The vines below him stopped, then twisted and turned in random directions. They were no longer after just him now.
"Come now, let's see what you've got!"
Aura charged at the scholar and attempted to jump-kick him, but the vines turned on her from below and tripped her. Her stride was cut short and stumbled through the air, and then fell before Lexicon. The scholar laughed at her fumble of a fall.
"Wha-Wha-Wha-what!?" She exclaimed. She brought herself up off the ground and stepped back, flustered and confused.
"Mare, what the heck? I told you to use the vines on him; not me!"
"I'm-! I'm sorry, Aura! I don't know what happened!"
Aura ignored his apologies and went to fight Lexicon again. Time and time again, the vines tripped her and caused Aura to stumble. The scholar couldn't help but feel but laugh loudly over the mayhem.
'I can't believe how much entertainment I'm getting out of this! Oh my, though perhaps I should stop now before-' Lexicon's thoughts were cut off when he realized that Yuri Alpha was still there. He sensed her caution and worry rise, and it looked like she didn't like what she saw at all.
"Uh-oh…" Lexicon said out loud.
Yuri saw this as her cue to step in and arrest the scholar for inappropriate behavior. She was not aware of the fact of the twin's own trickery, however; neither was she aware of Lexicon's counter of it. It didn't matter to her now, though, for she already stormed for him.
"Alright, that's enough Lexicon! I suggest you quit while you're a-"
The earth beneath her feet shook with a violent rumble. The arena floor under her heels cracked and busted upward and from it, a hoard of vines wriggled and slithered upward. It tied and twisted around Yuri's waist, arms, legs, and neck. She was held restrained above the ground, with the vines out of control now.
"Kyaaaahhh! What's the meaning of this?" Yuri shouted.
"Mare cut it out already! This is way too much!"
"Wah! I can't stop them. The magic that's making them is all mixed up!"
"This must be what happened when I used my countermagic against your vines, Mare. Unexpected!"
Aura looked at him and pointed, "Hey! We agreed on no magic!"
"Oh? Says the youngling who didn't mention her *magical* sibling that wasn't fighting."
"It's your fault and your magic that made the vines go nuts! You should-!"
Yuri shouted at all three of them, "Please stop arguing and help! These vines… are draining my strength… Ah! Stop moving there!"
"Alright then! Aura, free Yuri from the vines above. Mare, I'll dispel my magic first, and then you dispel yours to remove the vines. Ready?"
"Fine." Aura acquiesced.
"Hai!" Mare affirmed.
Aura leaped upward to Yuri's position while she avoided and slashed away with her whip against the vines that attempted to ensnare her. She was right under Yuri Alpha and cut the vines around her waist and legs. Meanwhile, Lexicon focused his magic on and tried to remove his own spell, but the vines prevented him. Mare stepped in and used a magical shield to aid him in his concentration.
"H-Hurry Mr. Scholar!"
"My thanks, young one! Dispel!" With a wave of his hand Lexicon removed the spell that made the vines act out. Mare was able to do the same and dismissed the vines. Aura was on the last vine that was wrapped around Yuri's neck but cut both it and the neck brace that held her head. She was unable to grab her head and in time, and so Yuri's head fell from above. Before it could hit the ground, her head was caught and saved. Lexicon had jumped in time to catch her head and landed safe and sound, with Yuri's head in his hands. Aura held Yuri's body in her arms when they landed and put the maid back on her feet. The scholar held Yuri out to meet her face-to-face, so to speak.
"My apologies for the sudden daring rescue, my fair battle maid. Looks like this battle nearly made us all, "lose our heads"! Hohohoho!"
Yuri was quiet and unresponsive. Her body shook beside them while Aura and Mare stared at him in disbelief. Aura looked like she was about to throttle him, while Mare appeared embarrassed and flabbergasted. Lexicon felt their strong emotional protests and looked at the twins.
"Huh? What is it; what's the problem? Is everyone alright?"
He looked to Yuri Alpha's head and found that her expression was quite red and flushed. It was as if she was about to confess a deep love to someone, but was conflicted and embarrassed of herself. She shut her eyes and yelled,
"Release me now, please!"
"Wait, what-?"
A sharp spike of pain ran up Lexicon's back. He felt a hard fist planted deep into the side of his back. He shook from the shock of the attack and fell to his knees, caught in a maelstrom of agony in his body.
"Oh, gods… my kidney! Why; why my kidney?"
Yuri's body was swift to take her head back and sprinted back to the twin Dark Elf guardians. She had her back faced to him and refused to turn around. Aura yelled at him despite Lexicon's injury,
"You goddamn pervert! What's wrong with you? You don't do that to a girl you hardly know!"
"W-what? What did I-?"
Mare interrupted, "S-She's a Dullahan! T-their head is their m-most v-v-v-vulnerable! For a stranger to hold it without their permission is like… Like-!"
"It's like you tried to take their purity, you pervert!" Aura finished Mare's sentence with a blunt answer.
The scholar looked over still confused until he heard Aura's answer. Her "Purity"? That could only imply one thing, and the scholar then realized his error.
"Awww, bollocks!"
"We're gonna tell Ainz on you! You're in soooo much trouble, buster!"
"Wait, please!"
Aura stopped her accusations against Lexicon when Yuri Alpha spoke out. Aura and Mare looked to the battle maid deputy in confusion. Was she not angry with him, or was it something else? Yuri Alpha walked over to Lexicon while she stood apart by three feet from him.
"Scholar Lexicon…"
"Y-yes, Ms. Alpha?"
"... Apologize."
"I apologize for what I did to you. I was unaware of how important trust was when it came to holding your head. I meant no disrespect."
"... Then I apologize too, for hurting you like that. You were only doing the right thing and prevented me from getting injured."
Aura protested, "Wait a minute! He can't get off scot-free; he caused the vines to attack us!"
"N-No Aura!" Mare intervened.
"Huh? Why not?"
"B-Because you told me to use my magic! If we had just f-fought fair, then t-the vines wouldn't have b-been a p-p-problem. Mr. Scholar… We're sorry too."
Mare bowed to Lexicon in apology, and though she didn't wish to herself, Aura also gave a reluctant but quick head nod.
"Now then, Mr. Lexicon," Yuri spoke again, "We can consider our apologies made if you return to your room."
"Aye, very well then. Let's not make the situation more awkward. Lead the way."
Yuri escorted Lexicon back to his quarters.
The two returned to Lexicon's room, but before he entered, Lexicon turned to Yuri and said,
"Ms. Alpha… I would like to learn more about your kind."
"Oh?" She asked.
"Yes. I would like for you to explain to me the things that Dullahan hold as important to them."
"Why would you want to learn that now?
"I felt it would be best that I understood the important parts of your race. There is very little known about Dullahans, other than in legends. But legends and myths are partly true with some artistic liberties taken by storytellers. In short, Yuri Alpha, in order to avoid what happened just now, I want to understand you and any boundaries you have; either as a Dullahan, or as a person, too."
Yuri considered his proposition to learn about her kind. It wasn't often people asked, and she didn't talk to anyone in Nazarick about it since it didn't seem important. The idea appealed to her albeit just a little and decided to go along with it.
"Alright. I'll tell you some "dos and don'ts", then. Will that suffice for you?"
"That will do nicely. Please, tell me."
"Well, with the obvious will start then: a Dullahan's head is the most important part of their body. It is removable, and allows us to move about without it, should we choose to put it down. But often we are always with our heads, and vice-versa. Have you heard of the myth of Dullahans never crossing running water? To put it simply: we don't want to lose our head in the current, should we drop them. There isn't anything inherently bad about making contact with rivers, for example…"
"Fascinating! Please, continue."
"The blue choker you see on my neck?" she pointed to it, "That is meant to hold my head in place and save me the trouble of holding it in my arms all day. As for holding it, well… It's as Aura put it. For another person to hold a Dullahan's head means he or she puts the utmost trust in that individual. It is… Well… Like one's… "P-Purity"."
"Ah, yes. I understand, of course. I didn't mean any disrespect, once again."
"I believe you. Despite the accident, you were… gentle. I'm thankful for that."
"Of course! Yuri, I know I am a stranger in strange lands, but I don't wish to cause undue damage. In truth, I would like us to be friends. It is… unlikely, I'm sure, but I would be honored to reach even a shadow of a level of that kind of trust. I want to help Nazarick because I believe Lord Ainz is doing the correct thing. Is there anything else I should know?"
Yuri thought for a moment and then adjusted her glasses. The light gleamed off the lenses in a dynamic way.
"Yes. Can you remove your head like me?"
"What? I… No, can't. I'd likely die if I did."
"Good. Because only I can remove my head. Not even CZ Delta. Understood?"
The scholar was perplexed by how serious she was but nodded his head.
"Good. I believe that will be enough for today. But, should we meet again, and if you have further questions about Dullahans… Then I suppose I can entertain you more. Should you wish, that is?"
"I would be honored, Ms. Alpha. Good day!"
Lexicon went inside and closed his door, and Yuri Alpha went off on her way.
Later, at Albedo's office...
The Pleiades returned to the overseer's office to report after their duties. Albedo knew that it was Yuri who escorted Lexicon today and so requested her to speak first.
"Yuri Alpha, report. What have you learned from watching the scholar?"
Yuri bowed to Albedo before she reported, "I had escorted Lexicon to the 6th Floor arena, where guardians Aura and Mare were practicing. The scholar requested to observe their sparring, but Aura insisted that he spar with them. The scholar agreed, but under Aura's conditions that it would be just herself and him, and fight one-on-one, with no magical assistance used."
"Hmph. How arrogant of that vagrant to think to challenge Nazarick's best. Continue."
"Yes, well, as the battle ensued, I noticed there were vines that attempted to ensnare the ankles of the fighters, keeping them from moving properly-"
"So now the scholar cheats? Despicable, but expected!" Albedo smirked.
"N-no. Please, my lady, allow me to finish?"
"Of course my child! Go on."
"The vines had grown out of control and ensnared me in their grip. Aura, Mare, and Lexicon worked to free me. But when Aura removed the vines around my neck, she accidentally unlocked my choker, and caused my head to fall."
"Were you hurt? Did that scholar tried to harm you…?" Albedo's eyes glowed with deadly intent, but Yuri corrected her assumptions with,
"Actually, he caught my head in his hands."
Everyone gasped and looked at Yuri, who then blushed a little from her admittance. Albedo stood from her chair in triumph.
'Got you, you little blonde shit-stain!'
"However…!" Yuri added.
"However?"
"He was unaware of the customs of Dullahan. My kind is a rarity in the New World, it seems, or as he had told me before returning to his room. He had apologized after I reclaimed my head from him. Also, to be fair, he was not at fault for the vines. Mare admitted he and his sister's attempt to throw the scholar off, but Lexicon countered the spell, which made them go wild."
"Yuri-nee? Are you sure he wasn't trying to fondle your ears?" Lupusregina Beta questioned. The other maids also inquired,
"Did that maggot not shame you with his invasion of your space?"
"Uwaaah~. You are not upset with him?"
"N-No. It was unexpected, to say the least, but… I'm sorry. I don't believe his previous actions today showed signs of any illicit intent, Lady Albedo. Forgive me for my failure." She bowed again to Albedo, who then sat back down and frowned.
"It's fine, Yuri. You did your best." But in the back of her mind, she thought, 'This man is craftier than he lets on. I suppose I'll have the other battle maids try. There's still time, though. I'll be patient for when he inevitably shows his true colors.'
"Battle maids! Your mission is not done, yet. I still do not trust this scholar to be without inappropriate thoughts and intentions. The next battle maid in line to be his escort will watch his movements carefully and strike when sure. Understood?"
"Yes!" They answered in unison.
"Very good."
End Chapter 1