Emissaries

by KantsMoralTheory

The dark elf twins have been assigned a task by Ainz Ooal Gown to act as emissaries to the Elf Kingdom. For such an important task, Aura and Mare have been gifted the blessings of the Supreme Ones, however, encounter an anomaly that sends them tumbling into the world of Danmachi.

2. Chapter 2

A run-down and decrepit church on the brink of collapse greeted the periphery of the dark elf twins as they followed the shy white-haired boy.

"W-well, this is it," Bell muttered while pointing at his shabby home, "It's not much, but I promise that it's safe. Once I convince my goddess to let you stay, you guys can stay!"

Aura threw the child a brief glance before responding, "Hmph, it's not much to look at but it beats the streets. So where exactly is the entrance?"

"Oh it's over here, follow me," Bell strolled toward the church, opening the worn-down door which led to a small room. He began to walk in and urged the twins to follow.

Lacking any form of fear or worry, Aura strolled into the room holding Mare's hand in order to properly drag him in before second thoughts surfaced in her worry-wart brother.

"A-are you really sure about this big sis?! I mean, who knows what'll happen if we stay in here," Mare whispered to his sister.

The dark elf sister didn't bother hiding her response as she loudly proclaimed, "Pah! Nothing will happen, I'm sure of it! Plus, as I told you before, if anything fishy happens I'll just kill whoever has the nerve to bother us." Aura tapped the whip on her hip for emphasis.

Responding with a hesitant nod, Mare accepted her assurance and walked into the room. Entering the dark elf twins periphery was a modest den, adorned with a cracked roof, small bed, and an even smaller couch with a cheap-looking table in front of it.

"T-this seems like a n-nice place, I guess," Mare commented.

Aura scoffed, "More like a dump… but it'll suffice for now."

Bell visibly cringed at the small dark elf's belittlement, "I-I… I'm sorry. My goddess and I can't really afford any better at the moment..."

"Well as long as yo-"

"But! I'm sure that I'll be able to give my goddess a much better home once I start to earn enough from the dungeon! However long that may take, that is…" Bell muttered.

Aura raised an eyebrow at that, "So you're only living like this because you're weak?"

The white-haired boy flinched before clenching his fists in self-hate.

"Sister…"

"What? I'm only telling the truth, what's wrong with that? He lives in a trashed building because of his own weakness. If it were me, I'd run into the dungeon and make enough money to help myself and everyone I care for. I'd work to the bone to give Lord Ainz a perfect life and home," Aura stated in a matter-of-fact tone.

The cross-dressing elf winced at the mention of his lord's name, "Y-yeah you're right… but I don't think he can help it. He's probably like the other humans we faced."

"Hmph, maybe… well whatever," Aura muttered before pointing at the boy, "You're not that bad of a person, especially since you let us use your home, but in my eyes, you're still just a pathetic weakling."

"I… I don't... "

Mare calmly placed a hand on his sister's shoulders before addressing the white-haired boy, "I-I'm sorry for my sister, she's just stressed, she doesn't mean it I promise," Mare gave a brief bow, "Thank you for inviting us."

"H-hey! You know I did-"

Before Aura could finish her rebuttal, the door behind them creaked open to reveal a short woman with an impressive bust. "Bell! I'm home! I brought home some left over-," The woman froze once she bore witness to the two adorable children inside her home.

Said children, not giving any effort to feed the interrupting woman their attention.

"W-what... did you two really consider my offer?!" the short lady exclaimed in incredible excitement.

"Huh?"

Bell broke out of his brief stupor before any misconceptions arose, "W-welcome back Hestia! I offered these kids a place to stay after they told Eina that they had nowhere to go. I-is that alright?"

Hestia gasped before developing an evil-childish grin, "Of course it's alright, they could stay as long as they like! But on one condition!" She quickly averted her gaze from Bell to the two dark-elf children who had been staring at her with their wide heterochromatic eyes. "You can stay… as long as you join my familia!"

"No," the dark elf twins said in unison with a matter-of-a-fact tone as the tomboy began to casually walk out of the room with Mare in tow.

The goddess's jaw dropped in utter shock with the children's blunt response, "W-w-wait! I didn't mean it! You can stay! You can stay! I promise!"

Aura raised her eyebrow in doubt, "Really?"

"Of course! You don't have to decide now. But by all means, please consider my offer," Hestia affirmed.

The cross-dressing elf gave a brief nod, "T-thank you for having us, where will we s-sleep?"

"Oh, well I guess you two will get the bed since your guests… Bell and I will share the couch!"

The white-haired boy's face blew up in a red flush, "N-no thank you! I'll sleep on the floor, don't worry! I'll lay down a blanket so it won't be too bad."

"Nope! Not gonna happen, we're sharing the couch. This is a direct order unless you wanna make our guests feel bad?"

Said guests could care less about the boy's fate and had already made themselves busy.

Bell gave a slight chuckle, "I don't think they'd mind. We should just-."

Growl

A bright red blush overcame Bell as he blew up in embarrassment. It had been a while since Bell could enjoy a meal, the last proper meal had been breakfast, and it was noon by now.

Hestia, once more, grew a devilish grin, "Tch Tch Tch, what will I ever do with you? Like I said when I entered…," Pausing in order to create suspense, the petite goddess pulled out a bag with a mediocre supply of potato snacks. "Ta-da!"

"You're the best g-goddess!" Bell proclaimed before politely grabbing the bag and placing it on the flimsy table. "I'll get the salt!"

Hestia puffed up her chest, "Hmph, yeah I know."

Bell quickly returned with the salt in hand and began to splurge, "Let's eat!"

Both goddess and follower took their place on the small worn-down couch before happily biting into their food. However, Hestia flinched upon her second bite once the visage of the twins entered her peripheral. The elf dressed in the fancy form-fitting suit gave the goddess and her meager feast a brief glance before returning to her business. Simultaneously, the wide-eyed and skirt-wearing child had formed a slight pout as she (he) pet the weak-looking plant in the corner of the room.

Hestia briefly lowered her snack and muttered, "... If you two would like, you can have some. You don't have to worry about me tricking or charging you, promise!"

"..." The twins remained silent at the goddess's pathetic, yet endearing offer. Aura hadn't even bothered to acknowledge the goddess while she continued to organize her thoughts. Mare, on the other hand, placed his full attention on the petite goddess.

"Y-you would share your food with us?" The feminine child nervously asked.

Hestia smiled in a motherly manner, "Of course."

"...Then I accept your offer," Mare nearly whispered before reaching into the bag and politely grabbing the nearest potato snack. The adorable child slightly bowed his head, "T-thank you."

"Hehe, no problem champ," Hestia responded with a gloating chirp.

Mare didn't bother to respond to the poverty-stricken goddess and slowly nibbled the meager snack. Hmm, I guess the food of this world doesn't provide any significant or recognizable buffs… but it tastes kinda good. Even though it's stale.

The petite goddess took it upon herself to stare at the adorable elf nibble on the fried treat. So cute! She must love it considering how infatuated she seems to be. Wonder how she'd react to some fresh ones? Maybe she'll consider joining! Hestia thought, developing a mischievous grin.

"... I-it's good. A-aura?" Mare stuttered before reaching into the bag once more to offer her sister the mediocre snack. "Y-you should eat… I know you like fried potatoes a-and stuff."

Although Aura found her little brother endearing, she scoffed, "I like fries Mare, not… whatever that is. Fries along with a big juicy burger served by Pestonya! Plus I'm not even hungry."

昼食の時間です! (It is time for lunch!), A device attached to the small tomboy's wrist broadcasted.

Before the tomboy could continue her long-winded rant, Bukubukuchagama's voice announced the beginning of lunchtime. Her stomach produced a churning growl exposing her own suppressed hunger. Heat quickly traveled into the dark elf's cheeks, "Tch… I'm still not hungry, if anything it would be a waste, I'll just wear the ring Lord Ainz gave us."

Mare pouted, "B-but Lord A-ainz told us to not wear it. I-it was a direct order."

"Hmph, I still don't want it," Aura exclaimed as she slapped her brother's extended hand away.

"I-I… okay s-sister," Mare meekly responded.

"..." The twins stared at each other, both feeling guilty for making the other uncomfortable. Aura ignored any lingering guilt and made her way to the bed. She tuckered herself into the poorly made bed and pulled the covers far enough to cover her face.

The room remained eerily silent as the deity and loyal follower finished their meal. Mare, of course, instantly lost his appetite once he realized how miserable his sister felt. The feminine elf slowly walked toward the bag and gently placed the slightly nibbled potato snack back into the bag. "I-I'm sorry, I'm not hungry anymore. Goodnight, t-thank you again."

"N-no problem, good night sweetheart," Hestia responded, pausing from her snacking.

Mare gave a polite yet brief bow before walking toward the bed. His hand reached over to slightly lift the blanket while his sister continued to pout. Slowly entering the bed so as to not bother his sister, Mare snuggled into the cheap bed.

"..." I miss my old bed

Hestia took one final bite of her meal and shook off any remaining salt stuck on her hands before uttering a tired yawn, "Well, we should go to sleep, huh Bell?"

"Mmph, y-yeah we should," Bell responded with a mouth-full of food in his mouth he quickly swallowed. "I'll go grab the blanket, good night goddess."

The petite goddess pouted, "Huh?! I told you that we're sleeping together on the couch!"

"Hehe, I'm sorry goddess, but I can't, you deserve the whole couch to yourself," Bell exclaimed with an innocent smile.

"T-that's not what I meant… oh whatever. Oh, wait a minute! I still haven't updated your status have I?"

Bell gasped in realization, "That's right! I almost forgot after everything that happened today."

"Well for the sake of your future, let's update your status!"

"Yes, Goddess!" Bell responded, before taking off his shirt and laying down on the blanket laid on the floor.

Hestia methodically took her glove off and pricked the exposed hand in order to produce a few droplets of blood that landed on the white-haired boy's bareback. Bell's status immediately popped up in Hestia's periphery, however, she was shocked to see her child's unbelievable growth. A new skill! It gave the user immunity to charms and immense growth depending on the strength of the user's emotions. Amazing!

Hestia slowly broke away from her momentary glee as she contemplated, Wait if anybody found out about this skill they'd steal away my Bell! I already know that my Bell can't keep a secret to save his life so if I tell him…

"So, how is it?"

A hesitant response itched its way out of Hestia's mouth, "P-pretty good, your agility improved a lot."

"Really!" The child chirped cutely as he grabbed the paper holding all his status information, "Goddess, what's this! Something special?" Bell asked while pointing at the scribbled-off words on the bottom of the paper.

"Hmm? My hand slipped a little, it's nothing."

Bell huffed in innocent disappointment before putting his shirt back on and taking his place on the floor to sleep. Hestia spared her sole-follower a brief yet worried glance as he drifted into a deep sleep.

I should probably sleep as well, gotta set up the stand tomorrow, Hestia thought. She slowly stood up and walked toward the couch, however, she noticed the bed in her peripheral. Hestia, without thinking, made her way to the occupied bed.

The petite goddess placed a small hand on the corner of the bed and grew a somber expression. "I'm not exactly sure what's going on, but I want you to know that you two are always welcome here… I'm sorry for making you feel uncomfortable before. You guys must be really strong to have made it to this huge city."

Although the twins had covered their entire bodies under the small blanket, Hestia noticed a small amount of movement as the sheets shifted around slightly. "... Don't pity me, weakling."

Hestia grew a gentle smile at the child's tenacity and moved away from the bed to make her way back towards the couch. Despite the fact that Bell had taken the only spare blanket, Hestia quickly fell asleep on the modest couch.

The twins were wide awake while they laid on the simple bed. Aura, still disgruntled, had her back turned on Mare. Her mind was elsewhere as she contemplated their situation. Mare, however, stared directly into his sister's back as tears slowly swelled up in his eyes.

"... Aura"

The tomboy paused before responding, "What?"

"I'm sorry for hurting your feelings… I'm r-really s-sorry…" Tears began to seep out of Mare's eyes.

Guilt quickly struck Aura, "I… no, you didn't hurt my feelings."

"R-really?"

"Yes… really." Aura turned around to face her little brother before giving him a reassuring smile.

Mare visibly relaxed and returned the gesture with his own bright smile. Although both children were still stressed, they found solace in each other's company. A strong silence descended as the twins stopped smiling.

"... Did you really mean it when you said that this was a part of Lord Ainz's plan?" Mare questioned in a grave yet innocent tone.

The tomboy flinched, "W-well… yes."

"W-why did you stutter?"

"Because I don't really know," Aura paused before explaining, "I just said it in the spur of the moment." The normally energetic child seemed hesitant, "I just wanted to calm you down, but I'm not sure if this really is Lord Ainz's plan. He seemed… scared when we went through the gate."

Mare's expression appeared downtrodden, "I-I sorta assumed that was the case." The feminine child paused, "Do you think we'll see Lord Ainz again?"

Aura avoided her little brother's gaze, "I don't know," the typically confident elf began to slowly tear up, "I-I d-don't know." Whatever pre-conceived notions of stoicism left the small child as she shivered ever-so-slightly, allowing tears to fall from her heterochromatic eyes.

Although shocked at his sister's abnormal reaction, Mare quickly inched his way towards his sister. Initially hesitant, Mare wrapped his arms around his sister in a warm and kind embrace. "I-It's okay! I don't know either. Um, actually! I know even less than you do since you're super smart!"

Amused at her little brother's desperate attempt to cheer her up, Aura slowly calmed down. She returned her little brother's hug with a hug of her own, "You really think I'm 'super smart'?"

"Uh-huh, I do, I really do," Mare whispered while he continued to hug his older sister.

"Well, you're not wrong!" Aura exclaimed.

Mare giggled, "I'm happy I have you, sis."

"And I'm happy that I have you."

The twins enjoyed each other's embrace and slowly drifted to sleep. "We're gonna get home and see our lord again… I promise."

The light of dawn seeped into the worn-down church through the many untreated holes and the sound of melodic birdsong echoed through the neighborhood. The rising sun cast a rosy hue across the morning sky and shined softly on the city streets.

The dark elf twins were the first to get up, although it took extra encouragement from Aura to properly get Mare out of bed. The tomboy straightened out her suit and double-checked the security of her equipment. The world item 'Depiction of Nature and Society' was still properly attached to her back and all her weapons were accounted for. Mare, much like his sister, still had his world item equipped. The gauntlets, in hindsight, may have made the hug uncomfortable for his sister.

"Alright, it's time to go," Aura stated.

Mare rubbed his eyes in an adorable manner and let out a short yawn, "Where are we going?"

"Hmm, well we should probably continue looking for information. I don't trust what all these humans say, I'm gonna investigate the geography around the city first I think." Aura explained.

"Didn't you already get a decent idea of the area when we walked to the city?"

Aura scoffed, "I barely had enough time to get a good enough lay of the land. All I figured out was that this place was nothing like what we were familiar with. Nothing like the New World anyway…"

"S-so do you want me to come?" Mare said, fidgeting on the spot..

"Of course I want you to come! But… I'm not super sure."

"W-what do you mean? A-are you still mad?" Mare questioned, tears easily welling up in his eyes.

"No idiot! It just doesn't sound like a smart use of our time and skills. You should do something else to help get information," Aura reiterated.

Mare paused to contemplate his sister's words, "Y-you have a point, but do you really think it's a good idea to split up? We don't know if there's anything out there that can threaten us."

The tomboy scoffed, "Bah, I doubt it… Lord Ainz may have told us to be careful but we both have world items! Nothing can beat us, plus even if anything remotely strong turns up, we can just run away."

"R-run away? How are we gonna run away if they're stronger than us?"

Aura flinched, "Ah well… then we'll just use our scrolls to teleport away!"

"W-what if they set up spells to counteract our teleportation?"

"Gah! Well, then we just kill them."

Mare stared at his sister cutely and ever patiently, "But you just said that they would be stronger than us?"

"Ahh come on, what side are you on Mare?"

"W-well I'm on your side, I just w-wanna make sure we both stay safe."

The twins locked their heterochromatic eyes between each other. Aura sighed, "I'm sorry Mare but I'm not changing my mind. We can't waste precious time right now, I'll scout out the area around the city and draw up a map."

"B-but!"

Aura interrupted her brother, "But, I promise to scout out the area as discreetly as possible. No one will see me, I swear!"

The feminine child mumbled and grew a pout, "I d-don't like this."

"I get it, but while I scout out the local geography and try to compare it to the New World, I need you to gather as much information about this world as possible."

Aura was frightened at the prospect of leaving her brother alone, but this was the best use of their time. She knew very well that the longer they stayed in this world, the more problems would arise. At this point of the game, they had to collect as much information as possible.

Mare held the same belief as Aura but was worried nonetheless, "I understand… I think I know what I'm gonna do to collect information."

"What will that be?"

The skirt-wearing elf explained, "W-well I'll probably look around and try to get directions for the nearest library. I could do that or go back to the guild."

Aura frowned, "That sounds like a good idea, but I'm worried about all the weirdos that may bother you."

"D-don't worry, I'll just tell them to leave me alone," Mare reassured.

Being the overbearing older sister she was, Aura reprimanded, "You know very well that these creeps don't take no for an answer. Don't be afraid to beat them up, okay?"

"B-but what about being inconspicuous?"

"You can still be inconspicuous and defend yourself, idiot. I doubt anybody will bat an eye if you're defending yourself from a creep or pushing away some loser who's super persistent in talking with you."

Mare fidgeted, "Mmmm, y-yeah I guess it'll be fine."

The tomboy breathed out a heavy sigh, "What am I gonna do with you?"

Aura clapped her hands and grew a sharp smile, "Well, we've wasted enough time, let's go and complete our missions. I'll send you a message when I'm done and we'll rendezvous at the most convenient place possible."

Mare responded with a quick nod, however, began to avert his gaze to the still sleeping Hestia and Bell. "Shouldn't we say goodbye before we go?"

"Hm? Naw, they're just a bunch of weaklings, we should just get out of here. But I will admit that they were sorta nice." Aura paused to think, "Yeah no, I'm not wasting any more time here. I'm gonna start getting a lay of the land."

Without any time to waste, Aura walked away and reached for the door. She promptly speed-walked through the mostly empty streets towards the gate.

Aura's quick escape left Mare all alone in the worn-down church. He had still been questioning what exactly to do, a small smile eventually reached his face. Mare grabbed a piece of paper and a pen from his inventory to draw a note for the people who took them in.

For the next three minutes, Mare joyfully wrote a thank you letter. Thank you for taking us in, you both were really nice! :) My sister and I will pay you back, we promise! You were really nice Bell, I hope we meet again soon. Oh and Hestia, thank you for offering me food. It was tasty, I'm sorry for not finishing, my creator mother always told me to finish my food so once again, I'm sorry. Goodbye! Mare finished up the letter and laid it on top of the dresser next to the bed.

The young dark elf smiled and decided to finally walk out of the church. Now, he only had to discern where to go first. Everything considered, Aura was right about all the weirdos, since he'd be forced to stay in the city, conflict was inevitable. Well, conflict was a strong word more like… extremely annoying interactions.

Mare was forced to contemplate his situation. I don't exactly hate the humans here or even the 'gods' but they're just so… bothersome. It's just like the New World, everyone always stares and makes me feel super uncomfortable. Even worse, most of the people who stare at me always have some weird intentions. Not that they admit it, but it's pretty obvious when you're the one being stared at. Truthfully, it was even worse here than it was back home, most people were scared of me back in the New World, some even thought I was disgusting because I was an elf. Here, however, the people stare at me for an entirely different reason. They wanted me, to be honest, it was gross. Why would anyone want me in the first place? Because I'm strong?

The troubled boy shook his head to break out of his current line of thought, "A-all that doesn't matter right now, I-I really need to focus. I need to figure out where to go first, m-maybe I'll just walk around until I find someone trustworthy then decide where to go from there."

It was still incredibly early in the morning so the streets remained relatively sparse. Shopkeepers only just began to set up their stalls and a few adventurers marched to the dungeon. Which proved to be a boon for Mare as he walked through the streets relatively undisturbed.

There was the occasional adventurer, typically female, who'd call him cute and attempt to approach him. The feminine child was always able to evade any long-winded conversations by providing an excuse to leave. Mare always did have a way with words, he even took advantage of his own nervousness and anxiety to persuade people to do what he wanted. A sparse amount of individuals would be willing to continuously bother an adorable and nervous child asking to be left alone. The only individuals who would remain to bother him were the aforementioned 'weirdos' but it was easy enough to push them away.

What had especially invaded his personal space was when a grandma thought she had the right to pinch his cheeks. Although Mare would have been more than happy to push her off like all the other women trying to do the exact same thing, he feared the possibility of killing her. It was one thing to push a strong adventurer in her prime to the ground, but a frail old woman? He knew better than to commit murder in the middle of the street.

However, the cross-dressing boy's moment of weakness opened the flood gates. The old lady pinching his cheeks coincidently had a few friends who decided to join in the festivities.

"Hello sweetheart, what's someone like you doing this early in the morning?" The sweet old lady asked. She instinctively pulled out a few pieces of candy from her pocket and offered it to the dark-elf.

Mare politely rejected the candy offered and meekly responded, "U-um, I-I'm just looking for s-something."

"Hmm, and what would that be?" The grandma glanced at the child's hands which were entirely covered by scary-looking gauntlets. "Oh… sweetheart don't tell me you're an adventurer."

"U-um, no… I'm not an adventurer, I'm just trying to find information to g-get home."

The look of all the surrounding women turned from adoration to incredible concern. Driven by some type of maternal instinct, the nearest woman took a knee to look directly into the child's heterochromatic eyes. "Don't worry sweetheart! We'll get you home. Do you know where your home might be?"

Mare quickly became flustered from all the attention and attempted to clarify the misunderstanding, "N-no I'm not lost, I just… I just… I just."

The aging grandma stood up and took hold of the child's hand, "Sweetheart, I understand. My kids and even my grandkids got lost all the time when they were growing up. They always go on little adventures, I'm sure you were doing the same. Now let's go and find your parents."

"N-no I'm fine… stop!" Finally having enough, Mare pulled his hand away from the caring grandmother's grasp. This sudden action surprised the old woman but unintentionally also pulled her arm hard enough to cause incredible pain. The level one hundred druid surprisingly didn't pull her arm out of its socket but nonetheless left the poor grandmother to grasp her arm in pain.

Fearful of the consequences and possible punishment for assaulting an old woman in the presence of several witnesses, Mare quickly apologized, "I-I'm so s-sorry!" The crossdressing elf hovered his armored hand over the grandmother's arm, "[Heal]", the sixth tier healing spell eased any of the pain Mare could've inflicted and hopefully, undo any possible evidence of his 'assault'.

Although the entire ordeal wasn't a problem and most likely forgiven by all parties, Mare was freaking out and in damage-control mode.

The spell was far more efficient than foreseen and healed not only the old woman's arm but her entire body. Her back pain was gone, her hip went back into place, and any abnormal status was cured. She felt thirty years younger.

In absolute shock, the grandmother stared at the child with her mouth agape, "H-how did you fix my back pain? A-and my hip?"

"W-well I just used a spell to heal you, nothing more. I promise! S-so… you aren't mad r-right?" Mare nearly whispered.

"Mad? Why in the world would I be mad? You fixed my crippling back pain young lady, you're a blessing!" The grandma urged.

The old ladies' friends took notice and one of them requested, "Perhaps you can heal me as well? I have a limp."

"Eh? S-sure it's no problem." Mare answered. Hopefully, they'll leave me alone after this, or better yet, give me directions!

Thus, for the next few minutes, Mare used a relatively cheap sixth-tier healing spell on all the old women in hopes for them to leave him alone. By the time he finished, Mare had a squad of grandmas thanking him for his miracle work.

"Young lady, you've done so much for us, I don't know how we can possibly repay you."

Mare, throughout the course of the entire conversation, had been called sweetheart and a 'young lady' but he didn't bother correcting them for the sake of time. "W-well it would help if you can give me directions to the nearest library. A very nice and respectable library… hopefully also free."

"Free? I'm sorry sweetheart but there aren't a whole lot of libraries around here. Most of them are managed by familia's but the gods leading them are typically poor so their libraries are sparse and far from respectable. Only one library comes to mind in terms of reputation, and that's the library run by Menrva. Sadly, it's pretty reserved, the only people who are allowed access are the rich, gods, and her own familia."

Mare grew a gloomy expression, his ears downtrodden, "S-so I have no chance…"

"Don't worry sweetheart, considering how much of a munchkin you are, you can probably broker a deal with her. Plus, that magic of yours will probably be able to persuade her to let you in."

The dark elf smiled, "D-do you really think so?"

"Of course sweetie, it's the largest building on 5th street, you can't miss it!" One of the old ladies responded.

Mare, overjoyed to find a lead, gave the old ladies his brightest smile and waved goodbye. The old woman happily returned the child's farewell and gave him their best wishes.

The dark elf began to skip and prance to the library, happy and oblivious to any worries. Little did the elf know that news of what he did today would spread throughout all of Orario. A new player in the game that was able to heal all injuries with ease. Coincidently, the rumors coincided with the reports of two adorable dark elf children entering the city. The news of these cute children had become a rampant topic among the gods, those who had seen them were bragging about catching a glimpse of the cutest mortals they'd ever seen. Of course, the news had piqued the interest of the more nefarious gods who were interested in capturing them. When a massive group of gods proclaimed the existence of 'the most beautiful mortals to have ever existed'. It naturally made many curious, even Loki was talking about them! She had even bragged about almost touching the girl. Like it or not, the dark elf twins were a hot topic in Orario.

Nonetheless, Mare happily strolled to the library. Even the pestering weaklings couldn't deter his good mood. The idea of progress was addicting, the closer he got to going home and reporting to Lord Ainz, the better. Maybe his lord would use the information from his report to invade and conquer this land! He may have been in a new world for all he knew, but the elf was hopeful that his lord had a way to reach them again.

It didn't take long for the prancing elf to finally reach the library, which was overwhelmingly gaudy. The structure had actually reminded Mare of a picture he saw in one of his books, that being the Great Library of Alexandria. The book was incredibly interesting, a story of love and betrayal, following the ambitious Julius Caesar and beautiful Cleopatra. Although Caesar did end up burning the library to the ground, it was a great story nonetheless.

Mare made his way up the steps of the library, only to be greeted by two giant doors and several guards. Among the guards was an especially strong-looking individual in full plate armor and a plume on his helmet.

"Halt, what is your business here…" The guard paused after taking in the newcomer's features. She was adorable, so much so that it almost made the guard stutter.

Mare straightened his back and puffed up his chest in an attempt to look mature, "I-I'm here b-because I wanna go inside." Too bad his attempts to look mature failed due to his stutter.

"I see... I'm sorry little girl but this place is only for high-profile individuals. Rather, would you like help in finding your parents?"

The dark elf deflated at his response, if his sister was here, she'd have already been inside by now. "C-can you make an exception, I-I'll do anything!"

The guard stared at the elf for a second before reprimanding, "A child like you shouldn't say stuff like that."

Mare tilted his head in confusion, "What do you mean?"

"I-It's just…" The guard looked at the clueless elf's eyes, "Ugh, never mind. Anyway, my answer still stands, you can't come in."

The dark elf pouted but quickly came up with an idea, "T-then I want to meet Menrva!"

The guard paused, "Really? I'm sorry little girl but the goddess is really busy."

"I-I promise it'll be worth her time! Just let m-me talk to her!" Mare's expression grew slightly desperate and his heterochromatic eyes widened in an attempt to give the guard his best puppy eyes.

"Gah, well I suppose it wouldn't hurt, I'm sure Lady Menrva would be interested in meeting you."

Mare smiled brightly, "T-thank you so much!"

"Yeah no problem kid, follow me." The guard responded before averting his gaze to the men, "You guys hold up the fort."

"Yes sir!"

"Alright kid, stay close and don't bother the clients inside. The name is Clark by the way," Clark said as the guards opened the double doors.

Mare responded with a simple nod before following the tall man into the building. Upon closer expectation, the man actually had a tail that resembled that of a cheetah. It was the only exposed part of his body, probably because there was no way to cover it up.

Upon entering the massive library, Mare saw a variety of characters. Rich merchants and nobles riddled the area but rather than read, they were talking amongst each other. The few gods in the building were only seen around a section of the library entirely dedicated to grimoires.

From his own analysis, Mare assumed that this library was less a library and more of a get-together for the ultra-rich and prestigious. Before the child had the opportunity to feel disappointed, he had to quickly avert his gaze from the gods. The last thing he wanted was more attention from those self-proclaimed deities, so he covered his face as well as he could with his gauntleted hands.

It took a while to reach Menrva's room, especially because it was on the very top floor of the large library. The trek was so long, Clark had even offered to carry the dark elf. Of course, Mare rejected his offer.

The entourage approached the luxurious door of Menrva's room and was greeted by a single woman equipped with two daggers and piercing purple eyes. She wore a simple dress, although it looked more like a nightgown.

"What do you want, Clark? I don't wanna be anywhere around you," The woman said harshly.

Although no one could tell due to his armor, Clark was glaring at the woman. "I bring a guest who requests an audience with Lady Menrva."

"Oh? And where is this guest?" The minute she had asked, a small skirt-wearing elf revealed himself from behind Clark.

"H-hello, I would like to talk to Miss M-Menrva." There was a brief pause once Mare finished his request.

"Oh my gosh! Who are you my cute little munchkin! What do you want from big sister Tiffany?" Tiffany nearly screamed in excitement once she took in the visage of the dark elf.

"I w-would like to have an audience with Miss Minerva, p-please," Mare said shyly.

Tiffany developed a giant smile and swiftly kicked Clark which sent him through the air and tumbling down the stairs. "Of course sweetie let's go meet Lady Minerva together." Tiffany offered the nervous child her hand.

Mare hesitantly accepted her extended hand and allowed himself to be escorted into the room. Said room felt both expansive and incredibly cramped. Even though the room was so large, it was a cramped mess with books all over the floor.

What greeted the pair as they entered was a nearly naked goddess Minerva laying down on an extravagant couch reading a book. She didn't even bother to avert her gaze from the book while the two had entered the room.

"Yo, you have a guest, Menrva," the brass woman said. "Oh and for christ's sake, put on some clothes."

Without taking her eyes off the book, Menrva responded, "Do you realize how early in the morning it is right now? I have a right to wear what I want when I'm not working."

"Yeah yeah, well you're working right now because you have a" Tiffany looked at the nervous dark elf next to her fidgeting ever so slightly, "really special guest."

That caused the distracted goddess to raise an eyebrow, Tiffany never describes any of her guests as 'really special'. She had always been a very brash and judgmental woman, not the best for forming connections but always amusing.

A sigh escaped Menrva's mouth, "fine, what do you want-" the goddess paused the minute she saw the guest meant to meet her. It was her! The dark elf making the rounds among the gods, they'd gone crazy about her. Fights had already emerged between the gods in an attempt to decide who would take them. Apollo had been especially vocal. But here she was, one of the dark elves that were praised by the likes of Loki.

"...Interesting, what do you require of me, little one."

Mare, once again, stood up straight and met the goddesses eyes, "I-I want full access to this l-library."

Menrva hesitated, "That's all you want?" A devilish thought quickly made its way into the goddess's brain. "Hmm, you know you're asking for a lot don't you little one?"

The dark elf completely froze.

Menrva grew a manipulative smirk, which she quickly hid, "You think you can just walk in here and make demands with nothing to offer? Tch tch, you're really pushing me against a wall here sweetheart. Do you even have any money?"

Mare looked at the ground and his long ears drooped, "N-no"

The goddess produced an exaggerated and fake sigh, "Hah, and you have no money? Jeez, you left me with no choice, please leave."

The feminine elf went from completely frozen to a fidgeting mess, "I-I n-no please d-don't make me leave I-I need to stay."

His reaction elicited the goddess to flinch in regret and Tiffany to produce a piercing glare targeted entirely on her goddess.

"Oh don't worry you can stay as long as you have something to offer me," Minerva explained, trying her best to ignore her strongest followers' glare.

Mare relaxed a little, "I-I can do anything you want, anything and everything!" The child explained, cupping his hands and looking at the Goddess with his large heterochromatic eyes.

The child's proclamation elicited Tiffany to produce an even colder glare directly targeted at her goddess. Menrva began to crack under her follower's pressure, "U-um, I think you worded that sort of incorrectly young one, it almost sounded indecent."

"N-no I didn't, I'm prepared to do anything for you to gain access to your extensive knowledge!"

Tiffany finally had enough and wrapped her arm around the elf's shoulder, "Don't degrade yourself like that for the likes of a useless goddess like Menrva here."

"U-useless!?"

"Yes useless, don't worry sweetheart, you can use the library to your heart's content, and if you need someone to talk to just come to older sister Tiffany okay?"

Mare raised his head to look directly into Tiffany's eyes, "T-thank you"

Aaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh Tiffany's inner voice was screaming, "N-no problem young one."

The brash woman was completely at peace until her goddess interrupted her moment of serenity. "Hey hey hey! That's not how it works around here! I get the final say, and I at least want a favor!"

Although the goddess's follower was ready to burst, Mare answered, "W-what would you like me to d-do?"

Menrva smiled, she knew that she couldn't get away with much since Tiffany was here and determined to prevent her from dabbling in her typical intrigue. But she still had the opportunity to salvage something from this, "I want you to come with me to attend a party hosted by Ganesha."

"W-why do you want me to come with you to a party?" Mare tilted his head, confused.

"Well, for no real reason, I just wanna show the other gods that I have a new friend. I'm sure they'll be really jealous." Minerva explained, hoping the child would accept her half-assed explanation.

"... I accept," Mare offered his hand to solidify the deal. An offer the goddess happily accepted, gently shaking the child's hand. Even though the gauntlet made it pretty uncomfortable.

Menrva grinned from ear to ear, while attempting to readjust her indecent clothes from falling off. "So, what do you plan to do while you're here?"

The dark elf for the first time, responded with a blinding smile and happy exterior, "I p-plan to read as many books as I c-can."

"Oh…" Holy shit this kid is so precious I can't take it. I want her in my familia so badly, I could just have her sit on my lap while I read a book. Or maybe I could read her a story? I'd cuddle her like a teddy bear when I sleep… Goddess Menrva, realizing her thoughts were beginning to go wild, came to a complete stop. No! I'm better than all those other greedy gods! I won't succumb to desire.

"I see, you may leave. Except for you Tiffany, you stay." Minerva ordered.

The adventurer responded with a simple nod while the elf smiled and walked out of the room. He bowed cutely before leaving. It didn't take long for the elf to escape the room, leaving only the goddess and follower in the room.

"..." A long silence perforated.

"So…" Tiffany muttered, "what in the world are you planning? It's one thing to manipulate a merchant or those losers demanding to be a part of our prestigious club. But a kid? A cute little girl? The hell has gotten into you?"

Menrva flinched, "W-well, it's pretty simple really."

"Explain."

"Gladly. As of now, that child along with her brother are the talk of the town. The gods won't stop talking about them and many of them are getting curious. What do you think will happen if I bring one of them directly to a party attended by almost all the gods in Orario?"

Tiffany frowned, "It'll give you a boost in your standing and reputation. Plus, you'll be considered as someone directly tied to the dark elves."

"Yep! Not only will I be the talk of the town but it'll also bring in business. By the end of this, everyone will know my name."

Her loyal follower sighed, "What about all the negative attention that you'll attract?"

"Meh, any attention is good attention, even if it's bad attention."

"Tch," Tiffany exited through the door, slowly closing it and standing guard.

Menrva laid back down on the couch and grew a vicious smile, "This is gonna be so fun."

In the back of the giant library, sat a dark elf wearing a small skirt reading a simple book on the history of Orario. He was properly secluded and surrounded by numerous books shelves, covering his visage from any possible passerby.

"..."

As time passed, the pile of books grew ever higher. Mare found himself infatuated with this world and its history. Interestingly enough, his race was apparently extinct in this world. Not that he cared, just an interesting fact.

Many of the books revolved around the many gods which inhabited the lower world and their many adventures. Although such stories were extremely entertaining for the curious elf, they often had too many twists and turns for his liking.

"W-wow, the gods here are pretty m-messed up," Mare muttered to himself. Throughout all of the novels, the gods were shown to be backstabbing, manipulative, and power-hungry. Always trying to increase their power structure and typically ignorant of their follower's needs.

Mare groveled, "Hmph," The gods here are nothing like Lord Ainz. He always cared for me, he always praised me, he even said he l-loved me. Even when I fell short, Lord Ainz always cheered me up. The dark elf began to reminisce about the time Lord Ainz not only hugged him but also let him sit on his lap. Even if Albedo ruined both experiences, Mare still cherished those memories.

"Ahh, I miss Lord Ainz."

The dark-elf had lost all track of time, but if the stack of books was any indication, then it must have been several hours. "I wonder what big sister is doing right now. Hope she's safe…"

Aura's POV

"Ah jeez, what am I gonna do!" Aura screamed into the air, luckily, she was alone in the middle of a forest.

"This geography! This topography! It's all wrong!" The area Aura had been searching, flustered her to no end. There was no correlation that she could make, all the fauna was different from the New World and the local land shared no characteristics with the New World.

"So… I guess that stupid half-elf was right, this is the Lower World, an entirely different world. I'm not in the New World anymore, Lord Ainz and Nazarick are all gone," Aura muttered. She shrunk, the petrified child felt like disappearing. Kneeling against a tree she began to contemplate.

What now… I made the map but what's good about a map if I'm stuck in a crappy world without my Lord. I miss Lord Ainz so much.

The down-trodden child tilted her small head and stared at the sky, "I miss you," she muttered.

Although demoralized, the child realized that the sun was actively going down. Apparently, she had taken the entire day to map out the area.

"Hmm, I guess it's time to meet up with Mare," Aura said before a sudden realization struck her. "M-my brother is looking for information… and it's getting dark… AAAAAAAH," Aura screamed.

"I didn't think it would take this long! I should've finished by midday or something!"

The tomboy quickly got up from her spot on the ground. Simultaneously, she activated a message scroll to reach her brother. "Hey! Where are you!"

"W-wha- I'm in a l-library," Mare responded, initially frightened by his sister's tone.

"Where's the library?! Tell me now!"

"I-it's the l-largest building on 5th street," Mare stated.

Aura blew a small sigh of relief, "good, stay there, I'm coming right now!"

Without another word, the small child broke into her classic running stance and sprinted toward the gate. After several minutes of Aura making a mad dash to the gate, she scoffed at the massive line in front of the gate.

"Tch, there's no way I'm waiting in that line, not without Mare to keep me company anyway… Maybe I can just cut the line?" The child paused to contemplate and weigh out her options, "...Yeah, I'll just cut the line."

Never taking a break from her sprint, Aura continued to dash towards the gate, surprising the people in line and even some of the guards who were able to catch a glimpse of the elf.

Without any sense of shame or understanding of social queues, Aura stopped directly in front of the gate and the guard who was processing the line. Her sudden stop caused a massive gust of wind which made the guard stumble and several members of the line to fall.

"Hi, I'm back from my trip, let me back in… please?" Aura asked, attempting to be polite.

The guard, flabbergasted, responded, "w-what in the world! You can't just cut the line and showboat! You're little stunt just knocked over half the line and destroyed countless goods!"

"Eh!?"

"Young lady, I don't know what familia you belong to, but you're in massive trouble! You're temporarily under arrest until we can settle this issue."

"Wha-?"

"Hey! Tod! Get over here and bring her in!" The guard motioned for his colleague to drag the girl away.

Hearing all the commotion outside, a very annoyed-looking woman entered the scene, followed by Ganesha. Said woman had blue hair and icy cold eyes. She was also quite a beautiful and reserved-looking individual. The same couldn't be said of the god next to her, who was the complete opposite of reserved.

"What in the world is going on here? There's no need to cause this much commotion at night."

The guard stood up straight and gave his best salute, "I apologize for the discrepancy madam Shakti, but this elf is disrupting the peace."

"I am Ganesha!"

Shakti blew a heavy sigh, "Be quite sir. So tell me what this child did exactly."

"Oh, well she ran towards the gate in a bid to cut the line, but in her mad and nonsensical dash, she knocked over half the line and ruined the cargo of several merchants!"

The well-collected woman simply turned her head towards the adorable child who seemed on the edge of beating the guard to the ground and running into town. "Is this true?"

"Huh? Well of course it's true, just let me in! I'm super duper busy right now and I got places to be!"

Shakti stared at the child in genuine confusion, "What familia do you belong to?"

The dark elf child instantly glared at the woman and began to clench her teeth in impatience, "This again? Seriously! Do you want to die? I'll strangle you and feed you to my pets, you fat idiot!"

Rather than keeping an act, Aura finally had enough. She had already reinforced the fact that she, along with her brother, were stranded in this world without their lord. She would not have some weaklings boss her around.

After her outburst, Aura inadvertently released some of her killing intent, instantly pushing all those around her to their knees, suffocating. Even Shakti, a level five adventurer, was struggling to keep herself composed.

"What? Too afraid to talk? Good, because I'm sick of you people and all of this 'familia' talk." The fearsome child slowly marched toward the blue-haired woman.

Before Aura could move any further, Ganesha went in front of his follower, proud and tall. "I am Ganesha! And I'm sorry for bothering you, little lady!"

The elf glared at the man the same way she did yesterday. "You're lucky that I'm the one you're dealing with. If I had been anyone else from Nazarick, you'd already be dead."

"I am Ganesha! And I understand little one! I will keep your words close to heart, enjoy your time in the city!"

Aura refused to spare the god anymore of her attention and after a quick scoff of disgust, she ran into town to find her little brother.

"..." A resounding silence descended between Ganesha and his followers.

"Sir… who was that?" The usually composed Shakti stuttered.

For the first time in a long time, Ganesha's face grew stern before his visage bore a massive smile, "Something interesting."

Authors Note:

Hello! Sorry for not uploading. I've just been really busy with school, work, and getting ready for college. On a side note, I can hopefully churn out a few more chapters because I have some free time.

Also! Let me make this clear so everyone in the back of the class can hear. No fucking lemons. None. Nada. Go home if you think I'll do that to the elves.

Naturally, I'll reference the intent of god's/goddesses such as Apollo and Ishtar. But, as you all may guess, they won't get what they want. Does that count as a spoiler? I mean it's obvious, right? The power difference between the twins and the familias in Orario is just massive.

Anyways, I decided to reread chapter one. I really dislike it, if I'm gonna be honest. I could have done a lot more and I rushed certain scenes. I was contemplating rewriting it, but decided against it, at least for now. I'll probably post this chapter and realize the one hundred and one mistakes I made.