Epilogue
Another two weeks passed with Tanya remaining on standby, without any further orders coming from Demiurge.
Members of a conventional aerial mage squadron would either remain at base with a telephone operator, receive sortie orders, then spend the better part of an hour suiting up and checking for any defects. After that, the battalion would either board a train, plane, or fly manually, depending on the destination and urgency of their deployment, taking anywhere from four hours to reach the national borders, up to two days when planning a no-magic paradrop into Federation territory.
She was a one-girl army fully equipped by default, carrying her entire arsenal on her person at all times. Deployment involved teleportation to E-Rantel, teleportation to one of the vassal states, or teleportation into a hostile territory. In total, anywhere from two seconds to two seconds to start at 'standby' in Nazarick and end at 'ready at X location'.
Until such a time when she was actually sent a message to do so, nobody would bother to tell her what to do – mostly. Her having been explicitly told to stay inside Nazarick, plus the ever-busy Demiurge going this long without making use of her were both dangerous red flags. Those were enough for her to act cautiously, doing her research in her own room while remaining vigilant, watching out for any irregular magic.
Strictly speaking, being inside Nazarick meant that leaving wasn't quite as simple as she treated it, due to the anti-teleportation defenses, which block movement except between certain rooms such as the Colosseum on the 6th Floor. Directly getting in – or out – wasn't possible without the [Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown], which she did not possess.
In reality, she had examined both the ring and the defensive barrier long ago; Both were surprisingly basic mechanisms, simple to imitate the former and penetrate the latter. The protection provided to the underground tomb by its World-Class Items were the only functionally complex part which she couldn't fully understand, yet they were ineffective against her, so she didn't pay them much attention.
She could disappear without anybody knowing better, and given that she regularly made a point of blocking any and all attempts at tracking her location with magic (surprisingly simple, basically just radio jamming, with a few minor changes), there was no to confirm that she was not in fact staying inside Nazarick.
To actually use this ability openly would require explaining why she had dedicated so much effort learning to circumvent Nazarick's security, so she had yet to do so beyond her initial experimentation. It was an escape card she could only take advantage of once – though this might become her chance to take advantage of it.
An undead messenger – not a maid, those understandably tend not to survive too well on the 7th Floor – came by, calling for her to come see Ainz.
This was strike two for her suspicion, since there was no practical reason for him not to send a [Message] instead, if only in advance of another contact, especially after their last interpersonal meeting almost went horribly wrong for the same reason.
She carefully knocked on the massive door, the sound of which echoed remarkably well through both the hallway and the room, and waited.
Twenty seconds later, the door was opened slightly by the maid on duty, who looked out at her.
"Ainz-sama, Tanya-sama is here to meet you."
"Let her in. The rest of you, step out." (Ainz)
The maid bowed and walked out as Tanya entered.
"… All of you, Eight Edge Assassins. Go." (Ainz)
After some skittering, those dropped off the ceiling and passed out the open door.
Tanya watched them rush out to follow Ainz's order, following the last one with her eyes until it passed through, then nodding to the maid, who closed the door. She couldn't see the invisible creatures leave to know they had actually left, hence the signal.
They were invisible, but that magic did nothing to mask their mana signatures; Not even [Perfect Unknowable] could, given that the concept didn't exist in the system which creates tier magic. Modifying the spell to fix that fault was one of her plans, but higher tier spells were fittingly difficult to modify, so working through changes to the ninth tier was deep into her backlog.
Considering my recent inability to detect somebody, she might have beaten me to creating a superior version, so stealing that research might be faster, though doing so would require the contradictory accomplishment of detecting the usage of magic to become undetectable, so perhaps not. Do spiders become more or less scary when you can't see them? I'm going to go with 'more'.
For the same reason, Ainz and Pandora's Actor were simple enough to tell apart. Doppelgangers could copy personality based on her memory, but without him knowing what a mana signature was, he couldn't actually copy that from Ainz, leaving a glaring contradiction visible to her.
Though, actually, that memory reading used to create a Doppelganger's mimicry was liable to leak what she knew about Ainz's real personality to Pandora's Actor himself, so he was unlikely to approve a plan using him as a double with her around.
The one in the office with her was, without a doubt, Ainz himself.
"It's just us here now, don't worry and speak freely." (Ainz)
Her initial suspicion about him came as a result of the comment he used to start the meeting.
Why had he bothered to point this out, when this was already the understanding between them?
She checked the room for anybody who might be observing, but the only magic active were her own, and the numerous enchantments naturally swirling around Ainz. Strange, but no observation here, so she moved on.
"… Alright, then. What did you need?" (Tanya)
"Take a look at these plans from Demiurge, about what will be done with the Theocracy and the Holy Kingdom." (Ainz)
Ainz passed a few pages to Tanya. She accepted them, reading through them in a matter of seconds before handing them back.
This was the summarized version given to Ainz with the intention of not wasting his time, far from the dictionary-sized complete plans she had received the last time, which really did take her half a day to read through and understand. The fact that he could create a summary this short without simultaneously made her respect his genius, and hate him for making her read the full version first.
"… I'm not sure about his estimates for how far the civil war in the Holy Kingdom would be accelerated by this, but it's reasonable enough. No comment on the Theocracy, I trust his plan, anyway I can't begin to guess at predicting the details about how they would act." (Tanya)
"Then, this one?" (Ainz)
He took back the first document and pulled out a second, handing it to her.
Just like the first, she began flicking through the pages, except this time, rather than maintaining neutrality, her expression subtly jumped between confusion, interest, amazement, ending with disappointment.
"I had honestly expected better from Pandora's Actor, but no, this isn't even close." (Tanya)
"Hoh?" (Ainz)
Ainz prodded her to continue, all while Tanya seemed genuinely surprised he didn't already know.
"It was in Demiurge's report, wasn't it originally your idea? Collecting magic in a Spell-Sealing Crystal, then break it to release energy into the surroundings?" (Tanya)
She watched as his eyes flared up, then after sensing an unknown minor spell effect activate on him, vanish into darkness.
"Ah, yes, so that's how it worked." (Ainz)
Tanya flipped back to the page corresponding to 'amazement' in her map of expressions.
"Still, how did he get half the formula correct just from what he saw… and the other half wasn't what I used, but… this might actually be usable. Mind if I keep this?" (Tanya)
It was a given that since Pandora's Actor was specialized in magic items rather than magic engineering, he would come to a completely different conclusion. Inevitably, being trapped in a mindset which built conclusions based on knowledge about a game would block him from figuring out a theory based on concepts which didn't exist in his memory.
At the same time, this paper clearly demonstrated that she made the same oversight. This world was clearly missing basic laws of physics. Assuming that the laws of magic she studied would carry over in an identical form might explain why despite properly triggering a core fusion, the blast would leave an unsuspecting, unprepared player completely unharmed except for some ruffled clothes.
The effects of a player's stats could not be underestimated, if one could perfectly protect against an attack of that magnitude in an instant. Either that, or the reaction had been incomplete due to yet another property of this world unknown to her, and could hopefully be improved if she could somehow work this new theory into it.
"… You read and analyzed those as quickly as Albedo does…" (Ainz)
"There's a difference in our perception of time. Rather, being able to process information this quickly without cheating like I am, those two really are singularities of intelligence." (Tanya)
"Aren't you already close enough? The way I see it, you could probably lead them better than I could." (Ainz)
Was that a genuine offer? Did he seriously want advice?
Though Tanya briefly considered the theory that Ainz was trying to entrap her into something, she couldn't imagine why. It wasn't as though he needed evidence to obey a judicial process, he merely needed to order anything he wanted done. Albedo would make for a far more terrifying interrogator, she could probably worm information out of Tanya without her even realizing what was happening.
"Nazarick is running better than fine as it is. You have clear growth, external threats are steadily decreasing, and clearly you have reliable plans for the future. Demiurge, Albedo… Pandora's Actor too. They're talented, really talented, trust them, keep directing them like you have, and they'll bring you results, just like they have until now." (Tanya)
His flaming eyes locked on to her own as they sat on opposite sides of his huge desk.
"Know this: Neither I, nor anybody else, could replace you, and neither should we. Nazarick cannot be run by anybody except you, the '41 Supreme Beings' mean more to them than we who weren't created as NPCs could possibly imagine." (Tanya)
Had she gone too far with layering on the praise that he instead got suspicious?
"I see… is that how you see them? They're loyal, but for the very same reasons you just mentioned, communicating my intentions to them isn't the easiest. With them, I look away for a day and they've burned an entire kingdom to the ground." (Ainz)
"-And if that kingdom contained a legitimate threat, I would advocate the exact same policy. Players, Dragon Lords, anybody and anything with the possibility of becoming a threat in the future should be exterminated for the sake of our safety. The only difference between our approaches is that I would prefer to avoid another total war, even at the cost of a bit of inefficiency.
If you still want my advice as an outsider, fine. Focus on hunting down the Dragon Lords you know of before they can group up and become a threat. Treat them as nations trying to form a coalition against you, destroy them even at the cost of temporarily antagonizing the regional powers that are humanoid nations. There's no 'Good' and 'Evil' here, only national interests." (Tanya)
She had to shut down this assumption before he tried treating her as an anchor to humanity. There were others with that role – Sebas, Pestunia, and Nigredo to name a few – but those who saw humans as slaves or insects were the majority, obviously including Albedo and Demiurge.
Their presence ensured there would never be a peaceful faction to Nazarick. Without Ainz's intervention, they might well have gotten executed already.
Knowing that, Tanya certainly wasn't planning on joining up with them.
"… Even if I wanted to, helping humanity would contradict our goals and endanger Nazarick. There's taking risks, and then there's standing against Albedo, Demiurge, Shalltear, and probably nine out of ten others at the same time. I'm not suicidal. It's impossible for me." (Tanya)
"You couldn't? Not even if I named you one of the Floor Guardians?" (Ainz)
Although Ainz proposed it so casually, Tanya had to pause briefly and think of an appropriate response.
She answered by laughing.
"… Giving an officer you hired less than a year ago a directorship? Funny. But seriously, unless you want to open an HR department for Nazarick, you would have to take those responsibilities away from the others, and you know they'd interpret a promotion for me as a demotion for them, a sign that you've lost trust for them." (Tanya)
He, apparently not expecting an outright rejection, watched as if to study her.
Though Ainz was not going out of his way to act majestic, the aura which accompanied his natural magic power was nonetheless pressuring. After sufficient practice, the process of acting had begun to worm its way into his regular behavior.
For a few seconds, they simply watched each other, to the point where even Tanya who had grown used to the presence of career generals felt slightly uncomfortable.
"You would refuse a promotion? You, of all people?" (Ainz)
From his toneless voice and stony skull, Ainz almost seemed angry at having his offer refused.
Still, Tanya met his gaze and nodded.
"That's right. I'd rather not undermine the entire organization for an empty promotion." (Tanya)
There was no salary raise here, no increase in vacation days. She didn't need new subordinates, and becoming technically equal to the rest of the Floor Guardians wouldn't equate to earning their respect. She already had Ainz's support, and binding herself more closely to Nazarick wouldn't strengthen that tie.
Worse, there was the possibility of those who loved Ainz above all else might read into it as the act of an upstart trying to steal political power for herself. There were enemies to be made, new responsibilities to shoulder, and nothing to gain by accepting.
"… Interesting." (Ainz)
He stood up, walking around the side of the large desk, past the chair Tanya was sitting in.
She stood up, watching Ainz's back as he stopped a distance between her and the door.
"You have your answer, then?" (Ainz)
"Huh? To what?" (Tanya)
Tanya asked, but Ainz didn't answer. Rather, nothing she'd said could be interpreted as a question to be answered. He only continued to stand still, directing his attention elsewhere.
Suddenly, the pieces fit together in her head, forming into a conclusion which seemed obvious in hindsight.
"-my apologies, Ainz-sama, I said too much." (Tanya)
"Hah, it's fine. I did permit you to speak casually while we were here. Now, that's enough, end this." (Ainz)
Just as he ordered this, one of the numerous enchantments swirling through him faded away.
"-Shit. I checked myself and the room, but didn't think you'd hide it on yourself. Who was on the other end?" (Tanya)
"Nigredo, primarily… you haven't seen half her abilities, I figured she could make a fair judgment." (Ainz)
"Right, 'primarily' her? No need to say who the idea came from originally. I suspected this might have been the case, but couldn't figure it out. You tricked me, congratulations, congratulations. Why bother, though?" (Tanya)
"Unpermitted dealing with marked outsiders. Concealing information from superiors. Claiming a title of royalty. Independent weapons development. Et cetera. Quite the list of allegations you've built up… from a certain point of view." (Ainz)
The first few charges were read out as if remembering something from a list, but after only a couple of them, he gave up on trying to remember the rest. Even these were barely a quarter of the full list he had first read, so abandoning the effort where he had was an understandable choice.
Tanya shrugged.
"Well, I would refuse interrogation by domination as described in Law of the Sorcerer King, Volume 2, section 3. If that's all, can I start resisting arrest now?" (Tanya)
"Haha, if you want to volunteer for testing out Demiurge's defensive preparations, by all means, be my guest." (Ainz)
"… Nevermind… I don't think I said anything self-incriminating enough to worry, perceived disrespect aside. Although, you really did say it was just the two of us, what were you planning on doing if I leaked something to expose you?" (Tanya)
"They don't believe me when I tell them I'm not perfect, why would they trust what you say about me…?" (Ainz)
Tanya nodded, and Ainz continued.
"Well, your assumption for whose idea it was is probably correct, but your reasoning is backwards. Albedo proposed this as a solution to clear you for new responsibilities." (Ainz)
"Really? That's certainly unexpected, I figured she would try taking the chance to get rid of me." (Tanya)
"Albedo isn't so foolish as to discard a card I consider useful. Working towards your own interests isn't exactly a crime, so long as it's not causing harm, and in this case, the outcome seems to speak for itself." (Ainz)
"-If you say so." (Tanya)
"Aahhhhh, I want a vacation." (Ainz)
"Why don't you take one then?" Tanya asked offhandedly. She spoke while mimicking his much deeper voice, "To rest is as much the duty of an attendant as the work they perform… what sort of ruler would I be if I could not so much as reward those most loyal to me with the opportunity to take time off?" (Tanya)
"Oi, you didn't seriously…" (Ainz)
"Demiurge's Compilation of Wisdom, Volume 8. It was required reading from him." (Tanya)
Again she saw the unknown skill activate as he continued to look away from her. His was a perfect poker face, of course, with no facial muscles to respond despite her prodding.
"If they aren't taking the message to heart… from Volume 6, there's-" (Tanya)
"-On second thought, this should be brought to Albedo's attention…" (Ainz)
"-Seriously, how did your friends design somebody so terrifying?" (Tanya)
"Even if you ask me that now, a game was a game, and they were characters we dedicated ourselves to creating. There are some individual differences in opinion but… I think they would have been proud to see them, living as they are. No, I'm certain Tabula Smaragdina would stop at nothing to see the characters born from the themes he loved." (Ainz)
"Taken to the extreme, any human ideal can create a monster?" (Tanya)
"Hm? Was that a well-known quote in your world?" (Ainz)
"No, just something spoken behind my back, in various forms, by various people." (Tanya)
That exact quote wasn't something she had ever specifically heard, not in that form, but an amalgamation of similar wordings from a number of people.
The ideal student, who studied enough languages to signal himself as learned; The ideal employee, completing assignments as befitting his station; The ideal manager, who could make capable human capital working for him believe they were well-respected, all while mercilessly cutting off the unnecessary fat as corporate policy dictated.
One encounter with an obnoxious ex-self-proclaimed deity later, the second time around, she instead had to become the ideal orphan, the ideal soldier, the ideal military officer. At least, that was the outward impression she did her best to project.
Now, what was her ideal this third time? She wasn't certain herself, strangely enough.
"… Wouldn't you fit in with them just fine, then? If the last year is anything to go by, the extra floor that is the Surface will be added on to Nazarick as an additional floor before long. Soon enough, it'll need a Floor Guardian." (Ainz)
"I already explained the internal issues which would almost inevitably arise. Aside from those, any way you look at it, the position is too public for me. We all but know the Dragon Lords are a legitimate threat, and if we use Shalltear as an estimate for the strength of what a level 100 entity can reach, I've tried fighting her enough times to know I wouldn't be able to reliably win." (Tanya)
"What makes you so confident about them being at that level? The only one I've met calling himself a 'dragon lord' died instantly to a single [Grasp Heart]. That Player too, he had none of the strength to match his level, even the girl you picked out from the Theocracy is a better piece, when you include mentality for fighting. Those fights were all utterly anticlimactic." (Ainz)
Hearing Ainz's dismissive tone genuinely angered Tanya for the first time in a while. After everything, to abandon his caution after a couple countries and a new World-Class Item fell into his possession.
Pushing her magic to the absolute limit, she sped up her perception and boosted her physical strength, as far as she could. Simultaneously, she sealed the room to prevent any sound from escaping.
It exhausted her, but for a moment, she could surpass Cocytus, Sebas, Shalltear, Albedo, and of course, Ainz himself. She pulled out Razor's Edge – at this range it was faster than a rifle, effective with its innate ability to ignore defenses when pumped full of magic, and just holding it wouldn't tax her lackluster swordsmanship – and faster than he could blink (or the undead equivalent), pressed the tip against his skull.
"Is this a game to you!?" (Tanya)
Ainz drew back from her weapon and sudden yelling.
"You are mortal. Never forget this." (Tanya)
Tanya flicked the blade back to the side, the threat being made, just in case he was moving towards the idea of defending himself. Whether or not she was actually capable of killing him here was not actually relevant, what was important was making him fear that she might be able to. That even she was able to harm him, levels be damned.
"You've fought seriously, what, two, three times? I've had to spent years in the trenches, flying missions daily and getting shelled nightly, day after day, with no end! How many times do you think I've nearly gotten killed? You can have nine hundred ninety-nine flawless days, then the day before the war ends, a sniper takes your head off. There is no drama in war. There is no convenient three-act story being directed. Don't try to set up climactic fights, learn Lanchester's laws instead." (Tanya)
Taking a deep breath, she took a step back and continued.
"I have several independent sources warning about them, from people well aware of your power. Even without those, they've survived for all these centuries and killed a number of other players before you arrived. No matter how powerful you might become, any of you can get cut down all the same. You. Are. Not. Special." (Tanya)
Except through all that, Ainz merely continued watching, unflinching, serenely listening without fear or concern.
"-I know that much. All our caution up until now has been towards that purpose. We're already watching the few we know of, searching legends and records for the others, and this is already pushing our librarians, what more are you expecting us to do?" (Ainz)
"Like I said, destroy them proactively, don't give them the initiative. Find them and bring overwhelming force down on them." (Tanya)
Ainz looked to her with suspicion.
"Why are you so obsessed with getting rid of them, specifically?" (Ainz)
"Because we're long past reconciliation, the only route to peace left is threat eradication. I'm willing to assume the greatest threat out of a player comes from World-Class Items, whereas the Dragon Lords are a complete unknown and certainly hostile." (Tanya)
"-It's because we know that, that we are trying to entrap them and study them, even if it means giving up a false defeat to ensure victory in the second round. Surely your answer to everything isn't a full frontal assault?" (Ainz)
"Then aggressively try to assassinate them. Take hostages to bait them, then kill them together with the hostage to be certain. Start a war for extermination and kill anybody who comes trying to play hero. You have the greatest demonic minds in the world working under you, surely they can come up with something more creative? The point is, there are no laws of war, therefore we are justified in anything we carry out in the name of victory." (Tanya)
"-Again, if it was so easy, why wouldn't Demiurge have suggested it already, instead of continuing to do nothing but observe them?" (Ainz)
Certainly, that was consistently at the core of their plans, but why? It was a legitimate question, one she had to think about a few moments before coming up with a theory.
"… It's just a guess, but could it be that since you gave the order to start conquering the world, albeit accidentally, they're focusing on finishing that above all else?" (Tanya)
"Ah," he muttered with a flicker of understanding. "If I ordered them to spread the name and glory of Nazarick, they wouldn't even consider discreet assassinations, would they… a fake-dramatic battle fits that goal instead…" (Ainz)
"…" (Tanya)
"… And there's no way to back out on it now, since I already gave them that goal…" (Ainz)
"…" (Tanya)
"… That being said, the usability of dedicated assassins in YGGDRASIL's high-level meta was limited at best, so you won't often find them outside the most devoted roleplayers or themed NPCs… Solution is too low-leveled to stand a reasonable chance against anybody who can themselves threaten us… Pandora's Actor as Nishiki Enrai? But, with no support, sending him on his own…" (Ainz)
"…" (Tanya)
"… What is it, you've just been staring in bemusement instead of arguing anything for a while now?" (Ainz)
"No, I was just thinking about how you completely change when it comes to those topics. It's strange seeing you suddenly turning self-assured and confident as soon as that subject comes up." (Tanya)
He looked down at her.
"I don't want to hear that from somebody who suddenly pretends to threaten somebody with a sword just to make a point." (Ainz)
"-I think you're missing the point…" (Tanya)
"I have my own experience, which tells me you had no intention of following through with the threat. While I understand what you're describing, and recognize the threat of these Dragon Lords, we have too little information to work off of, in either their capabilities or whereabouts. At best, we know of the Republic to the north, the Flying City to the south, and vague references to the grand dragon on the tallest peak on this continent, though the last is mere legend. The former are already planned for observation with what spies we have, yet attacking him in his base would be stupid, certainly won't be anywhere near as clean as this last time. Unless you think you can lead a frontal assault yourself?" (Ainz)
"No, I don't intend to try that on my own." (Tanya)
"We simply do not have the resources to chase legends in search of an unconfirmed threat." (Ainz)
Pulling several Guardians away to subjugate the Elf King had been successful, but not without interruptions to their regular missions. The military side might be mostly fine due to the attention it received, but on the other side, the woefully understaffed bureaucracy under Albedo would inevitably suffer were she forced away for longer than a day.
Tanya was aware of this as well, from the brief period she was assigned to the same task only to immediately be buried by the ludicrous volume of work Albedo finished daily.
"By Albedo's reasoning, pulling you back to take over part of the administrative work would be better than letting you rampage around in the outside world. You revealed yourself to the public as is, it won't be long before we start pulling aggro from those same enemies you are trying to avoid. That's what the clearance was for, to see whether you held ambition which would stand in the way of that work." (Ainz)
"… That's…" (Tanya)
"Unsatisfied? It's the desk job you've always wanted, well out of the way of any approaching dragons." (Ainz)
"… I can't believe I'm saying this, but no. The personal safety benefits are unbelievably tempting, yet continuing to sit here filing papers won't make progress in the right direction. Preparing for integration would be great for peacetime, but we simply aren't – we're always at war, until such a time when no more threats exist, and I'm certain that there exist beings against whom the peak of our capabilities would only draw a single drop of blood…" (Tanya)
Dropping the grim topic, Tanya put aside the argument and went off on a tangent.
"The way you explained it, my actions outside would cause issues due to the recognition of those around? Contrarily, it wouldn't be a problem were the same to be done in a distant land, yes?" (Tanya)
She again turned serious.
"A while ago, I heard a story from a reliable source, that centuries ago, on the opposite side of the great desert, there existed a nation whose entire population was turned to undead overnight. Does any magic you know of fit this description?" (Tanya)
Ainz thought for only a moment, before immediately reaching a conclusion.
"None. It may be possible for a World-Class Item, but if so, it is not one I have ever heard of. Interesting, but again, we don't have the people to spare." (Ainz)
"Don't you, though? There's no need to internationally justify this. An unsolved mystery in a distant land, a series of independent undead cities growing for centuries, isn't this the perfect first expedition for your 'new' adventurers?" (Tanya)
