Disclaimer: I don't own Overlord or Dungeons & Dragons
The Greater Apotheosis of Ainz Ooal Gown
Book : Consolidating Power
Chapter 4: Founding a Church
Beta:
Carne was an average village with no real importance in Eskorn, a human kingdom located in eastern Laerakond. The main livelihood of the villagers came from the collecting various forest goods from the woods that surrounded the village and their crops. It was wholly unremarkable. Yet it was the place that Lord Ainz had pointed to on the map of the continent when Sebas Tian had asked his advice on where he should found his cult. Admittedly the Supreme One had seemed distracted at the time but the god of duty was certain that even then his Lord's wisdom was infallible, hence why the Iron Butler found himself observing the small town from the sky.
"What a quaint little village." Maleficent, the Paeliryon devil from Lord Asmoedeus' own court, that had been sent to assist Sebas' efforts commented. "Are you sure this is where your Master suggested you begin your cult?"
"It is," the dragonoid confirmed to the twisted perversion of the female form that was his compatriot.
She was wider than she was tall, with an incredibly distended belly that hung well below her waist. Her warty skin was a combination of pink and green, and contrasted sharply with the black robes she wore. Robes that did little to contain the billowing stench of perfume, brimstone, and odorous oils that exuded from her body. From her back grew a pair of heavy, bat-like wings that allowed her to fly, if clumsily, despite her girth.
"Well, I suppose he must know something that we do not." Maleficent said with a shrug. "Shall we make a tour of the town before we begin?"
"In that guise?" Sebas asked skeptically.
"Of course not," the devil said with a chuckle even as her form shifted. In moments, gone was her corpulent true form and in its place was a tall, slender, pale-skinned woman clad in a black-and-purple robe with bat wing-like edges, underneath her robe, she wore a dress with the same color pallet but with some red instead of purple. In her right hand, she held a staff with a glowing green orb at the tip.
"Is that not still somewhat ostentatious?" Sebas asked, eyeing her elaborate dress and clearly magical staff.
"Not for a wandering Wizard." Maleficent said with a smirk. "In contrast, your outfit is more eye catching by far, my Lord."
Looking down at his traditional butler's uniform that his creator, Lord Touch Me, had granted him, Sebas frowned.
"I see your point." He grudgingly admitted. "Should I change it?"
"No," Maleficent said with a shake of her head. "You want to stand out."
Sebas considered this for a moment before nodding. The Devil was correct. If he wanted to convince the locals of his godhood and the wisdom of following the ideals of Lord Touch Me than he would need to appear beyond them. A perfect example that they should model themselves after. Standing out, as the Devil put it, was a good step in that direction.
"Very well." The god said. "Let's get down there."
It was a market day in Carne it seemed and a number of merchants had brought their wares to the small village to trade. This attracted people from all around the immediate region to the village, bringing with them their own goods. It was thus quite the lively atmosphere as Sebas and Maleficent walked through the streets. The two seemed to make quite the sight and the humans, locals and merchants alike, parted before them muttering about a high lord and his Wizard bodyguard.
I had not expected us to be treated as such by the locals. Sebas confessed to the Paerliryon via telepathy as they stood at one corner of the central village square that had been converted into a marketplace and watched the humans as they carried out their affairs all around them.
Oh? And how did you expect to be treated, my lord? I did mention you would stand out did I not?
You did. But I had not thought the humans would so easily see me as a high lord. My attire is that of a servant, not a lord.
Perhaps. But do these uneducated humans know that? All they see is a man in impeccable clothing. Clothing that in their minds only the greatest of lords can afford. Considering that, are their conclusions truly so strange?
I suppose no- What is the commotion over there?
The pair's conversation and people watching was interrupted by a ruckus taking place on the far side of the market, where a man on horseback dressed in armor over some elaborate clothes and flanked by two soldiers with pikes was watching as another pair of soldiers dragged a beautiful blonde woman towards him. All around the scene townsfolk looked on helplessly.
"Let my sister go!" A younger, brown haired girl shouted as she raised a simple wand and began channeling magic for some kind of spell. Unfortunately, she hadn't finished her casting when two more armored men appeared out of the crowd and seized her, one of them knocking her wand out of her hand and disrupting her casting in the process.
"Take her as well," the man on the horse said. "I always enjoy breaking the feisty ones."
"No, Lord Heivish! Please just take me!" The blonde beauty shouted urgently. "Leave my little sister alone!"
The human Lord just gestured at this men holding the blonde and one of them produced a rag which he promptly proceeded to shove into the protesting girl's mouth as a gag.
"Fool girl," Heivish said with a shake of his blubber padded face. "I'll be taking the both of you. Having a pair of sisters service me at once is great fun after all. I'll be looking forward to having you two entertain me."
Looks like that human lord over there is taking those two girls for his harem. Maleficent informed Sebas rather unnecessarily as Heivish broke into a lustful laugh. It was unnecessary for Sebas was already on the move.
Lord Sebas! What are you doing!? The Paeliryon cried out urgently as Sebas weaved his way through the crowd.
He didn't even need to use his new divine powers. Though the crowd of angry but helpless onlookers were tightly packed, there was enough space between the humans for a skilled individual to slip through the gaps. For someone of Sebas' skill, it was child's play.
As he was blurring around Heivish's soldiers and knocking them out, all the humans saw was a black and silver blur until he came to a stop next to the gagged blonde vision. As he stopped, the various humans he'd disabled all collapsed as if they were mere puppets and just had their strings cut. Ignoring that and Heivish's cry of alarm, Sebas gave his full attention to the stunned young woman as he gently pulled the gag out of her mouth.
"Are you well, miss?" Sebas asked as he tossed the gag to the side.
The girl could only nod numbly as she gazed at him with wonder in her brilliant turquoise eyes. She was so entranced that she barely noticed as her younger sister barreled into her side, knocking her over and hugging her desperately. Even sprawled on the ground she did not look away.
Sebas for his part just offered a gentle smile to the beauty before turning to face Heivish.
"Leave." He demanded, causing the man to quiver fearfully in his saddle as he surveyed the sight of his half dozen men lying unconscious on the ground.
Unfortunately, he seemed buoyed as another squad of a half dozen of his men rushed over.
"W-Who are you?" The human said, his voice betraying his lingering fear. "I am Staffan Heivish, lord of these lands. How dare you interfere in my affairs?"
"My Lord dares because he is strong." Maleficent said as she arrived on the scene, a Fireball spell already crackling at the tip of her staff. "For is it not the duty of the strong to protect the weak?"
Heivish looked at the Fireball fearfully, before looking back at Sebas and paling.
"Y-You'll pay for this." He managed despite his obvious fear. "I'll be back with more men and make you regret this, y-you upstart!"
With that Heivish rode away as quickly as his horse could carry his corpulent body and his men hastily followed, carrying their unconscious comrades as they did. For a moment there was silence as everyone watched them run away like dogs with their tails between their legs, but as soon as they were out of earshot the townsfolk burst into cheers.
"Thank you! Thank you, My Lord!" The beautiful blonde said as she rushed over with her sister, seemingly having gotten over whatever shock had consumed her earlier. "My name is Tuareninya Veyron and this is my sister Norininya. Thank you so very, very much for saving us. Ask anything of us and we will be glad to offer it to you in thanks."
"Anything, girl?" Maleficent asked leadingly and earning herself a harsh glare from Sebas when the younger girl paled.
The lovely blonde blushed but hastily corrected herself. "Anything within reason."
"Then perhaps we can enjoy the hospitality of your home tonight?" Sebas suggested, making sure to shoot his Devilish companion a glare to ensure she maintained her silence. "My bodyguard and I have yet to secure our lodgings for the night and doing so will save us the hassle of doing so. That would be more than recompense enough."
"Gladly, my Lord. Gladly." Tsuareninya said with a brilliant smile, before hastily turning to her sister. "Ninya, go prepare the house for our guests. Make sure everything is as clean as you can make it."
"Right away sister!" The young Wizard said as she rushed off.
"If you'll follow me, my Lady, my Lord." The older sister said with an unpolished but respectable curtsy.
"It would be my pleasure." Sebas said genuinely and allowed his host to lead them to their lodgings for the night.
Neither Sebas nor Maleficent truly needed sleep so it was that after a simple but pleasant home cooked meal, they'd retired to the Veryons' small bedroom and just sat there discussing their plans whilst the two sisters, the only occupants of the home since their parents had passed a year ago, made do with sleeping on a layer of hay they'd dragged into the dining room that made up much of the small area of the house.
"That was inspired of you, my Lord." Maleficent praised once they were sure the sisters were asleep and they could speak freely. They could have relied on telepathy or magic to hide their voices, but why resort to such things when the same privacy could be achieved with simple patience. "Intervening like that has established you as a hero in the minds of the locals and a perfect opportunity to begin disseminating some of your dogma to them."
"That was not why I intervened." Sebas insisted.
"No, but the results are the same." The Paeliryon waved his reply away. "And that's what matters."
"The ends do not always justify the means." The god said, his eyes narrowed.
"Relax, my lord." The Devil said with a chuckle. "I know my place. My mission is to assist you in establishing your cult. Doing anything that you would consider underhanded would be detrimental to that, considering your Lawful Good alignment. So I'll refrain. I do know how to control myself."
Sebas did not trust the Devil. Not entirely. He had however been ordered to work with the fiend so he just nodded and issued a warning. "That best be true, Maleficent. For if I find you harming the weak in my presence, I will end you."
"Even against your orders to cooperate with me?"
"Lord Ainz included an exception in my orders for circumstances where you crossed the line."
This startled the Devil and she looked at him in disbelief for a moment before chuckling. "So he truly as cunning as they say. I must say I'm impressed."
"You doubted my Lord's wisdom?" Sebas asked dangerously, his fists clenched and ready to punish the devil for her insolence.
"More surprised at the depths of it." The Paeliryon deflected easily enough.
Sebas shot her a warning look but otherwise relaxed. Her answer was acceptable, if only just barely.
"Oh! It looks like Heivish is back, just like we expected." Maleficent said suddenly, cutting into the tense silence between them. "Shall we proceed as planned?"
Sebas knew a redirection when he saw one, but the devil wasn't lying about the foolish human lord. Through the local omniscience of his avatar he could sense Heivish's return, this time at the head of a small host of his men.
"There are barely a hundred men." Sebas noted. "Is it really necessary for me to use my divine power?"
"If we want to properly establish you as a god? Then yes." The devil said with a frustrated roll of her eyes, understandable since she'd been repeating this point constantly. "I know you can destroy it without it, but you need to leave an impression on the mortals."
"Very well," Sebas said with a resigned sigh. "Play your part in the village while I handle them. And do not forget to protect the Veryon sisters."
"As you command, my Lord." Maleficent said with a mischievous twinkle in her eye.
Sebas mistrusted it but it did not seem malicious, so with little more than a frown of displeasure he teleported away to confront Heivish.
Staffan Heivish had been the lord of this land for years and was the latest in a long line of Lords Heivish that had ruled it for generations. Despite that he knew his grip on his lands was tenuous at best. They were not rich and he thus could not maintain much in the way of men at arms with which to control the peasants. Add that to the foolish, unfounded resentment that they felt for him exercising his rights to their women made his control even more fragile. Thus he simply could not allow the humiliation he'd suffered in Carne that afternoon go unchallenged.
Which was why instead of enjoying the carnal pleasures of his harem like he did most nights, this night instead found him riding at the head of his household guard as they headed to Carne to avenge the insult he'd suffered. With almost a hundred heavy infantry and a dozen armored horsemen at his back, Staffan was certain that not even his attacker from the afternoon or his pet Wizard would stand a chance.
Speaking of that Wizard. Just the thought of breaking her and having him under him as he plunged himself into her depths had him salivating. He couldn't wait to have her at his mercy and in his bed.
"You are an utterly disgusting excuse for a human being." The voice of the terrifying attacker from the afternoon reached Staffan's ears, pulling him from his lustful fantasies.
Standing before him and his host on the road to Carne was no less than the target of his ire. A village that a distant part of Staffan's mind noted was stirring to unexpected life as one by one lights began to pour out of its various houses. That barely caught his attention however as it was instead drawn to the man blocking their path, who was looking at him with utter disdain. A look that sent a shiver of fear down Staffan's spine but which he instantly repressed in lieu of barking orders to his men.
"Kill him!" He shouted, uncaring of how he looked as his spittle flew everywhere.
His men did not move, instead by the sound of the clinking of their armor they were shaking in fear.
"W-What are you fools doing? He's just one unnamed man! Run him through!" Staffan shouted at his soldiers, desperately trying to spur them into action.
It was futile. They remained unmoving, gripped as they were in some unknown fear emanating from the man before them.
"Man?" The elderly man in the immaculate but strange clothes said. "When did I ever say I was a man?"
Dread settled into Staffan's bones and he turned pale faced to the creature before him.
"I-If you're not a man, t-then what are you?"
"I'm glad you finally asked." The thing said with an amused grin even as he was surrounded by a nimbus of raw power, the sheer presence of which forced everything in its vicinity to their knees. Staffan's horse was no exception and he was thrown off, but despite the pain of the fall he found himself jumping to his feet involuntarily before immediately falling before the creature in supplication.
What is going on? What is he!?
"I am Sebas Tian!" The thing said, his voice booming supernaturally all around Staffan. "I am a god of Nazarcik. The god of duty. And I find you Staffan Heivish and these foolish men who follow you guilty!"
Guilty!? Guilty of what?
"Guilty," the self-proclaimed god said, as if reading Staffan's mind. "Of abusing the weak for your no reason other than you own pleasure. Such is an unconscionable offense in my eyes and considering the extent of your crimes deserving of only one fate: Death!"
Many of Staffan's men cried out for mercy at this, but he did not. Using all his will, he fought against the powerful forces controlling his body and looked up at the supposed god with a defiant glare. He was Staffan of House Heivish! He would not allow anyone, Dragon or God, to pass judgement over him! In his own lands no less!
Unfortunately for the arrogant lord, if the god even noticed his defiance, he cared not a whit for it and with a casual wave of his hand, Lord Staffan Heivish and all his household guard crumbled away into dust. And so heirless despite his womanizing, House Heivish ended with the death of its final lord. Its once proud history soon to be completely forgotten. The god of duty would make sure of that.
Back in Carne, Tsuare stood at the edge of town with her sister at her side and the rest of the townsfolk all around her as they watched the god destroy their hated lord. For years, Staffan Heivish had been terrorizing them, using his title and the band of thugs he called his household guard to oppress them and steal their womenfolk for his perverse entertainment. Thus as they saw his demise, they felt nothing but joy.
"Look closely people of Carne," Maleficent, the god's companion and the woman who had awoken the entire village to see the spectacle, said with fervent enthusiasm. "See the might of the god of duty. Observe the power of Sebas Tian! Is he not your liberator from oppression? Is he not worthy of your worship?"
The townsfolk murmured among themselves. The people of Eskorn, of Laerakond in general, had little experience with gods. Dragons those they knew. Tyrants with immense power that sought to enslave them all if they could. Primordials those they dimly remembered. Beings of great power that had been brought low by Dragons. But what was a god?
Tsuare didn't understand how or why but even as the thought crossed her mind, the answer flowed from her lips.
"Yes, he is!" She shouted, stepping before her fellow villagers, her extended family. "He who liberated us! He who will protect us so long as we have faith in him! He who protects the weak from the needless abuse of the strong! Sebas Tian is my god!"
Maleficent looked at her with satisfaction, but she believed already so Tsuare paid her no mind. Instead her focus was on her fellow villagers. She had to make them see the truth of things. She had to!
"He's mine too!" Ninya said loyally as she came to stand beside her sister. "He saved us both from Heivish. And he protects us even now. I don't know what a god is, not truly. But if Sebas Tian is not a god, then I do not know what else could be!"
"Ninya is correct!" Tsuare said, her tone imploring. "He will protect us when we are weak! He will guide us to strength! He will use his divine power to ensure that all get their fair share! Do you not want the patronage of such a good god?"
The murmuring among the townsfolk intensified for a moment before a man stepped forward. It was too dark to see who it was clearly, but Tsuare did not need to know who he was to understand what he was.
"He is my god!" The man, her new brother, shouted and Tsuare offered him a welcoming smile.
A smile she gave all her new brothers and sisters as one by one the people of Carne accepted their new god.
A few days later, Sebas and Maleficent watched from afar as the townsfolk put the finishing touches on their shrine to the god. It was a simple structure of hewn timbers that had been built in a miniature imitation of Nazarick's central mausoleum that was roughly twice the size of an average house in the village and was just large enough to house its population all at once. It completely failed to capture the Great Tomb's beauty but Sebas nonetheless appreciated it for the effort his new faithful had put into its creation.
"This was too easy," the Paeliryon, now in her grotesque true form, said with a shake of her head. "Convincing a bunch of peasants in a backwater town to worship a god which literally came down to save them? Even the lowest Devil could manage this. Worse, I didn't even do most of the convincing."
"You nevertheless have my thanks." Sebas told her honestly.
"Thank the Veryon girl." The Devil said gesturing to Tsuare as she walked around thanking the villagers for their help in building the temple. She was now dressed in a black dress with white trim, with a full knee length skirt, a white half-apron trimmed with ruffled lace. It was a far cry from her old peasant dress and was a gift from Sebas himself as a symbol of her new office as his priestess. "She received your divine inspiration and did most of the convincing."
"I did not know I could do that."
"Not surprising." Maleficent said with a shrug. "Gods can only do that to their faithful and before her you didn't have any. By the way, can I just say that I'm entirely unsurprised that you chose her as your priestess?"
"She is the first to believe in me."
"And the mutual attraction between the both of you had nothing to do with it?" The Paeliryon said teasingly. "You hid it well, but I've had plenty of experience working with Succubi. I've seen the stirrings of lust and attraction in even the subtlest forms."
Sebas said nothing.
The Devil scoffed at failing to get a raise out of him, but continued. "It's not my business but fair warning. Be careful siring half-bloods with the girl. They can get messy, Just look at the mess with those Bhaalspawn."
Annoyed at Maleficent's barbs and unwilling to give any sign of just how close to the truth they were, Sebas teleported back to Nazarick to report the success of his mission to his master. In the process, he completely failed to see the Paeliryon's smirk of amusement at his expense.
Done!
I hope everyone liked how I decided to bring in the Veryon sisters into my verse. I liked them both, especially Tsuare. The relationship she develops with Sebas in canon is fascinating, even if I'm unsure if you could call it a romance. So I decided to homage it with this chapter and since I'm a romantic made it into more of a traditional romance.
Some might ask where the hell is Sebas' attraction to Tsuare in the chapter that Maleficent mentioned in the last scene. Well, as she said it's subtle. Just look at what Sebas consistently calls Tsuare and you'll get it.
Well, that's all from me for now. Till next time, au revoir!
