Wenduag wasn't sure what she should have expected when entering the portal but she certainly didn't expect to find herself standing outside, beneath a starry sky.
"Is this the surface?" She asked in wonder to no one in particular.
"No, you're very much still underground. Welcome to the 6th floor of the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick." Came a voice from behind, causing Wenduag to nearly jump out of her skin as she'd been enraptured by the sight. Taking a moment to compose herself, Wenduag turned to face the voice -and felt her composure evaporate instantly.
Standing before her was a collection of monsters, each terrifying in their own way, yet one stood apart from the others. A large skeleton, wearing a regal robe and wielding a golden staff inset with 7 gems, seemed to radiate an aura of fear that was causing Wenduag's legs to feel like they had lost their bones.
"Greetings, I am Momonga, leader of the guild Ainz Ooal Gown and I have brought you here to answer some questions. To begin with, may I know what I should call you?"
The skeleton's voice was intimidating and deep yet strangely mortal. It lacked any raspiness one would expect from a decayed corpse. Though perhaps such should be expected; the skeleton lacked any traces of flesh so its voice was likely some magical effect.
Most of the other creatures present seemed to be living, with the exception of the vampire who was still holding onto Lann. There was a pair of elves, their similarities showing they were likely siblings, either brother and sister or two sisters, Wenduag wasn't sure about the one with trousers.
A man in striped clothing stood next to the skirt-wearing elf. His pointed ears would indicate he too was an elf were it not for the presence of a long, spiked tail that emerged from his lower back.
Her eyes moved to the next individual, a giant blue-coloured insectoid with four arms. Wielding a halberd nearly as tall as it was, the creature gave off the appearance of a true warrior.
She had already estimated that the old man from before had been dangerous and to see him present among such individuals only confirmed her suspicions.
Finally, she looked at the woman standing beside the skeleton. Wenduag could admit the woman was far more beautiful than any others she had ever seen, yet that beauty was unnerving when one took into consideration the horns and wings that protruded from the woman's head and back respectively. They did not detract from the unearthly beauty (in some ways they added even more allure when compared to the white dress and fair skin) but they did mark the woman as a fiend.
"Shalltear, are you sure our guest can understand our language?"
"She spoke earlier, arinsu." The vampire -now identified as "Shalltear"- said whilst looking at Wenduag in confusion.
"You sure you didn't break them like you did that one?" Spoke the trousers wearing elf child, pointing at Lann's unconscious body that had been unceremoniously dropped in the dirt.
"Nee-chan, I-I don't think Shalltear would d-do something like that."
"That's right, chibi! I didn't even touch that one and she was the one who knocked this one out!"
Is that elf's name "Nee-chan" or "Chibi"? Wenduag thought to herself, trying to note any and all information that might help her survive.
"Momonga-sama." The striped suit man spoke "If this outsider is incapable of verbally providing information, then may I suggest dissection as a means to study its physiology? We may be able to glean an understanding of the local fauna and how they compare to the races of Yggdrasil."
The skeleton turned to look at Wenduag, bringing its hand up to stroke its chin in consideration. Wenduag realised the implication of the otherwise benign gesture and mustered all her strength to try to resist the fear that had paralyzed her.
"Wenduag! My- my name is Wenduag, Lord Momonga-sama." She said, including the name she had heard to convey her understanding of their language.
"Umu, good. Well then, Wenduag, before we proceed, I would like to know: are you a Player?"
"A Player"? Surely, it's not asking about mere games, is it? Or… ah, I see. "No, Master, I am but a pawn, Savamelekh is the one playing in the Shield Maze. If you desire, I can lead you to him." A game between monsters then? Excellent, I can just join whichever side wins and climb my way to the top!
She's an NPC then? And she's willing to betray this "Savamelekh"? Guess this confirms it, the NPCs are independent and capable of turning against me if I don't act how they might expect. If this "Shield Maze" she mentioned is a Guild Base then I might not be able to deal with it by myself, especially with a player present. But it might not come to that; Ainz Ooal Gown may have had an infamous reputation back in Yggdrasil but hopefully, other players will be able to distinguish between a game and real life. Then again, it's entirely possible this is a trap. I should try to figure out more before making any decisions.
"Firstly, allow me some more questions. What were you and…" Momonga paused, realizing he had not gotten the name of the half-lizard man.
Fortunately, the one called Wenduag seemed to catch why Momonga had paused. "His name is Lann, Master."
"Then what were you and Lann doing before being brought here?" If they were sent as scouts as Sebas was, it may be safer to just kill them.
"We were looking for an angel's sword. Lann believed he could use it to assault the Shield Maze."
Hm? A single sword against an entire Guild Base? Could it be a World Item?
Sebas stepped forth, drawing both the angel's sword and the rock it was stuck in from his inventory and kneeled in front of Momonga, presenting the blade.
"Momonga-sama, the blade deals a minor amount of holy damage to its bearer and appears enchanted to be unremovable from the stone."
Momonga reached out towards the blade before hesitating. In Yggdrasil, he was not able to equip swords but had not yet tested his proficiency since the transition. If he were to be unable to lift the blade, would the NPCs lose their respect for him?
"Momonga-sama, is there something wrong?" The concerned voice of Albedo came from next to him, making him realize that hovering his hand a few inches from the sword did not look much better.
"No, it is nothing." Momonga said, and fully grasped the sword, hoping it wouldn't slip from his hand, which it, fortunately, did not. Instead, the blade glowed, letting out a golden light before fading and leaving but a transparent outline of the sword, which was drawn into Momonga's hand. The stone that previously held the sword fell to the arena floor, the noise of the impact being the only sound as all others present were silently watching events unfold.
Momonga himself was left staring at his hand and after he felt his skill Dark Wisdom activate. Eh? That sword counted as a Player's corpse? It's supposed to give me a spell, but what's this new ability? Much as how Momonga could control his Despair Aura by instinct, he could feel a new ability he had gained. Activating the skill Light of Heaven caused the sword's outline to appear and give off its golden aura in a flash. It only gives a single hit point? It's like a joke by the shitty devs, putting a sword in the stone to make players think it'd be something legendary.
As Momonga was reminiscing on the many tricks and traps the developers of Yggdrasil perpetrated that annoyed new players, Demiurge's mind was racing. He had seen Momonga absorb the power of an angel's sword into himself and whilst Demiurge had felt a twinge of panic -as holy energy was antithetical to the undead- he knew his master must have had a plan, and it indeed seemed he did as Momonga had brought forth the power immediately after as if to quell Demiurge's concern.
Of course. Demiurge though, the pieces beginning to click into place. Momonga-sama must have consumed that blade to gain knowledge of the world outside of Nazarick, but why? Demiurge pondered as he looked towards to kneeling outsider that introduced itself as "Wenduag". In but a short time he has managed to acquire holy power and forced one of the locals into subservience, even if it is clearly an opportunist looking to betray Momonga-sama.
The thought of that creature daring to oppose Momonga caused Demiurge's blood to boil and he would have subjected it to the worst torture his genius mind could imagine were it not that Momonga seemed to have use for her, though Demiurge would be sure to write up a torture itinerary for when her use had expired.
"I hope you do not mind, but I will be keeping the sword. Now, tell me more of this Shield Maze, you mentioned." Momonga spoke, desperate to avoid any questions about the newly acquired power.
Wenduag broke from her stupor and managed to utter a response. "The Shield Maze is said to be a barrier between the underground and surface. The Chief of my tribe believes that when it falls, it will be time for the Underground Crusaders to rise to the surface and fight the Demons."
Underground Crusaders? Demons? Tribe? Is she not a rogue Guild NPC after all? I shouldn't appear too ignorant, or she might take advantage of how little I know.
"I see, then I would very much like to visit the Shield Maze and speak with this Savamelekh. One more question, however; why is he unconscious?" Momonga asked, finally addressing the question of the half-lizard man.
"That would be because he foolishly attacked your vampire servant, Master. I struck him from behind."
"Why did he do such a thing?" Momonga asked, becoming somewhat irate that someone would try to harm the children of one of his friends.
"ah… that's… well…" Wenduag stuttered, sweat dripping down her forehead as she struggled to find a way to phrase the answer in such a way that wouldn't lead to her being killed by association.
"Speak" Uttered the tailed man and Wenduag felt the words get dragged from her throat against her better judgement.
"It's because she's clearly undead and undead are hostile to the living." Wenduag hastily answered, regretting every word she spoke. She immediately pressed her forehead into the dirt, hoping an act of submission would save her the inevitable execution.
When no such execution came she finally dared to look up at the one called Momonga-sama, and saw the skeleton had its free hand covering its face.
That about tracks. Even in Yggdrasil there were plenty of players who'd kill Heteromorphs on sight. Momonga let out a sigh as his own oversight before composing himself as he realised the Guardians were still present.
"I see, well I hope you do not share the same prejudices that your kin does." Momonga said, eliciting a meek head shake from Wenduag.
"In that case, I alter your tribesman's memories but allow you to keep yours intact." Mostly because I can't be sure this'll even work and I might need at least one of them. Momonga thought, lowering himself so that he could place his hand on Lann's head.
"[Control Amnesia]." He uttered, taking some time to sift through the Half-lizard's memories whilst he was in his head before altering his most recent ones.
"When he regains consciousness, he will believe he was stuck on the back of his head by falling debris whilst searching for the sword. We will move him before he does so." Momonga addressed his audience.
"Momonga-sama." Demiurge spoke up. "Forgive me, but does this mean you intend to leave Nazarick?"
"It does, Demiurge, though only for a short time. There are many things I wish to verify of our situation but if anything requiring my personal attention occurs, I will return immediately." Momonga responded, causing a slew of objections to be raised by the guardians.
"Momonga-sama, what if something were to happen to you and we weren't there to act as your shields?"
"The outside is filthy, arinsu. The Supreme One shouldn't need to wander dirty caves."
"Aren't your floors just dirty caves?"
"Nee-san…"
"Momonga-sama. Should. I. Prepare. A. Legion. For. Your. Expedition?"
"Guardians. I intend to explore outside as we require information on the current situation of the world." He said, being intentionally vague so as to not reveal the extent of his ignorance to Wenduag. "However, I hear your concerns and will have others accompany me for protection."
"Of course I will accompany you, Momonga-sama. It'll be like our honeymoon." Albedo said, grabbing onto Momonga's arm and wrapping herself around it. "Who better to act as your shield, after all?"
"I can think of one person." Spoke Shalltear, twirling her pipette lance that she'd drawn from her inventory.
"Oh? And what of when you fall into your blood frenzy? How well can you act as a shield then?" Albedo shot at Shalltear.
It was well known amongst the Guardians of Nazarick that Shalltear was the strongest, barring Gargantua, but her abilities were not well suited for a protection roll as she was required to deal damage as a means to heal herself. However, there was one fact that Shalltear could produce to win the argument. One fact that disgraced Albedo more than any other: "You've never even actually fought to protect Nazarick!" Shalltear yelled. Somewhat regretting the words as she said them, knowing they'd leave a mark on her otherwise friendly rivalry but right now she was fighting for Momonga's affection, and there was nothing she'd not do.
For the Floor Guardians, whose entire reason for existing was to protect Nazarick, dying was not something to be feared. In a way, they envied how many times Shalltear had given her life trying to stop invaders and the only regret they felt when they died was that it meant they had failed to stop intruders. However, no invasion had ever made it past the 8th floor. The Pleiades and Sebas who guarded the ninth floor had never needed to confront intruders as Victim's floor had been their end and that meant Albedo, who stood guard over the throne room, had also never had a chance to die proving her worth to the Supreme Beings.
"You… You…" Albedo growled, gripping the handle of Ginnungagap so hard her knuckles turned white. Only able to contain herself as her beloved was right next to her.
"Enough." Momonga spoke, his tone brooking no arguments. He may not have understood the reason why Shalltear's words caused such a tense situation but he knew he had to intervene. "Shalltear, you went too far. Apologise."
Shalltear bowed her head towards the succubus and offered a short apology before turning to Sebas, whom she only then remembered was present and offered the same.
"Now, for those accompanying me…" Ainz said, drawing the guardians back to the overall topic of the conversation.
Demiurge is needed here to oversee Nazarick's defences. I probably shouldn't take either of the twins since this world might have tighter Labour laws than Japan did. Cocytus should be fine since he belongs to a more benign species of Heteromorph. Sebas can fit in fine with humans so he'd be a good choice too. Shalltear should say here since she's Nazarick's first line of defence. I really don't want to take someone as smart as Albedo, especially after the changes I made to her, but… Momonga looked into the eyes of the succubus who herself in closer to him after Shalltear's words. There was a gleam of moisture that had built up and it was clear she was fighting back tears. Momonga sighed in resignation.
"Cocytus, Sebas and Albedo will be the ones to accompany me. Sebas, you'll need to change equipment to appear as an adventurer, I will retrieve some from the treasury. Albedo, you will need to keep your armour equipped at all times that we are observed by others or find some other way to disguise your demonic nature. As for the rest of you, I will be leaving Nazarick in your capable hands."