'What!?' asked Zaran as he got irritated because of Ainz's words.
'You cry for your fellow countrymen yet do nothing except cry. You say that the Theocracy and the king are against you and even if that is true does it excuse you of your slothfulness.'
Your Rage Is Far Too Subdued. To behave so cleverly and quietly, as if seeking sympathy... It is an insult to real madness." As he said that Ainz face had formed a huge grin that should not be possible for a human face.
'Who no what are you?' asked Zaran with fear as he had lost all of his anger.
'Who am I? Dunno. But if i had to say something then I would call myself as someone who has seen a few things.' said Ainz with a chuckle.
'...' Zaran decided to remain silent as if he was unnerved by Ainz's words. The carriage came to an abrupt stop. They had arrived at their destination.
'Sir we have arrived at the castle of Gatenbarg. The king has already been notified of your arrival. He wishes to meet you and your new acquaintances.' announced a royal guard.
'Tch! Someone must have relayed 'information about you two to the king.' said Zaran in a quiet voice to Ainz and Shalltear.
'It seems that the king of this nation is in contact with some rather unsavory people.' said Ainz as he saw an [Undeath Assassin - 4th] hiding amongst the guards.' Ainz acted as if he also couldn't see him.
'So you also think that huh!' said Zaran surprised.
'Is it common knowledge?' asked Ainz.
'Yeah. Everyone thinks that the king is trying to destroy this nation. Many have tried revolting against him but their leaders were killed before they could even enact their plans. The peace is merely a facade. The king is controlling and destroying the country through [Message].' said Zaran.
'How?' asked Ainz. He was surprised that how in the world can a [Message] spell be used to control and destroy a country.
'I cannot tell you anymore than this. I could be killed right here and now if someone were to know about what i just told you. Though if you are willing to make a deal with me then i will tell you everything. You may think that i try to recruit everyone i see but let me tell you this, I know you are strong. Strong enough to liberate this nation and its people.' said Zaran in a hushed voice.
'Hmm... Let's make a deal. You give us a place to stay and give us whatever information we require and then we will help you.' said Ainz as he calculated the pros and cons of this deal.
The pros are information and a temporary base of operations. The cons are...None. The cons aren't really cons if i can just break my end of the bargin.
'Thank you. Ainz' said Zaran but this time his emotions were not fake.
'As long as you hold your end of the deal there won't anything to worry about. But...' said Ainz menacingly.
'We are here.' said Zaran as he did not dare to respond to the last word Ainz had said out of fear.
In front of both of them was a door that held sparkle yet no elegance.
'Typical Royalty.' said Ainz with a little annoyance at the sight of such a waste of materials.
'Father!' shouted Zaran as he pushed the door open.
The inside of the throne room was quite unique to say the very least. Not because of its design or the material used in its structure. No. What was unique about this room was its occupants. The King. His guards and advisors. High nobles. The room looked normal if one were to only see these people. But Ainz who had a complete immunity to all illusion spells, could see a few individuals whom could not be seen by the other people here.
'Six [Undead Assassin - 4th] huh. They were the most common summon for infiltration,spying and assassination for necromancers like me. Their agility must be a little less than Elsa Granhiert but their strength would be greater than that of hers. Though her strength or even Reinhard's strength for that matter could not save them. I couldn't even keep my promise of taking care of Meili to her. Gah! After the fusion my emotions seem to become more active. Remain Focused!' thought Ainz as he walked through the door and into the royal court.
Ainz put his focus back to the man in the most distasteful garbs he had ever seen in both Yggdrasil and Lugnica.
As the king heard his son's voice he told his advisors to back away and spoke.
'Are these two the one responsible for those lights in the sky?' asked the king without even looking at Zaran's face.
'Yes father.' said Zaran in a cold tone.
'It is King Stultum to you.' said the king in a voice which held no compassion.
'Yes My King.' said Zaran in an emotionless tone as he gave a slight bow with a hand on his chest.
The king turned his face away from Zaran and looked at Ainz and Shalltear.
'Who are you and why did you filled the night's sky with strange lights?' asked King in an authoritative manner.
Ainz decided to tell him the same lie he had told Zaran. But this time he gave Zaran a hint. Zaran nodded as he didn't know what Ainz was going to do.
'I am Ainz. A [Scorpion Knight]. The fair maiden behind me is Lady Shalltear Bloodfallen.' said Ainz in a convincing way.' said Ainz.
'You commoner! Bow before the magus king.' A noble shouted at Ainz with full of anger at Ainz's behaviour.
'I have not pledged my loyalty to him. Only my lady is worthy of my loyalty.' Ainz's voice resounded in the hall room.
Everyone was silent. Nobody had ever dared to disrespect the magus king and lived to tell the tale. This is because king stultus was someone who would have such a person executed before anyone could object to his commands.
'Fair enough. It is not obligatory for you and your Lady to bow. All of you will remain silent from now on or else...' said the king in a threatening voice.
'No one will now interrupt us. Now speak. Why were you fighting a demon and a tier 5 demon at that? A single one is enough to greatly affect the result of a battle.'
'Umu... My Lady was a princess from a far-off nation. Her kingdom was prosperous. One day a tear opened in the sky and demons led by a [Demon Of Old] came out of it. Her entire nation was razed in a single night. Not a single human could run away from them. She was the exception.' said Ainz as he used an Yggdrasil quest as his backstory.
'And You?' inquired the king as he knew he had to gain more information about this [Demon Of Old].
'I was a vagabond before meeting her. I Planned. Hunted. Ate. Slept. This remained my daily routine for almost all my life. Though it all changed when i met my Lady. Her father. The king had sent her away from their nation with half of the royal guards. That [Demon Of Old] followed them. He wanted them to have hope so they could truly despair. As they all thought that they were free from the danger, he attacked. Everyone was killed. I was actually hunting for that demon as he had killed someone whom i cared for. Luckily for me that night was the chance i needed. Using my poison and sword arts, i inflicted many wounds on him. He was also poisoned badly. This led to him retreating. Such a shame i couldn't kill him.' said Ainz as he rubbed his chin.
'After he escaped, i fell to my knees and lost conciousness. I would have had died then and there if my Lady was not there to heal me. Perhaps our meeting was fated or maybe i was just lucky. Not that it matters now. What mattered to me was that she had healed me. Since that day i swored my undying loyalty to her. Since then we have travelled the world looking for that demon. We have killed many of his subordinates. Overtime people started calling us The Hunters. The lights you saw yesterday were an aftereffect of the holy spell my Lady had herself casted.' replied Ainz with a silver tongue.
'Hmm. You may go now. Crown Prince!'
'Yes My King'
'Take them and show them to their rooms. Give them whatever they require.'
'As you wish.'
'You may leave now.'
A trio were walking in the corridor. Ainz and Shalltear were letting Zaran take the lead.
'Sigh...this is what i was talking about. The king is planning something. He knew about your strength yet he didn't want your power. It is as if...' Zaran stopped at a terrible realization.
'He is in cahoots with people he deems more reliable than those who can kill a 5th tier demon.' Ainz completed Zaran's words.
'Shit. Nothing I can do will make a difference. I should just leave this country.' said Zaran.
'That is certainly a possibility. Lady Shalltear and Young Zaran listen to this story carefully. Whenever you are stuck at a crossroad, then remember this story. Once upon a time there was a boy who had the same two choices such as you. Either he could leave all those he swore to protect helpless or he could tread through the path of suffering and save them.' Ainz stopped as he reminisced about the past.
'What was the choice he made?' asked Shalltear with a childish curiosity.
'He chose the path of nigh eternal suffering. A path no mere mortal was supposed to walk. The moral of this story is that no matter what choice you make, it wouldn't be as bad as the choice that guy made.' said Ainz in a casual tone.
'Thanks...I guess.' said Zaran as he was weirded out by what.
'You are welcome but a word of caution from me. Always make a choice. It is better to suffer while trying than to suffer by not trying.' said Ainz as if he was a sage.
'...How old are you?'
'Has anyone ever told you that you are quite perceptive?'
'I don't think so. I am not liked very much among the royalty and nobility.'
'Hmm. To answer your question. Yes.'
'I didn't ask whether you were old or not. I know that you are much much older than me. The question was how much?'
'Yes.'
'I already told you this isn't what i was asking...'
Zaran became horrified as he realized a dangerous fact. He was older much much much older. Inhumanly Older. He decided to not question Ainz any further.
'On another note i wanted to show you to your rooms.'
'I thank you for this kind gesture but i am afraid that we hunters don't feel comfortable in such an environment. If you would be so kind as to show us a house we could buy. Somewhere near the sea would be quite a sight would you not say.' Ainz said in a mischievous manner.
'Ah! I understand. Though i must say that you would be quite the fisherman if you decided to go fishing. Just take any building. All of them are already empty because of the seafolk near the' responded Zaran playfully. The three of them had reached the castle's main gate.
'Then we must part our ways from here on. I hope to meet you again.' said Ainz politely.
'Me too. Take care. Your ' said Zaran with a smile on his face.
'Lady Shalltear if you would please cast the [Fly] spell.' said Ainz.
'[Fly]! [Fly]!' As Shalltear casted the spells, both Ainz and Shalltear started to hover in the air.
'I wish you goodluck Young Zaran.'
Both of them flew in the southeast direction. Zaran kept his gaze towards their ever shrinking silhouettes. As the sun looked like it was going to be submerged in the distant horizon, its piercing light made Zaran squint his eyes.
'This much should be far enough Shalltear.' said Ainz.
'As you command Lord Ainz.' said Shalltear as she avoided meeting Ainz's gaze.
Shalltear waved her hand in the air and both of them started to descend to the ground. Ainz looked around and saw that
Ainz having lived long enough realized that Shalltear was acting nervously.
'You seem to be anxious. What is the matter?' asked Ainz in a calming voice.
'I-It i-is n-nothing my Lord.' said Shalltear as she stuttered every word.
'It would be to my liking if you were to tell me the truth Shalltear.' said Ainz acting as if he was displeased with her words.
'M-My L-Lord! You called me your Master. I cannot fathom what your reason was in calling me your Lady. You are a supreme being. Such an honour i am unfit for. By your decree i cannot even kill myself to atone for this heresy. I don't know what to do.' said Shalltear as she sobbed.
'You take offence to me calling you my Lady? This is the second time my vow of knighthood and fidelity is rejected' said Ainz teasingly as he knew Shalltear would be flustered because of his words.
'No My Lord! This is not what i meant. I just wanted to know the reason for you calling me your Lady. I am not worthy of such an honour.' said Shalltear scaredly.
'Then does that mean you will call yourself My Lady.' said Ainz in a teasing voice.
Shalltear understood what her Master was trying to do. She sighed deeply.
'Yes My Lord!' said Shalltear as she accepted her defeat.
'Good. As for the reason of why i did so was to create such a backstory that will grant us the most autonomy.' said Ainz.
'Ah! Forgive me My Lord. For a moment i thought that you were just doing it to see how i would react.' said Shalltear with relief in her voice.
'Ah! that too. You may not think of yourself highly but i consider you to be my Peroroncino's daughter but more than that inside you i see someone who is worthy enough to stand by my side.' said Ainz knowing full well what this would do to Shalltear.
'...' Shalltear did not reply. Her mind had short circuited multiple times in the last 3 minutes.
Ainz lifted his head and looked around. Their surroundings seem to be only empty buildings. Ainz picked up Shalltear in a princess carry and moved into a nearby building.
The sun was going down. In an hour complete darkness would engulf these lands. Ainz used a [Clean - 1st] scroll on the house. As he was a base level 33 even his 1st tier spell was potent enough to clean the house. All doors, windows, furniture and other things started to repair on their own.
The noise of repairing brought Shalltear back to her senses. She opened her mouth to apologize for losing conciousness but decided against it as Ainz had already ordered her to talk casually to him. She decided that she would just do as Lord Ainz said rather than thinking of the meaning behind his beautiful words. She opened her mouth again but this time she asked a different question.
'What are you doing Lord Ainz' asked Shalltear.
'I am deciding on which [Jobs] I should put my levels in.' replied Ainz.
'I don't understand.' Shalltear waited for her Lord to scold her for he ignorance and not apologizing for it.
'Hmm... It is good that you are not that much uptight as you were before.' Said Ainz as he patted Shalltear's head.
'To answer your question. This...' said Ainz as he waved his hand and a holographic screen appeared in front of him.
[Level - 33]
[Title - Lolimancer]
[Jobs] - [You Do Not Have A Job]
[Skills]
[Others]
'...' Shalltear had never neen anything like this. She was left speechless. Ainz moved his hand to the [Jobs] icon. A new screen was opened. It listed all the possible [Jobs] he could take based on his actions in the [New World].
[Warrior - E]
[Mage - E]
[Crafter -E]
[Archer - E] - [Arcane Archer - S-]
'I think i should choose the [Mage] path. Even though i can't cast any spell right now, i can feel how cast them. I am lacking in mana and race. Meaning even if i become a [Mage, i wouldn't be able to become an [Overlord] without doing the ritual for becoming an [Elder Lich] and then going through the [Job] change quest. It is too slow of a process.'
'Hmm... I could try to create a [Power Suit] by taking the [Crafter] job but that would leave me too weak without the armor since my health and mana will not increase. I wish i had a way to just take every [Job].'
[User Can Take Any Number Of Jobs Regardless Of Race But Levels Will Be Consumed]
'This...This is going to be very broken. Isn't it?' asked Ainz but no reply came from [The System].
'Since I can farm experience from [Einherjar] i just need to dig a hole and hide in it from civilization. I think that guy from [Yggdrasil] lore what was his name again? Ah! [Acererak]. He did the same thing. That brought back many memories.' said Ainz as he reminisced but this time he was not sad but thankful. Thankful to his friends for the fun time they all shared.
'Maybe i could summon them to this [New World]. This reminds me [Summoner] is a specialized [Job] for a [Mage]. Thus the best choice would be becoming an [Archmage] and remaining levels in the [Racial Level] of [Skeleton Mage]. This will allow me to use my death magic related spells except [The Goal Of All Life Is Death] as it is less of a magic spell than an inherent skill of the [Overlord] race.' said Ainz as he decided to metagame his [Job] classes.
Ainz decided on which path he wanted to take and put his levels in appropriate [Job] and [Race].
[Racial Level] - [Skeleton Mage - 2]
[Job Level] - [Mage - 15] - [High Mage - 10] - [Archmage - 5]
'Now [System] show me my status.' said Ainz with a huge grin which threatened to rip his face apart.
[Affirmative]
[Level - 1]
[Title - Lolimancer]
[Race] - [Skeleton Mage]
[Jobs] - [Mage] [High Mage] [Archmage]
[You Can Now Cast Necromantic Magic At 1/15 Of True Power]
'Looks like having only 2 out 30 levels in [Race] has reduced the effect of this class's spell to one-fifteenth of its true power. I wanted to have complete access to my necromantic spells but it can't be helped. I will just have to either wait for 4 to 5 days for [Einherjar]'s cooldown or i can just summon my undead for farming experience. Though this [System] seems to take three times more the normal amount.' said Ainz. Ainz looked outside the window as he had heard the sound of footsteps.
'Shalltear! Be Ready. There are some people passing through the street. Judging by the sounds, they are in great numbers. I should check their strength before engaging them.' said Ainz as he lifted his Ainz. A magic circle appeared in his hands. As he did so a scroll from his inventory was burnt into nothingness as he wanted to cast a spell he didn't have enough mana for. To compensate for it, the [System] used up one of Ainz's scrolls which were stored in his inventory.
[Widen Area - All Appraisal Magic - 8th]
'This should show me the general level of these intruders. Provided that they don't have any resistances against it, none would be able to stop it.' Ainz said as he checked the results of spell. A screen popped up on which red dots were moving. According to the system there were 83698 merfolk. These were the ones near the coast Ainz and Shalltear were occupying. Since Ainz had used the [Widen Metamagic, the screen showed him every merfolk on the world. 20000000 merfolk. The screen was practically red in the sea. Though in the middle of the sea, there were no red dots. Forget red dots, there was a huge black circle. Ainz came to a single and most logical conclusion.
'Must be anti-divination measures. Though for someone to make such a big anti-divination area would either have to be near level 100 [Crafter] who specializes in [Formation Inscriber]. According to my knowledge there is no other way of doing such a feat.' said Ainz as he recalled all the [Job] details he had learnt from Yggdrasil.
[Merfolk Level Average 7 To 15]
[Black] - [??? - Level 107]
'So the black spot is indicating someone above level hundred. Either this unknown being is using [False Data] or they are stronger than a level hundred player. Even surviving against someone who is 5 levels above is a rare occurence. If i decided to fight in my current condition, I would be killed before i could even realize what happened.' said Ainz a little hesitant on killing merfolk now.
'Though I will have to farm for experience for my racial levels. Becoming a level 100 undead will grant me a high health and magic pool.' Thought Ainz
'Shalltear start crippling every merfolk you see but do not kill them. I want to see whether you can level up or not. Also i will cast a [Poison] spell on your [Spuit Lance] so that your attacks will kill them.' ordered Ainz.
Now one may think why Ainz would let Shalltear kill the Merfolk if he needs the experience for himself. This is because as a level one it would be quite dangerous for Ainz to kill a merfolk who could probably one-shot him. Ainz had already thought of this and devised quite an ingenious plan.
In Yggdrasil, there were those who fought together as a guild. Initially, loot and experience went to the one who landed the killing blow. Since everyone considered this system to be unfair the shitty devs made it so that everyone would get experience based on their contribution. Since Shalltear avoided killing merfolk, when merfolk died due to Ainz's spell he started to gain experience.
'Looks like the guild's experience sharing is still active.' said Ainz as he pulled out a [Mirror Of Remote Viewing] and kept an eye on Shalltear as he thought on what to do with the new levels he gained. It would take Shalltear an hour to kill them all if she doesn't use her [Household].' said Ainz.
'Hmm... I should check up on other parts of [The System] while Shalltear is out there hunting. System! What are the titles?' asked Ainz.
[Titles] Are Names Which Are Granted When Certain Conditions Are Met]
[All [Titles] Have An Effect Depending On The User..]
[Title [Lolimancer] Has Been Recorded]
[This Title Represents Your Absolute Power Over Lolis]
'Well Shit. I had my whole universe destroyed yet this thing was the first i regained of that place. Is this a joke because i am not laughing?' said Ainz annoyed yet a little melancholic as he thought about Beatrice. His Beako.
'I hate Echidna for telling me how a spirit can be used as materials. Now that i think about it didn't Echidna taught me how to just craft anyone into anything. I should look into [Crafter] class more. If there is a way to specialize in [Evolutionist] and then gain the rare class [Gem Infuser] then I would be able to be store almost all types of spells into [Sealing Crystals]. Though I would first have to find a way to craft those crystals first.' said Ainz as he noticed Shalltear entering the room.
'My Lord I have done as you have asked.' said Shalltear in a polite voice as she waited for her Master's word to guide her.
'Why Thank You! Your efforts seem to have given me a few levels.' said Ainz.
'Being of use to you is why i am.' said Shalltear in happy voice without her maniacal love. This time her voice was laced with simple devotion.
'Shalltear what do you think of me?' said Ainz.
Shalltear face grew a creepy smile as she listed how great Ainz was.
'You are the leader of the 41. The undisputed. The perfect being.' said Shalltear as she controlled her words and emotions to give a short and direct answer as to not waste Ainz's time.
'I may be the leader of Nazarick but there are many who are not only on par with me but the also surpass me in power. A perfect being huh... Even i don't know what it means to be perfect which makes me imperfect. And this imperfection makes me perfect in preparing for the future. I think that one can only be perfect if one is imperfect. So tell me will you be at my side not as a follower but as someone whom I consider my friend. Or will you not follow me.' spoke Ainz as he taught Shalltear the philosophy of perfection.
'My Lord I will still follow you. Whether you are strong or you no longer possess your past strength. Whether you want me by my side or not. I! NO! No one in Nazarick would even consider to keep going through their life or unlife if you were not there with us even when all of our creators left.' said Shalltear in a voice filled with confidence and resolution.
'Then be a little more greedy. During the long life I have lived, there was one annoying guy who always shouted about his rights. He considered every action he took to be his right just because he had the power for it. Since you have way more power than me should you not exercise your right. I am not foolish enough to believe if someone weak should have greed but you are strong so when you ask anything of me ask like how a daughter would ask her father. You may not believe it but I have had my fair share of daughters outside Nazarick.' said Ainz with a little smile.
'For now we should be heading out. I can already cast 3rd tier spells so let's fly in the sky. The moon looks beautiful i want to take a closer look at it. How about it?' asked Ainz.
'Yes...My Lo-' Shalltear spoke but was interrupted by Ainz.
'Drop the Lord. Whenever you say that i am reminded of a certain clown.
'Yes My Lo-...Ainz' said Shalltear in a meek voice.
'Umu... That is a thousand times better than that Lord or whatever titles anyone can give me. I am not particularly fond of such titles. One must only be called by one's merit and achievements. I Am Ainz And That Is All Ainz Is. Nothing beyond or below it.' said Ainz in a kingly voice.
Ainz then casted two [Fly - 3rd]; one on himself and one on Shalltear and both flew towards the sky. In a minute they had gone beyond the world hidden by the clouds.
A.N
Psst. grass.inki.
Yeah I kinda thought It would be a cool idea so I just wrote whatever came to my mind. I also changed the story about ainz having world items. he only has two items now.
His own wci and [incubator]. now he only has one wci as he has already used [Incubator]. the rest are in nazarick. Ignore my comment saying otherwise.
The reason subaru thought that he couldn't defeat Ainz was because he couldn't even kill Azathoth without it letting him. and that same Azathoth called Ainz his master. Yeah he wasn't going to take any chances.
Also the Azathoth Subaru faced was only level 90 which is even weaker than a [Dark Young]. This was because it was a summon. The real azathoth is a raid boss. All of which are above level 100. Everything subaru has gone through didn't make him more stronger than cthulhu mythos. He just has pure energy he doesn't have a clue about what to do it. he can't even explode himself. The Energy must first be controlled. So yeah this is just base subaru with nigh limitless potential.
I will try to avoid posting author's notes as they increase the word count which can be misleading for those who want to binge read. Any and all criticism are accepted and will be worked upon as long as there aren't too many of them. criticism should be about spellings, world building and other things such as plotholes.
For masked keeper:
subaru hates ainz. but he also hates himself. thus ainz and subaru are one