Volume 2: Prologue

A/N: To clarify some things before Volume 2 starts.

Haruchai: That last scene was not to say Ainz could cast spells intuitively, I merely didn't want to drag the scene on. Also, for your earlier comment. In theory, Ainz could do as you said and take rings and combine them. However, The ring that Ainz would be doing this to would have to be made of really high-class materials to store the data of both rings.

More clarification on leveling for Ainz: Although Ainz can gain levels through killing enemies, he still needs to assign those levels. In practice, the power of souls talent removes Ainz' level cap and gives him easily accessible potential.

Part 1

"-But how does one gain a true understanding of magic? the answer can be found through the use of the functions seen in your textbooks". An elderly man in robes said to his class of students.

"Be aware that the list of functions you're seeing in your textbooks is incomplete. There are many which are undiscovered; or perhaps, yet to be made, and of course, it is fine if you cannot understand these functions yet. But it is expected that by the final exams of this class you can fully comprehend and explain these functions. If you cannot, then you fail". The man said as he got out of his seat and approached the magic chalkboard in front of the class. As he did so, the class of twenty all brought their quills to their books attentively.

"But to have a full understanding of these functions, one must take a step back and better understand the structure of magic itself. For this class, we shall discuss a topic that is as much philosophy as it is magical studies". As the wizened man spoke, some of the occupants of the room let out sighs of exhaustion. It was clear that the students in the room were tired of discussing theory.

"Quiet, all of you". The old man spoke with a hint of anger creeping into his voice. Upon the succinct death of all sounds in the room, the teacher continued his lesson, beginning to draw three intertwined trees.

"This is some of what little knowledge we have left from when the Greed Kings ruled the continent. Needless to say the insight this theory provides is priceless". Most in the room after hearing this gave their full attention to the front of the class. But for one student in the room, to say that he was giving his full attention would be an understatement.

"Before I begin, be aware that I am not referring to the structure of mana. Such a topic is beyond not only me but to magic casters as a whole. There are many theories, but to the best of the academy's knowledge, mana itself is a form of pure natural energy that souls, whether it be the corrupted soul of the undead or the purest of angels, can manipulate. A non-answer, I know. However, that is all that is provable. But that is not the topic of today's lecture".

Continuing his sketching on the whiteboard the only sound which could be heard in the room was the slight hum of the teacher's marker and the furious scribbling of the students. As the teacher was putting the finishing touches on his diagram, he continued his long-practiced speech.

"This is the tree of all tier magic, a theoretical tree that, if it was perfect, would contain every single spell that exists. Whether it be Arcane, Divine, or spiritual. Of course, the idea of making a complete tree would be utter madness, although attempts have been made. But we are not even discussing the tree itself, rather its structure".

"As you can see," the teacher said while pointing to the arcane tree. "The most basic of arcane magic, the so-called lifestyle magic, would be in the trunk itself, and as one progressively increases their distance to the trees, the tier of magic that spell belongs to increases. Next year, in Arcane-Magic 103, if you choose to go down that path, we will use this diagram to explore the potential setbacks one can face if one takes the wrong route up the tree. But that is for next year. For now, let us look deeper".

"This initial theory leaves many questions unanswered. Firstly one might think that this is merely a way of organizing spells into an easily viewable graph, but that would be wrong. As I said at the beginning of this explanation, this graph describes the structure of all magic. One cannot get to the leaves of this tree without first climbing its branches. However, there are still many mysteries in this process. For one, what are the "branches" of this tree made of? What do the intersections of branches mean? In short, what makes one able to move on to the second tier of magic? And why are some stuck in place at their current height? One might think the answer is simply that the wizard in question who is stuck simply lacks the understanding to move on. Still, in some individuals, this is not the case, and that is putting aside the existence of sorcerers, what makes them able to climb the tree is a total mystery, oftentimes, even to the sorcerer themselves"...

'My god, how long is he going to go on?' Ainz thought to himself as his attention started to slide from the lesson in front of him into the recesses of his mind. 'Although to someone who has heard of Yggdrasil, I guess it wouldn't be obvious to them…'

"-one theory says that the branches of the tree are made of ones very soul-" Ainz heard as his attention leaped back to the class. But that would only last for so long until he started to zone out again.

'What was it he said about next year's class? Setbacks if one takes the wrong path? I guess he's talking about making an optimized build, but he's talking about it so strangely'.

"But let us move on from theory, let us discuss how this relates to the functions in your textbooks. So far, we have discussed the structure of the tree itself, but what of the leaves? To answer that question, you need to look no further than your books. Those functions could be described as the fundamental principles of your spells. The building blocks, so to say". The teacher spoke as he moved to the other side of the magical chalkboard and began drawing a leaf divided into two sections.

"This leaf describes the structure of the message spell. The core function spreads one's mana thin to search for one's target. The other-"

'Blah blah blah, I just don't care…' Ainz thought in melancholy, remembering his previous failure of trying to contact Nazarick. Ainz had tried to contact everyone and anyone, his guildmates, the maids, the guardians, the librarians, and even the head chef. Yet none had received his messages.

'Maybe I was wrong about the crystal princess' knights being NPC's? Maybe Nazarick is somewhere out there, just unguarded… No, I was there damnit!...' With an internal sigh, Ainz continued in his mind. 'Hold on… Maybe they were reincarnated just like me? But surely I'd hear about such a motley crew by now. I mean, they were all designed to be evil in one way or another except for a select few, and my name is a dead giveaway I'm associated with the guild…'

"Your Highness," The teacher spoke loudly to get Ainz' attention. "Since you seem to be daydreaming, maybe you could enlighten the class on how one casts the message spell, taking into account the basic functions of the spell?"

Hearing their teacher's jab, some students snickered quietly, however, their laughter died down after only a few seconds, prompting Ainz to give his answer. "First, you use the core function to create a bubble of thin rapidly expanding mana. Once you're able to sense contact with the recipient, you then use the auxiliary function to open a telepathic link".

With the silence of the room only lasting for a few moments, the teacher continued. "Very good, moving on…"

Intermission

In the midst of twilight, in a peaceful clearing in the forest, the only sounds that resided there were the drone-like clicking of cicadas, and the gentle trickle of a nearby stream. The atmosphere which presided there had long been known as a peaceful place, a place said to be blessed by the god of earth herself. But something was wrong, usually, woodland animals like deer could be regularly seen in this forest, yet today, something was keeping them away.

"GAAAH!" a shrill scream came from the north, as the sound of rustling branches followed.

"Come back here, you abomination!" a male voice shouted as a ray of holy light shot past his target, hitting a tree and causing the smell of burning wood to fill the area.

"Make me! Hahaha!" Aisul shouted in glee before his emotional suppressor caught up to him.

'Alright, today's search is over, that much is obvious… I should just teleport back to base…'

"How dare you fowl this holy place with your presence!"

"What makes this place so holy? Just looks like trees to me, hahaha!"

"Damn you!" The priest shouted in vain as Aisul cast his magic, returning him to his temporary home that was much similar to his previous one, with one major exception.

"Well…" Aisul spoke aloud to the cave, causing the echoes of his gnashing voice to reach his ears. "It's not much, but at least it's not covered in rubble".

As Aisul spoke to himself he walked to the table like slab of rock he had discovered in his home. Reaching the smooth stone, Aisul retrieved his map from his new robe and placed it on his only piece of furniture. As he did so, the map covered with the scribbles of his investigations unfurled before him.

'There's not much left… is there?' Aisul thought as he sunk deep into contemplation.

Ever since he had returned to the world of the living, Aisul had begun his search. He started by retracing his past, yet there was no deviation from then, and once more his trails ended, just as they did before.

'I'll get nowhere doing the same thing over and over again… I need to rethink my methods.' Aisul thought as he recalled his past vicariously through the map.

'I've traversed just about the entire border at this point… Unless I've missed something, they have to be either deeper within the Theocracy's borders, or not here at all… But how do I sneak into the major cities? All of them have security, and no doubt they'll cast detect undeath on me…' But as Aisul continued his thoughts, a brilliant idea struck him.

"Kaha-Hahaha-Hahahahaha!" Aisul laughed in twisted mania.

'Kukuku, to think that I'd be traveling back to the Baharuth Empire so soon.'

Part 2

As the constant drone of the lunch room filled Ainz' ears, he could not help but to drone out in thought, letting the continuous noise disappear from his mind.

'Why was I so excited to come here again?' Ainz thought as he took a bite from his apple-like fruit that tasted strangely sweet.

'I mean, maybe I should have followed father's advice and waited til I was older,' Ainz continued, noting some stares he was receiving from the other tables.

'What is this leading to, though?' Ainz asked himself. '...Well, I've made many plans, but all of them depend on me being strong, and at this rate, I'll be strong in… 3 years? Hell, maybe even longer! Also, I don't know how willing father would be to just let me adventure the continent, even saying what he said… It's obvious he's setting me up to be some kind of Bijin Emperor, would he really just let me make a team and go?'

"Your highness?" Firanne asked in an innocent voice before continuing. "Is something the matter? You look upset".

"I'm fine, just a little bored," Ainz quickly replied, seeing as the entire table's attention was now on him.

"Bored?" Gida asked. "That reminds me, how did you know the correct answer to Mr. Ilvalore's question? He picked you to answer because you weren't paying attention, right?"

Hearing Gida speak, everyone at the table and an additional few who were listening in had their attention glued to Ainz. Many at the school had wondered how someone so young gained admittance to the Imperial Magic Academy, even if he is the first prince. Many thought that someone as young as Ainz had no place at the Academy, but those were the people who didn't know him.

"I already know the message spell, that's how," Ainz replied matter of factly, bringing silence to the area.

"I see," Gida said slowly while taking another bite of food.

"Really?" Frianne asked before quickly continuing. "How long ago did you learn it? Did you learn from Fluder-sama?"

"No, I had a magic tutor before I came here, he learned from Fluder, though".

"But when did you learn it?" Frianne quickly followed up, not allowing Ainz to simply sweep the subject under the rug.

"It's been about a year at this point, I also know some other second-tier spells…"

"That's incredible!" Frianne spoke enthusiastically before following up on her words. "People call me a prodigy and I only know one second-tier spell. Have you considered signing up for the student council? I'm sure you'd do well".

"No thanks," Ainz said while taking another bite of his food.

"Why not?" Frianne surprisedly asked before clarifying her question. "Imagine the connections you'd make, let alone the influence it would afford you in the school. Are you saying that it doesn't interest you at all, your highness?"

"Not really," Ainz replied before asking a question of his own. "You seem surprised, why would joining it be such a good thing?"

"Well, there's a long history of great noblemen and women being members of the student council throughout time, I'd like to be recognized as one of those great people. I don't know about you, however," Frianne said while hiding her devilish grin behind her hand.

With the atmosphere of the table quickly turning cold and lifeless, Ainz was left to make his response. In all honesty, Ainz was a little impressed at how petty a single person could be, but another part of him knew that he couldn't let her slight go by like it never happened.

Before Ainz could reply, however, Terrin, someone who Ainz considered to be a friend, came to his defense. "Frianne, could you save your pettiness for some other time?"

"It's fine," Ainz said, causing the table's attention to turn to him once more. "I mean, to the uninformed, I might seem to lack ambition. But have you seen those horseless wagons that have started making deliveries around the city?"

To Ainz' question, Frianne nodded, prompting Ainz to continue. "I made those, you know. I suppose I had the help of Elias as well, so it wasn't completely me, but I am the one who made the design. So to answer your question, I already have connections, and I don't plan on spending my entire life in this school, so having an influence here doesn't interest me".

"I… I see," Frianne spoke hesitantly, realizing that her attempt to one-up Ainz had failed.

"You made those? How come you never told any of us?" Terrin asked while grinning widely.

"Well, I'm yet to make a version I'm happy with, so at the moment they're not all that impressive. But I'm thinking that if I could harness the power of Magi-Quartz, I could make a wagon that goes much further than a single circle around the city."

"Magi-Quartz!" Ronald shouted before calming himself. "That does not sound very safe to me, your highness…"

"I'm aware," Ainz said with a large grin forming on his face. "As dangerous as it might be, it would be the only way to make a wagon that could traverse the Katze plains to the draconic kingdom on a single charge. Unless you're a magic caster capable of recharging the wagon every time it runs out of mana".

"But… Aren't you still putting a bomb next to the driver and the cargo?" Terrin asked.

"Yeah, I was thinking of just encasing it in a metal box. Or maybe two. The real problem I'm having is finding a material that could carry mana away from the Magi-Quartz. If I could do that, then the sky's the limit".

"Hmm… I might have an idea," Dimoya spoke up for the first time since Ainz had met her. "I hear that if you store low-quality Magi-Quartz next to and touching high-quality Magi-Quartz, the two will even out their charges, creating two pieces of medium-quality Magi-Quartz. So maybe Magi-Quartz itself is the material you're looking for?"

For a moment, Ainz sat silent, taking in the suggestion he heard, and the potential ways he could utilize Magi-Quartz if such a thing were true. But a few things made Ainz believe that even if Magi-Quartz did function in such a way, it still wouldn't help him.

"That sounds like it might work, but if it wasn't dangerous before it would be then. That would also involve me trying to shape Quartz, and I assume that wouldn't be easy…"

'Wait,' Ainz thought to himself. 'What if I didn't need to shape it by hand?'

"Dimoya, who's the best alchemist you know?" Ainz asked.

"Ah, well…" Dimoya fidgeted for a moment before finally giving her reply. "I don't know any personally, but I hear the owner of The Golden Cauldron is good".

"That place is nothing special," Terrin said while quickly eating the final few bites of his food. "To be honest, your highness. There aren't many good alchemists here in the Empire. The best I know of is in the Kingdom, I think her name is Lizzie Bareare, why do you ask?"

"I'll tell you later, I think lunch is almost over," Ainz said as the afternoon bell rang, marking the end of the lunch period.