16/02/2021: Minor changes in dialogue for future purposes
A/N: Thank you Razel-Treasure, Bill L, and Sync24 for beta-ing the chapter!
Collection of Ashurbanipal
Volume XLI: Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons, A Myth
Chapter VII - White Knight
The tale of the slain Dragon was spread far and wide all across the mortal realms and everyone rejoiced for the undefeated monster was no more.
All but one.
The White Knight that the Dragon battled with in the hunt.
Even though he was the strongest amongst mortals, his allegiance did not lie solely with them, and so he found it incredibly unfair for the Dragon.
"How shameful," he said to the humans, "For you to celebrate as if you won a war, when you just defeated a weak dragon."
How cruel were the hearts of Man.
No one, even him, he acknowledged, would be able to survive that kind of ambush. Their attack was designed to tire out the opponent by swarming it in large numbers.
That was why he went on a personal quest.
He learned that the Dragon was still alive, even if her physical form had been destroyed.
Bearing to force the full might of his body and experience, he travelled all across the Nine Realms, searching for the pieces of her soul that had been scattered.
Small golden orbs of light, slightly flickering like an ember in a fireplace, hidden throughout the countless secret dens of the World Tree.
It was like searching for a needle in an ocean of sand.
After many years, he finally achieved the impossible.
He had scoured the frozen tundras of Niflheim, climbed down the caves to Muspelheim, contested with the arrogant giants of Jotunheim, and ultimately managed to find all the pieces of her soul.
However, the Dragon no longer had a physical body of her own.
And so, there was only one person available for him to consult. An old friend.
The Overlord of Death himself.
Chapter 25: Guardian of Nazarick
Since the dawn of time, monsters had always been hunting humans. With their skills and thirst for blood, the weak humans had always been the victim: food that was readily available for the monsters to feast on.
Not elves, not demi-humans, not lizard-men, but humans.
That is why they needed warriors, saviours and heroes who could rid them of these monsters.
It was said that a long time ago, one man had accidentally killed a beast on his own, gaining skills that only species other than humans could achieve.
The very first human swordsman.
He taught his skills to several disciples, and to suit each person's skills and capabilities, he had changed the skills in accordance to the person he taught, creating derivatives of his skills which brought out the latent talent of countless others.
Before long, the humans could finally carve out a small corner of the world for themselves.
However, not everyone had access to these talents, causing the gifted ones to create a group of people who would eradicate monsters for a price.
They were called Workers.
At first, the payment for eradicating monsters was low, but when the Workers realized that there were stronger monsters out there, they knew that their job was much more dangerous than they first believed. Their fear grew even further as they realized that their numbers were slowly diminishing over time.
When the Workers raised their prices because of these unknown factors, the people had agreed. Afterall, providing their services in exchange for money was profitable to both parties involved.
With more money in their coffers, it would be easier for the Workers to improve their gear. More money meant better armor and better weapons to protect their patrons.
In a few decades, the Workershad made a name for themselves. Hailed by the people as their protectors, their saviours, their heroes.
However, they grew arrogant, corrupt, and cruel. They began requesting more money than the people could ever afford and eventually, only high-paying clients such as nobles could afford their services.
The nobles would stay at their home, safe and protected, while the small people would be easily killed at a moment's notice.
The 'Heroes' had abandoned their own kind.
Unable to close their eyes at this unfair treatment, a group of Workers decided to create a structured system where there would be no more corruption, no more unfair treatment, and most importantly, so that the people would once again be safe and protected.
They call themselves Adventurers. Establishing the Adventurers' Guild for Workers to join in as long as they abided by the rules of the guild.
The Guild created a safe environment for the Adventurers to work in by reviewing the client's request before sending people of suitable strength to solve it. As a result, casualties decreased and the number of Adventurers increased.
As Adventurers grew in number, so did the people's trust in them. In each instance, they strove to ensure that each client was treated fairly and respectfully.
Soon enough, the number of Workers dwindled as many of them decided to become Adventurers instead.
However, there remained a number of Workers who stuck to their roots, and as a result, ended up competing with Adventurers for jobs.
The Workers called the Adventurers, Guildies. Glorified Errand Boys who only took orders from their so-called Guild Master, taking safe quests without risking their lives.
Adventurers called their counterpart Goldhounds, for they only worked if there was gold involved. Just like a dog with its tongue out, their disgusting saliva dirtied the ground in their wake, leaving their filthy trails for all to see.
The people had the Adventurers to protect them.
While the nobles had the Workers do their dirty work.
That was why most Workers and Adventurers didn't care about the rivalry, as long as both parties got the job done.
And that was the cold reality of it.
(o´・ε・`o)
One week ago…
She woke up surrounded in complete darkness.
The air felt different. She couldn't put her finger on it, but something in the atmosphere felt foul.
At that moment, it occurred to her that the smell of dirt she was so accustomed to was gone, and there were no sounds of people yelling on the street markets either.
Nothing but eerie silence.
She sat up from her prone position and looked around.
The girl suddenly realized that she was surrounded by three dark walls. The only source of light that had come to greet her was on the other wall that was similar to a prison cage.
She stared at the metal bars, shiny and strong.
However, it was the monster on the other side of the bars that caught her attention.
"My my, we have another one~?"
A flabby gray aberration with countless tentacles sprouting from its head filled her vision. It was wearing a bizarre outfit made of black leather that revealed far too much of its body.
As soon as her eyes fully grasped what she had seen, her body trembled as the wicked draft of the freezing room crawled up her skin.
The temperature had nothing to do with her trembling though.
She looked around the massive room she was in,
A peasant like her had never been in such a bizarre room. The lack of windows didn't allow it to tell her just how much time had passed, or even if it was night or day.
The sound of whimpers rose behind her and the woman whipped her head around.
She widened her eyes; she knew these people.
The florist's daughter.
The blacksmith's apprentice.
The son of the adventurer.
Even the beggar near the bakery.
People whom she often passed by, as she was too shy to greet them and looked at them properly.
Their bodies were littered with bruises, and their clothes were ripped beyond compare.
They were crammed so tight inside the small prison that they were constantly touching one another, each trying their best to forget the pain.
But as soon as these people had seen the monster in front of her, they had scrambled to the back wall of the prison, straying as far as they could from the monster in front of her.
"Ara, are you shy my dears? Didn't I show you enough love last time~?" the monster asked, caressing the metal bar with her weirdly pinkish nails.
She trembled in fear as the monster walked closer.
"Death Knight, take this one to my room."
The woman heard the heavy clanking of metal from around the corridor.
For some reason, the sound filled her with dread.
The sound grew closer and closer, until she finally saw it.
A giant knight outfitted in a set of armor completely covered in spikes. In place of a face was a malevolent skull with eyes gleaming in fury, No matter how she looked at it, that...that thing was no knight.
It was a Butcherer.
Suddenly she had heard the sound of hysterical crying and screaming sobs only interrupted by the person's need to draw breath. A primal sound that no one could ignore.
The sound had came from her.
She tried to stand up in an attempt to run away, grabbing onto the wall to support her body, only to fall down with a slump. The woman fell onto her bottom and tried to scoot to the back end of the room, grabbing onto her dress to calm her violently shaking hands.
But everything she did was useless.
"Oh my goodness dear. We really do have to hurry up, you know? There are still a lot more people who need to sing~" the monster opened the cage-like door to the room and advanced towards her.
The woman couldn't stop shaking.
"Don't be too scared now~! I usually prefer men, but I promise to pleasure you to the best of my abilities~"
"P-Please...please don't do this…"
"Nonsense! You trespassed onto the territory of the Supreme Beings, so the only fate waiting for you is a painful death~! Anyways," the monstrosity beckoned for the Butcherer behind her, "Death Knight, take her to the room~"
The armored corpse took a step towards her.
She scooted back an inch, her eyes red with tears and fear.
It grabbed her by the scruff of her clothes and lifted her up, taking her out of the room.
"N-NO! S-Someone! Help, PLEASE!" the woman futilely flailed in the Death Knight's iron grip.
She looked back at the people huddling at the back of the room, her eyes tearing up and her throat hoarse as she begged for help. The tears burst like water from a dam, spilling all over her face.
But eventually only a single lone tear traced down her cheek once they looked away.
Her eyes widened at the realization, and a small part of her died inside.
"W-Why…" she asked, still thrashing against the armored corpse's hold.
"WHYWHYWHYWHYWHY?! HELP ME!" she pleaded.
But none of them listened.
She opened her mouth, but not a single sound came out. Her entire body violently quivered as the rest of them pretended like they had seen nothing; they had lost all hope for salvation.
"Let's get going now dearie~" the tentacled horror sashayed off towards a room at the end of the corridor, the Death Knight following with the woman in its grip.
"Here we are~" the monster stopped before a door of cold iron and opened it.
The woman was greeted by the sight of countless bizarre instruments, causing fear to grow in her heart as a shiver ran down her spine.
"Oh~? You're interested in my instruments? Which one do you like? This one could cut off your skin so thinly, even thinner than your hair, but the pain is exquisite, especially if I cut off the same place over and over and over again. Perhaps this? This is one of my favorite tools; I can cleanly rip off your nails one by one. Or perhaps," the monster's face morphed into a grotesque grin, "You want my body to do it for you~?"
A sudden glint entered her eyes as she realized the purpose of the room.
"Ara! It looks like now you know why you're here dearie~!" the monster cheerfully clapped its hands together. "I promise you I'll make you sing so much more beautifully than the previous ones. Afterall, your throat is the best instrument and your screams will be the finest music to my ears~"
"N-no, pl-please don't do this…"
"Close the doors," the gray horror looked at the Death Knight, "And go guard the prisoners."
The Death Knight obediently shut the door behind itself as it exited the room.
"Now, shall we get started~?"
The rest of the prisoners had flinched when they heard the screams of agony that filled the corridors of the Frozen Prison. Her scream layered on top of each other as they relived their own experiences.
A gruesome chorus of pain.
But to Neuronist, it was the most beautiful song she had ever heard.
(o´・ε・`o)
Ainz looked at the scroll with the inscribed spell that he had created.
He looked around him to behold the fruits of his labor. Although the Arena of the Sixth Floor seemed perfectly normal at first glance, he had imbued his surroundings with a number of enchantments that he himself had created.
Spells that he had made.
Only his emotional suppression kept him from breaking out into a large smile every few seconds. That, and his skeletal features.
The sheer number of applications this knowledge had was astounding to say the least. Just in one day at the arena, he had already fortified the place to slightly buff the defense, agility, and offensive prowess of allies within the area.
Best of all, the passive enchantments were permanent. There were very few spells in YGGDRASIL that were capable of enchanting an area for eternity.
And all it cost him was a little bit more mana and a few gems as regents.
He could create his own buffs, debuffs, attacks, defences. Hell, he could even simulate spells from foreign branches of magic.
There were no job or racial limitations that could hold him back from what was essentially unlimited power.
A Ding! echoed in his skull.
He had never opened his status screen so quickly.
『STATUS:
Momonga, Guildmaster of Ainz Ooal Gown
Level: 101 (2560/999999)
HP: 60
MP: Exceeds Limits
PHY. ATK: 35
PHY. DEF: 70
Agility: 40
MAG. ATK: 90
MAG. DEF: 95
Resistance: 95
Special : 100
Total: 685+
You have acquired the『Spellcrafter』class.
Congratulations, you have acquired three new skills!
『Mind's Well』
Allows access to l̸͎̊͛̎̽̆į̸̞̲̭͖͔̲̳̘͂b̴̘̜̯̝̘͎͆̏̿͂̓̄̌̏͝ŗ̶̧̩̮̭̼̲͂̆̈́͝a̴̡͇̗̙͊̔r̴̦̟̘̺̾̿̿̈́͝ͅi̶̭͎̦͈̰͈͌̿͗̚͠e̷̯̩̭̺̩̫̼͍͚͚͂̒̏̍͛͗̽̔̔́̚s̶̙̺̅͘ that the crafter has met the requisites for.
『Inscription Proficiency』
Increase in success rate when performing an inscription-based activity. Bonus increase when inscribing a spell onto a scroll or another magical focus.
『Quick-Cast』
When casting a spell that the crafter themself has created, they may ignore any start-up time for casting. This skill can be used twice an hour.
Cannot be applied to ritual based spells and Super-Tier Spells™. 』
Ainz stood stock-still in dumb excitement.
All of a sudden, he began whooping out loud.
One of Tia's baby dragons sleepily opened its eyes to the sight of a dancing skeleton in the middle of the arena.
"Rawr?" it flew over to his Mooma's friend, curious as to why he was dancing.
"Oh, umu, ahem," Ainz quickly stopped his private celebration and cleared his throat in an attempt to cover up his previous cheer; all while his suppression worked to push down his embarrassment and lingering happiness.
If the dragonling told Tia what it saw, she would never let Ainz live it down.
Thankfully, the twins were not there to witness his undignified behavior, as they had gone outside to do their assigned jobs.
"Raawwwr?" the dragonling started flying around his head, still intrigued by his previous behavior.
"A-Anyways, I will now head back to my office," Ainz straightened his back, taking on the persona of the almighty guildmaster once again as he prepared to teleport back to his work, "By the way," he looked up at the dragonling.
"I would greatly appreciate it if you did not tell your mother about this."
"Rawr."
With a quiet sigh, Ainz activated his ring and the surroundings warped from the Colosseum to the purple office he was so familiar with.
"Welcome back, Ainz-sama," Albedo bowed as soon as she felt his presence.
"Albedo," he greeted, making his way to his chair before taking a look at the paperwork for the day.
It was great that the stacks of paper on his table had been slowly receding after a few days of working from sunrise to sunrise. But somehow new paperwork kept on making its way to his table while Tiamat's table was clean and empty.
Speaking about that Dumb Dragon, he had ordered one of the Eight Edged Assassins to stay with her at all times, but he had also ordered a dozen more to stand in reserve just in case something happened.
Even still, he didn't feel completely comfortable with Tia going into unknown territory.
"Ainz-sama," Albedo began, pulling him out of his thoughts, "Here is the paperwork for today. The most urgent pieces are the reports from Neuronist Painkill regarding the intruders at the second base Cocytus and Aura had built."
"Tell me about the intruders," Ainz requested of the Guardian Overseer. He found it easier to listen to the reports from Albedo than reading a dry ten pages.
"As per your order, we have set a teleportation trap at the door so people who enter the base will be teleported to Neuronist's dungeon. In just five days, there have been a total of twenty-four people who had infiltrated the building."
"That's a lot. Who are they?" Ainz's voice grew heavy.
"After Neuronist had interrogated all of them, she had found that all of them were just civilians who were under a second-tier『Charm』. However, the intruders don't know who or why they were being sent there."
"That's problematic," Ainz commented.
It seemed that the perpetrators knew what they were doing. They were sending scouts to look at the place, but instead of sending their soldiers or hiring some adventurers, they chose to charm some innocent civilians instead?
After a few moments of pondering, a bolt of realization struck Ainz.
The people in the dungeon were bait.
And they were being dangled in front of him to see whether or not he would bite it.
"What is the state of the intruders?" Ainz hastily asked.
"For now, they are still suffering from Neuronist's usual procedure for intruders since we haven't sent Pestonya to heal them, but they are alive and imprisoned in the Frozen Prison, Ainz-sama."
Ainz would have seethed in rage if he didn't have his emotional suppressor.
His opponents were not only distasteful, they were cowards of the highest degree.
Instead of just confronting him straight on, they sat in the background and forced innocents to do their dirty work.
Ainz was reminded of his boss who forced his workers to take on his responsibilities while he reaped all the benefits.
Despicable.
"If Neuronist finds out who is behind this, mark them as the highest level of threat against Nazarick."
Albedo widened her eyes.
To be evaluated as the greatest of dangers against Nazarick was almost unheard of.
The last time in living memory she could recall such a crisis being declared was when the Grand Alliance was at their doorsteps. If Ainz-sama was treating this new enemy as a disaster of the same caliber…
Then she pitied the poor fools who thought they could stand against Ainz Ooal Gown without paying the ultimate price.
"It will be as you will," she swiftly replied.
"Moreover, Albedo," Ainz picked up the next report on the stack, "About this report—"
The familiar beep of 『Message』interrupted him.
Ainz sighed; no wonder he never finished his paperwork.
[Ainz-sama,]
[What is it, Narberal?]
[The insects at the Adventurer's Guild want to see you, Ainz-sama] Naberal reported.
[I see. I'll be at the hotel room soon.]
[Understood.]
(o´・ε・`o)
He swung his sword in a wide horizontal arc, the bodies of the intruders parting like butter around a hot knife. Even as his enemies sunk to the grassy floor of the forest and choked on their blood, none of them had dirtied his midnight-dark armor.
Ainz casually dodged a punch from behind. He quickly spun around and with a speed that his enemies couldn't comprehend; he slammed his two greatswords into both of his assailants simultaneously.
Stars burned in their vision as they were thrown far across the clearing. One of them tried to stand up and delivered a sloppy kick towards the Dark Warrior's female companion.
She easily stepped back and evaded the kick before dashing towards him then slammed her palm on his chest and a fierce bolt of electricity burned through his entire body, causing him to lose his vision and slump down on the ground.
Another man who had been hiding in one of the shrubs threw his body weight at the female mage, startling her before she quickly recovered and brought her knee cap to his nose.
Ainz heard the blunt crack and ran towards Narberal to help. Blood was leaking from the man's nostrils as his nose was twisted unnaturally to the right. Somehow, the man managed to stand back up in an unsteady fighting position.
He pulled his fist back again and threw another punch, but before it could touch Narberal, Ainz blocked it with his sword and ploughed through his stomach.
For the man, the hit was equivalent to a full speed carriage rushing into him head on. His guts turned into liquid and his blood vessels burst. Before long, he had fallen on the ground, his chest that had gently rising and sinking with each shallow breath before it stopped forever.
"Momon-sa—n," Narberal stuttered— Ainz's request slightly slipping from her memory— as she looked at one of the groups who managed to use the others as a distraction to sneak past the duo and into their decoy Nazarick base.
As Narberal was about to run to catch them, Ainz blocked her way with his hand, slightly shaking his head as he let them run inside the building.
"Leave them be," he said to Narberal, and she complied.
There was no escape once the intruders had entered the building. A teleportation trap that Ainz himself had crafted during his time earlier in the Arena was installed just past the door. The trap would differentiate between allies and enemies, forcibly transporting the latter to Neuronist's dungeon.
Despite the efficiency of the trap he himself had designed, Ainz let out a heavy sigh.
'It's been weeks now…' he huffed his breath, half-pretending that the people were tiring him so they would come at him. 'And these people are still coming in.'
A week ago he had received an Adamantite quest from the guild regarding the sudden disappearance of people in E-Rantel.
At first they were going to give the quest to Hannah Annafelowz, the Silver Priestess; however, she was such a highly requested adventurer that the guild reasoned that she might not have enough time for such a quest, especially when a noble had just come in to request that she personally purify one of his mines.
Because of the urgency of the quest, they were left with no choice but to give it to Dark Warrior Momon instead.
There were a total of twenty-four people who had disappeared.
The number of people who had disappeared and the number of intruders who had recently entered Nazarick's second base matched, and Ainz knew this was no coincidence.
Promising that he wouldn't return to E-Rantel until all the missing people were found, he left the city, posting Narberal at the hotel with the order to keep her ears open just in case there was more information that she could gather.
Once he had returned to Nazarick, he wasted no time and immediately teleported himself to the Fifth Floor where all the intruders were being kept.
The sight was something he would never forget.
All of the intruders had their hands and legs bound by large padlocks. Every single one of the twenty-four were slumped down on the floor of the prison, liveless and utterly defeated.
Their eyes held not the light of someone who lived; even though they were open, they had looked lifeless, dead.
Neuronist's torture had broken them, completely and utterly.
Well, that was to be expected, considering just how harsh he had configured Neuronist's character.
He immediately took an entire day to personally remove their memories with『Control Amnesia』, keeping Pestonya on call to supply him with mana and heal the intruders' injuries.
Ainz had taken special care to edit out all thoughts of their torture. Despite his Undead nature severely repressing his already dulled empathy, something in their gazes reminded him far too much of how Tia, no, Hannah, looked during some of the bakery meetups when she thought no one was watching.
And so he expunged all recollections of their time in the dungeon.
After he had done that and took a few hours to very carefully plan his next moves, he had decided that his plan was perfect enough so that no one would question how he found them all, and Momon's name would be hailed once again for making the impossible, possible.
But that was a week ago.
Apparently, after that Adamantite quest, people were now aware of the existence of Nazarick's second base in the forest. As a result, workers had been coming in from all around the place, causing an increase in prisoners in Nazarick and more problems for him to handle.
He had no choice but to eradicate them all using his Adventurer persona, especially when another Adamantite quest had landed on him to investigate the place while Tiamat was away.
"We arrived here first, you Guildies! Back-off!" one of them shouted as they saw that two of their partners had been downed in an instant.
"I don't think I can do that. I have already received a quest to investigate this place."
"Fucking Guildies I swear," the man whispered but Ainz had caught that, "We were here first, so we have first pick over this place!"
"There is no such rule. Who are you people anyways?"
"We are Roaring Azure, you goddamn guildie."
"Ah, so you all are the goldhounds I've been hearing so much about," Ainz casually stated.
Ainz never knew that Workers could be so hostile.
"Goldhounds? GOLDHOUNDS? HOW DARE YOU!"
"Hm?" Ainz knelt down and rested his greatswords on the ground; he had a feeling that the man was going to blubber something stupid instead of just attacking him.
"You're just some meddling cunts who need permission to do anythi—"
His speech was stopped by Narberal who electrocuted him.
"I apologize, Momon-sa—n," Narberal bowed as the man crumpled to the ground, clearly dead. "He was being disrespectful to you so I—"
Ainz sighed, "It's alright, Nabe. Anyways…" he looked down at the dead body and back at the corpse's teammates who all took a step back in fear
All except for the one he presumed was the healer of the group who proceeded to heal the blabbermouth guy.
"You should have said that from the beginning instead of attacking me out of the blue."
"Kkh, y-you were the ones who stepped in where you don't belong."
"I don't think this conversation will get anywhere, so let's make a deal instead."
"What kind of deal?"
"You can claim this place if you want. After all this is something that no one has ever seen before," Ainz said, "Whatever you take, I get the rest. How does that sound?"
"Then what if we take everything?"
"Well, you can do that too. All I needed to do was to investigate the place in accordance to what the quest has asked of me."
"Hmph, just stay out of the way then, Adventurer," the man began to sneer before his remaining companion jabbed him in the stomach.
"Pst! Dumbass, he just beat the shit out of all of us! Are you really going to talk back to him when he's going to let us loot the place?" the companion hissed.
At the companion's statement, Ainz's blood boiled in fury.
'You? Rob OUR home? You're not going to come out alive.'
"In that case, please go on ahead," Ainz stiffly gestured towards the entrance to the decoy Nazarick, his emotional suppression barely holding down his rage.
The leader gave Ainz a dirty look before he passed through the entrance
"Fucking guildie, thinking he's so high and mighty," the companion scoffed as he followed his leader.
Once the two had passed through the door, Ainz promised himself that they would not see the light of day ever again.
(o´・ε・`o)
Tiamat was sitting on the left windowsill with her staff on her lap.
It had been hours since they left the village to continue on to the Capital. One soldier had kindly kept her company the whole journey as he told her stories of his life, and she listened to the soldier's story intently with a smile on her face.
Gazef, who had positioned himself at her right window sill, was taking note of his surroundings for anything out of place, but he couldn't help but to eavesdrop on their conversation. He knew that she didn't need his powers or protection, but she was far too trusting of strangers: a worry that grew greater, especially after last night's incident.
If he hadn't been keeping watch over the window, he wouldn't have known that she would have jumped.
Her demeanour exuded the aura of a sheltered Princess or a Noble's Daughter, but when Gazef saw her jump out of that window with precision and agility, he knew his first impression was wrong.
He almost smirked a little at the memory of her in just a night gown and a simple cloak, opening up the window and jumping without a care in the world. Her face didn't even register that she could get attacked in unknown territory.
Well, at least he knew she was capable enough to protect herself without him around.
The windows of the carriage were wide open, letting fresh air sweep through it. Usually, the light of the evening sun would be reflected on the glass windows and he or his soldiers wouldn't be able to see inside the carriage at all. Yet, the Priestess was letting him and his soldiers see the interior of the carriage and her by extension.
It was a privilege that the nobles wouldn't even give to their closest soldier.
As they travelled along the road, she had listened to a fair share of his men's stories and responded with the same level of enthusiasm.
"That's how I knew I made a horrible mistake!" one of his men said while flailing one of his arms, as the other was clutching the reins of his horse.
Embarrassment warred with panic inside Gazef as he fought the urge to just stop his men from talking: especially about that particular story. He looked intently at her but couldn't make out her expression since her head was turned the other way.
"Now I don't know what to do," the same man admitted to the Priestess.
"I agree. No wonder she punched you, I think you deserved it!" she scolded him but her tone was filled with amusement.
He shrugged, "I know, but damn, she was the best fuck of my life. I knew I fell in love with her at that moment," his face was distant, letting her know exactly what he was thinking of.
The warmth in Gazef's chest grew as he watched them talk. Even if his men were speaking of subjects crude and unbefitting of a Lady, she didn't get mad or offended. On the contrary, she was laughing along with them.
"Just tell her the truth, Jacques."
His comrade's eyes widened, staring into brilliant amethyst looking for any sign of dishonesty, but he couldn't find anything but innocence.
'Really,' Gazef sighed. His men should have expected such purity, considering the Priestess's personality.
"You know I can't do that," Jacques's voice came out in a weak whisper.
"Do you have another girl?"
"Of course not, she's my one and only!" he exclaimed proudly, his arms stretching outward dramatically before quickly returning to the horse reins.
"Then I see no reason why you can't tell her that you love her," she smiled as she looked into his downcast eyes, "Do you want to hear a secret?"
"A secret?"
"Yup. Just one teeny tiny secret that will benefit you."
Gazef saw how Jacques's eyes lit up, "And that is?"
"Telling the truth is the most effective strategy against a woman, especially if she feels upset. Lying about it could be an effective strategy, but if she ever finds out, then you better watch out, because she'll be upset about the initial issue and the deception."
His expression suddenly turned serious and he leaned closer to her. "Her birthday is in four days, should I tell her then?"
The Priestess gasped, "That would be perfect!" she gushed, "Have you thought about what to give her for her birthday?"
His face was filled with sadness at the question, "I haven't," he answered with a frown.
The Priestess turned to look at Gazef with wary eyes before she turned back to Jacques and leaned in to whisper loudly in his ears.
Because of her enhanced hearing, even the most minute sounds were amplified. As a result, she thought that no one would be able to hear her whispering since all she could hear was the sound of horses galloping.
"I have something that you could give to her, but you have to promise that this will stay a secret between the two of us."
Gazef had definitely heard that, and he unconsciously leaned towards the pair in curiosity.
Jacques furrowed his eyebrows, "That would depend on what the secret is, because I'm not keeping a secret from my girl."
Tiamat smiled at him, "Trust me, it's nothing life threatening," and after hearing that, Jacques nodded.
Excited, Tiamat rummaged through her inventory to find the little raw sapphire she had swiped in secret from the Marquis's gem mine, and handed it to him.
"P-Priestess-sama...this is—"
"Sshhhh!" Tiamat put her index finger on her lips, reminding him that it was a secret, and continued whispering to him, "Remember, it's a secret, okay? You can do what you want with the gem. Since it's unpolished, you can do pretty much anything with it."
"Priestess-sama, this is a gem. Something someone of my stature couldn't possibly afford," Jacques refused the offer and returned the gem back to her palm.
"Oh…" Tiamat thought about it for a few moments, "Then, the secret is off. You can just tell everyone that its a gift from me!"
"W-What?! Is this alright?"
Gazef relaxed his shoulders, 'Thank goodness it wasn't something dangerous.'
He shivered at the memory of the Priestess jumping out the window and blowing up an entire clearing just to 'play'. She was someone that definitely could not be predicted.
He was thankful that this 'secret' was nothing like what he had experienced yesterday.
"Of course! I can tell that you love her a lot. When you were talking about her, you've been smiling the whole time. If that's not love, then I don't know what love is."
The guy behind them snorted. "You should've heard about when he first saw her for the first time, Priestess-sama. He was—"
Gazef cleared his throat, and his soldiers immediately straightened up. "Focus," he simply told them, which they responded with a 'Hai!'.
"I'm sorry about that Hannah-sama. Sometimes my men can be...noisy," Gazef sighed.
"Oh no, it's alright. I don't mind," she shifted to the middle seat and made herself comfortable. "The stories they've been telling me were super exciting! I'm glad your soldiers wanted to share these stories with me."
His eyes softened at her statement, "Please bear with them for a bit longer. In a couple hours, we will be arriving at the Capital. For now, please take a break."
"I'm not tired though," she puffed her cheeks, "I really wanted to hear what happened when he saw her for the first time."
"Rest, Hannah-sama. You will need all your energy to talk in the Royal Court the next morning."
"Aww, fine. But only because you told me, Gazef-san," Tiamat took a deep breath, letting herself smell the wonderful wind before closing the window.
Being alone in the carriage by herself was boring, which was why she was so thankful that the soldiers were willing to talk to her for the entire day. But Gazef was right, she needed all her energy to figure out what the King wanted.
"It looks like we're here, Hannah-sama," Gazef inadvertently jolted her out of her pondering.
Tiamat looked outside of the carriage as it slowly came to a halt before the castle gates.
The latticed grill made out of metal fortified the entrances to the castle. Tiamat was familiar with the gate as it was often used in fantasy game settings.
'A real portcullis!'
Two armored men stood in front of the gate, and one bellowed, "Halt! Who goes?" causing Tiamat to look at him as the other sentry approached Gazef.
"At ease, John," Gazef got off his horse and shook the man's hand.
"Warrior-Captain-dono! How was the trip?" the sentry Tiamat presumed to be John broke out into a bright smile as he pulled Gazef in for a hug.
"Oh, you know, the usual," Gazef grinned as he patted the man twice on the back before letting go, "Frightening monsters and bandits every step of the way."
"Even if that was true," the man smirked at Gazef as he returned to his position and motioned for the men behind the gate to raise the portcullis. "They would be no match for you, Warrior-Captain-dono."
"You praise me far too much," Gazef humbly replied, "Most of my missions would've ended in failure without the help of my men."
"And you sell yourself too short, Warrior-Captain-dono. In any case, I won't keep His Majesty waiting for you any longer. I wish you luck with those snakes," John saluted.
"You as well, John," Gazef hopped back onto his horse, and the carriage moved pass the portcullis and into the castle courtyard.
Tiamat poked her head out of the window once more, "You're really close with the people here, Gazef-san."
Gazef turned his head towards her, "They are good people who devoted their lives to the Kingdom and its people. If I treated them like scum even after knowing that, I would be the worst sort of trash imaginable."
Tiamat hummed in acknowledgement, "That's very kind of you, Gazef-san."
"How so?"
"Despite your status, you still treat them as one of your own. Usually people with your title wouldn't even bother…" Tiamat casted her eyes downwards, remembering how the Marquis had treated his workers in the gem mines.
Gazef went quiet for a bit, the sound of galloping horses filling the silence until he replied, "This title was not passed down to me, Hannah-sama."
Tiamat tilted her head, urging him to continue.
"I used to be a commoner, born in a frontier village. I'm not a noble, born with a silver spoon, and I worked to the best of my capabilities to fulfill my responsibilities to the King. Despite the flashy title, I am the same as them, a simple commoner," he gave her a sad watery smile, "No one here is born lucky; instead, they're lucky just to escape the circumstances of their birth."
She stared at him, looking deeply into his warm brown eyes.
"Knowing this fact, will you treat me differently than before, Hannah-sama?" he asked.
How despicable of him.
He knew that this question was undoubtedly rude of him. The very nature of the question was cunning and deceitful; he knew that no matter what answer the Priestess gave him, it would only be beautiful to the ears.
If she answered with a yes, which was impossible judging by what he had seen so far, then he would be thoroughly disappointed because everything she had showed him would have been a lie.
If she said no, he knew that she could possibly be lying since he was the King's personal guard, and in his position he had seen so many people tell falsehood just so that they can curry some favors from the King through him.
He grimaced, regretting his question.
"I apologi—"
"So what?"
Gazef widened his eyes, "Excuse me?"
She huffed, "So what if you were born a commoner? A person's value is not determined by what family he was born into or how much money he possesses. It's how you treat others that determine your worth as a human being. From what I can see, you are an impressive human being, Gazef-san."
Gazef's jaw dropped open as the Priestess smiled at him. He didn't expect such an honest response from the Priestess. For her to be so blunt about what she thought…
How unpredictable.
"That's just like you to answer like that," Gazef muttered, but his voice was swallowed by the sound of horses neighing as they skidded to a stop.
"Could you repeat that, Gazef-san? I didn't quite catch that."
"We're here," he simply replied, climbing down from his horse.
The carriage came to a gentle stop before the entrance to the castle. Gazef opened the door to the carriage, and Tiamat stepped out from the transport vessel.
Before them was a large set of stairs that led to two titanic oaken doors reinforced with steel. At each step on the staircase, there was a soldier with a spear watching their every move.
Tiamat climbed up the staircase with Gazef at her side and the rest of his men followed behind them. She sweatdropped as she looked at one of the soldiers only for him to stare unresponsively into the distance.
'Right, they're on the job. I should probably stop staring at them,' Tiamat awkwardly lowered her gaze.
Finally, the entourage reached the grand doors of the castle, and in front of it were two guards: one on the left and right side of the door respectively, who were ready to open it at a moment's notice.
Gazef nodded to the guards at the door, and they nodded back, pushing open the double doors as they did.
"Welcome back, Warrior-Captain-dono," an entourage of maids bowed as Tiamat, Gazef, and his men moved down the hallway.
"Thank you," Gazef raised his hand before waving it in Tiamat's direction, "Could you take our guest to the room His Majesty set aside for visitors?"
A maid with short blonde hair and doe-like eyes walked forward in front of Tiamat and bowed.
"Welcome to the Capital, Hannah-sama. I am Julie Ert Hartbow, and I will be preparing you for your meeting with His Majesty and the Royal Court tomorrow. Now, if you would follow me," Julie bowed again before turning around to walk down the carpeted hallway.
"In that case, I will be heading to His Majesty's chambers. I wish all of you a good evening."
Tiamat looked helplessly after Gazef who motioned for her to follow the maid.
"A-Ah, yes!" Tiamat hurriedly walked after Julie. The rest of the maids glanced at her with an odd expression on their places.
Gazef waited until the Priestess had disappeared down the hallway before he turned down the opposing hallway to his next destination.
He passed by countless display cases of the Royal Family's heirlooms: artifacts of tremendous worth ranging from swords adorned with sparkling gems, bows blessed with filigree of holy silver, intricately engraved chalices of pure gold, among many others.
Suddenly, he stopped and looked up at the wall.
Before him was a portrait of King Ramposa III in his youth. Gazef could see the wisdom glinting in his eyes, eyes unburdened by the weight of time. The painting's blonde hair was a stark contrast to the King's current white, another testament to the suffering the King had undergone.
Gazef could still remember how incredible the King looked when he was in the annual war against the Baharuth Empire.
But that was decades ago. Now the King was struggling to juggle his duties as a King and a father, especially with the coming of age of the youngest Princess. Furthermore, he had to devise a way to pass the Kingdom down to his most competent son.
Moving away from the painting, Gazef continued trudging on through the familiar hallway before he finally arrived before the King's chambers, guarded by two soldiers from his Warrior-Band.
Giving his men a nod, Gazef knocked two times on the plain and ordinary door.
"Come in," the muffled voice of the King filtered through the door and Gazef obliged, opening the door slowly before gently closing it.
Once he was inside the room, he noticed that the King was already preparing himself to rest. The room was dark and was lit by nothing but a single candle by his bedside. The King himself was wearing his nightgown, ready to end the day.
"I have returned, Your Majesty," he bowed.
"Well done, Gazef."
Gazef smiled at the King's casual response, a privilege that he got to bask in private with the King.
"The Priestess has been escorted to one of the guest rooms by a maid and has retired for the night, Your Majesty."
"Come on now, Gazef. There is no one around, you don't have to be so polite with me."
Gazef lifted his head with a smile. As expected of the King himself, "I understand, Ramposa-sama."
Ramposa III smiled at him, his hands on his lap and his eyes still inquisitive despite his age, "So, tell me Gazef. What do you think of the Priestess?"
Gazef chuckled, "She is not a person one would expect."
"What do you mean by that?" the King's eyes twinkled curiously.
"Based on her appearance, you would think that she belongs to a Noble Family, but it turns out she is just like any other normal person. She's a very friendly individual, and I'm sure some of my soldiers are smitten by now. However, despite the status that she has, she's not condescending, and I would go so far as to say that she is humbler than what you would expect, Ramposa-sama."
"Is that so?" Ramposa sighed, leaning his back into his pillows even more, "Will she be able to handle the wickedness of the Royal Court?" Gazef caught the King murmuring.
"I believe so. Despite her kind and easygoing nature, I have faith in her spirit."
Ramposa smiled, "I trust you, Gazef. Well, you can leave me for the night and get some rest. You've earned it."
"Understood, Ramposa-sama, good night," he bowed once again and exited the room.
But instead of leaving like what the King had ordered him to do, he stayed outside his door until morning came.
(o´・ε・`o)
Two loud knocks on the wooden door woke her from her slumber.
"Please excuse me, Hannah-sama."
"Mn…" she quickly sat up from her sleeping position and rubbed her eyes, the soft cotton fabric under her skin brushing against her.
Cotton...fabric?
Tiamat slowly took her time to adjust to the dark room as she heard the sound of footsteps approaching the room where she was currently sleeping.
Once her blurry eyes could finally see what was in front of her, she saw that she was in an unfamiliar room and was immediately reminded that she had just arrived at the castle last night. She recalled being escorted by the handmaiden into the new room and was left alone so that she can get some rest.
The room was filled with personality, that's for sure.
It was a chintz nightmare of frills and flowers—pink and orange everywhere.
Once the Eight Edged Assassin had placed himself on top of the high ceiling, Tiamat had immediately crashed onto the bed, tired and weary after the long journey where she was constantly jostled about by the carriage.
She remembered falling asleep the moment her head hit the pillow.
Only to be woken up a few hours later by the maids of the castle.
The spider above her raised his blades to attack whoever dared to disturb the Supreme Being's rest.
Tiamat, who saw that the spider was preparing himself for a massacre, yelled at the people outside in panic.
"No, wait! Don't come in!"
"But we need to prepare you for your attendance with the King later this morning," a woman, a maid Tiamat presumed, told her from behind the door.
"I understand, but give me a minute!" she said in reply and looked at the spider above her.
"They have disturbed your rest, My Lady. I shall kill them all."
"No," she whispered, "These people are probably the handmaidens of this castle. If someone is actually attacking me, I'll protect myself with 『Aegis』and you can slash them down, okay?"
The spider put his blades away, "If that is your will, My Lady."
Tiamat breathed a sigh of relief. There would be no massacre this morning at least. She got a headache just thinking about the consequences of such a disaster.
She got out of bed before realizing that she was still in her Priestess garb: its fabric already creased beyond compare.
'Yup, definitely can't wear this in front of a bunch of rich people.'
She reached into her inventory and changed her outfit to the nightgown that she kept there, smoothing it out.
Tiamat cleared her throat, "Come in!"
The moment the words left her mouth, the handmaidens flocked inside the unusually big room. The Eight-Edged Assassin tensed, preparing for the worst, and prepared to strike anyone that was a potential danger. Tiamat looked up at the spider and give him a smile, mouthing to him that everything was alright.
"Good morning, Hannah-sama," the handmaidens said simultaneously.
"G-Good morning…"
Tiamat looked at the walls for a clock and saw none.
"What time is it?"
"It's about four in the morning, Hannah-sama," one of the maids spoke out.
"F-Four?!"
"Yes, as we have said before, we need to prepare you for your audience with the King."
Tiamat hummed in understanding, but internally, she was screaming.
'No one should wake up at Four-o-fucking-clock in the morning!'
"I see, but it's alright. I don't need your help to prepare, I—"
"We insist, Hannah-sama, you are an honored guest of the King," the maid bowed and the others followed, "We are here to serve."
"I-I can prepare by my—"
"Ladies, quickly get the bath prepared. On an important day like this, no matter how early we start, there won't be nearly enough time!"
The maids quickly moved towards the door to what Tiamat presumed was the bathroom and soon the sound of running water was heard.
"Excuse me, Hannah-sama," one maid pulled her nightgown down, exposing her entire naked body for all to see.
"N-N-No, wa-wait!" she attempted to cover what was left of her dignity with her arms.
The Assassin above her prepared his blades.
Tiamat wanted to commit seppuku.
If she continued to flail against the maids, she was afraid that the Eight-Edged Assassin might get the wrong idea and proceed to kill all of them. Tiamat had no option but to give in to the maids.
She dropped her arms and was dragged to the bathroom.
As she sat inside the tub, one maid doused her with water, while the other applied what she presumed was a perfume and yet another one put flower petals inside the bathtub.
"Hannah-sama, please relax your shoulders!"
"Where did the aromatic oil go? I need to put it on her hair!" one maid shouted above the clamor.
"Should I put in more medicinal herbs?" another maid asked her.
"Put more flower petals too!"
"Here," one of the maids returned with some sort of vial that Tiamat could only assume was the aromatic oil to the maid who was washing her hair.
"We're almost finished bathing her!" one announced.
"Wait, we need more time with the dress preparation!"
"Where is the rose water?"
"Bring the small brush!"
"Are these all the brushes?"
"Is the dress ready?!"
"Bring some flowers over here!"
Tiamat could feel a migraine starting to grow in the back of her head.
It seemed that she had been underestimating just how important an audience with the King was.
(o´・ε・`o)
The King's Throne Room was filled with a palpable energy.
Despite the humble atmosphere of the room itself, the Nobles were uncharacteristically more excited than usual.
They were going to have a famed hero in their midst. It had been decades since an Adamantite Adventurer had entered the Royal Court.
All of them were animatedly whispering to their neighbors, eager to finally lay their eyes upon the source of so many rumors.
"Enter, Adamantite Adventurer, Hannah Annafelowz," the civil officer boomed, announcing the hero's name for all to hear.
They heard a shuffle behind the door, and sooner than they expected, one of the maids opened the door for the hero to enter the room.
As soon as they laid their eyes on her, they felt like they were in a trance. Their eyes were stuck to her in absolute awe.
Her wavy silver hair was put in a delicate yet elegant updo, leaving some of the strands of her hair down to frame her face. The long sleeved dark blue dress that lightly brushed against the floor was elegant in its simplicity.
As she twirled around, the dress swished, following her movements. The skirt consisted of several ruffled tiers of white hidden by the dark blue of the dress itself. The whispering silver hiding amongst the navy-blue reminded them of stars peeping through a darkening sky.
She looked like an aristocratic doll that everyone couldn't help but to adore.
Even though she was standing in front of an impressive crowd, she exuded an air of calm and gentle elegance. No wonder people had gossiped of her being from a foreign royal family.
She looked forward and walked with confidence and grace. She didn't even bother to stop to give them all a smile before she stopped short, just a few meters away before the stairs that led to the Throne.
"Your Majesty," she said with her head down; she was curtsying so low—lower than any noble would dare to— to the point they were sure that she was almost sitting on the floor.
Even though she said she was from humble origins, they had their doubts. The easiest way for a noble to judge whether someone belongs to their circle was based on their etiquette. The Priestess definitely knew how to correctly address the King, and she also stopped a few meters before the Throne, a sign that she knew that her status right now was that of a commoner's.
Only a Duke, the highest rank of noble below the Royal Family, would curtsy directly in front of the Throne.
"Welcome to our humble castle, Hannah-sama," the King replied to her, smiling appreciatively at her manners.
She was beautiful, the epitome of femininity with her dress and translucent, flawless skin. Her sweet voice rang like a crystalline bell.
"Thank you for inviting me to the castle, Your Majesty."
The King stood up from his Throne, which caused a large murmur to arise from the nobles of the Kingdom.
Usually, the King would sit as he conducted his business, a sign of supremacy and dignity. Afterall, monarchs had always been held in the highest regard and treated with reverence and deference. By standing to receive his guest, the King was relinquishing that.
Despite all that, Ramposa continued down the stairs of his Throne before stopping just in front of her.
"Please stand up, Hannah the Adamantite Adventurer," he said with a strong yet soft voice. As the Priestess stood up, her amethyst eyes landed on his blue. "I am the ruler of this Kingdom, Ramposa III. First of all, I would like to apologize for suddenly summoning you to our castle."
She moved her hand in front of her, right on top of the left, and smiled at the King, "There is no need for you to apologize, Your Majesty."
"Secondly, I would like to thank you for saving Gazef and his troops," the King bowed to her, "Thank you very much."
At that instant, the nobles could see the shock on the Adamantite Adventurer's face at the King's conduct. If the King himself, the highest of royalties bowed, the rest of the nobles would do the same. For someone like him to bow to a mere commoner like her just because she saved that warrior dog of his? There was no way they would do that, even if it was the Royal Protocol.
That was until Marquis Blumrush and Marquis Raeven, two of the Six Great Nobles, bowed, the rest of them followed.
The Six Great Nobles were a political faction within the Re-Estize Kingdom that competed with the Re-Estize Royal Family for control of the nation. In fact, they were considered the second most influential group just after the Royal Family themselves. Therefore, they had become the standard by which the nobles compared themselves to.
If the Blumrush and Raeven didn't bow and remained standing upright, then the rest of the nobles would follow their example.
"Please raise your head, I only did what any person would do," she panickedly shook her hands, and everyone did as the tension in the room slightly lightened.
"No one would do what you have done, Hannah-san. As you might know, the Warrior Captain is my right hand man," the nobles gritted their teeth at that, "It was a noble act indeed, for you to have selflessly placed yourself in danger to rescue him and his men. That was why I have invited you here. I want to give you a reward. Is there anything you want?"
The murmurs amongst them grew stronger.
As soon as they heard the King's proposition, they immediately imagined themselves in the Adventurer's position, asking the King for wealth and gems beyond compare, perhaps a rich piece of land near the port, a raise in rank, or to offer themselves as a marriage partner to Princess Renner because they knew that whoever married the Princess would have a better chance of becoming the King.
They were pitiful beasts no larger than grass snakes that sat curled around the bones of their victims. Their eyes were nasty and vicious and painted yellow with jealousy. Their hunger could never be satisfied and they would do anything, anything, in their power to fill their endless appetite.
However, she just continued to smile at the King as an awkward pause filled the room.
"You can ask for titles or land. You can have anything you want as long as we can provide it," the King suggested which caused some of the nobles to perk up when they heard him.
When the King was rewarding someone with land, that meant that he was rewarding them with a title or vice versa. One could not exist without the other, for the master of the land could only be the nobles themselves. If she were to become one of them in this Kingdom, they could propose their son or even themselves to marry her. Of course, they would attain an unimaginable beauty, envied by all. But the secret was beyond that; they could gain power and strength.
The great power of a Holy Dragon that was said to be the beloved pet of a Goddess.
Some of them smiled at the news.
However, to their surprise, she hesitated before replying, "May I have more time to think on this, Your Majesty?"
Even the King's eyes went wide at her statement.
"Is the reward not great enough? Should I add platinum coins and great treasures to it as well?"
She chuckled, "Funny thing is, I just finished a quest from Marquis Blumrush the other day, and he had kindly rewarded me with a beautiful Ruby. That's enough for me, Your Majesty."
People immediately looked at Marquis Blumrush who was trying to wipe a smug grin off his face.
That was when the other nobles realized why he had bowed; he had known the Adamantite Adventure before them, giving him an enormous advantage.
Acquainting himself to her.
"Then, what else can I reward you with?"
She bowed, "As I've said, Your Majesty, I need more time to consider your generous reward. However, seeing how you cherish the Warrior Captain, to have him by your side is already a good enough reward on its own."
Some of the lesser nobles giggled in a low tone, muttering at how idiotic the beautiful woman in front of them was. If it was them standing there, they would have asked for the crown.
But the cunning ones thought otherwise.
The woman in front of them was not to be underestimated.
By not accepting the King's offer straightaway, she would be left with the King's favor, allowing her to ask for whatever she wanted or needed, and by refusing the gifts, it showed that she was smart enough to avoid options that would restrict her movements and her dragon's.
"I see, then Warrior-Captain, please give her your sigil."
"Your Majesty, the Warrior-Captain's sigil is with me," she declared, plucking the sigil from seemingly nowhere.
The nobles began whispering in hushed voices amongst themselves. For the warrior dog to give away the symbol of his service so casually…
"How do you have that?" the King asked in awe.
She smiled at them, "It seems that Your Majesty and the Warrior-Captain both had the same idea. When I had saved him and his troops, he told me to go find him at the Capital, that is why he gave me his sigil. I hope you are not offended, Your Majesty."
The King chuckled, "No, of course not! I see, the Warrior-Captain had given it to you from the very beginning."
She moved forward to give the warrior dog his sigil back.
"There is no need to return it, Hannah-san. Please keep it. Whenever you need a favor from me, you can come to the castle and show the guards the Warrior-Captain's sigil."
"I understand," she bowed, "Thank you for being so gracious, Your Majesty."
"It was I who was supposed to say that, Hannah-san. With that being said, my daughter is excited to meet you," the King gently smiled, "The Warrior-Captain will lead you to the Rose Garden. And please contact me whenever you have thought of what you desire."
Gazef bowed and walked out from behind the King to take his place next to the woman.
"It will be a pleasure to finally meet the Princess," the Priestess made a low courtesy once again before walking backwards a few steps and turning herself around to walk out of the door, with the warrior-dog following behind her.
(o´・ε・`o)
Once the doors of the Throne Room were closed, Tiamat sighed in relief.
"That was intense."
"I disagree, you did a very good job there, Hannah-sama."
Tiamat smiled at Gazef as they walked down the long corridor, which was decorated with a vast host of paintings of past Kings, heroes, and nobles of the Kingdom. All of the paintings seemed to be staring down at her with their eyes full of graveness.
If Gazef and the Assassin weren't there, she would've been a complete nervous wreck.
"Thank you, Gazef-san. But you won't believe how nervous I was there…"
She knew she was supposed to stop in front of the stairs just like in those fantasy dramas and animes about the Royal Court, but her knees buckled and she fell short, just a little distance away before the stairs themselves. She had almost screamed out, embarrassed by the situation, and had to lower her head so that people couldn't see her expression.
Plus, she had never had so many eyes on her, and her nervousness only increased when she realized that she was the only woman inside that room. Thankfully, her error was lessened by the presence of the trusty Eight Edged Assassin. He had lifted up his blade as her knees buckled, so that she curtsied just low enough that no one could tell.
"You could have convinced me otherwise," Gazef complimented, "Now, shall we, Hannah-sama?"
"Of course, Gazef-san lets—"
"Excuse me, Hannah-sama," someone said from the other side of the corridor.
Tiamat turned her head back to see that it was some of the nobles who had been snickering earlier. Not knowing what to say, she bowed to them instead.
The entourage were dressed in tacky outfits with frills sticking from every corner of their body. Their faces were filled with the confidence of people who have had everything go their way since birth.
"Hannah-sama, please allow us to escort you to the Rose Garden instead."
Tiamat tilted her head.
'The King told Gazef to escort me though… wouldn't they be disobeying a direct order?'
She suddenly felt extremely weary, "There is no need. After all, the King had—"
The man who was standing at the forefront of his entourage widened his grin, "You see, Hannah-sama, the Warrior-Captain isn't fit to guide someone of your status. He is a commoner, and therefore he doesn't deserve to escort a beautiful maiden such as yourself. That's why you should let us escort you instead."
The way they smiled at her, she hated it. Their arrogant condescension, boldness, temerity, insensitive audacity; all of it just awoke a deep seated hatred within herself. They thought they were better than Gazef just because they were born with money.
Gazef was someone a person like them could never empathize with. They might know how to spend their money, but they wouldn't know how much a single coin could mean to some people.
Hard times make a human into a better person.
How hard it must have been for Gazef to have endured all he did until he had reached where he was: the King's personal guard.
Tiamat looked up at them, making sure she looked at each and every one of them in the eye, smiling as she did so.
Their grins widened; they knew that someone like her would know how worthless the warrior dog was.
"Gentlemen," their eyes glinted happily as soon as she had sweetly addressed them. However the next sentence she uttered shocked them to the core, "I have not lived a privileged life as you seem to think. I only learned how to read and write a few weeks ago. If your upbringing limits the circle of people you interact with, then I suggest you do not get involved with me. Shall we, Gazef-san?"
Gazef looked at her in astonishment, but his mouth slowly morphed into a smile as he nodded at her. They walked away from the wide-eyed nobles who clicked their tongues at the lost opportunity.
It seemed that the rumors surrounding the Priestess could not be trusted.
(o´・ε・`o)
Gazef led her towards where the Rose Garden was located, steering their way to the long hallways of the castle grounds.
However as he took another step forward, he saw a wide figure at the end of the hallway walking out from the Garden.
Before them stood a chubby young man with blonde hair down to his chin. Despite his unathletic appearance, his eyes were filled with a sharp intelligence that reminded Gazef that this man was not to be underestimated.
The Second Prince of the Kingdom, Zanac Valleon Igana Ryle Vaiself.
As per custom, Gazef stopped—the Silver Priestess coming to a halt a moment later—and nodded his head to the Second Prince.
"Oya, if it isn't The Warrior Captain himself." Zanac greeted him.
"My Prince."
His slanted eyes looked down at Gazef, "What are you doing in this part of the castle?"
Gazef steadily held the Prince's gaze, "I am here to escort the Silver Priestess to the Rose Garden, as per ordered by the King himself."
Zanac tilted his body slightly to see the person behind Gazef's bulky figure and his eyes widened in surprise.
As the Second Prince, he had seen his fair share of beautiful women before, but he had to agree that this person was the most beautiful of them all.
When she bowed, she exuded an elegance fitting of the highest of nobles, and when she lifted her face upwards, it was as if he had seen the Fairy Queen herself.
"My Prince," she greeted.
"So this is the Silver Priestess?" Zanac lifted his eyebrow, "What has Father called you here for?"
"The King was thanking her for saving me and my men back at Carne Village."
"Is that so? What do you say to that, Priestess-san?"
Undeterred by the Prince's intense scrutiny, the Priestess answered confidently, "Yes, the Warrior-Captain is right, Zanac-san," Tiamat agreed, "The King just wanted to thank me for saving Gazef and his friends."
Gazef could see the Prince scrunch up his nose while his eyes wandered up to the ceiling, as if he was trying to remember what had happened to the Warrior-Captain. In the end, it seemed that he didn't come up with anything; perhaps the primary reason why he decided to change the topic.
"In that case, I thank you for helping Gazef-san. By the way, I presume that you're going to go meet my monster of a sister?"
"Monster?" Tiamat stared at the Prince in confusion.
"You don't know? Well, either you'll find out soon or you'll be fooled just like everyone else. In any case, I have to meet with someone. I suppose I'll see you two around," Zanac walked down the hallway and past the two.
Tiamat suppressed a shudder up her spine when she saw that the Prince's eyes lingered on her for longer than necessary. It was as if he was trying to burn her silhouette deep inside his brain.
She felt like she was being sized up, down to even the most miniscule detail. Either it was purely based on her appearance—facial features, eyes, or hair—or even the choice of clothes that the maids had prepared for her.
At any rate, Tiamat felt like the Prince that was passing her by had already made up his mind about who she was.
He smirked, openly revealing his intentions, "It is nice to be able to actually put a face on the fabled Silver Priestess," he said before he left, leaving Gazef and Tiamat alone in the hallway.
"Don't mind his statements too much, Hannah-sama," Gazef turned his head to the Priestess with an apologetic smile on his face, "Princess Renner is a wonderful person, and I'm sure the two of you will get along just fine."
"If you say so…." Tiamat awkwardly nodded.
"In any case, we shouldn't keep the Princess waiting any longer. Please don't get lost, Hannah-sama. The Rose Garden is rather large," Gazef continued down the hallway, Silvery Priestess in tow.
(o´・ε・`o)
Tiamat had always loved flowers.
The idea of blowsy, precocious, and seductive colors that bloomed in Spring and hid themselves in winter was a fascinating one. To think that such small things had the power to enchant the hearts of people no matter where they were was truly astounding.
She personally believed that a beautiful garden belonged on balustrades and pergolas in gardens like Heale House in Wiltshire and Hestercombe in Somerset. Of course, she had only seen pictures of those places on the Internet.
With the destroyed climate however, there was no way she could enjoy that on Earth.
She remembered a Hindu legend where Vishnu convinced Brahma of the rose's superiority to the lotus, and as a reward for changing his mind, Brahma created a bride for Vishnu out of hundreds of rose petals. It was one of the very few things she remembered from Tabula's ramblings.
Tiamat had only seen lotuses and roses from the internet, but there was no way she was able to afford such a luxury on a plant that would die in a few weeks time. So she didn't know how their beauty would cause the Hindu gods to fight over them.
Until now.
The scene in front of her was beyond amazing. It was interplanted with all types of flowering perennials, trees and shrubs, alive with buzzing insects, chirping birds, and her keen nose enjoyed itself as it was blanketed in lovely scents.
"—nah-sama, Hannah-sama."
"Y-Yes!" through her veil bliss from seeing a real, live, garden for the first time, she had completely blocked out all other sounds and had not heard Gazef calling for her over and over again.
"Is there something wrong, Hannah-sama?" he had stopped in his tracks and turned around to look at her.
Tiamat gave him a sheepish smile, "Sorry about that, Gazef-san, but this is my first time seeing such a beautiful garden," she looked away once again to appreciate the view around her and to etch the image in her memory.
"I understand," someone other than Gazef had responded to her statement, and Tiamat couldn't help but to turn her head to the source of the voice, "That was also my first reaction when I first saw the garden."
Tiamat saw a young man in his teenage years, clad in a suit of pure white armor with bushy eyebrows sprouting above his impassive eyes. His eyes were firm, an unyielding blue, as if it was forged from steel, and his skin was tanned by the sun, while his blond hair was neatly trimmed short.
"Hannah-sama, this is Climb, the personal bodyguard of Princess Renner," Gazef introduced him to her, "And Climb, this is the Adamantite Adventurer, the Silver Priestess, Hannah Annafelowz."
She paused to look at him.
'Waa, what a kind looking boy."
Despite his furrowed eyebrows, he had an innocent expression; honest and pure. No matter how bulky his armor made him look, his baby cheeks were still prominent, making him look even cuter.
'It's like a baby wearing a suit of armor. I should get Aura and Mare to wear some too...'
Since Tiamat took her time to see his features, they took it as a sign that Climb should introduce himself first. And so he did.
"Nice to meet you, Hannah-sama."
However, Tiamat didn't say anything but instead stepped closer towards the boy, and pinched his cheeks.
"H-H-Hannah-shamaaa…?!"
"S-Sorry. I couldn't help myself," she moved her fingers away from his cheek and bowed as well, smiling at the boy, "Nice to meet you too, Climb-kun!"
It had been weeks now since Ainz and her had arrived in the New World. She realized that she was being spoiled, especially when she was playing with Aura and Mare, who readily gave their chubby cheeks for her to pinch. For her to do that to a complete stranger, no matter how cute he or she was, was just plain rude.
Tiamat looked apologetically at Climb.
'AAAAH, I hope I didn't offend him.'
"Hannah-sama," Gazef chastised her, "Even if Climb might look young, he has been honing himself little by little to get to where he is today. Of course his skills might still need some work, but Climb is still a knight in his own right."
"Amazing, Climb-kun!" Tiamat gushed. For him to be training himself until he was strong enough to guard the Princess, he must have trained from a really young age.
The boy blushed as bright as the roses in the garden, "T-Thank you, Hannah-sama."
"This is where I must part with you, Hannah-sama. After this, Climb will guide you to where the Princess and her companions are waiting."
"I see, thank you for escorting me here safely Gazef-san," Tiamat walked to where Climb stood and watched as Gazef left the corridor. Tiamat smiled at the boy next to her, "Shall we go then, Climb-kun?"
Even though he was still blushing, he cleared his throat and nodded, leading them down towards the corridor.
As Tiamat observed the splendor of the corridor—the arbor that grew above it, with its myriad of orchids and roses—she tried to make small talk with Climb to ease the situation.
"How old are you Climb-kun?"
Thankfully, he was kind enough to answer her question, "I am fifteen years old, Hannah-sama."
"Fifteen years old and already the Princess's Guard? That's incredible, Climb-kun!
"My achievement is nothing," he answered, his voice suddenly turning cold, "I still have a long way to go."
Immediately, the conversation lost its warmth.
'Did I say something wrong? I was just complimenting him though… Ah, maybe he doesn't like being treated as a kid,' Tiamat let out a small sigh. 'Teenagers…'
The spider behind her raised his blade to kill the boy.
Tiamat shuddered and held the blades back with the palm of her hand, "It's my fault, it's my fault!" she whispered.
"He had answered your question with a disrespectful tone. He must die," the spider tried to reason with the Supreme Being.
"Nonononono, that's not how this works. That's not how any of this works!"
Climb turned back to look at the Silver Priestess, curious as to why she was mumbling to herself, "Hannah-sama?"
Apparently she was looking behind her, and so Climb tilted his head only to see nothing but the usual empty corridor. "What is it?" he asked.
"N-Nothing Climb-kun, don't worry about it," Tiamat put her hand behind her as she tried to hold the blade away from Climb as he walked nearer.
"This puny human didn't even use honorifics!"
The spider moved to swing his blade once again, but Tiamat blocked his path, holding his blade even tighter to stop his movements. The spider tried as hard as he could to pull the blade out of the Supreme Being's grasp without harming her in the process.
Climb was even more confused now, especially since he couldn't hear the Eight-Edged Assassin due to its passive『Silent Whisper』skill. As a result, only those with a level higher than the Assassin could hear it.
"Is it still far away?" Tiamat asked to Climb, the palm of her hand shaking as she tried to hold the spider back from the boy.
Climb looked at her weirdly but still replied, "Not far now," as he walked back in front of her and led the way.
"Don't attack the boy," Tiamat quietly ordered the spider, who reluctantly obeyed. He lowered his sword, and Tiamat finally released his blade, relieved.
"We are here, Hannah-sama."
Climb knocked on the wooden door, "Renner-sama, I have arrived with the Priestess-sama."
A muffled voice came from the other side of the door, "Oh! Please bring her in then, Climb-kun."
Hearing the Princess's response, Climb moved to open the door.
That was until Tiamat saw a shadow peeking from behind the small opening of the door. A second later, the door was busted outwards, knocking Climb to his back.
He was completely overwhelmed by his current predicament. Gagaran had pushed the door so quickly that he couldn't help but let gravity take control over his body. His surprise morphed into fear as he realized that he was about to get crushed by the woman's tree trunk-like arms.
He willed himself to stand up, but he couldn't manage to move a single muscle. He was the Princess' bodyguard for goodness sake! He knew Gagaran could be childish at times, but to be so easily taken by surprise to the point that he couldn't even stand on his legs was nothing short of embarrassing.
"『Aegis』!" Tiamat reflexively shouted, standing in front of Climb to protect him, seeing that he had made no movement to stand up or ran away from the strange assailant.
Remembering the Supreme Being's order from before, the spider's visage immediately flickered from existence, slicing the large hammered woman away as she tumbled back in pain and surprise since she couldn't see her assailant.
[Holyshitholyshit, stand down!] Tiamat panickedly Messaged the Assassin the instant she saw it flicker.
She sincerely thought it was too late, and images of a full out war against her flashed in her head until she realized that the Assassin had managed to redirect its strike from the woman's head before it chose to somersault in front of the translucent golden sphere.
"Stop! You're hurting Climb!" a girl dressed in blue shouted at the others.
A small person hidden by a red cloak and a bizarre mask sighed as she stood up from her chair, "This is what you get for trying to glomp strangers."
"W-Worth it," the large woman, who Tiamat assumed was Gagaran, replied as she tried to hold back the pain. Her stomach had been sliced open and Gagaran was lucky that the spider didn't actually behead her.
[Could you head back to the ceiling now?] Tiamat asked the Assassin, exhausted from the sudden rush of adrenaline.
The Assassin nodded before it hopped back onto the ceiling, keeping watch for anything suspicious.
The twins in ninja outfits had prepared their kunai to attack her.
"Climb-kun, is this really a room that leads to the Princess?" Tiamat asked in a hushed whisper as she helped him up on his feet.
"Yes."
Tiamat's eyes landed on the small girl in the blue dress with long golden hair that draped over the back of her neck. The small girl's eyes—which shone like the sapphire gem Tiamat saw in the mine—were laced with worry.
"Is she the one in the blue dress?"
Climb nodded.
Tiamat eyed the rest warily. There was a woman with long braided hair, twins dressed in some sort of ninja garb, a masked mysterious person, and an injured female Thor.
"Then the rest of them are a threat?"
"No, they are—"
The young woman with blond hair and green eyes stepped up, making sure to stand in front of Gagaran. When she raised her hand, the twins put their kunais away.
"I apologize for my members' rash behaviour. I can assure you that we are not a threat to the Princess, the opposite in fact. We are Blue Rose, and I am Lakyus Alvein Dale Aindra, the leader of Blue Rose," she smiled confidently at her. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Silver Priestess."
A/N: "I have not lived a privileged life as you seem to think. If your upbringing limits the circle of people you interact with, then I suggest you do not get involved with me." -Violet Evergarden, Episode 6. Btw RIP Gagaran.
Hackslashbash: Blue Rose finally makes their debut! Also, Gagaran is perfectly fine.
Discord: 'Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons' Discord Link: Helmeted Tyrant Trounces Peasant Sod (colon) (slash) (slash) devious inventor sparks creation onrejected devices . gg (slash) JUejk8J
