Setting up the Playground!

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2 years before the Entrance exam:-

It has been three months since Nazarick and its inhabitants were transported to this new world along with their master, the leader of the 41 Supreme Beings, Lord Momonga. They find themselves in a dense forest and until now, they have been instructed to defend Nazarick with all their might and have used illusion magic to hide the tomb in the fog. Despite this precaution, they were instructed to remain on high alert. However, today their master summoned them to discuss something important.

To that end, all the guardians were instructed to bring their most powerful subordinates to this meeting, resulting in the throne room being filled with high-leveled NPCs, including Sebas and the battle maids. On the right flank, the Old Guards, Nazarick's strongest skeleton warriors equipped with highly-enchanted gear, stood ready, while on the left were Momonga's personally-created death knights. However, not all inhabitants attended the meeting, including inhabitants of the 8th floor and Gargantuan, the stone giant.

As the time for the meeting approached, absolute silence filled the room, despite the presence of so many people. No one spoke or even moved a muscle; they all waited for their master, kneeling in front of the throne. It was a tense moment, with everyone eager to hear their leader's orders.

:-:-:-:-:-:

After some time, the door to the throne room opened and two people entered the room. Although none of the people kneeling in front of the throne ever lifted their heads, all of them knew exactly who had entered the room, and this person deserved their total loyalty and respect.

The first figure took the seat on the throne, and the other stood behind.

"Raise your head," the beautiful woman with lustrous black wings spoke with a sweet but dignified voice. "Our lord wishes to make an announcement."

As the staff hit the floor, everyone raised their heads, their backs straight and sharp eyes fixed on the skeletal figure sitting majestically on the throne. He held a magnificent golden staff and his red orb-like eyes glanced over all of them.

Momonga's pov:-

As he sat on the throne, he quickly glanced at everyone. They were looking at him with respect and admiration, but he thought, 'Hey, stop looking at me like that. Wasn't it already terrifying enough to address so many people at once?'

He remembered the last time it was easier when he had briefly explained the circumstances to the floor guardians and instructed them about their duties, and the rest they had handled on their own. He sighed internally, but there was no other way. He had to act as their superior and lead them because today's meeting would determine the future of Nazarick.

"Welcome, everyone! Today we have some important things to discuss. But before that, I would like to express my gratitude," he said, taking a dignified stance. "Demiurge and Mare, come forward," he ordered.

"Yes, my lord," both came forward and knelt in a well-choreographed manner.

He couldn't help but wonder, 'Do they practice this stuff?' as the thought quickly glanced through his mind.

"Demiurge and Mare, I extend my gratitude to you for your assistance in information gathering," he said, looking at the two kneeling figures. "Thanks to your help, we now have sufficient information to move forward. And Mare, your illusion magic has helped us protect Nazarick from unwanted intruders."

When Momonga and Nazarick first arrived in this new world, he lacked sufficient information about it and its inhabitants. Despite some initial scouting that revealed similarities to his original world, many things remained unclear to him. Most importantly, he was unsure about the existence of other players like himself. He was not foolish enough to believe that he was a special or chosen one who had been transported to this world alone. Therefore, he was hesitant to make any mistakes that could harm Nazarick and the NPCs, which were the last memories of his friends. To be safe, he asked Mare to hide Nazarick using his illusion magic and Demiurge to summon high-tier demons to scout the surrounding countries.

"Lord, there is no need for that-" Demiurge was interrupted by Momonga's raised hand.

Momonga knew that his NPCs were devoted to him and overworked due to their nature, which made it difficult for him to reward them. That's why he decided to use his authority to make them accept his gratitude. "I do not like to repeat myself. Will you accept my gratitude or do you want me to repeat myself?" he asked, his body emitting a dark aura.

The words spoken by his master made Demiurge tremble in his spot. As an archdemon, he was immune to all mental effects, but the fear he felt at that moment originated from within. The other NPCs behind him felt the same, as they knew that those words were not only for Demiurge but for all of them.

"Forgive me, my lord," Demiurge said, regaining his composure. "And thank you for your kind words."

Mare, still trying to control his trembling legs, replied with a shaky, "Yes... yes... thank you, lord."

"Very well," Momonga said. "Mare, go back to your position. Demiurge, you have an important task to perform."

Both NPCs nodded in acknowledgment. Demiurge remained in his position while Mare returned to his place between Aura and Cocytus.

"Now," Momonga spoke, confirming that he had everyone's attention. "Today, I have gathered you all to discuss the steps Nazarick will take moving forward. Demiurge will explain the results of our scouting operations. If you have any doubts or misunderstandings, please raise your hand and Demiurge will address them. Demiurge, please begin."

"As you wish, my lord," Demiurge said, standing up and adjusting his suit. "As you all know, a few months ago, the Great Tomb of Nazarick was transported to this unknown land due to some unseen phenomenon. As a result, there were many unknowns, and our merciful lord did not wish to see any harm come to us or to Nazarick. That is why I was tasked with sending my summons to human countries to investigate," Demiurge paused as he noticed Shalltear raising her hand. "Yes, Shalltear. What is it?"

"Wouldn't sending Hanzos or Shadow demons have made more sense?" Shalltear asked.

"You're not wrong. Those two, especially excel in the stealth department, but there were two reasons," Demiurge replied. "First, unlike my summons, which uses one of my skills, Hanzos and Shadow Demons are not expendable. They require gold and summon scrolls from the library, which are valuable resources for the future. Second, we wanted to test something. You see, the greater demons I summoned could use [Invisibility], so we wanted to test the extent of the spell. And well, it went better than expected. If used with shadow steps, it can even erase the footsteps of the user," Demiurge explained while Shalltear only nodded in response.

"After a few weeks, we discovered something interesting," Demiurge began. "You see, the humans of this world possess skills or powers that they refer to as quirks, and these quirks also have limitations, just like our skills. The majority of the population only has one quirk that they are born with, but I am still investigating cases where people with multiple quirks have been reported. Additionally, we have noticed that the amount of magic in this world is quite low, which is why we believe that the inhabitants of this world can't use real magic. But, putting that aside for now, let's move on to a more important topic," Demiurge said, his grin vanishing and the air around him turning more serious.

"The levels don't exist in this world, or more accurately, they work differently than what we are used to," he explained, adjusting his glasses. However, he soon noticed that many did not understand what he was saying, so he decided to take a different approach.

"You see," he said, producing a crystal ball. Inside the ball, there was a video of a man manipulating fire. "This man here is Pro hero Endeavor. Although there is no clear way to identify his levels, from what I have gathered, I would estimate it to be between levels 55-60. So, I ask you all, who do you think would win if Cocytus were to fight this individual?"

As he expected, everyone in the room knew the answer. They believed that the creations of Supreme Beings would never lose to someone as inferior as a human or, rather, they desperately wanted to believe that. Because Demiurge, of all people, should have known that as well, so why would he ask something so obvious? Meanwhile, Cocytus sat in absolute silence, waiting for Demiurge to answer.

"As you guessed, the answer is rather simple: Cocytus," said Demiurge. Everyone relaxed after hearing the answer, but Cocytus still looked at him, expecting more. Demiurge continued, "However, the winning conditions may differ depending on the situation. This man here is capable of emitting and manipulating fire, which is the primary elemental weakness of Cocytus. Although most of his attacks won't even leave a scratch on Cocytus, he is also capable of producing attacks on par with 8th-tier magic. These attacks will ignore most of Cocytus's defenses and could damage him, but they will also render the attacker unable to fight after producing such an attack twice. But more importantly, this will provide enough time for the attacker to bring in reinforcements." Everyone now listened even more carefully, knowing that 8th-tier spells were highly damaging even to the members of Nazarick. However, there was still one thing they didn't understand.

"But... but... isn't it impossible to learn 8th-tier spells before level 70?" Mare voiced everyone's thoughts.

"Excellent question, Mare," said Demiurge. "It was not possible in the old world, but the rules here are different. You see, skills and quirks are different in nature. Unlike skills, a quirk can become strong over time with its user if the user has a complete understanding of their power and its true nature. Therefore, I would suggest studying your opponent before engaging in combat."

The atmosphere in the room changed once again, and everyone became tense. They were worried that they might fail their master's expectations. Noticing their uneasiness, Demiurge continued.

"But don't forget, every coin has two sides," said Demiurge as his devious smile returned to his face. "It may be true that the level system is disrupted by the laws of this world, but it also gives us some advantages. For example, any individual of this world, regardless of their level, will die with a well-placed shot of this weapon." Saying that he brought out a handgun and took a shot at Sebas. However, the bullet simply bounced off his head, not even leaving a single scratch behind.

"As expected," said Demiurge with a satisfied nod. "Does anyone recognize this weapon?"

"I believe it is similar to a weapon that Shizu uses," answered Yuri.

"Well done, Yuri!" Demiurge exclaimed. "It is indeed an inferior version of the weapon that Shizu uses. And this very weapon is most effective against most of the inhabitants of this world. No matter how strong they are, under the right conditions, they will be slain with the use of this weapon. Also, as you just saw, this thing can't bypass our physical defenses, so for us, they are just toys to be played with. The second advantage we have is our magic. As I said earlier, the amount of magic in this world is much lesser compared to the old world. Therefore, people of this world do not have the ability to detect magic, which makes extracting information much easier. Also, they have a low magic defense. Low-tier spells like [Fireball] and [Wind Blade] will do significant damage. Also, unnatural spells like [Charm] and [Amnesia] work rather flawlessly on low-level targets." Saying that he finished his report, and once again, every eye was on their master.

"Excellent, Demiurge," said Momonga. "Now, if any of you have doubts, this is your last chance." He glanced over the hall, waiting a few minutes before continuing. "Good. This is the information we've collected over the last three months. There may be some loose ends, but we'll cover them in the future. Moving forward, this is what we'll do." As he finished speaking, Momonga could feel the mood in the room change. Everyone eagerly awaited their instructions. They wanted to be useful to their master and were willing to make anything their master desired come true with all their might.

"First, we need a stable supply of this world's currency. Robbing banks or stealing from the wealthy would cause an unnecessary commotion, so we will instead establish a multinational company. Sebas, you will lead this project, and I want you to make Nazarick Enterprises the dominant player in the world economy. Demiurge has already laid the foundation of this plan, and he will provide you with further details. Solution and Shizu will assist you with this project. Remember, Sebas, the next step in the plan depends on your success." Momonga instructed his trusted butler and maids.

"We won't disappoint you, my lord," Sebas and the maids replied in unison, bowing respectfully.

"Good. Our next step will be to establish Hero agencies across Europe and America. This will be funded by Nazarick and will significantly enhance our company's reputation. It will also serve as a front for us to abduct villains for our experiments." Momonga paused in his explanation when he noticed Aura raising her hand. "Yes, Aura, what is it?"

"Why can't we just kidnap people whenever we like, and why do they have to be criminals?" Aura asked with a look of confusion on her face.

"Aura, abducting innocent people would cause suspicion and unrest among the general public. If we were to take criminals, people would assume that they perished while committing some heinous act. However, if crime suddenly dropped across the continent, governments would start investigating the source of the decrease, causing unnecessary trouble for us. Conversely, if people believe that the crime rate dropped because of a new, competent hero agency, it would give a tremendous boost to the agency's reputation, along with the company funding it," Momonga explained.

"Thank you, Lord. Now I understand. Your wisdom truly knows no bounds," Aura said, her eyes sparkling.

"Thank you, Aura," said Momonga. "Now, onto the third part of the plan: increasing villain activities. This plan will act as a support system for the first two plans. Shalltear, you will lead this initiative. First, you will raid firearm factories and recover guns from them. Then, scout for usable villains and provide them with firearms. This will help us on two fronts. Firstly, we will conduct small-scale attacks on other major companies, dropping their share prices and, in turn, helping our company grow. Secondly, to demonstrate the value of our hero agencies, we must first prove how ineffective the existing agencies are. Therefore, you will increase criminal activities across the continents, which will eventually decrease once our hero agencies come into the picture. "

"As you command, my lord," both maids replied in unison.

"But, Lord," Shalltear complained, "I can control my blood frenzy."

"Don't be mistaken, Shalltear. I am not distrusting you or questioning the intentions of your creator, but we cannot take any risks. We can't afford to lose an entire city to your blood frenzy," Momonga explained.

"If you say so, my lord," Shalltear sulked, but she knew she had to follow orders.

"Aura, you will assist Demiurge in his experiments. Mare, if needed, you will assist with three projects. Cocytus, your responsibility is to protect Nazarick. Albedo, as the guardian overseer, you will keep an eye on everyone's progress and report directly to me. Narberal, you will assist Albedo in her task," Momonga quickly gave out the remaining orders to which everyone simply nodded.

"As for the last objective of today's meeting," he said, as he destroyed the flag bearing his own name. "From this day onwards, I will be known as Ainz Ooal Gown. You may refer to me as Ainz. As the guild master, I will carve this name into the world." Ainz's declaration left everyone in awe of his mighty figure. "If anyone objects, speak your mind now."

After a few minutes of silence, Albedo declared to the room, "We hear and obey, Lord Ainz Ooal Gown." Soon after, everyone took the pledge, repeating the words, "We hear and obey.".

"So, the meeting ends here. If you have any doubts, consult Demiurge later. Now, I will take my leave," he said, about to teleport. However, he remembered something and turned back to address Albedo, "After one hour, meet me and Demiurge in my office. Also, take this ring and bring Pandora's Actor along with you." He took out a ring from his storage and handed it to her.

Albedo's eyes widened with shock as she exclaimed, "This, my lord! I couldn't possibly-"

"I insist, Albedo," he interrupted. "You will require this ring if you want to enter the treasury. It will also assist you in administrative work. Please take it," he urged her.

"Thank you, Ainz-sama," Albedo said with a delighted smile. "I will treasure it with my life."

"Also, take Shizu with you. She will be needed," Ainz said, before teleporting back to his room.

:-:-:-:-:-:

After Ainz had left, Albedo took charge and requested that everyone who was not involved in the plan leave the room. Once everyone had departed, only Albedo, the Guardians, Sebas, and the Pleiades remained in the room.

"Incredible, our master truly is amazing," Aura exclaimed excitedly.

"Indeed, to gather so much information in such a short amount of time is remarkable," Solution agreed with Aura.

"But, Lord Demiurge helped too, right?" Lupusregina teased.

"Calling it a help would be far from the truth. I simply followed his instructions. By the way," Demiurge looked at Cocytus and asked, "Are you sure you want to stay?"

"As. A. Guardian. I. Should. Listen. To. The. Conversation. That. Will. Benefit. Nazarick" said Cocytus.

"Well, I don't mind if you stay," said Demiurge. "Now, let me assign everyone to their particular tasks. Sebas, I have already planted some doppelgangers in several prominent companies, so you should have investors and official paperwork ready within a week. Before that, I believe you and Solution should visit human countries to scout for a suitable house and get accustomed to using human currency. I will provide you with funds recovered from test subjects."

"So, where should we start?" Sebas asked.

"You should start in California, which is the biggest economic hub of America," said Demiurge. "You will also need to learn English, which is commonly spoken there and is universal. I am sure it will be useful in the long run."

Sebas asked, "Don't we have translation scrolls in the library?"

"We do have those, but as I said earlier, they are limited resources, so we won't use them at this stage," said Demiurge in a mischievous tone. "But I didn't know, will it be that difficult for you to learn a simple language?"

Sebas narrowed his eyes at the insult but let it slide. "Anyway, we will learn the language."

Although Demiurge was not narrow-minded enough to hoard scrolls if doing so would complicate his master's plan unnecessarily, he was confident that Sebas and his team could easily learn any language. Nonetheless, he enjoyed teasing Sebas, for reasons unknown.

"Aura, I have a favor to ask," Demiurge said during his briefing. "I would like you to travel around the world and search for any animals that have undergone unique mutations."

"I don't mind," Aura replied with a quirky smile. "It will be an easy task for me and my beasts. However, I must inform you that I have already searched this entire forest and didn't find anything like that. Lord Ainz also told me that it is the largest forest in the world, so don't get your hopes up too high, okay?"

It was indeed true that the Amazon rainforest was the largest on Earth. However, Ainz wasn't certain about the mob spawns there, so he sent Aura with some high-level undead to scout the forest. To his surprise, the forest was filled with normal animals.

On a side note, Aura brought back a big jaguar, mistaking it for a big, dotted yellow cat. The poor animal was sitting in a corner, shivering after it had attempted to attack her, and was subsequently trampled under her feet. Ainz allowed her to keep the jaguar after she agreed to take care of it.

"Of course, I have read the reports," said Demiurge. "But just to be sure, use [Invisibility] when you are flying over human nations to avoid any unnecessary attention. And finally, Shalltear, I have short-listed a few individuals who might interest you. They possess unique abilities that could prove useful for our cause."

With that, Demiurge's briefing was over, and the only thing remaining was to bring someone back from the fantasy land.

"I think that's enough daydreaming for today," Demiurge said, turning towards Albedo. "You have an important task to do."

"Oh, yes. You are right," Albedo replied, her expression turning into a warm and happy smile as she glanced at the ring. "I need to attend to this matter immediately. Our supreme leader has entrusted me with an important task, and I must fulfill it to the best of my abilities. Demiurge, I'll see you in an hour."

:-:-:-:-:-:

Ainz's Pov:-

After the meeting, Ainz returned to his room. He had already asked the maid on duty to wait outside, so he was alone. Without hesitation, he collapsed onto his bed, burying his face in a soft pillow.

'It was so tiring,' was the first thought that came to his mind. Although his undead body was immune to physical exhaustion, he felt mentally drained after the meeting. The truth was, it wasn't just the meeting that left him feeling this way, but also the lack of excitement in his life.

'I am so bored! All I ever do is work and look at papers. I spend most of my time cooped up in my room or the throne room. And the NPCs won't let me do any work either, so I feel like the most useless person in the tomb,' he muttered with a sigh. 'Maybe this is the only way out.'

After spending some more time rolling in his comfy bed, Ainz decided to contact someone using [Message]. He placed his finger on the head and focused his thoughts on the person he wanted to speak to.

['Hello, can you hear me?' Ainz spoke into the void.

'Oh, of course, my all-mighty creator, my lord, my liege lord Momonga,' replied the voice on the other end with an exaggerated mannerism, which only added to Ainz's frustration.

'Can you please talk normally for once? Also, I've changed my name to Ainz Ooal Gown. You can just call me Ainz,' said Ainz.

'Of course, o creator of mine. Ihr prestigeträchtiger Name wird meine Seele prägen,' responded the voice, now speaking in German.

'Why are you speaking in German now?' Ainz asked in an agitated voice.]

The person Ainz was speaking to was his own creation, Pandora's Actor, the sole guardian of the treasury. Despite being one of the smartest NPCs of Nazarick, every time he spoke to him, Ainz felt like he was having a serious headache. When he created Pandora's Actor, he was in his teen phase, and his personality reflects the bad choices of his youth. But Ainz didn't hate him, he just thought he could use some improvement.

['Anyways, soon Albedo will be there to pick you up, so I want you to bring something for me,' Ainz explained, then proceeded to tell Pandora's Actor exactly what item he needed from the treasury.]

After ending the [Message], Ainz sighed and laid back on his bed. 'Well, I should get ready too,' he thought to himself.

:-:-:-:-:-:

An hour later, Ainz entered his office to find three figures already kneeling on the floor. In one corner of the room, a maid was standing, almost erasing her presence.

"Raise your heads," Ainz said as he took his seat. "I have called you three here because I want your opinion on something. But before that," he looked at the maid standing behind him, and she understood the meaning and left the room. "Demiurge, please share the classified information with these two."

"Are you sure, my lord? We don't have any concrete proof about the matter," Demiurge confirmed with Ainz.

"No need to worry, Demiurge. You three are the smartest minds of Nazarick, so sharing information with them might bring up some useful inputs," Ainz said, looking at the other two confused figures.

"As you wish, my lord," Demiurge bowed and turned to his colleagues. "The information Lord Ainz is referring to was not presented in today's meeting. You see, there is a Hero in Japan who is currently known as the Symbol of Peace and is also recognized as the No.1 Hero there. However, despite his popularity, his work hours are significantly less than other heroes, and he often avoids public interactions. So, to capture his attention, we started creating incidents where he was spotted at the time. But after that, we observed something absurd. After solving an incident, he vanished into thin air. At first, I thought it was absurd that such a huge man with such a strong presence could vanish in an instant, but then I noticed a key element during all those incidents."

"And what is that?" Albedo asked.

Demiurge fixed his suit, looking quite proud of his discovery. Then he pulled out a picture of a sickly-looking blonde man. "It came to my attention that this man was always present whenever the No.1 hero solved any kind of incident, whether it was of our making or not. So when I followed him, it turned out this weakly old man was the All Might."

Albedo took the picture and stared at it. "Demiurge, tell me something. Was this... All Might guy strong enough to take on a floor guardian?" Albedo asked in a serious tone.

"I wouldn't go as far, but the amount of power he exhibited is still quite absurd. In my opinion. It would be wise for us to exercise caution around him, especially considering that he wields a mysterious power for which I couldn't find any explanation, despite all my sources," said Demiurge, sounding somewhat ashamed of his failure. "We had hoped to observe him more closely, but apart from his hero work, he leads a rather solitary life with no friends or close acquaintances to speak of. As a result, keeping him under constant surveillance was a waste of resources, so I had to pull back on that front. We also attempted to incite more incidents, but more than often other heroes always resolved them before he could intervene," Demiurge explained.

"Because you lacked proper insights, you kept this information classified for the time being," Albedo said, as she pondered something. "But an unknown power like this could become troublesome for us in the future. I suggest we eliminate this threat as soon as possible."

"That's a bad idea," objected Pandora's Actor. "There's a possibility that a player is involved in this, and attacking someone without proper information could be reckless."

"As expected from Ainz-sama's creation," nodded Demiurge, looking quite satisfied. "As he said, attacking this hero without understanding his power would be foolish. Therefore, we were thinking of invading U.A. High School."

"What is this U.A. High School you speak of?" asked Albedo.

"This is one of the most prestigious schools in Japan, offering hero courses to children who aspire to become heroes in the future," explained Demiurge, stroking his chin. "We have learned that the No. 1 hero is planning to join the school as a teacher in the near future, but we haven't found a candidate who can infiltrate the school without compromising their duties."

"That's why I will go," declared Ainz, interjecting into their conversation. The three NPCs looked at him with shock written all over their faces. Despite Pandora's Actor having three big holes in his face for some reason, he could feel his emotions. "I will infiltrate the school as a student."

"We can't possibly allow you to go to such a dangerous place," protested Albedo. "What will we do if something happens to you?"

"Relax, Albedo. I will be safe. After all, I am your master, and besides, if there is really a player involved, then there is no one better than me to deal with them personally," reassured Ainz.

"Wenn das der Fall ist, lass mich an deiner Stelle gehen, mein Schöpfer," Pandora's Actor said in an exaggerated manner.

"I can't send you even if I want to. You have the important job of managing the treasury of Nazarick. Also, from today, you will be helping Albedo manage the finances of three projects briefed today. Albedo will give you the details later," sighed Ainz. "And for the last time, stop speaking German."

"But Ainz-sama," said Demiurge with concern written all over his face, "your appearance may cause a problem." He was hesitant to criticize his master's appearance.

"Demiurge!" Albedo shouted towards Demiurge, her anger clearly visible in her eyes. "How dare you say something like that to our master? He's the only one who stayed with us after everyone else left us. How can you disrespect such a merciful Lord?"

"It's alright, Albedo," Ainz said, patting her head. He could clearly see the flushed cheeks of Albedo. "I don't think this world will accept a walking skeleton as a student, but I have already found a solution for that. Pandora's Actor, did you bring what I asked for?"

"Of course, my liege," he bowed and handed a watch-like object to Ainz.

"What is that, Ainz-sama?" Demiurge asked with a curious look.

"This is a Divine-class item, Cast Creator. It allows users to create a homunculus body and transfer one's consciousness into it. Back in the day, we used this to scout dark woods and new dungeons in the old world," Ainz explained while putting on the watch.

In reality, the Cast Creator was just a gimmick item added for content creators who wanted to make videos in-game. It was initially sold in the in-game store at a ridiculous price, but due to player backlash, it was turned into an in-game item. After the change, it was classified as a Divine-class item, allowing up to five guild members to create spare bodies, one at a time. It also allowed for the storage of up to 15 skills at maximum and allowed for the retention of the stats of the original avatar. Additional features were added, including the ability to apply fake status conditions and add fake organs to the homunculus body. However, the item had some drawbacks, including the limitation that only spells up to the 9th tier could be used, and if the body was destroyed, it would take two weeks to recharge the watch before it was usable again.

After activating the item, Ainz said, "Now let's test this one." Within seconds, a body materialized out of thin air, and as a cloud of dust settled, a Japanese-looking boy with black hair and blood-red eyes stood before them. Ainz felt a surge of emotions rush through his body as he recognized to whom this body belonged.

'Bukubukuchagama had bought this item by spending her entire paycheck, which she earned for dubbing a 6-hour-long H game. She created this character because she wanted to write a manga about it, and spent countless hours making it look realistic. She also spent a lot of money buying divine class equipment for her character. After many trials and errors, she finally finished her dream protagonist. However, before she could try it in the field, she had to leave the game, and since then, this item had been sitting in the treasury.' As he remembered his past guildmate, his emotional suppression kicked in. He was glad that his emotional suppression had saved him on many occasions, but it also annoyed him when it activated during moments like this.

"So it is decided then, I will enroll in U.A. High as a student and investigate the no.1 hero, as well as any other notable individuals," Ainz declared.

"But, Ainz-sama," Albedo said, her worry evident in her eyes. Ainz didn't like to make NPCs worry, but he couldn't help feeling happy knowing that she genuinely cared for him, and not just because of his idiotic setting change on the last day of the old world.

"Albedo, do you trust me?" he asked gently, looking straight into her eyes.

"Always, my lord," Albedo blushed and played with the locks of her hair.

"Now, let's get back to work. We have a lot to do," Ainz said, signaling the end of their conversation, and headed back to his room.

:-:-:-:-:-:

After the last meeting, two years went by quickly. Nazarick Enterprises became the dominant force in the world economy, with total control over the American and European markets. This was made possible by the doppelgangers placed by Demiurge and the constant villain attacks on rival companies led by Shalltear.

During these two years, the rate of villain activity skyrocketed on the European and North American continents. Shalltear and her team provided firearms to criminals and helped those with interesting quirks escape crime scenes, erasing their memories afterward to eliminate any signs of their involvement. Public unrest increased with each passing day, with people questioning the legitimacy of existing hero agencies. Eventually, Nazarick Enterprises launched its own hero agencies, which quickly gained a reputation as the most effective in the business, leading to a drastic drop in crime rates and criminal activity just months after their launch.

In reality, Shalltear would select the shortlisted individuals and deliver them to Demiurge. Then, Nazarick would enlist the heroes under their wing to raid the hideouts and collect the leftovers. Moreover, Nazarick's considerable influence made it easier for the company to expand and dominate the Asian market, particularly in Japan.

Meanwhile, One year after the big meeting, Demiurge confirmed that the No.1 Hero was indeed going to teach at U.A., thereby confirming Ainz's plan to enroll in the school as a student. Initially, when he declared that he was going on an undercover mission, many of the other guardians complained. However, to everyone's surprise, it was Albedo who ultimately crushed the resistance movement.

On his part, Ainz spent the remaining year training with his new body and learning things that teenagers usually would do. But aside from this he also had to learn how to fight all over again.

As a magic caster, Ainz was typically relegated to the back lines of battles. However, he recognized the need to improve his combat skills and sought out two individuals to train with. He first asked Sebas to teach him melee combat and then turned to Shalltear to refine his magic skills while on the move. Given their busy schedules, they could only make time to train on weekends. During weekdays, Ainz trained with Cocytus to perfect his overall battle skills.

As a side note, Ainz discovered that his dummy taste buds were actually functional, allowing him to eat and taste food. When he realized this, he was overcome with emotion and shed tears of joy. He shared his discovery with Albedo, who blushed and looked at him expectantly for reasons unknown.

And just like that, two years had passed and the day of the entrance exam had finally arrived.

To be continued...

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