Light's downfall

by ainzOoalGo

Non-canon 10th volume of Overlord, do NOT read if u don't know how volume 9 ends. Ainz sets his sights on the Slane Theocracy! What kind of battle will the Black Scripture put up? He's hungry for revenge after what happened last time! time for the showdown between Nazarick and humanity's strongest has come at last! Rated T for violence

2. Chapter 1

Overlord Volume 10 (lol): Chapter 1 Preparing the hunt

Part 1

The Great Tomb of Nazarick, inside the office of the last of the Supreme Beings, Ainz Ooal Gown. The Supreme Overlord is working on his next plan to topple the world.

What a drag! How did it end up like this?!

Ainz looked disheartened at the mountain of paperwork laid out in front of him. After the subjugation of E-Rantel his normal workload had doubled. On top of checking through all the reports of his subordinates in Nazarick he had to work out all the details of managing the city as the new enforcer, while posing as the adventurer Momon.

Even though as an undead he no longer felt fatigue or need for sleep or food, he still was under mental stress from constantly having to file mountains paperwork day after day.

Ainz mimicked the motion of sighing as he gathered what little motivation he had left to pick up where he had left of his work.

Next to him stood a platinum blond-haired beauty with a chest quite disproportionate to the rest of her body. She had a petite figure and beautiful crimson eyes that matched her black and strawberry red dress. This was the guardian of the first three floors of the Tomb of Nazarick, Shalltear Bloodfallen a true vampire. She appeared to be all smiles as she carefully watched her master work and was ready to be of service to her master in any way she could… in any way.

Ainz could guess why she was in such a great mood today. Normally Albedo would be the one helping him complete his administrative affairs which at this point were starting to fit the description Kafkaesque quite nicely. But Albedo and Pandora's actor had finally begun their secret mission to search for other members of the guild throughout the continent, starting with a few key points that Ainz had marked as POI's.

Haah, it feels kind of strange not having Albedo around who has a higher intelligence and is more of a help with these matters than Shalltear but at the very least Shalltear won't suddenly decide to jump me. In this regard I prefer Shalltear who has a more reserved personality.

"Ainz-sama please feel free to take a break from your work, I'm sure that those lower life forms won't mind you placing your own needs before theirs."

Shalltear must have guessed Ainz his current thoughts.

"No Shalltear, I have to finish these reports today otherwise tomorrow the people of E-Rantel might get upset with Momon for not doing his job properly which will lead to them being dissatisfied with the rule of Nazarick. We have conquered those humans and imposed our rule. We must make sure not to treat them badly afterwards."

"As expected of my Lord! To place those lesser forms' needs before yours, truly compassionate!"

Shalltear brought her hands together as if to start praying and she was starting to tear up from the heartfelt statement of Ainz.

Ainz shrugged his shoulders. He simply didn't want to deal with the troublesome task of suppressing the inhabitants of E-Rantel through brute force.

*Knock* *Knock*

Ainz's thoughts were interrupted from the sound of soft knocking on the door. He responded in a calm manner.

"Enter."

A beautiful blonde girl wearing a maid outfit opened the door. It was one of the 41 homunculus maids that cleaned and managed maintenance of Nazarick's 9th and 10th floor. She bowed deeply to great Ainz and then delivered her message.

"Ainz-sama, please forgive my interruption of your work but Demiurge-sama requests an audience with you."

Was he supposed to report today?

Ainz thought deeply for a second. Demiurge was supposed to manage Nazarick's temporary embassy with the Empire on top of all his other duties. What could be so important that he wanted to report now? Ainz decided that it was better not to wonder and just ask him directly.

"Very well send him in."

The maid bowed deeply and responded to her master's order.

"As you wish, Ainz-sama."

Moments later a man entered the room wearing a tight suit, round glasses and had neatly combed black hair. The thing that stood out however was his scaly tail and pointy ears. The floor guardian of the 7th floor Demiurge. He kneeled down before Ainz.

"Speak"

Demiurge raised his head and began speaking to Ainz.

"Forgive my intrusion Ainz-sama. Thank you for receiving me so suddenly. Oh, and I see that Shalltear is here as well, that's excellent."

Ainz frowned his non-existent eyebrows and responded.

"No need to apologize, you wouldn't ask for a meeting without a good reason, Demiurge. But why is Shalltear being here convenient might I ask?"

"Yes!"

Demiurge got up and resumed his orderly straight up posture before he began speaking again.

"Ainz sama I come to deliver a report of the highest priority which I believe cannot be delivered simply by message or messenger."

This statement made the crimson lights in the sockets of Ainz's skull shine brighter than usual. For the calculating Demiurge to value the contents of a report so much that he came personally made Ainz feel uneasy.

"Very well then Demiurge! Then tell me what you have found out."

"Yes Ainz-sama, I believe that I have finally discovered the hiding place of the vermin that used a World Item to brainwash Shalltear and make her rebel against us."

"What? Ah forgive me Ainz-sama."

Shalltear could not help but shout out her surprise after which she immediately covered her mouth with her hands and apologized.

Anger and surprise boiled up in Ainz at this moment. When Ainz thought back of how he had to personally kill Shalltear who was a creation of one of his former guild mates and close friend Peroroncino who he considered like a younger brother, it brought him close to where his passive skill had to forcibly calm him down. However it was still surprising that Demiurge was able to find the group that even Ainz was unable to track down after numerous attempts to lure them out.

"Hooh, so they've come out of hiding then?"

"No, Ainz-sama I was merely able to narrow down their possible hiding places thanks to the empire's intelligence network and spies."

At this point demiurge raised his finger like a teacher about to educate his students

My findings come down to these two points. First the people who brainwashed Shalltear do not appear to be from YGGDRASIL like us. Second, I am fairly certain that the culprits are hiding in the Slane Theocracy.

Upon hearing this doubt started to gnaw on Ainz. From the moment he discovered that Shalltear had been put under mind control by a world item user he had been convinced that the one responsible was a player like him, to hear Demiurge deny this felt like something of a misunderstanding.

If they really weren't players from YGGDRASIL could it be that my deduction of them specifically targeting Shalltear was wrong as well. The timing of their appearance was just too godly after all. No before that I must make sure.

Ainz glared at Demiurge and asked his next question whilst trying not to lose his composure.

"What proof do you have of these findings Demiurge?

"First off thanks to our experiments and findings we have concluded that some humans are capable of using items from YGGDRASIL and sometimes ignoring the level restrictions that even the members of Nazarick have to abide by. Thus the possibility of humans using items from beings of Yggdrasil comes to mind."

Ainz had already understood that, when he battled the human Nigun from the Sunlight Scripture he used a magic crystal which was clearly an item from YGGDRASIL to summon a high tier angel.

Could it be that world items are also usable to them despite world class items having a level requirement of 80?

Humans were regarded by Ainz and the rest of Nazarick as weaker beings no different than bugs beneath a shoe, however if they were capable of ignoring class and level restrictions and use even world Items, than that changed the level of threat they could pose to Nazarick quite significantly. But this alone did not prove that it was humans and not players that attacked Shalltear.

"But then let me ask you Demiurge. What makes you think that it was specifically humans and not other players that attacked us?"

To answer this question we need only but ask ourselves four other questions. First, why is the magic used in this world the same as in YGGDRASIL? Second, where did the humans get items from YGGDRASSIL? Third, how were we discovered? And fourth, why is Nazarick so powerful?

"Haah? What kind of question is that last one Demiurge?"

"Shalltear be Quiet for a minute!"

"My deepest apologies Ainz-sama!"

Shalltear bowed and refrained from speaking any further

The light in Ainz's sockets went dim as he tried to solve these questions in order

The reason that magic here and magic back in YGGDRASIL was virtually the same was something that he had found strange as well. He had come to the conclusion that other players had come to this world before him and taught the other inhabitants of this world how to use their magic. However the difference of time is what worried him since that was supposedly hundreds of years ago. The existence of Fluder who had been practicing magic for more than a hundred years proved that.

Could it be that time flows differently here compared to YGGDRASIL? Or were we all transported at the same time to different points in time when the server shut down? Maybe in a hundred years or so ill encounter someone from YGGDRASIL as well. When that time comes will it be friend or foe?

The second question's answer was virtually the same as the first. They must have gotten them from other players. Suddenly Ainz realized where Demiurge was going with this hypothesis. To give a powerful item to a human was one thing. Ainz himself had done so in the past as well, as he had given horns of the goblin general to Enri Emmot from Carne Village. But to give a world item to one was something Ainz wouldn't even consider doing. But it was another thing to take it from a player after his death. If the players that came to this world before had indeed passed away, their items would become available to anyone that found them.

However this does not mean that it really were humans. It could still be other players who arrived around the same time as us or players that have been able to survive due to their race's long lifespan.

Ainz sighed as he probably wasn't thinking hard enough about what demiurge said.

The third question bothered Ainz as well. How they were discovered was a complete mystery. No matter what little blunders Ainz had made before Shalltear's revolt he was confident that he had never let slip information about Nazarick or himself, let alone Sebas or Shalltear. Shalltear at the moment of her mission should have been wearing her ring to hide from detection and divination magic this went for all active members in the field. It really was too convenient to have known that she was there and to have prepared a World Item to capture her no less.

So in the end it really must have been a random encounter between Shalltear and another party. Though I thought that was just wishful thinking, the fact that we haven't discovered a hint of surveillance upon us further proves that they themselves don't know who they were dealing with. But in the end the possibility of another player still exists.

Ainz was starting to get a feeling that everything would become clear after he answered the last of Demiurge's questions. Although he wasn't confident that he could, seeing as he could not compare with his intellect.

That said, the last question puzzled Ainz deeply. "Why were they strong?" it was a question that did not need an answer. Because to compare the power of Nazarick to any of this world's nations would be absurd to say the least. Just one of the many guild battles that Ainz fought with his former teammates would be regarded as a battle of gods by any inhabitant of this world. That's right, because Ainz and the rest of Nazarick were unfair beings from an unfair world with unfair rules they could be considered to be so strong…

…

The light in Ainz's eyes seemed to go out for a second only to come back on as Ainz softly Addressed Demiurge.

"Excellent Demiurge, you really are a genius to have thought that far. Even I hadn't considered that. Then explain to Shalltear the answer to the last one."

Haah I'm getting tired of using this excuse to have Demiurge explain what he knows.

Demiurge smiled brightly as to him to be of service to his master on an intellectual level was the greatest joy he could feel.

"I am undeserving of such praise Ainz-sama."

"Eh, I don't get it Ainz-sama. What have you figured out?"

"Shalltear, you and I are in this world walking calamities. After Having easily killed the human Gazef Stronoff who was supposed to be the kingdom's greatest warrior we now know that virtually all humans are very weak compared to us. So if you were a player from YGGDRASIL and you'd encounter a humanoid being on an equal level just how would you react to such a development?"

At this point Ainz started to get the picture that Demiurge was trying to paint.

If Shalltear really did meet another player or players then why did they use a world item on her? If they were equal in strength they could have first talked it out, even though Shalltear would attack before asking questions due to her personality. Still there would be no need to use a world item as they could just overpower her or flee using other items. If they were stronger or outnumbered her then the use of a world Item was even stranger because the difference in strength or numerical difference made such an action obsolete. And if they were weaker and immediately used the World item then why did they leave her there?

If it was another player then then it couldn't have been because Shalltear had managed to kill the one using the item or wounded him to the point where they would have to retreat while leaving her there. Shalltear didn't possess a skill or spell that could cut a level 80 player's health to the point where he needed immediate and long term healing from just one hit.

"No matter what the setup was, if your opponent was a player or players from YGGDRASIL then it wouldn't have ended with you being left alone in that place in your neutral state. Thus a picture forms of someone who's only hope of beating you was using their world item to mind control you, however you managed to wound or kill the one using the world item before the control was complete and forced them to flee while leaving you in that state."

"It is as you say Ainz-sama."

"Well then, there remains only one question that I'd like to ask you Demiurge. Why the Slane Theocracy?"

"About that Ainz-sama, considering that we know for sure that the empire does not possess such power nor the kingdom, geographically the Theocracy is the obvious next suspect."

"Hmm… that definitely makes sense, with the kingdom and the empire out of the picture the only other nation close to us would definitely be the Slane Theocracy.

"Also as I said earlier, thanks to the empire's intelligence network I was able to find out much about the Theocracy's inner workings. Amongst those was a report that they have under their control a special unit like the one Ainz-sama fought in the human village, with the main difference being that this unit possesses items that were reported as 'not of this world'.

Ainz could not help but let out a soft 'aah' sound as the pieces of the puzzle were coming together quite nicely.

"So then let's assume that this unit like the ones we encountered at Carne Village were out on a mission and came across Shalltear. After witnessing how strong she is they resorted to using a world item. However Shalltear sensed the danger and struck a blow against the one using the item, thus causing a draw due to killing or wounding the user."

"Indeed Ainz-sama that is my theory as well, however it is impossible to say if it's really them who are responsible for the incident. But I believe that at this point it is our best lead."

"Hmm, you're right Demiurge, it is definitely worth checking out. Eventually we would become their enemy's anyway seeing as they despise non-human races."

"Ainz-sama please send me to dispose of those lesser beings! If they really were the ones responsible for my blunder then I should be the one to handle them! I will turn them into zombies and have them kill their own loved ones and family to see how they like it. Or should I maybe do the reverse and force them to kill or be killed by their zombified loved ones."

Shalltear was visibly shaking with both excitement and anger as she could feel the opportunity to relish exacting her revenge against the ones who caused her to rebel. Ainz could not begin to imagine what other horrors she would subject them to if they could be captured alive.

Somehow I doubt that they will allow their capture though, well if necessary we could revive them and then kill them again after torture.

Ainz had completely forgone any notion of sparing the lives of the ones responsible for making him kill Shalltear. If they really could be captured alive he would just say "go wild" to Shalltear and leave it at that.

"No Shalltear, if we manage to lure them into a trap I can promise you that I'll let you have your revenge but until then I'll have you stay in Nazarick."

"I understand Ainz-sama, please forgive my uncalled for outburst just now."

Shalltear bowed her head returned to her calm and composed state, but Ainz could still feel that she was revved up and rearing to go.

"Well then Ainz-sama if u permit me to strategize I will come up with a plan to destroy these foolish humans and clear away Shalltear's no Nazarick's shame."

To this Statement Ainz appeared to give off a broad smile as he responded to Demiurge's request.

"No need to uphold the façade Demiurge, I know full well that you already started formulating a plan the moment that u figured this out."

Demiurge smiled brightly with an evil grimace, displaying his true nature he answered his lord.

"As expected from my lord, there is nothing this one can hide from you. Well then if u will allow me to make a suggestion, I recommend we use that hairy old sheepdog u picked up recently as bait."

"Sheepdog?

Ainz Pondered for a second who Demiurge meant.

Aah you mean him. You're right if it's him he should definitely be able to lure out the any strong ones within the Theocracy.

"Now the next question is what we do with them after we lure them out. Even if they are weak they still possess at least one World Item. Even though we have armed the floor guardians with World items we have no way of safely confirming if they still deter the effects of other world class items."

"About that Ainz-sama, how about we transport them into my guardian's arena?"

Ainz thought about what Shalltear said for a second and then firmly answered.

"Rejected, if we lose control of a guardian there we will have no way of bringing them back or even killing them."

A guardian's arena referred to the part of Nazarick where the floor guardians would fight with any invaders that came into Nazarick if they were of a high enough caliber. Inside their arena a floor guardian was nigh invincible when compared to outside of their arena. With the exception of Victim whose arena didn't strengthen him so much as the other fellows on his floor, a floor guardian inside his arena could easily take on 20 level 100 players and had the strength of a semi raid-boss.

In Shalltear's case she would face them inside the 'Blood fest Ballroom', where all players would continually be drained off their health whilst fighting her and her high-level undead minions. This along with her Spuit Lance and the fact that she could consume one of her six vampire brides' blood to restore her health completely made it possible to out-sustain even the strongest parties.

In Demiurge's case his 'Devil's Lobby' had a very nasty mechanism where the floor was actually the mouth of an enormous demon. Every two minutes there would be a magic activation that disabled all forms of flying and levitation for all creatures except for demonic creatures. If the curse was not dispelled within ten seconds the floor would open and the players would fall into the mouth where repeated instant-death magic was cast on them till they perished. Combine this with the barrage of AOE lava attacks and constant assault from flying demons and you had a veritable raid nightmare.

Ainz smiled as he reminisced about how much fun Peroronchino-san and Ulbert Alain Odle-san seemed to have as they were developing these mechanics back in the day.

Weren't those two being a little bit too sadistic with their arenas? Then again I did setup the Avatars in the Treasure room to attack anyone with the ring of Ainz Ooal Gown so I can't judge too much.

The reason that Ainz wished to avoid making the guardians arenas the battleground for defeating this enemy was twofold. First off there was a considerable amount of money that needed to be paid to activate an arena. In the old days it would have been an insignificant amount but now it was too much to use carelessly.

Secondly, though in YGGDRASIL you couldn't affect a floor guardian with a World Item whilst they are inside their arena, with the exception of world items like World Savior which did direct damage instead of effects− this was to prevent guilds constantly destroying each other's bases using just one world class item. But here in this new world there was no guarantee that the rule still applied. Which meant that if a guardian could be mind-controlled inside of their own arena, then Nazarick would have no way to stop them− since they did not possess enough level 100 members to take on a guardian inside of their arena without the use of another world item and even then it was risky.

"Looks like no matter what I'll have to wrap my hand in cloth and stick it in the flame to see if it catches fire. Well we'll have to burn that bridge when we get to it. For now let's focus on getting the proper Intel first. To charge at an enemy without clear understanding of their capabilities is just foolish."

"You are right as always Ainz-sama. The best thing would be to approach the problem the same way as we did in the kingdom."

"You mean send a small scouting group to their country to collect valuable Intel, layouts, population numbers and military strength?"

"Exactly so Ainz-sama."

"Though I do agree with the approach, the question we have to answer next is: who will go?"

Almost all of the people that Ainz could rely on to complete missions outside Nazarick were either unavailable or unfit for the job."

Sebas and Solution were still working hard inside the kingdom. Though according to Demiurge the day when they took over the kingdom completely was near, it still was too long away for Ainz to recall them. Demiurge was buried in work as it is and Shalltear was out of the question for obvious reasons. Albedo was out scouting possible POI's for where his comrades may be hiding and the twins would be too dangerous seeing as the Slane Theocracy was so biased against non-humans.

"Haaah, as expected if would have to be the free members of the Pleiades. That would mean Yuri Shizu or Entoma."

"Might I suggest Yuri and Shizu? Seeing as Entoma might be a bit too dangerous."

"Hmm that's good for a start but still not enough. They need to have a high level NPC with them, one that can protect those two if bad goes to worst."

"Then how about sending Lycan?"

…

"That fellow huh?" Ainz wavered for a second.

It was true that the NPC Lycan met both of the requirements, he was both a high level NPC of Nazarick and would be indistinguishable from a normal human to the naked eye. The problem was that he is a loose cannon and had a bad personality. Ainz was unsure whether he could be entrusted to guard Shizu and Yuri during this important mission.

With the members of Nazarick spread thin, I can't be picky with the members I choose to send outside anymore.

Ainz thought about it for a second and then an idea struck him like lightning.

That's it I'll just give them that thing along as a means of escaping. Even Gargantua could make an escape if he used that.

"Huh, very well then. Shalltear please get me Yuri and Shizu and also, find whatever hole Lycan is sleeping in and bring him to me as well."

"Understood Ainz-sama!"

Shalltear bowed and left the room followed by Demiurge who also bowed and left to return to his other tasks.

Well then thighs are starting to get interesting, to finally have a chance to repay the ones who brainwashed Shalltear, I'm getting….

… a little excited.

Part 2

A month later

The old man awoke to the sound of a soft knocking. Inside the Tomb of Nazarick one would normally not be able to sleep soundly being a human, but this man was an exception as ever since coming here he had been sleeping peacefully on the rare occasions that he slept at all.

"Fluder-san you asked me to wake you up after four hours."

The sound of the soft female voice came from beyond the door of Fluder's room.

Fluder raised the upper half of his body and softly addressed the maid behind the door.

"Ah thank you very much, I'm awake now so feel free to resume your work."

"I understand, then please have a good day."

Soft footsteps could be heard as the maid behind the door left to resume her cleaning duties elsewhere.

"A good day… huh?"

To Fluder ever since coming here, every day had been bliss like a dream that never ended. Fluder had− after he had betrayed the empire defected to Nazarick under the pretext that he was borrowed to the Sorcerer King Ainz Ooal Gown to expand each other's knowledge of magic. Fluder had expected that the emperor had discovered his relations with Nazarick and thus requested this transfer. Afterwards he had sent a letter to the emperor explaining that he wasn't coming back and why, though he was almost certain that emperor Jircniv wouldn't bother reading it as he already knew what was in it, which he hadn't.

When the letter was delivered to the emperor all that he had said was "a letter huh, gramps?" and promptly thrown it into the fireplace with a face full of disappointment and disgust.

Fluder on the other hand couldn't care less about Jircniv or the empire anymore. He had left everything that he was, everything that he represented and everything that he pretended to be behind. The true him that was buried beneath decades of chasing the impossible had finally come out. He had shed his fake appearance and had become his true self, a man obsessed with nothing but magic.

Fluder felt his eyes were wet and started wiping away the moisture with his fingers while also confirming once more that all of this wasn't a dream, that he really had obtained a method of realizing his greatest ambition, which was to peer in the abyss of magic itself.

"How many times have I cried in my sleep since coming here I wonder? Is it one out of three or one out of two by now?"

Fluder spent almost every waking moment on research or work and even when he did sleep he often dreamed about the abyss of magic, thus crying tears of joy was no surprise. Moreover he hardly ate and even used magic which reduced fatigue so he could immerse himself even more in his magic research. But the old body of Fluder still had its limits and despite his best efforts still needed food and rest as he did not possess a 'ring of sustenance' like the floor guardians did.

He glared from the corner of his eyes at the shadowy figure standing in the corner of his bedroom. There stood what normal men would describe as death incarnate. A humongous monstrosity wearing rusted armor equipped with a shield and a sword, without flesh on its face and nothing but bones. A seemingly legendary creature called a death knight and Fluder's guard. Though a more accurate description would be warden or jailer.

Unlike the previous human that was allowed residence into Nazarick− the former brothel prostitute Tsuare, Fluder was a dangerous man even to Nazarick. It was not his ability to use magic of the 6th tier that made him dangerous, seeing as even Naberal was well capable of beating him in a magic battle. It was his ability to use teleportation magic on top of spells like {message} which could allow him to pass valuable intelligence to the outside which could be extremely detrimental to Nazarick.

Even though Ainz had stated that the chance of Fluder opposing Nazarick was low Demiurge had insisted on keeping him under at least minimum surveillance at all times. Fluder however didn't care if his new master trusted him or not. He had experienced worse in the Baharuth Empire when he was still in service of the first emperor. All he cared for was being able to stay and devote himself to Ainz until he had finally reached his goal and seen the extent of the abyss of magic. Afterwards he would gladly die and didn't even care if he was turned into an undead to serve Ainz from beyond the grave, no he would be most delighted if he could repay his master's kindness that way.

Still it was very surprising how quickly Fluder had gotten used to a death knight standing behind him and watching him sleep. Though he was certain that the death knight cared very little for what Fluder did or who he was, it wouldn't be all that surprising if suddenly the death knight decided to kill Fluder in his sleep. To Fluder this was a situation much like sleeping under a guillotine.

More than having a legendary undead stand next to me all the time, I'm surprised that it does not have the negative aura that the one in the empire does. Could death knights have the ability to turn off their negative auras at will?

He smiled as he understood that there was still much he had to learn, which made him realize that this was no time to lie around in bed.

Fluder got up from bed and slowly walked towards the big wooden closet in his room. It was intricately carved and much more beautiful than the one he had in his old room in Arwintar. Personally he didn't care for beauty very much anymore and nonchalantly opened the closet door to retrieve his robe.

After quick a change of clothes and a quick check in the mirror that he at least looked presentable, he started making his way out. As expected the death knight which thus far had been standing motionlessly in the corner of his room began to follow Fluder while walking five steps behind him.

Even though Fluder was of a strong mental fortitude he couldn't help but unconsciously grab hold on to the medal given to him by Ainz Ooal Gown to indicate that he has his 'possession' and thus not to be attacked without reason.

But Fluder's medal was still special. Ainz had realized that whether they wore the medal or not if someone wearing the medal did something disrespectful or said something bad about Ainz or the other supreme beings than many of Nazarick' servants would be prone to attack with the intent to kill. Therefore Ainz had commissioned a second type of medallion that distinguished those with special value to Nazarick from the others. If those who had this special medal did something wrong they would be brought before Ainz to settle on a suitable punishment. Fortunately so far neither the lizardmen nor any of the other 'possessions' had incurred the wrath from Nazarick.

A few rooms further down the corridor was the room of the head maid of Nazarick's regular maid staff, this was where Fluder needed to go before he could go to his working place. At the entrance to the head maid's room there was already standing a figure that looked like a women if it wasn't for her face which was not human but a dog's face instead, with a long vertical scar with stiches running down the center of it.

"Good morning to you Fluder-san. Are you ready?"

"And a good morning to you Wanko-sama, yes I'm quite prepared. Or rather I can't wait to go."

Fluder anxiously quickened his pace towards the maid as he knew full well what would happen next.

After he was about a meter away from her and the death knight had caught up to Fluder Pestonya activated her spell

{Group teleportation}

In the next instant Fluder no longer stood in the corridor of the living quarters, situated on the ninth floor of Nazarick. Now instead he found himself in a vast library surrounded by bookcases upon bookcases of hundreds no thousands of books of all sizes and colors.

Fluder now stood in the great library of Nazarick 'Ashurbanipal'. He looked around and saw that the workplace that he had set up was still the way he had left it hours ago. A sizeable mountain of books was placed atop of one of the tables in the library. When he had first left the library the mountain of books he had left behind had been cleaned up by the elder liches that worked here as maintenance. Fluder had gotten quite angry internally as he thought that he would never be able to find the same books again in this massive collection of knowledge, but he had performed admirably and not voiced a single complaint and instead just asked them to leave the books that he left on his table so he could return them himself when he was done. In the end he had found all the books from the first time again and had been able to resume his research normally.

All kinds of books were laid out here from books for summoning new monsters to game guides about YGGDRASIL's magic system to personal records written by the Supreme Beings about tips and tricks for mastering new spells.

When Fluder was first shown the library and the seemingly endless mountain of knowledge that awaited to be discovered by he was afraid he'd die of dehydration from crying so many tears. Even if he had stumbled upon this place when he was younger he would not be able to take in all which this library could give to him. At first he was very disappointed that the books were in a language that he didn't know but with amazing speed he had overcome even that obstacle.

Now Fluder was steadily improving his knowledge of magic and thanks to one of the items in this place had already been able to perform a 7th spell. The next step was learning enough about higher tier magic to be able to perform such a spell by himself.

Fluder glanced at the big book lying at the far end of his table still close enough that he could touch it. The item Fluder craved the most was lying within arm's length yet was out of his reach. 'Introduction to war magic' was the title. It was the event item a wizard would need to upgrade into a war wizard at level 60 like Naberal Gamma. Fluder sensed it very well, with the power of this book he could advance his magic by leaps and bounds. And yet he had felt it from the moment he touched the book the first time that he was not strong enough to acquire what was inside… not yet.

Ainz had already allowed Fluder to use that item when he was ready for it as to him it was an item comparable to trash. But to Fluder it was the item he had only dreamed about that would make him the greatest human sorcerer in history no even more important than that it would allow him to reach the end of his long road of searching for the depths of magic.

For now Fluder was bound to reality and forced to sift through endless encyclopedias on magic items and spells for summoning creatures. Only when could truly understand higher magic did Fluder feel he would be ready to use it and then hopefully advance to the next level.

Suddenly as he was reading another book about how to summon a high tier demon he caught a glimpse of something small moving through the library.

Being here as long as he had been, he had learned the timing of the elder liches which cleaned up the library on a regular basis and now was not that time.

He turned his head to see what it was hoping to see what he expected and indeed there he stood. A young dark elf with a women's clothes on and a wooden staff that felt completely out of place for the boy who was browsing through a couple of books. Mare Bello Fiore the guardian of the 6th floor of Nazarick and regular visitor of the Library.

Of course by now Fluder had learned that Mare was indeed a boy and that he was someone that Fluder by right should treat as a god. And yet this dark elf did not display arrogance or disdain and instead had a very timid and shy personality.

But Fluder knew that his true nature was very different from his appearance. He had seen it very clearly. That boy was a monster that made even the greatest human wizard tremble in fear at first. When Fluder had seen the full extent of the magic power that Ainz possessed he had felt a mountain of mana weighing down on him. No creature could possibly match Ainz Ooal Gown in this aspect…

But even so…

That boy is a natural disaster in humanoid form. If I had to compare the two it would be that while one possesses more power the other poses an even greater danger with the power he has. Why that boy himself is not regarded as an exalted being in this place… I don't think I'll ever understand.

Fluder decided to put the topic on his mind to rest and instead went to greet what he himself would describe as a divine being.

Well, well, if it isn't the great Mare-sama! Come to get another book from the library? You really devour them fast don't you?

The ears of the dark elf twitched as he hadn't noticed Fluder at first. Unlike most beings in Nazarick Mare wasn't one who treated humans badly and would simply avoid making contact with other life forms but as time had passed he had grown a little accustomed to him, since he was always in the library.

"Hmm… I've already read all three of the books that I took last time so… I came to ask Titus-san for some recommendations."

"I see, I see… that is why I came over. You see Titus-sama is currently busy developing a hybrid technique of inscribing magic into scrolls so he asked me to give this to you instead.

Fluder withdrew a book from a shelf which unlike the others was lying down and presented it to Mare.

"I believe this one is called 'Oliver something', though I didn't really get what it was about he said you would most enjoy it as it was also about the life of a young boy."

The young elf revealed a smile as his ears stood upwards and cheerfully grabbed the book that Fluder held in front of him.

"Uhm… thank you very much Fluder-san, I appreciate it."

"No, no someone like Mare-sama whose benevolent master allowed me to stay in this paradise praising me won't do."

"Is that… so?"

Mare tilted her head a bit not understanding why Fluder was being so polite to a fault.

"Ahh I almost forgot to ask you… uhm how is your work with Titus-san going?

"Quite excellent, thank you for asking Mare-sama. After sharing our knowledge we were capable on developing a technique that allows for magic up to the 4th tier to be stored on relatively easy to obtain materials contrary to that strange material you had been using thus far, even though Demiurge-sama seemed quite disappointed by this development. As a matter of fact Titus-sama is currently working on a method to achieve the same for the 5th tier which is why he is so busy."

After Fluder had come to Nazarick, he like Nfirea in Carne village was made to work on developing new techniques related to magic for the benefit of Nazarick. Even though the process had been slow going at first, thanks to his insights on lower tier magic and magic-inscription formulas−the mass production of scrolls containing up to and including magic of the 4th tier had arrived. Nazarick's communication and information gathering network had because of this expanded exponentially and had earned Fluder praise even from Ainz.

"That's great to hear, I'm sure Ainz-sama will be happy to hear you're making progress."

"Huhu… that's my intention Mare-sama. To be able to repay Ainz-sama's kindness is together with researching magic my greatest joy. If possible though I would like to ask him to let me be present when he casts that amazing spell you told me about or something close to it."

When Fluder thought back of the face he had made when he found out what transpired at Katse Plains he felt like a knife was carving his heart out. The amount of tears he had shed and curses he had uttered had been the most in his entire life that day. He would do no matter what to ensure that he was present next time that Ainz used such a powerful spell. Even if it was the last thing he saw in this lifetime.

According to what Mare told me he both killed and summoned with one spell. That alone goes against the principle of magic itself. Did he harvest the life energy of those soldiers and use that as fuel for the summoning? What else is he capable of? I want to know…

"If it's super tier magic then you won't get to see Ainz-sama use it very often. He is the only one capable of using it after all and an enemy or occasion that forces him to do so is very rare. But considering that you've been a great help I think it might be possible that Ainz-sama will allow it… he's very benevolent after all."

"Thank you for your kind words Mare-sama, then I will work even harder from now to earn that honor."

Mare nodded softly in response to Fluder's enthusiasm and then suddenly turned around after sensing a presence.

At the entrance of the entrance stood a man-like figure in a white costume who had a mask in the form of a bird beak to cover his face. It was Demiurge's subordinate Pulcinella.

"Oh Pulcinella-san it's rare to see you on the tenth floor. Did something happen?"

"No, no, please be at ease Mare-sama. I'm just running an errand for Demiurge-sama and Ainz-sama."

Pulcinella seemed to look briefly at Fluder though it was hard to tell with his mask covering his face.

"Actually, Ainz-sama requested me to personally come and get Fluder. It seems that he will be part of Ainz-sama's great plans."

Fluder blinked in surprise as he could not imagine what other purpose besides research of magic he could provide to a being as mighty as Ainz Ooal Gown.

"Before we go, might I ask the topic so that I may prepare myself while we walk? I do not wish to test the supreme one's patience due to being unable to respond when Ainz-sama asks me anything too complicated. "

"Of course if that makes you happy."

Though it was impossible to tell for sure, he seemed to display a smile beneath his mask.

After a quick look around to ensure that no one was eavesdropping even though such a thing seemed impossible, Puncinella answered.

"The next step in Ainz-sama's conquest of the world has been decided. Fluder-san, what do you know about the Slane Theocracy?

Part 3

The sun was setting and the light seemed to leave the capital of the Slave Theocracy's capital Astousa. Even though the room of the archbishop was well lit with the help of magic lights, it was still noticeable that dusk would soon approach. Already the faint glow of the magical lights that were starting to light up the streets were appearing through the windows. The beautiful mosaic depicting the six great gods seemed to shine even more splendidly because of this.

However, even this beautiful lighting could not diminish the archbishop's extremely bad mood.

Archon dale Tado, the sixth archbishop of the Theocracy and overseer of the black scripture. He was a man in his late forties. Unlike the other bishops the he was still relatively young. The position of archbishop was decided by the previous archbishop who chose his successor based on ability, devotion and faith. It superseded even seniority as Archon was the living proof of.

He looked at the water clock in the corner of his study. A device left behind by the six gods that showed the time with a very small error margin. Judging from the water level he still had some time he could continue working before he had to leave. After considering it he decided it was better not to postpone the inevitable and just get it over with.

He got up from behind his desk and left hoping that someone would be on the other side of his door with urgent news that he could use as an excuse to avoid going to his current destination.

He turned the knob on the door with an unsteady motion and…

No one, no luck tonight. After he left his home he looked at the elegant carriage that had been prepared for him outside and at the coachman that was standing next to it.

The carriage was a surprisingly plain and undecorated single two seat carriage painted in black. If it weren't for the holy symbol of the six great gods that decorated the door, one would never guess that it belonged to one of the six archbishops of the Theocracy.

"We're all ready to go your Excellency. The horses have been prepared."

Archon pretended not to pay any attention to the coachman and silently got into the carriage. After he had entered the coachman climbed into his spot on the carriage and grabbed the reigns of the two horses.

After giving the signal to move the horses set forth and started making their way through the city.

Archon didn't bother looking out the window, he payed no heed to the sound of the citizens on the street, he had only one thing on his mind.

"Ainz Ooal gown."

Archon could not help but mutter the cause of all his misery out loud.

Even after that conference a month go where it was announced that the Theocracy would commence the undermining and eventual destruction of Ainz Ooal Gown, there was literally nil progress on any front.

The windflower scripture had overturned every historical record in their possession and never found a single mention of a sorcerer named Ainz Ooal Gown. No, that was to be expected as he could be using a fake name. But even the very existence of a sorcerer as powerful as him should have been mentioned in history once or twice. But no records could be found thus no intelligence could be provided.

The Earthquake scripture that was in charge of managing the defense of the realm had raised the nation's security level to the max, but that was just blatantly acting like they did something that mattered. After all, if Ainz decided to invade the Theocracy then all those security measures would prove quite useless against his army of death and his magic power that wipes entire armies of the map.

From a rational point of view, there is only one way of dealing with him. The Theocracy had to use one of their great treasures that were left to them by their gods and destroy Ainz Ooal Gown without a trace.

This task would naturally fall on the Black scripture in other words, Archon would be tasked with coming up with a plan of action against Ainz Ooal Gown. This situation greatly displeased Archon.

In the Theocracy the citizens had to pay taxes twice a year, once to the theocracy as a state and once to their respected churches of worship. Those who prayed to the god of earth payed tribute to the church of earth and so on. As such the church that worshipped the god of death received very little contribution from the nation. And despite this Archon was forced to deal with such a nasty problem on top of having to manage an almost obsolete branch of his religion without anything that he could show for or rather was allowed to show for.

Managing such a horrible post would still be manageable on top of handling the Black scripture but those people are unbearable.

The scriptures that managed the Theocracy were representations of their individual faiths and were the caretakers of the people that they represented. No one thought it odd that the church that worshipped the god of death did not have a scripture to represent the people that devoted their faith to the god of death. This provided the perfect opportunity for the existence of a secret sixth scripture, one which would deal with things that the Theocracy preferred to remain hidden from the public.

"Having to meet with those monsters is bad enough, but now she wants to be present at the meeting as well… what a nightmare."

Archon once again sighed heavily at the thought of what awaited him.

The Black scripture, the most elite of the elite in the Theocracy. An unrivalled unit that excelled at destruction, capture, apprehension and of course assassination. Its members could not be described with merely the word 'exceptional'. Thanks to the citizen registry of the Theocracy they were capable of quickly finding extremely talented humans amongst their ranks. But the members of the Black scripture still could only be described as having God-given abilities that individually couldn't be matched by even most members of their own unit. The only problem was that many of their personalities were horrible and the task of keeping them in line fell to Archon, hence his foul mood.

The carriage finally stopped in front of a large building. This was one of the six cathedrals in the capital. Needless to say to which of the six gods the people in here normally prayed. Compared to the other cathedrals in the capital for whom has provided ample funds for upkeep and even cleaning of the exterior, this one was in dire need of maintenance.

It was a gloomy building, dark and dim. The black color that meant to represent the color of the god of death only added to the depressive aura that this place gave off. Nonetheless, the archbishop proceeded to enter the cathedral. As he entered and started walking towards the end of the aisle he noticed that there were still people in the cathedral who were sitting on the benches in deep prayer.

One of their dear beloved must have passed away so they were praying for a safe passage to the afterlife.

Archon furrowed his brows. Being part of the church that had to deal with so much grief and misery was the second biggest reason why he hated working as the archbishop of death so much after having to deal with the Black scripture.

At the end of the aisle stood a young man in his thirties, he was wearing a lock black robe with a religious symbol around his neck. This was the priest in charge of managing the cathedral and conducting the sermons and Archons most likely successor.

"Welcome your Excellency, I hope the trip went well."

Archon almost broke a smile from the clearly mocking remark of the priest. He as the only other priest of his church that knew about the existence of the black scripture should know all too well that Archon despised coming here if it wasn't for religious purposes.

"No need to break out any smart remarks Elfris, why don't you instead tell me… have they arrived?"

The young priest bowed slightly as he answered the bishop's question.

"Yes Archon-sama, though not all have returned. Most of them are waiting for you downstairs."

"I see…"

Without a further word said between the two of them, the priest started leading the way for Archon. After going to the sanctuary in the back of the Cathedral the priest led him through a hidden door and down a series of steep long winding stairs.

After they had reached the end of the stairs the two of them found themselves in a brightly light underground corridor. At the end of which stood five shining knights in bright white armor, guarding a large sturdy-looking metal door. They seemed to be armed to the teeth, all had in their hands a bright silver shield and an expertly crafted halberd. Around their waist could be seen a beautifully decorated short sword with a golden handle, the blade was concealed by a smooth wooden sheath. But even more than their armor they themselves seemed to radiate a brilliant glow of holy energy.

They were paladin guardians, an elite group of knights which also possessed divine-class abilities. Even the theocracy only possessed about five hundred of them as training was extremely rigorous and required a talent for both physical training and divine-type magic. The ones here were not the cream of the crop as those were reserved for guarding the most inner part of the sanctum or other archbishops but the ones here would still be capable of easily stopping and killing a group of invaders that was ten times their number, provided that they were soldiers with the same level of skill as gold plate adventurers.

When the archbishop and the priest approached the paladins brought their feet together and straightened their weapons to a completely vertical position to salute them as they passed through.

On the other side a whole different area seemed to open up. An underground temple that would remind one of seemed to open op before the two. The ceiling was at the very least fifteen meters high and was being supported by over twenty large pillars. On both sides of the room embedded into the walls themselves stood six massive stone statues depicting the six great gods. This was the hidden inner sanctum of the Slane theocracy where all the five legacies of the six great gods were kept.

Archon noticed someone standing behind one of these pillars though he could guess who it was as few were allowed to casually wander around in this part of the sanctum.

"Reveal yourself Zesshi, it's just us."

From behind the pillar appeared a seemingly young girl. She had a weird hairstyle that seemed to match her heterochromia eyes, with one side of her hair dyed white and the other dyed black. Of course Zesshi Zetsumei or 'certain death' wasn't her real name but she had carried that tile for so long now that it had become like her second name.

"Ara if it isn't Ar-chan, was wondering when you'd show up."

Archon furrowed his brows at Zesshi's lax greeting. He closed his eyes trying to calm down as he responded.

"It's Archon, I've told you not to call me that. By right you should address me as your excellency…"

As Archon opened his eyes he flinched as Zesshi's face was now only inches from his. In just that small interval that he had closed his eyes she had soundlessly approached him like an assassin would, well it was only expected of her.

I've told you not too look down on me too much little Ar-chan, now let's go to the meeting room, the others are waiting.

Archon chose not to try reason with her any further and instead continued to make his way further into the sanctum towards the meeting room of the black scripture.

It was a dim room with artificial light that insufficiently illuminated this place. If one would be generous one could say it compared to Nazarick's conference room where the 41 supreme beings used to gather. The main difference was that this room was far smaller and much less luxurious. Besides that it did compare due to the large round table in the center with 21 chairs placed around it. Yet this room seemed empty and devoid of joy as were the people that were sat down in it.

Only half huh? Well at least most of them are manageable.

Archon looked at the seven chairs that had been filled.

In one of them sat a youth with long hair, from his appearance you couldn't tell for certain whether he was a man or woman. The Archbishop knew him well however, this was the captain of the Black Scripture and one of the three god-kin, Sylvan Grad Bastion. A mighty talent holder and even at his young age unmatched by any of the lower seats and the almost the only one amongst the members of his unit that Archon could have a conversation with.

"Good to see you're here Sylvan-kun, I hope life at home is going well."

Sylvan didn't respond, he had recently gotten married and thus his life at home had changed quite dramatically. The woman he was paired up with wasn't particularly pretty but did come from a family which had produced a god-kin before so her pedigree was good. Her personality was quite a different matter as she was only sixteen and still quite wild and immature.

"Oi, Archon, don't just ignore the rest of the group like that! At least exchange former greetings will ya, even if you don't like us."

The voice that lectured Archon came from a man sitting in the far end of the room. He was a large muscular man with dark skin and with white hair which seemingly tended to grow in every direction as did the hair of his beard. This was the tenth seat of the unit and the one with the epithet 'The One Man Army' and also one of the wild ones of the Scripture.

"ah forgive me Bahmeth-san, I just felt that greeting the captain first was the right thing to do, Ahem… well then everyone thank you for coming let us begin the meeting shall we?"

"Haaah? Not everyone's here yet, why start already?!"

Bahmeth voiced his complaints with an awfully loud voice as always, which reverberated through the room.

Bahmeth-san, I'm afraid that your my time as well as yours has become rather valuable these days. The others will just have to make due with a report, don't worry Efris will minute this conversation so it's alright. Now can we begin the meeting?

After the question was met with an eerie silence, Archon along with the priest each proceeded to sit down in one of the chairs as well as Zesshi who quietly got into one of the chairs herself with a silent grin on her face.

"Ahem… well then let us begin with the monthly meeting. First order of business is to give you an update on the investigation into Ainz Ooal Gown. As our spies in E-Rantel show there is still no change in social situation or stability, the inhabitants if still petrified seem to start getting used to the rule of this sorcerer."

"Archon, don't bother with pointless updates that stay the same! Instead give us a new piece of information or a mission will ya!"

"I understand that continuing to listen to the same report is boring Bahmeth-san but please bear with me here it's very important that this unit has an understanding of what sort of foe we face."

Archon showed a wry smile as he attempted to calm down the barbarian on the other side of the table.

"As I was saying, since a revolt that would draw out the sorcerer seems unlikely to occur we will have to set up an opportunity to engage him ourselves. That's what the Windflower Scripture is busy with right now."

"Ah forgive me for interrupting you, Archon-san. But shouldn't they still be searching for Clementine?"

The one who addressed the bishop was a lean but well-built young man sitting next to Sylvan. His name was Quaiesse Hazeia Quintia also known as the 'One man Army' and the fifth seat and… Clementine's older brother.

Elfris rapidly responded to the question he knew that Quaiesse would ask.

"Ah sorry Quaisesse-san, you just got back from your mission so you don't know. The matter of Clementine has been officially closed due to strong evidence that she was killed."

The words spoken by Archon visibly made Quaisesse's eyes widen in surprise. But not because he was sad she was dead but because someone being capable of killing her besides a member of the Black scripture was unthinkable.

"How did she die?"

The question carried no emotion, but the man asking it was visibly anxious to hear the answer.

After confirming that he was allowed to speak from Archon, Elfris began his explanation.

"As far as the Windflower scripture was able to tell, the traitor known as Clementine left the Slane theocracy with the weapons she carried around with her as her non-mission equipment and the sacred treasure of the earth-miko. We have confirmed that she threw herself into the shady group known as Zuranon to avoid the Windflower Scripture tracking her down. We have strong suspicions that she then went to E-Rantel to meet up with another member of Zuranon to help him with his ritual. Before it was completed however, she was stopped and killed along with her partner. We have confirmation that one of the bodies there matches her description, even though it was damaged heavily by her killer."

"Who killed her?"

"About that, uhm… a two man adventurer team led by the now famous adamantite-adventurer {dark hero} Momon."

No one wanted to believe it. Everyone in the room excluding Zesshi had a look of disbelief on their face. To fight Clementine was one thing, even though that alone was a risky venture that would prove fatal for some of them. But to do so while having to deal with an unknown enemy from Zuranon was a very disadvantageous battle.

"Most likely…" the one who spoke and then paused was the captain himself. "… most likely this Momon used another powerful item to beat her."

That was the only explanation that the other members could accept. After hearing that the mysterious vampire that they had encountered whilst on a mission to prevent the resurrection of a dragon lord they had been destroyed with a powerful magic crystal, they had fervently refused to believe the report.

Fighting Clementine head-on without such a weapon would also be impossible, but to use a magic weapon against her who only had her stilettos was a different matter.

"Ahem, we seemed to have gone off topic, as I was saying the most important matter now is to find an opportunity to use [downfall of castle and country] the other archbishops and I have long debated this matter and we came to the conclusion that that was the safest bet in order to take down this enemy. By mind controlling him we can manipulate his entire force and systematically start wiping them out."

This statement caused and deadly silence to form in the room. Every member of the group wanted to say the same thing but no one really wanted to be the first to say it.

"Archon-san, how can you and the other higher-ups still come to that conclusion even after all that has happened?"

The one to eventually break the silence was Sylvan himself. As the captain and one of the god-kin he was one of the only people that could criticize the decisions made by the archbishops without fearing reprimand.

"After everything that has happened to Kaire-sama, you still wish to use her power?"

"Sylvan-kun, I completely understand where you're coming from. But the truth is that this problem is of such magnitude that it is the only realistic solution. The Sorcerer King possesses an army of legendary undead that he can control perfectly. Even one of his spells could potentially wipe out all life from the capital."

Sylvan didn't respond as he ran simulations of how to deal with Ainz if he attacked the capital inside his head.

"Before we take any such actions we must first determine the exact level of power that he possesses and not just in magic. Can't the Thousand Miles Astrologer get a grasp on his location?"

The one who posed the question was the old man sitting next to Bahmeth, he was the oldest member of the black scripture and it's only arcane magic caster 'Herald of Calamity' Augus Fernis Emyras. His black robe along with the bad lighting in the room, concealed most of his face but a pale face with a short snow-white beard was still noticeable. As the member with the most experience with arcane magic, his opinion could not go unheard.

"I'm very sorry, Augus-san. No matter how hard she tries, Palyntana-sama can't seem to be able to locate him with her magic. She said something about powerful anti-detection magic being at work, though she is sure that she will be able to provide a certain estimation if she can actually see him."

"If that's the case, why don't you let me go out and wreak havoc? Seeing as this Ainz O whatever's agents have already most likely infiltrated our capital."

For a second it seemed as if the world had gone completely silent. Every one of the members looked at Zesshi who had just uttered the most unbelievable set of words.

This is why I didn't want to bring her here.

Archon had the almost irresistible urge to cover his face with the palm of his hand. To allow this girl who was in charge of guarding the greatest treasures known to man to leave her post was unthinkable enough but the other thing she said was even more unbelievable.

"Zesshi, we have raised the security level at all the borders to the max, even if the people there can't do anything against the sorcerer king himself finding one of his inhuman agents who tries to cross the border is still manageable. That goes double for our capital which is on the highest of alerts. So what makes you think that his agents have managed to infiltrate this great city?"

"Who knows? But today I felt a strange presence whilst I was guarding the inner sanctum. That was actually the reason that I asked to be on the meeting to…"

Suddenly as if she had heard a strange sound or seen a ghost, Zesshi stopped talking and had a strange expression of both fear and surprise on her face. This quickly faded by a malicious smile from ear to ear that made even the other members of the Black Scripture shudder slightly. Her smile seemed to indicate that she had found her next prey whoever that might be.

"Ah nothing, I just pictured myself fighting this Sorcerer. I was thinking he made be able to provide me with my first challenge in a long time. He might even be able to beat me."

"Please don't joke around with such things Zesshi-sama, if u are beaten who will protect humanity. No if u are beaten then humanity is doomed for sure."

Elfris was eager to try to prevent Zesshi from making such further comments.

"Ah well, not like a mere magic caster could ever beat me."

As Zesshi said this she seemed to glance towards Augus with a mischievous smile.

Augus simply frowned upon hearing her mockery and remained silent.

Archon now quite fed up with Zesshi's crude comments and rash statements decided to put the conversation back on track.

"Well, as I said as things stand now we have no choice but to sit back and watch how things play out. This fellow Ainz Ooal gown has enough power to make you think of the six great gods in which we put our faith. That is why I'm certain that with his power he will not be satisfied with ruling just one region. He will come out of the woodwork sooner or later and when he does we need to be ready. And once again I must remind you that at that time we will be using [downfall of castle and country] to destroy him. I will not accept comments on this part."

Sylvan upon hearing this leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.

"Then shouldn't you at least listen to the opinion of the one who has to wear that exalted item and take on the burden of facing such a foe."

As Archon turned around he saw at the entrance an old grey woman. She had a very wrinkled face and gloomy look in her eyes. The special weapon of the Theocracy and oldest of the three god-kin, Kaire had entered the room.

Archon gulped down the saliva that had formed in his throat from seeing her and carefully addressed her.

"Oh if it isn't Kaire-sama. I'm sorry that I didn't notice you sooner, please forgive my earlier words but I must insist that using that item is still the best option we have, I hope you understand."

Kaire closed her eyes and did not respond as she silently entered the room and sat down in one of the chairs only after which she finally decided to respond.

"After meeting with that vampire, I have been unable to sleep properly at night. Even though the curse that prevented my healing has disappeared I still feel the malice from her attack haunting me every night. Understand one thing very well, after we deal with this magic caster I will retire from the Black Scripture. That is my only demand."

Archon nodded deeply. Even though the other bishops would most likely protest against the loss of one of the nation's greatest weapons, if the last think Kaire could do for the Theocracy was take over the mind of Ainz Ooal Gown then the others would have no room to complain.

"Well then I suppose with that then there are no things that we have to discuss. As I said before, for now we will just continue to monitor the situation and keep on our toes. But you have to be prepared to move out at a moment's notice and destroy this monster. That is all you are dismissed. May the light of the six great gods be with you!

As the members of the scripture and the others left the room Zesshi was the only one who stalled with her leave. She couldn't care less normally about what was decided at this meeting but today she had made the right choice coming here.

After such a long time. Finally someone who's worth playing with!

"Oh Sylvan-chan, do you have a minute"

"What is it?"

After confirming that no one would hear her she answered.

"I know that you're a very strict person but… do you think you could do me a little favor?"

Part 4

In the Slane theocracy one could easily identify who was local and who was foreigner. Members of the theocracy valued their faith over all others and dressed to express that. Wearing specially tailored clothes expressing their faith to which of the six great gods they believed in was the norm and to wear clothes without them was looked down upon. However in the face of such exotic beauty one could hardly look at the clothes.

"What a stunner. Do you think she is already engaged?"

"You moron, as if she'd be interested in you."

"Still… what is up with that hair color?"

"I have heard of people in the far south sometimes dying their hair in weird colors, could she be from there?"

"Well, at the very least she ain't from around here that's for sure."

Everywhere she went people turned their heads at the flawless face of the young maiden. Even for citizens of the Slane theocracy it wouldn't be strange to start jeering at the sight of such beauty. The young maiden on the other hand paid absolutely no attention to the many reactions of those around her and continued to walk towards her destination.

The girl looked no older then sixteen years old and was wearing a beautiful pink dress. She preferred cute things so it had been specifically chosen for her. What was also very nice was that it matched the color of her exotic strawberry-pink hair.

Not even the eye-patch covering her left eye could diminish her beauty in the slightest.

CZ2128 Delta, also known as Shizu, one of the Pleiades maids of Nazarick and direct servant of the Supreme Being Ainz Ooal Gown. She stopped at a large house in one of the streets not too far from the city's commercial district and softly knocked on the door.

After a short pause the door slowly opened, there didn't appear to be anyone on the other side of the door however.

Not in the least bit surprised Shizu simply walked into the house and proceeded up the stairs onto the second floor.

The second floor of the house was not one of many rooms but instead the entire floor was one giant room big enough for twenty people to be able to move freely around inside of it. It was equipped with three beds two large wooden closets a large dining table and a writing desk.

By the window which overlooked the street there sat another gorgeous women with her hair in a bun who was wearing an elegant but plain blue dress. She had rectangular glasses and a blue choker around her neck. She seemed to have noticed Shizu and moved her gaze from the book she was reading towards the girl.

"Oh you've returned Shizu, how did it go, did you get the supplies?"

"Hmm. No Problem Yuri-nee. Task, easy."

Shizu's face remained motionless as always as she withdrew a large bag seemingly from nowhere, from which she took out a bunch of food supplies. The fragrant smell of the food she had brought with her caused another figure in the room who thus far had been lying down to raise the upper half of his body to a vertical position.

"Hoooh, that smells good! So my supper has finally arrived huh."

On the other side of the room stood three large luxurious wooden beds, though compared to the beds on the ninth floor of Nazarick they were little more than an embarrassment, a human would find them very comfortable and soft. On one of these beds laid a young muscular man who appeared to be no older than 25 with dark red hair which was rough, uncombed. He had brown dark skin and wore a pair of dark brown pants with a dark black leather vest and a white silk shirt beneath. He had a pair of bright yellow eyes and a set of pearly white teeth which he was currently displaying due to him broadly grinning.

Lycan Thropius, a Level 85 NPC of Nazarick that resided on the third floor. He like Lupus Regina Beta, was a werewolf with the difference being he was skewed to have most of his levels put into his racial traits unlike Lupus Regina who also doubled as a cleric. Unlike her he didn't have to wear a cap to hide his ears which while he was in his human form looked no different from any others. However for reasons only known to the supreme beings he was made without area or function in Nazarick. He didn't report to any floor guardian and just roamed his floor, this combined with his rough personality had earned him the nickname 'Nazarick's punk'.

"Oi, Yuri hurry up and get dinner ready will ya?"

Yuri closed her book while sighing deeply as she swallowed the words she wanted to say from her heart and responded in her usual composed manner.

"Dinner will be prepared around the same time as usual, I implore you not to make unreasonable requests from me."

Yuri and Shizu needed no food as they were not technically living beings but Lycan was different, unlike the rest of Nazarick's active servants he had no ring of sustenance thus he required regular meals to be prepared for him.

As one of the few people in Nazarick that could cook Yuri was thus forced to prepare his meals for him at least twice a day. Even if all she could make was sandwiches and bento.

"Lycan. Mean."

Yuri couldn't help but smile wryly to Shizu's words which as usual summed up the essence of what needed to be said quite nicely, this caused great dissatisfaction to become visible on Lycan's face. Fortunately he decided not to act upon it as he knew it wouldn't yield any results and put the topic to rest.

"Ah by the way how's that little puppy doing in your little tea-party? Still playing with her food?"

The one he was of course referring to was Lupus Regina, his and her creators had some relationship with each other in Nazarick together, so it was only natural that the two of them did as well. Especially since they were both of the same race and could easily be confused as brother and sister.

"If u are referring to Lupus Regina she is doing quite well, she is currently on a mission in a human village under the instructions of Ainz-sama."

Yuri answered with a sincere smile hoping to lay the topic to rest here and now.

"Hey tell me does she still think of humans as 'toys'?"

She hesitated in answering as Lycan had hit the nail right on the head. Lupu had on many occasions referred to the humans she was charged with guarding as playthings or toys. Lycan took that short pause as confirmation.

"Ha-ha I knew it, that puppy is still way too wet behind the ears, still paying around with her food, honestly! Sometimes I worry that if you'd throw a ball she'd go and fetch it, wouldn't that be a laugh hahaha. She doesn't realize that humans are a food source not a toy. We only kill them out of hunger not pleasure."

Yuri directed a fierce glare towards Lycan now standing directly next to her. Her hand twitched to reach for the cane in her pocket space to smack it on the table and give Lycan a good lecture but she restrained herself as she knew full well how much Lycan hated to be lectured. Instead she responded with a soft comment criticizing Lycan.

"Lycan-san, belittling one of the 41 supreme beings' creations is not allowed. You of all people ought to know that."

Lycan clicked his tongue as that display of politeness of Yuri just now was nothing more than a mocking gesture towards him. Yet at the same time he could note rebuke her words as he knew full well that she was right.

By right a servant of Nazarick without a purpose would be frowned upon heavily in Nazarick. Even the assistant butler Éclair who openly declared that he'd take over Nazarick one day had one. Lycan was in reality an empty existence, hollow and meaningless and should have been heavily ostracized from the rest of the tomb, however seeing as he was a personal creation of the 41 supreme beings he was merely not treated with the respect that the other creations received.

Lycan could not possibly deny those words and so chose not to speak about the topic any further.

"So back to the topic of grub, what kinda meat is on tonight?"

"Poultry."

"Haah you know I don't like chicken. My kind being fond of chickens is just folklore you know."

"Meat expensive. Saving money important."

Shizu responded to Lycan's complaints with her usual poker face. All the while she was taking out her groceries and putting them on the large wooden table in the middle of the room which was big enough to host a dinner party for eight people. After she was finished she sat herself down behind the large wooden desk on the other side of her room as she began writing the regular reports that she and Shizu had to send to Nazarick.

"Shizu's right Lycan, we were given money from Ainz-sama and told to set up a base of operations in the Theocracy's capital. The money is not meant to be spent on your gluttony."

Yuri corrected her glasses as she continued to try and read the book that she was immersed in until Shizu arrived, seeing as the conversation with Lycan was going nowhere good as usual.

"Thaaaat's why I keep saaaaying that you should just let me out and hunt my own food."

"Absolutely not, we are here on a mission of the highest priority. You cannot endanger our cover just because the food doesn't suit your tastes."

"Well you see, you say that but we beasts don't really like being hand fed like lambs at a petting zoo, we don't kill unless we're hungry or provoked but we need to hunt."

"The way you 'hunt', you said it was out of hunger but the way you seem to enjoy yourself it can hardly be called hunting at all, it's just slaughter."

Lycan revealed a wide and sadistically evil grin on his face from ear to ear and what he showed were not the usual pearly white teeth but instead the fangs of nothing short of a monster.

The way that werewolf males killed was not as horrifying as Solution who 'processed' her food for several days or Entoma who enjoyed eating her prey bit by bit while they're still alive but in another way was much crueler then either as his method attacked not the body but the 'heart' of people.

Werewolf males' favorite food was human women, preferably beautiful ones. The way they moved was that they first buttered up to their prey with their fake charm and often handsome looks and gentle personality. When the target trusted them they were taken to a midnight date under the moonlight. Needless to say what transpired after…

"Well you know I just enjoy seeing the lovely face of a beautiful young girl who thinks she's about to have the best night of her life suddenly twist into fear and anguish as she realizes that she's about to be eaten by the one she loves. After that I just cut off the head nice and clean and have it stay that way as I eat the rest of her body! Aaah such carnage! I just loooove it! HAhahaHAAAAH!"

Yuri−quite well fed up with listening to the gory details of Lycan's methods stood up and started gathering the groceries Shizu brought with her to go to the kitchen on the first floor.

Just as she was about to head downstairs a voice from behind her spoke once again.

"Oh by the way, tonight's a new moon right? It will be completely dark on the streets except for those places lighted with magic lights right?"

"So what if it is?" Yuri asked hoping the answer she would receive was different from what she imagined in her head it would be.

"So it doesn't matter right? If I just make sure it's a quiet kill with no evidence then no one will know that there's a monster inside the capital."

So it was that after all. Why did Ainz decide to send this guy out of all people, I just can't understand his intentions. But then again he is the supreme ruler of Nazarick, how could I?

Without turning around Yuri responded to Lycan's clear insistence on defying orders.

"Lycan I will tell you only once more, you were allowed to go outside of Nazarick by the grace of Ainz-sama with clear instructions to guard us incase something goes wrong while we wait for reinforcements. Your purpose is not to go out and find your next meal unless it is with direct permission from Ainz-sama himself."

"Haah? Don't you have that thing to ensure your safety? There should be no one amongst the humans who can defeat it anyways.

Yuri quickly glanced at the chest standing by the bed, inside was a small colorful box with a handle on the side that would remind one of a Jack-in-the-box, but the creature inside was nothing quite as cute as a little toy figure of a jester. Inside was a high level NPC like Lycan that was given to them by Ainz in case of emergency.

For the first time Yuri spoke with a firm and decisive tone with the hope that Lycan would restrain himself.

"Be that as it may our orders are absolute. If you try to leave without permission I'll…"

Before she had even finished her sentence the temperature in the room seemed to have dropped several degrees as a deep and dark chill rose up that would cause panic in the hearts of even the bravest warriors.

Yuri didn't need to turn around to see what was causing this disturbance. What followed was the voice of something that couldn't be called human in the slightest.

Oi, a cute low level maid-chan like you shouldn't talk down to a high level servant like me you know.

Lycan could tolerate mocking, teasing and cheap provocations as he was not so petty, but to be forced to have a low level servant to talk like she was above him and not do anything was something that he would never allow in his life.

Right now the searing anger in his heart caused him to release an inhuman amount of bloodlust that was a match even for the floor guardians. Whether or not he would actually attack Yuri was anyone's guess, if it wasn't for…

*Pat*

…..

*Pat* *Pat*

As if it had never been there in the first place, Lycan seemed to have lost all of his bloodlust as he was currently staring motionlessly at the maid patting his head in a mechanical motion. Even Yuri who was so surprised by the sudden stop of bloodlust that she turned around only to see Shizu nonchalantly patting Lycan on the head.

"Good boy. Sit."

…..

"OI YOU PEACE OF SCRAP METAL, WHOSE F*CKING HEAD DO YOU THINK YOU'RE PATTING HUUUUUH?

Lycan's bloodlust had returned and now stronger than ever. A blood vein on his forehead had swollen up and seemed like it was about to burst. It was very likely that he was about to attack Shizu for treating him like a cute pet.

"Uwah…"

…

Lycan suddenly seemed to have lost all motivation as he sighed heavily and stopped emitting any bloodlust. His eyes completely devoid of life, he moved away from the other maids.

Lycan probably couldn't take pride in it. Starting a fight with another member of Nazarick over something so silly was beneath him and would most likely make him the tomb's laughing stock or enemy. Instead he just went back to his bed and laid down with his back turned towards Shizu and Yuri.

"Call me when dinner's ready… so annoying."

Yuri without saying a word nodded towards Shizu as a show of gratitude in response to which she got a shining thumbs up from Shizu.

After the atmosphere had calmed down a bit Yuri grabbed the groceries and went down the stairs when she suddenly halted her steps while standing in the corridor that lead towards the kitchen.

"I know you're there, reveal yourself."

As if waiting for that command three dark figures emerged from the shadows on the wall on the ceiling and in the corner of the corridor. They wore pitch black attires that seemed to consume all light and had covered every part of their body with it. Even their face was covered with black cloth that made you wonder how they saw anything at all. One might mistake them for humans if it wasn't for the fact that from their head grow two black goat horns and that they had four arms instead of two.

Nazarick's elite covert-ops 'shadow demon shinobi'. An ultra rare monster drop from the 500 yen gacha machine like the two dragons that Mare and Aura rode. Ainz Ooal gown was in YGGDRASIL as far as was known the only guild to possess three of them. While having close to zero combat ability they were superior to every other unit in Nazarick when it came to stealth and anti-stealth. In YGGDRASIL these monsters were often used during guild wars to get a firm understanding of the enemy's base, numbers, strength and items. To lose one would be an enormous loss so the guilds rarely risked sending them out. Ainz however had decided that determining whether or not the enemy that had Brainwashed Shalltear resided in the Theocracy took priority over the safety of these units.

"Report, what have you learned?"

One of the shadow shinobi's leaned in and whispered into Yuri's ear.

The reason that they had waited until Yuri had left the room was that Lycan could not hear anything about what they had discovered.

If the enemy found out about Nazarick's operations in the Theocracy and decided to come after them, Lycan had been ordered to give up his life to allow Yuri and Shizu to escape if it came to that. Ainz had stated that the only thing worse than the enemy finding out what you know is them finding out what you know about them, so that they can manipulate you using that gap of information to their advantage.

"I see, so you're saying that you have found a secret enemy base beneath one of the cathedrals? That is very interesting… what? You found a place too well guarded even for you to enter… incredible. And there was even a being that seemed like it could sense your presence."

Yuri was thrown into a deep state of thought after hearing these words. A being capable of detecting shadow shinobi shouldn't exist in this human country and neither should a place that the shadow shinobi can't enter without being detected. Perhaps the enemy possessing a world class item really did reside here in the Theocracy…

Having regained her composure Yuri corrected her glasses and addressed the shinobi.

"I'll have Shizu write the report containing this information to Ainz as soon as possible, for now you are to continue searching the city for any other hidden locations and don't forget to stay on guard. Dismissed!"

As quickly as they had appeared from the darkness− the shadow demons withdrew back into the shadows leaving not a trace of their existence behind.

Ainz-sama perhaps at last we have found the enemies that have given you so much worry and misery. For the sake of Nazarick, I Yuri Alpha will devote my all to make sure that we find out everything about them that you can so you may crush them. Enemies of Nazarick will not be forgiven.

Even though Yuri along with Sebas and Pestonya was one of the most gentle and kind hearted of Nazarick's inhabitants if the matter concerned protecting Nazarick and the other Pleiades− who she considered as sisters, she would be merciless.

That said to perform such an important mission while keeping an eye on Lycan sure is a strenuous task… hmm. Maybe I ought to put a tighter leash on him. Why must all the people I work with be like this? Perhaps it would be better if I wait a bit before doing that though, he's in an n awful mood today.

If Lycan hadn't released that monstrous amount of bloodlust, if Yuri hadn't decided on holding off on reprimanding him, if the shadow shinobi hadn't found the hidden sanctuary on the same day… perhaps things could have ended differently. But everything played out due to these coincidences happening on the same day. It was inevitable…

That very same night under the cover of total darkness…

Lycan went out for a walk…

Author's afterword:

Hello everyone and thank you for reading this chapter through to the end, I'm AinzOoalGo (AinzOoalGown was taken) overlord's number one (self-proclaimed) western fan. I hope you enjoyed the first chapter. I deeply apologize for the lack of fight scenes and Albedos in this chapter and I know my grammar is an insult to Skythewood but I'll improve I promise, better things are to come. Also please don't feed me to Entoma for writing my own OC into the story, blame Nazarick's lack of humanoid characters. I hope you will like and follow my work and I'll try to post the next chapter as soon as I'm satisfied with how it turns out.

Until next time and as always burn in hell yen press and

GLORY TO AINZ OOAL GOWN