Conquest of Lodos Forest
Chapter 1: Black woods of Lodos
Out of all the human nations in the world, the one that could be called the most untamed was without a doubt the Re-Estize Kingdom. Even with all the adventurers and the royal army keeping the peace, all cities and towns faced problems with monsters and undead disturbing the peace. Not to mention the demi-human races that, even now that slavery had been officially banned, continued to hold a grudge against humans and would sometimes not hesitate to slaughter entire caravans if they had the chance.
For the most part these clans of demi-humans did not reside within the kingdom's lands. Most of them scurried off to the wilderness in the south or sought asylum in the Aggrand Council Republic in the northern realms but exceptions still existed. One of which was, unbeknownst to most of the kingdom's citizens, the existence of a nation of dark elves that lived on their side of the mountains that formed the border between the kingdom and the republic.
The vast mountain range of Lodos that stretched all the way from the northern ocean to the great trade city of E-Asenaru concealed many secrets with its harsh weather and thick black forest which was called the Black Woods of Lodos. It was said that hundreds of years ago this place had been the battlefield where a ferocious demon god clashed with members of the legendary thirteen heroes and was beaten and later sealed. To this day, few dared enter those woods out of fear of what demonic remnants may be left. This was all the better for the dark elves that lived in these parts as they generally hated coming into contact with other creatures and enjoyed an isolated lifestyle where the forest was the only thing they needed to depend on in order to survive.
The kingdom's previous ruler had once tried to establish a peace and trade relationship with the elves, but the scouts he sent to find their base were never seen again. All that was ever found were the horses on which they rode, unharmed and well fed. One could only guess why the elves had resorted to such violence as there were reasons aplenty such as their now illegal slave trade or the Slane Theocracy's persecution of their kind or perhaps they simply did not wish to come in contact with humans and could not allow the scouts to tell of their base's location. Nonetheless, the kingdom even back then did not have the resources to spend on a conflict with a race that sought no trouble so the matter had been put to rest. Ever since, then none had ever dared to go out into the forest looking for the dark elves…
Until today.
Despite the size of the creature that waltzed through the forest at great speed, the tranquility of the trees was undisturbed as it surprisingly created little sound as it walked. Perhaps the great amounts of fur made it appear heavier and lumpier than it actually was. Any man, no matter how fierce or stout, would flinch after seeing the magnificence of this beast as its size alone would be a nightmare for anyone to contend with, but to the three creatures that sat on its back, this being was little more than a convenient mode of transportation.
Hamsuke swiftly dashed through terrain that would've been impossible to cross on horseback as it followed its master's orders on where to go precisely and in an unquestionably loyal matter. If her master told her to jump off a cliff, she would not hesitate in the slightest as it was foolish for an underling like herself to think too much about what her master ordered her to do. On her back sat three beings that to her were both frightening and awe-inspiring as each gave her a sense of unimaginable strength.
Aura, Mare, and Ainz who wore the armor of Momon were casually seated in a custom made saddle with the twins in front and Ainz at the back. As they traversed the woods, they seemed not the least bit concerned with their surroundings and in fact the two twin elves were even a little excited and happy to be riding with their beloved lord. It was not difficult to imagine considering that their lord had seemed happier as of late which made them happier as well. Perhaps what had happened in the Slane Theocracy had been a truly joyous moment for Ainz, but ever since then he felt much more relaxed and kind towards his subjects whilst naturally maintaining a very regal and imposing stance towards them.
Seeing their master at ease like this made all residents of Nazarick feel great joy and pride as they had not let their master down, thus also decreasing the possibility of him leaving them like the other Supreme Beings. When the twins heard that Ainz wanted them to accompany him to a nation of dark elves, they naturally agreed immediately as it didn't matter where they went as long as they could be of service to their lord.
"Ainz-sama, are you sure we need to go to the dark elf settlement by riding Hamsuke? I've already been there before when I scouted out the place so teleporting there would be much faster, no?"
Aura sounded curious as she naturally knew that there was a reason for everything that her master did but still wanted to be enlightened by his wisdom if only to grasp his intentions a little better.
"No, Aura, remember we are coming here as peaceful envoys to forge relationships between the Great Tomb of Nazarick and this clan of dark elves. If we teleport on their doorstep, it will be all the more difficult to be seen as friendly."
Ainz chuckled slightly underneath his helmet as he spoke. In truth, there were two objectives to this journey. One was as said to establish friendly relationships with this nation of dark elves and hopefully lure them into the fold as another satrapy of Ainz Ooal Gown. But secondly and most important for Ainz…
This was a mission to find more friends and playmates for Aura and Mare.
Ainz naturally understood that it was far too early for them to be looking for lovers or the sort, but the fact remained that unlike the rest of Nazarick, they had no other companions of the same species. Nazarick had only two dark elves because they were the favorite fantasy race of Bukubuku Chagama-sama. Ainz knew that they managed just fine with just the two of them, but it was difficult to make real friends with the other residents when most treated them with such respect due to their status as floor guardians. When he heard about a nation of dark elves existing not too far away and the threat of the World Class Item user diminished, it was the perfect opportunity to go and visit.
"By the way, Aura, how much further is it?"
Ainz gave Aura a meaningful look as his question was not as simple as it appeared.
"It is still about half a day's travel to their lair but…"
Aura gave a quick glance around as if surveying her surroundings despite their not appearing to be around them except trees.
"It won't be much longer, Ainz-sama."
Aura's reply was stern and concise as she gave an affirming look while she spoke.
"Eeeeh, dono, what does that mean? Will it be much longer? Will we be in danger – gozaru?"
"It doesn't concern you. You only need to keep going and leave the rest to us." Ainz said softly as he lightly patted the worried Hamsuke.
It was indeed not much longer before Hamsuke suddenly came to a standstill. There was no real obstacle, but her hair stood on end as she relentlessly looked around her with an uneasy look in her eyes. Even for the creature that was once called the Wise King of the Forest, this was not a pleasant situation.
Not ten seconds later did voices suddenly begin to echo from within the trees around them.
"Halt your steps, trespassers! Who the hell are you?!"
Author's afterword:
As promised, I will now begin writing side stories for as long as volume 10 isn't fully translated which honestly could still take like months. This story will be a bit more calm and fun than my previous work but don't worry it will still have fights and OPness. Making this M as I'm curious if it will get more attention that way. So without further ado let the dark elf arc… commence
PS: chapters will now be posted every couple of days but will be smaller than before. Consider them wuxia size