CHAPTER 12:

MISTAKES AND OPPORTUNITIES

"…Lord Enzo? It is I, Shalltear Bloodfallen."

Harry was awake almost instantly when the Message came through. It had been almost a week since he had adopted the Furt sisters. Thankfully, their parents didn't seem inclined to rock the boat, yet…to his relief. Momonga had taken Shizu and joined as an Adventurer, and had sent him a couple of messages. Long story short, he ended up teaming up with the Swords of Darkness Adventurer group, escorting Nfirea Baleare, of all people (he had heard of the famous alchemist and ex-Adventurer Lizzy Baleare, and Nfirea was famous for his ability to use any magical item), to Carne, to gather medicinal herbs and plants in the Forest of Tob.

Apparently, Momonga had gotten it into his head to subdue the Wise King of the Forest, as a means of showing his competency to the Adventurers' Guild. Said creature was intelligent enough to talk, but not much else. It turned out to be a Djungarian Hamster, a pet from Yggdrasil. That was the last update he had gotten from the man.

Replying to Shalltear's Message, Harry said, "I'm awake, Shalltear. What's wrong?"

"You were asleep? A thousand pardons, Lord Enzo, and I will accept any punishment you deem fit. But…I need advice."

Harry dreaded what she was about to say, but said, "I'm listening, Shalltear. I told you you could call me if things went wrong."

And Shalltear began explaining what happened. And Harry had to stop himself from groaning in irritation. Bad enough that his sleep was interrupted, but it was made worse considering how badly Shalltear had screwed up.

The long and the short of it was, their attempts to get the attention of a bandit group that might have a Martial Arts skill user paid dividends. Their coachman, Zach, was in league with one group that had Brain Unglaus, which they discerned thanks to Solution's surveillance of Zach while he was meeting with his contacts. The group, the Death-Spreading Brigade, were mercenaries during wartime, but acted as bandits in peacetime, kidnapping and raping people as well as robbing them.

After slaying the ambushers (with Solution eating Zach after he had expressed a desire to rape her) Shalltear was dropped off by Sebas to try and catch Unglaus and any other possible candidates. However, on fighting Unglaus, she taunted him, and that, along with coming across an unbeatable opponent, caused his mind to break, and he fled. Shalltear still decided to play with her food, so to speak, unleashing her True Vampire transformation…but the Blood Frenzy came into play, and Brain escaped through a bolthole, and then Shalltear, in a berserker state, slaughtered most of a group of Adventurers, sparing only one that had a potion that had to have come from Momonga.

Harry did vaguely recall Momonga telling him about giving a potion to a woman called Brita after some fracas in an inn. In any case, Shalltear had tried to pursue Brain, as well as a fleeing associate of Brita's using her Household Familiars. However, many of them had been annihilated by an unknown force. She had been tempted to go charging in, but had approached more stealthily, and had stumbled across a small group of people…that she recognised from Momonga's descriptions of key members of the Black Scripture, courtesy of Antilene's memories.

"…So, what do I do? I do not wish for my failure to be further compounded, so I remembered your words. I did not think I could speak to Lord Momonga during his own mission, but I thought…"

"…Okay, I get the picture, Shalltear. Gimme a moment to think." He calmed himself. True, Shalltear had fucked up, and fucked up badly. But it could be salvaged.

"…Shalltear, while you've messed up, it's not a total disaster. I want you to open a Gate to where I am," he finally said, donning his battle outfit as he spoke. "If we're lucky, we can still get Unglaus, but the priority is the Black Scripture."

"Understood, Lord Enzo. Your will be done." Soon, a portal appeared, and Harry stepped through it…

…And ended up in a forested area. Shalltear was prostrating herself on the ground, but he raised her up. She may have messed things up, and killed an innocent Adventurer group, but her culpability on the latter was debatable. "Enough of that. Show me where they are, okay? And quietly."

Shalltear nodded, the loli vampire gingerly leading him through the forest, until they ended up near a clearing. Thanks to a Disillusionment charm on them both, Harry and Shalltear weren't seen. He nodded as he recognised the figures from Antilene's and Nigun's memories. "…They're the Black Scripture, all right. That old woman there, that's Kairé, and she's wearing a dangerous World Item, Downfall of Castle and Country."

"Are we going to slaughter them?" Shalltear asked.

"Tempting…but no. We'll decimate them though, but we have to start with the old woman, and retrieve the World Item." His mind ran through various spells, from both Yggdrasil and wizarding magic, before he decided to go for the latter, as the spells were overpowered thanks to his new body and its magical reserves and power. He pointed at the woman's head, and hissed, "Reducto."

The jet of light burst the old woman's head like an offal-filled pinata. Even as she toppled, he used a Summoning Charm to yank her corpse from the midst of the Black Scripture, and then turning it into a pebble he put into his pocket. By now, the Black Scripture was on high alert, and so, he put on the hat, the one that concealed his face, and told Shalltear, "Your armour, don it, and use the visor."

Shalltear nodded, and in a brief strobe of light, she was now clad in elegant blood-coloured armour, with swan-like wings, the Bloody Valkyrie armour, it was called. The pair of them then strode out to look at the Black Scripture. "Ladies and gentlemen…though I use those titles very loosely with the likes of you…good evening."

"What the hell did you do with Kairé?" demanded one.

"The World Item she was wearing was dangerous, and shouldn't be left in the hands of naughty children," Harry said.

Another, a young woman dressed in what could have been a school uniform, paled. "…Captain…he was one of the ones who took on the Sunlight Scripture before my divination was blocked."

"Ah, so you were the voyeur, huh? Watching on as the Sunlight Scripture pillaged and raped innocent villagers, all for the sake of luring Gazef Stronoff out to be slain?"

"…And who are you to think he can judge us?" the dark-haired man that Harry recognised as the Captain of the Black Scripture from Nigun and Antilene's memories demanded.

"The same guy who kicked the arses of at least three of your so-called Six Gods," Harry sneered. "Oh, I did not do so alone, but you worshipped a group of xenophobic bastards who must've felt so chuffed to be worshipped as gods. Bloody Valkyrie?"

"Yes, my lord?" Thankfully, Shalltear seemed to pick up on the need to avoid using names.

"Kill the voyeur, and a couple of others. But don't play with them."

He knew she was grinning, even as she charged at the woman. A pair of fighters got in the way, but they simply became her first victims, impaled on her Spuit Lance. The voyeur was impaled before she could even scream. Shalltear flung her victims off the lance, before disintegrating their bodies with a spell. She leapt back as another tried to attack her, flying over to Harry's side. "We'll be leaving you alive for now, to ensure you bring a warning back to your leash holders," Harry said ominously. "The Theocracy has had its day. Saving humans at the expense of all else, and even turning on your own kind…you disgust me."

"We do all we do to keep humanity safe," the Captain retorted.

"No. You do so only to keep the Theocracy safe," Harry replied coldly. "You're scum…and scum exists only to be cleaned away. You can't even clean up your own messes…" He looked over to a blonde-haired young man with a face meant for feline smiles. "…Like your own sister. You must be proud that you raised such a psychopath…Quaiesse Hazeia Quintia. Rest assured…if she ever has the misfortune to meet me, I will put Clementine down like the rabid bitch she is. In any case, I think we're done here. Pray that the next time we meet, I'm still in a merciful mood, you bunch of self-righteous fundamentalist Nazis…"

With that, he took Shalltear's arm, and then Apparated…

…And materialised a short distance away, far enough to avoid pursuit, but also still in the forest. "Okay, you can change back out of your armour, Shalltear," Harry said.

In a brief flare of light, she was back in her Victorian ballgown. "…How shall I be punished for my failures, my lord?"

"I dunno yet, but…it's not going to be too bad," Harry said gently, before turning to her and kneeling so that he was at eye level to the petite vampire, gazing into her crimson orbs. "…Shalltear, you fucked up. Your mission was to capture Brain Unglaus, not to play with him. What's more, you massacred an entire troupe of Adventurers who were trying to stop those bandits you wiped out, and even if you modified the memories of Brita, her colleague will have escaped and may already be spreading word of a powerful vampire. Thankfully, when you realised what had happened with the Black Scripture, you knew when to ask for me. Otherwise, if you charged in…"

"…The World Item could have forced me to betray Nazarick," she said solemnly.

"Exactly. And I dunno how we would have fixed that, beyond killing you and paying for your resurrection in Nazarick. And given that you are the child of one of my friends…that would have been hard to do, on top of your combat prowess," Harry said. "The situation is bad, but not unsalvageable, Shalltear. In truth, it's thanks to you that we now have a World Item, even if by sheer serendipity."

Shalltear nodded, but then looked pensive. "…Forgive my temerity, my lord, but…why did you not exterminate them? Why leave any of them alive?"

Harry shrugged. "…I honestly should have wiped them out. But being a Fallen Angel makes me sadistic, and want to play with my food too, which makes me a bit of a hypocrite, I suppose. And I want the Slane Theocracy to be frightened. Frightened and angry people make mistakes. And in truth, while they are strong by this world's standards, it was the World Item and the voyeur that made them a true threat. I've defanged them for now. Besides, Antilene would be annoyed if I had all the fun."

He stood, and looked around. "Anyway, I think we can still capture Unglaus. Let's see…Point Me, Brain Unglaus." It was tricky doing this wandlessly, and it wouldn't work if Unglaus was out of range, but he felt a reaction, and not all that far from where they were. "Well, how about that? He isn't far. Must've stopped to catch his breath. Come on, Shalltear…"

They flew over to the area where Unglaus was, panting as he leaned against a tree, on the verge of laughing hysterically. He had blue hair, and had a face meant for cocky expressions…though it was twisted in sheer hysterical disbelief. He could have been the charming rogue hero of a fantasy story.

Harry decided to take no chances. "Incarcerous," he murmured, and suddenly, Unglaus was wrapped in ropes. As he screamed in panic, Harry descended in front of him, Shalltear not far behind. "Good evening," Harry said. He was taking a little too much delight in this, but Unglaus had willingly allied himself with a bandit group that indulged in rape. He had little sympathy for the skilled swordsman.

Unglaus was looking at him, and then at Shalltear, his panic increasing. "No, no…not her again!"

"Be quiet," Harry said, glaring down at the man. "Shalltear works for me. Her mission was to conscript you or any other Martial Arts wielders. You were just the bigger prize, given that you were about the level of Gazef Stronoff." He then sneered. "Then again, you can't have been that great if you worked with rapists and murderers. Did you ever partake yourself? Answer me."

Brain shook his head urgently, before sagging. "No…no, I'll admit it. I didn't rape anyone, but I turned a blind eye. I kept telling myself, it was for the sake of getting stronger, strong enough to beat him…but…she came along." His eyes flicked over to Shalltear. "She stopped my attacks…with her fingernail! Her pinky fingernail! And you're her boss?"

"Yes. So, I'm giving you a choice, Brain Unglaus. I can take the information I require from your mind, and erase this night's events…but it will leave you with some trauma that you can't explain, and I will certainly leave you in the gutter for all that you turned a blind eye to," Harry said with a snarl, before calming himself. "…But…if you are willing to pledge your loyalty to our organisation, you will have the opportunity to get stronger, in exchange for being our…consultant where Martial Arts skills are involved. You think Shalltear and I are strong? Our organisation is full of people like that. Join us, and you can start on your long road to redeeming yourself, and proving yourself worthy of your power. Or don't, and wallow in the gutter, broken for a reason you can't understand."

Unglaus, after a moment, sighed in resignation. "…Fine. I'll join you."

Harry removed the ropes binding him. "Oh, and FYI? If you betray us, what those bandits put those women through will look like Heaven compared to what we will do to you." As Unglaus nodded hastily, Harry activated Message for Albedo. "Albedo?"

"Yes, Lord Harry? I'm sorry, I didn't expect you to call at this time. Is there something wrong?"

"Yes and no. I'll be using a Gate to head into Nazarick and dropping off Shalltear and Brain Unglaus. Shalltear cocked things up. And before you say anything about that, rest assured, I will consider a punishment for her carefully. That being said, she called me up when she stumbled across the Black Scripture and their World Item. It could've been worse, Albedo, so we're not punishing her too harshly. Don't treat her as a pariah or anything."

"…Understood, my love. And Unglaus?"

"Give him a guest suite, but keep a close eye on him. Watch for any signs of suicidal ideation. Shalltear broke him. Also, there's that World Item, we need to send it to the Treasury."

"Understood…"

"So, how will Shalltear be punished, my love?" Albedo asked as Unglaus was led away by Yuri Alpha, while Shalltear headed back to her own quarters. Kairé's body had been sent to Demiurge, while Albedo was holding Downfall of Castle and Country in her hands.

"I'm still deciding," Harry said, having explained matters. "Shalltear fucked up, true, and she needlessly murdered those Adventurers, but she did so while in a berserk state, and she also did what she could to salvage the situation. I'd rather Momonga and I weren't consulted for every single problem, but on the other hand…"

"…If the situation becomes untenable, consulting with the Supreme Beings would be prudent, and the lamprey did at least swallow her pride enough to contact you," Albedo said with a nod. "In other words, you wish for her punishment to be severe enough to ensure she corrects her behaviour in future, but mild enough because it wasn't wholly disastrous and she consulted with you to stop it from getting worse."

Harry nodded, before he looked to Albedo. "…Maybe if I confiscated her sex toys and fetish costumes for…a week? A fortnight?"

It was an idle musing, but Albedo smiled, and said, "A fortnight would be appropriate, Harry. And a ban on molesting her Vampire Brides during that time. In any case, we will have to bring this World Item to the Treasury, and have Pandora's Actor place it somewhere safe. I'll contact Lord Momonga."

"We'll make it a conference call," Harry said, before he smiled. "You called me Harry, without any of that 'lord' business."

"We are alone, and you gave me permission," she said. "Anyway, let's save it for later." Harry and Albedo activated Message, calling Momonga at the same time. "Lord Momonga? We have news of considerable import…"

"Now's not the time, Albedo," Momonga replied.

Harry blinked. Momonga had been a touch curt with the Message. "Momonga, what's wrong?" Harry asked.

"Harry? You're awake?" After a moment, Momonga sighed. "Harry…we have a problem. And if you're willing, I appreciate having a second opinion. The Swords of Darkness are dead…and their killers have abducted Nfirea…"

CHAPTER 12 ANNOTATIONS:

So, things have gone a little better for Ainz Ooal Gown than in canon. True, Shalltear did still fuck up, but thanks to her swallowing her pride, she hasn't been brainwashed, and Nazarick now have a World Item and Brain Unglaus. Brita's still been traumatised, unfortunately.

Before I get onto the review-answering, I have a question for you. How old is Neia meant to be in canon?

Review-answering time! Dragon Man 180: Keno will be akin to an aunt for them, as Harry and Keno have a sibling relationship.

AnimeGoji91: Not everyone important in the Re-Estize Kingdom is corrupt and evil. Stronoff is a good guy, as is Climb and (despite his other faults) Ramposa. Zanac, while seemingly self-centred, is actually a decent guy, and while he lacked charisma, he had the intelligence and compassion for a king, for the most part. Marquis Raeven was also loyal to his king, despite publicly appearing to be part of his enemies. And let's not forget the good characters in E-Rantel and Carne.

The problem is, compared to the Empire, Re-Estize is conservative and lacks progressiveness. How much of the Empire's advances are down to Jircniv's own reforms, I don't know off the top of my head, but despite being despised by many members of the former nobility and feared for his epithet, Jircniv actually rules a much fairer and cleaner realm than Re-Estize, and Momonga actually notes this. I view Jircniv as being, in some regards, close to Augustus Caesar, a man who was a ruthless but competent ruler, especially compared to his successors in the Julio-Claudian dynasty.

I also pity the canon Jircniv. For someone who has the epithet of Bloody Emperor, he seems like a competent and decent enough man for a ruthless pragmatist. And yet, when Momonga comes along, he's thrown into a paranoid spiral. One thing I hoped to have with this fic is to have him and Momonga have a more cordial relationship. True, Jircniv is still afraid of Momonga and the denizens of Nazarick, but he at least knows what they are, and is better prepared for treating with them. While he can spiral down into panic and paranoia, which he does in a later chapter, it's due to other circumstances that involve Nazarick. Of course, the fact that he is friends with Harry helps.

No numbered annotations this time.