Chapter 10: Stepping Stones
Imperial Palace, Baharut:
"Tell me more about this Ainz Ooal Gown." A lavishly youthful male voice spoke out, letting everyone in its radius know it had the highest power in the room. Yet instead of naivety, it spoke of great experience and intelligence.
"Our latest report says he has begun an open conflict with the kingdom, stating that all land near E-Rantel shall be given into his custody." Small laughter followed after from a man in full-plated dark armor with blonde hair, his age somewhere in his mid-thirties.
"If you ask me, this is nothing more than a joke made by a jester!" And he continued to laugh away, somehow even convincing the other Knight, somewhat younger, to chuckle.
"With that, I have to agree," Nimble said while trying to control his laughter before the Emperor. Never had he heard of a man making claims on a kingdom, let alone a nobody.
"I know that much, but I want to know more about this person. Who is this Ainz Ooal Gown? From where did he come? Why does he do this? What reason does he have?" Again he asked the advisor standing before him in those elegant halls of the Imperial Palace of the Baharut empire.
"Your Imperial Majesty, there is not much known, only that he saved the Warrior-Captain from certain death and a village from getting slaughtered by what seemed to be some unknown troops posing as our knights. That is all which our spies could gather." Defeated, he admitted that he couldn't find more about this person, yet the Emperor did not dislike that fact as much as Vermillion predicted.
"Mmh, a strange phenomenon considering nothing comes out of that area except that it's the traditional place for the empire and the kingdom to clash. But we can use this to our advantage. We only have to wait out what will happen next." The Bloody Emperor replied, somewhat lifted from his bored attitude. Still, knights posing as his own was probably some plot to put the fault of the Warrior-Captains death onto the empire's shoulders, yet this Ainz fellow saved him from such an accusation. For that, he had to thank him.
"But that is not all. The reports say that the envoy sent by Ainz Ooal Gown was guarded by strange knights riding on even stranger horses. Every person near them could feel some dread, horror even. No regular knight could do that." the Scribe told more stories of his spies' reports. He tried not to believe it, but multiple witnesses confirmed the sources.
"Maybe they just dressed extra dark?" Baziwood laughed off the thought of these knights as something more significant than normal humans.
"Is that going to be your guess? I believe these to be mercenaries hired by that magic caster." Nimble told the strongest Imperial Knight, who seemed little moved by the question towards his answer.
"You don't have to be all that stiff, you know?" Baziwood tempted the noble-turned Imperial Knight. For him, a little competition was always a great way to have fun in his position.
"Isn't it etiquette? You should at least try." Nimble threw back at him. He knew the courtesies better than Baziwood, as he wasn't a noble before he turned into an Imperial Knight.
"Nah, I prefer to focus on combat and guarding instead of following courtesies." At that point, he was right, and that was why the Emperor trusted Baziwood the most out of the four Imperial Knights.
"Enough with the chatter, you two. Vermillion, I want all upcoming information about this Ainz brought to me. Nimble, I was hoping you could prepare the frontier for the annual war on the Katze Plains and make them attack sooner. I have a feeling this time, and it's going to be different. Prepare to leave tomorrow."
"As you command. But, I have a question, if I may ask?" Nimble said, and the Emperor waved his hand, allowing him to continue speaking. "Why continue this tradition? It hasn't led to the empire's victory in a very long time. Shouldn't we at least try new ways to invade the kingdom?" Nimble proposed his mind somewhat in the right place but not somewhere the emperor hasnt been yet.
"Truly, I think about that every day. Still, that is the most efficient way for us to go on. Risking a different maneuver could make us vulnerable to foreign attacks, even from the kingdom. The annual war stays until I have found a safe strategy to invade Re-Estize properly." The quick explanation made sense to everyone because it came from the Emperor himself.
"I understand. Thank you for answering my question." Again, the Emperor shrugged it off with a simple hand gesture.
"Now that I counted, where are Leinas and that other guy?" Baziwood asked. Nimble was soon to follow.
"Leinas is currently visiting her parents, and the "other guy" is probably training as always." At that, Baziwood put his hand to his chin. Never had he seen the fourth Imperial Knight do something fun.
"Well enough with the pleasantries. My schedule is a bit filled today, so why not rush the meetings a bit." Jircniv told his Scribe, who immediately took notes.
"Of course. There is a possibility to re-schedule the meeting to an earlier date, as the "person" in the interest of you meeting him is already in the palace." Vermillion answered.
"Good, let's not keep him waiting all too long." With that, the Emperor stood up from his red-colored sofa, making everyone else stand up in his presence. "Follow me. I need you two today." He pointed at the two Imperial Knights, who obliged with no hindrance.
8th Floor, Nazarick:
Barren Wasteland, stretching seemingly to an infinite scale if observed by a mortal eye, covered the land. The sky upon it was dark, filled with abnormal clouds symbolizing demonic beings and certain death. In the middle of the sky was a vortex of an unknown substance swirling around in the air, stirring gravity itself around it. Yet this place was no simple desert traversed by man or woman. This was one of the realms in the Great Tomb of Nazarick. More precisely, the 8th Floor with the most powerful entities on it. One of which was Rubedo, known to all Floor Guardians and most other inhabitants as one of the strongest creations made by the Supreme Beings. Yet none have truly seen her in their life. But she was not the only creation that overcame the strength of the Supreme Beings themselves. Several more entities, created and formed to be pure powerhouses, stacked with the most valuable equipment and abilities, lived on the 8th Floor for only one purpose. To destroy invaders with all their might.
First, there was, of course, Rubedo. A creation made of a World Item itself, a Caloric Stone. With that, her status wasn't entirely known to Nazarick. Most knew she was of the holy attribute, but the rumor of her being a golem also wandered the halls of Nazarick. Yet only the Supreme Beings knew the truth, but Ainz was unwilling to cooperate with the NPCs about the 8th Floor, let alone let them travel to it. The guardians obeyed their masters' orders but couldn't stop thinking about what horrors were on the 8th Floor for Ainz to hinder them from traveling there. Were they stronger, more powerful than the Floor Guardians? Possibly yes, from what they heard from the Supreme Beings themselves, that the 8th Floor was the last stand against the outer world if Nazarick was to be invaded.
Beyond Rubedo, there was Victim and Aureole Omega. Yet the rest of the names that inhabited the 8th Floor were unknown. But in a hidden place, away from the surface of the 8th Floor, stood three of the most powerful beings beside Rubedo on the Floor. One holy, one unholy, and one monster. Together they were called [The Trio of Mockery], befitting of their title as they were true copies of World Enemies back in Yggdrasil. The members of Ainz Ooal Gown thought replicating the abilities of these so-called bosses would surely create extremely powerful NPCs, making their stats go beyond their intentional level. Even with the raid of 1500 players on the Tomb, these three fought beside Rubedo and others of the 8th Floor Hierarchy against the remaining players. Many called out that this was a cheat, yet the Devs themselves inspected the 8th Floor and found it rather amusing, seeing Ainz Ooal Gown made their versions of bosses in their guild base, yet far away from the original's level of power.
But one thing they lacked was a detailed biography, as they were mainly designed for battle. Still, with them becoming real, their personalities could unfold to greater roots, but their race decided a lot of how they began to see life itself.
All three didn't move a lot, but Ainz at least told them to do something fun and gifted them a set of cards to play with. Poker, as he called it. He even gifted them a manual for them to learn the way to play it. And they made sessions for hours, as they didn't have anything else to do. What the rest of the hierarchy did on the 8th Floor was not in their interest, not even speaking of the Floor Guardians. The hierarchy thought themselves to be higher in rank than the Floor Guardians, as their power surpassed most of theirs. Yet they still obeyed the orders that Victim gave them, as he was a key to their victory at that time.
"You always cheat! Don't think I won't see it!" One of the three called out, its voice demanding the utmost respect of everything around it. Even when it spoke, the air filled with a sort of divinity. Its radiance alone could blind simple imps with ease.
"How can I even cheat? We are shuffling the cards three times! Maybe you are just not good at playing it!" The second one spoke, calling out the first one for its inability to be good at the game. Its voice was more filled with malice, filling the air around it with dread instead.
"Please stop this infight. We won't finish this round if you two keep doing this." The third one spoke out, its voice deep but neutral, not entirely dark but not pure as well. But a hidden beast lurked behind the sounds of its voice, always remembering everyone around it what it was.
At that comment, both looked away, hands crossed and full of anger towards their opposite. Then, the third one took all the cards away and shuffled them on the table multiple times.
"Have you heard the recent news from Victim?" The first one asked the second, seemingly not remembering the two were complaining about each other a moment ago.
"Of course I have! We are in a new world according to our Lord. Much more I didn't hear." The second replied.
"I wish to see this world for once. We have always been here our entire life since we were created. Maybe Lord Ainz will allow us to see the overworld soon." The third said, getting some confused looks from the other two.
"Our duty is to protect the heart of Nazarick! If we leave, we essentially betray our purpose!"
"Right! What he said!"
The two said back, not sharing the same thought as him. Yet he wished to see the world once. But he knew protecting Nazaricks core was above all.
"You are right. Now, let's continue playing."
Royal Suite, 9th Floor:
Hours and hours had he spent testing the staff in his hands. The guild item/world item still amazed him, and the abilities it brought with it. Now he had the ability to create anything with magic, go beyond level 100, transform into a deadly World Enemy, and travel to the Throne Room if his hp dropped too low. All in all, it wasn't understandable how a single-world item could wield all these skills. But it could be the cause of the seven divine orbs fused into the guild weapon early on.
Yet still, the status as a guild weapon seemed to make this even possible, as he hadn't found any other item he could turn into a world item yet.
"The next ability I'm going to select should be chosen carefully. I don't want to waste the next spot with an ability I can achieve in the future. So I should be careful from now on. Maybe I should hire Demiurge. No, not a good idea. Knowledge is power. To let them know the guild weapon is an actual world item... better to keep it a secret." Truly he thought that way for the safety of his NPCs, of course. "Should I create another leaf? No, in one week, the kingdom's forces arrive at my doors, and I have to prepare for it. Still…" He took a similar object out of his inventory, one which resembled the golden leaves on his staff. "Not here. I don't know what will happen if I fuse even more power into the staff. Last time it blinded me a bit. Next time the effects could be even more drastic."
Knowing that. He used his guild ring and made his way to the 8th Floor, a place hidden even amongst all the floors in Nazarick. The least visited Floor was called such for a purpose. Because of the strength of its inhabitants, of course. And Ainz thought, what better place to fuse the leaf than on the 8th Floor? If something terrible happens, the NPCs there could come to help him, and none of the Floor Guardians would know about it. He arrived at a sanctuary resembling a greek made temple. Yet, its quality was divine, with many extravagant details that usually wouldn't be possible, such as floating columns and other magic-enhanced architecture.
{Greetings, Lord Ainz. How can I assist you?} The slightly deformed appearance of an angel greeted him, bowing for a short duration and awaiting his answer.
"Hello, Victim. Don't mind me. I have come to do a short experiment. Nothing grant, I just need some space where I can conduct it."
{Of course. Please, let me know if there is a need for me.}
Ainz just waved the thought away and walked towards an open space filled with slightly violet-colored trees bearing shiny golden fruits. The grass was slightly different from normal one, as it had a turquoise tone to it.
"Now to the test."
He activated the staff's internal menu that came with him to the new world. He scrolled down, searching for an ability that would suit him the most in the long term. Now finding himself on the second page, he found an ability that interested him the most. It was not oriented to deal much damage or anything fancy. But its effects were simple and effective.
"[Time Defiance]. An interesting ability considering its effects. Allows the caster to remove any cooldown from skills, spells, abilities, etc., for the mana cost of a tier 10 spell. It should work on TGOALID, Super-Tier spells, and all other things considering its lore. To be honest. This is one of the most useful abilities the devs put in this file. I'll choose this!"
He forced the golden leaf onto one of the free orbs of his staff, making a harsh yet blinding light emit from the fusion.
"Something isn't right!"
His skeletal hand vibrated as if a force repelled the leaf from touching the orb. The light emitting from it grew tremendously, and the ground began to shake. Wind traversed around the happenings predicting the upcoming disaster. Suddenly a gravitational force, as if a moon hit him, pushed him away from the staff until he hit the invisible barrier of the Floor. Before hitting the ground, he cast [Fly] on himself and managed to regain his balance.
"What was THAT?! It just sends me off flying!" In a matter of seconds, Victim appeared with several angelic guards behind him, tending to their lord.
{My lord, are you alright?} Victim asked, frightened that somewhat had hurt the Supreme One.
"I am fine. Thank you for your worries, but nothing happened. Just an experiment went wrong. You can resume your duties." He told the angel, which seemed somewhat relieved after he said that. And as Victim left, Ainz returned to see his staff floating where it stood before, emitting a dreadful aura full of disaster and horror.
"What happened? It repelled me somehow, not letting me fuse the [Leaf of Yggdrasil] with the staff. But why? Why am I met with resistance? Could it be that it can't hold any more leaves onto it?" With a motion of his hand, he called the staff to him, and it obeyed as commanded. Nothing seemed odd. He went to pick up the leaf he left on the ground and put it back into his inventory. For now, he had had enough of it.
"Seems I do have to ask Demiurge about this. He surely will find the cause and a possible solution to this problem. I didn't want to do that. But I have no choice but to reveal it to him." With that said, he made his goodbyes to Victim and the NPCs around him and left for his office. There, he found several Eight Edge Assassins awaiting his presence and greeting him once he teleported there.
On his desk, he found a pile of paper stacked with precise accuracy to not let any look out of the pile. Yet as he took the first paper of it, he destroyed the masterpiece, made with the utmost dedication by one of the maids.
"Maintenance cost, Floor reports, Mercenary NPC cost, Carne Village, Kingdoms Revenue, Baharut spies, Momon, and many more documents. It seems the rest of my day won't be as pleasant as before." Slowly but surely, he went through the reports carefully and decided what to do next. Of course, he would later send them to Demiurge for him to "correct" them, making it seem like a test for the devil to find mistakes in the following orders. One time Demiurge completely changed one decision he made on a subject. Ainz felt some embarrassment from it, as much as his undead nature allowed him to do.
Royal Palace, Re-Estize:
The still night enveloped the city slowly, putting every denizen to sleep, at least most of them. One Princess remained awake, looking at the stars on her balcony. Not that she cared about the stars, it was only a picture she had to uphold for the maids that were essentially spying on her. After months of doing this, the maids would know when not to come and she would have some time for herself. Now she had to only watch the stars for a couple of minutes until her mind and body could wander off. Yet it made her tired, her eyelids closing evermore. Then, almost as if to fall asleep, her sight fell into darkness for seconds until she would open her eyes again. Yet, she was not met with the vast stars anymore. Before she stood a being, masked, having three holes instead of a face. It wore a suit, odd just as its appearance altogether. The Princess, instead of fear, replied with a bright smile.
"You know, breaking into the Royal Palace wasn't probably the best idea. Whatever you want, you won't find it here." Acting her best, she tried to look as fearless and careless as possible. Inspecting her visitor, she found out that he had just three fingers on each hand, giving a possibility that the man before her wasn't even human at all.
"Cooperate, or you die." The stranger told. Only from its voice, one could tell it was serious. The intruder wasn't pulling any jokes, and his confidence showed intelligence behind this whole operation.
"What do you mean? Do you want to kidnap me? A Princess? What a tragedy, oh my." She made herself look even more amused by the happenings, trying to win some time for herself.
"You, are nothing more than a monster under humans. Don't try to hide beneath that facade. And don't believe we don't see through that act. Show yourself and comply." Again, the stranger spoke. Piercing her unyielding acting with just a single sentence. Completely destroying her thought of having perfected her way of deceit. Then, the beautiful and elegant face was replaced by another in an instant. Nowhere was the golden Princess anymore, but a hidden monster awakened from the depths of her soul.
"So you have seen through it? I might have to perfect it even more. Then tell me, what does your master want from me?" She asked, completely unfazed by the fact that this person could end her life at any given moment. She looked around her room, finding more companions of his everywhere, one even standing on the ceiling. How that was possible, she didn't try to think about it. These invaders clearly were professionals, skillful at that, possibly inhumane. A weird horn sprouted out of their masked face, making her suspicions true,
"You don't love this kingdom, you only love that certain boy, am I right? Obey my master and he is all yours." With one simple sentence, he made the woman's smile grow even more. An unresting witch now found herself in the body of a princess, moved by the words the stranger gave to her. Or rather a promise.
"How does your master seek to accomplish such a thing?" Her mind wandered to who was the one behind all of this. No one of the nobles was clear. The Theocracy? Most likely. But these "beings" in her room didn't seem like the scriptures the Theocracy would send, they despised everything that wasn't human. Her mind just couldn't find the right person who organized all this. And that reason made her believe this person could actually carry out the promise the subordinate of his gave her.
"Soon you will receive a second visitor, he will explain all you will need to know. But not today, not tomorrow, but soon. Just when you won't expect it. Until then, be prepared." With just a second, the man before her was gone. She looked around to find an empty room once again as if nothing ever happened. Suddenly, the door opened and the Princess quickly adjusted her face accordingly.
"Is everything alright, your Royal Highness?" The maid asked, acting the best she could, yet the Princess was better at it. She saw through these maids the first day they were in her service. Daughters of nobles, only here to gather information.
"Actually, I never felt better." With a smile that could melt a man's heart, she replied.
"Very well then. Have a good night, your Highness." The maid left, closing the door behind her.
Renner only smiled until the door closed completely. That instant her smile dropped and she went to her mirror, placing it right before her. Again, she began to laugh, twisting her face to perfection.
"Mmh, not like that." Adjusting and improving was the case for her now. She had to make her act even better than before. "Hello Climb. That's not it. Hello, Climb..." She rephrased many times before the mirror, trying to say the sentence with the perfect smile. She had to improve. If this messenger could see through her, who else could and didn't tell her? She had to get better.
7th Floor, Nazarick:
A simple village with simple people living in it existed in the more northern parts of the kingdom. They didn't have the best life, but they were happy until one point in time, which changed everything.
One day the sky was drenched blood red, and multiple unholy and deformed creatures hunted down the village's residents. Fire burned, screams echoed, and children's tears filled the ground with lakes of water, upon which the demons bathed, drinking the tears with the utmost.
"No! Plea-" That was the last thing this man ever said. He begged the demon before him for his life, yet the demon didn't care. Its claws deep into the man's chest, and in one sweep, it took them out, licking the stained blood on them as if it was sweet chocolate. This was the fate of many villagers in this small settlement. They tried to run, but slowly the ground turned red, and the hope of life perished as they were surrounded from all sides.
In the sky were flying imps, alone they weren't truly dangerous, but in masses, they could skin an adult alive quicker than one would believe. On land, multiple hellhounds seek the blood of the innocents inhabiting the village. There were more creatures present, but these were the most numerous that night.
Through a mirror, one peculiar devil inspected the bloodbath with a broad smile, almost as if he gained excitement from the deaths of so many peasants. His joy was filled to the utmost, yet he still had a duty to do. Several days ago, he had been tasked by the Supreme Being to find a way if summoned entities could gain levels, and what better way than to send them out and kill whatever they could find? Indeed, it was a simple strategy. Yet soon, he would attract adventurers to the destroyed village that aim to eliminate the threat residing in it, creating a source of experience for the devils housing in the village from now on. A simple method, yet he was sure no ties would be found to himself or his master.
"I almost feel empathy for them. Oh, what am I saying, I am incapable of that!" With a sickening laugh that would put mortals into an existential crisis, he laughed until he found the matter uninteresting and continued to the next task he had to do today. Shortly after he disabled the mirror, he received a [Message] from his lord personally. He stood straight up, preparing himself to talk with his master.
{My lord! How can a servant such as I serve you?} Quickly, the devil answered the call before Ainz could tell a thing.
{Demiurge. How's the experiment going?}
{Just as planned. I just have to see if my summons indeed reached another level.}
{Very good. I hope the animals you kill aren't near extinction. It would be a shame to wipe out an entire species.} One wide smile this put on the devil. He knew Ainz understood his humor, but to share it, he was truly happy this was the Supreme Being that stayed with them.
{Oh no, my lord, they are very numerous animals. They are everywhere and breed like rabbits. They won't be extinct so fast.} Unknowningly to Ainz, Demiurge was having the time of his life, speaking about these "animals" in such a way. Humans were animals for him, as they didn't seem much different from them except for their intelligence. The only thing he finds use for them is to produce scrolls out of their skin.
{That is good to hear. Now, to the purpose of calling you. I have a different matter with which I would need your assistance.}
{I am all ears, my lord.} Demiurge was ready for everything that would follow. A new task was a thing that made him even happier than watching miserable humans die.
{Good. Mmh, it would be better to discuss this in private. Come to my office as soon as you are available. I will be waiting there.}
{Of course. I will delay any further tasks immediately.} Demiurge couldn't wait to hear his master personally. It was a thing he put above hearing him only in his head. In his presence, he could learn much from him and somewhat see what his master was planning. Just from telepathy alone, he didn't have such a connection, which is why he preferred the visual method.
{Thats no-, nevermind. I'll see you soon.}
The [Message] ended, and Demiurge was already on his way to the office of his master. Of course, without a guild ring, it would take him some time, but he hoped to earn one someday, as his master had already given one to Mare. Still, he thought giving away a Supreme Beings property so easily was inappropriate. But what could his thoughts hold on to his master? If he deemed it necessary, then it was.
Using the various portals to travel from Floor to Floor and finally reach the double doors leading to Ainz's office. He slightly adjusted his tie, put his glasses back on and put a smile on his face. Soon, the maid waiting for him opened the door upon his arrival, showing Ainz sitting at the back at his office table.
"Welcome, Demiurge." Ainz greeted him, being met with a devil every day was something he had grown accustomed to.
"Lord Ainz." The demon bowed before Ainz with precise movement, almost impeccable.
"I have something to give you." Demiurge's eyes lit up, and he quickly followed to the desk. Ainz held a piece of paper in his hands, passing it to Demiurge who read the following file carefully.
"Ah, I see. A splendid plan, my lord. Truly, its effects will bring us 50% closer to world domination. Your foreshadowing is truly miles above mine." The words left Demiurge's mouth only caused Ainz to raise an invisible brow. He simply didn't truly understand what the devil was talking about.
"Yes, exactly. But that is not the only thing for what I have brought you here." With a motion, he moved the Staff beside him to his hand, holding it with a steel grip. Demiurge was quick to follow.
"The most powerful weapon of Nazarick besides the world items, made by the Supreme Beings themselves to honor their strength respectively. The [Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown] is truly a guild weapon equal to world items." His words held truth, for a certain amount of time. Yet his knowledge was somewhat outdated.
"Correct, to some extend." These simple words made the facade Demiurge held break. Did he miss something? What was his master talking about? He couldn't understand it for the first time because the knowledge needed to understand was in his master's mind.
"My lord. I don't follow."
"Huh?" For the first time, he heard Demiurge say that. he half expected him to uncover the truth by now. "Surely you know what I am talking about." This made the devil think, a motion which he did often, yet this time he seemed more dedicated than ever.
"Wait, I believe I see it now. The Staff is the main weapon of Ainz Ooal Gown, if it gets destroyed, then Nazarick will be no more, from what I can understand. Yet the free use of this Staff you have shown tells me there is more to the Staff. If I had it, I would hide it in the depths of Nazarick, guarded by the strongest beings inhabiting it, probably the 8th Floor, yet you, my lord, did no such thing. This makes me believe there is something more to the Staff, something I do not understand." His quick progression from "not following" to almost lifting the riddle made Ainz realise it was nothing but a lack of knowledge. He partly believed Demiurge could get this knowledge out of thin air, yet he was wrong.
"I see, you have almost solved the puzzle. Yet you lack information. I was foolish to think you could open a door without the proper key." Not keeping up with the expectations of the Supreme Being disturbed the devil greatly.
"My Lord, forgive me for this mistake I made I have committed! If only I was intelligent enough to catch onto your words better! Forgive this simple servant for not living up to your expectations." Demiurge bowed deeply, his head low and his heart drenched in guilt.
"No, please, Demiurge. I didn't mean that way. It is simply that you didn't have the right knowledge to know what I was talking about, as I tried my best to hide this information from all of you. There is no mistake on your part." If a Supreme Being tried to hide something from the Guardians, of course, he couldn't know what it was. So it made sense he wasn't guilty of such a crime, yet nevertheless, he felt uneasy about that.
"Still, I could not find it out even when you asked me to, a direct command from you, my lord, and I didn't fulfill it."
Ainz didn't know what to say to make the demon stop this depressing attitude of his. If he only phrased his words better, as Demiurge took everything quite literally.
"I knew you wouldn't know it, so it was a test on my part to see how much you would find out. Please, don't make yourself suffer too much from my commands. That is not my wish, and you know it." Somehow these words hit Demiurge with an understanding of what his master deemed to say. And he took the confidence to look his lord in the eyes again.
"I will try my best to improve my cognitive skills, my lord." He had to improve, or his master wouldn't be this gracious the next time he tested him.
"A good choice. Improvement is always a thing one should strive for. Thinking oneself is perfect is the greatest mistake one can make. Yet back to the topic. The Staff, you know of its abilities, I presume?" He asked Demiurge, who was quite sure he was knowledgeable about what the Staff could and could not do.
"It is a mighty weapon, and as implied, it is a Staff with tremendous powers, holding many powerful spells bearing dominion from each of the divine orbs embedded into the weapon." He looked at the orbs attached to the Staff by seven snakes. Yet some difference was visible on the orbs. On some, there were golden leafs visible, surrounding the orbs. Going from the inside of the Staff around the orbs, slightly covering them. "But, it seems my knowledge is outdated, as there has been some improvement made on the staff." He could feel the powers coming from each leaf, its radiance blinding if looked at them too much.
"You are right. In old times, this was but a simple guild weapon. But somehow, I was able to transform the guild weapon into something greater."
As if his vision was cleared from a fog before him, the answer descended into his brain in an instant, knowing which powers were beyond a guild weapon.
"A world item?! But, with all respect my lord, how?" He didn't know how or why the guild weapon was now a world item. But his lord seemed to know of the process.
"You see these leaves. These are each a [Leaf of Yggdrasil], basically a world, as it is implied that a leaf of Yggdrasil is a realm, and if fallen off the tree, the world is forever lost, yet its powers remain in the leaf. And with these powers, I transformed the Staff into a world item." He explained to Demiurge, whose mind was making new calculations on what and what not was possible back in Yggdrasil. He deemed something like this impossible, yet the evidence was right before him.
"By my speculations, this means that Nazarick is now indestructible? Is that true, my lord?" He had to ask. With this knowledge, how could Nazarick ever lose to something, or dare say, get destroyed by something if the guild weapon couldn't even be destroyed?
"You are indeed correct, Demiurge. In theory. That is why I use it so openly. I even took it to the fight with Shalltear. If it was still a destructible object, I wouldn't even take it out of the Tomb, let alone fight a lvl 100 vampire with it. So why not explain how I did it."
"I am all ears, my lord," Demiurge said with a smirk. He couldn't wait to hear about his lord's plan on how he had done it.
"It is simple. I fused the leaves with the Staff one after another. Currently, there are four leaves on each divine orb. Yet three remain free. And that is where I need you. You see, the last time I tried fusing a leaf with it, it repelled me, sending me flying away from the Staff. As if a force didn't want to allow me to put even more power in one object. Here, take a look yourself." He removed the leaf he used earlier from his inventory and put it near the selected orb, yet a visible force wouldn't let him place the leaf onto the Staff. Demiurge watched with keen eyes, inspecting the phenomenon carefully.
"As you see, it doesn't allow me to fuse it anymore. And that will be your task from now on. You will find a way to, let's call it, stabilize the Staff so that the leaf can be fused with it properly. I don't expect you to be successful, yet your intelligence tells me you will find more than I could until now." His words praised Demiurge, yet the devil couldn't allow his master to talk badly about himself.
"Please, my lord. I am sure with your wisdom you could find the reason in no time! But I will be glad to take this task upon myself."
"Then I may give this into your care." With a move of his hand, the leaf left his palm and floated towards Demiurge. He took it with caress, looked at it for a moment and put it in his inventory. "But that is not all. You will need something else to accomplish your job. Here, take this." With an unexpected move, Ainz removed a ring any NPC would recognize. A [Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown], with it, one could freely teleport in Nazarick wherever he wanted to go.
"My lord, to receive such an honor is unfathomable. I will work my best to use it to its fullest extent." Gently he took the ring off the table and put it on one of his many fingers. He could feel almost tears dropping from his eyes, yet none came.
"Use it well. You have certainly earned it. But now let's get to the important part. The place where you will conduct these experiments. I don't want any other guardian or inhabitant of Nazarick to know about its existence. That's why you will work solely on the 8th Floor from now on." Ainz never allowed any of his NPCs to go to the 8th Floor, yet to receive such trust meant even greater failure if he were to displease his lord. "There, you will work undisturbed, yet I must solely ask you not to interact with the beings living on that Floor except Aureole Omega and Victim. Even traversing beyond the Bossom Sanctuary is forbidden. There will be a sufficient place for you to conduct your experiments, and I allow you to take up to three subordinates to the 8th Floor, no more." The strict instructions were a mystery to Demiurge. He didn't know what was on the 8th Floor exactly. Yet to even traverse to it was a privilege the other guardians didn't have.
"I will follow these rules with all my being, my lord."
"Good. I will send the Staff once you are ready. Be free to begin experimenting whenever you want. The farm you made can be run by one of the Evil Lords for the time being."
"As you wish. I will begin right away." His dedication was certainly visible. If his master wished him to experiment on the Staff, he would do so immediately.
"Mmh, very well. You are dismissed for the time being."
Leaving his lord was not something he did willingly. He would rather listen to what wisdom he had to say for eons, yet he had a task to do. He bowed before leaving for the 8th Floor with his newly acquired guild ring, and Ainz sent the Staff through a gate to the exact location.
"I informed Victim about Demiurge's arrival, so I hope it won't be a problem for him just to pop up there. Maybe I should've said he would arrive through a guild ring. Well, even I make mistakes." Finally, it wasn't his task anymore, and he could focus on the other things he had to do. "Right. Back to the papers."
Capital, Re-Estize:
"What did you say?" Evileye asked Leader, completely flabbergasted by what she had told them before. All the people in the inn looked at her for a moment until she sat back down.
"As I said, This Ainz person has threatened the kingdom to such an extent that the king sends a force commanded by the Crown Prince personally." Again, she repeated her words, yet the bunch couldn't believe it.
"So this unknown dude suddenly appeared, saved the Warrior-Captain, and now believes he can just threaten the kingdom? What an interesting man! I would certainly like to meet him!" The half-orc-woman said.
"You know what worries me? These knights he had sent with his envoy. Being undead and all, they could potentially be a threat. And then so many."
"Your right, Evileye. Such evil shouldn't roam freely, not under the command of this magic caster. But we still have a quest, that is, to fight 8 Fingers in the capital. We got three of their headquarters down. Still, I got the feeling we aren't genuinely progressing." They all knew it. It was impossible to kill ants in their own hill. They would just find another spot to live and avoid danger if possible.
"We need more muscle, some equal to us in skill," Tia said, her sister only nodding.
"True, but where are we going to find someone to help us?" Lakyus asked, yet expected to receive no answer.
"Have you heard of Momon the Black?" Evileye said, raising many brows under the bunch.
"The hero that saved E-Rantel from an undead invasion, sure I've heard of him," Gagaran responded.
"But what about him? He's a great warrior, but we need someone who knows how the 8 Fingers work." Lakyus was right, but Evileye just wanted to see Momon once. Hearing that he had risen the ranks so fast made her a bit suspicious, as well as Gagaran, who wanted to test that strength of his.
"I heard Brian Unglaus is currently in the capital, training with Gazef Stronoff," Tina said.
"He certainly was in that kind of business for a while. He would know how to properly defeat 8 Fingers, let alone his strength is almost as great as the Warrior-Captains." Evileye added. "But from what I know, he is already on it with the help of Princess Renner's knight, Climb."
"If that's the case, he will be a great help at the final fight with 8 Fingers. We know of the location where one member will be present. So we need all the help we can get."
"Your right, leader. Let's give them hell!" The giant of a woman said, yet far away, somewhere in a hidden room deep beneath the capital. There met the worst criminals, the scum that commanded even more scum.
"So what! We gonna kill them all if they continue! Not that they can stop us." A more refined and muscular man said, named Zero, a monk that made his way into the criminal world.
"We need to be careful. There are other forces that are fighting against us. We don't know who it is, but they don't leave a trace of them." One hidden member said.
"Whoever they are, I'm sure they won't be able to reach us," Cocodoll said, yet regretted it the instant he heard another voice behind him.
"Are you sure about that?" Suddenly all around the table where the 8 Fingers met stood ninja-like warriors, holding daggers in each hand that emitted certain death alone from their looks. The man who spoke was hidden in the shadows, hiding his features carefully.
"W-Who are you!? How did you get in here?" The Leader of 8 Fingers asked, yet he was only met with a blade near his neck.
"You don't need that information. You only need to know that you're under new management from now on. If you don't comply, you will be replaced instead. I wouldn't do that, Zero, but since you won't change your mind, you will be the first example for the other seven." Just as Zero wanted to stand up, he was met with a silhouette of a man. Muscular, tall, and with no visible hair. Yet, as the man closed in, Zero couldn't believe this was a mirror or some double of his. He was standing right before him, smiling at him with no worries.
"H-How? What is this!?" Before Zero could begin panicking, a dagger met the side of his skull, piercing his brain and killing him in an instant. His body fell to the ground, shocking every member of 8 Fingers. One of the ninjas threw the dagger and, with a simple gesture, called the weapon back into its hand.
"How are there two Zero's..."
"Wha- But he was right there. Is this an illusion?"
"This can't be... Zero was the strongest of us..."
The circle panicked, not knowing what just had happened as the strongest member of their organisation died before their eyes, yet somehow he stood before them, unfazed.
"Hello there. I am your new Zero." The Doppelganger responded, gaining many spooked faces all around the table. He sat down as if nothing had happened, and the corpse of the old Zero was dragged away, and all eyes were fixated on that. They looked back to Zero and his corpse to find nothing but confusion.
"As we said. You will be replaced, just like that monk, if you don't comply." The man said, all looking back to him from the massacre they witnessed. They didn't think he meant that literally. He slowly came forward, entering the light illuminated by the chandelier on top of the round table. And he was nothing like they expected. Instead of a face, they were met with a mask with three holes. Behind those holes, they could only see darkness, as if there wasn't even a face behind it. "You won't resist the subjugation force made by the Princess. Rather, I want them to think you were defeated once and for all. Send all your elite mercenaries to the location of the last raid. They need to believe that you're done for good. And all the nobles you have in your palm. They shall follow our orders or be executed. Do you all understand?" They all nodded in silence, knowing their life depended on their response. Of course, they said yes. "Good, now, here's a paper with all the necessary information and the commands you must follow. You will receive an envoy from us every time you meet here, who will relay further instructions once the time has come. And if one of you doesn't come…" He made a gesture with his hand, pointing at the new Zero. "Well, I believe you understand all what that meant. Farewell, for now.." With a snap of the man's fingers, he disappeared, along with all the surrounding assassins. Only a paper moved, slowly descending onto the table, landing just before the Leader of 8 Fingers. They didn't dare to say a word, only staring at the new Zero the whole time, who was smiling back at them.
"Why don't we continue our meeting." Sounding precisely like Zero made most of them shudder even more.
Outskirts of Re-Estize:
Five hundred soldiers marched down the road, followed by 1000 further levies, made only of farmers, smiths and other peasants. They aim to reach Carne Village and bring Ainz Ooal Gown to justice. At the front was none other than the heir to the throne, Crown Prince Barbro.
"Soon, we will reach our destination, your Royal Highness." The commander said, a noble who was assigned to aid the Prince with the subjugation of the rebel magic caster.
"I hope so! I want to get this over quick and make a name for myself once I collect this magic caster's head. But how long exactly will it be until we finally arrive?" Barbro asked his advisor.
"One night's rest away. As the captain said, we will set camp in one hour, near midnight. We will meet the village tomorrow close to evening."
"Good. But We will cut the sleep to 4 hours. We don't want to leave our enemy waiting for us." The Prince said, grinning at his own statement,
"Shouldn't we send a scout force first, your Highness?" The noble asked. Every in his right mind would seek out the enemy, spying on him from afar and see what his abilities are.
"We don't need to do that! It's just one magic caster that we have to deal with! Soon. I will be back in the capital in no time!" The Prince claimed, yet the noble didn't seem persuaded by the courageous talk from the heir.
"It is as you say, your Highness."
Soon they halted at an open field. Within minutes, tents stood, first, of course, the one of the Prince. Unknowing, two green-colored creatures watched them from the border of the forest, sizing them up and counting their numbers.
"We need to tell the boss about this." One of them said. The other only nodded as they made their way back to their village. It was a long walk, but running half the way would allow them to reach Carne in two hours instead of the 8 hours the army they spied upon needed. With their little legs, they would seem to be slow, yet as they possessed not as much weight as an adult human, they were undoubtedly fast for their size.
Not knowing, these two goblins were being watched as well. By their own shadows, to be more precise. They themselves didn't know this, but a servant of Ainz Ooal Gown monitored everything they did. It was rare, but sometimes there could be visible when their shadows distorted the moment the beings entered it. Yet the goblin's capability at uncovering such beings was too low, they being about level 15.
Ainz personally stationed the Shadow Demon's to be at Carne, combined with Lupusregina Beta, who would be there to improve the relationship between him and the villagers.
Yet he didn't use these demons for other purposes often, as their low level could be used against them. He didn't know what adventurers were skillfull enough to detect them, but he guessed there was a chance for them to exist.
So through the forest, they ran back to their master, none other than Enri Emmot. Summoning this troop of goblins was the aftermath of blowing the goblin horn Ainz gave her. Of course, this was a strategic play from his side, even if he didn't know it. Demiurge found it to be a mystery, yet he could feel there was a greater aspect behind giving such an item to a lowly villager.
"C'mon, we gotta run faster! These bastards will probably march towards us when the sun rises."
Church of the Six, Theocracy:
"So the culprit that is probably behind the disappearance of Nigun has finally shown himself openly." The Cardinal of Earth, Raymond, revealed this to the other Cardinals, who already knew this information.
"The evidence is clear, somewhat. From what our reports tell, this Ainz Ooal Gown has saved the Warrior-Captain from a group of "uniformed" magic casters, that is, our Sunlight Scripture and somehow survived as well as the Warrior-Captain. And all the members of the Sunlight Scripture went missing from that point on. A decent enough argument to tell that it is the work of this magic caster. How he did, it is still unknown." The Cardinal of Fire, Berenice, told the council. They couldn't believe it, but to defeat a whole Scripture was a deed deemed impossible since today, and even just for one man alone.
"We should send a force right at him! We need the artifact back that Nigun lost. This magic caster surely has it in his possession. I'm sure if Nigun used its powers, he would kneel before us and not be dead or gone missing." A good argument from the Cardinal of Light, Yvon, if not a bit of an aggressive approach.
"Exactly! If we do nothing, what would the gods think of us? Letting some magic caster attack their heralds and get away with it!" The Cardinal of Darkness, Maximilian, practically shouted out with anger, his wrath knowing no bounds regarding such matters.
"We have to consider the strength behind this Ainz Ooal Gown. Defeating an entire Scripture shouldn't be a feat achievable by most magic casters, let alone warriors. I doubt he managed to fight our Scripture alone. We have to consider that he has allies and will make use of the environment. This could be the only way I would think one could take down the Sunlight Scripture. With surprise." Raymond explained. The others nodded with no disagreement visible.
"Information is what we are lacking. We should have sent the Windflower Scripture after this individual long ago. By now, we would have valuable information if we did so." The Cardinal of Water, Zinedine, finally made some input in the discussion. His words held truth, but they deemed the Scripture to be needed elsewhere. "But we cannot afford to prattle about the past, whereas the future is everchanging. We should vote to send the Windflower Scripture now, let it gather enough information about this magic caster, and then retaliate with force."
"I believe this to be an excellent moment to attack right now. Of course, we would have to teleport our Scripture to the location, but the fact that a small army from the kingdom marches to capture this magic caster could be used to our advantage. I propose we should vote to use force from the beginning. There is no point if the kingdom reaches there first." The Cardinal of Light proposed an idea equal to the last in the eyes of the Cardinals.
"Are there any other proposals we should vote on?" Nothing more was said, meaning the voting could begin. "Good. First, we vote upon if we send the Windflower Scripture for intelligence gathering first. Raise your arms if you are for this proposal." Raymond himself, the Cardinal of Fire and Water, raised their hands. The other three waited their turn. "A tie. Very well. Now, raise your hands if we should use force from the start, attacking the magic caster in an attempt to retrieve the holy artifact." The Cardinal of Light, Wind and Darkness raised their hand, making another tie. Raymond sighed. "It seems this council couldn't find any solution, meaning we need to find a middle ground." At that, every member made himself ready to think of how to persuade the other three to change their minds.
"Attacking now would be good if we knew our enemy, for example, his numbers and what weaknesses he possesses. Retaliating now would be a mistake. Let the kingdom weaken or imprison this Ainz Ooal Gown, and then we can decide further. They would make the process easier, and if they lose somehow, this Ainz will still be weakened." The words the Cardinal of Water said touched the Cardinal of Light the most. He himself was rather a man of efficiency, mostly.
"But what about the artifact? If the kingdom gets their hands on it, its powers could get into the wrong hands!" The Cardinal of Light countered, expecting a solution from the opposite side. If the artifact was retrieved by the kingdom, who knew what the corrupt nobles of that country would do with its powers? They would have to speed up the process of conquering the kingdom.
"Until that point comes, our forces will be ready. Who said the Windflower Scripture couldn't fight? Their scores rank higher than the Sunlight Scripture, so I doubt they will have problems with reclaiming the artifact once it comes into the kingdom's possession." The Cardinal of Fire said.
"Correct. There will be no need to utilize the other Scriptures. That was the plan all along." Raymond looked to his fellow voters, who all nodded accordingly. They knew that the Windflower Scripture would be spies and attackers. Following one after the other. The Cardinal of Darkness showed a surprised face. The one of Light and Wind didn't.
"If that is the case, then I change my vote." The Cardinal of Light said, followed by the Cardinal of Wind.
"I will change my vote as well."
Only the follower of Darkness chose to stay on his side. Never had he changed his mind before, and never will he. The thing he decides to be best is because his god told him so.
"Very well. Then we have come to a conclusion. Send the Windflower Scripture for intelligence gathering and possibly interact personally to secure the safety of the stolen holy artifact." Raymond said, finally getting the majority of votes on his side so the meeting could eventually end.
"I presume this has found its end?" The Cardinal of Darkness asked.
"We are all free to go. All has been discussed. May the 6 guide your way." Raymond said, and all repeated the prayer. Most left, and only two remained.
"How is the boy progressing? I hope you're not treating him too harshly." Berenice said to Raymond while raising a brow.
"He is receiving the formal training which even I passed. I believe he will suffice, even when his body isn't as strong, his mind certainly is, and of course, his sacred talent." Both knew what he was talking about. The boy could make use of any weapon, probably even from the god artifacts.
"That is good to hear. Still, he will need to replace Lady Kaire soon. Age is slowly getting to her." Now that they had found a boy with the talent to replace the holy woman, they didn't have to fear the unusability of the item anymore.
"The boy is still far from ready. To our luck, the [Crown of Wisdom] made the damages necessary for him to join our ranks. Yet he lacks knowledge and skill. He is still naive." That was true. From the reports, his physical abilities have been improved to the point of peak human ability, yet he still fought textbook only.
"With time comes change. Well, that was all that I wanted to hear. May the six guide you, Raymond."
"You too, Berenice." Both exited in two different directions, leaving the chapel with no soul.
discord . gg / h6cpJ5d3xh
Join the discord if you want to help progress my stories, give feedback or just for fun!
That was it! Next chapter will show how everything unfolds, how Ainz manages the small army of the kingdom send after him and much more! Write a review and tell me your ideas of what I the future of this fic could look like, I welcome any support!
The Theocracy now knows what Ainz did, 8 Fingers and Renner were "enlisted" by Ainz, and the Empire will soon follow their lead!
Not as much action in this chapter, but I hope it was enough to foreshadow what's coming next!
You surely noticed the small interaction at the 8th Floor with three of the inhabitants there. Well, these are my OCs, DO NOT think of them as characters from Overlord. They arent! They design is based on three bosses from Yggdrasil. As they are called: The Trio of Mockery
Thats because they are literal copies of bosses, weaker yet still improved versions of the bosses. Ainz Ooal Gown used the same concept on the Evil Lords, so why wouldnt they do the same for some other NPCs. The characters they are based on are: First One: Celestial Lord of the Sixth Heaven, Second One: Cainabel, Third One: Behemoth
They have actuall character sheets that I made and names, but I want to keep the 8th Floor Hierarchy still a mystery for now. Actually, their names arent that different from the og ones. But these arent the only characters I came up with. There are plenty to discover on that Floor, ones which Im still hiding for now.
If your wondering about what boy the Cardinals are talking about, its Nferia. He was not saved by Momon, but by the Windflower Scripture. The damage by the [Crown of Wisdom] wasnt fully healed, just so that he was sentient, but didnt have his past memories.
His new name now is Helin Gaillard Lauransan, adopted by the Cardinal of Earth, Raymond.
Here is his sheet, as I believe I can give you at least that much:
Name: Helin Gaillard Lauransan
Alignment: Neutral Good
Race: Human
Lvl: 23
Job Classes:
-Alchemist(Genius) 7 lvl
–Pharmacist(Genius) 5 lvl
—Doctor 2 lvl
-Wizard 6 lvl
-Ranger 3 lvl
Weapon of Choice: Bow, Throwable Potions, Magic
Talent: [Restriction Evasion] Allows use of any equipment, disregarding all requirements needed to utilize said item.
Nferia, or rather Helin being in the wrong hands could become an issue for Ainz, as his staff can only be wielded by him, now a world item. If Helin(Nferia) gets his hands on that, nothing good would come out of it.
Hope you liked reading this chapter, and are happy to read even more in the future. As to what directions I want to take, lets say this universe will be expanded into multiple crossovers. With time, of course. Want to finish this story first. If I finish this story even.
Current Ainz sheet because why not:
Name: Ainz Ooal Gown
Alignment: -500 Extremely Evil
Race: Undead
Lvl: 100(+)
Racial Level:
-Skeleton Mage 15 lvl
–Elder Lich 10 lvl
—Demi Lich 10 lvl
—-Overlord(The One) 5 lvl
-⋏⟒ ⍀⍜⌰⍜⍀⎅ - 54/160(54'872/160'000) lvl
Job Classes:
-Wizard 15 lvl
-Sorcerer 10 lvl
-Chronomancer 10 lvl
-Necromancer 10 lvl
–Ruler of Death 10 lvl
—Eclipse 5 lvl
-⏁⏃ ⏁⟟⏁⟟⏃⋏ - 51/120(51'346/120'000) lvl
-⏃⍀⋔⍜⍀⟒⎅ ⋔⏃ ⟒- 47/120 lvl
-⎍⋏⊑⍜⌰⊬ ⋏⟟ ⊑⏁ - 33/120 lvl
- ⊑⏃⋔⌿⟟⍜⋏ - 23/120 lvl
-⎅⟒⟟⏁⊬ - 12/200(12'967/200'000) lvl
Equipped Weapon: [Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown] World-Item/Guild-Weapon
As you see on his racial and job levels, there are some mysterious classes which are hidden/encrypted. That is because in my fic Ainz does not receive classes normally, like in the game, but he has to actually do these things personally like the people of the new world. Of course, as an avatar some other rules apply to him, such as that he can gain much more exp by killing other entities and gain these said levels. Meaning he would speed up the process of gaining these said levels, and by using his world item to gain experience the xp will be divided by the number of hidden classes he has.
Ainz gains 60 xp:
60 divided by 6 mystery classes= 10 xp per class 1/10 lvl-2/10 lvl…
Note: EXP gained by learning or practicing(or by a world item) instead of killing will result in a boost applied, multiplying the gained xp by 2/4/6/7/8/9/10, based on what level the class is at:
0-2 lvl=2x
2-4 lvl=4x
4-6 lvl=6x
6-8 lvl=7x
8-10 lvl 8x
10-13 lvl 9x
13-15 lvl 10x
And then multiply that again with the new ring Ainz made:
[Ring of Greater Experience] Divine Class
Gives users the constant effect of getting double the amount of experience points received.
Plus a spell:
[Greater Experience] 8th Tier - Gives the user the effect of doubling their incoming experience points for a set duration.
All in all Ainz needs 120.000 experience points to reach the next level, a lot but possible with buffs and Ainz killing a lot of people sadly.