Author's Note: Guess who's back?! It's ya boy, Nitro!
Ainz, Elze, Linze, and Yae were in a different carriage now, riding alongside the girl and her butler, Leim, who still had his butler uniform marred by his blood. They had been asked by the young lady in charge to guard them on the way to the Royal Capital, which they accepted after promises of compensation.
There was another man with them who was unconscious, tied up with rope and gagged. It was the summoner from before, and he was situated next to Ainz.
"Let's get introductions out of the way," the young girl began, curtseying in her seat. "My name is Sushie Ernea Ortlinde. I am the daughter of the Duke of Belfast," she explained casually, causing the other three girls to go into shock, Ainz being unaffected thanks to his undeadness. Everyone (sans Ainz) bowed in respect in their seats. "Please, none of that!" Sue requested, all of them unbowing from their seats. "This is my butler, Leim. He takes care of and is like a grandfather to me."
"I love you too, Sue," Leim said, bowing slightly to the girl. "What are your names? I must know the names of the people who have saved my liege," he lightly demanded.
"My name is Elze Silhoueska, and this is my twin sister, Linze," Elze introduced before Kokonoe spoke up.
"My name is Kokonoe Yae, that's my surname first and then my forename. I'm from Oedo from Eashen, that's why my name is mixed around," Yae explained with a smile.
"My name is Ainz Ooal Gown, and I'm a wandering magic caster," Ainz said with his deep regal voice. "Despite appearances I am no noble, so please don't address me as such," he lightly requested. "So, Lady Ortlinde—"
"Nuh uh! Just call me Sue, you did save Leim's life, you know," Sue said with a pout. "That goes for all of you."
"Okay, Sue—" the young girl smiled, her pout melting away. "—I imagine you must be curious on who attempted the assassination against you, correct?" Sue nodded. "If you were to give me permission I'll use my magic to find the truth from the summoner."
"Please do so."
"With pleasure," Ainz said, reaching over and putting a gauntlet-clad hand on the man's head, "[Control Amnesia]," he casted.
Like a filing cabinet the Supreme Being had access to all the man's memories. Thumbing through the recent events Ainz discovered the summoner was a hired-gun, of sorts, being told the time and location of Sue's whereabouts in detail by a shrouded from view portly old man.
The spell was taxing on Ainz's considerable mana pool, as it was Tier 10 magic. After getting enough info from the man Ainz stopped casting the spell, metaphorically blinking himself awake. Everyone was looking at him worriedly.
"You okay, Ainz?" one of the girls asked. "You kinda spaced out after casting your spell."
"Yeah, and I've never heard of {Control Amnesia} before. Is it personal magic?" Sue asked innocently.
"You could say that, Sue," Ainz answered. "As for the result, the summoner is a hitman and was given detailed reports on your whereabouts, which is why he knew when and where to strike. The person who gave the summoner the order was disguising themself, however, so I can't gleam anything from it."
All in all it was a good practical lesson for one of his more underhanded spells. He didn't have much practice with it so he made sure to commit to memory how exactly it worked.
"Thank you very much, Ainz! I'll be sure to let my father know about this," Sue promised before flashing the peace sign.
That made Ainz wonder how much of his original world was in this new one, as the peace sign was kinda…
Nevermind, it wasn't important.
The six of them conversed all the while on their way to the Royal Capital, talking about things such as their favorite food, their favorite beverage, and the like. It was surprising to hear that all of them preferred some type of alcohol (all of the females saying wine was their favorite), while Leim enjoyed whiskey or brandy. Ainz was personally a beer sort of guy when he had flesh and blood, so he was a little disheartened to hear it not be mentioned before his emotion stabilizer kicked in.
After an hour or two of that, they finally arrived at the capital of the Kingdom of Belfast, Alephis (also having the nickname "The City of Lakes"). Ainz and company entered the double doors of a large mansion, a plethora of maids standing to their left and right of them in a single file line. They all had different hair colors, such as blond, pink, brown, magenta, blue; you name it was there.
It heavily reminded Ainz of the Pleiades, the battle maids of The Great Tomb of Nazarick, but besides it making him nostalgic for the good ol' days it did nothing to stop him from observing the mansion. It had high ceilings with many windows for natural light, and had a beige paint job. It was nothing on Nazarick, but it was suitable for the lesser nobility that they were.
His companions, meanwhile, all had their mouths agape at the grandness of the mansion, which almost made Ainz chuckle, amused.
Almost.
"Sue!" a voice from further within shouted in relief. On top of the staircase near the center of the house was a blond man with an impressive mustache, having emerald-green eyes. He wore noble attire that looked to be specifically made for him, showing his wealth and status.
"Father!" Lady Sue shouted as she hurried to her dad's arms, him scooping her up in a hug and twirling the two of them around.
"Oh, Sue! I'm glad you're safe!" he told her, kissing her forehead for affection. "When I heard the news, I thought I was going to die!" he told her before looking up at the band of adventurers. "Excuse me, sir!" he signaled out, pointing to Ainz.
"Yes?" the skeleton replied fearlessly, using his literal years of acting in his favorite game to handle this.
"So you're the adventurer who saved my daughter?" the father asked as he shook the disguised heteromorph's hand.
"It was a joint effort, Sir Duke," Ainz corrected.
"Please don't be so humble," the Duke said before kneeling before Ainz, shocking everyone. "You have my thanks, for saving my daughter, her butler, and my men's lives."
"It was not a problem, your highness. Please, raise your head, for it should be us who should do that. My friends and I merely did what anyone would naturally do," Ainz underscored his party's accomplishments. A risky gamble to better indebt a person, but one that would hopefully work.
"You show humility, too?" the father questioned himself softly before getting out of his kneeling position, standing tall and proud as he laid his hands on the sides of his body, almost like a superhero. "Allow me to introduce myself properly. I am Alfred Urnes Ortlinde!" he boomed out before laughing. "And who are all of you? Starting in the back with the samurai."
"Um," Yae blushed at being singled out before gathering her courage, "My name is Kokonoe Yae, that's my name backwards and forwards."
"My name is Linze Silhoueska," Linze said, bowing.
Her twin sister copied her as she then said, "My name is Elze Silhoueska."
"My name is Ainz Ooal Gown, but please call me Ainz."
"Great! With introductions out of the way, let's discuss somewhere more privately."
They were outside now, they being Ainz and Alfred at one table with fragrant cups of tea, and they also being Elze, Linze, and Kokonoe at another table, looking over to the main table to hopefully overhear anything.
"Before we go any further in our discussion, Ainz, why do you wear such clothing?" Alfred asked, taking a sip of his Earl Grey tea.
"Are you referring to my disguise or my wardrobe in general?" the undead asked, enjoying the sun's rays across his bony body.
"Both."
"In that case, the clothing I wear has enchantments imbued within it that offers me an advantage in combat, and the mask and gauntlets I wear hide my appearance; as it can be…quite distressing."
"In that case, I won't pry any further, my good sir. So what was brought you to the Royal Capital?" the Duke questioned.
"We were tasked with it by the adventurers' guild in Reflet Town to deliver a letter," Ainz said simply.
"To think if you hadn't accepted that mission…" the man shook his head roughly, as if trying to dispel a thought in his head. "My Sue may have been kidnapped, or worse, even killed. I'll have to thank whoever made the request when I find the time," he muttered the last part out. "By the way, my daughter said that you were a 'wandering magic caster,' in her own words. What are your affinities?"
"All of them."
Alfred's eyes widened in surprise. "All of them?"
"Yes. Fire, Water, Wind, all the elements. It's all because of this," Ainz said before reaching into his inventory and pulling out his Arcane Focus Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown, shimmering gold in the daylight. He purposefully let go of it so that it could float and rotate clockwise, impressing the father.
"I must say I've never seen anything like it before," Alfred said, putting down his tea to better appraise it. It was intricate in design and looked fit for a king or court magician.
"It's a design of my own making, your highness. Each of the serpent's mouths has a spell orb for each element, allowing one to utilize your world's magic system."
"You made this yourself? Not that I doubt you, but this seems like a big time investment."
"It was," Ainz lied, "but it was worth every second. Do you have an idea why anyone would want harm against your daughter?" he inquired, needlessly smoothing out his majestic robes.
"There are many who would see me as a hindrance, given my position," Alfred answered, bringing a hand to his chin as he thought. "Perhaps someone thought they could kidnap my daughter to threaten me, who knows?"
"Father!" a voice interrupted, the Duke's daughter wearing a fancy pink dress came walking up to her dad.
"Oh, Sue. Did you speak with Ellen?" he immediately asked.
"Yes. I didn't want to worry her, so I didn't tell her about the attack," Sue admitted, sitting down across from Ainz and next to her father. Behind her was her faithful butler Leim, who was now wearing pristine clothing, unmarred by blood.
"Who's Ellen?"
"My wife. Sorry you can't see her, even though you saved my daughter," Alfred apologized before continuing on, "My wife is blind, you see."
"What exactly happened, your highness?" Ainz asked, practically smelling a new quest and a new way to further indebt the nobles.
"It happened about five years ago, yes indeed. She managed to survive, but she lost her vision," the Duke morosely told the heteromorph. He was comforted by his daughter, who intertwined their hands together, squeezing to show that she was there. The others overheard this, looking sad at the turn of events.
"Did you try magic healing?" Linze asked, frowning like a kicked puppy.
"Of course, but it didn't help."
"Damn, there goes one of my avenues of helping her for my own benefit," Ainz thought to himself, both miffed and relieved that he didn't have to use any of his numerous healing potions.
Alfred continued, unaware of Ainz's thought process. "Even though it restored some of the damage to her body, it had no effect on the aftereffects of her illness."
Sue sighed, closing her eyes, "If my grandfather were still alive…"
"Hmm?" Ainz eloquently hummed.
"My wife's father, Sue's grandfather, wielded special magic. He was able to remove any afflictions from the body. The purpose of Sue's latest journey was to try and unravel his magic, in the hopes that, perhaps, she could one day learn it."
"If only we could find someone capable of using Grandfather's magic…" Sue morosely said.
"Sue, Null magic is personal magic. There won't be anyone who can use the same spell. But we can try searching for someone with a spell that has similar effects."
A lightbulb went off inside of Ainz's head, and if he had a face an evil smile would've been clearly shown underneath the Mask of Envy. "Another Null magic spell under my belt, and hopefully soon," he thought mischievously to himself. "I have an offer, though you'd have to approve it," Ainz began, folding his gauntlet-clad hands together respectfully.
"What is it, my good sir?" Alfred asked.
"I have a personal Null magic spell called {Dark Wisdom}; it allows me to learn any Null magic spells, the only caveat being that I need to have contact with them in a private way," he half-lied to them, hoping they could follow his simple logic.
"What?! You do?!" Linze, Elze, and Yae shouted simultaneously, standing up from their seats at their personas table.
"Yes; did I not tell you?" Ainz asked, cocking his head in confusion.
"No!" the girls shouted.
"Hmm, must've slipped my mind," he shrugged as he looked towards the Duke and his daughter, who looked gobsmacked. "How about it, then?"
"How exactly does this {Dark Wisdom} work? Does the person have to be alive or dead?" Alfred asked, the cogs in his head turning at the thought of his wife being restored.
"I just need the body of the person, at the very least the head of the target. It doesn't matter how old or fresh the person is, whether they're alive or dead. I just need to do it privately," Ainz stressed, not wanting the weaknesses of [Dark Wisdom] to be known, such as the fact that the target had to be dead for it to activate.
"I think I can arrange something."
It was an hour later and Ainz was alone in the cellar with the corpse of Sue's grandfather, lying motionless on a large blue marble table. Once the guards were sent away Ainz laid a gauntlet-clad hand against the corpse's head and activated [Dark Wisdom].
The corpse somehow managed to look worse as the spell {Recovery} slotted within the skeleton's mind. With a nonexistent smirk he casted {Reset} on the corpse to return it to how it was earlier, leaving the room and following an armed escort to the Duke's room. Everyone, that being Linze, Elze, Yae, Sue, Alfred, and his wife were in the grand bedroom, the wife sitting down on the bed with her eyes closed. She had light brown hair and was wearing a white dress shirt. She looked serene, at peace at herself, and if one looked closely, excited.
Ainz got close enough and put his hand in front of her eyes as he casted, "{Recovery}."
The palm side of his hand glowed, runic symbols, triangles, and circles of magic appeared as they moved rapidly like the world's fastest clock before the light show ended. The Supreme Being removed his gauntlet-clad hand, waiting for her to open her eyes. Everyone watched with bated breath, but both Alfred and Sue looked close to tears as they saw his little display, having clearly seen this Null magic beforehand.
Two cerulean blue eyes blinked themselves open, adjusting themselves to the light levels in the room. "I can see? I can see!" she announced, proving that Ainz did as promised. She began tearing up, along with the Duke and their daughter as she ran over and hugged the snot out of them. "You've all grown so much! Especially you, my baby Sue! My darling! My Sue!"
"You did it, Ainz!" Elze yelled, pulling him into an awkward hug. He towered over her quite easily due to his seven foot frame.
"You can actually use all types of magic?! It's incredible!" Linze added, celebrating much like her sister as she awkwardly hugged Ainz from another side.
"Your drive to aid others without fear of failure is something I respect from the bottom of my heart, Ainz-dono," Kokonoe said, wiping away her tears at a family being reunited.
"It was no big deal," Ainz downplayed his success yet again, "for Ainz Ooal Gown does not know defeat."
"To save not only my daughter, but my wife as well…I offer you my most sincerest thanks!" Alfred bowed in his seat. He, Ellen, Sue, Elze, Linze, Yae, and Ainz were all in a casual meeting room, having once again tea placed in front of each of them. "Bring it to me," the Duke ordered, a silver tray holding a brown bundle and a mini chest on it. "First," he picked it up, the sound of money being audibly heard as he held it, "take this, this is the least I can do. My gratitude for saving my daughter and protecting her on her travels. I want you to have it," Alfred said, passing the bundle to the disguised heteromorph.
It weighed a lot more than Ainz was expecting, but due to his ungodly strength from his new body he took it in stride.
"There are 40 platinum coins inside," the Duke calmly informed them, the female party members all sharing a shocked face, their features white as if their blood drained from their bodies.
"Hmm, that would mean it's roughly 40,000,000 yen, if my math is correct," Ainz thought to himself, forcibly calm during the whole exchange due to his emotion stabilizer.
"This-this is way too much for us to accept!" Linze tried to reject from her seat.
Alfred smiled, as if they had fallen into one of his traps as he countered, "If you plan to continue as adventurers, you'll surely have need of that coin. Just think of it as capital."
"We humbly accept, your highness," Ainz swiftly thanked, bowing lighty before the man.
The Duke then opened up the mini chest and passed the box to Ainz. Inside was four silver-looking medals that had an insignia of lions, a shield, and two swords on it.
"These are my family's medals. With these, you can pass right through the checkpoints, and make use of facilities available only to nobility. It's proof that you have our duchy's support should anything happen."
While Alfred was saying this Ainz divvied out the medals to his friends, each one suitably awed and excited at having one.
"If you ever need a place to rest your head, please do not hesitate to come here, Ainz and friends," Alfred smiled, holding out a hand to shake.
The two clasped hands, a sense of friendship being made on that very day.
"Be sure to visit sometime!" Sue farewelled, standing next to her parents on the porch of her mansion.
Ainz, Elze, Linze, and Yae all waved goodbye as the carriage they were on carried them away from the Duke's, two lines of soldiers wearing darkish green clothing there to bid farewell.
"We still need to deliver that letter," Ainz reminded them, still wearing his disguise.
"We do," Linze replied.
"Let's get it done then!" Elze said, as that was the next logical step.
After walking away from the target's mansion after delivering the letter, Linze remarked, "That was an eventual journey. You did many good deeds today, Ainz," she praised.
"Thank you, Linze. What should we do now?" Ainz asked.
"How about we return back to Reflet Town?" Elze suggested.
"That is wise, as I have business there," the Supreme Being remembered, wanting his rings from Barral soon. "What about you, Yae?" he questioned, wondering what she'll do.
The wind picked up and made her black hair rustle, a smile on her face. "I have made up my mind! Though our time together was short, Ainz-dono, I've gleaned many things from you, many of which says that you're an excellent party leader. You're powerful, but not arrogant, and consistently you choose to help others. If you'll allow me, I'd like to join your party."
"Hmm…" he hummed to himself, thinking fast. "She's a decent combatant, as long as she's fed, at least. No affinities for magic, but how to better strengthen her without buffs…I got it!" Ainz realized as he reached into his inventory, pulling out the katana that Barral made for him some moons ago. He offered it to the samurai, saying, "In that case, Yae, please accept this weapon. It's stronger than conventional weapons you can usually find at an armory."
"You sure, Ainz-dono? My weaponry is up to standards, I assure you," Kokonoe said, taking the blade which was deceptively light.
"I'm sure, Yae. Elze, Linze, any objections?"
"Why not?"
"Yeah, it'd be nice to have another fighter like me!" Elze celebrated. "You can come with us!"
And so it was decided there in the yard that a new party member was added, the four of them departing through a [Gate] to get to Reflet Town.
Author's Note: I'll be trying to upload another chapter either this month or the next. Here's hoping I can do so.