Dragon Kingdom
The Dragon Kingdom was one of the human nations formed after the fall of the Evil deities. Its founder, the Brightness Dragon Lord, intermarried with a human noble family and thus created the royal line of the Dragon Kingdom.
This Kingdom was home to more than 7 million humans, and it was located at the borders of Humanity's realm with that of the Beastmen nations. For centuries, since the founder of The Dragon Kingdom disappeared, the beastmen tribes had occasionally raided the lands of this human nation for food and livestock. The Dragon Kingdom lacked the necessary resources to raise a permanent army of professional soldiers large enough to combat the beastmen, who were several times stronger than an average human. The difference in ability between the beastmen and humans was just too great to overcome. If both humans and beastmen were of the same species, then a beast-man would have ten times the strength of a human. Using the adventurer's rating system, if a human was rated at 3, then a beastman would be rated at 30. The only saving grace for humanity was that exceptional beastmen were surprisingly rare, possibly because the beastmen themselves were already very powerful and generally balanced, to begin with.
The only reason that the Dragon Kingdom was not destroyed yet was because the other human nations bordering it, the Baharuth Empire and the Slane Theocracy, would send their military support to the Dragon Kingdom to help them repel the beastmen invasions. This wasn't done out of generosity. The existence of the Dragon Kingdom was the only thing keeping the beastmen massive hordes from attacking and destroying the human nations located on the western side of the continent.
The beastmen themselves didn't bother with a full-scale invasion either. They saw the Dragon Kingdom as a food source that would replenish itself even when left alone. So they saw this human kingdom as a farm field to be harvested. And so, life continued this way at the Dragon Kingdom, that was hardy breathing at the doorstep of the beastmen nations.
...
One week ago
The Royal Palace of the Dragon Kingdom
In a small but luxurious room, a young girl sat on a throne. She spoke in a voice that was very innocent and cute, and which was quite fitting for her age.
" Is this true? did the beastmen advance again?"
" I am afraid so, Your Highness. We have witnesses saying that beastmen from different races have attacked the nearby villages and small towns. The closest of them was just 100 miles from here."
A man, who appeared to be a knight, answered so with a heavy voice.
His name was Cerabrate, with the title of " Fierce Flash". He was part of the Crystal Tear, this kingdom's only adamantine-ranked adventure team. He was a member of the " Holy Class" and was famous for using the Shining sword technique.
"Well, what can we do now? If they continue their advance like this, they will be at the gates of the capital before soon."
" Don't worry your grace. We will find a way to get through this, as we always have."
Even after hearing the minister hoping, yet cold, words. She didn't feel like that this war would end with their survival. Her innocent and girlish-looking face became visibly saddened.
" Please don't worry. I swear it by all the gods, that we will defeat the beastmen horde. I shall take my team and head to the frontlines. We will stop their advance."
The girl's spirit seemed to lift up. She smiled innocently, and charmingly, at the Knight who declared his noble intention so sincerely.
" Thank you Cerabrate san. Then I will count on you."
" Yes, Your Highness! I won't fail you."
He rose from where he was kneeling elegantly and left the room.
After the door had been closed for a while, the girl then asked the minister at her side.
Is it okay now?
Yes, he was the last person, so it's fine.
After hearing the minister's cold words, the girl's innocent expression suddenly crumbled.
Perhaps it was because of fatigue, but her eyes clouded over and narrowed, while her mouth formed a shape and her shoulders drooped.
So tiring.
Her attitude and tone was that of a 50-year-old woman, but her voice still sounded young and cute, which was at odds with her appearance.
"You've worked hard."
"Yes, I have, so can I stop putting on this appearance now?"
The girl pulled up her skirt while saying this. I could do without this skirt that shows off the full length of my legs as well.
"I have told you many times before, but you can t, your Highness."
The girl was the queen of the Draconic Kingdom, White Dragon lord Draudiron Oriucrus.
Even though she was called a Dragon Lord, her fighting ability was no greater than that of a normal person. However, the Slane Theocracy still considered her to be a Dragon Lord because of the unique ability she was born with, the extremely rare ability that was the difference between a true Dragon Lord and an impostor.
She could use Wild Magic, the proof of power which distinguished a true Dragon Lord from a false one.
"As long as your appearance can evoke the desire in others to protect you, they will work harder."
"Are all humans lolicons? I would feel more comfortable if certain parts of me were bigger."
Draudiron put both of her hands on her flat chest and squeezed.
"Yes, if it was that form..."
"That person is definitely a lolicon. When I was talking to him, he was staring at me with lecherous eyes. If looking at flat things fills him with so much joy, he should go stare at a wall."
"And when the time comes, I will have to satisfy his desires... Oi! Don't look at me like a roasted pig served up for tomorrow's feast!"
"I apologize for my disrespect, your Highness."
"Oi, that hardly sounds like an apology."
"That is not so."
After staring at the minister's cold smile for a while, Draudiron realized that she would not be able to break down that expression of his, and she turned away in displeasure.
"Back to the topic, that form may be popular with men, but not so much with women. Instead, your present form appeals to men and women of all ages. So if you want to change back to that form, you will have to wait until the country is stable again. Or do you have any other plans to propose?"
"Don't speak of it as a form..."
"However, if the situation continues like this, whatever form you take will not matter anymore."
A heavy silence fell for a while as they contemplated the current situation of the Draconic Kingdom.
"Have you found out why they are attacking our country in full force?"
" Unfortunately no. "
" then, did you receive any message from the Theocracy? Will they send any help for us?"
The fact that the Slane Theocracy was supporting the Draconic Kingdom was not publicized because she herself was the highest authority of this country.
" They didn't send the Sunlight Scripture, instead they have sent some of the retired members of the Black Scripture."
" hah?! The old and retired members? We are giving them a huge sum of money every year, and they only send their overdue forces to our aid? What the hell!"
" Please calm down. I asked similar questions from the men they had send to our aid. They said that the Slane Theocracy could not send their army here because they had deployed most of their army to the borders of the Elf Kingdom and the former Re-Estize Kingdom. The Sunlight Scripture is rumored to have been wiped out. And the Black Scripture is either undermanned or assigned to another matter. So we can't rely much on the Slane Theocracy aid."
" hah," she sighed quietly.
" Relying on other countries for military support is the cause of all this. This is just depressing."
" do you think I wanted to rely on other countries? You know that military expense was crippling our finances. If we kept increasing it our country would have been bankrupted by now. Besides, it's not like we could have made an army out of thin air by just expending money!"
The country had been spending a lot against the beastmen every year for a long time now, and yet the situation had still ended up like this. However, it could also be said that the amount spent was what had kept the situation under control.
"Have you received any word from the empire? Will they come to our aid as before? After all, if we are destroyed, the Empire would be the next nation to fall."
The minister bites his lips.
" I have received a Pronouncement from the empire. It contained disturbing news."
" What news?"
" The Baharuth Empire has officially declared itself as a Vassal state of the Sorcerous Kingdom of Ainz Ooal Gown. We can't expect any help from them either. Not without the Sorcerer King's approval."
" Eh~. So that boy Emperor Jircniv has finally submitted to the will of that undead being?"
Less than two years ago , the Baharuth empire had officially sided with the Sorcerer Kingdom that was led by an Undead king, and because of the terrible massacre that had befallen the people of Re-Estize Kingdom, they were branded as traitors to humanity by the rest of Human nations.
The only reason that Dragon Kingdom was still in communication with them was because of their need of military support to repel the beastmen invasions.
" Well, what do we do now? If both the empire and the theocracy are out of the question, where else can we look for aid?"
" I have been thinking about that for a while. I believe at this point, where we exist between the threshold of life and death, we can only look at the Sorcerous Kingdom for any hope of salvation."
" What are you saying?! Isn't the Sorcerer Kingdom an Undead nation ruled by an undead king? Why would an undead being with it's hatred for life come to our aid?"
Her blunt objection was understandable. The undead were the enemy of all living beings. Even though she had heard that no massacre had taken place in E-Rantel, nobody could trust a dangerous being like an undead.
" It is true that the Sorcerer Kingdom is an undead nation, but it is also a fact that it possesses enormous military strength. Their military power is far superior to that of any other nation. If we could use the Sorcerer King power, who managed to crush more than 200,000 enemy soldiers with a single spell, there is a high chance that we can even overcome the beastmen and their threat."
" Even so, don't you think there is another way?"
Well, your Highness brought up the topic first how about using Your Highness's magic?
The queen waved her finger to deflect the minister's suggestion. So this was all he knew about magic. Draudiron could only smile bitterly.
Wild Magic... in this case, it's usable by a human being because 1/8th of the blood in me belongs to a dragon. In the worst-case scenario, it will only delay the destruction of the country. So it will be our last resort.
Wild Magic was different from typical magic because it was powered by souls, rather than mana. Therefore, it required the sacrifice of a lot of people, and the released souls would allow the casting of a powerful spell. According to her grandfather, magic like this could create an explosion that could rival the Platinum Dragon Lord's ultimate attack.
However, for a person far weaker than a Dragon Lord like her, the sacrifice to initiate that sort of spell would be huge, estimated to be in the millions.
" I hope it doesn't come to that. Then, with your permission, I shall go to E-Rantel. See if we can gain any support from the Sorcerer Kingdom."
" It seems we have run out of options. Then please do so."
The minister glared coldly at Draudiron, as she replied in her adorable little girl's voice.
...
E-RANTEL
'Ah! The joy of coming out after nearly two days is different. These days my workload has increased a lot.'
Ainz walks the streets of E-RANTEL in his Momon form. The roads of E-RANTEL have been beautifully reconstructed with stone and brick. Roads have been widened. Besides, many magical lampposts were installed on both sides of the road. Sidewalks and fences have been constructed to protect pedestrians. so as not to cause an accident. As a result of trade with the dwarven kingdom, the city exchanges undead miners and ore for fresh ingredients and high-quality, dwarven-made agricultural tools. Several groups of Death Knights, Death Warriors, Death Wizards, Death Assassins, and Death Priests patrol the streets of the city 24 hours a day. As a result, E-RANTEL has become the most secure city. Where women and children can roam at night without fear. Also, food culture is slowly developing here due to the abundance of cheap and fresh ingredients brought to the city. Many races are now living in E-Rantel. Human, Elf, Dark elves, Lizardman, Troll, Goblin, Rabbitman, Dwarf, Toadmen, Orc, etc races live here together. Humans seem to have become accustomed to demi-humans and some even have jobs. The city is much better now than it was in the past. However, E-Rantel is still under development. Most of the vehicles moving in the city are pulled by Undead horses or Soul Eaters.
Pedestrians on the street bowed their heads slightly as they passed by Momon. When I appeared in front of them in my undead form, they were running away when they saw me. But now they respect me. It seems these people love Momon more than their king. But these two entities are me.
Momon walked into an alley. It was empty. Ainz began to walk silently.
My country is growing very fast. So I should arrange registration for citizens.
All adults must provide ID cards. In this, we can easily find talented and qualified people. That's a good idea. I want to see my people happy. Also, allowances should be made within the Sorcerer Kingdom. Like education allowance, poor allowance, widow allowance, etc. But... we don't have the necessary money for these. Because a lot of money has been spent on development. Although undeads are used to produce a lot of crops. But we only sell them in the Baharuth Empire, Dwarf Kingdom, and the Elf Kingdom. Although we are constantly supplying the Holy Kingdom as well. But we are only helping. Which is given for free. We have no trade relations with our neighbors Argland Council State and Slane Theocracy. They see us as a threat. We also consider them a threat. I can trade with the city-state alliance. But it is far away. I only know about these few countries. But there may be more countries in this world. Because we don't have a complete map of this world. But in the future, I will create a perfect map of this world through Adventurers. I just use most of the resources to produce Yggdrasil coins through the Changing box. With this, we can increase the power of Nazarick.
Ainz was walking in his thoughts.
Then he bumped into a man.
The man fell to the ground as soon as he collided with Ainz.
"You...Bas.. tir..Y...ou ca..n't go on wa..tc...hing."
This man was very drunk. He started abusing.
"I apologize on his behalf! He drank too much! Please forgive him! Lord Momon!" A woman knelt before Ainz and began to beg for mercy.
"Eh! No problem. I didn't mind. You can go. But forbid him to drink too much. It may be harmful to his health."
Ainz looked at the man. He is drunk and lying on the ground.
"Excuse me! I'll take care of it. Actually, his brother died in the Battle of Katze Plains. He's been drinking so much ever since."
" Huh! So sad. You may go now."
"Thank you!" The woman bowed before Momon.
Then she took the man on her back and started walking away. The woman started walking slowly as the man was very heavy.
Momon looked towards where they came out from.
Bar...
'Even in my old world, many of my colleagues used to go to bars and drink alcohol to forget their troubles. They waste their money on short-term pleasures. I know they drink to forget their sorrows for a while. But this will not make their problems go away forever. Rather, it will increase.
They should face their problems and try to solve them. A righteous person does not run away from their problems. They should try to solve their own sorrows and disappointments without drinking alcohol to forget them. There is no point in wasting their lives and money like this.
Ainz saw the woman carrying the man on her back and leaving.
Huh!...I am responsible for his condition. But I didn't ask him to ruin his life with alcohol. It's entirely his fault. If he wants revenge then he can challenge me. I have no objection. But if he wastes his life by drinking like this, his brother will not come back to him. He is only hurting himself and his family like this. But there may be many more people like him. Since I killed about 2,00,000 people in the battle of Katze plains.
...Hmm...should I ban alcohol entirely within the Sorcerer Kingdom? But it will have many problems. Many races may revolt. such as Dwarf. So how about putting a limit on drinking?..Hmm... that's a good idea. However, since the Sorcerer Kingdom is home to many races. So it can be a problem. I have to establish a health department. People of every race should be restricted in their consumption of alcohol depending on their health. Strict measures should also be taken to enforce this law. I don't mind if I have to be strict for the good of the citizens.'
Ainz started walking.
"Huh! Should I visit the Adventurer Academy? No... I have a meeting tomorrow. So I will go another day. I now have to prepare myself for the meeting after patrolling the city. I have to present myself as a worthy ruler before the representatives of other country."
...