The sun shone on the lands surrounding the capital of the Dragon Kingdom, as though to look down upon this piece of the world, a vast structure loomed high upon a hill.
It was built with huge logs that were nowhere to be found on the surrounding plains, with sturdy walls made of stone that seemed to deny passage to everything in its vicinity. It was ringed by shallow ditches that were nevertheless carefully excavated and filled with sharpened stakes. This was to ward against Beastmen.
On the other side of the ditch flew countless flags. Of these, the most numerous were the Dragon Kingdom's flags.
That was only to be expected. After all, this building, this castrum, was the garrison base for the Dragon Kingdom defenders.
The Dragon kingdom didn't have an army that could repent the Beastmen's invasion, so they would usually call other countries to help them or hire adventures to serve as their military forces.
The garrison could house all of them, about 30,000 soldiers and adventures, which itself spoke volumes about the base's size. And this formidable castrum, as mighty as a fortress, was built on a piece of easily defended terrain.
It was built before the great river of Tua, which was 90 meters wide and 50 meters deep. Tua watered the lands surrounding the capital and its villages, but it also served as a natural defense for the city whenever there was an attack from the south.
These attacks would usually come from the Beastmen, but they all have been repeled by this base before Beastmen could even cross the river.
The reason behind it was simple.
The only way to cross Tua was to use the bridge constructed by the Dragon Kingdom, and the only way to do that was to pass the gates of the castrum that was built across the river.
The commander of the castrum could easily defend the bridge from an invading army of the Beastmen. That was because that despite their superior strength compared to humans, the Beastmen would be forced to form a line in order to attack the fortress. And when they did, they would be welcomed by the Garrison of this mighty fortress with a rain of arrows and boiling oil.
However, despite all of their tactical advantage, such countermeasures were nothing for some of the demihuman races that could fly in the sky or swim for a long period of time underwater.
For those reasons, even such a sturdy fortress was by no means a guarantee of absolute safety when one considered the many special abilities of demihumans.
The sun was shining in the sky, shading its radiance to the world beneath it.
Near one of the restrooms of the fortress, that housed part of the garrison stationed there, A powerful-looking man stood with one foot on the battlements, gathering his stuff for the trip that he had ahead of him.
He was a man who bulged with muscle.
His neck was stout, and his chest muscles were impressive enough that one could sense them even through his thick armor. His powerful arms protruded from his rolled-up sleeves. There was no better way to describe him than athletic, regardless of which part of him one looked at. His face was like a boulder, weathered by harsh conditions, and his calm and shaved face spoke of his calm and collected nature. His mighty body and his calm appearance ought to have matched each other, yet his eyes broke that trend. They were large and round, sharp like those of an eagle, and they felt almost comically out of place. But the most eye-catching feature about him was the adventure plate that hung around his neck. Said plate was made of mithril, which showed his position as a high-level adventurer and an important member of this garrison.
Adventured ranked Platinum and above were quite rare. Even if you searched all of the Dragon Kingdom, one could only find 20 Plantium-ranked adventure teams and even fewer ranked adventures. There were only three Orichalcum-ranked adventure teams and only one Adamantite-ranked team.
That man, Askanor Deorain, looked at the sky above him.
The wind carried the thin clouds at incredible speeds, but even the starry night beyond their gossamer veil could not produce enough starlight to illuminate the land.
The man's nostrils flared, and he took a deep breath, smelling the breath of night through the early autumn air, which was flavored with a hint of winter chill. The rising sun in the sky was swallowing the faint darkness of dawn upon the horizon with a speed visible to the naked eye.
He was preparing to leave this fortress for the capital. After that, he and his team were to guard an ambassador party that would soon leave for the Sorcerous Kingdom city of E-Rantel.
Askanor thought a lot about the Sorcerer Kingdom and the road ahead.
He too had the common knowledge about the Sorcerer Kingdom like most other people. A nation ruled by a terrifying undead king, controlled by fear, watched over by an evil force that never sleeps, and...
" Do you have to go?" a young boy asked him.
Askanor looked at him, and his heart ached.
The boy's name was Hond, and he was his nephew.
His brother, who was Hond's father, lived as a hunter in a village. He was leading an ordinary and happy life with his wife and son until the Beastmen attacked his village and killed everyone except Hond.
After Hond ran to one of the Fortresses near his village and told them about what happened, they asked him if he had any relatives to go to. His only family member was him, his uncle. So they send Hond to him to be taken care of.
Ever since he came here, he insisted on being trained alongside his uncle so that he could fight against the Beastmen. Askanor was opposed to the idea at first because Hond was only 15, but once he saw his determination, he agreed to train him himself.
Since he was worried about his nephew's safety and knew that he had no chance against beastmen's superior strength, he trained him to use a bow and arrow. It was still too soon to call him an archer, but he was starting to learn how to shoot. In fact, he showed some talent with the bow, something that he certainly inherited from his father.
" I will be back before long. Don't worry, once we have secured help and gathered an army, I will come back."
" But I don't want to leave you, uncle, let me come with you!"
Hond's deep voice and sad eyes showed how much he had come to depend on his uncle. But Askanor could accept this.
" I can't nephew. This is not a trip for a boy. Even if I wanted to, lord Rabban would never allow it."
Rabban Al Sauma was The Prime Minister of the Dragon Kingdom. He hired Askanor and his team as part of his security guard.
" You can't stay here for now. Go to the capital. I have already told aunt to look after you for the time being."
" No one can look after me! No one can look after anyone!"
Hond declared so in a voice that showed how angry he was. Normally Askanor would have taken offence if a youngster talked to him that way. But once he considered what Hond had been through, the slaughter of his village and the terrible death of his parents, he understood that he couldn't blame him for it. He too thought the same way when he looked at the past.
" Then grow strong so that you won't need anyone to look after you. The whole reason I have to go is because we don't have the strength to defeat the Beastmen ourselves. But once this war is over, we are going to train many boys like you to become strong and defend our country. So until I return, watch over these people for me. Will you?"
This was but a pep talk. But Hond nodded his head nonetheless.
Askanor patted his nephew on the back, picked up his stuff, and placed them upon his horseback.
...
The City of E-Rantel
After a day and night of constant travel, they finally reached the city of E-Rantel. They took residence in the shining gold pavilion, the best and most expensive hotel in E-Rantel.
It was weirder than they imagined.
At first, when they had just set out for the Sorcerer Kingdom, they imagined it as a nation filled with undead. But when they came to the city, they found out that several demihuman races coexist peacefully with the humans. Not only that but there were also several powerful undead beings that acted as the guards and labor forces of this country. They even saw several frost dragons flying in the sky above the city.
The Naga named Ryurarius who served as an immigration official of the Sorcerer Kingdom explained the situation to them, it was still difficult to overcome the cultural shock they received when they came to this city.
Within the hotel, Askanor Deorain was walking toward the room of lord Rabban.
He called him a few minutes ago for a meeting, so obviously he couldn't say no.
Askanor Deorain stepped forward to the room the hotel staff told him about and knocked on the door.
" Who is it?"
" Askanor Deorain."
In front of the door stood a knight, still in his armor. The discrepancy between the E-Rantel they imagined and what they had actually seen made them feel that resting would be a waste of time, and so they had decided to take action without delay.
"You've come just in time. We're about to start the meeting."
While he wondered if he needed to take part, it did no good to ask too much. The people on top had spoken, and obeying them was the proper course of action.
"Then let's go seek an audience with the Sorcerer King as we planned. Askanor Deorain, I'm counting on you."
" Of course my lord. But what else shall we do? The plan was to look for any aid we could gather for the Dragon Kingdom. Shall we visit the adventures guild anyway?"
They had originally planned to head to the Adventurer's Guild. However, according to Ryurarius, the Adventurer's Guild now was essentially closed down, and requests were handled by the Sorcerer King's underlings.
" let's drop by the guild anyway. Askanor Deorain, see if you can entice some idle adventures to come to the Dragon Kingdom."
" Understood. I shall try my best." He nodded his head in understanding.
Since Askanor Deorain was an adventurer himself, he had a better chance at recruiting other adventures to their cause.
Rabban gave his orders to the knight and Askanor, who sprung into action. He also readied himself for a meeting with the Prime Minister Albedo. In the hope of gaining an audience with the Sorcerer King.
...
Scene Change
The Argland Council State
The Argland was a country located in the northeast of the Re-Estize Kingdom. It was a nation made up of several demihuman species and was ruled by its Councilors.
Some of the said Councilors did not live in the Republic. Some of them ( like Platinum Dragon Lord ) were living in faraway regions and would only gather together to discuss important things such as their national affairs. And today, all of those Dragonlords were gathered together for an emergency meeting.
The Blue Sky, Platinum, Heavenly, Swordmaster Dragon Lord, Diamond, and Fire Dragon Lord, they all stood together in a circle within the largest hall in the Republic.
Said hall was a place specially designed for such meetings.
The head of this Council was the most powerful Dragonlord Present. The Platinum Dragon lord Tsar.
This meeting was held under the request of the Fire and Platinum Dragonlords.
The first one to Speak was Tsar.
" Greetings, My fellow Councilors. I am glad to see you are all alright. We are gathered here today to discuss a growing threat that has risen up again in our world. I believe you all know what I am talking about."
" Yes...the power that began 600 years ago and its shock wave that hit the world every 100 years. At long last, it has returned! Some of us have already felt and even confronted it. A new group of players from Yggdrasil has appeared in the world!"
"Hmmmm... The players are back to pollute the world again. We have to fight them off. An undead named Ainz Ooal Gown founded a country called the Sorcerer Kingdom about two years ago. For those who are still unaware, this new nation is ruled by an undead who claimed the land known as the city of E-Rantel, which was formerly a part of the Re-Estize Kingdom. During the annual war between the Baharuth Empire and the Kingdom, the Empire sided with the undead magic caster's claims and as allies at the time, the magic caster cast a powerful spell that instantly killed over 70,000 soldiers from the Kingdom and according to reports from the Platinum Dragon Lord's sources, that same spell summoned 5 giant black beasts that destroyed over 200,000 opponents. Also, this Nation does not stop here. They massacred about 9 million people of the Kingdom a few months ago and took control of the entire Kingdom"
Most of the council have been aware of this since most of them live within the vicinity of the Re-Estize Kingdom's borders. Those who didn't were very few at were quite alarmed to know about this.
"Wait. Why wasn't I informed of this immediately?" asked the Fire Dragon Lord.
Fire Dragon Lord
"We did inform you. But you just disregarded our messenger and went back to your sleep. You even said 'Unless it's a real problem don't even bother me' remember? Answered the Blue Sky Dragon Lord.
"Oh! So that's what the guy was ranting on about... sorry about that." The Fire Dragon Lord sheepishly apologized to his older brother.
" I think we can all agree that the players we face this time, are not the type that would help the world. They would destroy or enslave it. Our only option is to fight! We must join forces if we are going to survive!" Tsar said
The hall was thrown in a commission. All of the Dragon Lords were talking about whether it was wise to enter another war with the players.
" We all understand the point you are trying to make. But do you really think we can win against them? The last time the Dragon Lords went to war with the players was 500 years ago, in the time of the Eight Greed Kings. We all suffered a devastating defeat! Many dragon lords were killed, and in the end, only those of us who did not take part in the war survived. If we go into a war and lose again, Our entire race might be wiped out."
the Blue Sky Dragon Lord asked for a dragon-themed shining platinum armor. Which was the Platinum Dragon Lord's remote-controlled armor that he used when he needed to explore or attend such gatherings. He himself stays in the floating castle guarding the items left by the 8 Greed Kings that killed many of his kind.
The others did not say anything, but from their silence and nodding, it was obvious that they had the same thought.
Tsar understood their points very well, but he could not accept them.
" Then what do you suggest? To sit here and wait until our world is enslaved or destroyed? Do you think we will survive if we sit down and do nothing?! Also, you all might be forgetting that the Sorcerer Kingdom is building military bases near our borders. They must be planning to attack us."
" That's not what I meant! All I am saying is, we can't go to war without a plan."
Tsar answered :
" I do have a plan! In our war with the Eight Greed Kings, ten dragon lords managed to kill one of them when they worked together. Also, I am in possession of all their magic items in the floating city. If we unite with each other and other dragon lords out there and then arm ourselves with the Eight Greed Kings' weapons, we can take the fight to them and wipe them all out, one by one!"
Tsar looked at his fellow councilors. Most of them approved of his word. But The Swordmaster Dragon Lord was deep in thought.
Swordmaster Dragon Lord looked at Tsar and asked a reasonable question.
" I think your plan could work. But how can we convince the other dragon lords to join us? The Brightness dragon lord is flying around in the sky or living at the top of his mountain. He does not even help his human descendants in the dragon kingdom. The deep darkness dragon lord has been hiding since 300 years ago in his cave under the ground. Who knows what he is doing? The sea dragon lord is also living beneath the surface, she never cared about what is happening in the lands. The same is true about the Primordial Dragon Lord. Last I heard, he was busy increasing the number of his children so he could raise a draconic empire."
The heavenly dragon lord :
" I will go and talk to the brightness dragon lord. If possible I will convince him to join us to fight when the time comes. As for the others, I hope you will try talking with them as well."
Diamond dragon lord :
" I will do so as well with the sea dragon lord and Primordial dragon lord."
Tsar happily looked at the other dragon lords.
" Very good, at the same time I will try to contact Momon through one of my human friends. Don't be surprised. I heard that it was Momon who fought against the Demon Emperor Jaldabaoth in the kingdom and thwarted his plans. If he is the same type of player as the leader of 13 heroes and his companion, he would be a valuable ally for us. He also stood against Ainz Ooal Gown in E-RANTEL. However, he is currently in the service of Ainz Ooal Gown. So that he doesn't kill E-Rantel's people. So I will not reveal the complete plan to him until he agrees to join us in the battle."
...
Scene Change
Their audience with the Sorcerer King came earlier than expected. Askanor Deorain could not hide his surprise. That was because it was set to take place the day after Rabban had gone to plead his case.
The knights and diplomats of the Dragon Kingdom led by the Prime Minister found that the residence of the Sorcerer King which they arrived at was quite shabby. Perhaps it might have been quite ostentatious for someone ruling a city of this grade, but it was entirely unfitting of someone who called himself a king. There was no sense of tranquility born of a rich history, no aura of stateliness, and it did not reflect the whims of one who held power. It seemed like a building constructed for practical purposes.
It was quite pitiful compared to the royal palaces of the Dragon Kingdom. Yet, this was the domicile of the Sorcerer King. Since this had once been a regional city of the Kingdom, he had probably decided to make use of the existing small palace after taking control of it.
As the Knights removed their helmets and surveyed the palace, faint traces of disdain appeared on their faces. Perhaps they were comparing their surroundings with the royal palace of their home country.
Who could blame them for that?
Askanor Deorain wasn't sure why such a powerful king who could hold dominion over several races and control many powerful undead beings would choose to live in a place like this, but he felt that there must be some reason behind it.
As they passed through the gates of the palace, there were two facing rows of undead creatures, similar to the one they had first encountered upon coming to the city. Unlike the undead they had seen at the gate, they were slimmer and crossed their lances high in the air between them.
Flags hung from the tips of the crossed lances. On the right were the flags of the Sorcerer Kingdom, and on the left were the flags of the Dragon Kingdom.
Below the flags was a passage that they could move through. After that, music played. While it was a tune he had not heard before, it was probably best to accept this as part of the ceremony of the whole thing.
Askanor Deorain walked in what he hoped was a proud and bold way, as he scanned his surroundings.
This was a clear sign that the Sorcerer King was welcoming their delegation as honored guests; in other words, he acknowledged Askanor and the others as official ambassadors to the Sorcerer Kingdom, which meant Askanor also had to uphold the reputation of the Dragon Kingdom.
He walked along the path below the hanging flags, and at the end of the passage was
A world-class beauty stood there.
She's beautiful she s incredibly beautiful...
Her face was elegant and attractive Her incalculably expensive white dress was free of stains. Her compassionate smile was enough to make her a woman who might have been mistaken for an angel. However, she was no angel. The proof lay in the pair of jet-black wings sprouting from her waist.
"Welcome, diplomatics of the Dragon Kingdom. While this might be arrogance on my part, I am Albedo, and I have the honor of being the Guardian Overseer of the various Floor Guardians and Area Guardians throughout the Sorcerous Kingdom of Ainz Ooal Gown. To use a term that is more familiar to you, I hold the position of Prime Minister."
"I, I am grateful for your warm welcome. I am Rabban Al Sauma, The Prime Minister of The Dragon Kingdom. I am very grateful that you have arranged to make arrangements to meet with us."
" Well, then you can keep your weapons if you feel safer with them. If not, you can hand them over to those over there. Now let us not keep Ainz sama waiting. Please go forth and meet him."
The throne room was also not as lavish as they had imagined. It would seem it had also been pressed into service directly after being taken.
However, the throne itself glittered brightly; one could say it shone with a golden radiance. Surely it was not forged of solid gold; it must have been gilded with gold foil. But even so, one could see how much effort and expense it must have taken to do so, given the size of the throne. In addition, the flag behind the throne was just as impressive. There was no telling what had been used to weave it, but there was a depth to its hue that its simple black color could not properly express. A slight alteration to the light levels might make one think that it was a deep purple.
"Everyone, bow," Rabban commanded.
Everyone bowed as Rabban commanded.
" Announcing the arrival of his majesty Ainz Ooal Gown."
" Please Raise your head."
Everyone raised their heads
They saw an undead being sitting on a throne. Avatar of Death.
They were scared though. But they manage themselves.
" You have come a long way from the Dragon Kingdom. Welcome to E-Rantel, lord Rabban, and you gentlemen of the Dragon Kingdom." Ainz said
" Thank you for granting us this audience and for your warm welcome, Your Majesty."
" While we could have organized a banquet of welcome for you, I trust none of you are in the mood for such a thing, considering the events happening in your country. Therefore, I have taken the time out of my busy schedule to arrange an audience with you. That being the case, rather than wasting time to no use by beating around the bush and bandying insincere flattery let us be frank with each other. I trust there are no objections?"
" Not at all, your majesty."
" Very well then. Tell me about the situation of the Dragon Kingdom. Speaking without deception will allow us to better aid you."
After Rabban indicated his understanding, he began to explain the situation to Ainz.
The contents of his statement were more and less the truth. While he did mention that several cities had fallen to the Beastmen, he didn't say anything about the fact that even their capital, with it's four-layered high walls, was also in danger. He probably didn't want to let another country know that their nation was on the eve of destruction, especially to that of an undead nation.
" I see. That matches up with the reports I have received. Then what is your purpose for coming here?"
" We would like to submit a request to Your Majesty. Every year the Empire and the Slane Theocracy would come to our aid to help repel the Beastmen invasions. However the Slane Theocracy didn't send us any meaningful aid this year, and the Baharuth empire has sworn their loyalty to you and is now a vassal state of your country. So we came to you to ask you this. Please lend us your military strength so that we may save our country. If Your Majesty the Sorcerer King, who could annihilate entire armies with a single spell, comes to our aid, we will have nothing to fear of the Beastmen."
The light in Ainz's eyes lit.
'Ah! I didn't expect them directly... But That's a good decision. I myself was fed up of living in huge piles of paper for several days. So it wouldn't be bad to travel into the Dragon Kingdom for a few days. But I didn't expect them to directly request me to visit their state. But since I am a king, I should not agree now. It will spoil my image. Also, he didn't tell me all. I thoroughly read the reports that Albedo gave me about the Dragon Kingdom. He has hidden many things
"Lord Rabban, I understand your situation. But I cannot leave my kingdom like this to help you."
" Then, can we at least ask of you to send some of the empire legions to our aid? If we received their help, it would be sufficient to repel the Beastmen back."
" Lord Rabban, The Beastmen have invaded your country with an army of 300,000. Even if one doesn't consider the difference in strength between a demihuman and a human, the empire legions won't be able to help you fully repel the Beastmen. Not to mention that as our Vassal states, their military forces are being replaced by our undead army. They have already disbanded two of their legions, and the third legion is going to be disbanded in a month."
Rabban was left speechless.
If the empire and the Sorcerer King were out of the question, then where else could they look for salvation?
Ainz looked at them and waved his hand.
" Oh, don't worry too much, Lord Rabban. We can rent you our undead soldiers. If you want."."
"Ahh..thank you, Your Majesty."
"Hmmm..but can you pay our soldiers' rent?" Ainz said.
Rent! This was a completely normal question and completely expected. However, it was very difficult to answer. The Dragon Kingdom spent a lot of money in the war with the Beastmen. The Prime Minister knew very well the state of their Vault.
"How much money do you want?"
"Huh!... You might have seen my Undead soldiers when you came here.
By my estimation, it would take about 30 thousand Undead soldiers above level twenty to repel the entire Beastmen army. I will charge ten Gold Coins for each Undead."
Ten Gold coins!? According to me, there is not much money in the treasury. If we give them 3,00,000 Gold coins. Then we will be bankrupt. Our economic situation is very bad due to the attack of Beastmen. what do I do now?
"Is there a problem?"
"Your majesty, can you please reduce the price more? Isn't that a bit much."
"HM...sorry. But I told you too little. We rent each undead like Death Knight for fifty gold coins. Compared to that I have asked you for much less money"
The Prime Minister was very worried
"But can I give you a suggestion if you want?" Ainz said
"What advice?"
"You can be our Vassal if you want. We will give you free military support. If you are our Vassal. We will help you to restore and improve your country. You can consider our offer."
The Dragon Kingdom people in the room were shocked
"But...
"Don't worry. I won't do anything bad to you. The Baharuth Empire and the Dwarf Kingdom have also become my vassals long ago. I haven't done anything bad to them."
um... what should I do? But if we don't get help from the Sorcerer Kingdom, we will be doomed.
"But Your Majesty, I am only a prime minister. I cannot decide on this matter. I have to speak to the queen first. But she did not come with us."
"Then speak to your queen."
"But We have to go back into the Dragon Kingdom to talk to her."
"That's not necessary. Albedo, bring it."
"Understood!"
Albedo clapped her hands.
Two Elder Guarders came to the Prime Minister with a mirror. A huge mirror. It is the Mirror of Gate. The outer frame was made of metal with a golden sheen and was finely engraved with strange symbols that looked like runes. the mirror was completely unblemished, appearing to be a water-frozen solid. this item bears resemblance to the Mirror of Remote Viewing, this one, on the other hand, allows the user to be transported to another location from where they are at.
"What is it, Your Majesty?"
"You can quickly move into the Dragon Kingdom with it. It will get you to your destination with 0% damage. Just imagine where you want to go. And then enter it."
The Prime Minister swallowed his saliva.
He raised his hand first. It goes inside the mirror. Then he entered inside the mirror with fear.
...
Queen Draudiron Oriucrus. She was sleeping in her room when suddenly she woke up.
"Queen"
"Ahhh.."
Draudiron shouted.
"Queen, calm down, it's me."
"Prime Minister, But you went into the Sorcerer Kingdom, how did you get here so quickly?"
"I came here using this strange mirror."
Draudiron looks at the Mirror of Gate.
"Where did you get it?"
"It was given to me by the Sorcerer King. But I want to talk to you about something important here. "
"What is that?"
"The Sorcerer King has agreed to help us. But on one condition."
"What condition?"
Draudiron said worriedly.
"We must be their vassal. If we are their vassal. Then they will give us military support for free. Also, they will help our country develop, and will not harm our citizens in any way," he said.
"But what would the citizens think if we were his Vassals? He's an Undead!"
"But Queen, Baharuth Empire, and the Dwarf Kingdom are also their Vassal. Nothing bad happened to them. Also, if we don't seek the Sorcerer Kingdom's help, we will be doomed."
Draudiron gritted her teeth.
She gripped her bed tightly. She did not understand what she should do. She was very worried.
What should I do?