This story uses the same setting as my other story "Momon, Big Black Changeling". Essentially, Ainz Ooal Gown is the same type of creature as in that story, although this and that story happen in different worlds.
Everything seemed to be proceeding well. Their adventurer patsies were at war with practically the whole city, going through all its districts, all its desolate parts and hidden corners, barging straight into every building known or suspected to possess elements of the Eight Fingers; and in so doing, breaking the silent equilibrium that had once laid tranquil over the entire city. The criminal organization, however pervasive its influence might have been, had roused the ire of the Adventurer's Guild, for the perceived slight against one of their own. Infuriated by this, the former had declared war on the organization, and were prosecuting it with an almost zealot-like fury.
On the other side, the criminals were not taking it lying down, and immediately fought back against the adventurers with the anger and desperation of cornered rats, though it was certain that their number did not constitute even fully half of the group's actual footsoldiers. On the contrary, it was clear to see that the adventurers had yet to fully penetrate the very depths in which these criminals lurked.
For those engaged in the shadow war, like the warriors of Nazarick, the presence of the criminals' more elite minions was apparent, though they did not engage in reprisals as predicted. They fought to delay, to ward, to deceive and misdirect, all so the greater number of their people could escape through long-prepared boltholes and hidden evacuation tunnels. These had been hidden in plain sight throughout many of the places being currently raided by the adventurers: whether aided by clever artifice or magical displacement.
The minions of Nazarick witnessed a great number of secret caravans being moved around, of treasure, of slaves, and other assets piled into carts, into wagons, into whatever means of conveyance could be prepared, even magical bags of holding; all in an attempt to flee the city unseen and undetected, that the Adventurer Guild's war would not wholly uproot their business. If they had been left to their own devices, then it was certain that the Eight Fingers would have survived; and even more, may have even returned better and stronger than ever.
It was unfortunate for these fools that Ainz-sama had decreed their complete and total extermination, and that their so-called secret ways had already been long scouted by Nazarick. The shadow war was indeed a war in every sense of the word; which involved the desperate resistance of a beleaguered army against the overwhelming tides of Ainz Ooal Gown.
In a way, it did remind Narberal Gamma of Nazarick's campaigns against the underground creatures that had been unearthed in Solution Epsilon's village. It was not hard to associate the vermin they had to exterminate on both times: they were equally foul, unworthy creatures that Ainz-sama would not suffer to live, nor less trespass on his sacred domain. Though in her opinion, the creatures from that other underground were a bit more formidable, if only because their those others were a bit more persistent. At present, the cleansing of those buried halls was not even close to complete, and the campaign there had to be halted because of the present operation.
Not that it was any less satisfying to crush human skulls or incinerate their weak flesh into burnt out cinders. She relished the duty that had been given to her and her sisters in weeding out all these wretches.
"Nabe, you're smiling too much," her sister Yuri Alpha remarked, with a shake of her head. She twitched her weapon, flinging bits of old blood and meat onto the walls.
"That's because she's enjoying it too much~su!" Lupusregina Beta remarked, smashing in the head of a human trying to crawl away. Near her, Entoma Zeta was busy chewing onto that human's severed foot, looking like she was daintily snacking on a biscuit like a proper lady.
"She's only grinning because she doesn't get a chance to let loose a lot of times," Solution Epsilon said, as she came walking in from a nearby room. She looked pointedly at the room she had just left and shook her head. "Nothing," she said. "It appears we've caught much of the stragglers in this area. Entoma?"
"Mmmpphhh… Hmmppph…" There was a cracking sound, like wood snapping. "Pfah! Right, right, of course, sister!"
Yuri sighed again. "For this mission, please remain focused on your duties, at the least, Entoma."
"Right~" The insect maid stood and, still holding on to the piece of meat, skipped her way down the corridor.
Of the Pleiades who were there, only their sister Shizu was not present. She was currently assigned to be one of the "public" faces of Nazarick, assisting Ainz-sama's group with the war on the Eight Fingers outside in the city proper.
Just as Nabe was following along behind her sister Entoma, who would be leading them towards the next batch of targets, Yuri Alpha stopped in her tracks. She raised a hand to her ear and frowned. "Yes, this is Yuri Alpha." The other Pleiades halted, looking towards her, aware that a Message had just been sent. "Narberal?" Yuri said, glancing towards her. "Yes she is with me."
Nabe said nothing, and only looked back at her sister. "Understood," Yuri said. "I'll tell her." She cleared her throat and her body relaxed as the Message ended. "Everyone, listen. That was Albedo-sama. We have supplemental orders: we're to redeploy to another location. Except you, Narberal. There is a message from Demiurge-sama, it seems that Shizu has something to tell you."
"Shizu?"
"You're to be detached from our group to go to her. So resume your normal guise. The rest of us will need to don our masks for this."
"Are you sure, sister?" Entoma said. "We've not even cleared this whole place yet of meat." She gestured back down the corridor.
Yuri shook her head. "Be that as it may, these are orders. And who are we to contradict the words of those who are greater than us?"
"Don't matter to me either way~" Lupusregina said, her hands behind her head. Solution silently followed her as they prepared to depart.
Entoma made a clicking sound in her throat, which sounded like the crunching of glass, but made no further comment as she followed along behind her sisters. And thus did the Pleiades depart, leaving behind a scene of carnage and massacre.
Silence descended on the corridor, where once had been the desperate sounds of battle and the war cries of comrades condemned to die. When the silence was so absolute as to be deafening, a small part of the wall in the distance pushed out, as of a door, lumbering open with the distinct sound of stone grinding against stone. It was only a few meters out from where Entoma Zeta had been forced to turn around upon her sister's orders, her scouting bugs barely missing the secret entrance by a meter, more or less.
Baras and Taras, twins identical in shape but not in demeanor, peeked out fearfully over the corner.
"… They're gone," said Baras, the leaner of the two, who was clutching a curved knife hard in each of his trembling hands.
"Should we go an' look?" said Taras, the meatier of the twins, who was carrying a large satchel on his back. His face was pock-marked with scars, which had actually been a good way to distinguish the siblings from each other.
"Are you kidding me?" Baras said, shaking his head violently. "Can't you smell the stink from here? Smells worse than when we were sent down to the sewers that one time. I ain't about to hawk out my dinner just for this." He looked back down the other way, towards the end of the corridor in the opposite direction. "'Sides, we still got our orders from the bossman. 'S a good thing those monsters left, or we woulda never get this job done."
"And get paid," Taras said, grunting. He looked back at the bloody mess and made a face. "Well, sucks to be those poor, dumb bastards. But better them than us, aye?"
"Aye," his brother said, with a roll of his shoulders. Though both brothers were still so tense that a slight noise would have gotten them jumping, they were nonetheless relieved that the apparent danger had passed.
"The luck o' Taras and Baras, still going strong," Taras said, with a grin. The two of them started to run towards the end of the corridor, where they knew a passage to another tunnel was safely hidden.
They had no idea if it was sheer dumb luck that got them to hiding in that secret side cavity just in time to be missed by these monsters, but they weren't about to fall asleep and do nothing about it, either. The twins ran like their lives depended on it (which was true), but nonetheless did so all sneaky-like without making much noise, like proper bandits did.
They had all been given a task by the big bosses to retrieve a certain object from one of the Eight Fingers' most secret vaults. They went in as a full band, which would have been more than enough to intimidate some fool merchant what thought theirselves immune from the attentions of the Eight Fingers. The twins Baras and Taras were not the best fighters of the bunch, nor the ones with the most cunning or bravery, or skill, or the best runners, or the ones with a nose for money. But as events would show, they would have the most luck.
Now the word all through town was that the Adventurer's Guild had been pissed off as hard as a noble were one to piss on his morning oats. There were definite rumors of crackdowns, purges, wars, and other unpleasantries that no good member of the Eight Fingers should stomach. Thankfully, the twins had moved up a bit in the world, so they were not pushed out to fall on some cocky little bronze plate's limp sword. No, people like them were given the choice tasks of organizing the flight from the capital city, which most thought was stupid; but since it was the bosses' orders then it was hard to argue. Besides of which, the twins and most of the band generally agreed that there was opportunity here for some lucky snot to nick a few trinkets or go on a delightful trek of some choice backstabbings. A few ambitious losers even boasted of winning a spot on the Eight's tables once all the trouble was over.
Now the twins were smart, and that was why those guys were decorating the mess back there with all their spilled guts. They were lucky to have been picked to retrieve the treasure—though at that time they hadn't felt all that lucky. The band's leaders had chosen them, as the lowest in the hierarchy, to retrieve it from the vault in case of any "mishaps", and there had been actual dread of dying in some unusual way from just taking the damned object.
But that hadn't happened, and then they had also been lucky enough that when the noise of the fighting had first appeared, they were just towards the rear of the whole group, which allowed them to run back into the vault itself and close it behind them.
The twins had bickered about their choice in the darkness, because if there had been no monsters and their comrades had succeeded, then they were possibly looking to be shivved for their apparent cowardice, even if all of them woulda done the same if given the chance. But luck, as it turned out, was on their side, and here they were now, escaping to live for another day.
"'Reckon we can take the thing and scarper?" Taras asked his brother. They had pushed open the entrance to the secret tunnel.
"Are you joking? When it's a job from the killers?" They were referring to the assassination arm of the Eight Fingers, a fearsome branch that put the fear of the gods in every low-ranking member. "'Sides, you don't want to be messing with whatever magic is inside this thing. Object sealed in a place like this, it must be cursed or something. But definitely not something we oughta mess with. Let's do the job, hand it over, and hope we can start skipping town with the rest. Call that our luck for the day, and hope things get better tomorrow."
"You're right," Taras said, with a sigh.
"We'll get lucky another time," Baras assured his brother, as the two jogged into the darkness of the new tunnel.
Truth be told, Nabe was of two minds about being called away from her sisters. On the one hand, she was being prevented from doing the work they had just been doing: that is to say, the extermination of worthless human filth without any restrictions or condition. But on the other hand, it was somewhat preferable to be out here in the city, where Ainz-sama was sure to be. She had certain thoughts that Albedo had practically banished the entirety of the Pleiades to do their tasks in the underground, leaving her alone to be with Ainz-sama visibly. Well, surely there were actual, tactical reasons for it, but a part of her couldn't help but feel resentment and jealousy for being so blatantly shoved aside.
She dismissed such thoughts as she went on towards her destination: the location where Shizu had summoned her for some sort of emergency.
As she passed swiftly through the bowels of this so-called city, her senses picked up on all the rampant chaos around her. While it wasn't to the scale of a full-blown battle, the showdown between the Adventurer's Guild and the Eight Fingers were evidenced by the loud clashes that reverberated throughout the city. Everywhere she looked there were the uninvolved mortals, these weak civilians who were glancing about nervously and chattering away at each other in hushed tone. They were as oblivious as vermin scurrying on the ground, unaware of the work of titans above them. She shifted her gaze; they meant nothing to her.
Eventually, she reached her destination: a secluded back alley which she supposed was close to an actual operation target. She could detect the presence of adventurers close by, which either meant they were making ready to start their quest, or they had just about ended it.
She immediately spotted her little sister, disguised as she was in her role as "Cynthia". Near her was her so-called little brother, a man with a stoic look on his face. Rounding out the group was one of Ainz-sama's personal mercenaries. Dealing with the mercenaries always felt strange for Nabe. They were considered close comrades as with anyone with Nazarick, and yet it was very clear that they were also considered on the same status as outsiders. All of them had been assigned to aid Shizu's charge.
And speaking of her charge… Nabe looked around, and didn't find the face she had expected to see. She dismissed that thought shortly, assuming that she was perhaps away.
"I'm here," she said, meeting her sister's bland, silent expression with her own. "What did you call me here for?"
Shizu pointed silently towards a building behind her. "Your pet. Your charge. There is a problem, and I…" Her sister shook her head. "Shizu cannot comprehend it. It would have been easy to silence her, but she seemed… different. And she has Ainz-sama's protection. So now I have to ask you. By rights, you had been tasked with that one's guidance."
Nabe cocked her head. "What exactly happened?"
Shizu did not quite sigh, but it was very close to sounding like it. "The operation coming here was normal. No complaints. No irregularities. No casualties. Then, during the cleansing of that building, they found something. Correction: she found something. And now she refuses to follow orders to continue on, not until she talks to you." Her sister crossed her arms, a sure sign that she was vexed somehow. It was likely because she had just been so brazenly disobeyed by a mortal, a mortal that she could not just toss aside.
"You do have authority over her, do you not?" Nabe asked.
Though Shizu had no expression to make, to Nabe it seemed as if she was rolling her eyes. "I do. She does not listen."
They shared a look. For those loyal to Nazarick, it was very unusual for one to disregard orders from someone who had been bestowed authority over them by the great Ainz-sama. Such was the hierarchy established by the Supreme Beings since the birth of Nazarick itself.
But perhaps that was why she yet remained a mortal.
"I shall speak to her." Shizu nodded in acknowledgment. It seemed to Nabe that her sister was now relieved that someone had come to take this problem off her hands.
And now it was Nabe's concern. As the one who had chosen to take the mortal under her wing for some whim, she had been tasked with Ainz-sama with that same mortal's well-being.
It did not take long to find her so-called apprentice. After all, there was a hectic hubbub gathering upon a particular place, as adventurers crowded around, from where she could hear the distinct voice of Ninya, her apprentice.
After listening for a few more seconds, she could tell that Ninya wasn't just shouting randomly, she was actually crying. Sobbing. Making those ugly noises that only humans made.
"Sister… Oh sister… What did they do to you…!" she said, in a loud, braying wail.
"Ninya-san," an adventurer said. "You've got to let the healers do their work. Your sister needs it!"
"No!" she shouted back. "Stay back! I'm warning you! There's only one person in the world who I can trust my sister to, and they're not here. So stay back, I say, or prepare to be incinerated!"
Nabe approached closer, and could immediately see what it was that her apprentice was holding. It was some sort of human corpse, or something akin to it, its body clearly worn out from some sort of work. Scars, some fresh and some scarred over, littered the surface of its skin, which was itself covered in a layer of muck and grease and slime that emanated a disgusting amount of stink that made Nabe frown.
Despite all that, her apprentice was clutching onto the body as if it was her new toy.
She was barking at those who made to approach. Her other hand was curled over her staff, from which emitted dangerous sparks that foretold impending magic.
It was only when she saw Nabe approach, pushing through the crowd of humans with an imperious look, that her expression changed, and she immediately stood up, cradling the body in her hands, to walk towards her. To Nabe it was like some sort of dog that had found a filthy bone and was about to beg its master for a share.
"Nabe, my master…! Master Nabe…!" she wailed, her voice nearly hoarse. She thrust the body towards her, which she had no intention of touching. "Please… please…! Please save my sister…!"
"Slow down," Nabe said testily. She wouldn't back away from a mortal, but she did want to swerve a bit when presented with such a pitiful, disgusting mess. And the even more contemptible corpse it was lugging around. "And speak more clearly."
She was aware that she was now at the center of attention from the other adventurers, but she tuned them out. She focused on Ninya, whose face was utterly covered in ugly tears, a pathetic sight for any mortal. She recalled seeing the exact same on some of those criminals she had just incinerated.
"My… my… sister…" Ninya said. "We found her… Found her there… But I never… I never thought to… that I would find…" She clenched her eyes, her hands practically trembling.
"This… is your sister…?" Nabe took another glance at the pathetic piece of meat, more fit for dumping in the garbage than carrying around. "I see… So what is the problem? She looks like she needs to be… taken care of." And cleaned up, and healed, but that just went without saying. "So why are you holding on to her?"
Some nosy adventurer, probably the same one who had been speaking to Ninya, spoke up in agreement. "Yeah, we would've already gotten the healers to take a look at her, if you hadn't taken her away! I know she's your sister, but that's even more important for you to hand her off!"
"Shut up!" Ninya cried. "This is none of your business, you hear me?" She wanted to commend her apprentice on telling off that outsider, but now was not the time.
"Again, why are you doing this?" Nabe asked. "Why have you called for me?"
"You have to ask Momon-sama!" Nabe said. "I know he's busy at the moment, but you have to tell her about this… about my sister…! I know he's the only one who can save her, who can heal her… Please…! Just this one time..!"
She wanted to rear her head back and coldly refute the girl's assumption that Ainz-sama could just be summoned as one would a servant. Then she thought better of it, considering the fact that a host of unrelated outsiders were still watching them. Then her next concern was of the fact that she had the audacity of asking aid, when she had more important things to do, things she had been ordered to do by her superior.
And yet, it had been Nabe who had volunteered to take this one under her wing. She would never suffer the indignity of being told she had been wrong, or short-sighted.
Then again, this would be a perfect chance for Ainz-sama himself to set things straight for the girl. She should learn the cold, harsh reality of what binding oneself to the hierarchy really meant. Nazarick had to come above all concerns and considerations. So if she was prepared to let unreasonable, unrelated issues to come before her duty, then…
What sort of teacher wouldn't let this teaching opportunity go to waste?
"Are you sure about this? Is this really important to you?" Nabe asked. Is pressing the Master on this worth the incoming humiliation?
"Yes, she is!" Ninya all but shouted, nodding.
Nabe sucked out a breath. "Very well. Then come. We shall talk with A—Momon as quick as we can." She looked around at the other adventurers. "And what are you all still standing there for? Don't you all have quests yet to fulfill?" They all scattered, predictably, before her angry gaze.
Ainz's ongoing vendetta against the Eight Fingers was going well. Albedo had reported secretly that Nazarick's operations had been proceeding without incident. And his liaison with the Adventurer's Guild had told him that the Quests in the city were slowly and quietly being completed with little issue. There had been a few casualties here and there, but nothing too alarming or drastic. When it came to bands of determined adventurers organized expertly into a system resembling a well-oiled machine, there was little that could stop them short of an apocalyptic threat. Gangs of thugs scattered all over would never be an issue for these.
Besides, Nazarick was the one taking care of the "actual" threats that the Eight Fingers posed, mostly in their more elite groups that were guarding their more important hideouts. He was certain there'd have been a lot more problems for these adventurers if he had allowed these to participate and proliferate.
But he was being magnanimous about it, because this was his vengeance against these damned fuckers, and he wanted them to personally feel his displeasure once everything was over. Already he had captured two of them, and these had already been transported back to Nazarick with no one knowing. That left but Six Fingers, technically speaking.
The Guild were aware of the existence of such high value strongholds, but the higher-ups had deemed them difficult to dislodge, and so assigned only the very best-ranking groups to deal with them. They wouldn't know that the majority of such places would have already been long purified and would assume that the criminals had just successfully fled.
His part of Eclipse Nebula and Blue Rose had been at the forefront of the more "daring" raids, mostly assaulting highly-defended buildings with far fewer numbers (but with markedly more firepower). It allowed Ainz to flex his power as Momon a little bit, and impress those who might be observing him.
He had initially wanted his new wife Lakyus to stay out of the fighting entirely. She had just survived a murder attempt, after all, and he wasn't keen on tempting fate even more by exposing her to such threats. He was glad that her teammates seemed to generally agree, and tried to convince their leader that they could enact their vengeance without her being personally there.
But Lakyus had been very adamant. She had felt fine, and had in fact been invigorated by her near miss. There had been no overt side effects of the poison on her body, and she was therefore eager to take part in a little revenge.
"Those bastards have made my life an absolute hell for the past few months. They went so far as to threaten my family too. So I want them to get them their just deserts: and I especially want to be the one to be there slamming their faces in."
Ainz had been amused at her declaration, but it had taken Albedo to really convince him to allow her participation. "For, after all, my lord, could we not find a way to ensure her safety ourselves?"
And that seemed a reasonable thing to do. Therefore, to the astonishment of Blue Rose, he formally gave Lakyus the permission she desired, which was even more effective coming from her new husband.
Especially when it also came with a gift: which Albedo was careful to announce was a piece carefully considered and chosen by Ainz for the sake of his newly wedded wife. It was a set of armor that would not just fulfill the condition of helping to protect her, it was also a method of demonstrating his largesse as a husband. And it would also impress his new wife, who was known to be particular towards such functional gifts, so it was a win-win all in all.
It did impress, and wow Blue Rose, but especially Lakyus, who took a look at it and seemed to swoon.
It was a new set of armor, which Demiurge had confirmed to be usable by normal humans. It had golden frills and highlights, was lightweight, and certainly very expensive-looking, which was further reinforced by a powerful magical field that projected outward in the form of epaulet shapes.
It was the most powerful item to be retrieved from Ainz Ooal Gown's arsenal in the Tomb's Treasury. And certainly the most powerful one he had ever had to bestow upon someone who was not from Nazarick. It was a considerable gift, all things considered, and not one that should have been given lightly. But since he already considered Lakyus to be "his" in a way, he saw it as nothing too different from outfitting his mercenary NPCs with the best that money could buy.
Now granted, this really was the most powerful object he could give to an outsider, with the certain understanding that doing so wouldn't rebound on Nazarick in any considerably way. It was not too powerful or destabilizing that it could be used on him or the Tomb to enact some good damage years down the line; in the worst-case scenario that it somehow got lost to an enemy. So at the very least he was still being responsible in his generosity.
Lakyus was very profuse with her gratitude for the extravagant gift. According to her skills, she was able to discern that it was an armor rich in heritage and steeped in such unimaginable power. She had been awestruck and honored to have been granted such, and wondered if perhaps it might have been too much for her to handle. She had gone so far as to hint that the value of such an object would have been enough to finance the opening of her own little fiefdom, maybe even some petty kingdom out in the world.
"Ah, my dear," Albedo told her. "You must allow my master his indulgence. After all, it is a rare thing for our people, especially one at such a high rank as him, to be granting such enormous boons to outsiders." It was sort of true, in a sense. "That you have been bestowed with… what is essentially royal favor speaks to your value. And that he is willing to pay any price to protect that self-same value."
"Oh," Lakyus said with an embarrassed wave. "I don't think it's fair to go that far…"
"Oh but it is," Albedo said, sounding like she was chiding Lakyus. "Now is not the time to be humble about what you have been blessed, my dear. Yes, it is true that Ainz-sama choosing to grant this to you is miles beyond what you should be expecting. And yet, is it not precisely because you are his wife that he is right to be doing so?"
"Hey, Leader, you shouldn't really be bemoaning all this," one of her comrades in Blue Rose said. "It's a husband's gift, surely it's not that hard to understand? I know you're something of a knucklehead, but this is too much."
Lakyus had sighed. "Fine, fine, I won't complain anymore." She had then bowed to him, her face flushed red. "I feel like I've been saying this a lot, but thank you, Momon-san. My… husband…"
The new armor had proven its efficacy almost immediately on the sieges they had undertaken. Lakyus had practically become some sort of tank equivalent in this world, with the way she had just shrugged off whatever attacks had started targeting her. Because of her reputation as the Leader of Blue Rose, and the fact that it was her role in her party to be dispensing needed restorative magics, their enemies knew to target her first. But they were frustrated by the raw defensive data which his gifted armor possessed.
To be fair, those attacks that did manage to hit Lakyus were the lucky ones. Momon and Albedo, and their counterparts in Blue Rose, had gone on the outright offensive. Seeing Lakyus getting hit only redoubled their resolve and their fury, with even Ainz getting a little too hot under the collar. His swings with the massive twin blades were vicious and quick, and especially ruthless.
So it was thus that two of the strongholds fell. Blue Rose took the time after the second to take a short breath. They needed to replenish their stocks of potions, to allow Lakyus and the diminutive Evileye to recover their stamina for spells, and for the rest to ensure their weapons and gear remained fit for use. He and Albedo also feigned their own private preparations, though in reality, they only split off so they could get a moment of privacy where Albedo could receive updates on the unfolding plans.
It was during this particular lull that Narberal Gamma then contacted him through Message, to tell him that there was something important that needed his attention, and that she would be coming to him personally. That brought Ainz up short, because not only was Nabe breaking orders when she wasn't supposed to, but she was also coming to meet him here, when she really wasn't supposed to. He thought the maid knew she was supposed to keep up the fiction that she was busy doing something else, as he had told those who were asking after her.
"This could be troubling," he admitted, to a frowning Albedo. He glanced over at the nearby Blue Rose. It would be very awkward to have to explain to them what Nabe was doing here. Whatever business she wanted with him would also be difficult to explain easily, which meant that he had to meet with Nabe by himself in a separate place.
"Don't worry, my love," Albedo said. "I'll make some excuse. But don't dawdle. I suspect that we'll be moving quickly to the next operation, so we'll meet you there, perhaps."
Ainz nodded. "Use the Message scroll if anything comes up."
Still, despite feeling some slight annoyance about the interruption, Ainz was curious about Nabe's purpose. It would have had to be an extraordinary event that would cause the normally unflappable Narberal to break ranks like this. He wondered if something serious had happened; but then shrugged that thought off—for surely Demiurge would have informed him the minute something occurred.
The moment he saw Nabe was the moment he realized something was wrong. For not only was she here, she had brought Ninya with her, yet another person who wasn't supposed to be here, and had her own orders.
And not only that, Ninya was carrying something that almost made him want to retch.
It was some sort of corpse, and upon closer inspection, he saw that it was the body of a young woman. Then a moment later, he realized that the body was still moving somehow; and he stared at it for a full second to check that yes, the corpse actually was still alive and breathing.
He looked at Ninya's tear-stricken face, then to Narberal. "Explain."
"My lord, my sincerest apologies for breaking my orders." Well, at least his assumption was correct on that part. "I was summoned by Ninya here, who has a request for you." She looked at the girl. "Go on, tell him."
"My lord Momon…" Ninya began. "It's to do with…" She looked down at the body she was holding, and therefore couldn't make it more obvious what she was referring to.
Ainz could easily connect the dots. Ninya, who had been taken under Narberal's wing, had gone out of her way to call her, all for the sake of whoever this person she was holding. That meant this was someone important to Ninya, and furthermore, that she wanted Ainz to help her.
Since he didn't want to be playing a guessing game, he said, "I will assume this is someone important to you?"
"My… my sister…"
"I see…" He rubbed his chin. Behind all that muck and mud covering the body and furthermore obscuring her face, it was difficult to see the resemblance. "How did you find her?"
"She was in one of those brothels that we were tasked to attack," Ninya said, which then spurred a new wave of sobbing. "She… I instantly recognized… I couldn't believe it… What I saw… And then when I looked at her, instantly knew…"
"What could she have been doing in such a place?" Ainz wondered out loud. He tried to recall if he had talked to Ninya about her family. "Did you expect to find her there?"
"When I was younger… a noble took her… We believed he wanted her as a maid, or maybe… as his…" Ninya's breath hitched, and she refused to elaborate further, though Ainz knew what she meant. "And I worked… I wanted to earn… To get enough… To find her and free her… And now… Damn them…!" She shuddered. "Damn them all!"
Ainz cleared his throat. "Yes, you do have a right to be angry. However, why have you asked to bring her to me? I am sure the Adventurer's Guild has plenty of means to… help your sister. And she does look she really needs it."
"My lord," Ninya then said, her shoulders squaring up as if she was about to say something decisive. "Please… I know I have not done anything to warrant a great reward. And I know that I presume much in coming to you. But I know you are a great man, my lord. A wise man. A kind man." She paused. "I do not care what price I shall need to make. But I will pay it! Yes…! I shall devote my entire life to you… Until my dying breath, I shall serve you, oh Dark Hero Momon. And with that pledge is my solemn hope… For a boon that I do not deserve… Please… Help my sister…!"
He stood there silently, feeling two sets of eyes on him. He was impressed by the sheer intensity of her heartfelt plea. The fact that Nabe hadn't said anything also meant that she approved of Ninya's request, or that she was watching what he would say in response.
But he didn't want to be seen as too eager to offer aid, especially when he had his own position as leader of Nazarick to consider. He had to be conscious about his perception among his people, including Nabe who was just there watching.
And so he said, summoning up as much dignity into his bearing as he could manage. "Know, then, that I do not grant such boons lightly. And even in such a case where my boons are needed, a hefty price must be paid. Are you willing to shoulder such a burden, Ninya Beiron?"
"Yes," she said, without hesitation. "From now on, until the end of time, I am yours, my lord Momon. Your enemies shall be my enemies. And though this unworthy self cannot match you or my master Nabe, this body I shall offer to be yours to do with as you please... until it is dust."
Narberal made a grunt of what sounded like approval as Ninya concluded that speech. Ainz inclined his head towards Ninya, in acknowledgment of her words. "Very well."
He raised a finger to his temple, and called upon Demiurge. He quickly explained the situation, as well as the need to take Ninya's sister to a safer place.
And there was no place safer in this world, than in Nazarick.
Demiurge's minions came swiftly, and without delay, called as they were by Ainz himself. Ninya looked apprehensive when their masked forms appeared, as they were also dressed in strange clothing.
"These are our allies, so you need not fear. They shall take your sister to somewhere she can get treated. It shall be my vow to you that she shall not suffer any harm, and that her body shall be made whole." Left unspoken was any promise of her mind being cured. He was not a miracle-worker to that extent. Well, unless Nazarick had some therapists lying around without him knowing…
After the minions took the sister away to be transported through a hidden Gate, Ainz turned to Nabe next. "Well then, Nabe, it appears you have a new goal."
The Pleiades maid bowed. "I am ready, my lord." Beside her, Ninya, whose body was still rather filthy from all that she had experienced, nonetheless mimicked her "master" in bowing.
"You've got a new job now," he said, glancing at Ninya. "Didn't you hear? I've given Ninya a boon."
Ninya cocked her head. "Um… Pardon, Momon-sama? But I thought my sister…"
"Oh, I was not referring to that," Ainz said, and he let out a dark chuckle. "I was referring to your chance at something you can rarely indulge in. After all, would you not want… revenge on those who turned your sister that way?"
"Revenge…" Ninya repeated. Her voice turned hard, and she clenched her staff hard around the handle. "They… did this… That's true… Those bastards… The noble who took her must have sold her off… And the Eight Fingers… they… they..." A spell was in her hands now, looking ready to be unleashed. The raging fire reflected in her irises, as she gritted her teeth. "They're going to pay!"
"So you can see," Ainz said, glancing back at Nabe. "This is your responsibility after all, Nabe. Please see that she comes to no harm. She is, after all, an important part of… our group now…"
Nabe made another deep bow. "As you command, my lord." She turned towards Ninya. "Come on then. You want your vengeance? I'll take you there."
"… Thank you, master. And thank you, Momon-sama! Words cannot express how much I am indebted to you."
"I am sure you will work hard."
Narberal was fairly impressed by the drastic change that overcame her apprentice after her declaration to Ainz-sama. Where before she was meek and lacked the proper confidence to be called a true asset of Nazarick—now her soul seemed to burn with something harsh and malicious. It was like staring at one of Demiurge's little demons—those little fiends who only sought to burn and conquer—caged in human flesh.
It was rather amusing to watch, especially since her capabilities had not grown in any way. That was the reason why Nabe had been here, to watch over her little pet and keep her safe from anything bad.
Barely five minutes had passed since Ainz-sama had dismissed them, and Ninya had already attached herself to the next adventurer strike force that was about to tackle the next quest. Her "team-mates" in Eclipse Nebula had been told to stay back and allow her to go in by her lonesome; a request that Shizu took with some consternation, as it did conflict with her orders. And that was why she was also here, observing Ninya together with her sister.
At the moment, they watched Ninya gather together with some other adventurers, apparently listening to some briefing about their orders. Off to the side, Nabe could see their enemies were already gathering, archers moving to high spots and other thugs positioning themselves in various spots. Were Nazarick to intervene they would all die; but Nabe was content at the moment to just watch. Hopefully these adventurers would not be completely incompetent.
"She is going to be in much danger," Shizu said.
"It is not as if she's alone," Nabe pointed out. Having nothing to do, her sister was here to watch.
Then the attack started; the criminals starting first. Shooting from windows on the higher floors, an arrow came streaking at the group. One of the adventurers yelled, and someone took the full brunt of the arrow on their armor. Then a rain of arrows came, but the adventurers had already split. Ninya had flung out her hands, forming a makeshift magic shield to ward off the arrows.
There was a loud yell. The other criminal forces emerged from their ambush spots. The adventurers found themselves in an unfavorable position, surrounded on three sides with arrows raining down on them.
Then Ninya stood up, yelling something loud in her turn. Arrows whizzed past her without hitting, warded by her magic. She took aim with her staff at one of the bigger thugs, and after a second, a stream of fire erupted from the tip, engulfing the poor man. Horrid cries came from the burning fool, and all stood there, agape, as he literally burnt to death. Recognizing the spell, Nabe knew that one was especially effective at stripping off flesh from bone—perfect for trolls with regenerative skin, and certainly overkill for a mere human.
Ninya was still moving, and her next spell was a flash of pure lightning, which jetted forth from her staff in waves of sorcerous fury. They impaled another brute, the coruscating energies striking with the force akin to nature's voltaic fury. He, too, screamed like his fellow, falling down in a quivering heap.
And then the third was Ninya's coup de grace: swinging her staff back she pointed it at another goon, and immediately four conjured blades, shimmering like shooting stars, flashed into existence. Then, not a second later, they shot forward, impaling the poor human in the exposed parts of his armor, leaving him an odd sort of scarecrow, screaming, bleeding, dying.
Seeing their own people die so horribly just like that in quick succession seemed to take the winds from the criminals' sails. Though the adventurers couldn't capitalize on their demoralization, as they too seemed paralyzed by seeing such a sight. Nabe scoffed. But when Ninya all but started waving her sorcerous hands again, the criminals turned tail to flee, causing the adventurers to rise and pursue, albeit hesitantly. Ninya's next spell ended up missing, but the bright, destructive fire smashed into a house, causing flames to start growing on it.
"Hmph." Nabe scoffed, a little disappointed. Ainz-sama had decreed that destruction to the city be kept a minimum, and here Ninya was disregarding orders again.
"She did not impress," Shizu remarked.
Nabe shrugged. "She is just a human."
His absence had not really been missed. However, he had also not been there during their most recent briefing, where Blue Rose had received some crucial information from the Guild. Apparently, the leaders of the Eight Fingers had been spotted through remote surveillance about to leave through a secret passage that was passing very close to the Royal Palace. It was assumed that such a place would have either led outside to their salvation, or to the Palace itself, where their allies among the nobles would shelter them.
Despite their stated aims, the Guild could not just go against their nation of origin without inciting controversy. Thus far the nobility had been split in their reaction to the Guild's actions, and they feared that doing any more would only unite them against them.
Well, the Guild claimed that the information had come from them, but Ainz knew that it was Demiurge who had handled the "leak" of intelligence, as Nazarick was closely monitoring the Eight Fingers' movements.
Blue Rose had then decided, that with Eclipse Nebula's support, they would go into those tunnels, surround and subdue the boss's goons then capture the leaders, to put a definite end to this operation. It might not signal the actual end of the organization, in their eyes, but it would be a long way to dealing a crippling blow. Ainz was aware, though, that those leaders were currently transporting a large amount of assets, including gold and other precious metals, so capturing that would cripple the Eight Fingers definitively.
Ainz volunteered to be at the forefront of this new operation. He would lead it front and center, hopefully taking on whatever first attacks would come their way, before the others would help clean up. He was looking forward to personally leading the charge, and relished in the prospect of personally holding those who had planned for Lakyus' murder in his power.
All had been made ready, and they had identified their point of entry: a well on the road that lead up to the palatial district. Ainz had dived in first, slamming into the underground passageway with a determined grunt. Albedo and Blue Rose came following, before they started dashing forward as a group, on the way to intercepting the fleeing Fingers, and deal a decisive blow to the criminals once and for all.
That was when he felt the ground rumble. He paused, at first assuming this was some sort of impending attack, or that they had somehow stumbled into an unseen trap.
But then the rumbling continued, so now Ainz thought it was an earthquake. He could almost laugh at the timing: right after all the planning had concluded, only now did nature deign to speak her piece?
Yet his initial assumptions were again disputed, when a Message came at him.
"My lord," said the voice.
"Yes?" As it was Demiurge, he couldn't really say his name in front of these other people.
"Something unexpected has occurred," he said. "Please, fall back and retreat to the first defense line."
"What's going on?" Ainz asked. The rumbling only seemed to continue. Without waiting for Demiurge to reply, he turned back to the rest of the party. "Something's up. We can't continue here. We have to see what's going on up there."
They all nodded at his suggestion, and they swiftly came back to their point of entry, which wasn't really that far behind them.
One of the women, the one named Tina, was the first to climb. It was her cry that alerted them.
"Oh, shit! What the hell?" Then there were sounds of battle.
Ainz quickly made his way up, practically leaping through the hole. What he saw first was a definitely unexpected surprise.
While the whole city seemed to be shivering from the clash between adventurer mobs and the Eight Finger gangs, Baras and Taras were just about to reach their destinations. Deep in the bowels of the sewers, where the word "bowel" was an accurate description of the shit-piles roiling down in the sludge and the slurry of the city's collective refuse, there were hide-outs where only the meanest of the gangs could hide. These were strongholds of ancient thieves' guilds long decimated, or of unknown cults of a bygone era. The Eight Fingers were but their latest tenants, and had fortified them accordingly as their refuge.
The assassination arm of the organization made their natural homes here. These were especially pertinent in their line of work, as it was usually essential to make bodies disappear. It was to one such bolthole that the twins had to take their prize, all in order to make good on their assigned missions.
"Well done you goofs," said their handler, who had given them the mission. "Come in before the stink settles in."
The twins trooped in, and were amazed to see that only a few people they knew were gathered here.
"Aye," said their handler, catching the unspoken question in their gazes. "'Seems the Guild had more than just their goons ready to knock us all about. They sent people down in the hidden places too."
"We done saw them ourselves, when we retrieved this," said Baras, pointing to the satchel in his brother's grasp.
"And a good thing you did too. That thing's the most important part of our little scheme today. With it, we'll be giving those Guild loons a straight knife in the eye. That'll teach 'em to stick their noses into things that are none of their business." He pointed towards a nearby pedestal. "So put it there, let's have a look at the thing. Let's see if you boneheads managed to nick the right thing, or if we should be dunking you outside on the shit-lake, eh?"
"No pressure boys," said another rough, grinning unpleasantly at them.
"Fuck off," Taras said, as he walked towards the table. He placed the bundle on top, then stepped back as their handler slowly unrolled the fabric, pushing out whatever object was inside for all of them to see.
"Well, I'll be," said their handler. "Good job, boys. You didn't fuck it up." The object turned out to be some sort of crown, like the one the King upstairs wore on his head. Except, neither twin had heard anything about the King's crown getting robbed.
And the crown looked ancient, and dusty, the gems encrusted on its surface lacking any sort of sheen. Still, to their eyes the thing looked valuable, and with a little spit-shine it could've fenced for something rich. Of course, that was some fancy thinking, considering their boss seemed to want it for something specific-like.
"It's the real deal," their handler said. "Or is it? Tell me if it is." He turned to the side, addressing someone at the back of the small crowd. A hunched, cowled shape walked forward, and with pale, thin fingers that were almost skeleton-like in the torchlight, they picked up the crown. They caressed its surface as one would a woman's skin, and seemed to hiss and whisper something inaudible under its breath.
Then it put down the crown and made a sound like a cross between a laugh and a cough. "Indeed." Its voice sounded dry, like old book pages decaying under the sun. "'Tis the genuine artifact… Faded with age, to be fair… But, as its provenance has been assured to be almost god-like, then we can be certain that enough power remains: potent and ready to be unleashed."
"So it is the crown that Zero requested?" their handler said.
"Yes, yes," said the cowled figure, a little impatiently. "To your eyes it might seem quaint, but there is power here I dare not risk to touch too much, lest it burn."
Their handler tapped the table impatiently, before nodding. "That's good enough for me. So how do we use it then? Orders are to unleash its power and direct whatever it is against the Guild."
The figure made a hissing sound. "You take a big risk… But if you're willing to pay the price, then feel free to go ahead… Just be warned that the consequences will be very dire…"
"You need but offer it a sacrifice: someone that must wear the crown, and control the horrors lying within... Then offer to it the blood price, as all ancient compacts demand…"
"That's it then? We could start now?"
"It should be sufficient… but do not look to me if it looks like it demands more… I am not the master of that artifact… And such objects might be as greedy as their masters once were…" With that, the cowled figure withdrew, and as they all blinked, seemed to fade entirely from their sights.
There was a short silence as the gathered toughs looked at each other, wondering what was about to happen now. Their handler rubbed his scraggly bearded chin, dark eyes lost in thought.
Then he said, "Well, looks like it's your lucky day you two. The whole organization thanks you for your efforts."
The twins looked at each other. "Wha—?"
He felt pain as someone whacked him on the head. He fumbled for his dagger—too late, as another hit on the head sent him slamming to the ground, his whole world seeming to spin. Through the cloud of pain he saw his brother being forced to the ground, as he struggled, punching this way and that; though the others held him firm. He wanted to reach for his dagger, to hurl it and stick some throats. But he felt paralyzed, unable to even lift a finger.
"Sorry about this fellas," their handler's voice came, and to Baras it was as if it had come echoing from the back of a cave. He saw him walking up to Taras, the crown in his hands. "It's either you or I—and I'm not messing around with no ancient artifact, not even for Zero." He placed the crown on his brother, as if he were being coronated like some idiot king: King Taras the Stupid. King Taras the Unlucky.
He felt hands lift him up by his arms. He saw the crown, glowing with some unnatural light. He saw his brother's face, twisted in agony, like he had his stomach cramps again, only this time a whole lot worse. He wanted to say something, to curse, to shout, but to no avail. He felt something cold against his throat, and felt hot pain burst out like a bad boil. The last thing he saw before the darkness was his brother's face, as the skin peeled off his face like a sheet of dried paper.
The gathered energy was not as immense as it should have been. But perhaps that was just as well, or the Crown might have become more glutted, and in its satisfaction, might have birthed more evils than had been unleashed today.
For certain it had been satisfied with the vessel it had been given. The initial sacrifice of blood was adequate as well, to awaken the spirit slumbering with its ancient form. But it had not been enough, though fortunately there were fresh sacrifices just waiting nearby, ready to be reaped by the Crown that had now wakened to full.
When its birthplace had been reduced to the form of an abattoir, the Thing that had been a human pried open its immortal flesh, and from within drew out its dried-up husk of a heart, still beating its last. The Heart was the Key like the Light was the Blood, and the Light did beckon the evils that lurked beyond the thin and ratted Veil.
The world shook as the abominable was done, reality shuddering from the violation of sanctified boundaries. And so, rising from the terminus deep in the forsaken bowels of an unaware city, myriad evils began to Walk, to Crawl, to Fly.
The loathsome fiends claimed their first victims very quickly, as the Eight Fingers hideout had been sleeping right beneath an area where only commoners lived. The slaughter was quick, reaping a plentiful harvest of screams. Yet soon enough they met their first paltry resistance, as the tide fell upon the adventurers who were deployed. Battle was quickly waged, with only the toughest and pluckiest of the lot managing to endure and survive; and all the rest were swept away as easily as the rest.
From the shattered Veil had come a tide unending, fueled by the magics of the artifact that the twins Taras and Baras had fed, its potency seemingly never-ending.
It was only when the tide crashed into a particular redoubt that it was halted, for the first time. Not only was it halted, it was reversed, crushed, obliterated.
The masked visage of Demiurge observed the decaying remains of the creatures that had assaulted his position. The horde of creatures had caused casualties as they bowled over the low-level skeletons that had been brought. Yet when fiend clashed against fiend, Nazarick proved itself the stronger.
All throughout the city, word trickled in through Message. The various strike forces of Nazarick had unexpectedly met a wave of fiends, appearing as if out of nowhere. It hearkened to mind their campaigns in that dark underground, where the grotesque had appeared, in direct opposition to their Master's will.
The operation had to be suspended, of course; there was no way about it. Yet as the capital city descended into bedlam just outside, thus necessitating a swift intervention from the likes of Blue Rose—and of Eclipse Nebula—Demiurge couldn't help but rub his chin, and wonder.
Chapter commissioned anonymously, thank you. A reminder that the story is commissioned.
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