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.

All was suddenly silent in the room. Even those who had come to the office on some other business found themselves looking up from their work upon realizing that something really tense was happening. Whenever Ainz Ooal Gown suddenly stopped speaking, that usually meant something was afoot.

The young dark elf Aura felt a chill course through her spine, which may or may not have been caused by her innate parameters sensing a possible threat, and yet unable to see it clearly. Albedo had silently put her paperwork away, as if the affairs that needed to be seen to were of far smaller consequence than what was about to happen. She too could sense the charged energy in the air. Her eyes gleamed with terrible promise, like a predator that had just sniffed vulnerable prey.

And then there was Zesshi Zetsumei, the heaviest-looking mother present, who turned off the floating spell displaying the Remote View of a certain battlefield. She betrayed nothing in her expression but the sheer intensity of her gaze. All attention in the room therefore was firmly drawn towards the one who was both the source and the destination of all this rampant tension—Lupusregina Beta.

The Pleiades maid stood stock-still; her face frozen into a rictus of abject fear. No easy-going word or glib remark could come to her lips, as it seemed impossible to summon even one usable thought. "Uh… Aaah… Oooh…" were the only sounds that came from her. A low, keening whimper started to come from her throat, a pitiful sound that garnered no sympathy from those present.

"Well, Lupusregina Beta?" Ainz asked. The only sound left in the room were that of Lupus' whimpering and the rhythmic tapping of Ainz's fingers on the table. He let them fall in a certain pattern, left to right, one after the other—tap, tap, tap. The sound was like a clock winding through its gears: relentless, unstoppable. "Is there nothing you wish to say? You look as if someone had stolen your voice." He raised his other hand, causing everyone in the room to flinch. Lupus stared with fear at the hand, as if it were about to do something. Then Ainz let the hand fall back, and continued to speak, "Ah, is that the case, Lupusregina Beta? This is a serious thing. Have you been afflicted by some sort of… magical affliction?"

"Ah… No, n-no, Ainz-sama—" Lupus stammered, shaking her head forcefully, as if bothersome flies were buzzing around her ears.

"Ah." Ainz blinked. "Then that is good. It seems you can still talk after all. Your mouth and your throat seem to be working in perfect order. Well then, do please continue." He made a sweeping motion. "Answer the question."

Lupus began to tremble like a dog caught outside in the frigid downpour of a storm. Without relief, without shelter, she shivered dejectedly, trapped by the cold that surrounded her, weighed her down. Out of all the people in the room, only she could feel the oppressive weight of the master's presence in that moment hanging over the room like a rumbling storm squall bearing down on her without cease.

She swallowed, again. "That… That is…"

"Perhaps," Ainz then said, in a tone that was supposed to be gentle—but to Lupus it sounded like the hiss of a predator lurking in the bush. "You would allow me to say it for you, Lupusregina Beta. Would that be acceptable? Indeed, perhaps this is something you cannot easily say in front of so many people, hm? That would be more understandable. Would that be alright with everyone, I wonder?" There came a chorus from all around the room, though not from Lupus herself, who stood, fearing to be betrayed by her own voice.

"Very well then, let us begin from that assumption. I apologize beforehand if this is presumptuous on your part, and please do interrupt me if I found something wrong." Ainz shifted his position, and Lupus could only stare, like a dejected pet. Aura backed away slowly, as if she also didn't want to be standing directly in the way of Ainz's gaze, until her back was almost against the door. There was now a wide, empty space all around Lupus, isolating her completely in the middle. Though the office was not that large, the Pleiades thought the space much larger than she perceived, as if Ainz's desk was miles in the distance.

"You, Lupusregina, have been spending quite a lot of time outside of Nazarick." The first sentence read like the admonishment of a judge, a divine sort of judge whose words would echo for eternity. "You have spent days, weeks even, flaunting the rules and gallivanting in the outside world like some stray animal, all without even consulting me or anyone else in the Tomb. You did this in the full knowledge of the rules that I had set down, rules which I thought were unimpeachable for you lot. 'Obedient to death' indeed. That makes me laugh." The others from Nazarick shifted uneasily.

At that, Lupus tried to speak, but Ainz's piercing look was still leveled at her.

"Did it not occur to you, Lupusregina Beta, that these rules exist for a reason? And that if there was some emergency, some whim you wished to fulfill, you would have done better to ask me directly? Why did you not even ask? Is it because you do not trust me? Am I not your lord and master? Do you serve another?"

"No!" Lupus's answer came nearly in the form of a shriek. Her eyes were now filling up with tears.

"Then tell me." Ainz clenched his fist, then brought it down slowly to the desk's surface. For Lupus, it was the same effect as if he really had slammed it down. "Tell me why you ever even thought of disobeying my direct orders. Do you think yourself above following the rules of Ainz Ooal Gown?"

The question seemed to make the others from Nazarick stir. Yuri seemed to grow a great deal angrier behind Lupus, glaring at her sister's back. Aura was now openly frowning, or pouting, staring at the errant Pleiades as some law-abiding citizen might at a heinous criminal. And Albedo looked quite murderous, and seemed about to spit something poisonous from her mouth. And Lupus was not insensate to all the palpable hostility that burned her silently.

"Um… I… Ah…"

"You may interrupt me if I am wrong, Lupusregina Beta," Ainz said. "I assume this is what you were thinking when you so shamelessly disregarded my rules. 'I'm Lupusregina Beta. I'm beholden to no one and nothing. Not even Ainz-sama, who's supposed to be my lord and master, can make me do anything! I don't care what he says, I don't care what anyone else thinks. I'm my own master, and I'd be better off outside of Naza—'"

"No, no! NO!" Lupus all but wailed, throwing herself to the ground. "Please, my lord, I did not think like that, at all! Please, my lord, I—I—I only thought!"

Yuri went forward and dragged her groveling sister back up by her arms. "Show your face to Ainz-sama when you're apologizing!" she scolded. "At least keep some dignity to spare, Lupusregina!"

"S-Sister…"

Ainz cleared his throat. "With or without your dignity, Lupusregina, it is now your turn to explain. I need not remind you that I am very much displeased at the moment. This is the second time you have disobeyed me, and I am not someone who forgives easily, unless there is a good reason. So, with that in mind, gather up your thoughts, look me in the eye, and answer the question. Why?"

Lupus looked like she was steeling herself against a great blow. She wiped the moisture on her face with her arm, then sniffed and stood upright. "I—Ainz-sama, I… I first wish to apologize."

Ainz said nothing and continued to stare.

"I was going out of Nazarick because… because…" She took another breath, as if to steady herself. "I am very sorry, Ainz-sama. But I was very interested to keep checking constantly on Enfi. And his wife. The two of them, together. You know… to watch over them… the village… like I used to! Back then! That was my job right? I just wanted to do what I usually did. I'm sorry for not telling you, Ainz-sama, really I am!"

"My pardons," Zesshi suddenly said, breaking into the conversation. "Ainz-sama, who are these people she mentioned?"

Ainz blinked, as if the interruption had completely thrown him off. Beside him, Albedo was seething, gritting her teeth loudly as she glared daggers at the half-elf. The others in the room could only stare dumb-founded at the sheer audacity.

"Ah, they're two humans down at the village," Ainz explained, after a beat. "I have designated them important people. The boy, Nfrea Bareare, is spearheading Nazarick's alchemical efforts. And I may note that he has indeed earned the right to be protected by Nazarick, for all the products he has already managed to produce. And the… the girl is his lover, or at least someone who is dear to him, and that is why we safeguard her as well. They are not formally part of 'Nazarick', but they are vital to our efforts regardless."

"Hummm… Fascinating…" Zesshi said. "I thank you, Ainz-sama. I would dearly love to meet them someday. Perhaps… soon…" Lupus cocked her head at the human, though said nothing. "Oh, but my apologies for the interruption. Please, do carry on, my lord."

Ainz cleared his throat, his expression still blank as if nothing that Lupus said had impressed him at all. "Well, moving on, Lupus, that is admittedly a rather minor offense. Still an offense, mind you, but nothing that would have made me… angry. Yet I am. So this means this wasn't your only offense, Lupusregina Beta. You know full well what else you did." He gave her a look as if he was silently saying, do you really think me blind?

"I…" Lupus swallowed. Sweat ran down her back. "I…" With lips trembling, she continued, "I also went to… to the… to the human place E-Rantel." Yuri gasped behind her. Apparently, her sister hadn't been aware of that particular fact. "I went because I… because I was curious, and, and, I liked to walk around there, and… I don't know… I don't know…" She looked down at the carpet, as if she couldn't bear to look into Ainz-sama's face any longer than necessary.

Ainz crossed his arms and leaned back. "Well, now that you've admitted your mistakes, I think that should be fine, isn't it? Everything's all fine."

Lupus perked up, her face literally brightening. "Really?"

"Wrong!" Though he hadn't intended it, his strong reply still made the walls reverberate with the sound. (He really should work on modulating his voice a little more) She flinched and sagged back dejectedly.

Ainz sighed and kneaded his forehead with his fingers. The rest of the women in the room looked at him worriedly, utterly unable to guess his next move. Only Zesshi seemed pensive, though she still looked a little tense.

"…Lupusregina."

"…Yes?"

"Tell me again, in your own words. Why did you go and visit Carne Village?" Ainz asked quietly.

"Because I wanted to watch over the humans."

"Why?"

"… Because I wanted to watch over Enfi and Enri."

"Why them in particular?"

"W-Well, because… Because I like to tease them."

Ainz sighed. "And why is that?"

"It's… umm… Because they're cute. They—they're a couple, now, and, and, I like to tease them about it. And, and, they've got a baby now, too, so I wanted to share notes—"

"Lupusregina Beta," Ainz said, his voice not quite enough to yell, and yet it was enough to make the maid quail. "And what of our baby?"

"… Hweh?"

Ainz exhaled another angry breath. "Are you saying you do not care about our child?"

"No," she shook her head. "I mean, yes, I do, I do!"

"Then why would you disobey me?" he thundered. This time he did not even try to restrain his voice. He wanted it to crash through the walls. "Why would you risk your life and the life of our child going outside of Nazarick?"

Lupus yelped, upon realizing what Ainz was getting at. "Um… Ahh… But Ainz-sama, I was being really careful and all… I do know how that I need to take care of the…"

"No, Lupus," he said. "You really don't. You don't seem to fully understand the burden of the responsibility that has been placed on you. It is as if it does not matter to you at all! Was I wrong in choosing you? You do not seem like a good candidate for a mother."

"B-But I am. Ainz-sama!"

"I don't believe that one second," he snapped. "All you have shown me so far is that you far value your own whims, your own wishes above your child. Above me, even. Nothing about our child ever even crossed your mind as you went off walking around like nothing's happening! Did you never stop to think of the immense danger you were putting the child whenever you went past Nazarick's boundaries? No, I guess you do not. Or maybe you just did not care for it."

"But Ainz-sama…" she said pleadingly. "Nothing bad was going to ever happen! I was still going to keep the pup safe! I'm strong!"

At this, Ainz took a deep breath, as if he were restraining himself from shouting. "Now you listen, Lupusregina Beta." He pointed, straight at Lupus' belly. "You should remember that you are very close to your expected due date, according to the healers. Do you remember that? Do you? Good. Do you also then remember that the healers told you that this was going to be the most delicate time of your pregnancy? Our baby is right there inside you, almost ready to be born into this world, and you would dare risk them on some foolish whimsy, some stupid impulse? What were you thinking? Were you even thinking at all?"

Lupus stood there silent, unable to muster any form of resistance against her master's fierce tirade. How could she say anything? She knew even from instinct alone that to do so would bring down something even worse on her head. On all their heads.

"What you should remember… What you should have remembered all throughout your pregnancy, is that mothers carrying children are vulnerable. No matter what. It does not matter how strong you are, or how confident you are in your skills. In your condition it is easier than ever to defeat you, overpower you. Yes, even kill you, and that is not a conclusion that I wish to reach. For not only I would only be losing you, but the precious potential you bear inside your womb.

"I extend this concern not just to you, Lupusregina, but to all the mothers of my children. Do you think I exempt Albedo here from anything that would harm the welfare of either herself or her spawn? She has formidable strength and intellect; everyone in Nazarick knows this. But as a pregnant woman, and a mother, she is just as vulnerable as the rest of you. Like you, Lupusregina, she is subject to the same rules, the same restrictions. Did you assume that such rules would not apply to them? No. In fact, Albedo here has followed all my instructions to the letter. It is quite telling that it has made her a more dependable servant than ever." Albedo glowed with motherly pride beside him. "Which is more than I can say for you."

"But Ainz-sama," Lupus said weakly. She was raising her hand. Albedo's expression turned into one that looked positively murderous. "I… But nothing happened, didn't it? I'm fine! I'm right here…"

"And I am thankful to fortune or whatever great force surrounds us that made it so. But not you, Lupusregina Beta. I won't be praising you. But your question makes me think that you still do not see. That you still do not understand. For why else would you still be asking such questions, when you should know that the answers are simple?"

"Simple?"

Ainz scratched his head in frustration. "Let me present a story for you. I want you to follow along silently, and only interject or ask questions when I allow you to. That goes for the rest of you as well. Here goes."

One day, Yuri Alpha was just going about her way in Nazarick. She was asked to deliver a message to Carne Village. As everyone managing the GATEs was busy at the moment, she thought she could just walk herself personally to the village. It was just close by, after all, and for someone of her power it would be no problem going fast, even with the baby she carried within her.

But right as she was walking down the road to Carne, there came a loud sound. BOOM! Yuri was surrounded by a hail of spells. She put up her fists to defend herself, but it was not an enemy that she could beat. She couldn't even see them at all! Her assailants quickly surrounded her, subduing her, and tying her up with strange magics that even she could not break. Then, just as quick, before Nazarick ever realized the commotion, they disappeared, leaving no trace of their appearances. They would only realize when they noticed that Yuri had been gone for hours, with no one, not even Ainz Ooal Gown able to find her.

For how could they? This enemy was strong, and mysterious. They had been watching Nazarick all along, biding their time, until they could find an opportunity to capture someone and take them back for study.

Well, that is exactly what they did. In just a few hours since capture, they managed to analyze everything about Yuri. Her powers, her abilities, everything about her. They would violate her in every conceivable way to do this. And in the end, they would discover that she was pregnant. But by who? Well perhaps they wouldn't know yet. But it was just their luck, for she gave birth not a day later.

Now here was the baby, and what a strange baby it was! It was strong, so very strong, and had peculiar powers that could not have come from Yuri alone. They suspected that the father was someone powerful inside Nazarick. Perhaps that someone was even Ainz Ooal Gown.

With this weapon in hand, now they had a plan. They would bide their time some more. Using their strange magics they were able to brainwash Yuri Alpha, and turn her against Nazarick. She would help raise her child into the ultimate being that would be used against Nazarick, and perhaps whoever her father was. The child would become a powerful warrior.

Then the time came, much later in the future. An army laid siege to Nazarick. It was a grand army, spearheaded by none other than Yuri Alpha, and her child. One by one they would slaughter their way through the floors, until they reached the top. Yuri would personally destroy her former sisters, the Pleiades, without any complaint. For why would she? She had already long fallen to their brainwashing.

And worst of all there would be the child, who would end up murdering the father. Ainz Ooal Gown would fall, and Nazarick would fall with it. And it would all be because of one simple mistake, one crucial mistake that Yuri Alpha had made in the very beginning of it all.

"I apologize for using you as an example, Yuri Alpha," Ainz presently said, after concluding his story. "But I felt that this one would not really understand if I made her the captured one."

Yuri Alpha looked quite disturbed, just as with the rest of them as he kept on telling the story. It made him feel sorry for doing this to her, but he had to make an example that Lupus would follow.

And predictably, as Ainz permitted it, Lupus came with the fierce protest. "That's not gonna happen, Ainz-sama! Yuri would never betray Nazarick!"

"And how can you be so sure?" Ainz said, with a volume of voice just short of booming. "Do you think yourself wiser than I, Ainz Ooal Gown?"

She wilted. "N-No…"

"Then how can you claim that it wouldn't happen? Even I, whose Eyes can pierce through the veil of the future, am not all-seeing, nor all-knowing. Some other powerful one may come, and they may see me as a threat. And what better weapon to use against me than my own beloved mothers, or my own children? You, all of you, would be the most potent weapons to use against me, and that is no lie."

"But Yuri won't… It won't be like that…"

"It will never happen because I will never let it happen!" Ainz declared. "But I can only do that if all my mothers follow my lead. Follow my instructions and adhere to the rules I set! But I cannot account for independent-minded idiots who think only of themselves!"

His stating this made Lupus flinch once again.

"Since you still do not seem to be convinced, I shall defer to Albedo." He turned to his other lover. "Albedo, I do not wish to sully your thoughts, but please bear with me for just this once."

"Anything for you, my lord," Albedo said, inclining her head with a regal air. "Know that I will always obey you in anything you desire."

"Then imagine yourself as Nazarick's enemy. If you were able to discover the presence of mothers in our camp, what would be your reaction?"

"A deadly weakness," she promptly answered. She looked around the room as if she alone knew the answers to everything. "A weakness I could exploit, even if it is not to strike at Ainz-sama directly. If we are assuming that it is Yuri Alpha again, then capturing her, along with the baby inside her, would already be a great boon for any number of vile schemes I could think of. It would be exactly as Ainz-sama said. If I had the power to subdue a Pleiades, then I could do more. Brainwashing Yuri, and molding the child to become a powerful weapon would be easily done."

"Do you hear that?" Ainz asked the others.

"And that's not all," Zesshi now said, breaking into the conversation. For some reason Albedo looked displeased. "If I were to be… hmmm… foolish enough to fall into the hands of someone more ambitious then they could use Ainz-sama's blood for even more sinister means. Perhaps they do not even need to conquer Nazarick or defeat Ainz-sama. The exalted child of Ainz-sama alone will be a miracle unto themselves. If they inherit Ainz-sama's power then I could use the child to breed more like him. I have heard tales of ancient powers who sought to create the ultimate being… With Ainz-sama's blood, anything would certainly be possible. I would be able to conquer not just Nazarick, but the whole world with my servants of impossible strength."

Ainz hadn't even considered the angle that Zesshi had presented, but now that he had heard, he couldn't even refute it. The odds of such an entity using his children for those kinds of ends wasn't exactly zero. In fact, it was an outcome he did not wish to happen, which was exactly the reason why he was so protective of his mothers. To have his children be dragged out of his reach, completely out of his power without him being able to do anything about it was perhaps one of the awful things he could imagine. And then there was the thought that they would be as tools to be used for nefarious ends… His blood boiled at the very notion, and for a moment he thought his wrath would overtake him. Then it settled into a cool smolder, granting him the clarity to see things better. Such a thing should not happen yes—because he will never let it happen.

"Ainz-sama, may I be allowed to speak?" Yuri Alpha said next. Ainz raised his brows. It appeared that almost everyone in the room was about to weigh in on Lupus' situation with their own respective opinions.

"Hm. Go ahead, Yuri. Again, I apologize for using you as an example. I hope it was not too presumptuous of me."

"No, Ainz-sama," she said, bowing. "You were will within your rights. It is I who must humbly apologize on behalf of my sister. Please do not think too ill of her. That being said…" She approached Lupus' side, and turned to face her sister directly.

"Lupusregina," she began coolly. "Words cannot express the emotions I feel when I look at you, when I get reminded of this great sin that you have done. It has left me ashamed beyond measure, for your failure reflects on not just you, not just on me as your sister and guide, but also on the rest of the Pleiades. That even one of our number, who had been tasked by the Masters to guard the holiest sanctum in all of Nazarick, could end up failing in their duties, is the greatest of insults to They who created us.

"But then, that shame pales in comparison to the fear. The great fear that swallowed me when I discovered what you had been doing. This twisted, uncomfortable feeling deep inside my chest, which makes me so very angry at you, my dear sister. For making me worried about you, and for the child inside you." And then, without hesitation, she slapped Lupus full on the cheek. The sound was so loud and sudden that it made Ainz's eyes widen on the spot.

"You're a mother, Lupusregina Beta, damn it! So you better start acting like one!" Yuri yelled.

For a good long, moment, Lupus's head was twisted to the side, with an expression as if she had been sucker-punched rather than just being slapped. Then she slowly turned her head back to stare at her sister. She placed her hand gingerly on her hurt cheek. She looked a combination of upset and surprised, as if she couldn't quite fathom what Yuri had done.

Opposite her, Yuri Alpha was breathing hard, though she made no sign of slapping her sister again. She only stared her sister down with such a burning look that it even made Ainz shiver.

Ah, she's just like her, Ainz thought. Yamaiko-san had ever been a gentle soul. She remained resolute and calm even under difficult situations that had made people like Peroroncino cuss off a storm. Rare indeed were the moments when Yamaiko-san lost her composure, and when it did, everyone in the guild immediately took notice. It was like thunder from a clear, blue sky—you never expected it, and when you did, you'd be forced to sit up and pay attention.

Just then, Lupusregina, perhaps after finally succumbing to the overwhelming pressure of the whole situation, finally broke down. She began choking and heaving, as tears streamed down her cheeks.

"Uuuuuhhhh… Uwaaaahhhh… Uwaaaahhhhhhh… Sister…! Sister…!" she sobbed.

Her cries filled the room. Ainz was unused to the sight of a crying woman that he could do nothing but stare stupidly as she went on. He looked around the room quickly for anyone who could help, but unfortunately no one looked like they could. Zesshi Zetsumei looked sympathetic, certainly, but she didn't look like she wanted to comfort the maid. Albedo looked completely disdainful, staring at the bawling Pleiades with open disapproval. Aura looked just as lost as he was, so she wasn't as much help.

And then there was Yuri, who was looking just as upset as her sister. She wrung her hands, and alternated looking from her to Ainz. He caught her eyes, and it was clear from her look that she wanted to do something about Lupus. She made an inquiring look, as if to silently say, Please, Ainz-sama, may I?

He was torn. On one hand, he was still in the process of scolding Lupusregina. Getting too lenient on her this early would entirely defeat the purpose of scolding her in the first place. But on the other hand, he didn't want to seem too cruel, especially when it had already reached the point of tears like this. He didn't want to be known as that kind of strict, overbearing boss. More than that, he also wanted to be seen more as a magnanimous lover.

In the end, he sighed and nodded. He allowed Yuri to do what she wanted.

Yuri nodded, looking a bit relieved, before she wrapped her arms around her sobbing sister. It didn't take long for Lupus to start bawling right onto Yuri's dress, burying her face against her body and wailing as loud as she could. She didn't even seem to care that she was staining her dress, which was of course a point of pride for all NPCs.

Ainz bore through the long, terse moments of her crying anxiously. Was he really doing the right thing here? He didn't have experience with women, particularly pregnant women. Would he be seen as too cruel, and turn their hearts against him? Had the seed of rebellion been planted, ready to bloom at a much later time?

After a while, Lupusregina's cries wound down, until she stopped crying entirely. At this, Ainz sighed to himself and stood from his desk. He went around it to approach Lupus directly.

Yuri bowed and backed away when he approached. Lupus turned and practically threw herself on him, tackling him in the midsection and holding on to his clothes with fierce passion. He had expected this level of force and had braced himself accordingly, but still it felt as formidable as an actual enemy's attack.

"There, there," he said, trying to make his voice as gentle as possible. "I apologize for sounding so harsh. Especially with you being so vulnerable and all. I know your pregnancies are hard, and these have taken a huge toll on you, especially after months of carrying my child.

"But that's exactly why I have to start putting my foot down. You are all so vulnerable and precious to me, you and the babes you all carry. You made a very great risk doing what you did, even with how heavy your pregnancy is. And that I cannot forgive.

"Which is why I must now decree, here and now, that henceforth you shall be unilaterally banned from leaving the Tomb for the foreseeable future."

Everyone in the room looked at him in shock. Yuri gasped, and Aura made a small choking sound. Lupusregina looked the most devastated by it. From looking at her face it was as if she was about to burst into tears again right there and then. Ainz' heart squeezed, unable to bear the burden of laying down this judgement, but this was needed—not just to chastise Lupusregina, but to set an example for all the rest of the mothers.

And it wasn't even everything yet. He steeled his heart and told himself that this was something that had to be done, no matter how cruel it sounded. He glanced at Aura, who was still watching. He carefully phrased his next words for the sake of the young dark elf, who had hitherto been kept from all knowledge of sex.

"Furthermore, Lupusregina Beta, you will be banned from all night-time activities until further notice."

This time, Lupus' shriek was louder than ever before. She wasn't the only one, though, as everyone else barring Aura made sounds of surprise. This time, even Albedo and Zesshi looked surprised, as if the unthinkable had just occurred before their very eyes.

"B-but, Ainz-sama, you can't mean that… hehehe…" Lupus pleaded, pawing at him with her hands like she was some sort of dog begging for treats. "Ainz… sama?" She stared up at his face, as if searching for some time. "Please…? I'm really, really sorry, I am! I won't do bad things again! I'll obey the rules this time! Please! Please!"

"Lupusregina…" Ainz shook his head, firmly in the negative.

She began hyperventilating again. Fresh tears came to her eyes. "I don't want this, I don't want this, Ainz-sama! Please! Reconsider! I can't live without… without… se—"

"Keep your mouth shut," he whispered, glancing at Aura. "Or you'll get an even worse punishment."

"Pleeeeeeasse, Ainz-sama…" she wailed, falling to her knees. Ainz clucked his tongue and kept her from completely sagging.

"Do I have to remind you of your pregnancy! You can't do that! If you want to sit down, there's a chair right there!"

Lupus gasped and looked around the room, though she didn't seem to be looking for any sort of chair. Rather, she seemed to be fishing for some sort of sympathy from the surrounding participants. Very tellingly, she glanced over at Zesshi and immediately looked away.

"Sister…" she began, turning towards Yuri. She shambled forward and pressed her hands together in a begging motion. "Please…"

For a moment, Yuri looked conflicted, as if she was about to throw her arms around Lupus again. But she set her shoulders and looked her sister right in the eye.

"Ainz-sama is wise, Lupusregina," she said. "Trust in his judgment. Atone genuinely for your mistakes, and everything will be fine."

"Uuuu…" Lupus next turned to Aura. She made a bowing motion. "Aura-sama, please help me!"

"What?" Aura said. Despite clearly not knowing the specifics of the punishment, she was still semi-aware of what the implications were for Lupusregina. In the face of Lupus' groveling, she grinned. "No way! You're a troublemaker, so you get your just deserts. Ainz-sama is just treating you like a good master should do for misbehaving pets. Give you a little tough love! And you know something? You seem a little bit as unruly as some of my pets before I brought the whip down. After I did that, they became very obedient. How about it, Ainz-sama? You want me to train her?"

"Ahhh… No, that's fine," Ainz said. No matter how pure Aura's intentions were, he would never subject any of his NPCs to "training" as a pet. And he was certainly not going to throw in his pregnant lover like that. Maybe he needed to talk to the dark young elf and her brother about it later before future misunderstandings would occur.

Lupsregina seemed to also sense that Aura would not be her salvation, so instead she turned to her last resort.

"Albedo-sama…" she pleaded, clasping her hands together. "Please forgive me…! I know I did wrong, so I'll do better next time! I promise! I will! Please don't let Ainz-sama—"

"Foolish dog!" Albedo thundered, causing Lupus to flinch. The Overseer stood up, and looked like some sort of primordial mother goddess unleashing the full weight of her divine fury. "If my rightful lord and master has already deemed it right to punish you, who am I to gainsay him? So why would you even dare to ask I, who am a faithful servant of the Lord, to grant you clemency that you do not deserve? I, who love my Lord and the child he has given me with all my heart, a privilege which you do not seem to mind, nor less understand? You should be grateful that my Lord is wise and merciful, for if I had my way you would be receiving a far heavier punishment, as is right for one as disrespectful and insolent as you!"

Albedo's tirade had the requisite effect on the others. It left Aura and Yuri looking awestruck. Lupusregina was appropriately cowed, ironically leaning into his body as much as she could as if she could hide from the volley of words that Albedo had spit out. After speaking, Albedo took a deep breath and resumed her seat. She daintily crossed her fingers on top of her thighs.

"Well then, Ainz-sama," she said. "Since there are no objections—"

Ainz cleared his throat. "Ah, right, well then, if there is nothing else to say, Lupusregina—"

"Hang on, Ainz-sama," came another voice. "I'd like to speak, as well."

It was Zesshi. All eyes went immediately to her. Albedo looked quite shell-shocked, as if she had not expected the other woman to speak at all.

Zesshi, being the first of his mothers, looked the most matronly in her attire and with her figure. She gently pushed herself to her feet, and waddled with a certain poise towards them. Despite the image of her heaving breasts and her swollen, hanging belly, she yet possessed a certain aura and grace that left Ainz spellbound.

"At first let me start that I entirely agree with Ainz-sama's punishment that the maid be barred from leaving Nazarick." She shook her head. "It has ever been my opinion that such excursions, even if they are sanctioned as Clementine's visit not too long ago, or just now with Keeno's request, are a very dangerous thing for us mothers, no matter the circumstances. Motherhood is perhaps the most important things we can offer to our Lord Ainz, and we must not jeopardize it for whatever reason. Putting aside the maid's attitude towards her own child, it is still a correct decision for Ainz-sama to establish a complete ban on outside excursions. It does not matter if it is a punishment or not. It applies to all of us. As mothers who wish to give our all to Ainz-sama, we cannot squander this great chance.

"I will despise any mother who does not feel that way. Do you feel that way?" she turned, addressing Lupusregina directly.

"N-no."

"Do you love Ainz-sama with all your heart, your mind, your soul?"

"Yes," Lupus said, with trembling voice. "Yes of course!"

"Then do you also love the child within you?"

"Yes!"

"Then you must take that love and banish these fruitless thoughts from your mind. Being irresponsible towards your own body, no matter how confident you are, is disrespectful to both Ainz-sama who cares for you, and to the child whom you are ultimately responsible for. And as such, you will have no rightful objections to staying within Nazarick until the pregnancy is over. Am I correct?"

"Yes," Lupus sniffed. "Yes, I understand. But—"

Now Zesshi turned to face him. "Well, then, Ainz-sama, as you have just heard, all of us here bear great love for you, not just as servants, not just as mothers, but as lovers as well. And that love has made the maid accept her punishment as you have decreed. But please, I implore you, do not disturb this love."

"Disturb?" he asked.

"Zesshi Zetsumei," Albedo now said. She had an intense look on her face, and stared right into Zesshi's eyes as if she was telling her something with them. "What are you doing?"

She said nothing in reply. After a beat, Zesshi merely shrugged and turned back to face Ainz.

"By this, my lord, I mean that we should not be punishing Lupus so harshly. Some of us are at this point in time quite well advanced in our conditions. Any time from next month or so we will be experiencing our very first child-births. Frightening experiences as I've been told; but they are also said to be quite wonderful and fulfilling. And I believe it is crucial that we go into our childbirths with as much of your love and affection as we can bear, to steady us through our coming tribulations."

Ainz bobbed his head. She certainly had a point.

"Albedo here has been told like I have," Zesshi continued. "That our exercises together are actually much healthier for we who are closer to our expected dates. And not only is it an aid for us physically, Ainz-sama, it also soothes us emotionally to be connected to you, the one we love the most in this world. Depriving us of your light and love would be like taking away the sunlight from flowers desperate to bloom. We will wilt, Ainz-sama, with no one to mourn us.

"Thus, I then propose that your intended punishment of a ban on 'nightly activities'," Zesshi paused to glance discreetly over at Aura, "Be rescinded, for the sake of clemency. This is, then, to test the maid's commitment to atoning for her mistakes. If she is to make another misstep, perhaps even the same ones, then you can freely punish her as you had originally intended."

Lupus gasped, gazing at Zesshi with a look half incredulous as well as astonishment. She had perhaps never expected to find succor from Zesshi of all people, and that was expected from the way she had completely skipped begging aid from the half-elf earlier. Ainz was quite bemused by the whole situation.

Still, that left him in a bind. He didn't know what Zesshi's intentions were for boldly coming to Lupus' defense. But he surely didn't want to be seen as too lenient on those who committed errors. It would set a bad precedent for the others who were working under him, and would also undermine his authority as the leader of the Tomb. He didn't want to be seen as a strict, oppressive boss; still, he also didn't want to be considered weak and ineffectual.

Huh, she sure gave me a difficult position, Ainz thought. He glanced down at Lupus, who was now looking into his eyes with quite a pitiful, pleading stare.

"I think I shall test something," Ainz finally said. He looked around the room. "I will put the issue of Lupusregina Beta's second punishment to a vote by everyone here in this room. You all will decide if Lupusregina should be punished, or not."

"Um, Ainz-sama…"

"And let not my previous decision color your judgements," Ainz continued. "Use your own feelings and apply them to the situation. I will not be angry if you vote a different outcome from what I had initially chosen—that is, to punish Lupusregina. I ask each one of you to sincerely put forward your opinion on her punishment. I will support and encourage your decision, no matter what they are."

Everyone was silent as they looked around the room, staring at each other and at him. It was Yuri Alpha who spoke first.

"Then, Ainz-sama, please excuse me, but I would like for you to forgive Lupus this one time and not ban her."

"Sister…!" The joy that could be heard in Lupusregina's voice was utterly heartfelt. Even Ainz could feel it, a cry so genuine that it must have come from the deepest parts of the soul.

Yuri glanced at her sister and shook her head wryly. "Honestly, I really think you should be punished… But as a fellow mother and your sister I can't help but feel sorry for you."

"Sister..! Thank you! Thank you!"

"Well, that's Yuri's vote done," Ainz said. "Anyone else?"

"Well, Ainz-sama, I vote you punish her!" Aura chirped cheerfully. "As I said before, there's nothing better for a disobedient pet than some good old-fashioned tough love! These guys will never learn better if you let them do what they want. It's better to nip bad behaviors in the bud!"

"Thank you for your vote, Aura," Ainz said. Privately he thought that Aura seemed to be echoing some of her Creator's temperament. Was this what she had done to Peroroncino in private as well? He was curious, but he wouldn't be able to know now.

"I would like to present my vote, Ainz-sama," Albedo said in a cold, no-nonsense voice. "I will cast my vote on continuing the punishment. No matter how good the reasons may be for allowing her this privilege, she has still done wrong. And such mistakes demand their requisite punishment. I will not dare to second-guess Ainz-sama's judgment for he is already a being far wiser than the stars. As such, Ainz-sama, I implore you to keep a steady course and lay down the judgment as you had already intended."

"Hum… Thank you for that, Albedo," Ainz said. All eyes turned to Zesshi expectantly.

The half-elf shrugged. "I vote no to the punishment, obviously. I was the one who forwarded the proposal. I have already shared my thoughts, and to repeat them would be silly."

"So we are at a deadlock," Albedo said frostily. Two against two, two for and two against. Now this was tricky—it was like they had gone right back to square one.

Damnit, I'm the only one who can break the deadlock. It still came back to me. Ainz wanted to bash his head against a wall. He looked down at Lupus, who was once more looking at him pleadingly.

He sighed. "Very well. I shall vote to… rescind my previous judgment."

"Yes!" Lupus shrieked, pushing her pregnant body against him. "Oh thank you thank you thank you Ainz-sama!"

"Lupusregina Beta, listen!" Ainz said firmly, forcing her to stop. "While your second punishment has been rescinded, the first one still applies. And as Zesshi Zetsumei has said, this is your first and only strike. Should you commit further errors that are against my commands, then I will no longer bother with voting, or appeals, or any sort of leniency. You will be banned, period. Do you understand?"

Lupusregina opened her mouth, then faltered at his look. She nodded solemnly, as if she was really taking his words into heart. He really hoped that was the case—for her sake at least.

Yuri walked up to Lupusregina. "Come along then, Lupusregina. Let us return to our quarters. I imagine you'll need to freshen up." She addressed Ainz. "Thank you for your mercy, Ainz-sama. I shall endeavor to keep her in line."

"Well, really it is up to her," Ainz replied, scratching his neck. He was already walking back to the desk.

Yuri gently hooked her hand around Lupus' arm. "Come along then, Lupus. Out we go."

To their surprise, Zesshi stepped up. "If you would permit me, Yuri, I think I would like to be the one to escort Lupusregina to the Mother's Hall." The two Pleiades stared at her, wide-eyed and puzzled. "I imagine you're busy with some other duties, as I recall." She smiled at Yuri, who blinked.

"I er… I do have some…" Yuri stuttered.

"Very well, that settles it then!" Zesshi said with a clap. "Allow me the privilege. I have to get back to the Mother's Hall anyway."

"… Very well, as you say, Zesshi-sama. Thank you."

"Oh, let us dispense with such titles. We are both equal in status as mothers. Right, Ainz-sama?"

Ainz shrugged. "Ummm, yeahh…"

"I'll be going then, Ainz-sama," Zesshi continued, puckering her lips. Ainz leaned down to kiss her. It was supposed to be a quick peck, but the kiss lingered for a couple more seconds. That long kiss was not missed by those in the room, for obvious reasons. She turned to Aura. "Meeting later as planned then?"

Aura nodded, her expression dubious. "Yeah alright, on the agreed time. We'll be waiting."

"Fantastic. Farewell then. And farewell to you, Albedo," she said, curtsying towards the Overseer. The smile Albedo returned could have frozen lesser men in ice as strong as Cocytus' armor.

"Yes… Fare you well," Albedo said.

"Come then, Lupusregina," Zesshi said, addressing the maid. "Let's mosey on back to the Mother's Hall shall we?"

After leaving Ainz's office behind, the unusual pair of pregnant human and pregnant maid waddled on for a while in relative silence. Eventually, Zesshi waved her hand, causing the Screen of Remote Viewing to appear once more, floating just ahead of the pair. Lupus glanced at it, seeing a group of humans maul and mutilate each other. It was an amusing sight as always, but her mind was on other things.

Lupus kept shooting furtive looks at her companion, yet was unable to say something. Zesshi continued to watch the image of the faraway battlefield serenely, almost as if she wasn't minding Lupus' presence beside her at all.

Finally, when Lupus couldn't take the silence anymore, she spoke.

"Why… Why did you do that, su~?"

Zesshi cocked her head placidly. Her eyes were still drawn to the spell, as if the mortal struggle on the other side was an engrossing thing. "Hm?"

"Why did you defend Lupus like that?"

"Oh it was nothing," she replied airily, waving her hand dismissively. "I have my own reasons." For a while, there was silence. Then she spoke once more, "Look at that. Nearly all of them are dead."

"I… I see…" Lupus said, squinting. It was true that most of the humans fighting were no longer moving. They lay on the ground like so much broken puppets. She smiled to see it.

"It is good to see you smiling," Zesshi said. Lupus looked up and caught Zesshi's mismatched eyes. She flushed and looked away, embarrassed. "A smile suits a mother better than a frown, or anything else for that matter. I have heard it said that a child must ever be shown the warmth of their mother, particularly in their smiles. I'm sure you will remember this."

"Yeah, I will. I mean, I hope I will. …Su." Lupus said.

"I can sense you're still very curious. If you want, I can tell you all about it at a later time." Then it was Zesshi's turn to smile, wide and bright. She dismissed the spell and clapped her hands together, the mortal struggle seemingly forgotten. "Shall we arrange a meeting?"

_+break_+

The man broke into a run, flinging all his weight into the desperate charge. The paladin, blindsided, grunted as their bodies collided, armor clattering together in a loud din as they crashed to the ground, spraying mud everywhere.

"Hrghh… Basta…!"

"Raaaaaghhhh…!"

Fortunately, the paladin had dropped his sword just some distance away. If he could but reach it before the paladin recovered, he could have a chance at cutting the fucking bastard's neck. His blood roared in his ears as they grappled in the mud, as he pitted all his remaining strength into the struggle. The paladin must not have much energy in him either, as he was unable to cast some form of spell to stop him. One thing was certain, this was definitely going to end with someone faltering and getting gutted.

Unfortunately, he wasn't some seasoned warrior, and his strength flagged first. Even as he gritted his teeth, he felt his resistance give way against the overpowering strain of the other man's strength, already causing his muscles to scream. He no longer had any other option—he couldn't let go of the hand, nor could he butt the bastard in the head. At this rate he was going to be the one in the mud, flailing helplessly until the paladin got it in him to skewer his sorry guts.

Just then there came a heady scream from somewhere far. The man looked up just in time to see his captain charge in, with sword in hand. The captain struck the paladin square across the head, finally allowing him release from the struggle. As the paladin reeled, bleeding, dazed, his captain turned and brough his sword up over his head.

"Take this, you fucking bastard!"

Splat! The paladin's head split open like a grape, splattering armor and mud with nasty red bits. The man could only stare, wild-eyed, as his enemy's mangled head jerked from side to side, spraying blood all over, before the body finally collapsed backward. A moment later, the body seemed to exhale, as if the last bit of life departed in that very instant, before it lay cold and still.

The man kept on staring, wide-eyed, at the gruesome outcome. Then he felt the captain shake him on the shoulders.

"Are you fucking deaf, boy? I said get up!"

"Ah, y-yes, sir!"

"We're leaving!" The captain's voice was hoarse, as if it had given its all for a full day's battle. And indeed, that had been the case, as the man and his compatriots had fought since first light, through mud and shite and blood, to reach this point.

"Yes, sir!" The man stood up hastily, nearly falling over from sliding in the mud.

"Where's your fucking weapon, eh?" the captain demanded. "Stupid of you, boy, to rush headlong into a paladin like that!"

The man looked behind him, at where his sword had been broken, shattered by an errant spell that had flown past in that moment. But merely looking towards that direction made the man see the utter devastation of the battlefield in the aftermath of the battle that had only ended mere moments ago. He looked around and gasped at the utter devastation before him. There lay soldiers of the Re-Estize Kingdom and of the Roble Holy Kingdom, bodies lying in pools of mud and blood. Everywhere he could hear voices, the din of the dying screaming for aid, for succor in their final moments.

"Hey, listen to me!" the captain said, punching him in the shoulder, and bringing him back to the present. "We got no time for this. We need to regroup with the rest of the army! You can bet there's more of those bastards coming, and I'm sure I don't need to tell you we can't repel them all by our lonesome! So come on, boy!"

"But sir, the others—"

"Forget about them!" the captain thundered. "Are you a healer? Someone skilled in the arts of healing?"

"I—no, our healer was—"

"Yes, I know, he was gutted like a fish just a few minutes ago. And that is why we can't do anything about it now. There's nothing we can do for the poor bastards but pray for their souls. And I sure won't be doing any praying just yet! So thank the gods you survived, and let's hope we survive some more!"

Something in what the captain said made the man stir from his stupor. Yes, he did need to survive. He blinked and looked down. The paladin's sword was right below him. He picked it up.

"Aye, that'll do for you nicely, boy," the captain said, eyeing the sword, which had an edge that glinted like silver. "'Course you'll need to turn it in once we've got a proper moment to breathe. Won't know what sort of enchantment or curse is on that thing."

"Yes sir." He looked down and, after a beat, rummaged around in his former enemy's pockets. He was only able to find some assorted knick-knacks, which were mostly useless for him. Then he found a pack of wrapped rations—dried fish that stunk to high heaven.

"Aye, good idea, looting. But now we really got to go, boy. I won't say it again!"

"Yes, sir! Lead the way, sir!" the man said, stowing his prize in his own pockets.

The duo started jogging back the way they had initially come, towards where they had left the main part of the army. They had to walk through ground that had been made slippery from rain, on boots that had long been worn down from endless marching. With the adrenaline slowly draining from his body, the man was now seized by an all-consuming fatigue that bit at him from all sides, not the least of which were his beleaguered feet, which were probably raw and covered in blisters by now.

They had been moving for days now, following some grand stratagem of the higher generals, who seemed to know it all. All the man knew was that they were steadily being pushed back by the Holy Kingdom forces, and they were helping to stem the inward tide of their advance, to protect their homes.

Yesterday had been a full day's march from the nearby fort, their orders to prevent scouts from penetrating the fort's natural forest barrier and besieging them from a different angle. Then, at midday, it had rained, turning a miserable march into a soggy disaster. Still, they made good time, and established a camp of sorts at a high hill.

And then, just that morning, the captain had been ordered to take a group of soldiers down to scout around this area. He, along with the rest of his comrades who were now dead or dying, had followed along, bearing the indignities of striding up to their waistplates in mud with the good cheer of boisterous camaraderie. They had all been looking forward to the end of the war, to returning to their lives as simple workers and farmers. It had hardly been a year since the first draft, when the Kingdom had fought the Empire. Lands were being left untended, and there had even been rumors of rampant banditry going on just close by. Everyone had wanted to get the fighting done so they could go back to their families.

It was in that moment that the enemy scouts found them.

Despite the fact that they had outnumbered the enemy 3 to 1, it had very nearly ended in a draw. The paladins had been the great equalizer, using their superior fighting skills and equipment to take down at least five of their number before they were themselves brought down.

At least the "spear-boys" did their jobs in unseating the mounted bastards in the opening moments of the fight. Even if none of them were able to really follow up in sticking it into the paladins in the mud. Thinking back on it, the scouts were all mounted on horses, which meant they could have fled whenever they wanted. But they had charged in, as if they were honestly seeking a fight. And for their zeal they lost their lives, but not without taking a score of lives in return. He didn't know what the paladins' deal was, but in that battle, they had lost fathers, sons, and brothers; uncles and nephews and even great grand-sons and grand-fathers.

Eventually, he had broken his sword in the melee. He had turned, just in time to see the last paladin impale his fellow in the back. With no other person in sight, he did the only thing that was in his mind: charge in like a bull.

Well, at least he managed to survive that encounter.

And so, they had come out of it with at least two survivors who still possessed the will and the ability to fight. He was thankful to the gods for their mercy, and hoped he could at least survive for another day. He had narrowly escaped death. He felt sorry for the dead, but he would rejoice in his survival. At this point, survival was just about the only thing on his mind.

The worn-down, haphazardly set up camp was like a literal haven for the man as they marched into camp. He ended up collapsing just within the entrance, as all the accumulated fatigue caught up to him.

"You rest there, boy," the captain said, with a voice that was not completely lacking in sympathy. "But odds are we'll be folded into another group, so stay sharp. And get that sword to the quarter-master."

He spent a while just huddled on the mud, gazing up at the pale-white sky as he let his exhaustion catch up to him. All around the camp were soldiers just like him. Their armors streaked with dried mud and blood. Dull, desperate eyes stared out, from darkened faces grimed with sweat. Cheer and laughter was dearly bought from strained silences and the pull of harsh liquor.

He took out the prize he'd won from the paladin. It would've been easier to get himself down to the cook's camp and secure his lunch, but he didn't feel like it. He unwrapped the stench-ridden meal and bit off a chunk of the dried meat. The salty taste made him grimace, but he was able to chew on the gummy meat for a good while before he swallowed. He hadn't had fish in a while, and he now realized this was the first time he was eating the dried variety. A moment later, he found that he did not care for the realization.

After a while, he stood, and was just about to head to the quarter master as ordered before some strange impulse dragged him towards the commander's tent. He couldn't really explain the impulse. It was just close by. He approached it, and after a while he was able to discern a few voices coming out from within.

"… we not evacuating?" He recognized the voice; that was the captain.

"We are," came a voice that carried a noble twang. This was evidently the superior officer.

"No, I mean leavin' the whole damned place and regroupin' with the rest of the army!"

"Don't be absurd. This is the stratagem that His Majesty the King has himself approved. Don't overstep your bounds, peasant."

"But it's lunacy!"

"That's enough. You may excuse yourself now, captain. You will need to meet your new men and brief them on the plan."

"… Yes, my lord."

He limped away before the captain managed to get out. He felt an ominous feeling that was entirely unrelated to the gloomy sky. Still, there was no getting out of it. The nobles had been given leave to punish deserters harshly, and that led to them making good sport of torture and whatever vile methods they could cook up to execute them. If he had to desert, then he needed to disappear entirely, and he could not see an opportunity yet.

He and the captain were merged with another group who had also been badly mauled in a previous battle. They weren't unfamiliar fellows, as he had marched with them plenty of times before. Still, now, there seemed like a massive gulf between them, with their respective experiences. Yet still he could see himself reflected in their faces, and could almost treat them just like he could his previous fellows. But this time there was no spark of joy, and no song nor joke escaped their lips. They all watched grimly as the captain passed along the King's orders for them to undertake yet again.

They were expecting a massive Holy Kingdom push into this area, perhaps looking to besiege the nearby fort itself. The orders were to delay, or possibly even repel this incursion with whatever means possible, while sappers at the fort got to demolishing as much of the fortifications as they could. Then, when all possible objectives had been cleared, they were to execute a slow retreat, falling back towards the main bulk of the army as it consolidated itself.

Naturally their role here was to be the first line of defense against the Holy Kingdom's forces. And that meant they were literally back in the grinder for this battle. He stared out at his fellows. Even they could see it, as plain as day. There was little chance of coming back from this. If you did, you were blessed by the gods themselves. The only question now was if they wanted to die in the field, or if they wanted to die under the torturer's hook.

He spent the next few days in a daze. He lost track of time, as he dreamed up escape plans that fizzled out into delusional smoke. He woke up on the day of the battle with a pain in his neck, and somehow, he thought he could turn himself into the healer's tent and ask for a transfer for his "injuries".

They had dug out ditches and built barricades to prepare. As he huddled inside one hollow, his thoughts drifted back to his brother, who had died at the Katze Plains. It was said that the killing had been so total and horrific that not even a body could be brought back to bury. His mother had gotten sick from grief, and had taken to bed ever since then. That made it impossible to tell her later that he had been drafted to fight in his brother's stead for the Kingdom's new war. His neighbors had assured him they would take care of her, only urging him to come back safe. At the moment, he didn't know if that was even possible. Would he even be able to come back from this?

Theirs had not been a remarkable life. Their father had been a veteran soldier in the Kingdom, who had almost gotten a dispensation from the nobles to become his own merchant. But after several wars he had lost an arm and a leg, making him unsuitable for the promised work. Still, he remembered he and his brother feeling some pride for his valor, and even years after he'd passed away; they both managed to maintain some semblance of martial skill. This year's war had been his brother's first, and he had been so proud to do his part finally, even when their mother had expressed her misgivings.

"There's a monster at the other side," she had said.

And she had been right.

Now all that was left was an epitaph in the town graveyard, and him stuck in this hole, ready to meet his brother.

If there was some grim consolation to find, it was that his mother would die soon enough after him, and they would all be reunited in the life that came after this. It was not a terribly cheery prospect by any means, but at least it made him smile to himself.

"Oi, you didn't turn that in? What the hell are you thinking boy?"

He turned to the captain, who was crouched right next to him. He looked down at the pommel of his sword, which was still clearly the one he had nicked from the paladin.

"Uh, sorry, sir—"

"Well, never mind that now," the captain said crossly. "If we ever manage to make it back to camp, just turn it in, alright? You don't want people to report you to the officers for keeping contraband like that. They're always happy to take wrongdoers out for 'punishment'. I'm saying this for your sake boy."

"Under—understood sir." Truthfully, he had completely forgotten in the chaos of the past days. He didn't even remember what he had eaten, or what words he had said; nor was he even sure he had said a single word.

"I've noticed you look out of it for days now, boy," the captain said. "Just keep it together, alright? We'll strangle a miracle out of this mess yet!"

"Of course sir," he said, almost listlessly. "Very good, sir."

"Captain!" came a messenger. "Enemy sighted, sir! They're charging right in!"

The captain cursed. He drew his sword. The man did the same, as adrenaline started pumping in his blood.

"Alright men!" the captain yelled, pushing himself to his feet. He waved his sword high and pointed it forward. "You know what you gotta do! Fight smart! Fight hard! Let's give these bastards a hiding they'll never—" His words were cut short by a brilliant flash, accompanied by the sound of a fruit being crushed underfoot. A moment later there came the smell of burning meat. He looked up and saw the captain's head, or what was left of it. It had seemingly been replaced by a burning torch, before the flames dissipated and his headless corpse stumbled to the ground.

The man could only stare as the world around him erupted in shouts and screams. He knew he had to act. He had to move. Everyone was fighting, killing, dying around him.

He had to avenge the captain. He had to avenge his comrades. He had to fight for his King. His brother. His mother.

Mother.

"Mother…"

He curled up into the hollow, bending his knees to his chest, and started rocking back and forth. He closed his eyes, and waited for the morning to come.

Prince Zanac stared down at the map. An aide collected a flag that had been set over the image of a fort. That was another fort destroyed, another part of their army routed.

"… Good news is that the sappers managed to complete their objectives. Now they can't use the fort any more than the rest. And when we've won, it'll be easy to undo the damage with some weeks of work."

Nearby were a handful of the nobles who were awake at this late hour, gathered into an impromptu War Council to advise the King. The only major noble who was in attendance—aside from himself—was Marquis Raeven. The latter, however, was sitting in a lounge chair in the corner, lazily savoring a flute of liquor in his hands. When he caught his eye, Raeven raised the glass slightly, before he looked away.

".. But we have lost so many, and we were forced back," came the King's voice, the voice of his father Ranposa III. "We must call it a defeat, pure and simple."

The Prince's eyes traveled to the other forts that had been taken in the past few weeks, along with the rest they still managed to hold. When viewed from afar it didn't seem that bad. The enemy had really only taken one of the border forts. The rest had been destroyed or made unusable, all being a part of their current strategy of wearing out the invaders through attrition.

But the truth was a far less optimistic picture. A whole swathe of their forts were disabled, and the enemy free to move through what had essentially become hostile territory. They knew that the Holy Kingdom could hardly field a force to cover nearly the entirety of the ground they had gained. But all the same it was difficult to match their movements now that they had been forced to let go of their strategic defensive positions, conceding them one by one over the past days and allowing the enemy to gain a slow, but steady advantage in the war.

The good news was that on the whole their army was still in good shape. The rest of the nobles, their patriotic fervor roused, had managed to whip up a whole bunch of peasants to come serve, and had ridden up to join the King's main army. With no threat of an Imperial attack from the east, more of the eastern lords who had not become Marchers were able to offer their banners. Each were meager offerings considering their overall situation, but combined they made for a formidable number.

The only problem was that the help had arrived too late. Many resented these nobles who had half-heartedly put in their support, as with their added numbers they would not have been pushed back so easily. Zanac was careful never to lend his voice to those complaints, even if he privately felt the same. If they had been able to field their full might from the onset, they might have been able to win!

None of the rest of them quite realized it, but they were in dire straits. Or perhaps they did, but bullishly refused to admit defeat. It was admirable, in a way, but that sort of attitude wasn't one they needed at the moment. They had gone from attempting to secure a quick victory over the Holy Kingdom, to fighting tooth and nail to ensure they didn't get completely wiped out.

Pespea had been confident at the start, when the Holy Kingdom had been winning battles left and right at the border. Their position had been untenable, and at the time they had not the numbers to truly resist their enemies in a decisive battle. This was not the traditional pageantry they had enjoyed with the Baharuth Empire, this was like an impromptu raid that had immediately drawn a decisive counter-attack. And so orders were given to divide the army into many smaller divisions, and use them to harass the enemy from all sides. The intention was to probe for weaknesses and exploit it, bleeding their main army bit by bit, using their superior knowledge of their home terrain.

That endeavor failed, for the simple fact that the Holy Kingdom had better horse-riders. These smaller groups soon found themselves entirely out-maneuvered on the field. Even worse, these enemy counters often included actual paladins in the mix, who were more than a match for simple soldiers and scouts. Soon this strategy was abandoned entirely, but their losses only continued to add up.

What followed was, in Zanac's opinion, one of the worst strategic decisions they had ever made. While it had been some noble who had suggested it, Pespea had brought it up to the War Council, and Zanac, seizing upon any sort of advantage for what he thought was a ship about to sink, convinced his father to approve it. And that strategy was to abandon the idea of using their forts, which had been established in key areas for the very purpose of repelling an attack from the west. (which, perhaps, were more in expectation of the savage tribes living in the Abelion Hills than Roble itself) The forts had existed in a state of dormancy for so long, it was asserted, and there may be possible flaws in the masonry that had worsened with time. As such, manning them now would be a possible waste.

Instead, they would simply undermine the forts themselves, rendering it unusable by anyone else. Then, they would use the threat of these forts as a way to herd the invading army like sheep, funneling them towards specially prepared kill-zones where they could ambush their baggage trains with impunity, and from there starve their main host in due time. It was said that the noble who had suggested this defensive maneuver had praised himself for "looking at it from the perspective of an enemy" and therefore drawing a line through their network of forts, allowing them to "plan for the enemy's path". It had seemed so brilliant a strategy that Zanac had been taken by it.

Unfortunately, the Holy Kingdom had their own ideas. Instead of avoiding the forts as they expected, they had gone through fort after fort, attempting to besiege it every time. It was only later that they discovered that the Holy Kingdom had actually split its forces, when the hosts they had earmarked to ambush had come across their scattered armies, and ended up triumphing—sometimes. By the time they had thought to consolidate and attempt to destroy the scattered forces piece by piece, the enemy had also caught on that attempting to besiege their forts was fruitless. Therefore, the army that Pespea himself lead encountered the Holy Kingdom's reorganized forces on a certain hillside and did battle there.

According to Pespea, it ended up in a draw, as while he had been forced to retreat ("With minimal losses, Your Majesty!") he had also left "scores of Roble dead" on the field, in numbers 0"nigh uncountable", such that they would be forced to stop their progress to perform their religious rituals.

Yet again, they were proven wrong. Just as they attempted to regroup, word came of a mounted host riding hard on Pespea's heels. One night, they descended on his camp like heavenly messengers bearing righteous fury, leading to much chaos. That battle ended in disaster for them, routing it completely and forcing Pespea to retreat with a smaller force. This mounted force—and there was the persistent rumor that it was led by Remedios Custodios—pursued Pespea's army until it was relieved by reinforcements. In the battle that ensued, the combined army lost half its number before the Holy Kingdom was forced to retreat in its own turn.

In the aftermath, they were quick to abandon their initial plans and started to man their remaining fort networks with men, as intended. It was at this time that the fresh new banners from the eastern lords had come, rejuvenating their efforts. Yet no matter how much they tried, they were still unable to decisively beat the Holy Kingdom. Mile after mile they were forced to retreat, until they had reached this very situation today.

They had been forced to change their overall strategy into finding a way to achieve a sort of white peace. It was a disgraceful state of affairs. Roble's lightning quick response to the start of the war, as well as all the blunders that occurred after, had taken away much of their wind.

They were simply aiming to "not lose". To save face for the rest of the world by reversing their current troubles in one decisive battle, then using that victory to sue for white peace. That they hadn't sent heralds yet to convey their oncoming surrender was just their side trying to find some way to spin the whole thing into something a little more noble rather than a humiliating loss. But he knew—they all knew—that the hourglass was winding down.

Zanac drained the last of his drink. It tasted bitter in his mouth. He watched as another aide came to adjust some of the figures on the map, moving them along on the map's flat space. It seemed they had just received another report via Message from the front lines. It was only a minor alteration; nothing much changed in the overall picture. They yet remained firmly on the backfoot.

And the worst part? No matter what would happen to the nation, he had already lost face, even from the very start. It had begun just when they had started to lose ground; when victory had not come as swiftly as he had promised. As he and his sister had expected, he had become the scapegoat for what many perceived to be a failed expedition. He was the "bloodthirsty prince", who had dragged his father and his country into a war it could never win. Victory would mollify the others, but perhaps it would not be enough. And defeat would certainly be a death knell.

His opinion among the nobles was not much better. He was sure that the noble faction, despite being the very ones who'd collaborated with him to push his father to declaring war, were already preparing counter-measures for his reign. They had now seen a little of his measure as a ruler. For Zanac it was infuriating that they would remember this pathetic showing when he was unable to do anything but glower over a map showing their dismal failures. He had pushed for many decisions over the past weeks that had become catastrophic blunders. If he was lucky, he could silence the chroniclers before they could record him for all eternity as a witless fool. But there were things far worse than being called "The Unworthy". He was sure that had it not been for their combined greed, they would have declared themselves Marchers before long, joining Urovana in heinous betrayal.

Zanac felt that his only remaining allies were his own sister, who was just as powerless as he, and Marquis Reaven. The man's attitude had not changed one iota since the first news of their retreat had arrived. His new, cynical demeanor had put off many others, some seeing it as completely defeatist. But Zanac was able to see that this was merely how the man now coped with the constant failures they experienced. The man was an outright patriot who was very loyal to his homeland—seeing it on the losing end twice in a row would seem devastating for those of lesser heart.

Fortunately, he still had a part to play, as they all did. They would not be able to achieve the greatness they had initially aspired to, but at least they could end this farce with some modicum of dignity.

Zanac turned back to join the discussions that were still continuing at the War Table. His father the King was present, looking spry and alert despite the numerous setbacks they had experienced. It was as if his previous illness after the Katze Plains had been a temporary thing. Though he looked worn and weary, his father retained a keen, sharp-like alertness, like an old alpha watching over them. He didn't quite look as if he could just don his old armor and go charging off into battle, yet he could still order an entire army to die where it suited the kingdom's purposes.

Currently, several nobles were now loudly discussing their opinions for the king.

"With that fortress gone, the Holy Kingdom now has the possibility of going straight up and through to the central heartlands. It is a mercy that they won't be able to meet Urovana, a rather disagreeable outcome on the face of it." The noble pointed to specific places on the map, areas which had once been controlled by the Re-Estize Kingdom's network of forts. With those torn down, the invaders were literally free to march forward and capture town after town without them able to do anything about it. Still, no one was really certain that the enemy would go that route, as it would mean overextending themselves.

One arguably good thing that had occurred as a result of the Holy Kingdom's steady advance and their own retreat was the fact that they had managed to secure a direct line back to the border. It was a thin and tenuous line covering a narrow strip of territory; and they were unable to enforce it at all except to confirm the enemy's absence through scouts. There were absolutely no plans to send another assault into enemy territory that way, but it was still a very good piece of information to learn. This told them Roble had not the means to cover the whole front; that they had not the numbers to fully enforce a total conquest.

"With those forests in the way? Their horses won't like it," replied the other noble. "And are these not… Marcher territories?"

It was true that the southern portion of their land, which now lay open to the enemy, was one of those troublesome hotspots of rebellion. One reason why they had not managed to organize a pincer attack was the fact that there were few to no nobles from there who were still answering summons from the capital. It was therefore considered Marcher territory, and its cleansing would have taken place after their victory.

Now, Zanac was not sure they could even turn their eyes that way, let alone stop a pretender from declaring their own nation in that sector. Their one option would have been begging the Slaine Theocracy to help clean up house, as it was bordering them directly. But asking aid from those fanatics would have fashioned a slave's collar around their necks, and Zanac was unwilling to offer his neck just for that.

"Perhaps those disloyal… bandits will help wear down the enemies for us?" If there was one thing that Pespea and the Council had done "right", it had been to herd the enemy armies down towards that contested territory, hoping to bleed them further from opportunistic bandits and the like. Still, Zanac wondered if such a stratagem had really been intended; or if it were not merely the result of how things would have inevitably gone. For they had only started putting up stiff resistance once they'd retreated some miles back into their territory. In the face of it, the Holy Kingdom was naturally forced to find some other way forward, sweeping through their southern forts until they reached their current (assumed) positions.

"Oho, would we then need to bestow a medal on them for exemplary service?" said the other noble, laughing.

The first noble chuckled. "No, I do believe it would be impossible to expect them to go this way." He dragged his finger north over the map. "Their one feasible way forward is through this pass, which we hold in surety." Over there were a whole bunch of flags signifying the banners that had joined the royal "grand army". This innocuous looking area had never been a strategic asset, but the circumstances had forced it to become one.

If they could not bypass it, then the enemy was forced to fight through disadvantageous territory in the west, or force themselves through dense woodland in the east. East was very unlikely, as it would impede their horses, and as "luck" would have it, they had built few roads there. The royal highway had even skirted that area entirely, instead going through the pass they were currently defending.

The King had ordered Pespea to fortify the approaches to that crucial pass, declaring that this would be the final line of defense. If the enemy managed to breach the lines and rout them here, then he would be surrendering immediately, no matter the situation.

His father the King sighed. "Are there any more word from our spies?"

Their complete lack of any means of intelligence gathering had been decried by the King and the nobles when they had found out. Nearly everyone pointed to this as a major factor for not realizing that Roble would be able to attack almost instantaneously after the onset of war. Still, it had not meant that they had been complacent—rather, it was discovered that circumstances had neatly crippled them at such an important juncture.

Certain nobles in the faction had a network of spies spread all over the land. Oftentimes this was used for their own ends, but the King had the authority to force them to work for their nation. In this case, either the spies had been compromised from the start, or they had been hopelessly inept. All reports had stated that Roble would take too long to respond. All reports had said that civil war was imminent. Both set of reports had been proven wrong. And so they no longer even had solid information on enemy movements aside from their scouts' efforts, which was a further blow to their war effort.

One disastrous meeting later, the Crown then approved the use of certain unofficial elements for the purposes of establishing an actual espionage operation. This emergency endeavor would reach out to the likes of the Adventurer's Guild and even the criminal Eight Fingers to acquire assets they could use. The nobles were empowered to seek their contacts and hire anyone who could assist in the war.

Predictably, the Guild refused, as per its commitment to neutrality in international matters. But the message had been sent, and certain Worker groups arrived not long after to offer their clandestine services. And then those nobles with connections to the Eight Fingers also found success in hiring aid from the criminal organization to act as spies and infiltrate the enemy army for them.

Information on enemy movements started trickling in piecemeal. It was difficult to get a solid picture, but at least it was something. It allowed them to guess the sizes and locations of the enemy forces along with other miscellaneous information, delivered several times a day via dead drops. He didn't know by what means they had done so, but he didn't really care by this point.

"The last report indicated that the Holy Kingdom is currently skirmishing heavily with unknown forces, Your Majesty," a noble aide replied. "From the language on the spy's document, they might be referring to the rogue elements present in our own territory."

"So the bandits are tearing at them like fools," said the first noble. "What luck, Your Majesty! Fortune-willing, our enemies will destroy themselves." That thought seemed more like a daydream.

His father seemingly ignored this noble and said, "If only the intelligence could be more explicit. We are sure now that any of our loyal subjects trapped down there will be hard beset."

"If they betray you my lord, then they will suffer the same fate as the rest of the traitors."

Zanac glanced at the map, at the large area where the enemy was free to roam. It encompassed the entirety of their southern territories. In its current state it even acted as a corridor between the Holy Kingdom in the west and the Sorcerer Kingdom, more specifically the areas around their former territory of E-Rantel, in the east. Personally, he wouldn't have minded the invaders being bloodied by any ruffians down there. But he was more worried that those disloyal nobles down below would either declare their submission to the Holy King, or get Roble to recognize them as official independent nations. Doing that was quite unheard of for a nation still at war, but lately it seemed that there lesser and lesser things that were impossible.

For him, either outcome was equally disastrous, especially if he had to inherit that headache of reconquering those territories.

"If only we could force them to assault us here," the first noble said. "But they will have had sufficient knowledge of our lands beforehand to know that this will also be where our main defense is concentrated."

After a brief silence where the king said nothing, another noble said, "Perhaps, my lord, we can take the initiative? With them being occupied with the south, perhaps we may engage them directly in their homelands? Force them to divide their energies to defend themselves."

"Do we even have the manpower for that?" asked another noble. "We've exhausted our reserve of mercenaries willing to do the hardest work. Apparently that disaster's made any other groups leery of working for us." News of the utter decimation of the mercenary cat's paws they had sent into the Holy Kingdom first had apparently spread to their fellows living in the other nations. They had been waiting in the wings to descend upon what seemed to be a hapless Holy Kingdom, given express leave to raid and pillage. Now it seemed that it would be they who would be watched for weakness. It was made all the more apparent when no group deigned to work for them for whatever amount of gold they named. It was clear they reluctant to work for the apparent "losers".

"We… We could take this chance and split our forces," the other noble suggested. "Then ride hard west to the border, and conquer their towns there while they're occupied down here."

Another noble sighed. "It will take our troops leagues to ride, and they will be exhausted by then…"

"Do we not have spies in their own court?" his father then asked.

"Nay, my lord," said an aide. "Any 'assets' we possessed were strictly based in the former Holy Queen Calca's court. They were presumably killed in Jaldabaoth's invasion, and in the chaos since then no one's gotten more people in, especially when we thought that this new King wouldn't last long."

"Damnation," his father muttered. "We can't very well start an offensive if we don't know they have some sort of defense force left there. We don't know if there are any nobles we can push, so we can't even force them to rebel. We don't know the exact number of their army down here so we don't know if they're actually weak and ripe to attack—while we twiddle our thumbs and wait for an axe that may never fall! We don't know, we don't know, we don't know! That seems to be a recurring theme in this disaster! We have done nothing of substance since the start of the war! We are surrounded by gobbledygook and incompetency! What fools we now seem!"

For a moment, no other noble spoke, glancing uneasily among themselves. Only the sound of the noble aides shuffling papers and working in the background could be heard amid the hush.

Zanac glanced over at Marquis Raeven. The man was busy stirring the liquid in his glass on another table, as if he was barely paying attention to the debacle, nor of the King's words.

"My Lord Father," Zanac said, with clear voice. The other nobles were quick to look at him, as if he was the only one who could shelter them from the King's apparent rage. He was anxious, more than he ever was before. Although this had been a decision that had already been made, it still felt as if he were taking a monumental step. This would, after all, dictate the history of his nation to come, and the fate of many hinged upon his actions. The sheer burden of what he was about to do made his spirit quail in despair, and were it not for the promise of ultimate and everlasting glory, he would have turned tail and fled already. "I believe now is the time to consider Lord Pespea's proposal more seriously."

The nobles stared at him in fear. Some of those who knew what Pespea had proposed looked troubled. His Father looked back with stern, brooding eyes, showing nothing of his thoughts.

As if on cue, Raeven spoke to break up the silence. "Let me just stop you right there, my Prince."

Zanac paused, then turned, quirking a brow at his fellow. "Marquis Raeven."

The Marquis ambled over, his glass of liquor conspicuously absent. He looked around at the gathered nobles with a foppish look on his face. It seemed he was well and truly soused on his morning drink, and also totally unafraid to flaunt it in front of the King himself. "Some of you are unaware that there have been secret planning behind the scenes. Plans, which, I, have been privy too. You see, my dear lords, the King and the Prince and all the rest of them plan on doing one stupendously moronic thing."

He went to the map and clumsily grabbed one of the square pieces indicating one of their armies. "We are to send a sizable group, walk them down to very east here." He dragged the object to the side. "And presumably we would make a curve around the place here and surprise the enemy with a flanked assault." He turned around and shrugged. "Of course, my lords can see the issue, can they not?" He circled the area on the map lazily with the box. "A whole line of forest and few roads to access, making it a nightmare to traverse. We are looking… for a lightning quick entry to catch our opponents off guard. But with the forest in the way… Well, that's that."

"But my lords," Zanac now said, carefully interrupting Raeven's impromptu lecture. "A solution is well within our grasp. My thanks, Lord Raeven." He took over the box that Raeven held and placed it right over their new border, close to their old territories around the city of E-Rantel. "These were once our gateways to the east, to the Azerlisia Mountains where the dwarves dwell—trading partners in better days. Now we have been cut off, and forced to go through the Baharuth Empire. But this tiny piece of land may just become crucial to our future victory.

"I am sure you have already seen my point. After all, our noble minds are unparalleled in intellect. Yes, this is our plan." Zanac pointed to a spot right within their old territories. "This is prime farmland, flat and unforested. By crossing this small piece of territory, we then bypass this large forested area, and thereafter gain entry to the southern heartlands." While the majority of the Re-Estize Kingdom were plains fit for the thousands of farms that formed the bulk of their economy, there were still many portions of forest that dotted here and there. In this instance, one forested area was cutting them off from a chance to flank the Holy Kingdom forces in the south. "In bypassing them, we can instantly coordinate a strike through the plains together with the remainder of our forces here in the north. A pincer attack, from both sides, to pinch them between us and throw these arrogant paladins from our lands.

"This is to be our ultimate move in this war. With this one maneuver we change our fates and grasp the victory that should have been ours from the start. My lords, we present this plan to the King now, for he has had many a doubt about this from the start. I shall require your thoughts on the matter." Raeven immediately raised his hand.

"… Lord Raeven," the Prince said, inclining is head.

"Let me start then, my prince, by stating the obvious," Raeven said. "As is quite obvious to the rest of us here with 'sterling intellect', this route you have chosen violates the sovereign borders of a foe who has just proven the better of us. The Sorcerous Kingdom of Ainz Ooal Gown. If that accursed lich had the power to destroy an entire army with but a snap of his finger, what else do you think he might do to us if he discovers us invading his lands?"

Zanac had to admire the man for keeping his composure even when he brought up the Sorcerer King. He knew the man still held a little trauma from that particular incident.

"Yes, won't that be a concern?" a noble said. "We would be willingly breaking a truce, giving that creature the excuse he needs. Should we really be risking it all?"

"Not if we do it right," said another noble. "We've ascertained that this Sorcerer King does not or has not yet established border protocols on his lands. No guards, no patrols, no walls or anything like that. If not for the lines we drew on this map, no one would know the map belongs to any one of us!"

"He has the right of it, my lords," Zanac said, nodding. "Also, it must be stressed that this will be a swift and secret operation. The soldiers who will be going through this maneuver will be hand-picked personally by the commanders on the field, who will follow orders to the letter, and are also veterans on the battlefield. For this plan will require that the army sticks as close as possible to our border. The operation will be done at night, in absolute darkness—and they will need to move fast to ensure that we spend as little time over the border as possible." He paused to take a literal breath. "My lords, it really is that simple."

Some of the nobles still looked unsure. His father still didn't say anything. Then, the Marquis went and said, "I assume, then, that this 'group' of yours has been prepared already?"

"Yes," Zanac replied, turning to face Raeven. "While we did not prepare for this eventuality, when it was clear that the Holy Kingdom would break through our forts, we earmarked this plan in advance. That would make it… a week, perhaps. We cannot say that we would be ready to launch the operation right this instant. After all, our men still need to move towards the border. But… If my Father were to approve of it, then we can send word now, and in two... maybe three days, the operation will begin."

Raeven's voice was quiet and grim. When one looked into his eyes, one could truly feel the pain and terror of a man who had stared death right in the face. Of all the people here, only the King could truly know and understand. "What are your plans in the case of… discovery? Of retaliation? I assume you have planned for that."

"Truthfully, my lord, no." He smiled bitterly. "But we can certainly expect a few things to happen. A brutal creature like that would delight in taking even more from us. Though we still don't know what exactly is in that creature's mind. It does not seem to wish to destroy, as the rest of its kind does. Its goals are unfathomable, and its movements even more so. One would have expected E-Rantel to have been turned into an abomination, but so far our former citizens do not suffer much save for the privations of living with demihumans."

From the start they had been watching that city carefully, to find a way to undermine Ainz Ooal Gown. There were agitators ready to incite rebellion. Even if it had ended up failing it would have revealed the nature of his rule. Yet the citizens had not been given cause to complain. Their rights had not been stripped from them; rather they had even been enhanced! Anyone who was sick was tended to promptly. The poor and homeless were given employment. Peace and order were rigidly enforced, even if fear of the monsters was already an adequate deterrent. When the demihumans from Abelion and other places came to live there, no one was forced to give up their homes; the small city was expanded with massive construction works instead. In the end, not a single one of their former citizens even attempted to leave if they hadn't already. Life seemed "better" for them there.

"But rest assured, we will take full responsibility for the operation, including any adverse results. If the Sorcerer King threatens war, we shall do our best to appease him. If he wants our heads on a platter, then we shall give it." There was a flurry of murmurs all around the room, coming from even the noble aides. "And should he give into his monstrous instincts and think to destroy us all…" He paused. "Then I will be the first to ride to the front in defense of my country. And though it be futile, I shall at least die knowing I did it all for the Kingdom, and pray that divine retribution shall at last fall on such an evil creature. This I swear, before you all, my lords—and to you, dear Father."

There followed a long and ringing silence. There were no ringing claps or boisterous cheers or glowing endorsements.

There didn't need to be any.

It was Raeven who spoke first. He sounded impatient, as if he was addressing a man whom he suspected was being conned. "I know somebody put you up to this, my dear Prince. It's the War Council isn't it? Those damned meddlers with their high ambitions…"

"I beg your pardon, Marquis Raeven," said one of the nobles. "I am part of the War Council and—"

"—And they didn't bother clueing you in. Doesn't that realization just sting. But I'm not talking to you. Now I'm talking to the King." Raeven walked closer to his Zanac's father. "Your Majesty, I know you've already spoken about this before. And you haven't decided yet. I don't know what the Prince's game is, but thank goodness the final decision is still up to you. You have to stop this, this lunacy, Your Highness. Nothing good will come of going down this road. You've seen it yourself. You remember the blood, the pain, the devastation, all of them… You've been in that Plain. You know how it was like."

"I know damned full well, Raeven," his father snapped back. His rage was now apparent for anyone watching.

"Then please do not continue on this absurd course! Angering that vile creature is nothing short of lunacy! Why risk your kingdom on something so risky?" Raeven said, in a wild, pleading voice. This was seemingly the first outburst of emotion that came from the man.

"I see your point, old friend," the King replied, a moment later, with a weary voice. "But at this point, I do not think we have a choice in the matter."

Raeven looked like he wanted to say something more, but after a beat, he relented. He drew back from the table and exhaled a long sigh. "Pray excuse me, Your Majesty. I shall excuse myself now."

"Where might you be going?"

"I wish to retire," Raeven said. "By your leave."

The King stared at him steadily. The Marquis made a show of adjusting his clothes, as if he was gathering up the scattered pieces of his dignity. He didn't even collect the drink he'd placed on the table. He swallowed, and turned stiffly to Zanac.

"I bid you good luck, my prince," he said in a quiet voice. "I am sure you… no." He shook his head. "I am sure we will all need it."

He had scarce made a few ambling steps, and had not even reached the door yet, when a few of the nobles already begun to talk among themselves.

"The sheer insolence of that man!"

"Though he is Marquis Raeven, to think he could treat the King just like that!"

"Shame on him!"

"My lord, should we not sanction him? He could become a Marcher!"

"Enough." The King's voice silenced all conversation. His eyes sought Zanac's. "Prince Zanac, I believe you had something more to say?"

He waited a second. There came the sound of the Marquis closing the door behind him.

Pageantry. It all came back to it in the end. Some would say it was the literal lifeblood of their noble society here in Re-Estize. Any noble worth his blood would willingly let the mummer catch their gold, even knowing that a performance was being played.

He had to work to keep himself from laughing, from giving it all away. Even if the laughter was not completely from mirth, but from the exhausted madness of doing all in his power to ensure the safety of his realm. The lowest peasants out there now, wondering about the war, would never know of his harried, dark thoughts, of the deep well of despair that threatened to swallow him whole.

Everything was pageantry, even in a situation as dire as this. For one, Raeven was not as dismissive of the idea as he'd stated. Nor was his father completely taken with the plan.

Even Zanac thought it absurd, when the someone in the Council had proposed it a few days prior. It was madness, to even think of provoking such a fearsome creature. Long had been the debates that ensued, over which His Father the King presided, lending his ear to every argument.

The forces hadn't even been assembled yet. The King had not yet given his command, and even Pespea was reluctant to commit his forces into a separate unit when the threat of an assault was very real. In the time since they'd begun talking about the idea, they had lost three more forts, which neatly exemplified their current situation. The only thing that had seemed to "work" in their favor was the enemy had been neatly corralled in the southern contested territories, and even that didn't seem like the culmination of a grand stratagem. So even if Zanac thought the plan insane, he had no choice but to agree, knowing that his future reign might just hinge on this monumental decision.

The plan's supporters ringed their proposal with many adjustments and modifications, all to ensure that it would be as safe as possible. The march would be at night. It would be composed of veterans. They would have to run at a brisk pace, completing the crossing into the Sorcerous Kingdom's territory, then back again, in only a few hours. Magic casters would be deployed, to ensure that their forces would not be detected. Scouts would be sent beforehand, to ensure that their passage would be completely missed by any eye, even that of the odd merchant just passing by.

The detractors, naturally, rested on the omnipresent threat of the Sorcerer King's reprisal. Of the awesome power he had conjured on that fateful day at the Katze Plains, and of how they were now risking a repeat of that scene. Would all their counter-measures even be enough, for a creature holding that amount of power? Maybe they would fail, on the very instant they crossed. After all, it was hard to really state that the Sorcerous Kingdom would not keep an eye on their neighbors, especially one they had just recently defeated.

From the start, his father rested on the latter camp more than the former. He was no fool, more so when he was the one who had the ultimate authority to press on with the plan or not. Such was the burden of leadership that came with wearing that crown on his head.

Still, the voices of the noble faction could not be ignored for so long. And even those in the King's own faction were pressing for it. Furthermore, the camp of detractors could not deny that they would not be able to offer any sort of alternative to their troubles. When it came to firm, expedient solutions, this was the most attractive option.

Marquis Raeven's whole performance here had been just that: a performance. Much of the nobles here hadn't been privy to that secret meeting. By presenting the part of a dissenter, he was able to make them believe that the King was the one who had thought of and approved of the plan. Raeven was a notable man, who held the respect of many. If even he failed to convince his king (and earned his displeasure besides) then no one would dare doubt his father for fear of suffering the same. It would be hard for detractors of like mind to contact Pespea or the others, knowing it would be futile when Raeven had already been soundly overruled by the King's iron will.

Now it was time to follow up on the good Marquis' performance, and do his own bit for the crowd.

"My lords, it is plain to see that fate has forced us on this path. Our need is urgent and just." He turned to his father and bowed. His father looked like he already knew the answer he would give. In reality, he had already decided, and this was yet again more pageantry to show how both king and heir were united in thought and purpose.

"My son speaks wise. We approve of this plan. Let it be done," King Ramposa III said. His vibrant ringing voice echoed in the chamber. "Fate has dragged us to this crossroads. Now we have chosen the path to take. May the gods have mercy on us, and absolve us of our sins if we chose poorly."

Cheers and claps rang out in the room. "For the King!"

"Glory to Re-Estize!"

"Glory to King Ramposa!"

Zanac smiled to himself, turning away from the cheering nobles so no one would see the bitter expression on his face. He spied the drinking glass that Raeven had left behind. He hadn't noticed it before, but it was actually empty.

Eryuentia had never been quite the same since the last of its rulers fell, and the ownership of its many wondrous halls were lost forever. The Dragon that owned it did not really own it, and as such many of its rooms were locked from it, forever out of reach. Many creatures, operating like clockwork items, patrolled its halls endlessly, protecting doors that would never be able to open. Thus could the victorious Dragon only salvage just a handful of wondrous items left behind, born from a land far from this, perhaps beyond even the edge of the starry sea. Still, a hoard was a hoard, and the Dragon was content with a prize well-earned after shedding countless blood.

Few were suffered to approach Eryuentia. Many had tried, braving the harsh desert sands, called by the promise of bounty held within its walls. Only those who were deemed worthy were allowed entry, as was the case some time ago when a band of mortals had been generously given aid to combat an evil threat. The Dragon did not even need to intervene to stop the unworthy—with but a single press of a button the gates would remain shut, preventing one from entering. The ambitious traveler was forced to turn and hurry back to where he'd come; or perish, forgotten, in the ever-shifting sands.

On a certain day a traveler came once more, retracing steps that it had walked many times. And the Dragon, seeing an old friend in the distance, laid Eryuentia open for them, allowing this traveller to enter the gates freely and without much ceremony.

As the whipping winds subsided around it, the traveler unraveled the turban around its face, revealing the wrinkled, weathered face of Rigritt Bels Karau. She smiled upon laying her eyes on the wondrous city spreading out around her, as well as the city floating in the sky just up ahead, held aloft by strange magics. For however many times she had entered this place, she would never really lose the same wonder she had felt the first time she had arrived together with her comrades.

For all its wonder, though, came the reminder that this had once been a city that had housed thousands of people when the empire of the Greed Kings had been at its height. Many were the stories that still remained of Eryuentia, and while most of them spoke of the Greed Kings' duplicitous natures, others were songs describing the life and cultures that had been lost. For not a single trace of them remained here, swept away by time and the zealous automatons that yet continued their ritual duties. Only the sterile, if beautiful, structures of the Greed Kings remained, with half their secrets locked away forever. As a young woman she had desired those secrets. Even now she yet did, but accepted that there sometimes forces in this world whose power was beyond a mere mortal's. Recent events had also just proven it to her quite clearly.

There came a rumbling, like an earthquake. Rigritt was not alarmed, and instead walked on boldly, past empty, silent streets. Off in the distance, a great shadow passed like a cloud, yet far swifter. Then, emerging from the distance, came a figure clad entirely in armor.

It was an "old comrade", if it could even be called that. The Platinum Dragon Lord was ever fond of using this body like a puppet, forcing its will through the ancient armor to animate it as a normal humanoid. It could even venture into far lands, allowing the Dragon to retain its vigil over Eryuentia.

Yet ever since a certain incident, the Dragon had to recall its armor back to the city, and had therefore been deprived of knowledge about the outside world. Rigrit's arrival, therefore, was something of a blessing.

"I greet you my friend," said Rigritt, waving. "It appears we have much to discuss today."

"I am eager to hear it," replied the Dragon Lord. It spoke in a ringing falsetto, like some sort of lady knight. "Although I have been able to peer unaided into the world, the details yet elude me. There is another war, it seems?"

"Yes. The Re-Estize Kingdom and the Holy Kingdom's got into blows. It's the very first time, I think, since those two were founded. They've always been such good friends."

"Poor mortals," the dragon replied. It spoke kindly, but with few sympathy. The affairs of squabbling human were not for a dragon to judge, nor less meddle without much thought. It had personally born witness to the chaos that had given birth to these two nations, and had also witnessed the fires that had destroyed their predecessors. Even if the humans were so quick to forget their histories, the dragons would not. What was one more catastrophic war to the lifespan of a dragon? Not much.

"But was that the only thing you saw? Were you sleeping when the Baharuth Empire and the Sorcerous Kingdom defeated the Re-Estize Kingdom just a while back?"

"The Sorcerous Kingdom?" the dragon said, puzzled.

Rigritt chuckled. "It seems you did miss a lot, old friend. Let me bring you up to speed." And so they talked of recent events ever since her last visit, of the rise of the so-called Sorcerous Kingdom, of the monstrous Ainz Ooal Gown who could destroy an army with a snap of his finger, and of the Baharuth's Empire submission as a vassal.

"… And there are also some bad tidings I have heard over the grapevine…" Rigritt was saying. "I have heard tales that the Dwarves of Azerlisia have also been subjugated, but it is not clear if it is by this Ainz Ooal Gown, or another."

If there was one thing that would give the Platinum Dragon Lord pause, it was the unexpected presence of great beings. These things were not originally grown within this world, accumulating power in the natural order of things. These were gods and demigods torn from their original planes, and set here to once again stir chaos in the world. When these creatures were involved, a dragon lord should not merely blink; and yet it seemed it was the only one of its kin who really understood this wisdom.

"It is clear then," the Dragon Lord proclaimed, with a tone sure and proud. "The pattern continues, and the world is beset once more by those with great, unspeakable power. That vampire was only the first, perhaps the vanguard. Soon there will be much more monumental changes than the appearance of this new Kingdom. This lich will have to watched closely. In fact… I may need to travel now, to prepare the city states for any eventuality."

"Well you do you, but life isn't all grim, you know." Rigritt smiled, as if she was beholden to some naughty secret she was dying to share.

"Hm?"

"I have also heard from my lovely old comrades that another unthinkable thing has happened." Rigritt broke out into a chuckle, and shook her head. "Do you remember that one? That crybaby?"

"Ah, yes. Her. Poor thing? Why? Has something happened?"

Rigritt leaned in close, and then said in a whisper, "She's pregnant!"

For a while, it appeared as if the animated armor had returned to being just an armor: stiff and umoving. Then there came a high-pitched yell from within it, like a young woman expressing great disbelief.

"Eeeeeh?"

Chapter commissioned by UltraSpink of Da USA, thank you. A reminder that the story is commissioned.

If you'd like a story commissioned, feel free to contact me here, or on archiveofourown under "RHoldhous".