Note: This story is a work of fiction. It has many content of adult nature. If you do not want to read such content, please close your browser window or press the convenient back button.

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.

It had been a long and convoluted series of events that had led Ueda to this very moment, with her sitting comfortably inside the Mother's Hall. Her feet were propped up on a pile of soft, downy cushions, and she had a steaming pot of tea and several delicate biscuits on a tray next to her. On her left were a bunch of hardbound books, and she had one of these open on her lap, her eyes glued to the pages as she methodically read its contents. Every once in a while, she would flip a page and read a new entry.

The book's contents were really, really good, she could readily admit to herself. It was no musty tome upon which was scribed some form of wisdom or knowledge. So far, it had not really taught her anything. Instead, it was laying out some sort of story, like the ones the bards usually sang about, only in much more detail, as if someone was narrating the entire scene from start to finish. And there were hundreds of such scenes in the book, one set after another. Taken altogether, it was one grand epic of a story, all contained in the pages of a single bound tome.

She'd been so engrossed that she'd read one entire book's worth of stories in several hours.

She was already on her second one.

She had not really expected to be reading this story, or the other story before it, today. When she had woken up that day in her chambers, missing Ainz's presence beside her, she had felt a keen sort of melancholy she could not really reconcile. Part of her knew she was aching and missing Ainz-sama so deeply, and this was just her immense devotion for the Player God manifesting itself in her heart. Such were the "wages of a woman in love".

No matter how much she tried to wrestle away the ill feelings in her heart, she could not find succor from them. Finding few options, she sought to solve it by training her body. An old adage from her time as a trainee came back: to keep one's body healthy was also to keep one's mind wealthy. Or to put it in another way, as long as the body was continuously in a state of exertion, the ills of the mind would not lead her to despair and ignorance (or so the wisdom went).

She resolved to find a way to put in some body-shaping exercises, as well as perform a training drill or two. She had been less diligent with these ever since she had been captured, and she had even less time and inclination to do anything after she had fallen in with Ainz-sama.

Thus deciding to make up for the time she had lost, she had gone to one of the empty rooms she had discovered during her stay here. She immediately started going through some drills, moving her body rigorously in accordance with the regime she had learned ever since she had been but a trainee. They were strict, taxing things, said to push one's body forward in anticipation of a "level up". After all, one could not destroy monsters and gather experience if one were completely unprepared, like a sword that predictably breaks for being rusted.

Ueda had been going through a series of kata when a maid came upon her, and asked, "Oh my, Ueda-sama, what might you be doing?"

"I'm doing a little exercising of my body," she explained. The maid looked subservient enough that she could afford to be dismissive of them like all the other maids she had encountered before. Yet she knew from prior observation that things were different here in Nazarick.

At that the maid had looked quite surprised. "Is… Is that so, Ueda-sama? Oh dear."

"Something wrong?" she'd asked with raised brow.

Then the maid left without saying anything more, without even saying goodbye. Ueda had been confused about that, but thought nothing of it as she continued her exercises.

Then, some time later, a Healer came rushing in through the doors, screaming out all manner of obscenities. "Aiiiieee, Ueda-sama, you shouldn't be doing that, you shouldn't be doing that!" it had yelled.

"Huh?" she'd replied. She was definitely bewildered by the sudden yelling, and almost tripped over her foot from surprise. "What might be the problem!"

The Healer pointed an accusatory finger at her, as if she had uttered something heretical to her beliefs. "You are in no condition to be doing that, my dear! Especially with all of them inside you. Such strenuous exercises are prohibited! Prohibited! Why must every one of you always have hard, stubborn heads? You ought to be giving Ainz-sama these heart attacks personally, not us! See how you fare suffering his displeasure."

She had protested that, saying, "Wait, I'm fine, really! I'm watching how much I act. I know when to stop!"

"Please my lady," the Healer had insisted. "We do not wish to displease the Master! For he will be hearing of this otherwise, mark my words!"

At that, Ueda was forced to stop and accede to the Healer's request. It was one thing to assert herself to get what she wanted: it was completely different to be defying what Ainz-sama had decreed. She didn't want to be known as someone who routinely defied the God's will.

And so, after freshening up inside the bath, Ueda found herself with nothing to do again. And yet, even with her body pleasantly sore from all the exertion and the subsequent bath (which was admittedly very luxuriant), she was still feeling that bit of melancholy from before. Having thus been forbidden by the Healer from doing physical work, she was then forced to find some other means to distract herself.

That was when she finally went to the local library. Its existence had been pointed to her by Ainz when she had first been given the tour here. There had been actual libraries in other places, but Ainz had decreed the creation of a new library in one of the empty rooms on this floor. This smaller library was meant for the Mothers' exclusive use, and was staffed by a friendly undead: a lich.

It still boggled her mind to be looking at an actual undead creature act as if it was the most agreeable librarian she had ever met, but this was the reality. The lich had listened to her words, and had pointed her in the direction of several books.

"I have been reading these books, myself you see," the lich had said, its creaking, ominous-sounding voice sounding as if he was actually pleased. "…Well, in my spare time, that is. And wouldn't you know it, there are books with good stories here."

"Stories?" She had initially balked at that, for she had no desire to read a recorded piece of some bawdy bard's tale. But she reasoned that she may as well entertain herself now anyway, so she accepted the lich's recommendations, and had a guard bring several of the books back here, to the Mother's Hall.

It had been some hours since then. She'd burned through one book already, devouring it as a man might his first meal in ages. Now she was moving on to another. For a moment, she had even completely forgotten what she had been worried about.

"Humu, humu, I see…" she muttered to herself, as she sipped a few drops of tea while her eyes traced over the words on the book. "So that's how… Now that's very interesting..!"

Then movement from the corner of her eye alerted her to the arrival of another person. Her eyes widened when she realized exactly who it was had come.

Zesshi Zetsumei. One of the few prodigies in her country, the Slaine Theocracy, who could honestly possess the epithet "hero". She had been surprised to discover that Zesshi had long been replaced by a doppelganger back in the city, and that she had been the very first to receive the God's blessings. According to her belief in the Six, it was appropriate; but as a fellow mother she was a bit jealous.

She was carrying one of the triplets—Satoshi if she recalled correctly. The baby was asleep or maybe just closing its eyes, and was nestled close to Zesshi's chest.

"Oh my, hello there Ueda. What might you be doing today?" Zesshi said, by way of greeting. The half-elf briefly flashed a lopsided smile. No sense of hostility there, just the mild look of a tired, but satisfied mother.

She cleared her throat as she closed her book and put it aside. "I greet you as well, lady." Even now, she didn't really know exactly how to talk to what seemed to be the most powerful woman in this place. She nodded towards the child in her arms. "You only brought one of them?"

"I've let some people borrow the others," Zesshi said, her voice sounding a little conspiratorial. "A potent weapon to butter them up with my babies' cuteness! And the best part is: it works. I hope."

She raised a brow. "Are you not…worried about them?"

"They will be fine," she replied, her smile dazzling. "Everyone already knows the pain and agony of failing my… no, our trust. Ainz-sama is that kind of overprotective father you hear about. And you and I both know he will certainly move heaven and earth for the sake of us, and for his children."

Ueda sighed. "Well, they're your babies."

Zesshi went to sit on one of the chairs set aside for pregnant mothers like themselves. Cradling Satoru close to herself, she pulled down her shirt to reveal one of her thick breasts.

Ueda's eyes widened. She looked around. "A-Are you sure you should be—"

Zesshi paid her no attention, and focused on guiding her child's mouth to her waiting nipple. Once her son had been situated, Zesshi sat back and gave her a satisfied look.

"I did not think you squeamish," she remarked. "We're both women, and mothers besides that. You're going to be seeing a lot more of that in the future. And when your child is finally born, well, it'll be your turn to not mind having to do this. It's a mother's obligation, and thankfully we've been granted this extraordinary privacy by our love. So why waste it?"

"I'm… ugh…" Ueda shook her head. "Never mind."

Zesshi grinned in amusement. "Oh, that's right. I almost forgot. Not too long ago you were a man. Despite getting those magnificent things now, or having the lord's children inside you… I never thought you'd be some sort of prude."

"Please," she said, shaking her head. "I wish to not talk about it."

"As you wish," Zesshi said airily. Ueda had the distinct feeling that she was being mocked, but couldn't bring herself to accuse the other of it. "Well… now that we're both here, quite coincidentally I might add: perhaps we may converse?"

"On what?" Ueda said in a deadpan voice. "The proper way to breastfeed one's kid?"

"You will be needing that knowledge, sooner or later," Zesshi said, giggling. "But if you will not fancy delving into 'girl' talk, then perhaps we'll go to topics a little more relevant. Have you heard the latest news?"

"No," Ueda said. "I've been a bit busy." She said that with a straight face, but couldn't stop the faint rush of heat that went to her neck, when she recalled exactly what being "busy" meant: the memories of her legs getting entangled with Ainz-sama's, his breath hot on her ear, her womb aching for his majestic manhood planting its seeds…

"No doubt," Zesshi said drily. From the knowing look she flashed, Ueda was convinced she knew the truth of it. "Yet surely it would do to stay informed of things."

"I shall take that into consideration once I have become more familiar to this place," Ueda replied, frowning slightly.

Zesshi made her voice kindly, like a mother talking down to her ignorant children. "Ueda, dear, now that you're a mother, you're officially in the 'competition', as it were. And though Ainz-sama may not know or realize it, this competition is very fierce. You must start shaping up now or you'll get swept up in some other's schemes."

"Like yours?" she challenged.

"I know you're smart enough that I shan't accuse you of naivete," Zesshi said, shrugging. "And I shall not dishonor you by assuming you foolish."

Ueda clucked her tongue. "Your advice is accepted, in any case, because I know you were just being earnest about it. Moving on then: towards your veiled implication that you have heard some sort of news by your own means."

Zesshi nodded, affirming her guess immediately. "How much do you know about Ainz-sama's current war?"

"I know it's ended, at least that's what he said," Ueda replied, and tried once again not to think of when exactly he had whispered that fact—on her bed, as they spooned after an intense bout of lovemaking.

"It has, yes. And measures and accords of peace had already been drawn out," Zesshi continued serenely, her gaze now fixed on her babe feeding from her breasts. "The details escape me, however, though it is not as if I was seriously interested in whatever happens to them. For just as long as it does not disturb our peace here, or the welfare of our Lord and master, I am content to only know that the war has ended. And perhaps," she added, sneaking in a glance at her, "When that has occurred, we may finally have more time with him, don't you agree?"

She cleared her throat, and nodded. "Yes. Perhaps." She couldn't really say out loud that she was looking forward to it, especially not to Zesshi.

"But there is something to the news that might concern you most of all," Zesshi continued, though her gaze was still on her baby.

"… Please do get to the point. I have a feeling you're winding me up, and I'm not really in the mood for games like that."

Zesshi snorted. "Fine. Spoil my fun. I can tell you're still being a little cagey about things here." When Ueda flashed her a look at that, she shrugged without breaking eye contact with her baby. "I can tell."

"What is it you really want to say?" Ueda said, rubbing her forehead.

"Well, apparently there has been some… interesting developments regarding the Slaine Theocracy."

Ueda stilled. "What?" She leaned forward in her chair, her senses suddenly as sharp as if she had been called to battle. "What exactly do you mean by that?"

"Do you not know that lately the Theocracy has been sending a lot of messages to the Sorcerous Kingdom? The maids tell me that it's apparently gotten to the point that Albedo has had to be granted adjutants to sort out all the letters. Letters, my dear. A lot of them, needing to be screened as per usual, and thus giving our lover a bit of a headache."

"Letters?" Ueda repeated. She couldn't really understand what that was about. "Yes, I did something hear about that." In passing, Ainz had remarked something about it, but she hadn't known it was about the Theocracy. What could have compelled the Theocracy to have done this? If they wanted to drown someone, then sheaves of parchment would not be the proper way.

"You question why it is happening. As did I: and I was quickly able to divine the answer." Zesshi chuckled, her heterochromatic eyes glistening with amusement as she looked at her. "It is in the word itself: divine. Divine. For some reason, the master has revealed himself to the Theocracy. And now, they see him as the god returned. The actual god among the Sixth, returning to guide the Theocracy once more."

For a very long moment, she could say nothing. Ueda's thoughts lay frozen like a lake in the depths of winter. Then lucidity reasserted itself, leading her back to reality, as the crash of what she had just learned coursed through her.

"He actually did it," she murmured dreamily. Ainz-sama had actually listened to her! He had accepted his role as a new Player come again, and had revealed his divine origins to the Theocracy. It didn't matter whether or not the Theocracy really believed he was one of the Six. All that mattered now was that he had chosen to share of himself, and she knew she had some hand in convincing him to do it!

Of course, such a revelation was tempered by the fact that evil would take notice and find a way to undermine her love. But she was prepared for that. As one of his first followers, as one of those who had received his love personally, she would fight on His behalf with all her might.

"Knowing them," Zesshi continued, "They'll want to have Ainz-sama in the capital city for themselves. But seeing as Ainz-sama still hasn't said anything to us, and he's still receiving letters, I'm guessing that he still hasn't decided, and is waiting for a more favorable time."

"What? Why would he need to wait?" Ueda blurted out. "There can be no more favorable time than now! The peace has been accomplished, and none now doubt the Sorcerer-King's might! Now that he has revealed himself, it's only natural that he should formally accept rule over the Theocracy once more, don't you think?"

"Hmm… I can tell you're really affected by this," Zesshi said, her eyes sharp and narrowed. "And I find it difficult to agree with you now… Still, I shall leave the decision-making to the love."

"You must tell him, Zesshi," Ueda said. "You have to make him accept the place accorded to him! It is only right!"

Zesshi merely shrugged, her expression notably lidded. "I do not know about that. I do not think it is my place to give advice, especially when it concerns 'home'. But I do have this to say. You know how our lord is like. He is one who abhors war and conflict. And there is simply one thing that will likely prevent him from visiting the Slaine Theocracy, as they desire."

It didn't take her too long to put two and two together. "The war with the Elf Country."

Zesshi smirked. "Precisely. And to put it in another way, the Theocracy is also still too busy with that war to effectively communicate with the master. Perhaps they hope he shall descend upon their midst, and cast judgement upon the Elves? Laughable."

"They won't stop the war at nothing less than complete victory," Ueda said, her brows furrowed. "Especially since…" She hesitated to bring up the fact that the war had primarily been fought to bring down the elf king who had been responsible for siring Zesshi herself.

Either Zesshi noticed this and was ignoring it or she hadn't paid attention. She continued, "Well, they can do whatever they want. If they're spurred on to a grand offensive, it'll cost them a lot in lives and resources. An amusing thing to consider." Ueda tried not to frown to that. But she did agree to herself that if they wanted to end the war as quickly as possible, then their war efforts would need to be accelerated. It would involve nothing less than the full mobilization of all available Scriptures, especially the Holocaust Scripture, and the leveraging of all artifacts currently withheld from use.

"But… on the topic of the Elven Country though," Zesshi said. "You'll be glad to hear that we're going to take a vacation there!"

"You?"

"Myself, Ainz-sama, the triplets, and the Floor Guardians Aura and Mare," Zesshi replied, beaming down at Satoshi. "It will be something of a grand adventure, I think. Especially for the triplets. Now obviously they won't be able to do much of anything. But they'll be seeing things they will remember for the rest of their lives. And I intend to make this personal outing the best it can possibly be."

Ueda had no answer to that. The thought of having a personal vacation with Ainz sounded incredibly thrilling. But the choice of destination seemed rather suspect. It was like walking with one's child to the dirty slums of a particular city. There would be a lot of danger involved, especially for the triplets.

But just as before, she dismissed her worry. The triplets were hers to worry about, not for her. She would worry about her own children. Her thoughts remained fixed on the surprising news of Ainz-sama's revelation, and what that meant for her.

She was just about to ask a question of Zesshi when someone bumbled in through the doors of the Mother's Hall.

"Hello, ladies," Clementine drawled, her expression suitably impudent as her crafty eyes moved from Zesshi to her. "Fair greeting to you all on this wonderful day."

"Greetings, Clementine," Zesshi said, without turning her head. Ueda scowled and said nothing.

Then the blonde grinned and asked, "I overheard what you just said, Zesshi. A little vacation with the kids and Ainz-sama! That's pretty wonderful! And dangerous. You know it will be dangerous."

"Well, it's still undecided if I will bring the babies or not," Zesshi said airily. "I will be needing to do some physical work personally, after all. It might be tough having to coordinate the logistics of bringing them, unless Ainz-sama wishes to charter a full army."

"If you were to leave them behind, then who'll take care of them? The healers can likely take over, but what of the milk?" Clementine grinned crudely.

"Oh for gods' sake, Clementine," Ueda said, glaring daggers at the blonde.

"You want I should use mine?" Clementine asked, ignoring her. "I'm lactating. Or hers? Are you lactating, m'captain?"

"I beg your pardon, Clementine," Ueda said, her glare intensifying.

The impertinent blonde only cackled. "With boobs like that, I've no doubt you've got plenty to share!"

"As to the matter of feeding them," Zesshi said, as if choosing not to entertain Clementine's jibes, "I suppose that does support the argument that I do need to bring them with me. Then again, if I really need to, I can just use a Gate to go back here to feed them if I leave them behind. Furthermore—"

"Please do excuse me, my ladies," Ueda said, standing abruptly. She bowed. "A good day to you."

"Where you going?" Clementine asked. "I just came here."

"I have somewhere to be," Ueda said dismissively. "And I dare not waste any more time." She turned to Zesshi. "My lady, would you happen to know where Ainz-sama might be on this time?"

"He's in the office," Clementine answered. "I was just there, talking to him."

Ueda pursed her lips. "I see. Thank you for that."

"Do watch your step though," Clementine continued, as she started walking away. "You might bump and break stuff, considering the size of those breasts you may not be able to see much in front of you! Pffft…!" At that the blonde dissolved into howling, boorish laughter.

"I can see just fine, thank you," she growled under her breath, as she stalked away. She was conscious of how her breasts wiggled just below her sight, two decidedly heavy bags that had started to swell upon the confirmation of her pregnancy.

She considered them her "twin evils", even if she did like it very much when Ainz fondled and licked and kissed them, especially around the area of her areolas… But outside of such pleasurable circumstances, it was hard to be at all proud of such tiresome breasts. Where before they were only manageably large, now they were engorged, almost the size of her head. It made it virtually impossible to look down at her feet, unless she purposefully pried her breasts apart.

And the things were so damnably heavy too! If it weren't for her iron-hard discipline, which she had forged through years of hellish training, she would not have been able to survive walking around for so long with those things weighing her down. It had been a challenge exercising just before while carrying them around. And couple that with her impending pregnancy, she knew she was in for a very long and arduous haul.

Subconsciously, she laid her hands on her belly, which had now swelled a little bit now that her pregnancy was well on its way. Even in such early days, she could tell from the fullness of her belly that what the Healers had said were true: she really was going to have six babies at the same time, and was going to have to carry all of them from now to nine months later, day after day after day.

"'Tis quite remarkable, this," the healer had remarked, when the news had been confirmed. Back then and even now, she still couldn't quite believe it. She hadn't been adequately prepared for even one—and now she was about to get six? It was enough to make lesser men mad, and thankfully Ainz-sama had been there to help comfort her.

She had wanted to ask Zesshi how it had felt to give birth to her triplets. But something in her feared the answer, which was why she hadn't yet gotten the courage to actually ask.

And now, going back to the thought of her breasts, if these things were this big now, how much bigger would they become when she was close to giving birth? Would they be literal monsters hanging from her body? As Clementine had so crudely pointed out, such a size was only right for the amount she would need to feed six mouths. Six children of a Player God—that fact made her smile to herself, despite her trepidation.

Even Zesshi had been outmatched now by both the size of her litter and the size of her breasts. All of Nazarick seemed to hold her in awe now that her status had been confirmed. It was even quite an irony considering she had been changed from a man. She allowed herself to be smug at that point. Perhaps the only one who was close enough to matching her was that Zero, who was Sebas Tian's pet. She had her own curiosities about that woman, but she left that worry for later as she focused on her own thoughts.

Presently, she arrived in front of Ainz-sama's office. She saw the usual guards present, who greeted her arrival with a deep bow. There was a blonde-haired maid there: Increment, who greeted her with her own bow.

"Greetings, my lady Ueda," Increment said. "How may we serve you today?"

She gestured to the door behind her. "I wish to talk with the Master Ainz-sama."

Increment's expression crumpled into an apologetic one. "Beg pardon, lady Ueda, but Ainz-sama is still currently conversing with Lupusregina Beta. You will need to wait your turn… unless the Master himself summons you."

"That's fine," she said, finding a spot on a seat. She flexed her legs, which were still a bit sore from when she'd been exercising. "I'll wait."

"Would you like some food or refreshments while you're here?" Increment said. Ueda glanced at her, trying to figure out if there was some ulterior motive to this. Then again, all maids were supposed to serve all the Mothers, so this wasn't strange.

She shook her head. "No, thanks, I already ate."

"Very well. The Master has been informed of your arrival. I shall inform you when he is ready to receive you." Increment then turned to face the door, as if she was waiting for someone. Ueda hesitated, wondering if she wanted to engage the maid in conversation. Then she heard a giggle from beyond the door, and recognized the voice of Lupusregina Beta. She strained her ears, and tried to discern what they were saying. Despite the closed door, she found that she could still understand what was being said.

"Ah! Ainz-sama! That tickles!" Lupusregina Beta squirmed as he coasted his palms all over her gravid belly.

"Don't move so much," he chided her as she squirmed nigh uncontrollably. She was sitting on top of his thigh, her own legs lying on top of his other knee. Even with the child in her belly, Lupus remained deceptively light, like a feather in his hands.

"So what were you saying?" Ainz said. He had been distracted by Increment telling him that Ueda was outside waiting to talk to him. He wondered what she wanted, but decided he would ask her about it later.

"According to my instincts, it's gonna be eight more weeks until this little one comes out!" Lupus chirped happily.

Ainz raised a brow. "Eight weeks? Exactly? Are you sure about that Lupusregina Beta?"

She puffed out her cheeks. "Don't you remember that it was me who predicted when Zesshi would give birth as well~su? You shouldn't underestimate my keen healer senses my lord. If I weren't a Pleiades and your lover, I would be the best of our Healers~suuu~"

"Ah, right, certainly," Ainz said, trying to dial down the doubt in his voice. He didn't want to alienate Lupus, who was perhaps telling the truth. He did recall that she had correctly predicted the time when his Firstborn would come out. But was that merely a lucky guess, or an indication of an actual skill she possessed?

It was interesting to contemplate, as that would mean Lupusregina's value as both mother and healer would rise. If she were not needed for her power as a Pleiades, he was thinking of assigning her as head Healer, to leverage her priestly levels to oversee the other Mothers. Ueda, for example, would certainly be needing some help considering the number of kids she was supposed to be carrying. That was twice the number of Zesshi's, and he had already been very worried on that time!

"I'm pretty sure about this, Ainz-sama," Lupus said, jutting out her enormous breasts. Despite the temptation, he made no move to taste them, and instead pulled the hem of her skirt down to cover her belly.

"If that is really the truth, then that means Clementine would be giving birth a bit before you, no?" Ainz wondered. "Or maybe just a bit after." He recalled that they had essentially been impregnated together, as the two had engaged him in frequent threesomes with him in those early days of debauchery.

Lupus put a finger to her chin. "Hummm.. I guess so… But I really didn't look too closely at Clementine yet. I wanna sniff her a bit more to be sure. That's a good idea, Ainz-sama! I'll be going, su~"

She hopped off his knee and landed lightly on her feet. "Oi, be careful," he scolded her.

"Whaaat? I'm fine, Ainz-sama," Lupus said, grinning widely and stretching her arms.

He took a deep breath then nodded towards the door. "Invite Ueda in, will you?"

"Ueda?" Lupus walked forward and opened the door, revealing Ueda, who squawked and backed away quickly. The action made her massively increased boobs jiggle. It looked like she had been putting her head close to the door.

"Ah, Ueda," Lupus greeted. "Welcome, welcome. It seems you're next, huh?" Ueda glanced at Lupus. He couldn't see the latter's expression, nor of why Ueda seemed to grimace at it.

Lupus turned around and waved. "Bye-bye, Ainz-sama! I love you, su~"

Ainz cleared his throat. He didn't know what to say about that, and instead said, "We shall talk again later, Lupusregina Beta." Then the Pleiades left, waddling out the room.

After a moment, he glanced towards Ueda, who had been staring after the Pleiades maid. "Come in, Ueda. Was there something you wanted to talk about?"

"Ah, greetings, my lord," Ueda said, bowing. She took a step forward, as Increment shut the door behind her. "Ah, if it is not an imposition, there were some things I wanted to…" she said, speaking in a low voice.

"Come closer," he said, patting his knee. "Sit here."

"Ah… Ah, certainly! As you wish…" She was blushing now, even as she averted her eyes from him. She did as he asked, albeit with a little more than token hesitation. Still, once she was situated on top of him, she did snuggle a bit closer to his chest, leaning against his powerful frame with a smile.

Ainz let the silent moment linger for a while. Then he said, "So, was there something you wanted to ask, Ueda? I recall that I only parted from you yesterday. Now I know that you do miss our time together, but I do have other duties." And those duties did involve having to check up on each and every one of his lovers, including spending a little intimate time with them as needed. He was worrying now about the monumental task set before him when anticipating the prospect of adding even more Mothers to his collection.

"Far be it for me to get in your way, my lord!" she exclaimed. "But… there is one thing I was curious about."

"Hm?"

"Is it true?" she whispered. "Is it true that you have revealed your Holy self to the Theocracy?"

Ainz wanted to scream or shout, but he could not disappoint Ueda, especially as she had become one of his Mothers. For her of all people to remind him of his monumentally reckless decision was the highest of ironies, yet he had to acknowledge that he had been the one to wade into the foolishness himself.

He had been on the lookout for anything suspicious after what had happened at the Re-Estize Capital. Spies had been sent to watch the Theocracy delegation as they left in their turn, and shadowed them all the way back to their capital. Nothing suspicious had been reported by then.

Ainz didn't quite order the surveillance to be relaxed, but he was limited with what he could do inside the Theocracy's capital. A general watch was ordered, to see if the Theocracy would mobilize its people as a precursor to an attack on them.

Nothing of the sort happened for a few days. And for that time, he had been content to leave thought of such matters to the back of his head while he attended to other things (such as his lovers, like Ueda).

It was then that Demiurge reported that letters had started arriving at E-Rantel. As there had been no official embassy from the Theocracy, the missives had arrived by an official messenger, who had then insisted on leaving as soon as the letter had been delivered. Perhaps it had been rude not to insist on having a proper embassy for them, and the message-bearers were thus instructed not to dawdle too long at a place where they could not be monitored.

But as time passed, more and more of these "mailmen" arrived at E-Rantel, each bearing one letter after another. It had gotten to the point that it had formed a tidy pile on Albedo's desk, where she and Demiurge had been ordered to read and analyze every single one.

Their report came back to him as such: "My lord, the Theocracy wish to meet you, etc., etc.," added on to their own admonition of "How dare they act so forward with the Master, these inferior humans!?", or words to that effect. As such, Ainz had the impression that what he had done had alerted the Theocracy somehow, though he couldn't really be sure if they were looking to ensnare him to interrogate him or worse. Certainly, they would be very curious about him and his powers.

"Ah yes," he said, licking his lips behind his helmet. "About that…" He sighed. "Yes, you heard correctly. There is… some truth to what you say."

Ueda's eyes glittered like there were stars within them. "Oh, that's wonderful, Your Majesty! I knew you would heed my advice! Now all shall know the awesome, overwhelming truth of your real power!"

"Don't be too hasty," he said, raising his hand. "It was only a small thing. And nothing has materialized of it yet." That was a lie, but he didn't want to saddle Ueda with complaining. It was probably the worst thing a husband and a boss could do, to show undue weakness in front of someone he had sworn to protect and support.

"When you visit the Theocracy, could you take me there with you?" Ueda then asked, her voice fervent, almost manic.

"Take you with me?" he repeated, raising a brow. He hadn't been intending to, not yet anyway. But he knew he would have to, some time. "Now that's a curious question. I still don't know when exactly that visit will take place. But if by then you have advanced into your pregnancy, you know what my answer will be."

"Eh? But Ainz-sama…"

"No," he said firmly. He placed his hand gently on top of her belly, where he knew six of his prospective children now grew. An amount he had never anticipated, and for which he held some wonder (and some questions). "You are already aware of my stance on the matter. You bear six of my children. You are a human—descended of Players true, but still a human. Therefore, the risk to you is immense, and I shall not risk your safety for anything, not even for a quick stroll outside these halls."

"But Ainz-sama…"

"There is also the matter of your identity," he continued. "You remember that 'you' are still there, yes?" Once it was clear that Ueda would be joining him, Ainz saw no point in alerting the Theocracy to her absence and so sent another of Nazarick's doppelgangers to replace Ueda—though obviously the doppelganger copied his male self. Now there were two doppelgangers in the Theocracy's highest levels, a fact that made Ainz nervous.

"But I already look like this, Ainz-sama," she said. "They won't wonder a thing!"

"So how can we explain you then?" Ainz asked. "They might have ways to recognize you for who you are. And if they do, and arrive at the right conclusions, then the depths of our deceit will be revealed to them. And then they will of course make inquiries and investigations, and in the process, they may well discover the true depths of our influence in their country. And obviously that conclusion will lead to another foregone conclusion, which you and I know to be conflict. And I am loathe to involve Nazarick into the troubles of the outside world just yet, especially after the headache that was the Re-Estize Kingdom."

She said nothing to that for a while, and Ainz thought that he had been able to convince her with his compelling arguments.

Then she said, "Well, why don't we just tell them the truth!"

"The truth?" he repeated, staring at her as if she'd suddenly gone crazy. "What are you talking about? The truth? You mean just lay it all before them?"

"They are already aware that you are a divinity returned, my lord," Ueda insisted. "I know how the Cardinals think. They… None of them will dare to gainsay you once you've demonstrated a bit more of your power. Changing man to woman—that will just prove the strength of your divinity! I will be the prime example of it! Use me, lord!"

He shook his head. "Please Ueda, you must understand my position. It is all too complicated a plan, which has many points of failure. I will not take even the slightest risk, especially when it comes to your lives. Do you think it would be easy if our enemies discovered your existence, or that of my children?"

At that, she subsided, though the heat in her eyes still remained. "You are right, of course, my lord. In that case, perhaps we can concoct a suitable story for myself, one that will not conflict with the doppelganger you sent to replace 'me'."

"No, it is still too risky." He shook his head again. "You must remember that you are responsible for more than your life now, Ueda. You must be ever mindful of that fact."

She sighed, her face clearly looking forlorn. He stared uneasily at her for a few moments before he said, "Why are you so insistent on this anyway? Just be glad that I took your advice and revealed a bit of myself. Isn't that enough? We can afford to take things a little slower—no, it's more important than ever that we do so."

"I just…" Ueda began, then she hesitated. She sighed, and shook her head. "It's selfish of me, I suppose. But I just wanted to bring my children there, so they'd know where they came from. Where their mother was born, and raised. It's… foolish of me to say that, huh?"

Then it was Ainz's turn to sigh. Great, now he felt bad for bringing it up. Still, despite a sentimental reason like that, he really shouldn't compromise his position. She would have to understand that.

"I can understand your feelings on the matter, Ueda. But the situation remains the same. I will not risk the safety of you or our children, not for any reason. Perhaps later, we can do as you wish, after they are born."

Ueda did not look convinced, and indeed seemed saddened by his words. "Come now," he said. "Turn that frown upside down, and let's talk about—"

His words were interrupted when the door slammed open.

"We do not need to wait, my dear maid," said the voice of the sudden intruder. Ainz saw Shalltear Bloodfallen standing there, resplendent in all her glory. And there, cradled in her arm, was his son Satoshi.

"Oh my," she said, her red eyes flickering from him to Ueda. "Might we be interrupting? Perhaps this is the start to some scandalous congress?"

Ainz sighed. He was grateful, at least, to Shalltear for the interruption. That stopped things from becoming a little too awkward. "Let us talk more on this later," Ainz told Ueda. "At the moment, now is not the right time."

Ueda pouted, but after a beat she leaned close to give him a short peck on the cheek. "That's all I ask, Ainz-sama," she whispered. Then she turned to face Shalltear.

"Shalltear," Ainz said, "What are—oh dear."

All of them stared, amused, as Satoshi fisted a huge chunk of Shalltear's silver hair and was then steadily drooling over it as he struggled to eat it as one might ramen.

"Oh, I don't mind, Ainz-sama," Shalltear said proudly as she glanced towards the baby. "Any child of the Master can do as they please, especially when they're this cute. Oh yes you are, yes you are little Satoshi~"

Ainz chuckled. Not for the last time did he wish that his children from different mothers would all get along in harmony if not in happiness.

That would make everything he did worth it in the end.

"Guaahhh…!"

Breathless, Zero collapsed to the bed, the sheen of sweat forming a second layer over her skin. She wheezed slightly as she fought to catch her breath from the rigorous exercise she had just undergone. The area between her thighs tingled and buzzed, very pleasantly sore after the pounding she had just received.

Wiping a bead of sweat from her brow, she glanced to the side and saw her lover, Sebas, already on his feet. He was fast gathering up the clothes that had been tossed at the start of their copulation and was putting them on with perfunctory precision. No doubt he had no time to lie back there and spoon because of some duty he had to attend to. Frankly, the fact that he didn't at all seem winded after what seemed like hours of frantic fucking was a testament to his otherworldly stamina.

Sebas departed without a second word, perhaps assuming that she wouldn't have the energy to stay awake. Well, that was partly true, especially of Tuare, who was lying on the far side of the bed, now dozing peacefully and naked just as herself after being the first to be fucked. But Zero was made of sterner stuff, and despite the constant throbbing of her snatch, she managed to find it in herself to stand up from the bed. Her body was desperately screaming at her for something to drink, or eat after what felt like hours of frantic fucking.

She took care to tidy herself up before she left the room. Though being Sebas' women meant that they were being left alone, that did not mean that they were just free to go do whatever they wanted in this place. Tuare had made it very clear in her private words with them that while the overall Master approved of their relationships with Sebas, that did not mean that everyone would be beholden to them. Proper decorum had to be kept, and deference needed to be paid to the right people; and as such they needed to act without embarrassing or inconveniencing Sebas in any way. For if Ainz-sama ever found offense, then they would not be accorded the same considerations as if they were his own Mothers.

She went down the hall outside to the nearest pantry, where the latest food were being prepared. There were no maids present there, but it was understood that any of Sebas' women could just take whatever food was present there. It had been something that Ainz-sama had tacitly approved, after knowing that they, too, were to become mothers.

Mother. She had never once expected in her whole life that she would become one.

As she ate the food, she was aware of what the monstrous healers had told her during their examination of her body: of how she would need to eat as much as possible to provide for the children now growing inside her belly. It was strange to think about: that she was now responsible for carrying such fragile life.

And it was all thanks to her finally accepting her place as Sebas' lover. Honestly, she hadn't really expected to become pregnant at all, perhaps assuming that she wouldn't actually be fertile. But the first signs had come for her, and after consulting with the local healers, the truth came out. She was now pregnant with Sebas' child, just the same as Tuare and Edstrom.

And speaking of Edstrom, that woman appeared in the pantry as if summoned by her thoughts. She stared at the other woman for a few long moments as she chewed, utterly taken aback by her unexpected and sudden appearance. The two of them stared at each other for a while.

It was Edstrom who stirred to action first, walking forward, grabbing a plate and a few of the food from the dishes on array with such speed that a lesser-trained person would have entirely missed it, and then sitting down at Zero's table. "Yo," she said. "How're you doing?"

"Welcome back," she replied, though without real warmth. She was still uneasy about Edstrom, despite everything. In a way, she could be blamed for leading Zero to this very situation. Though a part of her head wondered if she should actually be thankful for the opportunity.

She examined the other woman. Edstrom was still wearing clothes that bared her midriff, though at this point she was showing off the obvious bump that was proof of her current condition. And there, to Zero's eyes, was also proof of something she was dreading: Edstrom's once-trimmed belly with its ridges had faded away, smoothing over to make way for the baby. She knew that was going to happen to her own belly as well, once the baby started growing. It would be the single most aggravating reminder of her condition: that her approaching motherhood would "smooth" out the rugged exterior of her warrior form. And she didn't exactly know how to feel about that.

She mentally dismissed that thought. She shouldn't be focusing on that.

"So, do I need to ask where exactly you've been?" Not that she wanted to share Sebas with Edstrom—the prospect of an orgy was still new to her mind. She resented the competitive nature of it, especially if Edstrom was present. Her former subordinate had seemed to take their relationship as "cock-sisters" into a full-blown rivalry: something one-sided at that.

Earlier, Sebas had wondered where Edstrom had been: but since the woman had left without so much as a by-your-leave to even Tuare, they could not answer him.

"Oh, nowhere you'd be interested in," Edstrom said airily. She was busy stuffing her cheeks with food like a chipmunk. "My tongue would be somewhat loosened, though, should you also tell me how you're getting along. Pregnancy seems to have given you a proper glow, 'boss'. It seems the role of mother suits you very well. I'm a little surprised."

She snorted. Zero recognized the teasing for what it was and chose to ignore it. She was no longer as insecure with the change wrought in her as she used to be, especially now that she had a little brat on the way. And unlike herself, this brat was going to be getting the best of what she could dish out, and she didn't care what he or she thought on the matter.

"Yes, you could say that," she replied, in between large gulps of the sweet "smoothie" that was available today, a drink that tasted of crushed fruit mixed with copious amounts of literal frozen ice. It was as bracing to imbibe as the hardest liquor, burning down her throat the same way.

She smiled at Edstrom fearlessly. "But more than that, I'm a bit more enthusiastic about the fact that these babies are going to be a whole lot bigger. And we both know how much Sebas loves fondling these things." She glanced down at her boobs, the great honking things which were now almost as big as her head. She heard that in this place, she had overtaken Zesshi Zetsumei in size, and was now only subordinate to that other woman, Ueda.

Edstrom's expression was one of surprise. It seemed she hadn't really expected her to play along with her jibes. Then she smiled and stuck out her tongue. "Well now, I guess you could say you've proven yourself a greater woman even now, boss." She made a fist. "But let me tell you, I ain't backing down, not when it comes to the bed. I'll hone my techniques down below so much that Sebas will be begging me to keep his cock inside. Just you watch."

She chuckled and shook her head. She was less enthusiastic about needing to please Sebas as Edstrom. But a part of her did admit that it would feel rather good if she managed to please Sebas in any way through sex—perhaps that would also be something she would train towards.

She gestured towards the plate, where Edstrom had stacked a lot more food than even Zero had taken. "Topping yourself up for your babies?"

Edstrom grinned at that. "Yep. Nothing but the best for the little ones. And since they were so gracious to give me access to all this food, then who am I to complain?"

It had been discovered just recently that Edstrom was carrying quadruplets, or four babies inside her. That was one more than the number of Zesshi Zetsumei's kids. It was rather impressive, in a way. Of course, being the girl of Sebas meant the news was not taken to be as impressive.

Edstrom clucked her tongue as she spooned a few more bits of food into her mouth. "I am honestly a bit worried, though. Four babies seems like a lot, especially when it comes time to give birth. When you hear the stories that giving birth to just one is a hell of an experience—now there's four of them inside me." She shuddered. "I certainly don't envy the bitch who got six to her name."

"Six?"

Edstrom nodded. "Haven't you heard? That Ueda, remember her? I heard over the grapevine that she's got six on the way. A whole damned litter."

Zero nodded to herself, both agreeing to that and thinking to herself. She found it hard to imagine having six babies, let alone just the one. The uncertainty poked at her mind, paralyzing it.

"And you never know, you could be carrying even more," Edstrom continued. She blinked and frowned at her.

"I rather hope not. One is already more than enough for me."

"Oh?"

"You and I share the same situation: in that neither of us have given birth yet. No matter what, I just want to have an easier time of things when I give birth."

Edstrom chuckled. "I can see that. I'm feeling a little anxious about my four, truth be told. But that won't stop me. I owe it to myself, and Sebas, for this new life that's been given to me."

"On that note, have you given any thought to—" Edstrom's words were cut short by a cry from a familiar voice.

"Zero! There you are!" came Tuare's voice, from where she stood at the door to the pantry. She bustled forward, and looked from her to Edstrom and then back again. "What's the meaning of this? Why did you not wake me? Why didn't Sebas-sama wake me?"

It was then that she noticed the sight of another pregnant woman behind her. She recalled her name as Neia: was one of Ainz-sama's own. She was a peculiar woman with strange, fierce-looking eyes, which looked as if they were always glaring with hostility at people. She didn't know why she was there, but it was reasonable to assume that she had come with Tuare.

"When I woke up," Tuare continued. "It was all so cold and lonely! I thought I had dreamed the whole thing. The last I recall, you were busy mounting Sebas-sama on the bed!"

At that Edstrom looked at her before dissolving into howling laughter. Zero glared, and Neia looked embarrassed.

"Oh, enthusiastic, are we, 'boss'?" she said between laughs, snorting and hooting.

"Oh, shut it," she growled, glaring at the other woman. She was aware that her cheeks were feeling a little hot and flushed.

Just then, a maid emerged from the inner pantry, announcing herself with a curtsy to them and a deep bow towards Neia. "Neia-sama, I am to remind you that your presence is required in your appointment."

Neia's eyes widened. "Oh right! My appointment! I'll see you later, Tuare!" She turned to waddle away.

"Very well, good bye!" Tuare said, waving.

She and Edstrom had only been half-listening to that little interlude, as they were more focused on their little argument.

Tuare could only sigh, even as she started helping herself to the food.

It had been a long time since Raymond Zarg Lauransen had ever gotten a good night's sleep. Even before the dreaded Sorcerer-King had appeared to bedevil the land with the omen of his presence, he had been tasked with many a responsibility as commander of the Six Scriptures, which did keep him busy. Certain of these endeavors were of such importance to the future of the Slaine Theocracy that he could not devote a degree less than his full attention.

And his reward, of course, was not in earning glory among his peers, nor with the banal promise of earthly reward. No, as a Cardinal of the sacred office of Earth, he was called to a greater purpose: to help fulfill the promises laid down a long time ago. They would lead humanity to a new golden age, freeing them once and for all from the shackles of lesser races. For all that he knew that at the end of this road he and the rest of his like-minded brethren might yet be unrewarded despite all their work did not discourage them in the slightest.

For so great was the faith invested unto the Cardinals. For only the wisest of minds, the strongest of wills and the purest of souls could ever be trusted with the disposition of the Theocracy's sworn duties. To not fall into the petty, barbarous fractiousness and weakness of the other human nations, whose follies were marked by the bones rotting away in many an abandoned ruin. The only ambition for which a Cardinal should ever strive was for the betterment of the Theocracy and of humanity, and of nothing else. To stray from it was heresy, and a betrayal of all that the Six Gods had stood for.

This, Raymond believed. In his heart, he fervently believed it was so. The tenets laid down in Holy Script by the Six themselves would illuminate the path, and the gospels passed down from Cardinal to Cardinal would guide them further on towards the destiny that had long been promised.

Never once in his long, mortal life, had his faith ever been tested.

Until now.

At first, he had not believed the message handed over by the Black Scripture.

The "crisis", as he called it in his head, had begun a few days ago.

At that time, they had still been wrangling with the apparent dissolution of the Re-Estize Kingdom. It had been news so sudden and so unexpected that there had needed to convene countless emergency council sessions just to address. That meant many sleepless nights as the Cardinals fought to steer their nation forward.

To say that the Re-Estize Kingdom's voluntary dissolution had not been anticipated by the Theocracy was no hyperbole. They had gotten no word from their scouts and spies in the various Scriptures, as if they had been utterly blind to the possibility. The most they had expected was the Sorcerer-King swallowing huge swathes of land, as well as a predicted backslide into chaos for much of the Kingdom for the next decade or so. They hadn't expected it to backslide completely into this complete a fragmentation!

It had necessitated a thorough review of their various spy departments, just to ensure that no one was becoming complacent. Being so caught off guard in this way was almost tantamount to being ambushed by an army completely unawares.

Part of the oversight of said departments were on his lap, and that meant he had to pull double duty attending the meetings of the Supreme Council and that of the many subordinates that had to do some "house-cleaning", so to speak.

And of course, this was factoring in their yet ongoing war with the Elf Country, which was still a relevant and necessary aspect of their war. Fortunately, on that note, the war front had able Marshals to whom they could easily leave matters for a week or two without oversight, letting them focus on managing the unexpected upheaval of the Re-Estize Kingdom's impending death.

The Slaine Theocracy tended to look upon the Re-Estize Kingdom as a "younger brother" of sorts. The Kingdom had been born a few centuries ago, much later than when their august nation had been founded by the Six Gods. There were secret texts in the vaults that spoke of the various nations that had once occupied the land which the Kingdom called home, many of which had even been friends and allies of their forebears.

The vagaries of history would ensure that the Re-Estize Kingdom would rise from the inherent uncertainty in the land, thereby uniting a large portion of the human populace that had been left adrift since those long-ago wars. The Kingdom had been founded with the Theocracy's blessing. And if certain texts deemed "Apocrypha" were to be believed, then their predecessors had sought to puppet the Kingdom, only to fail spectacularly. (Naturally no official texts that the public could access indicate this.) Regardless of the intention and outcome, it was natural for the Theocracy to behold the Kingdom as a necessary bulwark of humanity, and therefore it was always official policy to support it as much as possible.

The Katze Plains Massacre had been an eye-opener for them all, not just for the monstrous power the Sorcerer-King wielded, but also for the cracks that could now be perceived in the Re-Estize Kingdom's structure. The picture that their spies had then painted was not of a giant in peaceful repose, but a house where rot and parasites had infiltrated the beams and its very foundation. There had been much debate on what to do about this, as the chaos that would ensue from the Kingdom's collapse would be destabilizing for all, including them. There had been murmurs of lending support to the Great Noble Faction, or helping the King and his heirs directly. Yet the looming threat of Ainz Ooal Gown, who had quickly vassalized the Baharuth Empire in the aftermath, made them abandon any thought of long-term planning.

They had watched with consternation as the predicted chaos did erupt, with rebellious lords fracturing the once-great nation according to their greedy desires. But the war with the Elf King had to be managed, and so the Supreme Council unanimously decided that they would not intervene in the conflict.

That was to be a great mistake in hindsight.

Reports had come that then-Prince Zanac had embarked on some foolish bout of adventurism, which had the immediate consequence of bringing in the Sorcerer-King again in conflict with their Kingdom. They had immediately scrambled, knowing full well that the Re-Estize Kingdom could not possibly survive the massacre that would ensue. And sending the full might of the Theocracy to defend was a foolish thought, especially if it allowed the Elf King to consolidate his defenses. They had already come so far in penetrating the forest cover.

Resigned to the reality, they had opted to evacuate as many promising individuals from the Kingdom as they could. Most of these were highly-skilled Adventurers they had long-sought to invite into their service. They also sent their spies towards the fiefdoms closest to their borders—if worse came to worst they could start an exodus towards the Theocracy, allowing the people to flee into their borders, and therefore adding a whole host of new citizens who would become loyal to the Six's Creed.

And then, after weeks of tension, had come the invitation to a "Peace Summit". The meaning set by the name seemed simple enough to parse, even if it was an unfamiliar term. The Theocracy debated on whether or not this was some insidious trap by the Sorcerer-King. Raymond had been the one to insist that a delegation be sent, to at least show the rest of the world that the Theocracy did not fear anything, not even a potential trap. Pragmatically, they sent one of their least problematic people as a representative, along with the most fanatical lower-ranking soldiers who would take their own lives before they would be captured by the Sorcerer-King. To top it off, Quaise Hasja Quintia, member of the Black Scripture, had then been sent as part of the escorting contingent to infiltrate and observe the proceedings in secret, and he would also be tasked with many contingencies.

That had been some days ago. Since then, news had come of the reality of the Re-Estize Kingdom's fragmentation. Even further, those same border fiefdoms they had been willing to help were now the face of a new nation under the Theocracy's influence. It would have been wrong to say that the Theocracy had not taken advantage of the Kingdom's fall. But they had immediately seen the opportunity before them, and wasted no time in changing their plans.

It had taken a lot of secret backdoor dealings and negotiations, as well as their own multiple discussions on how best to leverage their influence over the newborn nation. Its new rulers would need to know exactly where their loyalties should be, and should be disabused of any unseeming notions. It would become a potent shield to the north, without being formally acknowledged as a vassal.

And then that same diplomatic delegation had returned, bearing news most dire and disturbing.

He had just been eating dinner, and was all set to reviewing the paperwork that would go into integrating the new lands that the delegation had managed to wrangle from the Peace Summit. They were small, rather narrow strips of territory with nothing really remarkable about them. But it was simply free territory that would have gone to someone else, and so they simply had to claim it.

Raymond's aide had come in, speaking rather breathlessly. "Sir! You have to come quick. The diplomatic delegation's just arrived… And… And you have to…"

"What? What's going on?" he asked, raising a brow. "Calm down, you're almost out of breath, girl."

His aide took a few deep breaths. "Sir, something's happened, maybe. The delegation's acting strangely. Quaisse-san is acting strange."

"What?" He stood up from his seat, suddenly awake and alert. "What are you talking about? Do you mean to say they have had magic cast upon them somehow? Did you not follow the proper protocols?" It was one scenario they had envisioned: that Ainz Ooal Gown would ensnare the delegation with a cruel spell.

"No, sir, every precaution was done!" his aide protested. "But somehow, after presenting themselves for debrief, they began speaking all sorts of inexplicable things!"

"What sort of things?" he asked, before he shook his head. "No, never mind that. Bring them all to the Hall of Cleansing. I will observe them first."

It was hard to believe that Quaisse himself had been subverted by that being, but he couldn't take any chances. The Sunlight Scripture had been wiped out, and everyone thought they'd been invincible.

The Hall of Cleansing was an area of worship and contemplation, used for various rituals. As his people herded the delegation to the chamber, Raymond had gathered an honor guard of assassins to surround the place, ready to slay them at his command. Then, from a hidden vantage point, he observed them down below. He made the sign of the Six and activated the anti-magic spell on his ring with a murmured word.

He observed the delegation's guards first, who were speaking excitedly among themselves. A few of them were shouting some words which he strained to hear.

"Hear us, my fellow countrymen! The God of Death has returned to us! Sursyana has returned!"

"Repent now, for the God of Death has returned! Sursyana shall grace us with His presence once more!"

Raymond's brow raised. Such words were very nearly approaching abject blasphemy. Many times in the Theocracy's past had ambitious priests and warriors attempted to seize some form of advantage by claiming that "the gods had returned" and were speaking through them as some sort of divine avatar. Their intentions were invariably never ascribed to genuine zeal but to self-serving greed, primarily to set up a false branch of religion just to prop themselves as some exalted ruler. The Theocracy were usually quick to squash such ambitions. He wondered if this was what was happening now.

He observed Quaisse next, someone who was of a higher rank than these guards. While that didn't quite make him immune to being mind-controlled or manipulated in some way, his words would usually have a little more weight, considering his rank.

The man stood silently in their midst, watching the proclamations echo off the walls as the guards devolved into frenzied shouts. A few had even torn off their armor and rent their clothes as they shouted blasphemy after blasphemy.

Quaisse wasn't joining in their apparent madness; and yet it wasn't like he was disapproving or anything. As a solid follower of the Six, he should have been more sensitive to fools potentially following some form of rebellion, and he should have done something about it.

Finally, after a few more minutes, Raymond saw that Quaisse wasn't doing anything. He sent someone to approach Quaisse and ask him what was going on. The message that came back was that "he had something of grave importance to report, to the ears of the Cardinals".

Seeing no other way to proceed, Raymond ordered the guards to be taken away someplace else, leaving Quaisse behind. He would be debriefed in this Hall, where he could not strike at the Cardinal directly—at least not without being killed by the observing assassins.

"Quaisse," he called out from his hidden spot. "You claim you have something of importance to report. Say it now, but be warned that your words are being judged heavily by the Six Gods. Any attempt at falsehood or heresy shall receive their due punishment."

Quaisse bowed. "I thank you for being here, my lord. I am well aware of the prohibitions, and the protocols. And I know why you are being cautious. Allow me then, to present my report here, for you to hear, though I observe that it is an unusual place."

"Proceed," Raymond said warily.

Quaissed then said, "I have a great many things to report regarding the extraordinary results that came from the dissolution of the Re-Estize Kingdom. I also have several pages containing my observations in their Capital. But were I to go through with it, it would take me much longer to be finished. And we both know that there are more important things for me to say: much more relevant things for me to address." He gestured pointedly at the doors, through which the delusional guards had been escorted.

"Speak then," Raymond said. He could not shake off the feeling of trepidation, as if there was some threat he couldn't quite grasp. Unfortunately, he couldn't tell if the threat was coming from Quaisse himself, or he'd have ordered the marksmen to make him a pincushion by now.

"My lord Cardinal," Quaisse said, and now his voice sounded different—tremulous and filled with deep awe. "It is my honor and my joy to report: that the Sixth God hath descended upon us once more. Sursyana has revealed Himself to us!"

Raymond sighed audibly. His shoulders sagged, as an emotion akin to despair and disappointment gripped him. "From whence comes this blasphemy from your lips? I expected better of you, Quaisse."

The blond shook his head. "My lord, you think I have been misled, captured perhaps by sinister magic. I can assure you that my faculties remain intact. In fact—" He straightened, puffing out his chest. "I am prepared to undergo the Trial of Absolution to prove that my soul remains pure and uncorrupted. I shall prove that I have seen the Truth with mine own eyes. Will that not suffice?"

To say that he was shocked was an understatement. "…Quaisse, why are you doing this?"

"Lord Sursyana deigned to return with us, and prove himself to you. Therefore, it has become my sacred duty to spread the Word of His coming instead. But I know that it would be too easy to accuse me of being an ambitious heretic. Therefore, I shall stake my entire life on this: on proving that I remain myself."

The Trial of Absolution was the ultimate test for heretics who had fallen prey to the Slaine Theocracy. It was more an apex form of torture than a real religious ritual, and it was rarely invoked.

Several rare forms of poisons and toxins were used, some sourced from creatures that no longer even existed on this world and had gone extinct many centuries before. These assaulted the heretic's body, purifying it from foreign poisons that could puppet the mind.

Hallucinogens were also involved at various points of the Trial, used in conjunction with illusory magics. They were to lull the heretic in the early stages, to fool them into lowering their guard by showing them an improbable scenario. Then a second batch was used during the final excruciating steps, when "the Six" would appear to them offering salvation, though it was clearly just an illusion. An actual heretic would be duped by such a display, though it would only prove their guilt all the more.

Obviously, instruments of pain and torture were involved. It served to batter the heretic's bodily endurance, to force him to fail and recant. The truly righteous could endure any sort of pain, and thus overcoming these were a major part of the Trial.

Should the heretic fail at any point in the Trial, then it was immediately considered a failure. There was no stay of mercy for such individuals.

If he recalled his history correctly, one could count the number who had undergone the Trial of Absolution on one's fingers. And of those, only one had ever survived, proving his innocence in some long-ago disagreement with the Cardinals of that day.

Therefore, for Quaisse to invoke it was no simple matter. He was voluntarily accepting to undergo such rigorous tests, which could potentially turn fatal, just to prove his point. At the very least, none could doubt his conviction.

Unfortunately, neither Raymond nor the others could really refuse it. Quaisse was later treated to the most powerful detection magics that they could leverage, and was thus found completely clean of any foreign taint, at least according to what they could do. And Quaisse was not just some random citizen who was growing ideas beyond his station; he was a ranking member of the Black Scripture. For him to have spouted such blasphemy, with a potentially clear body and mind, meant that they had to take him seriously. It was more than just a simple grasp for power: it was a straight-up disagreement between fellow humans who were equal in the eyes of the Six. Simply refusing his request and executing him would not do.

And so, he underwent the Trial. Thankfully, Raymond did not need to administer it, as one other Cardinal had volunteered to oversee the necessary steps. He was grateful for that: he just didn't have the stomach to witness such atrocities at that moment.

In what became a historical event, Quaisse came through the Trial without dying, nor being proven false. He had managed to prove his cause, and survived the Trial of Absolution to the very end.

He could no longer be ignored. His words now bore the awful weight of something momentous and significant. Through the Trial, he had proven himself still a loyal disciple, his ardent faith undiminished. And that meant that the Six in some way, still watched over him.

Since the news of what he had been speaking had already long spread, the entire Supreme Council were present to hear his report. Unvarnished by foreign magics and the errors of heresy, Quaisse was now an example of a divine messenger.

Berenice Nagua Santini, Cardinal of Fire was there, hostile to the very notion of heresy. The only thing that prevented her from ordering her own people to execute Quaisse were his results in the Trial of Absolution.

This was an opinion also shared by Dominic Ire Partoche, Cardinal of Wind, who had personally overseen the execution of many heretics in his lifetime. He was ever on the lookout for those who would violate the Theocracy's strictures, but since he had administered the Trial and personally witnessed Quaisse's triumph, he could not really say anything more.

Counter-balanced to this were Zindin Delan Guelfi, Cardinal of Water, who was intensely curious about what sort of "heresy" Quaisse was going to say. After all, this was a man who had passed the Trial of Absolution. Such individuals were rare, and as such, it was a once in a lifetime opportunity to study him.

Maximilian Oreo Lagier Cardinal of Darkness, was also held the same view. But he was a man who possessed much zeal, and had privately told Raymond that this must surely be some secret sign from the Six, if nothing else.

Yvon Jasna Delacroix was more practical, like Raymond himself. He only saw that Quaisse had passed the Trial. Therefore, his words, by convention and law, held some weight. It would be completely irresponsible for any of them to turn him away—not when protocol and ritual had already been properly followed.

It was Raymond who bid Quaisse speak. "You stand before us cleansed of all suspicion and wrongdoing. Therefore, you may speak your mind before us. But be warned: we still have the license to do what we will with what you say. Do not take this audience as implicit acceptance of what you bear."

"I shall repeat what I have said, my lords," Quaisse declared on before all of them. "Sursyana has returned to us, and now he walks this world once more. And he is someone we both know very well: Ainz Ooal Gown."

"Preposterous!" Berenice shouted first. "What sort of drivel are you saying, warrior?"

"May I remind everyone in this room that the Sorcerer-King Ainz Ooal Gown is an undead lord," Dominic said, glaring pointedly at Quaisse. "A lord of the undead, the greatest of sacrileges, it must be emphasized. To conflate one of the Blessed Six with such a creature is…" He shook his head. "Words cannot express the rage I feel."

"But what on earth has made you say that?" Zindin said, his expression sharp. "How can you make a claim with such confidence?"

"Our brother Dominic is right," Maximilian intoned, with waspish tone. "We all know the true nature of this undead. Yet why speak now of this impossibility?"

"My brothers, let us not forget the truth before our eyes. We must proceed from that foundation, first of all," Yvon said evenly. "For it cannot be denied that this worthy has survived the Trial of Absolution, already a rare occurrence in of itself. That means his words must have merit."

"Merit?" Dominic said, scoffing. "I see only a man who has somehow fooled our best efforts to weed out his blatant irreverence. Whatever his means, we shall get to the bottom of it."

"My brother, surely you do not mean to imply that the Trial is flawed?" Zindin said. "Or are you saying you made a mistake somehow?"

"The Trial was handed down to us from the Blessed Six themselves!" Maximilian exclaimed. "To deny their provenance and their efficiency is also another type of blasphemy!"

"I do not deny that the Trial is a sacred construct," Dominic said. "But it has surely been administered by fallible humans. There are many ways that mortal hands can fail. Though I am loathe to admit it, that also applies to myself. Thus, its results, in turn, while regrettable, can also be called into doubt. Or do you mean to tell me that you hold the possibility that the falsehoods that man claims to be correct?" He thrust a finger at Quaisse, who remained standing despite the numerous accusations levied upon him.

"Yes, we must not accept this, on principle," Bernice said emphatically. "However it was done, it has only proven the malevolent, unfathomable nature of that thing, to turn a loyal servant somehow into his twisted messenger."

"The texts are clear on this!" Maximilian said, almost shouting now. "The hands of the Trial's executors are guided by the Six themselves! They are quite clear on it, or do I have to quote the exact passage for you?"

"If you must quote Scripture, then you must also remember that the Scriptures themselves were written by fallible, mortal hands," Dominic opined. Maximilian and Zindin both exclaimed at that.

"That is a loose, personal interpretation of the sacred texts—your personal opinion, my brother! You are veering close to heresy yourself!" Maximilian said.

"What? How dare you insinuate—"

"I feel that once again we have strayed from the facts of the matter," Yvon cut in, his voice as loud as can be. "Before we hare off with misconceptions and assumptions, and wasteful arguments, let us see to what we know. We know that Quaisse has resolved the Trial of Absolution. That is a fact. That means his words are unstained by external forces. We also know he has claimed that the Sorcerer-King is actually Sursyana returned. That is another fact."

"And thus we must ascertain the truth at its very heart. And to do that, we must be diligent with gathering information," Raymond finished. He steepled his fingers and bore his eyes into Quaisse's. "Now tell us, warrior. What exactly happened? Start from the beginning."

Quaisse started to talk about his experience with the diplomatic delegation. How he had been observing silently over the many days. "Shall I share such thoughts that I have made now, honored ones?"

"Nay, that is not the current thrust of this audience," Yvon said sternly. "Proceed with the more relevant parts."

Then, he went on to describe how, at the further end of the "Peace Summit", when things had been wrapping up, that an incident had then occurred.

The incident had involved their appointed diplomatic envoy. She was apparently an excitable sort, a fact known to them. It was that very fact of her nature that had made them appoint her as the liaison out of everyone in the diplomatic corps who had the right experience and credentials; she was—to be blunt—someone who would not be missed if the Sorcerer-King had been in any way treacherous. Still, such a loose cannon had to be watched, and that was why a member of the Black Scripture had been embedded into her escort. Quaisse had been authorized to take over should anything happen.

"The events of that night will remain for me forever," Quaisse said. "On that moment, she went up to me, together with her aide, and told me a most remarkable story." He looked at them and shook his head. "And frankly, I could not really believe it myself. But according to them, the supposed lich had 'transformed'. He had become a flesh-and-blood man."

There were gasps and traded looks among the six of them. Raymond knew that those like Maximilian were well intimate with the Scriptures, even if some were evidently skeptical, like Dominic. Sursyana was the immortal god of death, but he was also known to be a shapeshifter, who had only donned the visage of a terrifying lich because of the need to intimidate the enemies of mankind.

"It surely cannot be!" said Bernice.

"Hold, let him continue," Yvon said.

"I was as skeptical as you all," Quaisse continued. "And I thought that this could be some sort of trap, somehow. But there was no one else of higher rank who could verify it. I knew then that time was of the essence. And so, I took it upon myself, at great risk to verify it by requesting an audience with Ainz Ooal Gown.

"He accepted, and on that audience, I was able to see it before my very eyes. I still have that memory, burning inside my mind. He changed into a normal man, before us. We were able to touch him, confirming the warmth of his flesh, and the blood clearly pumping within it. It was unmistakably human flesh."

Quaisse sighed. "Once more, I fell back into my old training. I knew I had no way to verify if what we saw was some form of advanced magical trickery. But when faced with all the facts, what else could I say? What else could I really claim?"

"And what did Ainz Ooal Gown say in response to all this? Did you hail him as Sursyana?" asked Raymond.

"We did… Well, I didn't. But I'm sure he heard," replied Quaisse. "When he heard the name, I saw him freeze. With a human expression, it was easy to see it change. It's much easier to read him when he's not using that skull as his face. He looked surprised, and honestly frightened. He knows that name, surely, but I cannot say if it is significant to him being Sursyana."

"Surprised? Frightened?" Dominic repeated.

"There are a lot of reasons one could glean from that," Raymond said, shaking his head. "After all, Sursyana is surely known to anyone who pays attention to us—"

He was interrupted by Maximilian's shout. "And because he is himself Sursyana!"

"My brother, you should—"

"No, Yvon, do not detain me in this!" he continued. "When you consider all the facts: of his sudden appearance, of his apparent power, and of his ability to transform, there can be no other conclusion. He has returned! Sursyana is returned!"

"We should not jump to conclusions hastily!" Bernice said. "Just because that undead can transform—"

"Ah, but you fail by making the assumption that he was undead from the start!" Maximilian said. "What if the undead form was itself a disguise?"

"There is merit to that train of thought," Zindin said thoughtfully. "Perhaps our perception of Ainz Ooal Gown was flawed by our presumption from the start."

"That is still not proof!" Dominic thundered.

"My lords, if I may?" Quaisse said, causing the bickering council to look at him once more. "There was one other thing I must report. And this is perhaps the most important one." At this, Raymond observed that Quaisse looked disturbed, as if he had eaten something poisonous and was just about to vomit something out. "Before Ainz Ooal Gown departed, he told us… He told us these words, and I shall repeat them for you as he said."

He took a deep breath.

"'Do not think of me as too holy'," Quaisse intoned. "'For I'm just a simple man.'"

There was a collective intake of breath, and Raymond was one of them. They all stared dumbfounded as one of the oldest lines of Scripture was recited to them. Quaisse's voice was not so much the striking part as the words themselves—resonating in their souls like a bell.

"Did he really say that?" Maximilian exclaimed. He was on his feet now, and looked as if he was just about to leap forward from the table. "Those exact words. He said that? You are telling us true, warrior?"

Quaisse nodded, rather solemnly. "And that is why I insisted on being subjected to the Trial."

For Raymond it was as if a thunderbolt had struck him on the head. He had never been this shocked, not since word had come that the Elf King had kidnapped and impregnated his former comrade.

"Do not think of me as too Holy, for I am but a simple Man."

Such words had been uttered by the God Sursyana many centuries ago, spoken to his devoted followers right before the Six Gods disappeared. The ancient scribes who had personally communed with the Gods committed it into Scripture, and yet the words would themselves become slowly lost to time. Subsequent versions of the holy texts started to omit miscellaneous things, things deemed too frivolous for the portrayal of the divine beings, or could otherwise confuse people. As such, that would leave only the very core of the Six Gods' teachings to be passed down through time. And yet the original records were preserved, hidden away in the deepest parts of the vaults. Only the most highest-ranking members of the Scriptures could read such texts, as they were sworn to secrecy. Naturally that included the Cardinals themselves, who were the ones to enforce the compact of silence.

Therefore, only a handful would know that Sursyana had ever uttered such words. And that involved every single person currently within the chamber. The ordinary worshiper and citizen of the Slaine Theocracy had only ever known the official texts, and would not have been able to divine what had been inscribed on tomes that were laid under the highest security that the Theocracy had ever mustered in its centuries-long history.

"It can't be…" Dominic said, his voice trembling. "It can't be!"

"Oh, but it is!" Maximilian shouted. "It is known: that the Six Gods had departed this world to allow humanity a chance to walk free. It is known: that the Six Gods had promised to return to this land, though the timing of such a return had never yet been revealed, no matter how many heretics and charlatans claim otherwise. It is known: that Sursyana had only ever uttered those words in confidence to his personal counsel, leading to its dubious nature which therefore necessitated its removal from further editions of the sacred texts. And so, in conclusion: there can be no other explanation. There can be no other conclusion we can draw!" He took a deep breath, then raised his hands high towards the ceiling, forming a "Y". "Sursyana has returned to us once more, as has been prophesied!"

"Calm down, my fellow brother!" Berenice said. "It's still too early to make such an assumption." Though even when she said that, Raymond could see that her face looked unsure.

"This must be addressed with clear minds and pure hearts, my fellow brothers and sister," Zindon said. "We must approach this carefully, lest we be set down a false path."

"You have the right of it, my brother," Yvon said, though Raymond saw that his eyes looked like they were staring at something far away. "I propose that we adjourn this meeting for now to allow us time to reflect on what we have learned."

"I also propose that this knowledge does not spread beyond all of us here," Raymond said quickly. "Not until we can be clear about the revelation. We would not want to be accused of leading the entire country down a false path." Of all the Cardinals, only Maximilian didn't look convinced.

"Very well." Yvon turned to Quaisse. "We thank you for bringing this matter to us, warrior. You have served the Theocracy and humanity well for enduring what you have, all to bring us these tidings. Whatever else happens, know that you have done well in this regard."

Quaisse bowed deeply to that. "I live only to serve humanity and the Theocracy."

After the meeting was adjourned, Raymond needed to debrief Quaisse himself regarding the other things he needed to report. As he observed the blond, he could find no trace of any sort of deception or corruption. He seemed just as normal as ever, and that was worrying.

"… You have done well," Raymond said, once the debriefing was complete. "You are dismissed from your duties for now. You have more than earned your rest."

"Thank you, Cardinal," Quaisse said.

"Please indulge me with one more thing," Raymond said, raising his finger. "Regarding… the other matter… of your revelation."

"Yes?"

He stared into the blond's eyes. "Do you believe in it?"

Quaisse straightened. Then he nodded briskly. "Yes. I do, Cardinal. There can be no mistaking the words that have been uttered. As well as the sensation of his flesh that I was able to grasp with my own hands. There is no doubt in my mind: whatever doubts there were have been washed away by my faith."

Raymond nodded and sighed. The man's faith had already been proven by his surviving the Trial of Absolution. That made his conviction in his beliefs all the stronger—and it also meant that his words were the equal of a literal martyr of the Six, with a zeal so strong that it could inspire others. Should the Supreme Council ignore his revelation, then there was no telling what he would do—he was a believer through and through.

"Thank you for speaking your mind. You may go," Raymond said.

In times like these, Raymond usually retreated to meditation and prayer to soothe his inner soul. That usually still meant a sleepless night, just as usual, but it was evident that even if he had chosen to sleep it still would have eluded him.

Despite a night of fervent prayer, no peace came to his soul; and neither did he come across a divine epiphany. He remained as hopelessly lost as ever.

On the next day, Raymond resolved to communicate with his fellow Cardinals. He would sound them out for their thoughts on the matter of the revelation. By doing so, he hoped to also find some closure to his own festering doubts.

The first one he visited was Maximilian, whose opinion of the matter he could already more or less predict. And he was correct on that.

They met inside his private chambers, which was warded from outside divination magic.

"Well of course I believe it, Raymond, don't you?" Maximilian said.

"There are considerations to be made…" Raymond said, then stopped when the other Cardinal raised his hand.

"To look away when Divine Providence has showed you a clear path is but abject ignorance," Maximilian proclaimed. "How can anyone believe in the Six, and yet still find some way to deny them when they return in the flesh? Perhaps if the Six had appeared to us all instead of long ago, we would have driven them away from us, because we did not have faith!"

"But there is a notable flaw here from what we can see," Raymond pointed out. "Before any of this happened, before the revelations I mean; we were all fairly certain about the nature of Ainz Ooal Gown. He is an entity similar to the Eight Greed Kings, or the Demon Lords from long ago. And his actions during the Katze Plains Massacre are a further mark against him. Why would Sursyana-sama actively kill humans? It does not make sense."

"The actions of the gods are not for mere men to judge," Maximilian grumbled. "But you bring up a good point. The Katze Plains massacre is about the only thing that seems to blemish the Lord's Great Return. I shall continue to meditate, and perhaps Sursyana Himself shall grant me lucidity."

That was the end of his audience with Maximilian. Next, he consulted his fellow Dominic, who had been most vehement against believing Quaisse.

"Thank you, my brother," Dominic said, nodding towards him as they both sat inside his parlor. "You have hit brilliantly upon the one objection which points against what they would have us believe." He slammed his palms on the table. "The Katze Plains was more than just a battle. It was a massacre of unbridled proportions. You remember our discussions from that time. The Massacre of so many humans was such a heinous act that it could only have been performed by some of the worst monsters in this world: demon lords for instance."

"Maximilian has indicated that it might be some act inscrutable for mere mortals."

Dominic barked a laugh at that. "Then I would be the first to beg questions from Sursyana-sama. If he thought it necessary in some way, then perhaps we would not have been firmly prohibited by the Six to kill fellow humans unless absolutely necessary."

"Unless absolutely necessary indeed," Raymond pointed out. "Perhaps the 'massacre' served some greater purpose? Sursyana-sama is the God of Death after all. Perhaps he simply sought to gather energy and was desperate."

"Then he is not a god, if he is that desperate."

Raymond made a humming sound. "My good fellow, do recall that even in the Scriptures it is said that the God of Light yet needed to eat, and that was why the Six-Day Miracle occurred. From that we can infer that even the Gods need to eat somehow." Or perhaps there was some other point to it, but he did not wish to elaborate. He did not want to get into an outright debate on theological matters like this was a symposium.

Dominic huffed. "Then if he really is one of the Six, he has a lot of explaining to do…!"

The redoubtable Yvon was Raymond's next visit.

"I have heard that you've been going around, seeking counsel from our fellows," he said, after he had ushered Raymond to a seat in his parlor. "A commendable effort."

"I was trying to see what each of us thought about the matter, in private," Raymond admitted. After a beat of silence, he gestured towards Yvon. "And what do you think about it, my good man?"

Yvon chuckled. He spread his hands. "You know me, old friend. I am loyal to the truth that has been revealed to me by the gods. And the truth of the matter is that a genuine revelation has been granted to us by Quaisse. That is the first fact. The second fact is that Sursyana is purportedly Ainz Ooal Gown. The next fact is that Ainz Ooal Gown is a monster, who has killed many people at the Katze Plains. Next is the fact that Ainz Ooal Gown is also a powerful magic caster, whose magical might has reached unto the realm of the gods. The fifth fact is that Ainz Ooal Gown has not also killed the people of the Re-Estize Kingdom during his war against them, according to the preliminary reports I'm getting."

Raymond nodded. "It surely is strange." When the Sorcerer-King had declared war on the other Kingdom, they had been sure that the lich would exact a terrible sort of vengeance by slaughtering as much of its inhabitants in its conquest, much like it had done during the infamous battle.

"It has been… remarkably peaceful during this last war," Yvon said, while stroking his chin. "Its actions are not those of a monster that completely hates life and the living. Surely a conundrum, especially with what it has already done."

"Perhaps it is some form of grand deception?" Raymond ventured.

"To what end then?" Yvon asked. "Leaving aside his purported divinity, what was the purpose for killing all those people at the start, before then turning around and offering an olive branch? If we take it at face value that it is only repentance for a mistake, then it shows that he is not the God—for he is said to be infallible. So if he is not actually Sursyana, then where does that leave us concerning this apparently repentant undead?"

Raymond could not answer, and so he could only leave it at that.

His next meeting was with Berenice, who had some choice words to say about the matter of Ainz Ooal Gown's Peace Summit.

"Well of course he called the Peace Summit," said Berenice. "How else was he going to convince the whole world that he isn't a ravenous undead dedicated to wiping out all life in the land? Listen, you and I both know how even the highest-ranking undead can bargain amongst themselves, and even work with humans, if it means that they can achieve their goals. But in the end, the allure of eradicating life is still there." She shrugged and took a sip of her tea. "This is much the same, Raymond. A very strong undead who can control its own impulses to 'make peace', on a grand scale, on a scale equal to entire nations. "

Raymond cleared his throat. "So there really is no doubt in your mind that this is not Sursyana returned?"

Berenice pursed her lips. "Don't be daft. I was merely offering the most reasonable explanation for how an undead lord like Ainz Ooal Gown could ever deign to make such overtures for this 'Peace Summit'. Yet you would also admit that in the end it still managed to destroy something. The Re-Estize Kingdom is no more. Fractured, shattered, into all those smaller states, as the reports state. Not since the City-State Alliance's birth has there ever been a potential for such chaos. In the end, perhaps the undead got what it wanted." She sighed, her brows furrowed in thought for a few moments before she continued.

"As to the speculation on his true identity as Sursyana… Well, I cannot really say much about it. I am only considering what is there in front of my eyes. I do not have Maximilian's blind faith, nor Zindon's sublime intellect. I am sorry, Raymond. I really cannot answer your inquiries."

Zindon was the last one he visited, and as he expected the man had long been prepared for his coming.

"So it's my turn then?" the man said, smiling. He was surrounded by piles of papers and books. He gestured to them.

"Ever since we adjourned, I have been poring over everything we knew about Ainz Ooal Gown. It is a given that he is indeed a powerful magic caster, whose spell exceeds anything that the Astrologer had ever seen before. It is therefore a very telling indication of his might and status."

"Then you believe he is indeed Sursyana?" Raymond asked.

"Ehhh…" Zindon shrugged. "I cannot really confirm it myself, not until we have more data. The fact of his might only confirms the fact of his might. He could be another being similar to the Greed Kings, one of those special calamities that only appears once in a hundred years. Is it enough to call him divine?" He sucked in a breath. "Perhaps. Perhaps not."

"Ah, then you are still as unsure as the others," Raymond observed.

"We are all of us unsure," Zindon replied. "Even Maximilian, who has already proclaimed his allegiance. We can try to overcome this doubt through the means available to us: through observation and examination, through aggression, through diplomacy—but I believe the only thing we can truly count on as servants of the Six is the one thing we have always claimed to possess all these years."

"Our faith," Raymond said.

"Precisely. Even I…" He waved his hand over all his books and papers. "Even I know that there is only so much you can glean from these. At one point, we must make the decision, however difficult it can be."

After visiting all of them, Raymond once again withdrew to his personal sanctum. No doubt the other Cardinals were also visiting and consulting each other, just like him. And perhaps Zindon was right. Perhaps the only thing that was needed right now was faith.

The Supreme Council reconvened, this time at a different location, and without Quaisse's presence. It was a meeting purely between the Cardinals.

"Now that we've all had time to digest the revelation that has been granted to us by Quaisse, we must proceed with our next intentions: as one, united in purpose and mind," Raymond intoned. "We must think carefully on what our decision shall be, regarding the possible return of Sursyana in the form of Ainz Ooal Gown."

He looked at each of them in return, just as each of them also looked into their fellows' eyes. This was not a place to debate, not anymore. Consensus had to be reached, so that the Theocracy might move forward, as one. As the scriptures went, disunity in any form could easily invite chaos.

Dominic was the first to speak. "It is clear now that this revelation cannot be denied as anything but real. The combination of both the warrior's purity from the Trial of Absolution and the words he has been bidden to speak show much of the truth."

Zindon was next. "And so, we are left with the revelation that Ainz Ooal Gown may or may not be Sursyana returned to us. He has already proven his power many times to us before. There is no doubt that the Sorcerer-King is a powerful being."

Maximilian stirred, and spoke when Zindon ended. "This fact is perhaps the only thing that prevents us from fully embracing his arrival. For if he really is Sursyana, then it is strange that he has ordered the deaths of so many people at the Katze Plains. It is clear that we need to be cautious about this."

Berenice nodded. "And to that end, we must begin our overtures to the Sorcerer-King—or Sursyana if the truth holds—and confirm his visage as the true God of Death finally returned to us."

Yvon said, "Alas, we cannot forsake the front with the Elf Kingdom, nor can we split our attention two ways. I therefore propose that we bring an end to the war with the Elf Kingdom to a decisive conclusion, that we may discover the truth of this matter for ourselves."

They all looked to him expectantly. He drew himself up and then said, "If Sursyana has indeed returned, then we expect to be arriving upon a new age. A golden age perhaps, for our nation and for all mankind. And because it is imperative that we ascertain the truth of the matter, let us no longer hesitate at the edge of the gates. Let us crush the unruly King and bring his country to heel, that we may celebrate the return of our God at the end with high spirits. What say you all?"

"Aye!" they said in chorus.

In the end, it was decided that the information of Sursyana's possible return would be restricted to only them and Quaisse. Quaisse would be appraised of their plans, just so the man wouldn't go and spread the word prematurely before everything was done. They had tentative plans to send him to Ainz Ooal Gown as a sort of liaison, which was good for getting him out of the country.

Matters were focused once more on the war with the Elf King, and this time the matter of bringing up Zesshi Zetsumei and the rest of the highest-ranking warriors of the Scriptures, including the Holocaust Scripture, was brought up once more. Held in reserve so as not to completely tip their hands, the Cardinals realized that they would need to bring her and the rest of them out just to hasten their victory.

At the mention of Zesshi, Zindon wondered if she might make a good offering for Sursyana, as a wife perhaps. Perhaps the former would even take a liking to the woman. And this would be exactly what she wanted in a mate, someone strong enough to defeat her. It would be an excellent opportunity to bring the blood of the Divine into the Theocracy once more, infusing it with fresh, undiluted source of power. Zesshi would of course be the first of many wives, in order to maximize the number of possible bloodlines that could be founded, before Sursyana disappeared once again (a distinct possibility). Letters would have to be sent beforehand, to try to gain an audience with the God. They would have to start right this instant.

Though that was perhaps something more for the future. Now, the time had come to decisively crush the Elf King. His days of tweaking their thumbs would finally come to an end.

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".

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