Volume 1 Chapter 7
The restaurant had a lively atmosphere to it, and although it wasn't fully packed with guests, the nature of the place made it look as if it were full of people. The yellow light that filled the restaurant was something that brought nostalgia to any Japanese person of the modern age. The lanterns that hung from the ceiling helped to present a festive feel to the location.
The steam coming from the open kitchen enticed anyone who smelled it to sit down and enjoy the delicacies it provided. Although it mainly served as a drinking establishment, the food it provided had always been one of its strong points; one didn't even need to taste the food to tell that, as the smell was proof enough.
The location was by no means a high-end establishment. However, it wasn't bad either; it had decent revenue and a good reputation in the neighborhood, as it was one of the most established Izakaya's within the capital. Although not as big or extravagant as many of the famous establishments within the capital, the old-timey design of the building had given it a loyal customer base of those who appreciated its atmosphere.
It was separated into two floors; the first floor, where most of the customers enjoyed their food and drinks, was the best location for people who didn't mind the busy and somewhat loud atmosphere it presented. The second floor was reserved for individuals who appreciated a much calmer atmosphere.
Ainz, who had been sitting at one of the tables for almost an hour now, had enough time to appreciate the atmosphere on the first floor, but now that he had taken it all in, he couldn't help but find it strange that no one had approached him to take his order yet.
'To be honest, I would much rather find a private room here to see if I'm even capable of eating food, and preferably not horrify anyone around me.'
Although it would be somewhat comical to see a giant skeleton attempting to eat food, Ainz was sure that the humor of the scene would be lost on the patrons of the restaurant.
'But really, why isn't anyone coming to take my order yet? It's been over an hour; anyone else would have walked away by now.'
He thought of calling someone over, as they didn't seem too busy with the small number of customers.
Besides, he already appreciated the decor of the restaurant, and he didn't find anything to occupy his time with.
'Well, I could plan my next move after this.'
Ainz had already achieved everything he had set out to do within the capital; there is nothing left for him to do here. The only reason he came to this restaurant was to experiment to see if he could eat food with his new body.
This experiment would change many of his plans going forward. If he is capable of eating food, then the next question would be if he could gain any buffs from the food in his inventory. If the answer to that question is yes, then he would have gained a great boost to his power.
Ainz didn't have high hopes for that experiment, as most of his abilities were influenced by the lore of Yggdrasil. The downsides of him being an undead should still be present all the same.
In other words, he wouldn't be able to gain any buffs from food like the humanoid races.
Ainz wouldn't have lost anything if that experiment didn't work, but it was worth conducting.
'Well, that's one experiment. Is there anything else I should try after this?'
He had already experimented with the help of Raven back at the destroyed camp; he instructed her to attack him with both magic and physical attacks. The conclusion was that his {High Tier Physical Immunity} and {High Tier Magical Immunity} are still in effect.
He wasn't sure how his {High Tier Magical Immunity} would react to a foreign magic system, but it still functioned even with that factor in play.
There were still a lot of spells and abilities he needed to experiment with to see if there was any alteration in the use of the spells or the effects they had on the world around him.
However, there were certain abilities that he was excited to try out soon, and they were not abilities he had gained in Yggdrasil.
It was Aura, the new power source he gained in this world; he had a basic idea of how it functioned but nothing substantial.
The memories he had extracted from Raven only presented him with surface-level knowledge of this foreign power.
It made sense in a way.
When someone is used to the existence of power like that as an everyday, common thing, they won't have their mind filled with the minute details of its functions.
An example of that would be electricity. Almost all humans on Earth have a basic understanding of what electricity is, how it functions, and how it is generated. However, if a creature that has no background information or knowledge on electricity was presented with the common terms used by an everyday man who just happened to speak about the subject, they would only be left more confused about it.
They would want to know what voltage means, what their electrons are, how a transmission grid works, and how a power station can generate power and transfer it to multiple locations at once.
This is the feeling that Ainz is currently dealing with. He had the basic information about how Aura functions; he can even use it to some extent. However, he is by no means proficient at controlling it. To him, it feels like a new appendage that he just found out he has and has no experience with controlling.
'I need to find a way to get more proficient at controlling my aura, or, more preferably, find someone that can teach me how to professionally use it. Should I have kept that woman with me and had her teach me how to use it? What was her name? Ah, yes, Raven. No, that wouldn't have worked. I needed to be out of the picture so no one would know of my theft of the relic and only know of my attack on the camp, at least as much as I needed them to know. Now that I think about it, was leaving it in the vault the correct move? It was risky, but if it worked, it would divert attention away from me.'
Another thing Ainz was interested in was his semblance.
'I hoped that it would be unlocked with my aura, but I guess that was too much to ask for.'
From what he had gathered out of the memoirs of Raven and that bandit he killed, semblances were usually unlocked after an Aura user had reached a certain level of proficiency in Aura. Of course, in some cases, the process can be achieved by accident or with the influence of certain stimuli.
The reason why Ainz was hoping his semblance would be unlocked with his aura was because of the precedent of cases where semblances were unlocked with the user's aura.
'I guess I'm not that lucky. Well, it's not a huge loss; I can still unlock it after increasing my mastery over Aura; it's just that something feels off, like I'm overlooking something important.
After pondering it for a while, a certain event came to his mind.
'There was something I overlooked! At that moment, when I leveled up, my understanding of my powers had changed.'
When Ainz had unlocked his aura, he came to the understanding that he had leveled up and had a fundamental grasp over his levels, classes, and his EXP bar.
He was sure that it wasn't something natural, as it only occurred after he gained his aura. It wasn't information like it was in the game but more like a feeling; it was similar to how he used his spells and abilities.
'Could that be my semblance? No, that doesn't sound right. Something feels off about it. I need to experiment more with Aura and that new understanding I have.'
Deciding to leave this issue to future Ainz, present Ainz sighed.
'So much to do in the future; at the very least, my life in this world won't be monotonous.'
Coming back to his surroundings, Ainz realized that no one had come to take his order yet.
'Okay, this is just too much! Even if they were being rude, this is too much.'
The restaurant wasn't that busy; he could see some of the waiters standing next to each other talking while shining some glasses with towels.
They were the picture of a waiter being free to take a customer's order, and yet, for some reason, no one approached him.
'There had to be a reason they were avoiding me; it's like they didn't even realize I'm here yet, as if I'm invisible.'
It was then that it clicked in his mind.
'Not invisible but unnoticeable. Yes, the cloak!'
Everything made sense now, and Ainz felt stupid for not realizing it sooner.
'It's about time to change, but I can't do it here; I'll have to do so in a secured location, or at the very least away from eyes.'
Ainz called out to one of the waiters, who was surprised by his call. Although the cloak made his presence unnoticed by untrained eyes, if he takes the initiative to interact with someone, they will notice him.
The waitress came hurriedly to him and spoke in an apologetic tone.
"I'm sorry, sir! We didn't come to take your order any sooner; we hope that didn't inconvenience you."
Ainz was surprised by her reaction.
'Interesting, so to a certain extent, she does know I was here and that she didn't notice me. That means my presence, to a certain extent, is present within the minds of those around me and is only noticed when I call someone out or want to be noticed, just like back at the gate, the guards only noticed me because I wanted to be noticed.'
One would think it would have been more advantageous for Ainz to express offense at the delay, but he couldn't bring himself to do so. In the end, it was his fault that it took this long for them to notice him, and he wasn't shameless enough to take advantage of this restaurant.
Part of this was his past as a salaryman; he was used to dealing with unreasonable customers, so he could understand the feeling of having to deal with difficult situations at work, especially when you think you've done everything you were supposed to do.
'Besides, pretending to be generous and letting it go would make them much more likely to receive better service out of gratitude.'
Ainz was basing that assumption on his experience; if a client were to overlook a perceived mistake by Suzuki Satoru, his favorability meter (as his friend Peroronino called it.) would have maxed out.
"No need to worry; I haven't been waiting for long."
The waitress smiled and relaxed at his comment, regaining her composure.
"Well, then, sir, may I take your order?"
"Yes, is it possible to reserve a private room for me? I would appreciate a quieter atmosphere."
Ainz saw a troubled expression appear on the girl's face after hearing his request. He didn't have to wonder about the reason, as she told him immediately.
"I'm sorry, sir, but the single private rooms are all occupied; we only have the group-sized private rooms."
Ainz thought about the answer for a bit.
'A group private room? Does that mean it is only reserved for groups? I don't see what the problem is.'
"That won't be a problem; I'm expecting my associates to come to the restaurant. However, I'm not sure they would be able to attend, so there is a possibility I would be using it alone. Would that be possible?"
The waitress seemed to understand something and indicated that there wouldn't be any issues with his request.
"I understand, sir; there won't be a problem. Just to make sure, under what name should I put the reservation?"
"Put it under 'Ainz Ooal Gown'."
If the girl found his name strange, she didn't show it. She took out her scroll and checked the available group rooms.
"I see, we have a 4-person room available. Would that be okay with you, Sir Gown? Or would you need a bigger room?"
He didn't have to think about his answer for long, so he stood up and answered her.
"No, that would be perfect; as a matter of fact, I'm expecting no more than three people to show up. Can you lead me to the room?"
"Of course, sir, right this way."
Ainz, glad the situation was finally over, moved to the room, looking forward to the food.
POV Change
In a dark room lightened with crimson light from the red sky of a hellish world outside and velvet rays from the mysterious crystals all around the room, erected in the middle of the room is a dark crystal table, surrounded by six wooden chairs and one crystal chair. Four of the seats were occupied, and yet no sound could be heard.
One seat was occupied by a woman in her early twenties, with black hair, amber-colored eyes, a red dress, and crystal-like heels. Outwardly, she didn't look nervous, but an observant individual would notice how her hands were folding and unfolding under the table. She was nervous, and the silence didn't help.
Next to her was a younger girl with a darker skin tone, green hair, and red eyes. She was less successful in hiding her outward expression of nervousness.
She kept looking back and forth between the girl next to her and the other person sitting across from them. However, she tried her best to avoid the gaze of the women sitting at the head of the crystal table.
The last statement was the antithesis of the man sitting across from them. His complete and utter attention from the moment the meeting started was solely on the woman sitting at the head of the table. To describe the appearance of the man, one word would come to the mind of the observer: 'Unsettling'.
An insane smile dominated his features; his attire and mannerism are all but tidy and respectful, yet at the same time, it didn't present an observer with the impression of disrespect. On the contrary, his mannerisms and gaze towards his subject of attention could only leave the observer with the impression of a believer gazing upon the divine form of their subject of worship.
The final person sitting on the table was the one at the head of the table. It was a woman with bleached white skin, dark eyes with crimson veins crossing from them, and a dark dress. No one looking at her would consider her human or a faunus; she was something else. The closest thing one would find appropriate to describe her would be a Grimm, a humanoid-looking one.
She is Salem, the queen of the Grimm, the pale witch, and the monarch of the dark continuant.
And right now, she was annoyed. That is not to say she is usually in a bright mood, but at the moment she is dealing with a situation that forced her to take quick and desperate measures. She avoids contacting her spies throughout the kingdoms for fear of their connections being discovered, but not long ago she was forced to make contact with most of her spies due to the incident that occurred early today.
'An incident in which the world fell into darkness for a moment before everything went back to normal. No one knew what had caused it so far; Watts is currently investigating it on his own, so I could get some answers from that side, but was that the correct move to take?'
She had her reasons to doubt such a move; if the cause of the incident was related to Ozma, then this could be a trap to lure out her agents, but the fact that Lionheart did not receive any information regarding such an operation makes that possibility slim.
'There have not been any information leaks from my side nor any suspicious moves, so I doubt Ozma realized Lionheart's treachery. So, this could be a simple, unrelated phenomenon, maybe a celestial phenomenon; we do not really know much about those, but Watts disagreed with that line of thinking. I will have to see what he finds out before making any big moves.'
And that is why she had gathered most of her agents. She did not start immediately because she wanted to let the silence put them on edge—well, most of them, at least. It was important to set the atmosphere for a meeting with her so they would not get complacent in her presence.
"Well, I believe it is time to proceed with today's agendas. I take it no one missed the darkness phenomenon that had occurred this morning, correct?"
Seeing everyone nodding around her, she continued.
"Do any of you have a theory about what could have caused it?"
A look around the table made it clear that no one had any useful information. Salme knew that but decided to ask this question regardless, in the off chance that someone with a different perspective would share something useful.
Alas, it seems that she was hoping for too much, as all the suggestions that they have put forward were things that she already dismissed.
"It could be a move by the huntsmen academies to force us to make a move, maybe?"
The young woman with the amber eyes suggested in a somewhat confidant voice, but her attempt to not show her nervousness was doomed to failure, as Salem could tell that she was on edge from her presence.
It is not that Salem liked to scare her subordinates, but a certain level of fear is needed to maintain her authority; she would not go out of her way to comfort them if they were to find her terrifying. It would be counterproductive in such situations. In a way, it is beneficial for Salem, as she believes that it is better to be feared than to be loved.
Regardless. It would be best to answer her subordinate's question if she wants the meeting to move forward.
"I had thought of that possibility, but so far I could not see any merit to that move. As far as we know, the phenomenon did not have any effect other than blinding the world for a brief period of time. To go so far just to force us to make a move would just be counterproductive, as the amount of resources needed to cause such a phenomenon would be astronomical."
The young woman with the amber eyes did not say anything after that. However, emboldened by the interaction between the two, the red-eyed girl gives her suggestion.
"W-What if it's just a natural phenomenon unknown to us?"
It was a logical idea. Remanent as a whole was not that knowledgeable about the intrigues of the wide universe; even Salem, who had lived on Remanent for thousands of years, did not understand the secrets of the wider cosmos more than the current modern educated individual, simply because she did not find any interest or reason to study such a subject.
'This is the most likely cause; I am of the same opinion, but it does not feel right; it sounds like an excuse to not dive deeper into the subject; one might as well say they do not know and that it is a mysterious natural phenomenon that science could not explain yet.'
"Watts does not share the same view on the matter, but it is more his need to be sure about the conclusion than any real reason to dismiss it. So, until we find new information on the phenomenon, this will be the explanation we will hold. Anymore suggestions?"
Truthfully, Salem did not hold any expectations from the only person to not speak so far. Although the mad man is loyal beyond a doubt to her, mental exercises were not his forte; to be more exact, logical mental exercises were not his forte.
And her notions were proved correct after the mad man opened his mouth.
"My queen I've been thinking of this since you've mentioned it, but what if the darkness wasn't an act in itself but the effect of something bigger?"
For a moment, Salem took what he said seriously; she even wondered how he came to that conclusion but dismissed it immediately.
From a certain preceptive perspective, it is something to take into consideration and is an interesting way to view the matter, but it falls apart immediately after one takes into account one factor.
"That would not be possible; the phenomenon being a side effect of a much larger cause would indicate that something out there had managed to indirectly cast the world into darkness, even if it only lasted a few moments; nothing on Remanent is that powerful."
The mad man seemed to take her words as the truth but still seemed to have something to inquire about.
Noticing that, Salem gave him a sign to ask his question.
"My queen, what about the Disaster-Class Grimm you control? I'm sure one of them could do something like that."
Salem Barley stopped a smile from forming on her lips; she did not like it when certain emotions surfaced on her outside appearance.
The belief that she is capable of controlling the strongest Grimm on Remanent was only known within her inner circle; even Ozma is unaware of that facet of her abilities.
However, that is not the complete truth.
Salem could indeed control Disaster-Class Grimm, but not all of them.
Had she been able to do so, she would have won this war long ago.
By her level of control, the Disaster-Class Grimm are separated into three categories.
The first are those she could control; the second are those she could influence; and the last are those she could not influence in any way.
Another thing to consider is the fact that she could only control or influence one at a time, which makes any operation involving them a complicated process.
'Besides, they are not all as powerful as some would think.'
In order to be categorized as a disaster-class grimm, a grimm must have the capacity to destroy a kingdom, and they do not have to be insanely powerful to do so, even though some of them are indeed that powerful. Most of the disaster classes are considered a threat by the nature of their abilities. For example, the Banshee was not a physically powerful grimm; its power came from its ability and the location of its nest. If an entire army were to be hit with her voice, they would be doomed; even Atlas' military would not be any different.
However, the Banshee was not durable in comparison to other grimm on her level; it was even less durable than weaker grimm. A couple of shots of high-caliber rounds would do the job.
The Banshee is one of the disaster classes that Salem could control. The problem that comes with using it is the limited maneuverability and durability of the grimm.
An example of the second category would be the Bukavac. In the past, Salem managed to influence it to kill Summer Rose by directing the hatred the Disaster-Class Grimm held for the silver-eyed welders.
'Unfortunately, I will not be able to use it anymore; the injury it sustained back then made it uncooperative. It was a shame it was the best unit I had for assassination; perhaps if a new silver-eyed warrior were to appear, I could convince it to kill them.'
The Bukavac was a grimm most suited for assassinating and ambushing powerful targets; its great speed and powerful attacks made it extremely deadly for an unprepared opponent. And unlike the Banshee, it was not weak when it came to defense. Although not its strong point, it would not die even if it were bombarded with heavy artillery—that is, if anything managed to catch its blinding speed. It truly was one of the best weapons she had.
As for the last category,.
Well, it was not a big one; as a matter of fact, only two grimm are categorized within it.
Truth be told, the last two could be put in a category of their own, separate from the other disaster classes, as each was a calamity on its own. Let alone the destruction of a single kingdom, one of those two would cause the end of the world.
'If only I could influence one of them, alas, they not only refuse to leave their nests; they have also developed self-awareness and a certain level of intelligence, so tricking them is unwise.'
Both of them left a dark mark on Salem's pride, as they were beyond her control and possessed a terrifying level of power. She does not know why they refuse to leave their nests, nor why they do not have the same maddening hatred towards humanity.
'Thankfully, no one knows of their existence other than me; otherwise, who knows how the world and even my servants would react to their existence? The question is, could they have caused that phenomenon? that I do not know, it could be possible, but for now, it would be for the best to keep that information for myself.'
Having come to that conclusion, Salem addressed her servant.
"It was not one of them."
He took her words as the unquestionable truth and did not ask anything further.
Salem decided to discuss a different subject, as this line of inquiry had reached a dead end. She was not too concerned about the phenomenon, as she believed they would eventually find an answer to its root cause.
And with that, their meeting continued.
POV
Going down the secret elevator, Ozpin looked for the vault within the dark depths. With the blue artificial light illuminating the cave pedestal beneath the elevator, no light coming from the end of the pedestal conformed to Ozpin's assumptions.
The relic of knowledge is gone.
Ozpin had already reached that conclusion before he got here, but Glynda still held some hope that he would be mistaken.
Even after they had gotten to the academy and saw the entrance to the elevator room suspiciously unguarded, Glynda still held to the possibility of a rational explanation for the suspicious circumstances.
However, now she could not deny the truth any further.
The relic is gone; no attack had been carried out on Haven, and from the conversations they had managed to eavesdrop on while sneaking into the academy, Leo was the one who had ordered the entrance to be left unguarded for the rest of the day.
She could not deny it any longer. Leo had betrayed them.
Ozpin had an idea of what Glynda was going through right now; throughout his many lives, he had been through similar experiences, but he had the advantage of a long-life experience of losses to numb him to the feeling of having a friend betray him. He always had his mission to fall back on, to remind him that all the tragedies and losses had a meaning in the end.
Glynda did not enjoy such a 'luxury', well, not to the same extent; her belief in their mission helped her overcome many things in the past, and he was sure it would pull through in the end, but it would take time, and right now they were pressed on time.
So, in order to distract her from her line of thinking, Ozpin decided to open up a new line of conversation. Part of him knew that Glynda did not need someone to help her digest Leo's butyral, but he still did so.
He smiled in an awkward manner before hiding it as he addressed his companion.
"I have to say it had been a long time since I had to sneak into a building; thankfully, the cover of the night helped us immensely. Do you not think so?"
Glynda looked at him with an unamused look.
"The guards were Faunus, professor. The darkness would not have meant much for them."
Ozpin looked away, feigning ignorance.
"Is that so? to think I missed that detail. Thankfully, you had noticed it; is that why you used your semblance to distract them?"
Glynda looked to be aware of his attempts to distract her.
"Professor, although I appreciate the sentiment, I am more than capable of handling this mission without the need for any uplifting moral support."
Ozpin did not let that response dissuade him.
'Oddly enough, it would seem that I am the one who needs the distraction this time, Glynda.'
With that fact on his mind, he kept the conversation going; he had a reason for doing so—something that has been on his mind since the revaluation of Leo's betrayal—and right now would be a perfect time to let Glynda know of it.
"I will not deny my attempt to do just that. However, I hope you will understand why I would find it necessary to do so. I hold no doubt of your caliber, Glynda, but the thought process you have right now could be devastating for us going forward."
Glynda stared at him closely, attempting to decipher what he meant, but he did not let her wander for long as he continued.
"I have been wondering about the circumstances that led Leo to betray us from the moment I came to know of them. You see, you and I know his character well, or at least we thought we did, and yet today's revelation came to us as unexpected as news could be, to the point that we were quite willing to dismiss it as false without much thought, and the only reason that we are here now was due to the interference of a third party."
He paused for a moment to indicate the importance of his next words.
"That is why, going forward, I need to be more mindful of those within our circle, from the minute details of their daily lives to the phycological impact each kingdom-changing decision leaves them with. All in order to avoid another case like Leo's."
Glynda looked surprised by his words, and he understood why such a declaration was basically hinting at the possibility of another betrayal having already happened or would happen in the future.
"Professor, that is just too extreme! Even if Leo had sided with the queen, that does not mean that everyone else is under suspicion."
"You are right."
He agreed without any objection.
"However, it would be for the best to prepare for the worst and hope for the best, as we cannot afford another incident like this in the future."
Glynda did not answer immediately but thought about what he said. She did not fully agree with his words, but she could not come up with a logical refute to his suggestion. They truly could not afford another betrayal.
Having come up with nothing to say to him, she addressed the problem from a different angle.
"If we were to attempt to spy on every move everyone in the circle makes, then when they find out about us doing so, it would create distrust between everyone. I do not think that is the best course of action."
"That is why we will make sure they never find out that they were being watched, at least not before they are ready to know."
"What do you mean, professor?"
Ozpin smiled at that and told of his plan.
"What I plan to do is not send spies to monitor every move everyone in the circle makes but to look out for certain indicators that could shed some doubt on the allegiance of the individual. After investigating the matter and concluding if the person is trustworthy or not, we would inform them of Leo's betrayal."
Glynda seemed to think about it for a moment before she got the hidden meaning of the plot and conformed to him.
"After we are sure they could be trusted, informing them of Leo's betrayal would have them doubt the others in the circle with the exaptation of us, which would lead them to suggest certain measures to test everyone's allegiances!"
Ozpin smiled at his subordinate's quick and excellent mental faculties.
"Indeed, and eventually, they would correctly assume that we had tested them as well, but they would not respond too negatively about it as they had come to the same conclusion when giving the information we currently have."
Glynda seemed to see the plan in a much brighter light after that conclusion, but there was still something she was curious about.
"But it would take a good reason to place anyone within the vicinity of the inner circle to gather the information; what would be our excuse?"
Ozpin had already thought of that.
"Will luckily for us, an incident had occurred not that long ago that is still left without an explanation, and it just happened that I, out of worry about said incident and to investigate it, had sent people to do just that with the support of those I trust within the circle."
Glynda understood Ozpin's plan, and she had to admit that using the unexplained phenomenon was a clever move, as no one would suspect that those seemingly trying to explain it would actually have another agenda to carry out; after all, they were sent by Ozpin, and unless someone had a reason to hide something from him, they would not be on guard against those sent by him. In a way, Ozpin would gain valuable information on those within the circle, regardless of whether they were hiding something from those he sent or not.
Just as she had come to that conclusion, the elevator had reached its distention.
However, both of them were surprised by the sight that met them.
It was not the missing vault, as they had noticed it missing from afar. No, what surprised them was the dead woman's body lying on the ground in front of the missing vault.
She wore a brown outfit, had short brown hair and tan-colored skin, and had ice-blue eyes. The expression she had was one of anger; apparently, the last moments of her life were not peaceful.
Ozpin was the first to react to the situation; he approached the body to examine it, and the cause of death was apparent: a noticeable hole through the chest cavity, where the heart should be.
'Judging by the smell and the fact that they burned the flesh around the wound, she was attacked by some sort of fire projectile, and by the shape of the wound, it must have resembled an arrow.'
He looked around the body for any signs of combat having taken place there, but he was met with no such results.
'No signs that a fight occurred here. So, she did not have time to fight back; in other words, she was ambushed and killed immediately.'
That left three questions unanswered.
'Just who is this young woman? What was she doing here? And who killed her?'
He did not have to think about that for long, as the answer came to him after a moment.
"Venral, a member of the Branwen tribe and the right hand of Raven Branwen."
Glynda, who had already taken out her scroll and discovered the identity of the dead young woman, came closer to inspect the body, hoping to find any clue to the two questions left unanswered. So, she addressed Ozpin in hopes of gaining any information he might have uncovered.
"What would a member of the Branwen tribe be doing here of all places, and who had killed her?"
Ozpin was not sure what the presence of the dead young woman meant, but he could answer one thing.
"If our assumptions so far were correct, then the only ones who had come here were agents of the queen, so it is highly likely they were the ones who killed her. As to why that is, I am not fully sure about it just yet."
Glynda She looked closer at the body and then at the location of the missing vault before a metaphorical light bulb appeared over her head.
"Professor! What if she was the maiden?"
Ozpin was momentarily surprised by the suggestion before thinking deeply about it and finding the assumption quite plausible.
"Indeed. It would make a great deal of sense for that to be the case. If we were to assume that the deceased young woman was the maiden, then after opening the vault she would no longer be useful to Salem's agents, and then in hopes of gaining the maiden's power, they killed her, and no doubt had a female member of their team make eye contact with her in her last moments to facilitate the transfer, which would explain the expression on her face."
The theory seemed to make more sense the more they thought about it.
"So, Raven Branwen had the maiden under her control all that time; maybe that is why Ainz Ooal Gown attacked their camp to secure the maiden and foil Salem's attempt at obtaining the relic."
Glynda supplied her own thoughts on the matter, and Ozpin was inclined to agree with her.
Silence continued within the cavern as the two were engrossed in their mental exercises.
But before long, Glynda broke the silence.
"Well, that is a good framework for us to work from, and unless new information is presented that would change our line of thinking, I think it is safe to assume we are right."
Ozpin nodded to that and continued.
"Now that leaves only one thing left for us to do."
Glynda gave the corpse another look before addressing her companion.
"That would be meeting Ainz Ooal Gown, correct?"
"Indeed, by now Qrow must have gathered some information on him; it is about time for us to get to meet our new accountant."
"What about the body, professor? I know taking it would be foolish, but leaving her like this is just..."
Glynda did not finish your sentence; the meaning was conveyed to Ozpin.
He too did not think leaving the body here would be appropriate; unfortunately for them, they had no other choice, and Glynda understood that but hoped that there would at least be something they could do.
From a logical perspective, she should not have felt any pity for a dead bandit. However, perhaps it was the young age of the dead woman that forced Glynda to show some sympathy for her.
It was quite a natural and humane reaction.
"I am afraid there is nothing we can do for her right now but promise to get whoever killed her to justice; they are after all agents of Salem. Eventually, we will have to face them."
After a moment of silence, he continued.
"Now, it is about time for us to leave. We would not want to leave the elevator too late and get caught red-handed, now would we? Before we go, Glynda, could you take multiple pictures of the body and the location of the missing vault door? They could come in handy in the future."
Nodding to his request, she proceeded to take multiple photos of the body and the surroundings. Looking aside from the scene, Ozpin moved to the elevator, followed shortly by Glynda, who had finished her task.
After the headmaster and the professor got on the elevator, they left the cavern. A shadowy figure emerged from the darkness.
POV Change
Strolling through the busy streets of Mistral, a cape-wearing man took a sip from a flask before hiding back, but the action wasn't missed by the people walking the streets, not that either of the parties cared for it. Enjoying a drink at this hour wasn't unreasonable.
What was unreasonable, in the man's opinion, was the circumstance he found himself in.
'Just where did he go? It's like he just disappeared after he entered the city.'
Qrow took a look back at the tea shop he had just left. The place was a good location for gathering information and meeting his contacts, but unfortunately, no one had heard anything about Ainz Ooal Gown.
'That's the fourth one already; other than the records of him entering the capital, I have nothing to work with. Just how can someone dressed like that be missed? The guards didn't even mention anything about his weird clothing when he passed through. Did he change before he got here? Did he bribe the guards? No, they didn't seem to be the type.'
Qrow didn't interact with the guards, but from what he gathered from spying on them, they did their jobs without slaking or extorting anyone; it wasn't surprising. The gate guards were the first thing anyone entering the capital would see, so the requirements for the job were higher than one would expect from normal city guards.
'Maybe I should have talked to one of them. No, that might have alerted Leo. Oz was clear on not wanting to attract attention.'
One would think that him walking the streets without a disguise would have blown his cover by now. However, Qrow was accustomed to hiding in plain sight. By disguising himself with a cloak or other such things, he would have been more suspicious to anyone who spots him, but by simply wearing his usual clothing, no one would bat an eye.
Although his clothes are somewhat peculiar, when one takes into consideration the standards of Mistral and Huntsman, one would realize that he wasn't wearing anything that would make someone give him a second glance.
'But honestly, how come no one heard anything about that guy? By the way he was dressed, he was bound to attract attention like a Grimm in a dust shop. The fact that none of my informants know anything about him means he must not have operated within Mistral and only came here recently, which supports Oz's theory on him coming here to interfere with whatever is going on.'
Feeling a headache form, he took another sip of his drink, only to realize that the flask was empty.
"Just my luck."
Looking around him, and to his surprise, Qrow found a restaurant he was familiar with; it wasn't a fancy place, but it served good food and better drinks.
'Well, I stand corrected; maybe my semblance didn't interfere this time.'
Laughing a bit at his joke, he decided to wait for the other two while drinking.
'Who knows, maybe someone in the restaurant had seen that Ainz guy? It's not like I'm making any progress doing anything else.'
Just as he was planning to go there, his scroll rang, and he took the call.
"Hey, anything on your end?"
(You could say that we found more than we hoped to. What about our new friend? Did you find him?)
"Unfortunately. No, the guards had records of him entering the city but nothing else."
(Unfortunate indeed.)
"So, what now?"
(Since we could not make contact with him, we will just let it go.)
"Just like that?"
(From what we gathered about him, Ainz Ooal Gown seems to be someone who only moves after meticulously planning his actions; from that, we could conclude that he would only meet us when he wanted to.)
"You talk like you know him well enough, even though you never met the guy."
(Part of conducting such meetings is to meticulously build the character of the person you are supposed to meet before the meeting takes place and change that character while the meeting is ongoing to fully understand that person. Although I have not met him yet, from what I could gather, it would be safe to assume that he is someone who can predict the actions of others to an unbelievable degree. Someone of that caliber would be holding most of the cards and would only show himself when he needed to.)
"Alright then, I'll take your word for it. So now what should we do?"
(For now, we will regroup to discuss our findings. Where are you now?)
"Well, I'm heading to a nearby restaurant. It's a good place; it has good food and booze."
Qrow could've sworn he heard someone groaning on the other side, and he could have guessed who did it.
(I see. Then send me the location and reserve a private room for us. We will see you there.)
"Yeah, I'll be waiting."
After finishing the call, Qrow headed for the restaurant and saw the busy atmosphere within it.
It didn't take long for one of the waiters to spot him and approach him.
"Hello there, sir, how may I help you today?"
"Hey there, I'm looking for a reservation for a private room. We are a group of three people. think you could help me?"
The waitress seems to hesitate a bit after hearing his request.
"A group of three, huh?... Excuse me for asking, but are you expecting to meet someone here?"
Qrow was about to deny that but stopped himself. The conversation he had with Ozpin just then came to his mind.
'He'll only meet us when he wants to... No, no, you're overthinking it, Qrow, no matter how smart that guy is, there's no way he could have planned this whole thing. How would he even know you would end up at this restaurant? You're just overthinking it, but just to make sure.'
"By any chance, is that person's name Ainz Ooal Gown?"
The waitress smiled at his answer.
"Oh! So, I was right. Sorry about that. Sir Gown has been waiting for you. He wasn't sure you would all make it, so I wasn't sure. Will the other two be arriving later?"
Qrow answered that automatically.
"They'll be here in a couple of minutes. You can tell him we arrived once they get here."
"I see. Is there anything else, sir?"
"No, that's all."
Qrow didn't see the waitress walking off or commenting on the short length of her skirt; his mind was occupied with what just happened. He felt like he was dancing on the palm of a mastermind, as if every move he had taken so far was calculated by someone else, as if he were nothing more than a puppet moving by the strings of the puppeteer.
That image fit him well in the next moments as he moved his hands in a mechanical manner and took his scroll out.
(Qrow? What's the matter? Did something happen?
"Oz, he's ready to meet us."
There was silence on the other end before Ozpin replied to him.
(….We will be there.)
As he ended the call, one thought was left on Qrow's mind.
'Now I really need that drink!'
AN: Well, did you miss me? I hope so, sorry for the delay a lot has happened, and no matter how many times I rewrote the chapter I could never be satisfied with it. I wanted the interactions between the characters to be much more natural, and believable. However, no matter what I did I couldn't get it right.
Am I overthinking it? Let me know in the reviews.
Either way, I'm planning to rewrite it in the future once I get better at writing interactions and describing settings.
By the way, Chaosredshift pointed out a discrepancy in the first chapter, it was Ainz calming that the death knight came from his semblance, when he should have not known what that was. I really missed up on that thank you for pointing it out.
I noticed it later on and put a small section in a later chapter addressing that, but I guess it would be better to edit that part.
Anyway, let me know what you guys think.
Finally. Thank you for your continued support and feedback, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Until next time.
Take care.