On the day the empire's master painter meticulously affixed the EeDeChi magic portraits to the Baharuth Empire's wanted board.
Early in the morning, in the Great Tomb of Nazarick, the great overlord Ainz Ooal Gown woke up as usual. Unaware that someone wanted to smash his skull, he was in a good mood. After taking a bubble bath with the help of a slime, he quickly finished dealing with the day's government affairs.
The reports presented by his subordinates were neither numerous nor complicated. The only notable item was the new weapons and armor tributed by the Dwarf Kingdom. Ever since the Great Tomb of Nazarick displayed its supreme power in the battle against the Quagoa, various distant nations and tribes of different races chose to submit.
Feeling bored, Ainz thought that since he had nothing to do, he might as well go observe the actions, manners, and demeanor of Emperor Jircniv of the Baharuth Empire.
Jircniv was a promising young emperor, ruthless and exceptionally strategic. To consolidate royal power, he launched a large-scale purge of the nobility upon his ascension, earning him the title of "Bloody Emperor."
Although he was resolute and cruel in power struggles, he was still a competent ruler. Jircniv introduced many reform measures, significantly boosting the economic and military development of the Baharuth Empire.
Before his isekai journey, Ainz was just a low-ranking employee in a company. Suddenly becoming the supreme overlord of the world and the Great Tomb of Nazarick made him feel a bit out of place. So, he often used invisibility magic to disguise himself and stand beside Emperor Jircniv, learning his every move to enhance his own ruler-like demeanor.
This tactic proved to be effective. After secretly studying for a while, Albedo once commented with stars in her eyes that Lord Ainz was increasingly exuding a kingly aura, and it didn't seem like flattery.
Having made up his mind, Ainz activated teleportation magic to reach the royal palace of the Baharuth Empire's capital. After casting High-tier invisibility magic, he entered the palace hall where Jircniv met with his ministers. For Ainz, who mastered tenth-tier magic and Super-Tier Magic, the highest sixth-tier defensive and security magic in the Baharuth Empire's palace were as dull as white chalk lines drawn by children on the ground.
It was still early. Ainz took a glance at the emperor's bedroom and saw that Jircniv was still asleep. Ainz wasn't in a hurry. He took out a chair from his storage space and sat in the palace hall to wait.
Moment after moment passed, and Ainz noticed that Jircniv still hadn't arrived at the hall to meet with his ministers.
"What's going on? Do emperors have days off?" Ainz wondered as he used High-tier magic to pass through the walls and entered Jircniv's bedroom.
Then he saw Emperor Jircniv press a young maid, dressed in white stockings, onto the bed and fucking her hard.
"Eh..." Ainz, cloaked in an invisibility and silence spell, observed the sex scene before him, "What a lively young man indeed."
Ainz looked at Jircniv's various sex positions, from missionary style to doggy style to cowgirl, and expressed admiration.
However, Ainz's heart didn't stir much. After his isekai journey, transforming from human to undead, his desires and interests in physical relations had gradually faded away.
Suddenly, he thought of Albedo, and a headache started to throb.
"Forget it, let's wait a bit longer." Ainz gave up the idea of using interruptive magic to disturb Jircniv and walked back to the hall where the emperor met with his ministers, continuing to sit and wait. The hall was empty, and without the emperor on his throne, the ministers and generals had not yet entered.
...
Ainz flipped through his small black notebook, reviewing the behavioral details and etiquettes he had recorded while observing Emperor Jircniv of the Baharuth Empire.
"When walking, keep your gaze straight ahead, but keep a bit of peripheral vision on your surroundings."
"When addressed by a subordinate from behind, turn your head slowly. Don't respond hastily as if the subordinate is assigning you a task..."
"Hmm?" Ainz looked up from his notebook to see a girl in loose black clothing, with a gray cloak, short black hair, and a giant sword on her back, casually walking through the grand and empty hall after pushing open the gilded palace doors.
Who is this girl? Ainz was puzzled. He had been intermittently observing Emperor Jircniv in the palace for nearly a month and had never seen this black-haired girl before.
Moreover, this was the main hall where the emperor met with his ministers. The only ones allowed to carry weapons here were the renowned Four Imperial Knights and a few trusted generals of Emperor Jircniv. Any other unidentified person carrying a weapon into this room would be instantly slain as an assassin.
Could she be lost? Ainz wasn't sure. But it didn't concern him. With the 8th Tier simple invisibility magic on him, it was impossible for anyone in the palace to notice him. This absent-minded girl could get sliced into mincemeat by the imperial knights, and it would have nothing to do with him.
The black-clothed girl with the giant sword walked up to Ainz. She glanced around the opulent hall, then focused her gaze on where Ainz was sitting, her black eyes full of curiosity.
"Hey, you in the clothes, skeleton dude, can I ask you something? Where's that emperor, what's-his-name, Jircniv?" the girl asked in Ainz's direction with a questioning tone.
"WHAT! YOU CAN SEE ME?" Ainz was shocked. He closed his black notebook and looked down to check his magical aura. The magic around him rippled slightly; the invisibility magic hadn't failed.
EeDeChi found the undead with a Justice Value of -500 speaking a bit strangely. A giant skeleton sitting on a chair with a string of "-500" above its head, how could anyone not see that? Justice Value -500, must be quite evil; could it be that its brain is broken too?
But she kept her good-natured demeanor. Along the way, she had fought through dozens of guards and knights to reach the palace center, but none had told her where the emperor was.
EeDeChi realized that violence wasn't solving her problem; it was better to communicate.
Ainz placed his hand on the armrest of the chair, discreetly activating a High-tier detection spell on the girl in front of him.
Tenth Tier Magic: Power Detection.
A series of texts and symbols appeared in Ainz's vision:
Race: Human
Level: ?
Strength: ?
Magic: ?
Innate Talent: ?
Defensive Magic: None
Potential Threat: None
Ainz immediately became cautious. It was the first time since his isekai journey that his detection magic returned so many "?" results. This girl either used tenth-tier or super-tier anti-detection magic, or she had an item with anti-detection magic equivalent to tenth-tier power!
Moreover, she saw through his 8th Tier invisibility magic with her bare eyes, indicating that her magical power was quite formidable, definitely above 8th Tier!
Ainz realized he had inadvertently encountered a powerful and mysterious individual. After calming his excitement and nerves, he noticed that the girl did not seem hostile, so he decided not to act for now.
"What do you need Emperor Jircniv for?" Ainz regained his composure and calm. He couldn't act rashly without enough information.
"I need to teach him a thing or two about governing." EeDeChi replied nonchalantly.
Jircniv was someone you could just find at will? He was the emperor, the supreme ruler of the Baharuth Empire, known as the "Bloody Emperor"! Ainz found it absurd and wondered what was going on in this serious-looking girl's mind.
However, Ainz himself had been freely entering the palace, peeping—no, observing and learning Jircniv's etiquette and behavior for a long time. He didn't seem qualified to criticize her.
"Who are you?" EeDeChi asked Ainz Ooal Gown. Suddenly, she reached out and snatched the black notebook from Ainz's hand, flipping through it.
"Hey! You can't just take someone else's stuff!" Ainz was startled. He hadn't been prepared for her sudden action.
"Just taking a look, not stealing it." EeDeChi read a few pages and found that it detailed the emperor's behaviors and actions, recorded very meticulously.
"What are you doing with this?" EeDeChi handed the black notebook back to Ainz Ooal Gown and asked.
"Uh..." Ainz took back the notebook, deciding not to reveal too much about himself before understanding her background, "I'm responsible for recording the emperor's etiquette and actions, to correct his behavior and make him more kingly."
"Is that so?" EeDeChi seemed skeptical. "Do you know where the emperor is?"
Suddenly, a message arrived from the Great Tomb of Nazarick. A red magic scroll appeared in Ainz's hand, and he transferred the message to display it in his vision.
In his view, Sebas, in his formal attire, looked at Ainz with an embarrassed expression. He bowed deeply, his neatly trimmed gray-white beard slightly trembling: "Honorable Supreme Overlord, Shalltear and Albedo are arguing over the ownership of your bathrobe. They're about to start fighting. I hope you can come and mediate."
"Or perhaps you could take another bath?" Sebas cautiously suggested.
Closing the message and restoring his vision, Ainz felt a headache coming on.
"Hey? Where's the emperor? Don't just stand there silently," the black-haired girl asked with a hint of impatience.
"Wait here. He'll sit there soon," Ainz pointed to an exquisitely designed, jewel-encrusted throne deep in the hall.
I'll investigate this girl later, Ainz thought, as he activated teleportation magic and left the capital of the Baharuth Empire.
"What? He's gone!" EeDeChi watched as the undead figure, along with the chair he was sitting on, vanished from the hall in an instant, leaving her astonished.