Chapter 44: Rulers in Dismay

"How very stressful."

Ainz sat inside his office, gazing through the mirror at the destruction caused by the Nautiloids. The empire's capital lay in ruins by his command. Now would be the best time to conquer it, yet he had other plans.

He shifted the mirror's view to E-Rantel, smoke rising as a similar scenery appeared, albeit less devastated than in the empire. His undead had made quick work of the Brain Eater underlings that infested the streets.

The economy of E-Rantel had taken a hit, but it was a calculated loss. After all, if only his city remained untouched amidst the chaos, suspicions would arise. This was an international invasion by alien beings; it would be weird for them to leave his city alone.

Using the Brain Eaters as a scapegoat had been a clever ruse to hide Nazarick's involvement. Demiurge first thought of creating a false persona and acting as the main villain, but Ainz was against it. He would rather use the Evil Lords as his generals rather than set them up against him. If he did, he would not be able to publicly use them for his purposes.

"He attacked the empire's capital, E-Rantel, and the Holy Roble Kingdom's northern cities..." Ainz pondered over Demiurge's plan. While he didn't know every detail of the Arch-Devil's schemes, he was aware of one thing: Demiurge had set his sights on the Holy Kingdom, a country Ainz hadn't visited yet.

'I wonder what we should do with all the land we got by annexing the kingdom.' Thousands of kilometers of barren land and empty cities stretched before him. There was ample opportunity for experimentation.

'The former Re-Estize kingdom might be the perfect testing ground for a few Super-Tier spells.'

Under his reign, nothing much had changed. E-Rantel was still the same; the people seemed to have adapted to the undead beings roaming their streets. At least now, they ventured outside, unlike the initial weeks when fear had kept them locked inside their homes. He had to talk Ainzach into using the remaining adventurers to coax the people out of their houses.

'I wonder how Pandora's Actor is fairing? The emperor invited him to the palace after his "heroic" deeds. Perhaps he wants to reward Momon for saving the day.' Ainz mused, still amused by the fact that he had switched places with Pandora's Actor. Taking on the role of Momon had grown tiresome, so the doppelgänger had been a welcome substitute.

"I wonder…" He glanced at the Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown hovering beside him. Its seven orbs, framed by golden leaves, shimmered with an otherworldly glow. Moments like these brought him back to the days of old Yggdrasil. When he and his comrades killed bosses to collect all of the materials to make a guild weapon that would dwarf all. Now, that memorial floated before his eyes, a remembrance of the past, one to which he would never return.

He shook off the nostalgia and refocused on his task. A menu appeared before him, displaying his current levels:

Racial Classes:

-Skeleton Mage 15 lvl

–Elder Lich 10 lvl

—Demi Lich 10 lvl

—-Overlord(The One) 5 lvl

-⋏⟒ ⍀⍜ ⍜⎅ 3 lvl

Job Classes:

-Wizard 15 lvl

-Sorcerer 10 lvl

-Chronomancer 10 lvl

-Necromancer 10 lvl

–Ruler of Death 10 lvl

—Eclipse 5 lvl

-Master Tactician(Genius) 3 lvl

-Armored Mage 3 lvl

-Dark Knight 3 lvl

-Unholy Champion 3 lvl

-Unknown 2 lvl

'Still nothing from my new racial class... I wonder what it is since I haven't felt any changes. I probably still lack a requirement for that race. Maybe I need to hit a certain level. All my new classes seem to work. Only the encrypted and unknown ones don't. I wonder what the difference between the two is. Encrypted must mean I don't have access to that racial class yet or do not understand it. And unknown must mean that the system itself does not understand that class. There is still much to learn.'

Ainz had enough time to study Ashurbanipal in its entirety, but he already knew most of the books there.

'That armor guy used some unknown magic, probably native to this world. I'll need to find more about that kind of magic before making any moves against beings capable of using it.'

Still, Ainz had no reliable source from this world that could tell him anything noteworthy except…

'How could I forget about him! Fluder, my "pupil", should know one or two things about that. He expects me to teach him. But I can't. I selected the spells I wanted to learn, whereas he had to study books and scrolls to become a wizard.' Ainz was sure he could keep Fluder busy with books from the library. There were enough books to keep the old mage occupied for a century. Still, Ainz wouldn't let him access the truly valuable knowledge so easily. Information, even in Yggdrasil, was a power he wouldn't share lightly.

Three sharp knocks interrupted his thoughts.

"Come in."

The door creaked open, revealing Demiurge, the Floor Guard of the 7th Floor. His spiked black hair, reflecting glasses, and sharp-toothed smile honored his devilish nature. A scaled tail swayed lazily behind him as he bowed. "Welcome home, Lord Ainz. I hope my little show was up to your expectations."

Ainz nodded. "It was. How many humans could you gather exactly?" Demiurge had utilized the warp ability of the Nautiloid's tentacles to teleport caught humans on board and then to wherever Demiurge needed them to be. This way, the Nautiloids were never full and could indefinitely capture humans.

"Roughly twenty-two thousand. I have sent some to Cocytus to kept frozen while I have taken others for myself. There are about eight thousand left on the 2nd, 3rd, and 6th Floor. However, they're on the verge of death. We should decide their fate soon."

Ainz's glowing eyes flickered. "I have an idea. Infect them all with nematodes so that they may become Lesser Brain Eaters. If we're out of them, transform the rest into Intellect Devourers."

"Understood." Demiurge grinned widely, his sharp teeth glinting. While Brain Eaters, or rather Illithid, did not have much to do with demons or devils, he liked working with them.

"Good. Then let's get to work."

"I, Jircniv Rune Farlord El-Nix, Emperor of the Baharut Empire, grant you the Honorary Title of Knight of Baharut. You may rise, Sir Momon."

The Dark Warrior rose, his black armor gleaming under the chandelier's light.

"I thank you, your Imperial Majesty." Momon said, bowing with a disciplined grace.

The imperial throne room was full of guests. Ranging from nobles to adventurers who watched the adamantite adventurer receive his title.

It was a small token of gratitude for his valor in defending the capital.

Jircniv turned to the crowd. "To the other adventurers who fought bravely, know that I have not forgotten your deeds. You shall be rewarded with gold for your service to the empire."

A cheer erupted from the room, marking the end of the ceremony.

"Now, I have prepared a grand feast for everyone present. Please, enjoy your meal."

Slowly, the guests left for the banquet, Momon as well.

"I thought you wanted to talk him into joining the empire." Baziwood muttered from behind Jircniv.

"That was my plan at first... but wouldn't make sense." Jircniv replied, his voice lowered.

"Why? He's as strong as all of the Imperial Knights! Far beyond a simple adamantite adventurer." Baziwood argued, praising the warrior as if he knew him. He only saw his fight in the arena, but that was enough for him to gauge his strength.

The massive gates closed, and the loud chatter disappeared into a silence Jircniv took as a sign to continue.

Jircniv shook his head, eyes narrowing in suspicion. "Momon appears at the capital, becomes Martial Lord, and suddenly, some unknown force invades us? Why not before or after he arrived? It's too convenient."

"And you think this Ainz Ol Goon is behind this?" Baziwood's brows furrowed.

"It's Ainz Ooal Gown. And yes, I do think it is a possibility. He commands many creatures never seen before, powerful ones at that. If something like this happens, and right when the Sorcerer King appears, together with Momon, who would you point your finger at? I believe Momon and Ainz Ooal Gown are in the same league, together with whatever these things are that attacked us." Jircniv explained. "Just because someone's a hero doesn't mean they're good."

"But what if it is just one big coincidence? These flying ships have never been heard before, not even from the Sorcerer King's own troops. And from our reports, even E-Rantel was attacked." Baziwood displayed his point.

Jircniv's face hardened. Baziwood's words could be true. But if he was right, he would never be able to live with himself by accepting a lie.

"A distraction. An attempt to sow confusion, perhaps. Or to make sure no one thinks Nazarick is involved. By staging attacks on his own territory, Ainz makes himself look like a victim." At least that's what he had done when he was in Ainz Ooal Gown's shoes.

The emperor paused, glancing around the now-empty throne room. His voice dropped to a whisper. "Who do you think profits the most from all of this? The Sorcerer King conquered, no, decimated Re-Estize. Do you think he's satisfied? We may be allies, but that does not mean he isn't planning to absorb Baharut into his kingdom." Jircniv prophesized.

The Imperial Knight's knuckles whitened as he gripped the hilt of his sword tighter. "If that's his plan… we wouldn't be able to stop him."

Jircniv sighed, the weight of the empire bearing down on his shoulders. "No, we couldn't. This is why we'll accept any visualization terms Nazarick presents. But in secret, we must find a way to sabotage him."

While he knew the Sorcerer King was powerful, he needed to find a way to stop this growing monster before it consumed the whole of humanity. He believed his interest would align with most, while others would simply join Ainz Ooal Gown because of fear.

'We need some proof that we can stop him. Otherwise, it would be difficult to find allies that are already under Nazarick's command.' Vassals of the Sorcerer King would already know how the kingdom was structured, providing invaluable intel for Jircniv and his allies.

'The Theocracy has kept silent. Understandable, as they don't want to give Ainz Ooal Gown a reason to attack them. Still, I thought they wouldn't allow an undead to quickly conquer so much land. I sent them letters explaining why I sided with him. I hope they understand.' He did it for his empire's survival. If he had acted against the Sorcerer King, he might've gotten the same fate as Re-Estize.

Baziwood shifted uncomfortably. "It seems everything turns to shit. Suddenly this guy arrives and ruins everything the empire's worked for." He was right. Fighting Re-Estize for all those years was to conquer it, taking its lands and people. Now, all those resources were wasted as the Sorcerer King claimed Re-Estize for himself.

"We play with the cards we are dealt with. We should focus on improving our relationship with the Theocracy." Jircniv knew if he could bring them to trust him, they could stand a chance.

"Let's hope for the best, your Majesty."

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A shorter chapter this time. And I'll have to sadly say that it will take some time until I'll upload this story again. I've come to a point where I must create a thorough plot to keep this fiction going well. The more I write, the harder it gets to continue.

Next thing will probably have to do with the Holy Roble Kingdom with a mix of other things. Also, I'll focus on other fanfics more when I set this into hiatus.