A Vulpine Spanner in the Works
Chapter 63: Answers For Me! Unfortunately, For Thee
[Fluder Paradyne]
"H-How did you even encounter Arche, Teacher?" I asked while looking between the two.
"Well, a few groups of workers and mercenaries came to my palace, hired by you. One of said groups had Arche as a member," Teacher said while patting my former student on the shoulder. "From there, I learned a little about her, and became sympathetic enough to help her out."
Arche then looked up to Teacher and asked, "Wait, you're Professor Fluder's teacher?" It appears that my former student hadn't known about our affiliation.
"Yes, dear Arche. I have become Teacher's student due to her immense knowledge of magic that supersedes mine, in addition to her being a goddess of magic. That alone makes her worthy enough for me to study under her," I answered fully, watching the young mage look to Teacher.
"Indeed," Teacher confirmed with a nod towards Arche. "It's also why I found it amusing when you said that you had once been a former student of Fluder's. An extraordinary coincidence."
Teacher looked to me once more as her amused grin turned a bit more serious. "Due to recent events, Arche finally decided to take her sisters and family butler before leaving her old home and former parents, a title which neither of them deserved. When I asked what she wanted to do with her future, Arche told me that she wished to return to the academy to study under you once again."
In that instant, I burst out laughing, slightly confusing Teacher and Arche.
"What's so amusing?" Teacher asked calmly, though she didn't show any signs of being upset, at least outwardly.
Quickly composing myself, I replied, "Would you believe me if I told you that, for some time, I've thought about the last encounter between Arche and I with immense regret?" I then looked directly at my former student with a warm smile, "I wondered, what if I hadn't pushed you away, like an angry child, and tried to help you through your struggles with the wealth and influence I already have?"
Walking over to Arche, I knelt down as easily as my old knees would allow until I was at the young mage's eye-level. "Perhaps this is the chance to correct one of my greatest failures? If you wish, Arche, I will gladly help house and watch over your family. And, maybe, you might be willing to become this old fool's student once more?"
I watched Arche's eyes light up with joy as she rushed up to wrap me in an embrace that I happily returned. "Of course I would, Professor Fluder."
"Thank you, child," I returned. Then, my eyes caught Teacher give me a warm smile and a nod before disappearing in a flash of gold from her teleportation spell.
Arche then pulled away from our embrace and looked to where Teacher had once been standing. "Where did she go? I was planning to thank her before she left," my student asked.
"Her work was done, and she didn't need to remain any longer," I answered, pushing myself into a standing position once more, despite my aching knees.
Arche looked to me with an understanding expression. "Guess she is a goddess after all, so she's probably busy," my student remarked.
"Maybe, maybe not?" I replied with a shrug. "It's not up to us to decide."
Then, placing a hand on my student's shoulder, I gave her a smile. "Now, how about you finally introduce me to your family? I'd love to meet the younger sisters you told me so much about over the years."
Arche nodded with a grin and started leading me to them.
[Chihiro and Yoshi]
Painfully, Yoshi was the first to awaken inside of an unfamiliar room of smooth, pale cobblestone. It had a sterile scent to it that irritated his nose, yet underlying it was the old, faded, and coppery stench of blood. The room had a single white light built into the ceiling that illuminated the entire area.
But quickly enough, Yoshi's eyes fell upon the wall opposite from him, where Chihiro's unconscious form was tightly shackled against the wall. Not even her head would be able to move.
"C-Chihiro!" Yoshi called out, about to rush over to his mate's side until he realized that he was also bound in a similar position against the wall. His heart began pounding as he quickly recalled everything that had happened before he woke up here.
They had been taken by demons!
Suddenly, Chihiro's eyes opened as she glanced around until finally spotting her mate across from her. "Yoshi, what's going on?" She asked, trying to struggle against her bonds in vain.
"I-I don't know," Yoshi answered with another struggle. "Do you remember anything before we ended up here?"
"I told you to run. After that, the demon did something that caused me to black out. You?"
Yoshi shook his head. "I was ambushed by another demon. He used a spell on me and that was about it… I'm so sorry that I left you," the brunette kitsune apologized.
"There's nothing to be sorry for. I told you to run. So, please, don't punish yourself for it," Chihiro gently consoled her mate.
"T–" Before Yoshi could say more a deep voice with a reverb interrupted him.
"Oh, good! My two guests are finally awake!" The owner of this voice stepped in view, and both kitsune quickly found themselves disgusted at the sight of the newcomer.
Both knew this creature, as they had seen or heard of them once in their lives. It was a brain eater, and a particularly ugly one at that.
It looked like a bloated corpse – smelled like one as well – that was completely hairless. Multiple tentacles drooped from its head, twisting and curling by themselves. The brain eater's face, with its unaligned eyes, were covered in garish makeup that only highlighted how hideous the creature was.
And finally, the brain eater wore a skimpy leather outfit that strained against the creature's bloated girth. This, combined together, made the monster seem more like a parody of what should have been an attractive woman.
"Today truly is a marvelous day since I've never had a couple as guests before. Even better, I get to display my skills with the audience of a Floor Guardian," the brain eater said pleasantly, as if having a normal conversation.
"Who are you? What is this?!" Yoshi asked, unfortunately attracting the attention of the creature as is quickly approached him, giving the kitsune a heavy whiff of the monster's stench.
"I am the extremely beautiful Neuronist Painkill, my Lord's foremost interrogation specialist," Neuronist said before affectionately rubbing up against Yoshi's bare chest. "It's obvious to tell that you are utterly stunned to see an attractive woman like myself."
Yoshi grimaced and tried to look away from the brain eater, yet that was made impossible due to Neuronist moving her head closer to her prisoner, taking up all of his vision. "I'm happily mated already," the brunette kitsune growled out. "Now, let us go!"
"Don't worry, we'll let both of you go once we have everything we need," a new voice said before both Chihiro and Yoshi's noses were filled with the stench of a demon.
Then, a humanoid man in a red, pin-striped suit stepped into view. He had a segmented, white tail trailing behind his body along with pointed ears. The couple couldn't see his eyes as they were hidden behind a pair of glasses.
"Who are you people? Why are you doing this?" Chihiro asked as the demon approached her with an expression of that seemed more akin to a cat about to toy with its prey.
"Those are the wrong questions. What you should be asking is what would you like to know about Kashia and her plans?" The demon replied as he began poking and prodding Chihiro like she was a strange creature to be studied.
In reply, the silver-haired kitsune spat in the demon's face. "Go fuck yourself," Chihiro growled.
The demon's expression lost much of its inquisitive expression and instead turned to one of intense displeasure as he wiped the spit from his cheek. A moment later, Chihiro screamed as the monster raked his claws across her chest before buckling a strap between her teeth and into the wall, muffling her.
"GET AWAY FROM CHIHIRO, YOU BASTARD!" Yoshi roared as he struggled to free any of his limbs so that he could help his mate.
"Neuronist, silence him for a while. It's clear that they both plan to be tight-lipped until we've had a few rounds with them," the demon ordered.
"As you wish, Master Demiurge," Neuronist said, causing both Yoshi and Chihiro's eyes to widen at the name. He was the demon that ordered an entire village in the Baharuth to be tortured and experimented on. More specifically, he was a member of Nazarick!
Before Yoshi could make any form of protest, Neuronist tightly buckled a strap between his teeth and into the wall.
"Now that I can't be interrupted, I believe that I shall tell both of you the game we shall be playing. See, it's always so marvelous to torture a couple together as they become mentally tormented by the cries of their lover while their own bodies are physically broken," Demiurge said, making both kitsune look to the other in fear for the other.
This caused Demiurge to laugh, "Good, you're learning. Now, I'll give you the rules of our game. I shall give one of you a question. Fail to answer or lie to me, and your partner will be tortured."
Pure terror filled the pair as they fully grasped what was going to happen.
"But before we begin, I will allow Neuronist to loosen both of your tongues for a while. Consider it a teaser of what's to come," Demiurge finished before gesturing to the brain eater.
Neuronist seemed to shake in excitement before pulling out a thin rod with a spike tip on the end that she waved in front of Yoshi's eyes. "I always love to begin with this. You see, my Creator suffered from a terrible case of chronic kidney stones. In honor of that, I'll allow you both to experience it."
Both Chihiro and Yoshi's eyes widened in terror at that point…
[Seth]
Day 71:
"How are your legs feeling right now, Seth?" Luspusregina asked with concern as she held me steady by my left arm while my right was occupied with a cane.
"They're alright, Lupusregina," I replied to the woman with a reassuring smile. "Just a little weak and sore, but that just means my legs are making progress. Soon enough, I'll be walking without any assistance needed."
Then, a little quieter, I added with mirth in my tone, "Besides, between you and me, I'm confident that I'm a bit too young to be acting or treated like a feeble, old man."
Lupusregina smirked in amusement, "You don't need to worry about your age. You look and smell too young for any advanced age you're implying."
"Smell?" I questioned, watching as the redhead's expression became proud.
"Yup. My sense of smell is extremely good. And with the way that humans tend to get a distinct scent the older they get, you're quite a way off from that," Lupusregina answered.
Strangely enough, ever since the day that Momonga came to visit me, Lupusregina has essentially usurped Enri and Nemu's roles as my caretaker.
She's been been there for all of my needs, both day and night, and I worried that the poor woman might run herself ragged with how devoted to the role she was. And yet, Lupusregina continually reassured me that I didn't need to worry.
I had suspected that Momonga had put her up to it and given some kind of order to take care of me, but it didn't explain how happy she looked to do so. If I could be confident on anything, it's that I could tell she wasn't faking how she felt – when around me, at least.
Since the day I first encountered her, I had been able to notice that something was off about the friendly façade she put on. That was something I always could tell, even when she tried to hide it.
My thoughts on the matter only continued to be proven correct when I noticed the small changes in her expression and demeanor when talking with me and when talking with one of the villagers. Most of it could be seen in her eyes.
It was slightly unsettling to see her eyes change from doting kindness to predatory… cruelty in an instant.
I did my best to avoid bringing up my concerns since she hasn't done anything harmful to the people of Carne Village. In fact, one could say that she was one of the friendliest people you could ever meet.
Pushing aside those thoughts, I chuckled at the redhead's words. "Well, good to hear that I've still got plenty of years in me."
"That's the spirit, Seth," Lupusregina said cheerfully as we continued our walk in the village.
All else aside, I was happy with the progress I was making. Three days ago, I could only make it out of my room. Two days ago, I could barely make it out of Enri and Nemu's house. Yesterday, I had made it 20 feet before I had to call it quits. Today, I'd guess I was about 40 feet or more from the house, and I still felt confident enough to go a bit further.
"Morning, Seth, Lupusregina," Britta, one of the other residents of the village greeted as we passed her by. She had short, red hair and tanned skin from being under the sun, and her clothes were simple leather to act as rudimentary armor. On her hip was a well-worn steel sword.
From what I've been told about the girl, she was apparently a newer resident to Carne who had once been an adventurer until a job went bad. Britta didn't like to talk about what happened when asked, and as a newcomer myself, I knew not to pry.
"Hello to you as well, Britta," I said with a nod.
Lupusregina gave a toothy smile, "Hey there. Nice to see the only other resident redhead out and about today."
"Likewise," Britta said with a smile. "How's the progress been, Seth? Seems like you've gotten pretty far today."
I nodded in agreement before admitting, "It's getting better. More than doubled my distance walked from last time, and I feel I can go a bit further."
"Then keep up the good work. I'm rooting for your quick recovery," Britta encouraged, making me laugh and nod.
"I plan to. I'll be walking unaided in a week or two at this pace," I confidently replied.
"We'll all be waiting for it. Good talking to both of you," Britta said in farewell before walking off. This left Lupusregina and I alone once again.
We continued our pace for a little longer before I found myself asking, "Lupus, mind if I ask a little about you, just to get to know you a bit better?"
The red-haired woman thought about it before nodding. "Go ahead, though I can't guarantee I'll be able to answer everything you might ask," Lupusregina replied.
"Fair enough," I agreed. "So, would you be able to tell me a bit about your family? I remember you mentioning that you were created, not born."
"You're correct. My Creator, Mekongawa, is one of the Forty-One Supreme Beings of Nazarick who created me using his own power. In a sense, you could refer to him as my father." It was while Lupusregina said this that I noticed a sad look appear in her eyes.
In a way, that look of sadness had a very humanizing effect on the woman. And for an odd reason, I somehow knew it was because she missed her parent.
D-Dadd-, wh-n's Momma -oming home? Sh-She sa-d she w-uldn't lea-e us!
I don't k-ow, kiddo. I'm so sorr-, but I don't k-ow. But I promise, -our daddy's always going t- be here for you.
My daughter's voice in that memory sounded so distraught. What had happened?
"Aside from him, I have six sisters," Lupusregina concluded.
"That's nice to hear. Do you see them often?"
The redhead nodded. "Usually whenever I return to Nazarick. Though I might end up seeing one of my sisters sooner or later," Lupusregina said with a grin.
"Why might that be?" I asked, noticing my legs were beginning to wobble. Guess I didn't have much strength remaining.
"One of them will be stopping by Carne to check up on things. I'll be sure to introduce you when it happens," the redhead said with a little bit of longing excitement in her tone.
I chuckled warmly at the answer, "From the way it sounds, you have a good relationship with your sisters."
"Yup," Lupusregina said, popping the 'p' as she did so. "I care for all of them dearly."
Unfortunately, at this point, my knees chose that moment to buckle. "Seth! Are you alright?" Lupusregina asked with some concern as she quickly moved to hold me up.
"Sorry about that, Lupus," I apologized with an embarrassed flush on my face. "Guess I was enjoying our conversation too much and overworked myself."
"Try to worry about your own limits a bit more," Lupusregina lightly chided me. "Now, do you want to sit down somewhere or would you like me to carry you back to the house?"
"Just need to sit down for a bit to rest. Then we'll head back to the house after that. I want to try and push myself a bit more before calling it quits," I replied, receiving a nod from the redhead as she helped walk me – more like carried me with my feet trailing across the ground – towards a nearby bench to rest on.
"You're certainly determined, I'll give you that," Lupusregina remarked while gently setting me down on the bench.
"Have to be. I've nothing better to do, other than recover. And I've got a daughter out there who I need to get to. Can't do that with a pair of faulty legs," I explained while gazing up at the red-haired woman.
Lupusregina looked down at me with an indecipherable interest in her eyes. Then, she asked, "How are you planning to find her? It's a big world."
"By starting simple. I'll head to a city, look for my daughter, then move onto the next city if I can't find her in that one," I replied before allowing a determined expression appeared on my face. "I just know that my daughter has to be here. I wouldn't have just abandoned her, so I won't stop looking until I find her."
A thoughtful look grew on Lupusregina's face before she said, "Lord Ainz could be able to help you with your task. I'll be certain to inform him about it."
A massive smile grew on my face as she said this. "Thank you," I replied with gratitude.
I'd find my daughter eventually, and I wouldn't stop until I did.
Tonight, I found myself having another dream of Inari again. I actually found myself more and more excited for these dreams to happen, just so that I could see her face and hear her voice.
There's so much I just wanted to know about this white-haired beauty. And each one of these memories always felt too short to me when they had her in them.
"Are you sure that you'll be fine heading out? The storm may have passed, but the cold is still an issue. If you need to, you can stay here for a bit longer until you find someplace better," I asked with a little concern to Inari as she put her cloak on and was in the process of fastening a mask to her face.
She stopped and gave me a smile, "I'll be fine for now, Seth. Thank you for everything."
"You're welcome, but you don't really need to thank me. It was the right thing to do for someone in need," I responded while packing up a few bottles of water and some cans of food with one of the spare can-openers I had into a simple bag before closing it.
"And yet, not everyone would've been as kind as to host a stranger in their home for a few days," Inari countered as I handed the bag to her, causing the white-haired woman to look between the bag and myself with some astonishment. "Seth, this is too much…"
I shook my head, "Take it. You need the supplies, and I have plenty here as is due to over stocking for the storm," I said in reassurance. "Besides, think of it as thanks for keeping me company during the storm. Otherwise, I'd have been bored out of my mind."
Inari sighed before giggling, "You really are something else. Guess there's no winning against you." She then took the bag from my hands, and I felt our fingertips touch for a moment, causing a small blush on to grow on my face while my heart beat a little faster. For a ghost of a moment, I swore I could see a hint of red on her beautiful face.
"I promise, I'll return your kindness back to you," Inari vowed, making me chuckle.
"Alright, but there's no need to rush in trying to repay me. Try to take care of yourself first," I responded, earning a nod from the woman.
"I'll see you again, Seth," Inari concluded before she put her mask on and threw the hood of her cloak up. From there, she left my apartment and I watched her walk down the hallway before I finally closed my door with a smile.
I found myself hoping that I would see her again soon, even if it was a bit selfish of me…
[Ninya]
Deer– Dear Ninya,
Its– It's been about a week since Yamato and I left Elwuld to go training. You shouldav– should've seen Oletta when she found out I was leaving. She tried going with us until Grandpa and I convenc- convinced her not to. Unfortna– Unfortunately, I'll have to get her a nice gift to make– appease her. That'll be a– an adventure by itself since I got– have no idea on what to get for Oletta.
Speaking of training… By the gods, Yamato is a task master. I get run raged- ragged every day, and feel like my arms will fall off by the time he finally calls our training session over.
Were– We're currently making our way towards Arwintar to get me more experienced with traveling and so that we can sign up– register as adventurers. You better try to stay on top of things, Reezy, or I'm gonna– going to reach platinum-plate before you!
Other than that, it's been simple enough traveling. Haven't fight– fought any bandits or monsters yet, but it might change as we get closer to Arwintar. I'll let you know.
How's life been for you? You and Tuare learn any new spells? Take any interesting adventurer jobs?
Hope to here– hear from you soon,
-Nero
I found myself smiling as I set the letter aside. It was a bit choppy, but he was working on improving. It was also clear to tell where Yamato made some punctuation corrections for Nero.
Still, I was happy to know that my friend was doing well on his training trip. I also hoped that Nero was continuing to improve his magic ability. I'd love to see what his first learned spell might be.
I'll have to write Nero a letter soon, which I'd probably do as soon as soon as I finished the spell I was working on. For the past few days, after we returned from our job killing the giant mantis that had been slaughtering cattle, I had been practicing [Foxfire Will O' Wisp] which I was so close to mastering.
Just needed to figure out this one trick…
Conjuring up two orbs of [Foxfire], I acclimated myself to maintaining their orbit around my body before conjuring up a third. It was a little nerve-wracking at first to maintain it, but after 20 seconds passed, 30 seconds, a minute.
A grin grew on my face as I pumped my fists in the air, "YES!"
"You alright there, Ninya?" Tuare asked as she entered the cabin while scratching one of her ears. I couldn't help the embarrassed blush that filled my face. Then, my older sister looked at the orbs of [Foxfire] orbiting me with an understanding gaze. That quickly changed when she looked down at the ground where I was sitting.
First, her eyes looked at the book, then they moved to the letter. That was when she got a devious look in her eyes. "Oh, I see, did your boyfriend finally profess his love to you in his recent letter?"
"Tuare!" I shouted while hiding my face behind my tail as I let the orbs break down into particles of mana. Great, she and mom haven't stopped teasing me since the day we got back to E-Rantel.
"I was just happy that I finally figured out this spell," I corrected. "And Nero isn't my boyfriend."
"Who ever said that I was talking about Nero?" Tuare retorted, which made me narrow my gaze at her.
"I'm not falling for that trap," I said with a huff. Tuare continued to smirk as she walked over to me. "You and mom have been non-stop with this."
"Oh, but it's so much fun to see you get so flustered," Tuare said while kneeling down and giving me a hug. "Still, I'm happy to hear that you've accomplished what you were trying to do."
I smiled and returned the embrace, "Thanks, Tuare."
When we finally separated, my sister asked, "Now that you've finally finished learning that spell, what are you planning to do next?"
"Well, first thing I have to do is write a letter back to Neeeer–" I sighed upon realizing I just played into Tuare's trap.
"Yes, go on," Tuare encouraged with an amused grin. "Who are you planning to write a letter to?"
"…Nero," I answered.
My sister patted me on the shoulder with a giggle as she stood, "Then I best let you get on to writing that letter to your friend. Who happens to be a boy. A boyfriend as it were.
"I will throw a water spell at your face!" I shouted as she ran out the cabin laughing, passing by Meepo who walked in with a basket of freshly-picked ingredients in his arms.
"Should Meepo be concerned?" The kobold asked as he walked over to the cellar door.
"No," I replied, laying completely on the floor. It also provided some relief to my back which has been getting sore lately. "I'm just… coming to terms with the unending teasing of mom and Tuare."
Meepo walked right by my head and patted my shoulder with his tail in a reassuring manner. "Meepo doubts he can help against Medium Mistress and Mistress' teasing. But wanna see something interesting, Tiny Mistress?"
I gave a curious glance to the kobold and sat up. "Sure," I replied, receiving a toothy grin from Meepo as he waddled to the cellar hatch and I got up to follow after him.
"So, what is it that we're going to see?" I asked as we entered into the potion room, completely organized by Meepo at this point.
I watched the kobold set the basket of ingredients down and give a whistle. Moments later, a pair of tiny, metal golems, about a foot in height, chattered over to us from elsewhere in the room and approached Meepo.
They had a vaguely humanoid design, with the main difference being the smoothness of their limbs, their beaked heads, and their hands only ending with four fingers. Both golems had a set of glowing, blue eyes.
When the golems stopped before Meepo, I watched the kobold give orders, "Take ingredients and sort for Meepo, please."
With their orders given, the golems worked together to lift the basket Meepo had set before them. Then, they carried it away to a different area of the alchemy floor.
"What are those things?" I asked.
"They are Meepo's marvelous Meeps. Meepo wanted to sort through ingredients and materials faster, so Meepo made his Meeps to do so," the kobold replied with a large amount of pride.
To hear him so easily claim to make golems was a little astounding. From what I knew about them, golems, even simple ones, took a lot of time and effort to make. The fact that he made more than one in the span of three months or so was impressive. Usually, it took years to make just one.
"How many Meeps did you make?" I found myself asking in curiosity.
"22 so far," Meepo casually said, making me blanch. That was beyond the capability of any magic craftsman I've ever heard of.
"…And you just… made them to help with chores?" I questioned.
The kobold nodded, "Yup. Meepo made his beautiful Meeps to assist in all manner of things. Due to size that Meepo makes them, producing Meeps is quick."
"How large could you make them?" I wondered, and received a shrug from Meepo in reply.
"No idea. Too many resources for one giant Meep compared to many small Meeps. Additionally, Meepo can't make them that powerful since Meepo wants to conserve resources, so Meepo compensates by–" he tapped his head with a smirk, "making brains better."
So, he's trying to make smarter golems now? "How's that going for you?"
"Meepo is making good progress, but that isn't that interesting. Come, come! Meepo will take you," the kobold said, making me wonder what he thought was more interesting than the golems?
I didn't say anything as Meepo led me further down the rooms of the Sanctuary.
As we approached the next room, I found it to be very warm. When I was about to ask why that was, my question was quickly answered when I saw an entire foundry up ahead that was filled with molten metal.
Then, I saw a few four Meeps approach the foundry, carrying ingots of metal in hand. The four Meeps traveled up a small staircase built into the side of the foundry's kiln before quickly chucking their loads into it.
Another Meep near the bottom of the kiln pulled on a lever that released a small hatch at the bottom of the large pot. This allowed molten metal to pour from the kiln and into molds placed underneath it.
From there, the golems took the molds out and allowed the metal to cool. I got a good view of the unassembled Meep parts lying within these molds that the golems soon pulled out after the metal cooled down and set them on a table to be assembled.
"Hello, my Meeps!" Meepo called out with a wave. Every golem in the room stopped what they were doing and waved back to the kobold in reply. "I introduce you to Tiny Mistress!"
All the golems soon walked over to Meepo and I, giving me more silent waves of greeting alongside unnerving looks. It probably bothered me because I couldn't tell what any of them were thinking.
I awkwardly gave the tiny creatures a wave before looking down to Meepo. "Have you been building an army down here?" I asked.
Meepo gave me a quizzical look. "Meeps are Meepo's helpers. Meepo loves his Meeps and Meeps love their Meepo," the kobold replied.
And that likely translates to Meepo only having made his golems as aids instead of as an army. Yet, with Meepo's tendencies, he probably made them fully capable of a fight if necessary.
Suddenly, one of the Meeps came up to Meepo with a slightly melted hand being shown to him. Meepo's eyes widened and he quickly inspected it, "Won-Tree, Meepo will have to fix you as soon as he's finished with Tiny Mistress. Take a break until Meepo comes back," he said before patting the golem's beaked head.
The now-named Won-Tree nodded, gave Meepo a hug, then ran off. How did he even differentiate them since they all looked exactly the same? With that, the kobold waved for me to follow as he led me out of the foundry and down a set of stairs into a room filled with a loom, a sewing station, and a large pile of fabrics, hides, and other materials from creatures I couldn't name.
A few of the Meeps ran past Meepo and I down another set of stairs that we followed after them. Arriving on this floor, I was greeted to what would be considered a massive armory worth an entire duchy or kingdom!
Rows and rows of racks and stands on one side of the room contained clothing or armor that I could just feel the magic rolling off of them. On the other side of the room, there were similarly magical weapons, staves, and arcane foci.
"Who made all of these?" I wondered as we walked through the room.
"Mistress originally made many items until she decided to devote all of her time to magic and have Meepo take over. Now, most in this room have been made by Meepo," the kobold said before looking me in a conspiratorial way. "Meepo believes that Mistress has forgotten much about crafting complicated magical items and only maintained her skill in alchemy."
It was interesting to know a bit more about mom's mysterious history. Wonder what else she must've done?
"Still, it's pretty amazing," I commented as Meepo led us down another level, where I suddenly saw a few Meeps run up the stairs past us with ingots in their hands.
Arriving on the next floor, I could see entire room was just stacked with crafting materials and chests that likely contained even more. The walls had multiple towers of ingots that were sorted into different types. There were piles of gold ingots, steel, mithril… adamantite! A metal that was beyond rare, and even more difficult to forge, and there was an entire wall of the stuff in ingot form!
While there were all of these metals in large quantities – able to reach the ceiling of the room due to the amount – the only thing in short supply was a small stack of iridescent ore that went up to my waist. Something about it just screamed 'magic' at me, and I could tell that it was special in some way.
"What is that ore over there?" I pointed out curiously.
"Rare resource known as prismatic ore. Hard to get, even for Mistress. Because of that, Meepo has avoided using it unless a specific project needed it, of which the one Meepo is showing you does," Meepo replied, making me wonder how special that prismatic ore must be?
Another floor contained walls of gold coins and treasure on one side, and the other contained items and weapons which definitely felt more powerful than the items two floors up. I could just imagine that immense destruction that any singular item here could cause, let alone all of them. There were also a few Meeps busy sorting some coins into neat piles.
"The treasury here contains only some of the items that Mistress acquired from the numerous adventures she went on. Much of the stronger weapons and treasure is hidden in a secret vault of hers," Meepo explained while I looked at the display in awe.
Mom had talked about her prior adventures, but to see all of these trophies – and this was only a few of them – was enough to put them into a better perspective. It made me wonder if I'd end up collecting a hoard like this after a couple of years adventuring?
Then again, with my infinite lifespan, it was guaranteed that I'd amass some large collection of trophies after enough time had passed. Wasn't that a terrifying thought? Where would I store all my collected junk?
After a few more floors with more stockpiles of items, we finally reached the last floor. Just getting near it caused the fur on my tail to stiffen, as if I was in the middle of a thunderstorm. The air around us was just charged with copious amounts of mana.
When we had finally entered the room, I could see two stations that consisted of slabs made of a substance with the texture of dark rock. Inscribed on the surface of the slabs were arcane runes that I lacked any guess as to what they translated into.
Laying on top of one was a fully assembled Meep which lay inert, while the other had a tiny, dark, rod-like object the length of my finger. Past both of those slabs was the beginnings of some staff that was partially assembled out of more of those rods. It was only the length of my forearm, but the mana being produced from it was ridiculous.
"What is that?" I asked as Meepo approached the object without worry and I followed.
"Meepo's project. Meepo wanted to make a powerful magic staff, like Mistress is, but the staffs Meepo can make can't get that strong… alone, that is," Meepo said with a grin breaking across his lips. "So, Meepo thought, why not make many powerful little staffs, shrink them down with magic, and then combine them together into one big staff to make a larger boom?" The kobold said with a cackle.
By the gods, he's making the equivalent of siege ballista bolts out of twigs and string.
"A-And how far are you in your progress?" I asked nervously.
"Meepo's a fourth of the way done. Making tiny staffs correctly takes time," Meepo answered while examining his creation-in-progress.
"How are you planning to test it?" I had a terrible fear that he would test it here and cause some horrific magical explosion that would kill us all. That, or he would test it outside the city, and it would backfire, killing him. I'd rather not have either of those events happen.
Looking away from his creation and to me, Meepo said, "Meepo will take it out of the city and have one of Meepo's Meeps try it. If it works, then Meepo is going to use it next!" His giddy excitement was palpable as his tail wagged rapidly.
"At-At least you're being careful…" I said optimistically while planning to inform mom about this later. She's probably be able to make better precautions that Meepo hadn't thought of, if she didn't have him cancel the project in the first place.
Yet, even when terrifying, Meepo was correct about one thing. This was undeniably interesting.
[Ainz Ooal Gown]
I watched Demiurge stride into my throne room with a pleased expression upon his face. From what I had been informed of yesterday, the plan to capture the two kitsune had gone off without a hitch. From there, Neuronist and Demiurge had gotten to work interrogating the two.
If I had to guess, that work bared fruit.
"Demiurge, what do you have to report?" I asked, watching as the arch devil kneeled before me.
"Lord Ainz, we acquired all the information the prisoners had at their disposal. On top of this, we used what time we had to harvest valuable ingredients from the pair," Demiurge began with a grin before pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "From what the pair knew, they fully confirmed that the god known as Thor did make contract with Kashia Blanc."
That was horrifying to know. Raid Bosses like Thor were actually on this New World walking about. What other bosses could be wandering around that we don't know of?!
"While they haven't made an alliance, Thor did say that he planned to meet with Blanc again to talk further. On top of this, we were given a valuable trove of information about the woman herself. She is – quite literally – the daughter of the goddess known as Inari," Demiurge said, making me freeze in place.
That had to be a simple character backstory for Kashia. She couldn't actually be the daughter of a goddess… Wait, putting that aside, if this was an actual backstory made real by translating from the game to this New World, then did it mean she had some class or ability for it?
Could it be a secret racial class of hers?
"From what was said, they are currently building a portal from this world to a place known as the Realm of Foxes to permanently unite the two. This would also allow for Kashia's mother to arrive into this world unhindered."
I finally had to interrupt. From what I knew of the zone in YGGDRASIL called the Realm of Foxes, it was a small hub area that was supposed to have been bigger for future content. Unfortunately, some continual glitches that plagued the way the zone worked, along with how the Raid Boss, Inari, would have her AI continually break, caused the zone to be mostly shut down.
The few kitsune Players in the game complained about it for weeks since they were supposed to get a few new items or classes from the expansion. God knows they needed it due to how legendarily terrible the race was to get working.
From the glitches I remember occurring, the grass would constantly change from green to silver, the sky would keep getting aurora's that the devs couldn't program out, structures would appear and disappear at random, and then there was Inari.
Her character AI would repeatedly break mid-conversation and she'd start walking away, seemingly looking for something before resetting back into place. Oddly enough, there were even a few reports of her just crying, likely from some quest script that just didn't work right.
But worst of all, her bossfight was terrible. No predictable patterns, and she'd either stop moving or spam extremely powerful attacks. After a short while, the Playerbase gave her the nickname of the Bipolar Bitch.
Finally, after too many headaches, the devs scrapped plans for it, removed the NPCs, and turned it into a safe zone for Players.
"You said that they were to unite the New World and that Realm?" I questioned to confirm.
"Indeed, my Lord. This world has apparently been newly added to the World Tree, Yggdrasil. Because of this, they wanted to unite the Realms so that Inari and her people can lay claim to this world before any group from the other Ten Realms can. That is on top of the goddess being desperate to meet with her daughter."
Hearing this put me on guard. I could now confirm that there were the other Nine Realms of Yggdrasil that I and Nazarick would have to contend with, maybe not now, but in the future it was horribly certain. On top of this was the other horrifying news.
Even if Kashia didn't have Thor as an ally, she definitely had the Bipolar Bitch Inari as one. Even worse than that, because of how most gods hated undead, and with the way that my subordinates had antagonized Kashia, there was no doubt in my mind that Inari would gun for Nazarick when she arrived.
"Will Inari only come through this portal or can she simply just travel across the World Tree or teleport?" I quickly asked, the thought of how I would handle this going through my mind.
Demiurge smirked and replied, "Inari is mostly confined to the Realm of Foxes, and unable to leave normally unless another Realm has enough worshippers to allow her to manifest there or is connected by a Realm Gate."
"So, she has limits…" I muttered to myself. Without a doubt, Kashia's faction has the capacity to create Realm Gates, unlike in YGGDRASIL. "How many worshippers would Inari need to manifest? Additionally, what do they know about the Realm Gate being made?"
"Between 2,000 to 5,000. Kashia has summoned more than 700 kitsune at this point and counting who worship this goddess. Each day, it gets closer to that limit, and that's just with those she summons instead of the resident populace being converted. As for the Realm Gate, it will still take a few months before construction is completed," Demiurge said with a slight scowl.
"Do we know where the gate could be?" I asked, and unfortunately received a shake of Demiurge's head.
"No, my Lord. That was something that the prisoners had no idea about," the arch devil answered.
"Disappointing…" I muttered while trying to figure out what to do. We had weeks to months before Inari arrived, and that was on top of the news of there being other Realms that would come for this world.
I'm at a loss on what to do. Do I try and attack Kashia and her people while hoping that nothing goes wrong and I fully eliminate the threat she poses? Even then, I'd have to ensure that every last kitsune is killed so that they couldn't spread worship of Inari to others.
That was essentially an impossibility. Killing a person is easy, killing an idea is beyond difficult.
And this assumes that I win this war. Were I to lose, then Nazarick was doomed, and the legacy of my friends and I would die a pitiful end.
My other bet was to talk to her, but then comes the main issue of current contention: Albedo.
I needed to ponder further on this, especially with all of these recent revelations I've learned. Why did things have to become so complicated?
"What would you like to do, Lord Ainz? We can try to capture and interrogate more kitsune to uncover the location of this Realm Gate. From there, I'm certain we could easily destroy it or use it as a counter-invasion method against Inari," Demiurge asked while my skeletal fingers thrummed against the arm of my throne.
"No, halt attempting to capture any further kitsune as it's already enough of a risk grabbing the two we have now. Instead, we'll increase our work with building up our current forces and utilize the spies we have in E-Rantel to learn anything further," I answered. "As for the prisoners we have, is there anything else we require of them?"
"Information wise, we do not, Lord Ainz. We've throughly picked through everything they know," Demiurge began before a large grin appeared on his face. "But I was hoping that we could hold them for one more day to harvest a few more materials from them before sending the pair back tomorrow."
Well, I wouldn't say that it would be exactly bad for us to acquire a few more rare resources when we still have the kitsune in custody. After all, they'd have their memories of what transpired erased from their minds, so it wouldn't be that much of an issue.
"I'll allow it, but ensure that there is no evidence of Nazarick's involvement when you return them back to their home," I commanded, receiving a bow from Demiurge.
"As you wish, my Lord. I'll make certain to compile a full, written report after I have finished with our prisoners," Demiurge promised, which I gave a nod to and watched as he walked away.
Being left alone for a short while longer, I found my silence interrupted by the familiar alert of a [Message] from Lupusregina. Hmm, wonder what she has to report today?
'Lupusregina, what is it that you wish to tell me?' I asked with interest. Additionally, it did remind me that I wished to meet with Seth again to talk. I'll probably visit him tomorrow to do so when I had the chance.
'Greetings, my Lord. I am just giving an update on Seth's current progress. He is currently recovering at a fast enough pace for one in a human form. Alongside this, his distance walked without requiring rest seems to double itself each day. I think he might be able to fully recover his ability to walk within a week or two at the rate he's going,' Lupusregina explained which I found to be pleasing.
'And his memories? How has progress for it gone?' I questioned.
'Unfortunately, it is still slow. At most, he can recall a little girl that is his daughter, but he has no idea what her name is or anything else. Other than that, it's bits and pieces, my Lord.'
'Not the greatest news, but we can only wait for time to tell us more. Was that all you had to tell me?'
'Two other things, Lord Ainz,' Lupus began. 'Seth plans to go looking for his daughter when he fully recovers. He believes that she must've come to this world with him as he wouldn't leave her alone.' Then, surprisingly to me, she added, 'In a way, his determination is admirable, considering how much of a nearly impossible goal it is by himself as a mere human.'
'Is that respect I hear from you?'
'If this Seth truly is one of the Supreme Beings, like Lord Touch Me, then I must respect the drive that only one of your kind could display, Lord Ainz,' Lupusregina explained, which I found to be understandable. Even if she was one of the friendlier of the Pleiades towards humans, it didn't change the fact that she saw humans as lesser beings like most of Nazarick did.
Still, it didn't surprise me that Seth planned to go looking for his daughter. With the few memories he did have of his past, he'd cling onto them with an iron grip. And from the bits of his personality that I've seen, been told about, and suspected, nothing would deter him from doing so.
'If that is the case, then tell me before he makes his departure. I'll have you dress like you're less obviously from Nazarick when you accompany him on his trip. Additionally, I'll be equipping him with a few items that can be spared as a precaution.' If he was determined to go, I wouldn't stop him, but I would have a few 'insurance policies' put into place just in case.
'As you wish, my Lord. I'll be certain to do so,' Lupusregina answered.
'One more thing, I have decided to send Yuri Alpha to take over your former position in Carne Village. She'll arrive with me tomorrow when I come to visit,' I added.
'That sounds wonderful, my Lord. I will excitedly wait for your arrival until then. Will there be anything else you require of me in the meantime?'
'No. Continue as you are…'
[Demiurge]
I was busy calculating numerous plans of varying success rates as I returned to Neuronist's interrogation chamber. Vexingly, I couldn't create completely fool-proof plans due to the one constant factor involving our enemy; unpredictability.
We don't have enough information on Kashia Blanc and her kitsune. Because of this, it made battle plans prone to error. I would have to work around such a setback.
On top of this, these 'gods' that are arriving in this world are worrying. While the library has information on quite a few of the gods that the Supreme Beings have faced, what I wasn't completely aware of – until now, that is – is that these gods seem to be able to resurrect themselves as I had been led to believe otherwise.
That was immensely useful to know. On top of this, I was also hoping that work with Kashia's blood would give us knowledge on some weaknesses of hers – and potentially other gods – that could be exploited in the future.
But I'll have to put those further thoughts on hold for the moment.
Opening the door to the interrogation chamber, I found Neuronist and one of her assistants setting aside a few bundles of furred hide on top of the pile that had already been collected from our prisoners' tails while another assistant went about healing the damage to our 'guests'. Another pile in the room contained collected fangs that could be turned into spell components, potion ingredients, or weaponry.
It was safe to say that both of the insolent beasts had been broken after a single day in Nazarick's clutches. Quite a shame that we had to return them back to their homes as I'd loved to continue studying them, but Lord Ainz knows best and it's not my place to question his grand plan.
"Welcome, Floor Guardian Demiurge!" Neuronist greeted cheerfully. "Have you finished informing Lord Ainz of our success?"
"Yes, I have. In addition, Lord Ainz has given us leave to continue harvesting from the prisoners for another day before we erase their memories and send them back," I replied, getting an excited bounce from the interrogator as she skipped over from one prisoner to the other.
"Do you hear that, my lovelies? We'll have one more day together, so we best make it count!"
That elicited a few pitiful cries from the pair as they desperately looked to one another in comfort. This was going to be very enjoyable.
[Chihiro and Yoshi]
Day 72:
Groggily, Chihiro was the first to wake up and take notice that she and Yoshi were in their bed together with numerous empty wine bottles surrounding them. Additionally, she could tell that both of them reeked of the drink.
"Morning, Yoshi," Chihiro said softly, causing her mate's eyes to blearily open until they focused on hers.
Yoshi gave her a smile in return. "Hey, Chihiro," the brunette kitsune answered back with a kiss before glancing around their bed. "Do you remember what happened last night? Last thing I remember is that we were having dinner, then nothing."
"Can't recall a thing. We may have overdone it," Chihiro answered. "But it seems like neither you or I are that badly hung over, so that's nice. Though, I do just feel exhausted right now."
"Same," Yoshi agreed. "But I guess that's what happens when you're having fun, even if we can't remember 'what' happened."
Chihiro lightly giggled at this before commenting, "We should probably get ready to go to E-Rantel."
"We should," Yoshi began before a strange, protective feeling overcame the brunette kitsune. He gently pulled his mate closer to his body while his arms held Chihiro a little tighter. "But right now, I really just want to be like this with you."
The silver-haired kitsune responded by snuggling deep into Yoshi's embrace while her tails entwined themselves with her mate's as the urge to hold onto the brunette, like he might be torn from her grasp, filled her mind. "So do I. Maybe we should just skip work for today?"
"Sounds wonderful," Yoshi agreed as he rested his forehead against hers. "I love you, Chihiro."
"I love you as well, Yoshi," Chihiro warmly replied as the couple slowly closed their eyes and went back to sleep in one another's embrace.