Read Daily Updated Light Novel, Web Novel, Chinese Novel, Japanese And Korean Novel Online.
Overlord (Light Novel) - Volume 11, Chapter 5 - Frost Dragon Lord Part 5
Volume 11, Chapter 5: Frost Dragon Lord Part 5
This chapter is updated by NovelFree.ml
Ainz and Gondo left the treasury together. A flight of Dragons bowed their heads before them. There were 19 of them in total, including Hejinmal.
In other words, all the Dragons Hejinmal had mentioned were here. Now there would be no need to hunt them down.
...It’s good that they’re all being obedient, but it’s a shame that I don’t have more Dragon corpses… Should I find some excuse to kill a few more? No, that would be evil. Then why not let them breed and then harvest them later… hm? Isn’t that the same thing?
“─Most Exalted Sorcerer King. Your faithful servants have gathered before you.”
Hejinmal spoke as Ainz was thinking. Putting aside his contemplations for the moment, Ainz replied:
“Raise your heads.”
The kneeling Dragons raised their heads as one.
Due to the massive size of their bodies, they were far taller than Ainz once they rose, but there was no sense of them looking down on him.
However, there were a few surprised looks among them.
They had heard about it, but it was still hard to believe that Ainz had slain the Dragon Lord, their father. Or rather, even Ainz would think the same thing if he were in their shoes. There were many things which had to be seen to be believed.
Just as Ainz was thinking that, one of the Dragons roared.
“I won’t accept this! To think the person who killed Father is actually ─ what?”
Ainz walked in front of the roaring Dragon. Then he smiled, and beckoned with his hand, as though to say “Give it your best shot.”
The Dragon swiped its claws at Ainz.
They were fast, but not as fast as the Troll he had fought recently.
Ainz did not dodge them. He took the Dragon’s attack head-on. The Dragon -- who thought Ainz could not evade in time -- grinned broadly, but when he realized that Ainz had no need to dodge, that grin froze on his face. After making sure that the Dragon knew that, Ainz cast a spell.
“[Grasp Heart].”
Ainz’s gaze moved from the Dragon who had collapsed like his father, and turned to the others.
“Is there no one else?”
After that quiet query, the Dragons were bowed even lower than they had been earlier, as though they were trying to lie flat on the ground. Nobody here doubted Ainz’s power any more.
Ainz opened a [Gate] and chucked the Dragon’s corpse through it. Then he took Gondo and got onto Hejinmal’s back.
His mother’s back was larger, so mounting would be more suitable for a ruler than taking Hejinmal.
However, Ainz had already ridden Hejinmal all the way here, so he might as well ride him the rest of the way.
“Leave this city. My subordinates should be waiting there.”
The Dragon flight took wing in unison, and the Hanzos led them to a place where many Quagoa were kneeling down.
The sight of countless Quagoa in silent prostration was quite bizarre, and as Gondo saw this, he croaked hoarsely.
Ainz was about to make the same noise himself, but he could not do such a thing in front of his Guardians, whose brightly smiling faces seemed to say, “We worked really hard!”
“Ainz-sama! As you ordered, we’ve finished the selection from the Quagoa. There are 4’000 males, 4’000 females and 2’000 children. The rest are all corpses. Also, we allowed them to recover the intact bodies and place them elsewhere.”
“I see. So they rejected my compassion, but now they cling desperately to their final chance for survival. What a bunch of fools.”
The clothed Quagoa kneeling in front of all the others shuddered visibly.
“Then, where is their king?”
“Over there,” Shalltear pointed. As expected, it was the trembling Quagoa. Before Ainz summoned him, he activated his halo of obsidian radiance. According to his research, that effect best suited a ruler.
As he listened to the mutterings and whisperings from the Dragon flight, he called out to the Quagoa Lord.
“King of the Quagoa, raise your head.”
“Yes!”
The Quagoa Lord’s body shook violently as he raised his head. Then, his eyes went wide, and he went still, as though he had been frozen.
Ainz could clearly hear him going “Hiiiiiiiieee…”
“...I am known as a merciful king. The sin of not immediately accepting my proposal shall be absolved by the blood of your people. Yet, if you will give your lives and your loyalty to me, I shall guarantee your prosperity.”
“Understood!! We are your servants, and all our children and our children’s children shall grind ourselves to dust in Your Majesty’s service!!!”
“A good answer. It pleases me.”
“Yes!!!! Thank you very much!!!!!”
As though to terminate the conversation, Ainz waved his hand, as though to indicate that the Quagoa Lord could resume his submissive posture.
Excellent! It seems all my practice paid off.
The endless repetition of lines and poses before the mirror had finally borne fruit. After striking a victory pose in his heart, Ainz turned back to his two Guardians, who had flawlessly discharged their duties.
“You have done very well. I am very proud of the two of you.”
“Thank you very much!”
“Your words have cleansed my heart of the shame of my previous mistake, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
“Hm, hm…”
After seeing Shalltear’s delight, Ainz was sure that he had used the right words.
“Then, is this amount alright? If it’s too much, we can cull them again until their numbers please you, Ainz-sama.”
“No, there’s no need for that… this ought to be a good number. Come to think of it, could any of them become powerful adversaries? Not by our standards, of course, but by those of the people of this world.”
“My deepest apologies. Those people were─”
“No, that’s not it. The Clan Lord whom you spoke to was considered quite strong, although we never saw his strength.”
“Is that so…”
While he was not sure how the Death Knights had been defeated, it was most likely a coincidence. For all he knew─
They might have fallen into the Great Rift...
As he thought of that, Ainz felt deeply ashamed. Realizing that he had been mistaken after lecturing Shalltear so passionately made his face feel like it was about to erupt in flames ─ and then, the shame was gone. In its place was a smoldering depression. And then, as he thought about how Shalltear had been taking notes, it deepened ─ and then he was back to normal.
Should he try to bluff his way through this?
However, if he messed it up, they might tell the others, “Ainz-sama said this, but actually~” and so on.
This is bad! This is really bad! I shouldn’t have gotten carried away by my joy and lectured them like that! I feel like crying now.
Ainz sighed deeply.
Well, come to think of it, isn’t this a good chance to tell the Guardians that I can mess up too? From there, I can move from the position of an incredibly wise ruler to an ordinary ruler, and that might free me from my emotional torment. And if I do that, the Guardians might notice my mistakes and warn me about them.
He ordered the Dragons to leave, because he knew they had very keen senses. Then, he had the Quagoa move some distance away. Gondo looked very lonely all by himself, but he would just have to bear with it.
Once the three of them were alone, Ainz gulped.
What he would do next might well send all his hard work down the drain. Ainz felt uneasy over how the way the situation would change and what might happen in the future. His body ─ which knew no fear ─ started to feel afraid. Despite that, he gathered up his courage to speak.
“Ah, you two, listen up. ...Do you remember what I said about the possibility of a being in this place that could easily defeat the Death Knights?”
The two of them looked at each other, and their faces suggested that they had realised something.
“Yes, that. It seems I was mistaken. Maybe the Dragon I killed could have destroyed the Death Knights, but it doesn’t seem like anybody else could.”
“I understand, Ainz-sama. Your words were intended to make me learn. To think that you had to disgrace yourself on account of my inexperience… I, Shalltear Bloodfallen, tender my utmost gratitude to your exalted self for your merciful considerations!”
“...Eh?”
Much to Ainz’s surprise, they were looking at him with respect in their eyes. In particular, Shalltear’s face was flushed red, her eyes were moist, her lips were pressed flat and her mouth was quivering as though she was on the verge of tears.
What part of that deserved respect? It baffled Ainz. Had he touched their hearts in some way?
Also, I should deny what Shalltear said, right? No, Shalltear learned a lot from this journey. Then I’ll put my faith in you, Shalltear!
“It seems you realized it, Shalltear.”
“Yes!!”
Their eyes seemed to shine even brighter.
Say what─? Ainz thought that, but he still had to clarify himself.
“Still, even I can fail, and I can make mistakes. I hope you will keep that fact in your hearts.”
“Yes! While I don’t think it’s possible for our great ruler to ever make a mistake, I understand, Ainz-sama!”
Shalltear seemed to have reached the limits of her endurance. She sank to her knees and began sobbing. As she clenched her teeth and wept copiously, Aura put her hand on Shalltear’s shoulders, her own eyes brimming with tears. While it was a touching scene which illustrated their friendship, Ainz had no idea what was going on, and all he could think about was where Shalltear ─ as an undead creature ─ was secreting her tears, saliva and other bodily fluids from. Thus, he took refuge from reality by thinking about biology.
While Ainz had no idea how things had gotten this way, he decided to leave things as they were for now. Yes, there were far too many things in this world which defied understanding, or rather, they were situations where he had to feign said understanding. That was how he felt when he listened to his CEO explain important cases.
Ainz felt that this was merely kicking the can down the road, but at the same time, he felt that his future self who would encounter the problem again would be a better person. Thus, Ainz did the only thing his present self could do now.
After kneeling down in front of Shalltear, he wiped her tears away, like a parent would for their child.
And then, in that moment, even more tears coursed down her cheeks.
“Ainzsh-shama…”
“Alright, alright. Don’t cry, Shalltear. I told you the same thing back then, didn’t I? You can’t waste your beautiful face on tears.”
“Wash I usheful to you?”
“Yes. You did very well. You were everything I expected of one of my Guardians.”
“Ainzsh-shama─~”
Shalltear clutched the material of Ainz’s robes.
“Er, erm. Alright, it’s about time you stopped crying.”
“O-okie…”
Shalltear looked up at Ainz as she breathed in through her nose and tried to wipe her tears away.
“Thank you so much for all the kindness you have shown me!”
“Mm, hm. Alright, then we ought to move on now. There’s still a lot to be done, no?”
***
The Council Chamber had been noisy all morning, but after receiving the latest piece of news ─ it fell silent.
If they were not hugging their heads, they were scratching them. Not a single Dwarf in the room could stay calm.
And then, someone spoke.
“...He’s back.”
“...Well, that… that was fast. Did he really… really take back the Royal Capital?”
“...Are you trying to find fault with him?”
“What a brave fellow you are, putting yourself at odds with the monster ─ no, the mighty being ─ who returned after seizing control of that Dragon’s nest of a Royal Palace. I’d say you’re as brave as that hero-king from the legends. ...By the way, please tell him that all of us believed in His Majesty from the beginning.”
According to the messenger, he seemed to have returned on Dragonback.
Dragons were very strong, and thus they were very proud. They were thus very interested in how anyone could have performed the shocking feat of subjugating such a being.
The obvious explanation was that he had used magic to force its compliance. However, when they took into consideration the matchless might of the Sorcerer King, it was equally plausible that he could have cowed the Dragon into submission by sheer force alone.
No, the latter was more likely. It did not seem like that Sorcerer King needed any magic to rule over Dragons. The absurd mental image of a Dragon kneeling before him in submission even flitted through his mind.
The Director of Food Production sighed deeply, and then he turned a stiff, stern gaze on everyone else.
“Then, what should we do? We’re out of time, aren’t we? His Majesty has returned. If we don’t meet him right away, we’ll be in trouble. That means we have to make a decision right away, about that ─ about the Forgemaster!”
The Forgemaster had fled the country with the metal ingot which the Sorcerer King had entrusted to him.
Needless to say, the act of running away with an item that another country had given to them for the purpose of making something was unforgivable.
This black mark would be visible for all to see when the Dwarven nations made deals with other nations.
It was a fatal blow to a country which traded on its smithing abilities.
Who would commission any work from a country with such a bad reputation? Worse still, it was not an average blacksmith who had run off with the item, but a member of the nation’s leadership. It might well be interpreted as the nation pulling strings behind the scenes.
As they imagined the future which might result from this, they began searching, all the while discussing what they should do if they could not find it.
However, none of them could find an answer which would result in the Sorcerer King granting them his forgiveness.
“...I still can’t believe he actually ran off with that ingot…” the Cabinet Secretary muttered, but those words had no meaning here. They were long past the point of feeling anything for them
The commander-in-chief looked coldly at the Cabinet Secretary.
“Then what should we do? There’s no doubt that he ran away with the ingot. We’ve also received eyewitness reports of the Forgemaster leaving.”
“...Could he have been controlled by the Sorcerer King’s magic?”
The room returned to silence in an instant.
Nobody here actually expressed their agreement with the statement, but rather, the commander-in-chief grew more and more displeased.
“Even if you don’t want to acknowledge this crime committed by a fellow Dwarf, by one of us, anyone who says that about the person who reclaimed the Royal Capital that we could not… simply put, that person is the scum of the Dwarves.”
“─Don’t be like that, commander-in-chief. You should know as well; he searched the hardest among all of us, and he’s the most tired.”
“I don’t think the problem can be explained by simply saying that he was fatigued…”
“Well, let’s leave non-constructive talk like that for later, Commander-in-chief. We need to make a decision about more important matters now. Should we inform His Majesty right away? I feel it might be better to try and delay things and use the time to continue searching. What do you think?”
The Merchant’s Guildmaster shook his head.
“It’s a bad move. That leads to the problem of us covering things up. We might as well come clean and beg forgiveness. Besides, have we found him yet? For all we know, he might be in the belly of a magical beast now. If only we could recover the ingot… that idiot.”
This was not something they should be saying about a friend, but nobody would speak out against the people rebuking the Forgemaster for causing such a big problem. On the contrary, the commander-in-chief even nodded in approval.
“Fortunately, he didn’t take the shortsword as well. But, ah, well, if we apologize… will we be forgiven? ...Well, it’s not like we can do anything but apologize.”
“It’s important to apologize, but it’s even more important to state the truth. And after that, all we can do is accept whatever terms he dictates.”
Everyone agreed on this.
“Then, what will he demand from us?”
The Dwarves did not know what metal made up the ingot which had been taken, so they could not estimate its value. This, they could not suggest payment in cash terms. If they underestimated the value of the item, they might end up angering the Sorcerer King beyond all hope of their relationship ever recovering.
Therefore, they had to let the Sorcerer King name his price. Still, would he actually ask for money? They imagined that he would ask for something else, but even they could not imagine what exactly he would ask for.
“I can’t think of anything. Let’s turn it around ─ what can we agree to? No… what requests should we deny him?”
“Can we even do that? It would be hard, right? This city might have historical value, but we don’t have any national treasures of a physical or magical nature.”
When the Demon Gods had rampaged through the Royal Capital, only one member of the Dwarven royal family had survived. He was the last king of the Dwarves, known as the “Runesmith King”, and after taking powerful magic items with him on his journey, there had been nothing left behind which could be considered national treasures.
“...Oh! I’ve got it! What about the Treasury within the Royal Capital?”
“We talked about this earlier, didn’t we? Saying that sort of thing to the person who reclaimed the Royal Capital for us is just too… Still, it’s also true that there’s nothing else.”
Looking around, everyone nodded in a show of agreement.
“...Hopefully, the Dragons didn’t destroy it.”
“Don’t say that. ...Then, let’s invite the Sorcerer King to enter by himself this time.”
***
Hm? There’s one less person. What happened?
There was a strange expression on the faces of all the Dwarves as Ainz entered the room.
The one who spoke for them was ─ well, they all looked the same to Ainz, so he had no idea who it was. All he knew was that it was certainly not the commander-in-chief. He began with “Thank you for reclaiming the Royal Capital” and launched into a long string of thanks, which made Ainz feel tired. Then, once he had forgotten what they were talking about in the first place, the commander-in-chief’s mood changed.
“There is also another matter which we must tender our sincere apologies, Your Majesty. The ingot which Your Majesty entrusted to us has been stolen by the Forgemaster, who fled the nation with it. We are currently searching for him, but we have had no luck in finding him. ...Your Majesty gave us that ingot and your trust, but yet an incident like this occurred on our part. We do not know where to begin apologizing.”
The Dwarves bowed as one.
Frankly speaking, Ainz had no idea what was going on. Therefore he asked:
“Why would he do something like that?”
Did running away with the ingot mean that he was going to sell it to someone? Was it financial greed that made one of the Dwarven nation’s councillors abandon his post?
For a moment, Ainz wanted to say that there was a player involved, moving their hidden pawns in the Dwarven nation. However, a player would not need an ingot like that. It was not valuable enough to make people forsake their position, even for very low-levelled players That being the case, it would have been more advantageous to keep their subordinate hidden and in a position of power.
“We don’t know. We honestly do not know. None of us have any idea why he would perform such a rash act.”
“...Then, my next question: what about the armor I requested?”
The Dwarves exchanged glances.
“...We cannot possibly apologize enough for that. While he left the shortsword, he took the ingot, and we are unable to return it to you. We have already sent out search parties and we will return it once we find it. Then, if you will permit it, please allow us to offer a substitute for the armor. While it pales in comparison to the ingot you entrusted to us, it is the greatest effort we can muster.”
“We plan to prepare three sets of adamantite chainmail, and then enchant them to the best of our ability.”
“If ─ if you desire a shield, we can fashion one for you out of orichalcum.”
“Umu…”
Now if he were a malicious customer with a complaint, now would be the best time to make a scene. However, Ainz did not want to be such a customer.
Still, the loss of the ingot─
─Does it pain me? It’s not rare; I have many more like it. ...And for all I know the metal isn’t found here, but it might be obtainable in other regions. That being the case, it’ll be better to have more suits of armor, right? They did say they were going to enchant them too… Plus, even if they do find that ingot, it’s not like they’re going to ask for all the other items back, right? That would make this a pretty good deal...
“...If you don’t have it, it can’t be helped. Then, let’s leave matters at that. Discuss this with Zenberu later and prepare what he wants.”
The Dwarves sighed in relief.
Should he have given them a harder time? Still, it would be bad if people doubted his kingliness due to his pettiness. In that case, perhaps accepting their offer would allow others to view him as a generous person.
Still, they ought to be alright with a request or two.
“...Then, may I add another request to that?”
“...What is it, Your Majesty?”
Their stiff voices implied indicated that they were all on guard against him.
“There is no need to be so tense. It isn’t a big matter, after all. I simply wish your country’s support for the matter of recruiting runesmiths.”
“What, what do you mean by that?”
“Could you hold a ceremony in this country and make a public announcement about them working in my nation? That would surely make them happy.”
The Dwarves looked at each other and nodded instantly.
“Really now. Then please allow my nation to handle the matter of catering. Preparing for these will take some time, so I hope you won’t mind my staying here for a while.”
There were no objections from the Dwarves.
Ainz smiled in his heart. Now he would not need to return to E-Rantel.
At first, he thought he would have to spend more time on all this, but in the end he had taken back the Royal Capital in a flash. That was bad.
The first reason was because he wanted to inform Albedo about the Empire’s request for vassalage with [Message], so she could plan it with Demiurge. Things would be very bad if he were present. Therefore, Ainz needed a reason to not go back.
Also, he wanted to improve his friendly relationship with the Dwarves, which was also a very understandable reason.
Ainz also wanted to learn three pieces of information from the Dwarven city:
1: The presence or absence of players. If there were none now, there might still have been some around in the past.
2: Further investigation of runes and related information. He did not know enough about this topic. He had already learned quite a bit from the runesmiths; runes had been around for a long time, but it was unclear when exactly they had appeared and who had introduced them. Part of the reason was the chaos of the Demon Gods’ attack, but Hejinmal’s books did not contain any information on this, and neither did the Treasury.
3: Knowledge on smithing and ores. Now that he had enlisted the runesmiths to his cause, all he had to do was slowly tease that information out of them. However, there did not seem to be any of the prismatic ores here, as expected.
Regarding the second point, Ainz intended to have the Dwarves find out more when after they returned to the Royal Capital in the future, which was why he needed a firm friendship with them.
***
The long lines of tables were set with many plates, each of which was laden with a sumptuous variety of dishes.
The piping hot food exuded a bewitching aroma, which drifted over to Ainz.
As one of the undead, Ainz had no desire for food, but the remnants of Suzuki Satoru did. His wish to try some and his curiosity over how it would taste pricked at him.
This body does have its good and bad points...
He could curb his hunger, but not his curiosity. After all, his curiosity was part of his mind, which was not affected by his undead body.
Perhaps if the dishes before him were made by the chefs of E-Rantel or Nazarick, it might not piqued his curiosity so, but these were made by Dwarves.
Since the runesmiths wanted to bring their entire families to the Sorcerous Kingdom, they had their wives, mothers, daughters and other female relatives cook for the event. Of course, most of the 2’000 shares of food here today were supplied by Ainz ─ by Nazarick.
Of course, Ainz was not a person who would use items wastefully, so most of these were essentially E-Rantel’s cuisine. The meat had been collected by the Dragons from this mountain range, while the wine had been sourced from the Kingdom and the Empire by those traders who remained in E-Rantel.
The tables were groaning with plates of food, but even now the ladies were still serving up the food they had made.
There was little difference in the external appearance of Dwarven males and females. The biggest difference lay in their beards. Male beards were very long, and they were typically woven into three braids, while female beards were sparser. That said, sparse still meant that their beards resembled those of human males. However, the ladies seemed to have a habit of trimming the whiskers under their noses.
I don’t really see how it’s a habit… Well, that’s culture for you. The Sorcerous Kingdom has gathered all sorts of humanoids. Probing too deeply about this sort of thing might cause problems in the future.
Ainz turned his gaze away from the ladies who were still serving food. His eyes crossed the countless Dwarven heads before him and rested on the raised platform in front of him.
Some of the smiths bound for the Sorcerous Kingdom were standing with the members of the Council.
And then, the Council informed them about the migration to the Sorcerous Kingdom.
“It has begun.”
“So it has.”
The answer came from Gondo, who stood by Ainz’s side.
“...You’re their representative. Is it alright if you don’t stand out there in front of them?”
“Give me a break, Your Majesty. I’m almost useless as a runesmith. It would be a shame to let someone like me represent them. ...Wouldn’t you be a better choice, Your Majesty?”
Ainz and Gondo locked eyes for a moment, and then they chuckled.
Naturally, Ainz simply did not want to stand on the stage to meet and greet people. His earlier words were simply something he had forced out.
“Still…” Gondo’s face turned serious. “I can’t thank you enough, Your Majesty.”
“Why is that?”
“This farewell party. Please look at the people on stage.”
Ainz looked at the stage once more. They were not finished speaking, and that was all that came to mind. However, it would be a bit insensitive to say that he had not noticed anything after Gondo had brought it up.
“Umu… I see…”
In the end, he simply used the appropriate answer as a smokescreen.
“It is as Your Majesty surmises. Everyone’s eyes have changed.”
“Indeed, they have,” Ainz replied without thinking, though he still had no idea what was going on. “Still, why is that?”
Gondo chuckled, like he found it amusing.
“It is the joy of feeling admiring gazes on them once more. Today’s ceremony ─ with dishes made with ingredients never seen before, as well as all kinds of alcohol ─ was to let the runesmiths realize that they weren’t being sold, but being hired by the Sorcerous Kingdom.”
“I’ll be expecting great things of them, you know?”
“Mm. I remember I once said that I would repay Your Majesty’s kindness. That applies to the others as well. Thank you very much. Oops, looks like it’s about time, Your Majesty.”
After taking a large stein of beer from Gondo, he thumped it against the table like the others were doing. Ainz then raised a tiny cup of liquor in a toast, and then gave it back to Gondo because he could not drink it.
The Dwarves ─ who had been holding themselves back all this while ─ burst into activity. Many Dwarves flocked towards the food, gorging themselves nonstop with the dishes on display.
“What’s this? It’s amazing! Did your wife really make this?”
“Mm. His Majesty provided the ingredients. We had a lot of failures while trying it.”
“Mhm. It’s good, that’s a fact. But to an old fogey like me, it could stand to be a bit blander.”
“You’re meant to wash it down with wine.”
“What? Let me try… Ohoh! Incredible! The taste is just right!”
“The wine’s good too. I wonder if my wife could make this too?”
“It seems that the Sorcerous Kingdom will be sending us food for some time. Looks like we’ll be eating well, then.”
“I’d rather have their wine. This is from the Sorcerous Kingdom, right? Better be prepared to pay!”
They talked at the top of their voices as they ate. And then─
“I envy those runesmiths. They get to eat this sort of thing whenever they like?”
“No, these should be pretty expensive, right?”
“Doesn’t seem that way, does it? Look, in human countries, vegetables are cheap. Seems to be the same way with the Sorcerous Kingdom too.”
“Mm, they really are a fortunate lot. And, I only had a bit, but is it me or is the Sorcerous Kingdom’s wine top-notch stuff?”
“Umu. I only had a sip of that myself. Ahhhh, that was delicious. Still, grape wine is good; though maybe not that strong.”
“Don’t we have a reason to visit the Sorcerous Kingdom?”
“I’ve heard tell that they’re planning to let the citizens of both countries move freely between them.”
“Oi oi, Everyone here’s pretty highly-placed, but shouldn’t you be more careful about letting that sort of thing get out?”
“Nah, seems they’re going to make a public announcement. In the future, this country will be active in a lot of places… and although this is just a rumor, they say that we took back the Royal Capital.”
“...Rumor has it that the Royal Palace was a nest of Dragons. The Sorcerous Kingdom is really amazing.”
Naturally, Ainz picked up on those words as well.
Rather than praise Ainz directly, their opinion of the Sorcerous Kingdom seemed to have gone up instead. That probably meant they could continue being friends in the future.
Ainz smiled in satisfaction, and turned to Gondo again.
“Go speak to them, Gondo. I may not be back for a while.”
“Is that so. ...Then I shall go talk with those chaps from the mines.”
Gondo was looking at a Dwarf with an evil look in his eyes.
“And what will you be doing, Your Majesty?”
“...A messenger from my country has come. I need to meet them. Then, see you again.”
Ainz raised his hand in farewell, and walked away.
He had originally been standing in a corner of a vast, spacious room. He opened the door to leave and headed for a guest reception room cum lounge room cum parlour.
It was quite a luxuriously furnished room, with tables, chairs, cabinets and the like. Demiurge was standing there.
“Forgive me for making you come all this way.”
“Certainly not. Your location is where I should be headed, Ainz-sama.”
Ainz walked across the room and sat in a chair. Then he bade Demiurge to take a seat as well.
“...I’ve seen the reports. I’m working here, so I must apologize for having you put them in writing instead of just delivering them by mouth.”
The reports in question detailed Demiurge’s preparations and activities in the Holy Kingdom. Of course, if he heard them from Demiurge himself, it might damage Ainz’s disguise. This had also been taken into consideration.
“...Even so, you’ve done well as I expected, Demiurge. Your accomplishments can only be described as outstanding.”
“Thank you very much, Ainz-sama.”
Demiurge bowed.
“Still, I could not hope to equal your feats, Ainz-sama… You have firmly secured a place in the Dwarves’ hearts.”
Ainz thought that he must surely be referring to how he reclaimed the Royal Capital, or recruiting the runesmiths. However, was that really the case?
“...Hm, so it seems you’ve seen through it already, Demiurge. Do you think the Dwarves have noticed?”
“Rather than notice it, I think they have no other alternative.”
Why wasn’t there anyone else here? If only there were, he could use his usual tactic. As Ainz studied Demiurge in detail, he noticed a smile on his face.
...What’s so funny?!
Demiurge’s smile made Ainz’s nonexistent stomach ache. Albedo’s smile was similarly terrifying. The idea that they might have seen through his act made his nonexistent heart pound faster.
“If… if the Dwarves see through it, what do you think I should do?”
“I doubt that will be a big problem. After all, you did provide the catering for the runesmiths’ farewell party. With that, you can shrug off anything the Dwarves say.”
...What’s he talking about?
“I trust it’s not important, then.”
Now that his attempts to lead Demiurge on had failed, Ainz decided to leave it at that. Asking too much about an intelligent person like him was very dangerous.
“Then, how goes the vassalization of the Empire?”
“Yes. Albedo and I have discussed the matter and we have drawn up a draft. After that, we hope you will look over it and share your opinions with us.”
If Demiurge and Albedo finished it together, then I won’t need to step in. Ainz thought that, but did not say it.
“...Have you given the Empire enough benefits? Enough that the neighboring countries will look at the Empire and think, ‘life will be good for us once we become vassals of the Sorcerous Kingdom’, or something along those lines?”
“It will be fine.”
Ainz muttered “Yes” in his heart. In that case, he could give it his OK without even looking at the draft.
“Even so, your achievements in the Dwarven Kingdom and the Empire were truly breathtaking. I imagine the term ‘fathomless wisdom’ exists to describe you, Ainz-sama.”
“Certainly not. I’m confident you could have done this easily as well, Demiurge.”
Demiurge revealed a rare expression ─ a bitter smile. Then he shook his head.
“Indeed, if that was all. Even so, how far into the future have you predicted the course of the Sorcerous Kingdom?”
Not even tomorrow. But of course, he could not say that.
Ainz wondered what sort of answer would fit the style of a ruler. Just then, he remembered a guild name from YGGDRASIL.
It was called Millenium Kingdom.
If only the Sorcerous Kingdom could really last a thousand years. Perhaps it was because of that thought, but a relevant memory came to mind.
He had no idea why the guild’s emblem was that of a crane, and so Ainz had asked Yamaiko about it. After that, she told him that it was because Cranes were said to live for a thousand years in mythology. Similarly, tortoises would live for─
“─Ten thousand years.”
Ainz frowned as the words slipped out. He had accidentally overstated the scale. Just as Ainz hurriedly looked toward Demiurge, intending to correct himself, he realized that it was already too late.
“To, to think your plans were of such a grand scope...”
Demiurge’s eyes went wide, and those jewel-like pupils of his shone even brighter.
Ah, this is bad.
“I was kid─”
“─That being the case, things like spreading the undead around must surely be to encourage the other nations to rely on you rather than viewing our troops as dangerous elements, Ainz-sama. That must be the right answer for someone who views the world from such a wide angle. Still… how fearsome you are…”
Ainz did not know what he was saying, but he knew there was only one thing he could do at this point. “Well done, Demiurge, you have completely anticipated my plans, as I expected.” However, he could not use that tactic all the time. Therefore, this time, he would say ─
“Fufufu, I haven’t thought that far ahead, Demiurge.”
“...Is that so. Understood. I shall carve this matter into my heart.”
As he saw Demiurge’s gentle smile, Ainz’s heart flooded with cold sweat.
Eh? What? What’s going on? ...I’m not too sure, but doesn’t this mean I’m in an even more precarious situation now?
However, Ainz had not thought of any solutions. Then, he would have to deal with it with a fake smile.
“Fufufu… I’ll leave it to you then, Demiurge.”
“Fufufu… Understood, Ainz-sama.”
In contrast, Demiurge’s smile shone even brighter than before.
Even though he wanted to cry, Ainz managed to pull himself together enough to ask a question in a trembling voice.
“...Then, Demiurge. About the report you sent… when do you think it will take place?”
“It will begin in the fall, but I shall have to trouble you in the winter, Ainz-sama. The beginning should be fine, but once the opposition makes their move as well, there might be some discrepancies even if we manage to manipulate them.”
“Well, you did plan this after all, Demiurge. I can leave it to you in peace.”
“Thank you very much, Ainz-sama. As for the matter of the Empire’s vassalization─”
“─I’ll listen in detail once I return. Can you give me a copy of the plan first?”
“Understood.”
“...Then, I look forward to how this project of yours will unfold, Demiurge.”
