Chapter 555: 65
After the War Chapter 13
Being among the top members of the Empire without any duties was a nice deal by itself, but just sitting around and enjoying life was starting to get somewhat boring. Thus, Ancient One was not about to waste his one opportunity to leave at least some impression on Ainz.
Dressed in an outfit that was somewhere in between a formal suit and pajamas, he walked towards Ainz's office with a large cigar in his mouth. Right beside him walked one of his personal maids with a glass ashtray in her hands.
As a bureaucrat by trade, he had noticed a rising problem that was until now completely neglected. Each world had separate time counting systems and no decently run country should leave such oversight. This is where his proposal came in; to unite both worlds under a singular calendar.
Luckily for someone like him, the screening process was pretty much nonexistent and he easily got into the inner sanctum of the administrative wing of the castle.
The only thing that remained was to reach Ainz himself, which also turned out to be an easy task. The guards just stepped aside and let him in.
The Emperor and his second-in-command, Ulbert, were discussing the recent tests performed by Tabula, which far too many citizens of the Empire had witnessed.
"Ancient One, good to see you are still kicking. I thought we would have to raise you as an undead before you were transported here." Ulbert greeted him.
"Ha, and give you the pleasure of outliving me? I would rather carry around my organs in a jar than let that happen." He shot back with a smirk.
"Good to see you, Ancient One. As I understand you have a proposition for us." Ainz said with curiosity as to what it was.
"It is good to see you too, Ainz. How are things?"
"Busy, as you can see. Let's hear your proposal first and then we can catch up." Ainz motioned for him to join them at the table.
Ancient One sat down with his maid putting down the glass ashtray on the table to his right. He let out a long puff, took out the cigar from his mouth to drop the ash, and pushed forward the folder explaining his idea.
"That is not a bad idea. I see you even took into mind the one-day difference between the year lengths." Ainz remarked praising Ancient One as he flipped through the folder.
"That was the hardest part but I think this world, or for convenience's sake, the prime world should be the base of the calendar. It will take half a century to start seeing any of the winters on Earth not being in the new year."
"I agree. I think we can implement the changes at the new year and set the point of arrival on May seventh, year zero." Ainz remarked. "That makes today August seventh, year three after arrival, according to this system."
"National holiday in all our worlds." Ulbert chipped in. "Let the masses know when the most important event of their lives happened."
"Ours too." Ainz added.
"Ours too. That's without a question." Ulbert agreed. "So you are gunning for an administrative position and not becoming a God?"
"Dealing with the cults, apostles, and probably a lot more you are not telling, is not for me. I'll be happy pushing papers and enjoying my minor divinity, at least for a while." Ancient One said casually.
"He is all yours, Ainz." Ulbert said with a cackle. "Even for an old fossil bureaucrat like you, you have no idea what you are getting into."
"I think Ancient One will fit in just fine." Ainz continued flipping the pages in the folder. "I see you have a few propositions to streamline the administration. I will consult with Albedo on the matter, but I think we can use a majority of your suggestions."
"Happy to be of use." Ancient One took another long puff. "By the way, how did it all start, anyway? Nazarick's natives tried to convince me that you saved Nazarick from Ragnarok or something along those lines. I assume I can talk freely while none of them are present."
"I designed the contract in a way that you can discuss things freely with other guild members, so you can speak about our past without restriction. I'm surprised you haven't even felt the contract activate once." Ulbert said.
"When you work for the government, you don't even explain in detail what you have eaten for breakfast to your coworkers, not to mention actual serious stuff. I guess it's a habit to keep my mouth shut about sensitive topics." Ancient One explained. "But back to the topic. I am curious about what really happened."
Ulbert leaned closer to Ainz and said in a hushed tone. "Damn, he is selling his pitch hard. Maybe I should steal him."
"No thank you, I have heard rumors about your line of work. You and Pero can deal with all the 'cleaning' staff, I prefer to worry about topics like road taxes." Ancient One leaned back in his chair with a chuckle.
"Sure…" Ulbert eyed him. 'Ancient One is too smart for his own good. I wonder how he would deal with Renner. I bet he would throw her off hard... Maybe… Nah, I'll do that if she messes something up.'
"In short, there is not much to tell. We know it was a ritual from this world that pulled Nazarick and us here and remade us. It happened on the last day of Yggdrasil. You probably already know that we weren't the first players to arrive but we know that we were the last as the ritual was stopped." Ainz explained and picked up a small shot glass from the table filled with one of Ulbert's specialties.
The extremely lethal poison had a similar effect to alcohol when drunk by powerful beings with high poison resistance. But for him, it only gave taste, as no matter the potency of the poison, he was completely immune to it. The main reason for drinking was the pleasant taste and the short burning aftereffect.
"I see… I remember the invitation but was very busy with a deadline that day. And the God stuff came from the guys upstairs? I hear that your kid is kinda in the same category."
"Splendora is special. She is already reading and counting. You should see how good she is with summoning…" Ainz broke into full bragging mode sounding extremely proud.
"Ainz! Only when people ask for details!" Ulbert quietly hissed.
"Ahm… right. Yes, she is one tier higher than us, but to my knowledge, she also enjoys some sort of protection to not be harassed by beings on her level."
"I don't mind. It's not a sin for parents to be proud of their children. I remember having this lady coworker. You ask one question about her kids and she could go on for hours." Ancient One dwelled into his memories with a faint smile. "She was so fine… If not for her husband, I wouldn't have minded becoming a daddy. I wonder how she is doing these days."
Even with Earth being a nightmarish dystopia, it still held a lot of pleasant memories and people whose company he once cherished. Of course, it would not stay that way for long as Earth would be restored to its former glory under the wise rule of his friends, but that small worry about his friends and distant relatives that weren't transported and only sat on the protective list still lingered.
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"Evil Boss still sleeping?" Tina asked as she poured her the wonderful drink that was called coffee and poured some sugar and milk into the cup with it.
"She is in the bathroom, prettying up for the Goddess." Gagaran remarked as she shoved bacon in her mouth with the vigor of a world-eating beast.
"Lady Ankoro is coming in today?" Evileye, or Keno, as her friends now knew her real name, sleepily asked while she sat down at the table.
"For sure. Maybe we are finally getting some work." Gagaran said.
"I doubt it. Unless the rumors about planned expansion to the east are true." Tia said and quickly grabbed the bottle of milk. She and her sister, as usual, fought for the last portion of milk to pour on sweetened corn flakes.
No matter how much was stored in the cooler, they always ran out.
"It's only a matter of time. You heard what Neia said. The whole world belongs to the Gods and would one day be included in the Empire." Gagaran said.
"There will be work soon. Everyone is preparing for it." Lakyus said as she entered the dining area. She gracefully sat down at the end of the table without ruffling her green dress.
"Evil Boss, you have to tell us!" Tia said. "We are a team."
"I know, but it's under general secrecy and I'm not sure if I should. I don't want to get you all in trouble." Lakyus said with a sigh. Keeping secrets from friends was such a difficult task.
"Aren't we officially your crew? Remember, that lich did give us all the fourth-level clearance." Keno remarked while her friends watched with horror as she brewed a viscous pitch-black liquid that was her morning coffee. Gagaran often joked that if she dropped the cup by accident, half of the Empire would not sleep for a week.
"I mean yes, but… let's ask Lady Ankoro when she arrives if I should give details."
"You already are in a pretty dress so she will be in a good mood." Gagaran laughed loudly.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Lakyus asked with her cheeks reddening. "I am dressed in an appropriate outfit to meet one of her stature."
"Sure, and not because the Goddess looks at you like you are a good juicy piece of meat." Gagaran continued her assault.
"Hey, Mass of Muscle, it's not appropriate to discuss their private relationship." Keno sat down and said in a mildly annoyed tone.
"Put that thing away, my eyes are burning!" Gagaran pointed at the mug that threatened to melt, unable to hold the liquid inside it.
"It's just a coffee. Want a sip?" Keno picked up the mug and brought it closer to the gigantic woman's face.
"My eyes! I see… It's all clear now. You want all of us to not sleep anymore and be like you." Gagaran looked in distance glassy-eyed as she spoke in a mock voice.
"I could just add my blood to your wine and you would be turned before you know it." Keno said with a deadpan expression.
"Oh, you too want to be heteromorphs." Ankoro's cheerful voice interrupted their spat. She, as always, had just walked into the Blue Roses quarters with a large basket filled to the brim with sweets from Nazarick.
"Hey, boss! No, we are just joking around." Gagaran said hastily while the other girls greeted the Goddess as well.
"Oh, I thought you wanted upgrades. It would not be that hard to do. I already know the alteration spell."
"Alteration spell?" Keno perked up. "Would that include age change?" She asked, not trying to sound too eager.
"Sure… ohhhh… I am so sorry. I could have changed your age weeks ago or asked my friends even before that. How old do you want to look, eighteen or maybe mid-twenties? Of course, if you want to go for a more mature look I can make you older as well." Ankoro said apologetically.
"Eighteen w-would be fine." Keno jumped to her feet. "Should I…" She let out a surprised yelp as the Goddess just raised her hand and now her body was rapidly growing. Keno let out a pained groan as her clothes partly tore at the seamlines.
"There you go." Ankoro cheerfully said and then tilted her head. "Looks a bit... tight."
"I… need… air… I mean… new clothes."
"Keno, you can pick something from my collection. Your new body looks similar to mine in proportions. Do you need help to get out of your current clothes?" Lakyus asked.
"I… I'll manage." Keno slowly moved towards Lakyus' room while wincing in clear discomfort.
"Anyone else want something changed? Gagaran, maybe better proportions? Or maybe someone wants a race change?" Ankoro asked with renewed enthusiasm.
"I'm fine." Gagaran replied. "I worked too hard on this body to change anything. Though a few centimeters on the biceps wouldn't hurt."
Lakyus stood up and bowed. "I would accept any change you deem necessary, Lady Ankoro."
"I don't want to force anyone. But maybe we can look at options together. There are a lot of cute choices. You could even become a werewolf like me. One bite and bam, you have an alternate form." Ankoro said as a bit of drool escaped the side of her mouth.
"I would be honored, Lady Ankoro." Lakyus replied none the wiser. "I also wanted to ask. Should I give information about the next big project to my friends?"
"Earth stuff? Of course, you can tell them. A lot of my friend's subordinates are trying the new weapons." Ankoro said and pulled her ears back. "I do not like guns myself, but I hope they will not be too scary for you."
"You can share most of the information you know with them if they are not going around telling it to everyone." She added.
"What's Earth?" Keno asked. She had already come back dressed in one of Lakuys' home dresses.
"It's a world where me and my friends were l… imprisoned in human bodies. We are taking over and repairing it. A lot of people will need help." Ankoro explained.
"Another world?" Gagaran tilted her head in confusion. "Is that a separate realm like heaven or hell?"
"No, just another planet in a different reality. There are countless worlds out there. More than anyone can imagine." Ankoro said. "I'm not that big of all that stuff but Tabula once tried explaining it to me. I think he said that in one galaxy there are hundreds of millions of planets."
She quickly realized that her subordinates were just looking at her weirdly. 'So that's how Tabula feels most of the time, I hope he doesn't mind too much.' "But enough of that. Let's have a feast." She raised the basket and smiled.
There were no better companions to eat sweets with than her Apostle Lakyus with her friends.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone