Chapter 23: Chapter 23 - The wise shows up
{A/N: Hello people, I know I didnt publish anything last month, I thought that I would have time on my "winter break", but ended up having a loooot to work in due to my parents seeing "oh you are free do as we want". (and to make everything worst, this winter break is ending in 2 weeks) Either way, as I did on december, trying to rush the most I can here. And Thank you, readers, to still be here!}
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Inside Carne Village, more specifically inside one of the cabins, Kelart, one of the angelic wings of Holy Kingdom's majesty, was reading a book among the others she had brought with her on that trip. It was a book about magic that, normally, she would not be reading of her own free will, having picked it up just to see what her apprentice's notes were like. There were unknown symbols, but everything was written in an extremely specific way, if she didn't know the owner of it, she would think it was complete gibberish from some mage who is always reclusive with his ideas.
". . . This boy... how did you find out about this...?" She wondered as she picked up a random sheet of paper and drew one of the symbols, and just by inserting a little mana into it, it transformed into a floating luminous sphere, which vanished after a few seconds.
This was a question she always asked herself when she had access to his writings. No matter how much time passed, it was still something unbelievable. "Really... something I had never seen back then... And he's still the only one I've ever seen who managed to do that... that crazy guy really covered his whole body with symbols..." She didn't like to express her emotions so much about that subject. She even felt a certain disgust, revulsion, almost a huge taboo, which, if it weren't for Queen Calca showing interest, would have caused that boy to be arrested and his entire family to be persecuted.
"How can someone who is the son of Pebal and Leticia... be so crazy like that..." She said to herself, still not knowing how to understand that, even after 6 long years of having that boy as her apprentice.
Pabel, the Platoon Sergeant of the Holy Kingdom's Army and member of the Nine Colors, and Leticia, former leader and mentor of some groups of Holy Kingdom's paladins... They were very well spoken of and seen as a powerful couple, at the time that Leticia was still working as a paladin. And to think that that couple would have, among their two children, an insane boy with an illogical situation... a boy who can't use skills without completely injuring himself, and just because of that, he had the motivation to create a new method of using magic, like a sorcerer...
"Saint Kelart!" Someone called out to her as they knocked on the door, but without actually entering, due to the woman's privacy. "The Baraja Duo is back, and it seems they brought with them a group of people... Some locals are saying that two of them are the ones who protected this village before."
The woman just gave a long sigh, thinking about the information while she put her hand over her face, gently squeezing the area between her eyes. 'Even though he said to try to wait, did he go to them? Or maybe he found them by accident...? Argh... if it's the first option... He'll have to deal with me...' She thought, a little irritated, because the idea of waiting until they appeared was her disciple's! And he himself went after them?! How illogical and selfish, in a way...
Without delay, she stood up and put on her clothes over her light armor. Leaving the hut to see the starry sky with the moon not having passed its absolute peak, possibly in less than 3 hours the Sun would begin to show signs of existence. And a little ahead, there were a few village guards and some goblins, all huddled together and observing what seemed to be a group of 5 people, and together with this group, there were the Baraja and the 3 known demi-humans. Near Kelart, but a little behind her, there were two paladins who were the only ones awake at the moment. The situation was not intense enough to have to wake up all the paladins in the village, at least, that was the common thought. And so, she watched the new faces approaching and when they were close enough, they made a slight bow as a sign of respect.
Although "new faces" would not be the appropriate term, since they were all wearing masks or helmets, not as if they were just battle clothes, but as if they were some kind of everyday clothing. Two men with suits and masks that vaguely reminded her of some species of feral demi-humans style of outfit, one wearing gold ornaments and the other with several belts around his waist and arms. Two other men in wide clothing, one appearing to be a sorcerer with a red mask, and the other a paladin with armor that definitely looked like one a warrior from the Holy Kingdom would wear, if it were 100% directly sponsored by Calca Bessarez. And lastly, a woman in a long-sleeved dress with a skirt, with gloves that looked like velvet and a narrow mask, being the only one to reveal her hair, which was pink.
"So... Letyan and Neia... could you tell me what exactly is going on?" She asked, just to be sure.
"We were training in the area I had found and ended up having our paths crossed with the group that saved Carne Village. I took the opportunity to confirm about the cursed sword, and they really are the originators of it." The disciple answered, trying to be as direct as possible.
"If that's the case, it means that our objective here is complete... I will report to the queen and would like to ask you a few questions." She said, now looking at the masked men. "My name is Kelart Custodio, I'm the Holy Kingdom's High Priestess."
"My name is Momonga, these are Bukubuku, Toucha, Ulbert and Tabula." Said the one with the red mask. "My friends and I were surprised and interested after hearing some things from the boy, and we would like to talk about it."
Kelart accepted that, the 5 guests went with her to the cabin she was using, and soon sat down to actually ask what was needed...
"About the sword itself, the main item... why did you throw it in the middle of the battlefield we were on? And... I would like to know why this item seems to have stuck to my disciple, besides it seems to have a large volume of negative energy, according to our research... Everyone, especially the queen, was frightened by the presence of something like this just appearing out of nowhere." She was direct, in her own way.
Ulbert gave a light cough, clearing his throat, while the others either sat in chairs, or with their backs leaning against the walls. "Well, to begin with... we didn't throw anything... After we arrived in this region, that sword simply... threw itself. It flew and even hurt me when I tried to catch it... It was bizarre to say the least..."
Kellart's eyes widened a little at that statement. "A sword that simply flew towards us...? But why now? And what did you mean by 'In this region'? If what you say is true, something must have happened for these things to occur."
"It's something much more complex than that, your disciple also asked these questions and we answered them honestly, due to the fact that the sword accepted him, but we realized that the situation is confusing and can be seen as something that should be kept locked away beneath a mountain..." Tabula spoke as she adjusted his mask a little. "So, we were thinking that, if we're going to talk to someone about this, it has to be with a person of high rank who can also be super trustworthy to us."
"And about it sticking to your disciple..." Touch spoke, taking off his helmet, revealing a face that matched his voice and height, but with some bandages on specific parts of the sides and neck. "That sword belonged to a friend of ours... a person we all considered the best at what he did. A Jack-of-All-Trades, so to speak. The item was made in a way that it could never be touched by another, so because of that and due to some data we collected while your boy was in our house... We discovered that... his aura and that of our former friend are very similar... and by that logic, it is one of the reasons we believe the sword flew to you."
Bukubuku interjected, speaking dramatically. "The evil energy that that item generates... comes from the extreme amount of lives that were defeated by our friend, when he was alive... heh... he even made jokes, saying that inside the sword there was a powerful demon, when in fact, it has some special crystals inside the sheath, which allows the item to be fortified when in contact with blood."
The High Priestess was still surprised by those words, it was hard to believe, but they were explanations at least, and it didn't seem like they were lying, but the fact that there was some very secret behind it, made her have a slight chill and an expected distrust... But why would they say something that would obviously arouse distrust???
Soon, she realized a detail. "Wait... did you collect... data?"
"We just asked a few things in the middle of friendly conversations, and among our faithful assistants, we have some who can analyze people with their gaze... nothing special..." The mage answered this very casually.
Kelart flinched a little. Saying something like that so casually? People with the ability to analyze just with their gaze??? That's not 'nothing special'! That's quite rare! Even if it was a figure of speech, and these people used spells, it was quite advanced for someone to be able to analyze aura in such detail, to the point of trusting a complete stranger.
Meanwhile, Letyan was walking around the village, curious about something Momonga had said when they were updating him on what they had done so far. More specifically, the situation of him infiltrating as an adventurer to see the situation outside of Nazarick's eyes.
Honestly, he thought the idea was good in a way, after all, the skeleton still has a human conscience, and being forced to see things only from the point of view of other monsters could cause some misunderstanding. But what he managed to discover was something that the young Baraja had never imagined could exist in that world.
"[]..'Yes, you may find it bizarre, but apparently there is someone with an innate ability to use any equipment without having the class requirements! And that person is literally in our garden right now!'..[]" Those were the words that stuck the most in the human's mind.
'Someone of that level living nearby? And what's more, living in E-Rantel? A city very close to the border between Re-Estize and Slane Theocracy...' Letyan thought as he walked towards the house of the village's goblin mistress.
'Better to keep someone like that safe, maybe somehow having the NPCs of Nazarick watch over this boy would be the best option... Those supremacist lunatics might not know about him yet or worse... they might already be plotting something...' He felt an intense chill run down his back as he continued within that mental monologue.
That kingdom would do anything for the good of humanity, even things that are seen as inhumane or genocidal. The famous phrase "The ends justify the means" can be used to immensely categorize people with political power there.
'And he knows that girl I talk to sometimes... Coincidences are making my life easier, I don't know which god to thank...' That was the last thought he had before realizing that there was someone outside the cabin, and from the description given by Momonga, it was the boy in question.
He was carrying some large leather bags, as if he was getting ready to leave, but soon he noticed the young Baraja approaching, scaring him a little, since some of the candles that illuminate the streets had already been extinguished by the action of time. But that didn't matter, because soon he came out of the shadows, with the light of the torches near the house illuminating him.
"Good morning, I hope I didn't scare you. The place really needs torches that last much longer."
"E-eh... I agree... you're one of the people from the Holy Kingdom...?"
"Uh-huh! I wasn't there when you arrived because there were things to look for around here." He said, extending his hand after getting very close. "My name is Letyan Baraja."
"N-Nfirea Bareare..." He replied, accepting the handshake.
"Want... some help with the bags, Nfirea?"
"Oh... a-actually I'd appreciate it... I'm going to the forest nearby to get some herbs, so I need to have all my equipment with me..."
"I see. It's better to be over-prepared than under-prepared..."
After that brief introduction, the sorcerer helped the alchemist pack his things, with not much conversation, just questions out of pure curiosity between the two men. Nfirea seemed to be quite a shy guy when it came to meeting someone new, but his shyness quickly disappeared, as if he was getting used to the conversation, or maybe Letyan was just really good at creating a friendly atmosphere.
"Ooh... you came with a whole group of adventurers just to gather herbs? You really do prepare yourself well for the situation."
"It's not a big group, it's just a team of 4 members and a duo of really good adventurers who were really cheap for me to hire."
"I understand, but you really got lucky... a swordsman and a mage destroying monsters without you having to stop the wagon. Are they really Bronze Badges?"
"They are, but only because they signed up recently... To be honest, the more time passes, the more I'm interested in those two..." Nfirea said as he finished cutting some fabric with scissors into a rectangular shape, putting it inside one of the leather bags.
"Oh? Why do you say that?"
"Well..." He looked around, as if trying to see if anyone was listening, and then continued speaking. "A girl came to my family's shop to sell a potion... This potion was something I never thought I would see in my life. A healing potion red with blood..."
"Red as blood...? Isn't that the description given in stories about the gods' potions?"
"I'm not religious, but yes, I believe it is... and not only that, it was a very ornate bottle, as if it were something only a noble could have..."
"And what does one thing have to do with the other???"
"This girl told me that the potion was given to her as a way of paying for a problem that was caused... and the people who had this item were precisely the Bronze Badge adventurers who came with me."
"So... you asked them to escort you out of curiosity?" Letyan asked and the alchemist nodded.
"But something else happened... actually... a set of information..." Nfirea rubbed his eyes a little. "When I arrived here in the village and met an acquaintance... she told me how the people who rescued this place had given her a healing potion... red as blood... and... she kept the bottle of the potion because it seemed very expensive and valuable... I saw the item... and it's identical to the one I have..."
"That... That really is suspicious in a way... I'll be honest."
"Well, I've already started to think that these adventurers might be connected to the group... but... then some names were mentioned... My friend said that one of them is called Momonga and a woman close to him is called Albedo... and just yesterday, there was a discussion with the adventurer Momon's duo... and in the middle of that conversation, the name 'Albedo' came up..."
"So... two of the adventurers who came with you... are part of the group that saved this place...? Huh... really, that seems too fitting to be a coincidence... they're now with my boss, they apparently came here of their own free will." Letyan spoke with his head slightly down, but mentally he was pulling his own hair.
'Satoru... you're really unlucky...' was his thought.
"Yes, and from what I heard they did when they saved the village... I'd say they're on par with an Adamantium adventurer, or even more advanced than that... a heroic class group... but well, I hope I helped... I heard you guys were trying to find them..." Nfirea said, leaning his back against the wall.
"We were actually looking for the origin of this sword here." Letyan explained the situation better as he stabbed the blade into the ground. "And then we associated the direction the item came from with the fact that your girlfriend had an item with a similar aura."
Nfirea's face turned red as a tomato as he shook his head. "G-Girlfriend? D-Dude, don't joke about that!"
"Hahaha! Sorry, I just said that to tease you a little. She also told me about you a few times while I was walking around the village with her. I mean, she only talked about having an alchemist friend, but she always smiles when she talks about it."
"Wait, so you already knew me?"
"Nah, I just heard about, you really do seem different from what I expected, but in a good way." Letyan commented as he sat there on the ground, also watching the sky.
Nfirea felt a little uncomfortable, changing the subject "So... The necklace Enri received... is similar to this sword, right?"
"Yes and no. The energy is similar enough for me to say that they both have the same origin, but... if we're talking about intensity level, what she has is a grain of sand, while this is a tsunami."
"Woah... but what she received allows her to summon goblins. That's already very useful."
Letyan gave a slight smile. "I said 'intensity', not 'usefulness'. A magic that allows one to cast a beam of destruction is intense, but only has the utility of destroying, while a magic that allows one to create a small sphere of fire is much more useful, but less intense."
Nfirea seemed to understand the analogy. "Well, I think I'll call the group that's going with me after I have breakfast..."
"Okay, if the forest you're going to is really close, don't be afraid to call for a little help." Letyan said as he walked towards the cabin where his sister was.
"Ah, you forgot your sword here."
"Oh, relax, it just flies to me whe-" Letyan turned around as he said that, but soon fell silent.
Nfirea had managed to get the sword off the ground and was now giving it to its owner. The former player's eyes widened at the sight, picking up the sword and soon having an idea. "Nfirea, if this situation we talked about before is really true... I recommend not talking about it to anyone else. If someone in their group decided to disguise themselves, there must be some reason... like perhaps... self-security."
"Self-security?"
"What's safer? You being someone powerful, walking around and being recognized to the point of perhaps gaining a target on your head? Or you, being someone powerful, deciding to hide so that your achievements don't affect the way everyone reacts to you?" Letyan's words easily entered the alchemist's mind.
"Oh my god... you're right... I shouldn't have sai-"
"Don't worry about me knowing about this... I've already been invited by them to see some things in exchange for knowing why the sword is with me... I think I'm the limit of people you should trust with such information... but I recommend asking the warrior Momon to confirm it and for him to be aware that you know this, there may still be the slightest chance that it's all a sickening coincidence. Never take something as fact, until the real fact is shown."
"O-Okay! A-again, thanks for helping me with the bags!" Nfirea lowered his head.
"No problem..." He said, now walking back towards the hut where his sister was. With some thoughts in mind. 'Okay, it looks like it's not just class requirements that he can bypass... interesting...'
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A few hours passed, it was already around 8 in the morning, Nfirea was at the exit of the village, waiting for all the adventurers of the escort. The Sword of Darkness group had arrived first, with the duo Nabe and Momon arriving soon after. It didn't take long for them to be close to the entrance of a forest that existed nearby.
"Okay guys, we're entering the forest. I'm counting on you..." Nfirea said, observing the adventurers.
"Well, I'm sure we'll be fine, since we have Momon-san with us." Peter, the leader of the group, spoke with a smile on his face, possibly remembering how the swordsman with them managed to defeat the monsters on the way.
"Speaking of which... Momon-san... I'd like to warn you that, if we encounter The Wise King of the Forest, I want you to focus on scaring it away and preventing it from approaching us..." Nfirea explained that detail. "It is believed that this being is the reason why monsters do not come out of the forest to attack Carne Village, since this part of the forest is its main territory."
"Huh... yes, it would be bad if this great monster were to be killed in this context. But I consider it impossible for it to be frightened, even if Momon-san is in combat." Lukrut, the archer of the group, spoke with disbelief.
"I understand, I will keep that in mind." Momon replied with this, causing the archer to be shocked.
"Eh?!? The opponent is a legendary magical creature that has lived for hundreds of years!! How can you say something like that?!"
"Only those who are strong are allowed to have such an attitude..." the barbaric-like druid, Dyne, spoke with a slight smile on his face, having already seen an example of strength coming from the swordsman.
"Well, since the enemy is so powerful and legendary... I have a suggestion...'' Everyone fell silent to hear Momon's words. "Nabe knows a magic that makes a lot of noise, she can use it to be an alarm... and I would also like both of us to check the area around."
"For me, you can do that, but it wouldn't be good if you stayed away for too long..." Nfirea commented, looking at the forest.
Momon accepted the alchemist's words and entered the forest with Nabe. The place became denser and denser with each step they took, and when they reached an acceptable distance, he began to speak.
"Okay, you can leave, let's go hunting!" Momon's voice seemed much more powerful than when he was with the humans.
"What hunt...?" Nabe asked, confused, and upon sensing something nearby, she turned around ready to attack, but soon stopped when she realized who it was.
Aura Bella Fiore was on top of a thick tree branch, with a big smile on her face. "So is it time? Perfect!! I really want to see this Wise King of the Forest that the humans were talking about."
"Eh!? Aura-Sama! How long have you been here?" asked Nabe.
"I entered the forest at the same time as you." She replied with a smile, possibly excited about the legendary creature that did not exist in YGGDRASIL.
"And I just followed her because I was interested in the flora around us..." Another voice came from between the trees, making Nabe feel a shiver all over her body, and when she turned around, she could see one of the supreme beings, Tabula.
"Well, anyway, it seems that this legendary being is the protector of the village in our backyard... but with our presence, it is not entirely necessary for that function... So I would like to use it in another way... In order to increase the reputation of this alter-ego called Momon... Yes... If the other adventurers see such a legendary beast being defeated by me, I will gain more fame as an adventurer." Momon said, observing the elf girl who was now swinging on the tree branch. "Aura, with your Tamer skills, can you find and obtain it?"
"Of course, Momonga-Sama!" she saluted. "I think I may have even seen this creature."
Nodding, Aura jumped from branch to branch, moving away from the group to do as she was told. Nabe still seemed quite confused by the situation, and after much trembling with fear and respect, she finally found the courage to ask.
"I don't understand, Momonga-sama, Tabula-sama... what's the point of all this?... Why gain fame as an adventurer when we have so much power...?"
"Well, you and the others may not understand this, due to our supreme nature, but it is actually a method of high disguise." Tabula said with a laugh. "If our nature as heteromorphs is revealed to the world, those who are highly racist against monsters will see Ainz Ooal Gown as a group that should not be made friendly with. Therefore, it is best for us to create human identities so that we can use them in case of a plan B."
"And people will trust these human identities even more if they are known and talked about a lot... right now, we are increasing the fame of the adventurers 'Momon' and 'Nabe'... and if we become extremely important, we can use the trust we have gained to create human identities more easily for other guild members..." Momon commented as he looked back. "And I think 5 people being witnesses to us OHKO'ing goblins isn't enough."
Returning to Aura, she was running through the forest, but she wasn't alone, as her two pets, Fenn, the Fenrir, and Quadracile, the giant chameleon-like beast, had followed her and were now serving as mounts, going in search of the legendary creature. This action lasted for about an hour, with Aura finding a sort of cave attached to a small mound of earth.
"Oooh... this seems to be the place, I feel it..." She said, trusting her instincts and asking the two pets to stay at the entrance while she went inside.
Taking slow, gentle steps, the little dark elf got closer and closer to the back of that cave, managing to hear a loud breathing sound that was becoming more intense. With a few more steps and extreme care, she began to see the creature, clearly sleeping and with its back turned to the passage. The only thing visible on the creature was a brown fur, along with a scaly tail that would be much more appropriate for a snake than for a mammal.
"Uh... I wanted so much to have this as a pet... I hope Momonga's great powers don't destroy it..." Aura said while still wanting that creature so much, but orders are orders.
Taking a deep breath of the air around her, the dark elf began to blow purple smoke from her mouth. It was a skill called [Nature's Breath], which allows the control of the emotions of living beings that were nearby. This skill was something that all elves have, but the fact that she had the High Tamer job class made it really effective on beasts.
The monster seemed to be affected almost instantly, making irritated noises and with its fur standing on end. The elf knew she had done all the work possible, so she ran away from there, riding on top of her fenrir and hiding so that the focus of the creature's fury would not be on her.
The creature swayed a lot as it ran like crazy out of the den and this caused a tremor to occur in the surroundings. This tremor was felt by the adventurers and Nfirea, who were already carrying some bags of medicinal herbs. This was clearly worrying.
"Huh?! What was that? Maybe it's the Wise King?" Nfirea said, showing astonishment.
Lukrut lowered his head to the ground, as if trying to understand the tremors on the ground, and then stood up, stating with certainty in his voice. "Something big seems to be coming towards us. It seems to be one creature and not several."
"Leave it to us, I think I can hold it." Momon was the one to speak, positioning himself while Nabe remained beside him.
"O-Okay, we'll be at the entrance of the forest!" Ninya said as he helped Dyne carry some of the bags.
"Please be careful and don't fatally injure him..." Nfirea said, believing in Momon's strength and running off with the adventurers.
"Shit! Weren't we supposed to have them as witnesses to the plan??" Tabula said this mentally to Momonga, having been hidden nearby all this time, due to the pure curiosity of the fauna.
"Yes... but it seems they thought quickly when it came to running away from a legendary creature... I won't judge them, survival is paramount. Maybe cutting off one of the limbs and leaving it in a non-fatal state is the best option... keep an eye out and don't get close yet..." Momon replied, with one hand close to the side of his head to be able to use the communication skill.
A strange aura appeared in the place, it was the feeling that the challenge of increasing Momon's reputation had arrived. But it wasn't just through sensations, as it was possible to see smoke appearing in front of them and quickly approaching, as if the creature's footsteps caused a lot of earth to scatter.
Momon took out the two greatswords he had and prepared for the fight, but the creature seemed to have realized that it had been found and because of that, it made a long-range attack. Stopping abruptly, the dust rose even more, hiding a lot of the creature, and from within the smoke of earth, a long tail made of scales approached, trying to stab. Momon was faster, managing to use both greatswords to block the attack. Since that wasn't a skill or anything like that, the dark swordsman was forced to take a few steps back.
The creature spoke, having disappeared from their sight after that attack. "You managed to block my first attack completely. Extremely admirable, I say..."
'Does he speak the human language of this world...? Or maybe it's the passive translation skill affecting me...' He thought, intrigued by that voice that echoed through the trees.
"Well then, invaders of my incredible territory... If you decide to leave now, I won't pursue you out of respect for such a strong defense..." That voice continued, making it difficult to identify which side it was coming from. "What action will you take?"
"What a foolish question! Don't you show your face because you lack confidence? Or maybe you are shy?" Momon taunted the legendary beast, and through the mental connection, Tabula, who was far away, laughed, loving that scene, as if he were watching a show.
"Such oppressive words... If you want that so much, then feast your eyes on my form and tremble in fear!!!"
The words of the powerful entity appeared while some trees were clearly pushed due to the force, causing Momon and Nabe to look in that direction, preparing for the attack. The being was slowly showing itself, large teeth, a brown bristling fur, countless runes shining beneath its fur and a large reptilian tail..
"I-I can't believe it..." Momon commented, looking up, since the creature seemed taller.
"Are.... are you fucking kidding me...?" Tabula spoke through the mental contact.
"That... I feel the disgust, fear and dread beneath your helmet, dark warrior." The creature said, thinking itself powerful.
"Let me ask you a question... Your species is not known as..." Momon said, approaching the creature.
"That's not a fucking..." Tabula also commented.
"Djungarian hamster?!" They both said at the same time, while Tabula seemed to scream in sudden astonishment, Momon said it as if it were a sincere question, with curiosity in his voice.
"W-Wait... what do you mean?! You know my species?" The creature said, being completely exposed to the light that fell between the trees.
"Y-Yes... how can I put it?... An old acquaintance of mine had a pet that looked like you..." Momon said, a little embarrassed, as he didn't expect something like that to be called the 'Wise King of the Forest'.
"HA! HAHAHAHAHHA!!!" Tabula laughed out loud in the mental connection. "My god!! If Saori were here, she would turn it into an adorable pet full of bows!! HAHAHHAHA" He seemed to be unable to hold himself back and if it weren't for the tentacles holding him tightly, he would have fallen from the tree he was hiding in.
"Uh...?" Nabe was super confused, because it was something she had never heard of.
"Wow! If there are others of my species, I make a point of meeting them! See, since I don't have offspring, I'm a failure as an animal..."
"Uh..." Momon tried to answer the creature. "It would be impossible because of your size... the ones I know are usually the size of a closed fist."
"I see... so I'm a failure as an animal because I'm too big... humu..." The creature said with his head down.
"Eh... I'm sorry about that..."
"No!" the monster shook its head. "Let's end these useless games and fight for our lives! That's right! Now be defeated by me and become my food!!!"
Momon just tapped the tip of his sword against the ground a few times. To some he might have seemed paralyzed by the situation, but in reality he was trapped in his thoughts, extremely disappointed. 'Gaining more fame by defeating a GIANT HAMSTER?! What a disappointment!! How is something like that a legendary animal?!'
"Huh? Paralyzed?! Come on, don't tell me you gave up before we started! We have to have a fight for survival!" the animal shouted, already prepared to advance.
Heaving a long sigh, he raised one of the swords towards the giant hamster, speaking with boredom in his voice."[Despair Aura I]"
The Wise King of the Forest looked confused, until he felt the skill hit him. Pathetically, he fell to the ground on his back, shivering in fear. "I surrender! I lost! Please don't hurt me!!"
"It... is just some beast..." Momon said, facepalming.
"What a stupid situation... I was excited for nothing, is this serious, Suzuki? Am I delirious by any chance?" Tabula commented through the mental connection.
"Oh! So you're going to kill him, Momonga-Sama?" Aura's voice appeared, revealing that she was nearby watching everything. "If so, I was thinking about skinning him. I feel like his skin would make excellent clothes for Mother."
The creature heard that and began to cry like a child wanting its mother, causing Momon to let out another disappointed sigh. If that monster was so easy to defeat, there was no reason to kill it... and that's when the idea came. 'Maybe showing others that I managed to tame it is much more impressive than showing the corpse...'
And so it was done. It didn't take long to make the creature stop crying and take him to the entrance of the forest. The group of adventurers were there with Nfirea and could observe the great beast that the duo managed to obtain.
"The Wise King of the Forest?!" Everyone exclaimed when he explained about the creature.
Momon nodded. "But please, go easy on him... He is now under my control and will not be violent."
"Yes! It is as master said. The Wise King of the Forest will follow master's path. I will not cause you any trouble!"
"Amazing! What a giant magical beast!!" Ninya spoke while everyone else was speechless.
'Eh...?????' Momon was confused by their reaction.
"I sense great strength and wisdom coming from him! Splendid!" Dyne spoke with a proud smile on his face.
'Great strength? Wisdom? This creature?!' Not only Momonga, but Tabula was thinking the same thing, still hiding nearby, inside the forest.
"You've already achieved so much, Momon-san! Now I can understand why you're taking Nabe with you." Lukrut commented, quite excited.
"We would have been massacred if we fought against such a creature... As expected of Momon-san. Incredible..." Peter seemed to speak with immense admiration.
"Eh... Nabe... what do you think?" He asked extremely confused as he couldn't see any importance in that animal.
"If we don't count its strength, its eyes seem to shine with power." Nabe answered sincerely.
'Are you kidding me?!?!' Momon thought.
'This is sick!!!! If this is powerful, I think even one of Kazuma's burps would be destructive here!!' Tabula spoke mentally, completely incredulous.
"Wait... Momon-san, if you take this magical beast with you, won't Carne Village be attacked by monsters?" Nfirea asked worriedly.
Momon looked at the hamster, wanting confirmation from him, and he said. "It's possible. Not an absolute certainty, but it could happen."
"No..." Nfirea seemed to be getting even more worried. "Wait, Momon-sama! I would like to join you!"
"Huh?" Everyone was confused.
"You are someone extremely powerful and on top of that you know several tricks that might be of interest to me! I would like you to help me, in exchange I can work for you for free and even carry equipment!!"
"Are you telling me that you want my help to become a powerful mage?" Momon asked to confirm.
"Yes! I want to be powerful and learn ways of defense, not for myself! But to help this village that I love so much!" The alchemist's words seemed extremely sincere and desperate, but they were answered with a laugh.
The laughter seemed mocking, but it was quickly explained so there would be no misunderstanding. "I'm not laughing at your dreams, however, I cannot allow you to be present with me at all times... But that doesn't prevent the fact that I can help you defend this village from time to time... and honestly, I would also accept your help at times..."
"T-Thank you!" Nfirea smiled widely at that.
But after a few hours, just before they prepared to return to E-Rantel. The alchemist called Momon to talk, being a little away from everything and everyone as it seemed to be something private, Nabe and The Wise King were not there as they had been ordered to stay close to the wagon.
"Momon-san... I would like to confirm..." He spoke, a little embarrassed by the small possibility of being wrong. "Are you Momonga? The one who helped this village?"
Momonga wasn't that surprised by that, early in the morning, when the sun finally rose, Letyan had quickly visited him to talk about it. About how the Alchemist seemed to have connected the dots due to several factors, in addition to the fact that he had been able to touch the sword with ease. This was one of the reasons why he had shown greater care and accepted the things he had asked for previously, the human in front of him could become a tremendous ally, besides, it would be an absurd waste for such a talent to be killed to keep the secret even more.
"So... What gave me away?" He acted well for that, trying to seem like he was disappointed in himself for hiding things.
"Similar names... Potions... things like that... And from the spells Enri told me you used... I already knew you were someone who should only receive the best of the best... A powerful mage... hiding as a swordsman..." Nfirea praised him and spoke softly, as if he was intimidated by the grandeur in front of him.
"That's why you told me to be careful not to kill that creature, instead of being careful not to be killed myself... I see..." He adjusted the red cape over his shoulder. "Well, really, if you found out like this, I feel like it was fate, so I won't complain and accept the fact that I was discovered by you."
"And I would like to apologize..."
"For what?" Momon was now confused, could it be that he had told someone?!
"I... I hired you because I found out about the healing potion... and I really wanted to learn how to make it... I... I was being selfish..."
"No, Nfirea..." He put his hand on the human's shoulder. "You're an alchemist, you were curious... curiosity and the desire to fill yourself with knowledge is something your job constantly demands... Blaming your desires by saying they're selfish factors isn't good for you..."
"O-Okay... you're right... I'm sorry to bring up things like that..."
"Anyway... since you already know that I'm part of an interesting group... there's no reason for me not to tell you about this..." Nfirea was confused by Momon's words, until he resumed speaking. "Among my companions, I have an alchemist. We already have a stock of items like that healing potion, but he can do more than that... you said you wanted me to help you become better at your job, maybe he's better than me at that..."
Nfirea's eyes widened, a smile appearing on his face. "I-Is that serious?! A-An alchemist who knows how to make more of that potion?!"
"Uh-huh! But I would have to see if he would accept someone like you as a disciple or even a trading partner." He gave a light laugh. "Then don't get 100% excited about it. Okay?"
Seeing the human agree, Momonga could breathe a deep sigh of relief. 'Yes, the more we keep him with us, the better the situation will be...'
And so things began to settle down...
The trip happened soon after that, causing Momonga to once again move away from the "Garden of Nazarick" to continue disguised as an adventurer. He remained mounted on top of his new beastly companion with Nabe, while the others continued to use the wagon. This way, the weight of the vehicle was lighter, making it easier for the horses to pull it faster, arriving at E-Rantel faster than on the previous trip.
During the trip, Momonga took the opportunity to have a conversation with Tabula through the mental message skill, wanting to get ahead and know if he was available for that crazy idea. Surprising the overlord, the brain eater seemed to be super excited and happy with the idea of having that human as a disciple, mainly due to his innate ability to use items without restriction, he could be of great help and could do some experiments with the excuse of being part of the study method.
The sky had already darkened, both the entrance to the city and the streets were already covered with the weak light of some lit candle-lamps, but before entering deeply, one of the guards at the entrance asked about the animal that Momon used as a mount, not explaining much beyond the fact that he had just tamed it. He was advised to register the creature at the guild, so as not to have any more problems.
"Ooh, so we have to go to the guild first?" Lukrut asked a little disappointed.
"Eh... I was hoping we could celebrate the fact that we got 6 times more herbs than we expected." Ninya said with his head down.
"Of course we can celebrate. You guys can take Nfirea and his luggage to his house, while I go register the Wise King. I'll go straight from there after. I hope there's some great booze at your house." Momon said with a laugh as he looked at the alchemist.
"Well, we managed to earn a lot more than I wanted, thanks to you and Wise King of the Forest... so I'll make sure you get to drink the best alcohol my grandmother has in the store." The alchemist said with a big smile and a wave.
And so they walked away, each heading to their own destination...
Momon still felt extremely embarrassed about his little adventure, still riding the giant hamster. Soon he got caught up in his thoughts again.
'Should I really be proud? I look more like a child on a toy horse... How embarrassing!! FUCK!!!... argh... but I still need to think of a name... Hamusuke? NO! Daifuku sounds good too... right?? Well, I'm the one who found him, so I should be the one to name him without help from others... but it was because of Aura that he was drawn to me... So who has the duty to name him, her? Or Haruka? ARGH!!! No! I'd better think of a name myself... but which one to use?!'
It didn't take long for the registration to be completed, and even so, several people stood near the guild entrance, observing the grand creature that was now there. Apparently, no matter how much Momon saw that animal as a simple pet, anyone else, especially from that region, would see such a creature as something impressive.
"There! Now your official name is Hamsuke, got it?" He said, petting the hamster.
"Oh, a simple and direct name instead of a big title... I like that! Thank you very much, master!"
"Huh?!"
Several people were surprised at the same time after hearing the creature manage to speak. It seemed like they were talking among themselves to find out who the man in the dark armor was. Momon could even hear some of them saying that maybe he was a noble and mega famous adventurer and that he shouldn't be a bronze badge, it seems that having that hamster as a companion was the wisest possible choice to achieve fame quickly.
"Hey!! You there. Aren't you one of the adventurers who went with my grandson?" A voice approached him, making him see who it was, simply an elderly woman and quite short. "I'm Lizzie, Nfirea's grandmother."
"Ooooh! You! Yes, yes, it's me... You can call me Momon... the one next to me is Nabe, and this one here is-"
"My name is Hamsuke now!" The hamster interrupted, feeling proud of his name.
"So... you really are the Wise King of the Forest?" The elderly woman asked curiously and the creature just confirmed it while seeming to think itself superior.
With the information about who the creature was being confirmed in that conversation, people began to gossip more among themselves. That was something they had never imagined seeing with their own eyes before.
"I ended up meeting him in the middle of the mission your grandson requested... I'm going to see him at your store right now, so I can get my reward and party a little."
"Party? What do you mean by that?" She asked curiously.
"It seems that the amount of herbs we got far exceeded expectations, so he wants to pay a bonus on the reward through a small party."
"If that's the case... Can you take me with you? I was already heading to the store anyway."
Momon agreed with the idea and let the old woman climb on top of Hamsuke so that they could go together to the desired place. But when they got there, something seemed wrong...
The little granny went to open the door with the key, but strangely enough, it seemed to be already open. "Strange... Nfirea never forgets to lock it... did he come in in a hurry?"
And so they entered while Hamsuke remained outside. The Overlord already began to feel something very familiar approaching as he saw the woman calling for her grandson, but without any response. This made him already pick up one of his swords and walk to where that feeling took him.
"What is it? Why are you going to the storeroom?" The old woman asked as she followed them, but was stopped from getting too close when he gave an order.
"Nabe, keep her safe... I smell blood in the air..."
The words left the old woman frightened, and when they entered the storage room, they saw something very unpleasant... Blood all over the floor and extremely injured bodies thrown around. The old woman screamed in fear and asked for her grandson, but clearly, he was not among the victims in that place.
"How unpleasant..." Momon said to himself as he walked among the bodies, but ended up realizing something.
Ninya's body was thrown with his back against a closet, blood had stained his mouth, torn clothes and body, but it was possible to see his chest moving extremely weakly. Along with that, it was possible to notice a small detail about him... or should be said... "her".
"We have a survivor here!" Momon exclaimed to warn the others about that, but before he could carry her out of there, one of the bodies began to move on its own and stood up with a face full of cuts.
"ZOMBIE!!!" The old woman exclaimed.
Without delay, Momon managed to decapitate the one who stood up with relative ease, and was able to identify it as being Dyne. But soon the corpses of Lukrut and Peter also began to rise, already taking up their blades to attack him.
With their back to the old woman and Nabe, the magician raised one of her arms, pointing at Peter and using a [Lightning] to effectively damage him. It was one of the few skills she could use, since she was forbidden from using things higher than 3rd tier spells during her disguise. In any case, Peter's head ended up exploding, with the electric current reaching his entire body. As for Lukrut's corpse, Momon kicked him in the leg, making him lose his balance, and during the fall, he used his greatsword again, making an upper-slash that severed another head.
It took a while for them to be able to take a deep breath and reason what had happened there. Ninya was being treated with the help of one of the emergency potions that Momon had in his inventory, while Nabe was with Lizzie, trying to understand what had happened. "How?... Why... Why is this happening to us...?"
"It depends a lot on the factors... because they didn't take anything from the adventurers or the things he had brought home... It really is as if Nfirea was the only target, whoever it was..." Momon thought about the situation a little more, now looking at the corpses. "And to make matters worse... it was probably a tier 3 mage who could create corpses of this category... but to leave them completely abandoned... There's a high possibility that it was someone who doesn't care about being discovered, or who thinks that nothing can stop him..."
"In other words... my grandson was taken by dangerous people because of something that only he has..." Lizzie took a few seconds to realize. "The innate ability... to be able to use equipment... That's the only thing I can think of."
"To be honest..." Momon spoke as he went back to tending to Ninya's wounds, who was unconscious. "I'm surprised that a kidnapping of this level hasn't happened before, given how important this ability is. So, to do this only now... It must be something last minute..."
"Last minute...?" Lizzie questioned.
"Yes... From what I heard, there was some trouble recently in another region near here and the culprits were arrested a few weeks ago... There is a possibility that, between the time of the arrest and now... the real people in charge have organized a plan B..." Momon spoke in that way so as not to give so many irrelevant details to the woman, he didn't want to worry her even more.
The conversation was interrupted by a loud scream, followed by several coughs. It was Ninya, she had woken up and seemed to get up in complete panic, almost casting a spell, but Momon was quick enough to cover her mouth. It took her a few seconds to realize who was there.
"M-Momon-san!!!" She exclaimed loudly, starting to cry. "S-She was a crazy snake!! So s-so fast and..." She soon stopped talking when she noticed that there were 3 bodies covered in cloth on the ground. She already knew who they were, with tears streaming down her cheeks more intensely.
"Take a deep breath... We just got here... and saw... this situation... Can you tell us what happened... or maybe you know who took Nfirea...?" Momon asked.
"N-Nfirea?! S-she wanted him! Ah.. AH! To control the Undead with some item!" No matter how much he tried to calm her down, she was in extreme shock at the moment, but at least she could get some information.
"A woman appeared and kidnapped him to use him as a tool to control the Undead... is that it?" Nabe butted in.
"S-S-She said that he can't really c-control them... But with him... she can order where they're going to attack..." Ninya said that with difficulty. "E-Rantel is the first target...."
'Controlling the Undead to attack E-Rantel... if it's a large group and it really is their plan B...' Momon thought, but soon asked, this time to Lizzie. "Is there a place where there might be a lot of corpses nearby? If they want to use the Undead to attack E-Rantel, it's most likely a place nearby with enough people to have an army."
"There's a cemetery a little away from the urban area..."
"Great... and by the way... Lizzie, I know this may seem rude, but as an adventurer, I would like to be compensated for this new job..." Momon's voice turned a little cold.
"I-I see, how much will it cost to hire you to save my grandson...?"
"Quite a large sum actually... but seeing as how you and your grandson run this large shop... I feel like a reward could be... giving me everything you have here."
"E-Everything?!" She exclaimed in disbelief. "Are you a demon by any chance, wanting everything I have to rescue my grandson?!"
"Rescuing your grandson will actually be the consequence of preventing E-Rantel from being attacked by an army of undead..." He said as he took a few steps forward. "Do you think everything you have is excessive for something of this level?"
"M-Maybe we can notify the guild..." Ninya commented, getting off the table and still seeming to feel pain in the stomach area, where the stab wound was deepest. "Depending on how serious the situation really is... the guild might give a reward for helping with the defense..."
'Hm... she's a good enough girl that she doesn't want me to do something like that to this woman... well... what she says makes sense... and in theory I would have even more fame if the guild itself compensated me for part of the work...' Momon thought about it even more and soon made up his mind.
"Okay... you'll pay me by being one of my main suppliers then... Anything I buy from this store, I'll get a 90% discount. What do you think?" Momon's proposal had been made and, unable to fight the situation, she just accepted.
In this way, they left the store and, since the guild was on the way to the cemetery, they ended up stopping by so Ninya and Lizzie could go and explain things. However, it didn't take even a minute after they arrived there, and screams could be heard in the distance on that street, causing the adventurers present to get up from their chairs to see what was happening.
In the distance, it was possible to see a group of skeletons and even zombies running down the street, attacking some villagers who were outside their houses, while others tried to break down some doors. It was a frightening sight that made everyone there freeze in fear, until Momon advanced, going to attack.
"WHAT IS THIS?!" Said a woman who was watching the scene, she was one of the secretaries of the Adventurer's Guild.
"I don't know, Wina... they look like... Undead?... Someone explain this situation to me, now!" The next to exclaim was the guildmaster, Pluton.
"Pluton-Sama..." Ninya said, getting off Hamsuke. "Someone from the city has been kidnapped and is being used as an energy source to control the dead..." She soon receives help from Lizzie to walk around there. "We came here to warn you about this before anything happened... however..."
"For some reason, they were very fast." Nabe commented over the top. "The kidnapping happened not even an hour ago, and they've already managed to create several undead that have already entered E-Rantel."
"Shit... An undead attack?! This is extreme! Wida and Theo! I want you two to try to organize the adventurers present here so that they can protect E-Rantel! Let's start with the areas closest to the Cemetery!" Pluton shouted to the receptionist and the magic caster guildmaster.
He then looked at another receptionist from the guild. "Ishpen! I want you to go tell the Innkeepers to prepare all the adventurers who are with them for defense! On the way, tell as many people as you can to stay in this area, because we will focus completely on protecting the surroundings of the Guild until the whole situation calms down!"
"Y-Yes, boss! Heh, I'll need 2 adventurers with me for security..." She spoke to those who were there and apparently two were willing to help her.
Meanwhile, Pluton could see that the adventurer Momon was managing to destroy those undead with relative ease, but even so, it seemed that more could be coming. He soon ran to him. "Hmm... Since you guys found out about this problem and it seems like you can handle it... I'll allow you to go deeper to burn it out from the root!"
"Thank you for your permission!" Momon said while whistling, Hamsuke ran towards him with Nabe already on top of the hamster.
"If the situation seems to get even worse after two hours, you can bring more adventurers to help!" Momonga didn't need help, seeing the level of the undead he had faced so far, even so it was better to say something like this, so that the guildmaster wouldn't create his own ideas.
Pluton just nodded and Hamsuke started running towards the cemetery, running over some of the undead he saw in front of him, Nabe helped using [Lightning] several times at the corpses in front of her, while Momon threw his greatswords, which stuck in the ground after destroying some skeletons, and he was soon able to pick them up without having to get off the hamster. It wasn't possible to destroy all the undead that were in the way, but at least he had given the adventurers a greater help.
As they got closer to the objective, more undead appeared and they looked strange. Some of them could withstand more than one of Nabe's basic attacks, and they also seemed to have a black slime running through their bodies in an abnormal way. Not even YGGDRASIL had something like that.
In a somewhat surprising way, one of the skeletons managed to throw that bizarre slime through its ribs, as if it were a slimy and corrosive tentacle. Momon had to quickly get off Hamsuke, grabbing the large hamster from below and throwing it upwards so the animal could dodge the attack.
"AaAAAAh!! Master?!?" The poor hamster said, crying in fear at the throw.
After that, to defend himself, he actually used the greatswords as a shield, being thrown back a little by the impact, but damaging some of the blade in the process. Meanwhile, Nabe remained on top of Hamsuke, taking advantage of the fact that he was thrown high into the air, to use more [Lightning], damaging more of the undead with excellent headshots.
'My blade... is this slime corrosive at this level?' Momon thought as two more undead that had that strange slime approached to attack him, with the greatest care he could, he was throwing the damaged greatsword at one and destroying the skull, but he also took care of the other two using the blade he still had.
"Momon-sama, be careful!!" Nabe shouted during yet another kill that Momon performed, and as he looked ahead.
He saw what appeared to be a large amalgamation of bones, with more of that black slime running through them. It was as if the union of several skeletons had created a sentient union. In addition, there were two creatures next to it that seemed to be zombie mutations, with claws and more than one pair of arms, each.
'More of that extremely corrosive stuff? That's dangerous... but I feel like I can still defeat it without using my real skills...' That was Momon's thought as he saw that blob of bones rolling at an abnormal speed towards him, with something that seemed to be a monstrous face emerging from the surface.
The moment an attempt to counter was about to be made, a great and powerful thunder occurred, making Hamsuke scream in pain, as if his eardrums were almost burst by the loud sound. And in front of Momon, that slime seemed to be already dead, while the two mutant zombies seemed paralyzed, as if their instincts from when they were alive told them to run.
"NARBERAL!!" Momon exclaimed, "I warned you not to use any spells above the 3rd tier without my permission during our missions!"
"I-It wasn't me... Momonga-sama..." She seemed terrified after the supreme being yelled at her like that.
"If it wasn't you... who shot the lightning!?" Momon exclaimed as he pointed and looked at the Bone-Slime, which seemed to be melting as if something was sucking it in, which caught the overlord's attention.
After a few seconds of melting, it was possible to see what was sucking in that slime, a sword. The sword was stuck in the ground, with its blade completely black due to that corrosive slime, but it seemed to continue absorbing the acid.
"Oh! Sorry Suzuki! Did I take too long?"
A familiar voice came out, and when he turned around, Momon saw a man with clothes as blue as the sea, shiny golden hair, angelic wings on his back and a halo floating above his head... but when he saw the man's face, he could see that he looked hurt, with that same black slime dripping from his eyes that seemed dark like the void, and half of his left arm was missing.
"AAAH! MASTER!? WHAT IS THAT?!" Hamsuke screamed in fear when he saw that being.
"Keiko... what the hell happened to you...?"
"I'll explain later..." He said, approaching and observing the two mutants in front of him and the sword completely covered in slime.
As he picked up the sword, the slime on the blade quickly crawled to the former player's body, and began to regenerate the arm that he was missing. He sighed heavily.
"But I have to say... the situation looks more irritating than I expected..."
Weekly Power Status
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