章 513: 22
Chapter 22 - Loyalties.
Lately, Draudillon has sat on her throne less and less. It almost felt like she wasn't a ruler anymore. With Nazarick's help, her countries' crisis was almost averted. A few more cleanups of what remained of the beastman war band and there would be no more left in her homeland.
General Tartuss had requested a private meeting with her and the prime minister. Ever since she took the throne, there was an unwavering trust in those two men. Neither had ever done anything to even indicate an ulterior motive. Both in her eyes were loyal to the core.
As she walked into the room and sat in her throne the first thing she noticed was the look on the general's face. Clearly, whatever he wanted to discuss wasn't good. She suspected he was opposed to Nazarick and likely wanted to voice his concerns about the overwhelmingly powerful foreign agents given free rein.
"You may start, General. What is it you wished to discuss?"
"My Queen, with our scouts and troops freed from the constant strain of battle, I took the liberty to investigate the situation in the western provinces. Unfortunately, initial reports all but confirmed my suspicion. The Nobles had held off large amounts of aid, both financial and military. Additionally, a large force is prepared within Marquis Gavanda's domain. If he was to send an army towards the capital, we could not stop it with our own forces."
"Is he planning a coup?"
"That is highly probable, my Queen."
First the beastmen, now this. Heaven's themselves had conspired against her. Before making her own decision, Draudillon decided to hear out her closest advisors.
"I want to hear your personal perspective, from you both. Speak freely."
The General was the first to speak, his tone growing grimmer.
"I don't think we have any options, my queen. Knowing the reconnaissance capabilities of our so-called allies, Nazarick at best knew and didn't inform us and at worst may even be behind this coup. My guess is, even if we somehow could prevent it on our own, Nazarick will use it to push their influence and increase our dependency on them."
She hummed in acknowledgment and turned to the other man. "Prime minister?"
"I will have to agree with the General. Even if Nazarick is not behind this and it is just a betrayal from the western nobles, a foreign empire has no reason not to take over and in the best-case scenario make you a puppet ruler."
The Queen is silent for a moment. There was no denying the fact that she had become the ruler in name only.
"Then there is just one option remaining. Thank you for your input. You both are dismissed."
Draudillon stands up from the throne and leaves her two advisors behind. There was no point dragging it out. She needed resolution. A million thoughts filled her head as she walked towards the guest wing. One thing she held over Nazarick could be extracted by force if they so wished. She held no illusions that even if she used wild magic, it would not be enough to kill the gods. The past events with the Greed Kings were a testament to her belief.
Knowing beforehand that she would come, Peros was already in his Elven form. A show just for her, but then again, she was no better. Ever since Peros arrived, she was always in low-cut dresses and borderline flirted with him whenever an opportunity presented itself.
"Queen Draudillon, it is always a pleasure to see you."
"Likewise Lord Peros."
Peros was smiling widely, clearly happy about her visiting him. Draudillon gracefully sits down and returns a lightly forced, polite smile.
"Lord Peros, now that your end of the bargain is almost fulfilled, I must ask, what the future holds for me?"
"Whatever do you mean?" Peros asks with a confused expression.
"Let's not play around, shall we? I am not that young and naïve. What will happen to my kingdom and me after you drive out all the beastmen? I am well aware you are holding back a piece of crucial information."
"As far as I know, you will rule your country and we will get the information about wild magic and mining permits."
"Right… and what about the western provinces?"
"They will be taken care of. What are you implying?" Peros asks.
The Queen could clearly see that Peros didn't have his pleasant expression anymore and his tone suggested he was getting angry.
"I'm not implying anything for now. Just asking questions." She responds in a calming tone.
"What did you think I would do?"
The question gave Draudillon pause. To say out loud her suspicions would be an open accusation.
"My apologies, Lord Peros. I didn't mean to sound so accusatory. You must understand how stressful these times are for me." Draudillon says with the best genuine smile she can muster.
"What did you think I would do?" he asked again, his tone was low and dangerous. Peros clearly wasn't buying her insincere calmness nor following any kind of protocol a noble would during a conversation with a monarch.
Draudillon lets out a long sigh, " I know all to well that my kingdom and I are at the complete mercy of Nazarick. All I ask is to know the fate of my home. Between the beastmen and the western provinces, I am a queen in a name only."
Peros gets up and walks behind her. Draudillon sees a ruby necklace in front of her as Peros puts it around her slim neck. She feels his fingers gently touching her neck when he closes the necklace. No man had touched her for a long time.
"What is this?" she asks, admiring the artistry.
"A gift. It will protect you when the time comes. Draudillon, whatever you may think, for now, I'm here to protect you and your home."
"Thank you."
Peros walks back to the chair opposite Draudillon, and after a brief pause, speaks.
"I know what you think of me. While I will not deny my tastes in women, that is not the reason I came personally. My forces needed a field test."
Was that a declaration that he wasn't interested? She came for answers, but now was more confused than ever. Not only did she not have an obvious answer to what Nazarick was planning, but also why Peros acted as he did. Was he playing some complicated game in hopes she would fall for him?
"Then I wish you a pleasant rest and I will take my leave. Thank you for the gift once again."
"You are welcome. And don't worry so much. I am here to help you after all."
She suspected that because of all the power Lord Peros possessed, making women fall for him was more interesting than just getting them by force. Maybe falling for someone wasn't such a bad thing, especially if it was to help her kingdom.
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The Dragon Kingdom was finally free and united. Peros had put on a western-style suit to attend the celebration. He was pumped with excitement, unwilling to wait for the conspirators to fail miserably. Their plan was simple, the mind-altering drug would be administered to everyone via the wine.
Then once everyone was drugged up, Cerebrate would announce his plan to marry the queen and she, in her mind-controlled state, would agree. That is, if she already wasn't wearing the necklace Peros gave her. He himself was far too high of a level to be affected, same as Shalltear and even Relzanu as a vampire could not be mind-controlled by using a simple drug.
His mood, however, was quickly spoiled when he had to put up with all the nobles. The eastern ones acted like they were the ones doing all the work liberating the nation and the western ones, well their pompous attitude was vexing, to say the least.
But there was a bright side as well. Some of the unmarried noble ladies were eyeing his Elven form with a barely hidden desire. A light flirt and a few compliments, and he was already receiving a few marriage proposals. Shalltear, who was receiving the same treatment from the younger unmarried nobles, did her best to not look as miserable and annoyed.
Once the queen appeared dressed in a white dress with the ruby necklace, Peros could hear whispers of speculation. Few of the more knowledgeable ones already spread the rumor of him being a potential suitor for the Queen.
He could only chuckle at the overly nosy crowd. One glance at Cerebrate told him that man was not happy about it.
Mingling around slowly grew tiresome. But the moment of truth was finally here, with servants delivering the special celebratory wine. He planned to act affected first, to let the fools play out their game for a short period, and had told Shalltear and Relzanu to do the same.
Draudillon raises her glass and says, "To our home," and takes a sip. The rest of the crowd follows her example. Mere moments later, he sees the eyes of various nobles getting sluggish.
Cerebrate looks around, grins, and exclaims loud enough that even those in the back of the room could hear.
"Kneel!"
Almost the entire room obeys his command, with only Gavanda and Draudillon remaining standing. Servants all step back, standing in an orderly line, clearly following the orders of the conspirators.
Draudillon looks confused for a moment and then her face twists in anger.
"What is going on?" she asks.
"Didn't work on you, a shame. No matter, you, my queen, will marry me and make me a king! Unfortunately, the Prime Minister and General had an accident and can't interfere."
"What!"
"Oh, don't look so surprised. You little teasing bitch had every chance to offer me your hand before, but instead, you had to get that monster filth to help you. Now they are in my control too. My uncle and I will take it from here. You can go freshen up for our first night."
Draudillon glares at him and then looks down at the necklace. 'It will protect you when the time comes.' Lord Peros gave it to her for exactly this situation. But if he knew how she was to be mind-controlled? She takes a quick glance at him and sees a very subtle smile. The sly bastard was playing along with the charade to let the foolish Cerebrate reveal the plan. Relief washes over her.
"You think you won? Do you think I will marry you? Wrong, you will not be a king." She hisses.
Cerebrate's face twists in anger and he comes close, grabs her hand, and yells.
"You little bitch, you will regret that. I was planning to be gentle with you, but no more."
Draudillon snarls and rapidly transforms back to her natural form, growing to his height. For a moment Cerebrate stares in shock, seeing how she truly looks for the first time, such that he didn't see her hand become monstrous and deadly.
"You piece of shit!" Draudillon yells and swipes her clawed hand at his face, taking one of his eyes out and leaving deep gashes. With full gear, Cerebrate would easily overpower her, but he was not expecting any kind of resistance and had dressed in a traditional noble outfit, leaving only a few enchanted rings on him.
He clutches his face and lets out a pained grunt. A moment later, the Queen grabs him by the neck and slams him to the floor, and holds him down with her knee on his chest. She lets out a guttural scream, letting all the bottled-up emotions and frustrations out for the first time in years. Finally realizing that Draudillon isn't this small and defenseless girl but truly is a descendent of a dragon lord, he screams for assistance.
"Peros, Shalltear get her off me NOW!"
A burst of laughter is the only response Cerebrate hears as the enraged Queen mauls him with her claws, screaming in rage.
Clear shock and panic can be seen in the faces of the treacherous servants. An easy guess that they now realize the mistake of siding with the conspirators.
Count Gavanda rapidly pales, witnessing the gruesome scene in front of him. He bolts for the door, but something hits him in the face. A man with a glowing purple symbol on his head materializes in front of the door. Then many more similar to him blink into the room, with the last being a dog-headed woman in a maid's outfit. A white light glows around the drugged-up nobles as, one by one, they return to their normal states.
They stare in shocked silence as their Queen rises from the mangled corpse of the former hero. Blood not only drips from her clawed hands, but also heavily stains her white dress.
"L-let's not do anything rash. If you let me go, I-I will call off the army!" Gavanda stutters to the glaring queen.
"Lord Peros, could you do me the honor and execute these useless parasites?"
"With pleasure," Peros smirks, reverts to his natural form, and nods at his chosen to give the order.
It takes only a few seconds for all the nobles and servants present to be killed. The trained killers choose targets in almost telepathic unison and execute them with extreme prejudice.
Draudillon takes a long breath out, seemingly finally calming down.
"I guess this is it." She says. "I will have to address the nation and explain to them the treachery of the nobles. Can I assume I will still rule it for my new masters?"
"Of course. That was the plan from the very start. Shalltear, sweety, the incoming army is all yours. Take as many of your vampire brides as you'd like."
"I will not disappoint you, father," Shalltear says, opening a gate and disappearing with Relzanu and Peros' chosen from the gore-filled room.
Draudillon slowly walks up to Peros and leans in, gently scraping his beak with the blood-covered claws, saying with a sensual voice.
"You can have your small dragon girl if I get the handsome elf in return."
Then backs off a bit and adds,
"But that can come later. Now is the time for me to fulfill my part of the bargain and reveal the dark secrets of wild magic."
"You are such a tease. I will contact Ainz right away."
"A queen has an image to uphold, you know."
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An army with the adamantite team Crystal Tear leading it marches towards the capital. Cerebrates teammates were promised noble titles and almost free rein in the freshly liberated eastern provinces. All they had to do was crush any opposition in the capital and execute the few remaining eastern nobles.
With the promise of total control over the Nazarick's monsters, there should be almost no opposition. The mood was lighthearted and eager. Even the soldiers knew they could act out whatever they wanted during the coup in the name of keeping public order and seizing the traitors of the nation.
The sudden appearance of a large dark void in front of them brings the entire army to a halt. A girl steps out first and Members of the Crystal Tear recognize the pale-faced beauty immediately; Shalltear. With her comes around a hundred women. All sharing the same pale faces and a purple glowing symbol on foreheads.
With no warning, they teleport inside the army's lines, unleashing bloodshed. Unprepared soldiers can only offer meager resistance and are no match for the powerful vampires bolstered by the Murder Gods buff. Locked in the tight lines of a marching army that doesn't have room to retreat, the panicked soldiers trample over each other, only increasing the body count.
Shalltear smirks and lifts her hand to tinker with a small bracelet.
'Twenty minutes should be enough. Let's see if the gift works as intended.'
With the timer set, she transforms into her more monstrous form, a hunched over hag-like creature with round spiked teeth filled mouth and a very long whip-like tongue sticking out.
While the army is already making a desperate attempt at fleeing, Crystal Tear leaves the army to its own fate and starts retreating on its own, successfully fending off the vampire attacks.
While her bloodlust is still within her control, she tears into the retreating adamantite team, taking the head of the main defender instantly and with little to no warning. She lifts the head in front of the rest of the team and puts the decapitated head to her mouth, sucking it until it becomes a wrinkled grey blob. Her pupils dilate and her breath gets ragged.
The brutality with which she tore the team apart would make even the most hardened war veterans despair. The frenzied unstoppable monstrosity prolonged their suffering on pure instinct. Tearing off the limbs and cauterizing the wounds to prevent them from bleeding out. Consuming the blood and flesh to strike even more terror within their hearts for no other reason than uncontrollable sadistic pleasure.
Those from the Crystal Tear who died first were the lucky ones. The last remaining one, a priest, cast light spell upon light spell, screaming in pain as the sadistic vampire broke bone after bone in her body at a rapid pace, ignoring the desperate attacks. Nineteen minutes in, she finally mercifully died a bloodied, broken mass.
Shalltear, completely lost in a blood frenzy, sniffs around for the next victims. She is already on the move when the bracelet beeps and a blue light explodes around her and in an instant clarity strikes. The young vampire reverts to her pale, beautiful human form and observes her work with a smirk.
'It worked perfectly. This gift is beyond wonderful.'
With grace, she levitates above the battlefield and observes the results. There is nothing left of the army. Vampire brides already dutifully carry corpses into piles for easier removal.
Shalltear descends, landing next to Relzanu, who materializes a parasol and opens it over her mistress,
"All done, my lady. No one escaped," she says.
Shalltear looks up at her servant, seeing a light stain of blood at the corner of her lips.
"Looks like you snacked on the job!"
"I'm sorry, my lady, but I got peckish seeing all the blood."
"Just clean yourself up. I will see what to do with you later. Our part is done anyway." Shalltear says to her servant, who looks down sheepishly.
{ Aureole, you can send the pickup team. }
{ Right away. What about your brides? }
{ I will send them back myself }
She performed her task splendidly. Father will be proud of her. And with her new enchanted tool, she didn't have to worry about her blood frenzy as much anymore.
A set of gates appear with the cleanup team showing up and picking up corpses. All that remains is to send her brides back to Nazarick and report the success. She could teleport back to father right away, but with a suspicion that he might be busy with his newest catch, she returns to Nazarick with her entourage of vampire brides behind her.
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Draudillon slowly descended the steps under the castle with five figures following her, the five gods she promised to reveal the dark secret to. Instead of uncertainty, for once she feels an odd calmness. What was the figure offering her a deal? She did not know, but the promise came through. Lords of Ooal Gown kept their promise.
When the descent ends, the group is met with a pair of heavy black doors.
Draudillon stops right before the door."What I show you is more dangerous than anything else in this world. I pray you will have the wisdom to not use it carelessly."
"Thank you for the warning Queen Draudillon." Ainz says.
After a moment of hesitation, Draudillon touches the door. They react to her touch and slowly opens to a small, dark chamber. She walks in and comes out with a small leather-bound book.
"This is the tome containing the knowledge. It's called Al-Azif."
Tabula pushes his friends aside and hurries to the book, snatching it out of Queen's hands.
"Did you ever use anything from it? How did you get it?" he asks in a frenzied voice.
Draudillon takes a step back, afraid of the sudden reaction.
"No, I never used a single spell or incantation. My great grandfather gifted it to me and told me where magic came from."
"This is more direr than I could have ever imagined. What do you know about this?" Tabula asks.
"Calm down, let the woman explain everything," Ulbert says.
"You, you don't understand…" Tabula finally takes a long breath and calms down a bit, adding.
"I apologize for my behavior, Queen Draudillon, please continue."
"I see you have a general idea of how bad this is. I must admit I know little myself, but I always knew this knowledge is something not to be taken lightly. All I know is what my great grandfather, the Brightness Dragon Lord, has told me that this knowledge comes from someone called the Great Old One. According to legends, he once ruled this world but in an age long gone some catastrophe had put it into an eternal sleep."
Draudillon continues with a weary expression.
"This magic feeds on both mind and soul. Only a dragon is strong enough to use it repeatedly and not lose his mind."
"You have our thanks for sharing this and assurance that we will help you and your people to flourish once again. I will send necessary help to restore order immediately." Ainz says.
The Queen bows and says,
"Thank you Emperor Ainz. I am grateful."
Not long after the departure of the five gods, Draudillon was back in the throne room. So much had happened in such a short time frame. Retaking of her country, the coup. She felt tired and alone for a moment. Peros had promised to come back after he discusses the next course of action with his fellow gods. Maybe she could share her worries with him?
A now familiar dark void suddenly appears, with a strange figure in a military uniform coming through. She notices the white skin on three dark holes on the head where the facial features should be. The figure walks up to her and says with a theatrical bow.
"O Regina, father sent me to assist you on the restoration of your lands. You can call me Pandora's actor."
"Father?"
"I am the proud creation of Emperor Ainz Ooal Gown. It will be my pleasure to be of service."
'Emperor sent his son to help me? Does he value me so highly?'
"I will graciously accept your help then, Pandora's Actor. Call me Draudillon."
It took all her concentration to follow Pandora's rapid explanation of his plan to rejuvenate the war-torn country's economy and power structure. For the most part, she just nods in agreement, trying to memorize even the core parts of her new advisor's plan.
If not for losing both of her previously most trusted people, the outcome of today's events could be described as more than favorable. By the frantic reaction of one of the gods, Draudillon believes her decision to accept the mysterious being's deal and reveal the information was indeed the correct one.
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It didn't take long for all the Lords to return to Nazarick and gather in the conference room, with Albedo joining them. Ever since she got the title of Empress, they had invited her to join the discussions. At first, she just sat there and listened to the casual banter of the supreme ones. For her to be considered on the same level with them felt unreal.
In reality, nothing had changed. Even before her new title, she was ranked sixth, just below all the supreme beings. The only difference was the more casual and relaxed treatment she was receiving. It took some time for the succubus to address other supreme beings besides her father and Ainz in the same casual manner.
All of them except for Tabula sat in chairs waiting for him to start speaking. It was uncharacteristic for him to be so worked up. Tabula was pacing back and forth, clutching the small leather tome in his hands like his life depended on it.
"Tabula, can you stop that and finally explain what's going on?" Ainz says.
"This is bad. Ah yes, in short, we might be in grave danger. This book, this little tome, is more dangerous than anything else we can do."
"Tabula, can you make any kind of sense? Just start from the beginning. What is so dangerous about it and what are we dealing with?" Ulbert interrupts his rambling.
"This tome is called Kitab al Azif. On earth, it was considered just fiction, but in fact, it was a well-kept secret. The mad Arab Abdul Alhazred wrote the actual book. The darkest, most blasphemous of magics. It contains the knowledge about the outer gods and the great old ones. Beings transcending standard understanding of good, evil, life, and death. And that Queen already mentioned one of the great old ones is present in this world. Luckily for us, it is in a dormant state for now."
Tabula pauses a bit, thinking about something, and then goes on.
"An immensely powerful being warned me about it some time ago. I don't know its true intentions but one thing is clear: we must prevent the awaking of the great old one at all costs. If that thing awakens, we may have no means to stop it."
"Any idea how we can do that. Does the book you are holding have any useful information in it?" Ainz asks.
"Maybe. In any other circumstance, I would just ask for this book to be locked away, but we might actually have to look into it. I propose Ainz is one holding this book, and we open it with at least two of us present. Careless experimentation could spell doom for this world and us."
"Then I will hold the book in a special container, we will open and read it only at Tabulas request. All agree?"
With everyone nodding in agreement, Ainz takes out a safe-like box from his inventory, locks the books in, and returns the safe to his inventory.
"I will try to seek answers from other sources before we resort to using that book. We must be wary of dragons as well. If they have this knowledge, they might be on the Great Old One's side." Tabula says and finally sits down.
"If they are, shouldn't we do something about it right away? Their country shares a border with Re-Estize after all." Bukuma says.
"Don't be hasty. Since we now know how dangerous this wild magic is and they can use it, who knows what they can do in desperation before we wipe them out." Ulbert responds, stroking his chin.
"I think we first wait and see what Tabula can find and then take action," Ainz says, putting an end to the discussion.
After the meeting, Tabula teleports back to his quarters. Despite the grim news, he felt some minor relief at the fact that his friends took his warnings seriously and didn't propose careless experimentation. His and their new forms would likely provide significant resistance to the influence of the Outer Gods and their worshipers. But one can never fully know when dealing with these things.
Mariposa, seeing her husband's worried expression places a hand on one of his arms and gives him her own,
"Did something happen?" she asks.
"Yes, kind of. Turns out the thing that traveler warned us about is a dormant Great Old One."
"That can't be true! Please say that was just a bad joke?"
"I wish I could Mari. For now, I need to search for solutions."
"Solutions? We must abandon physical bodies and leave. I will help you be reborn in a peaceful world if you like. Tabula please."
"Mari, we both know that's not an option. You think we would be just permitted to run like that."
"I guess not. Angering a traveler would be a foolish thing to do."
"At least now we know what we are facing. I'll try to contact known spirits and entities in hopes of getting answers."
"Then I will contact some of my friends and allies as well. Maybe I can find something useful."
For now, all he could do was search for clues and solutions. Tabula doubted the Traveler would respond. A suspicion that maybe the awakening to the sleeping monster under the waves was the goal and he might be tricked into doing it by accident.
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Ever since Jircniv swore loyalty and servitude to the undead emperor, his workload has been decreasing steadily. The few elder liches given to him could easily perform most of the administrative duties and unlike nobles, they could not be bought or blackmailed.
Jircniv knew they did not hold direct loyalty to him, but their master was interested in the country's prosperity, whose vassalage to Nazarick will be announced publicly one day.
Liches were not the only creatures assisting him or his inner circle. From the shadow demons expanding the spy network to masked stealth-oriented guards patrolling his castle unnoticed.
With no need to worry for an heir and with a promised extended lifespan, however long he wished to live as a useful servant, Jircniv saw no point in raising a child who would inherit nothing. He had dismissed most of his concubines. All of them were chosen for their traits and he did not hold any kind of emotional attachment. Only one remaining was Roxy. She was not the best looking one of his concubines, but her intelligence more than compensated for it.
Roxy was the only one with who he could freely discuss anything with. Even the few succubi that Lord Ulbert had given him were purely for pleasure. As much as he enjoyed their company, he didn't trust the demonesses one bit. Maybe it was the sinister nature of the demons, or maybe something else.
Overall, his life was in complete control of Nazarick and the brief interactions with other servants of the gods assured him they were fair and would not cast aside even the lowliest of servants as long as they were competent and loyal.
While he was going through the documents, Leinas came into his office with a knock. Once one of his bodyguards these days, she was a servant of Lady Bukuma and helped coordinate the communication with Nazarick and her mistress in particular.
"Emperor Jircniv, Lady Bukuma, requests your military plan to make her own preparations."
Jircniv takes one of the neatly tied folders from his desk and hands it to Leinas. Her demeanor, ever since the curse was lifted, had changed a lot. She now wears her long blonde hair in a ponytail, not hiding part of her face anymore. With his habit of noticing even the smallest changes in people around him, he had seen her confidence and outlook on life surge.
"Anything else?"
"Just the news about the Dragon kingdom. As of today, it is another country owned by Nazarick."
"Not surprising. Is Queen Draudillon still in charge or have our masters replaced her?"
"Sorry, I don't know. Lady Bukuma didn't give details."
"Thank you for the information Leinas, you may go."
'Another country in their control. And in such a short time. I wonder why Re-Estize will take so long? Some king of test perhaps?'
The only explanation he could come up with was that the gods tested mortal rulers in various ways. His was a simple one. Jircniv was convinced that he passed the test once he asked to be their servant. One thing bothered him, though. How much ahead of time the Gods could plan. Was his servitude planned out long before he even sent workers to scout the new nation?
Could it be that fate of the world was sealed long ago and now it all just plays out how it is supposed to? Renner surely believed that, and she was at least in equal terms of Jircniv's own intelligence. Maybe it was the time to become a genuine believer. After all, he was a direct servant of Emperor Ainz, the God of Life and Death.
To find out if Draudillon was still in charge of the Dragon kingdom was a simple task. A quick question to a shadow demon and mere moments later, it was confirmed to be the case.
A politically smart idea was to congratulate the newest servant of the gods on making the right decision. Even if he disliked Draudillon as a person, there was no reason to cultivate any animosity. He looks at his own shadow and says.
"Please send my congratulations to Queen Draudillon."
'It will be done' an answer echoes in his head.
Bonus Story - Newest General.
It was just another day with an enormous pile of various reports. Ainz was quickly skimming through the most important ones while his wife dutifully took care of the rest. Who could have thought that being the absolute ruler of an empire was not as glamorous as one would think?
With the recent revelation of an ancient terrible being present in this world, Tabula was completely occupied with finding a solution. Their shared experiments and research were put aside for now.
The small hope of something more interesting happening besides the endless pile of papers presented itself suddenly.
"My love, Lupusregina, just contacted me and informed me about something unexpected happening in the Carne."
"Did she tell you what happened?"
"No, she said and I quote, 'You will not believe what chief Enri just did. You have to come to see for yourself.'"
"I guess we can go see for ourselves what has happened," Ainz says.
He gets up, not yet knowing to be grateful or annoyed by the distraction, and with Albedo by his side, opens the gate to the Carne Village.
Shock soon replaced curiosity as his jaw drops open.
An army, an actual army of well-armored goblins fills up every single space of the small village with Enri standing absolutely lost on what to do surrounded by redcap goblins with a well-dressed goblin by her side. Seeing Ainz, she frantically bows and stutters.
"E-emperor A-ainz."
"Enri, what happened?"
"I… I used the horn you gifted me and… and they all just showed up."
'What the hell. Could a trash item really summon that many goblins? Could Enri have a hidden talent? No, the first horn worked as it should. Then maybe horn itself had a hidden effect activated when specific requirements are met?'
"Why your summons are so disrespectful towards Emperor Ainz?" Albedo asks loudly with noticeable anger in her voice.
The furry of the imposing succubus is enough to drive Enri to a panic attack, and she desperately tries to explain to the goblin beside her who Ainz is.
Before Ainz can calm Albedo down, the goblin shouts.
"All kneel before the ruler honorable General Enri serves, Emperor Ainz Ooal Gown!"
The goblin horde does as ordered right away, with Enri doing the same. Action is enough to put a small smirk on Albedo's face. Despite what her husband says, she was not about to stand an open disrespect from such lower life forms. With them wisely choosing to kneel, her mind was put to ease.
"Enri looks like a promotion is in order. With a loyal army summons at your side, we can't just call you a village chief anymore. Albedo, please inform Bukuma to come and promote Enri to a general and start her military training."
"At once!"
"A general?" The stunned girl mutters.
How she a simple village girl ended like this? Can she protest and ask for Emperor to change his mind? Before she can even say anything, Ainz is already gone.
It didn't take long for the Grand Marshal to arrive and hand her the promotion. Her village chief position was given to someone else, and a new fortress city was about to be constructed on the unused plains north of the Carne village. To her horror, lady Bukuma explained emperor holds several hundred such horns in, and in an emergency, the force she commanded could be rapidly expanded.P
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