章 515: 25
Chapter 24 - Meetings
With all the recent discoveries, Ainz didn't want to delay his plans for Katze plains any longer. Although lately, Eleleth was acting as his second bodyguard, he had to leave her behind this time. Not that negative energies in the Katze plains would harm her. In actuality, it was the opposite. As a Metatron level angel, her aura was so powerful that she would obliterate every single undead in at least a two-kilometer radius.
With Rubedo dutifully following him, Ainz steps through the gate and appears in the dead center of the Katze Plains. If there was one place, no one would expect to find living beings, this was that exact point. The lower tier mindless undead didn't pay any attention to him or Rubedo. Whether or not Rubedo was a fully living being was up to the debate, but the undead clearly didn't try to attack her.
The more intelligent ones, like liches, observed them from a distance. Even without openly flashing his aura, his presence was powerful enough to make them wary.
Ainz looks around, observing the sickly looking grey grass and the scattered remains of various buildings. This place once had a living population, but from what he had heard, the constant conflicts between Re-Estize and Baharuth had made this region a sanctuary for all kinds of undead. In other words, a perfect place to secure Tabulas device once it is built and make a vast military fortress to guard it.
With all the recent rise in power, Ainz was curious about how powerful his aura of despair was.
"I will test my aura, if you feel pain or intense fear please say so."
"I can bear it Emperor Ainz."
"I know, but I don't want to make you suffer, so if there are negative effects please say so."
"As you order Emperor Ainz."
Ainz gives her one more glance and then activates Aura of Despair level one. Seeing no signs of discomfort on Rubedo's unmoving face, he assumes she is not feeling its effects to a noticeable degree.
In presence of his dark aura, the roaming undead masses move towards him with liches taking control of mindless ones and forming orderly packs. The amplified negative energies create a chain effect with more and more undead appearing. Not only twenty minutes in, the first death knights appear.
With liches creating a chain of command on instinct, the roaming masses become an orderly army in a blink of an eye. Few of the most powerful ones finally approach Ainz and kneel before him.
"We are ready to serve dark one." The dark-clothed figures say in unison.
"Excellent. Clear up a large area from all undead. I want to perform a test before giving orders."
Ainz points at a large flat area. The undead orderly step away from the place he pointed at, giving just a spot he needs. Until now, Ainz had not had a chance to test the limits of his current power. A purely destructive spell was out of the question, as even tier eight and tier nine were city busters.
A solution was to test the create item spell, modified for pure creation, the spell could give the raw materials needed for the construction of the fortress. To his estimate, the current limit was tier thirteen. Boosting a simple creation spell to such a level with maximizing magic should provide interesting results and maybe even give the required amount of stone blocks in one cast.
Albedo provided the blueprints and specifications of the required materials and workforce. Her planning capabilities were out of this world after all, and it amazed Ainz each time to see his wife's mind at work.
With an order for everyone to step aside, Ainz starts the spell. Even a super-tier cast was a sight to see, but it paled compared to his new potential. The amount and intricacy of the spell circles rotating around him was a work of art in itself. He had no time to dwell on such things as he felt his mana drained and direct at the clearing.
A moment later a stone pile, putting even the great pyramid of Giza to shame, materializes in the clearing, crushing the nearest undead under the immense pile of stone blocks.
After a moment of shock at the result of his spell, Ainz makes a tactical cough trying to make the impression that he planned everything. "This should be enough for now."
With the constant influx of more powerful undead, a night lich appears and takes the leader's position among the Ainz's new army of servants. The clear power difference between it and the elder lich sparks Ainz's curiosity right away. Ainz motions for it to come closer and looks closely at the undead.
"I haven't encountered your type before. What type of lich are you?" A strange question to a freshly created monster. But every summon and created undead always knew instinctively what it was.
The Night Lich kneels with a lowered head,
"I am known as a nigh lich, my Lord. I am a tier above the elder liches present and thus they are subservient to me. What are your orders?"
Ainz motions for it to rise and hands the blueprints.
"I will entrust you to organize the construction and management of the new fortress."
The Night Lich kneels once again, saying, "It is an honor to carry out your will."
Ainz touches the liches forehead, burning the knowledge of various spells in its mind. If various construction tools can be created by magic, there was no reason not to use it. Ainz could already count at least two hundred liches present, with new ones popping up every other minute as the consequence of his aura of despair.
With an order to spread the spells he had taught to all caster type undead that pop up, Ainz departs with Rubedo following him.
The glee the Night Lich felt was beyond everything he imagined. From the moment he came into existence in the presence of this dark being, a God, he knew his path. He would serve and carry out the will of his master.
First, every single intelligent undead had to learn the creation spell and start making the tools, shovels, pickaxes, hand drills, and everything else they needed at the moment. Since his master didn't provide the metal, that too will have to be found nearby or made by the casters.
The Night Lich sends out scouts to survey the Katze plains, hoping to find mines or untaped metal reserves. It was better to find the needed resource naturally before resorting to magic.
After teaching the spells to his direct subordinates, the Night Lich turns to plan the first steps of construction. Whenever the master returns, the results must not disappoint.
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With the constantly growing military force and the increased need to centralize logistics of various armies, the Dummy Nazarick was repurposed as the military headquarters. Bukuma, as the leader, now had a full reign over it.
She redecorated it right away with an expanded military planning room and various offices for her generals and the Vice-Marshal Cocytus, Bukuma's second in command.
The planned battle on the outskirts of Katze plains was just around the corner. It was her chance to flex the might of Nazarick to the wider world. Various spies were already crawling around the area and, mostly, just accounted for and left to their own devices.
After all, what better way to spread the information than foreign spies.
Currently, she sat on her throne-like chair at the end of a long table, awaiting various parties to arrive. Her children, Aura and Mare, occupy the two closest chairs. Mare silently reads a book lost in its imagined world in his usual timid and quiet manner. Besides him, Cocytus studies the plans made for each of Nazarick's forces.
Opposite to Mare, Aura reads a manga, shifting around impatiently. Besides her sits Zesshi, glancing over the Elven girl's shoulder and trying to follow the story. Zesshi didn't understand the symbols used as text, but by the looks of it, Aura wasn't reading it either, and just looked at the black and white drawings of action scenes.
Zesshi glances towards her mistress from time to time who casually chats with Cocytus about the strategies they plan to use in the upcoming battle. With the twins warming up to her and Bukuma treating her almost like an adopted daughter, Zesshi had felt a familial affection for the first time in her life.
She had seen how other mortals worshiped the gods with almost insane devotion. Even though Zesshi wasn't as fanatical as the rest of the mortals, she still felt a deep devotion towards the Goddess she served. Following Clementine's example, she even called herself the Apostle of War. Other gods got their apostles one by one, prompting Zesshi to take the role while someone else hasn't claimed it.
With her mistress noticing her gaze and returning a small smile, Zesshi looks down and pretends to be immersed in the manga Aura is reading once again.
Finally, the first gate opens, and the first attendants arrive. Jircniv, followed by Leinas, makes a deep bow and takes his seat. Even with a charming smile, his discomfort and fear were visible through the mask of easy-going politeness he was trying to portray.
Leinas, on the other hand, was showing confidence and devotion towards her mistress. Zesshi saw only a competitor for a favorable position under her mistress in the blonde woman and nothing else.
Next arrives general Enri with a bearded goblin beside her. Zesshi had only heard of the simple peasant girl who earned the title by summoning an entire army of goblins. The quality of chain mail Enri wore rivaled the one Zesshi had received from her mistress as a gift.
She bows and takes her seat. It was clear as day that Enri was barely holding it together, mostly looking down and rarely glancing at others present.
Next came the representatives of the demon god Ulbert, Princess Renner, and the Leader of the Eight Fingers, Hilma. While Zesshi cared little about Hilma, who in her eyes was just some slut in an influential position, the mere presence of Renner gave her goosebumps. She was never so afraid of a human as she was of Renner and her soulless eyes. There was something very wrong with that girl.
What's more, Renner called herself the Apostle of Trickery. A suitable position for the mastermind behind the upcoming demise of Re-Estize.
Right after Hilma and Renner come the representatives of Lord Peros, Clementine, and Peter. While she still didn't like the insane bitch Clementine, Peter was someone who Zesshi got along with and, in some sense, could call him a friend.
Then came the King of the Beastmen country named Kato. He carries himself with the self-importance of a born leader and rubs Zesshi the wrong way. Just one word, just one glance from her mistress and she would wipe the floor with the arrogant-looking tiger.
Next is Nfirea, or the so-called Apostle of Knowledge, followed by Fluder. Unlike others who chose the title by themselves, the boy had received one by being Lord Tabula's prime apprentice and sharing his obsessive nature towards all forms of knowledge. The artifact in the form of a floating book behind the young man's back was a clear testament of how highly the eldritch God values him.
Even Fluder, who until now was considered the strongest caster in the world, was of a lower station in comparison.
Last to arrive were the representatives of Emperor Ainz himself, the Metatron Angel Eleleth, and the Death Emperor Ardagh, each representing the light and dark side of the God of Life and Death, respectively. As the angel radiated light, the Death Emperor sucked in all light surrounding his dark-plated form.
Two forms couldn't be more apart from each other, yet treated each other with mutual respect as the servants of the same master.
With everyone finally present, Bukuma says,
"Zesshi, please give everyone their battle plan."
She gets up, taking the pile of folders from the table, and says,
"Yes, mo… mistress," earning an amused look from Bukuma. With her cheeks lightly flushed, she walks around the table putting a folder in front of each figure.
"What is this! We can just crush the pathetic weaklings by ourselves." Kato says loudly,
"A simple beast should keep his mouth shut about things he doesn't understand. The world needs to see the full might of Nazarick's armies, not just a horde of mindless beasts," Renner hisses back at him.
The mighty tiger-man rises and turns towards the small princess,
"Are you challenging me?"
"Sit down and shut up. The princess is right in this case," Bukuma says in a casual tone.
"I am Kato, the King of the beastmen, I will not be talked down like this!"
"Is that so?" Bukuma asks. Her tone was now low and dangerous. Zesshi shudders, remembering the last time she heard her mistress using it.
The only time she was on the receiving end of her mistress's wrath. Not unlike during the beating she received as the guardian of Slane theocracies' most sacred treasures. Then it was nothing personal, and she was just in the wrong place. This was the voice Bukuma used when she found out Zesshi had not so subtly tried to seduce Mare.
The timid boy had defeated Zesshi in a friendly duel and she, in her short-sightedness, returned to her old plan of getting impregnated by a powerful male. What she didn't account for back then was just how protective Bukuma was of her precious boy.
Zesshi still could remember each word and each hit she received from the enraged mother protecting her boy from the sexual advances of Zesshi. After a week of agonizing pain, she finally received healing and not so friendly warning of what will happen if she tries to repeat a stunt like this before Mare is old enough to show an interest in getting a girlfriend.
The sound of ribs cracking returns Zesshi to the present moment. Bukuma is holding Kato by the shoulder and repeatedly slamming her fist into his broad chest as the room watches in stunned silence.
After a moment, she lets the much taller beastman go, and he falls to the ground, groaning in pain. Bukuma puts him on his back with a kick and then presses his broken ribs with her plate boot.
"Now then, I will make this clear to a simple beast like you. For now, you hold next to no value to me. Nazarick has thousands of nameless summons stronger than you. The only reason I'm not killing you now and making a rug out of your pathetic ass is so I don't have to repeat this with your replacement."
She presses her boot down, even more, making Kato wail in pain and continue speaking.
"You will do what you are told and you will do it with proper manners. Get out of line again and I will send you to Demiurge's farm myself! Is that clear?"
"Y-yes," whimpers Kato,
"Yes, what?"
"Y-yes m-mistress."
Bukuma takes off her boot from Kato's chest and returns to her seat as the beast wails on the ground.
"Eleleth, can you do me a favor and heal him so I don't have to listen to his whining and we can move on?"
The Angel casts heal with a nod. Kato gets up and gets back to his seat, trying to look as small as possible.
"Questions about the plan?" Bukuma asks, returning to her usual casual tone as if nothing has happened.
"We kill only the names on the list and make it look like they are randomly chosen?" Peter asks.
"Yes, and mix in the closest guards as well. It has to look like a broad assault on nobles, not an intentional culling."
"Got it."
Zesshi slowly drifted off as each of the representatives asked questions to clarify a thing or two. The war meetings were just not her thing. Aura beside her clearly shared the sentiment, trying not to yawn openly. Both understand the importance of the meeting, but that didn't make it any less tedious.
After everyone left, she could let out a sigh of relief. Bukuma pats heads of her children,
"I'm proud of how well behaved you both were during the meeting. You can go play now."
"I'm taking Zesshi to play ball," Aura cheerfully shouts and drags her by the hand outside. Being a play pall for the tomboyish elf girl wasn't the most daunting task, but it sure as hell was much more tiring than any training Zesshi did on her own.
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The King Regent Zanac rubs his temples with a tired motion. All the tasks to prepare for the upcoming battle seemed endless. Nazarick alone was bad enough, but now they knew that the Baharuth Empire and the Dragon Kingdom openly supported their enemy.
Even if just for an appearance's sake, he was still tasked by his sister to do the planning on the kingdom side.
'Like lambs to the slaughter.'
That all this planning was. Countless soldiers will die. By Renner's given estimate, the upcoming battle will be the bloodiest in the kingdom's history. The yearly skirmishes were nothing but a small feud compared to what was to come.
At this moment Zanac sits in his office. There was no point using the throne room for just three people and most didn't like him sitting on the throne, anyway. He was just a regent, after all.
Marquis Raevan, beside him, looks just as tired and Boullope seemed to have aged a decade during the last month. His once brown hair and beard were almost fully grey now. The once sharp gaze is bloodshot and blurry and his hands lightly shake.
It wasn't a secret that Boullope had turned to drinking, hoping to lessen the stress he was under. Even with the Re-Estize army reaching unprecedented numbers, there was little hope of winning against the monstrous empire. He himself, at this point, was willing to accept the shameful offer of peace and pay the requested sum, but most of the nobles, even in his own faction, were too stubborn to admit defeat.
"Marquis Boullope, what is the time frame for all the troops of your faction to arrive in E-Rantel?"
"Two weeks and our troops will be there."
"Then it will give us a week to prepare. I assume each noble plans to use their elite troops as well?"
"As far as I know, yes. We are throwing everything we have this time."
"Can I leave the planning of where each force will be positioned in your wing to you?"
"I will lead it myself. You don't have to get involved in the planning of my forces."
Before Zanac could say more, Boullope turns and leaves. The Noble didn't show respect to Zanac's late father when he still ruled the kingdom and didn't plan to treat Zanac with the respect his position would dictate either.
Zanac gets up from the chair and walks up to the window, looking outside. He was tired and frustrated and felt trapped in the position he was in. A king in name only. Renner was the one running things from Nazarick's side. Zanac hasn't even talked with one of them. They didn't consider him important enough.
Raeven walks up and stands beside him.
"Maybe they will make things better when the dust settles," Raeven says.
"With how things are now, they better have."
"Still don't trust our masters, brother?"
Startled, Zanac swings around to meet his sister's gaze. He didn't even hear how she came in.
"No, I…"
"You are so easy to startle. How unbecoming of a king," Renner says with a smirk.
"Do you need something, Renner?" Zanac asks with a tired sigh. Today he had no energy to even bother with her games.
"You look tired, brother. You need to relax. And I have just a gift from Lord Ulbert himself. He does notice your efforts."
While Zanac and Raeven stare at her, Renner nods to a space beside her and a beautiful woman with horns and wings appears. She bows and greets Zanac with a charming smile.
"Greetings King Zanac. Lord Ulbert tasked me with taking care of you."
The young king just stares at the beautiful creature in shock. The woman was clearly not a human. As alluring as she was, the fear easily trumps his desires.
"This is a succubus, brother. She is a gift to you from a God. Don't be rude!" Renner says with a slight snarl, as if Zanac's reaction had insulted her.
Zanac audibly gulps and says,
"It is a pleasure to meet you, miss…"
Succubus bows again,
"You can call me Zalarta, my King."
"She is yours, for now, brother."
"Send Lord Ulbert, my gratitude," Zanac says, not taking his eyes off the beautiful demoness in front of him. He did not know what to do in this situation. If it was a genuine gift from Lord Ulbert himself, there was no way he could refuse it.
What would this creature do to him? With no other option, he flashes a smile at Zalarta, who returns a relaxed expression.
"I will wait in your quarters." She says with another charming smile and turns invisible once again.
Renner walks around the large office table and sits down in Zanac's chair, looking over plans on the table.
"Looks like you both have done your part. Our masters will be pleased. And you both can stop worrying, gods see worth in you both. They will not discard either of you once Re-Estize is rightfully theirs."
Renner twists her face into a wide smile and continues,
"Emperor himself will leave you both in charge of this region if you can prove competent enough to rule it in his name."
"Why wouldn't they leave you in charge of the region, princess?" Raeven asks.
"My place in the new empire is not your current concern. Lord Ulbert has other plans for me and I prefer them greatly over the ruling of Re-Estize."
Renner stands up and walks towards the door, adding,
"Do not fail their trust! And brother, enjoy your gift."
Zanac for a moment stares at the door silently. His 'gift' will wait for him. He had no illusions that the real reason the demoness was sent was to control him. Not that he had any choice in that matter, anyway. Between the shadow demons and his psychotic sister, he was a puppet for them and nothing more.
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Rigrit walks the streets of Re-Estize capital once again. The nervousness and fear were almost palpable in the air. She had heard of the war with the Empire of Nazarick. From simple commoners to adventurers, she met while walking, none showed cheerful faces.
She has a clear destination in mind, a tavern frequented by Blue Roses, her friends. How long it was since she last met them? At least few years, their leader Lakyus was in her mid-teen's back then. Whatever little details reached her only assured her more that the team was in good care, lead by the young woman.
Finally reaching the place, she stops for a moment. The tavern still looks the same but for some reason, her instincts screamed 'danger'. Could it be a trap already? There was no way Lords of Ooal Gown knew about her.
After a long breath, she pushes the door open and walks inside.
"Hey, old-timer is finally here. I worried you died on the way!" The loud Gagaran's voice booms through the tavern.
She lets out a long chuckle as she walks closer and then sees the reason for her worries. Shadow demons, many of the stealthy monsters, were hiding in the shadows. She keeps her expression and pretends to not notice them.
"Still lack even the basic manners, girl. Show your elders some respect." She shoots back at the gigantic woman.
"Yeah, like that's gonna happen. Good to see you Rigrit."
"Same to you. Where is the rest of the team?"
"Leader is visiting princess and shorty is sleeping as usual. They will join us soon."
Gagaran says and then slams her arm on the table.
"Ready for a rematch?"
Rigrit grins, sits opposite to her and grabs Gagaran's arm for a round of arm wrestling,
"Don't cry like you did last time when you lose."
"I will not lose to an old geezer like you this time."
Gagaran flexes her impressive arm and moves Rigrit's arm for a bit and strains with all her might against the grip of the old woman. Rigrit slowly moves her hand with a strained face, slowly forcing the opponent's hand down. She had no intention of showing her actual strength to the invisible spies, but at the same time, she had no intention of losing to the loud-mouthed giant.
Finally, the breaking moment comes, and she slams Gagaran's hand into the table with a thud and says with a pant,
"I still got it, kid."
"I will defeat you one day old-timer."
"Hah, I will die of old age before I lose to you."
With all the commotion both have caused, they can hear light steps coming down the stairs. A moment later, the masked figure appears from the doorway.
"Oh, granny is here."
Evileye quickly joins them at the table. Not a moment later, three blonde women come inside. One dressed in an elegant dress rushes to the table and bows.
"Lady Rigrit, I apologize for being late."
"Don't be so formal, Lakyus, it's good to see you, girl."
"Of course Rigrit. It is nice to see you again too."
With the entire team of blue roses present, Rigrit gets to the point. She could already guess that getting noticed by the Nazarick was unavoidable and all she could do was to appear non hostile towards them.
"I wanted to meet you girls to ask what you know about this new Empire of Nazarick?"
"Not much. We know it is an empire of monsters and their leaders are players. As far as we know, Emperor Ainz is an undead but doesn't act like one." Evileye says.
"Interesting, but why are they at war with Re-Estize?"
"King Barbo tried to attack the village belonging to them without a provocation, just because he made a fool out of himself when they saved the capital from the archdemon," Lakyus says, almost spitting the words out, not hiding her dislike for the king.
Rigrit suspected that it may have been a false flag operation. Ainz Ooal Gown was known to be very manipulative in warfare with other guilds. But without proof, they were the righteous defenders in this case.
"Is there a way to contact them?"
"Why do you want to contact them, old-timer? They are monsters."
"A friend of mine is interested in talking with them."
"I'm sorry Rigrit, but we don't know. You could go to the village of Carne, but please don't do it. They will probably not look too kindly towards adventurers." Lakyus says.
"I am not suicidal. The next few rounds are on me and then I'm off to take a rest. These old bones can't party like I used to."
Spending time with the Blue Roses brought back all kinds of memories. Rigrit left the tavern in an elevated mood. She noticed the shadow demon attach himself to her, but she paid no attention to it for now. After returning to the inn where she rents a room, Rigrit summons an elder lich and orders it to guard the room as she rests in bed.
The next morning came with a knock on the door. She dismisses the lich and opens the door to see a boy about ten years old with an envelope in his hand.
"An invitation for you, miss Rigrit!" The boy says, handing her the envelope and then running off.
It was an invitation to a house in the noble district with a single line, 'Come if you want to find out more about the Lords of Ooal Gown.'
She had no doubts about what she will find there. But there was no other way, and they didn't have a reason to kill her for now, at least.
The mansion looked decently maintained, and the guard at the gates greeted politely. She didn't sense any teleportation jamming for now. A woman greeted her at the entrance.
"Miss Rigrit, welcome, master already awaits you."
The expression on this woman when she said master bordered on insanity. Rigrit didn't sense any mind control on her, though. She followed the woman to the basement of the house, still not sensing any kind of teleport jamming. If something goes south, she could just teleport away.
A goat sitting at the office table comes into view in a large basement room. There is an empty chair waiting for her. Then she notices them, demons, fallen angels, and what was most shocking, a full-blown Metatron angel standing near the walls. There was also an angel with metallic wings, but Rigrit did not know what kind of type she was. Her guess was that the woman was a custom-made guild base guardian.
The goat stands up and says in a pleasant tone,
"Welcome, my name is Ulbert Ooal Gown, and I heard you wanted to contact us."
"Thank you for the invitation. My name is Rigrit Bers Caurau."
Ulbert motions for her to sit and takes the seat himself.
"So for what do we owe a pleasure?"
Rigrit glances around at the various monsters present. Some had expressions of dislike, but Ulbert himself wore a professional, but somewhat creepy, smile.
"I will get to the point right away. I have no intentions of getting into the way of your growing empire. There is a larger problem in this world that I and my friend want to warn you about."
"We know about the Great Old One."
"You know! Then can I ask what you plan to do?"
Ulbert is silent for a while, observing Rigrit intently.
"We plan to get rid of it, or at least prevent the beast from waking up. Why do you ask?"
Rigrit notices how the room tenses up. One wrong answer and they will strike her down. She keeps a neutral expression and answers, trying to hide her nervousness.
"My friend and I want the same thing."
"Interesting. And why isn't your friend with you here if you seek to ally with us?"
"He is a dragon and…" She instantly felt it. Teleportation was blocked and every single monster in the room was in a battle position, ready to tear her apart.
"Wait, hear me out!"
Ulbert stares at her for a moment and then says,
"I'm listening."
"I don't know all the details, but when he asked to come to talk with you, he was scared. Something is already happening, and he is willing to go against his own kind to stop it."
"So a human player and a dragon want to ally with us against the Great Old One and I just have to take your word for it?"
"I know how it looks. But I am not your enemy, please!"
Ulbert eyes her. Rigrit could see that the Demon Goat was thinking intently. She was doing her very best to appear calm and not give them a reason to strike. Finally, he waves his hand and all the monsters relax.
"Ok, I will take your word for now. But we want to meet this dragon too. Set a meeting for us in a neutral location and contact me with a message. You know dragons were the pets of the Great Old One?"
"I am aware of it, yes, but I trust my friend."
"I am also curious about another thing. If you don't mind me asking, did you choose to age or haven't found a way to reverse it?"
"As far as I know there is no spell to stop aging, there wasn't one in Yggdrasil."
Ulbert lets out a chuckle and relaxes in his chair.
"You are here at least a century and haven't found the spell yet? One of us created such spell with only a few weeks of experimentation."
Rigrit looks at him curiously. For what reason he even told her that, to gloat? No, the likely reason was to tempt her. And it sure was tempting to have her youth back.
"Why tell me it?"
"Well, just pointing out a benefit or two in case you want to ally with us long term. Human or not, you are still a player."
"We will see. If that is all I will inform you when I have talked with my friend and give a date and place."
"I will eagerly await it. Until we meet again."
Once out of the mansion, Rigrit lets out a shudder. It felt like she was talking to a demon, not a human. Even the obligatory temptation to give something she wanted. Rigrit admits to herself that youth was one thing she would give a lot to regain, and this Ulbert knew about it. For now, she would have to talk with Tsar again to set up a meeting and pray it doesn't go horribly wrong.
Bonus Story - Maids.
Ainz, as usual, sat in his office going through the various reports. Work pile didn't get any smaller. He already had a plan to repurpose some of the created servitors to make them go though the unimportant information and only give him necessary summaries.
His boring routine was interrupted by Pestonya sending a message and reporting a fight between homunculus maids that she could not stop. Ainz was curious why she reported it directly to him and not Sebas or Albedo. What could maids be fighting about if the head maid wanted to involve him directly.
Ainz heard the commotion a good distance away from cafeteria, growing more concerned about what was happening. He stops just before the door, setting himself up to look as regal and leaderly as possible, already hearing shouts and dishes breaking.
He enters the cafeteria with a shout,
"What is going on!"
He might as well could have used the time stop spell as the room freezes in an unmoving sight of homunculus maids having a huge fight. Besides a plate landing near and breaking, there is no other sound. Some stood unblinking in a mid punch or holding opponents by the hair.
The scene surprised Ainz a bit too much, and he stands silently trying to figure out how to approach it. Maids finally break out of the shock and all kneel in orderly rows with guilt-ridden expressions. Pestonya, standing the nearest to entrance, bows and says quietly,
"Emperor Ainz, I failed my duty to organize the duties of the maids and take full responsibility, woof."
"What happened?"
"Lately overall performance of maids has risen drastically, and they finished their assigned tasks much faster. I tried to give each equal amount of work, but they took duties from each other and, despite my best efforts, it ended up like this. Please punish me Emperor Ainz, I am unsuited for my position, woof." Pestonya says, while looking down in shame.
'It is all my fault. I increased their limits without thinking.'
The overly fanatical maids couldn't live without being as useful as possible. Despite his best efforts, he could give them a day off every forty days to prepare for a day when they would serve him personally. If he was to order them to decrease amount of work, they were doing and take longer breaks, the poor maids would protest in despair.
A suggestion of yearly vacation was met with pleas of sparing them from such cruelty.
Only now he realized that with increased limits, they all rapidly grew in proficiency, and what took twelve hours a month ago only needed a few hours to finish.
"I can't blame you, Pestonya. The fault lies with me in this case. I increased their potential and didn't account for how much better of servants they would become."
His words had the effect he hoped for right away. The praise changed their guilt ridden expressions to ecstatic ones.
"There aren't more cleaning duties within the Nazarick. I recommend you all chose other ways how to serve better. Pestonya, coordinate with Albedo and assign each of them training of their choosing when their primary duties are finished."
"Yes Emperor Ainz, it will be done, woof."
Ainz could only sigh internally. Another thing that went wrong because he didn't account for long-term consequences. Nine out of ten times everything went better than expected, but in rare occurrence things needed to be fixed. He could only hope that his decision to let them learn new things will not backfire even more.
At least they will be busy for a while and not at each other throats for doing work assigned for another.
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