บท 553: 63
After the War Chapter 11
Sitting through the meetings was boring, to say the least. Even during his life as a cop, Touch hated sitting through them. Today's meeting in particular was a slog. Tabula had gotten his chance to explain the intricacies of the ritual that would remove Earth's anti-magic matrix and by the looks of it, the brain eater immensely enjoyed talking about the particular topic.
Touch leaned back in his chair, suppressed the desire to yawn, and glanced around. Most of his friends were not paying that much attention as well.
Buku was scribbling something on some paper and showing it to Takemi and Punitto who both nodded in agreement. Ulbert and his son were exchanging whispers while shuffling through a stack of papers.
Peros was starting to doze off with his daughter keeping him upright. Lucifer didn't even pretend that he was interested in what Tabula had to say and was playing with some small remote-controlled golems he had set up in a small boxing arena on the table.
The only one who paid at least some attention was Ainz, but then again, he always listened to Tabula's ramblings, no matter how unimportant.
'How long does he plan to continue like this?' Touch was ready to follow Peros' example.
None of the paladins would be involved in the conquering of Earth anyway as they served only as a defensive force. Under his leadership, they pretty much served as the police force alongside Ainz's undead.
Now that the order had expanded its reach and started to train non-human candidates, it also was a shining example that the various species could work together under a single banner.
Finally driven beyond a tolerance point, Touch turned away and yawned. Of course, Ulbert noticed and smirked in his direction.
{ Having fun? } He teased.
{ Plenty. } Touch dryly responded.
{ You can always call your son for some booze. }
{ My son? }
{ Come on man, did you seriously forget about Sebas? }
{ No, I didn't forget about him! } Touch said defensively. Truth be told, he had not attempted to even talk with Sebas. The old butler may have been his creation, but to call him a son was strange.
He had a family that was now in a better place. 'Maybe it's time to move on. I know they have new lives and happy ones at that. Sebas… how should I even approach him?'
{ Look, I know you miss them, but that doesn't mean you can neglect your other family. } Ulbert of all people scolded him.
Touch still had no idea what to think of Ulbert. Half of the time, he was a genuine friend that not only gave moral support but also called him out when it was needed. The other half of the time, he was the most insufferable bastard one would not wish upon his worst enemies.
{ I know! I'll talk with him after the meeting. }
That was enough to get Ulbert off his back. Putting his attention back to Tabula's long-winded prattle, he tried to keep at least mild attention to it.
"In conclusion. It will take all twelve of us, and we can combine the removal of the anti-magic matrix with the memory alteration ritual." Tabula mercifully ended his speech.
"Finally." Ulbert didn't even hide his relief. "Before I start, Tabula, did you test the nuke?"
"Not yet, but preliminary tests showed that radiation levels can be manipulated and radioactive materials neutralized with magic."
"Excellent. Now then, I have a few options to present regarding what to do with Earth. The first and most effective one is to provoke a World War, let them waste all their nuclear potential, then arrive as saviors and start repairing what remains. Even in the worst-case scenario, only eighty percent of humanity would die, leaving us with two point three billion humans alive." Ulbert read from a paper he was holding in a matter-of-fact tone.
"Ulbert!" Touch stood up. "Are you out of your damn mind?"
"What?" Ulbert smirked at his rival.
"You can't seriously use a nuclear apocalypse as a serious proposition. I know you are a heartless bastard but we are talking about billions!" Touch shouted at him with an instant suspicion rising. 'It was bait! And I fell for it.'
"Anyone else against the simplest solution?" Ulbert asked as he looked around.
"Although depopulation would be the easiest solution, we would miss out on billions of potential worshipers." Ainz remarked. "And Touch, this was just a proposition. Being antagonistic to every idea Ulbert makes is not beneficial."
"But he…" Touch let out a long sigh and sat back down. "You are right." 'Dammit, I need to control my temper or that goat will get a rise out of me in every meeting.'
"Then, the second option is to fully infiltrate the governments of the largest nations. Disable the nuclear weapon's network in its entirety and let our agents take over from within. Once they hold the power, we will arrive as Gods and start repairing the world. Of course, a sizable opposition is inevitable, but our standing forces and the local military forces will be enough to eradicate everyone who stands in our way." Ulbert continued. He then motioned for Demiurge to hand out folders to every God.
"Once in control, the new power structure needs to be established. Considering the ease of global communication, we will have to monitor the entirety of the population for dissidents and political and religious groups that would inevitably oppose us."
Ulbert then started to walk around the table, addressing his friends individually. "Buku, you, Punitto, and Takemi would deal with major forces and rogue militaries. Pero would assist with eliminating public figures and troublesome individuals. Ankoro and Planet will start repairing both the overall human health and the devastated environment, ensuring that we are seen in a positive light."
He stopped behind Lucifer, who was still not paying any attention and playing with his golems. Ulbert lightly tapped his shoulder, getting the fallen angel's attention. "Lucifer and Tabula will deal with the restructuring of academic and industrial fields. Additionally helping to spread knowledge to this world as well. Side note: we need to give it a proper name since I'm rather sure Earth won't be our final conquest."
"I will deal with information control and propaganda." Ulbert walked back to his seat and sat down. "Touch, your paladin order will have to rapidly expand and serve as a regular police force. You know the guardians of society in shining armor type of deal, while my forces will deal with more underground operations."
"Lastly, Ainz and Albedo will deal with the administration of it all, additionally serving as the public faces of the Empire. Any questions?"
"What is our approximate timeline?" Buku asked.
"Considering that all of you accept my proposal without many changes then we can start the invasion in two years. The overall takeover should take less than a year with an additional ten to establish base control and probably another decade to fully ingrain ourselves in every facet of society. Simultaneously, we could expand in this world while implementing non-hazardous technology."
"I have a request." Blue planet raised his hand. "As I understand, the ley lines contain most of the magical energy and using rituals in their locations gives the best results?"
"Correct." Tabula said.
"Could it be possible to build some sort of towers or antennas on said ley lines that use my spells to gather pollutants from the air and water?"
"Such installations shouldn't be too hard to implement. My team could design them within the next week or so."
"When you two have a concrete idea of what is needed, give me heads up so I can include them in the overall plan." Ulbert said. "Anything else?"
With no additional requests, Ulbert's proposal was put to the vote. Knowing that it was for the best to just accept the current plan, Touch, same as everyone else, agreed to it.
Once the lengthy meeting was over, he left the meeting hall and walked towards the castle staff wing where Sebas had a living space.
With the time being seven in the afternoon, he assumed that his son would be home. At least, most of the servants had ended their work at that point.
With the rune system showing exactly where he had to go, Touch located Sebas' quarters rather easily.
'I hope he at least will talk with me.' Touch nervously shuffled before the door.
After a moment of hesitation, he finally gathered enough courage to knock. A moment later, a young blonde woman opened the door. About twenty years old and dressed in a simple blue dress, she froze in place seeing him.
"Good evening, young lady. I'm looking for Sebas. I hope I'm not mistaken and this is his quarters?" Touch asked.
After what felt like a minute the young woman snapped out of her surprise and bowed deeply while speaking with a barely audible tone. "Lord Touch. I'm sorry, but Sebas is not home."
"Oh, I guess I will come over some other time then." Touch said.
"P-Please wait. Sebas should be back soon." The woman practically whispered as she straightened out.
'This girl looks so nervous. But she clearly is not a maid or… wait a minute, if Sebas lives here and she… could they…. I'll be damned. Oh, I better not automatically assume they are together.' "Sure, I'm not in any hurry."
The girl stepped aside from the door, inviting him in. For a moment, Touch considered switching to his human form but the girl didn't show any discomfort by seeing his natural insectoid look.
The girl led him to the guest area and offered a seat while she quickly disappeared into the living area. Touch sat down and looked around. The place was not as spacious and luxurious as his quarters but it gave more of a lived in home feel.
After a few minutes, the girl returned with tea and snacks, putting them on the table. She herself remained awkwardly standing and looking down.
"Please sit down, I'm not one for formalities, miss…" Touch smiled, hoping that she would understand his facial expression.
"Tuare." She said but remained standing.
"Please sit down, Tuare, otherwise we both will have to stand." Touch said in a kind tone to the nervous girl.
She nervously sat down and filled a cup of tea for herself.
Touch picked up a cup of tea and asked as he took a sip. "So, you and Sebas?"
"Married." She quietly responded.
Touch almost spit out the tea. 'Married! I have a daughter-in-law? How did I not know? Shit! I was so lost in grief that I didn't even bother to ask how Sebas was doing.'
There was so much to ask but would it even be appropriate? The first and most obvious question he wanted to ask was: "How did you two meet?"
Tuare looked down, clenching the cup she was holding. "Sebas rescued me."
Although he was not a cop anymore, the old habit of reading people died hard. Touch noticed her nervousness and clear reluctance to talk about her past. 'No doubt she was a slave.'
"It's okay. You don't have to talk about your past if you don't want to."
Tuare looked up with a faint smile. "Meeting Sebas was the best thing that ever happened to me. He was so nice to me even if he didn't have to be."
'Ainz mentioned something about our children having our personalities if the flavor text doesn't say otherwise. I don't recall ever writing anything in his flavor text part, so he would have the same personality as me?' "That does sound like him." Touch said in response as an awkward silence set in.
To Touch's relief, the silence was interrupted a moment later when Sebas came in with a small paper bag in his hands. "I got us your favorite…" He stopped mid-sentence as his gaze fell on Touch.
"Good evening, Sebas. I hope I'm not intruding." Touch said, trying to sound calm.
The old butler's face betrayed no emotion as he stared at his creator. He then bowed deeply and said. "Not at all. It is an honor to meet you once again, Lord Touch."
"Just call me Touch. I can't let my son be so formal with me."
"Would it be appropriate to call you father?" Sebas asked as he straightened out.
Touch couldn't help but notice a drop of sweat appear on his son's forehead. 'He is even more nervous than I am.'
"That is even better." Touch said as he stood up and approached Sebas. With a friendly pat on the shoulder, he added. "I am happy you want to call me father. Come, let's catch up on how you have been. I already met my lovely daughter-in-law."
All three sat down around the small table. Tuare quickly retrieved the bag Sebas had brought home and disappeared into the kitchen area, returning with three bowls of steaming casserole.
Although not particularly hungry, Touch shared the meal with his family, listening to them talking about their life together. Even with Sebas present, Tuare didn't talk about her past, only mentioning she had a sister in Peros' service.
At first, Touch was reluctant to talk about his life but ultimately let them know that he had a family that had moved on and because of his grief, he had neglected to visit Sebas.
After telling everything he could share, Touch bowed his head and said. "I'm sorry for not visiting. It must have been hard to see other players interact with their children while your own father didn't even drop by to say hi."
"I understand, father. I only wish I could have been by your side in your darkest moments." Sebas said.
"To be honest, I didn't want to burden anyone, but I guess your company would have been a good one."
His new family would never replace what he had lost, but at least now he was not alone anymore.
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