Overlord

Wise King of the Forest

Part 1

Clementine stormed back to Khazit's hideout — the secret shrine under E-Rantel's graveyard. Her strides were wild and forceful, her brows were furrowed, and her mouth was twisted. Her pretty features were distorted into something which could only have been described with the word "ugly."

That said, her true nature was probably more grotesque than that face.

Khazit muttered to himself as he guided a newly-created Zombie over to the undead storage area.

"Oh~ A new Zombie? That's over a hundred and fifty now, the Orb of Death is quite extraordinary~"

The number of undead that could be controlled by the third-tier spell 「Create Undead」 was limited by the power of the spell's caster. The more undead one made, the fewer one could control. Still, Zombies were among the lowest grade of undead. Someone like Khazit, who was specialized in controlling the undead, could maintain his hold over the unbelievable amount of over a hundred of them at once. The reason Khazit could control more than even that number was due to the power of the item he carried — the Orb of Death.

"It's all because you've been fooling around so much."

"Sor-ry~"

There was not even the slightest hint of remorse on Clementine's face as she apologized.

"Still~ it's their fault for dying so soon~ couldn't they hold on a little longer—?"

"…When you bash them like that, it's no wonder they'd die…"

"Adventurers wouldn't die so easily~"

"They weren't adventurers, just ordinary civilians… Clementine, do you like spouting obvious things to waste time?"

"Yesyesyes~ I'm sorry, it won't happen again, please forgive me~"

Khazit clicked his tongue.

"As if I could believe that. In any case, stop going after people."

"Oh-kay~"

Her flighty response made Khazit furrow his brows. Still, there was no point going on about it, so he decided not to continue lecturing her. He tried to express his disp.l.e.a.s.u.r.e with the wrinkles of his frown, but as expected, she ignored it.

"Buuut~ I'm so booooooored — speaking of which, where is he, anyway?"

"Has he not returned yet?"

"Not yet. I missed him — since it's hard to get a hold of him, what about grabbing that granny instead~?"

"Stop that. That old woman is a third tier magic caster and a famous person in this city, so don't look down on her. If you move carelessly against her, you might find yourself in too deep to dig yourself out."

"Ehhhhh~ But—"

Khazit reached into his robes, and withdrew a jet-black gemstone.

"…Clementine, I've spent several years preparing to turn this place into a city of the dead. I don't want your pointless antics to set my plans back. If you continue making trouble… I'll kill you."

"…It's called the Death Spiral, right?"

"Indeed. It's the rite our leader is conducting."

In places where the undead gathered, more powerful undead were born. When these more powerful undead gathered, even more powerful undead would appear. The magic rite which made use of this property was like a spiral, constantly spawning ever more powerful undead beings. It was potent enough to destroy an entire city, so it was known as the "Death Spiral."

This wicked ritual had been conducted in the past, and it had turned a metropolis into a city of the dead where the undead roamed free.

Khazit's aim was to turn E-Rantel into another such dead city. He would turn himself into an undead being by harnessing the necromantic energies from such a place.

He had made extensive preparations to achieve his aim. He would not let this woman who had showed up just a few days ago ruin his plans.

"Got it?"

Khazit saw through Clementine's adorably puffed-up cheeks. Her expression was one of cruel malice. In that moment, Clementine surged forward like a killing storm.

She closed the distance between them in an instant, and struck like lightning. The sharp blade in her hand gleamed lethally as it flashed toward Khazit's throat —

♦ ♦ ♦

The small blade Clementine thrust forth was a piercing weapon known as a stiletto.

There was little variation in the ways one could attack with a piercing weapon, so they were not easy to use. However, Clementine favored such weapons, and she had trained her body ceaselessly, selected the best equipment, and learned the right martial arts, all in order to kill in a single blow.

This technique of hers, honed and refined through countless battles with humans and monsters, was on a level where no normal person could defend against it.

Clementine was naturally gifted with physical abilities which exceeded those of normal human beings. On top of that, she had spent her life training and practicing her combat skills, so it was only natural that she should be able to fight at such a level.

However, her target was not a normal person.

Khazit — one of the twelve high disciples who were the pride of Zuranon — could not be killed so easily.

—And a white wall-like object which erupted from the ground and intercepted the unavoidable, razor-sharp blade. It was a gigantic hand made of countless human bones, covered in hooks which called to mind the image of maggots.

The hooks writhed, and the earth around them shattered. Under Khazit's mental control, a giant creature began revealing itself.

She could sense a powerful undead creature beneath Khazit's feet. The smug Khazit turned toward Clementine and said:

"What a waste of time. Because of you, I was distracted for a moment and lost control of the other undead."

"Tehe~ Sorry 'bout that~ But I wasn't going all out either. You had to pull out all the stops to barely block it, right?"

"That's nonsense and you know it, Clementine. You're not the sort to hold back."

"Uwah~ you saw through me~ Mm, if you hadn't blocked it, your shoulder would have been stabbed through. Butbut, I never intended to kill you — really~"

Khazit frowned again as he saw the hateful smile on the woman before him.

"Still, if it was me, I could beat that chap — maybe magic casters couldn't win, but as a warrior, I could defeat it handily. I'm just not too used to bludgeoning-type weapons—"

"…Your specialization in one-hit kills might make you strong against the living, but what will you do against the undead which lack biological processes? And do you really think 'that chap' is the last card I have to play?"

"Mmm~ that's also true~"

Clementine glanced toward the entrance. She seemed to have noticed the undead controlled by Khazit, who were waiting there for his orders.

"I think I could win… but if I draw out the fight I'll probably lose~ tehe~, sorry, Khazi-chan."

Clementine returned her stilettos under her cloak, and the rumbling from the earth ceased.

"Buuuut~ that's a specialized undead controller for you~ Well done!"

With that, Clementine turned and left.

"Ah, yes, yes, I won't touch that granny until the end. I won't go hunting people either. That should be okay, right?"

"…Mm."

Khazit did not release the power he was holding until Clementine left. He continued holding on to it even after her shadow was gone from his underground shrine.

"What a bad personality," Khazit spat.

He had his own flaws, but he was not nearly as bad as Clementine.

"Even though she's so skilled… no, it's because she's so skilled that she's so twisted."

Clementine was strong, and even among the twelve executives of the secret society Zuranon, only three of them could beat her. Sadly, Khazit was not one of them. Even with the magic item in his hand, he only had around a thirty percent chance of success.

"The former Ninth Seat of the Black Scripture… deranged individuals with the power of heroes are hard to deal with."

♦ ♦ ♦

"So that's what happened."

Nfirea sighed deeply, and mumbled to himself.

Nfirea had been close to Enri's parents. They were great parents, and the way they loved their daughters was quite enviable. Nfirea had lost his parents at a young age and only had murky impressions of them. Therefore, when he thought of an outstanding father and mother, Nfirea immediately thought of Enri's parents.

He was filled with rage when he heard that her parents had been killed by the Imperial knight impostors, and all he could think when he learned that they had been slaughtered in turn was serves them right. He was also somewhat angry at the higher-ups in E-Rantel, who refused to send soldiers over.

However, he felt something was wrong about him displaying this anger, when Enri — for whom that anger was far more justified — had set those feelings aside.

He looked at Enri, her eyes brimming with tears. As he wondered whether he should try to comfort her, Enri wiped her tears away and smiled:

"I still have a little sister. I can't lose myself in sadness forever."

Nfirea was halfway off his chair, and now he sat down again. Having lost the chance to console her, he felt like he had wasted an opportunity and was ashamed of his own uselessness.

Even so — his d.e.s.i.r.e to protect her had not changed. After a brief pause, Nfirea made up his mind. He would not let anyone other than himself sit beside Enri, even if that person was a powerful being who could protect her.

He felt a little anxious, but while he was riding on this surge of emotion, Nfirea decided that he would share the feelings he had had ever since he came to this village for the first time as a child.

"Then—"

His throat seemed to have clamped shut. Come on, say it! Although he desperately wanted to speak, the words stuck in his throat and refused to leave.

Both Enri and Nfirea were at an age where it would not be unusual for them to be married. In addition, due to his income as a herbalist, Nfirea had enough money to support Enri and her little sister.

I could probably provide for a child too…

The image of the family he wanted to make appeared in his mind — but he immediately waved away his runaway imagination. The knowledge that Enri was looking at him in surprise made him even more nervous.

His mouth opened, and then closed.

I like you.

I love you.

But the words refused to leave his lips, because he was afraid of hearing her reject him.

Then, what else could he say to shorten the distance between them?

The city's safer, do you want to live with me? I'll take care of you and your little sister. If you want to work, you can help in Granny's shop.

If you feel uneasy about the city, I'll do my best to help you.

He should say that. The chances of those words being rejected would be a lot lower than a confession of love.

"Enri!"

"Wh-What happened, Nfirea?"

Enri jumped as Nfirea loudly called her name. He began to speak:

"—If, if, if you've got any problems, let me know. I'll do whatever I can to help you!"

"Thank you… You're such a good friend that it's almost wasted on me, Nfirea!"

"Ah, ah, er… it, it's fine, we've known each other for so long, after all."

Nfirea was unable to say anything else in the face of Enri's beaming smile. He cursed himself for his uselessness, but at the same time he fondly reflected on how cute Enri was, and of the times he had spent talking with her.

Just as it seemed the matter was at an end, Nfirea asked a question:

"Come to think of it, what's up with those Goblins?"

Those Goblins called Enri their "Ane-san." In addition, those Goblins differed greatly from the ones they had encountered on the road to Carne; they had the air of veteran warriors. It was even more surprising to see a magic caster in the village. When and where had these Goblins encountered a simple village girl like Enri, and what sort of relationship did she have with them?

Enri simply replied:

"They appeared after I used a magic item given to us by our village's savior, Ainz Ooal Gown. They follow my orders."

"I see…"

Enri's eyes were like twin sparkling stars as she said that name. It made Nfirea feel bitter inside.

Ainz Ooal Gown.

Enri had already mentioned this name several times since they started talking.

When Carne Village was attacked by mysterious men dressed as Imperial knights, a magic caster who was passing by saved the village with his tremendous might, returning peace to the village. He was Enri's savior, and someone that Nfirea should thank.

However, the look on Enri's face made it difficult for him to thank him in earnest.

He could understand how Enri felt when she mentioned her messiah, but at the same time, jealousy welled up at the bottom of his heart. He was filled with his one-sided love for Enri, and by his competitive spirit as a man. Influenced by these emotions, his emotions turned ugly.

Nfirea thrust these feelings aside, and turned his thoughts to the magic item of which Enri had spoken.

It was a magic item which summoned Goblins, called the "Horn of the Goblin Whatever."

The magic caster who had saved her village had explained what sort of horn it was, but because her mind was too confused back then, her memory was hazy.

Nfirea felt it was a little strange.

He had no idea what sort of magic item it was, but she should not have forgotten about it. Nobody should have forgotten the details of a magic item with special abilities once they were told about them.

Still, there were many magic items which could summon creatures, just as there were many summoning spells in magic. Any monsters summoned with those spells would vanish after a while.

Summoned monsters were not creatures which could persist for a long time.

If that item could do that, it might well overturn all of magical history and theory to date.

How valuable was a magic item which could accomplish such a feat? Enri did not seem to have realized its value, but if she sold it, she could probably live comfortably for the rest of her life.

Enri had used this rare and precious item because she did not want blood to flow in the village once more.

Nfirea felt that this line of thinking was very much her style. Thus, the Goblins she had summoned called her Ane-san, followed her orders, and in addition to protecting the village they even helped in the fields. Apparently, they were even teaching the villagers how to use bows, and how to defend themselves. As a result, the village had gained several odd new residents.

Part of the reason why the village could accept the Goblins was because the knights who had attacked the villagers had been human beings like them. This had made them distrust human beings, and thus they could more easily accept the Goblins' help.

Another big reason was because the one who bestowed this item on them was the magic caster that had saved the village.

"So, he was called Ainz Ooal Gown? What sort of man is he like? I'd like to thank him myself."

Nfirea knew nothing about the name Ainz Ooal Gown. Besides, Enri had not seen his face under his mask, so she had no idea who he was either. Still, anyone who could casually give away precious items like those horns had to be someone important. If she had seen his face, she would not have forgotten it easily. After he told her that line of reasoning, a look of disappointment appeared on her face.

"Is that so… I was thinking you would know him, Nfirea…"

Enri's reply made Nfirea's heart pound violently, and sweatdrops bloomed uncomfortably on his back.

…Looks aside, he'd be a hit just going by his strength alone.

The words from last night appeared in Nfirea's mind, and he began to pant and breathe heavily.

Forcing down the uneasiness in his heart, Nfirea asked:

"En-Enri, what, what will you do when you see that Gown fellow?"

"Hm? Mm, I'd like to thank him properly. The village came together with the idea of building a little copper statue for him because he saved us, and I need to show my gratitude too…"

After sensing that the answer did not contain any hints of affection which frightened him, Nfirea breathed a sigh of relief, and let his tensed shoulders relax.

"Ah. Is that so? Mm… hoo. Yes, of course you need to thank him. If you noticed any special features, or if he reminded you of someone, maybe it would narrow down the field… right, do you know what sort of magic he used?"

"Ah, magic, huh. It, it was really amazing. The was a flash of lightning and the knight went down in one hit."

"Lightning, huh… did you hear him say 「Lightning」 or something?"

Enri's eyes looked to the sky, and then she nodded deeply.

"Mm! …I think I heard him say that. Although it seemed like there was more to it than that…"

After hearing Enri trail off into mumbling, Nfirea concluded that this Gown fellow must have said something before casting his spell.

"If that's the case… it should be magic of the third tier."

"…Magic of the third tier… is that very amazing?"

"Of course it is! I can only use second tier magic myself. Third tier of the magic is the limit for normal people. Only talent-holders can use magic beyond that."

"I knew it! Gown-san is really amazing!"

Enri respectfully nodded. However, Nfirea did not think the magic caster called Ainz was limited to third tier spells. Given that he was a person who could nonchalantly give away those magic items, he might be able to use fifth tier spells, which were the domain of heroes.

Why would such a great person come to a village like this?

A confused Nfirea tilted his head to the side, but then Enri dropped a bombshell which immediately blew all his doubts away.

"In addition, he gave me a red potion too—"

Nfirea recalled part of a conversation from earlier:

♦ ♦ ♦

"Then, what if I paid you, and you told me more about the person who gave you that potion?"

The warrior named Britta did not seem happy about that request:

"And why do you want to know?"

"Of course it's to find clues to lead me to that mysterious man in full plate armor. If we get in his good graces, he might tell us where he got those potions from, right? He might let something slip by accident, so if he's an adventurer, I want to hire him for a job. How about it, Nfirea?"

♦ ♦ ♦

That was the reason Nfirea had asked for Momon by name.

Nfirea's plan was to winkle out information about the potion by deepening his friendship with Momon. In addition, if they went to pick herbs in the forest together, Momon might accidentally reveal something.

Nfirea tried to hide the excitement in his heart, and in the same calm voice from before he asked Enri:

"Hm, what kind of potion was it like?"

"Eh?"

"You know I'm a herbalist, of course I'd be interested in potions."

"Ahhh, that's right! Making these things is your job."

Enri told Nfirea everything she knew about the magic caster and the potion he had given her. She mentioned the name Ainz Ooal Gown's wondrous deeds several times during her account. The Nfirea from just now might have been filled with jealousy, but at the moment, his mind was pondering other matters.

He put all this information together, and after peeling back several layers of mystery, the hidden truth was revealed.

It was very likely that the potion which had appeared in E-Rantel and which Enri had drunk were one and the same. It was also apparent that a pair of adventurers had appeared in both those places, a magic caster and a warrior in black full plate.

There could only be one answer, yet there were two people who could be candidates for being Ainz Ooal Gown. From what Enri had said, he could conclude that Ainz was a man, but he decided to ask again just to be sure.

"…Could that Ainz Ooal Gown person be… a woman?"

"Eh? I don't think so? I didn't see his face, but his voice was a man's."

By itself, this was not proof that Ainz was a male. After all, there were spells and magic items which could change voices. It seemed strange to think that Nabe = Ainz Ooal Gown. The merciless and occasionally naive Nabe seemed completely different from the wise, benign, and righteous Ainz. It was clearly too much of a stretch to think of her as Ainz.

"The person in the black full plate armor was called Albedo, I think."

"Is, is that so…"

He remembered the name from when Nabe had said it.

The answer was clear.

Ainz Ooal Gown = Momon.

From that, he could draw a startling revelation.

The magic caster who had saved the village was also a fearsome warrior. Although there were some warriors with magical training, for the most part, one would cancel out the good points of the other. In a similar vein, arcane magic casters could not cast spells while wearing the heavy equipment which most warriors favored.

So he was a magic caster of the third tier, as well as a swordsman on par with an adamantite-ranked adventurer.

This must be some kind of joke. If someone like that truly existed, he would be a hero among heroes.

Still, why had he asked so many questions on the road?

The most logical answer was that he was a magic caster who had learned his art in another country and was not sure about this one. That being the case, it made sense that he would possess potions from another land, whose means of manufacture was completely unknown.

After learning this piece of priceless information, his breathing became irregular, and he could not calm himself down even though he knew Enri was staring at him.

His heart was filled with complex emotions.

Ainz had saved Enri and given away potions. In comparison, Nfirea was a miserable little man who tried to get into Momon's good graces, in order to learn how he made those potions, and knowing this shamed him.

It was only natural that Enri would fall for someone like Momon.

As he thought about this, he could not help but sigh heavily.

"Are, are you all right? You don't look too good."

"Mm, mm. I'm okay, I was just thinking about something…"

Perhaps he could try to stave off his feelings of guilt by thinking that he wanted to learn the secret of that potion in order to save people. However, that hardly seemed convincing, given that he had wanted to learn how to make those potions in his capacity as a herbalist.

A mighty warrior who was also an excellent magic caster, accompanied by a beautiful woman, who possessed unknown potions, a righteous man that saved an innocent village girl from danger… and himself.

Nfirea considered the distance between himself and Ainz Ooal Gown — no, Momon — and fell into despair.

"What's wrong? You seem strange…?"

"Ah, mm. It's nothing."

Nfirea suppressed a sigh and smiled weakly. However, he was not confident he could make it look natural, and Enri's expression showed that she had seen through his fake smile.

"…What should I do? Enri, you don't like people who hide things from you, right?"

"…Everyone has something they'd want to hide when brought before the gods, especially things which would hurt others if spoken. But it's a different matter if hiding those things would hurt others… Nfirea, I won't hate you for it, but if you've committed any crimes, you need to confess your sins to the magistrate!"

"…No, I did nothing wrong."

"Yes… mm! Like I was saying! How could you do a bad thing, Nfirea? I believe in you!"

As he looked at the giggling Enri, Nfirea let the tension flow out of his shoulders.

"Mm, but still, thank you. For some strange reason, I feel the weight lifting off my shoulders. I'll work hard to catch up with him."

So that I can raise my head before you and say that I like you and that I love you.

Enri, who had no idea what Nfirea's impassioned declaration and his previous words meant, simply smiled and nodded politely.

Part 2

"Hmm…"

Ainz looked over to a certain part of the village, sighing as he did.

There, he saw several villagers lined up in a row. There were men, women, and children of all ages. He could see a motherly-looking forty year old woman as well as teenagers. The one thing they had in common was the stern look on their faces, which might even be mistaken for hostility. It was a clear sign that nobody here was in the mood to play around.

A Goblin with a bow addressed the villagers.

Even Ainz's heightened sense of hearing could not make out his words over the great distance.

After a while, the line of villagers slowly raised their bows. They were simple, shabby shortbows which looked warped and were probably self-made.

After drawing their bows all the way back, they took aim at the strawmen some distance away.

The Goblin must have given an order, because the villagers loosed as one.

The bows looked crude, but the arrows they launched flew in beautiful trajectories. All of them struck the straw men, without a single miss.

"Not bad…"

Ainz could not help but praise them.

"Are they really that good?"

Narberal, standing behind Ainz, could not help but express her doubt.

In all likelihood, Narberal could not understand why their skills were praiseworthy. After all, they were like children at play compared to the archers of the Great Tomb of Nazarick.

As he realised what Narberal was thinking, a bitter smile bloomed on Ainz's illusionary face under his helmet.

"You're right, Narberal. Their technique is hardly something to get excited over. However, ten days ago, they did not even know how to use a bow. In order to prevent their spouses, children, and parents from being slain once more, they threw themselves into training, so that they could one day stand with weapons in hand to fight. Is that not worthy of praise?"

What was truly praiseworthy was the depths of the villagers' hate, which had brought them this far.

"My, my deepest apologies. I had not thought that far."

"It's fine. Don't worry about it so much, Nabe. It's true that their skills aren't really that impressive."

Ainz watched as more arrows sailed through the air and penetrated the strawmen. An idea suddenly came to mind.

How strong could they become? How strong could he become?

Ainz had attained the maximum level in YGGDRASIL, level one hundred. When he came to the world, his excess XP bar was around ninety percent full. It was just a hunch, but since his other abilities were intact, the concept of levels should exist in this world as well. The question now was whether he could obtain that remaining ten percent of the experience bar and reach level one hundred and one.

To some extent, he had an answer to this question.

He could not become stronger. This was as powerful as he was going to get.

Ainz's might was one which could no longer grow, but their weakness could be an unfathomable source of strength.

If there were no limits on the inhabitants of this world, if they could surpass the maximum level of one hundred in YGGDRASIL, then Ainz and the vassals of the Great Tomb of Nazarick would not be able to defeat them.

And that would definitely—

"It's not impossible…"

Ainz felt it was possible that the Six Gods who appeared in the Slaine Theocracy six hundred years ago were actually players. Although he did not know why they had appeared so far apart from Ainz, if they counted heteromorphic beings — which had no maximum lifespan — among their number or if they possessed classes which extended their lifespans, there was a very high chance that they had survived to the present day.

If the Six Gods were still hiding in the Slaine Theocracy, and if they had begun powerleveling others using the power of the Six Gods — i.e. helping them with the abilities of powerful players in order to gain experience faster than normal — from six hundred years ago, it might well be possible that there were people in excess of level one hundred.

If that were the case, the reason why the Theocracy had not yet taken over the world might be because there were other beings of the same calibre lying in wait. It might even be the case that being level one hundred meant nothing.

As he thought about that, Ainz's nonexistent gut began cramping up again.

If the Six Gods really were players, then he had to try and get on their good side while he lacked information about this world. According to the members of the Sunlight Scripture, the Imperial knights attacking this village were imposters from the Theocracy, which meant that saving this village was making an enemy of them.

"Was helping them a mistake…"

As he had surmised, gathering more information was a top priority.

Just as Ainz was absentmindedly pondering these matters, he noticed a teenager running over to him. The hair which normally obscured his eyes swayed from side to side, and he could see a pair of eyes fixed intently on himself.

Ainz immediately had a bad feeling about Nfirea. It looked like the same panic the village chief had from earlier.

"Why the rush? Did an emergency crop up again? This village is really…"

Nfirea reached the mumbling Ainz.

He was panting heavily and his forehead was slick with sweat. His hair, stuck to his skin by his perspiration, revealed a serious expression which was directed at Ainz and Narberal.

Nfirea seemed a little hesitant and unsure of whether to speak. In the end, he gathered up his determination and asked Ainz:

"Momon-san, are you Ainz Ooal Gown-san?"

The sudden question left Ainz dumbfounded. He should have denied it immediately.

But could he do that? It was a name made together with his friends. Now that he had used it as his own, could he deny it so easily?

This brief hesitation was an unspoken admission, and Nfirea continued:

"So it was you, Gown-san. Thank you for saving this village, as well as saving Enri."

As Ainz looked on the bowing Nfirea, he quietly replied, "No… I…"

After hearing the words Ainz managed to squeeze out, Nfirea nodded in understanding.

"Yes. I understand why you might want to go by a different name, but still, I have to thank you for saving this village — for saving Enri, the girl whom I like."

Ainz did not reply to the deeply bowing Nfirea. While part of him, the middle-aged uncle part, was musing that the words "the girl whom I like" were really a youthful thing, another part of him was reminiscing nostalgically about things past, and at the same time he thought about other, more important things.

"Ah… that's enough… raise your head."

This answer was a tacit admission that he was in fact Ainz Ooal Gown, but no matter how he tried to get out of this, there was no way he could deny Nfirea's conclusion. This was a complete defeat for Ainz.

"Yes, Gown-san. The truth is… I've been hiding something from you."

"…Come with me. Nabe, stay here and wait for instructions."

After giving Narberal her orders, Ainz brought Nfirea to a place some distance away. This was to keep Narberal from overreacting if she heard something odd.

Once they had gone far enough away from Narberal, Ainz turned to face Nfirea.

"Actually…"

Nfirea swallowed nervously, but the look on his face was full of determination.

"Gown-san, the potion which you gave that lady in the inn cannot be made by normal methods and is extremely rare. I wanted to know what sort of person would have such a potion and what kind of methods would produce such a potion, which was why I requested this job. I am very sorry about that."

"Ah, so that's what it was."

As he thought, it had been a mistake.

Ainz had given the healing potion to Enri in this village, and to someone else in E-Rantel. Because of that, his identity had been exposed. In addition—

…Maybe I should have taken back that potion. If I'd gotten that woman adventurer's name as well it would have been fine… although, there's no point regretting it now.

At the time, Ainz felt that giving her that potion was the best course of action.

That woman had said, "Well, seeing as you're dressed in such a flashy suit of armor, surely you must have some healing potions, right?" Perhaps she had not thought about those words before speaking them, but the fact was that they greatly limited the ways in which Ainz could have responded.

For instance, one might see a person getting out of an expensive car. Upon seeing that person's opulent, almost decadent clothing and appearance, they would assume that the car matched their background. But what if that person dressed shabbily? People watching might then think that person had spent all their money on the car. They might even laugh at him.

Ainz wanted to avoid that sort of situation.

If he had refused on the spot, people might have become jealous of his beautiful companion Narberal, as well as his own full plate armor. They might have even begun spreading malicious rumors about him. Such rumors were a thing that followed one for life after they appeared, and people would bring them up constantly.

Ainz had come to E-Rantel to build his reputation as an adventurer. As a result, he had to avoid any actions which might damage his public image.

He had given her the potion after considering these factors.

It was a gamble which he had lost, but he did not lament it. This was not a fatal mistake, and all he needed to do was work hard to compensate for it. After all, Ainz was not a perfect being who could do no wrong.

Still, he did not know why Nfirea was apologizing.

"Is there anything to be sorry for?"

"Eh?"

"…Well, I can't say I feel entirely good about someone hiding something from me while smiling and shaking my hand, but then this assignment was designed to build a connection with me, am I correct? What's wrong with that?"

A deeply puzzled Ainz asked this question from the bottom of his heart.

"Gown-san, you're really a magnanimous person…"

Ainz had no idea why Nfirea was so impressed by him. Building connections was a basic element of living in society, so there was nothing wrong with what Nfirea had done. He was somewhat confused about the details, but he vaguely understood. Perhaps Nfirea thought that Ainz believed that Nfirea was drawing close to Ainz in order to steal industrial secrets.

"If I told you how to make the potion, what would you do with that knowledge?"

Nfirea gasped in surprise, and after a brief period of thought he answered:

"I had not thought that far ahead. I just wanted to know because I was curious… Granny's probably the same way too."

"I see. Then, there's no problem. If you were planning to exploit it for criminal gain, it would be a different matter, but if not, then it's fine."

"You're really amazing. No wonder… looks at you that way…"

As Nfirea murmured, the wind dried the sweat on his forehead, and his hair fell down to cover his eyes again. Still, Ainz could see a look of admiration in his eyes, like a boy meeting with his favorite baseball player.

Nfirea's expression reminded Ainz of the look of surprise and immense gratitude on his own face, when his friends had saved him after he had been repeatedly PKed.

For a moment, he felt embarrassed, and then that emotion was damped down.

Ainz was surprised that Nfirea's attitude could affect his heart, but he immediately calmed himself down and moved on. First, he had to be sure of one thing.

"Speaking of which, are you the only one who knows that I am Ainz?"

"Yes, I didn't tell anyone else."

"Is that so, that's good."

Saying that, Ainz thought about how to continue speaking with Nfirea, but he had no idea where to begin. In the end, he decided to ask him directly.

"…Right now, I am simply Momon the adventurer. I would be glad if you could keep that in mind."

"Yes, I thought you'd say something like that. I'm sorry for causing you all this trouble, Momon-san, but I needed to thank you in person. Thank you very much for saving Enri and this village."

Nfirea delivered his earnest thanks with a sincere look in his eyes.

"There's no need to stand on ceremony. I was merely righting a wrong where I saw it."

"Even so, there shouldn't have been a need to give away those horns."

The truth was that there was no particular reason behind giving those horns away. However, if that was how Nfirea had interpreted the gift, then he would leave it at that. Ainz said nothing but merely nodded in a magnanimous way.

♦ ♦ ♦

In his capacity as an employer, Nfirea arranged with Ainz to head for the forest in an hour's time. After thanking him again, he turned and left.

As he watched Nfirea vanish into the distance, Narberal came and bowed before Ainz.

"Ainz-sama, my sincerest apologies!"

"People are watching, raise your head."

Once she had straightened up, Ainz continued in a barbed tone, "And you're not wrong to say that. All this was because you mentioned Albedo's name."

My exposure here had nothing to do with Albedo's name, but that was still a big mistake. Might as well scold her for it now and make sure she doesn't do it again. First, I should forbid her from calling me Ainz… though… I don't think anyone heard…

"Please allow me to atone with my life!"

That did not sound like a joke at all.

Everyone in the Great Tomb of Nazarick was like this. They considered the members of the guild Ainz Ooal Gown to be their absolute superiors. They took great pride in their loyalty — to the point of death — to these Supreme Beings.

Though it felt like a bit of a burden to Ainz, having his hand-crafted NPCs being loyal to him was not a bad thing. It might well be the fate of any creator.

Narberal was an NPC like that. If he jokingly ordered her to kill herself, she would immediately take her own life. The reason why she had asked for permission at all was because of her absolute loyalty to her master, to whom her life belonged.

"…Enough. Anyone can make mistakes. All you need to do is strive not to make the same mistake twice. Work hard, step by step, and do not repeat your past failures. I forgive you, Narberal Gamma."

Narberal weighed the d.e.s.i.r.e to pay for her mistakes with death against the loyalty compelling her to obey Ainz's command not to die. After a while, the balance of her mental scales seemed to have tipped to one side.

Narberal slowly lowered her head.

"My deepest thanks! I will strive not to make the same mistake again!"

"…Well, don't mind it too much. The name of Momon the adventurer — my undercover identity — was not completely compromised, so you just need to pay more attention in future. However… depending on the circ.u.mstances, we may need to eliminate Nfirea…"

"Shall I take care of him now?"

"Don't be foolish. It would be troublesome if we messed up this assignment."

Nfirea's grandmother was a famous herbalist in E-Rantel. Annoying or making an enemy of her would make it more difficult for Ainz to reach his aims.

"In any case… we'll see how it goes."

That was all Ainz could think of for the moment.

Part 3

There was a large clearing in the dense forest about a hundred meters from the village. Although that clearing had been made by the villagers cutting down trees — under the protection of the Goblins — in order to make logs, it still looked like the gaping maw of some gigantic beast.

Ainz and the others made their final checks, and then the young man who had hired them spoke up:

"We'll be entering the forest after this, so I'll be counting on you to protect me. That said, the area just inside the forest is part of the Wise King of the Forest's sphere of control, so under normal circ.u.mstances, the chances of meeting other monsters are very low. The problem is that the Ogres we met yesterday came from a place near the Wise King of the Forest's territory, so something must have happened in the woods. Although it's hardly something that I need to warn you gentlemen about, I hope everyone will remain on guard."

Nfirea's gaze rested briefly on Ainz.

The Swords of Darkness turned to look at Ainz as well.

"Well, with you around, we should be fine, Momon-san."

"…If that monster called the Wise King of the Forest appears, let us hold it back. You should escape first."

They could not help but gasp as they heard Ainz's confident pronouncement. He seemed to shine even brighter in their eyes than after yesterday's battle with the Ogres.

Ainz felt like something was wrong every time the people around him did that. This was a relic of rarely being praised in his past life. He envied the way Narberal could accept their awe so naturally with a smug look on her face.

"If there's a need to run, could you please leave without delay? If the Wise King of the Forest is strong, I'll need to face it with my full power, and I don't want to get everyone caught up in it."