Chapter 1: To Take A Paid Vacation

Part 1

Ainz finished reading the contents of the hefty binder in front of him and turned all the way back to the first page to stamp on his personal seal. After a moment of hesitation, he pressed down firmly on the area marked for his approval. That was all it took for this binder of documents that contained the records of political issues far beyond Ainz’s comprehension and their respective solutions to be approved. All that was left was for Albedo to select a suitable entourage and they could set out towards their destination.

He passed the binder to Lumière, who had been quietly standing by. That concluded his duties for the day.

Ainz shifted his line of sight towards the clock.

It read 10:30.

Ainz started work at 10:00. In other words, only thirty minutes had passed since he had started working. This had been the status quo as of late. Normally Ainz would be done with his duties by noon, but this was far too quick. A wage slave like Satoru would have never started work this late, except on days where he was late. That said, based on what Satoru knew, it wouldn’t be weird for those working at large firms to clock in late. If Ulbert was in his place instead, he would be immensely grateful for the fact that shifts even existed.

So the work lives of this world’s inhabitants (for instance, villagers like Enri and Nfirea), which began and ended with the rising and setting of the sun respectively, should be considered the norm.

Although the city dwellers of this world operated in a similar fashion, they tended to start and end their workdays later than the villagers. The main factor responsible for this difference in lifestyle was access to lighting. Those who had access to magical sources of light were likely nobility. So the later one started working, the later they tend to work into the night.

So then, did all of Nazarick start work at 10:00? Not at all.

First of all, the ordinary maids were split into day and night shifts and their work hours were long. Cocytus’ subordinates standing guard on the Ninth Floor were in a similar situation. It was hard to tell when their breaks were, since they rarely took any time to rest at all, not even the leisure of a snack or smoke break.

But even so, close to 90% of those with such schedules had no complaints whatsoever about how they were treated.

Ainz had taken into consideration the opinions of the ordinary maids, as he sought to create a more humane work environment.

However, all he could think of after having heard what they had said was, {…What is wrong with their heads?} No, perhaps it would be better to say that their loyalty was truly unwavering.

How could they say things like “It is common sense to use items to remove one's fatigue and continue working forever” with a straight face? Ainz was shaken to his core the moment he heard these words. And those who were not satisfied with their current work arrangements only begged, “We want more work.”

These conversations had happened not too long ago.

While imposing his wishes onto his subordinates could be considered an abuse of his authority, Ainz had been steadily increasing the benefits that they received. First in his crosshairs were the ordinary maids.

The main reason was because their levels were extremely low. Their attractive feminine appearance was also a major factor. Although Ainz did not intend to be biased based on looks, he could not help but draw comparisons between them and Cocytus’ subordinates.

If it was a direct order from Ainz, there was no doubt that everyone in Nazarick would obey him. However, given his order might damage their morale, he had to be prudent in his instruction.

So he came up with the following excuse:

"Going forwards, there is a chance that the ordinary maids will have to supervise human maids. When that day comes, the ordinary maids will have to explain their labor situation to them. It would be better to improve the labor conditions now to prevent overworking the prospective human maids in the future."

Through these methods, though they might protest, he could effectively slash their work hours and provide them with additional vacation days.

Previously, they would take a day off every 41 days. Nowadays, it has doubled.

They have two days of rest now.

{…It feels like I haven't made any difference at all…}

While that thought had crossed Ainz’s mind before, he felt like any more and the amount of resistance he would encounter would be too great. Progress was progress no matter how small, even if it had to be achieved through compromise.

As such, a comprehensive vacation plan — one that included Paid Time Off (PTO) and paid holidays — had not yet been successfully implemented.

The reason why Ainz was determined to push through this vacation system regardless of the NPCs’ objections was perhaps borne less of his desire to treat the maids better, but rather a vestige of Satoru’s desire for the vacations he could never have.

So, Ainz had to consider other methods.

If he wanted to change everyone's mindset around work in Nazarick, then Ainz, who sat at the top of Nazarick's command structure, could not work too hard. He wanted to implant the thought that {If even my superiors aren’t working hard at all, then it should be fine for me to slack off too.} Ainz’s plan was to convince everyone of that idea.

One of the reasons went without saying. If he, a talentless hack, actively managed Nazarick, it wouldn’t be hard to foresee the complications that awaited them.

{Of course, if a talentless hack like me took the lead, Nazarick would become an absolute mess.}

However, that plan failed in the end.

The denizens of Nazarick instead thought {It is Ainz-sama’s given right not to work, so the portion of his duties that he deferred must be completed by me.}

The result was that Ainz’s only duty was to rubber-stamp his approval, but even that type of work had become increasingly rare.

He should have seen this as a good thing. The talentless hack Ainz taking on more responsibilities would only serve as a hindrance to Nazarick. But with that being said, Ainz still felt bad for burdening the others.

{Ahh…}

Ainz squinted his eyes to seem like he was concentrating (since his eyesight was abnormally good anyway) and looked toward the two maids. They were the ones assigned to him and the room for this shift. If their eyes met, he would immediately be asked, “Is there anything I can assist you with?”

{Surely you don’t need to be that serious… Oh, how I wish they’d relax a little… This tense atmosphere is giving me stomachaches…}

{How much time had passed since I last saw the maids smile?} Ainz couldn’t help but wonder. He mentally sighed one last time before he turned towards the maid next to him to ask, “Uhm… Lumière.”

“Yes, Ainz-sama?”

“Just to confirm once again, was that all the work I had for the day?”

“Yes, Ainz-sama. That was all for today.”

He asked the maid on duty as they served as his secretary while Albedo was away.

It looked like no one had sought an audience with him or arranged for negotiations today.

Even so, there was still the chance that additional work could emerge, so he could not let his guard down. The reason for such caution was because any time Entoma relayed an emergent situation to him via magic such as [Message], it would always be something serious enough to cause his non-existent stomach to cramp.

“Is that so…”

Ainz turned his head to look at the other desk in the room.

Albedo had insisted that the desk be placed there, yet she was nowhere to be found.

Normally Albedo would be working side-by-side with Ainz, however she was quite busy as it had only been a few days since the Kingdom's capital fell. She could be seen running around Nazarick and it wasn’t rare for her to resolve things in-person either.

Upon questioning the maid about Albedo’s status when he wasn’t around, he learned that she had been quite irritable. She must have been overworking herself, or perhaps it was because she could not see Ainz as often.

{If it is the latter, it would probably be best for me to meet with her more often.}

If that was all it took to improve her mood, he had no reason to refuse.

“……”

If Ainz did not speak, no one else would, so the room fell completely silent.

Truth to be told, Ainz would have preferred an easygoing and relaxed work environment, one where everybody was free to speak as they pleased. Ainz has since learned over the course of the past few years that this wish was an impossibility.

{So lonely.}

{I’m afraid I’ll spend the rest of my life being venerated here… Well, there’s nothing I can do about it, but a change of environment is still necessary.}

Ainz would usually spend his free time on many different outlets.

Equestrianship.

Pretending to read and understand academic articles, business intel, and political literature. The reason why none of that material managed to take root in his mind was probably because he only ever scanned through them. It was definitely not because Ainz’s head was actually barren.

He would also conduct all kinds of experiments with magic.

Recently, in addition to his combat training with Cocytus, he had also been conducting special training sessions with Pandora’s Actor.

“Now then…” Ainz acted as if he was mumbling to himself, but in fact intentionally announced it to the room.

Everything should be in place.

All that remained was to execute his plan to help Aura and Mare make some friends. Everything he had done prior to this was in preparation for the successful execution of this plan.

As for what types of friends they should have, their first priority should be Dark Elves. Next in line would be related races such as Elves. Although he had a good understanding of what this world had to offer, having Lizardmen or Goblins be the twins’ first friends was still a hard pill for Ainz to swallow.

They should start with those of the races most similar to them.

Ainz shifted his gaze towards Lumière.

“…I’ll be heading to the Sixth Floor, you should follow along.”

“As you wish.”

Although she would have followed along even without him reminding her, he still felt that this was more appropriate.

Ainz, along with Lumière, teleported to the Sixth Floor with the power of his ring.

He could have just ordered Lumière to bring to him whoever he was currently teleporting to see. In fact, that would have been more proper of him as the Overlord™ of Nazarick, but he elected to forgo such procedures to ensure that this task would be completed perfectly. As such, it would be better for him to go in person.

Rather than being perceived as boorish, visiting in person might be seen as a more respectful and friendly approach.

The ruler of the land appearing before them could also apply some pressure, allowing things to go smoother than they otherwise would.

The people he wished to see were the three elves who had been driven here by the Workers from before.

{…We should have extracted some intel from them when we placed them on the Sixth Floor… but we couldn’t back then.}

Although it had been years since then, the only information that was gathered from those three were the answers to some basic questions. They hadn't been queried about the Elven Country or even themselves. This was because Ainz wanted them to think of him as someone who was a stalwart against slavery, a magnanimous undead. Had he questioned them relentlessly about the location of their home and for information regarding the Elves, they might question if he had ulterior motives for saving them.

Had the situation changed since then? Of course.

Nazarick’s current state in comparison to its quiet beginnings was the difference between night and day.

The Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick had accepted people of various origins. If the Sorcerous Kingdom of Ainz Ooal Gown wished to establish diplomatic contact with the Elven Country and as such required all sorts of intel on them, it would not be weird at all.

{Now I have a suitable excuse for everything I wanted to ask them about. It doesn’t seem like they were bullied by the twins… Best case scenario is if they open up completely to me, but I should temper my expectations. If only I had the foresight back then, it would have made it easier to give orders now…}

As that thought formed in his head, he felt that it wouldn’t be right to have ordered Aura and Mare to feign kindness towards the elves. He wouldn’t have had to think this hard if only he delegated this matter to Demiurge or Albedo.

He had mostly figured out the deal with the ordinary maids and Cocytus by now. Though it’s often said that one should not judge a book by its cover, perhaps Ainz could not make sense of their thought processes because he was just a regular person.

Ainz and Lumière walked down a dark tunnel. At the end of that tunnel was a giant latticed portcullis from where sunlight poured through.

Further up ahead should be the Sixth Floor’s circular arena.

While the ring could have teleported them straight to the twins’ residence, he chose not to because—

—Like a set of automatic doors, the latticed portcullis quickly lifted itself up. Ainz was reminded of his first day in this world, when he had walked down the same path to visit this place. His eyes met with the tiny figure off in the distance.

“Ainz-sama, welcome!” The girl greeted him energetically.

“Umu. Aura, I have something to ask of you — also, thank you for your hard work.”

The Sorcerous Kingdom’s expansion meant that many duties had to be handled by the Floor Guardians. Even though most of the activity took place outside of Nazarick, they always made sure to keep at least two or three Floor Guardians — some combination of Albedo, Demiurge, Mare, Aura, Cocytus, and Shalltear — within Nazarick no matter what.

Most of the time that meant that Cocytus, Shalltear, and Albedo held the fort. However, Cocytus had to attend to the Lizardmen at times and Shalltear also had to take care of the dragons.

At those times, the others would take their places.

This was not on Ainz’s orders.

Indeed, Ainz had thought about appointing Cocytus as the Chief of Defense and Shalltear as Vice Chief, but the size of their domain was vastly different compared to before. Back then he had believed that it was sufficient for only one person to oversee Nazarick while everyone else worked outside.

But in the end, he was too embarrassed to suggest that plan and volunteer himself to be that sole person.

He was afraid that he might throw a wrench into the Floor Guardians’ original plans as their superior. Ainz still wanted to respect their initiative.

In any case, Albedo and Demiurge possessed intellects far greater than his own. As long as those two were in agreement, Ainz would be embarrassed to think otherwise. Compared to a commoner like him, the Guardians’ ideas must be better.

“Yes! I understand. Ainz-sama, what brings you here today?”

“—Umu.” Faced with Aura’s smile, Ainz adopted a regal pose and replied. To be honest he did not intend to act all high and mighty at first, but most of the issues in his life could just be resolved with an “umu” befitting the austere persona he had constructed. However, faced with doubts of whether or not he could successfully complete his upcoming task, he subconsciously elevated his tone.

It did seem to have an effect, as Aura immediately took on a more serious expression.

{Oops, now I’m definitely going to be misinterpreted.}

“Damn—” he accidentally thought out loud. If he was asked what was wrong he would not be able to keep up this act. Ainz chose to believe in his ability to fumble his way into an acceptable answer.

“…First, right, I’m here to visit the elves.”

“…Please allow me to confirm, you want to see the elves that we're holding captive?”

{I’m sorry, I shouldn’t try to use these weird explanations to mask my own mistakes… Please don’t look at me with such a serious look, please just smile like you always do…}

“…That is correct. I wish to know what they’ve been doing, ask them questions in preparation for what’s coming next, that sort of thing.”

“I understand, then I shall fetch them immediately.”

Ainz knew this was going to happen, or rather, he knew that all denizens of Nazarick would have reacted the same way. That was why he had prepared a response — which in reality was just a shoddy excuse.

“No, no. There’s no need for that, because I have two goals to accomplish here.”

“…So there are two, is that right? To have considered so many facets for a simple conversation with some captives…”

It was easy to tell what her thoughts were from her eyes alone, “{As expected of Ainz-sama.}”

{No, this is just something I say as a countermeasure to your and Mare’s “rational defenses.”} That was of course not something Ainz could say out loud, so he chose to just look away.

“The first goal was to use my physical presence to apply mental pressure on them. The second goal… is not directly related to those elves. Since we now reign over the entirety of the Great Forest of Tob, we have brought all sorts of creatures to the Sixth Floor. I wish to see for myself how things have changed around here. Aura, if possible, I want you to take me to where the greatest changes have taken place. Is that alright?”

To summarize, Ainz had tried his best to avoid interfering with the Floors since they were managed directly by the Guardians; as a result, he had not seen in person the changes that had occurred.

It was proof of his trust in them. If a subordinate’s work was all smooth sailing, the interference of their superiors would only be an annoyance to them.

So since this was a rare opportunity, Ainz wanted to swing by to see for himself. What he wasn’t sure of was how Aura would interpret what he had just said. The aura around her had suddenly changed. He could feel an unimaginable level of stress from her.

“—I understand. My Lord’s orders will be carried out as he wishes,” Aura replied with a serious expression. “There’s no need for Ainz-sama to ask ‘is it alright’! Ainz-sama is the Overlord™ of Nazarick, no matter where you go, the opinions of those who manage the lands are irrelevant!”

“Wha…? Um, umu. I’m very grateful you said that.”

“To say that you’re very grateful… Umm, I believe the meadow is where things have changed the most, so I shall lead you there.”

“The meadow—” Ainz searched through his memories, “—where the plant-type monsters live.”

“Yes, that is correct. There is also a separate area for plant-type monsters we cannot identify and an area for intelligent plant-type monsters. Between them is the village that was built for those who live like humans, shall we visit there too?”

Said village was built so humans could live within Nazarick as well. In case they were to encounter a Player in the future, perhaps it would be necessary to demonstrate that Nazarick and this world’s natives could prosper together. That was why the village was built.

There stood a few small houses and a farm, not on the scale where one could honestly call it a village. That said, there does not appear to exist a better term for it.

“Do you still remember? The dryad named Pinison?”

“…Ah, I believe so.”

That was a lie.

He could not remember her face, just a vague figure. Compared to Pinison, the fight against the massive Evil Tree was much more memorable. Pinison was an afterthought compared to that.

Truth be told, Ainz was terrible at remembering others’ faces and names. He was the type to secretly note down his first impressions of a person on their business card if they gave him one.

“I think that one identified itself as chief or something similar.”

Upon questioning, Ainz learned that many of the plant-type monsters lived as they pleased, so Pinison’s title of Chief was pretty much self-appointed. However, she was the first to come to Nazarick and also the one who helped form connections between the other plant-type monsters. To those monsters from outside of Nazarick, she had some standing and was someone they looked up to.

There were plant-type monsters who were stronger than Pinison, so it was rare for them to form a consensus. Since she had the backing of Aura and Mare however, there hadn’t been any major issues yet.

The foreign plant-type monsters would often receive Aura’s and Mare’s “welcome.” What that welcome entailed was a demonstration of the twins and their summons’ combat prowess until the monsters submitted. The difference in power would hang over their heads every time an order is given from the twins and as such, they would strive to carry it out perfectly.

In addition to that, upon witnessing the cash shop summoned Woodland Dragons serving Mare, the monsters would second guess whether or not Mare was a god.

Their belief in him has been solid to this day. Especially after seeing that Mare could call down a storm and raise the nutritional value of the land to awe-inspiring levels.

“But, I doubt all of the monsters view him as a god. There are some monsters who recognize those events as the results of druidic magic, but they revere him nonetheless… How should I put it…”

Aura let out an “umm” and fell deep in thought.

Ainz could more or less grasp the situation. This was the same as Players revering those with superior equipment as gods, idols, or something in between.

“—I see, I understand the gist of it. As long as everything is under your control, everything should be fine. Use whatever methods or approach, umm… hmm, umu. So that’s that.”

Ainz regretted his choice of words. There was no need to interject any of his nonsense given the outstanding work those two had done in managing the Floor. The best response from him would have just been to say, “Excellent!”

Ainz stole a glance at Aura’s face. It did not seem like what he said had affected her, but it was hard to tell what she was really thinking.

{I shouldn’t say things that will demoralize my subordinates, aghh, I even read that in those books about business management…}

Ainz reminded himself to watch what he said. In addition, he had to pay attention to his tone and volume as well.

“…Ahem! Though it would be nice to check out the village, let us just stick to the meadow for this occasion. It was your suggestion after all. I apologize, Aura.”

Aura immediately started waving her arms in panic.

“P-please don’t mind that! As I’ve said, Ainz-sama is the Overlord™ of Nazarick! Please feel free to go wherever you please on this Floor. I made a foolish suggestion and I’m terribly sorry for that!”

 “N-No…”

{Why are you apologizing? Or rather, hasn’t Aura’s behavior since the start been a little sus? Was it due to me fumbling at the start? Is she thinking that I had other plans?}

As Ainz pondered, Aura continued to ramble on.

“Within Nazarick— no, there is no place in this whole world where Ainz-sama is not allowed to go!”

{Well, there are plenty of places in this world where I can’t go}, Ainz thought. Especially places where it’s women-only.

{Feels like there are a lot of places only open to women…}

Even for those places Aura might still say something like, “Feel free to enter, it’s alright.” That would be an absolute embarrassment for Ainz, so he kept quiet.

He took a look at Lumière, whose facial expression said “Of course” as she nodded at him.

It was getting annoying to always have to come up with different excuses.

But he had to make sure he did not expose his true feelings. Ainz gently said to Aura, “Then I must ask you to lead the way.”

“Great! Leave it to me,” Aura said as she thumped heavily on her chest. “Then… what about transportation? Do you wish to ride something?”

“Indeed, may I impose on you?”

“Yes, please let me handle it!”

Aura looked behind her and raised an eyebrow, appearing in deep thought.

A few seconds passed by.

“While there are other beasts close to us, I’ve called Fenn and Quadracile here based on my own judgment. Is that acceptable?”

“There’s no need to seek my approval here. If Aura believes it to be acceptable, then I will not disagree.”

“Okay, thank you very much. Then, could I trouble you to wait a moment?”

“Ah, I’ll be in your care then,” Ainz concluded the conversation and started looking around the arena.

Taking a walk around the Fifth and Sixth Floors of the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick elicited a different kind of joy compared to the Ninth and Tenth Floors. Though exceedingly rare, it was possible to see the Aurora Borealis at some times of the year, at some times of the day, in this part of the country, localized entirely within the Fifth Floor. Compared to that, the simple satisfaction of a walk was more readily accessible on the Sixth Floor.

Ainz smiled. His non-existent stomach felt a little better.

♦ ♦ ♦

“Excuse me,” Aura said as she stepped away from her master and Lumière to take out a necklace.

The twins wore legacy-class necklaces that allowed for bidirectional communication. As items they were not particularly strong, but the twins still wore them quite consistently since it took two days from equipping them for the necklaces to begin functioning. Usually, items with such conditions were powerful, but this was an exception. In addition, the one speaking must hold the necklace, which was suboptimal during difficult fights.

With the severe limitations came the ability of unlimited communication. Whether items like this were useful enough to deserve an equipment slot was a never-ending debate.

“…Mare, Ainz-sama is waiting for you.”

A moment later, Mare’s voice reverberated in her mind.

“「Eh, eh? Ainz-sama came here himself? Did something happen?」”

“Isn’t it obvious? It’s an inspection, an inspection.”

“「Huh, huh?」”

“I think Ainz-sama probably wanted to check if we and the Area Guardians are properly managing this Floor. Although this time the inspection is only for the newly planted meadow, we need to double-check that the Area Guardians are not slacking.”

“「So do you think he started the inspection from our Floor because outsiders joined us? Or was it just one-by-one?」”

“—Oh, perhaps.” Aura felt like she was talking to a different person, but that was just her imagination.

“Ainz-sama said he came here with two goals in mind, but it's Ainz-sama, so I don’t think there are only two. Perhaps applying some pressure on us was the third unspoken goal.”

“「Wha? Even though work outside of Nazarick has been increasing, it’s still important to make sure that the most important and basic duties are taken care of properly, right?」”

Though she was still confused, she still had some clues.

In the past, people like Shalltear and Cocytus used to observe Albedo’s and Demiurge’s work with envy. But now, they had all been sent outside of Nazarick at an increasing frequency to begin their work there. They had especially demonstrated their loyalty during the Kingdom’s destruction through their military might. Their master, however, might have noticed the festive mood among them.

Regardless of duties, Aura and Mare were Floor Guardians of Nazarick. Defense, management, and governance were responsibilities that always came with the Floor assigned to them. Was their master questioning whether or not they had forgotten their original duties due to the new ones?

If their master voiced his concern over their work ethics, they would be an embarrassment to the Floor Guardians. If the other Floor Guardians, especially the Guardian Overseer Albedo, heard about it, they would certainly be rebuked. So perhaps this was their master being considerate.

“「Maybe Ainz-sama wanted us to tell the other Guardians what happened to make everyone more alert.」”

“Very likely. Then that should be the fourth goal, right? But I still feel like there’s something else.”

Aura didn’t know, neither did Mare. The thought that Demiurge and Albedo might know something about this made her lament a little.

“In any case, I need to prepare for a bit.”

“「Hm? What do we need to prepare?」”


“Oh, sorry, I didn’t tell you. I said there are two goals, right? Inspection was the first one. Second one was to visit those elves who were assigned to the vacant rooms.”

“「Oh, them. They were always going on about royalty this, royalty that. They’re so noisy, can Ainz-sama take them away?」”

Mare’s voice showed sincere dislike for them.

Mare liked holing up in his blanket all day. To those three elves, he was someone incapable of living independently, so they cared for him in orders of magnitude more than they cared for Aura. Hanging his blanket out to dry, helping him get dressed, sometimes even bathing him. Those actions were not appreciated by Mare, but rather he saw them as nuisances. However, his master had ordered him to keep them there, so he could not refuse the “care” he received.

“—Ah, Fenn and Quadracile are close. I don’t know how long it will be until we’re there, but be prepared, Mare.”

“「Mhm, leave it to me.」”

Aura disconnected their link and went back to her master.

♦ ♦ ♦

The meadow on the Sixth Floor of Nazarick was home to blooming flowers of all colors. If any of the invaders who went through the hell above saw it, they would surely begin to suspect the location of mimics and other deadly traps. However, nothing of that sort was present.

It honestly felt like there should be traps here, but the truth was there were zero countermeasures taken against invaders.

There were plant and insect type monsters capable of mimicking flowers in YGGDRASIL, but none were deployed here. No Area Guardian was assigned to the area either.

In a sense, this was just a pretty meadow under Aura and Mare’s direct control.

In the beginning, there was indeed a plan to fill the place with traps.

Invaders who reached the Sixth Floor would probably not accept the meadow as just a meadow. They would exercise caution, stay at a distance, and then use attacks imbued with burn effects to burn the whole place down. Therefore, at that time there were talks of planting flowers that could respond to fire and spread deadly or paralyzing poison. That plan was redesigned due to strong opposition from the three female members of the guild. The result was a plain meadow.

It used to be something only Ainz knew, but not anymore.

A total of twelve flower buds large enough to engulf an entire person sprang up abruptly in the meadow. They looked quite strange, or rather, they looked like a bad omen.

Ainz searched through his memory.

In this world, a lot of creatures were unknown to Ainz. He also thought about similar-looking creatures from YGGDRASIL.

“That’s an Alraune, right?”

“Yes!”

None were deployed in Nazarick or summoned after arriving in this world, so they must be a foreign species brought in from the Great Forest of Tob.

A shovel stuck out from the ground in the center of the meadow. It was the divine class item, “Earth Recover.”

As a divine class weapon, it had absurdly high durability but next to zero offensive power. That was because most of the data was used for secondary abilities.

Also in the meadow were magic beasts that looked like Angora rabbits, “Spear Needles.” The way they sat properly in the meadow while chewing on giant carrots added a boondock flair to the place, almost fairytale-esque. Still, they were probably not stationed there just for the style.

He would probably never figure it out without asking Aura, but it was most certainly for monitoring purposes.

Even so, their level was in the high 60s. The alraunes would be easily annihilated no matter what they tried.

“By the way, the carrot that child is crunching down on was harvested from the farms. Plant-type monsters like Pinison used their powers to provide abundant nutrients, turning regular carrots into giants.”

“Not growth, but transformation? Is it safe for consumption? Although for its level some half-baked poison wouldn’t have any effect on the Spear Needles.”

“It’s not poisonous. We checked with the Head Chef and they passed the minimum requirement as culinary material. Unfortunately they don’t provide buffs like the material we already have in Nazarick — they simply grew bigger and sweeter.”

“Isn’t that pretty successful just as food? Could the farmers of the Sorcerous Kingdom grow it?”

“No way. Right now, even with help from plant-type monsters, the amount grown is limited. A single carrot like that would drain a large amount of nutrients from the soil, even with the power of Earth Recover. The land won’t become a desert per say, but without using magic to recover nutrients, at least one year of rest would be required.”

As they looked, the largest flower bud opened up gradually.

“This is the Alraune Lord, the leader of all 14 alraunes here.”

Aura gave a light introduction for the opening bud.

“Fourteen?” After a quick recount, Ainz asked, “Not… twelve?”

“Yes, the remaining two are hidden in the meadow since they were just born. Shall I pull them out?”

“…No, no need.”

Would monsters born within Nazarick count towards the monster count of Nazarick? What kind of performance could be expected of them? Questions sprang up one by one. Before he could dump them onto Aura, the flower bloomed fully.

As expected, a female-looking monster was inside. It looked very much like what he saw in YGGDRASIL. It was called a Lord, but nothing was extraordinary about it apart from its size.

Its hair and eyes were the same color as its flower. The whole body was as green as its stalk. It was naked, but its skin seemed to be composed of tiny shoots. All in all, it was disgusting.

Its eyes were slanted and thin as a line. Its expression looked rather hostile, bordering on angry.

Suddenly, Ainz felt nostalgia, as he thought of a girl from the Holy Kingdom with a similar glare.

Ainz was bad at remembering faces, but that pair of eyes left a strong impression.

The monster's face contorted in a mischievous way.

“Good morning, Aura-sama. Once again you have brought before us such a beautiful ray of sunshine. On behalf of the green seeds, I offer you our gratitude.”

The voice was crystal clear, free of hostility. Instead, reverence could be felt. It seemed that the “smile” from before was pure in its welcome, even though it looked like it was plotting something.

The individuals beside the Lord had a lot of movements in their petals, but none bloomed. Their heads were not covered though, and they were all taking peeks in his direction.

Since he could not understand what their actions meant, it was inappropriate to call it disrespect. Perhaps that was the best way to show respect in Alraune culture.

“And…” the Lord’s eyes turned to Ainz.

“This is the ruler of the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick. Apart from that forest, this whole area is also under his dominion. The founder of the Sorcerous Kingdom which welcomes all species. King of kings, the absolute monarch, His Majesty Ainz Ooal Gown!”

Aura introduced him with pride. Ainz felt that the Lord’s face had turned more hideous. The petals of the other alraunes trembled as they hid their faces. Were they alarmed or afraid? Or perhaps this was another way to show adoration?

It was impossible to judge from their faces, but Ainz thought it was the latter.

“D-delighted to make your acquaintance, dominator of these lands, ruler of the Sorcerous Kingdom, and most importantly, master of Aura-sama and Mare-sama, Your Majesty Ainz Ooal Gown.” It opened its arms as if to greet him, “My name is Violet, I’ll be in your care.”

{Named after its hair color, right?} Ainz thought.

It was a relatively simple and straightforward name, but he couldn’t say that out loud. It was not a good idea to make fun of one’s name right in front of them.

“Hm, I see. By the way, this place is under Aura’s and Mare’s jurisdiction. I will not intervene much, so just follow their orders.”

Things would get messy if one were to mix up the commands issued by a departmental manager and the CEO, Ainz has had personal experience with this. Since he did not know how the twins managed the alraunes, it was best to keep things vague.

He knew nothing about the kind of duty that was given to the alraunes, or how they were being treated. So, he had no idea what to say.

“Understood, Your Majesty.”

{Despite having lived in a forest, its manners were quite decent}, Ainz thought. When was this female brought over? Or was it because she was mentored by the twins?

Or perhaps—

{—Perhaps it’s also spouting some vague pleasantries but is secretly thinking about the alraunes. Just like how I’m thinking of it as just a big flower bud.}

(T/N: Sentence above was nonsense in the CN TL, won’t know what it really was until I get my book)

Though it was great that they could communicate normally, it was obvious that they weren’t without issues before this. {Ahh, if it was really just a big flower bud I wouldn’t have to worry about its intentions.}

Ainz glanced over the meadow.

Though he thought that the alraune would be blocking his vision, the view wasn’t that different compared to what he could see at the start.

Ainz’s expression changed to an indiscernible smile. Of course, no one could read his expressions anyway. He swung his cape around in a stylish yet appropriate manner as he turned around. In front of him was the Fenrir and the Itzamna, along with Lumière.

As he took a step forward, Aura appeared by his side and asked, “How was it? Was that acceptable? Do you wish to see the other alraunes?”

“No need, there is nothing left of interest for me here. I’ve seen what I came here to see. Will you take me to the elves next?”

“Understood,” Aura replied and climbed on top of the Fenrir with Ainz.

As their destination neared, he could see in between the branches above him the somewhat unsightly tree that served as the residence of Aura and Mare.

Within a few seconds, it felt as though the trees had ducked out of their way. In front of them was a vast plain and in the middle of the plain was a giant tree. Its lush canopy casted a giant shadow upon the ground.

Standing in front of an opening in the trunk of the tree was Mare and the three elves.

They were there to welcome Ainz.

He wasn’t sure exactly when Aura spoke with Mare. If it wasn’t recent, they might have been waiting for a considerable time.

That was because Ainz did not schedule a time in advance, so he was quite ashamed of himself.

However:

Say a branch manager received news that the CEO of the main company was due to arrive at the closest bus stop, surely they would also stand outside to wait for them. It was not as though the branch manager would refuse to welcome the CEO. Even then, it was still Ainz’s fault for not informing them in advance.

Ainz wanted to tell himself that there was nothing to do about it since it just came to his mind, but would he be correct? After all, he had no idea how long they had waited for him. If he told them “You don’t have to wait for me,” perhaps he would be chastised for hurting their feelings or not considering the thought they had put into this.

Mare was dressed in his usual outfit. The elves on the other hand were dressed in quite plain clothing. Perhaps some people would prefer those. It was fitting attire for a worker. {Perhaps if it was… nevermind, as long as Aura and they are happy with it, it should be fine.}

{But then… Lumière and the ordinary maids might dislike their maid uniforms.}

The maids assigned to Ainz were apparently more prideful than their counterparts. So if they were to import maid candidates, even if they would not be bullied directly, they might for instance be intentionally told the wrong things during training. At least that was what Ainz had heard from Sebas.

While the maids assigned to Aura and Mare might not be like what Sebas had described, he could not completely rule out the possibility of them feeling discontent. Perhaps they would be uncomfortable surrounded by others with the same uniform as them. As far as they knew, the maid outfits were battle gear.

The Fenrir brought them to where those four were.

“Thank you all for coming out to welcome us. I am pleased with your loyalty,” Ainz greeted them as he sat atop the Fenrir.

Though he probably should have listened to what Mare wanted to say first, he felt like thanking them first would probably cast him in a better light.

“T-thank you very much!” Mare smiled and lowered his head. The elves followed suit.

{Nice.}

Ainz did a fist pump in his mind, congratulating himself for communicating well.

Everyone there appeared to be frozen in both posture and facial expression. As they felt Ainz’s gaze upon them, they gulped.

No matter who he looked at, all appeared to be nervous. The question was whether they were afraid or was it something else? Perhaps it was a mix of fear that any wrong move could mean their deaths and the jitter of meeting a famous person in the flesh.

Just to be sure, Ainz checked if his aura was active. Since he displayed no hostility or intention to kill them, they shouldn’t fear him… right?

{An unexpectedly tense situation. I thought I did well…}

When someone of Ainz’s caliber displayed strong emotions, those around them would become acutely aware of it and be overwhelmed with fear. In other words, people around him could kind of tell what he was thinking about. To avoid this, he had sought guidance from Cocytus, but Ainz was still unable to read other’s hostile intent very well.

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