PART 1 - PHANTOM BLONDE

The lizardman laid on the ground, beaten, as the arena roared with the stomping of thousands of golems.

A victor had emerged.

An unexpected result, to say the least. But Ainz couldn’t let that thought affect his next action.

Ainz rose with practiced movement and made his dark cape flutter. Was this how Pandora’s Actor did it? He muttered.

“A most exquisite fight” he expressed with a thundering voice. “I, the Sorcerer King Ainz Ooal Gown, proclaim you as the champion of this tournament!”

Zaryusu chuckled with unease as Crush healed his wounds. This must be a nightmare - this “thing” wasn’t possibly from this world.



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“Eeehh?” the Pleiades sounded in unison.

“This reaction is unbecoming of all of you” Sebas commented “must I repeat myself?”

“It is quite clear” Yuri answered “One of us is to accompany Tsuare as she is taken to study in Re-Khola.”

“But why?” Lupusregina interjected “Ain’t Yuri onee-san already teach her all there is to be a maid?”

Sebas stopped Yuri as she was about to karate-chop Lupusregina. “It is a fair question, Yuri Alpha. I, too, inquired about this to Ainz-sama. It seems Ainzach has revealed to Momon a large pool of talent has come from a school in the town of Re-Khola. That town was formerly known only for its medicinal herbs, but suddenly grew in size after this school was founded a dozen years ago.”

“Ahh, is it not beautiful when schemes of such intricate designs are put into action” A intruding voice came from the darkness “I still shudder to think how many steps I have fallen behind our Lord’s brilliant master plan”

“Demiurge-sama.”

“How many times must I remind you, Sebas? We are equals. Just Demiurge is fine.”

“To what must we owe your presence?”

“A briefing for the Pleiades accompanying Tsuare. Has this been decided yet?”
The maids looked at each other. Though being sisters just in name, they were still capable of non-verbal communication like most siblings. It didn’t take them long to come to a consensus.

“Yuri onee-san will go” Shizu finally spoke up “She is the only one that has not been given an assignment outside of Nazarick.”

“That is a fine choice.” Demiurge chuckled “Now, as you all know, Tsuare is to go to Re-Khola to train as an adventurer.”

“EEEEHHH?” It was Sebas’ turn to be surprised “Y-y-you mean…”

“Why do you think Ainz-sama would make Tsuare go to Re-Khola? She knows enough about being a maid to lead the human maids of E-Rantel. why would Ainz-sama send her to a school for maids?”

“That’s what I said!” This time, the karate chop was not interrupted.

“I understand that Ainz-sama’s plans are of incredible complexity” Demiurge sighed “But I expected more of you Sebas.”

Demiurge conjured up a table and pulled a map out of thin air. Demiurge’s gloved fingers started placing figurines of ivory over this map. Without wasting any movements, the barren map quickly filled up with life. These were not simple figurines; they were miniature golems. The amount of effort Demiurge was displaying forced the butler and maids to pay great attention.

“You were already briefed about Ainz-sama’s travel to the Empire’s arena. This plan is a continuation of that. Though Ainz-sama is a supreme being, he alone cannot be the sole responsible for teaching new adventurers. We require instructors.”

“Why not take current adventurers for that job?” Narberal inquired “Some of these water-flees are at least capable of that.”

“That is what I thought at first, but the outcome of this choice is not optimal.”

“Or what about the goblins?” Lupusregina said while still holding her head, the indent of Yuri’s chop still clearly visible on her cranium “They do have a couple of strong ones with Enri-chan”

“Sigh…” Demiurge looked up at the ceiling “Our instructors must be absolutely loyal to Nazarick. They will be the ones molding children into Ainz-sama’s perfect image of an adventurer, so we must not choose outside of Nazarick. The Lizardmen or Go-Gin are technically better suited for this but are too different from humans to be effective instructors at first. Fluder is too absorbed in magic to be of any help. Tsuare is the only person fitting.”



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Middle Fire Month
City of Re-Khola

“Wake up, we’re here”

The neighing of the horses and the clacking of the carriage slowly shook Tsuare out of her grogginess. Though the interior seemed pretty luxurious, it paled in comparison to her room in E-Rantel. This was the first time in her life that she missed the bed she slept on. Not that sleep is what she associated with beds; she was accustomed to something much more… stressful.

“I’m sorry.” She muttered

“This is the 27th time you’ve apologized” Yuri said indifferently “It is the wish of Ainz-sama, there is nothing to apologize for. Do not make me repeat myself a 28th time.”

“Sorry…”

Yuri was not in her usually maid outfit. She was in a much more mundane attire, much like the one Tsuare wore in E-Rantel. Tsuare, on the other hand, was dressed in the finest clothes from the capital. Sebas had gone a bit overboard with his shopping spree, but that didn’t bother her. What did bother her is that he was not with them.

Their disguise was as maid and mistress. This formula had yet to fail, so Demiurge was the one to propose it. They were posing as wealthy refugees from the Holy Kingdom that had managed to escape unscathed from the demon invasion.

“The Northern…” Poking her head out of the carriage, the morning sun was still too bright for Tsuare’s tired eyes. The sweet smell of herbs also assaulted Tsuare’s nose. The smell was overbearing but felt invigorating at the same time. No wonder strong adventurers are raised here, she thought. They must be very well taken care of by the pharmacists of the area.

“The Northern Institution for Bloody Battle Arts. The locals call it NIBBA.” Yuri had already gotten off the carriage and was tying the horses to the side of the building. “Hurry, we have to enroll.”

Upon entering the building, Tsuare was surprised by the layout of the room. Though the exterior of the building looked much like a tavern’s, the interior was a single, large empty room. There were swords and shields on stands on the ground or perched up on the wall. A couple of young men were sparring in a corner, others were practicing stances with an instructor. A bulky, bald man with an overwhelming presence was overseeing the room.

This bald man greeted Tsuare as she entered. His age could only be seen in his wrinkly face, as he stood tall and proud with his shirtless outfit. His well-toned muscles and multitude of scars were only outshined by the Orichalcum plate dangling at his neck. He must have been an excellent adventurer in his youth.

“Welcome, Welcome. I am Confedro Helve, founder of this wonderful school. To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?”

“My name is Aïrreh. Aïrreh Carbom. I come from a noble family of the Holy Kingdom.” Tsuare attempted to say confidently “We have suffered at the hands of the demon army, and I have resolved myself to take back my homeland with my own two hands. I have it on good authority that you are the best teacher in the Kingdom. Train me!”

Having raised her voice, she attracted more attention than she had wished. Despite ordering the E-Rantel maids around, she still wasn’t used to having this many people looking at her.

“Hahahaha!” Confedro laughed heartily “At least you have conviction. I like that. I’m always looking for students like you. Do you have the means to pay?”

This was Yuri’s cue to pull out a letter and a pouch of coins out of her robes. Both had the royal emblem of the Holy Kingdom. This wasn’t hard to obtain with Doppel-Caspond.

Confedro reluctantly grabbed the letter and pouch out of Yuri’s hands. He was suspiciously careful to not touch Yuri’s fingers. He wiped the letter and pouch on his pants before opening them.

Confedro seemed to reread the letter several times, often stopping and looking back at Tsuare.

“I understand… But this mentions two students. And by the weight of the pouch, I’m guessing there’s enough for two as well.”

“That is because you will train my maid as well.”

“No.” The response was quick. Confedro didn’t seem like he had to give much thought to this decision, and it had taken Tsuare by surprise “Do you mind?”

Still taken aback by the stern rejection, Tsuare did not have time to understand what Confedro was up to before she found herself being handled roughly. He’d rolled up her sleeves and lifted up her skirt faster than she’d been able to react.

“You’ll need to start from the beginning, but at least I know you’re resilient” Confedro said after being pushed back by Tsuare.

Tsuare was red with shame. She wanted to leave right now, but the thought of disappointing His Majesty was stronger. She looked at Yuri for support, but this one was especially indifferent to the current situation.

“DO NOT FUCK THIS UP.” An unexpected voice came from inside of Tsuare’s head. It was a strident voice. She had heard it somewhere before, but were?

The voice snapped Tsuare back to the present situation. “Why won’t you train my maid?” She managed to say. “If it’s more money you want, I can arrange for more.”

“Oh, it isn’t about the money ma’am.” Confedro replied coldly. “Just look at her. Black hair, almond eyes, she’s a filthy eastern monkey.” He spat as he finished his sentence. “If I wanted to train those monkeys I would have put ‘Eastern’ in the name of the school.”

Tsuare’s look of confusion pushed Confedro to explain more clearly. “My ancestors used to occupy the northern half of what is now the Empire. The dirty Easterners massacred us and pushed us into through the mountains to here. You’re from the south, so I am not surprised you don’t know of this.”

So he’s just racist, Tsuare thought. But what now? Yuri was charged with overlooking the entire plan. Tsuare couldn’t just continue alone.

“If that is your decision.” Yuri said indifferently to Confedro “I will take my leave. Goodbye, my Lady.”

Yuri gave a small bow and turned to leave.

“Huh?! Hey! Wait!” Tsuare cried before being pulled by Confedro further into the school. ”No need for long farewells, eh? At least this monkey can read the room” Confedro muttered.



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Once outside, Yuri whispered.

“Shadow Demon.”

“FUCKING FINALLY” the mysterious voice groaned, louder than necessary. Yuri’s shadow shook and seemed to give a deep bow to the maid. It then quickly slid back into the school.

Demiurge’s Shadow Demons were efficient and subservient, but this one was maybe a bit too… enthusiastic. He had at least helped Yuri to come up with an effective back-up strategy to counter Confedro Helve’s unexpected intolerance.

Her first order of business was contacting Ainz. That was the advantage of being the last Pleiades with an assignment outside of Nazarick; She knew not to repeat her sisters’ mistakes. From Narberal, she learned to respect humans. From Lupusregina, she learned to report anything and everything. From Entoma, she learned to not underestimate the humans. From Shizu, she learned to trust humans. And from Solution, she learned not to be a thot.

Yuri took a room in the nicest tavern in town and warded it against eavesdroppers. Only then did she use one of Demiurge’s Message parchements.

“Ainz-sama, this is Yuri Alpha reporting from Re-Khola.”

“Umu, this was faster than expected.” Ainz could not help but sound optimistic, he did not think this would go so smoothly. It was a harsh task for Tsuare to undertake. He was glad it had gone off without a hitch.

“Yes, Tsuare was successfully enrolled in the Northern Institution for Bloody Battle Arts.”

“Eh?”

“My lord?”

“hm, nothing. Please continue your report.”

“As you wish. Though I was rejected for looking like an ‘eastern monkey,’ Tsuare was admitted into the school and should be undergoing warrior training as we speak. II have taken the liberty to rent a room in a tavern with the money meant for my enrollment. Would you like me to scout out the town during her classes?”

“Ah, yes. You may do as you wish. But remember to remain inconspicuous. You are not to antagonize nor befriend anyone during your stay, is that clear?”

“Yes my Lord.” With that short reply, the Message ended.

Ainz returned his attention to his room. The book he had been reading was left open to his side. Ainz picked it back up but seemed to be unable to read it.

“Bloody… Battle Arts? Warrior… training?” Ainz muttered. His skeletal hands were shaking. Anger welled up inside of him. The book was torn in two, and pages flew across the bedroom.

“AINZACH YOU HORNY CUNT” Ainz screamed. The emotion suppression kicked in but was not enough. “I THOUGHT YOU MEANT THAT’S WHERE YOU GET YOUR MAIDS AND RECEPTIONISTS. THE ONE TIME YOU WEREN’T TALKING ABOUT LOOSE WOMEN IS THE TIME I MISUNDERSTAND YOU.”

After a few more minutes of unbridled kicking and screaming, Ainz calmed down.

This is bad, Ainz thought. He never had meant to put Tsuare is such a position. “This must have been why Sebas had been so down lately” he muttered to himself. Her work as head-maid in E-Rantel was more than enough for someone that had gone through such a hard life.

“But this is such a terrible idea, why didn’t Demiurge stop me?” Nazarick was gifted with smart NPCs, such a horrible decision should have been caught before being implemented.

Ainz used Message. “Narberal, gear up. We’re going to Re-Khola.”



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Though he had been quite rough, Confedro did seem to at least be aware of Tsuare’s ‘status.’ She had been spared the large dormitory and had been given a small, private bedroom. What was clearly missing were the private bathing quarters she had grown accustomed to in Nazarick and E-Rantel. She would have to wash outside, with cold fountain water, with all the other students.

Her thoughts of her lodging were interrupted by a familiar voice. This time, it hadn’t come from inside her head, but rather from in front of her.

“THERE YOU FUCKING ARE” she heard. The emptiness of the room only added to her confusion as to the owner of this irritating voice. “I AM THE FUCKING SHADOW DEMON LOANED TO YURI ALPHA-SAMA BY DEMIURGE-SAMA.”

“Shadow… demon?” she muttered. She must have heard that voice when she was rescued by Sebas. Or maybe she must have met one during her training at Nazarick. Either way, this was an ally.

“FUCKING SHUT IT” the demon answered back, this time inside her head. “I CAN FUCKING READ YOUR HUMAN MIND. THINK AND I WILL FUCKING HEAR. NEVER FUCKING SPEAK TO ME DIRECTLY.”

“But you’re the one that spoke out-loud fi-”

“YOUR MISSION IS TO LEARN AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE FROM THIS FUCKING NIBBA” the voice inside her head cut her off. ‘YURI ALPHA-SAMA’S ABSENCE IS A FUCKING ANNOYANCE, BUT I WILL REPLACE HER AS YOUR GUARDIAN. I SHALL REMAIN AT YOUR FUCKING SERVICE.”

Tsuare looked at her shadow, and the shadow stared back. She could not clearly make it out, but she thought she saw her shadow give a small bow. This was strange, but was not an occurrence strange enough to scare her. She had lived in Nazarick long enough to be used to seeing Eight-Edge Assassins, Death Knights, or, worse of all, Eclair Ecleir Eicler.

As a human, Tsuare was aware of the pecking order within Nazarick. Though this was just a minion conjured up for this specific task, she couldn’t help to think as though she was being supervised by her senior.

Giving a small bow of her head back to the demon. “May I call you Shadow Demon-dono? Or do you have a name?” she still muttered out-loud, despite the demon’s advice “Maybe I should give you a name, it would be easier.”

“I DO NOT FUCKING CONSENT” the Shadow Demon wriggled, knowing full well the futility of arguing. His orders from Demiurge were clear. Advise if necessary. Unconditionally obey Yuri, or Tsuare in the absence of Yuri. Only act in case of emergencies. He did not have the authority to refuse, he could only give his opinion

“I’ll call you Heyia. My little sister had a kitty named like that. Heyia-dono, how does that sound?”

“Already going crazy, Miss Carbom?” Confedro inquired from the other side of the door. “I’ve come to fetch you for the morning class.” He opened the door without so much as knocking. “All adventurers are a little crazy, but please do notify me if you start hearing voices” he added, snickering like a schoolboy. “Come, come, we have much training to do.”



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The school itself was more of a ranch than a real school. Apart from the dojo-like main room and the dormitories, the rest of the Institution was open air. Seeing as Re-Khola started as a small town, Confedro was not limited by city walls to build his school. The amount of land he could build on was limited only by his purse’s contents.

The first thing Tsuare saw once exiting through the back of the building was that infamous communal washing area. Though the area from the building to the fountain was paved and covered with a wooden roof, it was still open-air. It was currently middle Fire month, so the temperature would never drop below an uncomfortable level even at night, but she could just imagine having to be out there, naked, during the lower Water month.

There were also what looked like stables or a storage shed off in the distance, but she was not able to discern its purpose from where she stood. Much closer, however, was a barren earth field. Students were already lined up, waiting. They were all young men wearing dirty clothes. A few of them wore light armour, but most of them were in what looked like comfortable clothing. In contrast, Tsuare was still wearing the large dress that Sebas had gotten her. It couldn’t be helped; she hadn’t had the time to bring her luggage out of the carriage into her room.

“Mornin’ Maggots!” Confedro yelled loudly. This was a tone very different to the one Tsuare had heard him speak with previously. He must have been going easy on me to begin with, she thought.

“GOOD MORNING SIR” the group replied in perfect unison, giving a deep bow. This trained response was almost mechanical to the eyes of Tsuare. She had witnessed similar displays with regularity in Nazarick, though it was much more impressive.
A pain started radiating from her cheek. It was a familiar pain. A pain she had hoped to forget.

“DO NOT FUCK THIS UP.” A voice spoke up in her head, blocking out all other sounds.

“What?” Tsuare was still dazed from the slap she had received. The sound of the chuckling students came through to her ears, but that was soon dwarfed by a voice.

“I SAID, YOU DID NOT GREET ME MAGGOT.” This was not the same Confedro she had met earlier this morning. But she did not have time to think.

“GREET HIM AND BOW FUCKING DEEP.”

“GOOD MORNING SIR.” Tsuare screamed out, bowing as deep as she could. This was not the first time she was forced to greet someone. It felt different, however. She’d paid him to be in this position.

“This is Aïrreh. She’s our new student, lucky her. Let’s hope y’all be friendly with her. We’ll start with 30 laps. Let’s go ladies!”

“START FUCKING RUNNING. DO NOT FUCK THIS UP.”

Caught between a rock and a hard place, Tsuare attempted to hold her tears in. She started running but was quickly hindered by her long skirt and dress shoes. Her mind, already overwhelmed by the sudden turn of events, could not come up with any solutions.

“LOSE THE FUCKING SHOES. FUCKING CUT OFF THE SKIRT. ASK FOR A FUCKING KNIFE. CONFEDRO KEEPS TWO ON HIS FUCKING PERSON.”

Tsuare tripped. Heyia meant her well – at least that was her interpretation – but she wasn’t used to his voice coming out of nowhere. “A-a-ah, a knife” Tsuare panted. She tried to wipe the mud off her face, but her hands were caught in her long, blonde hair.

She had barely run; her exhaustion was mainly mental.

She can survive through this, she thought. She had to. This was an order from the terrifying Sorcerer King.

“A KNIFE PLEASE, SIR.”

Having expected this, Confedro had already unsheathed the dagger he kept by his boots. He flipped it expertly in his hands, grabbing it by the tip and threw it at Tsuare’s feet.

Tsuare, who had regained her footing, bent down to grab the dagger. It was much heavier than any knife she had ever handled. With difficulty, she rolled the grip of the dagger in her dirt-covered hands to find an effective way of holding it. With a firm grasp of the dagger in one hand, Tsuare bent down and pulled on her long skirt with the other. She planted the tip of the blade into the expensive fabric and pulled in a determined movement. She had to repeat the motion several times, but she eventually managed to shorten the skirt to just above her knees.

Having destroyed her precious skirt, Tsuare was putting her mind back into running. In her rush to cut her skirt, a combination of dirt and hair formed in front of her eyes. Without a second thought, Tsuare turned the knife to her head. Golden tufts of hair were scattered on the ground.

Not being hindered by anything but the knife in her hand, she planted it back into the ground. She turned to Confedro and gave a deep bow. “THANK YOU SIR.”

She turned back towards the field and attempted to catch up to her now distant ‘classmates’.

It must have been her fatigued mind playing tricks on her, because she thought she heard something from two different places at the same time.

“Good girl.”


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“I heard she’s a princess from the Holy Kingdom”

Lunchtime was a time to relax. Most students tended to be loud at their table. But not this time. All of the student’s whispered about the newcomer, this Aïrreh girl.

“Have you seen how she holds herself? She doesn’t have the air of a noble. At best, she’s the daughter of a merchant. And anyways, why would a noble send his daughter to become a warrior?”

There weren’t a lot of female adventurers; Blue Rose being the exception. There were even fewer in this school – none to be exact. What’s more, this school’s reputation was enough to deter anyone becoming adventurers purely for monetary gain. These students hadn’t come to become adventurers, but to become heroes.

‘Quod natura non dat, NIBBA non præstat’ This was NIBBA’s motto. Anyone could be an adventurer, but it took talent to become a hero. Confedro could do a lot of things, but he could not nurture talent where there was none. Of course, Confedro wouldn’t refuse large sums of money either, but he wouldn’t waste his time personally training those students.

“I swear!” exclaimed the boy “I was sparring inside with Eryth. She had a maid and everything. She gave Sir Helve a letter, and he took her to one of the private rooms. Sir Helve would never give a student a private room out of the goodness of his heart.”

He did have a point. Confedro Helve was not known for his friendliness. Sure, he wasn’t an ass all the time, but he took everything related to training VERY seriously. Rumour had it that he had spent several years of his youth training with an old Rhea in some cave somewhere. Still, why would he take her into his class? She couldn’t be serious about becoming a hero, she’d obviously bought her way in.

“Maybe it’s just because she’s a broad” another student chimed in “You wouldn’t want your Mega Milk sister to be sleeping in the same dorm as us.”

“Hey! Keep my sister’s breasts out of this!”

The typical atmosphere of lunchtime slowly came back to its usual level. So much so that everyone failed to notice that Tsuare had sat down with her bowl.

“Itadakimasu” she whispered to herself, her hands clasped tightly. She didn’t know what it meant, but all the maids of Nazarick repeated this phrase before eating. She had picked up the habit and had been using it ever since.

She’d also managed to quickly wash her face and hands before lunch. Pestonya would never have forgiven her if she’d forgotten such a basic rule of hygiene.

Her legs were killing her. She had been running barefoot for close to three hours. That was two hours longer than her classmates. They had easily completed the laps and had transitioned to weapon handling. Surprisingly, she had not heard a peep from either Confedro or Heyia.

“EAT FAST. DEMAND SECONDS.”

Speak of the devil.

But wait, did he-

“DID I FUCKING STUTTER?”

Of course, yes. It must be my imagination.

She stared into the bowl. She had expected worse - maybe gruel, or a thin soup. This was a thick, milky broth full large chunks of potatoes, whole grain and slices of bacon. It didn’t taste bad, but she’d been used to eating Nazarick-grade food. At least the cooks here knew not to starve the students for them to grow stronger.

She let her mind wander as she chowed down on her food.


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It could be said that the rest of the day had gone better. At least she hadn’t gotten slapped. She was given a wooden sword and was made to practice holding it the entire afternoon. Of course, she wasn’t taught how to swing it yet – that was far too advanced for her first day. She was taught how to sheath, unsheathe and a handful of postures for good measure. Her classmates were training the Martial Art Fortress.

Her hands quickly developed blisters. Her arms grew sore of holding the sword. Her mind numb to Confedro and Heyia’s screaming. But it was over for today.

She still had to get her luggage to her room. It had been left inside by the entrance of the school. Heyia had ‘advised’ her to just leave it - that clothes wouldn’t help her – but Tsuare couldn’t help but disagree. She hadn’t had the time to feel shame for her tattered dress and uneven haircut while she was training, but she started feeling extremely self-conscious about it.

“Isn’t my well-being an important aspect of my training? If I don’t feel well, I’m not going to be able to learn. If I don’t learn, His Majesty will not be very happy.”

“GRUMBLE FUCKING GRUMBLE”

“And the contents of the luggage are my property, someone under the protection of the Sorcerer King Ainz Ooal Gown. By extension, the contents of the luggage are His Majesty’s. Would you abandon His Majesty’s possessions because it was convenient?”

“…”

Tsuare was not great with logic. She had never been able to finish her schooling, so she struggled somewhat with coming up with arguments. One thing she did learn during her training in Nazarick, however, is that His Majesty is absolute. Even the snarkiest maids of E-Rantel wouldn’t argue when AInz Ooal Gown was mentioned.

“Heyia?” she thought timidly “Will you help me fix my hair?”

“FUCKING HOW? WITH MY SHADOW FUCKING HANDS? AND WHY’D YOU FUCKING DROP THE DONO?”

“Well, you’re always screeching at me. It is only fair I get to do at least that much as payback.”

She giggled a bit. Heyia’s cries of exasperation reverberating in her head.

She somehow managed to drag her luggage back to her room without encountering anyone. They were probably all washing themselves, she thought. That was the moment she was dreading the most. To be able to change her clothes, wash her hair and clean her sweaty body she’d have to wash first.

Should she find a basin of water and find somewhere where she could wash herself in peace? She wouldn’t be able to carry enough water with her tired arms. Wait until everyone was asleep? That would work, but that would eat into her sleep.

From one of the doors leading to the training yard, she peeked at the fountain. There was only a handful of boys, but she didn’t know if the bulk of the students had cleaned up already. Even if they had, there could always be a couple of stragglers.

“I MAY HAVE A SOLUTION”

Tsuare nearly jumped out of her skin. Confedro had snuck up behind her and must have noticed her fixation on the washing facilities.

Confedro didn’t wait for Tsuare’s heartrate to calm down to continue “You see, a couple of the boys were planning a raid on your room. I was struggling to think of a good punishment for them - this is an unusual kind of mischief for this school. If they steal kitchen supplies, I make them peel potatoes until they see spuds in their nightmares. If they skip class, I make them repeat their missed training without pause until they can’t stand up anymore.”

Tsuare was scared to understand where Confedro’s reasoning was going.

“You see, I’d hate for my school to get a bad reputation for harassing women.” Confedro started to ramble “Women make for great adventurers. My first student was actually a girl, though that was years before I opened this school. She was very much like yourself, though she ended up more of a man than me. She’s in Blue Rose, you’ve probably heard of her.”

“Umm, sir?” Tsuare shyly interrupted him “the punishment?”

“Ah yes. Though you are currently the only woman enrolled, you are not the first. I don’t do special treatment, much less charity.” Confedro pulled out a crumpled letter from his back pocket. Tsuare recognized it as the one Yuri handed him, though she had no idea what was written inside “That being said, I understand your circumstances to be extraordinary.”

“Do you see that barn across the field?” Confedro pointed with the letter “There’s a tent in there. Their punishment will be to set it up for you every time it suits you. That should be enough for you to scrub yourself in peace. You should consider that and the private room as my only acts of goodwill.”

“THANK YOU, SIR” Tsuare bowed deeply.

“You have a month” Confedro started walking away “After that, you better be strong enough to set it up yourself.“


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Carrying a bag of toiletries and a night gown, Tsuare made her way to the barn.

“What was in that letter, anyways?”

“I WAS NOT PRIVY TO THAT FUCKING INFORMATION. ALL I FUCKING KNOW WAS THAT DEMIURGE-SAMA WAS IN CHARGE OF IT, WITH ALL THE FUCKING HANDWRITING AND INSIGNIAS BEING GENUINE FROM THE HOLY KINGDOM.”

Tsuare kept mulling over the contents of that letter as she approached the barn. There were three students awaiting her arrival. One of them she recognized from her class, and the other two she hadn’t seen before.

“I want you to know I’ve had nothing to do with all of this” the boy she recognized approached her and spoke up “whatever influence you have over Sir Helve, please have him spare me his punishment.”

“I do not have this kind of power” she sighed “I do not know why he is treating me like this either.”

The two other students started laughing “She ain’t a princess huh? Maybe old Confedro just likes blondes. So you were talking bullshit in the end, Hart.”

“I told you what I saw. It’s your own fault for taking it too far.”

“Whatever, let’s just get it over with before Confedro makes us carry her everywhere she goes” the two went in the barn and started taking out canvas and pylons.

“Sorry for the trouble” Tsuare said, holding her hand out to the boy “I’m Aïrreh.”

“I’m Hart” said the boy, taking Tsuare’s hand warily and shaking it.

“Nice to meet you Hart. Say, who are those two students, I have not seen them before.” Tsuare asked “Are they not being taught by Sir Helve?”

“Oh no” said Hart, happily putting off helping the two ‘friends’ that had dragged him down with them “Sir Helve is personally teaching them, but they have almost graduated from this school. They are adventurers, but they only take requests that Confedro puts in. Did you not see their tags? They are at up to silver already. You officially graduate this school once you hit gold, though most students quit way before that.”

“Hart you lazy piece of shit, come help us” Yelled one of the students “this thing ain’t a tent, it’s a fucking chapiteau.”

“This is such a pain” said the other “at least I hope she can at least flash us her tits as reward.”

It was indeed not just a small tent. It was a circular tent two and a half meters high with a diameter of about ten meters. This was bigger than Tsuare’s room. It took the three boys half an hour to set it up. Tsuare could not imagine having to set it up herself, even after a month’s worth of gains.

“And we have to take the fucking thing down too… Just make it quick princess, we have another quest tomorrow. We don’t want to stay up for another two hours.” Said one of the two, having lost interest in peeping on Tsuare.

“Thank you” Tsuare could not stop herself from thanking them, even though they had brought this on themselves.

“Whatever, just hurry up.”

“Oh, Hart” Tsuare sheepishly said

“Yes?”

“A-after I’m done… Could you help me cut my hair?”



_____________________________________




After everyone had fallen asleep, a shadow crept out of the school and wandered around town.

It snuck inside the largest tavern and made its way to the only room with the lights still one.

Yuri was lying on the bed. The undead were unable to sleep, so Yuri would have preferred working during this time. However, a beautiful maid could not be wandering about town during nighttime without arousing suspicion. She was therefore constrained to the tavern since sundown.

“YURI ALPHA-SAMA, I HAVE FUCKING RETURNED.”

“Ainz-sama shall arrive in a couple hours. Go back to guarding Tsuare and come back just before sunrise.” Yuri said dejectedly “aaaah, what have I done wrong? Ainz-sama would not come so fast after a report if it wasn’t to correct one of our mistakes.”

“I HAVE IMPORTANT NEWS TO RELAY TO NAZARICK. I WOULD LIKE YOUR HELP TO MESSAGE AINZ-SAMA”

Yuri’s ears pricked up. This demon had changed the way he spoke, he was not as… enthusiastic as this morning. She stood up from the bed and looked into her shadow.

“Please give me your report.”


_____________________________________



“To shreds, you say?”

The strong wind made it hard for Ainz to hear clearly.

“Oh, you mean her dress.”

Ainz breathed a sigh of relief.

“I am happy you are doing your due diligence Yuri. Do not worry, I will be arriving shortly.”

Ainz could not complain. Yuri was doing her duty of reporting almost everything to Ainz. He did think that she might be a bit too diligent, though.

It must have been really hard on Tsuare. I swore to protect you, so I am coming as fast as possible.

“Faster you. No, not you Yuri, I was talking to Hejinmal.”

“Yes, Milord” Hejinmal said, out of breath.

He had been pulled away from a fascinating discussion with the Chief Librarian. As Aura’s pet, he had very little free time. Access to Nazarick’s library was his only source of pleasure ever since his library in the Dwarven Capital had been confiscated by Ainz.

He had been flying quite a lot recently. Not as much as his siblings of course.  They were being treated as draft horses, carrying cargo and people from one place to another. He was more like a prize horse, only taken out by his owner for joyrides.

Not this time though. He had been lent to the Sorcerer King for a special mission.

“What did you say?” AInz’ tone shifted “Thank you Yuri. Please keep an eye on Tsuare until I arrive.”

Hejinmal was not brave enough to ask what news Ainz had received, but thankfully someone else could did it for him.

“What is it Ainz-sama?” Asked Narberal

“Change of plans. We are going to Carne village.”