Текст книги "Overlord Volume - The Two Leaders"

Автор книги: Maruyama Kugane

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Текущая страница: 14 (всего у книги 17 страниц)

“All of you are my treasures.”

Ainz lifted up Mare as if letting him ride on the shoulders.

“I don’t even want to hand you over to Bukubukuchagama-san.”

“I am honoured, Ainz-sama.”

Sixth, who thanked Ainz on Mare’s behalf, had tears of joy flowing down her face.

“On behalf of Nazarick, I thank you for remaining here with us, out of all the Supreme Beings. I know that there are many instances where we have displeased you and you have found us lacking. I know it is rude to ask this of the creator, but please allow us to serve you loyally!”

“I will allow this. I said something like this to Albedo and Demiurge in the past – I am the master of the Great Tomb of Nazarick and your liege, Ainz Ooal Gown.”

Ainz was surprised that he was so comfortable saying these things that he had not prepared for. Though in a way, it was not that surprising, because all he had done was vocalize how he truly felt.

Mare hugged Ainz and buried his face in Ainz’s shoulder. A calm voice in Ainz’s mind said that it was a good thing he was not in his usual attire. A warm, wet sensation came from the shoulder of his robes, but Ainz let Mare cry. After the sniffling noise died down a little, he lowered Mare to the ground while softly petting him on the head.

Ainz took out a handkerchief from his pocket to clean Mare’s face. Since he had never done this for someone else before, he ended up being a bit rougher than he expected, but Mare stood still and let Ainz do as he pleased.

“Then, go wash your face, Mare.”

“W-what about Ainz-sama?”

“Hmm. I need to go to E-Rantel now. I have a meeting with the Guild Master. I rejected it so far because it was annoying, but I can’t put it off any more. If not—”

Ainz looked at Albedo, who was standing in silence. It was difficult to tell what expression she was making because her long hair was covering the face. But the fact she was trembling ever so slightly made him afraid. It resembled a volcano brimming with rage right before the eruption.

“What is it, Albedo?”

In that moment—

“—Ku. Ha!”

—Ainz’s field of vision suddenly shifted, and he felt something hit his back.

It did not hurt, since Ainz would only take damage from something with magical properties. It was just a shock light enough to tell him that he hit something in the back, but nothing that was close to being painful. However, the reaction of Ainz’s human side made him blink his lidless eyes for a second.

The situation was so sudden that Ainz could not think clearly for a moment. Since his undead mind was immune to confusion, it must have been Suzuki Satoru who was flustered.

“Mm, umm.”

When he opened his eyes, the Eight Edge Assassins came into view. Ainz understood that he was somehow lying on the floor and tried to get up, but he could barely move due to something soft and mysterious holding him down.

How is this possible? I have restrain resistance and other movement hindrance resistance items. The moment I was completely immobilized, I should have been freed... This means the opponent has high level restrain skill!

Ainz looked at the creature that was trying to restrain him and confirmed that it was Albedo, as he had suspected.

“Ainz-samaaaaa!”

After straddling Ainz with both legs and firmly mounting him she raised her upper body.

“W-what is it? What’s the matter?!”

“I don’t need to... hold it in anymore, right!”

Albedo opened her eyes wide. Her pupils that seemed to split her golden irises apart gave Ainz a chilling sensation down his back.

“W-what are you talking about?!”

Ainz panicked, but Albedo ignored him and put her hands on her dress, closing her fingers around the slit of her cleavage. With a grunted “Hmph!” she tried to rip it apart, but the material did not budge.

“Magical clothing is annoying. I should use an item destruction skill or just take it off normally.”

“Get a hold of yourself, Albedo. Get down from me right this instant!”

He tried to push her off by force, but the opponent was a level 100 warrior. Plus, he could not use his full strength because he was grabbing something extremely soft while trying to push her off. Albedo’s hands closed in and tried to open up Ainz’s robe.

“Don’t try to take off my clothes! Don’t move your hips! Oi!”

“Ah. Awawawawawawa...”

“It’s your fault, Ainz-sama! I held it in so far, but you started saying things that I can’t hold myself anymore! It’s all Ainz-sama’s fault! I just need a little bit! Just a little bit! Really, a little bit! Please, give me some of your favour! It’ll be over by the time you’re finished counting the number of Eight Edge Assassins on the ceiling!”

If she had mentioned that it was Ainz’s fault for changing her setting, he would have lost all will to resist. However, Albedo looked like she was about to devour Ainz whole and the fear of being eaten, like that of prey being cornered by a predator, overrode Ainz’s guilt and he struggled against her.

Finally, his subordinates, who were confused at this sudden situation, sprang into action.

“Albedo-sama has lost her mind!”

“Albedo-sama has lost her mind!”

The Eight Edge Assassins jumped off the ceiling simultaneously.

“Get her off Ainz-sama! No, no! Don’t try to restrain her with skills! It’s just going to get cancelled! Use your strength!”

“It’s too much! To be this strong, she is indeed the Overseer of Guardians! Mare-sama, help us!”

“—Awawa! Y-yes!”

Ainz fixed his clothing after being finally liberated and pointed to Albedo, who was being held by all four limbs by the Eight Edged Assassins.

“Albedo shall be grounded for three days.”

The Eight Edged Assassins dragged Albedo out of the room.

“U-uh, Ainz-sama... Are you alright?”

“I’m fine… But when did Albedo turn so weird? Did she eat something bad…? Devils don’t need to eat food, but there shouldn’t be a problem with eating... right?”

Mare looked away as Ainz asked the question.

“Well… I guess, uh, mmm, there would have been this and that happening for her. She must have been under a lot of work-related stress.”

Ainz stood up from his place and called over the maid. To regain his dignity, he spoke in the most regal voice he could manage.

“...Tell Narberal and Hamsuke to prepare. It’s time to head to E-Rantel.”

♦ ♦ ♦

Nazarick Time 13:35

Sitting on top of Hamsuke, Ainz pulled the reins to signal him to halt. He looked over E-Rantel’s gate which stood strong in front of him. Ainz did not dislike the gate, which could easily stop an entire army and radiated power and gravity. In Yggdrasil, there were many gates larger and more magnificent than this one, but unlike simple data, this gate was made with human hands —though the possible help of magic could not be discounted– and sweat. Standing before the steely gate steeped in history and labour, an indescribable emotion welled up from inside him.

There were guilds that conquered and used a city as their base in Yggdrasil. I used to wonder why they would set up a base in areas so difficult to defend... but I think I can understand now. Ruling a great city might be the dream of any man.

Back in Yggdrasil, it was a common occurrence for different guilds to lay siege to a city. Most members of Ainz Ooal Gown could not understand why they would do that, but there were also few members who said they wanted to try it as well.

Warmongers...

It was not a good label, but looking back, it was a good memory.

“What is it, my lord?”

“Nothing. Don’t worry about it.”

Hamsuke asked because her master had halted and took no further action. Ainz replied in a plain tone, as though trying to change the topic. It was a voice to hide his embarrassment about the fact he was caught up in the memories of good old days.

“Then, let’s go to the Adventurer’s Guild and get some monster subjugation quests.”

They could book a room for the night in E-Rantel, but they could not afford to waste the money. The only reason Ainz, who did not need sleep or food, stayed at a high-class inn was to show off his status as the highest-ranked adventurer in the city and to make connections. However, he was already acquainted with all the relevant authorities and would be welcomed should he ever visit them. Thus, there was no need to stay at an inn any more.

Plus, even when he did stay at an inn, he would teleport to Nazarick and create undead until morning anyways. Since there was no point in lingering, it would be wiser to take a quest and leave the city quickly.

In truth, he had begun to think that there was no longer any value in staying around E-Rantel.

“Is that so? My lord seems to enjoy fighting.”

“I don’t particularly enjoy it. Even if I do accept a subjugation quest, I’ll just mop it up quickly and spend most of the time in Nazarick as usual.”

Ainz lightly tapped Hamsuke’s gigantic head.

“We also need to train you to equip weapons and armour.”

“I always train hard! Those lizardmen taught me a lot, my lord. Soon I will even be able to use an ultimate strike!”

“If you can use martial arts, that would be perfect. What about your comrade who’s training alongside you? Do you think he can use martial arts as well?”

“That fellow? He does not speak, so I would not know. Though I feel he would be a long way from being able to do so.”

Ainz did not think “it” would be able to talk either. The possibility that it would be able to use martial arts was also close to zero. It was an experiment. If Ainz’s Death Knight could learn warrior-class skills, the plan would be changed immediately. If it could get stronger from training, it could be a matter of utmost priority.

“The undead do not require rest or sleep. Since it can train continuously, it should have learned martial arts faster than Hamsuke. But since it still hasn’t learned anything, it appears to be a failure.”

“Wait my lord! He’s trying very hard as well! Day after day, even after this king had gone to bed… I beseech thee to not kill him!”

“...Who said anything about killing? What kind of evil being do you think I am?”

“That is right! There is none in this world who is as generous as you are, Ainz-sama! He even spared a pathetically weak creature like you.”

Those chilling words flew from Narberal, who was riding just behind, and Hamsuke shook her body.

“—Nabe, we’ll be arriving at E-Rantel soon, so call me Momon.”

“As you command.”

“And Hamsuke is a vital part of the plan to strengthen Nazarick… Make sure you treat those who work for Nazarick well. Let me remind you that Hamsuke isn’t the only one I’m talking about.”

“Yes! I apologize.”

He also wanted to tell her to stop calling the humans names like “tick” or “flea”, but she didn’t listen and he had stopped trying entirely. If it was Narberal Gamma’s setting to call the humans such names unconsciously, he did not want trample on the hard work and devotion of his comrades.

“Well, let’s go.”

“Understood!”

Hamsuke strode forward with Ainz on top.

There were several people standing in line by the gate. Entering the city was much stricter than leaving and all cargos were searched thoroughly. Thus, it often took a while for peddlers or wandering merchants to get to their turn for inspection.

“Doesn’t seem like it’ll take too long…”

There were several travelers in the line, along with an armed group who looked like adventurers. Narberal asked quietly when Ainz stood behind them.

“Momon sam—san, can we not go ahead first?”

She was right. When Ainz first arrived, he had to go through thorough and annoying inspections, but as he became more famous, the inspections became simpler and nowadays he had a free pass. Not only that, they often passed him through before others.

It was not that “Darkness” was special, but all adventurers over Mithril rank were treated like this. It was to make sure they did not displease or inconvenience what could be dubbed the “city’s secret weapons”.

They should just exempt us from entrance fee as well...

It was a tiny amount of what he had earned through adventuring, but this was the number one source of money for Nazarick. Still, he did not consider using ‘Flight’ to just get over the walls.

Momon was a hero. Thus—

“We will not cut in line... Unless there’s an emergency or something that needs to be done quickly.”

Narberal replied with her head bowed while Ainz stared in front, zoned out on top of the Hamsuke.

“The line doesn’t look like it’s moving...”

The line stayed still, as though there was a traffic jam on the road.

“What is that…? They’re checking a wagon… Checking it really thoroughly. No, they’re just surrounding it and not checking it. Did they find something illegal? Excuse me.”

Ainz asked the gruff-looking guy standing in front of him.

“Ah, yes, what is it?”

“No need to be flustered. It just looked like the line wasn’t moving, so I’m wondering what’s going on.”

“I don’t know the details, but I saw this young lady going towards the checkpoint with some soldiers. Then suddenly—”

Even though he heard the summary, it was hard to discern the details. Ainz stuck his head out and listened in towards the direction of the check point. He could hear a loud shout when he listened carefully.

Hmmm.

Ainz’s curiosity was stimulated.

When he first arrived at E-Rantel, he was asked several questions as well, but in the end he could enter easily. He almost felt that guards were rather friendly towards common folk like adventurers and travelers. There was probably a real reason why they were friendly to him, but what kind of interrogation was that country girl undergoing?

Because his adamantite rank was universal in nature, there were few cities which would not allow Ainz inside. So Ainz wanted to know what they were asking her. In the future, he might need to infiltrate a city as someone who was not an adamantite-ranked adventurer like Momon. To avoid any problems which might result at that point, he wanted to be prepared.

“Wait here. I’ll check it out.”

“I shall go with you.”

“There’s no need. I’ll be very brief.”

All the soldiers who spotted Ainz shouted out in surprise. In E-Rantel, there was not a single person who did not know of the adamantite-ranked adventurer, Momon.

Ainz put special care into appearing confident as he approached the checkpoint. Inside was an agitated magic caster, a soldier and a country girl sitting on a chair.

“We want to enter the city as quickly as possible… but what’s the matter?”

“Uwaaah!”

The two men screamed out in surprise like the soldiers on the outside and the country girl looked over in his direction with a stupefied expression.

“M-Momon-sama! I apologize!”

“What are you... Hm? She’s...”

It was a familiar face. He felt as if he had seen her before and he racked his brain —even though he did not have one– for information about her.

“Yes! We were investigating this suspicious girl, so it took some time. We apologize for inconveniencing you, Momon-sama—”

Ainz remembered the girl's name while thinking that the man’s voice was distracting.

“—Enri. Yeah, you’re Enri Emmot, correct?”

“Uh, I’m sorry but who… Ah, that’s right. You came to the village with Enfi. I don’t remember talking with you… Did you hear my name from Enfi?”

Ainz froze unintentionally.

The one who met with Enri was the masked magic caster, Ainz Ooal Gown. Right now, he was the adamantite-ranked adventurer wearing pitch black armour, Momon.

Damn it! I said it out loud without thinking. Crap, I need to leave here quickly. But why is she here? If she was looking for me— no, looking for Ainz Ooal Gown, is something wrong? I need to hear about the details.

Considering what she had just said, it was not likely that she had discovered his true identity, but he needed to take the possibility that he had been discovered into consideration. Even if she could not tell that Ainz and Momon was the same person by comparing the voice from several months ago to what was coming out through the helmet now, there was nothing to lose by being careful.

Ainz called over the magic caster with a beckoning gesture. The magic caster would know more about the situation than the soldier.

He took the magic caster outside the checkpoint, far away enough so that nobody else could listen in the conversation.

“So... She’s a friend of a friend of mine. Can you tell me what happened?”

Technically, it wasn’t a lie since Nfirea was both Ainz and Momon’s acquaintance.

The magic caster opened his eyes wide. His expression was similar to surprise, but it was subtly different. One might compare it to a strand of string connecting to another. It was like he had solved a puzzle.

“Is that so… Of course…”

He wanted to tell the magic caster to stop talking to himself, but Ainz waited for him to speak.

“I thought she was a simple countryside girl, but she was carrying a powerful magic item in the shape of a horn. So I was going to find out how she came into possession of such a powerful item among other things.”

“What kind of horn was it? And its effects?”

“The effects were—”

Ainz looked up into the sky after hearing the whole story. He wanted to avoid the situation because he realized he had given that item to her.

He had given Enri that item for her to protect herself, without knowing that this kind of item was abnormal in this world. He did not imagine that it would cause her trouble. He could make excuses, saying that it was not his fault, but he could not just abandon her either.

Should I help? I’m not at fault, the one who has the item should be responsible… But it’d be troublesome if that item went into someone else’s hands. Plus, if she gets arrested…

Nfirea knew that Ainz and Momon were the same person. If he heard about this situation from her later on, he would think that Ainz had abandoned her.

There’s definitely going to be a problem… It doesn’t matter what happens to other useless humans, but he’s a valuable one. There’s a saying, “turn crisis into opportunities”. If I help her, Nfirea will be thankful and I’ll be able to chain him down with obligation.

Ainz spoke in a tone that he thought sounded very insightful.

“There’s no need to worry about it. I know very well what kind of person she is. She’s definitely not someone who would cause trouble, so please let her go. Can you do that?”

“Of course. If it’s an acquaintance of Momon from ‘Darkness’, even a criminal would be able to enter the city freely if you vouched for them.”

“Is that so. Then, I’m sorry to ask this of you, but please let her in. And I apologize once again, but can you let us, ‘Darkness’, in as well?”

♦ ♦ ♦

Ainz returned to Narberal and Hamsuke with the permit.

“I have the permit. Let’s go in.”

He passed by those standing while riding on top of Hamsuke. He had grabbed the attention of those waiting, but after they spotted the black armour, giant swords, Hamsuke and Narberal, they looked away, as though they had accepted it. They were keenly aware of the clear difference in status between them and Ainz.

He entered E-Rantel while receiving deep, respectful bows from the soldiers.

“Nabe, I have something to request of you.”

“I stand ready to receive any command.”

It was little unsightly for an adventuring comrade to show such signs of loyalty in middle of a city, but Ainz knew it was useless, so he continued.

“A girl called Enri will shortly pass the gate with a cart. Go and discreetly ask her why she’s in E-Rantel.”

Next, Ainz looked for a place to hide himself. It was to avoid further conversation with Enri.

He looked around and decided that a nearby stack of wooden boxes were high enough for him to hide behind and ordered Hamsuke there. The soldiers who were working behind the boxes were surprised by Ainz and Hamsuke’s sudden appearance.

“Soldiers, a moment of your time, if I may? I am curious as to what’s in these boxes.”

Ainz confirmed that he was not visible from the gate and asked the soldiers. In reality, he had no interest in the wooden boxes, but only asked because he did not want to get kicked out as a hindrance.

“Ah, yes, it’s an honour for Momon of Darkness to take interest. This is a vegetable named ‘kinshu’ from Grandel. This is—”

Ainz replied with “Is that so” or “Interesting” to the soldier who explained earnestly. His replies were insincere, but the soldier ignored it and carried on. After Ainz had learned quite a lot on how to cook kinshu, Nabe appeared from behind him.

“—I’m sorry to cut you off. Your explanations were very helpful, but my comrade is back, so please excuse me.”

Ainz announced to the soldier and trotted off on Hamsuke.

“So, what did she say?”

“She first wants me to convey her thanks to Momon-san. She had three objectives. First was to sell the herbs she gathered, the second was to check if anyone at the temple wanted to immigrate and the third was to go to the Adventurer’s Guild.”

“Adventurer’s Guild? What kind of quest is she trying to put in?”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t ask her that. Should I find her and beat her until she spills the beans?”

“No, don’t do that. We need to go to the Adventurer’s Guild anyways. We should be able to find out through the guild.”

It was probably not something like wanting to thank Ainz Ooal Gown directly. If that was the case, Lupusregina visited the village regularly—

“Speaking of which, Nabe. Did you receive any special report from Lupusregina?”

Ainz frowned —even though he did not have any skin on his face– when he saw Narberal shake her head.

Originally, he had stationed the Shadow Demons at Carne Village, but for the purpose of building a good relationship with them, he had sent Lupusregina instead. He had ordered her to send a report if any problem occurred, but there was not any report so far. So he decided there was nothing problematic happening over at Carne village thus far.

There would not have been a need to report that Enri went to E-Rantel alone, but uneasiness sprouted like clouds deep inside Ainz.

“I thought of Lupusregina as a hard worker. What do you think, Narberal?”

“It is as you say. It might be easy to think of her as insincere due to her way of speaking, but it’s an act. She is an excellent maid who is brutal and cunning.”

Calling someone brutal and cunning was hardly a compliment. Ainz glanced over at Nabe’s face to make sure it was not something she said because she did not hold Lupusregina in high regard, but saw only respect and admiration.

“Then is it alright to head to the Adventurer’s Guild, my lord?”

“Of course. You know the place, right? Then Nabe, hop on behind. There’s no need to take out “Statue of Animal: Warhorse” again.”

As soon as Ainz grabbed Narberal’s hand and pulled her up, Hamsuke launched forward as if she had been waiting for it. Ainz no longer felt ashamed of riding Hamsuke around the city. He rather liked how he could talk and give commands to it. It felt like a taxi.

The Adventurer’s Guild came into view, as well as the sight of Enri entering with her cart.

“...Guess it can’t be helped. We’ll use the back door. Hamsuke, go around the back.”

“As you command, my lord!”

Normally, adventurers were not allowed to use the back door, but adamantite adventurers were allowed to do pretty much anything they pleased. It was still the first time he used the back door though. Excessively using his privileges just because he was special would only tarnish his reputation.

He asked the first guild clerk he met after going through the back door to be guided to the guild master. Fortunately, or not, the guild master was in his room.

“Oh, Momon! Welcome!”

The guildmaster, Ainzack, welcomed him with arms wide open. He grabbed Ainz just like that and hugged him. It did not matter too much since he wore his armour and helmet, but if he had worn thin clothes, it was the kind of passionate embrace that he wanted to avoid for more than one reason. There was a light pat on the back before the guildmaster slowly broke off.

“It’s been lonely because you haven’t come around recently. Now, now, take a seat. We’ll talk for a bit while we wait for the members to arrive for the meeting.”

The guildmaster pointed towards the couch with an expression of greeting an old friend.

“Thank you.”

After Ainz had sat down, the guildmaster sat beside him. The distance between the two of them was short and it felt like a suffocatingly short distance, with their knees almost touching each other.

“Momon, we’ve known each other for a long time now. How about speaking informally now?”

“No, there needs to be formality even amongst friends. I was taught that this was something very important.”

When he was actually at work, he responded more kindly and even talked informally to show some familiarity, but Ainz had no intention to do something like that with the guildmaster. He decided it was the right answer to keep their relationship strictly professional.

Being too closely entangled with an organization will cause problems. As an adventurer, I don’t want to be too closely associated with a city. It’s about time that I found somewhere else to be. But before that…

Ainz peered at the guildmaster through the slit in his visor.

Why does he have to sit beside me? Isn’t that normally Narberal’s place? Having him sit there is weird.

Their proximity made Ainz feel uncomfortable, and it made him question the guildmaster’s sexuality.

I heard from the leader of the Magician’s Association that the guildmaster has a wife… or is that just a sham? Although it seems like he’s just trying to deepen our relationship… there must be some kind of ulterior motive behind it. Or maybe he thinks I play for the other team?

The very thought made Ainz break out in nonexistent goosebumps.

Ainz was strictly heterosexual… or rather, he used to be. As an aside, Suzuki Satoru was a fan of big breasts. That trait endured even into his current existence as an undead being. Rather than, say, Cocytus, Ainz felt more desire for Albedo.

Ainz shifted his seat away from the guildmaster and turned so that he was looking the man face to face.

“Forgive my rudeness. In truth, I came here to ask a favour of you. One of my friends has come to the Adventurer’s Guild with a request. Could you tell me what that request is about?”

“About that… well, by the rules, we’re not allowed to disclose the details.”

“Even so, I still need your help. I know this is unfair of me, and I know that rules exist for a reason. But still, I hope that you—”

Ainz lowered his head, and the guildmaster crossed his arms. He stared at the ceiling with a stern expression on his face.

However, that passed in moments.

“I understand,” the guildmaster said to Ainz. “I can’t refuse Momon-kun’s request. Then, can you tell me this friend’s name?”

“She is Enri of Carne Village– no, her name is Enri Emmot.”

“Enri, is it? Well then, please wait for me.”

After a while, the guildmaster returned to the room, followed by a female receptionist he had seen before. Her body was stiff, as though it was made of ice, and she entered the room in an unnatural way.

“Please excuse the disturbance, Momon-sama!”

This was the first time Ainz had seen someone move so awkwardly, raising their right arm with their right leg. Although he was thinking “Wow, that’s… sad” or “You don’t need to be so stiff, do you?” he maintained his resolute attitude and nodded sagely. The need to maintain one’s dignity was the burden of those with an adamantite rank.

“She attended to the request from Enri Emmot of Carne Village. It would be better if you asked her directly. Please, ask anything of her that you need.”

“About that… then– no, before that, guildmaster, please tell her to have a seat. I’m not the owner of this room, but still...”

“No! That would be overstepping my bounds! I’ll stand, thank you very much!”

To Suzuki Satoru, it felt wrong to have his counterpart standing while he sat. However, for Ainz Ooal Gown, the ruler of the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick… it wasn’t a problem at all. With that, he could easily deal with the differences between a leader and a follower. It would seem his daily practice had not been wasted after all. Indeed, it felt like he had slowly increased his experience total.

...How much more XP until I level up, hm?

“Is that so? Well then, let’s begin. Please tell me, in detail, about the request she made. Since this is very important, I hope there will be no omissions.”

“Y-yes!”

Sticky sweat beaded on the receptionist’s forehead.

“What’s wrong? Is something the matter?”

“No, it’s…”

The receptionist’s gaze was flickering back and forth.

“Am I asking the wrong questions? ...Well, that might be so. Then, let me ask; was it a request to find someone?”

“No, i-it’s not like that…”

“Ah, then what is it like? Was it not a request, then?”

“...Actually, it was more of a consultation for a future request. It concerned monsters called the Giant of the East and the Serpent of the West, monsters of the same level as the Wise King of the Forest that Momon-sama tamed. That, er, was it, I think.”

Momon considered that being too direct and forceful would only scare the receptionist, and continued asking.

“Then, will this be a problem in the future?”

“N-no! I-I didn’t know she was a friend of Momon-sama! If I had known I would have gotten more details from her! It’s true!”

The sight of the receptionist on the verge of tears perturbed Ainz. Could someone with so little control over their emotions work as a receptionist?

“—Guildmaster…”

“...Forgive me, I have not instructed my subordinates well enough.”

“But, no! That was the guild’s rule!”

After listening to the two of them, Ainz realized that they might have gotten the wrong impression. They thought that since Enri and Ainz knew each other, Ainz could have taken the request for free, but as a way of saving the Adventurer’s Guild’s face, Enri had come to request via the guild.

But the receptionist had treated Enri coldly and kicked her out due to monetary issues. They were arguing over who was responsible for slamming the door on an adamantite-ranked adventurer’s friend.

But… wouldn’t that be the right thing to do, according to the guild rules?

Ainz turned a disapproving eye to the guildmaster, who was chastising the receptionist.

It’s the duty of a superior to protect their subordinates when they make mistakes. Or perhaps he’s putting on a big show of scolding her in front of a customer to win sympathy for her? What a masterful technique… looks like he’s really getting into it.