Текст книги "Overlord - The Invaders of the Large Tomb"

Автор книги: Maruyama Kugane

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Overlord ( オーバーロード)

Volume 7

The Invaders of the Large Tomb

Text source: http://skythewood.blogspot.sg/p/knights-and-magic-author-amazake-no.html

Author: Maruyama Kugane ( 丸山くがね )

Illustrator: So-bin

Publisher: EnterBrain

Web Novel:   Http://Ncode.Syosetu.Com/n4402bd/

Prologue

Translator: SifaV6-Ohime-sama

Editors/Proofreaders: Ferro-chan, TD-dono, Namo-shacho, Sky-taisa, Rocky-heika

JcqC-bucho, Nigel-bancho, Storm Loki

On the 10th floor of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, in the innermost sanctum—excitement was quietly overflowing the area in front of the throne, where forty banners hung on two sides.

Without any words being spoken, the beings that gathered in the room neatly formed up in a ceremonial fashion with one hand to their chest, knelt towards the throne with their heads lowered, displaying their complete loyalty.

Not only were the floor guardians present, the other NPCs created by the forty-one Supreme Beings, as well as their servants were also gathered. The total number gathered easily surpassed 200. This was the second time the throne room was filled with this many servants since the transfer.

However, different from before, the servants gathered this time were among the strongest within Nazarick, with the average level being over eighty.

The subordinates that were accompanying Shalltear were all high-level undeads instead of the typical vampire brides. In addition, Mare even brought along the two level ninety dragons, both of which have never ventured outside before, to the throne room. The two dragons were ultra-rare creatures that were obtained from the cash shop Gachapon.

Among the carefully selected servants, some still managed to stand out. The most obvious example was the group of one hundred level forty undeads. They were lined up in a different block from the other two hundred servants.

Typically, lower leveled servants were placed near the rear end of the assembly without exception, where the treatment they receive was proportional to their level. However, this specific group of one hundred undead were personally created by the supreme ruler of the Great Tomb of Nazarick– Ainz Ooal Gown. As such, their status was different.

Even though every creature that was present in the room was one of Ainz’s subordinates and a loyal retainer of the guild "Ainz Ooal Gown", differences in status still existed. Of course, the ones at the top were the NPCs created by the Supreme Beings, with the NPCs that were appointed as Floor Guardians ranking above all others.

Ranked below the NPCs were the POPs, in other words, monsters that are automatically spawned by the Mercenary System from within YGGDRASIL—the servants. The status of the servants was based on their level and job class, and not the floor they had spawned from.

In that case, how should they rank the undead that were created by Ainz?

This was the question that bothered the Overseer of the Floor Guardians—Albedo—the most. Should she treat them the same as other the NPCs?

When asked, Ainz had simply smiled softly and shrugged it off by saying he wouldn’t care even if Albedo placed them at the very back.

Although the number of undead Ainz could summon per day was limited, the spells to create undead creatures did not require anything besides mana and a corpse. Compared to the high level servants that require YGGDRASIL gold or real money in order to spawn, it was obvious which were more valuable to Ainz, given that the only requirement for creating undead were corpses.

However, this was only from Ainz’s point of view, which was completely different from what his subordinates thought. Moved by her master’s generosity, Albedo responded with an "understood". However, regardless of how much she tried, the resulting formation was mismatched. Albedo started to become troubled.

After spending all her brain power, Albedo ended up placing the undead behind the NPCs and in front of the POP spawned servants.

While all this was happening, Ainz silently observed the entire process from the highest position within the room. With the posture of a mighty ruler, Ainz’s presence loomed over the throne room, filling his subjects with awe. To the people who were present, Ainz’s every decree carried the weight of a God.

"To begin, I would like to thank Sebas and Solution for the effort they put in for the past month in intelligence gathering. You have done well."

Seeing the two bowing deeply, Ainz nodded his head in satisfaction. However, the real problem for Ainz had just begun. It was extremely difficult for an average salary man like Ainz to play the role of a ruler. Seeing the faces of countless subordinates radiating with respect and love simply made the pressure even more overbearing.

Ainz felt as if his stomach was aching and his heart beating extremely fast, even though these organs should not exist in an undead made of nothing but bones. However, this feeling only lasted for a fraction of a moment. Even though just seconds ago Ainz was filled with the feeling of wanting to immediately run away, the special condition of being an undead forcefully compelled him to calm down again.

In the end, Ainz managed to continue putting on the airs of a respected ruler.

"The two of you, come before me."

Both Sebas and Solution stood up at the same time and walked towards the steps in front of the throne as if they had practised it beforehand. Once they reached where Albedo stood, the two of them got back on their knees and bowed once more.

"Raise your heads. For your outstanding performances, the two of you shall receive my praise as well as reward."

Ainz then shifted his sight to Sebas and said.

"Sebas, although you previously pleaded for Tsuare’s life, the reason that I decided to protect her is because of a personal debt as a show of gratitude to someone else. It has nothing to do with the accomplishment of your previous work, as such I will still permit you to ask for a reward. Well then, let us hear your wish!"

By giving rewards to servants that had performed well in their assigned tasks, Ainz hoped to provide an incentive to motivate others to perform better. As such, Ainz used the experiences he gained in the human society to create the current scene for all to witness. This was also part of the reason as to why he allowed so many subordinates to enter the throne room.

However, the current situation also came with many risks. In front of his subordinates, Ainz had to maintain the posture and attitude of a ruler who was capable of leadership. For an average salaryman like Ainz, this was very difficult to maintain. Even so, as the last remaining member of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, he had to overcome this challenge.

I cannot betray the hopes and expectations of the NPCs who have displayed so much loyalty to me.

Just as Ainz resolved his determination, Sebas’ mustache quivered.

"Offering my complete devotion to Ainz-sama is the sole reason for my existence, I have no need for—"

As I thought, these subordinates of mine possess way too much loyalty. This makes the pressure all the more harder to bear.

"That is enough, I understand your feelings. However, good work still needs to be rewarded. This is something that I as a master should do. Know that sometimes the lack of ambition in the subordinates can make their master unhappy."

"Ah! Please accept my apologies, Ainz-sama. In that case..." After several seconds of thinking, Sebas said, "I would like to ask for clothing and everyday living goods for Tsuare, who was kindly placed under my care by Ainz-sama."

"...I can provide clothes from my personal collection. Will that be fine?"

In YGGDRASIL, the cosmetic skins released were only available in limited quantities. If one missed out on them, it would be extremely difficult to acquire them. As such, players tended to buy up any new cosmetic item that looked halfway decent. This was the same for Ainz and his comrades. Because the guild had female members as well as many female NPCs, Ainz would often purchase skins regardless of whether they were meant for males or females, as long as they looked good. Sometimes he would give them to members who missed out on the sale, but that rarely happened.

The guild member who created Shalltear, Peroronchino, also shared the same inclination as Ainz, and had once said "Buying skins is like buying fap material. Regardless of whether you’ll use it or not, it’s always better to have a copy stored somewhere."

Because of this, Ainz ended up with wardrobe after wardrobe filled with untouched clothes. Even if he turned them into crafting materials it would still be a waste. Might as well try to make the best out of them by giving some to Tsuare. Now that Ainz thought back on this, the clothing from YGGDRASIL were all rather excessive in design, but there should at least be a few that were suitable for Tsuare to wear.

"No, that is too much. Tsuare has already received so much kindness from Ainz-sama, giving her Ainz-sama’s clothes would be too much to ask."

"Is that so? ...In that case, what should I do with the clothes..."

For Ainz, who had never purchased women’s clothing before, this was troublesome. What if he was misunderstood as having a lewd fetish? His reputation within the female circles of the Great Tomb of Nazarick would definitely drop.

"How about we leave this matter to Narberal? A small problem like this should not require the personal attention of Nazarick’s supreme ruler Ainz-sama."

Sebas spoke as if sensing Ainz’s discomfort.

"...Are you fine with this, Narberal?"

Reacting to the command, one of the motionless NPCs who stood in front of Ainz nodded her head deeply.

"Very well. Sebas, this task has been given to Narberal. However..." Ainz grinned, "I am also fine if you treat this as a date and take Tsuare to the capital to shop for clothes."

Ainz had already heard of the relationship between Sebas and Tsuare. Although they haven’t reached a physical relationship yet, it would definitely happen soon. That was what Ainz was told by Demiurge.

Demiurge, huh. Why did he suggest that forming a physical relationship between Sebas and Tsuare is a good thing? Well, I guess he was congratulating his co-worker on finding a girlfriend. Maybe they have a better relationship than I thought? Things didn’t seem so good between them in the Kingdom, but I guess it was understandable considering the circumstances. It makes me relieved. Continually fighting like those two isn't healthy at all."

The reason for the conflict between the guildmembers Touch Me and Ulbert was due to something outside of YGGDRASIL. In other words, Ulbert’s jealousy towards Touch Me was due to real world reasons.

The relationship between the two became tense ever since the quarrel they had that one time… Maybe that was the cause of everything.

If it was the Ainz of now, perhaps he could have understood the reason for the quarrel back then. While reminiscing the past, a sudden voice from Sebas startled Ainz and he hastily came back from the reminiscent state.

"Is that pos-possible? If that is the case, I would like to take Tsuare along to the capital."

It’s not like I want to purposely sabotage their relationship just because I am single.

When the two of them arrive at Re-Estize for their date, should I follow along wearing the Mask of Envy? It was just a childish thought.

"That is fine Sebas. Next, Solution, tell me the reward that you want."

"…I would be very happy if I could receive a few humans. If possible, I want them to be alive. And I would be even happier if the humans I get are pure."

The faces of the human captives appeared briefly in Ainz’s mind. The majority of the captives that were alive were members of "Eight Fingers", the type of people that disgusted Ainz the most. Among them, the useful ones had already been tortured, and any useful information they had was already extracted. The remaining humans were currently being protected by the ones under confinement.

I can’t use them. Pestonya and Nigredo risked going against my orders in order to save them.

"Very well. I shall reward you with a few live humans. However, they won’t be pure. Do forgive me for not being able to fulfill the complete requirements of your wish."

"Please do not apologize, Ainz-sama. I know that my achievements are still lacking, so I am satisfied with what is given." Solution said with her head deeply bowing.

Ainz nodded with the bearing of a ruler to Solution.

"...Is that so? My thanks. The two of you may return to your positions. Next is Entoma. Come before me.”

Similar to Sebas and Solution, Entoma came in front of Ainz and knelt down.

"Well then, Entoma."

"YeS!"

Such a difficult to understand voice, Ainz smiled bitterly.

"Looks like your voice still hasn’t recovered."

The insect that Entoma used as her voice box could not be spawned from POP. However, it was possible to use items from YGGDRASIL to summon them. There were still a few of these insects in Entoma’s room, so she could get her voice back anytime she liked. The reason why she had not done it yet was because of her personal grudge.

"Is mY vOicE tOo HoaRSe? If sO I wiLL iMmeDiAtEly go aNd FiX it."

"That is fine. I do not dislike your voice."

"ThAnK yOu vErY mUch!"

"For continuing the duty you were assigned despite your injuries, you’ve done well. However, it is not enough to receive the same level of reward as the two from before. Now, is there something you want?"

Rewards should not be so generously handed out. Otherwise it would lower the importance of a reward and defeat the whole purpose.

Keeping this in mind, Ainz judged that Entoma’s achievements were still lacking for a proper reward. However, getting injured and not receiving anything at all would be too pitiful.

Is this the so called Purple Heart? I’m not too familiar with military stuff. If that person was here he would be able to explain it to me better.

[TL-Note: In case you have no idea what Purple Heart is: Link.]

Ainz suddenly thought about the guild member who was a military otaku.

"In tHAt cAse ...AInZ-sAma, iF tHe cHanCe to kiLL tHat bRaTty giRL sHows uP, pLeASe leT me kNow. I wANt heR to alSo eXpeRIenCe tHe fEeLing of loSiNg heR voICe."

Realizing that Entoma was referring to Evileye, the mage girl that wore a strange mask, Ainz gave his consent.

"Understood. When the time comes, I will let you know. Return to your position, Entoma."

Watching Entoma head back to her original spot, Ainz began speaking once more "Now, let us move on to the next agenda."

No objection was raised. However, for Ainz, this wasn’t necessarily a good thing.

As the absolute ruler of Nazarick, even if Ainz said something that was white is black, no one would object. The silence from before might mean that no one objected, however, it did not mean that the actions Ainz took were necessarily correct.

Should I create separate divisions such as the Board of Audit?

The first thing he should do is create a department that assessed the contribution of each individual in Nazarick and the appropriate rewards for them. But this would run into the problem that Sebas showed earlier. Every NPC in Nazarick pledged their loyalty to Ainz as a matter of fact and considered service without compensation to be a natural thing. It would be difficult for them to determine what sort of incentive would be appropriate, and ultimately the decision would go to Ainz.

As an organization, the overall course of action and goals need to be made clear ...In the end, I left all the problems for Albedo to solve, and now everything is coming back to bite me. This has already exceeded the limits of ordinary people. Haa, looks like the experiences I gained in society after living for this long has no uses at all.

Ainz, or rather, Suzuki Satoru, who was originally on the receiving side, ended up having to deal with these problems and the pressure of being the one assigning the rewards. It would have been better to think about these things in Ainz’s own bed, which for some reason smelled really good.

"I will now make it clear on the future directions that Nazarick will take. Demiurge, come to my side."

The possessor of the highest intelligence in Nazarick walked towards the throne, and stood on the opposite side of Albedo.

"The overseer of the floor guardians of Nazarick, Albedo, and the highest intellect in Nazarick, Demiurge, I order the two of you to explain our plans. The plans that were made in the beginning are halfway into fruition, and now is the time for everyone to hear the overall directions that Nazarick will take. If anyone present have a different opinion, raise your hand. I will grant you permission to speak."

The most important of Ainz’ goal was to preserve the existence of Nazarick. No, in the worst case scenario, even if he had to abandon Nazarick, Ainz would still be fine with it as long as the NPCs created by his past comrades were safe.

The second most important goal was to make the name Ainz Ooal Gown known throughout the world. This was in the slight hope that if any of Ainz’s past comrades were in this world, they would be able to reunite. However, the chance of this becoming true was extremely low.

The third was to strengthen Nazarick. This goal should probably deserve more importance than the previous one. It is true that after coming to this world, Ainz felt that the Great Tomb of Nazarick would never fall and that "Ainz Ooal Gown" was the strongest organization in existence. However, as long as the entity that tried to mind control Shalltear still existed, partaking in too many public actions will be dangerous. Especially when facing against an unknown number of World class items, the possibility that an unknown guild is involved was quite high. That was why raising the overall power of Nazarick was the correct action to take.

The current status was that after incorporating the lizardmen into Nazarick, Ainz has been continuously creating undead in order to strengthen Nazarick’s military power. However, he needed do something more.

The fourth goal was to create an effective intelligence network but this had been lowered in priority after the recent turn of events.

Ainz had thought about the priority of these goals and ordered them as such. However, as an ordinary person, this was the best that he could do, and he could not know if there were any flaws in his thinking.

This was why Ainz wanted to borrow the brainpower of Albedo and Demiurge, who were very intelligent. If it concerned only ordinary things, Ainz was fine with borrowing their wisdom. In such case, there was no need for Ainz to put himself on stage and risk embarrassing himself in front of everybody.

However, that way of thinking was incorrect.

As the master, as the Ainz Ooal Gown the NPCs believed him to be, he needed this kind of stage to show that he indeed was a Supreme Being; a truly wise sage that none would even dare to predict.

"The two of you, speak loudly so everyone can hear. Everyone in this room are elites that were selected by their Floor Guardians. It is necessary for them to understand the plans we have made for the future. To the ones below, listen well."

That’s right. This was the desperate measure that Ainz had chosen to take. The larger scaled version of the "pretend I understand, but in case others didn’t, Demiurge shall once more explain it" plan. Just like before, Ainz only need to put up the pretense of being fully aware and wait for an explanation.

"Demiurge, for those who are in the dark, explain the current situation to them. Make sure to make it easy to understand. First begin with the explanation of the actions we took against the Kingdom."

"Understood." Demiurge replied as he then turned towards the assembly to begin his explanation.

That was what Ainz wanted to hear. For someone as intelligent as Demiurge, there must have been a purpose for the events to have occurred in that particular manner. However, after much thinking, the feeling that Ainz got was that somehow, they ended up doing unnecessary things.

"First, in the Kingdom, I was able to successfully reduce the authority of those in power with the help of Mare, Neuronist, and Kyouhukou. We can now begin to slowly infiltrate their ranks until the Kingdom comes under our full control."

"...Eh?"

A small sound escaped from Ainz’s mouth. Why do we need to take control of the Kingdom? It seemed as if the explanation was different from what Ainz heard last time. Wasn’t it in order to secure a steady income or to better acquire intelligence?

While Ainz was deep in thought, Demiurge stopped speaking and turned his head towards him. For once, Ainz was glad that his undead body would not let him sweat, and turned to Demiurge.

"Is there a problem, Demiurge?"

"No, it was just that I had the feeling that Ainz-sama wished to say something."

"Ah, is that so? You must have been mistaken. Continue. Let everyone know the reason behind taking control of the Kingdom."

"Yes. Now then, everyone, I hope none of you here are foolish enough to not know that by taking control of the Kingdom, we will be able to move closer towards the true wish of Ainz-sama, which is world domination."

Ainz quickly studied the faces of everyone present in the room. From the looks of things, it seemed like everyone knew about this.

Except for Ainz himself.

"...World domination?"

Just what is this?! When did it become like this? Of course Ainz couldn’t say these thoughts out loud.

Ainz once again tried to use as much of his brain power as possible to quickly make sense of things. It was unbelievable, hard to accept. How did it become like this? Originally they were supposed to be quietly taking actions in the background, avoid making too many enemies, raise the fame of Ainz Ooal Gown and then reunite with past comrades. It was supposed to be just to realize these cute little wishes.

However, now it ended up being—

Why is it world domination? Just how in the hell did this happen?

Although Ainz really wanted to deny the statement, he lacked the courage to do so.

Both the NPCs and the servants all displayed the expression which said "there was no need to ask". It is as if everyone had already accepted that this was the final objective of Ainz. Suddenly it seemed as if a lonely wind blew past the throne that Ainz sat on.

Ainz Ooal Gown was the absolute ruler of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, a peerless existence. After spending so much effort to create this kind of image, if it was broken here by Ainz himself, who knows what would happen. Would he end up becoming as pitiful as an idol without a single paparazzi, who lost all of her fan base, and could not sell her albums. The fate of Ainz would probably be even worse than that. Ainz had already managed to imagine these things in his head.

We’re too invested in this plan to stop now…

However, after carefully thinking things through, world domination didn’t sound as bad as it seemed.

It wouldn't be as easy as it was in games, and for an ordinary person like Ainz, the path to world domination seemed like an impossible road to travel. However, fame could be obtained—most likely infamy—and this seems like the perfect method to gain it.

The problem would be, if Ainz’s past comrades were to find out about it what would their reaction be? If the time comes, I’ll just have to honestly admit that I wasn’t able to successfully manage Nazarick and apologize, Ainz thought.

And there’s also the unknown enemy that brainwashed Shalltear. I can always make up some excuses... I’ll be forgiven… Right?

After finding his resolve, Ainz turned towards Demiurge and said. "Oh, so you remembered."

"Of course. If it is words spoken by Ainz-sama, this Demiurge will never forget. "

"Is that so… It was the conversation from that time right?"

"That is correct."

"...At that time?"

"That is correct."

"Ah, that time… I am pleased, Demiurge."

"Thank you very much."

"However, world domination is hard to achieve."

"It is as you say."

"In that case… How do you think we should proceed?"

Ainz felt like praising himself for managing to keep his voice steady throughout the whole thing.

"What we have currently achieved will be the starting point for our future plans. I have a proposal. I believe it is time for Nazarick to publicly come out onto the global stage. If we keep things as it is, it will become more and more difficult for us to operate, should the entities that brainwashed Shalltear continue to remain hidden in the dark."

"...It is as you say."

That can’t be correct, right? Ainz had thought that by remaining hidden, it would be safer. How did Demiurge arrive at his conclusion?

"I also agree, Ainz-sama. By becoming a known organization, there would be more options available to us, for example through correspondences or negotiations. It won’t be like what we are doing right now, searching for clues in the dark. This is what I think."

After hearing Albedo’s opinion, Ainz was able to finally accept it in his heart, and responded with "I see."

Compared with the things at the moment, it is indeed much more attractive to be able to take part in larger, more public scaled operations.

"By controlling the Kingdom from behind the scene, we can avoid making Nazarick stand out. However, I do not like the idea of making us a part of another country."

Demiurge shook his head at Albedo’s question.

"Of course not, Albedo. I too do not wish for that. Also, from the reports that we have gathered, the current Kingdom holds no charm, apart from a single person. It is the same as other countries. I believe that to place our organization as part of a country is foolish."

"And why is that?"

"If we belong to a country, our actions will become restricted. If the beings that attacked Shalltear are an organization, we will most likely lose the initiative. As such… Ainz-sama."

Demiurge looked towards Ainz as he made his proposal.

"I propose we form an independent nation called the Great Tomb of Nazarick."

Chapter 1. Invitation to Death.

Translator: SifaV6-san

Editors/Proofreaders: Ferro-chan, TaintedDreams-dono, Namo-chan, Sky-senpai, Rocky-mon, JcqC-sensei, Nigel-kyun, Zacky-kun

 

Part 1

The capital of the Baharuth Empire, Arwintar, was located slightly to the west from the center of the empire. The Imperial Palace, home to the reigning monarch with the nickname Blood Emperor—Jircniv Rune Farlord el Nix—stood in the heart of the city. Surrounding the palace were the universities, the magic academy, various administrative offices and other important facilities which spread out from the center of the capital in a radial fashion. Truly, it was a city worthy to be called the heart of the Empire.

Although it had less inhabitants than Re-Estize, the capital of the Kingdom, the Empire's capital was much grander in comparison. Not only this, due to many years of reform, the Empire was currently experiencing the largest surge of development ever recorded in history. New things were constantly being introduced to society, which increased the opportunities for merchants to explore new markets. A constant influx of goods and talents had since been seen in the Empire's capital. For the citizens living in the capital, it was truly a time of hope and opportunity.

Within this noisy and lively city, Ainz walked with Narberal by his side.

Under different circumstances, Ainz would probably have wanted to spend some time to explore the city, like a country bumpkin coming to a metropolis for the first time. After all, there were many differences between the Empire and the Kingdom.

However, Ainz didn't have the leisure to look around right now.

His movements were gradually starting to reflect his thoughts, slowly becoming more and more erratic over time.

The feelings enveloping him from within could be described with a single word—Unpleasant.

The more Ainz thought about the purpose behind this visit to the Empire, which had been planned by Demiurge, the more he frowned, despite the face being an illusion.

For Ainz Ooal Gown, the absolute ruler of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, the word "endure" should not be in his vocabulary. There should be no need to suppress his emotions. Ainz's words should be absolute, where white would become black if he declared so. There was no reason for things to be otherwise.

Yet the current situation still ended up this way because Ainz couldn't find a valid excuse to dismiss Demiurge's proposal.

The overall objective was—showcasing the strength of Nazarick. It was very easy to understand Demiurge's plan, and the results would also be immediate. On the other hand, what Ainz didn't like was that it felt as if he was about to throw mud on the things carefully built by his past comrades.

However, to reject such an amazingly thought out plan just because of his personal emotions would be a shame. Also, Ainz didn't want others to think that he lacked the magnanimity to accept proposals made by another individual.

To dismiss the current plan without suggesting any alternatives was something that Ainz, not as the supreme ruler but as a member of society, felt was unacceptable.

Ainz repeated the things he thought previously once more in order to calm down. There was a need to cool his head. Between logic and emotions, choosing to go with logic should be the correct choice. Even though those who were driven by their emotions would sometimes achieve extraordinary results, most of the time they were simply irrational. Not only that...

"...It's simply too late to back out now! Kaaa!"

Ainz inhaled and exhaled deeply using his non-existent lungs. And showed no concerns to the city guards and townspeople that cast odd glances in his direction as they walked by.

Due to Ainz's naturally tall and awe-inspiring figure, he was already the center of attention. This became even more so after he was exalted as a hero. Not attracting any attention would be strange. Because of this, Ainz had gotten used to ignoring people's gaze, even more so after he started riding Hamusuke.

After taking multiple deep breaths, Ainz was finally able to reduce the feeling of unpleasantness to a minimum. Only then did he notice the amount of effort that his subordinate, Narberal, had to make in order to keep up with him.