Overlord, Vol. 10: The Ruler of Conspiracy

Chapter 2 | The Re-Estize Kingdom

1

When the magic item in Climb’s pocket vibrated, he pulled it out.

It fit in his hand and had three of its own—for hours, minutes, and seconds—as well as twelve numbers carved into its face: a pocket watch.

Some larger clocks were mechanical, but at sizes that people could carry around, they were all necessarily magic items, at least in the kingdom. Since clocks were so closely tied to daily life, they were fairly cheap as far as magic items went. Still, they didn’t come at a price that made them easy for the masses to buy.

Climb was borrowing this watch. It had powers beyond a normal magic item.

The watch was called Twelve Magical Powers, and once per day, at the time it was set to, that hour’s magic effect would occur. But in order to receive those benefits, the user had to have been in possession of the watch for at least a day, and Climb had only just borrowed it, which meant the powers didn’t activate for him.

Gazing absentmindedly up at the blue sky next to him, the girl said, “Hmm? It’s already time? That was fast.”

“Seems that way,” Climb replied to her—Tina, a member of the adamantite-plate adventurer team the Blue Roses.

“Huh. I guess it’s hard to tell how time is passing when we’re just taking it easy like this.”

There were a lot of things he could have said about that remark.

First, Tina wasn’t taking it easy. She was guarding the front entrance of this place, the building behind Climb. And though she was saying things like, “It’s already time?” and “That was fast,” her internal clock was actually correct much of the time.

Some adventurers had unnaturally accurate internal clocks. Thieves, especially, but that was the fruit of their training. They often worked alone on clandestine investigations, so it was extremely important for them to have a strong sense of time.

“Hmm? Is there something you wanted to say?”

“No, nothing.”

She replied, “Okay, then,” and looked back up at the sky.

Climb couldn’t very well have come out and asked,
Why do you lie?
to probe into what she was hiding.

He didn’t even have enough money to hire Tina’s team, but sometimes they ended up at the same destination; that was no excuse for him to act overly friendly. He needed to refrain from doing anything that would upset her.

“All right, I’m going to go talk to the princess.”

“Get goin’, then.”

Climb turned on his heel and headed toward the building they had been guarding.

He had seen it any number of times while it was under construction, but this was his first time inside since it had been completed.

When he opened the door, what must have been a freshly built smell—a unique woody fragrance—tickled his nose.

He proceeded inside and down a hallway, then opened a door to a room in the back.

His master was there.

She was a princess radiant with beauty—Renner.

And around her were several children.

Casting a kind smile on the noisy kids, she was the spitting image of the Holy Mother as she listened to their stories.

Climb was speechless when he walked in on the picturesque scene.

He feared he would disturb an inviolable, sacred moment. The women standing by the window, who worked at the facility, seemed to feel the same way, and none of them moved a muscle.

But one of the people in the room didn’t seem concerned about that.

“Hey, the boy’s here. It’s already time.”

At the sound of the cold voice from beneath the mask, Renner raised her head and looked right at Climb.

Climb could see he was reflected in her sapphire eyes.

“…My apologies, Princess Renner, but it’s time to return to the palace.”

“I see… Well, I hate to leave you all, but I must go.”

The children emitted a disappointed “Reallyyy?” If she hadn’t completely captured their hearts, they surely wouldn’t have said anything like that.

Their response sent the staff into action. They consoled the children and forced the unreasonable ones to let the princess go.

“Can I come back and play again sometime, everyone?”

The kids all gave an enthusiastic response.

“Okay. Next time I’ll come cook for you. Let’s go, Climb, Evileye.”

“Hmph. Even without you telling me, I know I’m here for your protection—well, no, I guess you haven’t requested anything, so I’m merely accompanying you. Don’t worry about it. I’ll be right behind you.”

As their party left the building, the carriage they had waiting nearby was just pulling up.

Tina jumped in first without bothering to say anything. It appeared to be an utter lack of manners, but she was actually confirming the carriage’s safety. After her went Renner, Climb, and finally Evileye. Then the carriage began to move.

As they bumped along, Evileye suddenly said, “…Man, your job is tough, too, huh? Making these orphanages and stuff…”

“Is it?”

“Yeah. Didn’t you hear as much from all sorts of people? That they don’t have the money in this day and age to put toward a cause like that?”

Renner put a finger to her chin and cocked her head. “No, that didn’t happen. My brother did what I asked right away. And it’s precisely because of this day and age that we need to protect children.”

Evileye gestured with her chin that the princess should continue.

“Well, as you know, many people died at the hands of the king of the Nation of Darkness. I figured there would be lots of children without parents, so I built the orphanage to take care of them. We also needed to create jobs for the women who lost their husbands.”

“The King of Darkness, huh…? Setting that aside for the moment, isn’t there something more important to invest in than street urchins…? It’s only a matter of course that the weak die, don’t you think?”

“No.” Renner stated it firmly. This refusal had a power unlike her other words. “The strong rescuing the weak is the correct attitude. Besides…”

Climb felt her eyes on him.

Is she…?

Climb remembered himself as a child.

Did the princess think to establish an orphanage because she knew what his life was like back then? Was it to make sure no one else ended up like him?

A momentary heat flared in his breast.

Of course, he hadn’t confirmed her true intentions, but he had an inkling he was right.

“Well, that’s one way to think about it. And I don’t think it’s right to force my ideas on others. Still, did you really need to make it so big?”

“Yes, because it seems like lots of children will end up there. We’re planning to gather children from all the territory directly held by the king, so it might even be too small. Those children are my treasures. I need to take care of them to make sure they don’t stray onto a mistaken path.”

“Huh. Princess, you’re so smart.”

“What are you trying to say, Tina?”

“How do you think kids who lost their parents are supposed to survive, Evileye?”

“Well… Oh… We need the workers too much to have them fill in the ranks of soldiers. Which makes this a different way of keeping the peace…? I get it…”

“‘Even a person who is capable of living with integrity when people are watching can succumb to desire when unobserved. And if one crime goes well, they’ll roll further down the path of evil with that momentum. A small crime grows like a snowball. We need to keep people where we can see them, but that’s tricky, so we keep an eye on them in this way.’”

“Hmph. ‘Not everyone is strong’?”

“So you were told the same thing, Evileye? Guess it must be a favorite saying.”

“…I’ve heard it on at least three separate occasions already.”

The latter half was something only Evileye and Tina understood, but hearing this much, the first part made sense to Climb.

Many children who lost their parents would get their hands dirty to survive. If that happened, even the Eight Fingers, who had had much of their power stripped away, could potentially make a comeback, and the royal capital might end up more dangerous, too.

His beloved master was taking these steps with the future in mind.

But then Renner asked Evileye, seemingly puzzled, “What’s that from?”

“Hey… Are we trying to read too much into it? Or is she acting?”

“Mm, I think she genuinely just wants to help kids.”

“If you say so, then she must be. I regret being impressed now.”

“Ahem, it seems your impressions of me are arbitrarily fluctuating, but… You know…I’ve actually put some thought into this. If this orphanage goes well and we can give the children some degree of education to cultivate some outstanding individuals, I think other nobles will copy my idea. That’s another reason we need a large number of children…though it’s not a very praiseworthy one.”

“No, if that’s why you’re collecting urchins, that makes sense to me, and I’m impressed. If you get results, then you
will
deserve praise. Just volunteering for no compensation is incredibly suspicious.”

“Evileye, you’re warped because you’ve been through too much!”

“Hey! I’m pretty sure you’re the same as me!”

“No, I’m not. I’m pure. You’re the only tainted one.”

“Tch!” A click of a tongue sounded from beneath her mask.

“Oh yeah, the reason I established the orphanage was that Brain gave me the idea.”

“Brain Unglaus? What happened to him? Haven’t really seen him today.”

“Brain is running around the capital on a different errand.”

“Oh? There’s something he prioritizes higher than protecting you, Princess?”

“Yes. He’s working to fulfill the wishes of the deceased captain of the Royal Select. Oh, about him… I’m sorry to have caused you trouble.”

Tina narrowed her eyes to conceal the emotions harbored within them. “I’m pissed about the scar on our demon leader’s pretty face.”

“I’m sorry. I apologize on behalf of my father.”

“I know you already apologized to her directly, so I forgive you.”

“Thank you.”

“…Sometimes a dead person’s words are more powerful than the living’s.” It looked like Evileye glanced out the carriage’s window briefly. But it was only for a moment. “To get back to what we were talking about… What’s Brain Unglaus up to?”

“Apparently, the captain of the Royal Select told Brain he wanted him to take over as captain, but he felt like he couldn’t do that. Now he’s searching for the right person to take the job with the intent of training them.”

“If a guy with no noble connections is on the hunt, then… Aha! Both Gazef and Brain came from commoner roots, so I see how they’re thinking. And then you got inspired…”

“That’s right. And I established the orphanage. I’m hoping I can have Brain come meet the children. It’s possible that one of them might have the aptitude.”

“I wasn’t really looking back there,” said Tina. “What did you think, Evileye?”

“Just seeing their magic ability doesn’t tell us anything. If we trained them a few times, we’d know to some extent whether or not they would be able to cast spells, but that’s only for arcane magic. If the kids had an aptitude for psychic or faith magic, I wouldn’t be able to tell with my ability.”

Renner
hmm
ed worriedly. Then she smiled like a flower just beginning to bloom. “In the future, I’d like to have all sorts of different people come evaluate the children at the orphanage.” She was looking at the other two ladies in the carriage. Her eyes were more effective at conveying what she wanted to tell them than words would have been.

“…That’s a bit optimistic. Maybe her, but…”

“Too bad, Evileye. Maybe our demon leader, but…”

“Right? But I won’t agree so readily to even the stuff she says. And I’d need to be compensated—you’d have to hire me for at least some minimum amount of money. It wouldn’t be fair to the others to work every time essentially for free. It’s against adventurer rules. And passing on techniques is also something that should be paid for.”

“Everything is just as you say, and I agree, but I’m sorry. I don’t actually have any money…,” Renner said dejectedly.

The third princess was the spare of the spare. There weren’t any nobles who were willing to back her when all they could expect out of her was adding royal blood to their family line. For that reason, she had almost no money she could spend freely. Renner was modest, so it hadn’t bothered her so far, but the first or second princesses would have found this situation intolerable.

That was how Climb knew that Renner had imbued her feelings into the armor she had given him.

“But I hear that princesses wear glittering gowns and live a life of luxury.”

“Reality isn’t so simple. But I can’t deny that there are princesses like that. It’s something to aspire to…”

Climb was assailed by an emotion he couldn’t pin down as her eyes sparkled.

He wanted to provide that kind of life to the world’s most beautiful, purehearted woman.

But on the other hand, he had been saved because she was how she was and that was why he existed as he was now. Just as he was admiring her profile, she turned to look at him, her eyes radiating a lovely light.

“What are you thinking, Climb?”

“Oh, uh, nothing, Princess Renner.”

“Are you sure? If there is something, please tell me. We need to help each other out when we’re stuck.”

“I—I will! Thank you!”

“Hey. Sorry to interrupt your flirting, but I really don’t like the idea of teaching skills for free. I don’t care what she says—when the time comes, I’ll be getting what I’m owed.”

“I hope it will be a sum I can pay.” Renner bobbed her head.

“Mm, but you just want to know who has the aptitude, right? I’d only be there to watch their movements? What will you do, Evileye?”

“…Urk. Agh. I’ll be honest. I can’t see to the depths of their ability from just a few training sessions. Magic is more internal than external. And while I am a genius in the sense of magical ability, that’s all I am. I don’t have the powers of the great caster from the empire, for example.”

“So you want to see if they have an inborn talent or not?”

“A talent?” Renner sighed. “It’d be great if we could tell from childhood. Then the pro-nobles might not be able to keep up with their inflexible
but they’re a commoner
way of thinking.”

“Then shouldn’t you build a system where all children are examined using magic that can detect talents? If all you need to know is whether they have one or not, there’s a third-tier spell for that. Apparently, there are higher-tier spells that will tell you what specifically they have, but…I guess that’s a fantasy.”

“Really? You can tell who has a talent?”

“I’m not sure why your eyes are sparkling like that—don’t expect too much! I just remember hearing that if a psychic magic caster reaches tier three, they can finally determine whether the target has a talent or not. Even if they have one, then comes the hard part. You have to figure out how it’s expressed. And after all that work, there’s a good chance it’s something trivial.”

“Oh…” The sparkle went out of Renner’s eyes.

“Instead we should just try a bunch of different things. Standing under a waterfall, sniffing an herb that isn’t too dangerous to go into a trance—apparently, stuff like that can suddenly reveal a talent, like something just clicks.”

“Really…? Hmm, maybe that’s true?”

“Oh? Evileye, do you have a talent?”

Evileye had been quite chatty up until then, but now she began to give off the air of a stone. It seemed they had entered into a topic she wasn’t keen on.

But Climb’s master innocently asked, “Would you tell us what kind of power it is?”

It’s not that there weren’t times she was surprisingly sharp, but usually she was like this. It was like she couldn’t read the atmosphere or like she had no problem asking awkward questions.

It wasn’t that she didn’t consider the feelings of the other person, but maybe it had something to do with growing up as royalty?

“What? Are you that interested?”

“I don’t know many people with talents. So I was just wondering what kind you have.”

“I see. Well, if that’s the case, then I’ll tell you.”

Evileye leaned forward, and Renner did the same with her face full of expectation.

Sometimes talents could be a hidden trump card. Especially for adventurers. Climb didn’t think Renner would reveal it to anyone, but he didn’t think it was something that should be shared so easily, either.

“I don’t want too many people to hear, so can you bring your ear closer?”

“Yes.” Renner turned her ear toward Evileye.

And then…

“You really think I would blab something so important like that?!”

The shout filled the carriage.

Tina, sitting next to her, must have guessed that would happen, because she was plugging her ears.

“You’re so mean! My ear is ringing!”

Renner practically threw herself at Climb’s chest. The sound effect probably would have been something like
fwump
.

With tearful eyes, she looked up at him from his breast.

Climb cast away worthless thoughts like
She’s so cute
and
She smells good
. It was absurdly improper to have such feelings about his master.

“Lady Evileye, I understand how you feel, but if you would please have a little more mercy…”

“What? Isn’t she like this because you coddle her, kid?”

“N-no, that’s not it at all. Me coddling the princess?”

Even if he wanted to, he couldn’t.

“Right! I think it would be fine for you to coddle me more, Climb! I agree with Evileye!”

“E-er, Princess. I don’t think that’s…”

“No! If you would indulge me more, then if you got blamed for it like just now, it would make sense. So please coddle me! At any rate, let’s take naps together like we used to do when you were a child. Okay, Evileye, tell him!”

“That’s enough. I was stupid… Anyhow, young lady, I don’t talk about my talent. Got it?”

“Is it really so dangerous?”

“Yeah, it’s my last resort. If I used it… It would be like if our leader’s sword went on a rampage—it’s powerful enough to destroy a whole city like
that
.”

Evileye’s words carried weight.

But Climb heard a puzzled “Huh?” from his chest. He wanted to look, but if he did, he would become aware of how close they were, and he couldn’t take it.

Even if he wanted to push her away, she was so soft that he wasn’t sure how much force to use.

And all the while his heart was clanging like an alarm bell, the conversation continued.

“Lakyus’s sword?”

“Yeah. She said that if it goes crazy, it would level a whole city—or was it a country? She uses some of her power just to suppress it.”

“Really…? I had no idea.”

Climb hadn’t told the princess about the demonic sword.

“You don’t have to worry about it. Our demon leader only keeps it to herself because she didn’t want to stress you out. Pretend you didn’t hear about it.”

“…Hmm. All right. I’ll do that.”

“Speaking of which, what happened to Lady Aindra? I haven’t seen her lately.”

“Hmm? Didn’t anyone tell you? Hey, Princess, you didn’t tell him?”

“…I forgot. Uh, she’s accompanying Gagaran and Tia on some training, Climb.”

Evileye took over from Renner. “Those two died in the fight against Jaldabaoth in the kingdom. Of course, they’ve been resurrected, but they lost a lot of life force. To regain it, they’re voluntarily putting themselves in danger and fighting through life-and-death battles to build their strength back up.”

“We wanted to go along, too.”

“But if we did that, it would feel a little bit too easy somehow. The best way to get tough quickly is small group battles.”

“I wonder if that’s really true, though.”

“Well… There’s supposedly a Level Up ritual that is more effective, but… Well, if they believed that and slacked off on training, we probably wouldn’t even be able to buy time if that demon came to attack the capital again.”

“Buy time? Ohhh, Evileye, you mean until your favorite guy comes again?”

“Yes! Until the great hero arrives!” Evileye’s whole demeanor suddenly changed. The heat of her passion could be felt distinctly, even from beneath her mask.

“M— Sir Momon, right?”

“Right! The great hero Sir Momon! The most powerful warrior who dual wields gigantic swords with such ease, it’s as if he’s swinging twigs! He is without a doubt the strongest warrior of any country in the region! I’m sure that if he’s around, he’ll defeat Jaldabaoth for us! He nearly got him last time, but the bastard ran away! But this is Sir Momon we’re talking about, so I’m sure he already has a plan to deal with him!”

She gushed so ardently, all Climb could do was chime in with an “Oh yeah.”

“But can he even come next time? Isn’t he under the King of Darkness’s rule now?” Tina asked in a tired voice that was rare for her.

Evileye’s hands had been joyously clasped together, but now she shouted, “Ahhh! Sir Momon! Shit, that damn King of Darkness! Even if heaven allows him to rule over our hero, I will not! If he could just defeat him and be free! What was he thinking? Maybe I should go to E-Rantel and hear what Sir Momon has in mind.”

“…Wait until after those two regain their power.”

“I would be right back, though. Once I know the location, I can teleport. If I use Fly for one way, it won’t take that long!”

“Evileye, you really fall apart when it comes to Momon… Didn’t our demon leader already tell you you couldn’t do that?”

“If you would just keep it a secret, then…”

“Actually, I’m awful at keeping secrets. They just bubble right up.”

“I can’t really imagine that, given your previous occupation.”

“Unfortunately, I’m Tina of the Blue Roses now. You can call me Loose Lips.” Then Tina got a determined glint in her eye. “…This is a good chance. I should ask you. Evileye—can you kill the King of Darkness?”

Evileye froze. All the giddiness of earlier was gone. Now it was the strongest adventurer caster who sat there.

“If all the stories I’ve heard are true…he has surpassed the power any single caster is capable of possessing. I personally investigated what happened on the Katze Plain after the fact, using all my contacts—I got in touch with the old lady and analyzed the information we had, but…honestly, it’s too absurd. I want to believe the witnesses were bewildered by illusions.”

“It was no illusion. So many people died…” Renner’s face twisted in grief. “Two hundred sixty thousand people participated in that battle. Of those, a hundred eighty thousand died. I heard there are also people mentally anguished to the point where they can no longer lead a normal life. Some of the children in the orphanage have parents in that condition.”

“…From what the kid said, I can only imagine that to be true, getting attacked by that many monsters…”

“…Yes. It was truly hell. Luckily, I was with Brain and…the captain. With allies that strong, my mental state was spared, but I still glance behind me at times. For militiamen, that fear would be stronger, so I’m not surprised there are people with psychological issues.” Climb nodded.

“Okay, Tina. I’ll give your question a sincere answer. It’s impossible for me to defeat the King of Darkness.”

That was the answer they had expected.

“So it’s true.”

“Well, yeah. I might be able to do something about those monsters he summoned, but it’s hard to give a definite answer without seeing them myself. Honestly, a king with the power to summon more than one of those things shouldn’t exist in this world. Those powers are mythological.”

“Is it possible that he used an item to summon them? That it wasn’t his power?”

“That could be, but it would be dangerous to assume that’s what happened. Not that we have a way to confirm it.”

“It would be great if he would clash with Jaldabaoth.”

“That’s what everyone hopes will happen. Although the best would be if Sir Momon defeated him…”

“Who do you think is stronger, Sir Momon or the King of Darkness?”

The one who asked was Climb. Personally, he thought that the King of Darkness must have been stronger, since he could summon so many monsters. He was surprised to see Evileye take some time to think.

“I don’t know. Personally, I was thinking Sir Momon, since he repulsed Jaldabaoth, but the King of Darkness’s power is also difficult to fathom. Both are so much more powerful than the rest of us that I can’t even imagine…”

“Having a guy like that under the King of Darkness’s rule is the worst. No one can put up a fight.”

She was right.

If the one person who could potentially fight the King of Darkness on equal ground was under his thumb, that was a problem. If anyone wanted to challenge the King of Darkness, they would essentially have to face double the strength.

As the atmosphere in the carriage grew gloomy, the driver tapped on the window separating the passengers from the box seat. “We’ll arrive at the palace soon.”

At the driver’s voice, Renner sat up. Then she looked at the two adventurers seated before her. “Thank you so much for all your help today. Will you extend my gratitude to Lakyus and also tell her I’d like to have a meal together sometime?”

Having received word that his sister was nearly home, the second prince—Zanac Valléon Igana Ryle Vaiself—left his room to go welcome her.

Their elder brother—Barbro Andréan Yeld Ryle Vaiself—had gone missing, and enough time had passed that they had lost hope he was still alive, so Zanac had practically been declared the heir; it was strange that he should go to meet his little sister. There was a clear hierarchy between elder brother and younger sister.

Still, he went. The reason being that he had an urgent matter to discuss with her. He didn’t like it, but having lost an important counterpart, she was the only person he could rely on.

Eventually he caught sight of her.

Next to her stood Climb in his pure-white armor. He went almost everywhere Renner did, so there wasn’t anything strange about that.

Climb was a destitute child Renner had plucked off the streets long ago.

Before, Zanac thought she did it only on a whim because her head was full of nonsense, but once he learned how bizarre and intelligent she was, he started to think there had to be a reason.

And the reason seemed clear in the aftermath of Jaldabaoth’s attack on the capital and the King of Darkness’s massacre.

There were almost no soldiers in the capital stronger than Climb. Even among Gazef’s group of hand-selected warriors, only a handful were equal or superior to Climb.

Renner had also made personal connections with a man Climb had apparently brought over, Brain Unglaus, as well as Lakyus, the leader of the adamantite-plate adventurer team the Blue Roses. He was quite sure that his little sister possessed more military might than anyone in the royal capital.

Could she be aiming to carry out a coup?

It was only natural that Zanac should wonder.

Even if Renner wouldn’t take such a simple, direct angle, he had to be on guard. As part of that, he was making great efforts behind the scenes to forge personal ties with orichalcum- and mythril-plate adventurer teams.

Zanac was grateful to his elder brother.

After all, it was due to his disappearance that Zanac had effectively been chosen as the next king and was able to have a hand in so many different matters. That his brother’s annual allowance had been added to his was another boon.

Still, he was a bit concerned that his brother Barbro’s corpse hadn’t been found. It would be problematic if he was being imprisoned by the King of Darkness, and it would be equally annoying if he was injured and recuperating in a village somewhere.

“He’s determined to cause me trouble to the very end…,” he said under his breath so the people accompanying him wouldn’t hear.

He needed to wait until his position was a bit more stable before provoking the nobles.

Zanac was worried about his backing at the moment.

Marquis Raeven had promised to help him develop the kingdom but then broke free when Zanac tried to stop him and returned to his domain. It was only natural, since so many people from his territory had died, but for some reason, Zanac got the feeling he would never come back.

He was sure that one of the reasons was the loss of the commoner strategist that Raeven was so proud of as well as his team of former orichalcum-plate adventurers.

Zanac felt a mild ache in the vicinity of his stomach. If he talked to his sister, would the pain fade a bit?

One question had been on his mind for several weeks—whether or not he should send the King of Darkness a gift, and if he did, whether it should be congratulations on establishing his country or for some other reason.

The appropriate choice at present was probably to not send anything. If a country that had its territory forcibly taken sent a gift to the new state that established itself on that stolen territory, it would end up being interpreted as a sign of submission by neighboring countries. On the other hand, it was terribly important to build an amicable relationship with the King of Darkness.

Though the power of the Nation of Darkness was still unclear, it was well-known that its king alone was more than powerful enough to annihilate an entire country.

Zanac knew he had to prevent the King of Darkness from gazing toward the kingdom any more than he did already.

That was why he wanted to send a gift—personally, Zanac didn’t care if it was interpreted as a sign of submission—as long as it bought some time.

The tricky part was that he knew the kingdom’s nobles wouldn’t accept that.

Certainly, many people were aware of the King of Darkness’s power. But they probably wouldn’t stand for the heir to the throne making gestures of submission to the Nation of Darkness.

The nobles had suffered a major blow and were looking for someone to take their discontent out on.

King Ramposa III was tremendously upset—both shocked and devastated—by the death of the fantastically strong Gazef Stronoff. Seeing him in that sorry state, the nobles backed off somewhat, but it wasn’t as if they had discarded the animosity they felt toward the king who had been so thoroughly defeated and the royal family.

She’ll probably have a good idea.

Really, he wanted to make the call on his own, but too much time had already passed. He needed an answer.

Zanac stopped. His shoes clacked loudly against the floor.

Hearing the sound, Renner turned to look at him. Then she changed directions and walked over to him. That showed that he had superiority.

She arrived before him, but he didn’t say anything. It was a delicate time. He needed to continually assert his dominance over many people.

“I’m back, brother.”

“I see, sister.”

He benevolently answered her princessly curtsy with a bow. In his peripheral vision, Climb was bowing, but Zanac wouldn’t return the courtesy of a mere soldier.

“Shall we walk part of the way together?”

“It would be my pleasure.”

Zanac set off with her. He gestured with his chin at the people accompanying him to give them some space. He noticed Renner signal the same to Climb.

“You seem in a rush, Zanac. What’s going on?” Renner asked in a low voice, her smile unchanged. “Did a messenger from the Nation of Darkness come or something?”

Zanac nearly had a heart attack. He was considering his own actions so deeply that the idea that she might say something like that never occurred to him.

She must have figured that it wouldn’t be strange for the other side to make a move soon.

Zanac filed that away for reference and shook his head. “No, nothing like that.”

“Is there any other reason you would come out of your way to meet me?”

“Yeah. I was wondering what to do about a gift.”

“If a messenger comes, I think you should give them double whatever you’re currently thinking. Half to express appreciation for the one who came and the other half—well, it goes without saying.”

Zanac said nothing as he let her words sink in.

It was a really good idea.

If he told the nobles it was to reward the Nation of Darkness for coming to them, there shouldn’t be any problem—even if internally he intended it with other meanings as well.

Once again, Zanac was struck by how terrifying his sister was. She had solved in an instant the problem he had been racking his brain over. But as long as her followers had more military might, even if he tried to kill her, he would only be met with revenge. Thus, his only option was gentle persuasion.

“…When I become king, I’ll give you a domain somewhere remote. You should go there.”

“Understood. I’ll obey you, brother.”

“Once I send you, I’ll never summon you back here. I can’t promise there won’t be inconveniences, but I’m preparing a domain that should provide you a decent life. Stay there for the rest of your life.”

“Yes, brother. Thank you.”

He felt like Renner would understand even if he didn’t say anything more, but saying it would make her feel more indebted to him.

“You can even adopt a parentless child there—I don’t mind. Do as you like.”

“Thank you, brother.”

The immediate response must have meant she was already thinking along those lines.

Zanac didn’t understand why his sister was so in love with Climb, that commoner. He didn’t have that great of a face, and it wasn’t as if he owned anything of value. All Zanac could think was that he wasn’t a good match for his sister.

Ohhh, right. That one time, I heard about her fetish.

Remembering the disgraceful part of his sister he wanted to forget, Zanac felt sort of bad for Climb.

“I can’t wait for you to be king, brother. I hope that even once you’re king, you’ll sometimes think of me living off in the country.”

“Yes, I will, sister. And I hope I can consult with you now and the— Huh?” Zanac noticed a soldier jogging their way.

He was one of the survivors from Gazef’s group.

They had served the king well on that battlefield. That was why their positions were secure despite the loss of their captain and the king trusted them deeply. Incidentally, Renner’s two subordinates were trusted to the same degree.

Zanac remembered the withered face of his father.

“Prince, the king is calling for you.” After a pause, the soldier turned to Renner. “You too, Princess.”

“What is it?”

“We’ve received word that a delegation from the Nation of Darkness is on its way.”

Zanac glanced for a split second at his sister’s profile and then replied, “Okay. Tell him I’ll be there right away. Renner, I’ll go ahead. Come once you’re ready.”

“Yes, Zanac.”

The clothing she wore to go visit the orphanage was modest and simple. It would be an embarrassment in front of the nobles.

Having said as much, Zanac strode off with a grim look on his face.

“…Oof. There’s nothing at all appealing about that proposal—and it’s come far too late.”

2

Apparently, a delegation from the Nation of Darkness was traveling from E-Rantel to the capital over the course of a week.

And this was the seventh day. If the journey had gone according to plan, the delegation would arrive today.

Zanac, who had never really gotten the hang of wearing armor, was clad in it nonetheless and lined up alongside other knights facing the gate leading out of the capital toward E-Rantel.

A spell of overcast weather had cleared as if it had all been a hoax, and a pleasant spring sky stretched out overhead.

But thick clouds still hung off in the distance. The sky was blue only over the capital.

It was so unusual that the royal weather observer was left scratching his head. “It’s impossible.”

He had been employed at the palace for years and boasted an accuracy of over 90 percent when predicting the next day’s weather. If he said it was impossible, then perhaps the blue sky wasn’t natural.

Zanac exhaled—with a
phoow
—beneath his helmet.

His teacher had never told him about magic that could control weather, but it probably made more sense to suppose something like that was a piece of cake for the King of Darkness.

Zanac was annoyed by the fact that he didn’t have anyone beneath him who knew enough about not only magic but all the diverse sorts of powers that existed. More specifically, he had been relying too much on Marquis Raeven.

That man had been acquiring information from adventurers and compiling a compendium. It contained things like what magic items those adventurers knew of and their forms, the types of monsters and their abilities, and various kinds of spells.

Up until now, Zanac had been able to access that knowledge, since he and the marquis were allies. But now Raeven had left the capital and the compendium was gone.

Zanac tried looking for another noble who gathered information from adventurers like Raeven did, but unfortunately, he couldn’t find a single one. It wasn’t because the other nobles were fools. To nobles, the world of adventurers was another one entirely. Some nobles employed adventurers, but it was to take advantage of their strength not to learn their society and knowledge.

That’s how nobles had been for the two-hundred-year history of the kingdom. In that sense, Marquis Raeven was the odd one.

Is it that easy to find retired adventurers—and ones ranked mythril or higher at that?

He had heard that adventurers tended to have an instinctive dislike of political trouble. Indeed, the world of politics was far removed from freedom. Would adventurers like that really come and work under him after they retired?

Zanac grew moody.

“Prince.”

The sound of the knight’s voice next to him brought him back to his senses, and when he looked down the road—there they were.

They were like specks, but it was the Nation of Darkness’s delegation.

Zanac had flexed his royal powers and made it so no one else could travel down that road. No one came through the gate behind them, either. For today only, the gate was shut.

“Okay, let’s review one more time. It’s the same as when any foreign noble visits: If anyone tries to do anything to the delegation, it’s a serious crime. Execute the perpetrator immediately.”

“Yes, sir!”

The line of knights made an energetic reply, and the sound of them pounding the swords on their hips rang out in unison.

“All right! Use all your manners and let’s get this national prestige battle started!”

“Yes, sir!”

They all stood at attention until the delegation arrived.

Eventually, a messenger approached.

It was a knight in black armor astride a jet-black unicorn with burning red eyes. But whoever was inside the armor, they probably weren’t human. The dense presence the figure emanated shimmered like heat haze and warned everyone watching of life-threatening danger. The full plate armor pulsed as if it were alive.

Zanac felt the warhorse beneath him shudder.

Clawlike gauntlets released the reins and pounded on the knight’s chest.

“Apologies for speaking to you from my mount! We are the delegation from Ainz Ooal Gown, Nation of Darkness!”

To explain it with a simile, the voice was like the earsplitting timbre of a rotting string instrument. Just the sound of it gave him the chills and tormented him with anxiety. Zanac raised his own voice to counteract the fear.

“I am the second prince of the Re-Estize Kingdom, Zanac Valléon Igana Ryle Vaiself! The king has ordered me to guide you, noble visitors, to the palace! If you would, please follow us!”

“Very well. We accept your guidance. My name… Forgive me, but I have no name, so I’ll have you call me by my race name: Death Cavalier.”

The name surprised Zanac, but he couldn’t let it delay his reply.

“Shall I call you Sir Cavalier, then?”

“That would be splendid.”

“Understood. Then, first of all, could I greet the leader of the delegation here? I’m the second prince as well as the one responsible for the leader’s conduct while in the palace. If possible, I’d like to make sure that person knows who I am ahead of time.”

“I see. I’ll go ask.”

“You have my gratitude.”

The messenger returned to the group.

There were already all sorts of things Zanac could pick on, but he was dealing with the Nation of Darkness. If this was a country that ruled undead and controlled monsters, then it was better not to expect common sense. It would be foolish to assume the leader of the delegation looked human.

“Okay, brace yourselves. Don’t do anything that could offend them.”

“Yes, sir!”

Hearing their reply, Zanac tensed his core.

The delegation had passed through several towns on the way to the capital, so he had an idea of its makeup.

There were five carriages.

Each was drawn by sinister horselike monsters. And there were monsters guarding the area around them. Many were Death Cavaliers, but there were other kinds as well.

He didn’t know what they were called or how dangerous they were. But whether he knew or not, his job was the same. It was a delegation sent by the King of Darkness. He had to make sure they weren’t offended in any way.

A Death Cavalier—probably the same one as earlier—came forward from the approaching delegation.

“Sorry to have kept you waiting. The leader of the delegation—King of Darkness Ainz Ooal Gown’s closest aide, Lady Albedo—said she doesn’t mind meeting you. Right this way, Prince Zanac.”

Zanac signaled to the knights that they should stand by where they were and stepped forward.

Honestly, he was scared—because he was walking among types of monsters he had never even seen before.

Still, he had royal family backbone. Zanac would probably be king soon. He would no doubt meet this representative more than once, so he couldn’t humiliate himself. On the contrary, he had to sell himself and have this lady report back with the knowledge that the Re-Estize Kingdom was a great country.

Sweating uncomfortably, Zanac dismounted from his horse and stood before a carriage.

“This is the leader of the delegation, Lady Albedo.”

He put all his energy into making sure his face didn’t flinch no matter how horrifying of a monster appeared.

The carriage’s door opened, and a figure made a leisurely exit.

She was…beautiful.

No, Zanac had no other words to describe her. He could only call her a peerless beauty.

Surely no one could be as beautiful as Renner.
That’s what he had always thought, but apparently he had been mistaken. The difference between them was that while Renner had a brighter beauty, Albedo’s was darker, more bewitching.

She placed a foot on the step, and the faint tap of her heel brought Zanac back to reality.

He immediately dropped to one knee and bowed his head.

Though she was a representative from a foreign country, perhaps it was pitiful for the prince to take a knee. But considering the power differential between the kingdom and the Nation of Darkness, it was the correct move. What the kingdom needed right now wasn’t pride.

It needed benefit.

“Would you please raise your head?”

A gorgeous voice wafted toward him from above.

“As you wish.”

When he looked up, the beautiful woman was gazing down at him with a gentle smile.

It was the attitude of a person used to being superior—but was she human?

Zanac examined her without moving his eyes. First, he noticed the wings sprouting from her hips. Were they from a magic item or something else? And how about the horn-like things on her forehead?

They could have been magic items, or she could have been a grotesque—either was possible considering she was from the Nation of Darkness.

“I am Albedo, a representative from Ainz Ooal Gown, Nation of Darkness. I’ll only be here for a few days, but I’m happy to meet you. Now then, on your feet, please, Prince. We can’t have you kneeling all day.”

“Thank you.”

Even as he was standing, Zanac was thinking,
Now here’s a problem.

He was speaking directly to her, but he had been told only the name Albedo. Did that mean she didn’t have any other names?

In the kingdom and the empire, the common people had two names and nobles had three—four including their nobiliary name. The royal family had four—five including their nobiliary name.

That was the reason the kingdom’s nobles scoffed at Jircniv Rune Farlord El Nix, who had only four names, claiming he was not royalty, but would they behave as foolishly when they encountered someone with a name that sounded assumed or unofficial?

Zanac wanted to believe that his worry was unnecessary, but he couldn’t rule it out completely.

After all, many nobles had died on the battlefield. Many houses lost their leader and retainers, so for many families, the next in line to rule was the spare of the spare.

Spares of spares. People he had few hopes for had managed to ascend to the highest ranks of nobility. No elegance, no knowledge—because they hadn’t been given that kind of education.

Usually, the upper members of the factions would advise those sorts of people, but as one might expect, due to the war, no one had the wherewithal. As a result, buffoons had been thrown into those roles, allowing more buffoons to meet with one another, and buffoon factions were born.

Overall, the quality of the kingdom’s nobles dropped precipitously. Under those circumstances, would they be able to welcome a woman named Albedo with proper manners?

“…If you’ll excuse me, by what name should we call you, Lady Albedo?”

It was a rather forced question.

Really, he wanted to ask,
Lady Albedo, what is your title? That is to say, what is your position within the Nation of Darkness?
but he was worried someone would say,
You don’t even know the position of the representative from the country next door?

Still, this was the Nation of Darkness’s fault. It hadn’t released any information about what sort of people were in command. It had been several months since the country was formed. They had mainly been working domestically, and this appeared to be their first active effort in diplomacy.

All Zanac knew about Albedo was what he had just been told—that she was the leader of the delegation and the right hand of their king.

The empire must know, but…it’s not sharing anything. Well, they must hate us an awful lot if they asked him to use that kind of magic.

Albedo seemed to sense his uncertainty and replied, “I would hate to seem conceited, but my position is captain of both the floor and domain guardians.”

“Ohhh, I see.”

He said he saw, but he had no idea what sort of captain that was. Or rather, he didn’t know what she meant by “floor.”

As if sensing the perplexity he attempted to hide, Albedo continued explaining, “Hmm, or perhaps I should say that I am the captain of the guardians, second-in-command to Lord Ainz—ahem, His Majesty, King Gown of Darkness.”

“Ahhh, is that so?”

Well, she must at least have a relationship close enough to call him Ainz. Is she a duchess? Marquess? This is something I’ll have to remember to explain to everyone. Still, what’s a captain…of guardians?

“Very well, Lady Albedo. First, allow me to show you to the palace. We’re thinking of offering you a residence for honorable visitors in the castle compound during your stay in the kingdom. Please forgive my elderly father—Ramposa III—for only being able to meet you at the castle gate.”

“I don’t mind.”

Her smile didn’t so much as twitch.

In an ordinary relationship, she would probably thank him. Her attitude conveyed the hierarchy between them.

Sweat oozed from Zanac’s back—because he realized it would be hard to build amicable relations.

“…Also, normally we would ring celebratory bells, but because of a tragedy due to an unfortunate difference in opinion with another country, we’re unable to do so. Please forgive us. We also haven’t told the people that you’re coming, so I hope to have your understanding on that point as well.”

“Of course. That’s fine.”

He couldn’t imagine how the people would react if they heard a representative from the Nation of Darkness was here, so he was happy to hear her reply.

I suppose I owe her one.

The visiting party didn’t seem at all concerned that they might get run down by an angry mob. Not only the Death Cavalier but likely every member of their procession had been selected from the strongest that could be fielded in the Nation of Darkness. Zanac would believe it if someone told him that each of them was equal to Gazef Stronoff.

“Now then, may I ask you some questions?”

“Yes, I’ll answer any questions I can.”

“First, could you tell me what the plan is after we arrive at the palace?”

“Certainly. Tonight, the royal family is planning a banquet for you at the palace. Tomorrow you’ll go to the theater, and in the evening, there will be a cocktail party with kingdom nobles. The next day the palace orchestra will give a concert—and after that, we’ve reserved some time for diplomatic negotiations.”

“I see… Do you think it would be possible to add some sightseeing around the capital?”

“Of course. We have a group of elite knights ready to escort you.” They were to protect her, yes, but also to keep an eye on her and act as a barricade. “Is there something in particular that interests you?”

It would be necessary to close off the area that day to make sure none of the people came anywhere near.

“No…not really. I’m not familiar with the sights of the capital, so it would be wonderful if you would pick a place.”

“Understood. Then I’ll make the arrangements.”

Albedo nodded with a smile.

3

Phillip, for over a month now, had been thinking he was one of the luckiest men in the kingdom.

Personally, he felt he was the luckiest, but modesty is a virtue. And it was possible that there were nobles luckier than him, so he decided the smart thing to do was to leave it at that.

A noble, huh…?

The corners of his mouth wanted to relax into a smile, but Phillip tensed his expression and smoothed the wrinkles out of his clothes. It was his second time participating in a party like this, but as one might expect, given it was being held by the royal family, it was so much more splendid than the other one; the two were incomparable.

The people participating in this one, too, wore superb, gorgeous clothes. He wondered what a single outfit like that cost.

Phillip looked down at his own lackluster garments and felt just slightly irritated.

Yes, the clothes the higher-ranking nobles wore were fabulous.

A well-dressed noblewoman was smiling at him, but was she merely scoffing at the shabbiness of his attire? He had no reason to think that, but he did anyhow. Looking around, he began to feel like all the people in attendance were laughing at him.

This is all because I don’t have any money.

If his lands were more prosperous, he would have been able to dress better. But Phillip’s domain wasn’t very wealthy. The clothes he was wearing were hand-me-downs from his brother that he had a tailor do a rush job on. Hence the slight tightness in the shoulders.

The reason we don’t have money is because the ones in charge up until now have been incompetent. I’ll make sure to do things right.

Phillip was the third son of a certain noble.

This went for peasant families as well, but life as the third son wasn’t a very desirable existence. No matter how affluent a family, if it continued to divide up its resources, it lost power. That was why for peasants and nobles alike, the usual practice was for the first son to inherit everything.

An affluent noble family might be able to give a third son financial assistance. A noble family with connections might even be able to have him adopted somewhere. But that wasn’t the case with Phillip’s family.

As the eldest son approached adulthood—that is, by the time his risk of dying of disease had decreased—Phillip was basically useless. He would either be given a little money and driven out of the household or be given a shabby home and forced to work like a tenant farmer. Those should have been the only two options awaiting him in life. But instead he was making his debut in glittering high society.

That’s why Phillip was lucky.

His first stroke of luck was probably when brother number two got sick and died.

Once brother number one made it to adulthood, brother number two wasn’t worth much anyhow, and since the domain didn’t have any money, they didn’t have a way to call on a priest. They had treated him with herbs, but he never recovered.

That was how Phillip had been promoted to backup. His worth climbed from farmer to about butler level.

That much luck wasn’t so rare.

The reason Phillip felt he was one of the luckiest guys in the kingdom was that he got even luckier than that.

It happened a few years after he reached adulthood. Just as his elder brother was about to inherit the domain from their father, the war with the empire happened. In a normal year, it would have ended in a face-off. In a sense, it was the perfect sort of “safe” war for his brother to earn decorations in, and that’s why he went.

But he didn’t come back.

He had gotten caught in the King of Darkness’s spell and died along with twenty farmers he had taken with him as levies.

Phillip would never forget how thrilled he was to get that report—the joy of learning he was no longer a spare.

The only somewhat upsetting part was that the body never made it back, so they lost the full plate armor that had been passed down through their family for generations. But when Phillip stepped back to think about it, that wasn’t so important. All he had to do was make an even more splendid suit of armor with money from the domain. The far more major thing was that he was now in position to inherit the household land, which was something he never thought would be possible.

And the timing was perfect.

If his brother had died after inheriting, Phillip would be in charge only until his brother’s child came of age. Since he had died without inheriting, Phillip was sure to receive control.

It was almost as if the King of Darkness had done it for his sake.

For that reason, although Phillip had never even seen the foreign king, he felt close to him. If possible, he wanted to express his gratitude to the Nation of Darkness representative.

No—

Right. I have to use this good fortune. I’m lucky. I can’t let this chance go to waste.

The smoldering flames inside him blazed up.

Up until now, he had watched the things his father and brother had been doing, thinking how foolish they were.
Why don’t you do it more like this? It would be more profitable if you did things this way.
But he had never said a word—because he knew that even if he said something, none of the profit would come his way. That went for the credit of turning the domain profitable, too. He had been saving up his ideas for managing the land for a long time.

I’ll show the neighboring lords that I’m the one fit to rule this domain. I’ll show Father how wrong he was in thinking to have my brother succeed him. I’ll sell fine wheat and vegetables to the merchants—or wait, should I? If I drew attention like that, would someone steal my landmark idea? But if I don’t sell them, I won’t make money. I need a tight-lipped merchant—someone I can trust. Not that guy…

Recalling the face of the government purveyor, Phillip scowled.

Even though he was delighted about his new situation, the offense at the memory of that man won out.

Always looking down on me! For now, I’m putting up with it, but I’m definitely going to find a brilliant merchant in the capital and get rid of him. I’m already making the right connections!

Phillip praised himself for beginning to network despite having been in the capital only a matter of weeks, which helped dispel his displeasure.

Yes, I’m great. I’m already building a big pipeline. I’m absolutely going to make the domain rich and make a fortune. All the idiots looking down on me will learn just who they were ridiculing!

As he was imagining the shining future that would most certainly come, a man’s voice echoed throughout the hall.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to introduce the head of the delegation from the Nation of Darkness, the honorable Albedo!”

The orchestra that had been playing quietly paused, and the voices of the people chatting faded.

There was a ceremonial guard by the door who seemed to have just announced the guest of honor at this royal cocktail party.

“Albedo is said to be the right hand of the King of Darkness; serves as the captain of the guardians, which is equivalent to prime minister; and is attending alone this evening.”

Phillip heard a nearby woman murmur, “Oh my, alone?”

The wealthy-looking noble standing next to the woman reproved her with an “Oh, stop.”

Phillip’s expression was puzzled.
I think it’s fine to come alone. But I’m surprised they sent someone of such high rank to represent them. Is the Nation of Darkness that interested in us here?

Wondering what sort of man it would be, he turned his attention to the door next to the guard.

“And now, may I present the leader of the delegation, the honorable Albedo!”

The door opened and the room fell silent.

Standing there was a woman who truly appeared to be a goddess. Her regular features were more beautiful than those of any farm girl Phillip had ever seen, any prostitute he had visited since coming to the capital, or anyone else he had ever met for that matter. Certainly, the princess he had seen earlier was beautiful, but his personal tastes put this woman above her.

Her clothing was also gorgeous: a silver dress, golden hair ornaments, and a shift over the lower half of her dress that seemed like black wings. The way the magic light reflected in the air made it seem like she was glowing.

Phillip took a sidelong glance at the woman who had spoken earlier. She stood there in shock with an oafish look on her face.

Wow, I guess even the guest of an admirable noble makes faces like that. She looks like any old farm girl.

Phillip felt triumph welling up in his breast. It was because the representative from the country he felt some sort of affinity with was superior.

“Welcome, Lady Albedo.” Ramposa III stood and greeted her.

“Thank you for having me, Your Majesty.”

Phillip could tell from her profile that she was beaming.
There simply aren’t words that do her beauty justice…

“I’ve gotten old, so my apologies, but I’ll be using a chair. Now then, nobles of the kingdom. The guest of honor has arrived. Enjoy this evening. I hope you will as well, Lady Albedo.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.” She wore a broad smile.

When he glanced around, he noticed that the noblewomen were saying incomprehensible rubbish like, “She’s not even bowing.” He put the nonsense of those vacuous women out of his mind and followed the peerless beauty with his eyes.

He wanted to burn the sight of her chatting intimately with Princess Renner onto the insides of his eyelids.

It would be amazing if I could make her mine…

Of course, he knew that would be difficult. But it didn’t strike him as necessarily unthinkable.

Once I make my domain rich, I’m sure there will be nobles trying to give me their daughters. And when it grows richer, I’m sure even higher-class women will come for me. It’s not impossible that the princess or even that representative would want me.

Phillip felt the heat in his loins creeping up.

The higher-ranking nobles even have mistresses, apparently… Being with two women that beautiful at once would be just amazing.

Albedo and Renner… He looked back and forth between them.

His fantasy nearly ran away with itself, and he abruptly went to go get a drink. He couldn’t very well get a bulge in his crotch here. The cold drink sliding down his throat brought him back to his senses.

I wonder how they made this ice. It must be magic, but…

About the only people who could use magic in Phillip’s domain were the priests. They could heal illnesses and wounds, but they charged for it. Did it cost a similar amount to get ice made?

Maybe I should tell them that my illnesses and wounds should be healed for free, since they live in my domain. Isn’t it strange for a resident of a domain to be taking money from their lord?

Phillip made a mental note that this would be one of his new measures to do with priests.

Thinking about what he should work on first, he could hardly wait to return to his domain and get started. Each of his brilliant ideas would produce golden gleams.

Hmm?

When he looked back at Albedo, she was standing alone.

There were nobles standing near her, but they didn’t seem to know how to break the ice.

The Nation of Darkness, huh…? What’s going to happen to the Re-Estize Kingdom?

What did he care what happened to the kingdom? He was concerned about his own domain.

In that case…

Phillip’s thought gave him chills.

Hey, don’t think such dangerous thoughts. But…I guess it wouldn’t be a bad move…? I’m just surprised I even thought of it…

He could see Albedo’s lonely-looking profile.

Third is no good. Second is pointless. It won’t mean anything unless I’m the first…

The representative from the Nation of Darkness looked like she wasn’t quite sure what to do with herself, since no one was going over to talk with her. Phillip had read a book that said women weren’t great at handling that sort of situation.

I need to get in there. There aren’t any returns if you wager nothing. Forcing a change in the situation is what gives you the chance to rise up the ranks. I’m a lucky man; I need to take advantage of it.

Phillip’s family had belonged to a certain faction for years and years, but counting up from the bottom of the hierarchy was the fastest way to find their house’s name, and they didn’t really seem to be getting any benefits from being in that faction.

Phillip remembered something he had been told recently. It was a skinny lady who had said, “Why not just make your own faction?”

He wasn’t sure what to do with the rest of his drink, but having steeled his resolve, he drained it.

It was different from the watered-down drinks he had at home and blazed down his throat and into his stomach. As if propelled by the heat in his belly, he stepped forward.

“Lady Albedo, may I have a moment?”

When he spoke, she turned to him with a smile.

His face was flushed but not from the alcohol.

“Oh, nice to meet you…” She furrowed her brow slightly as if thinking, and Phillip knew immediately what she was waiting for.

“My name is Phillip.”

“Huh? Oh, Sir Phillip—I mean, Lord Phillip. It’s an honor to meet you.”

“The honor is mine, Lady Albedo. I’m delighted to make your acquaintance.”

Phillip sensed the atmosphere change around them.

When he glanced around, he noticed even the upper-class nobles were surprised.

Feeling all eye and ears in this royal cocktail party on him was sheer ecstasy.

I’m…I’m the center of attention!

He had been treated so coldly, but now the kingdom nobles, the most important people in the country, were paying attention to him. The thought of it made him unbelievably excited.

Yeah! I’m Phillip! Just watch! I’ll be the most important man in the kingdom!

Phillip worked his brain furiously and made the biggest gamble of his life—to ask Albedo to an upcoming ball.

“You idiot!”

This rained on Phillip’s parade, but at the same time, it fanned his smoldering embers into a blaze. The fuel he’d been stockpiling all his life burst into flames.

Phillip cast an insulting look on the conspicuously graying man in front of him.

“I didn’t send you so you could go pulling something like that! You utter fool!”

Phillip had told his father what happened at the palace during the party. Now he sighed.

“There’s no way we would be invited to a royal cocktail party! The reason I worked so hard to arrange an invitation was to create a chance to thank the count—and to introduce you!”

Nobles from various factions gathered at royal cocktail parties. And in their faction, a change of lord was a low-priority reason to attend. They didn’t press that angle, and Phillip must have been approved on somewhat hazy grounds. And once he was approved, it was difficult for anyone to complain afterward.

In effect, Phillip’s father didn’t have faith in his abilities. He must have thought if he introduced him to the faction members in the usual way, there would have been some kind of trouble.

Understanding all that, Phillip desperately suppressed his discontent and put on a fake smile.

“Now, now, Father, please don’t get so worked up. I’m going to make sure my house—”

“What do you mean, ‘my house’?! What you’ve done flies in the face of all common sense!”

Flies in the face of common sense?
Phillip snapped internally.
I simply made the first move because all the others were spineless cowards!

Do you intend to forever yield to those fools and chickens and content yourself with this miserable standing?

“Father! I’d like you to please think for a moment! Our domain may be off the main road, but we’re still between the capital and the Nation of Darkness. It’s not hard to imagine that if the Re-Estize Kingdom and the Nation of Darkness went to war that we would be caught up in the chaos of the battle; therefore, we should make friendly ties with the Nation of Darkness.”

“Y-you idiot!” his father shouted with a face even redder than before. “Those wretches in the Nation of Darkness are the ones who killed your brother! You’re saying you want to join forces with them?! Isn’t that treason?!”

What about it?
thought Phillip.

As long as the Nation of Darkness was stronger, it wasn’t an issue to betray the kingdom. They could be vassals of the Nation of Darkness. What was wrong with the weaker adhering themselves to the stronger? Who could blame him?

“What are you thinking?!”

He was disgusted by his father’s foolishness.

Saying something this obvious was absurd, but apparently it had to be said. “That’s simple, Father. It’s to protect m—” He had been about to say
my
. In the near future, it would be his, but it wasn’t completely yet. “Our domain. To protect our vassals. The Nation of Darkness is far stronger than us—stronger than the kingdom. Don’t you think it makes sense that they might attack in the near future? I want to have connections ready for when that time comes.”

“Ngh! What do you mean, ‘connections’? What will the neighboring lords think if we do that?”

“In this day and age, no one will blame us.”

In Phillip’s domain, many had died in that war. The situation must have been the same for the neighboring domains. That meant that no one had spare energy to get annoyed with them.

“There’s really nothing else on your mind?”

“Huh?” Phillip asked, unable to determine the motive of his father’s question.

“You’re thinking too shallowly—convinced you’ve accomplished something by having a daydream. You—”

“—That’s enough.” The man who had been standing silently behind his father up until then spoke.

It was the butler who had served his father for many years. He was the stony-faced type, and Phillip hated him. He was one of the people he was going to get rid of once his rule over the domain was secure.

At the butler’s comment, Phillip’s father worked to steady his breath. The red in his face drained away, and his complexion went back to its usual unhealthy look.

“I need to ask you…” He panted. “Phillip. Are you sure it won’t antagonize any nearby lords? That would be even worse…”

“I don’t think so.”

His father’s shoulders slumped. That attitude made him irritated and anxious.

Am I forgetting something?
But he couldn’t think of anything.

“Many young people died on the Katze Plain. All sorts of problems will crop up in the next few years, so we need to forge cooperative relations with neighboring nobles now. We’ll have to have one domain growing food, another weaving cloth, and so on. None of us has enough land to produce everything ourselves. Neither do we have money to spare. Now who would want to cooperate with a house that had dealings with the Nation of Darkness?”

The thoughts that came to Phillip as he listened were enough to create a slick of sweat down his back. His father was right.

“And you know, don’t you, that our domain doesn’t produce anything special that the other domains absolutely need? So even if we were left out of any cooperative alliance, it would be no skin off their backs.”

Phillip frantically worked his brain.
I’m smart. I can refute anything this old fool says.

“That’s exactly why we should go with the Nation of Darkness.”

His father gestured for him to continue.

“If we align with them, we can get them to support us.”

“…Then let me ask you this. If you were someone from the Nation of Darkness—no, say you were the king of some country, and a village from an enemy nation asked you to send them food, would you?”

“Of course. I would definitely send it.”

“Why?”

“Isn’t it obvious? It proves that I’m a benevolent lord.”

“And besides that?”

“Nothing else in particular, I guess.”

His father had his mouth slightly ajar. Was he impressed? But the reaction was a little strange if that was the case. But he did think that even the Nation of Darkness would want to be known as a benevolent nation. Especially since it was ruling the former Re-Estize Kingdom area of E-Rantel. He was sure the nation would want to put on a friendly face for them.

“I see. Is that what you think? I would probably support them, too—in order to have something to attack that country over. I would wage a war to liberate the village suffering under kingdom rule.”

“Ridiculous. That would just be letting your imagination get the better of you. Besides, that reasoning won’t fly anyhow.”

“Oh, you don’t think so?”

“In the first place, if what you said was true, wouldn’t that be even more reason to strengthen our ties with the Nation of Darkness?”

“You—” His father looked frustrated. “Have you no pride as a noble of the kingdom?”

“Sure I do. But not having that pride would still be better than being destroyed.”

“This is the king who savaged your brother and many other kingdom subjects with that horrifying magic spell. The king those
things
reverently hold aloft…”

“It’s war, Father. Does it really matter if you die by the sword or by magic?”

“…Why do you have so much faith in the King of Darkness?”

It wasn’t as if he had faith in him. It was true he felt an affinity. But more importantly, the king was a pawn for them to create value as well as for him to enrich his own position.

A pawn! That’s right! To me, this king who everyone in the kingdom fears is a mere pawn!

He envisioned himself playing a huge—nation-scale—board game and grew excited.

Still, Father’s concerns are valid. But not terribly serious, considering how simply I refuted them… Still, perhaps I should tell Lady Albedo next time I see her…

“You have nothing left to say. Did you thank the count at the party? For recognizing you as the next lord of the domain?”

This was the thing that made the least sense to Phillip.

Why should he have to bow his head to someone he’d never met just because the guy was the head of the faction?

Choosing the next lord of the domain was within the realm of each domain’s autonomy. The count had nothing to do with it. If the man had recommended him over his two brothers to inherit the domain, he would of course have thanked him, but that wasn’t how it had happened. Phillip’s current position was entirely due to luck.

In other words, there was no reason to lower his head.

That was why he hadn’t paid his respects. But he figured his father would get upset again if he said that. This was a lie to protect his ailing old man.

“Of course.”

“I see. That’s good. Then things might still work out. We should be able to ask him for assistance if necessary.”

Just as Phillip was feeling relieved, sensing the conversation might be over, the butler chimed in from behind.

“I still have a question. The first issue you brought up, Master Phillip, hasn’t been resolved. You said you invited the representative from the Nation of Darkness to the ball we’re holding. What are your plans?”

“Right, Phillip! What were you thinking? We don’t have anywhere to hold a ball!”

Landholders from the country kept manors in the capital.

They were for residing in while they visited the capital and were consequently on the small side.

Of course, they weren’t small like a commoner’s hut. They used them only a few times a year, but in order to demonstrate their power as nobles, they needed a place large enough to accommodate the entourage accompanying them from their domain as well. Still, though the house was relatively big, it wasn’t built for holding balls.

But that problem was already solved.

“It’s all right. We can’t do it here, but I have a place we can borrow.”

“Ooh, is it the count’s?” His father smiled faintly as he asked, but Phillip shook his head.

“No. The house of an acquaintance I met in the capital. The lady of the house will let us borrow it. I saw her before I came back, and she said it would be no problem.”

“For how much?”

The butler’s question made him sigh in his head.

That’s the first thing you ask?

“For free.”

“Free…? Really?”

“Really.”

Phillip remembered what the woman had told him:
You seem to have a bright future, so I’ll invest in you if you like. You can just pay me back double later.

“That sounds a little too convenient… Are you sure she’s not trying to swindle you?”

That irritated Phillip, but he knew how much his father trusted the butler, so he couldn’t go flinging insults. “I made a debt, but I arranged to pay it back at the same time. It’s not a problem.”

“…This means you have a venue, but what about the invitations? Are you going to ask the count to arrange them?”

What are you talking about?
Phillip groaned in his head.
The whole point is to hold the ball to build up my name. Why should I have to give away the best job after doing all this prep work?

Is this how a slave thinks? How sad… I don’t want to end up like that.

“That’s okay. I asked the lady lending me the venue, and she’ll take care of it. Naturally, I’ll select the guests.”

“…It’s rude to not include the count. It’s not too late to ask him for help. Do you even know nobles to invite for polite company in the first place?”

“To an extent, but I also have a special guest planned. The lady mentioned him to me.”

“Are you”—suspicion appeared in his father’s eyes—“sure you’re not being manipulated by this woman?”

“Father! That’s awfully offensive no matter how you look at it! I planned this, and I’m carrying it out! It’s true that I’m getting some help. But it’s because she heard my idea and thought it had merit—she thought it would go well—and that’s why she’s funding it! Why are you being this way? I’m the next head of the domain, so shouldn’t you be supporting me one hundred percent?”

It was true, too. She had said, “If you’ll let a few nobles I’m close with attend, I’ll help you.” He asked for her assistance because she was clearly requesting benefits for herself as well. He wasn’t being manipulated at all.

She was different from people like the count his father was bound to, who took all the profit for themselves.

Phillip wanted to tell his father,
You’re the one being manipulated.

“…Sorry, but could you tell me her name?”

Phillip contained his anger. He was talking to someone who still had a slave mentality. The right thing to do was generously forgive him.

“Her name is Hilma Shugneus. Have you ever heard of her?”

“No, have you?”

The butler also shook his head. Phillip was satisfied to know of her before his father, who had lived in noble society a long time.

“I’d like to ask her about involving the count. There could be trouble if we go to him over her head. Is there anything else, Father?”

His father looked utterly exhausted and did not reply.

Phillip still had some complaints, but his project was underway. All that was left was to invite Lady Albedo of the Nation of Darkness and come up with a plan to solidify his standing with her.

4

Before Phillip’s eyes was a splendid ballroom. It was no less grand than the royal ballroom—maybe it was even grander.

He was bursting with the desire to brag to someone. It was true that he had left the decorating up to Hilma. But she had said to him, “Is a standard ballroom good enough, or would you like something unparalleled? If the latter, the debt will be sizable.” Phillip didn’t hesitate to choose the latter.

In other words, Phillip had put himself in debt in order to arrange this space—that is, it was due to his efforts. And it was filled with nobles whom he had gathered.

It was perfect. Which was why there was only one thing that bothered him.

He had decided where to send invitations—though he’d borrowed some wisdom—and they were sealed with the crest of his house. And more than anything, everyone had come to meet the representative from the Nation of Darkness. Phillip was the one who had invited her.

In other words, he was the host and organizer, so the attendees should have been thanking
him
with bowed heads. They should have expressed their gratitude for being invited and praised him for having the courage to invite the representative from the Nation of Darkness.

But what actually happened?

The first person everyone who showed up went to greet was Hilma. Then they finally came to him. And only after she mentioned him. How would things have gone if she hadn’t nudged them?

He was heavily indebted to her, so he had to tolerate the fact that she stood out more than him, but he was nothing but offended by the other nobles. The nobles should have the common sense to know who to greet first.

This is why you’re all so hopeless. Tch. I guess it was a mistake to take Hilma up on her proposal after all?

The nobles he invited were all based on suggestions from Hilma. The ones he selected were people who either had become or were about to become domain heads as a result of the battle with the Nation of Darkness. In other words, they could be said to all be in the same position as him.

The reason he had followed her advice was that he thought there would then be many people who could understand how he felt. He thought that a house where the lord wasn’t changing was much more likely to have a negative opinion of the Nation of Darkness.

But…

They’re all incompetent.

The next guest to arrive right before his eyes also went straight to Hilma.

How rude
, thought Phillip.

The idle idiots really were fools to the bone. That must be why they didn’t know who they were supposed to greet first. He didn’t know what else to think.

…Well, but isn’t that a good thing? Isn’t the whole reason they’re afraid to take the initiative that they’re stupid? If another noble was smarter than me, I’d never get to be head of the new faction. Unfortunately, my house isn’t powerful yet, either.

This was another chance. He would count their blunder of not greeting him first as a debt and get it paid back sometime in the future when he needed it.

As Phillip was counting his eggs before they hatched, Hilma came over.

She was all skin and bones.

She looked sickly, she was so thin, like she must have been suffering a serious illness. If only she had a little meat on her bones, she would be beautiful, but that was already in the past.

“Lord Phillip. It seems like everyone you invited has arrived.”

“Oh?”

In other words,
everyone
considered him number two.

Phillip thought he was doing a fine job of concealing that his inferiority complex was triggered, but Hilma seemed to notice it anyway.

“Hee-hee,” she laughed. “You seem dissatisfied.”

“No, not at all.”

Phillip smiled. He was a noble, after all. He felt he had a knack for making his opinion felt.

“Please don’t lie like that, sir. As your assistant in this endeavor, I’m getting my sips of the sweet nectar, too. We mustn’t hide things from each other.”

There was something humble and fawning about her words.

This.

Phillip’s heart fluttered.

This was how common people were meant to interact with nobles.

It hit him that he was sitting in the position he had aspired to for so long. He felt the displeasure he had been experiencing up until now fade away.

“What is it, Lord Phillip?”

“No…you’re right. I wasn’t mad, just a little anxious.”

“Anxious how? Is something missing? If so, shall I get it ready before the representative arrives?”

“It’s not that.” Phillip cleared his throat pompously as he answered. “The people here just don’t seem very high quality. Even if we form a faction with them, I wonder if we’ll be able to compete with the other factions.”

“I see, so that’s what you’re worried about.” Hilma smiled.

She was too skinny to arouse any desire in him, but her charms were still captivating enough that he felt his throat wanting to swallow hard.

“But isn’t that precisely why you should be the one to lead them, Lord Phillip? Imagine your domain. Are the people who live there clever?”

“No…”

“Isn’t that exactly why someone wise needs to be at the top?”

“Yes, I see. You’re right.”

“I believe that you’ll be a good leader for the faction, Lord Phillip. And I’ll support you as much as I can.”

“To get your sweet nectar?”

“Of course. It will be profitable. I’m sure of that, hence my offer of assistance.” Hilma grinned.

Phillip’s anger had completely vanished.

What Hilma was saying was right.

He was thankful he was lucky enough to have met her.

Not only did she have all the things Phillip didn’t have in the capital—like financial power and connections—she was friendly with him like this; she made it so easy to understand the merits involved and told him exactly what compensation he needed to provide, allowing him to feel comfortable working with her.

“If you stick with me, I’ll make you the wealthiest woman in existence.”

It seemed like her eyes widened slightly. Then she smiled in satisfaction.

“That makes me so happy. I’ve been thinking I’d like a necklace with a big jewel like the noblewomen wear. Work hard, Lord Phillip.”

“Yes, leave it to me. By the way…there’s something I wanted to ask you.”

“All right. Go ahead. What is it?”

“…Why are you so thin? Is something wrong with you?”

He needed her cooperation going forward or the plan wouldn’t work. If her sickness couldn’t be cured by a priest, he would have to find a replacement for her as soon as possible; or maybe she could recommend someone to succeed her.

“No, there’s nothing wrong…”

“I’ve heard the daughters of large families go on diets to lose weight. Is that it?”

Hilma smiled. It was a smile he’d never seen before that made him indescribably anxious.

“No. I just can’t eat solid food. Which means I can only have liquids, and I can’t have too much, so…that’s why. If I do get sick, I’ll have to get some treatment cast on me, so please don’t worry about that.”

The atmosphere reverted abruptly to the way it had been a moment ago.

“I won’t die without sucking up lots of sweet nectar from you.”

“O-okay. I see. That’s fine, then. But you can’t eat solid food? How come?”

He didn’t mean anything particular by the question, but the results of asking it were major. It was like all the emotion drained out of Hilma’s face.

Phillip panicked at the change, which was even more dramatic than the previous one. “Wh-what the—what’s wrong?”

“Ah, oh. Do excuse me. I was just remembering…” She held a hand over her mouth as she said it. She looked awfully pale.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I must have brought up bad memories…”

What sort of trauma did one have to go through to end up incapable of eating solid foods? Now it seemed she was living a luxurious lifestyle, but perhaps there had been a period of her life where she was eating poorly? He wanted to ask, but it was clear to him that he couldn’t.

“Lord Phillip, I think it’s about time to welcome the representative. If you escort her in, everyone’s eyes will be on you. That will convey more clearly than words who the host—who the most powerful person here—is.”

“Ooh! You’re right.”

At the royal cocktail party, she had appeared solo, so he figured that was normal, but apparently that wasn’t the case. He was embarrassed to not have known, so he pretended it had slipped his mind until now.

“I’m sure everyone will be surprised. A bunch of people who failed to greet you will get anxious and panic.”

Phillip felt a sadistic pleasure. There were nobles gathered here who had greater titles and more land than he did. What would the look on their faces be as they stood before him—the unnecessary burden of a child in the family…?

“Right. I shouldn’t keep her waiting. Let’s call her.”

“Then I’ll lead you partway there.”

Hilma called a waiter, and he took Phillip to the room where the representative of the Nation of Darkness, Lady Albedo, was waiting.

He knocked and then opened the door.

The woman inside was simply too gorgeous.

She wore a raven-black dress different from any he had ever seen in the kingdom. Her bare shoulders were a radiant white. Around her neck was a string of large jewels, yet it wasn’t gaudy at all but rather a modest accompaniment to her beauty.

She’s so pretty…

He blushed in spite of himself.

“…Shall we go?”

“Yes, allow me to escort you.”

He took her hand in its black lace glove and helped her to her feet.

Standing next to her, he noticed a pleasant smell. What perfume was it that made his heart so light? He was suddenly seized by the urge to smell more of it even if it meant snorting, but obviously he couldn’t bring himself to do such a thing.

They walked together to the ballroom, but the silence weighed heavily on Phillip. He racked his brain to try to come up with a good topic but only thought of something right as they reached the ballroom’s door.

“The ballroom is full of nobles. They’re all here to meet you, Lady Albedo.”

The choice of topic wasn’t all that sudden, so she replied right away.

“Oh? I’m grateful for your support, Lord Phillip.”

Albedo gave him a familiar smile.

Phillip’s heart pounded.

He didn’t think it could be possible, but did she maybe sort of like him?

In just a little while, he would be the man leading a large faction. The Nation of Darkness may have had an overpowering military, but it still had only one city.

So wasn’t he a fairly good catch, then?

And it just so happened he wasn’t married, either.

“By the way, Lady Albedo, do you have a husband?”

Her eyes went wide. He had seen her gentle smile a few times, but he had never witnessed an expression like this.

Realizing he had made things awkward, he felt slightly ashamed of himself.

“That’s an interesting question, Lord Phillip. It’s a terrible shame, but I don’t. I’m lonely and single.”

“Is that so? With your beauty, I assumed you would be inundated with proposals before you even said a word.”

“Tee-hee. Oddly enough, I’m not. That said, even if I were, I wouldn’t know what to do with them. So I actually feel like things are perfectly fine the way they are now.”

“I see.”

When they reached the door, he put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close.

He heard a strange creak and turned to look for the source of the sound.

“…Is something wrong?” Albedo asked with a smile, and the slight question in his mind slipped away.

“No, nothing at all. Now then, allow me to escort you.”

What could they see?

Hilma was just a little curious how these nobles dressed to the nines viewed this ballroom.

First-class cuisine, first-class waitstaff, first-class furnishings, first-class music, and third-rate garbage nobles.

Most of the nobles at this ball were freeloading third sons or worse—the spares of the spares—disappointing and headache inducing for all sorts of reasons.

One look at their faces was enough to tell.

Many of them, feeling liberated, wore triumphant smiles, and likewise many of them were ablaze with ambition.

To people like that, this ballroom was a place to satisfy their vanity.

But really, this place was a feeding ground.

The kingdom’s noble society had been thrown into confusion.

Even a few months after the battle with the Nation of Darkness, the scars were large and showed no signs of healing. Some factions disbanded while others formed. Noble houses that had been at the top suddenly found themselves on the bottom.

The kingdom’s current chaos was a great chance for the nobles who for whatever reason hadn’t belonged to a faction before. No, it was their last chance. If the factions re-formed, they would be driven into a corner. This place should have been a giant feeding frenzy for them.

They were starving fish trying to get the small fries in their bellies.

Meanwhile, the small fries would probably be eaten in a single bite without even realizing the larger fishes’ aim. Or would they notice it and manage to swim away? Or perhaps there were small-fry nobles who would take a bite out of larger fish and feast.

After observing the ballroom for over an hour, Hilma had determined that there were no first-class nobles here—no one worth working with.

But she didn’t despair. If there were any first-class nobles who could enter this dangerous ballroom unfazed, there was a good chance they were spies.

Though she had rejected them during the invitation phase, Hilma didn’t feel she had managed it perfectly. She was sure a noble from some faction or another had managed to infiltrate.

She considered it amusing.

Her report would have more depth, which would make her more valuable, so it wasn’t a bad deal for her.

Okay, it must be about that time?

It had been an hour and a half since the ball started. It was the appointed time.

Hilma’s true job started now.

I’m scared.

Her arrogant attitude of earlier had vanished as if it had never been there to begin with.

A fear that the gentle word
scared
couldn’t even cover welled up from the pit of her stomach.

The thought that if she displeased them, she would be sent back to that hell made her want to flee at top speed. Of course, if she did that, she would probably be punished in a way that would make even that place seem like heaven.

She had given orders to kill more than once as a member of the Eight Fingers. And she had even given orders to make people suffer before their deaths. But any of her orders seemed downright merciful compared to the treatment she received from that monster.

“Hilma.”

The voice from behind startled her.

When she turned around, it was the most idiotic man in the ballroom.

“Hmm? Is something wrong?”

“No, Lord Phillip. It’s nothing.”

Hilma hid her true feelings beneath a smile. She was annoyed with herself for getting caught off guard by such a piece of trash.

“Lady Albedo wanted to take a ten-minute break, so she was looking for you.”

“She’s been talking with nobles nonstop, so it’s only natural that she would want to rest. Understood. I’ll show her where she can relax.”

“I see. Then maybe I’ll go with you.”

What are you talking about?
Hilma was truly disgusted with him.
Or has he sensed something?

Wary, she kept up her act.

“I think it would be better if you refrained.”

“Why? I’ve been at her side all this time. I don’t think it would be strange for us to go together.”

Now she knew he really didn’t get it.

In other words, he was a moron among morons. He was an imbecile who had none of the manners or sense that a noble should have.

“If a man who is not a woman’s husband accompanies her to a room to rest, that gives everyone an opportunity to gossip.”

“Ohhh, but I was going to come right back after escorting her.”

“Even so. I understand your concern as her host. But as the one providing the venue for the ball, I can take her to the resting area.”

“Yeah…”

He seemed like he wanted to say something, so Hilma waited in silence.

Really, she wanted to tell him to spit it out already, but he was the host. She couldn’t be too rude to him.

“What do you think I would have to do to marry her?”

“Huh?!” His question made her forget her act. “Eh?! What did you just say?!”

“About a way for me to marry Lady Albedo.”

Hilma wanted to scream,
Is this nitwit for real?!
but she reined in the urge. She didn’t think his stupidity was the bottomless kind. According to the information she had gathered, this woman was the right hand of the King of Darkness—essentially the prime minister. A low-level noble from the neighboring country couldn’t possibly have these kinds of designs.

She would have been less surprised if he had asked how to go about marrying Princess Renner.

“I mean, I managed to gather all these nobles together, didn’t I? I think I’m on her level, don’t you?”

Hilma clamped her hands over her throat in spite of herself.

Though she knew none of those
things
would slip down it, the fear and anxiety from the trauma of being shredded up made her do it.

No,
trauma
wasn’t the end of it.

How would
she
feel if she heard this nonsense coming from the mouth of this not-at-all attractive man? If the blowback fell only on Phillip, that was fine, but if any malice was turned on her, it was possible that dark hell awaited her again.

“Su-surely that’s going too far. I’ve heard she’s the prime minister of the Nation of Darkness. I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s the equivalent of a duchess here.”

“But the Nation of Darkness only has one city.”

“Wh-what does that have to do with it?!”

His remark disparaging the Nation of Darkness gave her goose bumps.

Certainly, its territory wasn’t so large, even including the Katze Plain. But wasn’t its military mightier than anyone’s?

No matter how much effort they poured into trade or diplomacy, relationships between nations were decided by brute power disparity. No matter how vast a nation’s territory, once it was defeated, its land would be stolen.

If this idiot couldn’t even figure that out, how could she make him understand?

Hilma’s thoughts went around and around, but she didn’t have an answer. Common sense and stupidity existed at odds with each other.

In the end, she gave him the conclusion.

“It’s impossible. There is no chance of you and Lady Albedo getting married.”

“…We have a pretty good vibe going, though. Didn’t you notice when we entered the ballroom together?”

Hilma was shocked.
Is that what he was thinking up there?

Is he planning on tempting people to his faction by claiming he has the Nation of Darkness’s backing? This guy is an extreme idiot… Give me a break. Don’t provoke her.

She felt something bitter creeping out of her stomach—at the same time, she felt she would like to give this fool a taste of the sensation of those things going down into his.

“…Our chat here has gone on a bit too long. I’ll escort Lady Albedo, so I’d appreciate it if you would stay here and entertain your guests.”

“Ah, when you put it that way, I suppose I have no choice. Take good care of Lady Albedo.”

She didn’t say,
You should have known that without me having to say anything…
, and instead bowed her head slightly. Then she went directly over to Albedo because she was sick of listening to that blockhead.

Albedo was speaking with some nobles. Normally, Hilma would have read the atmosphere and watched for the right moment to say something, but she was tired from interacting with the idiot, so she spoke right away.

“Excuse me, Lady Albedo, I thought perhaps you would like to take a rest.”

“Hmm… Yes, I hate to be rude, but I think I’ll rest for a little while.” Albedo followed her out of the ballroom.

“Phew… Ah, I feel sick.”

Hilma looked over her shoulder at the voice. She wondered what she would do if the lady really did feel unwell.

But when she looked, she saw her wiping at her shoulder with a handkerchief.

Their eyes met.

“That nasty man put his hands on me. There is only one man who is allowed to touch me out of desire for my body… That shit. That brainless shit.”

Her teeth ground audibly. She, who wore that gentle smile at all times, openly expressed her disgust. It must have been that bad.

Hilma wasn’t sure what to do. Was it all right to talk to her now? Or was she preparing to punish her?

“…What’s wrong? Let’s chat.”

“Su-sure…,” Hilma responded, internally terrified. “I understand how you feel, Lady Albedo.”

“Oh. Then…would it be impossible at this point to get rid of that fellow and find a new one?”

“If you wish, Lady Albedo, I could find you a new toy.”

Albedo’s mouth opened, then closed, and that repeated several times.

It must have been an offer tantalizing enough to put her at a loss.

Either way, hell surely awaited, but all she could feel for Phillip was that he would reap what he had sown.

“Phew… Don’t worry. I was merely complaining. He made an impression on a lot of nobles at the royal cocktail party with the extent of his stupidity. In that sense, it would be a shame to trade him out now… If he’s acting that way on purpose, he might be more fun than I thought. But there’s no way.”

Hilma remembered the conversation from earlier, that delusional man saying he wanted to marry Albedo.

How would she react if Hilma told her?

She was far too scared to bring it up—because it was possible it would start a fight.

“He hasn’t done anything, yet he thinks himself special. What an outrageous idiot.”

“Yeah. Eventually we’ll bring him crashing down to earth. This body belongs to Lord Ainz—he needs to be punished for touching it with his filthy hands.”

Then without saying anything else or meeting anyone along their way, Hilma led Albedo to the entrance of a certain room.

Before the door, she wanted to sink to her knees in relief. How stressful it was to accompany her alone—she, the right hand of that king who even ruled over Jaldabaoth. But she would never be permitted to slump like that.

Hilma mobilized every last bit of her physical and mental energy, and at the same time, she promised herself that when this was all over, she would spend an entire day sleeping.

“This way.”

When Hilma opened the door to the room, the men sitting inside all stood at once. They were as bone thin as she was.

They were her colleagues.

Five Eight Fingers division chiefs plus their leader for a total of six.

In other words, her most reliable friends in the world. Once they had quarreled, but the thought couldn’t possibly cross their minds anymore. Having learned the connection between Jaldabaoth and the Nation of Darkness, they were all in the same boat. Until this country was swallowed up, until they were liberated, they would have to work together as slaves.

When her friends, with whom she felt even intimate, set eyes on the embodiment of fear that was Albedo, they bowed deeply. Their shoulders shuddered with a terror they couldn’t fully conceal.

Albedo had Hilma close the door, and she took a seat in the highest-quality chair in the room, which had been placed in the most honored position. Neither the men nor Hilma made to sit down, instead standing at attention while waiting for orders.

“All right, I have orders for you. First, I want you to transport all kinds of materials to the Nation of Darkness.”

“Understood. It will be our pleasure to offer them to you.”

The smuggling division chief answered without a moment’s hesitation. How could he possibly hesitate? Now that he had been summoned, all he could do was agree to any and all orders.

The chief of the smuggling division had lost a ton of goods during the Jaldabaoth disturbance, so he didn’t have power over the Merchants Guild any longer, but his position was still secure. That was because when he did business with the nobles fighting the Nation of Darkness, he had done all his deals in cash up front. The merchants who had permitted payment after the fact were all struggling now, so perhaps it was more accurate to say that his reputation was once again on the rise.

“That’s not what I mean. Sell them at the appropriate prices. And with the money you make, buy food to prepare the kingdom from the food shortage that is sure to hit. There’s a lot of food that the kingdom army wasn’t able to move—no, let’s have foodstuffs be handled under a forward contract. Lord Ainz has already begun producing large amounts of food for that purpose.”

Given how many workers they had lost, the future she described was sure to come to pass.

“Understood. We’ll have the merchants get started right away.”

“These are what we want the most. Make sure to have them bring plenty in the first batch.”

He reached out reverently for the bag she’d tossed onto the table.

“Yes, ma’am!”

“And how is the magic item research going?”

A different person answered with zero delay. “My humble apologies!” He bent over so hard, he whacked his head into the table. The sound it made was surprisingly loud.

“We’ve enlisted the help of the Wizards Guild and are investigating as we speak! Please give us a bit more time—or rather, if you don’t mind an in-progress report, I’m happy to give it.”

“Sure, that’s fine. Work as fast as possible. Oh, and another thing. Have you decided on your new members yet? If you have, I need to take them back and baptize them.”

The new members were to fill the empty seats—new division chiefs.

Recalling what “baptism” entailed, Hilma felt nauseous. She desperately tried to keep her expression steady, but her colleagues all had the same look on their faces.

The demonic baptism had broken their spirits and obliterated their will to resist. If any of them had been told they would have to endure it again, they would have burst into sobs like a child.

“Unfortunately, we haven’t decided yet,” their leader said.

It was true, but it was also a lie.

There wasn’t actually any reason to appoint new heads. The chiefs missing were the security division’s and the slave-trafficking division’s. The latter’s deals were mostly done, so there wasn’t much benefit to choosing a new one. As for the former, they weren’t sure if there was any point in having one. Besides…

“The ones you’ve lent us are outstanding, so it might be a good idea to have them as chiefs.”

They were borrowing undead, and all of them were unbelievably strong.

When they heard the Six Arms were dead, a group of mainly former-worker riffraff had gathered. One undead was sent in to put them down and massacred a group that numbered nearly forty without letting a single person escape.

And there was another laughable reason: No one present wanted to make anyone go through what they had. The rulers of the underworld, who put out bounties on people like it was nothing, didn’t wish even a taste of their own despair on anyone else.

“…Okay. If the organization will function properly, then I have no problem with it. Do you have anything to ask of me?”

“I don’t mean to trouble you, but in the mine I’m borrowing, the skeletons you lent me are doing a fantastic job, so I was wondering if I could borrow them a bit longer.”

“Yes, of course. If you’ll pay the fee, I’ll continue lending them to you.”

“Thank you.”

The man who spoke wiped the sweat off his forehead with a handkerchief that was so wet, it had changed color.

The most formidable thing about the Nation of Darkness was that it gave not only whips but carrots.

The strong didn’t simply steal from the weak but wheeled and dealed like capable merchants, following the rules. In fact, as long as they didn’t show any desire to rebel, it was like having an immensely powerful protector—it was incredibly comforting. Of course, when they actually stood in front of that protector like this, they wanted to flee in terror, but still.

“Now then, it goes without saying why I’m here in person. I believe I’ve already said this, but you will cooperate with the Nation of Darkness as we absorb the kingdom. Gain as much influence in the outside world as you can.”

“Understood!”

They all hurriedly bowed their heads.

There was no way they could object to the kingdom being taken over. If those monsters wanted to do something, it would happen sooner or later.

At first, they considered going to the Blue Roses, Drops of Red, and Raven Black for help, but when they learned that the Nation of Darkness was so overwhelmingly mighty that even Jaldabaoth was under its control, they realized there was no hope. Their only choice was to bow their heads and wait for the end.

“Oh, right…”

Hilma and the others’ shoulders twitched.

“There’s one last thing I forgot to say. There’s a magic item I personally want you to search for using your intelligence network. Send regular reports of your results on parchment to Albedo of the Nation of Darkness. I have no idea what it even looks like, but…”

“…What sort of item is it?”

“It’s an item that allows you to control your opponents’ minds.”

“Mind control…like a charm wand?”

“No, I think it’s something much more powerful. What I want you to collect are rumors about legendary items, not anything commonly available. Tell me anything you find out, even the smallest detail. Got it?”

Mind control was a terrifying effect.

They understood right away why she would be wary of it.

“P-Princess!”

A frantic maid entered the room.

She didn’t even knock. It wasn’t praiseworthy behavior, but she must have been just that distressed.

Renner realized immediately what had happened. But in front of the maids, Renner was a naive princess. She responded with a dopey question accompanied by the appropriate expression on her face. “What’s wrong?”

The corners of the maid’s eyes moved slightly.

Perhaps she was inwardly angry—at the princess for being so spacey when she was this visibly upset.

Renner leisurely placed her cup on its saucer.

It was as if the sound spurred the maid to speak. “U-uh, umm…”

“It’s all right. Please take some deep breaths and calm down.”

The maid followed her suggestion and tried to catch her breath.

When Renner saw she had regained some degree of composure, she asked, “What happened? Are the demons here again or something?”

“N-no. The representative from the Nation of Darkness wants to meet you, Princess!”

“That woman?”

“Yes, she’s very beautiful.”

There was only one representative from the Nation of Darkness, so Renner’s question should have come off as strange. She wanted the maid to point that out, like,
Hellooo
, but she was so distraught, she gave a straight answer.

Well, I don’t care
, thought Renner. It was the accumulation of these sorts of things that gave her the reputation she could use. These were all moves made in advance.

Climb was standing by near her, and she heard his armor squeak.

Perhaps he had cocked his head.

The innocent behavior of her puppy dog filled her heart with love.

She guessed that he didn’t understand why the representative had come to see her. He had seen them greet each other. He probably assumed there wasn’t much in it for the Nation of Darkness to talk with the—in the end only decorative—third princess.

Renner smiled kindly in her head.

The saying “The stupider the child, the cuter to the parents” was really true. Or maybe it was more like, “Even pockmarks look like dimples when you’re in love.” Probably both—because if anyone besides Climb had done it, the emotions that rose up in Renner would surely have been different.

She was seized by the urge to gaze endlessly into his twinkling eyes, but she held herself back—until she could coat him in sweet, sweet sugar.

“Why ever has Lady Albedo come to see me?”

Cocking her head was key. She knew from several tests that this annoyed someone who was in a hurry.

And in reality, tiny flames flickered deep in the maid’s eyes.

It was anger. At the same time, Climb’s armor made a faint noise again.

Perhaps he detected the maid’s feelings and had an opinion about them. But the sound quickly ended. He must have gone back to stoically standing at attention.

So cute.

He was a puppy who was unsure whether to step forward and defend his master.

He must have decided that if Renner didn’t notice, not moving was the better course of action. The maid was the daughter of a good noble household. If Climb from who-knew-where made some remark, it would get back to her parents and cause trouble for Renner in the end.

He trusted Renner so much, he must have been shedding tears inwardly. If only his family were more important, then he would never let this happen…

Renner suppressed her desire to look at Climb standing behind her—because that meddlesome maid had opened her mouth.

“I’m afraid to say I don’t know that much—only that she wants to see you.”

“Hmm… Well, Lady Albedo is a woman, so it’s possible there are things she wants to discuss with a woman… Perhaps about makeup?” she asked innocently—or more like brainlessly.

“I don’t know. May I show her in?”

“Of course!” Renner answered happily and then turned to Climb. “Umm, Climb. My apologies, but this is going to be girl talk. Could I get you to leave the room?”

“Understood.”

He was a bit disappointed, but it wasn’t his choice to make. He didn’t need to know all the complicated details as long as she would look at him with those pretty eyes.

When Albedo entered the room, there was only one person present.

Albedo had four objectives in coming to the royal capital.

The first was to transport supplies, the second was to create an excuse to start a war, the third was to make some arrangements regarding a personal goal, and the fourth was to make a deal with the mistress of this room.

No, “deal” wasn’t quite right. It was more like giving her a reward.

Without getting permission, she crossed the room and sat in the chair that was there.

Then she spoke to the young girl who had taken a knee and was bowing.

“Raise your head.”

“All right.”

The girl, Renner, looked up.

“You’ve performed brilliantly.”

“Thank you, Lady Albedo.”

“Oh my…”

Seeing a girl entirely different from the one she had dealt with so far, her curiosity was incredibly piqued.

This was the Renner she had heard about from Demiurge.

Though she had betrayed her family, her blood, and her people, there wasn’t a hint of regret in her expression. She was human but inhuman. Mentally, she could be called a grotesque. Surely she understood good and evil, but understanding them was as far as she took it. She was the type who, unfettered by such concepts, would work toward her objectives unfazed.

“…In praise of your work, I come bearing a gift from Lord Ainz.” She pulled the item he had entrusted to her out of space. It was a small box with multiple seals on it. It would never open unless all the conditions were met.

“It’s…”

Albedo watched like a researcher observing a guinea pig as the girl received it with gratitude.

And the girl was a guinea pig. That was precisely why their interests aligned.

“Thank you. Please extend my gratitude to Lord Ainz Ooal Gown as well.”

“I will. Regarding the other thing you wanted, that goes without saying, right?”

“Of course. Nothing will make me happier than receiving your mercy upon paying the fair price.” She smiled.

It was an adorable smile.

Which was why Albedo asked, “If you open the box, your wish will come true, but are you capable of that?”

What would the members of Nazarick think if they knew Albedo was worried about a human? But once the girl’s wish came true, she would be given a position equivalent to a domain guardian. Albedo wouldn’t be punished for showing a little concern for a future subordinate, would she?

“Yes, Lady Albedo. I’m already preparing.”

“Oh. Then make sure you’re ready by the time we invade.”

“Understood, Your Greatness.”

When the girl bowed her head, Albedo looked behind her.

The thing lurking there appeared and bowed its head as well.

She felt like it might be wise to give this girl more troops, but she held back.

If this girl’s activities were discovered before the Nation of Darkness attacked, there would be no point in bringing her into Nazarick.

In other words, this was a test.

“Then that’s enough formal discussion.” The tone of Albedo’s voice changed. Renner looked confused. “It’s too early to leave. Shall we discuss—chat about something? Have a seat now. Why don’t you tell me about your puppy dog?”

Albedo was met with an ear-to-ear grin.

“It would be my pleasure, Lady Albedo. And if you don’t mind, could I hear about Lord Ainz Ooal Gown, too?”