Chapter Fifty-Seven

  “That’ll be a no from me.” Cenna said and tapped the butt of his spear on the floor, he put one hand on his hip and spread his feet shoulder width apart, it wasn’t lost on him that neither the Queen, nor the guards, nor the demon had undertaken an aggressive posture.

  But his words had an immediate effect on Dominic, who looked up at him, away, and back to him again, “What?!”

  “I said ‘no’. Relax, Dominic, if that one,” Cenna waved a hand toward Ulbert, “wanted to kill you, I could maybe stop one blow, maybe. More likely you’d be dead already and you wouldn’t hear me telling you this now.”

  “You’re one of the heads of state for our ally, do keep your dignity.” The Queen’s mockery was worse in Dominic’s mind, and while he darted his gaze frantically everywhere in search of a threat, he found none, and slowly straightened up.

  His glare however, went nowhere with anyone.

  Ulbert took a step forward, “These are the facts. You tried to kill a hero of the Crown. You tried to kill someone officially dispatched to deal with problems at the border. You tried to kill my escort and my friend. You did kill a number of our soldiers in an unprovoked attack…”

  There wasn’t a moment to react, there was only normal breathing, then Dominic felt himself choking, the world was a blur, then there was blood in his mouth and pain slammed through his back, shoulders, arms, head, legs, and he felt stone tumbling around him and his body go limp, and then he felt himself slam home again, but this time with less force, and into the floor. The ceiling was a blur, and in that time, Cenna had only managed to bring his spear into position and hover it over Dominic’s body.

  But Ulbert stepped away, “The only reason you are alive,” his voice went on unchanged, “is because you are a head of state and have diplomatic immunity.” He then leveled the knife tipped pointer finger toward Cenna, “And you, only defended yourself… and did us a modest service, eliminating some troubling people. Otherwise, neither of you would go home except in boxes.”

  “I would declare war,” Queen Draudillon said matter of factly while Dominic hacked up blood that ran down his cheeks to stain the floor, “but this seems to be entirely your doing. So we send you home with a message.” She leveled her eyes at Cenna, who kept his spear leveled over Dominic’s hacking, coughing, spasming body, “Deliver a blood price of one thousand gold coins for every man you two killed, not including criminal elements, five thousand gold coins for the attempt on Torald, and remove Dominic from his place among the Cardinals, or my country will expand West next.”

  “I’ll deliver your message…” Cenna kept his cool, keeping his spear leveled at Demon Emperor Ulbert, “but what about him?”

  “He will remain as a hostage until the compensation is paid.” The Queen said it as if she were pronouncing a sentence of death.

  “And if they choose not to pay?” Cenna asked, his heart picked up its pace a little, he would have to report all this, and there was no way it would be kept from Zesshi. It was the down side of the trump card, if she couldn’t win, she would immediately switch sides. The only thing that might bind her loyalty was the few friends she cared for and the chance to kill her father, but she would happily bargain for their lives and could kill him on her own, he was sure.

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  “Then you have accurately assessed his worth.” Ulbert said and stared down his nose at the Godkin.

  “Fools…” Dominic coughed up the word mixed with crimson blood, he spat roughly, “There are ways even demon gods can die… fools.” He uttered, and consciousness fled before he fell down onto his back again.

  “You’d best get going.” The Queen said, and Cenna, after one long look at Dominic, accepted that this mission at least, had only one successful end, leaving alive.

  “And someone, confine that. We have a wedding to plan and I’d rather not have it in the way.” Queen Draudillon barked the order, and his chuunibyou heart sang.

  ‘I could really, really get to adore this woman.’ He thought as Cenna left the hall and the limp figure of Dominic Ihre Partouche breathed quietly in the arms of a few servants who quickly began to drag him out of the way. “Now, let me help you with those plans, my dear.” He added out loud, and the day began to look up.

  When Ainz received the message from Ulbert, his elation was sadly brief, the emotional suppressor kicked in and his response was far more moderate than he wished. A moment later, the gate was opened and Ulbert stood before him again. The two embraced briefly, and after explaining everything, Ulbert said, “We intend on marrying sooner rather than later, the same day of my deification, and I wanted to ensure you would attend, bring as many guests as you wish, and of course if you can name anyone who should attend…”

  It was a request for help without requesting help. Ainz readily obliged, there could never be a time when he would refuse to aid his friends. “I can think of a number of people and will provide you a list before you leave. Has Demiurge returned to you yet?” He asked, and Ulbert shook his head.

  “No, though that isn’t a surprise, it’s a long way back, a new treaty will have to be drawn up, and of course I am sure he would wait to see if there is an attempt at betrayal, that sort of thing.” Ulbert waved a dismissive hand, “He’s got time.”

  “I suppose, but come, come, you haven’t gotten to experience Nazarick yet, all our ‘flavor text’ it’s real here.” Ainz emphasized and watched as the goat-headed demon’s eyes grew wide.

  “The bar?” He licked his lips, Ulbert had been underage for alcohol when he began playing the game, but ascended to drinking age before he left. More than once after starting his own job as a salaryman, he’d expressed a wish that the liquor in the bar be as they wrote it to be.

  “Yes. The bar. Everything. Allow me to give you a tour of the home we built together, since it’s been so very long…” Ainz squeezed Ulbert’s shoulder, and the goat-demon ‘felt’ those words.

  “I’m so sorry…” Ulbert said, “Really. I just-”

  “No. Don’t. You chose the world, real responsibilities. I can’t blame you.” Ainz said with a shake of his head, “Besides, you’re here now and that is what matters.”

  His emotional suppressor hit him again, and with that, he guided Ulbert as if it were his first time, out of the office, and through everything. With tall tales of true adventures relived, Ulbert was all but overwhelmed. After Albedo fell in with them, her sweet and loving smile given to her lord and her respectful bow to Ulbert, the stories expanded.

  “...And then Lord Ainz’s genius and his courage saw Shalltear brought back to us.” Albedo’s proud voice was undiminished from first note to last.

  ‘Was it really this big in the game? Was it really so grand… did it really feel like this? Was Cocytus always this big… were Mare and Aura this adorable? Was Shalltear so delicate…?’ He’d seen them all on the battlefield, but this was not the same as that.

  This was them at home, welcoming, and full of life. And in them all, he found echoes of their creators.

  Albedo’s story sounded like another grand adventure, unfortunate as Shalltear’s shame might have been, Ulbert couldn’t help but envy Ainz the chance to experience it.

  “We have yet to find the ones responsible, and Shalltear herself has no memory of the incident, but one day?” Albedo cracked her knuckles and spoke with fury in every syllable. While the little loli lamprey might not have been her favorite, given her aspirations to lie with the Sorcerer King, she was nonetheless a subordinate.

  “It is a dangerous world, even for us, I suppose.” Ulbert acknowledged, “Even Dominic was defiant, insisting there were ways to kill Demon Gods. What a fool.”

  “Yes. This world is full of fools, Lord Ulbert.” She then smiled at him and asked, “Have you heard the story of how Baharuth was subjected yet?”

  “No, but do tell.” Ulbert asked with a laugh while Ainz did his best not to die inside.