Overlord (Light Novel) Chapter 35

Chapter 3: Those Who Pick Up, Those Who Are Picked Up

Part 1

These towers were surrounded by several long and narrow two-story buildings.

After walking a little further, he saw a sturdy gate. The latticed gate yawned open, and on either side of it were several armed guards, stationed near the two-story buildings.

There was a gently sloping wide staircase before him, and a set of doors which opened into a distinguished-looking detached house. Naturally, these doors were open, to welcome visitors.

On the right was a guest lounge that contained a sofa and several other pieces of furniture. There were magic casters conversing within. On the left was a notice board. Several people were studying it in earnest; some wore robes and looked like arcane magic casters, while others seemed to be adventurers.

On either side of the counter stood a pair of skinny wooden dolls, of the kind used for sketching. They were the size of actual humans and they had no facial features — Wood Golems, in other words. Apparently, they were being used as sentries. The fact that they had not posted any human sentries inside must have been pride on the part of the Magician's Guild, the outside sentries notwithstanding.

The young man at the counter noticed Sebas and greeted him with a look. Sebas nodded in return. He was a frequent customer here, so both of them were familiar with each other.

“Yes, I'd like to buy a spell scroll. May I consult the usual list?”

The youth quickly brought a large tome to the counter. He must have gotten it ready when he noticed Sebas approaching.

Sebas brought the book over to himself and paged through it.

However, Sebas' master had given him a magic item that could solve this problem.

A pair of eyeglasses sat within. Its bridge was made of a platinum-like metal, and at a closer look, it seemed to have been inscribed with tiny characters, or some kind of textured pattern. The lenses themselves had been ground out of a crystal that resembled blue ice.

Sebas swiftly yet carefully scanned through the pages, and then he suddenly froze. He looked away from the book, at the girl beside the youth at the counter, and gently asked:

“Ah, it's nothing…”

“I just thought… you looked very handsome.”

Sebas smiled, and the girl's face flushed even redder.

Sebas found that understandable, and then turned his eyes back to the tome. He stopped at a certain page and asked the youth:

“Certainly.”

“[Floating Board] is a 1st-tier spell which creates a translucent floating platform. The size and carrying capacity of the platform varies with the caster's magical power. However, when cast from a scroll, it is limited to a surface of one square meter and can carry a maximum of 50 kilograms. The created board moves behind the caster, and can be a maximum of five meters away from him. Since the [Floating Board] can only follow behind the caster, it cannot be made to move in front of the the caster. Should the caster turn around, the board will slowly move to his back. It is primarily a transportation spell and can commonly be seen during earthworks.”

“Of course.”

“Will one scroll be enough?”

The youth gestured to a man sitting nearby.

After about five minutes, the man who had left returned. In his hands was a roll of parchment.

Sebas looked at the scroll on the counter. It was elegantly made, and looked distinctly different from the paper one could purchase outside. The name of the spell was written in black ink on the outside of the scroll, and after verifying that it was the same as the spell he wanted, he removed his glasses.

“Thank you for your patronage,” the young man bowed politely. “As this is a 1st-tier spell scroll, that will be one gold and ten silver coins.”

That said, “comparatively” was the key word here. One gold and ten silver coins was very expensive for an average person; equivalent to about half a month's wages. However, to Sebas — or rather, his master — it was a trivial expense.

“I have received the correct amount.”

♦ ♦ ♦

“That old man's really handsome!”

Debate broke out among the counter staff — especially the ladies — once Sebas had left the Magician's Guild.

“He must have had experience serving some great noble. I wouldn't be surprised if he was a noble himself, the third son of some minor lord or something.”

Everyone seated at the counter could not help but nod.

“Mm! Me too! Me too! I'd definitely go too!”

“He looks really learned. You think he's a magic caster too?”

The spells Sebas bought had all been recently developed. That implied a broad familiarity with magic. If he had been ordered to buy a scroll, he could have simply asked the counter staff directly, with no need to browse through the catalogue. The fact that Sebas had paged through the tome was a sign that he was making the decisions on what spells to buy.

“And then there's his spectacles… they look expensive.”

“I doubt it, they should just be masterwork glasses, right? Made by the Dwarves, I think.”

“I'd like to see the beautiful girl he came with once,” one of the men muttered. The response from beside them was a wave of disapproval.

“Mm, I felt so sorry for Sebas-san then. She was giving him the old run-around.”

The men did not dare respond after hearing the ladies criticize a fellow female. Sebas' mistress was a ravishing beauty, and she had stolen their hearts in an instant. The ladies beside them had also been handpicked as the face of the Magician's Guild, but comparing them to that woman was like comparing the moon to a turtle crawling around in the mud. The men wanted to tell the ladies not to be so jealous, but it was clear what would happen if they actually spoke those words out loud.

“Alright, enough chitchat.”

♦ ♦ ♦

After leaving the Magician's Guild, Sebas looked to the sky.

He only hesitated for a moment.

“—Shadow Demon.”

“Inform Solution I will be a little late. That is all.”

“Alright,” Sebas muttered, and began moving.

“Then, I shall head over there today.”

It was hard to move through these narrow alleys, where the light of the setting sun was blocked by the tall buildings all around and the footing was atrocious. However, it posed no obstacle to Sebas. He walked on in silence and concealing his presence, as though he had melted into the shadows.

His aimless wanderings had brought him here, and he realised that he had come a long way from his home base. Sebas' instincts had largely grasped his location, and he mentally traced the route from his homebase to this place.

He was not concerned about the safety of Solution, with whom he lived.

“…Should I go back?”

As Sebas forged silently ahead in the darkness, he saw a heavy steel door in front of him — about 15 meters away — suddenly creak to life as it opened, and light leaked out from within. Sebas stopped and watched silently.

There was a thump as a large sack hit the ground outside. Illuminated by the light from inside, Sebas could see that the soft object inside had changed shape from the fall.

Sebas frowned, debating over whether to move ahead or go in another direction. Sticking his nose into this would probably lead to trouble.

“—Let's go.”

Sebas' shoes scraped along the ground, and he soon drew near the sack.

Sebas felt something had caught onto his pants. Looking down, Sebas saw what he had expected.

This was when the sack opened fully, exposing the woman's upper body.

She was a desiccated bag of bones, with hardly any vitality left in her.

“…Could you please let go?”

All Sebas would have to do was move his leg and he would be able to shrug off those fingers, which could not even begin to compare to dried-out twigs. However, he did not. Instead, he continued asking:

“—Oi, old man. Where the fuck did you come from?”

A man appeared from behind the door. His arms and chest bulged with muscle. His scarred face clearly displayed his hostility, and he glared hatefully at Sebas. The lantern he was holding emitted a red light.

The man clicked his tongue with exaggerated deliberation, and then jerked his chin at Sebas.

Seeing that Sebas remained still, the man took a step forward. The door slammed shut behind him with a ponderous thud. The man slowly placed the lantern by his feet with an intimidating swagger.

He worked his shoulders and cracked his neck. Then he slowly raised his right hand and clenched it into a fist. He was clearly not afraid to use violence.

Sebas smiled. Coming from an aged gentleman like Sebas, that dignified smile clearly displayed a matchless calm and compassion. Yet, for some reason, the man stepped back as though a ferocious carnivore had appeared before him.

Shaken by Sebas' smile, the man could not finish the words he was trying to form. He staggered back, without realizing how heavily he was panting.

That seemed to be the signal for Sebas to seize the man by the lapels — and then he easily lifted his body off the ground.

Just going by appearances, there was no chance Sebas could take this man in a fight. Be it in terms of age, musculature, his thick arms, height, mass and the aura of violence around him, the younger man had the advantage.

—No, that was not the case. Perhaps an eyewitness would be able to sense the difference between the two of them. While humans had poor instincts, they could still sense a sufficiently great difference between two parties.

The difference between an absolute superior and an utter inferior.

He finally realised that the man before him was nothing like what his appearance suggested. He also realised that pointless resistance would only serve to anger the monster before him.

As the man began stiffening in fear, that cold voice bored its way into his ears.

“She, she's a worker in our place,” the man replied, his voice off-key from panic.

The man wondered if he had said the wrong thing. However, it was the most correct answer he could have given under the present circumstances. The man's eyes were wide in fear, trembling like those of a frightened little animal.

The man thought for a moment. However—

Sebas' grip intensified, and the man was briefly breathless.

Sebas tightened his grip on the man, making it harder for him to breathe, and the man gave off a queer wail. Sebas was sending a message: “I won't give you time to think — answer now.”

“—I do not like being lied to.”

“Aiiiieee!”

Sebas' grip grew even stronger, and the man's face flushed red as a cry leaked out of his throat. However generous he might have been by discounting the fact that he had put someone into a sack for transport, the man's actions of dumping said sack into an alley did not feel like he was taking a sick person to the temple for treatment. It was just like disposing of rubbish.

The man was having trouble breathing. He thrashed wildly as he realised the mortal danger he was in.

—But of course.

“I advise you to tell the truth.”

The man was unable to breathe, and Sebas narrowed his eyes at the man's crimson face. He let go of the man just before he had passed out.

“G-guwaaargh!”

“W-wait… p-please, wait!”

“The tem— that's right! I was taking her to the temple!”

Sebas had thought that the man would immediately come clean out of fear for his life. However, the man might have been afraid, but he did not look like he was going to talk right away. In other words, the danger of letting that information slip was on par with Sebas' intimidation.

His master had not ordered him to cause trouble. His orders were to blend into society and covertly gather intelligence.

The man gulped and his eyes quivered. Then he frantically tried to cobble an excuse together.

“Then you can come with me.”

The man seemed to have sensed something from Sebas' expression, and he hurriedly continued:

Sebas froze, and frowned for the first time.

While his master had said that he could take overt action when the situation called for it, that was only when he was playing the role of a butler caring for his mistress.

Sebas did not think this brute of a man was very learned, but his voice was filled with confidence. In other words, someone must have taught him a little about the law. That being the case, there might be some factual basis to his declaration.

However, that was a last resort; something he could only do in direct service to his master's goals. He could not raise his hand to strike for a girl he had encountered by chance.

As Sebas hesitated, the man's crude laughter filled him with anger.

For the first time, Sebas' brow knitted in visible frustration as he took in the man's mirthful expression. Perhaps the man had grasped his weakness from that display of his.

“…Do you really think my master could not resolve a matter of this magnitude? Rules exist to be broken by the strong, no?”

“…Why don't you give it a try, then?”

Sebas' bluff had not worked on the man. He must have some kind of powerful backing. Judging that this approach was not effective, Sebas decided to change tack.

“Er… No… this…”

His mask had fallen.

If the man had continued to argue using the law — even if he was only lying — Sebas and his inadequate grasp of the Kingdom's laws would not have had an answer for him. However, the man did not understand the law and was only parroting what he had heard, so he could not see through Sebas' lies.

Sebas turned away from the man and cradled the woman's head.

All he could hear was the sound of faint breathing. No, it was more like the last gasp from a deflated balloon. Did a sound like that even count as breathing?

“Do you want me to rescue you?”

There was still no response.

Given that he knew what sort of living hell she had been through, it was obvious why he was sneering. Otherwise, why would he have thrown her outside, ready for disposal?

Indeed, if one considered her grabbing of Sebas' pants to be good luck, then she would not have any more.

—In her case, her sole piece of good fortune was the fact that Sebas had stepped into this alley, and it was now over. Everything else all rested on how much she wanted to survive.

—Faintly.

“—”

“I do not believe in helping those who can only pray for others to save them. However… if you struggle and strive to live…”

“Do not be afraid. Rest. You are under my protection now.”

The other man could not believe what he had just seen, and so he blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

I didn't hear anything, the man wanted to say, but he was frozen in place.

He did not know when Sebas had stood up, but now his razor-sharp gaze transfixed the man.

Those vicious eyes stopped the man's breathing, as though they possessed the ability to physically crush his heart within his chest.

“Ah, no, ah…”

“Then, I'll be taking her with me.”

“What is it now? Trying to buy more time?”

Sebas had heard that name during his intelligence gathering. They were a criminal organization which ruled the Kingdom from the shadows.

Seeing that the man was trying to cajole him now that the use of force had failed, Sebas glared icily at him and spoke in equally frigid tones:

“Come on, give me a break, man! They'll kill me!”

Sebas had originally thought the man was just trying to buy time for help to arrive, but that ought not to be the case given his attitude. However, he could not think of a reason otherwise.

The man's eyes went wide in shock, and then he hastily answered.

Even Sebas could not muster up his motivation in front of that utterly pathetic attitude, and his killing intent vanished. That said, he still did not intend to give the girl over to the man. That being the case—

“I do not consider money to be more important than life. However… I shall provide in that respect.”

Perhaps killing him really would be safer, but at the same time, letting him flee with all his strength might be able to buy them some time. He had to use that time to treat her and bring her somewhere safe.

In addition, it might cause problems for the people close to her, given that he did not know the circumstances which had led to her present state.

The truth was that he did not understand the stirrings in his heart which had led him to rescue this woman. Just about any other denizen of Nazarick would have ignored her to avoid getting involved in troublesome matters. They would have packed up and left this place.

Sebas decided to ignore that phrase which had inexplicably surfaced in his heart and said:

Sebas took out a pouch. The man looked at it, doubt in his eyes. The sight of such a small pouch was probably not very reassuring.

“Run away with all your strength, understand? Also, I have some questions for you. Do you have time to answer them?”

“I understand. Walk with me, then.”

Part 4

Sebas currently resided in a high-end residential district of the Royal Capital with good security.

They had rented such a large place for a reason, of course; since they were posing as members of a wealthy household from afar, they could not possibly live in a run-down old house. For that reason — and because they did not have any credentials to present or any connections — they had to pay several times more than the going price to the builder's union when leasing the home. In addition, they had to pay in one lump sum, which amounted to quite a large expense.

“Welcome bac—”

“…Sebas-sama, what is that?”

Solution did not reply to that terse answer. However, the air seemed to get heavier around them.

“Well now. Could you start by healing her wounds?”

Solution looked at the girl Sebas was holding. Once she understood, she shook her head and stared at Sebas.

“…Indeed. Silly me, I completely forgot about that…”

“Shall I throw it away, then?”

“…I understand.”

“Could you please perform a health examination on her?

“I understand. Then, I shall immediately…”

The girl meant nothing to Solution, but even so, giving her a checkup at the front door was hardly a good thing.

Solution nodded silently by way of reply.

Solution opened the door for Sebas, who was holding the girl in both hands. The heavy curtains were closed and so the room was dark, but it did not feel stuffy in the least. The door had been opened many times before, so the air inside was fresh, and the interior was spotlessly clean.

He had infused the girl with ki, and performed some basic healing. However, she remained as motionless as a corpse.

Solution carelessly stripped the girl of the cloth which covered her, revealing a bruised and battered body. That ghastly sight should have made for difficult viewing, but Solution's expression was unchanged, and she had a dull, disinterested look in her eyes.

With that, Sebas left the room. Solution did not look like she wanted to call him back as she began her diagnosis.

“How foolish.”

Sebas stroked his beard without thinking about it. Why had he saved that girl? Even he could not explain why.

No, that was not it. Why had he saved her?

His loyalty was genuine. He could confidently say that he would gladly throw his life away in service to the Supreme One.

♦ ♦ ♦

The guild had primarily flourished by PKing. Who would dare believe that Touch Me, of the Original Nine, had founded the group which predated the guild in order to protect the weak? Yet, that was the truth.

♦ ♦ ♦

“Could this be considered a curse…”

“It is wrong to show pity and offer aid to those who do not belong to Ainz Ooal Gown,” Sebas muttered grimly.

Every member of Nazarick — save those who had been programmed otherwise by the 41 Supreme Beings, like the Head Maid, Pestonya S. Wanko — firmly believed that abandoning those who did not belong to Ainz Ooal Gown was the right course of action.

That was not because she was cruel.

Making a decision based on human — in other words, worthless — sentiments was the wrong thing to do.

Just as Sebas was about to bite through his lip, Solution stepped out of the room. Her face was still a blank mask.

“… She is suffering from syphilis and two other sexually-transmitted diseases. Several of her ribs and fingers are broken. The tendons on her right arm and left leg have been severed. Her upper and lower incisors have been pulled out. Her organ function is diminished and she has a fissured anus. There are signs of drug addiction. In addition, there are countless traces of contusions and lacerations. This concludes the basic summary of her condition. Do you require a more detailed explanation?”

“Easily.”

Healing abilities could even help someone who had all their limbs severed. In fact, Sebas could use ki to heal just about any form of physical injury. The truth was that if he had not been worried about emergencies or the truth getting out, he could have healed the old lady's twisted ankle on the spot.

“I'll leave it to you, then.”

“There's no need to go to that trouble. Solution, you have a scroll of healing magic, do you not?”

“Use that, then.”

Indeed. He should have thought of some other way instead. It would be best to heal her wounds and stabilize her first, before curing her addiction and disease afterwards. However, he did not know if he had the time for that. If she was dying because of her addiction or diseases, healing her would be an exercise in futility unless said healing was constantly reapplied.

“Do it.”

“…I understand. I am to restore that female to a pristine condition — in other words, I will revert her body to the state it was before she engaged in those activities. Am I correct?”

“I shall do so at once.”

Nobody here needed to eat and nobody here could cook. Neither did anyone here possess magic items which eliminated the need to eat. Thus, he had to obtain food for her.

Solution paused here and then looked straight at Sebas before continuing.

“…There is no need to trouble Ainz-sama. We will leave the mental symptoms for later.”

How should he deal with her—

Still, was all this really the right thing for him — Sebas Tian, butler of Nazarick — to do?

If only that would allow him to physically expel the worries that had built up within his heart. However, it did not. His heart was pounding and his thoughts were a blur.

But no matter how hard he thought, he could not come to a conclusion. Thus, Sebas decided to stop seeking an answer. Right now, he ought to start by solving the simple problems. It might only be delaying the inevitable, but this was the best that Sebas could come up with at the moment.

Solution changed the shape of her finger. The slender digit lengthened, becoming a syringe-like structure that was several millimeters thick. As a Shoggoth, Solution had always been able to make great alterations to her shape, so altering the thickness of her fingers was child's play.

“Since Sebas-sama has approved it, I might as well take care of this unpleasant business quickly. You would probably prefer it that way, no? Besides, it is not as though you are aware of it, are you?”

That scroll was not the only item Solution had concealed within herself. In addition to scrolls and other expendable magic items, she also contained quite a number of weapons, protectives and other wargear. This was nothing out of the ordinary considering her body could store several human beings.

She was uninterested in her appearance. Only one thought ran through her mind.

This body looked like a walking corpse. It probably would not thrash wildly and delight Solution even if she melted at it with corrosives.

She was familiar with Sebas' personality, since he was the leader of the Pleiades battle maids. He would never permit such a thing. After all, he had not permitted her to capture and eat any humans during their journey, save the ones who had tried to ambush them.

Solution shook her head and dispelled those thoughts.

Solution broke the seal and unfurled the scroll. The spell contained within was called [Heal]. It was a high-end healing magic of the 6th-tier, and it could restore a great deal of health in addition to healing various diseases and other abnormal status conditions.

As an assassin, Solution had levels in several thief-type classes. Thus, she was able to use this scroll of [Heal], which he would not be able to use otherwise.

Solution used a skill to synthesize a sleeping poison cum muscle relaxant, which she injected into the girl.

Middle Fire Month (8th Month) 26th Day 19:37

The cloths were filthy and the hot water was black, indicating the unsanitary conditions that girl had been in.

“Yes. It has all been taken care of, and there were no hiccups. However, there were no clothes for her to wear, so I selected an outfit for her at random. Do you approve?”

“I see… The sleeping agent should have worn off by now… but if you have no further directives, I will be taking my leave.”

Solution nodded by way of response, and slipped past Sebas.

The girl sleeping on the bed had just regained consciousness. She sat up, still drowsy.

Her filthy blonde hair now glowed with a beautiful luster. Her emaciated features had regained their fullness. Her cracked lips were now a healthy pink.

Her age was now plain to see. She looked like she was in her late teens, between 15 to 19, although the shadow on her face from her years in her man-made hell made her seem older than she actually was.

“I trust you are completely recovered. How do you feel?”

No, the truth was, he had not expected her to answer him. That was because he could tell that her blank expression belonged to someone who was distracted and crestfallen.

He had bought the meal from a restaurant, bowl and all.

The girl's face twitched in response to the fragrance.

Seeing that the girl had not yet completely withdrawn into her own world, Sebas placed the wooden bowl and its spoon before the girl.

A third party would probably have started to get frustrated at this point. After a long time had passed, the girl's hands moved slowly; the movements of one afraid of being brutally beaten.

She picked up the wooden spoon, dipped it into the porridge, then brought it to her mouth and wolfed it down.

Her throat worked, and the porridge slid into her belly.

Sebas supported the bowl, shifting it to a place which was easier for her to reach.

If the porridge had not been cooled until it was just right, her frantic feeding frenzy would probably have scalded her tongue. Broth leaked from her mouth and stained the blouse of her pajamas, but she did not care. She was more drinking than eating it.

_{The latest_epi_sodes are on_the ʟɪɢʜᴛɴᴏᴠᴇʟᴡᴏʀʟᴅ.ᴄᴏᴍ website.}

With her humanity restored, her eyelids closed slowly and ponderously.

However, just as her eyes narrowed into a line, they snapped open and she curled up into a frightened ball.

Perhaps even she did not know.

“Your body must need sleep. Don't push yourself and have a good rest. You will not come to any harm as long as you stay here. I guarantee this — when you wake up, you will still be in that bed.”

Her blue pupils were dull and lacked vitality. However, those were not the eyes of a corpse, but a living person.

“Ah…”

“Thank… thank you.”

“It's fine. Since I have rescued you, I will do my best to guarantee your safety.”

Her blue eyes moistened, and then overflowed. The girl opened her mouth and then wept piteously.

She cursed her fate. She resented the fact that it had ever existed. She was filled with hatred that nobody had helped her until now. Her wrath was directed at Sebas as well.

After receiving Sebas' kindness — after being humanely treated, it was as though part of her had broken down under the strain of everything she had endured until now. No, perhaps it might be better to say that after having her humanity restored, she could no longer bear her painful memories.

Sebas watched silently as she went mad.

Sebas leaned forward and hugged her.

Her body stiffened for a moment. Then, as she realised how different this embrace was from the men who sought only to violate her flesh, her body slowly relaxed.

Sebas repeated those words like a mantra, gently patting her on the back, like he was comforting a crying child.

♦ ♦ ♦

“Ah… I'm… sorry…”

Sebas extracted a clean handkerchief from his breast pocket and handed it to her.

“But… lending… me… this… clean…” the girl asked nervously. Sebas reached out to cup her chin, then gently raised her face. She had no idea what had happened, but just as she was freezing up with fear, the handkerchief gently grazed over her eyes — and the trails of her tears.

What circumstances would have caused his master to wipe Shalltear's tears? He could not imagine Shalltear crying. While his mind was occupied with futile guessing, his hands worked to clean the girl's face.

“Come, please use this,” Sebas said as he stuffed the somewhat damp handkerchief into her hands. “It is quite sad when a handkerchief goes unused. Especially when it cannot even dry tears.”

“Alright. Have a good rest. We will discuss the future and other things when you wake up.”

The truth was that her mind was not completely stable, hence her agonized weeping just now. Magic could briefly salve that spiritual suffering, but it could only treat the symptoms and not its cause. Unlike the physical body, the invisible wounds of the spirit could not be so easily healed.

Sebas wanted to let the girl rest, but she hurriedly replied:

Sebas did not know if he should continue speaking to her. However, since she had been the one to initiate conversation, he decided to respond while keeping an eye on her.

The girl hung her head.

You don't have any? But of course, he did not actually say that.

“Alright, then. Can you tell me your name?”

“Ah… I… Tsuare…”

That was the cover story.

“So…tion…san…”

“…?”

Sebas closed his mouth, as if to indicate that was all he would say on the matter. After a brief silence, he spoke once more.

“All… right…”

When he opened the door, he was not surprised to find Solution standing there. She was probably eavesdropping on them, but Sebas did not blame her. Solution did not feel that Sebas would scold her for doing so, so all she did was mask her presence and stand outside the door. Since she had assassin-type class levels, she could have done a better job of hiding if she wanted.

“Sebas-sama. May I ask how you intend to dispose of her?”

Sebas moved from the front of the door, and Solution silently followed behind him.

“…You're referring to Tsuare, I take it. I intend to wait until tomorrow before deciding what to do.”

Solution did not finish that sentence, but she pulled herself together and then spoke again.

Now what exactly could the words “deal with” mean?

“You're right. If she interferes with the orders Ainz-sama has given us, then I shall deal with her without delay.”

“She might have her uses. And since we've picked her up, it would be a shame to just discard her. We need to think of a way to properly utilize her.”

“There should be no problems on that front.”

“No. That's not it. If any problems arise, I will take action. Therefore, I hope you will be able to watch quietly until then. Do you understand, Solution?”

Solution swallowed her rising frustration as she watched Sebas leave.

That said—

All the wealth and resources of Nazarick belonged to Ainz Ooal Gown — in other words, they belonged to the Supreme One. Was it really alright to expend them without permission?

♦ ♦ ♦

Sebas opened the main door. As usual, he had gone to the Adventurer's Guild in the morning and recorded all the requests on the notice board in his notebook before the adventurers could take them.

He passed through the door and entered the house. Several days ago, Solution would have come to greet him. However—

This task was now handed to the soft-spoken girl in the maid outfit whose long skirt covered her legs.

They could have treated her as a guest, but Tsuare refused.

After seeing what her true intentions were, he began to feel uneasy as well.

Of course, Sebas had told Tsuare that he would not abandon her. If he was the sort who could discard someone with nobody else to turn to, he would never have rescued her in the first place. However, he lacked the persuasive power to heal the wounds in Tsuare's heart.

Tsuare nodded.

“It went… well.”

She seemed as gloomy as always and her expression hardly changed, but being able to live as a human being had gradually eased the fear which gripped her, and she could speak much more clearly now.

Sebas walked, and Tsuare walked with him.

“What are we having today?”

“I see. I look forward to that, then. Your food is delicious, Tsuare.”

“You, you are too… kind…”

“Yes. I… will ask you… when I do.”

Tsuare's cooking was hardly a gourmet spread. She made simple, everyday dishes.

A flash of inspiration suddenly struck Sebas.

A look of shock appeared on Tsuare's face, and then she shook her head timidly. Her face had turned pale for a moment and she had broken out in a cold sweat.

Sebas thought, As I expected, but he did not voice it.

She had taken this house to be an absolute defense of sorts, in order to suppress the fear within her. In other words, she had drawn a line to tell herself that this place was different from the outside world, which had hurt her. That was the only way she could function normally.

Sebas understood that it was very cruel to expect Tsuare to walk amongst the masses given her mental condition. He should have spent more time to help her get used to being around others again, but that naturally required time.

He had to continue training Tsuare to give her additional possibilities, in preparation for that day.

“Tsuare, I understand your fears. However, I hope you will relax. I — Sebas — will protect you. I will crush any and all dangers which draw near and ensure you will not be harmed.”

“Tsuare, please step outside with me. If you're afraid, you can close your eyes.”

As Tsuare hesitated, Sebas held her hands tightly. What he said next was terribly unfair to her.

Silence filled the corridor, and time slowly passed them by. In the end, Tsuare's eyes grew moist, and her tender, pink lips parted to reveal her pearly white teeth.

“Please be at ease. Despite my appearance, I am quite strong… Let me put it this way. In all the world there are only 41 people stronger than me… well, and a few others.”

The figure he had chosen made Tsuare think that Sebas was merely cracking a joke to reassure her, and so she smiled. Sebas saw this, and smiled back without saying anything.

Sebas knew Tsuare had some faint semblance of attraction to him. However, Sebas felt that it was more like gratitude to him for saving her from her torment. It was similar to brainwashing, or the trust she placed in someone who was reliable.

Even if Tsuare did feel genuine love for Sebas, he did not feel that he could adequately return it. After all, he had been hiding so many things from her, and their respective circumstances were far removed from each other.

“Solu…san…”

Solution had hardly met with Tsuare before. At the very most she had glanced at her in passing and left without saying a word. Anyone would feel uneasy about being ignored like that, and in Tsuare's case she would probably be terrified.

Sebas smiled, and after finishing his half-joking words, the unease on Tsuare's face lightened somewhat.

“…I… How could I… I'm nothing like… the Mistress…”

Tsuare was pretty, but she was nothing like Solution. However, beauty was in the eye of the beholder.

“What! How could…”

“And I… I'm… filthy…”

“Indeed, that is the case with gems. Unmarked ones are worth more, and they are considered purer.”

“However — people are not gemstones.”

“Tsuare, you seem to consider yourself dirty. But who can judge the purity of a human being? There are clearly defined standards for precious stones… but who will set the standards for a human being's virtue? Is there some common value to surpass? Some public opinion that must be adhered to? Does that mean everyone else's thoughts and opinions can be discarded?”

“Every person has a different definition of beauty. If beauty cannot be determined by one's appearance, then in my opinion, we cannot determine beauty by what people have experienced, but by how they are inside.. I do not know what you have been through and I have only spent a few days with you, but what I know is that the person inside you is the furthest thing from being filthy that I can imagine.”

“…If… you feel I am pure… then hug—”

“You are very beautiful to me.”

“Tsuare, forgive me. The Young Mistress calls and I must answer.”

Sebas left a red-eyed Tsuare bowing behind him and knocked on the door. He then opened it without waiting for an answer. As he closed it, he smiled to Tsuare, who had been spying on him all that time.

“Young Mistress, I have returned.”

Solution, the false mistress of the manor, had a airheaded expression on her face as she lounged on the sofa in the center of the room. However, that was merely an act. That was because Tsuare the outsider was also in the house, so she had to put on the mask of a haughty heiress.

“…She has left, I take it?”

The two of them looked at each others' faces, and Solution spoke in a normal tone.

Solution always asked the same question whenever they met, and Sebas always gave her the same answer.

Under normal circumstances, that would be the end of it. Solution would sigh deliberately, and then drop the matter. However, Solution did not seem inclined to let it go today, and she continued asking:

“There have been no problems until now… Fearing a human and the problems they might make is hardly the attitude which a servant of Ainz-sama ought to have.”

The situation was very bad.

Solution had not made any move to harm Tsuare until now due to being forcibly restrained by Sebas. However, if things remained as they were, it might not endure for long.

“…Sebas-sama. Once that human violates the orders Ainz-sama has set forth—”

Sebas ended the sentence himself without giving Solution a chance to continue speaking. She turned an emotionless look on him, and then nodded to indicate that she understood.

“Of course not, Solution.”

Solution's hushed tone hid emotions so powerful that they made Sebas stop in his tracks.

Sebas fell silent. After a few seconds, he answered:

“…Entoma and the others regularly contact you with [Message] spells every day. Why not bring it up while you are in contact with them? …Or is there something you wish to hide?”

“That would mean… everything you have done is not for your own personal gain… am I right?”

Sebas knew that Solution was deliberately picking at this topic, and he was keenly aware that he was in danger himself.

Naturally, Sebas was one of them.

No, he only thought he understood. Solution's attitude from a few seconds ago had clearly informed him of the full extent of his naivete.

—Sebas smiled.

“…Of course. It was not for personal gain that I did not report this to Ainz-sama.”

“I appreciate that girl's culinary technique.”

It was as though there was a question mark atop Solution's head.

“…Perhaps.”

“I feel that we need a few people around. Besides, would it not be bad if we could not serve a single dish if guests arrived?”

“Indeed.”

“I am interested in Tsuare. I feel that even if she has her doubts about us, she would never make them public. Am I wrong?”

“Indeed.”

This was how Sebas calmly explained himself to the silent Solution.

“…I understand.”

Sebas stopped halfway, because he had heard something like two hard objects colliding.

That disordered noise repeated itself again, and he was certain that it had been deliberately made.

They froze when they realized the sound was coming from the main door's knocker. Nobody had ever knocked on that door ever since they had come to the Royal Capital. They had conducted their business in person and they had never asked anyone to come to the house. That was because they were concerned that others would wonder why such a large house was only occupied by two people.

Sebas kept Solution in the room and walked to the main door, where he lifted the cover of the door's peephole.

The plump man was neatly attired, and he wore well-tailored clothing. He had a weighty badge on his chest which reflected a coppery light. His sweaty red face was also packed with fat and had an oily sheen to it, probably from too many rich meals.

His pale, sallow skin looked like it had never seen the sun before. His eyes were keen and his scrawny face looked like some predator — a corpse-feeding scavenger, in fact. His dark clothes hung loosely about him, and he must certainly have weapons about his person.

Sebas had no idea of who these ragtag bunch of misfits were or what they wanted.

“I am Inspector Stefan Havish,” reported the fat man at the head of the group. His voice was shrill and somewhat off-key.

Stefan ignored Sebas' reaction and continued:

Stefan neatly punctuated his statement by saying, “May I come in, please?”

He thought of many excuses to deny him entry, but chasing him away might lead to greater trouble in future.

That said, what harm would it do to allow several humans into the house? If they intended to resort to violence, Sebas could easily deal with them. Indeed, their being impostors would only suit Sebas' purposes.

“If I may, could I have an audience with the master of the house? While it cannot be helped if the master is not in, we are here to conduct an investigation. Things will go poorly if we return empty-handed.”

“Before that, I would like to ask — who is that man behind you?”

“I'm Succulent. Pleased to meet you.”

His cold smile was like that of a cruel hunter mocking his prey as it stepped into his trap. He must surely have made all the proper arrangements with all the appropriate parties before strutting up to him, bold as brass. That being the case, Stefan was most likely a proper official. They would surely be prepared for any refusals on his part. That being the case, he ought to see what they had in store for him.

“Very well, we'll wait, we'll wait.”

Succulent sneered at him, while Stefan shrugged.

Sebas lowered the cover of the peephole and turned towards Solution's room. Before that, however, he had to tell Tsuare to hide inside the house—

He had the soldiers wait outside, while he brought Stefan and Succulent inside. Both of them were visibly shocked when they saw Solution.

It was clear which of them was more worthy of caution. Sebas bade them take a seat on the sofa opposite Solution.

“Then, what is the matter?”

“A certain establishment reported that someone had taken away one of their workers. At the same time, I heard that the person responsible had paid a great deal of dirty money to another worker. Our country prohibits the trafficking of slaves… doesn't that sound like breaking the law to you?”

“Oh, really?.”

“Sebas will handle all the troublesome bits. Sebas, I'll leave the rest to you.”

“Ooooh, I'm soooo scared. Inform me when I'm about to become a criminal, Sebas.”

“Have fun, everyone.”

Before the door's latch could slide home, they could hear gasps of surprise as the soldiers outside were startled by Solution's good looks.

Sebas took a seat before them with a smile. Stefan shrank back as he saw his smile, but Succulent decided to speak up on his behalf to help retain control of the situation.

“Indeed. We cannot condone the filthy slave trade!”

“For that reason, dear Succulent here has reported this case even at the risk of staining his business' reputation! What a model citizen he is!”

“Thank you, Havish-sama.”

Turning that around, what were the conditions for Sebas' victory?

However—

“He was arrested on suspicion of slave-trading and is in custody now. After questioning him, we managed to learn—”

The man had probably sung like a canary when he was captured. He had most likely bheen squeezed for information useful to them under questioning.

What if he said she was not in the house? What if he said she were dead?

“Still, what led the two of you to me? What proof do you have?”

“It was the scroll.”

—The scroll he had bought in the Magician's Guild.

Still, that alone would not prove that Tsuare was here. He could also insist that there was someone else who happened to look like him.

That being the case all he could do was come clean. Sebas decided to leave his fate to the gods.

“In other words, you admit to buying her.”

“Unfortunately, we cannot allow that. Things would be bad if you were allowed to match up your stories.”

Listen in while we were talking. Sebas wanted to say that, but he shut his mouth.

“…Before we go into that, do you not that think that allowing her to sustain such severe injuries while working is more problematic in the eyes of the nation? Are there not laws against that too?”

“…I doubt they are the same thing.”

“…Just a little?”

Succulent sneered at Sebas' question.

“—Alright, that's enough.”

“My duty is to verify that slave trafficking was going on. Employee welfare is another matter entirely. All I can say is that it has no bearing on the case.”

“…Hm, I'd like to tell you, but there are some difficulties in doing so. Regretfully, sticking one's nose into others' business will only earn you resentment.”

Stefan grinned evilly, as though to say, “I was waiting for you to say that.”

“…Ah, I would like to wait for that, but the business has already filed a case, so I must arrest you and begin investigations. It's out of my hands.”

“Given the situation and the circumstantial evidence, you're clearly guilty, but the plaintiff has said that they're willing to go easy on you. Compensation will be needed to smooth things over, of course, and destroying the documentation related to the slave-trading offense will also require a bit of money.”

“Well now. We'd like you to return our employee, and make up for the loss of income incurred while you were holding on to her.”

“In gold coins… well. Ah, I'll give you a discount. 100 gold coins. Compensation will run you another 300 gold coins, so a total of 400 seems fair, don't you think?”

“Hang, hang on a bit,” Stefan interrupted. “That's not all, Succulent-san.”

“That's right. How could I have forgotten, friend Succulent?”

“…yet?”

“No, it's nothing,” Sebas quietly said as he smiled.

“Destroying the documents costs a third of the compensation fees, so that'll be 100 gold coins. That's a total of 500 gold coins, I believe.”

“How could that be? Listen, mister. When you reach an accord with the other side, that means you didn't buy a slave. In other words, the expenses of buying that slave are written off. Just imagine that you lost the money somewhere.”

“…However, her injuries are not yet fully recovered. If the two of you take her away now, her wounds might reopen. And if she does not receive the proper treatment, she might well lose her life. I believe it would be better for her to stay with me and receive care here. What do you think?”

When he noticed this, Sebas realised the depths of his mistake. He had allowed them to realise how much Tsuare meant to him.

“Ohhh! That makes a lot of sense. If you make a hole, you have to fill it!”

The smile faded off Sebas' face, and it turned impassive.

“…Aren't you afraid of your desires getting you in trouble?”

Stefan's face was bright red as he shouted.

“What do you mean by my desires? All this is to uphold the law passed by the glorious will of Princess Renner! How dare you call it base desire! Show some respect!”

Once Succulent cut in, Stefan calmed down immediately. His anger had faded too soon, a sign that this was merely a scare tactic and not genuine anger.

“But I say, Succulent-san…”

“Very well.”

“Still, I have to thank that slut. To think a piece of trash could actually turn out to be a goose that lays golden eggs.”

Sebas glared at them, as though the door were transparent. There was no particular expression on Sebas' face. He looked as calm as always. However, there was a distinct emotion in his eyes.

—No, the word “anger” was far too mild to describe how he felt.

Succulent's parting shot was honest, flung at him because he was certain that Sebas was at his wits' end and had nowhere to turn — that his victory was assured.

Solution oozed out of the shadows in response to Sebas' voice. She had melded into the shadows with abilities from the assassin-type classes she had taken.

Sebas had only asked as a formality. Naturally, Solution nodded to say, “of course.”

Sebas could not answer that question immediately. As she saw that, Solution glared coldly at him.

“I do not feel that will solve the problem.”

“If I expose a weakness, they will seek to capitalize on it until they suck us dry. That's the kind of people they are. I do not think handing Tsuare to them will solve the problem. More to the point, the real problem is how much they learned while investigating us. We entered the Royal Capital as traders, but if they look too closely, they'll see through it — through our disguise.

“I do not know. I wish to take a walk outside and think.”

***

This was all meaningless.

As Sebas' subordinate, she could not simply ignore his instructions, but she felt that leaving things be would only lead to a worse outcome.

She was hesitating.

In the end, she made up her mind. She raised her left hand and opened it.

She opened the scroll and activated the spell bound within. Once used, the scroll crumbled and fell to the ground as dust, and then even the dust vanished.

“Is that you, Ainz-sama?”

“Yes.”

In addition, they should have considered the greatest benefits for the 41 Supreme Beings in every move they made. However, everything Sebas had done until now could have been said to have violated that precept.

“Sebas-sama may have betrayed us.”

“Wha! …Ah? … No, how could that be… mhm… Do not joke with me, Solution. I forbid you to accuse others without evidence… do you have proof?”

“Yes. Although, it might not quite count as proof…”

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Chapter end