That’s why my guild mates should be fine with it even if I invite Nfirea and the others. They aren’t intruders, but guests.
Ainz asked Demiurge, who seemed to be pondering something, and the two guardians who were already waiting inside the room:
“Guardians, are you ready to visit the bath?”
“My deep apologies, Mare and I thought about going earlier.”
“Is that so, then Cocytus— you are already holding it. Let’s meet before the bath house then. Increment, if anyone comes to my office, let them wait here.”
“Understood.”
Ainz got up and left the room after hearing the answer from the maid. Leaving the minions who wanted to follow behind, Ainz led the way to the bath house that was situated in floor 9 as well. Ainz thought it would be better to chat idly as they walked side by side, but Cocytus’s cautious nature didn’t allow him to do so. Maybe he noticed that Ainz was feeling a bit lonely, Cocytus closed the distance and asked:
“Ainz-sama. Did. The. Number. Of. Eight. Edge. Assassins. In. The. Room. Decrease? Were. They. Sent. Somewhere?”
It might still be related to work, but conversing casually with Cocytus made Ainz feel better. Still, he kept his elation a secret when he spoke.
“They are in the E-Rantel hotel. Narberal is staying there in case some visitors appear. The Eight Edge Assassins are conducting surveillance some distance away.”
“Isn’t. It. Dangerous. For. Narberal. To. Be. Alone?”
“It is, right now is a good chance for someone to attack.”
“I. See. She. Is. The. Bait. Right. Now?”
“That’s right. If the enemy that brainwashed Shalltear is watching us, they will definitely think this is a rare chance. They might not want to get near Momon who defeated the powerful vampire Shalltear— although the name I gave them is different. What if Momon isn’t around and only one magic caster is left behind…”
“Will. They. Take. The. Bait?”
“No idea, but if they do bite, I will be a master baiter.”
Ainz made the movement of pulling on a fishing rod with one hand.
“Will. We. Send. Everyone. Out. When. The. Time. Comes?”
“No, we won’t do that. We will scope out the true identity of the opponent first. If they are as powerful as us, or better than us, then acting recklessly would be unwise.”
It made sense logically, but was hard to accept emotionally. Cocytus muttered:
“I. Understand. That. This. Is. Necessary. But. I. Find. It. Hard. To. Accept. This. On. An. Emotional. Level.”
“We need to investigate slowly and endure until the moment we discover the weakness of the enemy. When everything is ready, we will tear them to pieces. The sin of brainwashing Shalltear and forcing me to kill her is very heavy.”
Even if the other party was a player, Ainz didn’t feel for them at all. The only ones Ainz was concerned for were his past companions and the NPCs here. If anyone came to find trouble, he would teach them the terrible pain they would need to suffer for their foolishness.
“Repaying good with good and evil with evil. This is the norm of the world.”
A cruel smile appeared on Ainz’ face. He was feeling the exhilaration of the possibility of conducting more experiments if he captured a player. The experiment he didn’t carry out because it was too scary— death, would be the first test he would run.
“An. Eye. For. An. Eye. And. A. Tooth. For. A. Tooth. Right?”
“That’s true, but did you know? That saying also means that one shouldn’t go too far in seeking revenge. However, I intend to exact payback far beyond what they did to us.”
That’s what Punitto Moe would say, Ainz uttered in his heart.
“Ohhhh! As. Expected. Of. Ainz-sama. Excelling. In. Both. Might. And. Intellect.”
Without needing to turn his head, Ainz could feel the respect directed at him from his back.
“Is. Ainz-sama. Planning. To. Spend. The. Entire. Day. Inside. Nazarick?”
“No, after the bath, I will go through the work on hand and then return to E-Rantel. There are plenty of matters requiring my attention there too. What about you?”
“I. Will. Return. To. The. Guard. Post. Inside. Nazarick. For. The. Time. Being. The. Exploration. Of. The. Area. Surrounding. The. Lake. And. Other. Matters. That. Will. Benefit. Nazarick. Have. Almost. Been. Completed.”
“After you come back, the ones outside would be Demiurge, who is in charge of many projects, Sebas and Solution, who are gathering intel in the Royal Capital, Aura, who is constructing the base in the forest, as well as me and Narberal.”
“It. Is. Hard. To. Accept. The. Supreme. Being. Doing. Work. That. Should. Be. Done. By. Us--”
“Haha, just let this matter rest, Cocytus.”
“Please. Don’t. Say. That. Ainz-sama. Is. The. Ruler. Of. This. Place. Your. Word. Is. Law. Please. Ignore. My. Foolish. Rambling. Also—”
The air about them changed, making Ainz said “Ara?” Cocytus seemed a little depressed, but it was hard to tell— Ainz looked at him over his shoulder.
“If. Demiurge. And. Myself. Were. Truly. Excellent. There. Would. Be. No. Need. For. Ainz-sama. To. Venture. Outside. Correct? In. The. End. We. Are. Still. Too. Incompetent—”
“That isn’t true. All of you were created with a specific purpose in mind. That is why it is important for everyone to perform their assigned duties. To be honest, it is fine if you all couldn’t do anything else beyond that. Demiurge who is knowledgeable and intelligent is just too good, that’s all.”
Seeing that Cocytus was reluctant to agree, Ainz continued:
“Well then, you just need to increase the things you can do bit by bit. You should have learned plenty after subjugating the lizardmen village under our rule. Ruling the village will become the food for your knowledge from now on. Advance step by step like this, and you will be at Demiurge’s level one day.”
“Can. I. Really. Do. So?”
“I think it is possible.”
Ainz answered in a roundabout way.
“Demiurge is matchless in terms of intellect, to become a man who can rival him will be a tough road. However, I think that your efforts would not be in vain.”
The two of them continued walking in silence before Cocytus squeezed out his words out softly:
“My. Deepest. Gratitude. Ainz-sama.”
“I didn’t say anything that is worthy of your gratitude. Alright, Cocytus, we are almost at the bath. Let’s ease the atmosphere before Demiurge or Mare returns.”