“Yes, there are. There are four Dragons older than me, six around the same age as me, and nine who are younger than me.”
“Hoh!”
The Elder Lich seemed very happy, but Hejinmal was sure he had some sort of evil scheme in mind.
“How many of them are stronger than you?”
“The four who are older than me are all stronger than me. The Dragons of the same age as me are also stronger than me.”
I might even lose to my younger siblings. Hejinmal could not say that. After all, if his value dropped in the Elder Lich’s eyes, he might be killed on the spot.
“I see. Then, what tier of magic can these elder Dragons use? Are they only capable of arcane spells?”
“The strongest of them can use magic of up to the 3rd tier. As you have said, it is arcane magic.”
As Dragons grew, they naturally acquired the ability to use arcane spells even without going out of their way to learn them. However, they could only cast a few spells. Even Hejinmal’s father could only use three spells of the 3rd tier.
“What? They only have 3rd-tier spells?”
The Elder Lich seemed disinterested, but then he perked up as though he had noticed something.
“No, I should probably ask. What if this is just a ruse? They say that a mighty eagle hides its claws. Is it possible that the strongest Dragon there can use 8th-tier spells?”
“No, it’s impossible. Or rather─”
Besides, 8th-tier spells could not possibly exist. Would it be better to tell him that?
No, he could not. The truth sometimes hurt more than lies. If he gave offense to this undead magician, there was no way he would prosper from it.
“─No. He can’t possibly use spells of such a high tier. I once heard that he had learned a 3rd-tier spell of flame resistance.”
He should probably say that, right? His father was not a foe who should be underestimated.
“Umu ─ I see. Well, it’s only natural that one would want to cover up one’s weaknesses.”
This nonchalant tone made Hejinmal feel uneasy.
“Aura.”
“Yes, Ainz-sama.”
It would seem the Dark Elf was called Aura. Judging by her smell, she was probably a female.
The other one who looked like an Elf did not have a female scent about her. In fact, she had no scent at all, much like the Elder Lich.
“I’ll give you this Dragon. I recall you said you wanted one?”
“Thank you very much. But can this chap fly?”
Two pairs of eyes looked at him, one filled with doubt, one apparently saying, “That’s a good question.”
“I, I can probably fly.”
He might have been a hikkikomori, but he ought to be capable of flight. Flying was the same as walking for Dragons. There was no way he could forget how to do so. Hejinmal gave that answer as he regretted the fact that he had not flown here.
“Then, I’ll take him, Ainz-sama. Hm, then, I need to show him who’s the boss around here, and make him obey me completely.”
Before Hejinmal could wonder what exactly she was going to do, he felt thousands of frigid razors impale him.
He was dead. There was no doubt that he was dead. The fear which informed his instincts of that fact became invisible blades that pierced his entire body.
In an instant, his mind went blank. In his diminished state of awareness, he clearly felt his heart stop beating.
“Uwaaaaah─!”
As he cried out, it banished the black chill crushing his entire body.
His heart slowly began beating again. His limbs trembled, and his lungs struggled to pull in oxygen.
He recalled something like this from a book somewhere. It was called “murderous intent”. In other words, the Dark Elf who would be his Mistress was a being who could radiate murderous intent that was powerful enough to instantly put a Frost Dragon into a near-fatal state of shock.
In that case, what sort of being was the Elder Lich which she called “Master”?
There was no doubt about it. He was beyond Hejinmal’s imagination.
He was a being of absolute power ─ an Overlord.
He had made the right choice.
By the time Hejinmal had come to his senses, he found that the group had backed off, looks of surprise on their faces.
Just as he was wondering what was going on, he realized the disgusting sensation below his waist. As he looked down at his feet, Hejinmal was shocked.
It would seem his bladder had gone slack and he had wet himself. A puddle spread below him like a lake.
“Uuu…”
What should he say now? It was possible that he had displeased them and he would be killed.
“I, I was so overjoyed that I peed a little!”
He had abandoned all delusions of control. Though he had the feeling that they would not believe him, it was better than saying that he had pissed himself out of fear.
“From today onwards, this one shall serve and attend his Mistress, Aura-sama, and offer his utmost devotion and loyalty to her!”
“Ehhhh…”
Hers was an expression of absolute disgust.
This was bad. If she felt he was worthless, he might be discarded like a piece of trash. The mighty could do that. In fact, had his father not done the same thing? However, help came from an unlikely corner.
“I see… Well, that can’t be helped.”
“Eh? Really, Ainz-sama?”
“Mm. I once heard about something like this from one of my friends ─ Ankoromochimochi-san. She once told me about how upset she was when her dog peed out of joy. It seems this sort of thing happens when they get too excited.”
“You mean, Ankoromochimochi-sama? Really? So it’s like how Fen and some other magical beasts mark their terrain, then?”
“That might well be. Granted, I’m not too clear on Draconic biology. However, that was probably the reason why that chap did it.”
The being who might or might not have been an Elf had been listening quietly all this while. She tilted her head and asked the Elder Lich:
“Ainz-sama, would it be better if we did it as well?”
“Shalltear. Is it really appropriate to say that?’
“Mm. As Aura said, if you did that, I would collapse in shock. This sort of thing is only cute on small pets…Well, Ankoromochimochi-san was worried because that dog was getting on in years. She said something about not getting him too excited… ah, those were the days.”
The air around them changed, to something that was the polar opposite of the murderous intent from just now.
In any event, Hejinmal moved to wipe the soaked portion of his body on a nearby wall and scraped off the stain.
“Say. What will we do next?”
The Dwarf ─ who had been watching the proceedings in silence ─ finally spoke up. Hejinmal sensed that this Dwarf was unlike his three companions, in that he was not powerful.
Had the Dwarves hired them as mercenaries and sent this Dwarf to keep an eye on them? If that was the case, Hejinmal would have to show this Dwarf respect as well. Still, where did he rank as their subordinate? What sort of orders would he be given from now on? These uneasy questions flew through his mind.
“You have a point. We’ll leave the Quagoa to Aura and Shalltear. I shall go with this Dragon and eliminate all the Dragons opposing us.”
Hejinmal’s body shuddered again.
He spoke in a casual tone. Dragons were beings which he could take lightly. This was the attitude of the mighty.
Hejinmal hesitated about what to do. It would probably be wise to beg for the lives of the other Dragons. After steadying himself, he spoke:
“…Gown-sama, Aura-sama, may this one be permitted to speak?!”
“Very well. Speak.”
“Understood! A thought occurred to this one. The people here do not know the greatness of Gown-sama. Would you be willing to extend your mercy to those fools? In other words, the other Dragons should know of the glory of Gown-sama!”