Chapter 3, Part 2

The Draconic Kingdom’s army quickly spread through the city of Krozno, they had freed the captive humans and were now celebrating their victory in the streets. Despite being the hero of this battle, Momon wasn’t interested in the celebration, though he did give a short speech to boost the army’s morale. What he was truly interested in was the beastman they captured.

“Momon-sama, he has awakened,” a guard had finally said the words Momon wanted to hear.

He and Nabe made their way to where the beastman was held. Kraus with some of his men and several commanders of the human army came too.

They entered a building and saw the beastman, tied up with people guarding him. The tiger kin glared at the new arrivals, his hatred for them was apparent.

“I see you have come to0, then let’s get started,” Momon began. “All of the beastmen have been slain, save for a few.”

“That son of a goat!” The beastman cursed at someone.

“What’s your name and rank?”

The tiger kin glared at Momon, but then he shook his head as if coming to a decission.

“I am Gerund, the commander of this city,” he spoke.

“What did you do to the beastmen?” Momon asked. After Gerund gave him a puzzled look Momon clarified: “What did you do to make them have no fear?”

“Ah, that. I had ten potions, that would make them brave, mixed in their drinks this morning.”

“Oh, so do beastmen often use such potions?” Momon’s interest was piqued.

“No, this is the first time I’ve seen them,” Gerund replied.

“Then where did you get them?” Momon asked after staring at the beastman in surprise.

“Norum gave them to me, and told me to use them on our forces.”

“And where is the minotaur?” Ainz asked, the lack of honorifics when the tiger kin mentioned his commander was a clear enough indication of his attitude.

“He fled, just like before,” Gerund spat on the ground.

“You don’t think highly of your commander?’ Momon asked.

“What kind of beastman runs away from a fight?” The outrage in his voice was obvious. “And if he thought you were stronger, then why didn’t he tell us to flee too? Instead he sent all these beastmen to their death, and for what?”

“You savages deserve to die for your crimes,” one of the army commanders told the beastman who scowled at him in response.

“Anyway, what did the potions look like? What did Norum say they would do?” Momon asked.

“Round potion bottle made out of some kind of glass, with red liquid in it. He said it made you have no fear and increased your fighting strength,” Gerund replied.

“Do you have more such potions?” Momon asked.

“No, we’ve used them all this morning.”

“Did Norum say where he got them?”

The tiger kin shook his head. For a moment no one said anything, Ainz was deep in thought and the others waited for him to continue.

It sounds like a Minor Rage Potion, but how would this minotaur get ten of them? And Why would he waste them in such a senseless way? Ainz’s mind raced.

“Are you the one who came up with the plan to ambush Momon-dono when he jumped over the wall?” Kraus asked, after Momon failed to speak for some time.

“No, Norum told me to do so,” Gerund answered.

“Why did you run away? Didn’t you drink the anti-fear potion?” Kraus continued.

“Pfft, why would I? Norum runs away from the fight, his tail between his legs. But wants me to fight to the death? I can’t refuse his orders, but I am not dying in such a stupid way,” the beastman’s face twisted in anger as he spoke.

“You don’t have any explanation for Norum’s action, do you?” Momon once again began to ask questions.

“He’s scared of you. Isn’t that obvious?”

“Mm, then do you know why Norum ordered your forces to stop their advance and to hold their position instead?”

“Beats me.”

“I think I heard everything I need,” Momon waved his hand at the beastman. “Please carry on your interrogation, Kraus-sama,” he continued before leaving.

He and Nabe walked silently through the city, until they arrived at the place they would be staying at. After they entered, Ainz used a scroll that would prevent anyone from eavesdropping on them.

“God damn,” he slammed his fist into a wall, though not at full strength. “We are two thirds of the way through with liberating this nation, and I still don’t know anything about the minotaurs’ motivation, nor on who’s spying on us.”

His emotional limited kicked in, making him regain his senses.

“Come out,” he ordered.

A Hanzo emerged from his shadow and bowed, then stood silently in attention.

“I want four of you to find where this stupid minotaur went, then report his location. Keep three Hanzos watching him. If he moves again, knock him out and bring him to me.”

I am done playing games, Ainz though. I am going to find out what’s going on here once and for all.

“Yes, Ainz-sama,” the ninja bowed before disappearing.

In the evening

Momon waited patiently for the Hanzos to report back. The Draconic Kingdom’s army was going to stay in Krozno until the Queen arrived. Once she did, a meeting would be held to determine next course of action.

Ainz wasn’t concerned with that though. What concerned him were the strange things which were happening. The beastmen’s large scale invasion, their sudden halt, the seemingly pointless deaths of the beastmen at Krozno, the mysterious origin of the potion used to make them not want to flee, and perhaps the most troubling, the spying. None of it seemed normal.

I need more information, capturing that damned minotaur is a priority, Ainz thought. I should also consult with Pandora’s Actor, after all he’s almost as smart as Demiurge.

For a moment Ainz’s thoughts switched to the demon – Demiurge had came back from the Argland Council State. But his information wasn’t urgent, this was. Ainz refocused on his current problems.

An hour later he saw movement in a near by shadow and the Hanzo emerged from it.

“We have located the minotaur warrior, Ainz-sama,” the ninja reported after bowing.

Ainz nodded indicating he should continue.

“He is staying in a small camp a few hours away from here.”

“How small is the camp?”

“There are about a dozen beastmen there.”

So few? Is it so he can quickly retreat? No, that shouldn’t matter even if it was a large camp, Ainz’s mind raced.

“Are there any large encampments near by, which could reinforce his position?”

“The closest one is an hour away, and there are only a few hundred beastmen in that one,” the ninja reported.

Ainz leaned back in his chair and rubbed his chin.

Just what is going on here? It’s like he’s baiting me to attack, but to what end?

“You haven’t found anyone more powerful than the minotaur, have you?” Ainz asked.

“No, Ainz-sama.”

“Thank you for your excellent work.”

“It’s our purpose to serve you, Ainz-sama,” the Hanzo bowed.

“Nabe, [Message] Pandora’s Actor, tell him to contact me,” Ainz said.

A short while later Ainz heard the familiar voice in his mind.

“Meine Creator, you wanted to speak to me?”

“Yes, there is something I wish to discuss with you,” Ainz responded.

***

The next day the queen had arrived and a strategy meeting was held. Everyone had already gathered when Momon and Nabe entered. This was the first time Momon would see the queen since she arrived, and as he entered the room there was a squeal and a figure rushed towards him.

Before he could make sense of what was happening the queen had flung herself at his chest, wrapping her hands around his neck.

“Eh? Ahem, what are you doing?” Momon asked, shocked.

“Oh, Momon-sama, I was so worried when I heard what happened! Is it true, you alone had slain over a thousand beastmen?” The queen asked in her childish voice.

“Cheh, another over sized mosquito,” Nabe murmured from behind.

Why does this scene feel so familiar? Ainz wondered.

“Draudillon-sama, I believe we have a meeting tohold!” The Minister reminded.

“Ah, yes, of course. I was just overcome by emotion. It would’ve been a great tragedy if anything happened to such a great hero,” the queen replied. “I wanted you to know my true feelings,” she smiled at Momon, light blush on her cheeks.

After casting a triumphant glance at Nabe the queen returned to her place. Stealing a glance at the battle maid Ainz could clearly see how mad she was. He placed a hand on her shoulder, trying to signal to her to calm down, and walked toward the table with a map on it.

“I can hardly believe the progress you were able to make. In such a short time, under your leadership two of the three conquered cities had been liberated,” the Minister praised.

“As expected of the great Momon-sama,” the queen said cheerfully.

“Ahem, so what is our next move?” Kraus tried to get things back on track, he wasn’t sure how to react to the queen’s behavior. Granted, many women would fall for the dark hero, still, the queen’s behavior was a bit much.

“We should continue our momentum and drive the beastmen out of our country,” one of the commanders suggested, and turned to Momon expectantly.

“About that, despite the progress we have made, we still don’t know the reason for this invasion,” Momon said.

“As long as we remove them from our nation, it should be fine,” another commander said.

“But, if we don’t get to the root of the issue, even if we drive them off, the beastmen might attack again in the future,” Momon tried to turn the conversation towards the direction he wanted.

“I agree with Momon-dono, at the very least we should get rid of those minotaurs, as long as they haven’t been dealt with, this kingdom will still be in danger,” the Minister concurred.

“But the minotaur had been fleeing from us since Decoza, he clearly doesn’t want to fight,” Kraus said.

“To that end, I have a plan. The army moves too slowly, giving this minotaur, Norum, plenty of time to escape. When we moved with a small force, prior to taking Krozno, Norum only escaped in the last hour or so. With that in mind, I would like to track him down with just Nabe and I,” Momon explained.

“Just you two? But that’s too dangerous!” Draudillon bemoaned. She had slowly changed her position at the table, and now stood beside Momon.

“Ahem, I am confident in our prowess,” Momon replied.

“Ah, Momon-sama is so strong,” the queen murmured, as she held Momon’s hand in hers and looked at the dark warrior with admiration.

“This flea!” Nabe, who stood on the other side of Momon, said looking at the queen. Her face fully displaying her emotions.

The men standing at the table exchanged glances, none of them knew how to deal with this situation. In the end, they chose to ignore it.

“Would it not be better if my men accompany you? It wouldn’t slow you down, and several of us are proficient in tracking and stealthy infiltration,” Kraus said.

“It is as you say, however, there are two reasons why I must reject your offer. First, there is a chance that this is a trap and when we leave, the beastmen will attack this army. Without your men to fight the beastmen champions, even without the minotaur the beastmen might claim victory,” Momon explained.

“Second, I am sure you have realized this yourself, but we are being spied on. If a large group leaves this city, whoever is spying on us will likely notice it. On the other hand, Nabe and I can leave quietly and quickly, lowering the chance of being spotted,” he continued.

“But what if it’s a trap to lure you? If you fall, we’d be hard pressed to defend our current positions, much less drive the beastmen off,” the Minister said.

“It’s a risk we have to take,” Momon stated.

“I guess,” the Minister conceded.

“Everyone, I’d like to speak with Momon-sama alone,” the queen announced.

The men looked at each other, while Nabe appeared to be about to say something, but Momon was first.

“It’s fine Nabe,” he said.

“Then Momon-dono and Nabe will go after the minotaur, while my men will support the army in case we are attacked,” Kraus summed up their strategy and got a nod from everyone before leaving.

Whatever the queen planned to talk about, it was her prerogative, the strategy meeting was mostly over too.

After everyone left the queen looked at Momon. Her love struck gaze terrified him to the very bones.

“Momon-sama, I am so grateful for your help in liberating my nation,” she began. “If only we had someone like you in the Draconic Kingdom.”

“Mm,” Ainz made an agreeing noise while wondering where this was going.

Haven’t she already said the same thing before? Is she trying to recruit me to the Draconic Kingdom? He wondered.

“Momon-sama, is there something you want to do?”

“Meaning?”

“I am sure someone like you just wants to adventure and live a free life, but you are also willing to forgo your desires in order to protect people,” the queen smiled.

“I couldn’t abandon the people of E-Rantel,” Momon replied cautiously.

“Yes, because you are a true hero, willing to protect the weak!” Draudillon’s loving gaze once again pierced through Momon.

“But E-Rantel is just a small city, its population is pretty low,” she continued after Momon didn’t say anything. “A hero like can do so much more.”

She really is recruiting me, Ainz was amused.

“Just think of how many people you could protect if you were the King of the Draconic Kingdom!”

If Ainz wasn’t an undead he would be chocking right now. Even as an undead his reaction wasn’tmuch better.

“Ahem,” he cleared his throat after coughing profusely. “I, I never thought about that.”

“You should, you know, there are other benefits to being a King,” she said, as she approached Momon, taking his hand in hers and placing it on her heart.

“What?” It was a good thing he was wearing a helmet, the way his jaw dropped wouldn’t be flattering.

“Can you feel my passion, Momon-sama? Together we could protect and lead the people of this nation.”

“I, I.. Ahem, I am afraid you’ve got the wrong idea,” Momon finally managed to say.

“A maiden’s heart doesn’t lie. Can’t you feel it Momon-sama? She asked, pressing his hand harder against her chest.

“I… am going to go, I need to… plan our attack with Nabe,” Ainz said, forcefully pulling his hand away from the love-crazed girl.

“I’ll be waiting!” She yelled at his retreating back.

What the hell was that? Ainz shivered as he quickly walked to the place Darkness stayed at. Had the queen gone mad? It’s bad enough she thinks I am lolicon, but why would she get so aggressive? I haven’t given her any signs, have I? He wondered.

He was so distracted by his thoughts he actually missed his destination and had to walk back.

“What did that annoying fly want?” Nabe asked when he entered their room.

“She…” Ainz stopped as his mind spun, I can’t tell her what she did, if I do Albedo will find out and it will be over for the queen.

“Ahem, it’s not important,” Ainz said waving his hand dismissively. “More importantly, we’ll go after the minotaur in the morning,” he continued.

“Don’t you need time to regenerate your mana, Ainz-sama?” Nabe asked.

“We don’t have time for that. I’ll be going as I had been, with [Perfect Warrior].”

 

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