With a row of maids following and doing last-minute adjustments to his robe, Momonga entered the ballroom. The first thing that came into view was a long table filled to the brim with rare drinks and delicacies the world had not seen before directly from Nazarick's stores.
The three maids that were putting cutlery in place noticed him first and immediately bowed. "Lord Momonga," they spoke in unison.
"Please, don't mind my presence and carry on with your tasks," Momonga said, lazily waving his hand.
The servant staff resumed the work while the pleasant sounds of musical instruments being played reached Momonga's nonexistent ears. His eyes fell towards a corner where, on a small stage, a live band was doing its last rehearsal before the ball officially would start. By the faint whispers that Momonga picked up, it seemed they still were not fully decided in which order to play the melodies.
Those servants who were not doing final preparations already stood in a row by the wall to his left, directly opposite the window wall.
Momonga curtly nodded to himself, seeing that everything was falling into place. He felt a little bad for having everyone working in overdrive, but for an important event such as this, he knew everything needed to be prepared. A high-class banquet was certainly no exception in his book.
The room was spacious enough for the guests, which amounted to all forty or so of them. It gave them enough room to move freely, but at the same time the interior was designed so that it would not give off a feeling of emptiness.
Momonga assumed the position that would make him the most noticeable person when someone would enter the room. Near him stood his faithful bodyguard Rubedo, who was dressed in a cocktail dress, observing the servants with both curiosity and determination. If one or more of the guests decided to strike her master, she would be ready to drag them to her realm of origin and leave the hapless victims to a fate far worse than death.
All three of Momonga's consorts were still preparing for the evening and would be present. Since Shalltear would not be able to guard Nazarick's first floor, Cocytus had taken on the duty, in the vampire's absence, with Pandora's Actor as a backup.
The chances of any of the guests being behind or involved with a surprise attack were low, but it was better to not leave anything to chance. In case of an overwhelming force, Rubedo and the four dragons would immediately return to the Great Tomb and prepare to defend it.
The first to arrive was Pero, who was dressed in a black three-piece western-style suit, followed by a few of his concubines who all were dressed in similar low-cut black dresses. They were wearing necklaces with Pero's crest, which acted both as an identification and a strong deterrent to those who were uncouth enough to try anything towards the concubines.
Kaijin also entered along with Kurobe, both dressed in similar suits as Pero. Given the dwarf and the kijins' occupations, it made sense for them to join the entourage.
As soon as Pero saw the opportunity, he meandered on over to Momonga who gave him a short nod. The birdman critically inspected the undead's outfit before exclaiming, "You're not even wearing a suit! That's just cheating, man. I thought we were in this together."
"What do you mean?" Momonga asked, glancing down at his dark robe. Usually it was left unfastened, but it was buttoned up for the occasion in order to give off a less menacing appearance.
"I don't know if you realize this, but it was helluva pain to get into this outfit," Pero said, waving at himself. "Meanwhile, you get to be in your usual gear."
"I never told you to wear a suit."
"Oh don't you start, just because Buku spared you doesn't mean it's fair!"
Pero puffed up his wings in seeming anger, but his posture slouched as he quickly broke out into laughter. "Anyhow, it must be a real pain for ya what with all the work you've got. Are you sure you're doing alright?"
"Don't worry about me. As every day passes, I feel as though I'm becoming more managerial, in a sense. But it's becoming so natural for me that I can't help but think about the times back when I was leading the guild."
"Ohh, you mean the times where you would lead everyone into those crazy adventures?" Pero remarked with a laugh. "I rarely saw you bossing people around and just let us roam to our heart's content. But now that I look back on it, that's pretty much one of the charming traits of our glorious leader."
"I'll take that as a compliment. But sadly, you might have to see me take on more of a boss man type of role."
"Hey, hey! Don't pull my leg. Sometimes I can't tell if you're being serious or not. But man, we seriously need to take time off from our jobs. The three of us, I mean."
"I'd like to get everything in our respective agendas sorted out before we can think about free time, but that does sound nice for a change." Momonga replied, scratching his bony chin.
"Totally. Things are quite hectic, to say the least. Maybe it's moving a little too fast in some fields, but as you keep working towards being a leader for everyone, I know we'll be able to pull through. Now then, I'll be going off to meander with the ladies! Good luck playing the host of this party, bro."
"Yeah, I'll see you later. Good luck on playing your part."
After waving Pero off, Momonga started to see his consorts arriving in droves, with Albedo in the lead. Unlike Pero's concubines who all were in identical outfits, each of Momonga's women wore different dresses.
Albedo was dressed in a low-cut white dress with golden accents. Shalltear was wearing her Victorian-style dress, with the differences being the removal of her ribbon and the vampire's decision to let her hair loose. Finally, Shion was dressed in a long low-cut purple dress with her hair let loose as well.
It was clear that by the variety in their attires and various minor changes in their appearances, they were trying to stand out from each other as much as possible. If it was for the sake of gaining an edge in future diplomacy with the demon lords or simply to be eye candy for Momonga, not even the undead knew. The only thing they had in common were the necklaces with Momonga's crest.
After them, Shuna, Benimaru, Rigurd, Demiurge, and Nigredo arrived in a procession of their own.
The last to arrive was Buku, who rushed in with Aura, Mare and Souei in tow. Both Buku and Aura were dressed in identical long cocktail dresses with modest cuts and Mare was dressed in the same three-piece suit as his uncle.
'Buku managed to get Aura in a dress. It must have been a nightmare.' Momonga observed the girl who was barely concealing a miserable look on her face.
His view then became obstructed by Buku as she continued to close in the distance between her and him.
"Huh, looks like I was a little late. Sorry about that," Buku said. She patted down the remaining creases on her dress before looking back up at Momonga's face.
"It's fine, Buku. You arrived just in time. Is everything prepared on your end?" Momonga replied.
"Of course. Ready to be the host?" Buku asked in a cheerful tone. After the undead gave a curt nod, she looked around before switching to another form of communication.
{ To be honest, I'm kind of a little excited. When I went to huge gatherings back in our old world, I met way too many stuck-up degenerates for my own good. I feel like things are going to be far more interesting from here on out. }
{ I can sort of understand your sentiments. Social gatherings weren't really my thing, but I'm curious to see what opinions the demon lords hold of us. Keep your wits up, especially towards the one named Elmesia. } Momonga replied in his head.
{ Relax, Momo! I know what I'm doing. And for an occasion like this, you can't always be so stuck-up all the time. }
{ It can't hurt to be too cautious. }
{ That's so you to say that… }
Momonga spoke again, this time in a public address. "I have not organized or even attended events like this before. We have made a lot of preparations, yet I feel something is going to slip by without me knowing."
"Like you said, we have put in a lot of work to get things right. The way things are now, everything will proceed as planned. Good luck being on the main stage," Buku said, not missing a beat in her reply. She waved him goodbye before walking off with her own entourage.
Momonga watched her leave for a few more seconds before sweeping his eyes on the rest of the crowd. 'I don't feel like having to go to everyone personally, so I'll just stand here and let people approach me. It should be fine, right?' the undead thought to himself.
The only one missing at the moment was Veldora, but apparently he was planning to arrive after the guests for a more dramatic entrance. He also mentioned that he and the four dragons were going to the treasury and picking a few outfits from the pile of low-tier ones.
As people started to mingle around waiting for the guests to arrive, Nigredo approached Momonga and Albedo, who at this point was standing beside him.
Although Momonga had numerous times expressed that there was nothing wrong with her appearance, Nigredo had chosen to wear a white porcelain mask with only openings for her eyes. The enchanted mask would open up to show her mouth if Nigredo decided to eat or drink.
"Lord Momonga, thank you for the invitation. I am honored to be included in your inner circle." She said with a curtsy.
"You are practically Lord Momonga's sister-in-law. Of course, you would be included." Albedo replied in his stead.
'Sister-in-law? Albedo is making hints again.' Momonga silently listened to their conversation as both sisters started to chat.
This wasn't the first time Albedo and others of Momonga's consorts hinted at the idea of marriage.
It was getting increasingly obvious to Momonga that he wasn't in charge of the relationship with them and the three women always ganged up on him to get their way. It was only a matter of time before they would become too insistent on the marriage and he would have no other option but to propose.
Luckily, his inventory was filled with various rings and he could easily pick three identical ones for the occasion.
Not long after, the first guest arrived, causing many eyes around the room to fall on the visitor.
Clayman, known for his punctuality, made it an utmost priority to get ahead of his fellow peers and be first on the scene. He entered the room with sharp and calculated steps, not affording even the slightest mistake in his gait. He was holding his pet fox with his two subordinates, Mjuraan and Yamza. After them, Yuri Alpha came in and took a place at the doors where she and her sisters would observe the event and act as assistants.
Clayman casually signaled for his two subordinates to go mingle with the locals and approached Momonga. Just as he was about to exchange some pleasantries, a dog-sized wolf with a white skull pattern on its forehead and a large horn right in the middle of its skull, jumped out of Momonga's shadow and sat down by his side while wagging its tail and glaring at the fox.
{ Relax and play along. } Clayman instantly messaged the three-tailed fox, who clearly got startled at the sudden appearance of the animal that exuded enough power to rival Clayman himself.
The fox nervously shifted in his arms, and after a quick glance at the wolf, yawned to show disinterest and closed her eyes, curling into her master's arms. { That creature is dangerous. His aura is massive. } She messaged Clayman in a panicked state.
{ I noticed. I already told you, I do not plan to sacrifice you for no good reason, so calm down and play a good pet. }
{ As you command, master. } The fox replied with a certain amount of disdain in her tone.
"I must apologize for my pet's sudden intrusion. It seems he had gotten over excited after feeling the presence of your pet fox." Momonga said as he gave the wolf a pat.
"There is no need to apologize. Our little friends have minds of their own, no matter how well trained." Clayman replied in a pleasant tone as he gave the fox a gentle stroke. "Is that a dire wolf? I haven't seen such a breed before."
"He was one before I named him. Now he is classified as a death wolf." Momonga replied, giving Ranga another pat as the wolf leaned against him with a low rumble.
"An apt name for a new species such as this one. Perhaps it is true that a named pet takes upon certain qualities of his owner. Maybe one day I will try it with this one." Clayman said, scratching the fox behind her large ear.
As Clayman walked away to get a glass of wine, the next guest arrived.
Carrion walked into the banquet room with his three beastketeers in tow. Momonga couldn't help but notice how Lupus and Suphia were glaring at each other with barely hidden animosity which was only broken apart when Lupus took her place among her sisters and gave a subtle wave to Pero who waved back.
Carrion approached Momonga with a casual stride, and same as Clayman, sent his subordinates to interact with the locals.
"Sorry about this, but I'll be getting straight to the point. I have a proposal that you might be interested in." Carrion started with a toothy smile.
"Is that so? I'll hear what you have to say," Momonga said, crossing his arms.
"Sure. As the leader of a monster kingdom, you must know that our kind values strength above all else. With that in mind, how about we let our subordinates have a few sparring matches to blow off some steam? I'm sure other demon lords would like to join in as well."
"As long as no one gets killed, I have no qualms about it. I assume you have some candidates in mind?" Momonga replied. Giving another glance at Suphia and Lupus, who despite the distance between them, still exchanged glares.
Carrion motioned at them. "You noticed it too, huh? Those two are just itching to get at each other's throats. Though I'm sure between the two of us, we could keep the match civil enough and not let anyone die."
His subordinates had used snarky remarks and taunted their maid more than once. Despite Lupus' calm and somewhat submissive demeanor, it was a fair guess she wasn't as weak as she appeared. Suphia, in particular, had used every opportunity to taunt and insult what Carrion assumed was a wolf lycanthrope.
It wasn't that hard to notice that everyone in power was wearing identical rings which likely helped to hide their auras and Lupus had the same ring, meaning she was at least above those who didn't hide their auras.
This meant she was clearly as strong as Suphia, if not stronger.
A duel between them would serve two purposes. First, he could gauge the strength of the maid and use her as a measuring unit for her superiors, and second, show Sophia that running her mouth without knowing who she is taunting may end up getting her ass kicked hard.
"I think we can announce a sparring session tomorrow at noon at the arena and let our subordinates pick their opponents freely," Momonga said. 'It will be a great opportunity to show our might. With Pestonya present and me casting shields, it should be fine. But I know who else will want to fight. Maybe it is time to let Milim test her might against Sebas and let them see what Nazarick is made of.'
With another guest out of the way, he watched as the next guests arrived. Frey and Gazel arrived at the same time followed by Shizu and Narberal respectively. Since he had already interacted with both, Frey and Gazel exchanged quick greetings with him before moving on to talk with other people.
Frey's daughters immediately tried to approach Pero, but his concubines successfully fought off any potential competition, keeping both harpies at a safe distance.
Right after them arrived Elmesia with her retinue and Solution as her guide. Same as her sisters, Solution took her place by the wall.
'All the official guests have arrived. That means only our two long-term guests have yet to appear. And where is that dragon? He promised to be on time.' Momonga couldn't help but to start to worry about what antics Veldora was up to.
To his surprise, Milim, who was followed by Entoma, didn't barge in with her usual overly careless manner but entered the room calmly and immediately looked around. The moment she saw Mare she beelined straight to him and showed her dress to the boy with a twirl.
Maybe it was a bit of an overstepping of their privacy but Momonga couldn't help but eavesdrop.
"How do I look?" Milim asked Mare just as she finished her twirl.
"Y-you look v-very beautiful," Mare responded with a light blush making the demon lord's cheeks become slightly tinted as well.
"Thank you. I like your suit." Milim replied, not knowing what else to say. An awkward silence began to settle in between her and the dark elf boy.
Apparently, Momonga wasn't the only one observing the scene.
The three other demon lords were staring at them openly with varied reactions, but they were all in an unspoken agreement that Milim and Mare's relationship caught them off guard. Frey tilted her head in confusion while Clayman nervously adjusted his collar. Carrion seemed to show a more amicable reaction compared to the other two demon lords as he just watched the two with a grin.
Just as Mare and Milim were about to decide on their next conversation starter, the last demon lord rudely barged in with a screech.
"I am late! I knew it; it was because you were trying to slow me down with all your boring lectures about proper etiquette!"
"Lady Ramiris, I only meant to provide help. And there is no need to worry about being late. It is clear to me that the banquet is only starting."
Behind the frantically buzzing fairy was Diablo who tried to calm down the tiny demon lord. After Ramiris blew him off, he sighed before he went to assume his position beside the Pleiades maids.
No one paid that much attention to the scene, save for a few curious stares. But the one who could not afford to look away was Elmesia who stared at Diablo and then rapidly walked towards Momonga. "A moment of your attention please." She said with a forced smile.
"Is something wrong?" Momonga asked. 'Could she have some sort of conflict with Ramiris? Her labyrinth was relatively close to Sarion's border, but what could she have done to cause any sort of conflict? Or maybe it was Diablo who caused such a reaction from her? But why would someone on her power level worry about a demon?' He tried to guess the reason for Elmesia's agitation.
"Do you know what sort of demon is working for you?" She motioned at Diablo.
"Diablo? Yes, I was aware of what he was when I named him." Momonga replied.
"Y-you named a primordial!" Elmesia once again looked at Diablo and then at Momonga. "Have you any idea what you have unleashed upon this world? Do you have a plan on how to stop him when he stops following orders?"
"In case of him breaking the deal, either I or one of my subordinates will just destroy his physical form, sending him back to the realm he came from." Momonga replied.
"I'll make one thing perfectly clear. If you lose control over that monster I will do everything in my power to destroy it." Elmesia said with a hiss. 'He treats it like it isn't a big deal. Could it mean that Momonga and his closest subordinates are stronger than a named primordial? I will have to reevaluate my approach to Tempest. There might be a chance that mother and I would not be enough in case a war breaks out.'
"Thank you for your concern but I assure you, Diablo will be in my service for a very long time and for now he has not shown any sign of wanting to break the deal he agreed upon."
"I hope that is the case." Elmesia forced a smile once again. "Please be careful. The legends about these monsters are not for the faint of heart."
She walked back to her retinue and discussed something in hushed tones that were made incomprehensible with encryption magic.
'Is Diablo that big of a deal? Sure, he was one of seven primordial demons but Elmesia seems stronger than him. I might be missing some critical information, but maybe she is just going off legends which can tend to exaggerate details. If that's the case, I can't blame her for not knowing the actual truth since it's probably a rare occurrence to meet a primordial demon.' Momonga mused.
Just as Momonga looked around to see if there were no conflicts arising, the doors flung open with a thud and Veldora came in dressed in a loose stylish white shirt with a tie haphazardly put around his neck.
He and the four dragons who each were in either similar pants and casual shirts or summer dresses, also wore sunglasses.
Ayin stepped forward and loudly announced with a smile on her face. "Rejoice mortals. Lord Veldora is here to have a good time!"
"Let's get this party started!" Veldora shouted, and grabbed a beer can from the ice box that Bahamut was holding on his shoulder.
If guests already weren't startled enough, another shout put them in even deeper shock. "Uncle! You promised to not show off!"
Edited by Zirmeister.
Proofreading by Alassandro, I AM THE STRING CUTTER, Ethal07, SwissChocolatess, and Sad_Smiles.
AN: Thank you for reading the story, and if you have caught up to the latest chapter, you can check out my other work or join my discord server (Link is in my profile) where additional chapters are available or if you are interested in becoming a beta reader.