Right after Momonga and Ulbert teleported away, the oppressive pressure of their auras disappeared and the floor guardians sighed in relief.
"T-that was scary." Mare was the first to speak.
"Their auras were crushing, and when Lord Ulbert Alain Odle laughed, I almost soiled myself," added Aura.
"I NEVER KNEW THEY WERE SO POWERFUL." Cocytus was the next one to share his experience.
"They didn't use auras when we were alone with them. Lord Momonga was very nice to us and let us help with his tests." Mare added, earning envious glares from her peers.
"With your permission, Lady Albedo, I will head back. I don't know where lord Momonga went, but I should be at his side as the head butler." Sebas addressed Albedo.
That snapped Albedo out of the euphoric trance she was in. "Of course. Lord Momonga mentioned the conference room, so I think all the Supreme Ones will be gathered there."
"Understood. Then I shall await my orders outside of the conference room." Sebas bowed and then left the arena with a brisk pace as Demiurge noticed Shalltear's heavy breathing and asked.
"Is something wrong, Shalltear?"
"I-I'm fine! Their presence was so magnificent that my underwear went through a crisis."
"Disgusting bitch!" Albedo shouted at her.
"Oh, you are one to speak, you big-mouthed gorilla! I could smell the state of your underwear from the first fucking floor!" Shalltear shouted back.
They were both now glaring at each other, letting out low growls.
"Aura, I'll leave those two to you," said Demiurge leaving walking towards the portal area at a brisk pace.
"Hey... wait!" Aura shouted after him, but there was no use. A shouting match was going on and Aura just stared helplessly at them.
"Flat child!"
"Fatty!"
As the two were close to exchanging blows, Aura looked around for any help but even her brother had wisely managed to quietly slip away in the confusion.
'They will blame me if those two kill each other.'
"Oi, don't you two have more important things to do?" Aura shouted at them, shaking her head. "Geez, you are like two children."
Both turned to glare at her, making Aura gulp and take a step back. However, instead of attacking her, Albedo straightened out and said in a calm voice as her expression returned to a gentle smile.
"Of course. How unsightly of me to display such childish behavior."
Shalltear, not wanting to lose face, also calmed down and curtsied. "I apologize for my behavior. I'll be off to resume my duties."
"Of course, that would be for the best." Albedo said to her. "We can discuss our differences in less stressful times with a more dignified demeanor."
"Indeed," Shalltear responded with fake politeness and walked off.
Aura just let out a sigh and left the arena. 'I better stay away from them when they are together.' She gave herself some wise advice.
‹X›
Ulbert and Momonga teleported back to the conference room where their friends awaited them.
"So, how did it go?" Peroroncino was first to ask and then quickly added. "Hey Momo, turn that Aura off, my feathers are starting to stand up."
Momonga finally realized that his Aura of Despair was on, and turned it off. 'Just how long has it been turned on?' He wondered.
Ulbert turned off his own aura and started explaining how the meeting with the guardians went. "They all swore to serve us and when I asked how they felt about us, it turns out they basically worship us. And their views on Momonga are on another level entirely. In their eyes, the rest of us can't hold a candle to him, right Momo?"
"I just don't really understand why they hold us in such regards; especially me?"
"Really, Momo? You were the one who took care of them all this time while the rest of us quit the game. I do not know how this all works now that they are alive, but it's a fair guess that they remember at least some parts from before, right?" Buku speculated.
Then Tabula spoke up. "I think they remember quite a lot. Two days ago, when Momonga and I went and changed my daughters, I could sense their reactions towards Momonga, and I could even see some."
"Speaking of which, Tabula, it's time for you to tell us everything. I sure as hell know you have kept silent about things. You fucking knew this would happen and said nothing beforehand. By the way, outside of Nazarick is a grassland now, so we do not know where we even are." Ulbert addressed him in an accusatory tone.
"I said nothing because that would hinder your choice, just as the one who gave me hints didn't explain everything to me. If any of you want to return to Earth, to your old life, I will do anything to help it happen. As for what I know, there isn't much more. I knew something big would happen and Nazarick would change, but to what extent, I did not know. For now, I can try to find out what I can in the astral realm."
"I don't want to go back." Momonga said first. He already had made his decision beforehand and the others nodded one by one. Their old lives were shit. Even if they weren't human anymore, their lives would be infinitely better, even if they could never leave Nazarick.
"Speaking of the outside world, we ordered Mare to conceal Nazarick as a simple mound and, until further notice, forbid anyone from leaving Nazarick until we know more," Momonga added.
"You think something might attack us? Then shouldn't we activate Rubedo right away just in case? You said she would be loyal to you." Peroroncino asked.
"We might as well. If she is alive as the rest of the NPC's it would be cruel to leave her inactive. Oh, that reminds me. Shalltear, Aura, and Mare wished to meet you."
Buku asked with uncertainty, "Aren't they angry at us for leaving?"
It was Ulbert that responded to their worries. "When we were in the arena with Momonga, Demiurge came to me and looked at me like a child seeing his father after years of absence. He fucking cried when I told him it was not his fault I left. Demiurge, what I thought would be an evil monster, cried like a child seeing me. I felt like some deadbeat father who had left his child and fucked off for years."
Peroroncino was deep in thought and when Momonga asked if he was alright, replied "I… I don't know how to approach Shalltear with the way I made her. It was with that cute lewd loli waifu in mind but being here it feels… God dammit, why did I make her like that..."
Seeing her brother's distress, Buku asked in an uncharacteristically gentle voice, "Like what?"
"That she will want to sleep with me. I... shit... why did I make her in such a way. Why does that idea feel so fucked up? I made her as… god dammit… If I would have known she will become real and I would think of her as my daughter I would never have made her in such a way!" Pero continued lamenting his decisions.
He let go of his head and let his forehead hit the table with a quiet thud.
"Not to add salt to the wound but you wanted your NPC to be a nymphomaniac, so that's kinda on you," Buku said patting her brother on the shoulder with an armlike extension she made out of her gelatinous form. "But I get you. Some heads up from whoever did this to us would have been nice."
"She is my daughter. I don't want to think about her in that way." Pero groaned. "Fuck, what should I do if she starts to act up on all the things I wrote into her backstory?"
"You know, if you feel like she is your daughter, she probably will think of you as her father. And even though you are a fucked up pervert, I don't think you wrote incest fetish in her backstory."
"No, I didn't. Thanks, sis..." Peroroncino to his sister perking up, and with newfound resolve added, "I will go talk to her later, but now I'm starving, there must be some food somewhere in Nazarick."
"I will contact Sebas. He was supposed to be head Butler of Nazarick." Momonga said.
"Do it! I need food." Pero said as his stomach growled loudly to emphasize his statement.
{ Sebas, could you please arrange some meals for me and my friends? } Momonga messaged him and sent a second message right away, so as to not seem too arrogant and lazy. { We are busy with the current situation and need a quick meal to continue working. }
{ Of course, Lord Momonga. }
"Sebas will bring us something."
"Hey Momo, how are we going to eat? I want to taste stuff, not just dissolve it." Buku asked.
Momonga slid a ring over the table to her and put one on his free finger, saying, "These are doppelganger rings, just pick a form..."
He didn't manage to finish the sentence, as Bukubukuchagama eagerly grabbed the ring and absorbed it into her red gelatinous mass, activating it, thinking of the form she wanted to take the most.
She rapidly transformed into a humanoid shape as skin and hair grew on her now human-shaped form. She had chosen to look like the two children with the same heterochromia eyes and long golden hair as Aura and Mare. What she didn't account for was that changing into a humanoid would leave her without a single piece of clothing and armor.
As a slime had nothing resembling clothing, she was now standing nude in front of them.
Buku was never particularly shy but now with her curvy and toned body, not to mention the pair of large, shapely breasts, she had no problem standing nude.
Momonga stared at her for about half a second with his mouth open, her gorgeous form now burning in his mind. Then he rapidly snapped out of it, reached into his storage, took out a simple robe, and tossed it at her, turning his head away, being embarrassed simply because he stared at her nude form.
Buku quickly dressed, saying, "Thanks, big brother Momonga, I didn't expect to give you all such a show," as she gave a wink to Momonga.
She was always flirty with him so she could easily play off her mishap.
"Did you have to ruin elves for me or something! Cover your ass." Pero shouted at her.
"Don't be a dramatic bitch. I was a slime just a moment ago and you sure as hell had a lot of 'research material' regarding slimes."
"Argh." Pero grumbled in response.
Momonga activated his ring as well. He had saved a few forms in it, which he used in raids on enemy guild bases. Since he was left alone, he needed various builds to clear them. The first idea was to switch into a human but Nazarick mostly hated them and he didn't feel like one anymore anyway, so a demon sounded like a better option.
The moment he activated it, flesh rapidly grew on his face and to his surprise, for a very brief moment, he felt pain. It replaced his skeletal face with a demonic one. Grayish skin with a bit of blue tint, dark eyes, sharp teeth, and two horns sprouting upward from his head. Two large wings grew out of his upper back, seemingly ignoring his robe, which retracted, giving them space to grow out of. The wings felt like a part of him right away. Flying was one of the things he wanted to test, but that could wait.
To his surprise, Momonga noticed that the ring only gave an appearance and not the full demonic build he had stored in the ring. He made a mental note to look into it later. Now feeling hungry for the first time since midnight, his attention settled on having a meal as well.
Only about two minutes had passed before a knock on the door was heard.
"Come in." Momonga invited whoever was knocking.
Pestonya the head maid was first to walk in. She had a sewn-up dog's head instead of a human one, but otherwise, she was dressed in a regular maid's outfit with a seemingly fully human body. After her followed ten homunculus maids, each carrying a platter with appetizers.
The maids looked a bit out of breath, as if they had run as fast as they could with platters in their hands.
Pestonya bowed as two plates were put in front of each of them and they were presented with menus by the maids, and spoke, "Apologies for the delay. I shall take your orders for the main course if you please, woof."
Momonga and the others were stunned, looking at the number of appetizers presented to them. Peroroncino snapped out of it first, ordered a steak, and started eating. The rest of them quickly ordered as well.
The food smelled and looked divine. Such luxuries were reserved only for the elite back in the old world.
'I better not mess up. How do you even eat most of these things? Where are instructional videos when you need them the most.' Momonga mused.
The only solace was that the others were in the same situation. Pero and Ulbert seemingly cared less as they started munching on the appetizers. Following their example, Momonga started to eat as well. His first pick was a small bowl of some sort of soup.
While he savored the taste of the soup, the maids arrived with the main course. Luckily his current demonic form could hold a lot of food as he was determined to not waste a single thing even if it caused pain.
Then came the dessert fit for kings. This single three-course meal alone was worth all the stress the current situation had caused.
As the maids were taking away empty plates, they were sitting with satisfied faces and Peroroncino, as usual, was the first to speak. "That was heavenly. I didn't know food could taste so good." the others nodded in agreement.
X
After the meeting, Momonga teleported to his quarters on the ninth floor. Each of them decided to do or try things on their own now that they knew Nazarick was safe for them. He only had an hour since they all agreed to meet for a walk outside.
He was against the idea at first, but trying to breathe fresh air was something even he couldn't pass up. Besides, a combination of all five of them could take down some of the weaker world bosses and there was no reason to believe that some world-ending threat just waited for them outside.
In his usual determined, pragmatic manner, Momonga decided to use the time to test various equipment. With his hoarder tendencies, he didn't even need to leave his quarters to get all the test equipment he needed. The massive vases littering every free space of his private domain were filled to the brim with various weapons. The tables were filled with books, jewelry, and various one-use items. And every single dresser or cupboard was packed to the brim with sets of armor.
Curious if he could wield a sword as a caster, which he couldn't in-game, Momonga picked up the sword by the hilt, feeling how light it was. Being a level one hundred, even as a caster, gave him immensely high stats, and even though his strength was lacking compared to the other stats, he felt abnormally strong compared to his former feeble human self.
'I wonder how Buku and Pero are handling their new power. Must be hard to even pick up things without breaking them.' Momonga thought of his friends while swinging a greatsword around. The massive blade felt completely weightless as if made out of cardboard.
For the siblings who both had more physical builds, the new strength must be overwhelming. Of course, strength alone didn't make one a melee fighter. In the untrained hands of Momonga, the sword was nothing more than a sharp club.
A maid was standing nearby and watching him intently. When he and his friends split up, Sebas had insisted on providing each with a maid in case the Supreme ones needed anything. Momonga tried to turn him down at first but the stoic butler didn't budge and broke his master's resolve to go without servants.
In his case, it was Narberal Gamma, one of Pleiades' battle maids, a dark-haired beauty with Asian features. The group of six maids led by either Sebas or their youngest sister Aureole Omega, were the last defenders of Nazarick. Although much weaker than a floor guardian, their purpose was not to kill invading players but to serve as distracting eye candy that could dish out enough damage to surprise a distracted opponent.
Momonga quickly noticed how unhappy she looked to not be of any use to him. He internally sighed as he continued to swing the sword and then dropped it 'by accident'.
"Narberal, could you please pick up the sword and put it back in that vase?"
"Yes, my Lord." the maid enthusiastically responded and hurried over to do as ordered.
It was an insignificant gesture for him, but she now looked much happier, although, as before, tried to not show it.
'I will have to remember to give servants small tasks so they feel useful. She looks much cuter with that subtle smile.' Momonga glanced at the maid. 'I better not use the demonic form too often. It's so distracting.' He quickly caught himself thinking unsavory thoughts that almost instantly switched from the attractive maid to Albedo, whose lovely presence never left the corners of his mind ever since he activated the doppelganger ring.
Returning to the task at hand, Momonga also did some tests with other weapon and armor types getting the same results. He could technically use everything, but he simply didn't have the skills to use them properly.
'Could I learn to use melee weapons and abilities of different classes? I will have to set aside time and properly test these things out.' Even if the concept of a level was a lot looser than before it still was the best method to know one's strength so there was no need to discard it. As people say, there is no point in inventing the wheel twice.
X
Ulbert, meanwhile, was inspecting his living area with Yuri Alpha, oldest of the Pleiades battle maids, following him around. She was a beautiful woman with an intelligent look, dressed in a maid's outfit. The thing that stood out was her blue collar. Same as her sisters she got the chance to serve one of the Supreme Beings.
'Interesting collar. Why did they give her such an accessory? Oh right, she is a dullahan. I guess it makes sense that she would hold her head in place that way.' Ulbert inspected the beautiful maid in a rather unashamed manner.
"Can I be of service, Lord Ulbert Alain Odle?" She asked, reacting to his stare.
"Not at a moment. I was just wondering about your collar but I already remembered why you are wearing it." Ulbert flashed her a smile.
The new life was the polar opposite of his previous one. All the pain was gone. In fact, he didn't even feel tired and his new demonic body felt weightless and responsive.
Without a hurry, he walked around his quarters inspecting what luxuries were now available to him. A massive bed with silk sheets called to him to take a comfortable nap. A bar filled to the brim with rare spirits just begged for him to test it out.
And then there was the bathroom. It was bigger than his old apartment with a massive bath in the middle.
'I should take a bath. All this stress has made me sweaty and I likely stink like a dead goat.' He decided.
"Yuri, can you please fill the bath?" Ulbert asked the maid.
"Of course, Lord Ulbert Alain Odle." The maid responded with her usual calm demeanor suiting her undead nature.
'Man, this is the life.' He watched as the maid opened the faucets, prepared the towels, and a bathrobe, not to mention put a set of soaps and bath salts next to the bath for him. 'If Momonga had not sent the invite… shit, I might have been dead at this point. Maybe I did die and this is a paradise… Naah I would know that I died and someone like me would not be in paradise.'
Ulbert started to take off his accessories but Yuri almost instantly interrupted him and started to do it in his place. Her gentle, lightly cold touch was exciting.
'Calm thoughts man… mmm, she surely is skilled. I really need to thank Momo for the invite. Mental note to self, thank glorious guild master for the invite.' He set a reminder in his head.
This was the life he always dreamed of. No pain, no harsh survival. Surrounded by friends and loyal servants.
Yet the darker memories surfaced for a moment. Ulbert on Earth was an orphan with no education. As a bright kid, he had learned to read and write on his own but no one gave a shit. He was tossed into a low-end job at twelve. At thirty, his health had all but gone. Just one of many discarded tools for the elite.
'Fuck all that. I want to enjoy this, not think about all the gloomy shit that was before.' He hastily pushed the dark thoughts away as Yuri took off his shirt and reached for the pants.
'This is getting into Pero territory real fast. I better be on the safe side for now.' "Yuri, this is enough. You can leave while I take a bath."
"As a maid, it is my utmost duty to cater to all your needs, my Lord." She continued to unbutton his pants.
'Damn that sounded suggestive as hell.' "I know, but you do know how people take baths right?"
"I can arrange another maid for you, my lord, if my presence is bothersome."
"That's not the… Eh, whatever." He wasn't particularly shy after all and if the undead maid wanted to watch so be it. Despite being a caster who had rather limited physical capabilities compared to someone like Pero or Buku, he was ripped with his slim form showing clear muscle even with all the fur covering them.
Lastly, she took off his underwear and glanced at his 'tool', getting a slight tint on her pale cheeks for just a moment and she absentmindedly bit her lower lip before snapping out of it and resuming a neutral expression.
'Oh, she likes it. I wonder if it would be too forward to offer her to join me. She clearly is hiding an impressive body under that outfit.' The temptation surely was there. With his cancer progressing, it has been over a year since he had last enjoyed a woman's company.
His careful, calculating side still won in the end. 'Better not risk it for now. Momonga might not be happy about me abusing my position on the first day.'
He quickly walked past the maid and sat down in the large bath. The water was at the perfect temperature, lulling him into a relaxed state. Something he hadn't experienced for a while.
"Yuri, could you get me a glass of something to drink and a cigar from the bar?" Ulbert asked to enhance the experience even more.
A moment later he soaked in the bath with a cigar in one hand and glass of bourbon in the other with a wide grin plastered on his face. 'This is the life.'
After cleaning Lord Ulbert's main outfit and preparing a new set of underwear, Yuri stood beside the bath, awaiting orders as a proper maid should.
As an undead, her overall feelings were dampened, the same as Momonga's.
Otherwise, she would not be able to recover from the red face when she saw a Supreme Being undressed and taking a bath in front of her.
Finally, Ulbert was getting out, and she as a dutiful maid was ready to dry him off with a towel, but he, to her disappointment, wrestled the towel away from her and dried himself off. But as consolation, she helped to put on the bathrobe and once he was in the dressing room she of course was helping Ulbert to put his main outfit back on.
X
Tabula had decided to use his time to discover as much as he could about the new circumstances. It took mere moments to get into a deep trance and go to the astral realm for answers. First, he tried to contact the same being that gave him hints about Nazarick becoming real, but no answer came.
There were other ways to find information, so he investigated the basic rules of the world. It was quite clear that most game restrictions didn't exist anymore, like the number of spells one could learn, and their types also didn't matter anymore, just the person's capacity to learn. The weapons one could learn and class restrictions didn't matter anymore as well.
In place of a level cap, there now was a person's maximum potential.
After some wandering around, a book appeared in front of him out of nowhere.
'I guess that entity did respond. Let's see what sort of information he granted me.' Tabula eagerly grabbed the book and started to flip through the pages while sitting down cross-legged on an endless field of green grass with a blue sky above.
One of the first things the tome revealed was that an item called Endless Strive could increase the potential of a being and that Momonga possessed it. What was even greater, the so-called one of twenty world items would not disappear in the world if bound to the owner's soul.
There was such functionality in-game for up to legacy items, but now it could be applied to even the greatest of world items if the proper rituals were used. The same page contained a detailed description of how to perform such a ritual.
Since time functioned differently in the astral realm, Tabula didn't need to worry about being late for their walk, as even days spent here would only be minutes in the physical realm. He continued reading the book, absorbing the extremely valuable information like a sponge.
The next revelation came soon after as he read on. Because of his and his friend's almost godlike power and nature, they could call themselves Gods and speed up the learning of what they were Gods of. Of course, proper instructions were there as well.
'Such knowledge. Why is this entity giving me so much knowledge? What is he gaining for it? What price will he ask in return?' Tabula mused flipping a page and there came the answer.
'Events set in motion need a balance. Ask and you shall receive. Worry not, his book is a gift; nothing more, nothing less.'
Shizu Delta, the Pleiades maid assigned to Tabula was standing near him while he sat in a deep trance traversing the astral world. As an automaton, CZ2128 Delta or just Shizu Delta, didn't particularly mind just standing there.
'Supreme One is busy with deeper matters. My duty is just to wait for him to have need of me.' She remained unmoving. Even if Lord Tabula didn't ask a single thing of her it was paramount that she was there ready to serve.
X
Peroroncino was in the ninth-floor dojo testing out how weapons worked since he wasn't fully ready to face Shalltear just yet and he had nothing better to do. Lupusregina Beta, the Pleiades maid that managed to be assigned to him for a day, was happily sparring with Pero even though she could match neither his strength nor speed.
Although she was on the curvier side, the sheer beauty of the tanned redhead made the avian's heart beat faster.
"You better be careful, I might grab you if you are too daring," Pero said to her with Lupus narrowly avoiding his attack by jumping aside.
"Oh, the Lord wants to grab his poor maid and do lewd things to her. How scandalous." She said while faking a shocked expression.
"You are not that good of an actress. I see how excited you are at that prospect, you naughty girl." Pero taunted her with a laugh.
"Me, a pure, innocent maiden? My Lord, surely you jest." She said as she jumped around and swung her butt seductively.
"You tease!" he shouted and closed the distance faster than she could react, lightly digging his talons into her taunting backside. Lupus yelped and jumped forward.
"Lord Peroroncino is such a brute!" She let out a whine and glanced at him with puppy eyes. Unfortunately in the excitement, she couldn't hide her smirk.
"And you like it." He laughed.
"My, my, Lord Peroroncino is preying upon a poor maid." She smirked back showing her prolonged canines.
"Now come at me you, tease. We are far from over." Pero said.
The subsequent attacks went no better and Pero managed to grope her toned butt a few more times. Despite her earnest efforts to look angry, all Lupus managed to do was let out happy giggles at all the attention she was receiving.
After a thirty-minute match, Peroroncino had barely warmed up, but Lupus was panting heavily, covered in sweat. She wore a wide smile and her wolf's ears twitched happily under her hat.
'She is a solid nine for me. I wonder if I could invite her…' His friend's judgmental burning gaze appeared in his mind's eye. 'I'll better wait a day or two before starting my collection. There are other hotties around, after all. Momo might not be happy if I took one of the battle maids for myself on the first day.'
"Our time is almost up. How about one more strike and then I'm off to hang out with friends." Pero asked.
"Lord Peroroncino is leaving me behind?" her smile faded.
"Sorry, but we are going outside to check the situation. I can't risk taking you with me."
"As you command, Lord Peroronciono," Lupus said with a bow, trying to keep her composure.
"Oh don't stress it. I will be around and we can spar some other day as well if you don't have other stuff to do."
"I would be honored, Lord Peroroncino." Lupus smiled again and using Pero being distracted, lunged for a strike that predictably ended with her poor butt suffering another strike.
X
Buku was picking out armor she could wear as an elf in the armory, with Solution Epsilon as her assigned maid. At first, she just wanted to visit Aura and Mare, but going out in just the robe Momonga gave her didn't sit right with her. She was a tank, after all. Nothing less than heavy plate armor on her new form would suffice.
Seeing Momonga's creation for the second time, Pandora's Actor, was as amusing as it was the first time. When he exaggeratedly greeted her and Solution and called them both fräulein, she couldn't help but giggle.
Solution seemingly wasn't too thrilled about it and just glared at the eccentric Momonga's creation in silence.
'She doesn't look angry. Wait a minute is she envious of Pandora's Actor? But why… oh, could it be because Momonga created him?' Buku noticed Solutions' glare wasn't one of annoyance.
To distract her, Buku asked about Solution's abilities. "I wanted to ask how you keep your human form?"
"My creator Lord HeroHero has given me the ability to keep in the back of my mind how I want to look, Lady Bukubukuchagama."
"That simple?"
"Yes, Lord HeroHero gave me all the skills I needed." Solution said with clear reverence towards her creator.
"I'm sorry that he couldn't make it. I know he would be happy to see you." Buku apologized to the maid on the player's behalf. 'If only he had stayed a bit longer. The poor guy would not have to work himself to death in that shithole.'
"Thank you, lady Buku." The maid bowed but even she could not hide the sadness in her eyes.
'They are all like lost children who wish to see their parents. I definitely will go visit Aura and Mare tomorrow.'
To not get overly stressed about meeting her two creations, Buku quickly turned her attention to the various plate armor sets that were laying around in the treasury, not wanting to upset the maid whose creator didn't make it.
She picked a few spare legendary tier sets and put them all in her inventory which was empty at the moment. Additionally, she grabbed dresses and other casual outfits that caught her attention. Most were either purely cosmetic or had caster stats so it would not serve as any sort of serious gear but just fancy clothing.
After returning to her quarters with Solution in tow, Buku gave the maid all the casual clothing to be sorted in her dressing room and meanwhile took out the plate sets one by one, examining which one had the best stats for her.
Of course, a divine tier set would have been the best option but there weren't any spares in the treasury, and taking another player's gear even if they weren't around would likely cause at least Momonga's ire. Especially knowing how finicky he was about the treasury and guild rules in general.
In the end, all that mattered was that she would be able to take a lot of hits while her friends dealt with the attacker if one even showed up while they were outside. If it came to the worst she could revert back to her slime form and fight using her natural form which did have divine tier items.
X
An hour later, they all gathered at Nazarick's entrance for a walk outside. Somehow, both Demiurge and Albedo caught wind of them going out and waited for them at the entrance like parents catching their children sneaking out.
"Supreme Ones, we can't let you go out without an armed escort!" they both said in unison.
"Demiurge, Albedo. Do not worry. The five of us can kill a world boss, we will be fine," Momonga said to them but to no one's surprise, it had no effect.
With their continued insistence on not letting the Supreme Beings go out without an armed escort, Buku was first to break and just said. "Let's just bring them with us. No harm in it, right?"
"I guess not. You both can accompany us if you like but that's about it. We do not need a massive army guarding us." Momonga said. If the two guardians wanted to go with them, so be it but to fully give in to their demands was also a slippery slope that could lead to them being more insistent in the future.
Now, with Albedo and Demiurge tailing them, they went outside and took their first breath of fresh air.
Momonga used his doppelganger ring once again activating a demon form to have the ability to breathe normally and took deep breaths, staring at the sky. He could hear his friends doing the same. There was no need to talk. They all felt the same. Fresh air, clear sky. This was their chance to create the paradise they wished for.
Deciding to test his wings, Momonga cast Fly on Tabula, Ulbert, and Buku, as Pero and the rest could fly by themselves, and took to the sky. They were floating high in the sky, high above Nazarick. No light in view besides the clear starlit sky.
Albedo flew close to him and locked her hand with his, carefully positioning herself so their wings didn't hit each other. Her hand was warm and there was an alluring radiance coming out of her. He hadn't noticed it as an undead, but now in his demon form, he had nothing to dampen his emotions. She was not saying anything, just holding his hand and looking into the distance with a warm smile on her face.
Momonga hadn't felt a woman's touch for years and such an intimate one was a new experience. 'Her arm is so warm. She is the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.'
Maybe these thoughts came because of what he wrote in the backstory of his character, yet it felt so right. 'Tabula wished for me to take care of her.'
Even if his current feelings were just a result of the lines he added to his avatar's backstory it would not change a thing, he would do his best to make her and her sisters happy. In a sense, all of them were brought together by Tabula's last-minute insistence.
After staring at the sky for a while, Buku said somberly, "Blue Planet would have loved this."
"Yeah, it sucks that the others didn't come. Most would enjoy this new life." Ulbert added.
"No pollution, clear sky. Maybe this is our chance to make a better world," Momonga remarked absentmindedly, just enjoying the moment.
Suddenly, Ulbert broke out into a burst of mad laughter "You know what, you are right. We need to make a better world so we need to take over this one. We can't let some shitheads mess this one up, like Earth was."
"We don't even know what's out there. For all we know, we may be weaklings here." Momonga in his usual manner was the voice of caution.
"Endless Strive can be reused again and again, there is no limit to our growth anymore." Tabula casually informed everyone.
"What?! Wait… How did you even know I had it? I never mentioned I had found it, and wouldn't it just disappear to who knows where after use like all twenty do?"
"The astral realm can give all the answers if you know where to look." Tabula casually replied, then continued "All you have to do is to bind the Endless Strive to your soul and the item will never leave you, I even found out how to perform the ritual."
"So, all that crazy occult shit you were always talking about, was it all true?" Peroroncino asked in disbelief.
"Most things were," Tabula responded with slight annoyance. He knew very well that people rarely paid attention to his lengthy explanations. "I am not just insane you know!"
"Sorry man, I didn't mean to imply that you are insane, just… damn, you were living knowing this kind of shit could happen and no one was listening. I would be salty as hell if it was me." Pero added.
"Don't worry about it. I did my best to inform people of what is out there." Tabula dismissed his concerns.
"I think we will benefit from your knowledge more than ever." Momonga said to the brain eater and then addressed all his friends. "So, we agree we are taking over this world or if we can't right now, we level till we are on top, counting that none of us have a natural lifespan anymore?" Momonga half asked, half proposed.
The proposal was unanimously agreed upon.
"Today we can rest and tomorrow morning we could decide on what roles we should take and what our next steps are." Ulbert added a proposal of his own.
"Right, we can't sit on our asses for too long. I agree we should decide on our responsibilities." Buku nodded at the demon.
Both Albedo and Demiurge were listening to the conversation intently. Finding out that the original world of the Supreme Ones was corrupted and that they didn't want the same thing to happen to this new one was shocking. Also, they now knew what the goal of the Supreme Ones was: world domination.
Momonga returned to his quarters, still in demon form. He could have dropped it but feeling tired was nice and he wanted to stay how he was so he could sleep for at least a few hours. There was no shitty job to wake up to, and he thought to himself that he can have one night's rest before starting his new life.
X
With all the Supreme ones safely back in their quarters, Albedo called most of the floor guardians for a meeting. She purposely called Demiurge a bit earlier.
"Demiurge, just the face I wanted to see." She greeted him with a warm smile.
"Something you wished to discuss?" The archdemon asked as both sat down in a smaller conference room in the servant area of the ninth floor. The room was a far cry from the absolute marvel that was the one reserved for use of Supreme beings but served its purpose nonetheless.
"Out of Nazarick's servants, you are no doubt one of the most intelligent ones so I wanted to discuss our findings with you first."
"You mean the fact that the world, Supreme Ones' hail from, is ruined and they wish to conquer this one to not let it suffer the same fate."
"Among other things. There is an additional piece of information only I had the privilege to witness the moment the changes happened at midnight."
"Ohh?"
"Supreme Ones spoke of change that affected not only them but all of us as well. I know it's hard to accept but we have never seen their true forms. What we have always known as our creators are just avatars they used to live in Yggdrasil and I suspect their true unlimited forms are beyond our comprehension." Albedo said with reverence in her voice.
"That is not surprising, to be honest. Of course, our meager minds could not comprehend the true magnificence that is our creators. That would also explain how they could just return at a moment's notice and go in and out of the former reality we know as Yggdrasil." Demiurge agreed.
"From what I gathered, things have changed. I think Supreme Ones cannot return to their full selves or to that ruined world they hail from, for some unknown reason, and will be staying with us. By observing them speak of such things, I'm fairly sure they are happy about this change."
"It may be a far-fetched theory but could it be that they sacrifice parts of themselves to save Nazarick from the Ragnarok they awaited? Of course, they would feign ignorance to save us from the harsh truth." Demiurge took off his glasses and polished them with a silk napkin as he presented his theory.
"My creator…" Albedo suddenly stopped. 'Demiurge won't understand that I hated my creator.' "He was preparing for the change. When he came back he changed me and asked Lord Momonga to imprint changes in his core being as well." She locked her hands with a wide smile.
"Intriguing. I assume your borderline inappropriate actions after Supreme Ones left the arena were the result of said changes."
"Yes." Albedo looked away. "I must admit I have difficulties controlling myself regarding Lord Momonga."
"I see. But if said changes were intentionally made not only by your creator Lord Tabula Smaragdina but also were accepted by Lord Momonga as well, I would assume they are well aware of your behavioral changes and have accounted for them."
"I would think that is the case as well, but I should learn to be more composed nonetheless."
"In either case, we should concentrate on carrying out the will of Supreme Beings and prepare to assist them in conquering this world. Unless your role is meant to be different." Demiurge said.
'By how her eyes dilate and breathing patterns change when talking about Lord Momonga it is rather obvious Lord Tabula has made her feel a deeply romantic and sexual attachment towards Lord Momonga and obviously she would show possessiveness if any other female showed similar interest. The most logical assumption, in this case, would be that Albedo is intended as a wife to Lord Momonga and she was changed to erase any superior loyalty towards her own creator.' The demon quickly came to a conclusion about what was done to the guardian overseer.
With her being the most important NPC of the great tomb save for other Supreme Beings she would be the most suited candidate to fill the role she was guided towards.
Just as their conversation ended, all the floor guardians walked into the room one by one. They too would be informed about the plan to conquer this unknown world but neither Demiurge nor Albedo mentioned the changes that were made in Albedo.
Bonus story 1 - Drawing names and telling stories.
Yuri Alpha had gathered her sisters and informed them that each Supreme one was taking an hour's rest and they were to be assigned to serve them.
"There are five Supreme Ones and six of us, so one will have to stay behind," Yuri added.
Lupus raised her hand and shouted, "I want to serve Lord Momonga."
"I want to serve Lord Momonga too. Maybe he will need cleaning." Solution interjected, licking her lips.
Yuri clapped her hands to get their attention. "I know all of us want to serve Lord Momonga, but only one of us will get that honor today. We will draw for the names of the Lords with one of us staying behind."
After getting nods of agreement, she prepared six identical pieces of paper and filled five of them with the names of the supreme ones, and mixed them together.
Lupusregina, as the most impatient one, grabbed one piece right away and read. "Lord Peroroncino. Not what I hoped for, but serving him will probably be fun."
Yuri planned to take the last piece, so she motioned Narberal to take the next piece, which she did.
With a triumphant smile, she announced her piece which said, "Lord Momonga", dampening the mood of the remaining Pleiades.
Shizu took the next piece and just said in a neutral voice, "Lord Tabula Smaragdina."
Solution grabbed a piece and then said "Oh, I got Lady Bukubukuchagama. What a coincidence, she mentioned something about wanting to talk to me."
As only one of the two remaining pieces contained the name of a Supreme One, Entoma took one with a shaky hand and let out a whine when she opened it up. "I got the blank one."
Yuri then announced, "That settles it. I'm serving Lord Ulbert Alain Odle, and the rest of you go take your positions as well. I'm sorry Entoma, your chance will come next time."
‹X›
Entoma returned from snacking on bugs on the third floor of Nazarick and waited for her sisters to return and tell the stories of how it went. They all returned at the same time as the Supreme ones had gone outside the Great Tomb together and dismissed them.
Lupus was overly excited as she was jumping around, her ears twitching under her hat. She was also the first one to share.
"I got to train with Lord Peroroncino. He likes my butt, see!" As she lifted her skirt and showed the talon marks on her butt left by the mischievous avian.
After that, all eyes were on Narberal as her story was one the rest of them wanted to hear.
"Lord Momonga tested weapons and armor. He even dropped one on purpose so I had something to do." She told them, beaming. The rest quickly agreed that Lord Momonga was always so nice and considerate even towards mere servants like them.
"I visited the treasury with Lady Bukubukuchagama. She picked armor for herself in her new elven form. She now truly looks like Aura's and Mare's mother." Said Solution, not wanting to even mention anything about meeting Pandora's Actor.
"Lord Tabula just sat unmovingly." Shizu added.
Then Yuri, as the last one, dropped the bomb and reported with cheeks reddening. "Lord Ulbert Alain Odle took a bath, and I can assure you he truly has the physique of a Supreme being." She had clearly won this small competition as her sisters just stared at her in sheer disbelief at her luck.
Proofreading by Visur Nyxan, Dtrackt, Tophrel, Aterro, Sad_Smiles, and Rotten Pizza.
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.