Roy, you've gotten far too lazy.
If you rely on Eve for everything now, what will you do in the future?
Get that brain working.
You can do it!
Roy had agreed so readily that, when he came to his senses, he realized he had stopped thinking.
Even if Eve's reasoning was one hundred percent correct, he still needed to use his own brain and look for flaws.
That would keep his mind sharp and stop him from losing his ability to think.
Soon, Roy caught on:
"Eve, although that was what I had in mind..."
"Could we make it even better?"
"Having only a Dragon Worship Cult doesn't seem convincing enough."
"The Great Tomb of Nazarick has three brilliant minds, along with the Bone King, who enjoys the blessing of fate."
"It always manages to achieve its objectives through lucky coincidences. We can't underestimate them."
"Since we have a Dragon Worship Cult, we can have more shadowy organizations."
Roy was the client, and the client was always right.
As the one setting the requirements, he could have Eve come up with an even better proposal.
Eve's eyes lit up, and her immense processing power began iterating.
Soon, she reached a conclusion:
"Your wisdom is truly admirable, Supreme One."
"We can also establish a Dragon Slaying Cult, forming an anti-dragon force from various races."
"That way, we can become friends with the Great Tomb of Nazarick under the guise of the Dragon Slaying Cult and feed them a steady stream of false intelligence."
"With World City's capabilities, we can fabricate all sorts of historical timelines that look entirely genuine."
"No, even if a historian comes to examine them, they must be genuine."
A good plan.
Roy's eyes lit up.
The Dragon Worship Cult and the Dragon Slaying Cult are both mine. How can the Bone King compete with me? Sooner or later, he'll become a pawn in my hands.
World City could craft a story.
The millennia-long struggle between the Dragon Worship Cult and the Dragon Slaying Cult would become a hidden thread running through the continent.
After suffering the initial attack, the Great Tomb of Nazarick would inevitably seize on the clues pointing to the Dragon Worship Cult and continue investigating.
In the end, the Great Tomb of Nazarick and the Space Dragon would tear into each other.
Serving as Roy's stepping stone and probing for intelligence on the Space Dragon would be the greatest honor of the Bone King's life.
Meanwhile, with a goal to pursue, the Bone King would have no reason to wreak havoc on humanity.
Without showing himself, Roy could protect the Re-Estize Kingdom-and, more importantly, its human gene pool.
Those born with innate abilities, one in every two hundred people, were Roy's private property.
He couldn't let them go to waste.
"Excellent. That was my original plan."
"Eve, start making the arrangements."
"Everything shall be done according to your will, Supreme One!"
Eve busied herself setting the plan in motion, while Roy took responsibility for enjoying life.
He had Eve for work and Veronica for everything else.
Even during his thirty years as a young master of the Higuma Family, Roy had never had it this good.
After all, the Higuma Family's infighting was fierce. Simply being alive made him a threat.
Now, he controlled World City and had over a million capable fighters under his command.
Life had never been better.
"Life in the New World isn't all that bad."
"These soldiers from the Re-Estize Kingdom are quite accommodating. They've provided plenty of useful information."
Sitting alone in his room at the inn, Ainz couldn't help voicing similar sentiments.
Just then, a messenger's voice came from outside his door:
"Lord Ainz Ooal Gown, the Warrior Captain requests your presence at the Adventurers' Guild for a discussion."
The soldier from the Re-Estize Kingdom hadn't heard the Bone King's muttering and spoke with utmost respect.
"Understood. I'll be right there."
If you wondered how the Bone King had suddenly become an honored guest of the Warrior Captain, the answer was simple.
After the Warrior Captain subdued the Wise King of the Forest, Ainz tentatively concluded that this world wasn't particularly dangerous.
If a hamster could hold its own against a famous warrior of the Re-Estize Kingdom, the level of martial prowess here couldn't be very high.
So he made his arrangements, put on the [Mask of Envy], and disguised himself as a magic caster who trained deep in the mountains. He came to investigate under the pretext of having heard the commotion caused by the Wise King of the Forest.
Just as he visited the Re-Estize Kingdom's army camp in his guise as a magic caster, a group of [Giant Petrifying Lizards] suddenly went berserk, left the marshes, and charged ferociously into the camp.
The situation instantly turned dire, and cries rang out:
"Run! Giant Petrifying Lizards!"
"Watch out for their petrification rays! Watch out for the venom!"
Giant Petrifying Lizards were level 27, with a difficulty rating of 83. Handling them required at least Mithril-class adventurers.
In terms of difficulty, even Mithril-class adventurers, who were level 21-23, were reluctant to take them on. Their appropriate opponents were normally Orichalcum-class adventurers, who were level 24-28.
Their unique petrification rays, enormous bodies, and highly toxic bodily fluids made them especially troublesome.
Even one was difficult to handle, let alone three charging together.
The Warrior Captain immediately gave his orders:
"I'll hold off one, and Brain will take another. Wise King of the Forest, please handle the remaining one. You have our deepest gratitude."
The Warrior Captain hadn't had time to treat his injuries, and neither had the Wise King of the Forest.
Their earlier battle had been far from easy. Brain was the only one still in perfect condition.
Brain immediately said:
"Once I kill the petrifying lizard, I'll come help you."
Yet the moment they clashed, Brain was struck by a petrification ray and put out of action on the spot.
The situation suddenly became critical.
These Giant Petrifying Lizards had undergone a complete transformation.
Aura, the Great Tomb of Nazarick's sixth-floor guardian and a renowned trainer who hated losing, had used the skill [Magical Beast Enhancement] on them.
These [Giant Petrifying Lizards] had instantly gained ten levels, reaching level 37-six levels higher than the Wise King of the Forest.
Three outlier Giant Petrifying Lizards were enough to wipe out the Re-Estize Kingdom's troops.
The Warrior Captain's expression changed, and he immediately ordered:
"Priests, undo the petrification!"
"Shield bearers, advance! Cover Brain for a moment, and watch out for petrification and venom!"
The Warrior Captain stood like an unshakable pillar. Despite being severely exhausted by his battle with the Wise King of the Forest, he still nimbly evaded the petrification rays and single-handedly held off this clearly abnormal Giant Petrifying Lizard.
Was the gap really that large?
Brain realized he had spent all his time studying swordsmanship for fighting people, rarely bothering with magical beasts because he had considered it pointless.
Faced with this situation now, he felt utterly ashamed.
Meanwhile, the Wise King of the Forest was nearing the breaking point.
The entire battle line was on the verge of collapse.
At that critical moment, Ainz made his entrance.
From the entrance to the army camp, he declared in a ringing voice:
"What unfortunate timing."
"I came here to visit the Re-Estize Kingdom's Warrior Captain, only to encounter a monster attack."
"Allow me to present the Re-Estize Kingdom with a gift."
"Grasp Heart!"
Without any apparent reason, Ainz flew in front of the Warrior Captain and announced his arrival to everyone.
"Be careful, sir!"
The Warrior Captain was alarmed to see the magic caster fly to the front, then saw an enormous heart appear in Ainz's hand.
Ainz promptly crushed it.
The Giant Petrifying Lizard died on the spot.
Worried that the others might not have seen, he cast three high-tier spells in succession.
One was Heart Grasp, and the other two were Chain Dragon Lightning.
Compared with an inscrutable spell like Heart Grasp, seventh-tier Chain Dragon Lightning made its power far more obvious.
Massive bolts of lightning struck, reducing the Giant Petrifying Lizards to scraps.
No one dared look down on this terrifying magic caster again.
The magic caster Ainz had saved the Re-Estize Kingdom's troops in their hour of crisis.
As for where that crisis had come from, don't ask.
Faced with such a heroic figure, the soldiers of the Re-Estize Kingdom couldn't help cheering and offering him their devotion.
Ainz had successfully infiltrated the Re-Estize Kingdom's forces.
Before you continue