Valkyrie's Shadow

Winter's Crown: Act 2, Chapter 3

Winter's Crown: Act 2, Chapter 3

Chapter 3

The excitement from watching the training session wore away, and the worrisome thoughts from earlier in the day returned after leaving the Expeditionary Office. Knowing that he should be able to get his answers upon reaching Momon’s guest manor, Ainz distracted himself by striking up a conversation with Narberal.

“So Nabe,” he asked, “what did you think about all that?”

“Mare-sama is working very hard,” she smiled fondly. “The tomb he created is wonderful as well.”

“…I meant the Adventurers, Nabe.”

Narberal narrowed her eyes and frowned.

“They’re still pitiful insects,” she said.

“I believe they’ve become much better compared to the ones from back then.”

“It is only through Ainz Ooal Gown-sama’s benevolence that they’ve been able to make any improvement,” she sniffed. “They would still be wallowing in their ignorance otherwise.”

“Mah…that’s just how it is, isn’t it?” He told her, “The Sorcerous Kingdom will bring change for all, becoming the ideal nation where all its citizens may live in peace and pursue their happiness. Adventurers should be adventuring, not working as disposable bounty hunters.”

“Yes, Momon-sa–n.”

They crossed the short distance to the guest manor and paused at the door. It would be decidedly odd if Momon had to wait to be let into his own home, so Ainz entered and made his way upstairs to the solar.

“Pandora’s Actor,” Ainz said as he opened the door to the room, “there are a few answers that I require from…”

His voice died in his throat as he walked in on the very same woman that they had encountered in the main plaza. She turned and offered him a brilliant smile.

“Ah, my lord father,” she spread her skirts out in a curtsey, “did you enjoy your time in the city?”

L-lord father? Ah, that’s it, this is Pandora’s Actor in...

Ainz’s thoughts froze and he ground to a halt in the doorway. His mind slowly unthawed as he recalled the happenings of the past few hours.

More involved with the citizens…new relationships. What did that woman say? ‘…flit from branch to branch…hold him tightly’.

––!

As the pieces fell into place, Ainz’s mouth fell open in horror, emotional suppression firing several times but unable to quell the storm raging within.

The familiar behaviour of the woman. Narberal’s reaction. He had been fretting over Aura and Mare’s education on these topics, but it appeared that the most problematic one of them all was right in front of him.

“You!”

His voice filled the room as he strode forward. Pandora’s Actor, in the form of the woman, backed away in alarm until his back bumped into the wall. Momon’s gauntleted hand slammed into the wooden surface beside the Doppelganger’s head, and wisps of long, chestnut hair fluttered after the impact.

“Ah, kabedon~” Came the woman’s faint voice; a rosy flush appeared over high cheekbones.

“St–”

Ainz’s illusory eyebrow twitched as he registered the shy words. He hesitantly turned his head to glance behind him, finding Narberal staring at them with an expressionless face. Then her lip twitched. This was definitely bad. He stepped back before anyone else could accidentally stumble upon the sight. Stealing another glance at the woman’s form, he decided that if Pandora’s Actor had not addressed him so, he would have believed it was actually her. Something didn’t feel quite right, though…

“Pandora’s Actor,” he attempted to keep his voice calm. “What are you doing? What is your relationship with this woman?”

“Our relationship? Hmm...I suppose we see each other from time to time. We’ve known one other for a few months now.”

A few months? That’s basically since I had him take over as Momon. More than enough time to – wait, does that mean I’m going to be a grandfather soon? Damn you! I haven’t even–

“Ainz-sama?” The fact that Pandora’s Actor was in the form of the woman made things even more confusing.

He gave himself a shake. Even if he was too late, he should still give him a good talking to. Women would often proposition him during his days as Momon; considering the warm and relaxed aura of this woman in his presence, there was a strong possibility that ‘that matter’ was…Pandora’s Actor would need to take responsibility – and stop being such a philanderer.

A philanderer…that meant…

He looked over at Narberal.

That’s what it meant, right? Aaah! I’m so sorry, Nishikienrai-san! Because I didn’t teach my son properly, your daughter has–

“Ainz-sama?”

This time, it was Narberal’s voice, and Ainz looked to his right. Her face was painted with concern as she looked up at him.

Ah, so this is the face of my daughter-in-law…hm? No, wait! This can’t be right…or can it? It’s true that they’re both Doppelgangers, but…Narberal doesn’t really like him, right? Wait…Pandora’s Actor said she was perfect for the role of Nabe – maybe she’s been acting so perfectly that only Pandora’s Actor can tell? No. Nonononono. Narberal is just a Narberal. Or…or…AHHH! What do I do!?

“…did something happen?” Pandora’s Actor asked Narberal as Ainz wrestled with his inner turmoil.

“That’s…we came across that woodlouse near the cathedral. Near the end of the conversation, she said…something.”

The battle maid’s voice faltered and fell off.

“Something...?” Pandora’s Actor tilted his head.

“T-that’s right!” Ainz looked back towards him and interjected, “Explain!”

“Eh…what am I explaining, Ainz-sama?”

“That voice – no, that woman!” He pointed at Pandora’s Actor, “Why did she approach us and say that? Who is she?”

“I still have no idea what she said, Ainz-sama,” she–no, he replied. “Did she thank you for something?”

“Yes, exactly!”

“Ah…then it must be that.”

“That!”

“Indeed. It was not strenuous, by our measures, but it was quite eye-opening in various ways,” he chortled in the woman’s voice. “As for who she is, she is a noble we encountered shortly after the handover of E-Rantel.”

“A-a noble?”

Like Adventurers, he discovered that the nobles of this world led, for the most part, rather mundane and decidedly non-fantastical lives – contrary to how they were often depicted in the entertainment of his own world. He had studied Emperor Jircniv while performing research on how to conduct himself as a sovereign, and it seemed that only the Emperor and his court somewhat matched their fictional counterparts, mostly when acting in an official setting. If anything, running a nation more resembled running a company rather than leading through acts of high-handed willfulness or spectacular charisma.

Even the annexation of E-Rantel did not have the hallmarks of a fantasy conquest. A formal battle had been fought and won, and what had followed was nearly a month of paperwork. Rather than a conquest, it felt like a business acquisition: once the paperwork was signed, the territory, its assets and its staff simply saw a transfer of ownership. Many had fled, which was to be expected given the circumstances as they saw them, but many had also stayed.

If one were to continue with the analogy, the nobles who assisted in administering large portions of Ramposa’s former demesne were essentially middle managers who came along with the acquisition. As he had ordered the adoption of Re-Estize law in the Sorcerous Kingdom, the roles of these managers did not change – they simply went from working for company A to company B. Which was perfectly fine with him. Or rather, he didn’t want to think about rebuilding everything from scratch.

Like any company, these employees would be of varying quality but, reportedly, the dismal state of Re-Estize was mostly due to the lack of resources available to enforce law and policy, or more compelling options being presented. As he planned on creating a utopia for all which was supported by the might of Nazarick, any vestigial problems that they inherited would quickly melt away…or so he hoped. Come to think of it, he felt that there was something related in some past report…

“Ah, that’s right,” Pandora’s Actor said. “The domestic reports almost never describe personal appearance, so it’s understandable that you might not recognize this individual on sight. She was one of the first to embrace many of the ideas that you introduced to the new realm: Undead labour, Lich administrators, Death-series security as well several interesting innovations stemming from her unique perspective. Her ability to analyze and adapt could be said to be one of her strongest traits. The data we’ve collected from her activities has helped to improve and refine our systems for use elsewhere in the realm. She, along with her associates, even resolved a legal issue inherited from Re-Estize to even Demiurge’s satisfaction.”

“I-is that so. Then what is this person up to now?”

“Shalltear has enlisted her assistance in various things, including with the new aerial transportation network. Baroness Zahradnik is also actively participating in the new Adventurer Guild.”

“Shalltear did? Adventurer? To be honest, she didn’t have the look of one…”

“That in itself is a most intriguing point,” Pandora’s Actor detached himself from the wall and started pacing about. “Demiurge has conducted tens of thousands of studies regarding the physiology of the natives of this world and has proposed several theories that attempt to reconcile Yggdrasil’s systems with its own. We’ve taken this foundation and used it in the Adventurer Guild to further build our understanding.”

Ainz mulled over the statement. Their woefully inadequate knowledge revolving around the mechanics of this world, along with the inability to bring up status screens and other elements associated with Yggdrasil served as a lofty barrier to their development of the citizens. Not only could they not guide Adventurers properly in their class growth, but they also could not ensure that their national industries were optimized by using civilians with ideal production builds. Using the Adventurer Guild – which they enjoyed comprehensive oversight over – as an avenue of research was an inspired notion.

“I presume that this is the reason you’ve taken this appearance,” he said.

“That’s precisely correct,” the Doppelganger replied. “Hmm…you’ve recently encountered her – this is just the likeness, no?”

Ainz returned to his normal equipment, dispelled his Momon illusion, and examined Pandora’s Actor. To be honest, while he could distinguish between Humans better than he could, say, Goblins, he was not exactly confident in assessing individuals that he had only seen in passing.

“Her breasts are nowhere near that large,” Narberal’s lip curled.

“That’s…um, you know – they just…feel better this way, right, Ainz-sama?”

Ainz’s emotional suppression triggered once again.

Why are you dragging me into this, you walking cringe generator!

Narberal clicked her tongue sharply; both Ainz and Pandora’s Actor flinched.

If he was being perfectly honest with himself, he would be forced to agree. Those were his own tastes, after all. He did not recall putting anything of the sort in his NPC’s settings, though…it appeared that his black past was not the only thing Pandora’s Actor had inherited. He dreaded what else could possibly manifest if this was the case. Wait, did that mean he himself had a penchant for crossdressing, too? The recent outfits that had been selected for him by the Homunculus Maids were quite…

“If replicating this individual for research purposes is the goal,” Ainz said quickly, “then I believe you should be as authentic as possible.”

“Your Word is my will, Ainz-sama!” Pandora’s Actor replied sharply, and Ainz could not help but watch sadly as the manifestation of hopes and dreams before him shrunk away, “Where was I…ah, yes – physical appearance. The subject you see before you is a most compelling case of how experience and levels are gained in this world. While I mentioned that she was participating as a part of the Adventurer Guild, she was barely active in their training program until recently.

“When we first encountered this young noblewoman, she had unknowingly inherited her family’s territory and was barely an adult – level one, if you will. This is what I surmised, based on my measurements of her physical performance relative to other Humans of various vocations that we had encountered previously. Between that starting point and when she was able to commit more time to the Adventurer Guild, she qualified to take the Gold-rank test.”

Ainz cradled his chin in thought after taking a seat on a plush couch nearby. If he recalled the equivalencies correctly, this meant that she had gained somewhere in the neighbourhood of ten levels in the time since the annexation of E-Rantel.

“I take it that, like in Yggdrasil, low levels are not difficult to obtain?”

“That is a matter of some debate,” Pandora’s Actor replied, “but at least with the Adventurer Guild this seems to be the case. Even the Copper plates we started out with are already Gold now, or nearing it, due to the regular training Mare has put them through. How they advance from this point is yet to be seen. Anyways, this individual did not partake of the regular training, yet advanced as fast as her Adventurer peers.”

“Hmm…so she discovered an alternative method of levelling – one that rivalled what we could provide to the Adventurer Guild?”

That sounded like bad news. The Training Area was one of the major draws of the Sorcerous Kingdom’s Adventurer Guild. If there was a way to match its benefits through other means…

“Initially,” Pandora’s Actor said, “we could only speculate that she gained her levels undergoing challenges which provided a sum of experience equivalent to what could be gained in the Training Area. After some investigation after being made aware of it, however, it seems that there is indeed a precedent. Actually, the vast majority of experience gains in this world do not occur from killing monsters – it is mostly from performing tasks relevant to one’s vocation. This may be a gross oversimplification, but one could swing a sword ten thousand times and gain Fighter experience by doing so.”

“I see. So she performed ‘relevant tasks’ and gained levels through them.”

“Precisely – and in using those alternate means, she did not gain the usual physique of a combatant. As long as one possesses the appropriate levels, one will also gain the stats, abilities and traits associated with those levels. A perfectly harmless-looking individual can actually be a dangerously powerful one in reality…I suppose that is something we should already know, as many of the NPCs have appearances which belie their actual capabilities.”

“So in taking the form of our Adventurers, you can confirm various observations that have been made…that seems straightforward enough,” Ainz nodded. “Then, what have you found out about this woman?”

“This woman – that is, Ludmila Zahradnik – is quite the puzzle, actually. The rest of the Adventurers were easier to figure out, as adventurer roles tend to share much in common with Yggdrasil ones. I’ve spent a lot of my free time with her analysis, actually.”

“Hoh…do tell.”

A spear appeared in Pandora’s Actor’s hand, and the figure of the Human woman flowed through several smooth manoeuvres across the polished stone floor.

“Though she is a noble, which we understand to be something like a civilian class that did not exist in Yggdrasil, she currently exhibits the rough baseline performance of a level ten Fighter. She also refers to herself as a Ranger rather than a Fighter, and has repeatedly demonstrated the skillset of a Ranger.”

“Well, both Ranger and Fighter have similar basic capability in melee at low levels,” Ainz noted. “It isn’t until they start branching out into specialized class builds that any sort of significant divergence occurs…the notion that she is a noble is curious, however. As you’ve mentioned, they’re supposed to be weak noncombatants.”

“Save for a handful of cases, yes,” Pandora’s Actor propped the spear up in one hand. “It wasn’t until I did some digging into the older intelligence reports that I made any sense out of it. The Imperial Army actually has many nobles that pursue martial service – becoming captains and generals in their Legions. Two of the surviving Imperial Knights are from these ranks of the martial nobility, both reportedly quite powerful by the standards of the local Humans.

“My running hypothesis is that Baroness Zahradnik, and those nobles like her, possess a prestige class: except rather than the prerequisite for that class being fulfilled by contributions from base classes, it comes from her lineage and cultural tradition. In essence, she has access to an advanced class from level one.”

Uwah…that’s dirty! If this was Yggdrasil, everyone would be screaming imba…well, no – even if it had a good suite of skills and abilities, the people around here usually don’t have the levels to bring out the full power of those classes… actually, she might? Under us, she might have the chance for a good build…

Ainz set aside his thoughts on build mechanics and started weighing out the pros and cons. On one hand, it might be dangerous if she were to grow powerful. On the other hand, she was being monitored closely and could potentially yield knowledge in several of the more practical fields of study in this world that they were still woefully ignorant of. For now, it should probably be alright...

“Then what of her capabilities?” Ainz asked, “What benefits are gained from having this class?”

“Well, therein lies the problem with this method of analysis,” Pandora’s Actor scratched his head. “While I can copy the appearance and physical properties of the Adventurer being studied, I only seem to be able to perform actions that are available in Yggdrasil. Actually, since there have been some adjustments; allow me to try again. Hold still for one moment please – this won’t hurt.”

Ainz’s stomach sank as Pandora’s Actor went through a series of movements that looked suspiciously like that of a sentai hero before framing his eyes between his hands and crying out.

“JUSTICE RADAAAAAAAR!!!”

Ainz froze in his seat, jaw-dropping open as he gripped the armrests of his seat. He waited for his emotional suppression to catch up.

‘Won’t hurt’, my ass! It’s so embarrassing that it hurts! What sort of penalty game is this?

“Hmm, it’s as I thought,” Pandora’s Actor said, “no effect. Nabe-chan…that sneer of yours hurts.”

“W-w-what the hell was that!” Ainz unfroze and nearly shouted, “Is that an actual ability of hers? Does she actually scream that when she uses it?”

“I’ve only read about it in reports, Ainz-sama,” he replied. “It doesn’t mention anything of the sort, but I figured it should have a suitable activation phrase. It’s some sort of tracking ability that detects criminals or something along those lines…”

“Something like that exists?” Ainz said, “Perhaps you should have asked her to demonstrate how it works before attempting it yourself.”

“Unfortunately, she lost the class level associated with this ability and hasn’t been able to re-obtain it through Adventurer Training. As such, I believe it has something to do with her judicial duties.”

Ainz winced. That was the worst kind of death when you were levelling – ones that robbed you of new abilities shortly after you gained them. It was apparently far worse in this world since one couldn’t just select what levels they were taking by choosing it from a game UI.

“So she has to run around catching criminals to get it back?” Ainz asked, “Touch Me would have a field day with that. Wait – she lost levels? From how you’ve been promoting this individual, she sounded like she was doing well for herself.”

“She died twice in as many days; it’s quite the mystery. It certainly shows that the quality of personnel can vary so widely even when they should all be the same strength.”

“Dying twice, back to back in this word…that seems like it would be rather discouraging.”

“Not at all,” Pandora’s Actor chuckled. “She only comes back with varying degrees of annoyance. As I mentioned: adaptability is one of her greatest strengths. Even death no longer seems to have any hold on her, now that she knows that resurrections are available. She dies, gets up, analyzes what went wrong and throws herself back into training. A voluntary test subject that energetically applies herself into whatever task is at hand, and she always comes back – even when faced with frustrating setbacks.”

“It sounds like you’ve identified a most useful individual,” Ainz said. “How are the costs for these experiments being handled? I promised my full support to the Adventurer Guild but, even so, they’ve been allocated a limited budget in order to promote efficient expenditures.”

“Albedo frowns, Ainzach sweats.”

“I see…I suppose a provisional budget for the purposes of collecting test data should be established. You may present it to Albedo when you determine what is appropriate.”

“Your generosity is most appreciated, Ainz-sama – though hunting down criminals…do you believe this would be effective in regaining her missing levels in this mysterious class?”

“You mentioned that she resolved a legal issue in the west, did you not? If nothing else has worked so far, and she’s done nothing else of note, then it should be the case. Something like a class quest…”

His voice trailed off as he considered what he had just said.

As if…Adventurers would have all sorts of exotic classes by completing job requests if that was the case. We don’t even have NPCs that hand out quests in the first place.

“I shall begin making the suitable arrangements,” Pandora’s Actor said. “There is just the place for this as…hm, yes – everything fits together so well.”

Eh?

The form of the woman before him took on an inspired expression. He hoped that she–no, he wouldn’t enter into those grand gesticulations that he was prone to.

“Though the major issues have been resolved to the west,” Pandora’s Actor continued, “Count Völkchenheim is still sorting out matters in his reorganized demesne. There appears to be nothing substantial, but there should at least be a few lingering elements left over from Re-Estize to root out. Sasuga Ainz-sama: I cannot hope to compare with your mastery over the grand stage that is the Sorcerous Kingdom. To think that you’ve plotted out contingencies to this degree.”

Völkchenheim?

The name sounded like it should be familiar. Well, no matter. More importantly, he hoped he wasn’t about to send out one of the administrators of the realm on some fool’s errand…

“Umu,” Ainz nodded sagely. “I hope it does not need to be stated that this world has many distinct differences from our own, so labelling such things as ‘class quests’ may not be entirely accurate.”

“Of that, I am painfully aware,” Pandora’s Actor smiled ruefully. “Our efforts to qualify and categorize this world’s class progression systems with the Adventurer Guild often hit rough patches, though not as confounding as this particular one. With your definitive inference, however, we are one step closer to developing a way to direct our Adventurers onto the paths desired.”

“Good. If your work can be developed into a practical theory, we will be able to apply it to the entire Sorcerous Kingdom. I am especially keen on seeing how this knowledge can be applied to the growth of our new Runesmiths.”

“Hmm…while I can’t say that I can send tradesmen through the Adventurer Training Area, I will begin collecting information and see if I can find any correlations.”

The brow of the woman furrowed and she seemed to enter deep into thought, muttering to herself.

“Runesmiths…the world’s systems…unable to copy…I see, I see…” The expression of the woman brightened, eyes shining as she cast her gaze over him, “You are far too kind, Ainz-sama – to think that you would so gently guide me to the cause of her puzzling deaths. Truly, I am blessed to have such a father!”

The urge to squirm in his seat nearly overwhelmed him. Ainz thought he did well ad-libbing the mystery of the missing ability, but now he had seemingly solved another unfathomable problem. His mind worked as he tried to figure out a way to step around it.

“Well, I’m sure it was simply a matter of time before you figured it out as well,” he told Pandora’s Actor. “Besides, that particular problem has outsized costs associated with it.”

“You are, of course, correct, Ainz-sama,” Pandora’s actor nodded. “Not only with the cost of resurrections, but we very nearly made fools out of ourselves as well. I will begin planning out the required changes. As for the other problem, I believe that Narberal would be suited to observe Baroness Zahradnik as she performs her tasks. We certainly can’t take any of the Guardians away from their duties. They are acquainted with one another, so things should run within acceptable parameters.”

Narberal? Are you sure?

Or so he wanted to say. Glancing over at Narberal, he decided that he shouldn’t show any disapproval after he had so recently praised her for her work as Nabe. She didn’t seem to react so vehemently to this individual, either. Perhaps some progress could be made with the way she interacted with outsiders by going along with the plan.

“So long as it doesn’t interfere with your ongoing work together as Darkness.” He told them, then turned to Narberal, “Nabe – I look forward to some positiveresults.”

“Hah!”

Narberal responded with a sharp affirmative, and Ainz frowned inwardly. He hoped his message got through to her. Then again, she never left swathes of electrocuted Humans in her wake when left to her own devices, so maybe it wouldn’t be so bad…

“Umu…umu…excellent work, Pandora’s Actor. You may convey my satisfaction to all of the others involved in your activities.”

Ainz rose from his seat, and Pandora’s Actor waited on him, folding the woman’s hands over her abdomen.

Does he really have to stay in that form? He’s already come to his conclusions, hasn’t he? I hope he’s not going to do anything weird after I leave…

“Pandora’s Actor…”

“Hah,” the figure of the woman stood at attention.

“I consider you an adult, so I will try and keep my nose out of your personal matters…but you are to always conduct yourself as a gentleman, and take responsibility for your actions.”

“Hah?”