{The Great Amphitheatre, 6th Floor of Nazarick, a few weeks after Ainz's visit…}

Neia Baraja gawked at the sight as she stood in the pit of the Amphitheatre. The [Gate] spell closed behind her. She gazed around her in awe. The vast structure. The bright noon sun, the clear sky. The cool air. It was quiet.

After visiting with the Sorcerer King in E-Rantel, she had been instructed to go through a [Gate] and wait on the other side. Ainz said that other people, including himself, would be joining her soon enough.

Neia walked along the edge of the arena, observing the flags that dotted the walls of the structure. She counted forty-one, including the banner of the Sorcerer Kingdom that she recognized. The symbols of others she did not. Were these nations that the Sorcerer King had conquered? Neia didn't have time to ponder that, as one of the entrance portcullises to the arena opened. She recognized the smooth mechanical gait of the person that passed through, and the eye-patch that person wore.

"Shizu-senpai!" she cried, quickly running to close the distance between herself and the Pleiades maid. "Shizu-senpai, this is amazing! Where are we?!"

"Not sure. Never been here before. Ainz-sama would know."

"This is just… incredible! I've never seen this region of the Sorcerer Kingdom before! I had no idea there was a massive arena here!"

"All good, Neia." CZ punctuated her statement by producing a bottle of brown liquid from nothing. She handed it to Neia, straw and everything.

"Thanks, Shizu-senpai," said Neia, with a smile. This chocolate drink had caused the genesis of a fairly demanding sweet tooth on Neia's part. Further conversation was cut short by a massive creature, a gigantic wolf, leaping over the side of the arena, kicking up dust as it landed on the loose dry soil of the arena. Neia nearly dropped her drink in fright.

"Shizu! What's that human doing here? Did you get Ainz-sama's permission?" Neia saw the voice came from the elf boy in a white suit, currently astride that massive dangerous-looking wolf, using it like a steed. Neia had seen the elf boy and her sister in the white coat and matching skirt when they all paid their little visit the Theocracy. Shizu turned to answer the elf boy.

"Ainz-sama's orders, Aura-sama. Ainz-sama and other outsiders coming here soon."

The massive wolf trotted forward, closing the distance rapidly. Soon enough, Neia found the slightly wet snout of a giant wolf in front of her, taking in her scent.

"Woah, Fenny! Fenny! That's enough!" said the elf boy, presumably named... Auri, was it? He guided the wolf away from Neia.

"This thing is your pet, Auri-sama?" asked Neia, incredulously.

"Aura Bella Fiore, servant of Ainz Ooal Gown-sama! Do I know you? Wait-" Aura turned gleefully to CZ. "Ainz-sama's coming here?!" he asked, excitedly.

"Confirmed, Aura-sama."

The elf boy turned away. "MARE! AINZ-SAMA IS VISITING HERE SOON! GET OVER HERE!" Neia heard another person cry out when Aura started yelling, rather startled, followed by a rather timid:

"A-Ainz-sama? H-here? I-I'll be r-right over, onē-chan!"

Onē-chan? Eh? Aura's a girl? She doesn't look it...

Neia heard the other elf girl, Mari presumably, cast a spell, [Fly], on herself, before flying over the wall of the Amphitheatre, and rather wisely (given her skirt) landing immediately on the other side, and daintily running over. The girl held a wooden staff in one hand.

Aura energetically jumped off the wolf. "Sit, Fenny! Sit!" Like a well-trained pup, the gargantuan wolf sat down, looking exactly like an overgrown dog. "Good boy!" Aura turned to CZ. "So Ainz-sama's bringing other outsiders here too? Wouldn't Demiurge-san be better for this sort of thing? I mean his experiments in the Holy K…" Aura paused and looked at Neia, realizing something. "In the holy caves near the Great Forest of Tob were really successful."

"Holy caves? In Great Forest of Tob?"

"Y-you know… the caves. Ainz-sama told me all about them. But I can talk to you later about that." Thankfully for Aura, a [Gate] opened. Ainz Ooal Gown, accompanied by Emperor Jircniv, Fluder Paradyne, and Nimble Dale Anoch, passed through the [Gate]. Fluder seemed to be enjoying himself, as always, surrounded by magic he himself couldn't cast. The rather thin Imperial Knight, a shadow of himself, looked absolutely anxious, but the Emperor himself was impossible to read. He flinched subtly upon seeing the two elves. Aura, Mare, and Shizu knelt before Ainz as if it were a reflex, and Neia followed their example.

"Aura, Mare, Shizu, Ms. Baraja. You may rise. There is no need to stand on ceremony for now. At least raise your heads."

"Ainz-sama, are these humans here for Your entertainment? We'll do our best, but might be boring since they're so weak, and-" The Emperor looked at Ainz calmly as the Sorcerer King interrupted Aura. Neia didn't see the beads of sweat on the Emperor's forehead.

"No, Aura. We're here to discuss plans for the war. At Ms. Baraja's suggestion, we are going to assemble an army of our vassals with which to attack the Theocracy. I'm expecting some others to join us within the hour." Neia's eyes, hidden by her visor, widened at this. The Sorcerer King had listened to her suggestion.

"Thank You, Ainz-sama, for hearing the prayer of Your lowly servant!"

"No need to thank me, Ms. Baraja. Your suggestion has much merit. I was going to cut off the snake's head then and there, had you said nothing. The Sorcerer Kingdom and its allies have yet to engage in any joint military operations. The war with the Re-Estize Kingdom was handled by the forces of Nazarick, exclusively. I would like to see how a force of all my allies performs."

As Ainz spoke, another [Gate] opened, and this time, a towering pale blue-green insectoid creature, carrying a silver halberd, lumbered through, exhaling a puff of frigid air. He was followed by a strong battle-scarred Lizardman with blade fashioned of ice, and a humbly-dressed, kind-looking young woman of around Neia's own age, the bloody Mayor of Carne Village. Neia had heard the rumors about the bloody rise of that town from a Re-Estize backwater to an imposing military base, when an army of 5,000 elite goblins suddenly appeared and destroyed the Re-Estize Kingdom's attacking army, killing the Crown Prince. She had seen the insectoid goliath and the Lizardman warrior before as well, but she had not made their acquaintances yet.

The insect-like monster took a knee, like she, the elf twins, and Shizu had before. The behemoth spoke with a chilly baritone voice, its timbre oozing with power.

"I. Am. Here. As. You. Have. Commanded. Ainz-sama. With. Me. Are. Zarysusu. Shasha. And Enri. Bareare. I. Await. Your. Next. Command. Ainz-sama."

"Well done, Cocytus," said Ainz. "Rise. [Create Greater Item]." With a wave of his hand, Ainz summoned a large table and several chairs in the middle of the Arena. There was even a pitcher of water and glass cups as well. He moved to the head of the table, almost gliding across the ground, as his feet were covered by his flowing majestic robes.

"Aura, Mare, have you finished our map project?"

"Y-yes, Ainz-sama." The elf girl in the skirt produced a large scroll out of nothing, an ability of Nazarick denizes that hardly surprised Neia anymore, and reverently handed it to Ainz. Some of the others present weren't as used to that sight, however, as evidenced by the gentle gasps she then heard.

"I hope it meets Your expectations, A-Ainz-sama" murmured Aura, her voice quavering with anxiety.

"You gave your all on this, Aura. You and your brother should be proud. How can it not meet any expectations?" The twins beamed at this.

Neia did a double take. B-Brother? What?! She wasn't the only one.

"Ainz Ooal Gown-sama… I was worried that I would be the only one to confuse the two. They look so much alike!" remarked Emperor Jircniv, trying his best to be light-hearted.

"How so, Jircniv-dono? I do not follow," said Ainz, perfectly serious. That took the wind out of the Emperor's sails, almost.

"W-well… uh… is not Aura-sama Mare-sama's brother? And Mare-sama Aura-sama's sister?" The twins looked at Ainz for his answer. All gathered there held their breath.

"Heh… Hehehehehe! Hahahahahahaha!"

Ainz started laughing. Emperor Jircniv looked utterly confused, before chuckling himself. He subtly elbowed Nimble, who then began laughing. All artificial, of course.

They got the two mixed up the whole time! This is golden! Ainz thought to himself. He felt his amusement die down, suppressed by his emotional inhibitor.

"My apologies for my sudden mirth, Jircniv-dono, I meant no insult. But you are mistaken. I understand the confusion, so I do not hold it against you. Aura is the female, and Mare is the male, for the record."

"Ah… I… I understand now. To Aura-sama and Mare-sama, I wish to sincerely apologize for making an erroneous assumption based on your appearance. I hope you do not take offense to my past ignorance," said the Emperor calmly, bowing with all possible grace. Neia could understand how he could rule an Empire. He's really composed, as good diplomats should be.

"Let's put that misunderstanding behind us. It's time we attend to the matter at hand." He unrolled the massive scroll on the table, revealing a vast and detailed map of the whole surrounding region, complete with the shapes of cities and buildings, the flow of rivers and the movement of the clouds. Everyone gathered around the table, admiring the sheer beauty and detail of the map. Fluder reached his hand out, touching an ocean. The illusory water rippled at his touch, and he drew his hand back, seeing a droplet or two stick to his fingers. He adopted an expression not unlike a child in a candy shop, a bright smile crossing his wrinkled face.

"Incredible! The water! It feels… real! HAHAHA!" The old man batted lightly at clouds gathering over the Theocracy. They gave way, and reformed once his hand had gone. "Magnificent! I can feel the very clouds! HAHAAAAAA! Unbelievable! Jir my boy! Jir, you must touch the clouds! Or the oceans! Or something on this map! The detail! The sheer scale of this map! It's absolutely incredible! It makes our own Atlas Baharuthica look like a child's drawing in the sand as the tide rises!" The Emperor rolled his eyes at the wizard's pet name for him, but he reached out, tapping the ocean with his index finger. He laughed slightly, feeling the cold water.

"This… how even… possible?" he whispered in shock.

"Aura. Mare," said Ainz. The twins had been staring at him expectantly, awaiting his final judgment of their work. "You have created something superb, including features and details that I had not even considered when I assigned you to this project. You spent six months on this, as I instructed, and yet it seems like you worked on it for a century. Well done. I am unsure if I can adequately show my appreciation for your work, but perhaps this would suffice to begin with." With affectionate hands, he reached out to ruffle the hair on both the twins' heads, causing them to laugh for joy as he did so.

Neia felt a new sense of admiration for the Sorcerer King that she didn't think was possible. A strong leader, a kind person, and now a loving parent… He did mention his Children a few times...

"S-six months?" asked the Emperor, incredulous. "This map was made in only six months? It took the Cartography Committee decades and cost millions to create Atlas Baharuthica!"

"Are you impressed, Jircniv-dono?" asked Ainz.

"A-Absolutely, Ainz Ooal Gown-sama. Nothing the Empire has produced can compare to this! If this sort of map can be reproduced, even on a small scale, it would provide incredible benefits to everyone! It would be an honor to discuss this when you have time, Ainz Ooal Gown-sama!"

"Of course, Jircniv-dono. Also, there's no need for the -sama honorific. I appreciate your politeness and reverence, but I do not see you as subservient to me, which is why I use -dono, and permit you to do the same. You may also drop the honorific altogether, if you wish. I leave that to you."

"You are exceptionally kind, Ainz-sa… -dono."

"It's nothing. Now then, while you are all admiring the map, we must move to the task at hand. The Theocracy. Cocytus, have you examined the intelligence files regarding their military strength and tactics?"

"I. Have. Ainz-sama. The. Theocracy. Currently. Employs. A. Defense. In. Depth. Strategy. Which. Has. Multiple. Advantages. Against. Our. Forces. It. Will. Be. Harder. To. Eliminate. Them. In. A. Single. Blow. Like. You. Did. With. The. Kingdom."

Nimble gulped uneasily at the memory of Katze Plains and the sea of blood and horror left behind.

Cocytus continued. "Using. [Gate]. To. Directly. Enter. Kami. Miyako. Would. Be. More. Efficient. But. As. You. Wish. For. Your. Vassals. To. Fight. For. You. I. Recommend. That. We. Gather. Our. Forces. At. E-Rantel. As. That. Provides. Two. Direct. Routes. Of. Attack. From. The. West. And the East."

"Our bastions on the Katze Plains are still operational. We could use those as staging points for the attack," said the Emperor, pointing to the barren region.

"Ainz-sama," said Mayor Enri. "May I make a suggestion?"

"Of course, Mrs. Bareare."

"What if we used an alternative route?"

Ainz raised a thoughtful hand to his chin. "The Draconic Kingdom?"

"It. Is. Not. Expedient. As. We. Will. Spend. Time. Moving. Troops. But. We. Could. Have. The. Element. Of. Surprise. If. We. Move. Fast. Enough. It. Would. Take. Several. Weeks. To. Move. An. Army. Through. The. Empire. And. Then. Through. The. Draconic. Kingdom. Given. The. Differences. In. Road. Quality."

"Good thinking, Cocytus, but remember that her husband has provided us with the recipes to mass produce potions that we can give to our troops, which may make your concerns unwarranted. With all the soldiers under its effects, a forced march would be possible for some time, and reduce the need to stop and camp. We could possibly have an army across the Draconic Kingdom border in a week." What do I know? "[Message. Lupusregina Beta.]"

"[Lupusregina Beta at Your command, Ainz-sama!]"

"[Lupusregina, it's good to hear you. Please pay a visit to Carne, if you can, and ask Nfirea about Violet VII.]"

"[I'm currently guarding Carne right now, Ainz-sama, I'll ask him right away... He says that one dose of Violet Mark VII can last for a week. Its positive effects include heightened energy levels, better hand-eye coordination, decelerated dehydration, accelerated cognitive processes, enhanced stamina, and sharpened senses, and it removes the need for sustenance for a 24 hour period. Withdrawal symptoms are significantly milder than the previous Marks. It lacks the aphrodisiac properties of Mark VI.]"

"[Well done, Lupusregina. Convey my gratitude to Mr. Bareare for his hard work. Remind me to reward you when I have the time, that's an order. Ainz out.]" He ended the message before Lupusregina could protest.

"Ainz-s… dono?" asked the Emperor.

"Forgive me for that. I was just confirming the duration of Violet VII with our producer, Nfirea Bareare."

"Ah, I've heard of him, mostly from Fluder. You've put his talents to good use, Ainz-dono."

"I have. His newest potion will essentially remove the need for sleep, hydration, and more for a week. Food will only need to be consumed once a day."

"Incredible…" said Fluder. "That's what the youngster's been up to, haha! So this army will speed its way through the Draconic Kingdom, and on to the Theocracy?"

"That is the plan, I think. Now, I am entrusting the details of this operation to Cocytus. I have been unfortunately called away to Nazarick, so I cannot remain here for the rest of the time, nor will I be able to see you off. I apologize for these unexpected events. Until next time," said Ainz, turning away and vanishing in a blue light.

{Ainz's personal chambers, 9th Floor of Nazarick…}

He appeared in the middle of his bedroom. Phew… I nearly got stuck in there planning war strategies and battle tactics. I worked as a nine-to-five accountant, though in reality it was any time the company wanted me to suffer, not a general! I'm glad Cocytus knows what he's doing. He heard a knock on the door.

"Ainz-samaaaa? Are You there? Are You there, Ainz-sama?" Albedo. Ainz heard her murmur something to herself. "He's not in... now's my time..." Huh?

"Yes, Albedo, I am here. What can I do for you?" He heard her squeak aloud, startled.

"Oh, uh, I just wanted to ensure that You were alright, Ainz-sama," she laughed nervously after finishing.

What is this woman doing? He went to the door and swung it open. There, sure enough, was the angelic blushing Guardian Overseer.

"What can I do for you, Albedo?"

"Oh, Ainz-sama… I just wanted to admire Your undying handsomeness."

She's in that mood again, thought Ainz. Come to think of it, isn't she always in that mood?

"Well, uh, thank you, Albedo." The succubus seemed on the verge of saying something, but hesitating.

"Albedo, what is it?"

"Supreme Lord! I just had the most enlightening talk with Demiurge! He opened my eyes to the truth!"

The truth? What on earth is she saying?

"Oh? What did he tell you?"

"He told me… he told me…" she was struggling to spit it out. Each time she started a wave of ecstasy washed over her, forcing her to start over. "He told me that You already chose me to be Your Queen!"

THE FUCK?!