Without a word, she pressed the back of Ainz’s hand that had been running through her hair to her face—probably to her lips.
Mare sobbed. And then Aura.
Demiurge was also dabbing at his eyes.
Jealous of those who could shed even a few tears, Cocytus watched as his comrade pledged her loyalty once more.
What Shalltear had feared most was that because she wasn’t useful, because she had caused trouble, because she’d abandoned her oaths, that the kind, last remaining Supreme Being in the land would disown her.
But he had obliterated her worries…
…with the word love.
How great was her joy? Cocytus, in the same position as her—no, worse—stood silently behind her, watching in envy.
“Okay, Shalltear. You’re dismiss—”
“Lord Ainz!” A cold voice cut their master short.
Cocytus glared at Albedo, offended by her rude conduct. Something was off. An unidentifiable uneasiness flitted across his mind.
“Clear rewards and punishment keep all in order. Perhaps it would be best if you punished her.”
“…Albedo. You have some issue with—” He closed his mouth.
Ainz must have paused due to something Cocytus didn’t understand. But what settled things was another word from Shalltear.
“Lord Ainz. I agree with Albedo. I beg you, please punish me. It will be a joy to be able to prove my devotion.”
“Okay. I’ll decide later what to do and punish you. You’re dismissed.”
“Yes, Lord Ainz.” Her eyes were always red, but now they were bloodshot as well. She descended the stairs, and back in her previous position, she assumed the most humble posture possible.
And then…
“Cocytus, Lord Ainz has something to say to you. Please listen.”
The air was tense.
The moment had finally arrived.
Cocytus bowed his head deeply. His posture, from which he could see nothing but the floor, was appropriate for an audience, but he remained in it because he lacked the courage to gaze upon his master’s face.
“I saw the battle with the lizardmen, Cocytus!”
“MY LORD!”
“It ended in defeat, didn’t it?”
“SIR! MY HUMBLE APOLOGIES FOR THIS ERROR. I—”
A sharp strike of a staff on the floor cut off Cocytus’s apology.
Albedo’s icy voice vibrated in his ears. “Isn’t that rude, Cocytus? If you’re going to apologize, raise your head!”
“DO PARDON ME!” He lifted his head to see his master seated on the throne at the top of the stairs.
“…Cocytus. Let’s hear from the general of the defeated army. How did it feel to be in command this time instead of fighting on the front lines?”
“MY LORD! MY HUMBLE APOLOGIES FOR LOSING THE SOLDIERS YOU GAVE ME, AS WELL AS THE ELDER LICH COMMANDER YOU CREATED!”
“Hmm? Oh, I can make any number of those, so it’s fine to lose them. Don’t worry about that. What I’m asking you, Cocytus, is what it was like to lead an army. I’ll say this first: I have no intention of blaming you terribly much for this defeat.”
The atmosphere among the guardians and the minions behind them was one of bewilderment, excepting Demiurge and Albedo.
SO THE THINGS DEMIURGE WAS SAYING WERE… HRM! Sensing his master was about to continue speaking, he hurriedly shifted his attention.
“Everyone fails sometimes. Even me.”
Disbelief hung faintly in the air. There was no way the Supreme Being Ainz Ooal Gown could fail, and in fact, he never had. In short, such a claim was only to comfort Cocytus.
“All that matters is what you gained from the experience. Cocytus, let me rephrase the question. How could you have won?”
Cocytus fell into silent thought. He knew now what he could have done to win. He voiced one of his faults. “I UNDERESTIMATED THE LIZARDMEN. I SHOULD HAVE PROCEEDED MORE CAUTIOUSLY.”
“Hmm! You are correct. No matter how weak an opponent may seem, you should never make light of them… I should have had Narberal watch this fight. What else?”
“I THINK PERHAPS WE LACKED INFORMATION. WE DIDN’T KNOW THEIR STRENGTHS OR THE LAY OF THE LAND WITHIN THEIR TERRITORY. I LEARNED THAT WHEN THINGS LIKE THAT ARE UNCLEAR, THE CHANCES OF WINNING WILL INEVITABLY BE LOW.”
“Hmm, hmm. What else?”
“WE ALSO DIDN’T HAVE ENOUGH COMMANDERS. WE WERE USING LOW-TIER UNDEAD, SO WE SHOULD HAVE ATTACHED A COMMANDER WHO COULD GIVE THEM ORDERS ACCORDING TO THE SITUATION. ALSO, CONSIDERING THE LIZARDMEN’S WEAPONS, WE SHOULD HAVE MAINLY USED ZOMBIES TO TIRE THEM OUT OR USED ALL OUR TROOPS TOGETHER INSTEAD OF SEPARATELY.”
“And besides that?”
“…MY APOLOGIES. THAT’S ALL I CAN COME UP WITH AT THE MOMENT.”
“No, that makes sense. Well done. Of course, I can think of some other things, but you have learned well enough, Cocytus. Really, I wanted you to discover these things on your own without being asked, but…I suppose this is acceptable. Now then, why didn’t you choose these courses of action from the start?”
“…I HADN’T THOUGHT OF THEM. I BELIEVED WE COULD SIMPLY KEEP PUSHING.”
“I see. So when the undead all died, you realized some things? Good! If you strive to not fail again, then this will have been a meaningful defeat.”
Cocytus had the feeling his master smiled a bit.
“There are many types of failures, but yours is not a critical one. Besides the elder lich, all those undead were auto-spawning monsters. Losing them doesn’t affect Nazarick at all. And the fact that the guardians have learned not to repeat these mistakes is a bonus.”
“THANK YOU, LORD AINZ.”
“That said, it’s true that you were defeated, so I will have you accept punishment like Shalltear—”
There his words cut off, and Cocytus waited to see what his punishment would be. The brief silence did make him a little anxious, but a weight had been lifted from Cocytus, knowing in his heart that his master hadn’t lost hope in him; however, the next thing he said made Cocytus stiffen.
“Honestly, I thought I’d take you off this operation, but this is a better idea. Cocytus! Wipe away the filth of this defeat with your own hands… Exterminate the lizardmen—this time, without anyone’s help.” If they killed all the lizardmen so that no word of the battle got out, it would be as if Nazarick had never been defeated in the first place.
Someone who scorned those who lived outside Nazarick as lower life-forms would be delighted to set about perpetrating this atrocity. Up until now, Cocytus would have taken the order without hesitation, too, but…
Cocytus trembled—because he knew what it meant to do what he was about to do.
He breathed in and out a few times.
As everyone wondered why he hadn’t accepted the order, he spoke.
“LORD AINZ, THERE IS SOMETHING I WOULD LIKE TO ASK OF YOU!”
The world stopped. He felt the attention of a few stabbing into him. Cocytus—a guardian at the peak of power and strength within Nazarick, who could count on one hand those as strong or stronger than him—was assaulted by chills so violent he shivered.
Regret crashed down upon him like an avalanche, but it was too late.
Now that he’d said something, he couldn’t take it back.
With his multiple compound eyes, Cocytus had an extremely wide field of vision; his only saving grace now was that because he was facing the ground, he couldn’t see his master’s face. If he had looked enraged or displeased, Cocytus wouldn’t have been able to do anything.
“I BEG YOU, LORD AINZ—”
It was not their master but someone else who interrupted.
“You fool!” Albedo rebuked him with an earsplitting scream, a voice appropriate for the captain of the floor guardians. Cocytus was petrified, trembling like a child scolded by his mother.
“You dare petition Lord Ainz despite being the one who brought defeat to Nazarick? Know your place!”
Cocytus didn’t speak but
kept his head bowed, hoping for consent from their master, even as Albedo battered him harder with her rage.
“Back dow—” But Albedo’s shout vanished partway, giving way to the quiet voice of one man.
“That’s enough, Albedo.”
She gasped, and their master repeated the words again to soothe her.
“Raise your head, Cocytus. Why don’t you let me hear what it is you want to ask?” It was a quiet voice containing no apparent anger. That was precisely why it was terrifying.
The fear resembled the feeling of being swallowed up while peering into an impossibly clear lake.
Cocytus had gear to protect him from the psychic effects of fear from external sources. The emotions assaulting him now came from inside.
Swallowing hard—not spit, but venom to be exact—Cocytus raised his head and looked his master in the face.
The flames in his vacant orbits were a slightly vivid red.
“Once again. Will you let me hear what it is you want to ask?”
Cocytus’s voice wouldn’t come out. He tried over and over, but his throat was tight and he couldn’t utter a single word.
“What’s wrong, Cocytus?”
A heavy silence weighed him down.
“…I’m not mad or anything, you know! I just want to know what you’re thinking, what you want to say.”
His tone held the kindness one used when asking a clammed-up child. Responding to that push, Cocytus said, “I’M AGAINST KILLING ALL THE LIZARDMEN. I BEG YOU, PLEASE HAVE MERCY.”
When he’d finished speaking, he thought he felt the air in the room shift. No, it had shifted.
The biggest reaction was from straight ahead—Albedo’s murderous glare. The other guardians were shaken, although Demiurge and their master were tranquil—he sensed nothing from them.
“Cocytus, do you know what you’re saying?” Albedo’s icy voice, transformed by killing intent, was enough to make even chill-resistant Cocytus shiver. “Lord Ainz ordered you to exterminate the lizardmen as punishment. That you would raise an objection to it… Guardian of the fifth level, Cocytus, could it be that you’re frightened of the lizardmen?!”
Her voice was mocking, but Cocytus had no response.
Albedo’s attitude was correct. If their positions had been reversed, Cocytus would probably have been similarly irritated.
“How about you say someth—?” What cut off her words wasn’t a voice but a sound—the sharp strike of a staff on the floor.
“Quiet, Albedo. I’m asking Cocytus. Don’t interfere.”
“Excuse me, my lord! P-please forgive me!” Albedo bowed and returned to her previous position.
Their master’s gaze returned to Cocytus, serious and practically boring a hole through him. It was impossible to read his master’s emotions. He could have been completely furious or just curious.
“Now then, Cocytus. You must have a reason for saying what you just said. Some kind of benefit to the Great Tomb of Nazarick? Tell me.”
“MY LORD! THERE IS POTENTIAL THAT IN THE FUTURE THESE LIZARDMEN WILL PRODUCE ROBUST WARRIORS. I THINK THAT PERHAPS KILLING THEM ALL NOW WOULD BE A WASTE. WHEN POWERFUL LIZARDMEN ARE BORN, IT WOULD BE A BENEFIT TO INSTILL IN THEM A LOYALTY TOWARD NAZARICK AND MAKE THEM OUR FOLLOWERS.”
“…Your proposal does make sense. In the end, undead from lizardman corpses weren’t any stronger than the ones made using human corpses. If we can make arrangements to collect corpses buried in E-Rantel’s graveyard, there’s no reason to insist on using lizardmen.”
Cocytus was about to say, “Then…,” but he realized their master wasn’t finished speaking. He had a bad feeling, and then his fear was confirmed.
“However! It’s more cost-effective to use the undead I create with corpses than live lizardmen. Loyalty requires trust. Undead don’t rack up food and drink costs. The only pro I can think of for using lizardmen is that their numbers will increase. And even then, we’d have to think about the long-term implications… Let me know if you think I’m missing something, anything you think would make sense to me.”
Their merciful master would grant his wish as long as he was convinced, but Cocytus couldn’t come up with anything.
He’d always seen himself as a weapon for his master to wield. Because of that, because he’d never thought for himself, he couldn’t explain his own thoughts well. He hadn’t considered how they, as an organization, could benefit.
And what he was being asked really boiled down to one thing: What was in it for the Great Tomb of Nazarick? The reason Cocytus didn’t want to kill the lizardmen was because one had attracted his interest. As a warrior, he was drawn to the group that lizardman was trying to protect—it was a personal emotion, definitely not a utilitarian motive based on seeing the bigger picture.
Cocytus panicked.
If their master, quietly watching him, became impatient or bothered, this miraculous question would lose all meaning. All that would be left was the standing order to exterminate the lizardmen.
He desperately racked his brain. Still, he had no answer.
“What’s the matter, Cocytus? You don’t have anything? If not, you should be fine with exterminating them, yes?”
The question was repeated.
Nothing came to mind. Cocytus had nothing to say, and his mind was just spinning its wheels.
A murmur echoed loudly in the silent Throne Room. “…I see. That’s too bad.”
Just as the weight of the words too bad threatened to crush Cocytus, a quiet voice handed him a lifeline.
“Lord Ainz, please forgive the intrusion…”
“What is it, Demiurge? You have something to say?”
“Yes. Regarding your earlier decision, I wonder if you would consider entertaining a humble plan of mine.”
“…Let’s hear it.”
“My lord! Lord Ainz, you’re well aware of our need to conduct experiments. What if we experimented on the lizardmen?”
“Oh-ho, that’s an interesting idea.” Their master leaned forward out of the throne, and for just a split second, Cocytus felt his crimson eyes on him.
“Indeed. We don’t know what Nazarick’s future will be, but there may come a time when we need to combine and lead forces. We may need to conquer a country someday. At that point in time, whether we’ve performed experiments in governance or not may have a huge impact on how successful we are.” Demiurge further straightened his posture and gave his conclusion, looking squarely at their master on the throne. “I humbly suggest that we conquer the lizardman villages and experiment with governing in a way that does not employ fear.”
The staff struck the floor, and the sharp clack echoed throughout the room. “…A magnificent proposal, Demiurge.”
“Thank you.”
“Very well, I will take Demiurge’s advice and change the lizardman group’s fate from extermination to occupation. Anyone with an objection, raise your hand and speak.” He cast his flickering crimson gaze across the guardians. “…It seems there are no objections. Then it’s decided.”
Everyone bowed in acknowledgment.
“But Demiurge, what a great idea. I’m impressed.”
Demiurge smiled. “What are you saying, Lord Ainz? Surely you had already come up with it. You were waiting for Cocytus, weren’t you?”
He replied with an awkward smile rather than words. But that said it all.
Cocytus felt all the strength leave his body.
He had commanded Nazarick’s glorious army, lost, and then objected to his master’s opinion without a counterproposal. What did that make him? It made him… INCOMPETENT. I AM UTTERLY INCOMPETENT.
“No, that’s not true, Demiurge. You’re thinking too highly of me. What I wanted was an original idea, no matter what it was.”
His eyes moved again and stopped the longest on Cocytus. Realizing what it meant, he felt deeply ashamed, but he couldn’t look down.
“You need to prioritize intention. Determine the intent and take the most appropria
te course of action. Listen, guardians. This won’t work if you just blindly follow orders. You need to think a little first. Think about what will benefit Nazarick the most. If you believe an order is mistaken or that there’s a more efficient way to do things, then present that to me or whoever made the proposal. Now then, Cocytus. Let’s return to our previous topic. I said I would punish you, right?”
“YES. YOU SAID TO KILL ALL THE LIZARDMEN.”
“I did, but now instead of killing them, we’re going to govern them; therefore, your punishment has also changed. Govern the lizardmen and instill in them a loyalty toward Nazarick. Rule by fear is strictly prohibited. We want this to be a case study.”
This was a huge role that Cocytus— No, probably none of the guardians besides Demiurge had ever filled before.
For just a split second, the words It’s too hard for me appeared in Cocytus’s mind, but there was no way he could say something so pathetic—neither to their generous absolute ruler to whom he owed his loyalty nor to his comrade who had rescued him from a difficult situation. “UNDERSTOOD. I’M NERVOUS ABOUT MANY THINGS, SO I ASK FOR YOUR SUPPORT.”
“Of course. Materials, food, personnel—I’m sure you’ll need many things. Nazarick will provide them.”
“THANK YOU. I PROMISE TO PERFORM IN A WAY THAT LIVES UP TO THE MERCY YOU HAVE SHOWN ME!” Cocytus shouted from the bottom of his heart.
“Good. Then I order all guardians to arrange a sortie. We need a feint and to show them that what they’ve seen so far is not the true power of Nazarick. Of course, if it will cause obstacles in governing the lizardmen after the fact, we don’t have to do it, Cocytus.”
Cocytus thought it over before replying, “I DON’T BELIEVE THERE WILL BE ANY ISSUES.”
“I see. Guardians, prepare for departure.”
All the guardians present called out their acknowledgment in unison.
“Albedo, I’m going as well. Prepare the soldiers.”
“Understood. Should I assume there are those who enjoy spying among our enemy and choose personnel who will cause a misunderstanding?”
“Exactly. But don’t forget we also have to awe them into submission.”
“Then perhaps an army with Nazarick old guarders as the linchpin would be attractive.”
The Lizardman Heroes Page 19