Ainz Ooal Gown: Noble Knight

The response to this proposal was noticeably different; the brows of several nobles relaxed somewhat.

The Kingdom of Argrand is located in the northwest of the kingdom. Its territory is a peninsula surrounded by the sea on three sides, and its terrain is mostly mountainous.

It is one of the very few countries where humans and subhumans coexist on an equal footing, and its national strength is comparable to that of the Slane Theocracy.

Moreover, there was no direct conflict of interest between the deliberative states and the kingdoms, and they had never fought a war against each other.

Marquis Brumlashut roused himself: "The Council of Argrand is indeed worth considering. That country itself values ​​order and stability, and the idea of ​​a demon establishing a nation should raise their suspicions."

Lord Leiwen nodded slightly: "Although the relationship between the Council and the Kingdom is not close, there is no enmity between them either. If we use the pretext of 'jointly dealing with the demonic threat,' we might be able to persuade them to send troops to help us."

Zanak was silent for a moment, his gaze falling on the map. A complex light flashed in his small eyes, as if he were making a final decision.

After a moment, he raised his head: "Father, I think the Council of Argrand is the most worthwhile direction to try at the moment. However, it is not advisable to make too much noise at the moment. Let's first contact the Council through secret channels and test their attitude."

Queen Lambusa III looked around and, seeing no other objections, nodded slightly: "Let's do it that way."

The meeting drew to a close in a subtle atmosphere. The nobles rose one by one, their footsteps fading away along the corridor, and the light from the wall lamps slowly dimmed in the empty hall.

Zanak watched as those figures disappeared one by one into the light outside the door, and his thoughts drifted away with them.

Although the decision to negotiate with the Council of Argrand was ultimately reached, he judged that if Feifei did not return, the kingdom would most likely abandon Riblomrashur.

Because the nobles had lost all confidence; their only confidence lay in Fei Fei.

And it was precisely this point that made the second prince uneasy.

Those forces that once checked and balanced each other are now all supporting Feifei.

Chapter 143 The Test of the Great Tomb

"Therefore, the Kingdom will choose to conduct secret negotiations with the Council of Argrand."

Demiurge adjusted his glasses and stated with certainty the path that Nazarick had planned for the kingdom.

His gaze swept over the guardians, finally landing on Ainz, and the corners of his mouth curved upwards even further.

Inside the throne room of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, the light of the magic lamps shone steadily, illuminating the stone pillars carved with intricate patterns.

Ainz sat on the throne, outwardly maintaining the composure befitting a supreme ruler, but inwardly he was experiencing a silent upheaval.

Demiurge's words flowed slowly through his consciousness, eventually leading in a direction he had never anticipated.

Ainz had to admit that Demiurge's cunning far surpassed that of someone who was merely a lowly company employee.

Using the Demon Kingdom as bait, they lured the kingdom to test the Argrand Council.

In this way, Nazarick could remain behind the scenes, observing and gathering intelligence from a safe distance, regardless of the response of the reviewing states.

He tried his best to keep his skeleton from making any unnecessary movements, but his jawbone still unconsciously opened a slight gap.

“…Demiurge.” Ainz felt a little guilty, but fortunately his skeletal face didn’t show any expression, and after a long period of training, his voice was still steady enough. “You really do see things very clearly.”

Demiurge bowed slightly, his smile deepening: "Lord Ainz, you flatter me. I merely followed the steps of your plan a few moves further."

Yawu's ears perked up, and his heterochromatic eyes gleamed with amazement.

"As expected of Lord Ainz's plan! He even considered the Council of Nations."

Mare stood beside his sister and whispered, "...Amazing...Lord Ainz even thought of things this far ahead."

Albedo stood below the throne, her white dress highlighting her graceful figure.

Her golden vertical pupils were filled with light that was almost overflowing, and a huge smile spread across her lips.

Intense emotions were surging within Albedo's chest, threatening to break through the dam called "reason".

She twisted her body, crossed her arms in front of her chest, and made as if she was about to pounce on Ainz.

"Lord Ainz!"

Albedo's voice was so sweet it was almost cloying, and it was filled with barely suppressed excitement.

She had already taken half a step, and the hem of her pure white dress swayed gently with her movements.

The red light in Ainz's eye sockets flickered violently.

A green light flashed across his body, triggering forced calmness and suppressing the panic deep within Ainz's soul.

"Albedo." Ainz raised his hand, his knuckles spread, making a gesture of stopping her, and casually said, "Stop. We're in a meeting right now, this isn't the right time."

Albedo stopped in her tracks, but the expression on her face did not change.

On the contrary, the flush on her face deepened, and even her forehead was steaming.

Albedo believed she had understood the deeper implication in Ainz's words, and the pair of small black wings on her back fluttered excitedly twice.

“Lord Ainz is right.” Her voice was a little softer than before, but her eyes were full of undisguised anticipation. “I understand. Although it will be difficult… I will restrain myself for now.”

Albedo silently added in her mind that she would go to Lord Ainz's room to keep him company as soon as the meeting ended.

She regained her balance, her posture so dignified that it was as if the figure that had almost pounced on her just moments before had nothing to do with her.

Although Ainz found Albedo's words somewhat strange, he couldn't delve into it at the moment.

He cleared his throat, put his supreme and majestic aura back on, and turned his gaze toward Demiurge.

"Demiurge, continue explaining to the other guardians. I will add to the explanation as needed."

Demiurge nodded slightly, turned to the guardians present, and a calm smile appeared on his cunning face.

"According to Lord Ainz's judgment, the countries that Nazarick should pay the most attention to among the surrounding countries are the Slane Theocracy and the Argland Council."

He held up one finger and began a more in-depth analysis.

"During the last probe, we confirmed that the Slane Theocracy's attitude towards the vampire Henpeni is not aggressive. The Theocracy's higher-ups have not shown any intention to actively investigate or punish her, which suggests that they do not take this matter seriously enough, or perhaps..."

He paused for a moment, a shrewd glint in his jewel-like eyes behind his glasses.

"Or perhaps the higher-ups of the Theocracy are quite cautious about unknown forces. The Theocracy is a kingdom established by the six great gods and has almost no connection with dragons. Therefore, Lord Ainz judged that maintaining friendly relations with them would be a more prudent strategy."

Yawu raised his hand, like a student raising their hand to ask a question in class.

"Demiurge! Doesn't the Theocracy claim to abhor dehumans and alien species? Can we really coexist peacefully with them?"

Demiurge turned to her, the corners of his mouth curving upwards even more.

“Yawu, you’re right. The Theocracy does indeed uphold the doctrine of ‘humanity supremacy,’ but decisions made by the higher-ups are never based on slogans. The Theocracy’s decision to remain a bystander last time is the best proof of that.”

He gently pushed up his glasses. "If they were truly as determined as their slogans claimed, fighting the alien race to the death, they should have taken action when the Demon Kingdom was established. But they didn't. This shows that the higher-ups of the Theocracy aren't stupid; they know how to weigh the pros and cons. When the risks and rewards are completely disproportionate, slogans can be temporarily set aside."

Yawu blinked, a look of realization flashing in his heterochromatic eyes.

“...I see. That’s why Lord Ainz chose to maintain friendly relations with the Theocracy instead of treating them as enemies.”

“Exactly.” Demiurge nodded slightly, then changed the subject, steer the conversation in another direction.

“In contrast, the nature of the Argland Council is completely different.” He held up his second finger.

"Based on the information brought by Feifei's identity, it can be basically confirmed that the one serving as the country's councilor is Long. It is said that there are five, and some people say there are seven."

The atmosphere in the throne room became somewhat solemn.

Cocytus's insect-like head turned slightly, exhaling a breath of cold air, its compound eyes gleaming with thoughtful light.

Yau flattened his ears a little, and Mare unconsciously gripped his staff even tighter.

“Among these dragons,” Demiurge lowered his voice, uttering the somber conclusion, “there is very likely the one that controls Shalltear.”

Ainz unconsciously increased the pressure on the armrest with his finger bones.

Although he had guessed this conclusion to some extent, hearing it from Demiurge's mouth still caused him to experience a significant emotional fluctuation.

Ainz spoke with a heavy tone: "So, using the Kingdom to probe the Council of Argent is precisely to confirm whether that dragon is in the Council of Argent without exposing Nazarick."

“Lord Ainz is absolutely right.” Demiurge bowed again, his respect deepening.

"This is the most respectable layer of your plan, using the kingdom as a shield and probe, letting them touch those who may pose a great threat."

"If we use the Demon Kingdom to test them directly, they might suspect that there are forces hidden beneath the Demon Kingdom. But if we use the kingdom, their attention will only stay on the surface of the Demon Kingdom."

"After all, there is only one wise man like Lord Ainz in this world. Some people with a little cleverness are already quite good at thinking about the second level."

Ainz silently breathed a sigh of relief. He had unconsciously spoken his thoughts because of his longing and worry for Shalltear, but thankfully he hadn't said anything wrong.

Demiurge continued, "Furthermore, Lord Ainz's decision to maintain friendly relations with the Theocracy is also based on deeper strategic considerations."

He turned to the remaining guardians, his expression becoming even more solemn.

"If it is confirmed that the Council of Argrand in the north is the culprit controlling Shalltear, and if peace talks fail and the other side is unwilling to hand over Shalltear, then war between Nazarick and the Council is inevitable."

"By then, if Nazarick also has to deal with the Theocracy to the south, it will face enormous pressure from fighting on two fronts. Even with the strength of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, it will inevitably be stretched thin when facing two fronts at the same time. Therefore, Lord Ainz is making arrangements in advance at this time to maintain good relations with the Theocracy and to buy a strategic buffer for the possible war."

He paused for a moment, as if giving everyone time to process what he had to say.

“…I see.” Cocytus’s deep voice broke the silence. He nodded slowly, a look of approval flashing in his compound eyes. “Lord Ainz’s plans are even more profound than I imagined.”

Yau's ears perked up again, and she nodded vigorously: "No wonder Lord Ainz told me and those lower-ranking servants not to get too close to the border of the theocracy."

Mare also muttered under his breath, "...Lord Ainz thinks so far ahead..."

Albedo crossed her arms over her chest, and the light in her golden vertical pupils became even more intense.

She didn't speak, but the aura she exuded was enough to say everything.

After Demiurge finished speaking, he turned his gaze back to Ainz, as if waiting for final confirmation or supplementation.

“…Huh?” Ainz was stunned for a moment before realizing that Demiurge was waiting for him to add something.

Ainz cleared his throat: "Ah, Demiurge is right. I have nothing more to add. This is exactly what I was thinking. As expected of you, Demiurge."

He finished speaking somewhat nervously, but Demiurge's reaction was more enthusiastic than he had expected.

Demiurge took a half step back, raised his right arm in front of him, and made a perfect German military salute with his five fingers together.

"Lord Ainz, you flatter me. I am far from being as good as you."

His posture was upright and his tone was firm. Demiurge truly believed that the ingenious plan he had just made came from Ainz's will, and that he was merely relaying it.

Ainz raised his hand, using his knuckles to cover his eyes. He sighed silently to himself.

Demiurge is great in every way, except that he's prone to overthinking.

He had clearly stated that he hoped Demiurge would not do this action again, but Demiurge always seemed to interpret his instructions as some kind of deeper test or encouragement.

However... Ainz then released his hand from his eyes.