Ainz Ooal Gown: Noble Knight

Before the morning light had completely dispelled the mist over the wetlands, Nazarick's legions had already begun their advance toward their fourth objective.

The undead column carved a wide, muddy path through the wetlands, the skeleton soldiers' bones scraping together with the heavy footsteps of the zombies, creating an unsettling rhythm.

The waterbirds in the swamp had already taken flight in fright, and even the chirping of insects had fallen silent.

Yau rode on the back of her Fenrir wolf, swinging her legs listlessly.

Fenrir the Divine Hunter, a giant wolf with an all-black coat, is the leader of the Yau Beast Legion, and his level is approximately 80.

The dark elf girl's ears twitched slightly, picking up information from her companions in the surrounding forest. For the time being, there was nothing unusual, no enemies to be noticed.

“Demeurges,” she suddenly spoke, her voice ringing out clearly in the silent marching column.

"Hmm?" The demon walking beside the dire wolf pushed up his glasses and turned his head to the side.

"I'm thinking about it." Yawu tilted his head, his heterochromatic eyes revealing genuine confusion.

"If Lord Ainz intends to lure that dragon into attacking, why not give it enough time to know? For example, declare war in advance and give them time to prepare."

Demiurge's cunning face revealed a wicked smile.

"This is the wisdom of Lord Ainz, Yau."

His voice was calm, as if he had expected this question all along.

“If war is declared in advance, these weak lizardmen will definitely unite. While the Great Tomb could certainly crush them in one blow, the battle would end in a very short time.”

Demiurge gently pushed up his glasses.

"The dragon that is secretly watching will give up its action because there is too little time to react."

Yawu's ears perked up, and the confusion on his face was gradually replaced by sudden realization.

“But if we slowly wipe them out, tribe by tribe…” Demiurge’s voice held a hint of knowing amusement.

"The destruction of each tribe is a signal of despair. And the dragon has enough time to receive the message and make a decision."

Demiurge concluded, "If it weren't for the threat of this dragon, declaring war early would indeed be the best option. But under the current circumstances, slowly eliminating the lizardmen is more in the Great Tomb of Nazarick's interest."

Yawu's eyes lit up, and a look of sincere admiration appeared on his face.

"Wow, Lord Ainz has thought of so much!"

Her voice was full of admiration, but then a hint of sadness, which didn't quite match her youthful appearance, appeared in her heterochromatic eyes.

Her ears drooped slightly, and her voice became softer.

"If Shalltear were here too... she would definitely be amazed by Lord Ainz's wisdom as well."

Demiurge's gaze fell on Yau's face, a hint of amusement in his eyes.

"Isn't your relationship with Shalltear bad?" he asked with scholarly curiosity.

"I remember you two used to argue a lot. It's a bit surprising that you miss her so much now."

Yawu pursed his lips, his expression oscillating for a moment between "unhappy" and "I've been right".

Then she sighed and explained in a tone that said, "I just can't do anything with you."

"Oh dear, this is the design for Lord Bubble Teapot and Lord Peroroncino."

She raised her head, her gaze falling on the edge of the misty forest in the distance, her voice softening slightly.

"Lord Bubble Teapot and Lord Peroroncino are siblings. They often bicker and argue, but they actually have a very good relationship."

She paused, her drooping ears twitching slightly.

"So... although Shalltear is always annoying, she is, after all, a continuation of the Supreme Beings' will. It's really not used to her making a fuss around."

Demiurge was silent for a moment.

"I see. It is my honor to know about the relationship between the Supreme Beings."

His voice was filled with sincere gratitude.

The march continued.

As the morning mist dissipated in the rising sunlight, the moisture on the wetlands transformed into a thin white veil, enveloping the silent, advancing legion of the undead.

Ainz unfolded a map drawn by Aou's retinue in his hand.

The parchment is marked with fine lines depicting the five lizardman tribes in this wetland, with detailed information about each settlement recorded.

His finger bones moved slowly across the map.

The Green Claws have been wiped out. All their corpses have been transformed into undead and incorporated into the Legion.

The Sharptail Clan has been wiped out. They too have been transformed into undead, becoming a supplementary force to the Legion.

The Little Tooth Clan has been wiped out. Those lizardmen who were skilled at throwing stones are now just skeletons that obey orders.

A faint, dark red light flickered in Ainz's eye sockets.

"Yoshi."

His voice wasn't loud, but it carried a sense of satisfaction that the plan was progressing smoothly. He tapped the remaining two marks on the map with his finger bone.

"That leaves two tribes that haven't been cleared out yet."

His gaze fell on the next target on the map, the red light in his eye sockets burning steadily.

Then he raised his head and looked ahead at the marching column, his voice resolute.

"Then the next target is the Red-Eyed Clan."

Ainz has his own plans.

Based on the available intelligence, it is unlikely that the dragon controlling Shalltear is related to the lizardmen.

These subhuman beings have a very low level of civilization.

But what if that dragon really is hiding in this wetland?

Ainz's gaze involuntarily drifted to the last marker on the map, the Dragon Fang Clan.

That name.

"Dragon Fang".

Ainz touched his jawbone, assuming a thoughtful posture.

Since the name contains the character for "dragon," it must be the most likely candidate, right?

If that dragon is indeed related to the lizardmen, then the probability that it exists in some form within the Dragontooth tribe is obviously much higher than that of other tribes.

Perhaps it's their guardian spirit? Or maybe it's disguised as a lizardman, infiltrating the tribe? Or perhaps...

Ainz's thoughts raced.

Saving the most difficult boss for last is a basic player strategy.

First, clear out those small tribes to build up the numerical advantage of the undead army, and at the same time, test the dragon's reaction.

Ainz couldn't help but feel a surge of genuine joy at his own extraordinary wisdom.

'Suzuki Satoru, you're actually quite smart.' He silently praised himself in his heart, then felt a little guilty.

'But I absolutely mustn't say such things aloud. If Demiurge hears me, he might interpret some "deeper meaning" I never even considered... That third layer of purpose last time was already enough of a headache for me.'

As he was thinking, a signal suddenly came from his family members ahead.

Chapter 12 Collector's Obsession

The morning mist has completely dissipated.

Golden sunlight streamed unhindered across the wetlands, making the water shimmer. The distant treelines, bathed in sunlight, took on a deep, dark green hue, like a dark scar on the earth.

And ahead of that tree line, at the boundary between the wetland and the forest.

A lizardman army is standing in formation.

This lizardman army was small, numbering only a few dozen. They were covered in various totems, wielding crude stone weapons, and stood in a crooked, haphazard formation in the sunlight.

Ainz raised his hand.

"Stop moving forward."

The undead legion stopped in their tracks at the same instant, as orderly as puppets pulled by the same thread.

The clanging of the skeleton soldiers' bones stopped abruptly, and the heavy footsteps of the zombies also came to an end.

The entire wetland fell into an abrupt silence.

Ainz's gaze passed over the skeleton soldiers in front of him and landed on the lizardman unit.

Standing at the very front of the line was a figure that Ainz found somewhat familiar.

That was a...

Haystack?

A faint red light flickered in Ainz's eye sockets.

The figure was covered in dense weeds and strips of cloth, and from a distance it looked like a walking plant.

Ainz thought of a certain plant-type monster from YGGDRASIL, but that was clearly not it.

Through the gaps in the weeds, you can vaguely see white scales underneath.

The "straw pile" broke away from the group and walked alone towards Ainz.

She stopped when she was about twenty meters away from Ainz.

She knelt down.

"The great Lord Ainz Ooal Gown."

Her voice was calm, but the tremor at the end betrayed her inner fear.

"I am the representative of the Red-Eyed Clan, Kuruxeruru."

She paused, then lowered her head even further.

"We, the Red-Eyed Clan, have decided to surrender. We humbly request Your Excellency to accept our surrender."

Her voice echoed across the empty wetlands before being carried away by the wind.