Throughout all of this Ainz had not moved a single inch from his chair, all this time he had been simply staring into Lycan with his hollow eyes. By now Lycan was sure that the last words he would hear in his life would not be far away as he awaited his master's judgement.
"Lycan…"
Ah man I'm so dead, damn why'd these two have to save me?
"Can you answer some questions for me please?"
He had not been given permission to raise his head but the out of place moment when Ainz asked these question caused Lycan to raise his head almost involuntarily.
"You. Dare. To. Raise. Your. Head. Without. Permission. How…."
Before Cocytus could finish he was interrupted by Ainz who raised his hand to indicate silence.
"It's fine Cocytus, let him speak with his head raised. Now then my first question and please answer as honestly as possible. Why did you leave the safe house?"
"I'm sorry, Ainz-sama it was to… go out and hunt."
"The impudence, eating humans isn't a right, it's a privilege given to you only when Ainz-sama or a floor guardian gives you his or her blessing."
"Shalltear be quiet!"
"My deepest apologies Ainz-sama, but to go directly against your decree is…"
"I won't repeat myself…"
Ainz turned a cold stare to Shalltear with his hollow eyes and immediately caused her to cease any and all forms of hostility as she returned to her neutral position next to Ainz.
"Now then next question. What was the reason you got beaten? Even though you're not the strongest NPC in Nazarick you should have no problem beating one human, no?"
Lycan swallowed his saliva before answering. To him this question was even harder to answer then the previous one as it hurt his pride deeply.
"Yes, Ainz-sama, the reason is twofold. First that kid is not human. Her race isn't any I know of but at the very least she isn't completely human, the smell is similar but her strength and speed is dimensions apart from what I'd consider a strong human."
"Hmm, that is very interesting. And the second?"
Lycan wavered before answering this one, logically there was no chance that Ainz-sama or anyone else would believe his explanation.
"The second reason… is her equipment. I confirmed it when I used my [item eater] on her gear. What she was wearing was divine class equipment same as her weapon."
At this moment the room had developed an eerie silence, divine class weapons and gear were so rare and valuable that even most floor guardians had at most one or two of these. To be covered fully in them was beyond ridiculous.
Shalltear wanted to begin shouting at Lycan once again but held herself back due to the previous reprimand. Instead the waited for the response of her master.
After hearing this response, naturally Ainz had remained completely calm and unmoved. The ever motionless skeleton face that he had did not betray a single emotion as he calmly responded.
"My last question then. If you fought her without her gear who would…"
"Of course me Ainz-sama!"
Lycan cursed himself internally as he had not only spoken without permission but even interrupted Ainz. His damned pride had gotten the better of him yet again. This however caused nothing but a silent gaze from Ainz. Unsure of what to do Lycan simply continued talking as he prayed internally that he had not offended Ainz.
"Ah… no, I mean… I could feel it that after I unleashed my full strength that she was no longer capable of fighting me head on. After I used [berserker mode] she was forced to stay out of my range and attack from a distance. Without that extending weapon of hers, I'd rip her to pieces, no matter how strong she thinks she is."
"I see, that is very valuable Intel. Though you did go against my orders, thanks to your actions we have been able to confirm quite a lot of my suspicions. This will make things a lot easier. My thanks."
Lycan was surprised that by now his head was still attached to his shoulders and could do nothing but show his heartfelt appreciation to this merciful being that he called his master.
"I'm unworthy of your praise, Ainz-sama."
"Lycan, listen well, you are a very valuable NPC in Nazarick and not just because of your special ability. To be punished for your mistakes doesn't mean you die here. It means you dedicate yourself even harder to your tasks and prevent failures in the future, I have no use for you if you are dead. Let this be a lesson for all NPC's."
"Yes, Ainz-sama!"
All the responses in the room flowed into one as all the servants responded to their master's heartfelt statement.
"Well then, Lycan you will stay by my side until such time that I permit you to leave and report to me immediately when I ask you. Do you understand? I will need your insights on quite a few things."
"I understand Ainz-sama. Though I fear I may be lacking."
Having dodged death solely due to the mercifulness of his ruler, what else could Lycan do but nod his head and agree.
"Well then, as for Yuri and Shizu."
""Yes""
Yuri and Shizu responded as their turn had finally arrived. Even though they were not the cause of the blunder it was due to their negligence and thus they shared the blame too.
Faced with this even the composed Yuri could not help but shudder in fear, unlike Shizu who as usual displayed no emotions. At this Yuri could not help but feel jealous as Shizu's racial traits come in quite handy at times like this.
"Because you didn't pay enough attention or didn't control Lycan properly enough this happened. But like I said this lead to great fortune. As such you are forgiven, as long as you don't allow the same thing to happen twice."
"But Ainz-sama, our lack of attention lead to the near death of one of our comrades, I still request punishment."
"Shizu, agrees."
The desperate plea of Yuri caused the lights in Ainz's eyes to go lightly darker for a second as he pondered on what to do with these two loyal maids.
Haaah what a pain. Maybe it's because Yamaiko who created Yuri was a teacher that's she so strict on punishment but why does every one of these guys have to be so damn loyal? No, I mean it's good that they're loyal and all but they still want to be punished when I say it's okay. What a hassle…
"Fine, Demiurge actually asked me to send a few extra hands to the embassy we recently set up in the Empire. You two can go help him out as a punishment."
"But Ainz-sama, such a thing is…"
"No more arguments, the decision is final. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Ainz-sama"
Looks like I finally managed to settle their displeasure.
"Ahem… now then back to business. Thanks to Lycan and the reports made by Yuri and Shizu with the help of the shadow demon shinobi, we can now begin the next step of our plans. I'll give the floor guardians and servants involved the details later for now you three are dismissed."
Lycan and the two maids stood up and bowed once more to Ainz before leaving the room. Now the only ones in the room with Ainz were Shalltear and Cocytus, excluding the Eight-Edge Assassins on the ceiling.
"Ainz-sama please give us our orders and we will destroy that entire nation at you command. I've been itching to play with some humans again."
"My. Blades. Are. Yours. To. Command. Ainz-sama."
"You two are hasty as always. These things come in a specific order. But you're right this time there will definitely be bloodshed. But seeing as we have become a nation, there are two conditions that must be met before we can start rampaging on their capital."
Ainz lifted his finger like a teacher about to start homeschool.
"First, we must have a reason to attack them, a nation attacking another nation simply for the purpose of conquest is never respected and only feared. We want to be both. Second, we must issue an official declaration of war. After they have been warned and given a chance to surrender that is when we can strike without mercy."