“…However.”
The emotion in Solution’s mutter was strong enough to stop Sebas in his tracks.
“…However, Sebas-sama. Is it alright to not report to Ainz-sama? About that thing.”
Sebas fell silent for a few seconds, and then replied.
“There will not be any problems. It would be discourteous to rob Ainz-sama of his time for one human.”
“…Entoma and the others should be communicating with you via 『Message』daily at the appointed time. Could you not simply say a few words on the matter then? …Are you intentionally hiding it?”
“Of course not. I would not do something like that to Ainz-sa—.”
“Then… you are not acting out of your own self-interest?”
The air became tense.
Sebas realized that Solution had slightly readied herself into a stance. He understood just how dangerous of a position he was in.
Every member of Nazarick pledged absolute loyalty to ‘Ainz Ooal Gown’ —and by extension, the Supreme Beings. With the Guardians at the helm, it would not be an exaggeration to say that every single member was in agreement of that creed. Even the assistant butler, Éclair, who wants to conquer Nazarick for his own, was loyal to the 41 Supreme Beings and regarded them with respect.
Needless to say, Sebas was one of them.
However, he still believed that it was wrong to cast out a pitiable existence because of mere possibilities. Although with that said, he also knew very well that the majority of Nazarick would not agree with him.
No, he thought he knew. Solution’s reaction revealed just how shallow his understanding had been.
Solution was serious. She was prepared to meet Sebas the butler— in other words, her superior in regards to the daily workings of Nazarick and one of the strongest in close combat, with force depending on his answer. He had no idea that Solution was prepared to go that far to erase the problem.
—Sebas showed a smile.
From his smile, Solution’s eyes looked at him strangely.
“…Of course not. The reason I am not reporting this to Ainz-sama is not because of my own selfishness.”
“Then can you show the basis for your actions?”
“I hold her cooking skill in high regard.”
“Cooking... you say?”
It looked as if question marks were hovering over Solution’s head.
“Indeed. And would it not appear strange to others if there were only two people living in this large mansion?”
“…That is possible.”
Solution had no choice but to concede on that point. Not having servants while living a life of luxury in a large residence would definitely appear odd.
“I feel that at the very least, we should have one at least one servant with us. If we were to invite guests to the house, would it not be suspicious if we cannot even serve them a meal?
“… In other words, you are using that human as a part of our disguise?”
“That’s right.”
“But there is no need for it to be that human specifically.”
“Tsuare feels indebted to me. That means she would never leak information even if she feels endangered. Am I wrong?”
Very briefly, Solution thought it over, nodding soon after.
“You are right.”
“That’s how it is. There should be no need to ask for Ainz-sama’s permission if the matter is only regarding our cover. Not only that, he may even become angry and tell us to handle such matters on our own.”
Sebas quietly asked Solution, who was remaining silent.
“Do you understand now?”
“…Yes.”
“Then this should be enough for no—.”
Sebas cut his words short. He had heard a sound, like two hard objects colliding with one another.
It was so subtle that anyone but Sebas might have missed it.
The erratic repetition of the noise confirmed that someone was doing it on purpose.
Sebas opened the door to the room and focused his senses toward the end of the hallway.
They both froze, realizing that the sound came from the knocker at the front door. Since they first arrived in the Kingdom, no one had ever knocked on that door. Any dealings they had were always done outside and invited no one to their residence. It was a desperate measure to prevent others from finding out that only two people were living in this large mansion.
But today, they had visitors. It would be more than enough to cause a troublesome incident.
Sebas left Solution in the room and walked up to the entrance. He opened the cover of the prop-up window attached to the front door.
What he saw through the hole was a man with wide shoulders surrounded on both sides by the Kingdom’s soldiers.
The man with the wide shoulders was dressed decently well. On his chest, he wore a heavy crest that shone with the glint of copper metal. The healthy complexion of his face was padded with blubber and he was remarkably fat, perhaps due to his eating habits.
And lastly— there was a man who seemed different from the rest.
His skin was pale, like it had never been exposed to sunlight. With sharp eyes and gaunt cheeks, he looked like a bird of prey— like the scavengers that ravaged rotten carcasses. His black clothes hung loosely on him, making it obvious that he was hiding weapons.
What irritated Sebas’ sixth sense was the air of blood and grudges that hovered around him.
They were truly a mismatched group lacking cohesion. Sebas could not determine their identity or their objective.
“…Who is it?”
“I am patrol officer Stafan Hevish.”
The plump man at the very front spoke in a high pitched voice and revealed his name.
He was a patrol officer, a civil servant tasked with keeping public order. A position similar to the boss of the normal patrols that made their rounds around the city, their duties included a wide range of categories. Because of this, Sebas could not predict why this man named Stafan had decided to pay a visit and became troubled.
Ignoring Sebas, Stafan continued to speak.
“The Kingdom has a law that bans the buying and selling of slaves. It was spearheaded by Princess Renner who drew up the plans which allowed it to pass. We received a report that the people of this residence may be holding this law in contempt and came to investigate.”