Under Shalltear were 25 undead beings, each around level 80 or so. Aura had picked out 30 magical beasts. There were six Vampire Brides who were attendants to Shalltear, Aura and Ainz. Then, there were the five Hanzos Ainz had brought with him. After that were five Mammoth-like magical beasts of burden which had been summoned with in-game currency. Said beasts had cargo harnesses on both sides, the kind that was commonly used in YGGDRASIL.
They could be considered the weakest beings in the group, given that they were only level 40 or so. Still, their cargo-carrying capabilities were quite impressive, and their cold and fire resistance meant that they could move easily through frozen tundra or near calderas filled with churning lava. The most important thing was that their appearances belied their incredible mobility and ability to operate for long periods without eating or drinking.
Ainz ordered Cocytus to stand by behind him, and then called Zenberu forward.
“What do you wish of me, Your Majesty?”
Zenberu stepped away from Zaryusu and Crusch — Ainz remembered their names — and came before him. Ainz could not help but look at the little white Lizardman that Crusch was cradling.
Perhaps Crusch sensed Ainz’s collector spirit, but she instinctively moved to protect her child.
It’s not like I’m going to snatch it away…
Feeling a little depressed, Ainz handed Zenberu three items.
“Take them. This ring eliminates the need to sleep, eat or drink. This ring grants cold resistance. And this necklace grants the ability to use the [Fly] spell. I will teach you how to use it later. It’s in case you fall off a cliff.”
“Many thanks, Your Majesty.”
This was the basic mountaineering gear he used during his YGGDRASIL days. He could swap out his gear in response to any unique area effects he encountered in the Azellisia Mountain Range.
“Sorry about interrupting your preparations. I have done everything I needed to do. You may return.”
Zenberu nodded and returned silently.
“Cocytus. It would seem the children are quite curious.”
The children did not flee but kept their distance, looking at Ainz and the others with sparkly (?) eyes.
Mm. Would the kids be able to adapt if I brought them to a human city? No, what if I did the opposite and brought human children here? Maybe I could build a campsite nearby, and then bring the Lizardman children there.
Ainz imagined a scene of human, Lizardman and Goblin children playing together. Then he added Aura and Mare, the Dark Elf children. And then he decided to throw in Shalltear as well.
He had put Shalltear in because he saw her making preparations alongside Aura, the undead and the magical beasts. There was no special significance to it.
I like that image. Maybe I should suggest this to Albedo and Demiurge…
“If. They. Displease. You. Shall. I. Order. Them. To. Leave. Immediately?”
“That was not what I meant… Don’t you feel that children might be able to get along, even if they are of different races? Don’t you think human children could walk hand in hand with Lizardman children?”
“I. Am. Unsure. But. If. It. Is. Your. Will. Then. I. Am. Sure. That. They. Will. Join. Their. Hands. Ainz-sama.”
…This has nothing to do with my will or orders or whatnot, it’s just a matter of getting people of different species to work together. I guess I can’t make this suggestion due to my position as King…
Ainz’s ideas would all be interpreted as absolute orders. Thus, to some extent, it was quite frightening.
“…Really now. Then, it’s about time we set off. — Aura, Shalltear! Are you ready?”
The two of them replied almost instantly
“Yes! We’re all set!”
“The same. If you give the command, we can move out at any point, Ainz-sama.”
“Zenberu!”
“No problems here!”
“All right, then let’s go!”
“Ainz-sama. Be. Careful! If. Anything. Happens. I. Can. Mobilize. My. Forces. At. Any. Time.”
Cocytus had a point. If there were enemy players around, things might escalate into a full-scale battle, and that would require the use of military force. However—
“—That might happen eventually. However, this is more of a reconnaissance in force. If we encounter anyone strong, we will fall back after gathering sufficient intelligence. If that happens, we will look forward to your accomplishments on the battlefield.”
“Understood!”
The plan was to head north and climb the mountains, guided by Zenberu’s memories.
The mounted undead acting as their vanguard proudly displayed the flag of the Sorcerous Kingdom.
All the intelligent beings who lived near the lake were under Cocytus’ banner. Thus, raising the flag meant that they did not need to fear any attacks. Even so, that only applied to intelligent creatures — those that understood the concept of being ruled. It meant nothing to low-intelligence creatures, like beasts, for example. On the contrary, it raised the chances that such creatures would attack them. Still, there were no monsters in this forest which Ainz and his group could not handle.
Shalltear seemed to be looking around for such foolish beings, but she could not find a single monster. In the end, they reached the northernmost end of the lake.
Their eyes followed the course of a small stream that fed the lake, and ahead of them lay the serrated peaks of the Azellisia Mountain Range. Under a clear blue sky and sunny weather, it was quite a majestic sight, and it stirred a faint emotion within Ainz’s heart.
Just then, Zenberu closed the distance to Ainz, and made a suggestion.
“Could I be allowed to walk ahead of you? I think looking at the surrounding scenery might help me recall something.”
Naturally, there were no objections.
“All right. Go to the head of the column, then. But don’t go alone. Take one of my people with you. If anything attacks, use them to cover you and fall back. You are a very valuable member of this expedition.”
“My deepest thanks.”
After commanding — or rather, asking — the magical beast that he rode, the creature obeyed and began moving. Since Zenberu had no experience in riding, Ainz had put him on one of Aura’s magical beasts, which could be controlled by speech rather than technique.
There was a big difference between their speed in the mountains and their speed while travelling along the lakeside.
In other word, they moved very slowly.
At first, they simply followed the stream north, but they slowed down after detouring to avoid a waterfall.
Zenberu tried his best to recall the route he had taken, but it was very difficult to retrace the steps he had taken only once, several years ago, while heading in the opposite direction. In addition, their elevation was still very low, so the tall trees blocked their line of sight.
Even if the shape of the land had not changed, the trees still grew as time passed.
Zenberu continued forward as he struggled to jog his memory.
Most of the group’s members did not require rest, but Zenberu — the most important person of all — was among the few exceptions to that. Thus, they had to stop several times to take a break before they continued on in silence.
They caught glimpses of what seemed to be monsters in the distance, but they did not seem to want to approach. Perhaps Ainz’s group was too numerous, or perhaps the monster had fed itself already. Ainz thought that capturing an unknown monster to play with might be fun, but he decided to give up on that idea this time round.
Their current objective was to reach the Dwarven Kingdom.
Ainz knew very well that a hunter who chased two rabbits would catch neither.
With a faint twinge of regret, Ainz chose to hurry on their way.