It was formed by the owners of a site which charged its members a fee each time for accessing information, and specialized in sending spies to join other, higher-ranking guilds in order to steal information and other such dubious acts. The Gaming Administration did not punish such deeds and it was quietly accepted as a means of acquiring intelligence. However, the guilds who had been stolen from were much less forgiving.
What happened was that those guilds formed an alliance and attacked "Three Burning Eyes". After capturing the respawn point inside the guild's base and the respawn points of the temple in the surrounding streets, the alliance began to PK the guild members from "Three Burning Eyes", and when they resurrected, PKed them again, not letting even a single one go. They kept this up until
"Three Burning Eyes" disbanded and all its members scattered.
And in the end, the most memorable part was when they made their information site free to access.
How nostalgic, Ainz thought.
Well, there were definitely no spies in Ainz Ooal Gown… However, if it wasn't for that incident, maybe we would have had more members…
Because of that incident, the recruitment process for Ainz Ooal Gown had been halted, and the guild was formed with 41 members, which was the minimum number required for a guild to be considered as high tier.
During the final years of YGGDRASIL, the chances of reliable information being made public on the web was rather high. However, the only time that Ainz really focused his attention on information sites was during the golden period where "Ainz Ooal Gown" was at its peak. The amount of useful information was really limited at that time.
My knowledge of the game most likely peaked at that time. Although I still paid attention to the announcements made by the Game Administration… this world likely contains YGGDRASIL players apart from myself, thus I need to also consider the risk posed from having less knowledge than them.
Through the captured members of Eight Fingers, Nazarick was able to acquire lots of useful intelligence. However, that information largely pertained to the Kingdom and the Empire. There was very little regarding the Theocracy, the Holy Kingdom and the Republic. There was a need to further improve intelligence gathering.
"What a pain, I thought so much about it, but in the end I still feel troubled. It's time to switch to a more light hearted topic."
In order to change the conversation, Ainz mildly looked around his surroundings.
"Speaking of which, the Empire seems quite lively."
"Is that so? I felt the same way in E-Rantel."
In response to Narberal's words, Ainz glanced around once more.
"The streets are full of life and the people’s eyes are bright. It's a sign that people believe they're living well."
Although Narberal responded from behind with "As expected of Momon-san", Ainz was a bit embarrassed by his own words and didn't reply. It was only a slight feeling that Ainz had about the people on the streets, and whether it was true or not, Ainz still did not have confidence in what his eyes saw.
It's not as though I was following Pandora's Actor's lead… "it's a sign of something”. To think I could say these words out loud without shame… It's like I've turned into a poet or something.
Because he had been expected to act like a hero back in the royal capital, Ainz had gotten into a hero's mindset, and it was apparently starting to become a habit.
The face beneath Ainz's helmet showed an expression of slight embarrassment — of course it was impossible for a skull to turn red — and then Ainz saw the hotel Fluder had described to him.
Even from a distance, one could tell that the imperial capital's best hotel was far more luxurious than its counterpart in E-Rantel. That was one way of describing it, but that impression was only based on the level of facilities and the difference in style. One could say the high-class hotels of the Kingdom were steeped in history while those of the Empire were recently-opened, and if you asked which was better, everyone would have different opinions.
"I'm not sure about going in, but the atmosphere does seem pretty nice."
Ainz gently touched the adamantite plate that hung in front of his chest and headed towards the entrance.
Similar to E-Rantel, athletic soldiers in leather armor were standing guard at the entrances and exits.
As Ainz and Narberal approached, the guards turned questioning glances to them. However, after focusing on a single point, they hurriedly looked away with wide eyes.
"A-Are they the real deal? I think they are the real deal, judging from the equipment they have… "
Hearing the whispers that came from his comrade, the other security guard tried his best to stand still and hide his nervousness. However, as they closed the distance, his tension was obvious, but he was nonetheless capable of speaking politely.
"My apologies, adamantite-rank adventurer-sama. I'm very sorry for the inconvenience, but may I please see your identification?"
As Ainz handed over his plate and asked, "Does this hotel only accept members?"
"Yes, in order to maintain the reputation of this hotel, we only accept regular members or those with referrals. However, adamantite-rank adventurers are an exception to that rule."
Wiping both hands with his sleeves, the other security guard carefully took the identification plate that Ainz handed over as if he was afraid of breaking it. Turning it over, he read out the words carved on the back.
"Darkness'… Momon-sama?"
"That's right."
"Verification complete! Thank you for giving me the chance to hold an Adamantite plate!"
His attitude when returning the plate was still as careful as before. The plate that served as proof of an adventurer's status was made using the same type of metal that corresponded to the rank of the adventurer. Even though the plate was fairly small, the cost of making an adamantite plate was astronomical. While the plate might be extremely hard to break, the possibility of accidentally losing it was still there. For someone like the security guard of a hotel, the thought of having to compensate for the loss of an adamantite plate was simply unbearable. The security guards had heard of many stories where adamantite plates had being lost before. Such as when trying to return the plate, a Crane-Parrot — a type of bird — would fly by and snatch it up. Stories like these weren't told to make people pay more attention, but were actual events which had happened before.
A look of relief bloomed across the faces of the two security guards once Ainz took back his identification plate.
"Now then, may we enter?"
"Yes, Momon-sama. Please allow me to lead the way."
"Is that so? We'll be under your care then."
Tipping wasn't a thing in the Kingdom. Hopefully it was the same in the Empire. Ainz couldn't help but think about these kinds of things while being shown in.
After walking through a spacious lobby with marble-like floor tiles, they reached the reception counter.
"Announcing the arrival of the adamantite-ranked adventurer Momon-sama and company."
Sitting behind the reception counter was a man with the appearance of having received a proper upbringing. After being acknowledged, the guard turned towards Ainz and bowed respectfully before heading back to his post.