Someone had even taken their gloves off to shake hands with him, with him in gauntlets and all. It must be a matter of rank, Momon thought as he looked at the back of the person who had just said hello.
What a crazy color…
His hair was a shocking pink.
It wasn't uncommon for adventurers to paint their gear in garish colors, but this was the first time he had seen someone dye their hair in such a lurid shade.
Adventurers in the capital really were a different thing altogether. Just because there were so many people in the capital, that didn't mean you had to go so far just to stand out.
Well, it doesn't seem like there's any taboos or stigma associated with dying your hair…
During Ainz’ life as a salaryman, pink hair would have been considered strange, but in this world, even kids could dye their hair.
He forced himself to depart the topic of hair, and instead looked at the line of adventurers in front of him. It reminded him of the queuing instinct of the Japanese. Then, he turned his focus to Narberal who stood behind him.
Ainz had never once registered a party name, but the party called Darkness had one more member, the slim beauty who now stood behind him.
The massed adventurers did not dare speak to her because the sheer hostility which she radiated was prickling their skin. That, and they had come to meet and greet Ainz, which would be more beneficial to them.
In the end, adventuring society is just like working life…
After all, they were all social constructs of humanity. It only made sense that there would be similarities between them.
Around the time where Ainz’ hand would have started getting sore from shaking if he had been a human, the stream of adventurers approaching began dwindling down. Sensing an opportunity, Evileye approached, cutting in front of the person who was going to shake Ainz’ hand. They couldn't complain, though. The adventurers had made their introductions in order of rank, from highest to lowest. Being at the tail end of the line, the ones remaining were the novices, and they certainly couldn't say anything against the adamantite-ranked Evileye.
"The introductions should be pretty much over, could you come over here for a bit?"
Ainz glanced at her through the slit of his closed helm, and then he spied Gazef from the corner of his vision. If he was still there, that could only mean one thing.
"Nabe, take my place and meet them. I'll come over after I finish up here."
The nearby listeners' eyes went wide.
"I'm very sorry, but the ones who queued up came first."
Ainz turned from Evileye and continued speaking to the adventurers who had come to see him.
If Ainz were speaking to the boss of a small company and was called over by the boss of an international corporation, he would naturally go over to the latter. It wasn't favoritism or discrimination, but rather, common sense. If he stuck to his guns and ignored the call, he would be seen as a selfish leader who couldn't see the big picture. As a salaryman, sometimes you had to put aside your own thinking and act for the greater benefit of the company.
That was what it meant to be a cog in a machine.
However, this time was different.
I shouldn't speak to Gazef. Even if it's just for a moment, and even if it's been two months ago so he shouldn't remember… if he does, I'll be trapped. But there's no getting around it. Although I feel uneasy, I should probably let Nabe take it on first, and then lower my voice a little before speaking to him.
…I've been speaking for quite a while, so if he hasn't heard it by now he probably never will. Still, I'd better be careful.
"Quick, Nabe. Go over to them."
"Understood."
Taking his eyes off Nabe, who was walking over to the princess, Ainz took his helmet off as well. He felt the eyes of the entire room focusing on him. He cricked his neck, and then put the helmet back on. Originally, he'd planned to spice up the act by wiping his sweat off, but Ainz’ “face” was an illusion, and if he didn't do it right, his hand would end up passing through it instead. So, he decided to end it with the neck-crick instead.
That was the plan, to satisfy Gazef's curiosity by letting him see Momon's face.
Hopefully after Narberal goes over, they'll forget about coming over to talk to me…
Ainz prayed so in his heart while he turned back to the adventurers who were seeking him.
"What a surprise, are you used to this already?"
It was Evileye's voice. She was still hanging around. Why couldn't she have been a good girl and gone over with Narberal? Of course, he didn't reveal his irritation. In fact, to avoid suspicion, he replied to her in a gentle voice.
"Oh, it wasn't anything special."
This was nothing for anyone who had worked in a company before.
"Hardly. I think it's the best attitude to have for leading a party."
How annoying. Stop cutting in when I’m making introductions.
The words burned in Ainz’ heart, but he had to swallow them. If he lashed out at her now, the effort he put into not killing her would have been wasted. He split his attention as though he were performing a simple task, and made the appropriate noises to someone who had come to see him. The other party also knew that Momon was being called away, so they wrapped things up in two or three sentences.
After the line of adventurers had dispersed, a quick look revealed that Gazef was gone. He suppressed the urge to burst into dance, and instead spoke calmly to Evileye.
"The legendary Warrior Captain seems to have left… oh dear. I think I spent too much time with the others. My apologies."
"Mmm? What do you know, he's gone. He's a busy person, it makes sense that he couldn't stay. Although, it does seem quite rude that he didn't even say a word of thanks to our ace, Momon-sama, who's going to protect the capital. How rude. Let me get him for you."
"Wait. Wait!"
He'd accidentally raised his voice. Ainz continued in a more even tone.
"No, it won't be a problem. Really, don't worry about it. I'm only here because Marquis Raeven hired me, anyway. Protecting the capital is simply business. Nothing that the Warrior Captain should praise me for."
"Is that so… I've been feeling that Momon-sama was a generous man."
Ainz thought he was being mocked, and he looked closely at Evileye. But he couldn't read her face, covered by her mask as it was.
I can't trust anyone who wears a mask after all… what a pain. Still, why does she wear the mask? It must be some kind of magic item…
It was at this moment that Ainz realized his mistake, and he scrambled to examine his surroundings. The mood of the room hadn't changed, and nobody had reacted with fear and hostility toward the adamantite adventurer Momon.
Illusions in YGGDRASIL were just a trivial way to change an item's appearance, but in this world, illusion magic was real. In that case, it wouldn't be unusual for items that pierced illusions to exist… In E-Rantel, nobody saw through it, and after I heard from the Magician's Guild leader that one needed experience to see through them, I got careless… there are also quite a few orichalcum ranked adventurers here, what a blunder…
Ainz surveyed the room again.
Nobody's on their guard, I guess my secret's still safe… from now on, I won't remove my helmet in the capital unless I have to. Someone might have a talent for seeing through illusions.
"…Evileye-san,"
"Please, call me Evileye. Momon-sama is my savior, you need not be so formal with me."
Ainz was only being polite. But if that was how she wanted it, he had no reason to refuse.