“Understood su~”
The wooden cabinet should have been backed up against a wall, but when one looked inside, its interior seemed to stretch into another world.
Yuri took the first step and walked through to the other side of the closet.
She was followed by Nfirea, and a little bit later, by Enri holding onto Nemu’s hand.
They passed through the wall ahead of them without resistance, and found themselves inside a vast, grand pathway, flanked by statues on both sides that were so life-like it seemed like they might even move.
“Uwah~”
Nemu exclaimed softly as she looked around the ceiling, her mouth as wide as her eyes. In order to keep her from falling, Enri looked forward as well.
“Amazing…”
The floor was made of polished rock, on which a colorful carpet had been laid to show the way forward. Enri was struck dumb with admiration; she imagined that this must be what palaces looked like.
“Please, walk this way.”
Yuri’s voice snapped her out of her daze, and she thought of running a little to catch up with the two people ahead of them. But since that would be entirely unbefitting of a place like this, Enri merely quickened her footsteps to advance swiftly.
After walking for a distance, a wall appeared with a closet door upon it, similar to the one they had used to enter. However, there were two key differences. The first was that this door was several times larger than the first, big enough for several people to enter at the same time. The second was because an image of the other side was projected onto the door, and a multicolored film of magic opened up inside it.
“Then, please enter like you did previously.”
Enri and Nfirea looked at each other.
“We’ll go in together.”
Enri and Nfirea linked their hands. From left to right stood Nemu, Enri and Nfirea, and together they walked into the door.
In an instant, amidst a shower of pink petals, there was a vision of a woman in clothes which were red on top and white below―
“Welcome~”
A harmonious chorus of voices greeted them.
Looking around, they had arrived in an even more luxurious hallway, with two rows of astoundingly beautiful maids flanking them on both sides. At the end of a passage stood a man in a black robe that seemed to suck in all light from around him, wearing a bizarre mask. He was the savior of the village, Ainz Ooal Gown.
A panicked Enri froze where she stood.
The chandeliers on the ceiling sparkled, and the white marble floor was spotless.
A magnificent passage and pretty maids all in two rows. It was like walking into a fantasy world.
Lost in this ephemeral, dream-like world, Enri accidentally lost her grip on Nemu’s hand. The part of her mind that wasn’t completely overwhelmed by her surrounding recognized this, and in the next moment, Enri snapped back to reality.
Nemu ran ahead.
“Amazing! It’s so amazing!”
Nemu shouted at the top of her voice as she ran. She ran down the two lines of maids, and towards Ainz.
Faced with a world that overwhelmed her senses and heart, she abandoned her restraint and let herself run wild.
“It’s super duper amazing!”
“Nemu! Come back!”
Enri started running a fraction of a second later. Nemu’s disgraceful behavior was making sweat form all over Enri’s body.
But was it really all right for a mere village girl like herself to run in a divine realm like this, flanked by beautiful maids? Enri hesitated, and her feet betrayed the conflicting emotions in her. In the end, she ended up moving like a half-dead frog, starting and stopping, her mind running through all the worst-case scenarios that could result.
While Enri was still limping along, Nemu had already reached the side of the village’s savior without resistance.
“Is it that impressive?”
“Yup! It’s really amazing!”
“Is that so? Amazing… no, perhaps that’s true.”
Ainz reached out a hand, and calmly patted Nemu on the head.
“Is the place where I live truly that wonderful?”
“Yeah, it’s really wonderful! Did you make this, Gown-sama?”
“Hahaha, yes, that’s right. My friends and I did.”
“That’s amazing! Gown-sama and Gown-sama’s friends are all amazing!”
“Hah! Hahahaha!”
The clear and bright laughter reverberated through the hallway.
By this time, Nfirea and Enri had hesitantly reached the two of them. Enri tightly gripped Nemu’s hand, infused with a will that would never let go.
“We thank you for your kind invitation from the bottom of our hearts!”
“There is no need for such formality. We are here to celebrate the production of your new potion. Be at ease.”
“Gown-sama, I am truly sorry. My sister Nemu has been rude to you.”
“Really, think nothing of it. She was moved by the sight of my residence, was she not? Then that is no insult to me.”
Ainz seemed to be in a good mood as he replied.
“Then… next up, I intended to speak to Nfirea-kun… Nemu, how about it? Do you want to see the home that I, no, that we created together?”
“Yes! I wanna see! I want to see the amazing house Gown-sama and his friends made!”
Nemu spoke before Enri could refuse.
“Hahaha. Very well, very well! I have such sights to show you…”
Enri was unable to speak, once she saw the good mood Ainz was in.
She settled down onto a recliner, remembering that she had been asked to wait in the receiving room while Nemu was shown around.
Rather than say she was invited here, it would be more accurate to say that she was like a small animal that had been taken from its nest. She sat uneasily, and looked around herself. Beside her ―
regardless of the size of this place, the two of them stuck closely to each other ― her lover Nfirea was also unable to keep still, much like a small animal himself.
Enri could understand that her village’s savior, the magic caster known as Ainz Ooal Gown, was a mighty being, but what she had seen today went beyond her wildest imaginings.
It was as though she had stepped into a shining dreamscape, or a story where princesses and other great figures took center stage.
The fireplace was decorated with glass birds that had been carved to life-like perfection. If she broke one, she could work her entire life and still be unable to pay for it.
The sofa was exquisite, and Enri wondered if she was dirtying it with her clothes.
The chandelier, the first she had seen in her short life, was not lit by torches, lanterns, or candles, but by magic instead. She had seen magic lights before in E-Rantel’s Adventurer’s Guild, but they couldn’t compare in brightness or style.