Shalltear shook her head.
“It would be impossible.”
“So that’s why it doesn’t really matter if there’re a lot of newcomers on this floor. You don’t need to worry about it.”
“Aura already said everything I wanted to say. The plan is to gather all the new monsters here, or so it’s being discussed.”
“Huh? Not just the plant-type monsters?”
Aura asked in surprise and Albedo simply smiled.
“That was the initial plan, but thanks to you, Aura and Mare, we didn’t observe any problems so far.
So we decided to take a step further. But it’s still in the initial planning stage and I have no idea if it can be implemented. So that’s why I didn’t tell you even though you’re the guardian of this floor.”
Albedo stated that she was not finished yet and explained rest of the plan.
“The name is Project Paradise. Starting with the base Aura built, it’s a gigantic project designed to gather monsters friendly to humans to live here.”
“Why is there a specific requirement saying it has to be creatures friendly to humans?”
Albedo started laughing as if she was waiting for the question. It was a very evil laughter.
“That’s the core of the plan. The core of Project Paradise.”
“To be honest, I find it hard to understand. Aren’t we working hard because Nazarick has to be a paradise for the Supreme Beings? Why did you name it like that?”
“It is an appeal to the outside world that we can peacefully co-exist with others.”
“Ah-ha… Is that the angle?”
“My goodness. Shalltear actually understood…”
Shalltear glared menacingly at Aure, showing an expression that could wither even the flames of a century-old love.
“Did you perchance think I was stupid?”
“…W-wait a moment Shalltear. Do you really have to ask, after everything you’ve done so far?
Hmm? Just take a moment and try to remember..”
In a moment, as if she had actually remembered all her mistakes, Shalltear’s pupils dilated like a dead animal and she averted her eyes.
After seeing Shalltear’s pitiful appearance, Albedo decided to change the subject.
“Uhmm, Ainz-sama proposed this plan as well. When we were talking about the 6th floor, he mentioned his desire to collect various monsters as well. It’s not an idea you can come up with a narrow view of the world. I talked about Ainz-sama’s talents with Demiurge before, and we came to the conclusion that he’s a genius as expected.”
“Everybody knows that Ainz-sama is a genius, but I have heard that he doesn’t speak much.”
“Demiurge said that, right? Well… Ainz-sama doesn’t reveal his thoughts easily. And sometimes he acts strange, but the saying ‘The wise may seem stupid and the brave may seem timid’ hasn’t been wrong so far.”
Albedo’s eyes moistened as she shook her head.
“I still haven’t figured out why he created the persona of Momon the adventurer, but he’s truly scary… For everything to have been part of his plan from then until now…”
“You mean Ainz-sama disguised as the adventurer Momon? What about it?”
“You’ll learn soon enough… It’s because he has Momon. He will become the foundation of Ainz-sama’s rule. He’s truly great… Even Demiurge’s plans might actually be the result of Ainz-sama’s guidance—”
“What might you be murmuring about? It is a bit scary.”
Albedo pulled herself together at Shalltear’s words and coughed a bit before looking at the other three.
“What was I saying again? Yes, yes! Ainz-sama’s words and actions have deeper meanings behind them. Even though it might be impossible to fully comprehend his intentions, try to put some effort into understanding his plans.”
“It’s too difficult. Ainz-sama’s too smart. Ah, it’s a Spear Needle.”
Two gigantic white lumps with a height of more than two meters slowly waddled their way to Aura from the middle of the village. They were monsters that looked like angora rabbits.
“They are very cute.”
Shalltear was petting one of the white bunches of fur standing beside Aura.
“They’re so soft, I want one too…”
“Feels good, doesn’t it? But when fighting, their fur turns as sharp as needles.”
The level sixty-seven monster, Spear Needle.
When entering combat mode, their fur turned into a thicket of thin needles. If killed in combat mode, the fur wouldn’t return to its original soft state, so it was important to kill it stealthily with a single strike. That’s why the players who hunted Spear Needles were much higher in level than the monsters themselves.
“Is that true? Oh my, how scary.”
Even after saying it out loud, Shalltear kept petting it.
“Well, it won’t go into combat mode unless I order it to, or if enemies are nearby. But realistically, is there anyone who’s really going to be an intruder here? I haven’t gotten any reports from other floors either.”
“Of course. After all, I placed servants with excellent detection abilities on the 3rd floor. It would be hard for anyone to get through them undetected.”
Aura suddenly stopped moving and turned her head towards the colosseum.
“What is it, Aura-sama?”
“A gate from the 7th floor just activated.”
“From the lower floor? Demiurge’s out right now… Maybe it’s one of his subordinates? Are you sure it’s okay not to check?”
“Mmm— Mare’s there, so it should be fine. If there’s a problem, he’ll contact me.”
Aura touched the earring piece on her necklace.
“It’s not something special either. If someone wants to get to the surface from lower floors, they’d need to go through the gate on each floor at specific points. Speaking of which, we have someone who uses magic so they don’t have to run, right~?”
“Eh-hem! The Great Tomb of Nazarick truly is an impregnable fortress.”
“Yea, even if someone uses the super-tier magic ‘Sword of Damocles’ or the World-class item I possess, they wouldn’t be able to destroy an entire floor. That’s why you must never lose the ring which allows you to teleport anywhere at will.”
Everyone looked at the ring on Albedo’s left pinkie finger.
“That’s right. When Mare goes outside, he always puts it somewhere safe. Thinking about it this way, I can comprehend the importance of that ring— Ah! Mare contacted me.”
Aura put some distance between herself and the group before she grasped the earring and started talking to Mare. Aura slowly frowned and by the time the conversation was over, her expression was quite dark.
“Sorry. I don’t know why, but Mare said he’s preparing to go out. I need to go back just in case.”