184

Ainz walked towards the Dark Elf village with Mare in tow.

Mare was wearing the male attire that Ainz had lent him instead of his usual feminine wear. Just like the ones he had lent to Aura, these were just simple clothes that didn't have any data in them and thus, no magic.

This world's clothes wouldn't automatically adjust to fit the wearer unless imbued with magic, but it's different for the clothes from YGGDRASIL and so they fit Mare to a tee. They just had to be careful in a battle with these clothes due to the absolute drop in defensive stats compared to their usual outfits.

Ainz actually thought about having them wear something else at first because of this.

He had already heard from the twins' that Bukubukuchagama prepared a lot of items for them aside from their normal gear.

But, was there really anything suitable among those items to hide their status and true strength in the place they were heading to? Ainz could only shake his head in disappointment. Most of them were things like Aura's animal suit armor or Mare's dress armor; things Ainz would consider as fetish gear. That was how Ainz ended up providing the clothes for them.

In the first place, this was Ainz's plan, so it stood to reason that he should be the one to provide the things necessary.

That didn't mean they were all wearing similar outfits in this case. Mare and Ainz's outfits had one big difference from Aura's.

The two of them were covering their lower faces with cloth, like they were wearing a mask. There was also the bandanna covering their foreheads, so only the area around their eyes could be seen.

Although he felt sorry for making Mare bear with the additional heat, Ainz needed him to do this for his sake.

They found Aura waiting for them at the entrance of the village; though the village didn't really have a place that could be called an entrance. She was not here because she saw them coming or because she was at the right place at the right time through sheer luck. It was because they had already contacted her with a [Message].

Behind Aura stood her group of fanatical Dark Elves. It's rare for the Dark Elves, who spent their daily lives on trees, to be seen standing on the ground like Aura. It was still a dangerous place, even if it was near the village. They were probably doing it because of the trust they had in the strongest person around—

Aura—or maybe it was because they wanted to be in close proximity to the one they adored, as much as possible.

There were other Dark Elves gathered on the bridges spanning the trees, looking down at Ainz and the others. Everyone seemed to be talking with the people beside them. Although he couldn't hear the content of their conversations, he was sure they were talking about them.

"Ooo-ncle! Mare!"

Aura, feeling a little embarrassed, greeted them loudly so the gathered Elves could hear it as well. Ainz responded with a wide smile.

He wanted to retort with "I am not an uncle!" but suppressed the urge, not wanting to mock Aura's mistake.

(T/N: Originally Aura started with an "Oooh" and segued into "Oo-oji-san" (grand uncle) in Japanese, to which Ainz wanted to retort with "I am not your grand uncle". Decided to change it as it couldn't be TLed into English perfectly.)

"Yoo, Aura! Uncle's here!"

Ainz replied in a cheery voice and waved back after putting down the luggage he had been carrying on his back. Then, he lightly patted the shy boy standing next to him on his back.

"Y-yes". Mare gave a brief wave as well. He greeted her with a "sister…" but it's very unlikely that they heard his shy muttering.

Still, it didn't matter if his voice was too quiet. All they wanted was to let everyone know that the man and the boy—Aura's relatives—had arrived.

Well, they need not have waved their hands to show how close their relationship was, but it's not like it would cause any issues either.

Perhaps they had succeeded in their act, because the Dark Elves just continued to watch them silently even as they approached Aura.

"Mmm, with that settled, please allow me to escort—I will show you around"

Ainz grinned upon seeing Aura so troubled and tense. Her face was twitching as she tried to make a smile. Seeing a side of Aura different from how she usually was, warm fluffy thoughts like "She is so cute" and "I want to pat her head" flashed through Ainz's mind—then he immediately calmed down.

"—No. Nn…"

The reply unintentionally came out a little cold, so he cleared his throat and made his voice sound cheery again like before.

"…I have to thank these people for taking care of you, you see. Did you borrow a house somewhere?"

Aura gave an exaggerated nod.

"Then why don't you head over there with Mare? I will catch up later"

"Yes, Und—no, Okay?"

His present role was that of Aura's uncle.

Incidentally, the three of them racked their brains about who he was supposed to be: was he Bukubukuchagama's older or younger brother? If he was the latter, then was he older than Peroroncino or younger? In the end, Ainz took on the role of the younger brother of both Bukubukuchagama and Peroroncino.

Aura, who should have been acting accordingly, ended up fumbling around not knowing how to interact with him. Maybe it was because she didn't have enough time to prepare as she was sent to the village earlier, or maybe she hadn't resigned herself to their situation yet, but it seems like she couldn't play the role perfectly yet.

"Hahaha. Take Mare with you then. The journey wasn't that long but let Mare have some rest."

"Y-yes! Understood!"

Perhaps Aura had finally settled on some plan in her mind, as she gave an energetic reply. However, he felt like she had just given up on the character.

Ainz's gaze followed the twins, who were walking away, for a while and then shifted his gaze to the gathered Dark Elves.

There were a lot of people here.

The elders were not here yet, but the gathering was already over half of the village's population. There were also some children among them. He didn't feel any ill will from them, probably due to how much they benefited from Aura's help. That said, there were still some strong gazes that were appraising him, trying to understand what kind of person Aura's uncle was.

It's that Aura fanatic and his followers.

Ainz felt that there was something off about them.

Although he arrived after her with her brother, he was an adult who had sent a child, Aura, out alone into the forest. It was entirely reasonable for people with common sense to have that expression upon seeing him.

Therefore, Ainz wouldn't have felt anything off if a normal Dark Elf—someone who's not an Aura fanatic—made that expression.

But these guys were different.

These were the ones that said things like age didn't matter if someone was talented. They of all people should have found it logical that he would send a superbly skilled ranger ahead alone.

In that case—

—those gazes have another meaning behind them, Ainz thought, and after contemplating for a while, he arrived at an answer that matched. …Aah, maybe they are wondering if she was just being taken advantage of by an incompetent uncle.

That's probably the reason for that look in their eyes…uuummm, it's vexing that they are not exactly off the mark. Oops…I should begin soon.

He had gotten a large enough audience. It was useless to spend more time waiting and he didn't want to let their accumulated curiosity cool down if possible.

It's been a long time…

Ainz felt a little tense. Idly wondering if this was how a lecturer in the classroom or a conductor on a stage would feel, he started to speak to the Dark Elves gathered on the trees in a cheery voice, just like the one he used in the orchestrated act he put on before.

"Now that's settled—"

Ainz removed the cloth covering the lower half of his face and displayed what was underneath it.

He showed them a smile and immediately covered his face like before.

"—I apologize. My tribe's tradition dictates that men have to cover their faces like this. Even if covering one's face is considered rude here, please forgive me for not removing it."

No voices of discontent arose from the audience. It seemed like they had accepted Ainz's explanation.

Of course, it was a huge lie.

Ainz wore a rubber mask on his face and had cast an illusion over it Momonstyle, but it was only a low-level illusion so rangers with sharp senses might be able to see through it if they looked closely enough. This excuse was to cover up the faults in his disguise.

He hoped that it would be hard to see through the illusion just from the area around his eyes alone.

"Well then—pleased to meet you. Seems like you took care of my Aura… She may have already told you about me, but my name is Ain Bell Fior"

He stated his name, which was thought up by all three of them after exhausting their brains. Well, in reality, the twins' did most of the thinking and he just received the name from them.

"I've brought a few meager gifts with me. Would anyone lend me a table please?"

Suddenly, he saw a nearby tree wriggle a bit before branches grew from it rapidly, wide enough to spread the luggage on it. Someone in the crowd probably used magic.

"Thank you," Ainz gave his gratitude and lifted the luggage from the ground onto the table.

"I don't know if they will be to your liking but I would be glad if you would accept them."

Ainz thought a lot about what he should bring as gifts.

Seeing the elves in Nazarick eat its food with relish, he thought about bringing condiments like salt. Even Ainz knew that salt was something no dish could do without.

So, he initially planned to bring lumps of rock salt with him but realized that although salt was essential for humans, that might not be the case for the Dark Elves.

Even if it was essential, it could be the case that the Dark Elves required it far less than humans. In that case, its worth would be reduced in their eyes.

Also, as Ainz found out, they didn't seem to use anything similar to salt in their cooking sessions—at least not during the ones he snooped on. He also didn't see any Elves salting their meat. That they had the magic to prevent their meat from spoiling was probably a major reason why they didn't.

Maybe they actually did use salt, but only on the rare occasion because they found it precious? That didn't seem to be the case either.

Well, it's not like he could go around checking all of the kitchens for salt just because he could use [Perfect Unknowable].

Considering this absence of salt and how they didn't waste the blood of their prey, perhaps they were satisfying their need for salts from the blood as carnivores do.

Incidentally, because E-Rantel didn't have anything like rock salt mines or salt lakes, their salt was produced by the magic casters who were proficient in domestic magic. They also imported some from the Empire and the Kingdom.

That's why he was told the price of salt increased a bit for a while under his rule, but that no longer seemed to be an issue.

Ainz vaguely remembered reading something like that from the documents that passed by him. Albedo had probably dealt with it.

Anyhow, Ainz decided not to bring salt.

In its place—

"These are metal knives created by dwarves, you see? Splendid, right? I heard that you make some very strong ones here from trees using magic but they probably aren't stronger than metal, right? These are made by dwarves who are especially good at smithing. They are first-rate stuff."

The first thing he took out from the bag was a slender and thin wooden box that held a cleaver in it. He followed with arrowheads and cutlery knives, arranging them neatly on the table.

This was a trade fair, to bring foreign exchange to the Dwarven Country which was under the Sorcerer Kingdom's economic sphere.

Of course, this village which was self-sufficient didn't have the coin to pay. A method to bring foreign currency into this village would have to be prepared in this case, but Ainz thought that this was a chance for the Sorcerer kingdom to act as their intermediary and thus bring them under its economic sphere as well.

The issue was that he didn't discuss this plan with Albedo.

—I don't expect a plan thought up by my useless brain will go smoothly, but it's not like there's anything to lose…there's not, right?

So, there's no problem even if it failed, but he would be praised if it succeeded.

Ainz held such hopes privately, but he knew that the greater the anticipation, the greater the disappointment would be when he failed. So he tried not to think too much about it.

It won't be an issue at all even if they were to say "we don't need it." I only brought them out of goodwill so it would just end with a "sorry that it's not to your liking."

But…the mood seems good.

The eyes of the Dark Elves around him were sparkling. The first to speak was the Master of the Hunt.

"Can I take a look?"

"Please, please. Go ahead and feel it in your hands"

Approaching Ainz, he first reached for the arrowheads. A natural choice. He would be a little surprised if the Master of the Hunt reached for the cleaver first instead.

"Splendid work. I heard the Dwarves are a race that live in the mountains, so they really can make such fine things… These are valuable goods, correct? What could be a good barter for this …"

…Ooh, just like I predicted.

The businessman Suzuki Satoru chuckled to himself.

He managed to give a successful presentation of the things his audience wanted.

Some of the Elves still used currency as the Elven Royal Capital used to trade with human society before the breakdown of their relationship, but it's doubtful if such a remote village participated in that trade or even had Elven peddlers visit this place either. Therefore, bartering was the norm here. Just as he had expected, "rare and excellent goods" like these were greatly welcomed.

"…I brought these not to barter, but to give them to everyone. Please distribute them as you like later."

The Master of the Hunt, who was checking the sharpness of the arrowheads with his hand, made a bitter expression.

"No, we are the ones who are indebted to your niece, Fiora-dono. To receive these without giving anything in return…"

"No, no. These are meager gifts, a mark of our affection and gratitude. Please accept them, but if you want to barter for something…I have magic items that were produced using a splendid technique of Dwarves called runes."

Ainz can feel the sparkle in the Master of the Hunt's eyes intensify.

"Runes? A magic item you say?"

"Yes, that's right. It's a magic item created using runes. I am using it myself, but depending on the barter I will consider it. According to them, it's just a rudimentary thing but I can't give away a magic item for free. Plus, it was originally somewhat pricey as well."

Selling things cheaply brought customers, but if it went too far, it might end up creating a class of customers who would refuse to buy anything if they were not cheap enough.

Dwarves could sell it however cheap they wanted to, but that's not the case for Ainz. In fact, he should sell it at as high of a price as possible here. The issue was that this village didn't have anything he wanted. No—there could be something Ainz just didn't know about yet.

Frankly speaking, Runecraft hasn't brought any good results yet, and there is not much demand for it either. But, it's too hasty to come to a conclusion yet, even though it's an unprofitable department. I have to take the long-term view on it, say, about a hundred years.

"That said, I don't think a village like this with a lot of druids would need it."

With such a disclaimer, Ainz took out a metal stick from his pocket. He was already prepared to present it like this so there was no hesitation in his actions.

"This thing lights a short flame at its tip. It's more for use as a fire starter instead of a light source because the flame will disappear if it leaves your hand."

As he did not hear a negative response like "what, that's it?" Ainz felt a bit relieved.

"I also have a few others, but that's for later. I am hoping I can join the kids in the temporary lodgings soon to relieve some of the journey's exhaustion."

The gathered Dark Elves made empathetic expressions.

While they didn't travel far from their village, they knew how dangerous the place they lived in was. They understood the need to take a rest after traveling through that.

"—Sorry for asking you this while you are exhausted, but can you answer two questions?"

"Yes, please"

It's that Aura fanatic named Plum.

Ainz turned serious. If he answered wrong, there was a possibility that the guy would turn into their enemy. On the other hand, if he gave an answer they wanted, he would become a strong ally.

"The first one is…do you have any Elf blood flowing through you?"

"Oi, you are being rud—"

Master of the Hunt tried to stop him but Ainz waved his hand slightly, expressing that he didn't mind it.

"It's fine. No one has said that to me before…but does that look to be the case?"

"Ah, no, don't mind it then. It just felt like that."

"Is that so?"

Sharp.

Incredibly sharp.

Ainz was currently using the face of some elf he saw in the Royal Capital, with only the skin color changed to match the Dark Elves. Ainz thought it was perfect and even Mare didn't find any problem with it, but for genuine Dark Elves his face probably looked uncanny, enough to sense it just from the area around his eyes.

"…I've never heard of anything like that from my parents, but if you feel that way, maybe some of my ancestors married Elves in the distant past…and the other question is?"

"Fiora-sama is extremely talented as a ranger, but are you the same?"

So he would attach "-sama" to the niece's name even when he was talking with her uncle. Feeling a strange sense of admiration at his staunchness, Ainz wondered whether he should ask why he was attaching "-sama" to his niece's name, or was it better to not broach that topic?

He couldn't decide which was the correct option, but he should answer his question first.

"No, I do not have talent as a ranger like that child, but I am confident in my ability as a first-class wizard."

"…uizaad?"

"Yes, Wizard."

Plum's eyes darted around.

Ah, he looks like someone who doesn't know what a wizard is…is that even possible?

No, a wizard is someone who acquires and uses magic through learning. In a place like this without an education system, it's unlikely someone like that could appear…right?

Well, then maybe it's reasonable that they don't know?

He didn't really know the exact reason behind this lack of knowledge, but if it was as he had expected, then he just had to make the other party understand.

"I mean, an arcane-type magic caster."

"Arcane…I see. I see. That's awesome. As expected of Fiora-sama's uncle."

He felt like he could hear the guy thinking, well, I don't really understand, but it sounds awesome so let's praise him anyway. But, that's fine. He was used to getting fanatically praised for everything in Nazarick, so much so that such an obviously blunt way of getting praised was rather refreshing.

"Aa—, Seems like my explanation was not good enough. Wizard is…a job that uses magic, like druids."

"Ooh! I see! Then you can create food too?"

"Eh? Ah, no, sorry. There are also wizards like that…I heard, but unfortunately, I can't do that. To be specific, I am more proficient in magic that eliminates enemies."

He remembered hearing that domestic magic could create condiments and spices, but wondered if it could also do high-quality foodstuffs.

Even if they thought of him as incompetent because he couldn't do that, he wouldn't mind it. He knew himself to be mediocre, so if the other party thought him as incompetent then it would just be a reflection of his own thoughts.

Rather, he would even feel happy if that was how they saw him.

But—he couldn't let himself be thought of as incompetent while he was acting as Aura's uncle. Ainz was currently standing in for Bukubukuchagama after all.

"Enemies…I see…then you can hunt, right? I understand. As expected of Fiorasama's relatives."

This guy was supposed to be a genuine hunter, so what the hell was he talking about, Ainz wondered.

Taking down external threats was probably a part of a hunter's duty in this village, but that would not be the only one. Returning with food from the dangerous forest would be their primary work. If taking down enemies was enough for one to be called a hunter, then this village should have been filled with fully-armored burly-looking warriors instead.

But Ainz, who was neither a hunter nor one of the villagers, couldn't point it out to him. It would be bothersome if he ended up hurting the other party's feelings.

Aura and Mare would be living here for a while so he couldn't go around creating discord with the villagers. No amount of apologizing to the twins would be enough if his arrival made them look bad in the villagers' eyes. He would feel even more guilty because, even if that were to happen, Aura would surely say "don't worry about it" with sincerity.

Anyhow, it was better to explain it clearly and get a verbal acknowledgment from him. He didn't want to be accused of lying or some other things later. After all, the twins would be constantly aware of his actions here. The circle of Nazarick's most intelligent people would probably conclude with a "sasuga!" even if Ainz made some idiotic mistake, but he was scared that the children would ask him "why did you do that? Please tell us" innocently. He didn't want to use the "think for yourself" card with a child.

While Ainz was having such thoughts in rapid succession, Plum nodded like he understood it more or less, and finally replied.

"Really, that's great. Splendid!"

Was it really so splendid? Ainz wondered, but he was fine with it if that's how it looked to the other party. This situation wasn't bad either. Ainz decided to go with the flow.

"I am not too confident about my hunting skills as I have never hunted, but I am happy that a skilled hunter from this village thinks so about me." With this, they would be the one responsible for calling him a hunter and expecting good hunting skills from him. "That kid is probably helping you with the hunts…I think, but let me take over that duty from her. Can you let those two play in the village meanwhile?"

Plum made an expression like he just heard something preposterous. Ainz didn't think he had said anything particularly strange and tried to recollect his words, but he couldn't find anything wrong with them.

"I came here hoping to let those city kids experience life in a Dark Elf village, so I want them to experience something they can't in the city…right, like the games the children in this village play, if possible."

"I see. So life in a city is a lot different from the village, huh."

The Master of the Hunt nodded in understanding. Ainz was unsure what city life looked like in the Master of the Hunt's mind, but he was not responsible for the other party's own misunderstandings. He might have lied a little, but he was not exactly wrong either. He could make any number of excuses even if he was solicited about it later.

"—Can I ask a question as well?"

The one who spoke was a man who looked like a ranger, standing on the walkway. That was true for all the Elves here but he had quite a pretty face, it would be appropriate to describe him as "cool."

"Please go ahead."

Ainz was not happy about this and didn't want to get questioned at all if possible, but he couldn't say that to his face.

The elf hesitated a bit before asking his question.

"Does Fiora-dono have a fiance?"

"Fuaah?" Ainz nearly exclaimed before suppressing himself. The question came out of nowhere.

After he became flustered at why the hell would this man ask such a weird question, Ainz observed the people around him. Like him, they were also surprised.

…Seems like he is acting on his own. That aside, why is he even interested in Aura's fiance…? He wants to know if there's someone in the city we came from…Fuu. There's nothing to think about. There can only be one reason for his interest.

Ainz felt confident that he understood the intention behind the question. In fact, there could be no other reason behind it.

He wants to have Aura's bloodline in this village. I am sure I saw a few boys among the children.

Ainz glanced at the children for just a moment. There were many boys just as he had expected.

Does he have a son among them? …It's really hard to know a Dark Elf's age from their appearance, isn't it? But, the thought of their marriage never crossed my mind till now. Well, isn't it fine if there's someone who Aura likes? I'll need to make sure that person is decent first though, as Bukubukuchagama's stand-in! …Oops, going on the tangents again. I will have to decide if I will lie here or tell the truth.

But he didn't even need to think about it. Telling him the truth wouldn't hurt them at all. Instead, they would have to follow with lie after lie if he lied here.

"…No, there's no one like that right now."

"Is that so."

The man looked a little relieved.

…Is he the type who interferes too much in their children's choice of a partner? This is bad. I came here to make friends for the twins. It would be bothersome if this guy pushed his son front-and-center while making it hard for the other children to approach the twins. I have to figure out more about this…

"…By the way…can I ask for your name?"

The guy immediately put forward a crisp appearance.

.

"I am named Blueberry Egnia."

Ainz knew about a food called blueberry. Like that Plum guy from before, maybe it's a Dark Elf tradition to prefix their name with a food's name. In that case, he should have just given Aura a fake name as well instead of worrying about how she would feel getting called by a fake name by her potential friends. What troubled him was that he didn't know if their native names for the fruits were getting translated into something he knew, or if they were just using the same names without knowing their meaning—that these were traces left behind by Players.

"…I see. I will keep it in mind. Blueberry Egnia-san right?"

"Yes. That's right. Thanks for trying to keep me in your mind."

Ainz didn't understand why he was being thanked.

Before Ainz could ask him, a small commotion started among the Dark Elves.

Ainz immediately understood the reason for the change. Looking towards where the Dark Elves' attention gathered, he found the elders as expected.

He could hear a few voices around him asking, "why are they so late?"

Ainz sighed internally. This was going to be troublesome, just like when Aura visited.

Is there any company where the employees would bad-mouth each other in front of outsiders? People sometimes grumbled, but they would never hurl insults…I think?

Umu. Is it fine to let Aura stay in this village? …or should I just hope that the children will not get pulled into this? But how would those children behave after hearing their parents bad-mouth others? I don't know…Anyhow, I should make sure my actions don't adversely affect Aura and Mare.

He could guess what was going to happen now, but he didn't want to stick his head in unnecessary trouble. He only wanted to maintain their neutrality, so he would need to respond skillfully in this situation. That meant—

I just have to mimic my simulations to a T!

Well, come at me, Ainz postured internally. One of the elders started speaking, ignoring the stares around him.

"One from the same descent as the sapling Fiora. You did good to travel here from a faraway place."

Sapling? Just as I thought.

Ainz grinned mentally.

It was the Dark Elf way of speaking. In this world, the words of various races were translated into something Ainz could understand. The fact that this word "sapling" was translated as such meant that there was no hidden meaning behind it. If it meant young boy or girl, it would have been translated into the words Ainz knew. So, prefixing "sapling" to the children's names was no more than a convention.

They probably started with a Dark Elf-style phrase to estimate how knowledgeable he was, as a Dark Elf adult living in the city.

From Aura's investigations—and Ainz's eavesdropping—they knew that there were two factions in this village; one faction placed importance on traditions like the elders and while the other was filled with youngsters who wanted to be free from those shackles. The elders probably wanted to see which faction Ainz and his ilk—Dark Elves who lived in a city—were more amenable to.

…I want to maintain distance from both factions. We might end up getting pulled into a faction if I was to say something careless here. If we were to decide to join one, I think the faction liked by the parents of the children Aura and Mare will be playing with—

probably the youngster faction—would be the better choice. But, I am not sure if that's the right faction…there's just not enough information. Evading them by saying something appropriate and insisting that's how we normally greet is probably the best course of action here.

Ainz already expected something like this, so he was prepared beforehand.

"—As a traveler who treads the same earth, I offer my gratitude to you, denizens of this forest, for your hospitality toward us, travelers from a far-flung forest."

Ainz said something that sounded authentic without thinking too much about it. The elders blinked once and then sighed with an "ooh".

That certainly was not the sign of a bad impression. In fact, he could sense that his words got a good reception.

"Both the Sawtooth and Ring-Cupped Oaks are similarly sturdy, and both are majestic in their rise towards the heavens. I am satisfied. If the trees continue to flourish, they will certainly give birth to a forest someday."

Ainz spoke without a hitch and finally nodded in satisfaction.

Frankly speaking, even he couldn't understand what he was saying. It's not like he was thinking about anything in the first place. He couldn't expect the listeners to understand if even he, the speaker himself, didn't. But unexpectedly, the elders were nodding just like him.

They behaved like they understood his words.

Suzuki Satoru, the salaryman, found their reaction very familiar. He had seen many situations just like this. No, he should say that he understood it because he himself did that all the time.

Ah, how should I put it? This is how superiors react when their subordinates use jargon or abbreviations they don't know of…

Silence permeated the area for a while after Ainz ended his greetings.

"…That's good to hear. Then let us take our leave as well. Long greetings to someone after a long journey would make one grow ivy after all"

"Ivy, is it?"

Ainz unintentionally repeated the word back. Maybe that was how Dark Elves say that it's not good to extend a conversation too long, but then it should have been translated as such to his ears. It sounded too literal to him.

They probably heard Ainz's unintended question, but despite that, the elders turned away and started walking back, ignoring him.

"…what?"

It didn't go according to his simulation.

Ainz looked at the gifts he had brought.

He originally expected that they would request the distribution of gifts to be left to them.

Eh? …Only greetings? What does this mean? Did I make a mistake?

Ainz felt uneasy, like this was an interview that ended too quickly. This was exactly how one would react if the interviewer asked "are there any questions?"

after just a few words.

If they had shown clear signs of dislike at Ainz's words from before, he would have chalked it up as valuable experience even if they end up having to move to another village.

However, he didn't get any reaction out of them at all at the end of their conversation, so he was not even sure if he had left a good impression or a bad one.

On observing the people around him, he couldn't feel any dislike or hostility directed at him. Rather, it looked like they too were puzzled by this development.

I don't understand at all…but, there's no use in thinking further. Depending on the situation, maybe I should use [Perfect Unknowable] to snoop on them and what exactly they are thinking.

Ainz stared after the retreating elders and then asked a nearby villager as if he suddenly remembered something about a related matter.

"…Seems like I am welcomed at least. I have something to talk about with the elders, are they busy?"

"Eh? Aa, I…think?"

The villager replied with a vague answer in a fluster. He probably racked his brain for an answer from the previous conversation.

"There's a tree that's used by the elders for meetings, I will show it to you later."

The Master of the Hunt, who was closest to him, extended a lifeline. Ainz could understand why Aura called him uncle.

"Right, I will try to have a talk with them when there's time. —Now that's dealt with, let me go and join those two at the house. I hope someone can lead me to our lodgings."

"I will be happy to do it!!"

Ainz's non-existent heart jumped out at the sudden voice from his side.

It was Blueberry.

He had probably climbed down to the ground from the walkway silently while Ainz was talking with the Master of the Hunt.

"…Sudden shouting is bad for the heart, so could you please stop?"

"S-sorry…I will be careful so that something like this won't happen in the future."

Ainz couldn't admonish Blueberry more after seeing him this extremely apologetic.

He wanted to show that he was a tolerant person. He also didn't want to agitate the man further into doing unpredictable things.

"I am glad that you understood…Now then, I am probably troubling Blueberrysan, but can you please lead me there?"

"It's no trouble at all. If there's anything in this village that troubles you, please call me. I will try to help as much as possible."

"That's reassuring to hear," Ainz replied and started walking after Blueberry.

However, that didn't mean his work was done yet. His most important task still remained.

Ainz stopped on the way, his eyes landing on a group of kids and–although it was hidden by the cloth—he smiled at them.

There were 4 boys and 2 girls, a total of 6 children.

Two kids, a boy and a girl, looked younger than the twins. One boy was of the same age and the remaining three looked older.

"Yaah, you kids" Ainz greeted while walking toward them.

None of the adults around stopped him out of wariness. Ainz had probably left a good impression on them with his behavior since his arrival.

"I hope you will look after Aura and Mare."

"Eh?" said the children's faces. He couldn't stop here. He needed something to push them on. Frankly speaking, it was for this moment that Ainz even set out on this journey.

"Please let those two play along with you all. That said, you probably can't win against them if you play games that involve moving your body. So I would be grateful if you could invite them to play something different, the kind of games that they can't play in the city"

Ainz had simulated his conversation with the elders with Mare's help. In contrast, he had simulated this conversation with the children by conferencing with himself in his mind. There were probably going to be mistakes and some things he had forgotten about.

He couldn't be seen making mistakes by the adults as it could affect them adversely hereafter. That was why he wanted to talk with the children alone as much as possible, but it's doubtful if they would allow him, some unknown outsider, to interact with their precious children without an adult's supervision.

He would have to use this chance now.

Ainz brought out a leather pouch from his pocket.

Then he took out an amber-colored lump half the size of his thumb from it.

"Now then, hold out your hand"

The one Ainz spoke to was a boy standing at the head of the group. He was probably the leader of this village's children.

Ainz dropped the lump in the boy's palm, taking care not to let their hands touch directly.

Though it looked like a bribe, it was certainly not one.

Ainz sincerely wanted to give it to him normally instead of dropping it from above, but his hand was an illusion. If they were to touch, he might find something wrong with the texture.

He absolutely had to avoid that.

Ummm. What if I cut some criminal's hand and make a glove with the muscle and skin? Maybe Nazarick has someone good at that task…I wonder if they would hate it if it was a human's hands though. But again, someone like Neuronist might like it…

"Eh, T-this is…"

Ainz spoke gently to the boy who was looking at the weirdly shaped thing in his palm.

"It's candy. It's sweeter than fruit. Ah, it's the type where you lick it, not the type you chew. But…I don't know if it's sweeter than the truly tasty fruits…"

Ainz stated with slight hesitation.

Due to his body, Ainz couldn't confirm the taste himself. At most, he could only check how it felt to chew, so he was not confident about their taste. He had certainly experienced licking candy in his previous world. But now, though the YGGDRASIL candy that he had never tasted before turned miraculously real, he could no longer taste them.

Taking into consideration that there were fruits with magical powers in this world, it was entirely possible that some could be sweeter than this candy. It was also possible that the Dark Elves were used to eating such fruit normally.

He had heard that the fruits of this world were not always easy to eat because selective breeding techniques did not progress much. That was why there were people inside Nazarick who were trying their hand at selective breeding.

For example, the Sous Chef.

The boy nervously put the candy into his mouth.

The kids around him—also Ainz and the adults watching them—waited for the unlucky (and also brave) boy's reaction.

"—Sweet!! Tasty! What the heck is this thing!!"

Ainz smiled at the boy's response, whose eyes were wide open with surprise.

Ainz's expression remained the same even after seeing the boy, who from sheer surprise, took the candy out from his mouth, dripping with saliva.

I am relieved that he didn't dislike it…Allergy is the only other worry, but, well, that's not very likely…

"Come, come. Let me give you some too."

Ainz called them and gave out candy to each child.

There were also some gazes from the adults as if they wanted some, but he ignored them. This bribe was specifically for the children. There were no benefits in giving the adults some too. He was handing them out to the children because they were the ones he entrusted Aura and Mare with.

After everyone received some, Ainz repeated his request. Of course, he made sure that he didn't sound like he was threatening them.

"Well then, please take care of those two."

With his task done, Ainz started walking again. After realizing that no one stopped him—

Hell yeah!

—he let out a cheer internally.

The presentation went great, Ainz thought, but then he immediately abandoned the thought and became serious.

He would only know if he had succeeded or failed when those kids came to invite the twins to play. That said—

—I did what I set out to do. But…Why did Blueberry-san, who was walking in front me, not say anything? Parents should at least give a simple "thanks" if their kids were given candy, right? Does that mean his child was not among that group? Are there other children? Good grief. Seems like I have to work a little longer.

-x-X-x-

There were three people in the room.

The Grand Elder, Raspberry Nabar.

The Male Elder, Peach Orbea.

The Female Elder, Strawberry Pischa.

There was only one topic of discussion. Naturally, it was about the traveler

who had just appeared a short while ago, the uncle of Aura—the ranger who possessed outstanding abilities.

And they were all at their wit's end.

The reason for that was—

"The Sawtooth Oak…what kind of tree is it? The fact that he used that name back there, what in the world could it possibly mean? "

At the meeting they immediately held upon their return, Peach asked that question while he grimaced. Raspberry, with a similarly sour expression on his face, answered.

"No idea, but do you really think we could just ask him that right then and there?…If it meant the sacred tree that his tribe uses for ancestor worship or in rituals, wouldn't he think that he had been insulted if we said we didn't know what kind of tree it was?"

Heaving a sigh, Strawberry grumbled.

"This is all because we put on the demeanor of 'obviously we know that' back there. The words 'we don't know' would never escape our lips, no matter what was said."

"It would be one thing if we were different races, but we're all Dark Elves.

Considering the direction they came from, it's very likely that they're from one of the clans that split off in our parents' generation. If that is the case, then the differences in language shouldn't be that big. When you put all of those together, that was probably a formal greeting in the style of his tribe."

"I couldn't confirm it since you could only see the area around his eyes, but I caught sight of some features that looked as if he had some Elf blood in him. So, it might be possible that it was the etiquette for greetings that originated with the Elves?"

Beyond that, they also had another basis for his possible connection to the Elves. That was his name.

Dark Elf names went in the order of family name followed by given name, while Elves on the other hand, used the order of given name followed by family name.

In light of that, how they were named was similar to the Elven style.

"Naturally, I wouldn't know about the Elven way of doing things nor their etiquette, now would I? Do you two know?"

There was no reply.

First off, it wasn't as if even they knew all of the Dark Elf traditions. That was because some of the oral traditions had been lost prior to them coming to this forest, so they were in a situation where they didn't even know what had been lost. That was why they were racking their brains over it.

"For the time being, are we all in agreement that our name was passed down in his tribe as the tribe of Ring-Cupped Oak? It's either that or something similar.

For example, perhaps this Oak splits into two when it grows so we're being called that because we branched off his clan too?"

"If you consider the flow of that conversation, it seems like there is no other way we could interpret it. However, along with the Sawtooth Oak, I wonder what kind of tree a Ring-Cupped Oak is? I wonder if there was a hint that it could be another name for one of the trees we do know of? And on top of that, what significance does the choosing of that tree have?"

On the contrary, if they likened a tree that they knew to the Sawtooth or RingCupped Oak trees, their visitors might question their sanity. Therefore, if they knew what trees they were, they could then grasp the nuances held within.

However, even they, within the extent of their knowledge of trees and plants, could not stumble upon anything about the Sawtooth and—in particular—RingCupped Oak trees.

Even when they went so far as to take into account that the common names of trees might differ by clan, no answer was forthcoming.

"Hmmmm. It would be great if we could hear it straight from the source, but…"

"If we could do that then we would…Wouldn't it be troublesome if he thought we didn't even know that much? It might leak out to the youngsters from him."

Even they at least knew that the youngster's group hated them. Nevertheless, they believed the youngsters would come to respect the wisdom they held when they were older. Traditions—ancient wisdom— seemed meaningless when one only took a glance at them. However, the truth was that there were some reasons as to why they persisted, and it wasn't something that was okay to just disregard.

Even they should agree that knowledge was power.

However, no one here even knew how to give a formal greeting—what would happen if the youngsters were to judge them for having lost that tradition? It might produce a more serious and lethal confrontation than there was right now.

That was why they were racking their brains over it.

"I wonder if it really was just a mere greeting…even when I looked him in the eyes he didn't seem to be showing a hint of emotion. He was so expressionless that it felt a little unsettling."

"…So…what do we do? His knowledge concerning Dark Elf traditions is something I'd like to ask him about though…"

"…That's a little too dangerous. Even if we were to abide our shame and say to him that we wanted to talk with him privately, I don't know if he would really keep his mouth shut. If that's the case…you don't jump into a briar patch if you're not being chased, huh? "

"You're right. It's best to keep a certain distance, and not approach him."

"That being the case…what do we do with his gifts? The souvenirs from a land where races other than Elves or Dark Elves live. There are probably rare items among them."

If the three elders took responsibility for distributing the souvenirs, there would be some suitable benefits to it.

Of course, there would probably be people who would make their discontent public depending on what was distributed and to whom. The drawback was the possibility of them bearing a grudge over it. However, in most cases, that sort of person would already have a reputation of saying that it was unfair no matter what they received. It was obvious that some of the youngsters would complain just because the elders were the ones who divvied everything up.

However, if the elders distributed everything fairly, then everyone else aside from them would probably look coldly upon the ones who would say that it was unfair.

Therefore, even if the elders placed the duty of distribution upon themselves, they did not intend to take anything for themselves.

There should be more value in creating an image of them being selfless elders than there was in pocketing rare goods.

However—

"—As was just said a moment ago, don't jump into a briar patch. If we decide to distribute his gifts, the necessity of directly signaling our gratitude to him would emerge, whether we like it or not. If that were to happen, we would probably have to convey our gratitude in a form that followed the rules of proper etiquette after all."

"…That means in the event that the other party placed a lot of importance on etiquette, they might regard us as boorish or they might interpret it as us being dissatisfied with their gifts, correct?"

If he were to think that as the village elders they should know the proper etiquette, then how would he react if he was to see their ill-mannered attitude?

When falling from a great height, the higher you were, the bigger the damage would be.

Moreover, when one received a magnificent gift from a visitor, one could not

respond to it in the same way they would when they were to receive some trivial

item. One would have to afford their benefactor every courtesy.

"Then let's leave it to the youngsters. It was fortunate that they got ahold of the gifts first. We'll probably hear all the details, so it's fine to just leave it to them as it is.

"That's right. That's a good idea."

While Raspberry and Strawberry were concluding things, Peach looked sullen.

"I don't mind that, but should we call out to the youngsters to be careful? That lot are the type to disregard the traditions, and so they might unwittingly insult his tribe."

"Hmmmm." The two other elders also looked sullen now.

"This isn't the time to be saying things like, 'are we at fault for not drilling it into them, even if we had to invoke our power as the Council of Elders, after all?' now is it? The uncle of Aura-dono, the one who easily repelled the 'Ursus Lord. I have no doubt that he is reasonably apt. I don't want to be glared at by a person like that."

"Be that as it may, do you really think those simpletons would honestly agree with anything we had to say? For now, we'll just warn them, and if they were to make some blunder, the only thing that could be done then would be for us to…take the blame, wouldn't it? Frankly, I don't want to have anything to do with that, but even so, we are the elders, aren't we…"

"We have to take responsibility…huh. I guess that can't be helped…"

"However…what should we do? What was the reason that the uncle came to see the members of his own race, did anyone hear? "

"…What should we do if the reason he came here was to learn the customs that are passed down in this village? …To put it bluntly, I wouldn't touch that with a ten-foot pole."

"It would be awkward if we didn't have the welcome party, right?" When Fioradono came, she said her uncle was also coming, so we haven't done it yet. Plus, to the rangers who did that much work in just a few days, not holding the welcome party would be the village's shame…and finally, our lack of participation in that party would go beyond impoliteness, and would be the same as a provocation.

"…Haaa. We'll participate in the party, but let's try to keep our distance from him as much as possible. The uncle-dono looks young, I'm sure the youngsters will keep him company. "

"That's right. I'm grateful to those children who will be making moves to win him over to their own side."

After that, when they had finished several other items on their agenda, Raspberry turned towards Peach and threw the question at him that he had been wanting to ask for quite a while.

"By the way, what did that whole thing with 'like allowing ivy to grow…' mean?"

Strawberry also looked at him. She probably also had that question in mind.

They couldn't ask him right there, naturally, but now there was no problem.

Peach, who had been questioned, stammered in reply.

"…Sorry. I was trying to match the tone of the conversation…so I just…said…something that sounded appropriate."

"Haaa," Raspberry breathed a heavy sigh.

"…The uncle's bafflement at having never heard that expression before was apparent in his voice."

"What should we do about this… How do you think we should answer if he asks about the meaning the next time we meet?"

"Even if you ask me that… If we were to be asked that question, we would have no other choice than to think of some suitable meaning for it right here, right now. We'll answer him with what we come up with. We can't say that we were just showing off appropriately… Moreover, it would be troublesome if the youngsters were to think that the traditions we regularly talk about were also something we say just to show off."

"Well, that might be the only thing we can do…Don't say things just to show off anymore, okay?"

"Yeah, I'm sorry. I won't do it ever again."

"Well then… What meaning would the words, 'like allowing ivy to grow,' have?

Let's all decide on that so that we are all able to give the same answer to whoever asks, okay?"

The elders, who had thought they were done, once again started exchanging their opinions on the new agenda item that had appeared.

-x-X-x-

. It was around the same time, while the elders were at their wits' end trying to produce a tentative answer, that there were people who were similarly at their own wits' end.

It was the youngsters who opposed the elders.

The reason they—if you were forced to call them something, it would be the Youth Faction—were rebelling against the elders was because their very own principles opposed those of the elders.

Since they lived in the forest (a dangerous place) they held the opinion that for the sake of the village, they should yield to those who possessed superior abilities. Even if you were long-lived, you should give up your seat to someone else if you were inferior in ability to the younger generation.

It was the elders' respect for convention and tradition versus the Youth Faction's belief in ability supremacism, so to speak.

Therefore, if the elders were outstanding in terms of pure capabilities—in this case, that meant things that could be seen with the eye, like magic or fighting strength—the Youth Faction would probably also yield to them.

Unfortunately, the elders didn't have that level of ability. From their point of view, people who were finding one way or another to butt in were just irritating.

And yet, the reason this had not developed into a total conflict between them was because the four people in this village they deeply respected—the Master of the Hunt, Blueberry Egnia, the Chief Pharmacist, and the Rite Master—did not wish to oppose the elders.

However, something had shaken things up here.

It was the existence of Aura.

The magnificent and outstanding ranger. Even bearing in mind that she was a traveler, Aura's words carried serious weight among them. Her words were equal to, or above, those of the four people in the village who had gained their confidence up till now.

They couldn't help having Aura's opinion weigh on their minds.

Incidentally, those who had extreme views, even among the Youth Faction, were the Dark Elf zealots.

"So what do you think will happen?"

One of the youngsters asked everyone without moving his line of sight. At the edge of his vision were the souvenirs that Aura's uncle had brought.

Since no one had appeared who said that they would distribute them, they had been carried to the Elf Tree that was being used as the village's communal storehouse for now.

"Somebody'll probably distribute them, I suppose. The elders?"

If it were the usual pattern, that was how it would probably be. At times like this, the ones who would butt in would be the elders. Therefore, if things went the usual way, they would have commented that they would distribute it themselves first, but this time nobody said anything.

On the contrary—

"—I might not mind even if they did."

It was a set of circumstances where that opinion formed.

As expected, this was related to Aura, who they revered.

When Aura came, she hadn't shown them the etiquette passed down through her own tribe. Due to that, they got a sense that their ideology was being vindicated, that those sorts of things had been abandoned outside of the forest, or that capable people didn't worry about such things.

However, at the appearance of Aura's uncle—Ain Bell Fior— doubts about those ideas arose.

The greetings of the dark elf who was her uncle—who seemed to have a little Elf blood mixed in him—were incomprehensible to them. Since he wouldn't have said something meaningless in a situation like this, there was no doubt that it was what the elders would call a greeting that obeyed proper etiquette.

The one who came first, Aura, hadn't displayed that sort of attitude. Yet, the one who came later, the uncle, respected such manners.

Where did this difference come from?

Although they wouldn't say it out loud, everyone had already deduced the answer.

It was the difference between children and adults.

He, the uncle, had made the request for the children to please look after the two of them. In other words, it meant that he was treating Aura, who possessed that much strength, as a mere child.

It was inconceivable.

Certainly, when living in the forest (a harsh place) the first important thing children should learn wasn't politeness. There were plenty of other things that were more important than that—it was necessary to drill into them the things related to survival.

Therefore, it was no wonder that the children would be totally unacquainted with the rules of etiquette, even the elders had never shown any signs of trying to relentlessly drill it into the children.

Based on that, what became a problem for them was why Aura's uncle hadn't shown a courteous attitude until the elders came.

Was it because Aura's uncle viewed everyone gathered at that place as children just like her? Not just the ones in the Youth Faction, no one there had shown the proper courtesy to the uncle. What sort of attitude would an adult take toward children who didn't know about that sort of etiquette?

Certainly, the adult wouldn't extend a greeting that followed the rules of etiquette. They would look at them in the same way they do children and treat them as such.

That etiquette stuff they had dismissed as meaningless until now suddenly had meaning. It was code used to show respect to the other party, and he had only shown it to the elders.

That was the answer they arrived at.

"If we're thought of as children with the appearance of adults by the uncle and then we just go ahead and divide up the souvenirs of our own accord, we might be regarded as a village where the children are in control—or worse—a village of savages who don't even know what etiquette is."

"Even if we couldn't give a greeting that followed proper etiquette, he might not decide that we're children just because of that…but he might. In the event that happened, when he returns to the city, it would be spoken of all around that in a village of the Dark Elves who live in the forest, there's a group of childish people who like to throw their weight around, you know."

"…I resent that."

"Yeah, I feel the same way. This village being laughed at by the outside world is a little—no, pretty damn unpleasant."

"… The reason why he didn't greet us in a way that followed the rules of etiquette was probably to appraise our worth."

"Yeah, I think if we had responded with the proper etiquette, then Fior-dono's attitude would have been different."

There certainly was some feeling that they had been pigeonholed, but it might not have been done out of malice. Rather than that, what benefit would there be for the other party to be malicious and still make contact with them? Of course, it wasn't as if there was no possibility that he just had a rotten personality.

"…I can't really agree with it for one reason or another, but we have no choice but to leave it to the elders, who follow the rules of etiquette, after all."

Since he seemed to have greeted the elders in a way that conformed to proper etiquette, the elders must have also been courteous to him. In the present condition, the uncle could be considered to have paid respect to the elders but not to them. If the elders were to divide up the souvenirs, then the uncle wouldn't think of it as strange.

"Yeah, that's right. If we don't do anything then the elders will just divide everything up of their own accord. And then…the only other ones we can ask to do it are the Chief Pharmacist and the Rite Master, who weren't there…but what do you guys think?"

"Those two…especially the Chief Pharmacist, will absolutely hate it."

The Chief Pharmacist was the type who would find doing this kind of thing bothersome, and if they were turned down by the Rite Master, it would end up being left to the elders.

"…Alright. We've come to a conclusion. For the time being, we've finished the task we were asked to do. Let's get outta here."

"Yeah, let's do that. And then…should we learn the bare minimum of the rules of etiquette from the elders?"

The youngsters all looked reluctant to do so.

It was because until now they had concluded that etiquette was pointless. They didn't want to be treated like children ever again.

That was why lowering their heads to the elders at his point was unpleasant.

The youngsters, who had mixed feelings, breathed heavy sighs from the bottom of their hearts.

"Also…there was talk of holding the welcome party after Fior-dono and the younger brother had come…what do we do? Surely there must also be a way to hold a party that conforms to etiquette. Failing to be polite would be an embarrassment, wouldn't it?"

"We'll probably be alright with the party…but the village being judged as just a collection of children who don't know what manners are is troublesome. Let's leave the arrangements for the party to the elders."

"That's fine. If it's the elders…though it annoys me to admit this, they'll probably get that part done right."

***

While the elders and youngsters were each at their wits' end about what would happen hereafter, there was yet another group who were also at their wits' end.

It was the six children.

They had gathered around in a circle and among them, the one who was most at his wit's end was the first child to receive candy from Ainz—in other words, the child who had been asked to play with Aura directly.

It was the truth that the children had a strong curiosity about the girl who came from that unknown, distant place called the city.

Even now they were interested in, wanted to make friends with, and wanted to play with her. In spite of that, there was a reason why they just looked at her from a distance and never approached her.

It was because they were living in different worlds.

Even if the girl who had abilities that surpassed those of the number one hunter in the village was close to them in terms of age, the difference in their standing was on the order of that between heaven and earth. They couldn't just approach and start a conversation with that kind of person.

Even if you saw a super famous person that you yourself respected, it was normal to hesitate to even talk to them.

However, from this moment on, they had to do that.

"What're we gonna do? …What kinda games should we play with them? …What even is playing if a contest of athletic ability isn't on the table?… So basically it would mean things other than tree climbing, which uses your body, or something…? There's no playing like that…"

You could say that the reason the Dark Elf children were optimistic about inviting Aura to play with them was because of the candy they had received just a bit ago, but you could also say it was because they wanted to try playing with her even more than that too. In a sense, you could say that Ain's proposition had been a godsend for them.

"How about 'What's in the Leaves?'"

What's in the Leaves was what the other races would call Hide and Seek.

"I don't know about the boy who came today, but that girl is a super amazing ranger, you know? She'd find us all instantly. We couldn't do the same for her."

"Who cares if we get found? That's not what playing's all about, is it?"

"You moron. Getting her to play with us is different from playing together with us."

The other children who heard that whistled in admiration.

"You're so cool Ku-chan!"

"That's our Ku-chan!"

"Whoa! Don't say something so obvious!"

Ku-chan—Orange Kunas.

While the child who had received the candy from Ain had a conceited smile on his face, he calmed everyone down and got them back under control.

"Well, putting aside the fact that I am pretty cool, did you guys think of something to play that's not a con, a contest of athletic ability?"

"Tree cli…is a contest, isn't it."

Among the children who were hmmming deep in thought, one of the older girls asked.

"Well, if that's how it is, can't we just have them teach us the games they play in the city?"

"Haa." After Kunas had let out an exaggerated sigh, he answered her point blank.

"You moron."

"What do you mean, 'moron?'"

"—What, you mad? If you remember what he said, calling you a moron'd be appropriate. He said to let them play something that can't be played in the city, something that can only be played in this village, didn't he? Don't tell me you forgot already?"

"…Did he say that?"

"Yes, he did. So something we can play that couldn't be…played in the city, would be what, exactly? I mean just what the heck kinda games do they even play in the city? Should we start off by asking them about that?"

"Something unique to the village…going into the forest, then?"

"Knock it off!" Upon hearing one person's suggestion, Kunas had a stern expression on his face. "It's not as if you guys don't know what happened to Arkun, right!?"

Everyone fell silent. Among them, the child who had made the proposal, had gone pale.

It was relatively safe inside the village, but the areas around it were different.

If the children went into the forest to play by themselves, danger would descend upon them. Certainly, they might be okay if it were just once or twice.

However, that luck wouldn't hold out forever. Children who never come back existed, and the adults didn't do anything about it.

They did not even do the simplest of things like keeping an eye on the gatherings of children, or tying a long string onto the children.

Even if there were those who never came back, it was regarded as a necessary sacrifice for violating the directions of the adults and exposing themselves to danger as a result.

If they could teach the other children about the dangerousness of the forest through the death of one child, it wouldn't be thought of as a substantial loss.

On the contrary, the idea of them growing up without knowing the dangers of the forests was more frightening.

In fact, there wasn't a single adult in this village who didn't have a friend in their childhood who became a victim of the forest.

For this reason, they were plenty afraid of the forest. Being vigilant, they were able to live out their lives in this village. This was what it meant to live in this forest.

"I know you're thinking 'that girl is a ranger with remarkable skills, so it's safer to go into the forest with her than with the adults.' But, it's too dangerous for us.

Take Iris and—" Kunas pointed at the smallest boy. "—me, our physical strength and other stuff is totally different, right? At the very least, you have to be able to climb a tree immediately."

"So what do we do then?"

That was where they had ultimately ended up.

"So I guess we have to ask those two about what they do to have fun in the city."

"I mean, what kinda place is a city? Are there more trees than there are here, you think? Is it so full of wild game that the girl could become an amazing ranger?"

After the children exchanged glances, they naturally stared at Kunas.

With a look of triumph on his face, Kunas answered.

"I heard the whole story from the adults that went hunting with her."

"That's our Ku-chan. You're amazing!"

"You really are amazing, Ku-chan."

"Heh, Heh, Heh…It seems like a city is a place where it's not just Elves or Dark Elves, but also a lot of guys from various other races are there. It sounds like there aren't any trees at all. Instead, they say that a lot of houses are made of bricks, mortar, or some other kinda dirt there."

"From dirt… So it's something like the Garicus do?"

(T/N: The original is 茸蟻人(Furigana: ｸﾞﾘｴｲｸ ), seems to be a reference to Termite Mushroom + "man" so garicus (agaricus) would be my guess for the intended name.)

The name of one of the races that live in this forest came up.

The Garici were also omnivorous, but since they didn't go so far as to eat intelligent life, even if they ran into a Dark Elf in the forest, they would both keep their distance and silently pass by each other. It seemed like their dwellings were shaped like boxes of hardened dirt.

The children imagined a meadow with a lot of those boxes, they tilted their heads in puzzlement because they simply couldn't understand it.

"Whoa. They came from a place that's kinda amazing…"

"I kinda feel like I want to hear more about the city…"

"Look. Even if we asked them about it, it could turn out to be something they've played even in the city, then the number of games we've prepared would just go down, wouldn't they? In other words, we'll have to prepare several games to play, won't we?"

"Argh!"

Once again, the children pondered.

It really was difficult.

"Hold on, what about Playing House?"

The smallest girl murmured.

The three oldest boys looked a little reluctant.

As you would expect, they probably wanted to say that they had already outgrown that kind of game. However—only Kunas looked like he thought it might not be that bad of an idea.

"Certainly, if it was Playing House, it wouldn't be a contest of athletic ability or anything, would it? No, anything but that!"

"But it's not something that can only be played in the forest, is it? It's something you can do anywhere!"

"All we have to do is play a version of House that's unique to the village."

A version of House that was unique to the village…

What kind of House would it be? Excluding Kunas, the speaker, nobody gave an indication that they knew.

"Also, that boy who came later. He doesn't look like he's very good at physical activities, so Playing House might not be a bad idea. At that age they probably still play House, right?"

"I do not!"

One of the boys, who was around the same age as Aura, said. The children around him countered with, "wha?"

"You were Playing House by yourself."

"That wasn't Playing House! I was playing Dark Elf Heroes!"

The children's conversation shifted to a discussion of what the difference between Playing House and playing Dark Elf Heroes was.

***

Accepting Blueberry's guidance, Ainz arrived at an Elf Tree. Of course, Ainz knew where Aura was staying. Therefore, being led here was unnecessary. But, seeing as today was supposed to be the first time Ainz had come here, he couldn't act as if he did.

Since he didn't see them outside, it seemed like they had gone inside the house first.

"Thank you very much for showing me the way here."

Was there something he was curious about? Blueberry, who was acting as if he was examining the Elf Tree, said in a disappointed-sounding voice.

"I am glad that it seems I was able to be of service to you. Should anything else arise, please do tell me. Shall I carry your luggage inside?"

"N-no, I would hate to have you go to all that trouble. Please pay it no mind."

"Is that so? You may ask anything of me, if you wish?"

Ainz didn't know why, but Blueberry was coming closer to him without any hesitation.

Humans had a concept called personal space. Maybe for Dark Elves, that personal space was closer than for ordinary humans?

When he thought about it, living in a dangerous place where monsters could appear in the surrounding areas like this village also meant that you had to cooperate with others to survive. Perhaps that was even being expressed in a situation like this. Be that as it may, there really wasn't a single thing he wanted to ask him to do.

"No, there really is nothing. Just guiding me all the way here was more than enough."

"Is that so…Well then, Fi…P-please give my regards to Aura-san."

…Why only Aura? …Ah! So that's what it is! Ainz had arrived at the answer.

…Crap. I forgot to introduce Mare, didn't I? Aura called out his name, but that was it.

However, the merits of introducing Mare to the adults weren't that big. Since he just needed to have the children know who Mare was, he could just let Aura take care of that.

"Understood. I shall pass it along to her."

Seeing off Blueberry, who kept looking back at him, Ainz went inside the Elf Tree and, just as he had expected, the two of them were waiting for him there.

"Good wo…" Ainz suddenly hesitated and corrected his form of address. "No, I kept you guys waiting, didn't I?"

"I know this is abrupt, but what shall we be doing from here on—"

"—Wait. Let's quit it with the excessive honorifics. I understand very well that if we have Aura the ranger's ears, then no matter what Dark Elf in this village tried to creep up on us she wouldn't fail to hear their footsteps. In other words, right now, this place is safe, which means there's no problem as to the kind of language we use. However, acting is something where if you're not always on point, the slightest thing could reveal the faults in your performance—While we are in this village, I am Aura's uncle. There's no need for you to use honorifics with me."

"Uu," Aura groaned. When she cast a quick glance at Mare, who was next to her, she dropped her gaze just a little bit. Then, while looking at Ainz with upturned eyes, she asked.

"Err, uncle. What're we gonna do now?"

Mare nodded his head in agreement beside her.

"Good. Attagirl…No, this way of speaking is also awkward for me as Aura's uncle. With the same kind of feeling as just a moment ago…that's fine, Aura. Something like this?"

(T/N: Ainz literally uses the word グッド (good) here)

Aura showed an expression that you could say was either, a forced smile, troubled, or even that she was embarrassed. Confirming that it wasn't an attitude of "no good"—even if she said it was no good, he had intended for them to take on a more affectionate attitude than usual—Ainz announced to the two of them.

"—Now then, no, maybe something like, let's see? For the time being, as we had planned at the start, our plan to stay in this village for a week at the longest, has not changed…hasn't changed, would that be better? Because we don't know how the situation might change—or is changing—I can't say anything with certainty, but I'm planning to take it easy and gather some information for now."

"Oh, uh, well, uncle. When you say information, what kind of information is it?"

"Good, Mare. That's got a nice ring to it!"

Ainz also had a feeling that this wasn't much different from Mare's normal way of talking, but for the time being, he would praise him.

After glancing at Mare's bashful expression, he started his explanation. Mare had even asked him about it on the way here, but he said that he would explain everything once Aura was with them to buy himself some time.

Thanks to that, he had time to properly prepare an excuse for why they were staying here.

"It's everything! Everything about this Dark Elf village. Because hereafter, there may come a time when I'll have the two of you act like ordinary Dark Elves, you know? No, that time may never come. However, if that time does come, you would be considered suspicious if you acted without knowing what the customs among the Dark Elves is.

Therefore, we'll think about the future while we still can, so I have been thinking, what if we are able to experience the customs of the Dark Elves even just for a little bit in this village?"

Wasn't that a pretty good excuse? And the important part was about to come up.

"There may also come a time when I will need to have you two in particular act like ordinary Dark Elf children. So how about you two try playing with the other children? Of course! This isn't an order or anything like that. I don't mind if you go about it in a better, different way."

From the perspective of the plan to have the two of them make friends, these instructions were probably a little last minute. If he stepped into it a little more, it would have become an order, but if he didn't, there was a good chance that they wouldn't associate with the children.

However, the two of them having curious looks on their faces was something he had not foreseen.

What? Why? …I thought it would be perfect because I refined my simulations of how they would respond over and over again. Did I leave something out?

"Are you sure it is alright…err…it's okay to not gather information on the Theocracy?"

This time it was Ainz who had a curious look on his face at Aura's question. Be that as it may, not even the slightest movement would show on an illusory face.

Why would they even be talking about information on the Theocracy?

Mentally, Ainz was tilting his head in confusion.

It should have been the case that he had told them this was a paid vacation back in Nazarick. He had a memory of saying that this could simultaneously serve as a test of whether or not Nazarick could function without any problems even with three of its top brass—Ainz, Aura, and Mare—missing. However—

I never talked about getting information on the Theocracy, did I? Because unlike Albedo or Demiurge, their karma values aren't that low.

Let's just ignore what the two of them did in the Kingdom, for now.

On the whole, whatever feelings of kinship these two might have might only extend to the Elves and Dark Elves, or they might simply just hate humans.

"Ooh, that's right. If we can obtain information on the Theocracy as well, I'd like you to do that too."

"Yes! Understood!—Huh? Yeah. Gotcha…?"

Smiling at Aura, who didn't appear used to speaking in this manner yet, Ainz loosened the strings on their luggage.

"Okay. We're living here for a week at most. Let's organize the merchandise."

.