109

Reyshifting, the method used to travel to the Singularity, usually did not cause any negative side effects on Ainz or the Servants. Therefore, as soon as Ainz heard a tearing cough from his Servants immediately after arriving at the Singularity, he was instantly alarmed. Is the enemy already here!?

Thankfully for Ainz's sanity, it was not. A few moments later what had happened to the Servants became clear in front of his eyes. Or more specifically, it didn't.

The first thing Ainz noticed was the smell. Then a familiar burning sensation in his eyes, making Ainz blink in confusion and to wipe the tears that were building up in his eyes.

"Ho?" Smog. A heavy, suffocating, gray-brown smog. So heavy that one would be swimming in it instead of walking. A thick layer of smog is the only thing in front of Ainz.

Ainz blinked again. This situation was familiar to him. Actually, very much so.

The same kind of smog usually hung on the streets of the cities of his past life.

Burning face and poisoned air, burning out the eyes and forcing a person to choke from one breath in a senseless attempt to defend themselves, trying to cough up their lungs full of smog. At least to those to not have the good sense to wear a gas mask.

Of course, such a thing would only be true for a normal person. Satoru Suzuki, Ainz, who has now possessed the body of a Servant - and, moreover, a powerful undead, all this, moreover, wrapped in a body created by Da Vinci, just breathed the air in an unusually calm manner. For a second even forgetting about the Servants nearby.

'Sulfur gas…' Ainz inhaled. It's funny, he had spent his entire life under the polluted atmosphere of Earth that he could now even determine the composition of the smog that had descended on him by only half-forgotten sensations and smells -

'Hydrogen sulfide... Nitrogen dioxide... A little bit. Gasoline? No, benzpyrene gives a different taste in the mouth... Soot. A lot of soot... '

After another second of a fitful nostalgia, a wave of fire engulfed the entire surrounding space. Like the fire of purification, the flame engulfed the smog. Fortunately, the wave of fire passed harmlessly, practically circling Ainz's figure. The flame rushed forward, burning out the smog that was surrounding Ainz and the Servants. The flame left several tens of meters of fairly even circle of empty space surrounded by fire.

"Kha!" Someone coughed loudly and with extreme indignation behind Ainz's back, forcing Ainz to turn around, finally remembering about his Servants, "Why the hell did I end up in this cesspool?!"

"Watch your tongue, Nobunaga," Arthuria's voice sounded cold enough, but Ainz could also easily determine that the speaker was experiencing some difficulties. Apparently, even for the True King of England, London's smog did not pass without leaving a trace, "You are now standing in Londinium, the capital of Britain."

"This place does not cease to be a cesspool due to the fact that you have personal attachments to it", - Nobunaga replied sharply, after which the flame instantly flared up around her to relieve her even of the remnants of smog around her completely, - "I did not come here to… to choke on the smoke!"

"But, how did it happen exactly?", - Da Vinci instantly intervened before the two Servants started butting heads, before Ainz could do the same himself, and then turned to Ainz, - "Anyway, hmm... Ideas why such a thing appeared here at all?"

'Honestly, I would like to ask you about it…' Ainz sighed inwardly. No, definitely, there were negative traits in his act as a titan of intellect... But, if nothing else, Ainz knew how to use the information he had to the best he could.

"Probably the Grail," So Ainz nodded pointedly while giving the most obvious of answers.

"Without a doubt", - Da Vinci smiled at the answer, immediately turning away.

Ainz turned to face the smog that is now creeping back to the cleared space of air. Like they are trying to fill the vacuum again.

Despite the fact that Nobunaga's action instantly cleared a significant area around Ainz from smog, the smog was rapidly creeping back, trying to fill the empty space again. It was only a matter of time - and a short one at that - before Ainz and his Servants were again covered under the thick veil of choking smog.

Ainz looked around him now that he could see 10 meters in front of him.

Apparently they had ended up… in some nondescript alley paved with cobblestones, with victorian buildings on both sides of the alley…

"Hmm?" Ainz blinked. This style of buildings... Ainz recognized it. Often, the rich peoples from his world built their mansions in their arcologies in this fashion. Well the one he saw on that tv show anyway… True, the fact that the buildings on the sides of the alley were no more than four or five stories high confused Ainz somewhat. Maybe it's simply because of the time period? The one he saw on the arcologies were at least twenty or thirty stories high.

Ainz glanced up at the sky… Maybe it's because the sky is filled with smog?

The sky was gray, almost completely covered with the low hanging clouds of smog, but... Even so, Ainz could see the distinct outlines of the same strange glow in the sky that still gave him a bad feeling. It seemed as if the clouds and the smog themselves were bypassing that abyss-like circle. Because of which, even in a gray, lifeless sky, that hole in the sky seemed like a black abyss that would swallow the world. In comparison to that even the gloomiest and dead grey sky was alive and radiant.

"Hm?" Ainz suddenly felt someone pulling on his sleeve and turned around to see Jalter grabbing onto the sleeve of his clothes, using like a cloth to cover her nose.

"Don't think anything strange," Jalter replied to his unasked question, not looking at Ainz at all. She was looking at the slowly approaching smog, "It's just... This smoke smells... Unpleasant."

"Burn by-products always smell unpleasant. Even incense would be unpleasant if you breathe too much of it.' - Ainz exhaled, then blinked when he realized something important. Perhaps the reason why… Ainz looked at Jalter in response to his realization. - 'Hmm... Burning... Ah.'

After a little thought, Ainz chose not to bother with his sleeve. Jalter probably needed it more than Ainz right now.

"Senpai?" Mashu's voice distracted Ainz from the morbid realization, forcing him to return to earth, "Orders?"

Hah, orders... Ainz wouldn't mind getting a couple of them himself right now.

So their position was a complete random... They have no information about where they needed to go… Going in blind while only having one chance… ha.

Ainz could easily ignore the smog - his body was immune to poison, and he has counters for any poison strong enough to bypass his immunity. Even the thick smog cannot hinder him, as some of his abilities allowed him to ignore the fog. Up to a certain limit anyway... However, the other with him most likely did not have such abilities. And judging by the way Nobunaga had coughed earlier , it seems that even for the strongest Servant, if they were unprepared for it, such a thick smog was still a problem. In addition, their reduced visibility in this dangerous situation was especially troublesome... Vision, hmm...

"Medusa?" Ainz addressed the last Servant he had brought with him. Medusa was the only one who seemed to be untroubled by their surroundings, remaining cool and silent throughout. Judging by what she saw in her skills and her usual method of getting around, she was one of those that are capable of ignoring both any poison that might be in the smog and any visibility problems... After all, until quite recently, she was able to navigate very well without the aid of her eyes. A little smog wouldn't hinder her at all. - "Can you take a look at our surroundings? Take special care if you see there's anyone around. We are already in enemy territory."

"Of course", The girl answered calmly and... Friendly? At least Ainz found her reply to sound that way himself.

In barely a blink of the eye, Medusa's figure disappeared into the approaching bank fog, preventing Ainz from showing his concern and to give her something to protect her from poisoning. Just in case...

In any case - Ainz looked at the parameters of his Servants once again, to make sure nothing would happen to the unprotected Medusa. Well… with her newly improved parameters, Medusa would have done fine without his help in that regard. But the other Servants...

Mashu... Thanks to her specialty as a Tank and her recent Level-Up, she was able to ignore poison up to a certain level. Which, no matter how disgusting and irritating, smog wouldn't affect her at all. But, still, she's practically blind in this fog.

Arthuria could easily ignore the lack of visibility with her Instinct, but not from poison, at least not this type... Nobunaga - hmm, theoretically, she could use her skill... Well, either that or just constantly burn everything, including the smog, in the area, scattering the poisonous fog. Of course she was one misstep away from burning the city if she continued doing that… something about a burning London seemed familiar somehow.

Jalter - no, just no, in both cases. Da Vinci... Technically speaking, she did not have any abilities in this direction… But this is Da Vinci, she will think of something.

Hmm... Maybe it's time to ruffle his inventory a bit!

"Senpai?" Mashu looked at Ainz with interest, already suspecting what he was doing.

"It's to neutralize the smog," Ainz replied calmly, after which he turned to Jalter... and found himself face to face with Da Vinci instead.

"Hmm," Ainz wanted to pull away from the unexpected close contact, what happened not long ago clear on his mind, but the suppression of his emotions made him stay where he was, "Leo?"

"Hmmm… it looked like… yes, it looked like a virtual space created by Imaginary Numbers?" Da Vinci intuited.

Ainz blinked.

Okay, imaginary numbers… Wait! That sounds like… and virtual space!?

Ainz froze in horror.

She... She... Could she figure out his origin just by looking at him interacting with his inventory?!

Ainz froze, agonizingly racking his brain until a good answer could come to his mind to distract Da Vinci with wild goose chases with… He could barely handle making up answers on the go about his 'magic'! He really doesn't want to dip into metaphysical babble as well!

"Move away!" Fortunately, Jalter helped Ainz in this instance, pushing Da Vinci away from Ainz a second later, "You're stepping on my foot!

"If that were so, you have made your sacrifice for the sake of science!" - Da Vinci instantly answered Jalter, after which she continued on, apparently stepping on Jalter's space again. "So what about…"

'Multiple targets are approaching'. Medusa's voice in Ainz's mind gave him the excuse to immediately interrupt Da Vinci's interrogation, - "Something is approaching!"

In an instant, all of Ainz's Servants reacted - even Da Vinci dropped her smile for a second, stepping back, allowing Arthuria, Jalter and Mashu to come forward.

Ainz exhaled after a moment. Fuh, Enemies... enemies are good! During the fight, no questions asked for Ainz!

After another second, Ainz finally realized that his connection with Medusa had not ended yet, and then returned his attention to that - 'Number, type, strength, are they Servants, and when will they arrive?'

'Not Servants' - Medusa replied after a moment of delay - 'The closest comparison... Hmm... Robots?'

Ainz froze for a second, after which he asked for clarification. - 'Robots?'

'Or mechanical golems' - Medusa answered calmly - 'Number... About ten. Approximate strength... Insignificant. Moving in our direction... In thirty seconds they should be visible.'

'I see... Conduct a short reconnaissance nearby to make sure that's all of them, then come back' - Ainz relayed his orders to the girl, after which his connection was finally ended.

"Damn it!" Another flash of fire from Nobunaga dispersed the approaching fog again, - "I hate this place!"

"Oh yes, right." Ainz's mind returned to what he was doing just before he was interrupted by Da Vinci. "Here. Poisoning and visual interference protection."

The first to snatch the ring from his hands, of course, was Da Vinci. Who, however, instead of putting on the ring, instantly brought it to her eyes.

"Hmm, this will require my analyzer…" After another second, Da Vinci's left hand flashed for a second before a rather grotesque glove with an elaborate blue and brass design appeared on it, "Yes, it will definitely be better that way."

Mashu and Jalter on the other hand received the rings calmly...

"I'm not going to accept gifts from you", - And of course, as soon as the queue reached Nobunaga, everything did not go according to plan.

"This is only to neutralize the environmental hazard," Ainz replied calmly.

"I don't plan to let this smog come any closer to me, never mind just letting it envelop me.," Nobunaga replied with absolutely no care for Ainz's reasoning, "I don't want soot marks on my clothes."

"Constant use of your fire will drain your mana reserves and completely unmask our position to everyone," Ainz replied calmly as well.

"So more mana will be required from you, I thought that was not a problem." - Nobunaga rolled her eyes, - "Besides, I don't plan to hide from the enemy anyway."

"It is required for the mission that we remain in stealth.", - Ainz blinked, Ainz was a bit confused. Was Nobunaga not briefed about their mission?

"I require it not," Nobunaga looked at Ainz deviantly.

"But…" Ainz was suddenly completely lost in the face of such illogical counter-argumentation, "The mission is above your desires."

"Nothing is more important than my desires," Nobunaga answered as if it was obvious and crossed her arms over her chest for additional emphasis.

Ainz blinked.

Oh…

Oh….

Oh!

Ainz, of course, assumed that it would be difficult to control someone like Nobunaga, but... He had no idea how much of a problem it would turn out to be. A minute after appearing in Singularity and already an issue. And over something insignificant at that!

As if in mockery of Ainz's thought, Nobunaga snapped her fingers, after which a flash of flame spread around her again, burning out the fog. And, to complete the gesture, and perhaps at the will of Nobunaga herself, a gout of flame playfully licked Ainz's hands - not enough to cause damage, but enough to convey her message.

Ainz blinked.

"Servant in the field of perception" A mechanical voice made Ainz turn around, finally remembering what he's supposed to be doing. - "Multiple... Multiple Servant signatures. Determining threat level... Not determinable. Commencing protocol - 'Free Servant'."

What Ainz saw approaching was... actually, not so unusual. In his distant world, Ainz saw more than one or two robots, including those with a rather fanciful design. So several mechanical creatures, like partially disassembled dolls on hinges, for which someone forgot to draw faces or give clothes, did not even cause him much surprise. Given that even the environment around Ainz at the moment was not very different from the one that he might have seen in his past world, if somewhat diminished.

Perhaps the only slightly interesting object that Ainz could see was a mech among a cluster of robots. A large, angular mech with a disproportionately large cylinder head that seemed to occupy most of the mech's entire volume with a single large, shining eye at the bottom and center of the head. Apparently, it was it who had spoken at the moment.

"Lower your weapons and follow with us to the creator", - The green light of the Mech's eye looked as cold as only a robot could.

Ainz froze.

Objectively speaking, the current situation was...

Perfect!

Either the creator of this mech was an ally, which was preferable - or an enemy - which was also good! Because either way, Ainz and his Servants were spared the need to wander around the smog-covered London needlessly to search for clues.

It's so easy to immediately get lost on a trail that they were not aware of... And even more, given that Ainz was completely blind and left without any information regarding the Singularity, perhaps this was Ainz's only chance of getting at least some semblance of a plan at the moment.

"We surr…" - Ainz slowly began to raise his hands ...

"I don't feel like it," Nobunaga's voice interrupted Ainz's words after a second.

There was a thunderous ringing - after which a small neat through hole appeared in the head of the Mech.

Ainz shifted his gaze to see Nobunaga holding a long musket, as if it had come from a history book illustration.

"Attention, enemy!" - The mech managed to take a step back before falling onto his back, like a child who has not learned to walk, - "Transfering... Information... to the patrols…"

"Oh..." Ainz blinked.

Oh…

Emotion suppression was activated for the first time.

Huh...

Emotion suppression was activated a second time.

Heh...

Emotion suppression was activated a third time.

Hmm...

Ainz did not interfere with the suppression of emotions, perfectly aware of the sequence of actions that he had to take now that they have become a threat. Excessive emotions at the moment could significantly complicate what he needed to do.

The remaining several robots reacted instantly, rushing forward, but Ainz did not need to do anything. The blade of Arthuria and Jalter, the shield of Mashu and Da Vinci's spell smashed the group of opponents so quickly that several of the robotic opponents did not have time to take a step forward.

Ainz blinked, then dropped the spell he was preparing - no intervention was required from him at all. With that over with he returned to the plan.

The first point - to deal with the attackers - is done.

Second point...

"Nobunaga", - Ainz slowly turned to the rebellious Servant, - "You... did you hear that they invited us to come to their creator?"

If Nobunaga hadn't heard, then there was definitely nothing to be done about it but to accept such a failure as an unfortunate mistake, shrug and move on.

"I'm not deaf.", - Nobunaga, however, dismissed such assumptions.

"Okay," Ainz nodded, "In that case ... Do you realize that it could be an ally in this Singularity - or even if it was a trap, an adversary whose destruction would help us in this Singularity or give information about what is happening and what we need to do?

If Nobunaga had not considered this information, accidentally missed it, or even was a little bit dim and was not able to think through the situation like this, then it was not her fault. If a subordinate committed a mistake because she doesn't understand the instruction or the situation, then the fault would definitely lie on the supervisor. It is the supervisor's or superior's action or inaction which created conditions in which the subordinate committed that mistake. Perhaps in this case, Ainz would have to experience considerable shame for his inability to be a good leader - or, in this case, a Master.

"And now you think I'm an idiot?" Nobunaga sighed mockingly.

"Hmm, so you understood the situation..." Ainz exhaled slowly.

"Hmm, guys, I think we shouldn't stay here any longer than we should", - Da Vinci tried to defuse the situation, taking a step forward, - "Another patrol will obviously arrive here soon…"

"Leo", -Ainz, however, only gently put his hand on her shoulder, and then, no less gently, pushed her aside.

Leo looked into Ainz's face and sighed, taking a step back.

Arthuria, Jalter and Mashu prudently did not interfere with what was going on and what was about to happen, taking a couple of steps back, as if to make room for Ainz and Nobunaga.

"In that case… Why did you shoot the robot? Make me understand why choose such a course of action.," Ainz took a step forward towards Nobunaga.

Although he may look threatening, Ainz was genuinely curious about Nobunaga's reasoning. If Nobunaga were to say something like 'I could tell that it was lying'. Or even something as nebulous as 'the robot gave me a bad feeling', Ainz would just nod and take this into account when he would meet with the robot's creator in the future.

After all, without having significant skills in this matter, Nobunaga might be right. She might even possess some kind of unique skill that can do such a thing or she might even have experience with automatas.

Or, perhaps, if she had become seriously sad and gloomy after doing it, which could indicate, say, some serious psychological trauma, then Ainz would have retreated as well while taking the new information into account for the future.

"No one is allowed to take me prisoner", - Nobunaga, however, as if she could hear the thoughts in Ainz's head, chose to destroy whatever logical reason Ainz could think of. - "I did not allow this during my lifetime - I will not allow it now."

"In other words…" Ainz exhaled slowly, "You just didn't want to give up some of your personal comfort for the sake of the mission… Is that so?"

"Right", - Nobunaga chuckled, and then coughed irritably, - "Damn fog!"

After another second, another wave of flame spread around.

"Oda Nobunaga", - Ainz exhaled slowly, seemingly sincerely trying to keep himself calm, - "It seems... I believe I have asked to please not use your ability in this way. I have also provided you with the reasoning why this should be done, and I have also provided you with an alternative. So do please explain why you kept doing so?"

"I don't feel like it," Nobunaga's answer was calm and delivered in an indifferent tone.

"Ho..." Ainz was somewhat surprised by the audacity of his new Servant.

"Then let me ask you a question, Oda Nobunaga", - Ainz gaze sharpened, - "Are you my ally?"

Mashu behind Ainz's back, sensing something wrong, took another step back. Even Da Vinci, whose smile faded long ago, looked seriously at Ainz and Nobunaga. She would like to intervene and stop this... However, Da Vinci was well aware that at the moment the situation between Ainz and Nobunaga was out of her control and her intervention would most likely make the situation worse. So she took another step back, and after a moment a staff appeared in her hands. At the very least, she should prepare a barrier just in case.

"I am your Servant, Master," Nobunaga uttered the last word with disdain, "But this does not make us allies. Rather, you can say that I am simply allowing you to use my power - nothing more."

"Hm, I see…" - Ainz exhaled and slowly, unnaturally slowly shook his head from side to side, - "This is... To the highest degree, quite sad…"

"You want to make me obey, huh?" - Nobunaga's voice was mocking, -" I admit, you are good at intimidation. But this alone will not be enough to make me obey. I do not obey anyone. My name is Oda Nobunaga, the True Demon King. Kings don't bow their heads."

"Ha…" Ainz lowered his head, "Okay… In that case, maybe I should state my position."

"I can't forbid you to do this," Nobunaga lifted one corner of her mouth in a grin.

"I am not at all opposed to someone challenging my authority and infallibility", - Ainz slowly looked up and suddenly smiled, - "In fact, I even welcome this - after all, no one is perfect and I can make a mistake... No, I definitely make mistakes, so I don't mind if someone can act on the situation, or improvise far beyond my original plan."

"Also, I must say, I am extremely understanding to all the personal faults of my Servants", - Ainz nodded, remembering Cainabel's acute Tsundere-ism, - "I do not take ownership of the personal time of my Servants, nor do I set any special rules that my Servants need to obey. And, usually, I am extremely tolerant of the actions of Servants."

"But", - Ainz smiled suddenly turned somewhat scary, - " That is when we are not inside a Singularity."

"In their free time, any Servant has the right to demonstrate any desires and any type of behavior", - Ainz nodded, a smile still on his face, - "However... I have to say that in the Singularity, then solving the Singularity, the mission, supersede any personal, psychological and even moral comfort. It applies to any person, any Servant, me - and even you. The Enemy will not allow us such luxuries."

"And what if I say I don't agree to that?" Nobunaga chuckled.

Ainz smiled back, "Then I will consider you a hindrance to the mission."

"What then? Will you kill me?" Nobunaga chuckled again.

Of course, the answer from Ainz's part was 'no'. In that case, he would simply send the Servant back to Chaldea, and deal with that situation when he's back. Killing Servants, even if they disobeyed his orders and jeopardized his mission, was definitely prohibited. In the worst case, if the Servant tried to go against Ainz, the destruction of the Servant would be damage done to his collection, any satisfaction gained would be superficial and would be very hard to fix. Ainz would most likely appoint an observer over the Servant, or, perhaps, he would imprison Servant in non-fading impenetrable ice and leave the Servant in some kind of storage.

But… Of course Ainz couldn;t say that.

"I leave it to your imagination," Ainz replied politely, without taking the smile off his face.

"Ho, a duel then?" Nobunaga grinned again, "I agree."

Ainz exhaled, it seemed that he needed to put his foot down.

"Excellent", - Ainz continued to keep a smile on his lips, turning to the Servants, - "Mashu, please, could you start the countdown."

Mashu nodded slowly, then took a step forward.

Ainz turned to face Nobunaga, keeping a polite, friendly smile on his lips.

He was very, very angry. Smiling after all, was originally a sign of aggression.

Ainz did not believe that everyone who was not his allies was his enemy.

But Nobunaga's actions, her words and attitude brought her closer to a dangerous line beyond which Ainz would become her enemy.

And, ha, what then...

Ainz really did not want to become an enemy with his own Servant.

So, in that case, he should have shown Nobunaga very clearly why he shouldn't have become an enemy of Ainz Ooal Gown.

Excerpt from the scientific work "Analysis of the life and death of Marie Antoinette":

"The death of Marie Antoinette is widely known and cannot be doubted." In view of the officially documented information about her public execution by the royal executioner, Charles Henri Sanson, it left no room for rumors about the possible mystical salvation of Marie-Antoinette.

However, there is a widely spread rumor that spread doubt about it. According to the story, while climbing the platform during her execution Marie Antoinette smiled at her executioner, saying 'as destined, you will always remain my executioner.' to which Charles Henri himself replied 'it is impossible to escape from fate, as it goes now and so it will be in the future' hinting at some kind of prophetic reason for Marie's death, and that she tried to escape her execution and was successful until it was Henri that did the deed..

Despite the fact that this myth, in fact, has no basis in real documentation, except, obviously, exaggerated rumors. The history of the emergence of such rumors has an interesting nature. Most likely, it lies in one of the most ancient traditions that connect kingship and prophecies, the connection of which can be traced on the examples of extant stories about the rulers of Ancient Greece, Egypt and the Middle East. Most likely, a similar story also serves for the likely posthumous exaltation of Marie Antoinette, putting her on a par with the ancient kings.

I would like to finish my monumental work with a funny curiosity. There exists another person, with historical documentation, also named Marie Antoinette that is somewhat famous. She was a female pirate captain, a rarity, which claimed that she possessed noble French blood and was of nobility. Given the somewhat similar appearance she possessed to the more famous historical figure, I had to hear several times from my colleague the ludicrous theory that these two people are one person.

Which is certainly ridiculous, given that the pirate captain Marie Antoinette operated during the Golden Age of Piracy. A period which ended, even by the most gracious estimates, twenty-five years before the birth of Marie Antoinette, Queen of France. However, given that the very existence of the pirate captain Marie-Antoinette is little known and was extremely fleeting - the number of people aware of such a serendipity is low, so it is nothing more than a funny curiosity, rather than a full-fledged rumor or legend.