After all, Lucien did not need to pay much of a real cost.
In exchange, he was being offered the possibility of becoming a king, along with cooperation from a powerful and reliable organization.
In this unfamiliar world, he would also gain a foundation he could rely on.
Most of the actual work would be handled by Nazarick anyway.
All Lucien needed to do was remain somewhat cautious and avoid placing absolute, unconditional trust in Nazarick.
Ainz also shared most of the information he had gathered since arriving in this world.
That included the fact that the Great Tomb of Nazarick was currently located in the middle of a desolate plain, and that he had ordered his subordinates to alter the surrounding terrain slightly to conceal it.
Ainz also explained that not long ago, he had unexpectedly discovered and saved a village that was being massacred.
During the same incident, he had rescued Gazef Stronoff, the man said to be the Kingdom’s strongest warrior.
His purpose in saving Carne Village had been to test his own strength in the New World.
As for rescuing the Warrior Captain, Gazef possessed enough fame that if Ainz defeated enemies even the Kingdom’s strongest warrior could not overcome, Gazef could spread the name of Ainz Ooal Gown on his behalf.
When Ainz explained this part, Demiurge’s eyes widened.
“What a magnificent strategy!
The results it produces in the future will surely be extraordinary!” Finally, Ainz explained that during his time as an adventurer, he had never encountered a genuinely difficult job.
The Adventurer’s Guild refused to assign dangerous requests to someone of his current rank.
On top of that, he could not read the local written language, so he could not simply examine the requests posted on the guild’s noticeboard and handle them on his own.
As a result, most of the work he had done over the past several days consisted of undesirable manual labor that nobody else wanted.
Not only had he earned very little money, but near the beginning of his adventuring career, an accident had even forced him to compensate someone with a low-tier healing potion.
Lucien also shared a general account of what he had observed.
The Kingdom’s soldiers were extremely weak, and most adventurers amounted to little more than poorly organized rabble.
Even when Lucien used only his lowest-grade stealth abilities, no one had ever managed to see through them.
After a brief hesitation, Lucien also told Ainz about the mysterious underground organization he had discovered earlier.
He still had not determined their full capabilities, so he had chosen not to act recklessly.
After all, he had already notified Ainz about the possible danger through their message system.
Keeping the details secret now might instead make Nazarick suspicious.
With that, the two reached a complete understanding.
At the very least, there did not appear to be any openly active beings around E-Rantel who exceeded the expected scale of power.
As long as they avoided drawing excessive attention, there was no need to exercise absurd levels of caution in every minor action.
“Oh, right.
Have you managed to earn much money since arriving here?” Just before they parted ways, Ainz asked one final question.
“The gold coins we brought with us can be used here.
At worst, they’re accepted according to the value of the gold itself.” “But coins are circulating currency.
If we spend too many unfamiliar gold coins and they eventually reach someone powerful or knowledgeable enough, there’s a chance our identities as players could be exposed.” “That’s one of the reasons I registered as an adventurer and started trying to earn local money.” Fortunately, Lucien had not made that mistake.
He had been a full-time mercenary raider back in YGGDRASIL, and he regularly sold the gold he earned in-game to cover his living expenses.
He had never accumulated an enormous fortune in currency.
Once the server shutdown was announced, the value of YGGDRASIL’s currency collapsed almost immediately, so he stopped bothering to liquidate the rest of his possessions.
When he unexpectedly arrived in this world, his account contained only a few million gold coins.
Since the game’s basic system functions still remained intact, Lucien had avoided using any of the resources he had brought with him as a precaution.
As for where the money he had been spending recently came from.
“Take this for now.” Lucien casually produced a heavy coin pouch.
It was the same one he had stolen from the wealthy nobleman shortly before his first meeting with Ainz.
“I couldn’t possibly…” Ainz looked visibly uncomfortable accepting it.
“Skip the formalities.
The main issue is that earning money legally is somewhat difficult for you.” “For me, because of my class abilities, it’s considerably easier.” “…Then, thank you.” Ainz genuinely was short on money.
Although he had received roughly three thousand copper coins after saving Carne Village, he had given all of it to Sebas and his companion as operating funds for their information-gathering mission in the Royal Capital.
On top of that, he would have to provide them with additional money every month.
Despite being the Supreme Ruler of Nazarick, Ainz’s life as the adventurer Momon could only be described as financially strained.
And that was despite the fact that neither he nor Nabe needed to spend money on food or drink because of their races.
Otherwise, Ainz had no idea how he would ever manage to save anything.
“Still, you should be careful when choosing people to steal from.” “Try to target people whose influence is limited to the local political sphere, or ordinary profiteers and opportunists.
That should be safer.” Ainz left the latter half of his thoughts unsaid.
In his previous life, he had lost both of his parents, had virtually no path toward improving his social position, and could do little except work himself exhausted just to survive.
He had also possessed almost no real friends.
By most standards, he had been an archetypal loser.
Because of that, he deeply resented the sort of people he had just described.
Even so, accepting so much money for nothing left him feeling uneasy.
In the real world, Ainz had never truly had friends.
If he had to name any, it would have been the companions from his guild, the people who had shared his interests inside YGGDRASIL.
He did not really know how one was supposed to behave toward a genuine friend.
Lucien seemed to be considering Ainz’s circumstances and had given him money without hesitation.
If their relationship was supposed to be one of equals, then perhaps Ainz ought to do something for him in return.
After a fierce internal struggle, Ainz spoke with unusual hesitation.
“Would you like me to arrange a follower for you?” “Hm?” Lucien gave him a puzzled look.
The offer itself did not bother him.
He simply did not understand why Ainz sounded so uncertain about it.
Perhaps he really did feel that he should do something in return.
“You see, we’re cooperating now, correct?” “I trust that your strength is enough to handle most difficulties by yourself.
However, there will probably be occasions when you need someone to run errands, maintain your residence, or handle miscellaneous tasks.” “If you have someone available, that’s fine with me.
As long as their appearance and personality allow them to move around human society without causing problems.” Ainz had faced exactly the same concern when choosing a companion for his identity as Momon.
He had wanted to bring someone of Guardian-level strength with him, but most of Nazarick’s strongest inhabitants had racial appearances or personalities that made blending into human society difficult.
After considering his options repeatedly, he had ultimately chosen Narberal because she looked human and possessed a relatively conventional fighting style.
And when Ainz made this new proposal, he already had someone in mind.
“Then what would you think about another member of the same battle maid unit as Nabe?” “I recommend Yuri Alpha.
She’s the eldest of the Pleiades Battle Maids.” “Her race is Dullahan…
Ah, but don’t worry.
She possesses a decorative head.” “It can be removed, but while attached, her appearance is indistinguishable from that of an ordinary human.” “Fine.
Thanks.” “Then I’ll summon her now.
It’s just…” Ainz hesitated, something he rarely did.
He stumbled over his words.
Lucien looked at him in confusion.
“What’s wrong?” “No…
it’s nothing.” “I’ll explain the remaining details to you tonight.” (To be continued.)