“Great work again, Lady Fiora. Another magnificent shot.”
Plum was the first to speak. This was not empty flattery—he clearly meant every word.
“Oh? I mean, maybe it’s better than what you can do, but there’s always someone better. Um, I’ve got fam— No, that’s too rude to say. Anyway, trust me, there are far more impressive people out there. Oh! In this case, not my uncle.”
“You said your uncle and brother will be here today or tomorrow. Are they also great rangers?”
“Nope, neither one’s a ranger at all.”
“Really? I figured if they were navigating these woods without help, they must also be highly skilled rangers. So what are they?”
“They are highly skilled. Skilled how…? Well, you’ll find out soon. Look forward to it. And sorry—mind letting me focus on keeping watch? I’m sure I could get away on my own, but with you all along, spotting things a second faster could make all the difference.”
She’d probably been unsure how to describe Ainz’s and Mare’s abilities and found a great excuse to end the conversation itself. But how would that play with Plum?
When you were happily chatting with someone, getting shut down—even for good reason—was hard to accept. Some people might even turn on you.
He’s a believer, so he probably won’t do that. Then again, he does have some authority. If he holds a grudge and starts trash-talking her, I’ll need to have a plan in place.
Maybe her reputation could afford to take a hit or two, but he didn’t want it dropping too hard.
But Ainz’s fears proved unfounded.
“My apologies! I should have realized.”
Plum’s head snapped down. Had he not been carrying game, he likely would have dropped to his knees—or whatever the elf equivalent was. These overreactions were proof he was a true believer.
“Uh, I mean, you’re pretty good. I’d bet you’re on the ball normally, and you’re just overrelaxed ’cause I’m with you. In a way, it’s a sign of how much you trust me. That’s always nice. Just gotta bear in mind that there’s a time and a place, you know?”
Sweet. That’s a good trick, doling out praise as a superior. Maybe using her floor-guardian experience. That has to be a sign the NPCs are growing. That’s a nice thought. Or is it something she inherited from BubblingTeapot? An even nicer thought. It’s almost like she lives on inside Aura.
Ainz pictured a pink blob floating behind Aura—a pretty uncanny image, really—and a smile flitted across his unmoving features.
Like Aura suggested, the party moved on in silence, keeping a careful watch. They reached the village without further encounters. Only when he was sure they were on safe ground did Plum call out.
“Rejoice, everyone! Lady Fiora took down another big one!”
Ainz clicked his tongue.
He’d expected as much and knew he could do nothing to stop it. Hunters took all the risk for the sake of the village. It was natural for them to boast about their prey and appropriate to give credit where it was due. And Aura was an outsider, so he was taking pains to secure her position.
But Ainz didn’t want this kind of attention.
The villagers on the bridges above gasped at the size of the elk.
“I’ll go on home, then.”
“Okay! We’ll take it from here, Lady Fiora!”
Leaving Plum to it, Aura slipped through the gathering crowd, heading for the quarters they’d lent her.
Ainz wanted to follow after her, but he had to keep track of any subtle shifts in her position here. That wasn’t an option.
A few steps out, Aura turned her head, looking up to where Ainz was floating.
She looks lonely.
He might simply be reading too much into it, but he caught a distinct whiff of melancholy from her profile.
Some dark elves feared her, others revered her. But not one of them acted like a friend.
She’d earned respect—not as a child traveling the world but as a superior being. Not to repeat himself, but that position itself was not a bad thing.
It just didn’t match his goals here.
Aura is the village’s hero, so they can’t treat her like a kid. That makes things tricky. If the pedestal she’s on crumbles before I get here, they might send me packing. Can’t blame them. Even if we’re related, a latecomer won’t have the achievements Aura’s racked up.
As Ainz hovered, the dark elves gathered round. Some of them were no bigger than Aura herself.
The meat was dressed, portioned, and passed into waiting hands.
“Help yourselves! And thank Lady Fiora for it!”
The dark elves smiled, expressing their gratitude.
Even veteran dark elf hunters didn’t always bring back prey. And game of this quality was rare indeed. Ainz had heard as much during his scouting missions.
The mountain of meat steadily dwindled away. Each time a piece was taken off, Plum told them who to thank.
Again, that alone didn’t bother Ainz.
Aura had felled this beast. If they hadn’t been grateful, he would’ve been livid. Still—
“Lady Fiora is amazing. She’s the sort of person who should lead our village.”
“You can say that again. She not only drove off that ursus lord, but she’s a top-class hunter. If she stays, the village is secure.”
“True, true.”
Plum had five grown dark elves gathered around him.
Their opinion of Aura was only growing. And the children were listening—that was the problem.
“…But she’s just a child?” one man said. A man who smelled of grass.
The faithful’s brows furrowed.
“That’s what the elders think. They’re a bunch of fossils!”
A roar of anger.
Plum had been smiling happily a moment before, but now his words came out in a shout.
“Does growing old make you better? Of course not! Sure, you gain some measure of experience, and some acquire improved skills. But age alone doesn’t guarantee either! Age is a useless metric on its own! Real skills are all that matter!”
Ainz agreed on this point.
He’d seen plenty of workplaces. Those with skills did well, and those who didn’t would be humps their whole lives.
“Ability! That is what is most important in a world this dangerous! Skill is the only real measure! No matter how young they might be!”
“But…isn’t Fiora a little too young?” a woman ventured.
Another faithful glared at her. “How is that different from what the elders say? Are you one of them?”
“Wha—?”
The woman glared at the speaker. The elders clearly had few fans among the villagers.
Honestly, they don’t seem to be doing anything that bad…
Ainz didn’t understand why the younger villagers were so prejudiced. But he’d only been watching the village a couple of days and hadn’t learned everything about them in that time. Maybe there was a reason he just hadn’t figured out yet.
“If we’re gonna banish the elders’ stupid outdated beliefs, we need to follow a truly skilled dark elf—like Lady Fiora! Maybe we should even appoint her our new leader!”
Stop.
Ainz winced.
That was not why he’d sent her here.
If she heard them talking, she might even agree and take over the village on the basis that it would benefit Nazarick. That wasn’t what Ainz wanted.
Ainz turned to the children who were watching the grown-ups argue.
Their delight at the hunt’s bounty was gone, and they looked nervous.
This is bad.
Ainz wanted the twins to make friends.
These weren’t like the children in the world Satoru Suzuki came from. Nemu was a good example—the children of this world were innocent, and curiosity alone should have made them approach Aura by now. But from what he’d seen, not one of them had gone near her. Aura’s reports corroborated this.
The children of this village had grown up with the peril of the forest always looming. Perhaps that had stifled their natural curiosity. But it was more likely they’d picked up on how the grown-ups felt and believed she was out of their league. Aura was a child, but not one of them. And that distance kept them apart.
If her reputation took a hit, maybe it would be easier for them to approach Aura.
It’s hard to be friendly or get close to someone the grown-ups admire, even if they are the same age. That might be why she seems unapproachable. From what I’ve heard, their parents aren’t telling them to stay away or mind their manners, which is some small salvation…or is that also bad?
Ainz let out a sigh.
At this rate, they’d never make friends.
Guess I’ll have to step in. I can ask them myself. That won’t guarantee the outcome…but I’ll have to hope it makes a difference. Do all parents struggle like this?
Ainz had to wonder. The last thing he heard before casting Greater Teleportation was—
“—And how dare you call her just Fiora! She’s Lady Fiora to you!”