Ch 11
He was not nervous. It was definitely not how he would describe himself in his situation. He was valued after all. He had good connections, was good at blending in, and knew how to deal with different kinds of people.
He had obviously met the boss a few times, but the only times they interacted was when relaying orders or reporting information. However valued he was, he was not in the boss's inner circle.
That was fine.
He firmly believed that his usual situation was the best.
Valued, but not important enough to be a target.
Things were different today.
The entire inner circle of Carlambino Gambino was present. That included his son, Pastellano Gambino, who was to become the next head of the family. It included every single important person in the family's inner circle, and that meant something important was going on. And he was in the middle of whatever it was.
The meeting had happened in one of the estates a bit outside of the city. He had been called here only 1 day after handing "Momonga's" poisonous concoction to his superior, who wanted to test it.... Said superior was present and had a serious look on his face.
Everyone had settled in.
They stared at him for a while before someone started.
Thunk! A dull sound reverberated through the room as he stared at "Momonga's potion." It was still full, so it hadn't been put to use yet. Frankly, it didn't even look like it had been tested.
He waited.
He would speak when told to.
"Yesterday, Ginny was told to test the poison."
Ginny. He knew her. She was a medic and knew a lot about poison. It made sense for it to be brought to her.
"Bring her in."
Her body was brought in. She lay there, unmoving, with a small smile on her face.
His superior started talking.
"The potion was handed to her right after I received it. I am the one who gave it to her, and I saw exactly what happened."
He still did not talk. He had not been asked to.
"She was excited upon receiving it. She started her tests. I was still present. She dropped dead soon after that."
Simply dropped dead?
"She had used a few tools to perform a few tests on it, and she accidentally touched one of the tools, which had come in contact with the liquid."
Just from that?
"It was not as if the liquid somehow got into her system. She simply brushed it with her arm; no cut, no nothing. She dropped dead that very moment."
His superior stared at him, most likely trying to see if he properly understood the situation.
His cue. He'd start with a question.
"She died due to simply coming into contact with the poison? No struggle, nothing?"
His superior was used to his way of doing things, so he did not bat an eyebrow, but the others showed intrigue at his statement. They were used to more nervousness.
His superior simply nodded.
'Damn, Momonga, you weren't lying...'
A slow grin grew on his face. This would be good for him.
The other big shots exchanged looks as they watched the grunt visibly relax in front of their eyes.
He seemed confident even. They listened carefully as he spoke.
"I don't know much. Just that strength is supposedly irrelevant when it comes to this poison."
More exchanged glances as his grin widened even more. He was still nervous; this Momonga was still a bit of a wildcard, but if the poison was that impressive, his superiors would be very interested in getting to know the merchant, and he'd most likely be the mediator. It meant more value.
Yet, in the next moment, his grin was wiped off his face, and he went pale.
"Strength is irrelevant, you say?"
The voice came from the family head. He answered as humbly as possible.
"So he said, Sir."
"Who exactly?"
He took a moment to collect his thoughts before describing the entire situation he had been in. When he finished, he added:
"He is supposedly a merchant. He seemed interested in selling us his products. Said he'd deal in weapons, drugs, and many more services. He did not specify any more than that."
The family head, Carlambino Gambino, nodded, seemingly in thought, when his son suddenly spoke up.
"Did we not hear about him? He is the one who supposedly destroyed the Pollo pirates. He is currently living in the base with the Marines. Might be one of them?"
"They wouldn't give us something so potent just for the sake of luring us into a trap. This potion is dangerous, even to them."
"Then why would he stay there?"
"They are probably trying to get him to join them. Lord knows they need more people. Especially if he is that strong."
The room descended into a cacophony of voices, with everyone talking to one another; even the family head was participating in the chaos. He overheard a lot of things, especially about the sheer versatility and usefulness of such a poison.
"I set up a meeting with him in 2 days. Same place as before. I can bring him here IF he agrees to."
His statement silenced everyone, as they simply looked at the family head. What he had done was technically seen as disrespectful, but they would let it slide given the circumstances. But one thing bothered them.
"If he agrees to?"
They all understood what that meant. If the merchant was not someone who could be moved by threats, then the negotiations would have to be actual negotiations.
The son of the family head spoke up again.
"Is he troublesome?"
"I do not know. I did not fight him. He looked confident though, and he is certainly big enough to scare some people. But he had a good attitude, so it ought to be alright."
The family head spoke up again.
"We will not meet him yet. There is not enough information, and he could be dangerous. We will deal with him and see what he can give us and what he wants from us."
He then looked at the poison before turning back to him.
"I want you to talk to him. We want to know about the poison and the best way to use it, and more importantly, if he has more such interesting things he sells. And what he wants for it."
He nodded.
The discussion had come to an end. His superiors had only added that he alone would not be enough for the negotiations and put him under the family head's son's direct supervision.
He was a bit disgruntled at that, but he would deal with it.
When he finally left the room, he could not help but look forward to the next meeting with Momonga.
'Ahh. Momonga, my friend. Let's see what you can bring to the table.'
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Undead did not sneeze. Nevertheless, the gigantic Undead Overlord was suspiciously eyeing his surroundings. He was sure someone had just talked about him.
He was currently back at the base, pondering his actions. He had involved himself with the criminals on purpose, for the simple reason that he needed business.
He had no idea where to start selling his stuff, and the underworld was possibly one of the best places to, as long as it was in moderation. He knew that the underworld wasn't just "evil" people; it was more accurate to say that it was a subterfuge for the desperate.
You did not just wake up one day and dive into criminality.
'Well, that logic technically applies to pirates as well...'
He did not dwell on it too much. He wanted to find devil fruits, and he was sure they'd be circulating through the underground.
He wasn't someone who considered himself a good person, and he would not hesitate to do a few shady things.
"Well, there are some things I wouldn't do. Professionals have standards after all."
But a few dealings here and there? He was not above that.
His plan was simple. Sell interesting stuff.
The poison he had given the thug had been a simple death potion, useless to higher tiers; there were next to no idiots who actually did not have high death immunity, but the lower levels always did love when they got to use instant death items or spells.
"Come to think of it, wasn't that potion maybe a bit much?"
The humans here were pretty weak after all. He was pretty sure he wouldn't find many with immunity. The world wasn't a videogame in which you could farm for talismans or find magical rings. Everything he had seen had no enchantments, and that included the base commander's clothes and weapons.
"Tier magic is not a thing here."
He hadn't seen any of it, and he was probably the only one capable of casting it.
Well, he was going to relax for now. His meeting with Thuggy the Thug was in 2 days, and he was going to relax until then. Maybe even chill at the beach. He found the idea pretty funny. A naked skeleton in swimming trunks, sitting on a towel while reading a book. Or jumping in the waves. And sinking to the bottom when trying to swim.
"I suppose I could just explore the bottom of the ocean..."
Just a silly thought. Maybe if he ever got bored of devil fruits.
He received several polite greetings while walking, from villagers and Marines alike, until he heard it.
"HELLO, AINZ."
"Ah, hello, Emi."
Practically flying at him, a small figure wrapped her arms around his leg. Behind her were her friends, who joined in. They had spent some time together, although it was more accurate to say that they had simply latched onto him and followed him wherever he went. They weren't the only ones. The Marine base commander tried to motivate him to observe the training and meet a certain dude who "he'd get along with."
Ainz wasn't particularly interested. He was going to watch the Marine training out of sheer boredom, but really, he was just waiting for his meeting with the thug.
He was going to leave after that. He wanted to travel after all.
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Watching the Marines train hadn't been very interesting. It had obviously just been physical training and a lot of endurance. Next to him, someone had been babbling about unwavering discipline and the stalwart shield of the sea, but although Ainz had tried to listen, he had quickly stopped.
He had returned to his room now and was writing down his observations of the day.
1. People here are rather weak. Average Marines rarely surpass Level 10.
2. Strength determines the rank. If you are stronger, then you will be ranked higher. At least that's what it looks like. Exceptions?
3. [Mana Essence] yielded strange results. The people do have something akin to mana, but it's very weak, perhaps parallel to their willpower/stamina?
That had been the most disconcerting thing about today. But he did not believe they were capable of tier magic.
Their "mana" seemed to come directly from them, and it fluctuated a lot depending on what they did.
In comparison, Ainz's mana was stable.
"Maybe it's a matter of control?"
He wondered aloud. As an Overlord, he was basically an undead whose survival depended on his mana.
"Lore-wise, Undead have to sustain themselves with souls, most likely due to these being filled with Mana. However, the Overlord regenerates mana faster than he loses it, which is why they were considered the peak of undead evolution. And they don't need to hunt for souls anymore..."
He mused to himself.
"And so because of my race, I have high mana control, which is why I can use magic. These people have mana, but it's unrefined..."
That was what it looked like to him. A small fire that offered no protection to the soul.
Yet, it followed and sometimes preceded the movements of the marines.
"Say, do your Marines perhaps have access to special abilities or powers?"
He immediately felt like hiding in a hole after his statement. He had talked about it like they had superpowers, something not likely for regular humans. He'd be looked at like a weirdo for that statement.
"Oh, as expected of you, Sir Ainz. You are well informed! Yes, to contend with the powerhouses of the sea, we Marines rely on the Rokushiki (six powers)!
But it is practiced in the Grand Line and the New World. It IS a rather secret technique, and broadcasting it around the world would make it easier for the pirates to have access to it. That being said, I wonder how you came to know about them..."
Ainz had repeatedly thanked his luck stat in the first part of the Marine's Answer before going back to curse it in the second segment. He totally looked suspicious having access to restricted knowledge like that!
Nevertheless, he had managed to correct himself with logic, although he had the feeling the Marine next to him did not buy it.
"Ahh, no. I have never heard of these six powers. I just thought that your Marines would need special training to be able to contend with powerful devil fruits."
The Marine had nodded, looking unconvinced, and then fell back into a long-winded explanation about standard Marine routine and protocol, something he could not care less about. It wasn't long after that that he had returned to his quarters.
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Commodore Jonathan wasn't buying it. He and his wife, Jessica, were currently in his office. She had prepared a lovely meal for him, and one by one, the vegetables in said meal were disappearing from the plate and reappearing on whatever lay beyond the window. They were currently talking about their two powerful guests, and she had gotten distracted enough for him to be able to dispose of the yucky vegetables.
"I don't know about Fujitora, but this Ainz is definitely hiding something."
Yes, that much was obvious. Nevertheless, her investment in this whole thing was very welcome as he faked chewing on his meal while throwing another salad leaf out of the window.
"He knows about the six powers! And he calls himself a merchant. He might even have the training plans for it! What if he sells them to some criminals?"
He doubted that. Ainz seemed genuinely clueless at times. At the same time, he also showed too much specific knowledge about things. For him, he looked like someone trying to figure out his place in the world.
Admittedly, he was a tad bit worried. Ainz could be faking. It was definitely not beyond him, and the reports indicated him as difficult to read due to his strange attire.
Plop. Another smallpiece of fruit from his plate disappeared.
His expression turned serious. He wouldn't mull it over now. There were different times for different things. He had to concentrate on truly important matters such as "finishing his vegetables."
His wife had noticed his seriousness and was once more impressed by his work ethic. To be so serious about his investigations during his meal was a great thing indeed. She was sure he'd be promoted to rear admiral soon!
As she was walking closer to the window, her husband's voice rose up in a panicked note.
"Hnnngh! Honey! Would you go over to my desk and take a look at my notes? I believe you were spot on with your remark about him hiding something. Perhaps you can use the notes to figure something out?"
She narrowed her eyes at him. She wasn't stupid enough to not notice the guilty/pleading voice of his. Nevertheless, she was too curious about this Ainz, so she'd simply play along for now.
Arriving at his desk at the opposite end of the room, she started reading the reports.
"Honestly, this guy is good. Doesn't give away anything. He plays dumb for every challenge we give to gauge his strength.
Like getting him to go to the training grounds and commenting on how even he would against our top recruits. And he just acted like he did not hear it! He really doesn't want to give away anything..."
Plop.
"Mhm. You are certainly right about that..."
Plop.
She turned back to him. "Do you think you should meet with him head-on?"
No plop this time. Not while she looked at him.
"It'd be good to get an idea of the kind of guy he is."
"Hmm, I might just do that. Nothing too formal, of course. Better to catch him unprepared."
It took them a few minutes to end their discussion, and when his plate was finally empty, she took it and left with it, utterly clueless of the mountain of veggies beyond the window.
He smirked victoriously. He had won again today. Now, it was time to catch their mysterious guest.
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He could not find him. But what he did find was a bunch of children on the training grounds along with the instructors trying to teach them the Marine Salute. It was technically indoctrination to teach them those things while they were so young, but who was here to care?
After asking a girl where "her friend Ainz" had gone and receiving a VERY loud answer in the form of.
"HMM, MY FRIEND AINZ? He is ... uh, I don't know."
Sighing, he simply went towards the man's quarters, where he found an open door and Ainz scribbling on paper and muttering about Aura, mana, and goods.
He raised his brow. He did not know what was implied with Aura, had never heard about Mana, and ... well, he knew what goods were.
A simple cough was all he needed to make himself known.
"Hmm, oh! Hello there. Is there something you need from me, sir...?"
"Indeed. I am Commodore Jonathan. I command this little base of ours. I hope I am not intruding?"
He gave a pointed look at the stack of papers. Frankly, he was rather impressed with the amount of writing this man had apparently done.
"Excuse me for a moment."
Ainz quickly swiped the papers and, to his confusion, simply dropped them where they disappeared in a black hole. He had heard of the man's apparent devil fruit, but hearing about it from him in person might be good.
"Was that a devil fruit ability?"
Straight and direct. Given how good the man was at evading questions, he figured it'd be good style.
"Yes indeed. I am Ainz Ooal Gown, the humble owner of the Mise Mise no Mi. It gives me the ability to store and release things however I may need them. Very useful for someone of my profession."
"Hoohh, and I understand you used said ability to beat the pirates? I read about a bomb. Well, that is not important for me. I am more curious about your means of travel. You simply appeared on the ship after all."
Ainz obviously got wary. He stiffened a little and seemed to hesitate.
"I... am capable of storing bigger objects as well. I have a boat I used to travel."
He smirked. Ainz clearly wasn't comfortable with direct questions.
"Is there a limit on what you can store?"
Ainz stiffened again, but this time the answer came out fluently.
"The size and weight of the objects."
Frankly, the answer sounded very practiced to him.
"I assume you must have trained a lot in order to become as strong as you look. Your Devil Fruit ability must be quite good. Is it awakened?"
He wanted to know if Ainz was aware of the Devilfruit awakenings. It wasn't something just anyone knew after all.
"Awakened? I'm afraid I don't understand."
He doesn't know? Or does he fake it?
"Let's see, the easiest way to explain an awakening would be to say that they reached their full potential. You'll be able to affect your surroundings with whatever your Devil Fruit may do. It's basically perfect fruit and user fusion."
Ainz hesitated. Obviously so. He seemed to mull over something before simply staring at him and then pointing to the sky.
Jonathan's eyes widened.
A gigantic black hole opened in the sky, and as it grew, water, wind, dust, and smaller objects started floating up, disappearing into the black hole. The black hole did not stay long and dissolved moments after having appeared.
They stared at each other.
Jonathan's mind was churning. Did this man actually have the ability to forcibly store things? It seemed too far-fetched from something like a store-bought fruit, yet no matter how unnatural that was, he had done it. He couldn't deny what he had seen.
"Can you do that again?"
Another black hole appeared.
It still seemed strange to Jonathan. This was supposed to be the store fruit.
So why was everything getting compressed as it got sucked in?
Ainz next to him started explaining how he had found different applications of his devil fruit and that this was just one of them, but Jonathan could swear he saw a bead of sweat on the mask, as if caught lying.
His eyebrow twitched. He would not be dealing with strange devil fruit applications. He had found out that Ainz really was strong. That was enough for today. It only took him a moment to thank Ainz for his time and excuse himself to his paperwork (bed) before disappearing.
Meanwhile, Ainz was worried. Was that too strange? Had he gotten too creative with his fake abilities? Well, in the end, he could do nothing but retreat to his quarters.
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I have to be honest; I'm kind of struggling with this. The DF is alright, but maybe I should have gone for a Death Death fruit or something. It's kind of difficult to write about Store store fruit abilities.