The Two Leaders

“I am happy to hear you say that. Punitto Moe-san also said ‘throwing a punch to get the other party’s attention’... Or was that Warrior Takemikazuchi?”

“It can’t be wrong if these are the words of the Supreme Beings!”

Those two had extremely different views, so who said it? Ainz tried to recall when a large number of monsters flooded out of the cave. All of them were much taller than humans.

“A bunch of trolls huh. I thought the part about giants was just a ruse, but there appears to be some truth in it.”

Trolls had long noses and ears, with an exceptionally ugly face. Their large bodies were deformed, and thus nauseating. They wore clothes that looked like the skin of tiger-like creatures, with the beast’s heads hanging on their shoulders. Well over two metres in height, they had strength far exceeding that of ogres. Only fire and acid could stop their powerful regeneration abilities.

Altogether, there were six trolls and fourteen ogres.

Ainz paid the most attention to the troll at the head of the group. It had a superior physique as compared to the other trolls and its confidence could be seen clearly on its ugly face. With leather armour made from the hides of several animals and a great sword that was larger than the one Ainz used in the guise of Momon, it had also better equipment than the others. The sword seemed to be a magic item, with some form of liquid flowing back and forth in the groove right in the middle of the sword.

“About the same as Hamsuke?”

“Looks like it.”

So this troll was the Giant of the East. Ainz observed carefully, wondering what kind of troll it was.

Trolls were monsters with many different subraces, with unique adaptations depending on the place where they were found. For example, there were volcano trolls that were resistant to fires, sea trolls that could swim nimbly and breathe in the ocean, mountain trolls with monstrous strength living in the mountains and the rare toll troll, which lived under arched bridges. They could increase the variants of their species almost at will.

And so, what was the specialty of the troll before Ainz? Trolls which adapted to caves were called cave trolls, but they were different from what he saw before him. A troll that he saw for the first time in this world— this ignited Ainz’ collector spirit.

The Giant of the East was a rare variant. It had survived countless battles and had adapted to battle, a troll specializing in battles. Ainz dubbed it a war troll, a rare specimen even among the many types of trolls. Its combat abilities were exceptional compared to other trolls its age. Its body might be smaller than those of mountain trolls, but its muscular body and fighting ability were far superior to them. Its weapon wasn’t something that could be wielded with just brute force, but a sword. It was knowledgeable enough to know that clubs were subpar weapons. It was a troll that had awakened as a warrior.

“So you are the Giant of the East?”

When the other party didn’t deny it, Ainz pointed slightly to the right of the troll.

“I would be really happy if you are the Serpent of the West. Are you?”

Normal beings would think that there was nothing in the direction Ainz was pointing, but Ainz could see as clear as day that a heteromorphic being was there.

“You probably think you can hide using invisibility, but I have seen through it. You can stop your futile actions now.”

After dispelling its invisibility, a monster appeared in that empty space. It was indeed a serpent. No, it only had the shape of a serpent. The upper body was that of a frail old man while the lower half was a snake. Such monsters existed in the game and Ainz stated its race immediately.

“A Naga. It might be mistaken for a snake, but isn’t that an exaggeration? No, a title like Virtuous King of the Forest exists too, so it makes sense.”

“To see through this one’s invisibility, could it be—”

“—Why are you here, skeleton!”

A loud voice reverberating within the cave drowned out the words of the Naga as the Giant of the East took a step forward. With someone worth speaking to in front of him, Ainz faced the creature head on.

“First, let me clarify, I am not a skeleton. Correct your misunderstanding.”

“If not a skeleton, what are you?! I permit you to state your name before the King of the East, Guu!”

“...Guu?”

Ainz couldn’t understand what he was saying momentarily. Since it spoke like a king or a tribal chief, that was probably its name.

“I see, Guu. Apologies for the late introduction, my name is Ainz Ooal Gown.”

The cave echoed with laughter.

“Fuhahaha! The name of a coward! Not a powerful name like mine, your name is ugly!”

Following these words, the giants laughed along in an annoying way.

“Cow—”

Aura who had taken a step forward was stopped by Ainz.

“It’s fine. Don’t get angry over something so trivial, stay cool. We are here to talk as ambassadors of friendship. For future reference, could you explain why you think I am a coward?”