Ainz's Second (Overlord Fanfiction)

- 6: Initial Schemes -

--- Arakan's POV ---

Arakan's surroundings warped, changing from the interior of the room he had just rented to the steps leading up to Nazarick's main entrance. He didn't see anyone there to greet him, but that was to be expected, no one knew he would be returning today aside from his Black Riders- and even they didn't know exactly when. He began to walk up the stairs, pulling his ring of Ainz Ooal Gown from it's place in his pocket dimension inventory and placing it on his right index finger.

Ainz had elected to have his ring given to Albedo for safe-keeping until he returned for fear of it being stolen...but Arakan didn't see the need to. In his eyes, it'd only ever be stolen if he died, and that wasn't going to happen. He continued to move up the well maintained steps of the central mausoleum, approaching the columns that denoted the entrance into the tomb. The moment he passed these columns, Arakan activated the power of his ring, teleporting deep into Nazarick, appearing at the entrance to the 9th Floor. He could have used the ring even from outside the tomb...but he felt the need to approach it himself.

Immediately after teleporting he had begun to walk through the extravagant halls of the 9th Floor, being reminded just how impressive it was compared to what he had seen outside in the New World. It had been a little over two days since he had come here...but he would unfortunately not be able to stay here if things went as planned. As he walked along, Arakan made a movement with his hand that caused the white clothing and weapon he wore as Raan the Adventurer melt away into a blue mass of light and fire, before reforming as the Divine Class equipment he was used to wearing. For some reason...despite the fact that he was wearing plate armor and a white mask that covered his face, it was in this gear that he felt most comfortable. He had none of his weapons equipped, and so his luxurious black cloak covered nearly the full length of his body.

As he moved along Arakan encountered several members of the 41 Homunculus maids as they went about their daily duties, each of them stopping what they were doing to genuflect as Arakan passed. He returned each of their bows with a nod...but it was beginning to get a little tiring once he did it for the fourteenth time. After nearly 10 minutes of walking, he reached his destination- said destination being Ainz's office. He pushed open the door and walked inside, finding the person he expected to see within.

That person was of course, not Ainz. He too was currently acting as an adventurer in the city of E-Rantel, so there wasn't much reason for him to be back in Nazarick. Instead, Arakan found Albedo sitting at a second desk not far from Ainz's after having insisted that she shared an office with him. She had looked over from her seat the moment Arakan entered the room, and immediately rose so that she might greet him. He continued walking until he finally reached her desk, prompting her to bow her head quite low with a smile on her face while speaking softly.

Albedo: "Welcome back, Arakan-sama. I did not expect you to return so soon."

After gesturing for her to raise her head, Arakan too spoke.

Arakan: "I won't be here long, just need to speak with the Riders to make sure everything I need is prepared. How have things been going for you with Ainz and I gone, Albedo?"

Albedo: "I have thankfully been able to manage in your absence, but still...is it really necessary for you both to force yourselves to live amongst those humans? Any one of us would have been happy to go in your place...and it would put our hearts at ease if you remained here."