Epilogue

After the Sorcerer King’s victory, things had become very simple. The demihumans had already lost the will to fight, so all that was left was to mop them up. There were practically no casualties from the Holy kingdom, but the ground was littered with demihuman corpses.

决出胜负之后的事情就变得简单了。亚人们已经丧失了战意，就只剩扫荡残存势力了。圣王国这方几乎没出现死伤，散落在大地上的净是亚人的尸体，

Now that the enemy general Jaldabaoth had been defeated, nobody could stand in the way of the Holy Kingdom Liberation Army.

既然已经打倒了敌方主将亚达巴沃，就没有人可以阻挡圣王国解放军了。

Recapturing the city of Prart and the capital city of Hoburns was practically instantaneous.

大都市普拉托，接着夺回首都荷本斯的过程都只是一瞬间的事。

It would take a while longer to free the city of Rimun, which was further west, and there were still people suffering in villages which had been converted to detention camps, but this was already a big step.

要解放更西边的大都市利蒙尚且需要一段时间，而由村落改造的俘虏收容所里至今也还有正在受苦的人民吧。但这也算是走出一大步了。

The liberated capital was filled with joyous sounds, and their ardor had not abated even after the entire day. In fact, it had actually become livelier.

被解放的首都里欢声鼎沸，即使到今天都过了整整一天，热情都还没有消退。岂止如此，不如说气氛感觉更加热闹了起来。

However, the brass -- Neia included -- knew that there was still a veritable mountain of problems to be dealt with.

但是，包括宁亚在内的高层们知道残留的问题还堆积如山。

The first issue was food. The demihumans had eaten everything and caused a shortage of food. It would surely hamper the progress of the Holy Kingdom in the future.

首先是粮食，由于被亚人们吃光所导致的粮食问题，在今后会阻碍圣王国的发展道路吧。

The next was the loss of life. The loss of the workforce was still tolerable. However, if the deceased were skilled craftspersons, scholars or people who might one day become them, then the loss of knowledge would be a fatal blow to the nation.

接下来是失去的生命。说成是劳动力也可以。如果失去的生命中有特别技术人员或是学者，再或是有那些苗子的人，丧失的技术说不定会成为致命性的打击。

And then there was the matter of resources. The demihumans had plundered and destroyed many things, and rebuilding all that would take a lot of resources.

然后是资源。被亚人们掠夺，破坏的各种物品，要重新制造出来需要花费相当多的资源。

Finally, there was the matter of time. The demihumans had taken a full two seasons during their invasion, and they would need to work twice as hard to make up for the loss.

最后是时间。被亚人的略所夺走的两个季节，要加倍的劳动力才能取回来吧。

And of course, there might be demihumans lurking within the Holy Kingdom. They would need to be rooted out and exterminated.

而且或许还有亚人潜伏在圣王国里，需要发现并讨伐。

The location of most of the loot taken by the demihumans -- valuables and magic items -- were unclear. The demihumans all had separate cultures of their own, so adorning themselves with precious metals and collecting human wealth was hardly a strange thing, However, the strange thing was that there was no clue at all as to where those things had been taken. That was because they had been completely unable to track the enemy’s transport units.

推测是被亚人们夺走的大量宝物——贵重物品和魔法道具——也行踪不明了。亚人各自都有独立的文明，拿贵金属装饰自己，收集人类的财宝也不是什么不可思议的事情。但有些异常的是，哪些东西都被带到何处这点却完全掌握不住一丝的线索。这是因为完全追踪不到敌人运输部队的一丝足迹。

Still, however many problems lay ahead of them, there would be people who felt that it would be fine if they could lose themselves in frank and honest revelry. They would need a short break before the painful days to come, and Neia agreed on that point as well.

不过就算眼前有这么多的问题，大概也会有人觉得说现在只要坦诚地沉浸在欢喜之中就好。在接下来的痛苦到来之前，暂且休息一下也是必要的，这一点宁亚也表示赞成。

However, she could not do that today. She could not lose herself in celebration on this day.

但是，只有今天不行，只有今天没办法沉浸在欢喜的感情当中。

The reason for that was because it was a day of parting.

要说为什么，因为今天是离别的日子。

It was a very painful day.

非常悲伤的日子。

There was a lone carriage stopped in front of the royal capital’s main gate, on the eastern side of the city. In contrast to the carriage’s plain exterior, Neia knew that its interior was lavishly and meticulously fitted, and its performance was also excellent. In particular its seats did not hurt the bottom even after long periods spent sitting on them.

王都东边——都市城内的正门前，有一辆马车孤零零地停在那里。与这辆马车平凡的外表相对，宁亚知道，它内部的装潢非常高雅讲究，性能上也非常优秀，特别让人感动的是长时间在里面也不会让屁股感到痛的坐垫。

Indeed.

没错。

It was the carriage Neia had been allowed to share with the Sorcerer King when he had come to the Holy Kingdom.

这是宁亚来圣王国时被允许同乘的魔导王的马车。

In other words, today was the day when the Sorcerer King would leave the Holy Kingdom and return to his own country.

也就是说，今天是魔导王离开圣王国，回到自己国家的日子。

Originally, it would not have been a surprise to see a carriage of the Sorcerous Kingdom surrounded by demihumans. The Sorcerer King had united the Abelion Hills and brought many of the demihumans under his banner during the battle with Jaldabaoth. That said, there were none of them in sight, because the Sorcerer King had allowed them all to return to the hills.

本来的话在魔导王马车的周围，就算是有亚人的身影也不奇怪。魔导王把亚伯利恩丘陵整合为一，在和亚达巴沃的战斗中把大量的亚人收入到了麾下。尽管如此，连一个人的身影都看不到，是因为魔导王都让他们回到了丘陵。

This was not a matter of the past few days. He had let them return after the final battle with Jaldabaoth had ended.

这还不是最近一两天的事。在和亚达巴沃最终决战结束后，就让他们回去了。

When she had asked the reason for that, she had received the answer, “You must hate being with the demihumans, don’t you?” Such was his sympathy for the people of the Holy Kingdom.

问起理由的时候，得到了「你们也讨厌和亚人们待在一起吧？」这样体恤圣王国人民心情的回答。

Neia was deeply moved.

宁亚被感动支配着。

He had considered the mental state of the Holy Kingdom and let his own soldiers return home, saying that they would travel in the company of the soldiers of the Holy Kingdom, who were from another nation. This was by no means ordinary behavior for the ruler of a nation.

考虑我方的精神状态，让本国的士兵回国，说着和作为他国的圣王国的民兵同行，作为一国之王来说这并不普通。

Indeed, unless it were the King of Kings -- the magnanimous Sorcerer King.

没错，除了王中之王——宽大的魔导王以外。

Neia’s group of like-minded supporters were also deeply moved.

和宁亚有同样想法的团体也是一样深受感动。

Therefore, when Neia and her comrades had taken it upon themselves to become the Sorcerer King’s honor guard, nobody could bring themselves to protest. Of course, there was almost no more fighting, so for the most part they simply moved with the Sorcerer King, but the faces of her comrades were still fresh in Neia’s memories.

所以宁亚和同志们擅自地担当了魔导王的随从，不管是谁都没法说些什么的一招反制。当然，已经几乎没有战斗了，所以只是单纯聚在魔导王周围一起行进而已，但同志们的表情宁亚现在还记忆犹新。

She remembered their joy at being able to walk with the person who had saved them, the glorious feeling of being able to accompany the hero who had defeated Jaldabaoth, and then the bliss of being allowed to stand by the side of the king they so admired. Their faces all blended these differing emotions.

能和救助自己的人身边一同前进带来的喜悦，能和打倒亚达巴沃的英雄一起行动的荣耀，然后是能够在所仰慕的王身边伺候所带来的幸福，就是这些不同的感情混合到一起的表情。

They were nowhere in sight today.

这样的他们现在并不在视线范围内。

All she could see were the walls and the main gate of the Holy Kingdom’s capital, and then the street leading to Prart -- which continued on to the Sorcerous Kingdom.

能看到的只有圣王国王都的城墙和大门，再者就是通往普拉托——再往前朝魔导国延续的街道了。

“Are you going back today, Your Majesty? The people are all abuzz with joy after the liberation of the royal capital. I feel it would not be out of place to have Your Majesty join us for the next few days, in a thanksgiving festival for the person who did the biggest part of taking back the capital….”

「魔导王陛下果然今天就要回去了吗？解放了王都，让很多人都沐浴在欢声笑语中。我觉得在这几天会招待在王都夺还中功劳最大的陛下您参加人民表达感谢的庆典也不奇怪啊……」

She had asked that question several times in the past. She would probably get the answer she knew she would receive, that he was heading home. Even so, she still had to ask it again. It was probably the incompetent side of Neia showing.

问了之前就问过好几次的问题。恐怕自己也知道会得到，要回去的答案吧。尽管这样还要再问一遍，应该是宁亚没出息的那一面在作祟吧。

“Ahh, I’ll be returning to the Sorcerous Kingdom today. I’m not confident in my ability to deal with ceremonies.”

「啊啊，我今天就回魔导国了。因为没有能好好应对典礼的自信呐。」

As the Sorcerer King muttered to himself, he made a very exaggerated movement, like a comical shrugging of his shoulders, perhaps because he knew Neia would feel distressed if she took his words to heart.

小声嘟囔了一句的魔导王，是因为让别人当真了会觉得困扰么，慌张地做了一个大的假动作，像是非常滑稽地那样耸了耸肩膀。

He really is bad at making jokes.

（这位大人真的很不擅长开玩笑呢。）

“Surely you jest, Your Majesty.”

「陛下，别开玩笑了。」

“Umu, well, yes I was, I was just kidding. Yes, kidding… In truth, I’ve done everything I came here to do. Thus, there is no need for me to stay here. I also need to guide the development of the Sorcerous Kingdom, in my capacity as its king. If I leave the throne for long, Prime Minister Albedo will nag me.”

「唔姆，嘛，就是这样，是开玩笑的哦。玩笑。.……认真来讲就是应该做的事情全部都完成了。那么就没有再留在这里的必要了吧。我也有身为王而不得不去领导魔导国发展的立场。长时间离开王座是会被宰相雅儿贝德训斥的。」

Neia’s mind conjured up the visage of the world-class beauty she had seen but once. She was a woman whose beauty made her unforgettable.

宁亚的脑海中浮现出在那时只有一面之缘的绝世美女。太美了以至于让人无法忘怀的女性。

Surely she can’t be that scary when she gets mad… or is she scary when she gets mad because she’s beautiful? While I don’t think that’s what His Majesty meant, it’s a little hard to imagine someone as pretty as that getting angry. Still… I’m envious…

（那位大人应该生起气来也不会太让人害怕吧，还是说因为是美人，所以生起气来才可怕吗？虽然觉得魔导王陛下说的不是这个意思，但是那种美人生气的样子有点让人难以想象啊。但是……好羡慕喔……）

Being allowed to speak to him like that, because she was close to him, was something that Neia desperately wanted, yet could not ask for, which made her very envious. How happy would Neia be if she heard the Sorcerer King she so respected tell others “Neia will scold me” or something like that?

因为是自己人所以才能使用这样的话语，这是宁亚想要也得不到的发言，让宁亚非常羡慕，如果自己所尊敬的魔导王对别人说「会被宁亚骂的」这样的话语，让宁亚听到了会高兴成什么样呢。

「是这样吗……但大家无法来欢送拯救了这个国家的陛下，真是遗憾。」

The Sorcerer King’s decision to go had been a sudden thing, and there had been nobody to send him off. It was as though he were a sad and lonely person.

魔导王决定动身是突然决定的，连个欢送的人都没有，似乎正在诉说着它的悲凉。

“I already told Caspond-denka that it would be troublesome if the festival was too lavish. This nation will be facing a lot of difficulties from now on. Rather than waste resources and manpower on sending me off, I’d rather have them use it on rebuilding the country.”

「对卡斯邦登殿下已经这么说过了呢，要是太过张扬也让人感到困扰。从现在开始这个国家在各种方面上会很艰难吧。如果因为让大家欢送我回国，导致消耗了无谓的劳力和物资的话，不如想让他们用在这个国家的复兴上。」

“Your Majesty…”

「陛下……」

Why do you have to go back?

为什么，要回去呢。

If she clung to his thigh and made a big scene, she could probably delay his return to his nation by a week.

抱着大腿哭闹的话，应该能拖延一天回国的时间吧。

While she keenly felt the desire to do so, she bore with it. She could not act spoilt around the most merciful Sorcerer King.

虽然被想这么做的欲望所包围，但依旧忍住了。不能再向慈悲的魔导王撒娇了。

“Ah, it’s not because I want to act like some kind of big shot, ah, it’s just that this country really has nothing left, yes...wealth and the like, while I’d thought of asking them to leave a bit more… What I mean to say is, ah yes, I would like you all to not mind me and keep working hard. Also... look, the stability of your country will be good for the Sorcerous Kingdom too, as neighbours. There’ll be trade between us and so on in the future, yes.”

「啊，并不是我要摆出很了不起的样子，那个，因为这个国家已经真的什么都没有了呐，真的。……财宝之类的，虽然也不是没想过说多少留一点也好啊……。我想说的是，也是呢，想让你们不要在意我好好加油呢。而且……你看，因为这个国家的安定，对于作为邻国的魔导国也有好处呢，在将来，准备进行贸易活动之类的时候，呐。」

So he had sensed what Neia was thinking, and he was fumbling to comfort her. While he was typically very cool and stylish, he was now speaking in an unreliable way.

是察觉到宁亚的心情，慌忙中打算安慰她吧。明明平常都非常威风凛凛的，却表现出感觉有点靠不住的说话方式。

“Thank you very much, Your Majesty.”

「非常感谢您，陛下」

“Oh? Hm, don’t, don’t worry about it. I came to this country for Jaldabaoth’s maids, after all. And now--” The Sorcerer King patted CZ -- who had been standing beside him all this time, as though she were trying to mask her presence -- on the back. “--And now I have them, so it was worth coming to this country.”

「唔？姆，不，不用在意，我也是为了得到亚达巴沃的女仆才来到这个国家的，然后实际上——」魔导王轻轻地拍着至今为止一直站在旁边像是消除了气息一样的希丝的背部。「就像这样到手了，来到这个国家也算值得了。」

The Sorcerer King had gained CZ -- the maid demon -- with his own strength. Neia and everyone who shared her beliefs felt the same way.

希丝——女仆恶魔是魔导王靠自己的力量夺到手的，不仅是宁亚，跟宁亚有着同样想法的人都是这么认为的。

There had been discussions about what they would give to him, but someone had mentioned that since he was a king, having someone who did not represent the country giving him a present would instead be very rude, and so the plan had fallen through.

曾经有次讨论过自己这边要不要送些什么的话题，但是对于王来说，不是代表着国家的我们去赠与东西，有人提出这样会不会反而很失礼呢，结果这个计划就这么夭折了。

At the very least, Neia had hoped that Caspond would make some concessions on a natural level, or sign a treaty which was unfavorable to the Holy Kingdom.

至少，宁亚希望卡斯邦登能在国家层面上让渡些什么，或是结缔些对圣王国这边不利的条约。

“...If you so desire, I can cast a grand spell that can only be used once every year to resurrect your parents, you know?”

「……如果你期望的话，我用每年只能使用一次的大魔法让你的双亲复活也是可以的？」

“Thank you very much, Your Majesty, but -- there is no need for that.”

「非常感谢您，陛下，但是——不用了。」

During the liberation of the capital city, one of the prisoners had witnessed Neia’s mother fall in battle. Given that person’s story of how inspiring she had been as she fought, surely she would not mind if she was not resurrected.

在解放这个首都的时候，被囚禁的人当中有人目击到了宁亚母亲战死的场景，听那个人讲述着自己的母亲是多么令人值得骄傲的战斗着，不复活她应该也不会生气的吧。

In addition, it was said that resurrection spells required extremely valuable materials as a material component, and Neia would be hard-pressed to afford those. Perhaps the most merciful Sorcerer King might supply them for free, but she could not keep relying on the Sorcerer King’s largesse for her own sake. However, it would seem the demihumans had disposed of the corpse, so she could not even bid her a final farewell, which was quite sad.

而且，据说复活魔法需要高价的物品当做媒介，恐怕是宁亚难以支付的高价之物吧。慈悲为怀的魔导王或许会无偿提供也说不定，但，不能再为了自己一个人的缘故去依赖魔导王的厚意了。

只是，遗体好像被亚人们处理掉了的样子，连最后的道别都没做到，说是遗憾也确实很遗憾。

“Talking for long will only make the parting hurt more. I ought to be going soon. CZ, is there anything you want to tell Miss Baraja?”

「长时间的交谈只会让离别更加痛苦而已，差不多该出发了吧。希司，你有什么想要对巴拉哈小姐说的？」

“...Goodbye.”

「…………再见」

“Alright! Goodbye!”

「！好的！再见!」

CZ extended a hand to Neia, who shook it.

希丝爽快地伸出手，宁亚也握了上去。

And then, the two of them let go without any further ado.

然后两个人都在无意中松开了手。

“...Are the two of you alright with this?”

「……你们两个，这样就好了么？」

“...It’ll be… fine.”

「…………没问题……的」

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

「是的，魔导王陛下」

“I see. Then -- we’re going, CZ.”

As the Sorcerer King put one foot on the step leading up to his carriage, he turned back to address Neia.

「这样啊，那么——希丝，要出发了。」把脚踏上马车台阶的魔导王回过头，对宁亚说道。

“...This country will experience many difficulties in the future, but… I’m sure you’ll be able to work hard and pull through. I hope to see you again.”

「……今后，这个国家各种方面都会很艰难吧，但是……如果是你的话，一定能好好地加油的，以后再见吧。」

“Yes!”

「是的！」

Just as the Sorcerer King was about to enter his carriage, Neia looked at his back and could not stop herself from shouting:”

魔导王正准备进到马车里的时候，看到他背影的宁亚，情不自禁地开口道。

“Majesty! Your Majesty!”

「陛下！魔导王陛下！」

The Sorcerer King paused on the step of his carriage and looked back. Neia gulped, worked up her courage, and asked in a trembling voice:

魔导王停在马车的台阶上，回过头。宁亚咽了口唾沫，拿出勇气，发出颤抖的声音问道。

“Ah, excuse me! Could I, could I call you Ainz-sama!?”

「那，那个！可以称呼您为，安兹大人吗！」

The cheek of her. Surely she, as a commoner from another nation, would be scolded for daring to address him in such a familiar fashion.

多么的厚脸皮啊，他国平民这么自来熟地称呼，会被怒斥也不奇怪。

“...Eh? Ahh, yes, you may… call me anything you want.”

「……诶？啊啊，可以……随你喜欢的来称呼吧。」

“Thank you very much.”

「非常感谢您！」

She bowed deeply to the magnanimous king of another nation, and by the time she raised her head, it was CZ’s turn to board the carriage.

对着宽大的国王鞠了一躬，抬起头的时候，正好是希丝乘上马车的时候。

“Take care, CZ-sempai!”

「希丝前辈，多保重！」

“Mm!”

「恩！」

CZ stuck out her thumb, and then she vanished into the carriage.

伸出了大拇指的希丝的身影，消失在了马车中。

Perhaps it had sensed the two of them had boarded, but the horse whinnied and trotted off.

是怎么感知到两个人乘上马车的呢，马儿嘶鸣一声独自地开始跑起来。

“--Then, Your Majesty!”

「——那么，魔导王陛下！」

As she watched the carriage move off, Neia could no longer hide her tears as she shouted:

看着已经出发的马车的背影，宁亚已经没办法藏住眼泪地大声喊着。

“Long live His Majesty the Sorcerer King!”

「魔导王陛下！万岁！！！！」

She was not the only one shouting at the top of her voice.

大声地跟着她那可以说的上嘶喊的声音叫着的人不只一个。

There was more than one gate in the royal capital. Her fellow believers had sneakily gathered together and then they had popped up outside the gate to loudly wish the Sorcerer King prosperity and happiness.

王都的城门不止这里一个。和她意志相同的人们用了其他的门偷偷聚集起来，从门的那边一齐现身，大声地为魔导王祈求荣华兴盛。

“Long may he live!”

「万岁！！！」

“Long may he live!”

「万岁！！！」

“Long may he live!”

「万岁！！！」

At the same time, they scattered the flowers they had struggled so hard to collect.

与此同时撒着拼命收集到的鲜花。

The carriage carried on amidst all this.

在这样的情境中，马车前行着。

It was hardly a fitting send off for the man who had saved the Holy Kingdom. Even so, it was the best effort from Neia and the people who understood how she felt.

这样还不足以为拯救了圣王国的人送行。即使这样，这已经是宁亚和能理解她心情的人们能尽到的最大努力了。

The carriage shrank in her tear-dimmed vision.

在充满泪水的世界中，马车变得越来越小。

Neia sobbed.

宁亚抽泣着。

She felt so lonely now.

好寂寞。

She wanted the Sorcerer King and CZ to ask “Would you like to come to the Sorcerous Kingdom?” If they had asked that, Neia might have abandoned everything to go with them.

想要被魔导王和希丝邀请说「要不要到魔导国来？」如果他们这么说了的话，宁亚说不定会舍弃一切跟过去。

But they had not.

但是并没有。

She hated it.

好不甘心。

In the end, Neia had been nothing more than a squire for his brief stay in this country.

果然自己只不过是滞留在这个国家时的侍从而已，宁亚的份量只有这种程度而已。

All manner of negative emotions roiled up inside her.

各种负面感情席卷而来。

However -- that was wrong.

但是——不对。

In Neia’s ears echoed the words which the Sorcerer King had said.

...This country will experience many difficulties in the future, but… I’m sure you’ll be able to work hard and pull through. I hope to see you again.

宁亚的耳边回响着那句话，魔导王是这么说的「……今后，这个国家各种方面都会很艰难吧，但是……如果是你的话，一定能好好地加油的，以后再见吧。」

In other words, he had expectations for Neia.

也就是说宁亚正被期待着。

Something like, though the Holy Kingdom is in chaos, I’m sure Neia could pull the country together, or something.

在这一片混乱的圣王国里，如果是宁亚的话，就能让国家好好振作起来，这样。

It had felt like a long time, but also a very short time, but it had changed her life tremendously -- and now it was over. However, this was only the beginning. There were many things she had to do.

既像是很长也像是很短一般，让自己的人生产生巨大改变的这一段时光结束了。但是——这不过是开始而已。自己还有很多不得不去做的事情。

For starters, she had to repay the Sorcerer King’s kindness with her actions.

首先是有必要用行动来报答魔导王的恩义。

Then, she would need to rebuild this country. Justice and evil. Neia had never really understood what the two of them meant, but now she could hold her chest high and answer.

然后是必须要重新建设这个国家。正义与邪恶。一直以来宁亚并不是很懂二者的定义，但现在的她能够挺起胸膛作出回答。

The Sorcerer King was justice, she would answer. And being weak was a sin. The important thing was to work hard to be strong, and so on.

魔导王即是正义，这一回答。还有比如弱小是罪恶，重要的是为了变强而努力等等道理。

Neia had to spread the truths she had learned throughout the Holy Kingdom.

要让宁亚所获得的真理传遍迎来和平的圣王国。

“Baraja-sama, please wipe your tears.”

「巴拉哈大人，请您擦擦眼泪吧」

It was Beldran.

是贝伦托兰。

At a closer look, his eyes were also red. Perhaps he had wiped his own tears before coming to Neia’s side, but his voice was still trembling, so he had clearly wept recently.

仔细一看他的眼睛也是完全通红着。或许是在来到宁亚身边之前偷偷擦去了泪水吧，但他的声音还在颤抖，明显刚刚哭过。

“Ahh…”

「啊啊」

Neia forcefully wiped her tears away, just like how CZ had first wiped her face.

宁亚用力地拭去了泪水。就像当初希丝为她擦眼泪时一样。

“Baraja-sama. The people who witnessed that battle all want to hear about the Sorcerer King. Many more have come with their families in tow.”

「巴拉哈大人。目击了那场战斗的人们想要听听魔导王陛下的事情。还有很多人是带着家属一起过来的」

“I understand. Tell them that His Majesty -- Ainz-sama is a truly noble king, and also about CZ.”

Neia looked straight ahead.

“Goodbyes really are depressing. However -- Everyone! Let’s go! Let us spread the truth -- that His Majesty is justice -- to more people!”

「我知道了。就告诉他们魔导王陛下——安兹大人是一位多么伟大的王者，还有和希丝相关的事情吧」宁亚注视着前方。「离别着实让人寂寞。但是——各位！我们走吧！将陛下即是正义这条真理，传达给更多的人！」

“--Ohhhh!”

「——哦哦！！」

Over 3’000 people shouted in unison by way of reply, and then they fell into step behind Neia.

为数超过三千的人们一起高声做出了回应，他们跟在宁亚身后迈出了步伐。

***

The carriage moved on.

马车前进着。

The long project was finally over. Ainz had never experienced it himself, but this must have been what it felt like to be an expatriate. Even if he had returned to Nazarick from time to time, this might have been the first time he had been away from it for so long.

漫长的工作结束了。虽然安兹没有体验过，但所谓的单身赴任就是这样的吧。尽管有时会回到纳萨力克，但离开这么久这说不定还是第一次。

He had thrown the matter of ruling the demihumans of the Abelion Hills to Albedo, and he had handed the entirety of the Holy Kingdom’s future affairs to Demiurge.

关于如何统治住在亚伯利恩丘陵的亚人们的事宜全都丢给了雅儿贝德，圣王国今后的问题也整个推给迪米乌哥斯解决了。

In other words, Ainz had taken the weight off his shoulders. He sighed, subtly enough that CZ -- who was sitting opposite him -- did not notice. While he had simplified Demiurges’s script halfway through, the fatigue from all the complicated events until that point had not yet been fully eliminated. However, he did feel the sense of relaxation which came from solving a previously insoluble problem.

也就是说安兹已经卸下了肩上的担子。和希丝面对面坐着的他以不会被注意到的程度松了一口气。虽然途中把迪米乌哥斯的剧本切换成了简单模式，但到那为止的困难模式所带来的疲惫还没完全消除。不过，一份工作——而且是相当无计可施的案件得到解决时特有的放松感也着实存在。

That said, after returning to Nazarick -- E-Rantel, rather -- he would need to carefully and slowly take care of the work he had put off for the past two seasons. Once, he had put his stamp on documents in a slapdash manner, trusting that Albedo had already looked them over, only to be told, “Truly, this snap decision-making is only possible for Ainz-sama. I am filled with respect”. Ainz had wondered whether that assessment of him was sarcastic or not.

话虽如此，回到纳萨力克——耶·兰提尔的话，就有必要认真地，不紧不慢地把在两个季节里间堆积下来的各种工作解决掉吧。之前有一次，因为觉得雅儿贝德先看过了所以没问题的吧，就刷刷刷地盖了许可印，结果就得到了「不愧是安兹大人。如此的判断速度，真是令人尊敬」这样让安兹感到了是不是在被嘲讽的评价。

Indeed. It was not because he had work waiting for him that he had not used [Gate] -- which could take him back in an instant.

没错。不是因为回去有工作等着，才没有使用能瞬间返回的<传送门>。

Definitely not.

绝非如此。

There were ways to teleport to places one had not seen before, but it was still too early for that. It would do no good to show his hand. Of course, the Hanzo on the carriage had said nothing, and the anti-divination spell he had cast had not been triggered. It was a clear sign that nobody was monitoring Ainz and the others, but there might be methods which Ainz did not know about.

要是去没有人看得到的地方倒是会使用传送之类的手段，但现在还太早。暴露出自己的手牌基本没有任何好处。当然，在马车上面的半藏没有出声，展开的反情报系魔法也没有发动，即是说明并没有人在监视着安兹他们吧，但说不定会有安兹所不知道的手段存在。

If there’s enough time, we can wait until we reach a less visible place before teleporting, Ainz thought.

时间充裕的话，传送就等到视野再不便一点的地方使用也来得及，安兹是这样考虑的。

Indeed. It was definitely not because he wanted to keep away from those documents he could not understand no matter how many times he read them.

没错，绝对不是哪怕多一秒也想要逃离那些读了也无法理解的文件的缘故。

Still, if there was a problem--

只是，要说有什么问题——

CZ hasn’t said anything since she got on the carriage...

（从坐上马车开始希丝就没说过一句话啊……）

Neia had been that way too, but he always felt restless when he shared a carriage with someone else and they remained quiet. He could casually mention something if the other party were a man, but he would have to watch his words since she was female.

宁亚那时虽然也是一样，但像这样两个人共乘一架马车的时候，一言不发的时光总是让人觉得心痒痒。对方要是男人倒还能随便说点什么，但女人的话就得留心发言的内容了。

Can’t you say something, CZ? That thought had been in Ainz’s mind ever since the beginning. Regretfully, it did not seem like it would be happening anytime soon. Finally, Ainz was no longer able to bear the silence, and after preparing himself for the worst, he spoke.

希丝能不能先开口啊，这种想法从最开始就一直存在于安兹的脑海，遗憾的是似乎是办法实现了。最终安兹无法承受沈默带来的重压感，做好觉悟后开了口。

“CZ, how do you feel about leaving Nazarick to work on your own? Do you have any questions or suggestions for the future?”

「希丝，让妳一个人离开纳萨力克去工作的感想如何？有没有什么问题或是未来的课题呢？」

He would start by listening to a report from his subordinate, who had been busy with work when she had been sent out for an errand.

首先先从听取一个人在出差地忙于业务的部下的报告开始。

While he was not good at speaking to women, it was fine when he imagined them as female coworkers.

虽然不擅长和女性对话，但想象成与女性社员的对话就没关系了。

“...I think… worked hard.”

「…………我觉得……可以努力」

“Is that so. You have worked very hard.”

「是吗。真的很努力了呢」

That was the end of the conversation. It was dead and gone.

对话结束。完全结束了。

Even if he waited a little longer, he ought not to expect CZ to carry on.

就算稍微再等一下，之后也不会从希丝那里继续下去。

Once the words “worked hard” were mentioned, it was very difficult to follow on from there. She had not answered the question about having any questions or future suggestions.

一旦说了可以努力，就很难把话接下去。有没有问题或是课题啊，根本没有回答这个提问嘛。

That said, these thoughts of his were merely the shallow contemplations of a superior. He ought to be thinking since she worked hard, all I have to do is wait for the results. There were also benefits in doing so. That was because the implication was that nothing had happened which might cause a problem or become an issue.

虽然是这样想的，但那是上司的肤浅的考量。自己已经努力过了，之后只要等着结果就好，应该要这么想才对。而且这样也有好处。因为这也意味着没有什么会成为问题或是课题的事发生。

However, CZ continued speaking.

但是，希丝继续开口。

“...It’s hard to think on your own and then take action…”

「…………要一个人独自思考然后行动很难……」

“Indeed, that is the case.”

「没错，就是这样」

CZ had been working in Nazarick all this time, and all she had done was take instructions and carry them out. However, he had only given her rough instructions this time, and then the actions she took based on the decisions she made within the scope of those instructions were her first task. For all he knew, that might have been too broad for her. Perhaps he should have started by giving her a simpler task, but Ainz also knew that CZ had given him concrete results.

希丝至今为止都是在纳萨力克里工作，单纯听命行事而已。但是这次，只是给了粗略的指示，然后要在这个范围内靠自己做出判断后自主行动却是她最初的工作。这样看来这个案子太大了也说不定。或许从更简单的工作开始比较好，但是安兹也知道希丝有交出了确切的成果。

“Still, it’s hardly unusual for the Pleiades to go outside for their work. The fact that the maid demons are now the Sorcerer King’s minions has spread from the Holy Kingdom to the other nations by now. This was a good experience. But giving vague instructions was a bad idea. Just as I thought, the person giving orders has to make them clear--”

「但是，已经成为昴宿星团的成员们出外也不奇怪的状况了。女仆恶魔已经成了魔导王部下的情报已经从圣王国流出到其他国家了吧。这次是很好的经验吧。但是给出粗略的指示这点不行，果然下令的一方要给出确实的——」

At this point, Ainz sensed that he was digging his own grace. As the pinnacle of Nazarick, Ainz was the most likely to give out orders.

讲到这里，安兹察觉到这是在自掘坟墓。身为纳萨力克顶点的安兹发出最多命令的可能性最高。

I can’t possibly come up with concrete action plans. Or rather, if I come up with shallow plans, Albedo and Demiurge will frown on me!

（不可能提出确实的计画书的。不如说，绝对会提除肤浅的计画让雅儿贝德和迪米乌哥斯皱起眉头！）

“--should draw up plans that emphasize adapting to the situation, and a certain degree of undefined space are fine too. As I thought, it’s the person on the ground who knows best!”

「——应该要做出优先临机应变，某种程度上可以有所空间的计画书才对。果然现场的人才是最了解状况的！」

“...Yes. I learned a lot more compared to just following instructions.”

「…………是。比起单纯依命行事，学到了很多东西」

“Ahh, indeed, just so. I’m very glad you understand this, how it feels.”

「啊啊，没错。就是这样，我也非常懂得这种心情」

Ainz scratched his head as he went “Umu”, but then as he realised the difference in competency between CZ and himself -- whose nonexistent stomach ached when he had read Demiurge’s reports -- he wept softly in his heart.

安兹虽然嗯嗯的点着头，但是感受到了因为看了迪米乌哥斯的指令书而让不存在的胃开始作痛的自己和说到有学到东西的希丝之间两人能干的差距，心中稍微流出泪来。

“Speaking of which,” Ainz decided to change the subject. If he went on, he might only end up shocking himself more. “It seems you and Miss Baraja got along very well. It felt like a shame that we had to part.”

「话说回来」安兹改变了话题。要是再说下去的话，自己说不定会受到更多的打击。「在我不知道的时候，和巴拉哈小姐的关系变得很好了嘛。刚刚也觉得离别很可惜吧」

“...I like her…”

「…………很中意……」

“--Really!? That’s wonderful!”

「——是吗！那真是太好了！」

Ainz’s expression of joy was genuine.

安兹坦率地发出开心的声音。

While Suzuki Satoru had not had children before, anyone would feel like a parent when one heard that a child who had no friends had made friends for the first time.

虽然铃木悟没有小孩，但是不管是谁，听到没有朋友的小孩第一次交到朋友时都会有父母的心境。

Ah, I’m glad I resurrected her… hm? What does liking her mean… don’t tell me she’s not a friend, but more like a sex toy...

（啊，复活她真是太好了……嗯？很中意是什么意思？……莫非不是朋友的关系而是，更接近玩具的意思……）

“...Can I assume that you are friends?”

「……可以认为是成为朋友关系了吗？」

CZ briefly bowed her head in thought, but in the end she replied with a “...yes.”

虽然希丝略微歪着头陷入思考，但却给出了「…………是」的肯定。

Ainz was filled with delight. However that explosion of joy was promptly negated.

安兹的背后有巨大的花绽放开来，不过爆发似的欢喜情绪却立刻被压抑了。

While he was unhappy about that, the thought that this might be the first time someone from Nazarick had made a friend outside brought a trickle of joy to his heart.

虽然对此觉得不满，不过说不定是纳萨力克第一次有人交到外面的朋友这件事，还是让喜悦感一点一点的渗透出来。

Most of the people in Nazarick did not leave it, so they did not make friends outside. Perhaps if he let the other members go outside regularly, they would be able to make good friendships.

纳萨力克大部分的人都不外出，所以才交不到外部的朋友。如果让其他成员也很平常的出外的话，说不定能达成到良好的朋友关系。

Ainz did not think that people with friends were superior to others. However, thinking that one did not needs friends was also not correct.

安兹决不是认为有朋友的人才比较优秀。但是不需要朋友的这种想法，也并非是正确的。

Still it was always better to have the chance to make friends than not.

不过有交到朋友的机会总比没有来的好吧。

I had my friends from Ainz Ooal Gown. In that case, it might be good to let the other members go outside and give them free time to interact with others… especially Mare and Aura. No, it’s also possible that giving them all some time on their birthday is… umu.

（像我是有安兹·乌尔·恭的同伴在。这样的话让其他成员也到外面，给予他们自由的时间和他人有接触的机会比较好呢。……尤其是马雷还有亚乌菈。不，还有全员诞生的时间是一样的可能性。……唔呣。）

“Have you arranged to meet Neia again?”

「那么有约好下次再去找宁亚吗？」

“...No...too far…”

「…………没有…这里很远…………」

“Ahh! No need to worry about that. I’ve already marked this place as a teleport point. You can go and have fun whenever you want. You can use [Gate] as you wisht, so there’s no need to be shy. Mm.”

「啊啊！不需要在意这件事。已经记下了传送用的地点。在喜欢的时候去玩就可以了。什么时候都能用<传送门>的，不用客气也没关系的喔。嗯嗯」

“...If I’m free… please let me do so…”

「…………要是有空的话……请让我这么做」

“That’s right! Free… I’ll give you free time. I’ve been thinking about a holiday plan for some time now. I should give the Pleiades vacation time too. Wouldn’t it be good to go out and have fun with the others? I’ve arranged to have you placed under me, so it should be fine.”

「就是这样！有空……会好好的给你们空闲的喔。从之前就一直对休假制度有兴趣了。也给昴宿星团们休假吧。也和其他的成员一起去出去玩不是很好吗？已经做好了将妳们置于我支配之下设定，应该没有什么问题吧」

CZ thought briefly about it, and then shook her head.

希丝稍微考虑下后摇摇头。

“...It’ll cause problems.”

「…………会添麻烦」

“Problems, you say…”

「添麻烦啊……」

What does that mean? Problems for Neia? Or will it keep her from having fun with Neia? Or is it because the other members won’t approve...

（这是什么意思？是会给宁亚添麻烦吗？还是说会妨碍到自己跟宁亚玩吗？又或是其他的成员会不愿意吗……）

“Well, if it causes problems then it can’t be helped. You’ll have to go on your own, CZ. Speaking of which, let me change the topic. Miss Baraja’s parents are both dead. Is that alright?”

「嘛，会添麻烦的话就没办法了。希丝自己去就好了。话说回来，我换个话题，巴拉哈小姐的双亲似乎死了，没有关系吗？」

Neia Baraja’s parents were both dead. If she had asked him, he felt that it would be alright to resurrect them. If doing so would make her even more grateful--

宁亚·巴拉哈的双亲果然已经死了。若是拜托的话，是觉得让他们复活也可以。若是那样做会得到更上一层的感谢的话——

No, that’s not right.

（不，不对）

In truth, resurrecting Neia’s parents was not a very lucrative matter. It was plain to see that Neia was sufficiently grateful to him. In that case, there was no need to continue scoring points with her. In addition, Wands of Resurrection were very expensive, so he wanted to save them, if possible. If Pestonya and the others were to use resurrection spells, then she would require gold coins or jewels or other valuables in exchange.

老实说，让宁亚的双亲复活已经不是那么有价值的事了。一看就明白宁亚对自己已经足够感谢了。那样的话，就没有必要做任何追加得分了。而且复活短杖相当贵重，所以想尽可能保存下来。在让佩丝特妮她们使用复活魔法的情况下，需要使用作为代价的金币或宝石之类具有价值的东西。

In truth, there were practically no benefits to be gained.

老实说，得到的利益根本划不来。

However, it would be a different matter if it were CZ’s friend. I wouldn’t mind giving CZ’s friend benefits like that.

（但是，如果是希丝的朋友就另当别论。希丝的朋友的话，给出这种程度的福利也没关系。）

Because she seemed close to CZ, he had asked her questions -- both Neia as well as CZ -- to judge their reactions.

因为很亲近希丝的样子，所以乘坐马车的时候才会抛出话题——不只是宁亚，希丝也是——来看看态度。

“..It’s alright… Special treatment isn’t good.”

「…………没关系……的。特殊对待不好」

“Really? It would make an excellent present… in that case… well, that’s it, then.”

「这样吗？会成为很好的礼物喔……那样的话……嘛，那就这样吧」

In truth, resurrecting the dead -- especially incomplete corpses -- could prove very troublesome. The scenario he saw most often went something like “How come you could do it for him and not for me?” Also, it would be troublesome if he was asked to resurrect the Holy Queen. Granted, Demiurge could probably handle the situation if he did resurrect the Holy Queen, but the demerits outweighed the advantages.

其实将死者，尤其是将没有完整状态的尸体复活，很可能会成为大麻烦。经常见到的就是「」为什么那个人可以，我就不行呢」的家伙。而且要被拜托复活圣王女的话就麻烦了。虽然就算真的复活圣王女，迪米乌哥斯大概也有办法对应，但坏处还是比较多。

If you want to play, how about reading that book? Would that be alright?”

「如果要去玩的话，不能够读那本书喔？没问题吧？」

“...It’s fine...it’s in the Doctor’s room.”

「…………没问题……的。在博士的房间里」

CZ possessed knowledge on all of Nazarick’s mechanisms. That was too dangerous, and she would not be able to leave Nazarick like this, Therefore he had used [Control Amnesia] to edit her memories.

希丝拥有纳萨力克内部所有机关的知识。这样下去太危险了，也没办法像这次这样出到纳萨力克的外面。因此用<记忆操作>[Control Amnesia]来改动过了。

CZ’s knowledge of those mechanisms had been part of the backstory her creator had made for her. While he did not know if the spell could work on such things, after manipulating her, he found that the spell had worked as intended.

希丝拥有的机关知识是身为希丝制作者的玩家所做的设定。虽然不知道魔法是否连那样的东西都能发挥效果，但是实际操作之后发现魔法能如期运作。

That was a technique Ainz had developed after repeated experiments on a lab rat he had obtained. It felt like he could do incredible things once he mastered it.

这是安兹利用得手的小白鼠反复试验所练成的技巧，但感觉如果彻底钻研的话似乎能办到什么很厉害的事。

The reason for that was because Ainz had the feeling he might be able to access the core of the NPCs. What exactly were the NPC backstories, the origin of their memories? Still, that was ultimately the product of Ainz’s imagination, and it was very likely that they were completely unrelated. If he wanted to sort that out, he would need to further understand the spell, and understand everything to do with the human memory. In that case, he would need a lot of lab rats and decades to practice and research with, as well as preparing himself for the possibility that it might all be a waste of time.

会这么说是因为，是否能接触到NPC根源的部分呢，安兹有这样的预感。记忆的开端，NPC的设定到底是什么之类的。不过这些终究是安兹擅自的想象，实际上根本没有关系的机率很高。要弄清这些的话，就有必要更加了解这个魔法，并理解有关人类记忆的一切。那样的话，就需要大量的小白鼠和数十年的练习与研究了吧，还要做好这些全都可能是白费功夫的觉悟。

Still, CZ had currently been implanted with incorrect memories, so to some extent, she was a trap.

不管怎样，如今希丝已被植入错误的记忆，某种程度上可以说成为了陷阱。

Anyone trying to use CZ to enter Nazarick would surely suffer.

如果有人想要利用希丝潜入纳萨力克的话，肯定会吃到苦头。

“The Doctor… hm? Can those CZs move?”

「博士……吗？那些希丝们会动吗？」

“...If the time comes.”

「…………时机到来的话」

Aren’t they just mechanisms, then? Ainz wanted to say that, but he did not. It was just like how Santa Claus’ real face was hidden under a veil of mystery.

那些不就是单纯的机关而已吗，虽然安兹那么想却没说出口。和圣诞老人的真面目被隐藏在神秘的面纱下是一样的。

While he had never visited Suzuki Satoru’s home in his memories, he had come to visit in YGGDRASIL--

虽然记忆中一次都没有来过铃木悟家，但在YGGDRASIL的游戏中倒是有来过——

Although, they were actually the devs.

「虽然真面目就是营运公司呢」

As Ainz laughed forlornly, he noticed CZ looking intently at him, and so he said, “I was just talking to myself.”

寂寞的笑着的安兹注意到希丝一直看着自己，于是回答了句「自言自语而已」。

“...Your Majesty.”

「…………魔导王陛下」

“Hm?”

「嗯？」

“...Your Majesty/”

「…………魔导王陛下」

“...What is it, CZ?”

「……怎么了希丝」

She had addressed him by his name in the past, but now she had suddenly switched to using his formal address. That slightly -- or rather, greatly -- disturbed Ainz.

一直以来都是普通的叫法，却突然用职位来称呼，这让安兹稍微——应该说感到相当的困惑。

“...Been too familiar all this time… is that how it was?”

「…………一直以来都太套近乎了……是这样吗？」

“What, what are you saying? I’d feel sad if you called me Your Majesty. Ainz-sama will do. Frankly speaking, you don’t even need the -sama. How about Ainz-san?”

「说、说些什么呢。要是被你们称做魔导王陛下才会感到寂寞呢。安兹大人就好了。老实说，把大人拿掉都没关系。安兹先生怎么样？」

“...That would be rude. I’d get scolded.”

「…………那样太无礼了。要被骂」

“..Oh, I see. Well, you don’t need to call me Your Majesty, at least.”

「……喔，这样啊。嘛，但不用称呼陛下也没关系喔」

“...Got it.”

「…………我知道了」

“Oh yes, how about the Runecraft™ thing that I told you about over the [Message]?”

「对了。<讯息>里拜托的，关于卢恩的事情怎么样了？」

“...I tried.”

「…………努力过了」

“I see…”

「这样啊……」

It would see it had not gone well. Still, it ought not to be a problem even if it failed.

好像不是顺利的样子。嘛，就算失败了也应该不会有什么问题。

Still, maybe I should wait to return the items I lent, Ainz mused idly as he watched CZ.

但是包括弓在内，回收借出去的道具还是等等比较好吧，安兹一边呆呆的想着一边看着希丝。

When he had left, he had shared his carriage with a girl who kept glaring at him. On his way back, it was a girl with a blank face. Both of them were unique in their own way.

去的时候同乘者是瞪着自己的少女，回来的时候是面无表情的少女。两人都别具特色。

As Ainz thought about this, he smiled.

想着这些的安兹，稍微笑了出来。

***

Caspond looked outside from the deepest part of the royal palace -- the Holy King’s chambers.

卡斯邦登在王城最深处的地方——给圣王的房间里往外眺望。

His coronation would be in a few days. Therefore, he had come to this empty room -- including the break room beside this one -- to calm his thoughts.

数日后即将举行加冕典礼，因为以想要静下心来的理由所以这个房间里——包括旁边的休息室在内谁也不在。

The first person who would complain, and who would not mind her words was Remedios. She was currently meditating in her home. No, it would not be right to say she was meditating. Rather, she was gathering her strength at home. That was because he intended to send her to see if there were any more demihumans hiding within the Holy Kingdom.

首先肯定会发出抱怨的一人，不会察言观色蕾梅迪奥斯在家闭门思过。不，说是闭门思过有点不对，是让她在家养精蓄锐。因为之后预定要让她去探查有没有亚人在圣王国内潜伏。

That said, he had still moved to the Holy King’s room before the coronation had finished. This was a very good reason for Caspond’s enemies to attack him. He had insisted on doing so even though he knew that because the power struggles had already begin.

虽说如此，加冕典礼还没结束前就移居到圣王的房间，这对与卡斯邦登敌对的人来说是很好的攻击理由。即使知道这点也依然强硬这么做是因为权力斗争早就开始了。

The aim was to establish the facts before the anti-Caspond nobles could say anything. Given that Caspond did not quite understand noble society, the ability to tell friend from foe was quite convenient. That too was part of the plan.

在部分否定卡斯邦登的贵族插嘴之前造成既定事实就是目的。对于如今不怎么了解贵族社会的卡斯邦登来说，能够明确区分出谁是敌谁是友会比较便于行事。这个想法也是其中的一环。

“...I’m sure some of the nobles must be unhappy by how I took the throne without making arrangements with the other nobles. That’s particularly true for the Southerners -- the ones which he did not oppress. In that case, what will the Northerners I fought with think if I listened to them…”

「……我没有事前和其他的贵族们做任何疏通就登上王位的话，一部分的贵族会感到不快吧。尤其是南方的——没有受到那位大人的加害的贵族们。那样的话要是听取他们的意见，一同战斗的北方居民会怎么想呢……」

“They would surely be unhappy, and become a major divisive factor. That way, the plan to divide the country in two will be complete.

会产生明确的不满，成为决裂的一大要因——一分为二的圣王国就完成了」

Caspond’s self-directed mutterings received an answer.

卡斯邦登的自言自语得到了回应的声音。

It was a gentle voice that seemed to seep into the heart. It belonged to the entity which was Caspond’s superior.

一道渗入人心的温和嗓音。那是相当于卡斯邦登上司的存在。

Caspond immediately turned and knelt to the speaker. He bowed, and then raised his head.

卡斯邦登立刻转身，向声音的主人屈膝，低下头后抬起来。

“I bid you welcome, Demiurge-sama.”

「恭迎大驾亲临，迪米乌哥斯大人」

He was not wearing his mask, and he had not changed his appearance before showing up. In other words, he was certain that this place was safe.

没有带着假面，也没有改变容貌就现身，就是说肯定确认过这周围的安全了吧。

“I am here in order to move items back to Nazarick. Are there any problems?”

「我是为了回收要搬运到纳萨力克的东西而来的。现下有发生什么问题吗？」

“None at all. Everything has gone as you have planned, Demiurge-sama.”

「一切毫无问题。全部都如同迪米乌哥斯大人的计画一样」

Caspond smiled, and Demiurge returned it.

卡斯邦登露出笑容，迪米乌哥斯也也回以微笑。

“While there were some things which were beyond my expectations, the first phase of the plan has concluded without any problems, thanks to Ainz-sama’s actions. I look forward to your good performance in the future.”

「虽然也有一部分是在预料之外，但多亏了安兹大人行动的福，第一阶段的计画没有发生任何问题就结束了。今后也期待你的表现」

Caspond’s head was bowed, but he knew those words were not true.

虽然低下头，但卡斯邦登很清楚这不是真话。

Demiurge expected nothing of him. However, if he was about to jump the rails which had been laid for him, he would immediately jump in to correct the plan and keep it on track.

迪米乌哥斯对自己根本就没在期待。只不过要是脱离他铺好的轨道的话，立刻就会进行修正继续完成计画的吧。

He ought to have prepared several plans for revealing Caspond’s true identity. His instructions had included several items which made him wonder why he had to do these them. Those must have been intended to prepare for that moment.

应该连卡斯邦登的真面目暴露时的计画都准备好了几个才对。指示中有几个地方让人产生为什么要这么做的疑问，那肯定是为了那个的准备吧。

The first phase of the plan was to bring the Abelion Hills and the demihumans under the sway of the Sorcerous Kingdom. Before that, they would exterminate the troublesome species and then plant the seeds of a conflict between the Northern and Southern Holy Kingdom.

计画的第一阶段。那就是将亚伯利恩丘陵和亚人们完全置于魔导国的支配之下。在那之前歼灭掉会碍事的种族，然后同时埋下圣王国南北对立的火种。

After that, Caspond would be in charge of the second phase, which was to bring North and South into opposition, and then conflict.

接着是卡斯邦登所主导的第二阶段，那就是北部和南部明确的对立和抗争。

The final, third phase would be to have the Sorcerous Kingdom step in to take over everything.

最后的第三阶段则是以魔导国为主导的完全统治这个形式。

“... I have a question regarding the item needed for that, the body of this one. Will you keep it here?”

「……为此所需的道具，属下的尸体。要存放在这里吗？」

“There is no need for that. It has already been brought to Nazarick. When it is necessary for the plan, it can be brought here.”

「没有那个必要。已经送到纳萨力克了。计画进行到必要的地方时可以送过来」

The true Caspond’s body was wrapped in an item known as a Shroud of Sleep, and it had apparently been brought to Nazarick.

正牌卡斯邦登的尸体被安息裹尸布[Shroud of Sleep]这个道具所包住，似乎是送到了纳萨力克了。

This magic item could arrest the decay of a corpse. He had been neatly killed with instant death magic upon capture, and his body had been preserved before rigor mortis could set in. If one touched it, one could still feel traces of his body heat. With that corpse, one would simply assume he had died all of a sudden.

这个魔法道具可以抑制尸体的腐败。在抓到的阶段就用即死魔法漂亮的杀掉了，尸体在死后僵硬都还没开始时就保存起来了。触碰的话甚至还能感到些微的体温。使用这个尸体的话，只会认为是突然死亡吧。

“Allow me to verify something. Do you understand what you ought to do, as Holy King?”

「姑且先确认一下。作为次任圣王该做的事，已经理解了吧？」

“Yes. In order to make this a country worthy of Ainz-sama, I must make it prosperous.

「是。为了在将来能成为一个配得上拥戴安兹大人的国家，属下要让其富裕起来」

“Mm, just so. However, you must keep the people unhappy. After all, dissatisfaction is the best spice to welcome a new king.”

「嗯，就是这样。但是，绝对不要减少不满。因为不满是迎来新王的最好的香料」

“Yes,“ Doppel-Caspond replied. Then he asked Demiurge about a problem that had not been described in his plan.

是，这样回答的卡斯邦登·二重幻影对于迪米乌哥斯指示的计画中所没有的问题发出提问。

“Speaking of which, what should we do about that girl?”

「话说回来，那个女孩要怎么处理才好呢？」

That was all Demiurge needed to realise who Doppel-Caspond was talking about, and for the first time his smile came from the heart.

只是这样就领悟到在说谁的迪米乌哥斯首次展现出发自心底的笑容。

“I once used the word ‘unfathomable’ to describe Ainz-sama… indeed, that is the case. Ainz-sama has prepared an excellent pawn for me. Her existence has accelerated my plan by several years.”

「过去曾用过深不可测这个词来形容安兹大人……完全就是这样。安兹大人替我准备了一个相当棒的棋子。她的存在让我的计画能以年单位缩短」

Doppel-Caspond had the feeling that Demiurge’s eyes -- he could not tell exactly where he was looking -- had suddenly moved. They seemed to be looking at the wall. And over there is… on that topic Caspond remembered that it was the main gate of the capital.

卡斯邦登·二重察觉到迪米乌哥斯那双不知道在看哪里的瞇瞇眼突然动了。朝着墙壁——在那一头是，这样考虑着的卡斯邦登想起了是首都的正门。

“While he had said he wanted to enthrall humans to his side… to think he could actually make a girl like that in such a staunchly religious country. Although, I have no idea why he said it would be fine to kill even a girl to whom he had lent such a splendid Runecraft™ weapon, no doubt it must have been to force her into a mental state like that.

「虽然之前以为是想要得到醉心自己的人类……居然能在宗教色彩浓厚的国家里做出那样的女孩……。虽然对为什么连借给了武器的女孩都杀了也没关系的这个指示有所疑问，没想到是为了将她逼到那样的精神状态啊」

Demiurge seemed to be in a very good mood, and he did not seem to be telling this to anyone in particular. Caspond merely waited in silence for Demiurge to turn his attention back to himself.

心情很好的迪米乌哥斯并不是在对任何人说这些话。卡斯邦登只是静静的等待着迪米乌哥斯将意识转到自己身上。

“The instruction to help that girl was truly the right answer. No, if it were Ainz-sama, he would surely be able to correct anything that I did. While he did say in the past that he planned to introduce flaws into the plan to test my adaptability, to think he had laid such cunning plans… he is truly the one who united the Supreme Beings. Every time, he shows me how far I am from him… Kuku, what a cruel master he is.”

「没有贸然揣度，做出帮助那位少女的指示真是正确答案。不，如果是安兹大人的话，不管我做了都会漂亮的修正吧。虽然说过因为想知道应对能力而打算什么都不考虑让计画出现破绽这样的话……却还布下了绝妙的局……真不愧是整合诸位无上至尊的那位大人。每一次，都让我知道自己有多远远不及……呵呵，真是位残酷的大人」

Demiurge seemed profoundly moved as he shook his head, and the interior of the room was silent. Finally, Demiurge adjusted his collar, as if to bleed off the last of his excitement, and then tightened his tie.

迪米乌哥斯一副感动不已的样子摇着头。房间里被沉默所支配。最终像是要将兴奋的余韵给散去一样，迪米乌哥斯整理衣领，重新打好领带。

“Support Neia Baraja with everything at your disposal. Do so in the name of giving thanks to Ainz-sama. That ought to further accelerate the conflict between North and South… I will soon hand you plans on what to do if someone tries to interfere with that girl. Until then, act as we have discussed.”

「以你的立场去全面支援宁亚·巴拉哈在做的事。要用感谢安兹大人的名义来公开进行。这也能够促进北部和南部之间的对立吧。……最近会把如果有妨碍那女孩的情况出现时等等的计画书交给你。在那之前用说好的立场来行动」

“Yes! ...But what will become of that girl? Do you intend to make her the next Holy King?”

「是！……那么那个女孩会怎么样呢？难道说要让她成为下一代圣王？」

In that case, he would need to make the appropriate preparations. That said, Demiurge had said he would be giving him exact instructions, so it would be best to do as he was told.

那样的话，就有必要先做好相应的行动。虽说如此，迪米乌哥斯会发出要这样那样做的指示，只要照着去做就好。

“That’s not a bad idea too, but it would be better to give her another mission. While there is no telling if Ainz-sama wishes to be regarded as a god, if he does intend that, then it would be better to prepare for it. The experiment of worshipping Ainz-sama as a god will surely be useful in that case.”

「那样也不坏，但还是让她担当起别的使命比较好。虽然无法得知安兹大人是不是希望被称呼为神，但若是有这个意思的话，做好事前准备会比较好。将安兹大人当作神来崇拜的人的实验中会派得上用场吧」

“Yes!”

「是！」

“Now then, is there anything else you would like to take this chance to verify?”

「那么还有想趁现在确认的事项吗？」

“Yes. It concerns that woman who is no longer necessary, Remedios Custodio. While the original plan was to have her run around as needed, would it not be better to kill her off?”

「是。关于已经不需要的女人，蕾梅迪奥丝斯·卡斯托迪奥。虽然按照计划适当的让她来回奔走，但杀掉她不是比较安全吗？」

“No, just keep her alive and let her become a scapegoat for the nobles’ dissatisfaction. That was why I said she was the only one who was not to be killed. Transfer her to another department. Let the Vice-Captain become the Captain of the Paladin Corps and then make use of him. He can be put to meaningful work.”

「不，就让那个继续这样活着，暂时让她成为贵族们宣泄不满的对象比较好。为此才在最初见面的时候就说只有那个不要杀掉的。把她换到别的部属。圣骑士那里就让副团长就任团长后使用吧。这个能有意义的利用」

“I understand!”

「属下遵命！」

“Deal with her when the conflict becomes evident.”

「处分要在对立变得明确的时候」

After showing that he understood, Demiurge indicated that the conversation was over, and vanished with [Greater Teleportation]

在表达了解之意后，迪米乌哥斯表示话就说到这里，使用<高阶传送>消去了身影。

The demon hiding in his Shadow, and the Hanzo that Caspond could never defeat no matter what he tried were still at his disposal.

潜伏在影子里的恶魔，以及卡斯邦登无论如何也赢不了的半藏这样的部下还依然借用着。

Doppel-Caspond rose to his feet and looked outside the window again.

站起来的卡斯邦登·二重再度眺望窗外。

While he could only see the courtyard, he imagined he could see the revelling people throughout the city. After that, he laughed mockingly.

虽然只看得见中庭，却能幻视到都市里满是欢天喜地的人们。然后他发出了嘲笑。

“--Enjoy the taste of happiness for a while longer, citizens of my country.”