The underground casino was located in the northwestern part of the Royal Capital.
When night fell, the small-time thugs and gamblers from the Royal Capital's lower echelons would gather here; among them were foolish individuals who, despite their dire circumstances, still yearned for overnight riches, as well as gang members who brought in wealthy targets seeking thrills, intending to empty their pockets.
Even with the Royal Capital's unprecedented crackdown on various crimes recently, this place continued to operate normally.
This was because it was one of the casino strongholds of the Eight Fingers, the kingdom's largest underground organization, supported by many nobles behind the scenes.
In the casino manager's office, Noah Zidan, the person in charge who should have been sitting in the office chair, was now standing trembling, his position occupied by an Undead wearing a black robe and nine rings on his hands.
The scarlet glow in the Undead's eye sockets made Noah dare not breathe, his entire body seemingly enveloped by a chill, and it was already difficult for him to remain standing.
Beside the Undead stood a guard in full armor, holding a great axe; judging by the style of the armor, it appeared to be a female.
"Alright, you may go and attend to your duties," Ainz waved his hand, dismissing the terrified man.
"Yes!" Noah responded loudly in a panic, then turned and walked out of the office, only realizing the moment he closed the door that his back was soaked with sweat.
Sigh!
Ainz sighed, his gaze inadvertently sweeping over Albedo beside him, feeling very troubled by it.
After the last incident, the Guardian unanimously agreed that Ainz should not continue to personally investigate intelligence, especially appearing in the Kingdom's territory without strong guards by his side.
This was not to say that the Guardian was scared witless by that battle, but rather they felt that Ainz, as the supreme ruler of the entire Great Tomb of Nazarick, did not need to put himself in danger.
Therefore, when he traveled now, Albedo, Nazarick's strongest in defensive capabilities, would always accompany him, and not only that.
On the office ceiling and walls, lower-level beings could not detect them at all, but Ainz could see countless Eight-legged Blade Assassins meticulously guarding the distance from the door to his immediate vicinity.
These were specially arranged close-quarters guards; if Ainz hadn't used the excuse 'this is a covert operation,' even more guards would likely be surrounding him.
Although he personally felt it was unnecessary and somewhat unaccustomed, he seemed to have no room to refuse the Guardian's concerns.
"And even the Adventurers Fifee is being impersonated by Pandora… Ah~ what's the difference between me now and being in prison!" Ainz thought with great distress, finding it difficult to adapt to his subordinates' excessive concern; he wished he hadn't told them his suspicions about Lock's identity.
However, according to Demiurge's investigation, Lock's life story, from birth to the present, was fully traceable in this world, completely unlike how he and his companions had suddenly appeared.
So, was he truly a Yggdrasil player?
Even if not, he must certainly have some connection to the former White Star.
The mysterious person encountered in Carne Village, the World Item user who mind-controlled Shalltear, and Lock, who possessed White Star's exclusive equipment—this world, as he suspected, still had players other than himself.
And there was a very high possibility that these people were connected; could it be an organization like the 'Otherworld Player Alliance'?
Then why didn't they contact him, who was also a player?
Or perhaps that organization had already divided the entire world by region, and he had inadvertently trespassed into their territory, thus being treated as an enemy?
"If communication could be established, perhaps we could integrate into this world faster, and maybe my guildmates are in some corner of this world…"
The more Ainz thought this, the more he felt regret, and at the same time, he felt happy for that sliver of possibility; after all, he was just an ordinary person nostalgic for the past.
"Lord Ainz, the miscellaneous matters have been handled; where do you plan to go next?" Albedo seemed to have received some message, reported to Ainz, and asked.
"Hmm~"
Ainz's bone-white finger bones rested on his chin as he pondered for a moment; his presence here was entirely due to Demiurge's subsequent handling plan.
Based on the intelligence Ainz provided, considering that a 'Player Alliance' organization might be planning something in the Kingdom through the native Lock, and to avoid escalating conflict with this unknown force, Demiurge decided to sever ties with the Eight Fingers organization, which was entangled with the Great Tomb.
Some high-ranking members of the Eight Fingers, depending on the situation, could even be directly absorbed into Nazarick and sent to other countries to gather intelligence, as there were very few beings within Nazarick suitable for operating in human nations; absorbing some native humans as pawns was still necessary.
The remaining lower-level members, who were unaware of the Great Tomb's existence, were best dealt with directly as a precaution.
To ensure their complete demise, Demiurge planned to place demon-summoning items in each of the Eight Fingers' current strongholds, then activate them simultaneously, allowing the demons to destroy all of the Eight Fingers' forces in the Royal Capital.
Of course, their goal was to eliminate the Eight Fingers, not to re-engage in war with Lock. Therefore, they had informed the Golden Princess in advance, trusting that Lock's Tiger Knight Order would be able to eliminate the demons after they appeared, preventing the situation from escalating to the entire Royal Capital.
This was also a gesture of goodwill towards the other party; during this time, Lock had been currying favor with nobles and establishing factions, and he likely urgently needed a meritorious deed to stabilize the cohesion of his forces and enhance his prestige among the populace.
Incidentally, the Adventurers Fifee and Nabe, played by Pandora, might also distinguish themselves in this incident; if they could infiltrate the Golden Princess's faction, they might have a chance to obtain information about 'players.'
Three birds with one stone!
"I want to stay here and see if the unfolding events can meet our expectations. If everything goes smoothly, that's good; if any mishaps occur, we can also rectify them in time," Ainz said. In truth, it was entirely because he had nothing to do right now; if he returned to Nazarick, he would only be bored, wandering from the first floor to the tenth, or inspecting the Lizardmen's village, and so on.
Rather than that, it was better to stay here and oversee the execution of the plan.
"I understand," Albedo nodded in response. Since Lord Ainz was staying here, guard duty was her concern. "I will dispatch personnel now to find a suitable observation point."
"Pay attention to concealment; try not to be discovered by anyone," Ainz instructed, not wanting his presence to cause other problems for the original plan.
"Yes!"
Albedo acknowledged the command, then immediately used 'Message' to notify Solution in the outer perimeter to carry out the task; she herself had no intention of leaving.
After being told not to disturb him, no one else should come to this office, and since he didn't need sleep at all, Ainz could only stare blankly at the ceiling, which also helped him think.
What should I do next? I can't think of anything! Maybe I should just leave it to Demiurge and the others to figure out.
Convinced that strategizing was not his strong suit, Ainz simply gave up.
The night quickly passed, and as a new day began, the warm morning sun illuminated the entire Royal Capital, and all residents started their day's work.
Meanwhile, in the training tower of the Royal Castle, the clanging of weapons could be heard early in the morning.
Gazef swung the iron sword in his hand, striking the enemy's right shoulder with precise accuracy, but the result far exceeded his expectations.
Even with a slightly dull sword tip, given his strength, an attack on an ordinary person would directly pierce through skin and muscle, only potentially being stopped by harder bone at the very end.
But Climb, standing before him, completely avoided such a result; although Gazef's iron sword pierced his clothes, it was entirely blocked by the skin on his shoulder.
Seizing this opportunity, Climb's long sword in his right hand immediately thrust towards Gazef's abdomen, its swift speed several times faster than usual.
Gazef keenly detected the attack, took a small hop backward, and his long sword also chopped downwards, deflecting Climb's attack.
"That's enough for now," Gazef said, then sheathed his weapon.
Climb also stopped his movements, his joy evident on his face. Just today, he was finally able to stand his ground against Gazef, something he could never have imagined before!
However, when Gazef saw Climb's face, he sighed inwardly.
To enable Climb to grow to this extent in such a short time, it must be the miraculous method of that rumored Count, right?
Because of his own powerlessness, he was willing to sacrifice something for strength. Gazef didn't approve, but he was also happy for Climb; at least he had pulled himself together again.
He believed that Climb chose this path not for himself, but for Princess Lana, a choice made out of loyalty, which Gazef admired. But whether such power had any other side effects, no one knew except the Count.
This was also the real reason why Gazef, though he had considered improving his own strength, had never placed his hopes on Lock.
"Climb, are you alright?" Gazef stared at Climb, noticing that his eyes were filled with an unusual excitement.
Climb swung the arm holding the iron sword and said with a smile, "I've never felt this good. With a bit more practice, I'll fully adapt to the changes in my body, and then I'll be able to unleash my full strength."
"That's truly astonishing. In just a single day, your strength has improved to this extent. Perhaps once you've fully adapted, I won't be your opponent anymore," Gazef exclaimed.
"What are you saying? I still have much to learn from you!" Climb said with a slight hint of concern.
Although he had become stronger, he still respected Lord Stronoff and sincerely wanted to learn his exquisite combat techniques.
"Is that so? Then let's go again. This time, I'll use my full power!!!"