The narrow roads in E-Rantal proved to be a bigger challenge than going through the gates.
The group moved with the carriage for as long as they could, but at some point they were forced to continue on foot to the Bareare Shop.
After instructing Nigun to guard the carriage, Ainz took 2 of Enri's barrels in his hands, with Lupusregina carrying one, and the rest of the group carrying the remaining two.
Fortunately, they didn't need to walk for long before finding the shop.
It was a two-story building made out of wood that didn't stand out from the other shops in the street, but the 'Bareare' written on the storefront showcased that they were in the right place.
As did the strong smell emanating from the building.
Is this poisonous?
As an undead, Ainz had complete immunity to poison, so he looked at the people around him.
The members of Sword of Darkness were frowning, but showed no sign of poisoning, while Enri was trying her best to keep a good expression on her face.
Is it because she doesn't want to be rude to the people she knows?
He mused, but then his attention went to Lupusregina.
More than anyone, she was trying to keep her expression neutral, but thick beads of sweat were already forming on her forehead, and her eyes were trembling.
It seems that heightened senses aren't always a good thing, huh?
Lupusregina was a werewolf with a powerful sense of smell, so it was understandable that she would be the most affected by the borderline-poisonous smell coming from the shop.
"Why don't you wait in the carriage? I can take things from here." He whispered to her.
It would be cruel to force her to stay under these circumstances.
"But," Lupusregina looked at the others, and seeing that there was no one near them, continued.
"Ainz-sama, you shouldn't be left unguarded. What if an enemy attacks?"
And in which way would your presence matter in such a situation?
Despite his subordinate's concerned tone, Ainz struggled to take her words seriously.
The Pleiades may be called battle maids, but they were NPCs created more for roleplaying purposes than for actual combat.
Save for Aureole Omega, all of the Pleiades were low-level NPCs with non-optimized builds who could be considered strong by this world's standards, but would at most count as a middle-tier force in Nazarick.
Lupusregina was a level 59 divine caster, the second highest level out of the regular Pleiades, but with 5 levels in Werewolf, she could only cast spells up to the 8th tier.
Would it take me 2 or 3 10th-tier spells to defeat her?
Considering his many instant-death spells, maybe only one would suffice.
In Yggdrasil, damage calculations were affected by the levels of the one dealing and the one receiving the damage. If the dealer had a higher level, the damage would go up, while the opposite would be true if the defender was the one with the higher level.
This meant that even a fairly balanced group like the Pleiades would still struggle to take on a level 80 individual, let alone him.
At the moment, he was using the spell [Perfect Warrior] to convert all his magic caster levels into warrior ones, which made him a half-baked level 100 warrior who would certainly lose when faced with someone like Albedo or Sebas, but who should still be stronger than a level 90 warrior player.
If an enemy capable of threatening him appeared, it was safe to say that Lupusregina wouldn't be able to do anything to them.
But saying that to her would be very cruel, so he opted for another approach.
"Go to the carriage and secure the route to this shop. If anyone suspicious appears, inform me immediately." He assumed the tone of the Overlord of Nazarick at this moment.
"Yes, Ainz-sama." Lupusregina almost bowed her head to him, but thankfully stopped herself.
Should I have given her the role of my servant for this little roleplaying adventure of ours? Maybe it would be easier for her.
Ainz noticed that treating him with anything less than complete respect was something that seemed almost painful for the NPCs of Nazarick.
There was some deviation for some due to how they were programmed, but when it came to it, they all revered him as a Supreme Being, something akin to a god to whom they were fanatically devoted.
As such, even asking for them to treat him like an equal for this role seemed to put them in a difficult position.
To be seen as a god was not something he wished for, but he wasn't strongly opposed to it either.
In the end, for him, it would all come down to what the NPCs wished for.
For the children of Nazarick, he could be a god or a devil, and even their overlord.
Maybe those 6 players were also pushed into the role of gods by the humans of the time?
As Ainz thought about the founders of the Slaine Theocracy, the door of the shop opened, and an old lady appeared.
***
Lizzie Bareare was a fierce woman, something that not even 75 years were able to fix.
For her, fierceness wasn't so much a personality trait as much as a prerequisite to survive in this city.
She walked with a hunched back and had barely any teeth in her mouth, but no one in E-Rantal would be dumb enough to think of her as a defenseless old lady.
Born in a village that no longer existed, she had come to E-Rantal in search of opportunities with no family and no money, but a lot of talent.
Many decades later, she was widely regarded as the best pharmacist in the city, a fact she took pride in.
But her proudest achievement was still having her grandson Nfirea.
Her son and daughter-in-law had long since died trying to be adventurers, so Nfirea was her only living kin.
She poured all her love and attention into teaching him her craft, and the boy didn't disappoint her, growing into a phenomenal pharmacist whom she was sure would one day surpass her.
There was nothing she wouldn't do for her grandson, which was why she received the guests with some apprehension, leading them to the room she had reserved for negotiations with clients.
5 men… No, 4 men and a woman, most of them young.
She opened the windows, hearing the sighs of relief from the youngsters who she knew were suffering under the smell of her shop.
"Enri, what brings you to E-Rantal? And who are these people?" She spoke to the young girl she was more than a bit familiar with.
Enri Enmot was a girl she had seen grow up.
From time to time, she would go to Carne to gather special herbs that grew in the forest, and when she did, she would bring Nfirea with her.
And that was why she knew that he loved Enri from the very first time he laid his eyes on her.
She thought it would end as a simple childhood crush, but as the years went by, his feelings for Enri only grew stronger, and she couldn't blame him for it.
Enri was a lovely girl who had charmed her way into her own heart.
Lizzie already saw her as a future granddaughter-in-law, so it was with great surprise that she opened the door of her shop to find this very same girl accompanied by a group of strangers.
"Ah, Grandma, this is Momon, a powerful warrior and companion to the savior of the village, and these are Ninya, Peter, Dyne, and Lukrut, adventurers we met on the way." Enri awkwardly introduced everyone.
She let her gaze wander through the group.
The four youngsters were clearly silver-ranked adventurers, nothing to worry about.
But the man in black armor raised alarms in her head.
From her experience, someone who could use armor like that would either be a powerful adventurer or a noble, none of whom should be mingling with a village girl like Enri.
Wait, savior?
"I came to the city to sell herbs collected by everyone in the village, and because Ainz-sama asked me to help Momon and Lupita, Ah!" She then lightly hit her head.
"She is not here right now, but she's also a companion of Ainz-sama."
"Wait, Enri. What happened to your village, and who is this Ainz?"
She thought the name sounded familiar, but she couldn't quite remember where she had heard it.
"Ainz-sama is the magic caster who saved the village from an attack by knights."
Enri then began to tell her how her village had been attacked, how her parents died, and how a powerful magic caster had come to save them.
At the mention of Gazef Stronoff, she finally understood where she had heard the name.
The rumors going on in the city had obviously reached her ears.
She knew of the mysterious magic caster who had saved a village and the Warrior Captain; only she didn't expect it to be Enri's village.
Tears welled into her eyes upon hearing Enri's tragedy.
"Oh, my child, how much you have suffered." She brought Enri into a strong embrace.
"It's okay, Grandma. Nemu is still alive, and thanks to Ainz-sama, we are rebuilding the village. Once I sell these herbs and bring back the money, we won't have to worry about food or clothing for the winter." Enri gave her a cheerful smile.
You're such a wonderful child.
She wiped the tears from her eyes.
"Don't worry, Enri. I have some connections in the city, so I'll have Nfirea help you with selling everything.
"Huh? You want me for something, Grandma?"
Suddenly, someone entered the room. It was her grandson.
After looking at the people around the table, his eyes widened, staring at Enri.
"E-Enri?" He stuttered.
"Nfirea!" Enri, still with tears in her eyes, rushed for a tight hug.
"W-W-What!?" Her grandson short-circuited.
"Hum… Let's give them some space, shall we?" Momon stood up and signaled to the others.
"We'll go to the Adventurer's Guild for now, but we'll be back." The man turned to her and spoke politely.