Volume 16: The Half-Elf God-kin Part II Chapter 4 : A life in the Village (Part 1)

Ainz walked towards the Dark Elf village with Mare in tow.

Mare was wearing the male attire that Ainz had lent him instead of his usual feminine wear. Just like the ones he had lent to Aura, these were just simple clothes that didnt have any data in them and thus, no magic.

This worlds clothes wouldnt automatically adjust to fit the wearer unless imbued with magic, but its different for the clothes from YGGDRASIL and so they fit Mare to a tee. They just had to be careful in a battle with these clothes due to the absolute drop in defensive stats compared to their usual outfits.

Ainz actually thought about having them wear something else at first because of this.

He had already heard from the twins that Bukubukuchagama prepared a lot of items for them aside from their normal gear.

But, was there really anything suitable among those items to hide their status and true strength in the place they were heading to? Ainz could only shake his head in disappointment. Most of them were things like Auras animal suit armor or Mares dress armor; things Ainz would consider as fetish gear. That was how Ainz ended up providing the clothes for them.

In the first place, this was Ainzs plan, so it stood to reason that he should be the one to provide the things necessary.

That didnt mean they were all wearing similar outfits in this case. Mare and Ainzs outfits had one big difference from Auras.

The two of them were covering their lower faces with cloth, like they were wearing a mask. There was also the bandanna covering their foreheads, so only the area around their eyes could be seen.

Although he felt sorry for making Mare bear with the additional heat, Ainz needed him to do this for his sake.

They found Aura waiting for them at the entrance of the village; though the village didnt really have a place that could be called an entrance. She was not here because she saw them coming or because she was at the right place at the right time through sheer luck. It was because they had already contacted her with a [Message].

Behind Aura stood her group of fanatical Dark Elves. Its rare for the Dark Elves, who spent their daily lives on trees, to be seen standing on the ground like Aura. It was still a dangerous place, even if it was near the village. They were probably doing it because of the trust they had in the strongest person aroundAuraor maybe it was because they wanted to be in close proximity to the one they adored, as much as possible.

There were other Dark Elves gathered on the bridges spanning the trees, looking down at Ainz and the others. Everyone seemed to be talking with the people beside them. Although he couldnt hear the content of their conversations, he was sure they were talking about them.

Ooo-ncle! Mare!

Aura, feeling a little embarrassed, greeted them loudly so the gathered Elves could hear it as well. Ainz responded with a wide smile.

He wanted to retort with I am not an Oncle! but suppressed the urge, not wanting to mock Auras mistake.

(T/N: Originally Aura started with an Oooh and segued into Oo-oji-san (grand uncle) in Japanese, to which Ainz wanted to retort with I am not your grand uncle. Decided to change it as it couldnt be TLed into English perfectly.)

Yoo, Aura! Uncles here!

Ainz replied in a cheery voice and waved back after putting down the luggage he had been carrying on his back. Then, he lightly patted the shy boy standing next to him on his back.

Y-yes. Mare gave a brief wave as well. He greeted her with a sister but its very unlikely that they heard his shy muttering.

Still, it didnt matter if his voice was too quiet. All they wanted was to let everyone know that the man and the boyAuras relativeshad arrived.

Well, they need not have waved their hands to show how close their relationship was, but its not like it would cause any issues either.

Perhaps they had succeeded in their act, because the Dark Elves just continued to watch them silently even as they approached Aura.

Mmm, with that settled, please allow me to escortI will show you around

Ainz grinned upon seeing Aura so troubled and tense. Her face was twitching as she tried to make a smile. Seeing a side of Aura different from how she usually was, warm fluffy thoughts like She is so cute and I want to pat her head flashed through Ainzs mindthen he immediately calmed down.

No. Nn...

The reply unintentionally came out a little cold, so he cleared his throat and made his voice sound cheery again like before.

...I have to thank these people for taking care of you, you see. Did you borrow a house somewhere?

Aura gave an exaggerated nod.

Then why dont you head over there with Mare? I will catch up later

Yes, Undno, Okay?

His present role was that of Auras uncle.

Incidentally, the three of them racked their brains about who he was supposed to be: was he Bukubukuchagamas older or younger brother? If he was the latter, then was he older than Peroroncino or younger? In the end, Ainz took on the role of the younger brother of both Bukubukuchagama and Peroroncino.

Aura, who should have been acting accordingly, ended up fumbling around not knowing how to interact with him. Maybe it was because she didnt have enough time to prepare as she was sent to the village earlier, or maybe she hadn't resigned herself to their situation yet, but it seems like she couldnt play the role perfectly yet.

Hahaha. Take Mare with you then. The journey wasnt that long but let Mare have some rest.

Y-yes! Understood!

Perhaps Aura had finally settled on some plan in her mind, as she gave an energetic reply. However, he felt like she had just given up on the character.

Ainzs gaze followed the twins, who were walking away, for a while and then shifted his gaze to the gathered Dark Elves.

There were a lot of people here.

The elders were not here yet, but the gathering was already over half of the villages population. There were also some children among them. He didnt feel any ill will from them, probably due to how much they benefited from Auras help. That said, there were still some strong gazes that were appraising him, trying to understand what kind of person Auras uncle was.

Its that Aura fanatic and his followers.

Ainz felt that there was something off about them.