2 - God I’m already stressing out about all this…

"My lord!" Shalltear shouted as she rushed up to Lucius throwing her umbrella to the side. She grabbed ahold of his mask and leaned down to meet him in his sitting position. "One of the few men I cannot rule above!"

'Oh god I'm so happy this mask can cover my face so nobody can see my reactions and how out of my depth I am… I should probably shift around my leg for reasons…' Lucius thought to himself as he adjusted his posture somewhat.

"Shalltear, why don't you just give it a rest?" Aura said her hands planted firmly on her waist.

"Oh, little shorty you were here?" Shalltear said letting go of Lucius. She slowly turned to face Aura with a rather smug expression. Aura looks visibly irritated and is about to say something but Shalltear continues. "It must be difficult, Mare, to have such a crazy older sister."

"Fake boobs." Aura simply said after regaining her composure.

"What!?" Shalltear shouted moving her arms to cover her chest. Lucius smirks underneath his mask upon hearing this.

"Looks like I was right! That's why you went through the trouble of using a gate to get here. You were in a hurry, but since you overstuffed your breasts they would shift if you ran." Aura said with a smug smile that rivaled Shalltear's when she first turned to face her.

"Shut your mouth! You have nothing, yourself!" Shalltear shouted in a flustered tone in response to Aura. Lucius chuckles to himself eating up the conversation.

"I'm still only seventy-six years old, but you're undead. It must be tough having no more chance to grow. Why don't you just accept what you have now?" Aura said in a childish tone.

"Bitch, you should think carefully about what you say!" Shalltear shouted running towards Aura Lucius stretches somewhat now that he has space to do so.

'This is great… I'm defiantly not going back home to that soon to be wasteland even if I'm given the chance.' Lucius thought while watching the pair bicker. 'Come to think of it weren't their creator's brother and sister? Those two were great to watch when they would bicker... Although Peroroncino was into some freaky stuff.'

"What a ruckus." A powerful voice said suddenly just to the left of Lucius which caused him to jump out of surprise. He sees Cocytus slowly walking up to everyone. "You two are playing around too much in front of our master."

Lucius looks back to the bickering pair to see they are both in fighting positions suddenly. Shalltear with two burning orbs surrounding her hands and Aura readying her whip.

"This little shorty slandered me!" Shalltear shouted angrily.

"I told the truth!" Aura shouted in response.

Lucius claps his hands together as loud as he can, creating a sudden gust of wind. Lucius is rather shocked by the sheer loudness and power of the clap. Everyone turns to face him looking startled by the sudden sound they see blue and red vapor shooting from his back. His eyes are also glowing two different colors his left is red where the blue part of the vapor is coming from and the right is blue where the red vapor is coming from. They stand as straight as they can and look at Lucius with a hint of fear in their eyes.

"As amusing as this is to watch now is not the time for games." Lucius said unaware of the glowing eyes and vapor radiating off of himself. He looks over at Cocytus and said. "Good to see you're in attendance."

'Wait why in the hell did I word it that way?! Shit, Think of something better to say quickly! Wait... Why has my Aura Of Dominance activate?' He thought to himself somewhat intimidated by Cocytus's appearance.

"I shall always respond immediately to your summons." Cocytus said in response to Lucius.

"Good… Good." Lucius said glad he thought nothing of what he said.

"Everyone, I apologize for making you all wait." A man's voice said to the right Lucius looked over to see Demiurge and Albedo walking in tow towards him and the rest of the guardians. Once they reach the group everyone seems to take a sort of formation and stand before Lucius whose eyes still glow vibrantly along with the vapor.

"Now, everyone, to our supreme leader, the ritual of fidelity." Albedo said kneeling before Lucius along with everyone else.

'This kind of reminds me of that time I visited one of the underperforming office buildings… It was hilarious firing the manager in front of a good portion of the workforce." Lucius thought to himself smiling somewhat sadistically underneath his mask. He stops smiling as he realizes he's taking far too much enjoyment over what he had just recalled compared to when it actually happened. He shakes the thought off then looked back to all of the guardians waiting on him.

"Excellent you all may raise your heads… I'm proud to have such a workforce who listens flawlessly…" Lucius sighs as he realizes he called them his workforce then continues. "For gathering here on such short notice I thank you all."

"Your thanks are wasted upon us. We here have all pledged ourselves to you. Lord Lucius, you may find us lacking. However, we vow to work hard and live up to the expectations of the supreme beings that created us." Albedo said looking dead serious.

"We vow this to you!" They all then say in unison which makes Lucius smile once again thinking about their creators.

"Fantastic! I do not doubt that you all will perform more than adequately and without fail!" Lucius said in high spirits having been reminded of his friends in the guild. He sees them all smiling well apart from Cocytus who can't exactly smile but Lucius feels as if he's doing it in his own way.

"Now onto more some more pressing matters. The entire tomb of Nazarick is in a rather peculiar situation… Sebas has scouted the outside of the tomb and has discovered something…" Lucius said completely aware of Sebas waiting nearby. Sebas bows then walked forward coming to a stop near Lucius then kneels.

"The surroundings of the Great Tomb of Nazarick are all that of a grassland steppe." Sebas said making Lucius scratch his chin underneath the mask.

"Grasslands and not a swamp… How about any sign of civilization?" Lucius asked now thinking he wasn't just moved to the game but some sort of new world.

"I could not confirm any buildings, humans, or even monsters in an eleven-kilometer radius." Sebas said still kneeling before Lucius.

"Fortunately, we seem to be in the middle of nowhere it would be rather awkward if something as large as the tomb appeared in full view of a city... Anyway, it seems as if we were all moved or transported to an unknown area or world… Ugh, it's so hard to think a million miles a second when speaking in a completely different language than you're used to… Albedo and Demiurge." Lucius said pausing

'Okay stop and think for a moment what needs to be done… Treat this as a strategy game.' Lucius thinks of many things that need to be done before looking back up to Albedo and Demiurge. "We need to fortify our defenses further so think of ways to personally improve it. And we need to create a more effective information gathering and sharing system… And furthermore, we need to test our strength in this situation we are in provided we're not alone in this place." Lucius pauses for a moment to catch his breath and think some more.

"It would be best to hide the tomb from any potential onlookers… What do you think should be done Mare?" Lucius asks Mare who twitches at the mention of his name.

"I-It would be difficult only using magic. But, if we covered the walls with dirt and concealed ourselves with vegetation…"

"You want to smear the glorious walls of Nazarick with dirt?" Albedo interrupts sounding displeased.

"Oh no, we absolutely shouldn't try to hide said glorious walls from those who are unworthy to gaze upon them. Not to mention those who would wish to destroy them." Lucius said sarcastically in an annoyed tone. He shifts around wondering why he had said that but just shook it off.

"I am very sorry, Lord Lucius." Albedo said further bowing her head downward.

"It would be good to conceal ourselves as some sort of hill or mountain… Sebas are there any hills or mountains around?" Lucius asked glancing over to him.

"No. Unfortunately, we are surrounded by flatlands." Sebas responded looking up to Lucius.

"Well that doesn't matter much I supposed we could just make some fake hills around the immediate area… Terraforming should work just perfectly for you Mare." Lucius said looking back to Mare who blushes. "Hmm, actually there might be some spots that can't be as easily hidden with dirt and grass… We should hide the not so easy to conceal parts with illusion magic provided that it still works as it should."

'God I'm already stressing out about all this… I'm the boss so I should be doing next to no work compared to everyone else and reaping the rewards. Ugh, Okay what's left to cover?' He thought to himself. 'You know what screw it I'll leave the rest to Demiurge and Albedo they both are probably smarter than me anyway I just need to relax.'

"Albedo and Demiurge I shall leave the rest of the precautions to you two. I'm quite confident your intellects will be more than sufficient to cover anything I couldn't." Lucius said looking over at the pair. He quickly teleports away to his room and stares at the blank white walls before dropping face-first onto his red and black bed.

"This is way too much god damn thinking! I think I'll take back the whole me not going back to my world thing if I have to be this god damn active trying to look like a proper ruler." Lucius said loudly to himself.

"It seems you're fully aware of the game becoming real master I would expect nothing less of you." A female's voice said from behind Lucius who froze completely. He slowly rolled over to see the beautiful pale skinned Carmella standing before him. She practically stares into his soul through his mask with her scarlet eyes. She moves a strand of her short black hair and curtsies with her classical French maid dress.

"You scared the ever-living hell out of me Carmella! I'm truly grateful I made you aware of the world being a game… Since the real Carmella didn't log in much…" Lucius said with a sigh before rolling over to his left to see… Carmella? he shoots up and looks back and forth between the two.

"I didn't want you to be alone so I logged in but I couldn't exactly find you since every time I did you teleported away… My compliments on the NPC you made of me she truly is a perfect copy." Carmella said studying her counterpart.

"Gods just what am I going to do with two of you? I err… Thinking innocently. Carmella, pretend to be the NPC version of you. That might inspire everyone to work harder when they see the progress you 'alone' make responding to my orders letting me slack off more." Lucius said with a devilish smile underneath his mask.

"As I serve you in the real world I will ever strive to serve you in this one." Carmella said with another bow before walking to her NPC counterpart and speaking with her.

"The coming days are going to be awfully exhausting I can just feel it…" Lucius said before drifting off to sleep despite not requiring it.

THREE DAYS LATER

Lucius stands in a room next to a rather large mirror with one of the Pleiades standing nearby. He tries out various sets of armor trying to find what he can and can't use due to his build for his character. But he can't seem to find anything figuring the classes he's chosen covers everything. He finally stops on a mostly white outfit which also happens to be tribal looking just with no cloth wrappings it had a mask modeled after a white raven which he loved the look of. He also went through his inventory and decided that his white and red serrated katana would go best with this outfit.

"How do I look Narberal?" Lucius asks turning to the Pleiades member who stood by the doorway. He gives a couple of slow turns showing off the outfit which is completely inspired by a white raven. Despite being so flashy it's easy to move in.

"You always look your best Lord Lucius." Narberal Said with a bow and a blush.

"Hmm, I suppose you would say that even if I didn't... But I'll take your word for it as I have excellent dress sense... God, I could use some fresh air." Lucius said stretching finally used to his new height of seven-foot.

"The guards have already been prepared." Narberal said looking up to him with her usual blank face.

"I need some time to myself I'm not going far… And before you say anything else no I am going alone and that's final I'm not some fragile child. I could easily take on several of the floor guardians on at the same time." Lucius said getting no response from Narberal other than a look of awe. He teleports away to the first floor then sighs deeply.

"God I haven't had any time to myself since coming to this world having to act this much is damned tiring… Not to mention having to say and read everything in Japanese. Oh no, what if I have to learn an entirely new language here." Lucius said aloud before ascending the steps before him he reaches the top and sees Jealousy, avarice, and Wrath standing at the top of the stars looking down at him. As they stare Demiurge steps out from behind them and looks at Lucius before kneeling with the three demons.

"Lord Lucius you came here without any guards? And that outfit…" Demiurge said bowing his head down.

"Ah yes rather eye-catching isn't it?" Lucius said trying to change the subject but realizes that won't work on Demiurge of all people.

Demiurge lets out a small gasp before looking up to him. "So that's how it is."

'Oh god, he's doing it again… I need to think of what he's thinking of again damn it.' He thought to himself.

"As expected of a ruler, your attention to detail is impeccable." Demiurge said which added, even more, to think about but he just can't think of anything. He lets out yet another sigh before looking back at Demiurge who continues. "However, I cannot allow you to go out without anyone accompanying you."

"Ugh, fine then just you will join me although I would like some alone time at some point can't even be alone in my room because of Carmella's diligence." Lucius said looking at demiurge who smiles even more than before no doubt having figured out about Carmella.

"Thank you very much for accepting my selfishness." Demiurge said before standing up and following behind Lucius. They walk to the entrance before then finally reach the outside. Lucius stares at the night sky.

'It doesn't matter how much money you have it'll always be difficult to see such a clear night sky because of that damn smog.' Lucius thought to himself before reaching into his inventory and bringing out a necklace that has a feathered wing on it. He tosses it to demiurge he quickly catches it then looked up at him.

"Just in case you'll need to fly in the future without drawing any attention to yourself. Fly." Lucius said before ascending into the sky bursting through the clouds getting an even better view. He quietly stares at the stars as a sense of calm comes over him.

"The stars in the sky are truly beautiful compared to those from my world which were constantly covered by pollution." Lucius said removing his helmet and putting it in his inventory.

"I believe they shine for you and you alone my lord. As a reward for you doing something so selfless as staying behind with us all." Demiurge said gazing upon Lucius as he stares up at the stars.

"I might just claim all this new world's beauty and share it with all of Nazarick in that case." Lucius said in a joking tone.

"If you wish it, we will use all the forces of Nazarick to claim it for you." Demiurge said with a hand on his chest as he bowed ever so lightly.

"Ha, when there are so many unknowns at work? Although, taking over the world might just make up for the lack of internet." Lucius said his eyes now glowing red as he stares off at the stars.

'If any of the other main guild members have come to this world I would much prefer making them the leader. While I am a leader deep down people play games to separate the real world from the virtual. Although, This world is not exactly virtual.' Lucius thought to himself before being disturbed by what sounded like an earthquake. He looks down to see large masses of dirt and earth moving towards Nazarick.

'Magic being boosted up by some sort of skill or a separate spell… Wait it's been three days why the hell wasn't this done sooner?!' Lucius wondered to himself but shrugs it off.

"Lord Lucius. May I ask what you plan to do?" Demiurge asked Lucius who places his fingers on his chin thinking.

"Perhaps I'll go visit Mare as he works… Maybe I'll give him a gift for his hard work as of yet what do you think would best suit him?" Lucius asked before looking back down at Nazarick and putting back on his white raven mask.

"I am sure that he will be happy just to have you speak with him." Demiurge responded which didn't exactly help him make up his mind. He flies to where he has spotted Mare and lands gracefully. Mare looks over to him and after a short pause makes an excited expression.

"Lord Lucius!" Mare shouted now running up to Lucius with an adorable smile plastered onto his face reminding Lucius of his little sister. He smiled a bittersweet smile. Mare stops as soon as he's close to Lucius then looks up to him. "Why are you here? Did I make a mistake?"

"On the contrary, your work is of the utmost importance to Nazarick. That's why I wanted to let you know how satisfied I am with your work." Lucius said in a warm tone.

"Yes, Lord Lucius." Mare said as Lucius thought what to give him before realizing something he should have done much sooner which in hindsight probably would have made the walls being hidden far faster.

"I know just the thing to give you." Lucius said before a green flame appeared in his hand revealing a ring.

"Ring of Ains Ooal Gown! This is an item that only supreme beings are allowed to wear, so I can't possibly accept it!" Mare shouted holding his staff tightly to his chest.

"Shesh calm down. That isn't the case I believe Pandora's Actor has one… maybe… Besides moving through the floors of Nazarick is rather challenging, but it'll be so much simpler to use this ring just think of the floor and you're there. So take the damned ring already!" Lucius shouted the last bit in a joking tone. Mare nervously takes the ring and stares at it for a moment before he placed it on his ring finger.

'Why the hell did he place it on that finger? Ah, whatever I'll need to give rings to all the floor guardians since it's important for them all to move unhindered.' Lucius thought to himself before looking back at Mare.

"Th-Thank you very much! I will be sure to work hard to live up to s-such a treasure!" Mare said not able to contain his excitement.

"I'll be looking forward to your hard work, Mare." Lucius said clearing his throat.

"Yes! Um, by the way, Lord Lucius your outfit looks great." Mare said smiling brightly once again.

"Of course it looks great Mare." Albedo said from behind everyone turns to face her. "Lord Lucius is perfection personified therefore anything he does, say, and wears would be just as perfect like him."

'Oh if I had known what I was getting into when he gratified the NPC's. Although, having this many women interested in me could be fun… No, no, no. Don't act upon your libido you already did something awful when you dirtied all the NPCs…. Lupusregina and Narberal are rather tempting though for sure.' He snaps back to reality as he sees Albedo now standing right in front of him.

"I'm happy that you've said as much but I'm far from perfect I have many flaws just ones I let no one else see… Well other than Carmella uh the real one she is actually my maid in my world. We grew up together in fact." Lucius said noticing everyone looking intrigued. He stares at albedo for a moment before she looks down at Mare's hand. Her eyes widen as she makes a rather shocking sound. Lucius can't help but let out a 'Gah?!' Sound.

"Is something the matter?" Albedo said looking up at him innocently.

"Nothing, nothing at all… Sorry for interrupting you Mare please continue." Lucius said his heart beating slightly faster due to the fright he just had.

"Y-Yes. Excuse me, Lord Lucius." Mare said returning to his work.

"I should give you one too Albedo." Lucius said looking back to her.

"Give me one of what?" Albedo said with a rather alarming expression on her face. Lucius just shakes it off and creates the last ring he can for twenty-four hours.

"You'll need this as well since you're the administrator of the guardians and whatnot… As for you Demiurge, I'll prepare one tomorrow for you as I can't make any more for now." Lucius said as Albedo took ahold of the ring placing it in her hand.

"Thank you very much." Albedo said twitching about with an even more concerning expression.

"I will work hard to be worthy of such a ring." Demiurge said in response to what Lucius had said. Albedo begins making more alarming sounds. Lucius wisely decides its best to leave as fast as he can before she tries to jump at him. He teleports back to his room. He swears he could hear Albedo make psychotic sounds right as he was teleporting away but just ignores the thought.

"My lord do you need some stress relief?" One of the Carmellas asked walking up to him.

"Ugh… I think I just narrowly avoided being assaulted by Albedo so that isn't exactly an enticing offer as one would think." Lucius said sighing as he drops down into a red and gold armchair. He removes his mask and sets it on a nearby table.

"All I meant was a massage and your favorite dessert." Carmella said revealing that this was indeed the real one.

"That would be fantastic… Would sleeping with the NPC's truly be an evil thing?" Lucius asked his eyes once again red.

"That depends on the situation I would suppose… If it was on one of the ones you've changed the backstory of then that would be no different from mind-controlling someone and taking advantage." The other Carmella said which now made him question which was which. He sighed for the millionth time and slouching in the chair. His eyes suddenly shifting back to blue.