["Shut up. I didn't allow you to speak, you Sigonian hyena." The man let out a disdainful cold snort. "Those guys in black suits didn't say much, so I don't know what methods you used to survive that massacre. But I think you're lucky, so I bought you. From now on, you and your luck are both my assets. Understood?"]
["Your first order is simple: Besides you, I also bought another thirty… hmm, thirty-four slaves. Go play a [game] with them—two days. Come out alive, and prove that your skills are genuine."]
["…You're crazy."]
[The man laughed lowly: "Hehehe… Just inspecting the goods."]
["Aren't you afraid you'll waste your money?" Aventurine said coldly.]
["I have plenty of money, little golden retriever. The pan-galactic slave market has no shortage of self-righteous brats like you." The man paused. "But you have a decent appearance, so quite a few customers have bet their entire fortunes on this skinny little ghost of yours. Go on, don't disappoint your master."]
["…How much did you spend?"]
["Whoa, you want to know that? Sure. Sixty Tamber (copper coins), no more, no less."]
["…I want to gamble with you." Aventurine gritted his teeth and said word by word, "Half of sixty, thirty coins… As long as I can come back alive, you have to give them to me. Do you dare to bet?"]
[The man laughed loudly: "Want to gamble with me? Fine, you've got guts!" The man switched to an arrogant tone. "—But sorry, impossible. Slave, don't forget your identity. You don't have the qualifications to sit at the table at all."]
["You are just a chip, destined to be held by others and thrown out. Either you help your master bring back more chips, or… never come back."]
["All or nothing—don't embarrass me, lucky boy."]
——
Overlord.
(His starting point was actually this low. He really was a slave.)
(I thought Ratio's words carried exaggeration and humiliation, but they were actually stating facts…)
Inside the Great Tomb of Nazarick, Ainz returned to his room and began seriously thinking about the matter of slaves. Aventurine's experience gave him quite a bit of inspiration. Although humans' mastery of magic was inferior to the Guardians, they were undoubtedly different [Cornerstones]—perhaps they could unearth different talents.
If the slave owner on the Celestial Screen had killed Aventurine from the beginning, then a highly talented human would have completely disappeared from this world. His good luck, talent, and methods… all of it would have turned into nothing but a dream.
Therefore…
"Demiurge, there should still be quite a few humans imprisoned in the Great Tomb, right?" Ainz looked toward the demon following beside him.
"Ah… Yes, Ainz-sama… They are all two-legged sheep captured from nearby. We have properly stripped their skins to use as materials for scrolls."
Demiurge hesitated for a moment before continuing to answer.
"I see… Is there any substitute for this material?"
"Hm… For adult male skin, it may be difficult to find the most suitable replacement for now. The slightly inferior one is female skin, which has some toughness. The worst is the skin of the elderly and children… One is too aged and full of wrinkles, the other too tender and thin. Neither is very suitable for processing."
"I see…"
There was a slight smile in Ainz's words, which left Demiurge momentarily unable to understand what his master meant.
"Supreme One, do you feel that the efficiency of skinning is not high? I can instruct the Torturers to accelerate the healing of the two-legged sheep's skin, allowing us to peel them once every two days. However, this may cause them to mentally collapse and commit suicide… At that time, we will need to capture new ones."
"That won't be necessary. My idea is actually the complete opposite of yours, Demiurge."
Demiurge was stunned for a moment, then respectfully lowered his head even further.
"Ah… What does Ainz-sama mean…?"
"Since the skin of the elderly and children is not suitable for making scrolls, why not release them? Women can also be released in appropriate numbers… But do not let them return freely. Instead, erase their memories of this experience and have them continue serving the Great Tomb of Nazarick."
"Letting humans serve Ainz-sama? Isn't this rewarding them too much?"
Everyone in the Great Tomb of Nazarick considered serving Ainz-sama as the greatest reward. For this, many maids would even voluntarily cancel their one day of rest per month to continue working. Thirty full days of work in a month was the greatest reward for them.
To be able to come to the Great Tomb and serve the Supreme One… Weren't these humans too fortunate?
"This is the second task I'm assigning you, Demiurge… You must unearth the potential within these humans and fully realize their talents. For example, some humans have talent in swordsmanship, while others are suited for magic… In short, you must make full use of them, especially the children… You must pay special attention to them."
"As you command. In the future, I will organize them in batches according to age and talent. However, Ainz-sama… if some humans truly have no talent, may I ask how they should be handled?"
"In that case, they can continue to serve as materials for skinning. Oh, and inform Albedo about this matter. You two will handle it together."
"As you command, Supreme One."
——
[Stelle and the others arrived at a bar with Gallagher. Here, a handsome big sister named Siobhan warmly received them.]
[Siobhan and Gallagher were old acquaintances. He had once been the bartender of this Dreamjolt Hostelry. Speaking of which, Gallagher even showed off his skills and mixed a unique drink for the guests from the Astral Express.]
[Finally, he let Stelle choose a decoration for her own special mix.]
["Hanun Brothers standee."]
["The fearless rebel. May you also be able to bite through your shackles like him." Gallagher inserted the standee on the rim of the cup. "Alright, it's done. I toast you with this [Ticket to the Graveyard], Nameless—"]
["To the already dead and the soon-to-be dead."]
[After tasting their respective drinks, everyone praised them endlessly, only sighing at the wonderful and rich flavors. Himeko even took the opportunity to ask Gallagher, hoping he would share the clever ideas behind the mixing.]
["Unfortunately, if you're expecting a profound answer, I'm afraid you'll be disappointed." Gallagher spread his hands. "The meaning it contains is very simple… This is simply the true taste of the sweet dream paradise, nothing more."]
[Himeko said thoughtfully: "This true taste… does it have anything to do with that Mikhail?"]