Overlord: Advent of the New Gods

Chapter 20

Not much had changed with how things were run in Re-Estize since Barbro took the throne. Zanac, Raeven, and Bolloupe were doing all the work while Barbro was indulged in all the debauchery he could, with him appearing before the common people only twice, parading around like he was behind the positive changes for masses of the kingdom. Those close to the palace knew better, but they could do little besides try their best to look the other way.

In some sense, his life was easier now, far easier than before. Zanac didn't need to worry about political opposition or inner power plays as the kingdom danced to Renner's tune while she carried out the will of the Dark God, their brother conveniently ignoring the advice of his elders and officials on her growing influence. She ensured Bolloupe's resentment toward the king grew each day, yet always simmering below the surface just out of immediate eyesight. From what his sister had reported, Barbro almost openly refused to sleep with his wife and even the gifted serum, which was supposed to help produce the child, was left unused. On top of it, rumors had begun to spread of his lechery, including that the king had impregnated at least one prostitute, making the whole situation into a nightmare for his father-in-law. Some even said he had gotten a whole dozen knocked up as the rumors flew.

Today, in his to-do list, there was a rather peculiar line: meet Hilma, the new leader of the Eight Fingers. She would arrive in the castle semi-officially to deliver a massive bribe to Barbro, and then meet up with those who served Lord Ulbert afterward. The fact that a leader of a notorious crime syndicate could step inside the royal castle and not lose her head in the process would be absurd in any decently run nation, but it had become a reality for the kingdom and its upper echelons. Sometimes life was stranger than fiction.

The first part of the day was spent writing correspondence and drawing plans for road restoration, which was the real plan instead of rebuilding the palace according to Barbro's vision. His older brother would never rule long enough to see his ambition come to fruition, his practices too tyrannical and his demands too useless. Zalarta was acting as his secretary and giving reference materials, often without him even requesting them, a great help for those who worked under the incapable king.

As much as he wanted to see her as just a demon who saw humans as nothing more than food or playthings, that image of her had begun to fade. The succubus was supportive and encouraging, using every opportunity to lift him instead of tearing him down, even during long, dark, and overworking nights when it would have been incredibly easy to force herself on him. She also had gotten increasingly flirtatious the past few days, which spoke of her growing increasingly hungry, as according to a book on demonology he managed to acquire, succubi fed on sexual energy, which she likely wasn't getting as she spent every moment of his waking life near him and invading his dreams while he slept.

"There was the old plan for connecting cities with stone-paved roads. It seems it was put in motion and these are signatures of major nobles agreeing to carry out the said plan," She commented while presenting a worn-out map, dusting off the forgotten document stuffed deep in one of the bookshelves.

The upkeep of the former prince's office left some things to be desired, as it had come to her attention that the maids only cleaned easy-to-see areas and neglected the rest, once again showing how little respect Zanac carried among the castle staff.

Zalatra let her breathe in the depths of the bookshelf to prove her point, getting a cloud of dust in her face and intensely sneezing to shake nearby books.

"Bless you… sorry." Zanac caught himself a bit too late

"I won't melt by mere words," She responded, amused.

"Right." Zanac straightened and switched the topic. "Everyone pocketed the money and then made excuses. I think only Raeven and Pespa built roads in their domains. Hmm, this plan is outdated, if we take into consideration that we need roads connecting Re-Estize with other territories controlled by Nazarick." Zanac spoke absentmindedly as he started to draw the new plan over the old one, grabbing another new ink bottle.

"The demons of Greed are less greedy than these worthless pieces of flesh you call nobles. It is beyond me how one can drive their domain to such lows and not even consider the loss of profit."

"Since when do you know anything about economics? I thought you specialized in close combat and the behavior of mortals," He questioned.

"Oh, I need to be smart to catch myself a prince, you know," She purred teasingly. "If only said prince noticed my efforts ~ "

Zanac just sighed at her antics and continued working. The demoness was no different than the rest of the people around him, looking for her own ends and using him as a means to achieve them, nothing more. He wasn't aware of Nzarick's inner politics, but anyone with a basic understanding of the Gods could see that everyone involved with Re-Estize was fighting for Lord Ulbert's approval, and thus keeping him in line by any means necessary was a good way to earn the dark God's approval. He harbored no illusion that Zalatra likely saw him as nothing more than a means to an end, and should he make a mistake, she would show her harsh side in a heartbeat, and likely exploit any weakness he was foolish enough to reveal. But for now, two could play this game of using the other.

"Not in a mood for some playful banter today, are we?" Zalarta approached Zanac, her hands slowly traversing to his stiff shoulders and giving them a light massage

"There is a lot of work I need to do, and then there is Hilma. Like I have enough to worry about without someone like her near me," He explained. 'Just one day. Is it too much to ask for peace of mind? A seductive demon, a former prostitute and drug dealer, and my monster of a sister. Maybe I should ask Lord Demiurge for a vacation in some monastery as a reward. Surely solitude would help me to not go crazy with how things are going on right now,' He lamented in his mind.

"She serves Lord Ulbert and would not sabotage you." Zalarta let go of his shoulders and retreated to a window sill, looking outside.

"Hopefully. She is a criminal," Zanac stated absentmindedly.

"Do you think I act like this just to torment you? What the hell do you know about my kind? All of you humans always portray us as monsters without feelings," She spoke quietly, hissing.

"I'm sorry if I offended you in any manner. But there aren't many sources of information available on the topic," Zanac looked up and hastily explained himself, realizing she had caught on to his secret investigation.

"You could just ask... but I am only lying, aren't I? A demon will always be evil, manipulative, and cruel." She only grew angrier at his response, glaring at him.

Zanac turned his head towards her, dragging his palm over his face. There were limits on how much he could take, and he knew he was close to a boiling point. Dealing with his handler's tantrum was simply too much. "I am a prince. There is not a single person in my life who hasn't tried to use me toward their end. Your job is to keep me in line, and we both know you would not defy Lord Demiurge's or Lord Ulbert's will. You tell me what I should think of you."

"If you see everyone as your enemy, they sooner or later become one."

"What do you expect from me? To swoon over you just because you are a succubus or an attractive woman?" He rubbed his eyes with his thumb and index finger. "I have a job to do, and I have no time to play around."

"Do whatever you want. Hilma is where we should go." Zalarta assumed a stony expression and walked up the door, applying invisibility and ready to follow him, as always.

<X>

Hilma walked the halls of the royal castle, her high heels clicking against the polished stone floor while behind her Zero carried a box full of gold as her second in command of the whole organization. For now, the farce of pretending to be subservient to Barbro needed to be carried out until the foolish boy, pretending to be a King, would be used up and discarded. They had been allotted this gold for business like this anyways by the higher-ups, may as well use it.

They quickly reached the King's private quarter without any trouble, meeting the young King in a state of undress with a succubus disguised as a prostitute in his lap, seductively wrapping her arms and legs around him. The cunning demoness was tasked with planting stupid ideas in Barbro's mind over time and did so with delight as she drained away his life force to such a degree that the young man didn't, couldn't sleep with his wife anymore.

Hilma bowed before the king and motioned for Zero to put the box on the table, the latter quickly kneeling as well. "Your cut, your Majesty. Thanks to you, our profits are higher than ever."

"Why did you come personally?" Barbro asked, disinterested in her presence as the demoness fed him laced chocolate candy with sweet giggles.

"I need to talk with a few nobles to ensure your organization can spread into their domains. I hope you don't mind." She flashed him a toothy smile.

"What about Baharuth?"

"Progress is slow, but we have some hopeful leads to undermine Jircniv's rule and possibly take over the Empire," Hilma explained.

"Carry on then." The King waved for her to leave, turning to his favorite.

Once back in the halls, she strode towards Renner's living space, Zero walking now empty-handed beside her. The massive man had changed as much as she had, now but a shadow of his former arrogant self. In a world where monster Gods walked, there was no place for human arrogance anymore, and all they were but ants before the giants that found them mildly useful.

"I heard Renner is a monster in human skin, be real careful around that one," He whispered.

"She's still just a human. She can't even imagine what hell exists." Hilma shuddered as the memories of roaches eating her once again invaded her mind, ripping her apart alive from the inside out.

"Lord Demiurge is of high opinion of her." Zero reminded her in hush tones.

"I got the message. You don't have to dote on me so much!" Hilma snarled.

"If you mess up, I'm left as the last one. You're my meat shield," he openly admitted with a chuckle.

"Charming as ever," She remarked frigidly.

"Oh don't take it personally. I don't want to get punished either, especially in the way you had." his cheerful demeanor dropped as the mountain of a man shuddered at what he had spectated. Her treatment was but a warning for the others, should they decide to act out or be careless. Quite literally, Gods forbid if they decided to go against orders.

Zero was a bastard of a man, there was no doubt about it, but she had no reason to worry about him. Her mother would protect her. Her loving demonic mother was her shield and pillar that one day would remake her into a proper demon, unbound by mere mortality.

Her second in command wasn't her worry at the moment. The young duchess was. Renner was in charge of the whole Re-Estize operation and Zero's warning held immense merit.

They found the former prince and princess surrounded by shadow demons and succubi, pouring over maps and books.

"Ah, Hilma, I finally meet you in person. You seem unwell." Renner greeted her with an unsettling smile, akin to the ones the more demented Eight Finger interrogators had.

"I am fine. I can say the same. I would have never guessed you were the one to serve Lord Ulbert among the royals. Zanac yes, but not you."

"Everyone with sense would serve the Gods," Zanac remarked as they settled around the table.

"Enough pleasantries. We have things to discuss. Hilma, I want your men to start poisoning the wheat fields and cause forest fires in eastern provinces to drive monsters towards farms," Renner ordered.

"What exactly is the plan? The nobles have enough money to live through it," Hilma asked in return.

"You can't eat money. A countrywide famine is needed for the peasants to accept the Gods as their saviors. Once the first fifty or so thousand die, my brother will have proper unrest on his hands, and that we can use," Renner explained with a smile. "Nothing pushes little humans beyond what they can tolerate so well as the dying gasps of their beloved children, starving in the streets and alleyways."

'Does she find enjoyment in doing something so monstrous? It's not even for profit or to praise the Gods, but just to cause suffering.' Hilma glanced at Zanac, who seemed to have accepted whatever his sister was planning.

"A dangerous plan, but if you believe this is the best course of action, I will issue the order," Hilma nodded.

"It is what they deserve. The unworthy ones need to be culled. I will not permit anyone who doesn't accept the Gods with open arms to live. On a related note, we also need to prevent anyone from fleeing by sea. The road to Baharuth will be blocked by the time famine starts, and the Slane Theocracy has blocked all entrances to their country across the border. But it leaves the sea and the council state. The despair before salvation needs to be absolute."

"I'm sure we can sabotage ships before they set sail, but blocking the entirety of the council state border will be problematic," Hilma replied, trying to keep a smile on her face. Renner's presence was as unsettling as Demiurge's, making her suspect that the Princess might be related to the vile demon, even if she knew the princess was just a human. Rare few could suggest mass murder through starvation with such a nonchalant attitude, even among what she knew of the Gods' servants. The former princess was a psychopath through and through, which meant all she cared about was her goals and anyone around her could become collateral damage as long as the benefits outweighed the costs. Such people quickly rose through the ranks of Eight Fingers, but one needed to be constantly wary around them.

"Can't our bosses get a dragon or two to burn down a few border villages and make sure everyone knows that?" Zero suggested. His demeanor was casual as ever, but even he wanted to leave as fast as possible.

"We do not want the involvement of dragons at the moment, as they could see such actions as provocation. But I think we can use a similar idea. The border mountains could be filled with monsters. A few attacks on villages known for supplying travel supplies or roads could dissuade people from attempting to cross the mountain range. Lastly, start spreading propaganda that the King will increase taxes during the harvest season on top of mass conscription for his armies, but make it subtle so it isn't overtly noticeable, yet could be written off as a Baharuth disinformation effort should Bolloupe or Reaven take notice." Renner issued another order.

"I will do as you wish. I must say, you would have fit right in among us," Hilma complimented Renner.

"If I wanted to run Eight Fingers, I would have done so. The entire organization was ineffective, backstabbing, and sloppy. No wonder you couldn't spread through Baharuth, where they have a decent crime-fighting force," Renner openly insulted the whole organization.

"You are smart I give you that, but-"

"I recommended Zoran as the first choice, you as second, and Illonov as the third, and you know where he ended up." Renner gave her a knowing grin.

"I was still picked as the best option, don't forget that," Hilma spat back.

"Just because you slept your way to the top doesn't mean you aren't replaceable. I will not permit you to mess up my operation and disappoint Lord Ulbert. I will deliver this Kingdom into the hands of the Gods and not you, nor my idiot brother, nor useless nobles will get in my way. I will succeed or send you all to the deep pits of hell. You are alive and in your position only because you are mildly competent, don't ever forget that."

The tone Renner used made her shudder. It wasn't a threat or gloating. It was a promise, should she get in the young monster's way, that nothing, not even her mother, would save her. Like a sharp knife, it cut directly into her mind, causing pain. Hilma saw Zero look away as if he didn't want to be a witness to the scene. There must have been some sort of magic that caused such an adverse effect.

One thing Hilma knew for sure: it would be a bad idea to make Renner her enemy. "O-of course. I apologize. I will follow your lead without a question," She half stammered.

"Good. This meeting is now concluded. I expect a report within a week and I will notify you if there are changes in the plan." Renner waved for her to leave, which Hilma gladly did, fleeing the room in a half-run.

Editing by aidan_lo.

Proofreading by aidan_lo, Sluethen, fvvck, clagan, Mfkzrocker, x4x, LionLover, Dtrackt, and Stac.

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