Chapter 333: 332 the price offered by Reiger
At this moment, Ainz’s already non-existent brows furrowed even deeper.
He observed Reiger through the helmet, attempting to see through Reiger’s thoughts, but all he could see was a face of calm and indifference, revealing nothing more.
"Your Excellency knows even about ’YGGDRASIL’, as well as secrets concerning the world, do you still need to obtain information about magic from me?"
Ainz said tentatively.
But this was met with an ambiguous expression from Reiger.
"Knowing is one thing; understanding is another. No matter how well I comprehend tier magic, it would never exceed that of a player who originally comes from ’YGGDRASIL’ like yourself," Reiger said indifferently, "Besides, it’s said that there are over six thousand kinds of magic in ’YGGDRASIL’. That number is too vast for me, and perhaps even for you, to confidently claim a thorough understanding of every single magic, right?"
Ainz held his tongue, showing tacit agreement with this statement.
Reiger continued to make his case.
"If you don’t know how to price it, shall I set the price?"
Reiger lifted his hand towards Ainz, holding up a finger.
"Firstly, as the fee for buying information, you will need to provide me with detailed information on a super-tier magic, including but not limited to demonstrating its effects in my presence."
"Then, you can consult me on your questions, for each one you ask, I will charge information on a hundred kinds of magic, again including but not limited to demonstrating their effects in my presence."
"If it’s not possible to meet the condition for demonstrating effects on the spot, then you must compensate with magic items that can satisfy this condition, including but not limited to magic scrolls, seal magic crystals, magic wands, and short staffs."
"That makes it easier to understand, right?"
There was no doubt that this was a price list.
A price list devised by Reiger himself.
"Super-tier magic..."
This condition particularly captured Ainz’s attention.
"Yes, super-tier magic," Reiger said flatly, "You should be able to afford this price, shouldn’t you?"
Super-tier magic, transcending above the tenth tier, was a special kind of magic usually only accessible to players.
This kind of magic, even high-level NPCs, could not normally learn, and magic items like sealed magic crystals couldn’t contain such high-grade magic. As a result, except under special circumstances, only players from ’YGGDRASIL’ who possessed magician class jobs could learn this level of magic after reaching level 70.
In other words, even within the Nasalik Underground Tomb, Ainz was the only one capable of normally using super-tier magic; the rest of the NPCs could not use it.
If there were no second high-level player with magician class jobs in this world, then Ainz would be the only magic singer in this world capable of normally using super-tier magic.
Therefore, it was natural for Reiger to start fleecing from this point.
"Also, you’re concerned about that vampire incident, aren’t you?" Reiger said to Ainz, "Although I wasn’t the one who did it, I know the details. You can also ask about this matter."
These words sent Ainz into deep thought.
At this point, he had nearly come to believe Reiger’s words.
Although Reiger remained a suspect, from his indifferent and aloof attitude, it seemed he likely had little to do with the matter.
In that case, it would be better to seize this opportunity to resolve longstanding doubts and acquire as much high-level secret information as possible.
Moreover, at the very least, Reiger had information regarding the anomaly with Shalltear, and this alone made it worthwhile for Ainz to buy information from him.
With this in mind, Ainz had made his decision.
"Then, the first question," Ainz said, gazing at Reiger, "Aside from myself, who else in this world is a player?"
By asking this question, there was no doubt that Ainz was agreeing to the transaction.
This caused Reiger’s smile to linger on his lips as he began to answer Ainz’s question.
"Judging from the historical traces that remain, there are several groups that are fairly certainly players."
"The first group appeared in this world about 600 years ago, formed the foundation of the Slane Theocracy, and protected humanity from multitudes of demi-humans and heteromorphic races—the Six Great Gods."
"The second group arrived about 500 years ago, introduced tier magic to this world, severely injured the dragon race that ruled the world at that time, unified the continent for a short period with overwhelming power, and established a nation—the Eight Greed Kings."
"The third group appeared about 200 years ago in this world. They were called the Thirteen Heroes, a group gathered to defeat a demon threatening the world. It included mighty individuals from various races and some of the members were players."
"The rest are just rumored to be players, not confirmed, but this indicates that their impact on this world wasn’t significant enough to leave clear records—perhaps due to a low level?"
Hearing Reiger’s words, Ainz immediately asked another question.
"Where are they now? Are they still alive?"
It was a question that had to be asked.
If these players were still alive, Ainz would need to be wary of them.
The natives of this world were not strong, but players were a different matter altogether. If they were enemies of Nasalik...
Ainz had to consider such a future.
Fortunately, players who could threaten Nasalik seemed to no longer exist.
"Five of the Six Great Gods were human and had a lifespan, so they passed away long ago. The remaining one was killed by the subsequent Eight Greed Kings, so now all of the Six Great Gods are dead."
"The Eight Greed Kings suffered heavy damage in the war with the dragon race. It’s said that internal strife occurred later, ending in mutual destruction, leading to their own demise."
"The player members of the Thirteen Heroes also don’t seem to have survived; it’s said that they accidentally killed a companion in the fight against the demon and refused resurrection."
"To summarize, within the range of information I’m aware of, you are the only player still active in this world."
Reiger said this and then sharply turned the subject.
"This would be the second question."
In other words, this question would also come at a price.
Ainz did not voice any objections.
It was only information about some magic, revealing it wouldn’t cause him any actual harm, so let the other party charge if they wanted.
"Then why was a player like me transported to this world?"
Ainz found that he felt a twinge of nervousness as he posed this question.
Clearly, the matter concerned the truth behind his own world-crossing power, and even if he told himself to stay calm, nervousness was inevitable.
Reiger glanced at Ainz like this.
"The details of this, not to mention me, even the Dragon race that once ruled this world wouldn’t dare say they grasp the full situation," Reiger said indifferently, "But one thing can be confirmed: it seems to be related to the Dragon Emperor."
"The Dragon Emperor?"
The unfamiliar term made Ainz momentarily start.
He was aware of the existence of dragons in this world.
Dragons were considered the strongest race, having once ruled the world; they were the supreme rulers of this world before the emergence of the Eight Greed Kings.
In "YGGDRASIL," dragons were also deemed the strongest race, not only possessing immense physical attack and defensive power and seemingly limitless stamina, but also able to harness countless special abilities and magic, causing many players to taste defeat at their hands.
But the term "Dragon Emperor" was indeed new to Ainz.
He had some understanding of the Dragon King.
It was said that this was a title with particular significance among dragons, bestowed only to those who had reached the apex of their age, possessed special powers, or could wield magic of an extraordinary nature, thus earning them the right to be called kings.
Among them, some Dragon Kings capable of using ancient magic that predated tier magic were even referred to as True Dragon Kings—this was a classification and definition given by the Slane Theocracy.
He had heard of Dragon Kings.
He had also come to know about True Dragon Kings through his channels of information gathering.
However, the Dragon Emperor, Ainz had indeed never heard of it.
"Don’t look at me like that; I don’t know much about the Dragon Emperor either, only that he was the father of the current Platinum Dragon King, once the mightiest among the Dragon race," Reiger said.
Seeing that Ainz was about to speak, Reiger immediately cut off his question with that statement.
"If you were to use ’YGGDRASIL’s level system as a reference, then the Dragon Emperor is the only being I know of who surpassed level 100."
Upon hearing this, Ainz was completely astonished on the spot.
It was not just Ainz; even Narberal covered her mouth in shock.
So, there really were beings in this world who surpassed level 100?
Was it he who caused the players to cross over from "YGGDRASIL" into this world?
"What does he aim to do?"
Ainz couldn’t help but question impatiently.
"That question, I’m afraid, is known only to him. Even the Platinum Dragon King, his son, may not know the details within," Reiger shook his head and continued, "Alright, that’s the third question."
After that, Ainz asked a few more questions about "YGGDRASIL" and the information regarding players who had come to this world.
It was not until Reiger said "This is the eighth question" that Ainz suddenly realized the quantity of magic information he needed to pay had already exceeded the number of magics he possessed.
If he continued questioning, he would only be able to compensate with items like magical artifacts.
This prompted Ainz to briefly hold off on further inquiries in this area.
After all, the most crucial information was already in hand, and the rest could be investigated slowly.
Therefore, it was time to get back to the primary reason for seeking out Reiger that day.
"I want to know why Shalltear was subjected to mental domination," Ainz said somberly.
"Logically, she should not be able to be influenced by mind control."
This was what baffled Ainz the most.
Undead were not susceptible to mind control.
Whether it was Ainz or Shalltear, as long as one was undead, immunity to mental manipulation was a given trait.
Despite this fact, Shalltear had been under mind control.
This made no sense at all.
"The answer is actually quite simple," Reiger said, looking at Ainz and revealing an answer that shook him to his core.
"Someone used a world-class item on that vampire."