Thank you all for reading this far—I really appreciate it.
I've decided to make some changes. I'm changing EeDeChi to EeDechi because I feel that this structure is more similar to names like LeBlanc and McDonald, which might make it more acceptable and natural to English-speaking readers.
I'm not a native English speaker, so I write in my native language first and then use a translation tool to translate it into English. Please note that there's no AI-generated content involved—it's just a translation.
I always proofread my work after translating it.
But because my IP isn't clean and I'm sharing the account with others (Because the pricing($20 per month) of the translation tool is a bit high for me), the version of the translation tool I have access to seems to have reduced intelligence.
Each chapter of this novel takes me about two and a half to three hours to write, and when you add the time I spend revising, translating, and proofreading, it's safe to say that I spend about four hours on each chapter.
That's not even counting the time I've spent brainstorming the plot and the hair I've lost in the process.
My writing ability in my native language is probably at an upper-intermediate level, so if what you end up reading is a poorly translated version in English, that would be terrible.
In short, using a low-quality translation wouldn't be fair to me, and it wouldn't be fair to you either.
Recently, I discovered a new translation tool that seems to produce better translation results.
I've decided to use the new tool to translate my novel from now on, and I also plan to retranslate all the previously released chapters using it. At the same time, I'll be changing all the names to EeDechi.
This is a huge undertaking for me, but I've decided to go through with it.
Hopefully, this will give you a better reading experience.
To be honest, I didn't have much confidence in this novel at first because not many people were reading it. But as I've been revising it, I've added a lot of new content and improved it more and more. Now, I feel that this novel is really good—its quality is very high, even if there are very few readers.
In the future, I'll be able to proudly tell others that I wrote this novel.
Finally, you're very welcome to share your reading experience — it means a lot to me.
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EeDechi and her teammate kept wandering around the city. Gotta admit, the place looked pretty damn nice from the outside.
Neat and classy houses lined up like building blocks, all orderly and perfect. The buildings were made of beige and light gray stone bricks, giving the city a kind of grand, dignified vibe.
The roofs were mostly steep and pointy, covered with deep blue or reddish-brown tiles. Every house had a fancy little balcony and small arched walkways, with the columns carved with delicate vine patterns, oozing elegance.
But here's the weird part: every few steps in this city, you'd spot a beholder perched on a tall, round pillar.
These beholders didn't attack anyone or step off their fancy pillars. They just sat there, eyeballing everything around them with those creepy, bulging eyes—especially the people passing by.
There was even a third-floor balcony of some house staring straight at one of those beholders. You could bet the folks living there had to keep the curtains shut tight, or every move they made would be a free show for that thing.
"I swear those beholders are staring right at me. It's freaking me out," Franco grumbled. "I can't even cop a feel on some chick's ass without feeling watched."
"Don't flatter yourself," Barrit shot back. "Those beholders aren't zeroing in on us specifically."
They were rolling with EeDechi, the numero uno wanted fugitive, after all. If those beholders locked eyes on them everywhere they went, they'd have to hightail it out of there ASAP.
They passed by another propaganda poster—this one plastered across the whole side of a three-story building. It was a massive portrait of Ainz Ooal Gown, just his upper half, looming over them.
The portrait of Ainz was all majestic and serious, his right hand raised and pointing ahead, with golden-red lines fanning out behind him like rays of sunlight.
Below Ainz's giant bust, there were drawings of all kinds of creatures—humans, half-dragons, lizardfolk, orcs, halflings, elves, dwarves, fishmen, vampires, goblins, you name it.
These wildly different-looking beings stood in a neat row, each clutching an identical-colored book to their chest. They held their heads high, eyes sharp and steady, faces glowing with pride and passion.
Under the whole painting ran a bold red slogan: "THE GREAT SUPREME OVERLORD AINZ OOAL GOWN GUIDES US TOWARD THE DIRECTION OF HARMONY AMONG ALL RACES!"
EeDechi wanted to squint and figure out what book those creatures were holding—after all, they were drawn so tiny. Cramming that many races into one picture wasn't easy, and next to Ainz's massive figure, they looked like a row of little tin soldier toys.
But right beside this huge propaganda piece stood a death knight leaning on his sword, so EeDechi only dared a quick glance before looking away.
The group kept moving forward, leaving the quiet residential area behind and stepping into a buzzing market.
The market was packed with vendors from all races doing their thing.
A short little halfling's oven wafted the smell of rosemary-roasted quail, while a hulking ogre drooled at his stall nearby—hard to tell if he was craving the quail or the halfling.
A half-blind gnome jeweler was peering through a magnifying glass at a gold tooth in a kobold's mouth. Two humans lugged a crate of cheese down the street, the stench so strong it made a minotaur nearby let out a loud sneeze.
An orc was hawking thick, chunky slabs of smoked meat, while a dark elf selling short blades nearby fiddled with an obsidian dagger out of boredom.
"Crash!" A human woman suddenly tripped, and the bread in her basket spilled all over the ground.
A horned satyr in a linen shirt bent down to help her pick up the bread, asking with concern how she'd fallen.
The woman's calf was red and swollen. She stammered something about tripping over something she didn't quite see.
Maybe she really didn't catch what happened, but Barrit and the others saw it clear as day.
As the woman passed by a lizardfolk, he "casually" turned around, swinging his steel-whip tail and knocking her flat on her ass without breaking a sweat.
After flooring the human, the lizardfolk acted like nothing happened, just kept chatting with his buddy.
This lizardfolk towered over the woman by a good three heads, all rippling muscles and brute strength, with dragon-like ridges spiking from his skull.
No way was she about to call him out. She just rubbed her aching leg and limped off.
The four of them stopped at a sahuagin's grill stall, waiting for some seaweed-flavored fish skewers to finish cooking. In that short time, the dragon-featured lizardfolk "accidentally" whipped his tail again, knocking over two more passing humans and a dwarf who barely reached his waist.
The lizardfolk's drooling mouth curled into a smirk as he watched the the other races tumble at his feet, his yellow slit-pupils glinting with a cruel, shitty grin.
For him, picking on weaker races seemed like a total blast. Back in the day, these races were just food for lizardfolk, but now that the Sorcerer Kingdom was forcing everyone to play nice, the lizardfolk always found a way to stir up some shit.
"This lizard's Justice Value is only -151, and nobody's doing jack about it?" EeDechi asked, pointing at a pitch-black death knight standing nearby. The death knight looked like a damn statue, not even twitching.
The sahuagin boss handed EeDechi a skewer of steaming, fragrant grilled fish, his voice gurgling like bubbles were popping in his throat:
"Ha, you don't know yet? E-Rantel's laws are 'fair.' Those brain-dead undead judges, when they can't figure out a verdict, they settle it the 'fair' way—chop off both the plaintiff's and defendant's heads! As long as you're ready to trade a life for a life, you'll get a 'fair' outcome, no problem."
"So even if you get screwed over, nobody dares report it. The lizardfolk just says he didn't notice his tail and 'accidentally' tripped someone—who's gonna call him out on that?" Vaelynn chimed in.
She picked up her fish skewer, eyeing the meat's color. "Boss, this fish isn't fresh, is it?"
"Ha, not fresh?" the sahuagin growled, his voice thick and heavy. "I've been running this fish stall for three years, and I don't need some pointy-eared chick talking smack. Two more months, and it's time for the 'Honorary Citizen' evaluation. May the Great Supreme Overlord bless me and keep me from becoming one."
"Why don't you wanna be an Honorary Citizen?" Barrit asked, curious. "Honorary Citizen" sounded pretty cool, at least on the surface.
"Ha, what does a damn adventurer like you know?" The sahuagin let out a "ha" before every sentence, his fish gills flapping by his lips as he said, "Ha, if I become an Honorary Citizen, I can't just head back to the Polphi Sea whenever I want. That's my real home—the salty seawater there tastes so good, not like this dry-ass… cough, this sunny, picture-perfect city that doesn't even get a storm all year."
"How's business been lately?" Barrit asked casually.
"Ha, oh, it's great, just freaking fantastic," the sahuagin said, flipping the skewers in his hands.
"Is it actually good or not?" Barrit pressed, now curious.
"Ha, you out-of-towner, haven't you heard the holy words of the Great Supreme Overlord? The Great Supreme Overlord said this year's Sorcerer Kingdom economy is booming, the cities are getting livelier every day, everyone's living better and better—how could business be bad? It's gotta be hotter than ever. If I said business sucked, wouldn't that be me talking shit on purpose? Ruining the whole thriving vibe?"
"Oh, got it," Barrit nodded.
After tossing over a few silver coins, the four of them said goodbye to the fish stall boss and kept exploring deeper into E-Rantel.
As they passed by the troublemaking lizardfolk, the one with the dragon features "accidentally" turned again, swinging his tail toward EeDechi.
EeDechi acted like she didn't even notice the spiked, monstrous tail whipping toward her leg. She "casually" lifted her foot and stomped down on the lizardfolk's tail, giving it a light step.
"CRACK!" The sound of shattering bone and splitting flesh rang out loud and clear. The chunk of tail EeDechi stepped on popped like a tomato, blood spraying everywhere, a total gorefest.
"AHH!" The lizardfolk let out a blood-curdling scream, his pupils flaring red, fury practically shooting out of his nostrils.
As his rage exploded, cracks split the ground beneath him, sand and gravel swirling around him like a tornado. A dagger flew out of a nearby minotaur's sheath, hovering in the air and aiming straight for EeDechi's eye, ready to launch.
"WHO'S USING MAGIC?!" A gravelly roar cut through the air like a banshee's wail. A death knight clutching a sharp blade stomped over.
The dagger clattered to the ground, and the spinning sand and rocks dropped too. The lizardfolk, who'd puffed up like an overblown balloon, deflated in an instant. He tucked away his bleeding tail stump, trembling as he faced the death knight, way bigger and badder than him. "I didn't… it was an accident…"
The death knight's skeletal eye sockets flickered with ghostly fire. It loomed over the lizardfolk, its voice like stone grinding on sandpaper: "Records show dragon-blooded lizardfolk Zha'korr Vissk, second offense using offensive magic."
"No… this is my first time! Last time was my brother!" the lizardfolk howled in panic, dragging his mangled tail as he tried to bolt.
The death knight charged, its gleaming sword flashing. With one clean swing, the lizardfolk's head shot into the air, and blood gushed from the headless corpse like a freaking fountain.
"AHH!" Screams erupted as people on the street scrambled to get away, while others didn't even flinch, going about their business like this was just another day. The death knight sheathed its blood-dripping sword and strolled off like nothing happened.
"This…" EeDechi had only meant to teach the lizardfolk a lesson. She sure as hell didn't expect things to go this far.
"He broke the law," Vaelynn explained. "Nobody's allowed to use offensive magic or force in E-Rantel. First time's a warning, second time they cut you down no questions asked. Keeping fights in check is the whole deal behind 'all races living in harmony.'"
"Was that dragon-blooded lizardfolk using magic just now?" Franco asked, scratching his head. "I didn't feel any magic vibes."
"Probably Wild Magic, a dragon thing—runs on soul power, not regular magic," Barrit said.
"Yep, Wild Magic for sure," Vaelynn nodded. When it came to knowing random shit, only she could go toe-to-toe with Barrit.
Just then, a big, blobby slime oozed over, and people jumped out of its way left and right. Wherever it went, the street ended up sparkling clean.
"That's the janitor," Vaelynn said. "Don't get sucked in—it doesn't dodge pedestrians. A few dumb kids have already ended up dead in its gut."
The massive slime squirmed over to the lizardfolk's headless corpse, slurping up the pooling blood, body, and head in one go. In no time, the street was spotless, like nothing had ever happened.
The group kept chatting and laughing as they strolled a few more steps. Barrit was starting to feel like he was on some kind of vacation, just chilling next to the Great Tomb of Nazarick, soaking in all the weird race vibes.
"Being a tourist in E-Rantel's pretty sweet. But settling down here? Life might not be so peachy," Vaelynn said with a smirk.
They walked up to a church. The entrance was decked out with a fancy velvet carpet, colorful flower baskets lined the stone steps in a long row, white gauze was tied into pretty loops around the statues, and inside the grand stone hall, a symphony swelled up and down like heavenly bells ringing out.
"Looks like a couple's tying the knot. Wanna crash it and grab some free food and drinks?" Vaelynn pointed at the church.
The three adventurers nodded. Checking out some wild local customs sounded like a good time.
The four of them stepped into the church hall and snagged a row of seats in the corner. The wedding vibe was kinda off—way less lively than it seemed from outside.
The couple's relatives sat below the guest platform, split into two clear camps: one side was humans looking all gloomy and sad, the other was orcs grinning ear to ear, practically bouncing with joy.
Up on the stage getting blessed, the groom was a beefy, ugly-ass orc stuffed into a black tux that didn't fit right, with a white shirt underneath and a red bowtie at his neck—looked weird as hell.
The bride, decked out in a pristine white gown, was a gorgeous human chick with smooth light brown hair and bright green eyes brimming with pure despair.
EeDechi and the others exchanged looks. They'd seen this bride before at a little tavern outside E-Rantel—she'd been trying to ditch the city, only to get dragged back by a death knight.
"The bride's obviously not into it," EeDechi said in a rush. "Look at her, she's about to bawl."
Below the platform, an old couple leaned on each other, sobbing their hearts out, supported by some folks nearby. Probably the bride's parents, gutted to see their precious girl hitched to an orc.
"No wonder that 'Honorary Citizen' girl wanted to bolt from E-Rantel—she was running from this wedding," Vaelynn said, piecing it together.
"Is E-Rantel just orc territory or what?" Barrit snapped, pissed off. "Do orcs get to marry whoever they damn well please?" Watching a woman from his own race get screwed over like this—any decent guy would lose it.
Vaelynn explained: "It's part of the Sorcerer Kingdom's race-blending rules—model couples. Every year, they use divination magic to pick a guy and girl from the Honorary Citizens, doesn't matter what race, and pair them up for marriage."
"Other than maybe having a big dick, how the hell are orcs better than us?" Franco fumed, yanking out his wand.
"I'm stopping this fucked-up wedding no matter what!" EeDechi's eyes darkened with rage.
"Chill out, everybody!" Vaelynn said, tense. "Don't start shit in E-Rantel. But…" Her eyes flicked slyly. "There might be a way."