“Sato- I mean, Momonga, are we not…”
Yuuji turo look at the Overlord by his side, sitting on the obsidian throne World Item hrone of Kings”; a world item Ainz Ooal Gown received upon clearing the Underground Tomb of Nazarick dungeon in a siempt.
The appearance of his dear friend in this form was one familiar to him, as he had seen it often through the anime. However, aside from his appearance which was much more intimidating and impressive iy, the aura and presence Yuuji would expeonga to exude were… absent.
Another evidehat proved they were still in the Yggdrasil game.
Momonga nodded with a slight sound of bones hitting bones as he responded.
“Yes. We are still in Yggdrasil. As you see iht of your s where the server time is, we have around 10 minutes before the server shutdown.”
Yuuji did not miss the slight disappoi and sadness within his voice as he spoke those st few words.
A game he had called home for more than a decade. A pce where he could belong whey did not give him that. A pce where he could be his best self. And a pce he could be with his dear friends.
And now, such a sacred, beloved space would reach its end. No matter how much Yuuji and the rest of the group chat members had help him and bee his new family, the past wouldn’t be so easily fotten. No, it would never be fotten.
But, at the very least, Yuuji hoped Satoru would slot the fad move on.
“I see… Then, perhaps we use this ce to get our bearings and familiarize ourselves with our powers and… memories.”
Yuuji sent ai of a winking face holding a thumb up, to whionga resded with a chuckle and a thumbs up.
Then, Momonga turowards Lelouch, who seemed to be slowly rec from the pain.
He was truly shocked when he saw the three suddenly appear by his side, and with such striking appearanbsp;
From a first gnce, Momonga could make an educated guess of what their rad css could be. However, apart from that, he had no idea what their builds were or what kind of equipment they’re wearing.
“Does your head still hurt, Lelouch?”
“Nggh… It’s starting to not hurt as much… But the phantom pain is still there.”
He held his head with his gloved hand and shook his head. This… This was the first time he had ever felt such tremendous pain in his head. Did Yuuji experiehis every time he teleported to another world for the mission…?
Satoru owards Lelouch. Theurowards Aika, trying to see if she was also still in pain.
“Aika, how about you? Are you- E-Eehhh…? W-What is she doing…?”
“Guhehehe… Guhehehe~ Oh nyooo~ Hubby, you ’t~ Ahn~! Just where are you toug me~? Not there~ Don’t tease me~”
Hearing her little chuckles and murmurs, the three boys all turo look at Aika, and they saw her fag away from them, hugging herself while wriggling in pce, giggling creepily.
And while Momonga couldn’t show any expressioo his skeletoures and Lelouch due to it still being a game, Yuuji could tell they were making a weirded out expressiht now.
“Aaahh… Well, let’s just let her live in her wondernd for now…”
Leloud Momonga hey still have around 8 minutes now, so they still have a few mio spare.
Yuuji couldn’t help but smile helplessly at Aika… W if she too was super horny sihey haven’t seen each other in so long.
And with her neearance… Yuuji could barely hold himself back. If possible, he’d like to spend his first night in this new world with her.
Yuuji shook his head, keeping the lewd thoughts he had in the back of his mind for now, and turowards Momonga.
“Momonga, as you see, we have received the supp items from the group chat. And… we also have the “memories” about being a part of Ainz Ooal Gown…”
There was silence as Momonga slowly processed Yuuji’s words.
He turo look at the line of fgs, hung across the throne room; eae depig the symbol of his dear friends.
And then, he saw three “new” fgs he had never seen before.
The first one was that of an angel’s wing and devil’s wing. The sed, a pair of devil’s wings with a heart in the middle. And the third, a pair of angel’s wings with the symbol of Geass.
It was easy to tell whie beloo whom. And the fact that they existed here meant that…
Satoru let out a sigh, at least inwardly as he could not truly sight in the game or as a skeleton.
Then, he looked back towards Yuuji and nodded.
“I uand… Please don’t mind it. I… uand how the group chat works. But… I’d like to hear your stories soon.”
Yuuji and Lelouch both o his request.
Momonga then leaned back to his throne and looked at the server time, slowly tig down to its st minutes before the shut down at 00:00:00.
‘It has been… a journey. I used to think this would be the end… But.’
He g Yuuji, who was now busy snapping Aika out of her daze, and Lelouch who was fiddling with his system UI. And a sense of relief, excitement, and nostalgia filled his chest.
‘It’s yet aart… A start to an even more adventurous journey.’
He turned his gaze back towards the fgs. The fgs of his friends.
Touch Me. Nishikienrai. Hero Hero. Bukubukuchagama. Perorono. Warrior Takemikazuchi. Tabu Smaragdina. And many more…
Including the three who had left the guild early and were now repced by Yuuji, Aika, and Leloubsp;
His dear friends…
‘I’ll be keeping yacies… And keep moving forward with my new friends. I hope you don’t mind.’
He closed his eyes, reminisg the preemories he had with his guild mates, friends, and families in this game. The happy. The sad. The excited. The disappoi. Everything, now beautiful memories he will never fet and would forever fuel him in his life.
Then, he opened his eyes, and turowards his new, dear friends.
“It’s time. Are you guys ready?”
“Yes.”
“Uhn~!!!”
“We are.”
Yuuji, Aika, who was ging onto Yuuji’s arm, and Lelouch all nodded.
And soon… the server time ticked until there were only seds left.
23:59:56
23:59:57
23:59:58
23:59:59
00:00:00
……
…
.
00:00:01
--------------------------------X--------------------------------
e Vilge.
It was a vilge located on the border of the Re-Estize Kingdom, he edge of its border with the Baharuth Empire, close to the southern tip of the Azellerisia Mountain Range.
A small, quiet vilge just outside a patch of woodnd he Great Forest of Tob, a pce that brought the vilge both bounty and danger.
sidering its size and its location as a frontier vilge of the Re-Estize Kingdom, its popution was uional. A mere 120 people, distributed among 25 families.
The vilge made its living from the resources of the woodnd forest and agriculture, taking advantage of the vast nd around them.
Apart from doctors and herbalists who’d sometimes e to collect herbs from the Great Forest of Tob, the only visitors to the vilge were the yearly tax collectors.
It ce fairly cut off from the rest of the world.
Without teologies found in cities, or even simple magic items such as items that would create magical illumination of [tinual Light], the vilgers within this small patch of civilization worked acc to the whims of nature around them.
They would start w early hours in the m, the moment the sun peeked out from the horizon, up until it set fully oher side of the world.
Today was no different from any other.
Waking up early in the m, E went to the well to carry water. The beautiful, blonde-haired girl with untanned, surprisingly pale skie her farmer lifestyle, a slender figure, lithe arms, and slender legs despite her quite sizable womanly features both front and back, quickly made her way to the well.
After filling up her bucket with water, she hoisted it up and made her way bae. And she would be making the same trip twice more, totaling to three times, to fully fill her house’s water tank.
Despite her lithe figure, the slender, pte arms of the young woman belied the true strength and muscles she had beh those pale, soft skin. Long years of farm life and helping out with chores and manual bor had made sure she had grown some muscles, making her quite fit and leae the suppleness and softness she still retained as a young girl.
As Enri made her way home, she couldn’t help but dread the fact that she would o make the same trip twice more. If she had a bigger bucket, even if it were to bee a bit heavier, she would’ve taken it if it meant decreasing the number of trips she had to make.
Suddenly, she heard a sound that snapped her out of her idle daze. She turo look, and immediately from but a gnce, she could feel the tension in the air, and seeds of fear began to sprout within her heart.
Her ears picked up sounds of woods being broken as well as… A scream.
A chill ran down her spine.
No… It must be a mistake. She must be mistaken. It couldn’t be a human voice. Why would a human suddenly make such terrifying cries?
And then, she notiore thing that made all thoughts disappear from her mind.
The fact that the screams… came from the dire of her home.
Casting away the bucket of water, Enri ran. She ran as quickly as she could.
And perhaps dy luck pitied her so much that she gave her the luck to not trip over her own long skirt and help her keep her bao keep on running.
The sound rang out once more. And this time, she could not deny it anymore… It was a human scream.
Her heart sank to her stomach, yet she kept running, no matter if she could feel her legs burning from the acid her muscles excreted due to the inability of her breath to catch up to the demand of oxygen she o run so quickly.
She ran, ran, and ran.
The neigh of horses. The screams of humans. And the crag of wooden structures.
The sounds became clearer and clearer as she neared her home.
And she soon saw someone… and another one in armor, swinging a sword at him.
The vilger colpsed to the ground with a howl of pain, and with a sihrust to his mortal chest, the howl vanished, and the man dropped to the ground, like a puppet that had its strings cut off.
“Ma-san…”
In such a small vilge, even someone uo her family or work would be as close as kin. As such, she knew full well who the vilger that had been cut down was.
He was a loud person, a rambunctious one. But he was a good man deep down… He had dohing wrong that would deserve a steel bde through the heart.
It was unfair. But, Enri gritted her teeth and tio run. Run towards her home. To find her family, while praying to whatever Gods may listen to the prayers of a little, vilge girl like her. Pray that they will be safe.
“Dad! Mom! Nemu!”
Enri opehe door with a shout, and she saw three familiar figures with unfamiliar looks of fear etched on their faces.
“Enri! Are you alright?!”
Her father held her tightly in his arms. They were strong, brawny, tough arms from all the work he had done in the field. But now, they were trembling… It was as if it took him everything to hold her tightly.
“Aaah… Enri…”
Her mother also embraced her. Her gentle, lithe arms now seemed even weaker as she trembled all over.
“Good! Now that Enri’s back, we o flee as well!!!”
They couldn’t stay any lohey o flee, lest the steel bdes would find and pierce their chest as well.
The family of four immediately grabbed each other's hand and ran out of their home. But just as they were about to leave, a man, a fully-armored knight bearing the insignia of the Baharuth Empire, stood at the doorway. A long sword in hand.
The Baharuth Empire was the neighbor to the Re-Estize Kingdom, and the two had frequently waged on each other. Most of the battles have been mostly limited to the region around the fortress city, E-Rantel and had not reached the vilge.
That is… until now.
The cold eyes that pierced through the vision slits of his helmet froze the entire Emmot family.
And just as he was about to ehe house…
“UOOOOHHH!!!”
“KUUH!!”
Enri’s father lu the knight, toppling him over and causing both men to stumble around the ground.
“Damn you!!!”
Blood streamed from the small cut on her father’s face, a small wound that he must’ve suffered from bull-rushing a man in full pted armor.
He tile against the knight as he held the knight’s hand from drawing his short sword, while the knight held his hand which was holding a kit knife.
The sight of blood and struggle for life stuhe two young girls of the Emmot family.
“Enri! Nemu!”
The cry of their mother snapped both daughters out of their frozen fear. And as they turn to look, they could see their mother, shaking her head while wearing a heartbreaking expression on her once beautiful, gentle fabsp;
They ran. The three of them ran as quickly as they could as to not let the ultimate sacrifice of their beloved father and husband go to waste.
Guilt aatio her heart, drawing fresh blood and leaving a scar that would probably never heal.
The neighing of horses. Angry shouts. Csh of steel. And the smell of iron and burning flesh.
All of them assaulted Enri’s ears and nose from the dire of the vilge.
The fear was enough to freeze her iep… If not for the small hand that spurred her on, her little sister’s hand, she wouldn’t have the ability to keep on running for long.
Suddenly, her mother, who was running ahead of her, suddenly froze, turned around, and doubled back, her hands frantically gesturing to her children to run somewhere else, and far.
Even without a word, Enri knew what she had done…
She bit her lips, held her little sister’s hand tighter, and tio run as she forced back the tears in her eyes in futility.
She tio run… And steeled herself to make the same decision as her mother for her little sister.
VergsX