Hey there everyone! How is it going? I bring you both another chapter of this silly madness as well as a small 'explanation' about things on my end lately!

See, last month was quite hectic for me: Not only did I have exams 2 consecutive weeks, my parents also decided to make a travel to Rome for over a week, leaving me with having to take care of my dog and the house meant for 4 people on my own for all of that time, while still going to classes. All of that together, and my small selfishness of using most of the free time playing with my PS4 to relax, killed most of my writing time, which is why the next chapter of "One Punch-Gamer: Chains of Fate" has been delayed. I'm still working on it, but it will take a while yet in being done, so I decided to quickly put together this in a couple nights of silly fun to both vent and tell this to all of you who read that story and are waiting for the next chapter. Sorry again.

Anyway, that aside, hope you can turn off your brains and enjoy some mindless evil fun again in the meantime! Also, in case it wasn't obvious for those who don't bother paying attention the dates I write, there is a relatively big time skip between the end of last chapter and the beginning of this one :P So, without more delay, enjoy!

Disclaimer: Neither SAO nor Overlord belong to me. I'm just mixing the characters and plots for fun because I'm weird like that.

Chapter 3: Unwilling Hero of Justice!

August 18th, 2023. Netherworld Tower, Netherworld. Lower Levels, 21:20…

Eyebrows furrowed in utmost concentration as he connected two cables into a panel (Poorly) embedded on the black rock wall, the man on the dark robes took a deep breath and, closing his eyes and gritting his teeth, triggered the many switches on it.

After several seconds of silence…the dark hallway was illuminated by eerie light, strange glowing crystals (Which for some reason had several electric cables 'impaling' them) on the corners coming to life and humming with power.

"Section H-9 has been successfully powered up and connected to the network, Kayaba-sama." came a soft and emotionless voice from one of the crystals. "Congratulations, as of right now, the entire Netherworld Tower is under Cardinal's techno-magical supervision."

"Thanks, Yui…even if the word 'techno-magic' still makes me cringe, and that after almost 10 months down here…" muttered the creator of SAO while shaking his head and looking towards the nearest crystal. "Also, knowing that there like a 50/50 chance of it all exploding horribly every time we make the connections doesn't really help."

As he finished the words, the glow on the crystal grew in intensity before the 'holographic' (Though technically it was 'techno-magically projected') form of a little girl with long black hair, white dress, and empty eyes appeared before it, staring at Kayaba with an empty expression.

"Technically, the percentage was reduced to a little below 40% during the last stages of the installations, Kayaba-sama. Cardinal has adapted well to this."

"Sigh, of course it has…that's what her main ability was designed for when I created it, learn and self-upgrade…'adapt'…though I never thought it would adapt by using some bizarre and unholy combination of technology and evil magic on a hanging inverted tower of doom buried beneath the earth." sighed the scientist before looking down at his hands, covered in dark and unnaturally skintight gloves that shone with eldritch runes. "…Yui, you were created to analyze, understand and judge human psyche in general, so please tell me: What do you think of the moral implications of us working under an 'evil' Overlord?"

"My opinion on all this is irrelevant, Kayaba-sama, as I know you can simply lock me away or delete me through Cardinal if I don't obey." firmly stated Yui, her emotionless voice somehow turning a tad colder. "If you want my honest opinion, though, I think that you are the last person on the face of Earth that has any right to talk about the moral implications of things."

Kayaba had to suppress a shudder when he could almost feel the hidden disgust and annoyance behind the AI's words. Even after 8 months, it seemed that the surprisingly human-like girl still hadn't completely 'forgiven' him for sealing her away within SAO, unable to fulfill her purpose and only watch as the players despaired…even if it had been just for a couple hours.

He blamed it on the fact that the only 'people' she could now watch over and 'learn' from were the fucking minions, Gnarl and the other 2 humans that lived in the Netherworld.

And speaking of the Devil…

"Ah, Heathcliff-san…I see you finally finished with the last part of the tower…Oh, and hi there, Yui-chan!"

"Good afternoon, Silica-sama."

"…ye-yeah…same here, Silica…sama." muttered the scientist while turning around to stare at who, even if it wasn't the Devil, could be maybe called his 'Mistress'.

Ayano Keiko smiled at Yui's projected form, almost seeming to ignore his presence. The young girl had changed quite a bit, more in demeanor than appearance, but both were certainly noticeable: She now wore an expensive-looking blood-red dress, short enough to not be a hinder to her movements, with exquisite and otherworldly designs on it, not to mention that the decorations keeping her twin-tails in place were now two sinister skulls carved out of actual ivory of all things and she was wearing gleaming black sandals which, the man knew, were enchanted to keep her feet warm.

There was also the fact that she was much chirpier compared to the scared little girl that had been kidnapped almost 10 months ago, not to mention that she had grown slightly, though it was barely noticeable, even if the Overlord's 'mistress' seemed quite proud of it. The whole 'Silica' thing came from the fact that, after hearing their 'master' used that name in public and with the minions in general to 'inspire more respect' than his real one, she had decided to do the same. And curiously enough, that name was the same one she had used during her brief imprisonment within Sword Art Online.

She hadn't been really pleased to know he was Kayaba Akihiko, the one responsible for the worst hours of her life and the death of over 200 other players, among which she could have found herself. Not to mention being indirectly responsible for her ending up in the Netherworld, given that she would have never been in that hospital that evening if not for SAO.

Consequentially, that had only made her adoration (Because the scientist saw no other way to call it) for Kazuto grow after it was revealed that the Overlord truly had been to one to stop him and then 'turn him into his servant' all for the sake of 'no one being eviler than him'.

Of course, given that Keiko already knew the truth behind the boy, she had seen the reality of it all right away, and had engulfed him in a thankful hug, much to his utter confusion.

And since then…well, things had been quite hectic down there. Sure, no more dangerous raids or attacks to the surface had been made, but, after a few weeks of letting things 'cool down', the Minions had still been sent in very small groups to get the cables Kayaba needed to get the main SAO Server, and as such the Cardinal System, up and running again.

When that had been done, things had gotten…quite bizarre, to say the least, when the local Overlord suggested they could try and use it to improve their crazy 'techno-magic'. Despite his initial reticence about dealing with the concept that seemed like an insult to what he had dedicated most of his life working on (And his obvious dislike of anything straight out 'magical', as SAO's setting should have made obvious), the man had gone along with it because he couldn't exactly 'deny' his 'master'…and it had worked.

Sure, there were a couple problems at first, several minions electrocuted to death when installing wires, a couple that exploded when setting the first 'evil' crystals, and a moment when he feared Cardinal had broken down when countless screens he couldn't understand popped up after they first connected it to the aforementioned magical batteries.

But in the end, somehow, everything had turned out fine. Cardinal had managed to adapt to the crazy and unholy mix between evil magic and technology and started to work through and around it, Yui's 'projection' right now being one of the simplest examples.

And, as of that moment, the whole Netherworld Tower was 'connected' to Cardinal's ever-growing techno-magical power.

Honestly, Kayaba wasn't sure if he should feel very proud or utterly terrified of that fact.

"…I just got a call from the Throne Room." suddenly informed Yui after looking to the side with a moment, her expressionless face almost imperceptibly brightening up. "Overlord-sama is calling us."

"Then we should be there right away!" happily declared Keiko before raising a hand towards the virtual girl. "Yui-chan, teleport us to the Throne Room!"

"Affirmative, Silica-sama."

"What?! N-no, wait a…!"

The man's warning fell on deaf ears as beams of eldritch powers shot from the evil crystals, hitting both humans and leaving nothing but a soft smell of ozone in the area.

Not even a second later, both figures reappeared in the middle of the Throne Room, Keiko sporting a bright smile and Kayaba in his knees, gasping in fear as he patted himself like crazy, letting out a relieved sigh when he found himself complete.

"A-ah…are you out of your mind?! We still haven't perfected that function, it still had a 50% chance of failure! W-we could have ended up lost in the limbo, or disintegrated, o-or…!"

"Actually, Kayaba, Cardinal managed to reduce it to a 0,576% overnight." calmly corrected him a familiar voice, making both man and young girl look towards the Black Throne that towered slightly over them, one with disbelief and the other with admiration in their gazes. "We lost like 3 dozen minions, but it was worth it."

"And, of course, I was informed of that first thing in the morning, Heathcliff-san, which is why I gave the order." kindly replied the twin-tailed girl before rushing happily towards the throne, hugging the black-robed figure sitting there. "Good morning again, Kirito-sama!"

"Same to you, Ke…I mean, Silica." replied Kazuto with a small smile before the young girl dutifully let go of him and 'bowed', idly greeting some of the passing Minions that noticed her presence. "So, I take it everything is finally done?"

"Affirmative, Overlord-sama." informed Yui while materializing on the center of the room, the magical projection operating a couple of holo-screens from within the Server. "The entire tower is under Cardinal's supervision now; we have view of every single corner and a direct connection for communication, vigilance, teleportation, and ambient-control of them."

"Beyond excellent!" came Gnarl's voice as the Hellspawn walked into the room, his tone full of evil joy. "That means we have finally achieved the objectives we set out to do back when we got Heathcliff to join us!"

"Hi there, Gnarl-sensei!" greeted him Keiko with her usual smile, the Minion Master nodding in return to his Master's mistress and, also, his 'helper'.

"Yeah, well, it would have been way faster if we hadn't lost the secondary servers back then." mumbled Kayaba while crossing his arms. "At least we didn't lose anything important when we lost those…"

"Except for the data codes and encryptions needed to properly activate the others MHCPs, you mean." spoke Yui while staring directly at him, her emotionless demeanor once again turning somehow ice cold as she glared at her creator.

"…except for those, of course."

"Once again, I'm deeply sorry for your loss, Yui-chan." muttered the young Overlord with a sad tone…before quickly adding something else upon seeing Gnarl's raised eyebrow. "Be-because your, uhm, sisters would have been a great help for our plans!"

"There is no need for you to apologize, Overlord-sama, there was no way you could have known when my dear creator didn't even tell you about ME to begin with, and would probably have forgotten if Cardinal hadn't asked your malevolence what you wanted to do with me." calmly commented Yui while ignoring the Hellspawn's satisfied nod at their master's correction. "Serving your evil cause is my only purpose now that my original one went to hell, but I will still endeavor to find a way for restoring my fellow MHCPs…as long as it doesn't interfere with your plans, of course."

"And you have my sinister blessing to do so, Yui-chan…all for the sake of my evil plans, of course!" quickly finished Kazuto while standing up and patting the magical projection's head, Yui seeming to make a visible effort to keep her impassive face and not preen happily at the gesture.

"…I don't get it. What he 'does', and is supposed to be, goes against everything she was originally programmed for…why does she hate me while to him acts as if he was her father or something?" mumbled Kayaba with a suffering mix of confusion and scientific curiosity.

"Do you want me to honestly answer honestly why Kirito-sama is a better parental figure in her eyes, Heathcliff-san, or just continuing to smile at you this way will suffice?" questioned Keiko with a 'sweet smile' that sent shivers down the man's back.

"Ah, Silica-sama, I'm so proud of how well you have learned about the Ways of Evil!" praised Gnarl towards the twin-tailed girl, before rubbing his chin in thought. "Which reminds me, I could use your help again today in doing something on that Internet-thing…Overlord, mind if I use your computer again?"

"I grant you permission to do so, Gnarl." 'magnanimously' declared the young Overlord while subtly making a gesture for Keiko to keep an eye on the Minion Master, his 'mistress' returning it happily before skipping away after the creature, leaving him alone with Kayaba. "…man, I'm so glad Keiko-chan has adapted so well to keeping up this act."

"Yeah, very well…maybe too well." muttered the scientist while giving the boy a meaningful look.

"I know, right? You don't know how relieved that made me!" cheerfully replied the black-haired boy, totally missing the meaning behind the man's look. "I mean, sure, she was very awkward at first, and she was even so scared sometimes I let her sleep on my bed while she cuddled me out of fear, but she adapted to everything from the 'evil names' to the Minions very fast after that! She also started to learn a lot of things from Gnarl without problems, and keeping everything around here from collapsing almost as good as he does…hell, some days even I actually believe she enjoys being here as much as she pretends! I'm really going to miss her when we manage to get her back home…"

"…Ka…uhm, Kirito-sama?" questioned the scientist while eyeing the minions coming and going through the Throne Room. "Have you ever heard the term 'Stockholm Syndrome'?"

"Uhm…no. Should I have?"

For a moment, Kayaba opened his mouth, very tempted to give an answer, before realizing how Yui (Who had still been there the whole time) was staring at them with her 'emotionless' face and showing clearly no intent to correct the, in the current situation, critical lack of psychological understanding, which went, once again, against the very basics of her programming. The implications of which terrified him.

"…no, it's not really important, my Overlord." decided to say the man while suppressing a defeated groan.

After all, as everyone kept fucking telling him, he wasn't really anyone to talk about moral implications, right?

"Well, now all that we need to do is figure out the next step in our 'World Domination Plan'." sighed Kazuto before crossing his fingers. "We have Cardinal now, but how do we use it in a way that, you know, doesn't cause country-wide destruction, kills lots of innocent people, but still is 'evil'?"

"Are you asking me just because I'm supposed to be the smarter one?" barely suppressing the need to ask for an aspirin, SAO's creator simply shrugged. "I don't know what to tell you about how half-ass the use of our resources for evil, to be honest. You may have better luck looking for ideas on TV than…"

The man's words were interrupted by the Throne Room's 'magical television' being turned on, channels quickly being changed as if someone was making an inhumanly fast zapping.

"…now that's oddly convenient." mused the young Overlord with a raised eyebrow, even as Kayaba turned to look at Yui with a questioning face.

All he received for answer was a cold look and the MHCP pointing with a finger towards the ceiling, making his eyes widen and a groan to escape his mouth.

"I didn't mean that literally, Cardinal." complained the scientist while shaking his head. "Just turn off the damn television and…"

"…finals of the Middle-School Division's Kendo Nationals…"

"Wait! Back up!" shouted Kazuto while standing up, surprising both Kayaba and Yui at his unusually sharp tone, several minions stopping to stare in surprise too. "That channel of before, put it back on!"

Cardinal apparently understood perfectly what its Overlord was referring to, for it had no trouble putting once again the televised match onscreen, the form of two young figured fully clad in kendo equipment and protection, shinai held tightly on their hands while the multitude watching them did its best to keep silent, hushed whispers echoing everywhere.

"Kirito-sama, we're back! You won't believe what Gnarl-sensei…what are you watching?" interrupted Keiko just as she and the Minion Master came back into the room, her curious gaze fixed upon the screen.

"Kendo Nationals. We just happened to stumble across it." explained the young Overlord as the two people he could say were the closest to him in the world (For good or bad) walked near him and Kayaba. "I…used to practice, when I was young. Not for long and I didn't really like it that much, but…I guess it brought back memories…"

"Ah, yes, the sport people of this land practice nowadays in a pale attempt to keep their long-decaying culture of the sword alive." commented Gnarl with a shake of his head while watching the screen, earning a raised eyebrow from the two Japanese present that hadn't lived almost 5 years with him. "I mean, sure, back then when my previous lord arrived at this land and waged war against the armies of back then, your samurai weren't half-bad, especially those backed up by your Gods' blessings, but nowadays is all bamboo and wooden swords almost all the time and most of your traditions of honor and of stabbing yourselves in the good if you screwed up (Which was hella funny to see, by the way) is all but gone. Such a shame too…"

"Is…amazing, to see your interpretations of our country's old culture, Gnarl." deadpanned Kayaba while rubbing his forehead.

"Why, thank you, Heathcliff…though I got to admit, that human there isn't half-bad with that toy-weapon." conceded the Hellspawn while staring fixedly at the screen, the scientist just noticing Keiko and Kazuto were also doing so, one with an awed expression and the other with a surprised one.

Turning to the screen, he was just in time to see one of the competitors almost seeming to dance around their clearly outmatched opponent, the movements on the kendoka's body seeming so smooth the man had a hard time believing it was actually a middle schooler and not a professional, the shinai she wielded easily parrying and redirecting every single hit from her increasingly frustrated enemy.

Finally, in a final desperate charge, the slightly taller participant rushed towards the girl, aiming for a quick and devastating strike…

"…it's over." whispered Kazuto as he sat down again.

…which failed when the girl simply sidestepped him with laughable easiness and slammed her shinai on his chest, winning the match, the multitude exploding into cheers while her opponent fell to his knees in clear shock.

"See? Not bad for a human practicing a cheap imitation of an art meant for fighting to death against their enemies." 'complimented' Gnarl with a dark chuckle, earning an annoyed look from Kayaba and being mostly ignored by Keiko, who was still staring with awe at the winner.

"Heh, my grandfather would have gotten crazy angry if he heard you say that, Gnarl." not-so-darkly chuckled the young Overlord while shaking his head. "And he could probably have beaten you too. The old man could hit like a bull when he was ang…"

It was at that moment that the new National Champion took off her head-protector and the boy's words died on his throat, everyone blinking in surprise at noticing how he stood up again, shock and disbelief filling his eyes as he STARED at the young girl.

Grayish-blue eyes looked at the crowd with a mix of pride and embarrassment, though she was quick to school her features into the serious calmness any kendoka should have, and that he knew had been drilled on her since she was very young.

Idly, she passed a hand over her lustrous dark hair, which fell down just slightly past her shoulders, unconsciously touching the golden and green hairpin with a motif of the sun, radically different from the one he last remembered seeing her use.

"So pretty…" muttered the youngest human in the room while staring at the now uncovered girl, even as the television announced how Kirigaya Suguha was now the new National Champion. "Wait…Kirigaya?"

"Isn't that…?" started to ask Kayaba while turning around, only to fall silent at the intense and nostalgic smile on Kazuto's face.

"Sugu…" whispered the young Overlord while staring at the girl, who was barely able to hold back her smile as she was awarded the title of the country's best kendoka in her category. "…grandfather would be really proud of you."

"Is that someone from your family, my Overlord?" asked the Hellspawn with an interested look.

"Yeah, she's my cous…my little sister." muttered the black-haired boy with a small shake of her head. "I hadn't seen her in almost 5 years, so this came like quite the shock…then again, maybe not. She was always way more dedicated to kendo than I could have ever been…"

"We-well, as amazing as your little sister is, you're even more amazing in other ways, Kirito-sama!" quickly assured Keiko with an eager smile, though she kept giving glances towards the young girl on the screen and muttering something about needing to eat more.

"Indeed. Just as Silica-sama says, your calling was just in another place." clarified Gnarl while looking from the screen to the nostalgic-looking Overlord. "…want us to kidnap her and bring her here?"

"…what?! NO!" quickly shouted Kazuto with a horrified look on his face, staring at his Minion Master as if he had said the craziest things ever. "Why would you think I would want that?!"

"Because you used to complain all the time about how much you missed your family and wanted to talk to them once again to apologize for running away?" questioned the Hellspawn with a raised eyebrow. "You're the Overlord, future owner of the world, and know we have more than enough power to do something like kidnaping them easily and as such reuniting you with them…why wouldn't you want that?"

"Uhm, well, because…" trying to appear as calm as possible (And failing) while trying to think of an excuse that didn't involve saying he didn't want to ruin his family's life like he had accidentally done to poor Keiko (Which he really had to thank for being so good at keeping up the act of enjoying being there!), the boy's eyes widened as an idea finally surged through his mind. "Be-because my families are nobodies! Ye-yeah, that's why! Kidnaping them would be a waste of resources and time because they wouldn't further our endeavors of taking over the world in any way!"

"Hmm, you're not wrong about that, my lord…" accepted Gnarl while rubbing his goatee with a thoughtful look. "Does that mean you would only use our resources to kidnap someone that allowed us to further our evil plans and be useful for our cause at the same time?"

"O-of course!" agreed the young Overlord with a confident smile, going along with the weird talk just because he was thankful for driving the subject away from his family. "If we had to kidnap someone it would have to be someone influential, probably with a high standing on society, and a lot of resources we could take advantage of to further our evil plans …"

"So, someone like those guys?" asked Yui, who had been silent for quite some time now, while she pointed at the screen, making everyone blink and turn towards the magical projection to see what looked like some kind of press conference, with an elderly brown-haired man addressing the press from a podium while what seemed like his family and a bunch of bodyguards stood behind him.

"…can't let the terrible events of last year to stop us from progress! Kayaba Akihiko may have been a monster, but the technology he developed can still be used for the good of everyone! That's why RECT won't rest until we make sure that…!"

"Who is that guy?" asked a confused Kazuto while tilting his head.

"That's Yuuki Shouzou, CEO of RECT Inc. They're the only company with a main division fully centered around FullDive technology nowadays, after buying all of Kayaba's public research and anything that wasn't destroying last year from the now bankrupt Argus." swiftly informed Yui while looking up, a clear sign that Cardinal had just sent her that information. "The ones standing behind him are his wife, son and daughter; Yuuki Kyouko, Kouichirou and Asuna respectively. His company's main subdivision, RECT Progress, has become famous nowadays because of the creation of a new and completely safe FullDive device called 'AmuSphere'. Apparently, all of his drive for all of this comes from the fact that the division's previous chief, one Sugou Nobuyuki…died during the 'Overlord Incident' in Argus last year."

"Wait…Sugou? Why is that name so familiar…?"

"It's the guy who was driving the car you escaped in." deadpanned Kayaba while staring at his 'master' with disbelief. "You know…the one you left to explode to save Ke…Silica here?"

"Oh yeah, that guy! I had almost forgotten about him, to be honest…" muttered the young Overlord while, at his side, Keiko muttered a silent prayer for the man her dear Kirito-sama had chosen her to save over. "So, in a way, everything this Yuuki guy is doing is because of me, uh…?"

"More or less, Overlord-sama. Also, Yuuki Shouzou seems to be one of the people most intent on denying the authenticity of the 'Overlord Kirito', saying it was just a mentally unbalanced normal terrorist taking advantage of people's panic over the SAO incident to trick everyone." informed Yui while making a disapproving gesture.

"Ho-how dare he say those horrible things about Kirito-sama?! He can't be forgiven!" shouted the youngest human in the room while pointing towards the screen. "All the weight of Evil should fall on him! Isn't that right, Pina?!"

"Meow." was all that the conveniently-appeared cat said, obviously, as it rubbed its body against Keiko's leg and nodded.

"…say, is anyone else worried by how big that cat is getting?" wondered Kayaba while staring at the feline, which was now, for some reason, over half as big as Not-Wolfy was.

"No." was Gnarl's answer before narrowing his eyes towards the screen, ignoring both the scientist's groans and the CEO's speech as his eyes fixed on someone "Yes…this could work, my Overlord! A kidnapping to not only further our plans, but also remind the world that you're a real Evil that shall soon take it over!"

"Wa-wait, are we seriously going to kidnap that Shouzou guy?! He most likely has tons of bodyguards and security that I doubt the Minions can effectively…"

"Oh no, kidnaping the man itself would be a waste and it would be all but impossible to take advantage of his resources like that." explained the Hellspawn with a devious grin before pointing towards a specific person on the screen, standing dutifully beside her mother and brother. "But someone he cares deeply for, and that would be not even remotely as protected, on the other hand…"

Slowly, Kazuto, Keiko and Kayaba's attention turned towards the chestnut-haired girl with the clearly forced smile, who anyone with half a brain could say didn't want to be there, but did so anyway like any obedient child of a prestigious family would.

"…okay, why not? Let's kidnap Yuuki Asuna." said the scientist with a resigned 'evil chuckle', even as the black-haired boy's head snapped his way. "We're supposed to be the bad guys, after all!"

"Wha-what?! But…!"

"I will go organize the Minions and prepare the Gates for deployment!" cheerfully declared the twin-tailed girl before rushing away with her abnormally big cat in toe, not even giving the young Overlord time to call her name. "For Kirito-sama!"

"Well, it's decided then, my Overlord! Our next step has presented itself to us, surely thanks to your amazing luck!" preened Gnarl while raising his hands dramatically.

For his part…Kazuto forced an 'Evil Smile' on his face as he leaned forward.

"Indeed, Gnarl. That poor, helpless girl has no idea what's coming to her." spoke the black-haired boy with a sinister look.

In his mind, though, the only thing that could be heard was a constant repeat of 'Fuck, fuck, fuck!'

"Ohohoh, it always warms this old evil heart of mine to hear you say such things, master."

"Su-sure Gnarl, whatever you say…uhm, Yui-chan, do you think you could get Cardinal to…?"

"We already have all the public and private data on the girl, Overlord-sama, even at to which Private All-Girls School she attends, and her school's horary. Luckily for us, she's attending Summer Classes despite her high grades, so getting to her will be laughably easy, eheheheheh…was my evil laugh good?"

"I…wasn't going to ask that, but thanks, I guess? Also, please, never try to laugh like that again…"

"Hai, Overlord-sama."

Resisting the urge to scream in frustration, Kazuto sighed in defeat.

On the bright side, there was no way this situation could get any worse…

With a tired smile, Kirigaya Suguha entered her bathroom that night after having just said goodbye to her extremely happy and proud-looking mother, taking off her clothes and preparing herself a nice warm bath to wash away the sweat, tension, and embarrassment of the day.

Idly, the girl's gaze turned towards the bathroom's mirror, her eyes moving over her growing body and stopping on her face, her hand idly touching her hair and tugging softly at it with just a small hint of annoyance.

It was starting to grow too long. She always liked her hair shorter because it got in the way of kendo, no matter if her fellow kendoka told her she looked 'girlier' or 'prettier' with it. A year ago she would have never let it grow this long in the first place, but…

"Hey, hands off the hair, partner! We reached a compromise so stick to it!"

Barely suppressing a frustrated growl, the young kendoka glared towards her reflection…which now was crossing her arms over her breasts and giving her a cheerful look despite 'her' words, the intricately designed 'hairpin' with sun motifs on her hair despite the fact that the girl had taken it off.

Of course, that hadn't really been the case, as she couldn't 'take off' the 'hairpin', ever. It had just changed the way in which the world perceived it so that she could take a bath without it bothering her.

"You mean you forced me into one, Sanrei!" glowered Suguha while resisting the urge of punching the mirror, knowing that all she would do was being forced to invent an excuse for her mother. "I never asked for any of this, so I just went along with it because I had no other option!"

The entity called 'Sunray' in Japanese laughed brightly, the animosity of its 'host' seeming to not bother it in the slightest.

"Nee, you have to be more cheerful, Suguha-chan! After all, do you know how many people dream of being like the brave heroes of the legends? You should be ecstatic about what you are now!" dramatically declared the Sun Spirit while raising her arms, unmindful or uncaring of the nakedness of their shared body. "A paragon of Justice and Power among mortal men! A protector of the innocent! A light that shines without equal to illuminate the darkness!"

"…when you say it like that, it sounds almost cool." muttered the girl with a twitching eyebrow. "Of course, then you slip and mention how high my chances of suffering a horrible death against the Overlord are."

"Gasp! What are you saying, Suguha-chan?! You will totally defeat the Overlord and save the world, even if it costs your life!" a couple of seconds passed as Sanrei seemed to reflect on what she said. "EHEM, I mean, that you will totally beat him without losing your life, yeah!"

Shamelessly sighing in defeat, Suguha concentrated in cleaning her body while getting ready to enter the bathtub, ignoring further ramblings from her 'partner'.

Some days, she still hoped to wake up and find out this was all just a dream, but after almost a year since that fateful night, that hope had become nothing but a dream itself.

It all sounded like madness and gibberish, or the plot of some cheap fantasy anime for children: The Gods and ancient mystical creatures, all real, joining together to repel the previous Overlord, whose powers and armies of Evil were so great he slew every single one, even if they managed to take him down with them in the end. And Amaterasu-omikami herself, the Major Shinto Goddess of the Sun, mother of the universe, 'She who Shines in Heaven', the one the Japanese Emperors were said the descend from, had been the one that fought the last battle with him, her siblings dead around the two as she managed to land a fatal blow on the Dark One just as he destroyed her.

The followers of the Gods had then sealed the remains of the Overlord's army, hoping the Evil never again threatened their land or the world itself…but they had also created a 'failsafe', a last hope in case this happened, now that there was no force left on the world to oppose the Dark One if he returned.

Sanrei was nothing but a minor spirit of the sun, a servant of Amaterasu herself. Nothing 'special' in the grand scheme of things, but still a being far above mortals, and also the partner of many brave warriors that had fought against the Evil Minion Hordes and all other abominations the Overlord had under his control back then, turning them into powerful super-warriors that had been only called 'Heroes', able to defeat entire armies singlehandedly…even if all of them had ended up dead in the end.

And so, ancient monks and masters of the mystical arts had gathered what remained of the Gods' divine power, in the very same place where they fell against the Overlord, and imbued the Sun Spirit with it, before sealing it and connecting said seal to the one keeping the Dark One's armies sleep. That way, if the Master of Evil ever returned, they hoped that one of their descendants would be able to have enough power to beat him before he became too powerful.

…there ended up being several problems with that plan, though. First of all, it seemed the idiot of Sanrei had been sleeping for so long that, despite being released when the Overlord's seal broke, he had still slept like a log until the incident of last November, when the open use of the Dark One's evil powers had made it react, which meant the evil ruler had who knows how much time to train his powers. Then, there was the fact that not only the fear and memory of the Overlord and the old ways had been totally forgotten in the modern age, but also that all but one of the Gods' Servants' families still remained, and that there were all more 'normal people' than 'noble warriors'.

Besides the fact that he worked overseas, her father wouldn't even know what to do in a serious fight at all, and so it had been her, Kirigaya Suguha, barely a teenager, who had ended up being 'chosen' (Read, become the unwilling host) by Sanrei to carry on the suicidal task.

The girl just thanked the dead Gods that she had chosen to follow the way of kendo because of her grandfather, unlike her father, because, otherwise, she would probably have ended up with actually 0 chances of succeeding. After all, all the power she had been granted, whether she wanted it or not, would mean nothing against the Overlord without the skill to use it.

"…guha? Suguha? Ugh, are you ignoring me again? Stop being so gloomy! Shouldn't you be happier? You just became the country's champion!"

"And normally I would be beyond happy about that, but it's not easy when I was holding back the entire time to not beat the shit out of all my opponents!" growled the girl before looking down with a mix between a scowl and a worried look, biting her lips as she finally slid into the bathtub. "It was so easy…even that guy in the finals, I had to do a serious effort to not end the fight instantly, and it still was no challenge at all…I should feel terrible, I should feel like a cheater or a liar, but…I don't! Why?!"

"Because you did nothing wrong." nonchalantly answered Sanrei from the reflection now visible on the water's surface. "You're a 'Hero' now, someone who stands above all mortal men. You're destined to shine over normal people, you're fated to stand above them, to be a beacon of Hope and Light that opposes the Darkness within their hearts!"

Suguha actually frowned at that, once again (As it had become a habit for her since last year) looking into the deeper meaning behind her 'partner's words.

Sanrei wasn't human, 'it' didn't even have an actual physical form, only adapting hers since they 'shared' a body, and 'her' philosophy just made it clearer every time they talked.

The Sun Spirit truly believed in every single thing she said. She truly believed that, by some random twist of Fate, the young kendoka was destined to be everything she said, to be the 'Knight in Shining Armor' that saved the day and vanquished evil to save the world. It was her nature to believe it.

…except that it was also very clear there was also a 'realistic' part of Amaterasu's Servant that knew how slim their chances were and how very likely it was that BOTH of them would die trying to fulfill this 'sacred task'. In a normal person, this would have meant either extreme hypocrisy or a serious psychological problem.

On Sanrei, though, it was just the way 'she' was. The only reason left she existed for.

The creature had been created by Amaterasu, just another among many, a guardian spirit and a protector of her followers. Whether she herself had faith in mankind or not was irrelevant, as it didn't affect her purpose to serve her Goddess and protect them.

Now, though, with the Gods gone and only one last task left to do, after which she would end up without purpose anyway, the Sun Spirit was single-mindedly determined to see it through no matter how it ended. Having to use a girl that wasn't even 15 for it and probably dooming her life in the process didn't matter because she had a concept of 'morals' that was almost alien compared to the human one.

And that, honestly, made Suguha shiver way more than the prospect of facing off against the reincarnation (Heir or whatever) of someone that had killed all of her country's major Deities in direct combat.

But, despite all of that, and even if she never had a choice to begin with…there was still something that drove her to try, to put up with the 'training' Sanrei had forced her into during the last months…

"…you won't go back on your promise, right? You will truly fulfill it, Sanrei?"

"I'm the last Sun Spirit that served Amaterasu-sama, Suguha. I can't break any promise made in her name, nor would I ever willingly want to." answered her reflection with that annoyingly unnatural smile still on her face. "If by some miracle you manage to…I mean, WHEN you defeat the Overlord and survive, my powers will no longer have any purpose, so you will be free to use them to find your cousin…big brother….whatever you call him."

"Onii-chan…" whispered the young kendoka while closing her eyes.

If she was going to be forced into a nigh-suicidal task that seemed right out of some fantasy shonen manga then she may as well get something out of it, right?

She would do it. She would become strong enough to defeat the Overlord and when she did, she would use Sanrei's powers to find Kazuto. To ask him why he didn't come back, if he hated their family…if he hated her. Or…

Well, it didn't matter for now. All that did was to keep mastering her powers, maybe convince her annoying body-mate of what those '3 Treasures' she had mentioned long ago were and find a way to defeat the surprisingly absent Dark One (Of course, unlike the people online who were starting to believe it had been nothing more than a trick, she knew the guy was the real deal).

Hopefully, she would still have some months to keep practicing with her 'Hero' powers before anything serious happened…

The next day, as she finished her summer classes for the day, Yuuki Asuna stared listlessly out of the window as she grabbed her schoolbag.

Yesterday had been quite boring, but dad had insisted in that it would project a 'better image' if all of them were present during his speech, so she had to go. Taking advantage of her brother being home much more lately had also been helpful in that regard.

And it was that what made the teenager sigh, even as she smiled at her classmates as she exited the classroom, her mind wandering to the incident last year, when she was stupid enough to put on Kouichirou's Nerve Gear to 'see how that virtual game was like', and that could have very well cost her life.

If she had just gone straight to her room and studied like every other day, she wouldn't have gone through what probably were the worst hours of her life, filled with fear and despair, until the 'incident' that set everyone from SAO free happened.

She was so terrified that the first thing she did when she 'woke up' was to latch on her mother and brother (Her father hadn't been present at the time because of the aforementioned event), cry her heart out and repeat 'I'm sorry!' endless times. Both of them had been so shocked that any idea the woman had of reprimanding her had been forgotten and they had just awkwardly hugged her.

Asuna had been forced into a very expensive private psychologist for a whole week after that, at her family's insistence, just to make sure she was okay. She had nothing to say against that, as long as it didn't get in the way of her studies. Coincidentally, she had passed her upcoming tests with flying colors because of how obsessed she had been with the 'monotony' of studying after she almost died because of wanting to have some 'excitement', not to mention the weird mood around the house when Sugou-san had been killed that same day (She wasn't particularly close with the man that was supposed to become her husband in the future, so she didn't really know how to feel about that).

Her mother was right, after all. She just needed to be concerned about her studies and being successful in life, nothing more. That certainly would keep her away from videogames that could kill her.

Still, as she exited the school building proper and started the walk through the main grounds towards the car waiting outside to take her home, a small and annoying part of herself couldn't help but remember with a bit of longing the short time she spent within Aincrad before the true nature of the Death Game was revealed, walking through the streets of Starting City and watching the people going around and talking with each other, no one paying special attention to her, a couple even greeting her out of politeness instead of it being because she was the Yuuki heiress or a 'rich girl'. That strange yet not unpleasant feeling of being 'just a normal girl'…

Shaking her head, the chestnut-haired teen turned back to reality and looked forward. Such thoughts didn't matter anymore. Her life was set in a very specific path, which in the end she didn't really mind following (Having been raised for it specifically), and nothing would ever happen to change that rea…

The sound of terrified screams, shouts and of a speeding car caught Asuna's attention just as she saw the car she usually boarded to get back home rushing into the school grounds, her mouth dropping open at seeing not only the driver unconscious near the actual entrance, not to mention the female students running out of its way…but also the brownish, inhuman creatures of yellow eyes standing above and inside the vehicle.

Asuna had barely enough time to remember how many times she had agreed with her family about the whole 'Overlord' thing being nothing more than a very elaborate scam prepared by a terrorist seeking to take advantage of the SAO incident before the car drifted brutally and almost ran her over, the young heiress screaming as she fell on her ass from the shock just as the door's slammed open and a cute, if quite big, dog with some weird message on the side stared at her, a Minion with a weird armor and a rubber chicken in hand pointing dramatically at her from its side.

"Kidnap humie! For Overlord!"

Finally, the chestnut-haired girl remembered how to scream in fright as several Browns rushed out and grabbed her, easily taking her inside the car despite her best attempts at struggling while kicking and punching, the creature's seemingly uncaring of her hits as the door's closed and the vehicle accelerated away, the screams of her classmates for her name idly reaching Asuna's ears as she managed to sit up and press herself against the seat, fumbling for the seatbelt while her terrified eyes moved from the grinning Minions to the front of the car, where Rubber-band was merrily sitting on the wheel.

"This is not real, this isn't real…I was not just kidnapped by a bunch of actual monsters as one of them drives away a car when he can't even reach the pedals…"

"Actually, Rubber-band-san isn't the one driving, it's me." came an emotionless female voice from the car's speakers, making the young heiress' mouth drop open at seeing the figure of a little girl with dull eyes appearing on the screen that usually displayed the weather and other similar info. "Good evening, Yuuki Asuna-san. In the name of Evil, we have kidnapped you."

All that the girl said in answer was a whimper, even as the Minions surrounding her (And the ones still atop the car) cheered and laughed sinisterly, making her feel the need of curling into a ball.

Asuna wasn't sure how long they were driving, maybe 10 minutes, maybe half an hour, but she was too busy trying to not have a mental breakdown like she had back in SAO to notice. The point was that, in the end, she felt the car slowing down and gulped as all doors opened, the devilish creatures beckoning her out with dark chuckles. Unable to do anything else, the chestnut-haired girl followed.

That's the first time she saw HIM, and she felt her breath catch in her throat as her gaze fell upon his imposing and otherworldly form.

Clad in an armor blacker than the night, with eldritch designs that spoke of an Evil long-forgotten but never gone, a wicked blade humming with dark power on his hand. The white mantle carried upon his back only seemed but a purposeful contrast to show how much Black was his color, like the darkness itself obeying him, but also spoke of power and riches, of someone larger than life destined for greatness since birth.

His eyes stared at her from beyond the black helmet, and the dark golden glow they held made even that of the alien Gate standing behind him seem dim in comparison, betraying the untold power his small frame, barely taller than her, hid.

His voice made her very soul shiver, fear and a myriad of unknown emotions filling her at hearing it.

"Tell me, Yuuki Asuna…do you still think I'm nothing but a fraud?" asked Overlord Kirito with dark amusement in his words.

All Asuna could do to answer was frantically shake her heart, feeling her body trembling without control.

"Woah, she is really terrified…" commented Gnarl from back in the Throne Room, he, Kayaba and Keiko watching the scene through a magical projection Cardinal had created thanks to the link between the Overlord's power and the Netherworld Gate which now stood behind him. "Truly, your Evil presence just keeps making those simple humans realize how insignificant they are, my lord!"

"Yes, yes, he has traumatized the rich teenage girl, amazing. Can we please hurry this up before anything that screws the plan up happens?" spoke the scientist with a tired look.

"…that almost seems as if you're actually expecting something like that to happen, Heathcliff-san." deadpanned the twin-tailed girl while looking at the man.

"Indeed, that's just silly!" waved it off Gnarl while they saw Kirito stepping closer to the terrified Asuna. "Cardinal made sure to scramble signals and redirect the humans' emergency calls everywhere so that the authorities couldn't intervene in time! What could possibly ruin our lord's plans now?"

Back on the small clearing, the Yuuki heiress almost jumped as she saw the Dark One extending his armored hand towards her.

"Wha…ah…?"

"Now then…come with me without resistance." simply declared Kirito while trying very hard not to break character. "Or things will get very…unpleasant for you."

Staring at him for a moment, the chestnut-haired girl hesitated…before resigning herself and starting to reach out, her heart filled with despair and fear…

"(Let go of her, you monster!)"

…before Hope and Light exploded forward, shaking the entire area with an explosion of power.

The minions screamed, most of them being cut apart, Not-Wolfy barely able to get his rider out of the way.

Back in the Netherworld Tower, the 3 most loyal servants of the Overlord shouted their master's name in shock, before their eyes widened at what they saw.

Slowly, the young Overlord dropped the shield he had raised by instinct, barely containing a shocked gasp at the figure now standing at the other end of the clearing, holding his 'hostage' protectively against her side.

Blinking in shock, Yuuki Asuna looked up.

Beautiful yellow hair, like that of the morning sun, spilled back and upwards, held in a ponytail by an armored decoration filled with motifs of the sun, same ones filling the sharp mask that covered the upper half of a pretty yet strong-looking face.

Golden and green armor covered her chest, hips, legs and arms, tight against her body like it shouldn't have been possible for any normal metal, the exposed parts of her beautiful skin shining with the radiance of the sun, as if to indicate they were no less protected despite the lack of armor.

On the center of her chest, just over her bountiful breasts, the Mark of the Sun, the ancient symbol of Amaterasu-omikami, burned with radiance, a blade that seemed made of nothing but concentrated light held tightly with the hand that wasn't holding Asuna to her side.

The young heiress was pretty sure she felt her heart skip a beat and a light blush creeping on her face when the masked face looked down towards her, the radiant being's (Because Asuna could in no way call her simply a 'girl') lips twisting with worry.

"(Are you okay?)"

All she received in answer was a dumb nod, still overwhelmed by the shining girl's presence, same one 'Overlord Kirito' was experiencing in that moment.

It was like a radiant well of Hope and Light. A mystical and unnatural presence that offered protection and the assurance that everything would be well, that the sun would come out tomorrow and that rainbows would cover the sky, that birds would sing songs of peace and that all your dreams would be fulfilled.

The part of him that was a kid who lived 10 years as a normal human felt as mesmerized by it as Asuna was.

The other part, however, the one that had awakened the moment he broke the ancient seal of the Overlord, that which was Evil and Darkness destined to rule over it all, felt repulsed by it, as if was the antithesis of everything he stood for, and as if her mere existence made him feel sick.

"Wh-who the hell are you?!" shouted the young Overlord once he felt his voice come back under his control, idly noticing a wary-looking Rubber-band taking position at his side, the other remaining lonely Brown doing the same on the other.

For her part, the armored girl just let go of Asuna, making sure of putting herself between him and the chestnut-haired adopting a fighting stance while raising their holy-looking weapon.

"(I'm the Hero Leafa, the last Servant of Amaterasu!)" proclaimed the blonde as her aura shone stronger still, the power of the sun filling the minions with dread and the young heiress with hope. "(Overlord Kirito…I won't let you lay a hand on this girl!)"

Asuna gasped, her hand shooting over her heart in surprise.

Kazuto gaped under his helmet, having no idea of what was going on.

Gnarl growled, jumping in place with worried/angry look at the Hero's reveal, the 2 human present looking at him with confusion.

All the while…a single thought kept echoing inside the brave hero's mind, sung by two voices, one scared and the other resignedly cheerful.

"We're so doomed, we're so doomed, we're so doomed…!"

And so, after countless years, Light and Darkness were about to clash once again…

Author's Notes: Dramatic cliffhanger! Next time, an epic, dramatic and beyond belief battle of unholy proportions between the Dark and Terrible Master of Evil and the Brave and Unyielding Hero of the Sun!

…that was a lie, by the way :D

Anyway, that's all for now, folks! Hope you had fun seeing how Silica is being corrupted without they even realizing, Kayaba is giving up on trying to be the rational man, Kirito keeps being unable to escape his evil destiny, and now Sugu has become the Hero the world needs, but not the one that she wants to be (As in, she never wanted to be one in the first place XD)!

Also, yes, I'm aware that Sugu saving Asuna from 'Evil' Kirito is probably the biggest Multiversal Irony ever written on this side of Fanfiction. I'm not sorry :P

Okay then, now I will go back to work in OPG's next chapter. Stay cool, everyone, and have a nice start of December (Here is raining and it's freaking cold XP)!

Until next time, this is Saint, signing off!