I'm not dead, everyone! Rejoice!
Jokes aside, I'm VERY sorry for the massive delay for this, I'm pretty sure more than one thought I had stopped writing my stories. When I saw that the last time I updated this one in particular was literally over half a year ago I cursed myself. See, though, it was a mix of many annoying and regrettable things that happened together and that, if you don't care to listen to, you can just skip and read the fic, but if you're interested: I got a new super-long JRPG I had been waiting for a long time right after the last update of 'The Eroge', so I started writing a lot less…and then I screwed up my arm falling off my electric scooter, leaving me unable to write or play anything for like two weeks, which created a massive Writing Block and made me just play once I could use my arm again to get over it. All of that mixed with the end-of-the-year laziness and preparations to do what little we could with the current state of things made a big mess (And also the Sinon DLC dropping for Alicization Lycoris distracted me some more), so I only really FINALLY started writing this chapter in earnest halfway through last month…then I got a bit distracted again by my birthday. In fact, I feel deeply ashamed because this chapter should have really been done two days ago, but stupid laziness and last-moment-distractions made it delay until today.
So, I really hope you can forgive the whole mess, and while it's very late, let me formally wish you all a happy new year and that hopefully it's better for us all than the last one, my dear readers. Let's hope I don't suffer such a massive delay again.
But for now, enough of me rambling, time to leave you with more whacky evil adventures of Kirito to enjoy!
Also, as always, thanks to anyone who helps filling this story's TvTropes' page!
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 8: The Purpose of Power
January 9th, 2024. Kawagoe, Saitama. Local Middle School, 15:35…
Releasing a small sigh, Kirigaya Suguha walked outside her classroom, heading downstairs and mentally forcing herself to ignore the whispers following her.
Honestly, she had grown more than used to the extra attention she received nowadays quite easily, if only because she had a lot of way-more-important (And dangerous) things in her mind all the time now.
Let them waste their time wondering why the girl that had recently won the kendo nationals in Middle School suddenly stopped practicing it after entering High School. Rumors and whispers were annoying, but they also helped out in keeping her isolated from others.
How funny. That was something the Suguha from a year ago would have never found as positive in the slightest, but now, with more than enough power to blow up a city boiling within her now very-much-not-human nature and with the threat of an Evil Overlord hanging above her, she was more than happy with keeping everyone at arms' length.
"Well…almost everyone, I guess…even if…"
"[Ah…heads up, partner! Our most trusty ally has come to pick us up!]"
"…oh Gods no, please tell me she didn't bring-!"
"Ah, Suguha-sama! Over here!"
"Urk?!"
Trying to do her best to ignore the sudden gawking looks many people were sending her way (The few that weren't doing so towards the source, at least), the former kendoka gave out a weak smile towards the chestnut-haired girl that was practically beaming her way.
While standing beside a very noticeable limousine that had every student gawking at it. And now also looking from her to the beautiful rich girl nobody had seen before around the-
"…hey, wait, isn't that Yuuki Asuna?!"
"Yo-you mean, the girl that was kidnapped by the Overlord a few months ago?!"
"Yeah! The same one that the Heroine herself rescued and…!"
"LetsgoAsunasan!" quickly rushed a red-faced Suguha while trying her best not to panic (Failing badly at it) as she grabbed the blinking older girl and all but pushed her inside the limo, slamming the door closed behind them and feeling grateful when whoever was driving started the car and took them away without needing any indications. "…Asuna-san, what were you doing?!"
"Uhm, picking you up? Yo-you say that today we had to gather to review the…gasp! O-oh no, don't tell me I got the day wrong?!" suddenly panicking, it seemed as if Asuna feared that she was about to tell her she had caused the end of the world by mistake, or something, causing the younger girl to groan.
Honestly, Yuuki Asuna wasn't a bad person. In fact, the girl her 'dear partner' Sanrei had basically forced onto her as an 'ally in the fight against evil' was extremely friendly…way too much, in Suguha's honest opinion.
She wouldn't call her quite 'obsessed' (Even if she felt tempted to do so a lot) with her alter-ego, but she certainly idolized her in a way that the young kendoka considered a bit 'unhealthy'.
Waking up in her room and the way she almost seemed to worship her every word had been her first clue to that. Never mind all the '100% original' merchandise of Leafa that filled it. But it was actually talking with her that had fully made her realize that the rich girl, older than her by a bit over a year, had gotten a bit too into…well, everything related to her heroic persona.
To put it bluntly, Asuna looked at her probably the same way a hardcore fan would a famous idol or an international soccer player. It was…more than a bit jarring, to say the least, to be looked and spoken at in such a way for a girl that was older, smarter, and, in her opinion, way more beautiful than her (Even if Sanrei insisted that her 'heroic powers' had made her 'way more beautiful than a simple mortal').
And as if that wasn't enough…there was the 'small' fact that it was clear that the Yuuki Heiress had never had 'normal' friends before. Probably only other rich girls from her school or anyone her family deigned 'important' enough to meet with her, not with someone like her that was, before all of this mess, an average high school student from an average family.
So, when that combined with her seemingly chronic need to 'impress' her Heroine, well…you got messes like that of coming to pick her up in a freaking limousine, at the entrance of her school, and calling her '-sama' in front of everyone.
At the end of the day, the chestnut-haired girl somehow seemed to have become both the incarnation of what she didn't want people to see her as (She wasn't actually some legendary hero, dammit! Just a girl that had gotten dragged into a crazy mess!)…and also the closest thing she had to a 'confidant', if mostly thanks to Sanrei's meddling.
While it was true that she probably would have never approached her if her so-called 'partner' hadn't literally dropped her in her house and undone her transformation after her disastrous last confrontation with the Overlord, Asuna had also been, worship-fangirling aside, extremely helpful and nice in many ways.
She let her take a bath at her personal bathroom (It was SO big!), offered her a change of clothes…then apologized profusely when they were a bit too tight on her chest, let her eat some amazing food, and even rest on her room for a couple of hours!
Suffice to say, by the time she had gone home (After insisting profusely that she did not need a ride home), Suguha was a strange combination of fully-recovered and overwhelmed. Hearing Sanrei's explanation as to why he had exposed her to the rich girl hadn't exactly helped matters.
Sure, maybe the Yuuki Heiress would have still helped her regardless if she just asked, given her attitude and adoration towards her, but her stupid sun spirit hadn't even consulted with her before going ahead and acted just so they could have someone influential on their side. It almost felt as if they were taking advantage of her, all her willingness to do so and the sun spirit's explanations about how Heroes of old were usually backed by powerful lords be damned.
Still…she couldn't deny that the advantages having Asuna as a 'friend' gave were quite amazing. Even putting aside all the fancy things a rich girl had access to, it gave her plenty of excuses with her mom to be out of home and, sometimes, even not sleeping at her own house by saying she was 'staying over with Asuna', knowing that any call anyone felt the need to make asking the chestnut-haired girl would receive a 'confirmation' from her.
She had stepped up her training ever since she almost died fighting the Yamata-no-Orochi, after all. Both because of not wanting a repeat of that and…because of her new weapon and status.
Suguha could feel it, every time she swung the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi. The almighty power of the Storm resonating through the sword's edge…and deep within herself.
All of it, humming just under her skin, empowered by the radiant Sun she already had taken possession of before. It had taken her weeks before she was even properly able to 'transform' again without her power quite literally exploding everywhere as the new mix of divine energies settled within her body and soul.
In Sanrei's words, while the concept wasn't quite the same as the one used in myths, she was 'something like a demi-goddess now', at least power-wise. Her lifespan had probably been affected by it too, most likely, but the Sun Spirit confessed to being unsure of how to properly measure that by himself.
Putting aside the fact that he casually had said she could very likely outlive her parents even many times over if she survived this whole ordeal of facing the Overlord…the young kendoka could clearly feel it now. The immeasurable strength, the terrible speed, the glorious agility, the mighty power…all the gifts that mankind was not meant to know, waiting for her to unleash them, and barely even restrained by her 'human' form. One of the main reasons why she had given up kendo, really…it wouldn't have been fun anymore, and her grandfather probably would have not approved, if she could end any fight in one hit before her opponent could even blink while holding back.
What would happen when she inevitably had to go and claim the last of the Imperial Regalia? When her body absorbed the remains of divinity within the Third Treasure? Would anything 'human' of her even remain? Would she be able to change back into 'Suguha' at all?
…would…would Kazuto even recognize her anymore, if she found him…?
"…ha-sama…Suguha-sama!"
"Wah?!" snapping out of her (Every day more often) internal existential crisis, the young kendoka looked up to see her self-proclaimed greatest fan, confidant and (To some extent) the only real 'friend' she now had that knew everything about her besides Sanrei (And wasn't that something depressing to think about?). "So-sorry, Asuna-san, I spaced out a bit…thinking about important hero stuff. What did you say?"
"Oh, no, forgive me for interrupting your deep thoughts, really! Also, your fully concentrated face was almost inspiring to look at!" preened the Yuuki Heiress with a radiant smile, making Suguha wonder if perhaps she shouldn't rethink her opinion about her possible obsession with her. "I just wanted to tell you that we have arrived."
"[About time, I would say! Also, nice going there, Suguha! There is always a good time to meditate about the importance of Heroism!]"
"Ah…" looking outside the vehicle while ignoring her 'partner', the Heroine realized they had, in fact, arrived at the campus-like building that was their destination. "Thanks for that, Asuna-san…ugh, now I'm thinking I should have changed out of my school uniform before this…no point in delaying it now, though."
"I-I do think you look amazing in your uniform, Suguha-sama!"
"…thanks, Asuna-san." Suguha sighed even as they exited the vehicle, letting the young girl and her bodyguard/driver lead the way even as she looked around at the people coming and going through the Toto Institute of Technology with mild-interest.
It only took around 10 minutes for them to be received by the man they had come to see, which still amazed the young kendoka, given how important he supposedly was (Though no surprise given who had been his student). Then again, that probably was just another showing of how influential and rich Asuna's family was…and the best part was, given what her father had been trying to push regarding FullDive technology (And managed quite a bit of success with, hilariously, thanks to how much attention the media had focused on their family after she saved their daughter from the Overlord), nobody would find 'strange' for the Heiress to be meeting with him.
As such, when the bespectacled man with grayish hair and an extended goatee beard sat before them and gave them an awkward look, she was more than ready to enact her (Though mostly Sanrei's) latest crazy plan.
Anything that could help her get even the slightest edge against the Master of Evil would help, after all.
"Good evening, young ladies. I'm Professor Shigemura Tetsuhiro…gotta say, Yuuki-san, when you asked for a meeting regarding possible help in regards to keeping FullDive technology important, I wasn't exactly sure of how to answer you…" the man started while looking to the side for a moment. "I may have taught him, but I'm not proud in the slightest of what Kayaba-kun…what Kayaba Akihiko tried to do, before the…Overlord got him. My daughter Yuuna could have died that day and-"
"[It's precisely because we know you have reasons to not want this technology to be ever misused again that we have come to you, humble man.]"
To the professor's utter shock, Sanrei materialized seemingly from nowhere, floating between both girls with the radiance of a miniature sun surrounded by small electric arcs, casting otherworldly shadows through the entire room.
"Heavens…!"
"[I'm Sanrei, last of the Sun Spirits, and these two girls are under my protection of sorts. We're allies of the Heroine Leafa, last hope of this world for surviving the impossible evil that the Overlord no doubt will bring.]" continued the spirit even as Tetsuhiro stared at him in utter shock. "[For some reason we can't ascertain, the Overlord stole the main source of this FullDive technology back when he first emerged…and you, the sensei of the man who created it, are going to help us track it down.]"
…screw it, Suguha was already starting to regret this.
Why did Sanrei have to make everything sound as dramatic as if they were in a Shonen Anime, dammit?!
January 10th, 2024. Netherworld Tower, 09:20…
Sometimes, Kazuto pondered if, when reading or watching them in books or television, or even in videogames, people ever wondered what the 'villains' did when they were 'off-screen'.
Did they even bother thinking about it at all? And those that did, did they think they were at all times thinking about their evil schemes, their dastardly plans? Maybe what terrible things they would do to the good guys once they 'inevitably' beat them?
Whatever the case, though, the young Overlord was certain of one thing…
"Hmmm…I never can get enough of how good these pancakes are!"
"Indeed…as someone who had been frugal with her food for a while, though, I wonder if having gotten used to such luxury is something good…?"
"Who cares, Sinon-san, we're Evil, remember? Liz-san, can you pass me some more syrup?"
"Right away, mistress! Hey, what about you, Minion Master? Want some too?"
"Ah, yes, blacksmith, I think I do. I have grown disgustingly addicted to this delicious human excuse for food myself."
"Gotta say, your idea of training the fucking Minions to help around with some chores is really paying, Lisbeth-chan…ah, man, Klein, stop hogging all the milk!"
"I-it's not even me, PoH! The-they're just…eheheheh…"
"Klein-sama, please, drink some more! I warmed it especially for you~"
"Don't listen to her, master! Here, say 'Aaah' for me so I can feed you more pancakes!"
"Commander…would you like…a hug with your…breakfast?"
…it probably wasn't at all like how his 'Alliance of Evil' did things! And dammit, Rika really made great pancakes, it wasn't fair, it was making him lose track of his thoughts!
"Ryota-, no, Klein, control your girls during breakfast at least." the Overlord spoke with a sigh even as he chewed on a pancake, gaining the attention of most of the people at the table while Minions ran back and forth, doing his best to ignore the way the 3 not-quite-human females around his 'Alchemist Master' shivered in fear at his words. "We're trying to eat."
"A-ah, yeah, boss, you go it…Ochi, Miko, Hana, please, just enjoy breakfast today, okay? We wouldn't want Kirito-sama to get angry!" awkwardly laughed Ryoutarou while the 3 girls slithered away from him and sat in their proper places at the table.
"Hai, Klein-sama…"
"So-sorry about that, Overlord…"
"We won't…do it…again…"
"Yes, you will. However, that's a totally Evil thing to do, so as long as you keep your disobedience to just swarming around my resident evil alchemist, I won't vaporize you for it."
His morning quota of evilness said, Kazuto allowed himself to lean back on his overly-decorated chair and chew on his own extremely delicious pancakes, glad that his years of 'pretending to be a bad guy' prevented him from putting up a childish blissed-out expression in front of all his followers/Minions. Enjoying the lull of sugary sweetness and subdued eating that his words had brought, the young Overlord allowed himself to look around to witness what the current state of things was.
His Minion Master was eating pancakes gleefully while his blacksmith put another stack for him, with a merry grin on her face that turned into a meek and blushing look when she noticed his gaze, Gnarl's eyes gaining a maliciously amused glint at Rika's reaction. Nothing abnormal there.
His 'mistress' seemed to be debating between following proper decorum or following the 3 inhuman girls' example to feed him some food, while his 'assassin' (Seated at her side) gave her an encouraging smile that she quickly returned. Also totally 'normal' Keiko and Shino interaction, no need to look deeper into it.
His 'commander' was looking creepily at everything while chewing on the pancakes with unnecessary strength as if to hide how much he was enjoying them while still looking menacing. Yup, just normal Vassago things.
And finally, his evil alchemist was smiling and conversing casually with his three Lamias…who were also kind of his lovers. Which was kinda weird if you stopped to consider he had created them and was technically their 'father' too, but he was the one who had inherited the power of the Evil Overlord and the mission to conquer the world, he wasn't going to morally question his followers.
Especially not when the closest to someone 'sane' he had to talk to there was motherfucking Kayaba Akihiko, who had been more than willing to become the century's greatest mass murderer for his stupid dream of a floating castle before he stopped him. Or when he found Vassago's company oddly relaxing despite knowing the guy was a former mercenary that probably got off killing and inflicting despair more than a normal person should.
Didn't help that he had started to realize that Keiko may actually have been fully absorbed by her 'pretended role' as his mistress, judging by her reaction after he had confided with her about the identity of the Heroine (Suffice to say, he had been unable to pry her off him for a few days after that). Or that Shino seemed to borderline worship him and had become oddly okay with brutal violence after whatever the hell Gnarl did to her to 'fix her issues'. Or that Rika had gone from a scared girl to an overly dedicated and loyal blacksmith that all but ran the most 'utilitarian' needs of the entire tower and Minions, almost as much as Yui, almost from a week to the next…
…Gods, they really were like a parody of a Sentai Enemy Group, weren't they?
Trying to rid himself of such 'heavy' thoughts, 'Kirito' once again centered his gaze on the 3 more inhuman yet still human-like members of their group currently 'sitting' on the table.
Certainly, when he had gone down to the Alchemy Lab the day after his insane clash against the Heroine in Atsuta Shrine, he was expecting that maybe 'Klein' would have blown up part of the room in his grief-stricken rage from the death of poor Jerry.
Instead, he had found Tsuboi Ryoutarou flanked by two snake-girls, looking dazzled and slightly crazed as he finished pouring a worrying amount of evil energy and alchemic materials he had no idea about into a magic circle.
As soon as the third 'lamia' had emerged and he had seemingly collapsed from exhaustion, Kazuto had snapped out of his shock and charged into the lab while flaring his aura, ready to save the man's life if needed…only to be shocked upon seeing the naked snake girls shaking in fear but standing protectively between him and the downed man.
Several calls, Gnarl rambling about amazing talent in the humans they had recruited, Keiko squealing about getting the inhuman girls decent with Shino's help and some Vassago laughing at the chaos later, the full story had come out: Somehow, their resident alchemist had further cracked whatever process he used to create Jerry and, after a deliberate application of Yamata-no-Orochi's remains (Which he took without asking, it must be said), had used it to create new mighty and powerful intelligent servants of evil.
Or, as PoH had so snidely joked, to make himself the Monster Girl Harem he wanted.
Ochi had been born from an eye of the legendary evil dragon, her long bluish hair and sharp orange eyes somehow reflecting this, given that she had inherited the ability her 'older brother' Jerry had of shooting energy from her eyes…that was embedded with the corrupted divinity of the monster, giving her more firepower than most tanks would have (It took over a month to fix the wall she had blown up when demonstrating it). Thanks to the girls' insistence, she was no longer naked…but had taken to wear what looked like a glorified armored black bikini, to 'visually please Klein-sama', in her own words.
Miko, unlike her dark-skinned 'older sister' was almost deadly white in color, maybe because her creator/master had used one of the eight-headed snake's fangs for her creation. Her short hair was a sharp silver, and her eyes and snake-half were the only things that were almost identical to her sister…especially with the long and sharp claws her hands ended in, which she could extend at will and that were coated in Orochi's deadly poison, capable of killing most beings on Earth in seconds. Which maybe was the reason why she had chosen to start wearing a slightly oversized shrine maiden outfit (Which Kazuto had no idea why was in the vault), the sleeves of which fully hid her clawed hands from view most of the time.
Finally, little Hana (Who was way shorter and younger-looking than older sisters) was the most 'human-looking' of the trio. Her skin was a very normal human-like pink, her snake eyes were a more subdued hue of orange and her blood-red hair was, while eye-catching, not an impossible shade for a normal person to have. The young Overlord wasn't sure if this was because Ryoutarou had collapsed just as he was finished the ritual to create her, because he had been exhausted when doing so or because he had just used some scales from the Yamata-no-Orochi for her unlike the much 'rarer' raw materials used for the other two…though that may also be the reason why her capacity to speak was much 'slower' and she seemed much more emotionless than the rest.
…either that or, somehow, Klein's desires had affected the ritual to somehow create him a textbook kuudere. She also coincidentally happened to be the smartest of the trio and seemingly got along amazingly with Yui, having taken to study the functions that Cardinal allowed their home with her whenever she wasn't fawning over their resident Alchemist alongside her sisters, so that may not be as crazy as he thought.
Sighing softly as he finished his breakfast, downing his pancakes with some delicious chocolate milk and wondering if perhaps he shouldn't be eating a more 'adult' breakfast for a second, the Lord of All Evil stood up, intent on heading for his room and spend another day of pretending they were amassing their forces and preparing to take on the Heroine/the World with much better preparations than last time instead of just lazing around for as long as he could…
And, of course, that was when Kayaba Akihiko, the hood of his 'Heathcliff' robe off, came rushing into the room, drawing several surprised stares at his out of breath appearance.
Huh, and Kazuto had just been thinking about why he wasn't there having breakfast with the rest of the-
"Someone just tried to hack into Cardinal." bluntly announced the man while looking straight at the young Overlord, making him and the others blink.
"…Ka-Heathcliff, that is, that little technological monster of yours could probably fight off worldwide attempts at hacking it back when it was just hooked to normal Servers, and now it's being powered literally by a nigh-unlimited source of evil magic." deadpanned the black-haired boy while standing up, wondering why he had a very ominous feeling as he did so. "I doubt anything in this side of the universe can come close to even hack it."
"And you would be right, the attempt was repelled with laughable easiness…but the thing is…they had to somehow know how to track down its approximate server connection for the hacking to take place in the first place. Or, at the very least, know the system enough to network-locate its approximate coordinates and 'ping' into it."
"…and for those of us who have no idea what you just said?" asked Rika with a raised eyebrow, not getting the reason for the man's clearly hysteric demeanor.
"I swear to…it means, Lisbeth-san…that only someone that has a vague understanding of Cardinal's systems, aka my own programming, could have attempted to hack us in the first place…" explained the father of FullDive technology while slumping in one of the chairs "…and that whoever did it probably didn't intend to get into Cardinal in the first place…just know where we were."
An uncomfortable silence extended after that, even as everyone's eyes widened and Kazuto couldn't help but curse at his damn Fate.
Of course, he couldn't keep getting away with slacking off in 'doing Evil', dammit!
"Okay, Ka…Heathcliff. Please, tell me you know WHO tried to hack us."
"…Yui and Cardinal are looking into it right now, but…I can count in one hand the people in this entire world who would be able to even remotely track down my Code." grimaced the man while covering his face with his hands, suddenly looking even more stressed than usual. "One you got killed the very day we met, another is…someone close I haven't seen in a while…and the last one is…"
"The man you learned under before going off on your own and entering Argus to start developing Cardinal and Sword Art Online." announced Yui's holographic form as it materialized above the table, everyone's eyes moving towards her even as another projection of a certain building, alongside the portrait and info of a certain bespectacled man, appeared behind her. "Shigemura Tetsuhiro, 47 years old, widower, parent of one daughter, and a professor of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at the Toto Institute of Technology."
"…well, that was conveniently fast." pointed out Rika with a raised eyebrow.
"Well, Yui-chan IS kinda a super-advanced AI, Liz-san. Being fast is her thing!" Keiko pointed out with a smile, like a mother proud of their daughter.
"Thanks, Silica-sama. Point is…Shigemura Tetsuhiro tried to hack us earlier today, for some unknown reason, and while he utterly failed at it, the mere fact that he was able to attempt it speaks volumes of the man's intellect…and also, that he currently knows the approximate area we are at with a 5000 Km. margin of e…" interrupting herself, the young-looking AI frowned as she stared up at seemingly nothing, eyes narrowing as she clicked her tongue. "…nevermind, reduce that to just a 3500 Km. Cardinal just repelled a second attempt at hacking coming from the servers at the Toto Institute of Technology."
"Son of a bitch!" cursed Vassago while standing up, a clearly annoyed look on his face as he was forced to drop his pancakes. "They ARE trying to locate us!"
"Kayaba, do you have any idea why your old teacher may be interested in finding the freaking Overlord when you're believed dead for everyone and I doubt he has any lost love for you?" dryly questioned the Overlord while looking at his first 'servant', who just looked very tired and old all of a sudden.
"I…honestly have no idea." accepted Kayaba Akihiko with a worried look. "Still, it's obvious we're not just going to let him find out where exactly we are, right? And before you ask, no, I can't just have Cardinal shut down their servers from here, at least not without making the reason for it pointless…an action on such a scale would immediately broadcast where we are to anyone looking close enough."
"Of course not, you idiot! We will take action immediately!" Gnarl snarled while jumping off his chair and grabbing his strange staff, glaring at the Minions in the room. "You, imbeciles, gather as many Browns and Reds as you can and get ready to-!"
"No. There will be no need for that, Gnarl."
Kazuto's words made everyone in the room freeze, the sheer ominous power and raw Darkness one could somehow feel suddenly flowing from the Master of Evil extending through the room.
There was Power, within the smooth and dark words, its existence as undeniable as that of Evil and Magic for everyone within that place. Even as their gazes turned towards their Overlord, seeing him casually standing up while his golden eyes flashed like diabolical flames, a mix of fear and awe shook their hearts, like every time they gazed upon him 'dropping his façade' and reminding them of his true malevolent nature, though with some…marked exceptions.
That is, Keiko practically squirming in place with an adoring gaze while the other two human girls around the table visibly blushed.
'Kirito' ignored it all, though, his gaze currently fully focused on his Minion Master as he walked forward and past him, trailing all eyes on the room after him while a burst of his power made his usual dark cloak vanish, leaving him with the shockingly normal casual clothes he liked to wear underneath (Something that nobody but Keiko and Kayaba knew, though, so it actually made it look as if he had magically changed his attire).
"M-my lord…? What do you mean?"
"I said that there is no need, Gnarl…because we're not going to waste our Minions in something as stupidly simple as a simple man trying to find us with a computer, much less give the Heroine another excuse to show up." eyes glowing malevolently, Kazuto put on his best charming smile. "I'm going to take care of things…personally."
And even as everyone shuddered with different degrees of awe and pity (For Shigemura) at their master's words…
"Like hell I'm going to let the Minions loose in a fucking institute of technology to 'stop' a single professor, that's asking for a massacre to happen! And if I can't prevent Sugu from showing up, even better…it's okay, Kazuto, you can bluff your way through this, you always were good enough at stealth missions (In videogames) despite how much you hated them, and you have magical evil powers now…how hard can this be?"
Deciding to do his best to ignore the shudders that suddenly ran down his back as he said those words, the young Overlord turned around, ready to execute his 'evil plan'…
Shigemura Yuuna was a young woman (She would be 18 in just a few months, after all) that had many normal worries in life.
Her studies, her half-forgotten dream of being an idol or at least a singer, dealing with her childhood friend's not-so-secret crush on her…
Though well, to be fair with Eiji-kun, it wasn't as she didn't 'like' him enough, really. They had been together since they were kids and they went through the 'trauma' of being trapped in SAO together…for a few hours, yes, but it was still quite terrifying. She herself had nightmares of the thing for almost a month…and her dearest friend for at least a couple weeks, she knew (She had never bought that excuse of his about just wanting to see if she was okay when messaging her past midnight, after all).
Also, because of said incident, her father had spent months being even more protective and overbearing than usual…not that she could totally blame him, the fear of losing her probably having reminded the man of when her mother had died. And that mixed with the fact that a goddamn 'Evil Overlord' had appeared and announced himself to the world, then proved to NOT be a hoax but a real thing meant that Shigemura Tetsuhiro had immediately decided it was a good time to get her home-schooled, which she knew was just an excuse so she wasn't 'out and in danger', but that she had decided to humor without much fuzz given her dad's emotional state.
Which meant that, for a long while, she had borderline nobody to talk to but her childhood friend through her phone or her computer. He actually had come along and visited quite a few times too whenever he had a free weekend or something, though her father's icy glare had dissuaded that from being a too common occurrence (She just knew the older Shigemura partially blamed Eiji for her almost being trapped and potentially dying in SAO, as stupid as that was…how was he supposed to know the creator, her father's own disciple, was a madman with a God Complex?!).
The point, though, was that she may or may not indirectly encouraged Eiji without realizing to the point his feelings had been more than obvious in their last meeting (Thankfully it had been a while since her father had finally become reasonable enough to let her go out without acting as if she was going to die from it). In which he had also announced his intentions of getting a job at her dad's department on the Institute of Technology, more than likely under the man himself, something that he clearly was expecting her to be proud of.
And while she was more than happy for her best friend's aspirations in life…the fact that he obviously was doing it mainly to impress her and, hopefully, to impress her father so that he had no problems with the relationship he wanted them to have when he finally got the courage to confess. The only problem was…she didn't exactly feel that way for Eiji.
Sure, he liked the boy with all her heart, maybe even loved him like family, but had never really entertained the thought of them being 'something more', unlike what he clearly hoped.
Then again…maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea? Sure, she didn't love Eiji like that now, but she got along with him better than with anyone else in the world, so maybe going out with him would be for the best? It wasn't as if she romantically liked any boy now or for a long time, really (Probably one of the reasons her father had sent her to an all-girls school before being home-schooled, most likely), and with enough time, she may even get to see her childhood friend the same way he obviously saw her like, and they would very likely be happy together…
Shaking off those troubling thought for now that she had her mind mostly made up regarding that particular topic, she reminded herself why she was there that morning, at Toto, where her father worked, walking towards his offices rather than being at home studying: Her dad had called yesterday so say he wasn't coming back home for the night, something that wasn't exactly 'normal', but wouldn't be a reason to worry usually, given it had happened a few times in the past…if it wasn't for the fact of how oddly serious/nervous he had sounded when calling her, and how he had dodged her questions when she had inquired what he was working on that had him so busy.
Now, Shigemura Tetsuhiro was many things, but a man capable of convincingly lying to his daughter he was not, sadly for him. And Yuuna hadn't heard him sound quite so 'tense' since the days after she 'woke up' halfway to the hospital with a Nerve Gear still on her head, the man crying in shock and relief over her.
So now she had to find her father and grind him for what was happening or, at least, trying to convince him to take a break, because nothing that was making him so nervous could be healthy to be stuck at without any-
Whatever else that the brown-haired girl was going to think about was abruptly interrupted when, upon turning around a corner of the relatively empty hallways, she all but crashed on someone going the opposite way, causing her to squeak and fall back without…!
"Woah, careful there!"
Strong hands, suddenly holding her. Wide-eyed, Yuuna looked up towards her 'savior', the unusually hard body she had actually crashed against.
Her first impression was that he was quite tall, as much as her despite his voice sounding oddly young and smooth. Also, the strength in the arms and hands currently holding her body betrayed the seemingly thin and scrawny form the boy wearing baggy black clothes (Which looked oddly warm for the current climate) seemed to have at first glance. Also, he was wearing sunglasses over his slightly effeminate face. Indoors.
That last thing normally would have made the girl fight to hold back her laughter at how silly it made him look, if it wasn't for how her heart had suddenly started hammering in her chest faster than she could ever remember it doing, the mysterious boy's words echoing in her mind as if they were the most interesting thing she had ever listened in her whole life.
Realizing that she had been staring silently for a few seconds and that the stranger was probably still waiting for an answer, Shigemura Yuuna opened her mouth to let out the smartest thing she could think of.
"You have an amazing voice. Have you ever sung anything professionally?"
"…uh?"
…AGH! Damn you, brain!
On his end, Kirigaya Kazuto, Overlord extraordinaire and currently 'undercover' as a completely normal and non-evil teenager, blinked in surprise behind the glasses currently hiding his unnatural golden eyes from the world, before cursing mentally upon seeing the girl that had crashed onto him blush fiercely and look away while mumbling nonsense.
Curses, he had just intended to try and make her more 'docile' by pulsating his 'Domination' power around him, without actually casting the spell to turn her into a mindless slave! Had he gone too far and accidentally messed up with her mind anyway?! Evil-dammit; and he had been so proud of how easily he had infiltrated the Toto Institute of Technology without anyone stopping him despite how 'suspicious' he looked with those damn sunglasses thanks to that trick! But the girl had caught him off-guard as he turned around a corner while looking for Shigemura Tetsuhiro's office and…
Suddenly seeming to remember that she could, in fact, stand on her own two feet, the brown-haired girl slipped out of his grip and took a few steps back, dusting off her skirt and coughing loudly while still refusing to meet his eyes.
"So-sorry, that came out wrong, I-I just used to dream about singing professionally and listening to your voice reminded me of that and now I'm rambling for no reason ahahahahah!" laughing very awkwardly, Yuuna all but flung her hand towards the blinking Kazuto, a forced smile on her face and eyes closed while she dearly wished the ground would open up and swallow her. "Shigemura Yuuna, nice to meet you and sorry for crashing against you!"
"Uh, yeah…I'm…Kirigaya Kazuto…" frowning slightly behind his sunglasses at how odd it made him feel to say his real name so casually to someone nowadays, even as he took her hand and calmly shook it. "And it was no probl-…wait, did you say 'Shigemura'?! Like Professor Shigemura Tetsuhiro?!"
"U-uh? You know my dad?" asked the brown-haired girl while slightly snapping out of the 'trance' feeling his hand holding her own had caused her. "I was on my way to see him right now, actually…"
Wondering if the universe was smiling at him for once, barely able to believe he had such luck (And internally glad that the girl's brain hadn't apparently turned to mush as he had feared), Kazuto put on what he hoped was his best charming smile and flared his Domination around himself like an aura once again, though slightly less than before to prevent anything unpleasant from happening again.
Yuuna's face became even redder as he did so, though he was too focused on his 'genius plan' and keeping his evil powers low and in check instead of just subsuming the innocent girl's mind to his Will as they clearly wanted.
"Actually, I was looking for his office, Shigemura-san. See, I was looking to see if it would be possible to get an internship under Shigemura-sensei to get some extra credits and I was directed to find him, but I wandered off while admitting the Institute's facilities and got a bit lost. Would it bother you if I accompanied you to his place?"
There, hopefully that had been convincing enough. Though, having had almost no 'normal' human contact in years beyond his 'servants' (Who really weren't the best to judge such a thing…at all), he had no idea. Hell, for all he knew, he had just sounded like a creepy or a weird stalker for the girl, but maybe his power would be enough to-
"N-no at all! It would be my pleasure! In fact, consider it my way of apologizing for crashing into you!" quickly answered Yuuna with a bright smile, turning around and gesturing for him to follow her as she headed for her father's office in a totally-not-nervous half-run.
Following after her after just a moment of surprise, the young Overlord allowed himself a moment to mentally pat himself on the back at how effective his creative use of his magic had been.
The brown-haired girl, meanwhile, was wondering if the boy behind her was the universe's way of laughing at her earlier dilemma or if she simply had a thing for nerdy-looking Bishonen and she had just come to the realization now.
Whatever the case, the pair finally arrived at the hallway leading to Shigemura Tetsuhiro's office, each one lost in their own thoughts while pretending to be totally paying attention to the idle talk they were having about the facilities and the weather…just in time to see a chestnut-haired girl exiting the very room they were heading to, then turn around and do an overly formal bow towards someone within the office.
"Thanks once again for your help, Shigemura-san. Please, keep us updated of any more progress and I wish you the best of luck in this endeavor."
"I-it's no problem, Yuuki-san. Please, give Kirigaya-san and your…employer, my regards."
Nodding softly with a relaxed smile at the final words, Yuuki Asuna turned around and started walking down the hallway, blinking in curiosity once at the pair as she walked past them and raising an eyebrow at the boy wearing sunglasses indoors before mentally shrugging and moving on, ignoring the strange chill she felt when his covered gaze passed over her.
She had many important things to do, after all, like meeting with Suguha-sama and then updating the 'Sightings of Leafa-sama' section of her blog…it was a lot easier to ban people posting fake images when you had firsthand confirmation if she had been there or not, after all!
Meanwhile, Kazuto was just still staring in shock after the girl that had just left around the corner, his mind processing what he had just seen and heard at maximum speed.
"That was Yuuki Asuna! And the man inside there, which I'm guessing is Shigemura, just said…Kirigaya…which means that, the one trying to find us is…the Heroine Leafa…no…Sugu…"
"…hey, Kazuto-kun, are you going to come or not?" Yuuna's sudden words snapped the young Overlord out of his shocking discovery, making him notice the older girl wasn't smiling anymore and was instead half-glaring/half-pouting his way…or was it the way Asuna had gone to? He honestly wasn't sure…
"Ah, sure…I was just lost in thought all of a sudden…"
"I bet you were…" muttered her even as she entered the room first, her annoyed thoughts towards 'stupid pretty boys staring after other girls when she was guiding them so kindly' suddenly vanishing upon noticing how tired her father, currently sitting behind his computer at his office's desk, looked. "Dad?!"
"Wha…? Yuuna?! What are you doing here?!" standing up with bags under his eyes and clearly having been nervously sweating more than what was healthy, Shigemura Tetsuhiro stared at his daughter with a mix of fear and disbelief. "I told you to stay at home!"
"I came because I was worried about you! I knew something wasn't right when you called yesterday, but Gods, what's even going on?! You look terrible!" all but shouted the worried daughter as she rushed towards her father, completely missing the one she had been 'escorting' entering the room, closing the door…and locking it behind him. "Did you even sleep last night?! And please, tell me at least you had breakfast this morning!"
"I-I'm fine, Yuuna, just a bit…overworked…there is a very important new project I have to finish as soon as I can…" trying his best to not look directly as his daughter's scolding/worried eyes, the professor tried to deflect the conversation (And her attention) away from him and towards something else, and luckily she had seemingly brought something that could do exactly that. "Bu-but that aside, who is this that came with yo-?"
"Indeed, I bet you must be very busy, Shigemura-san. You had to have spent the whole night just figuring out the code Kayaba used for Cardinal's database out of whatever logs remained at Argus and then rebuilding that from scratch to act as a 'compass' until you found its active IP." slowly, the man's face lost all color, his hands suddenly trembling as he heard those words and Yuna simply blinked in confusion, turning around…in time for her eyes to widen as Kazuto discarded his sunglasses, golden orbs almost seeming to shine with untold power.
"Ka-Kazuto-kun…?"
"Yo-you…oh heavens…you're one of them, aren't you?" the man asked with clear fear, though still grabbing his daughter and all but dragging his shocked daughter to his side, half-covering her with his arms.
"One of them? Oh, dear professor, you're mistaken…I'm The One, in fact. After all, when you took so much effort just to try and find us, I felt the need to come in person just to congratulate you for it." taking another step forward, the boy's form suddenly seemed to ooze a terrifying darkness, a miasma of dark and corrupt power that shook the soul of mortal men practically bleeding off his form. "Overlord Kirito has deemed you worthy of being graced by his presence. You should feel honored."
Even as his barely-humanoid-looking shape of darkness and two glowing golden orbs instilled the fear of Evil into the parent and daughter pair (Or so he assumed), Kazuto mentally patted himself for his best 'evil douche' impression there (Even with the stupid 'talking in 3rd person' bullshit!). Watching so much TV and surfing the web whenever he had free time had done well in teaching him how to pretend to be Evil amazingly…and also to not made the same countless fuck-ups most cliché bad guys usually did. Most of the time.
He was still getting used to the whole 'Eternal Fight of Evil vs. Good' thing, after all.
"Yo-you're…you're the Overlord…?" Yuuna's words made the Master of Evil refocus once again, curiously noticing how she looked more awed than terrified, unlike her father. "U-uhm…tha-thank you…?"
"Heh?" raising an eyebrow within his darkened form, the young Overlord took careful notice of how Tetsuhiro's eyes widened as he looked at his daughter in shock, making sure to sound amusedly curious enough to not reflect his confusion. "What would you be thanking me for, 'Yuuna-chan'?"
"I-I was…I was one of the victims of Sword Art Online. I kno-know it wasn't your intention or anything, bu-but you…probably saved my life that day you ended it." mumbled the brown-haired girl while looking away in shame, before steeling herself and looking back at him as he was still musing over her revelation. "Yo-you said my dad was trying to find you?"
"Yuuna, don't talk to-!"
"Yes, he was. In fact, I'm pretty sure he got asked by my dear enemy Leafa the Heroine to do so, am I right?" seeing the newest look of shock in the bespectacled man's face was everything the black-haired boy needed to confirm his worst fears, mentally groaning at that. "Fucking great…what the hell are you doing, Sugu?! Okay, now I just need to think of a way to keep this mess that doesn't involve just burning their brains or-"
"Do-don't hurt my dad, ple-please, Kirito…sama!" Yuuna unexpectedly begged while falling to her knees, shocking both males in the room yet again even if only one of them showed it. "I will do anything if you don't, ple-please!"
"N-no, Yuuna, you stay out of this, I won't-!"
"Hmm…you know what, that actually sounds convincing enough." interrupting Tetsuhiro's words, the smooth and power-filled voice of the Overlord made both normal humans tremble once again, even as he took a couple steps forward until he was almost standing before the kneeling girl. "Here is the deal, Shigemura-san…in exchange for not turning BOTH you and your daughter into a pile of ashes, you will stop your attempts at tracking us down, then you will lie to the Heroine and tell her we suddenly became untraceable despite your best efforts. And, if she ever tries to contact you again, you will inform me of this. Otherwise…"
As if to make a point, Kazuto casually grabbed Yuuna's arm and effortlessly threw the older girl into the air, her squeak of shock and fear being silenced as fast as her father's horrified shout when he just casually caught her in his arms.
"S-so strong…" were the thoughts running through the girl's…terrified mind, yeah.
"Well, I think I have made my point clear, haven't I?"
"I-I…yes, you ha-have…"
"Good! Then, if it's not much of a problem, your dear daughter is going to escort me outside, until I'm safely far away from him…and if I see any hint of you having called the Heroine or something?" even as he dismissed the energy around him and his eyes stopped most of their unnatural glow, the young Overlord still managed to keep an 'imposing' presence with just his voice alone, his evil magic making the sunglasses he had thrown away fly back to his hand, completely intact. "Well, let's just say that you won't like what happens to her."
Looking as if he wanted to do nothing more than to stop the Master of Evil, but knowing how foolish attempting that was, Tetsuhiro gave a reluctant nod towards him even as he stared as his daughter, a myriad of emotions running his eyes even as she returned a reassuring smile and nodded after him. Steeling herself, Shigemura Yuuna followed Kazuto outside, the door closing behind them.
To be completely fair with the man, he managed to stay calm for a whole minute before simply breaking, his face twisting into a rictus of pain as he rushed out of his office, frantically looking left and right and calling out his daughter's name as he ran down the hallway in one direction.
Meanwhile, the great Overlord Kirito finally stopped in the middle of the small park that was just in front of the Toto Institute of Technology, casually letting go of the flustered Yuuna and giving her a 'mocking' bow before turning around and snapping his fingers.
In the middle of the trees-surrounded clearing, a Netherworld Gate emerged from the ground with a small rumble, its ominous glow started shortly after even as the brown-haired girl stared wide-eyed.
"And that's my way home. Goodbye, Yuuna-chan, it was a pleasure doing business with you and your father."
And with those words said, Kazuto started working forward, almost unable to believe that, for once, one of his 'evil deeds' had gone so smoothly. Huh, maybe doing things alone really changed the outcome more than he thought…
"N-no, it was no problem…a-and thanks for not, you know, vaporizing me and my father!" quickly added Yuuna while looking away, still seeming quite flustered. "Honestly, what was he thinking, working with magical superheroes against a Lord of Evil at his age? He's always worrying about me, but I swear he's the one who is going to give me a heart atta-"
A very specific metallic sound, too far away to be heard by normal human ears, reached the young Overlord's ears. Eyes snapping as wide as they could, he turned around and SHOT a condensed ball of fire from his hand, moving through the air faster than a bullet.
The shocked girl had barely started screaming when the smoking and headless body of the sniper fell off one of the furthest trees in the clearing, causing Kazuto to curse and jump to her side as a barrier of purple energy snapped into existence all around them, catching the veritable hail of bullets that suddenly rained upon them…no, that were aimed at him.
Ignoring Yuuna's suddenly terrified screaming, the Master of Evil glared all around him, at the hidden armed men that had suddenly abandoned all pretense of hiding and were now seemingly just trying their best to kill him, despite there being an innocent girl in the way.
Snarling at their useless efforts, rage building within him as Yuuna's screams turned into terrified sobs, the Overlord HOWLED his next words.
"Pathetic Humans! Did you really think that you would catch me off-guard twice?! Know your place!"
The fact that he punctuated those words with his aura flaring and his barrier exploding outwards in an omnidirectional shockwave that catapulted all attackers off their feet and broke more than a few bones (Even snapping a couple of necks) on impact probably made it all the more terrifying.
Also, the fact that a snake girl followed by almost two dozen Minions of various colors basically burst out of the Netherworld Gate a second after he was done, the evilish creatures quickly rushing out and jumping upon the 'poor' shooters that had survived the initial blast, quickly meeting a much more painful death as screams were drowned by the Minions' macabre laughter.
"Overlord, are you okay?!" asked Ochi while slithering to his side at an inhumanly fast pace, two wicked-looking daggers in her hands while her eyes darted around the area and over the Minions' massacre of the poor soldiers, the few that managed to shoot back not lasting long as Reds blasted them with fire. "Klein-sama sent me as soon as we felt your power flaring through the Gate!"
"I'm fine, Ochi. These bastards just thought they could catch me off-guard…but never mind that now!" quickly cutting off his own words, the Overlord's eyes narrowed as he heard the telltale sound of heavy vehicles rolling through the park in areas he was sure they shouldn't and the distant shouts and screams of people. "Everyone, into the Gate, now! Fall back to the Tower and collapse it behind us!"
Cheering, the Minions quickly followed their Master's will, though more than one took their time to snatch the weapons from the guys they had just killed before rushing back into the Netherworld Gate, Kazuto and Ochi having rushed through first of all.
By the time the armed vehicles with the 'JSDF' logo reached the area, the gate had sunk again into the earth and nothing but a very messy sight of the dead, burned, and stabbed soldiers were left behind.
Cursing as he turned off the earpiece through which he had just been told of their latest failure, a certain bespectacled officer covered his face with his hands as he leaned against a black van.
Evil Overlords, giant monsters, and 'Magical Heroines'…What the hell was their country turning into?
"Lieutenant Colonel Kikuoka!" an armed agent rushed quickly to the man's side, saluting even as he looked up at him. "Shigemura Tetsuhiro tried to enter the park while screaming his daughter's names when he noticed the commotion. We have apprehended him, but…"
"Yes, take him with us. We will know everything he does by the end of the day…and please, at least tell me the agents keeping watch on Yuuki Asuna are still alive."
"They are, sir. The girl entered her house's grounds last report they made, so unless she can, uh 'teleport' too, they know where she is for sure."
Good. At least that was one good thing. They had come close this time, but it seemed that they simply didn't have the power to bring that lunatic down. He would have to talk with his superiors about the use of…deadlier methods, it seemed…
Meanwhile, at the Throne Room of the Netherworld Tower, Kirigaya Kazuto groaned as he threw away his stupid sunglasses and rubbed his face, ignoring how a worried Keiko rushed to his side and handed him his usual cloak while asking if he was fine.
Evil-dammit, that had almost ended without any issues! Why was his luck so cursed?! He had even killed like a dozen armed people, even if he didn't' feel too bad about it (Something that probably should worry him more, really) as they were trying to kill him, but still! At least the day hadn't gotten any more complica-
"Uh…" a suddenly familiar voice behind him made the young Overlord's brain freeze, slowly turning around as his curious mistress peered over his shoulder and they stared at Ochi and the Minions surrounded a nervous-looking Shigemura Yuuna, whose arms were raised even as a nervous smile was in her still tear-stained face. "Don't kill me, please?"
"…Yuuna-chan…why are you here…?"
"Ehm, yo-you said 'everyone' should get into the gate a-and the people out there were shooting me, s-so…I obeyed?" excused herself the girl while looking around. "Uhm…nice evil lair? It looks very…diabolical?"
"Hah! How do you keep finding such amusing humans, Master?" questioned Gnarl with a loud laugh while more Minions laughing along for no specific reason.
For his part…the Master of Evil felt like crying, screaming, cursing, or doing all three at once.
Why couldn't he stop kidnapping innocent people whenever he went out to do something 'evil'?!
Deep within the mountains of Japan's countryside…lighting struck down from a darkened sky, arching in a shape suspiciously like that of a dragon before striking down with the wrath of Heaven itself.
The straight blade of one of the land's most ancient relics received it with no issue; the force of nature doing nothing but spark through its edge and fuel the sunlight-gleaming figure holding it.
Lowering the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi while taking a deep breath, the 'Heroine Leafa' opened her eyes, even if behind her mask no visible change could be appreciated.
For a moment, she could feel everything around her, from the rain falling from the clouds to every single thing it touched, nature's wrath being nothing but an extension of her awareness.
Then, reality seemed to distort as the mirror floating over her back glowed, everything around her losing color as a very different scene replaced it all…
0000000000
The heavens roared in horror, in rage, in despair, and in fury. The water falling down cut like knives, the wind with the force of the deadliest explosions and the lighting with the bite of an angry God.
Such was the reflection of the one wielding a mighty divine blade and slashing, stabbing and even slamming it against the living nightmare, the Darkness itself seeming to laugh at him.
Suddenly, the world seemed to still and The Overlord solidified himself once again, his axe cutting through lighting itself as if it was made of some inky water and stabbing deep into the chest of the God of the Sea and the Storms.
For a single second, Susanoo-no-Mikoto froze, his eyes fixed upon the glowing evil orbs behind the horned helmed mocking him.
Then, his sword arm moved again in a way that defied the laws of nature, faster than lighting itself and with the rage from the darkened depths of the ocean.
Screaming in rage and pain, the Dark One stumbled back, now completely armless, staring in shock at where the only upper limb he had left was still gripping the cursed axe buried deep within the God.
"That was…for Amaterasu…you…monster…"
Such whispers were the last words Susanoo spoke into this world, the mighty divinity falling into the destroyed landscape and moving no more.
Breathing heavily, arms lost and armor cracked…the Overlord laughed, the mocking sound seeming to make the heavens themselves tremble, even as hi maddened gaze turned towards the last remaining combatant, who was standing up with nothing but sorrow in his eyes.
"And now…you're the only one left, little one~"
"Onee-sama…Onii-sama…" whispered Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto, the androgynous face of the God of the Moon consumed by regret. "…thank you."
As soon as those words left his lips, a massive circle within a 5-pointed star glowed appeared under the entire area, making the Evil One's eyes widen, doubly so when the Ying-Yang symbol consumed the circle and the markers for the 4 Sacred Guardian Beasts of Japan exploded from all Cardinal Points around them.
"What?!"
"Goodbye, Over…no….begone, God of Evil! May this world never again have to suffer your presence!"
And with those roaring words, the Seal activated and the Overlord screamed…
0000000000
"…huh…did I just see the last moments of Susanoo's life now?" numbly commented Suguha once her surroundings returning to normal. "I'm sensing a sadly recurring pattern with all of this…"
"[Indeed you did, partner…and while I'm not fully sure what you meant with those words, the truth you seem to perceive is accurate. You have fully managed to assimilate the God of Storms' power within you.]"
Looking down at her glowing skin, feeling the lighting-charged divinity coursing through it, the young kendoka couldn't help but wonder how her life would have been if her brother had never left that day so long ago.
Probably a lot less headache-filled, at least…
"Then…it's time to prepare, right? To get the last one…"
"[Yes…the last of the Imperial Regalia, the treasure containing the remains of Tsukuyomi-sama's divinity…Yasakani no Magatama, the Eight Slopes Curved Jewel guarded within Japan's Imperial Palace itself!]"
Trying her best to ignore how cheerful Sanrei sounded at the idea of them 'appropriating' the relic literally used in the enthronement ceremony for Japan's emperor since times immemorial, and once again doing her best to not think of all the consequences such an action would bring, the Last Heroine forced herself to see the positive side of things.
At least the Overlord hadn't done anything at all for months!
…later on, when she got home and stared in confusion at all the messages Asuna had left her, she would deeply regret having such a thought…
Author's Notes: And there! Evil messes up again…I mean, all part of the Overlord's plan XP
Funnily enough, though, this originally was a simple and shorter transition chapter to get the 'new arc' started and show how this story is heading straight for its ending quite fast. Yuuna was, in fact, just going to be a small cameo for fun to show the disastrous effects of mixing Kirito's natural 'swag' with dark powers that make the human mind more easily suggestible, but thanks to a good pal's joking suggestions I decided to roll with everyone's favorite idol role. It won't interfere with the plot as a whole and it's small enough to still bring some more evil laughs around, as it will be shown next chapter.
Hope you liked Klein's snake-waifus, even if they didn't do much this chapter. They're meant to start showing off more of their roles around the tower/interactions with everyone from the next one onwards, but after such a massive delay for this update it probably feels quite awkward they did almost nothing but fawn over him today…even if Klein certainly isn't complaining XD
Also, Fangirl Asuna tries to be helpful! It's always funny to imagine ways in which she can be 'warped', really, and in this setting it was particularly interesting: No SAO means she never has the mental breakdown and suicidal impulses that eventually turn her into a badass after meeting Kirito, but getting saved by 'Leafa-sama' lit a fire in her that has steered her in another way…but without having been 'toned down' by the tragedy of SAO, she's still a rich girl that has been raising in high society and doesn't realize someone as 'normal' as Sugu may not react all that well to the thing she's used to…mainly 'cause for Asuna there is nothing 'normal' about her savior heroine, really.
And well, that's all for now! Seeya all next time, and for those that follow it on my next update that will be…OPG's last Interlude…hoh boy, that's going to be wild…
Until then, and sorry again for the delay, this is Saint, signing off!