Welcome to Unital Ring III: Rebellion In The Underworld. Leaving off from where The Virtual Study Society left off, the story splits into two parts: Kirito, Jaymes, Asuna, Kureha, and Alice in the Underworld, everyone else in Unital Ring. Part One and Two of this story focuses on the Underworld parts of V26. The Underworld story is partly a sequel of sorts to my other story, Rise of the First Children, so there are some differences from the novel in terms of characters and events. Part Three will cover what happens in UR at the same time

As of publishing, V27 is a couple weeks from release, so there might be a pause before the "second half" of this story picks up. At that point, the Underworld story will diverge between the events in the Dark Territory and the Star Empire's. I hope I can nail it the way I want to.

We're starting in the Dark Territory with Jaymes' group for a couple of chapters to set the plot of the Underworld's trouble (at least from within the Underworld). Thanks for reading

Part : Fate of the Dark Realm

My name is Princess Sylvie, daughter and heir of the Crimson Emperor Jaymes and the Abyssal Empress Eydis of the Dark Territory.

For seventeen years, I've heard how great my father is. I've heard "the Emperor this", and "the Emperor that." I heard that he came from another world, how he came to this one and defeated two gods, and ruled the Dark Territory to its current state for one hundred and eighty-three years. Opinions of him differed between the people of the dark world. Demihumans would say he was a benevolent ruler, considering he improved their conditions as best as possible. Among the human race, some would say he was a fair and just emperor, while others would call him a demon. All sources said one thing in common; that it would be foolish to make an enemy of the Emperor.

And for the same amount of time, I watched as my mother did her best to rule. Ever since my father left her the throne, she's faced an onslaught of enemies who sought to fill the void left behind. Some challenged her, invoking the Law of Power as their claim to take on the throne; others took less savory and honorable measures. But my mother proved her power; after all, the Empress was said to be stronger than the Emperor when it came to swordplay. But she's no idiot, and neither am I. We may not know who they are or their numbers but know our enemies are waiting for the day Empress Eydis abdicates, and I become Empress Sylvie.

But even after my mother secured her place, I still suffered. While she fought for the right to rule, she sent me away to Aunt Airy, who lived in secret on the upper levels of Central Cathedral. When I returned, despite being the princess, kids my age, nobles and commoners, boys and girls, would repel me like I'm a goblin at a Star Empire school. I barely had any friends growing up, save for the five I can count on one hand, all born of influential noble houses and have loyalties to the Empress...or so I'm to believe. The only two houses I know to trust are House Zancale, longtime supporters of the Emperor and Empress since their rule began, the special forces known as the Kureha, and House Auratam, the pugilist descendants of the first Supreme Commander. Therefore, the only two friends I'm to trust completely are Log Auratum and Dorothy Zancale.

Knowing it wasn't easy, I idolized my mother's strength during these trying times. But she never showed her troubles and fears to me; she always kept a warm smile in my presence except when we trained together. A smile that, as I grew older, I learned was a facade but a necessary one. She couldn't show weakness to her daughter until she was sure I was ready to hold my own in a world that served strength over loyalty.

While I was never happy that my father left us behind, I also idolized his legend, hoping that the gifts he left me would provide me the strength to succeed the Empress. When I developed enough hair on my head, I received the first gift, an obsidian hairpin carved into an "S" with a slash going through the top arc. I've worn it every day as it meant a part of him was with me, watching and protecting me in my loneliness.

At five, my mother started my training, and she gave me the choice between the katana and the longsword; following my father as she expected, I chose the latter. When I was eight and mastered the basic techniques of the one-handed sword, my mother presented me with crystals that had recordings of my father. I heard my father's voice and saw his likeness for the first time. I was told he left not too long before I was born, so I never heard my name in his voice, but it felt like I was learning directly from him. He taught me more advanced techniques of the "Aincrad-style" and all his secret arts and techniques. By twelve, I mastered his toughness technique Hyper Awareness, but that's when my progress stalled.

I wasn't ready for the final gift until my sixteenth birthday. I received a rare weapon of divine authority; Byakko's Blade. By then, it was nearly the day I would transfer to the Human Empire and attend the academy in North Centoria, but my mother wanted me to have it before I left and get used to it. She wouldn't teach me how to use its special powers, Perfect Weapon Control, and instructed me to keep it hidden, except to those I trust. To this day, only six people outside the Empress' circle of trust know of the sword; my friends Dorothy, Log, Notte, and Rano back home, and the Orthinanos siblings in the Human Empire.

Now that number extends to eight; my father, who I'm meeting for the first time, and his friend Kureha.

The Jaymes I heard about, idolized, and wanted to be is not the man before me. He's quick to piss off, but at the same time, he's kind. He looks like someone who fought his fair share of battles yet jumped at the first opportunity to fight. He's...he's me, in a sense, and that pisses me off. This cannot be the hero who stood against Adminstrator during the Clamp Crisis, who fought Emperor Vecta twice during the Otherworlder War, who fought (and lost) against Mother, in one night fought (and nearly won) against the Star King and Queen and later defeated the First Children, and who destroyed the cult that worshipped the First Children after a century of fighting them.

I thought that couldn't be the same guy until I saw his Object and System Control in the hundreds, and a moment ago, when he got so angry, his brown eyes turned blood-red. The Emperor I heard so much about and the Jaymes in front of me were the same person, but in a sense, they felt like different people.

"I don't know what stories you've heard of me, but I'm not the infalliable emperor you've might've been told about. If anything, I'm the opposite of what you know. I'm not an all-powerful demigod, but a human with so many flaws it's embarrassing. I'm quick to anger, quick to act, and hold on to grudges. I'm...not even all that kind. I've slain other humans in my world out of a sense of self-proclaimed justice. Every day I wish I could feel some regret from it, but it never comes. And I... The Otherworlder War, in truth, is my fault. Your people and your mother's people were supposed to kill each other, and originally I would have allowed it to happen while capturing Alice and bringing her to my world. And speaking of your mother... I cannot look at her. In my heart-in my real heart-I truly love her, but I cannot give her what I did those two centuries. So if I see her, all I'll feel is guilt trying to choke me. And it already does so; there's two girls back home who vie for my heart, and at the same time, I...in two different, equal ways, love them too. And...I think I've unintentionally put Kureha, who I loved ever since I met her, into that same pot of trouble, and I hate myself for it."

"In so many ways, I'm the worst person. I tried being the protector, failed twice at that with Koharu and Medina. I've tried to be happy for Kirito and Asuna, yet my jealous insecurities forced me to fight them. I tried to find happiness with Liz, but I betrayed her. I want to believe I found it with Eydis, but I know neither of us will see it in my eyes. Now there's Koharu, who I am happy to see alive and believe this to be my second chance, but... I know I don't deserve any happiness after all I've done or will do. I think I began to accept that but never speak of it...then I heard of you."

"I did not plan on leaving offspring in this world. It's...one of the reasons I had to deny Medina's affection, for I did not want a legacy that would pain me to have forgotten. Yet, near the end of my time here, Eydis had you, my first and only daughter. She did well raising you in her own way. I bet I knew she would... But I realize now, even though you were raised by Eydis, you're more like me."

"I can relate to it in a different way. I wasn't shunned like you are, just the complete opposite. You may look forward to succeeding Eydis; I did not look forward to succeeding my father. He said you have a few childhood friends who truly became your friends; I only had and always have had Kureha. Then as you came over to a foreign land, Cordelia became your partner. I had multiple friends like that as I visited new lands like Kirito and Asuna and your mother. Also, I too, wanted to serve a couple of lessons to my father. We grew up in similar ways despite different environments, and you happened to take after me. Bet that annoyed Eydis."

That's when I realized the father I idolized might not be the man before me, but they're indeed the same being. I learned of my father, the Emperor, who he was when he was seated on the throne, but I never learned of the Jaymes that my mother knew and loved. I never could find the courage to ask her about him, fearing it would make her sad because I felt she was lonely. Even right now, though they have reunited, I know the truth of their fates will keep her alone.

I have to take my limited time and learn all I can. If I want to be strong enough to succeed my mother, I have to spend as much time as possible with the only man who is her equal...and most of all, I want to be with a man who looks like my father and learn to accept him as such. Maybe even call him "Father" one day.

But the best-made plans never go as well as we want.

Jaymes

I didn't have much time to take in the sight of the capital of my former kingdom, the human city of Obsidia.

I knew the "history" of the Dark Territory from my memories. In the time known as the Age of Blood and Iron, the dark realm waged war with the human realm. The human realm won and erected the Eastern Gate to bar the dark realm from another invasion. Meanwhile, the defeated dark realm started to wage conflict within their ranks, with humanity overpowering the demi-humans.

Claiming the only fertile land in the realm, the humans built a city and named it after the primary material used to build it, obsidian. A fifty-floor castle was created in honor of Vecta, the Dark God and ruler of the Dark Territory. When Vecta returned to the heavens, the throne room was sealed by magic chains. Until the emperor returned, those chains prevented entry into the throne room. Upon his return, the dark realm will unite and strike at the human realm again.

Regardless if Subtilizer took over the Vecta super account, the Dark Territory and the Human Empire would have fought against each other due to the Final Load Test experiment Rath installed into the Underworld simulation. Because of Administrator's interference and the weakening of the Human Empire, they only had months to rally a large enough force to fight against the dark realm. Whether Quinella oversaw the war and created her sword golems from human souls or we mustered enough forces as we did, the dark realm would have won.

I have no clue what Obsidia looked like 200 years ago, but the city I see from a mountain range west of town is far from my expectation. The Dark Territory is an arid, rocky region, yet I guess I shouldn't be surprised that the obsidian city has tall, metallic buildings. From the thirty-foot-tall walls surrounding the city in a square shape to the inner city where Obsidia Palace rises out of a mountain, the capital looks like an Industrial Revolution-era city, minus the pollution.

"Wow," Kureha gasps. "I remember what this side of the world looked like, especially those ruins we fought in, but I never expected to see metal structures on this side of the Underworld. How did you do it?"

"I don't think the metal elements spawned here like a mining bug. Sylvie, is the Dark Territory filled with ore deposits?"

My daughter, standing a couple of feet before me, nods, "Yes. Before the war, you can imagine where most of our metalworks went to. Mother says that we started expanding our use of metals early in your reign. You came up with many brilliant things to make living in the dark realm much brighter, including many of the inventions from the Star King being reworked to fit our land's needs."

I cross my arms, feeling impressed with myself...then I feel the dry, coarse ground under my feet. My fluctlight told me that I failed to replicate what I did in Uetra Valley for Medina's family, in which we used a spell to turn infertile land into fertile. It was easier with Uetra Valley since the empire is filled with sacred resources; the dark realm's landscape was due to the lack of those resources. "Did I ever find a solution to growing crops?"

"You did." Sylvie points to the sky, the sun peeking out behind grayish-white clouds. "We took soil from the empire, put it in these places called greenhouses, and somehow it worked. Because of those greenhouses, we can grow crops of any kind year-round. In ten years, the Dark Territory was producing more than enough food for our people. Your later efforts finally found a solution to greenify the Dark Territory, which we're in the process of doing now."

Hearing about my success in solving the primary reason the Dark Territory was set against the Human Empire brings a wave of relief through my body. Knowing my promise to Bercouli Synthesis One was fulfilled puts lingering doubts behind me. If I did nothing more, I brought peace between the two realms.

With pride, I glance at the castle. From a distance, it looks like a series of octagonal buildings that are connected, held up above the mountain by large pillars, and ascend towards the sky (not the red color I strongly remember, but blue as it was right after we beat Subtilizer) where it thins out to an elongated tower. "Great to know... So the throne room is at the top, right?"

"Yes. The tip of the tower is the fiftieth floor. But that's not our destination." Sylvie points her finger to the left of the tower, where a more diminutive spire is located. There's a connection between it and the tower, be it a hallway or a walkway. "That spire is where the private holdings of the imperial family are housed. Only Mother has access to it nowadays, and I've only seen the inside of it once. That's when she gave me Byakko's Blade. If the Chaos Drake is anywhere, it is there."

"How do we get inside?"

"She recited a word that opened the way. I assume it's something only the two of you would know."

Something only the two of us would know? There's...plenty of potential words. But I know myself, and I know Eydis; if we're going to create a password that even I would know, it has to be something related to the memories before the Otherworld War. I'll figure it out when we're at the door to the walkway or use Falchion to override and force the door open. Just have to remember not to use Incarnation like how a certain black swordsman did when he broke into my throne room.

We'll sneak inside, head for the secret holdings, and fly out on the Chaos Drake towards Admina. Since no one's allowed passed the Chains of Sealing, it'll be a piece of cake. The only problem...is my feelings toward bypassing Eydis. I have no reason not to say hello, but I know that if I see her...pain and regret will overcome me. The part of me that fell in love with Eydis does reside within me - in my final memory of Eydis, I practically told her how I felt - and I cannot decline the fact I did fall for her. Yet that's not all; I may not remember, but even now, my soul yearns for its longest companion. For Eydis, half her life has been at my side since the day I came to this world and crash-landed on her.

I noticed it the last time we met a month ago. She looked for the Jaymes she loved, and the part of him that remains within me did bubble up for a moment. I'm not sure I could keep him down a second time. Ever since I decided to come to Obsidia, the desire has prodded my heart, and the closer I've gotten, the harder it pokes.

And I have a more onerous hurdle in the real world because I can't avoid Koharu.

I hadn't figured out how to tell Kirito and Asuna, who may have seen Sylvie earlier when we separated. She didn't engage with them as Cordelia did, and Alice swore to keep it secret. So if I'm having trouble telling my two best friends, how can I spill it to the girl I love?

You say I told Kotone and Momiji easily, but that's different. Momiji would have found out the other day if I didn't tell her (because I had to talk to someone about it after I found out) or from Dr. Koujiro. Philia caught me deep in my thoughts and, like the treasure hunter she is, got what she sought and more. The other three...and the others, I'm going to have a more challenging time explaining this than when I had to explain why Kazuto was put into the Underworld this summer.

Though I do have an idea to tell Koharu. I'll take her out for dinner in the neighborhood tonight, or maybe we'll talk a wa-

BOOOOOOOM!

My thoughts are cut off by a bright flash of light followed by the ear-rupturing sounds of an explosion. It originated from the castle around the throne room's location. I hear Cordelia gasp in shock, and Kureha grunts in confusion, but my peripheral vision only has one figure, the young princess standing before me. She makes no sound, and I can't read her face since I can only see the back of her light blonde hair. I can see her tense and ball her right hand into a fist. But she doesn't move otherwise.

I do hear her mutter, "Where are you... Mother... Mother..." I believe she's using Incarnation to search for her mother, though the distance is quite long. By my estimation, we're no more than ten miles or mels to the palace. And...well, I've already done the action she has without thinking about it. I've already determined what she searches for, but there's much more that I've sensed that I know what I must do, even if it is against my more significant goals.

The yearning that's been eating my inside has won out. Kirito can handle Admina just fine, but the capital of Eydis and Sylvie's land...this is my task. I have to protect it. Not because Sylvie is my daughter, or that Eydis was, by all definition, my wife and empress, or because I once was the emperor. I'm acting as Jaymes right now, and I have a hard-headed tendency to protect things that matter most to me.

"Kureha," I say, turning to the pink-haired girl behind me. She isn't looking at the castle but elsewhere through two pieces of glass between her thumbs and pointing fingers. I've seen Bercouli do the same thing back during the war to mimic the enhanced sight of a monocular. I guess she learned that skill last time too.

She doesn't look away from her line of sight. Kureha knows I want to act and can freely do so. She knows I'm not calling her name out of the blue; my tone is asking her permission to act as I please. "You noticed them too?"

"Yes."

"...Are you sure that's the right decision?"

I turn back towards the city, then to Sylvie in front of me. "...No. But I'm making it anyway."

"Okay, then. I'm going to head over there to those mountains. I can see the lingering traces of magic that created the blast through the air and originated there." I want to question how she saw all that because I see nothing (I can detect it, though) or how'll she get over there, but there's no time. Kureha leaps off the cliff without allowing me to ask.

I don't know if Sylvie has finished her dowsing, but it doesn't matter. Her mother is alive and seems to be in a fight, and I have a lock on her location in the palace. Furthermore, a massive wave of magic surrounds the city, and it doesn't feel like good intentions. It is probably the reason Sylvie is having a hard time; there's some interference on my senses too. If the Underworld had such a thing as true dark magic, this sensation sent a chill down my spine.

I swallow that fear and reach out for my daughter. She bears a panicked expression, understandably, given the sudden situation. I remain calm as I get her to face me. "Sylvie. Stay calm."

"B-but I can't find her. I can't sense Mother."

Meanwhile, I turn to her friend, who looks more frightened than the princess. Maybe I'm used to the constant fighting as a VRMMO player and multiple-time hero of the Underworld, for this is the girls' first taste of life-or-death combat. Their predecessors fought in a time of constant strife, but they've known only peace or the threat of war.

I don't know how to calm them. I wasn't the one who calmed Koharu back on that fateful day in SAO. It wasn't me who talked sense into Medina when I fought her. But I do know how to motivate them.

"Eydis... She's alive. There's some interference, but I can sense her. She's in the tower with a few others...and I sense a maleficient force there too. I won't ask you to go beyond your ability, but whatever is happening will put all your skills to the test. Eydis shouldn't need it, but... There's a reason I gave you Byakko's Blade, and there's a reason the Mirage Blade allows you to wield it. Show me and yourselves those reasons. Go save Eydis."

Sylvie looks no less panicked, but my words register with her. Cordelia's fright melts as slowly as a block of ice on a warm counter. However, I see the slightest expression of determination on their faces. One girl is determined to save her mother. Another wants to save her friend's mother and her ancestor's friend.

"Mother... Right!"

"We have to save Empress Eydis."

I nod, then focus on the tower. The residual effects of the explosion are gone, but there's damage to the structure. Obsidia Castle is an immortal object like the cathedral so it will be repaired by the system soon. The people inside are not as lucky, but I don't sense anyone there besides Eydis and another.

"What about you?" Sylvie inquires.

"Kureha and I will find whoever's responsible for this. But...if the situation does get serious, use this." I hold up the bracelet around my right wrist. Sylvie looks at the bracelet on her arm, then scoffs as she turns her back to me.

"As if I'd call on you for help. You said it yourself; I have Byakko's Blade, and Mother is more than strong enough to protect herself. C'mon, Cordelia."

Cordelia sighs as she enters the swirling wind arts around Sylvie. "Such a nuisance. Don't worry, Jaymes. I will not bring dishonor to Lady Medina and my family's name. And if we need help, Sylvie will call for you."

"Did you not hear me? I will not ask him to help us." Sylvie snaps as the art is fully charged. Before she casts the spell, however, Sylvie looks at me over her right shoulder, a single brown eye. I may have only known her for less than a day's time, but I know her eyes betray her words. "But, in the very slight case that I do ask, you better come. If you don't help me and Mother, Emperor or not, I will hunt you down."

In response, I click my tongue and turn away from her, preparing to take flight. "You're right. You're the daughter of Emperor Jaymes and Empress Eydis. You don't need any help at all, Princess." I hear her grumble before the two girls vanish, then my attention goes to the western mountains. Whoever is there is orchestrating this...and though I have no evidence to back it up, I bet there's some connection to my past.

"Kirito, Asuna, Alice, and Eolyne, I'm sorry, but I'll leave Admina to you. I can't abandon Eydis or Sylvie once again..."