Chapter 4: Simple Adventures
"Dialogue"
'Inner monologue'
[Yggdrasil Spells]
{Elden Ring Sorceries/Incantations}
{Message}
Exiting the castle halls, Ainz was met with a beautiful scene, not remembering how long he had been watching it. The magnificence of it all entranced him somewhat. Yet, his mind regained composure and focused on his next target.
Not long after, he found what is, or what was left of a church, made out of rigid stone as it somehow still stood erect. The ground was consumed by nature, grass, and plants growing inside, as the pillars on each side seemed unstable.
'[Life Essence] showed someone being in here.' Ainz mused as he entered the church, looking for whoever was inside this god-forsaken place. Yet the person he was looking for was not hiding in particular.
"You're a traveler, aren't you?" The man spoke as he looked upon Ainz. He looked to be in his thirties with a bald head and a full black beard. He wore academic robes aligned with a picture one would have of a mage.
"I am traveling now, so yes, technically, I am." Ainz answered.
"Perhaps you could spare some runes? Believe it or not, I studied glintstone sorceries at the Academy of Raya Lucaria. For a small donation, I'd be happy to share my knowledge." The man stated, which sparked the interest of the Overlord greatly.
"Raya Lucaria you say? Here, take these Runes." Ainz offered the man, who seemed to appreciate his gesture greatly.
"Well, bless you, bless you. You are a true saint. My name is Throps. Presuming you're interested, I can teach you some sorceries, as promised. Only, none of them are particularly great…" The man whispered the last part, yet Ainz heard every bit of it.
'He can sell me sorceries, interesting. How can I refuse such an offer? Even if they are useless, learning new magic is always intriguing to me.' Ainz thought.
"I would love to see what you have to offer." Ainz responded, to which the sorcerer quickly showed Ainz his wares in what seemed to be scrolls.
"I have Glintstone Pebble, Glintstone Arc, and Starlight available. Your choice." He said.
"I will take them all. How much?" Ainz asked.
"All together, about five thousand Runes." Without a thought, Ainz passed the Runes to the man, gaining the three spells for himself.
"Here you go then." Just after the transaction, the man passed the scrolls to Ainz, who studied them before putting them into his inventory.
'So once I have such a scroll, I can use this spell indefinitely. Interesting. Usually, scrolls only supported one cast after they disappeared. But I suppose a different world brings different rules.' Ainz mused as he was lost in thought.
"I guess someone like you will want to travel to the structure in the north, towering over the water? That's the Academy of Raya Lucaria, where we study glintstone sorceries." The man explained, Ainz returning from his thinking quickly to listen to his words.
"Then why are you here and not in the academy?" Ainz inquired, at which the man sighed.
"Its doors have been closed for quite some time now. After they declared they wouldn't interfere with the Shattering, the academy cast repelling seals on the east gate leading to the Capital and the south gate leading here. As you might have guessed, the seals are still active, making entry to the academy impossible without a glintstone key. So I'm stuck here. A fledgling sorcerer with little chance of acquiring a key." The man expressed the fate that stuck with him. His only hope diminished as he would never find a key to enter the grounds of sorcery again.
"How do the seals work? Is there a special mechanism involved in creating them?" Ainz questioned. He showed interest in them, yet the man seemed to notice his curiosity, mistaking it for naivety.
"I am no grand sorcerer, and I have no clue of how these seals have been constructed. When they cast the seals, I'd just popped out, and now I'm uprooted from my place of learning." The man gave little to no information regarding the seals, yet Ainz did not think this to be of any concern.
'I would have to see these seals for myself. Maybe I can even bypass them completely.' He thought before returning to the man.
"I thank you for your generosity in sharing that information with me. But I have to inquire something further, if you're willing, of course." Ainz said, and the man nodded.
"I do not mind sharing more of my wisdom." The man commented, at which point Ainz cleared his non-existent throat.
"What my question is, do you perhaps know of anybody else who might teach me more sorceries? I am keen to learn at the school of Glintstone, yet I am not able to enter the academy itself. Maybe you would know someone outside of its vicinity who is able to do so?" Ainz asked the man, who touched his chin as if contemplating what to say.
"There is one, a sorceress, called Sellen. She was the most promising in the history of the academy. Yet she was expelled from the academy and accused of unthinkable treatment of certain sorcerers under the name of the Graven Witch. I still won't believe those accusations. But if you want to find someone who will teach you more, she is your find. Yet she has not been seen for quite some time now." Thops said, the light in his eyes shining with a glitter of remembrance, where he had met the illustrious Sellen once in the academy, for her to never enter his eyesight again.
'Sellen. I should look out for her. Maybe she knows more about those Glintstone Keys and where to find them.' Ainz thought.
"I thank you for your help. Is there anything else you could tell me that could be of use?" Ainz asked, at which the man seemed to think for a moment before answering.
"Mmh, not that I know of. I'm just a bluntstone, without a pebble's worth of power, so knowledge is scarce to one such as I." The man explained.
'Should I kill him? Maybe he's not a good sorcerer, yet I can certainly gain some spells from him if they work like mine. But I should reconsider that. Better I make some good relations with the people of this world. Who knows? Maybe I meet them again. And if the spells I bought do not work, I can always come back and use [Dark Wisdom] on his corpse.' Ainz contemplated before he chose to say his goodbyes to the man.
"I hope you will find your way into the academy once more. And if I manage to enter, I will not forget you, Sorcerer Thops." Ainz recalled his name, a sparkle visible in the man's eye.
"How rude of me! I forgot to ask your name, good sir. I hope you forgive this man's rudeness." The man apologized, yet Ainz didn't seem to mind too much.
"No worries. My name is Ainz Ooal Gown, but please call me Ainz. For now, I am simply a traveling mage, wandering the Lands Between to find new knowledge." Ainz answered.
"I see. Then I wish you good luck on your journey." The man said.
"To the day we meet again, Sorcerer Thops." Ainz said before he turned around to exit the church, leaving the confines of the once-holy ground.
Thops, somehow, couldn't get his eyes off the man. His stature, his clothes, his way of walking, and even his whole reactions to his environment seemed so different from a normal person like himself. He wondered if the man was secretly one of the great sorcerers who sought to enter the academy once more, yet the man's questions about his way of magic made him doubt that.
Ainz, however, continued to move to his next objective. Testing the new spells he got.
'First, I have to find some monsters to utilize the spells on.' Ainz mused as he looked around, ready to find a target to kill without repercussions.
Ainz teleported high above Limgrave, seeking out anything that resembled a beast. There, with his sharp vision, he scanned the surroundings, finding what he was looking for.
He spotted an ugly creature, which towered over anything in its presence. Its ribs were almost exposed, showing a hole in its chest, leaving no room for any internal organs. The muscle on the creature was almost non-existent, being extremely thin for its size.
It boasted a grey beard and hair tilted to the back of its head.
The creature did not seem to show any intelligence beyond what an animal would be capable of.
'I should be able to practice my spells on that thing. The spell seems to be a silent cast from nature. But well, better that way.' Ainz mused, focusing his thoughts on casting his new spells.
"{Glintstone Pebble}"
The spell cast, and a turquoise-purple arrow of light shot toward the giant. The speed was not as impressive, and the effect was almost the same as a [Magic Arrow]. Yet it seemed to scale up with his stats.
As the spell connected, the giant fell back. As Ainz checked, the spell removed half of the giant's health.
'Impressive. It seems to deal raw magical damage. Can I use Yggdrasil meta magic with it?' Contemplating the possibility, he tried to bring his thoughts into action.
"[Maximise Magic: Glintstone Pebble]"
As expected, the spell seemed to work, gaining more speed than before and finishing the giant off in one hit.
'So it does work with Yggdrasil meta magic. Interesting. This could be useful once I find more powerful spells.'
The Overlord felt a tingle of joy from this experiment, which faded away thanks to his undead status. As a user of arcane powers, he was eager to learn and try new possibilities of casting magic. This world provided exactly that.
'Let's see, I have two more which I wish to try.'
The Overlord continued his search for more enemies to try his spells on. To his luck, he found some other similar giants as well.
"{Glintstone Arc}"
A horizontal line of a mix of blue and purple light shot forward, hitting the giant square in the chest.
'It dealt about the same damage as {Glintstone Pebble}, but it can hit multiple enemies at once and costs more to cast.' Ainz thought, finishing off the giant with the same spell again.
'The next one seems to be a utility spell, but I should cast it once nonetheless.'
"{Starlight}"
Above Ainz's head, a small purple light appeared, illuminating the surroundings slightly.
'Well, that was that.' To say Ainz was a little disappointed was an understatement. But, the spell did exactly what its name said, making an artificial light to see in the dark. But Ainz did not need such a spell since his vision allowed him to see anything crystal clear, even in the darkest pits.
'Ah, it seems I haven't even noticed that it has gotten dark. Mmh, but I can't let the feeling go that I am being watched.' Ainz mused, sensing something nearby. And it was closing in on his location.
Just in time, Ainz teleported away, escaping the enemy's attack.
As he reappeared, he got a good look at what creature attacked him. Its form was twisted, its body as thin as a rake. It seemed as tall as the giants he had fought just before, yet its bad posture made it seem smaller.
The creature seemed to possess wings, withered in appearance. Though it had four limbs akin to a human, it was more of a bird, with claws as feet and a bird-like head.
Especially the head intrigued Ainz the most. It was a skull, having an opening on its right side.
'That's why I sensed it. It seems to be an undead of this world. What's their name again? Those Who Live In Death, right? But why did it attack me? I have a ring especially made to hide my status. Still, it doesn't seem to continue its attack now that it saw me up close.' Ainz mused, the creature watching him closely.
In its hand was a staff similar to a scythe, having a curved blade on its end. Yet it seemed old, ancient perhaps. Now more of a blunt weapon than its true purpose intended.
'Before I try to take control of it, I want to test some suspicions I have.' Ainz thought.
"[Death]"
He cast, yet the creature did not die nor show any sign of being affected.
"[Charm]"
Nothing. Even this spell didn't seem to work, either.
"[Poison Needles]"
An array of small needles shot toward the creature, yet it didn't diminish its HP, not applying a status effect either.
Screaming furiously, the bird seemed triggered by the last attack, dashing at Ainz with the help of its wings as it swung its club.
"[Hold Species]"
The creature froze in place, around it appearing arcane circles that served as shackles for the bird.
'I want to test one last thing.'
"[Ice Spear]"
A spear of ice appeared at the front of his finger, hurling at the creature with medium speed. On impact, the damage dealt was almost non-existent.
'It is just like any undead from Yggdrasil, with the same weaknesses as well. Then it must mean it is also weak to bludgeoning damage. But enough for now, let's see what creature this really is.' Ainz, thinking it was time, began to unleash one of his most potent abilities against fellow undead. One which would allow him to triumph over anyone of his species who was weaker than him.
"[Undead Domination]"
With these simple words, the creature seemed to stop all efforts of breaking free. Ainz saw this as a sign that the skill worked. With a wave of his fingers, the runes around the bird disappeared, and Ainz decided to appraise it first.
'It is called a Deathbird. Its level is unclear, but it's about as strong as a Death Warrior. But its ability to fly is helpful. If I only could summon or create this Deathbird on my own, that would be interesting if that works.' Ainz mused but was shortly disrupted by a familiar voice.
"It seems you have taken control of one of the Deathbirds in Limgrave." Melina spoke, gazing at the bird as it looked at her. Materializing before it did seem to trigger it a bit, worrying for its master's safety.
"It was nothing extreme. I have a skill that allows me to take control of weaker undead. Yet I would like to find a way to summon these creatures on my own." Ainz shared his thoughts, at which Melina tilted her head slightly.
"It is impressive enough that you managed to even tame such a creature. Yet the power to summon one would be beyond my knowledge on how to obtain. The only thing I know that mimics the ability to summon a creature is a spirit ash." Melina explained, her gaze still fixated on the Deathbird.
"A spirit ash, you say?" Ainz inquired, hearing the word for the first time.
"Yes, companions one can summon through a bell. The Tarnished you slayed had one. Perhaps you took it from him?" Melina inquired, at which the Overlord quickly searched his inventory for anything resembling a bell.
"You mean this thing here." He said, removing the bell from his robe as if he had stored it away in there. It was an item he received after killing the Tarnished and looting his body.
"Correct. If my memories are to be believed, the Tarnished received this bell from Ranni the Witch, which went under the name of Renna when meeting him." Melina stated.
"Ranni the Witch? I suppose another important figure in this world's history?" Ainz questioned Melina, who nodded in response.
"She is shrouded in mystery. At the Night of the Black Knifes, her body was killed, yet her soul lived on. If we would gain her alliance, she could aid us, you, in becoming Elden Lord. She can also be a source of knowledge if you prefer that." Her words put the Overlord in deep thought, yet he was quick to answer once she finished.
"My priority is to learn more about the sorceries of these lands. I suppose I should focus on that first." Ainz stated.
"Perhaps I know of someone who might help you in that regard." Melina claimed.
"Do tell then."
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Here you go! The next update is here! Hope you like it!
Some think Ainz is gonna unrealistically stomp the Elden Ring universe, but that's not the case. Some beings scale way higher than him in raw power, but he equals that out with his hax and the ability that he can actually level up.
The next update will be on the 29th of February.