mohanedlwuis: Yes, of course, Ainz can level up. Players can level up faster and reach higher levels than the inhabitants of the New World. But one had to defeat many opponents of the same level or higher for level-up. And that's a problem since Ainz is of a higher level than 99,99% of the inhabitants of the New World...
loolafier: Attention, I did not introduce Buddhism in the Overlordverse. Kugane Maruyama (the original author) did. Buddha is considered a minor god in the Four Great Gods religion.
Gold simp: To be honest I don't know what's in the Gate of the Gods (this is what Bab-ilu means in Babylonian, it is also the real name of the city we call Babylon... I did a lot of research on Mesopotamian mythology to write the FanFiction Moonchild). I believe Kinoko Nasu wanted it to contain only objects from Mesopotamian mythology.
A fight between Gil and Cocytus? Two are planned.
Gundum XXX: You will have probably noticed that the 'translation software' that translates everything people say and that allows all the inhabitants of the New World to understand each other does not translate the... proper names?
A good example is the names of cities. Many names start with "E-" or "Re-". These prefixes must mean "Town" or "City", but they don't appear in the manga as Ranteltown or Estize-city.
Why am I talking about this?
In the VO, the word 'Player' (プレイヤー, Pureiyā) is in English (yes, badly pronounced English)... the Japanese isekaied in the New World as their game avatars referred to themselves as 'Players' using the word in English as a proper name... so the 'translation software' does not translate it.
The religions that worship these isekaied Japanese as gods (like the 'Six Great Gods sects' and the 'church of the Four Great Gods') use the term 'Player' as a collective term to name this type of gods. But they use the term in English without understanding that this is a slang word for 'video gamer'.
Non-religious persons (like Evileye) considered the 'Players' as a race.
The Platinum Dragon is the only inhabitant of the New World to know the true story of the Players. In Episode 11 season 4, the dragon assumes at some point that Ainz Oal Gown is the NPC of Albedo and that she is a Player, which proves he understands how the Game Yggdrasil works. He learned all this because he was part of the Thirteen Heroes whose leader was a Player. I can't point you to a specific moment where Tsaindorcus Vaision clearly says everything he knows about Players and how he learned it. But - scattered between multiple conversations - there are clues about what the Platinium Dragon Lord thinks about Players. At the end of the current Arc, Miriel will meet the Platinium Dragon Lord and I will have the opportunity to address this point in detail.
Jircniv has children because he has a harem with many concubines... but he is not married. His children are bastards without any rights to the throne. Besides, I didn't invent that Jircniv's advisors urge him to marry. If you want to learn more, you have to watch episode 9 season 3 of the anime.
Author's Note: Readers' Reviews are generally sympathetic, generally constructive, and generally point to something I have poorly explained... But trying to explain everything in detail with lots of footnotes to prove your point of view is incredibly boring to write... and it must be even more so for the reader (unless you're a Lore fanatic like the one who posted reviews longer than my chapters a few weeks ago).
When I am told that I have described well the characters and the universe I am happy because I spent hours reading the lore on the internet and the manga, and a lot more time spend to view and review the anime (pausing the anime the time I can examine in detail the furnishing of a room to be able to describe it as accurately as possible).
This allowed me to discover some little hidden details of the story you have to see to understand the true meaning of some sequences.
But what makes me happy is when the readers tell me they love Miriel. I created this character and... I too... I became fond of her.
Unexpected Allies
Huge and eerie, the skeletal Undead roamed the battlefield surrounded by four of the Nazarick's Floor Guardians. Ainz Ooal Gown was inspecting the remnants of the clash. Suddenly, he turned to his guests who followed a few steps behind, escorted by the skeletons in armor that formed the Nazarick Elder Guarder.
He spread his arms out as the wind filled the sleeves of his wizard's robe and shook the bands of rune-adorned cloth that fell from his collar. The sockets of his flesh-free face were briefly illuminated.
"That's it, the Trolls will think twice before attacking the Baharuth Empire, won't they Jircniv?"
The Bloddy Emperor smiled... even though this unnatural grin looked more like a grimace. He bowed politely, a hand on the heart.
"For sure, my liege, the Sorcerer Kingdom showed its power and it also showed that its friendship was as precious as its anger was formidable."
If not sincere, the words naturally came to Emperor Jircniv Rune Farlord El-Nix. He had spent a lot of time preparing his response with the help of seasoned diplomats.
Without a doubt, these words must have been appropriate as Gown nodded. The Sorcerer King then turned to the ambassadors.
"I hope you will testify to your respective governments that the Sorcerer Kingdom has only intervened to help a vassal state in need and does not threaten your nations."
As Jircniv and the ambassadors moved away, they heard Gown's voice resound powerfully.
"Rite of Darkness!"
The ambassadors and the group surrounding Jircniv turned around... to discover that a black aura surrounded Gown as a gong rang in the distance.
Then...
"Undead Army!"
The Overlord was encased in a sphere of greenish energy, formed by multiple pentacles adorned with magical inscriptions. In the sky, another pentacle appeared and rapidly expanded to cover the entire battlefield. Beams of green light descended to the ground like an ominous and unnatural rain...
Gradually, the Trolls began to rise one by one, but their wounds did not heal, because Zombies lost their racial abilities...
A nervous wizard, who was part of the Emperor of Baharuth's escort, began speaking; gripping Jircniv's arm so tightly that the latter winced in pain.
"Your Majesty, this is a 7th-tier spell that can summon a huge horde of undead. No mortal can cast such high-tier magic!"
Gown had given them a 'parting gift' that instilled fear in their hearts and souls. Jircniv Rune Farlord El-Nix smiled with irony.
"Wonderful... Normally, after a battle, even the winner is weakened. That is why war is considered a dangerous gamble, a last resort to diplomacy. But an undead army led by powerful necromancers is stronger after every victory... an almost invincible force."
Jircniv shook his head, he could not defeat Gown on the battlefield and his opponent was far too clever to fall into a half-baked trap, so he had to undermine the Overlord's power from the inside...
Sitting in one of the large chairs of the observation platform, Ainz turned his head backward and 'closed his eyes'... the impact of stress had just hit him with the violence of a blacksmith's hammer. He had often experienced this kind of pressure when he was still Suzuki Satoru. This was what he felt when his kacho (head of department) would call him for his monthly report.
It was so exhausting to be the 'great Ainz Ooal Gown, sorcerer King, God of Death, and Supreme Being' and who knows, many other grandiose titles...
Satoru was neither perfect nor omniscient... far from it... From the beginning, he was just an actor who played the role of a charismatic and competent leader. He had no choice... He was the only one who could control the Nazarick's NPC.
The day he arrived in the New World when he had just come out for the first time and marveled at the beauty of the stars, Demiurge had offered to conquer this world for him. The Creator of the Blazing Inferno had said this as if it were a mere 'gift', making war, and conquering a world seems so... normal to him. No wonder, the majority of Nazarick's NPC were evil (their karmas were negative, even very negative, after all).
At that moment, without even needing to think, Ainz clearly understood that he had to be the Supreme Being that would lead them to victory, who conquered worlds because the Creator they envisioned was a king, a conqueror... and... without his leadership, either Nazarick would destroy itself from the inside, or the inhabitants of the New World would destroy the Great Tomb. And he couldn't allow it! Nazarick and the NPC were all he had left of his friends.
His skeletal hand tightened on the armrest of the armchair.
He would protect them. He had already lost his flesh; he would even sacrifice his soul to protect the 'children' of his friends.
"Ainz-sama?"
Hearing this sweet voice near him, Ainz 'opened his eyes' and saw an adorable vampire gothic lolita standing next to the armchair. Her red eyes looked at him in question, she seemed uncertain.
"What's going on, Shalltear?"
Lifting the bottom of her dress, Shalltear Bloodfallen curtsied.
"Excuse me, Ainz-sama, I noticed you hadn't taken the Emperor aside to talk to him. Can I ask you why you changed your plan without telling us?"
Taking the Emperor aside to talk to him? Changing plan?
For a few seconds, Ainz wondered what Shalltear was talking about. Then... like a dam that gave way... his memory returned... the discussion with Demiurge before he departed for Robble... the 7th Floor Guardian's new plan to win the Holy Kingdom support... the role of Jircniv in this new strategy...
He panicked looking for an answer a little smarter than "Oops, I forgot" when a greenish aura surrounded him, calming him instantly.
"I decided to let the Emperor of Baharuth leave the battlefield and join him afterward so that the ambassadors do not guess my role in this affair."
On Shalltear's face, the expression of doubt and incomprehension was replaced by awe.
"Oh... I didn't think of this... as usual, Ainz-sama, you are as cunning as wise... we Floor Guardians are unable to understand all the subtlety of the Creators' plans."
Ainz sighed inwardly... believe me, Shalltear, I too had not thought of this 'improvement of the plan' before saying it.
But instead of answering with the truth, he stood up with dignity, whirling his cloak theatrically.
"Shalltear, sometimes I make mistakes."
Very often even...
But even though it was Ainz himself who said this, the gothic vampire was indignant, her eyes were replaced by... two pink hearts (?):
"No, Ainz-sama, you are the most beautiful, the strongest, the most intelligent the most..."
The Overlord interrupted him.
"Excuse me, Shalltear, but I must join Jircniv before he gets too far away. We'll resume this conversation later."
Never, if he can help it.
"Of course, Ainz-sama," replied the Floor Guardian.
The Sorcerer King used "Silent Magic" and "Fly" simultaneously. Wrapped in a blue light, he took off from the ground and headed east.
Although his feelings and emotions were stifled because he was an undead creature, Ainz felt dirty inside... dirty because he had to constantly lie to his friends' children... dirty because he was not worthy of the devotion of the NPC of Nazarick. People do not understand how much the compliments of the people one loves can hurt when one knows not to deserve so much admiration.
You have to experience this kind of situation by yourself to understand it.
Ainz easily spotted the hippogriffs escorting Jircniv's carriage.
Strangely, they revolved around a motionless point...
Weird, the convoy was stopped in the middle of the plain.
The Overlord descended to the group of people arguing between the wagons and landed just outside the gathering of humans and half-humans... causing a movement of surprise, almost panic. Their reaction must have been normal. It was probably scary to see a flying skeleton falling from the sky without warning.
"Emperor Jircniv Rune Farlord El-Nix, sorry to bother you, but I need to talk."
Ainz stopped to look at the people surrounding the emperor and recognized the members of the diplomatic delegations of the Karzanas City State Alliance and the Great Minotaur Nation.
"Oh, you haven't left yet."
The Buddhist monk who led the ambassadors of Karzanas bowed deeply.
"We were just... saying goodbye to His Majesty Jircniv Rune Farlord El-Nix. I... I apologize if we don't stay. We have a long road ahead of us, Your Majesty the Sorcerer King."
Gown nodded, waving his hand he casually demising them.
"I understand, of course. Let me wish you a safe journey."
He turned in the direction of Jircniv, having already forgotten the ambassadors... who took the opportunity to escape. The young blond emperor was sweating bullets and seemed on the verge of fainting. Ainz looked up at the burning sun... oh yes... it was summer. The day must have been very hot. He tended to forget what it was to have a body of flesh and blood that felt the heat and cold.
"What a scorching heat, my dear Jircniv," said Ainz in a friendly tone.
The emperor of Baharuth swallowed. By an effort of will, however, he managed to respond with a smile.
"Yes, the weather is heated today. What do you want to talk to me about, Lord Gown?
"Let's not talk about this here. I just came to make an appointment with you. I have a mission of primary importance for you and I would need you to join me in Nazarick with the head of your army and those of your military advisers whom you consider indispensable."
Jircniv looked at Ainz in disbelief, hesitant to answer.
"You want me to... declare war on someone?"
Ainz's eyes lit up with a red light.
"Not exactly, I want you to protect the Holy Kingdom and Queen Calca Bessarez from anyone who might threaten them."
"To protect... but... Let me be clear, it means to go to war with the Demonic Emperor!"
Ainz raised his hand in a gesture of appeasement.
"Fear not, you will receive my full assistance... nevertheless, for various reasons, my name should not be mentioned. Officially, it is you and you alone who go to the rescue of the Robble Holy Kingdom."
As Ainz moved away, Jircniv wavered. He had no strength left in his legs. Fortunately, Baziwwod caught up with him. Otherwise, he would have fallen to the ground... which would have been another humiliation for the monarch.
Spasmodically clutching the arm of his bodyguard, the Bloody Emperor was pale as a dead man.
"How... how... did he know?"
Jircniv had organized this meeting with the ambassadors with the utmost caution. Even the emissaries of the Karzanas City State Alliance and the Great Minotaur Nation did not know where negotiations were to take place. They had followed riders sent by Jircniv... except that Gown had suddenly popped up and interrupted the talks. The emissaries had been so terrified that they had fled... probably thinking that Jircniv had betrayed them!
"He is the devil himself!"
As the Emperor passed a hand in his hair, he saw several blond threads between his fingers... the stress was going to make him precociously bald.
Meanwhile, the 'reincarnation of Machiavelli, Sun Tzu, and Bismarck in the same body shell (1)' was quietly returning to the battle site. He had already completely forgotten the incident and, of course, had not understood that he had burst into a secret meeting and nib a conspiracy in the bud.
It was disgusting to see how lucky Ainz was.
The same day, Daggerford, north of the Robble Holy Kingdom
Diolaine Gisle Kure walked in the corridors of the Daggerford Castle. She was dressed as a maid in a black cloth dress, with a ruffled apron and a lace headdress on her pink hair.
She came from the kitchen and carried a tray with a teapot, a porcelain cup, and a plate of food.
Along the way, she met servants and even two guards on patrol. None of them paid attention to her. With so many nobles housed in the castle, and all their servants, Diolaine had become as invisible.
She put the tray on a piece of furniture in the hallway and opened a door with a spare key.
The maid frowned, disgusted by the smell of chemicals in the room. Leaving the door open, the Slane Theocracy spy entered, stumbling on a pile of books, walking on indistinguishable objects hidden in the dark... a real obstacle course.
Swearing in a whisper, Diolaine finally reaches the opposite wall. She dragged the curtains, before opening the window. A flood of light spread revealing...
The room was a mess. Books, drawings of pentacles covered with numerous corrections, and papers rolled in balls were spread on the ground mixed with a wild variety of strange items. The spy recognized magic crystals, an armillary sphere, a compass, and numerous astronomical tables.
On the only table in the small room, a set of horns heated colored liquids that evaporated before condensing again in glass coils.
It was the origin of the disgusting smell that permeated the room.
Fortunately, Diolaine had opened the window and the wind and the summer sun chased the miasma.
From the bed came a moan while the sleeper's hand pulled the blanket over her head. The tenant seemed allergic to a healthy lifestyle... like any ordinary teenager.
It has now been three months since the cardinals had entrusted Miriel to her. The half-elf, however, remained an enigma for Diolaine. At one point, she was behaving like an almost normal teenager (apart from her pointed ears) and the next moment, the spy of the Slane Theocracy saw a wizard of great wisdom and vast knowledge, mastering powerful spells and making deals with demons.
Which of these two faces was the right one?
Maybe neither or both.
After all, people were always multifaceted, not showing the same face to their mother or...to the baker where they were going to buy bread.
Endearing at one point, scary the next, but still... frustrating, the Summoner didn't trust anyone. She talked as little as possible about her emotions and kept her secrets to herself. She locked her heart so as not to be vulnerable and carried the whole world on her shoulders.
Diolaine was a spy. She was trained to 'read' the emotions of others. She realized that Miriel was afraid of being mocked and despised. Her prudence in dealing with others was the result of painful experiences. It seemed unlikely that a Player (a god!) would have reason to fear that ordinary people dare to mock her. Yet...
But, it wasn't the time to think about that. Divine or not, she had to force this teenager to get up, wash, dress, and feed her so she would get to her appointments on time. It was Diolaine's job as a maid. A sadistic smile appeared on the spy's lips as she tore the sheets from the bed! She loved son much some part of her job!
"Get up! A long day awaits you. You have a meeting with the wizards of the Holy Kingdom this morning. And tonight you must attend a ball."
Woken up with a start, Miriel sat on the bed rubbing her eyes.
"Someday I'll send a horde of demons to wake you up the same way. You'll see how nice it is."
"Wake us up" corrected the maid.
"Us?" repeated the wizard, not understanding what her interlocutor meant.
A hand on the cheek, in a falsely innocent posture, Diolaine replied.
"There are so many pretty boys here, why would I sleep alone?
While the Summoner squeaked like a mouse, the spy smiled widely.
"Miriel, are you sick? You're as red as a crayfish..."
The large vaulted cellar was normally used to store food, but its contents had been transferred to other similar cellars. The light filtered down to a ventilating hole. Nevertheless, lighting was essentially produced by candelabra distributed around the room.
In the center, there was a sort of pedestal, for the time being empty. It was covered by a purple cloth covered with cabalistic signs. Surrounding was drawn a vast pentacle. A very complex one with multiple seals divided into several concentric rings covered with writings belonging to several alphabets... some of these signs were typical of the Yggdrasil magic while others were used in OOO.
The wizards who talked to each other were mostly white-haired old men with long beards dressed in robes. They had been practicing magic since childhood and had never faced such a challenge. It was fascinating, hybridizing the Tier magic with some sort of unknown magic!
Hearing the sound of footsteps, they turned to the stairs.
Miriel had just arrived.
Those who had seen her in the morning would not have recognized her. She was dressed in a blue mage dress of a rather simple cut. The garment was woven of gold and silver threads. Her hair, washed and energetically brushed, looked like a flood of ink of the color of the night. A part was tied in a braid that went from one temple to another, forming a garland at the back of her head. On her forehead, she had a headband made of two interlaced bands (one gold band and one made of silver). In its center was set with a huge sapphire. She had several necklaces around her neck with magic medals, seals, and talismans. Almost at all her fingers, the Summoner had rings.
She leaned on a wizard staff resembling a gnarled wooden stick on which a garland of roses curled.
As the wizards came forward to greet her and gathered around her, Miriel smiled at them. Her fine-looking narrow face was marked with freckles on her cheeks. Her beauty was accentuated by discreet makeup... the work of Diolaine, an expert in the field.
"Good morning, gentlemen. After the end of our previous working day, I thought about the reasons for the breakdown of communication with... with the Other Side. We need to make a transforming change to the Pentacle. I have a new drawing to propose."
The Summoner plunged her hand into a tear in the space bounded by a budding of crystal cubes of all sizes and took out a bundle of papers that she placed on a table.
"Examine the sketch of the new pentacle that I propose. Those who read the sacred language (2) should be able to translate my notes to the other wizards".
The Summoner had made some mistakes in calculating the position of the stars which required corrections. Worst, one of the secondary circles imagined by Miriel could never have worked as the half-elf had intended. The Robble wizards had been obliged to fully dissect this circle before rebuilding it from scratch. They also proposed many changes in the composition of several of the other secondary circles.
The sun had long since passed to the west when the assistants rose, having completed the drawing of the new pentacle.
Entering the great circle, Miriel placed an object on the central pedestal. It was a silver sphere regularly adorned with protrusions: the Orb of Usha.
The orb came from Obscura Onihime Online. In-game, it was a mere quest item that had to be brought back to the dragon Elvil to get a reward. It had no other use. But in the OOO's Lore, it was a way to travel to other worlds. Faculty it effectively had in the New World.
The only problem, Miriel simply did not have enough magic energy to activate the Orb of Usha... even with the Ring of Kings, even while wearing simultaneously all the objects that increased her MP she had in her inventory.
Miriel attentively studied her magic books and found that magical rituals could allow several people to join forces. But these rituals needed to be adapted to the positions of the planets and the seasons for operating... the planets and seasons in the world of OOO of course. These rituals would be of no use in the New World unless extensively reworked. The Summoner had asked Robble's wizards for help in adapting these rituals to the astronomical clock of this cosmos. They had eagerly accepted. Discovering a new form of magic excited them.
Master Backar smiled at the half-elf. He was an imposing old man whose black beard, intertwined with silver threads, descended to the waist
"I think this new pentacle is much better than the previous one. I can't wait for us to start the ritual."
Miriel bowed.
"I would never have made it without the help of the Robble's Wizard Order, I am very grateful to all of you."
"Her Majesty the Queen Calca Bessarez asked us to help you and then... you have so much to teach us. The Players know more about magic than us, humble mortals."
Embarrassed, the Summoner hesitated to answer.
"I know much less about magic than you think. I only combined information from different books... and I wouldn't even be able to do it right if you hadn't corrected my work."
"Don't sell you short, milady. This pentacle is your idea, we've only helped you."
There is nothing more boring than ritual magic... unless you like to stand and repeat odiously long litanies of absurd words.
Standing in a circle on the outer perimeter of the pentacle, a wizard reads haltingly:
"Azibard, kalashur, trimashiet, by the crescent moon at the edge of the world, by the blood of the firstborn, by the abyss below..."
Three steps from him another wizard recited an incantation of the same kind.
"Babassiluk, kirmatshir, Ederna Okmu, Ederna Okmu, Ederna Okmu, three times put the work on the loom without breaking the thread, by the first egg, by the begotten and the unbegotten..."
All participants reached out to each other...
Suddenly, a first wizard shuddered as a flood of blue-green light came out of his palms. His neighbors were connected to him by this energy chain and propagated it to their own neighbors.
Only Miriel did not participate directly in the ritual, both hands on her wizard staff, she was preparing...
Suddenly the pentacle lit up, the light propagating along the lines drawn on the ground, converging towards her.
Miriel was all of a sudden wrapped in a blue-green aura that began to grow, rising higher and higher, like a flame. The Summoner clenched her teeth, at first it was pleasant as a tingling throughout her body... but she received so much energy that it became painful, more and more painful... and probably dangerous.
She stretched her wizard staff towards the Orb. And a tentacle of energy struck it... but it was not yet enough. At Miriel's finger, the Ring of Kings awoke... projecting on the wall strange drawings born of the pulsations that agitated the interior of the ruby called Actorios.
The Orb of Usha began to levitate, rising slowly above the ground before breaking into a thousand pieces that scattered... in slow motion.
As the debris moved away from each other, a reality gap formed where the orb had been, the tear widening rapidly.
A scene appeared in the opening, a scene from another world...
A powerful voice rolled under the vaults of the cellar, speaking in Japanese.
"Ah, you're back, we can resume negotiations."
A huge dragon was wallowing on a gigantic mound of gold coins, precious stones, and pieces of art. Here and there, enchanted weapons and magical objects were visible in the pile of treasures.
The scene that appeared in the tear of reality made it possible to recognize a cave of vast proportion with stalactites on the ceiling—near a wide opening stood two guards in armor much like the set used by Japanese samurais, though adorned with barbs and spikes that gave them a wild and barbaric appearance.
The dragon stood up and its wings slammed as it descended from the heap of gold and advanced towards the gap between the universes.
Its head alone was longer than a man standing. One of its eyes with split pupils was the size of a human head. Powerful horns protruded from its forehead. The dragon's body must have been twenty meters long, and its bat wings were double in wingspan.
Its scales and barbs running along its tail were bright red, while its belly was rather orange. The wings were the same red as the scales, except at the edge, where their hue darkened.
The Red Dragon stuck to the breach until its eye was only visible. It began to speak in a strangely melodious, seductive... hypnotic voice... few people could speak to a dragon without falling into its control.
"Miriel... what a pleasure to see you again."
The wizard humbly bowed her head.
"I greet you, O Elvil, Terror of a Thousand Worlds."
"No need to be so humble Miriel, you are currently the person I want to hear most. I was so happy to hear that you survived the mission I gave you."
Despite the situation, the half-elf teen smiled mockingly.
"You were thrilled to learn that I had succeeded in my mission, my survival must have had a very marginal effect on your temperament..."
There was a low growl. The Summoner shuddered, fearing that she had made the dragon angry... before understanding that it was the Fire-Breathing way of laughing.
"Your candor is refreshing. You're right. Let me be as honest as you are. Give me the Orb of Usha! And I will give you in exchange all that I possess, even my treasure..."
All the dragons were thieving magpies that accumulated everything of value, between them their status depended on the value of this treasure. Of all the dragons, the red ones were the stingiest.
Miriel stood up, daring for the first time to look at the dragon's eye. She swallowed... being right in front of a Fire-Breathing Dragon of Elvil's age and power was a terrifying experience. After all, among OOO's bosses, this dragon was in second place. Only Obscura was more powerful than it.
"Elvil-sama, I don't want gold... please help us. We need your help, powerful master of the air. A scourge threatens this world."
"A sourge?"
"Yes, Ainz Ooal Gown, the Sorcerer King!"
Exhausted, Miriel fell to her knees, panting.
Hearing a shock, she straightened her head to see that the Orb had fallen back on the pedestal. The object was smoking but had regained its integrity.
One of the two paladins who guarded the door spoke.
"I will inform Her Majesty the Queen that the negotiations with the dragon Elvil have been fruitful."
The Summoner shook her head... too tired to answer.
There remained one problem to deal with. How to open a door wide enough and stable enough so that Elvil's entire army has time to cross?
Maybe with more casters... and a larger pentacle? Yes and with amplification circles for each participant...
Despite her exhaustion, Miriel had a lot of ideas and was eager to get back to work.
Unfortunately, Diolaine had just walked through the door.
"Milady, it's time to prepare for the ball."
Sighhh...
"And no need to sigh, it doesn't work with me."
Despite the 'milady' that Diolaine used to address her when she was dressed as a maid, the spy behaved towards Miriel as if the half-elf was a rookie in the army and the spy was her sergeant-instructor...
Now that she had some time to think, Miriel realized what an incredible situation it was.
She had spoken with Elvil... a video game character... Not only did the dragon remember entrusting her with the task of finding the Orb of Usha, but on the other side of the breach, existed a world as real as the New World.
How was that possible?
In creating the game, did the OOO development team create an entire world in another universe or did they create a video game based on another universe without even realizing it (3)?
The Summoner opened and closed her hand several times, looking at the fingers moved. And... Miriel... there had been a 'real' Miriel in this universe. So where was she now?
Unless, of course, I...
Unless Watanabe Haruko and Miriel are not two different people but... one soul living in two different bodies.
Confused, the Isekaied Japanese felt that she had just touched on a fundamental question. If the resurrection of the Players was impossible it was probably because their souls and bodies were not linked together in the same way as in other beings.
The guard at the entrance struck the ground with his halberd.
"Milady and milords, Lady Miriel, archmages, and player."
In the huge ballroom, conversations stopped and heads turned towards the entrance. The Dress of Erangui had once again transformed. Dressed in a green and white ball gown entirely embroidered with scrolls of gold thread, Miriel walked while smiling, without turning her head, her eyes staring solely on the royal throne on a platform.
Each of her gestures was dictated by her inner voice, the ghost the Countess Mathise d'Eraingui haunting the dress of the same name.
As she walked into the ballroom, she heard hostile murmurs. They spoke just up enough to be heard by her... but not loud enough to appear to insult her. It was a form of harassment that existed everywhere... when Watanabe Haruko entered the classroom bullies behaved in the same way.
"Oh my, Lady Miriel is here."
"It's really her? I cannot believe she dares to participate in a ball where true nobility are invited!"
"Goodness! She really is shameless!"
Mathise d'Eraingui had explained to her that it was normal for her to be ridiculed. For courtesans, newcomers to the court necessarily wanted official positions and annuities. They were rivals who risked ousting them. In addition, she was not noble... which meant that the entire traditionalist faction of the court already considered her an enemy to be defeated.
As per protocol, the Summoner curtsied at the foot of the throne.
"Lady Miriel, it's a joy to see you. Thank you for coming..."
"As if it were possible to refuse the invitation of a queen" whispered telepathically Mathise d'Eraingui.
"I thank you for your gracious invitation, Your Majesty," replied the Summoner trying not to listen to the ghost's voice. "How are you tonight, Queen Calca Bessarez?"
The young blonde woman sitting on the throne smiled kindly.
"I'm fine, thank you for your kindness."
The conversation continued for some time. It was a way for the queen to say, "I know this person and I care about her, you are warned".
After the small talk was over, the Summoner got up and walked through the room. A young woman with purple hair and dressed in a white dress crossed the Half-elf's road to impose her presence.
"My Goddess, you are also here, young lady Miriel. Are you feeling well? (4)"
"Interesting" whispered telepathically Mathise d'Eraingui. "She wears a dress just suitable for a royal's ball. This young woman must belong to small nobility, the daughter of a baronet or baron and she dares to mock a favorite of the queen."
"You told me it was impossible..." Miriel replied silently.
"I say 'unlikely'... not 'impossible'... she's probably not acting on her own, someone ordered her to provoke you. This means that someone who has enough influence not to fear the queen's wrath hates you."
Waving her fan, the small nobility woman laughs.
"You're not answering, Lady Miriel? I hope you're not dumb. You're already so unlucky with all your other problems."
"No. I didn't answer because I don't know who you are."
Mathise d'Eraingui laughs "Well, just the right level of arrogance. The nobles are always bewildered by the arrogance of those whom they see as inferior." She paused, attracted by the activity of some young women a few meters away..."Lady Miriel, look to your right."
Turning her head away (another deliberate insult to the young woman in white), the Summoner discovered a group of noble ladies whispering to each other, peeking at her while hiding their laughs behind their fans. Oh, of course... bullies were not predators, but hyenas. They always attacked in packs under a leader. Sitting in the center of her lackeys, there was a very beautiful woman dressed in a very expensive red dress that showed slightly too much bare skin. She was...
Oh?
A beautiful haughty blonde European-type lady with drill hair?
No anime and shoujo manga fan could fail to recognize this archetypal character. A classical villainess, much like Elisa Legrand (5) herself!
Suddenly, she felt like the hero of her own shojo manga.
Amused and excited by the situation, Miriel dedicated a dazzling smile to the blonde villainess making her blush with anger.
Throughout the ballroom, many men (and even two or three women) swallowed wrong the contents of their glasses and coughed.
Cupid had just entered through the window, shooting a lot of arrows marked "Miriel".
The half-elf's smile was a weapon of mass seduction.
Author's note: Poor Jircniv...
Once again the unlucky emperor is a victim of one of the Overlord series running gags, Ainz accidentally ruins the plans of his opponents, and all the witnesses believe it was the result of the machination of a superior intellect *coughs*.
A reviewer had asked me to include the Platinium Dragon in this Arc, I told him that three dragons would appear... you now know the identity of the second of them. Elvil, the Terror of a Thousand Worlds!
As the end of this chapter indicates, I borrowed a little "Shojo manga power" to add to the mixture heating on my stove, I hope it will season the stew.
(1) Machiavelli is considered a political genius; Sun Tsu is a brilliant general and strategist; while Bismarck is a talented diplomat.
(2) Miriel wrote in Japanese, of course. And Japanese is the language of the Players.
(3) Paracelsus (alchemist, physician, and Renaissance theologian) had an answer to this question. According to him, men (creatures of God) could not imagine something that God (the universal Creator) did not create. In other words, all imaginary universes would exist somewhere.
(4) You may not realize it, but this young woman is subtly insulting. "My Goddess, you are also here," Miriel announced at her entrance, invited by the queen, and just spoke with Calca Bessarez... hard not to notice. This false surprise can be interpreted as "you are so insignificant that I have not noticed you." Then calling her "young lady" is a way of saying she's just a kid who shouldn't be at an adult meeting.
(5) The villainess of the series "Candy Candy" (published from 1976 to 1979), Elisa Legrand is the ancestor of all the villainesses of the Shojo series... most of the series (including some manga for boys), perpetuate her characteristic appearance and her behavior now so typical of the Villainess (a bullying beautiful girl, rich, influential, blonde with drill hair, love rival of the heroine).
