If you notice any errors, please feel free to give me constructive feedback. English is not my first language, so if you notice any mistakes, please mention them in the comment section at the end of the chapter. I do not own Overlord. All property rights belong to their respective creators. Let's begin the story!
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Chapter-13
Muspelheim,
Yggdrasil,
Earth – Year 2129,
Overlord Verse;
Year 2129 – Two Years After the Fall of Valhalla
The forge glowed with molten light of pixels as Hitoshi slammed on the piece of ore after completing designing it's appearance and functions. Sparks danced across the obsidian-tiled chamber like tiny stars falling upward.
Kai stood at the center of the clan's underground crafting hall, hands resting at the back. Across the room, Hitoshi—Heiki Kaji—stood hunched over the forge, hammering like a man possessed as he struck the metal down repeatedly.
Each blow rang like a bell toll, fusing ores mined from three different mines. Lava veins flowed across the furnace, a faint hum resonating with each strike.
"Another one?" Hitoshi asked without looking.
Kai transferred over another batch of data crystals. "Fear not and continue with your work – we still have quite a bit in our stock."
"Don't tempt me." Answered Hitoshi.
At the corner of the room, Kindred Star's soft laughter drifted through as she etched enchantment glyphs on a small golem. The sky-blue haired elf sat cross-legged atop a levitating cushion, as she was busy creating a golem.
Silent Witch floated behind her, arms crossed, waiting for Kindred Star – Her friend, from her previous clan. So, as to pull her away after she finishes working on her golem, and before she could start another project of hers. With Kai encouraging them both, she had been quite a pain for Silent Witch to manage. She and her friends had been unable to go on adventures together. With Kai rallying them on their enthralled hobbies by purchasing every thing he could get his hands on – in the market and from cash shop. Kindred Star had been skipping out on her friend's plans, missing on their shopping trips and when they hung out after college.
The rest of the clan looked on from the elevated walkway with helpless amusement.
Wandering Soul, now frequently found in oddly mismatched outfits, leaned toward Indomitable Wall, whispering, "Are we just… a glorified weapons and items workshop now?"
Indomitable Wall shrugged.
Nameless Shadow sat on the rafters, observing with deadpan stillness. Shouko—Evernight Candidum—stood near Kai's side, her gaze distant but amused, her golden armor's red cape fastened at the shoulder with a pin shaped like the spearhead of Gungnir. It was a cash shop item – she had purchased during the festival celebrating the fall of Valhalla.
"Do you ever get tired of this?" she asked dryly.
Kai glanced over, smirking. "What? Will I ever get tired of making and collecting cool weapons and artefacts? Possibly not and hopefully never." He replied and continued, as he turned to face her. "Moreover, I do not wish to allocate my levels to production type classes. And I am a born collector – it was same with the certificates and trophies I have collected so far. I had no interest in many of the fields of which I hold trophies, yet I competed in them and won to collect them." His little speech and his mindset managed to shock everyone present in the guild would be an understatement – their whole world view had been flipped upside-down. Such that Hitoshi and Kindred Star had paused their work to stare at Kai. Being in the same guild for two years now, they had come to know about the greatness of Kai by Shouko, Manabu and Hitoshi. So, for him to speak about winning with such detachment, while there were many who gave their all to achieve all they could, dedicating their life to their respective field. All for a young master to walk down the stage and beat them at their turf as if winning was all but a trivial matter to him.
It was the day they got a glimpse into the character of Kai Kurenai. With his twisted desire to win – to give his all in everything he did, till he could win or possibly till he couldn't be counted amongst those who lost. With his presence of mind and the flexibility he had demonstrated in the game – with his obsession to win, amazed them. Having watched him and heard his stories, they had assumed him to have an ego the size of a star but his grounded decisions despite his occasional narcissistic tendencies contradicted their preliminary opinion of him. In spite of his egoist behaviour to win by himself – he surprisingly cooperated more than any other player during team events.
While, it remained unbeknownst to them and for Kai himself – his obsession to win and his aggressive attitude towards wining in everything in his life stemmed from his fixation to win in sports and video games from his past life. With his nearly perfect body and mind, as they worked in perfect sync to his thoughts and desires – more so than his past body or that of anyone else. Made him thirst for results as he remained wistful to master everything and excel at everything he tries, as he subconsciously turned aggressive towards everything – spent were many sleepless nights devoid of any form of entertainment, practicing and perfecting things he did not even understand the purpose of. Sacrificing novels, video games and some other things he loved, as he raced to live a perfect life – that he couldn't have in his past life. Though it remains a mystery, if whether he would have chosen such life, if he wasn't born with his current body. With the lifestyle he had chosen, the current situation of his body could be attributed to his toxic obsession – which also blinded him from the existence of DMMORPG.
******
Two years of ceaseless dungeons, Conquering mines, Clan Wars, and exploration had amassed a hoard of raw materials many guilds couldn't even imagine. Data crystals, crafting materials, various ores—every piece hoarded and stored inside the clan vault.
It had become routine.
A silent obsession between Kai, Kindred Star and Hitoshi.
Just as Hitoshi completed the weapon, he sighed. Lifting up the sword – he handed it to Kai. When a gate opened up at the meeting hall of their clan. Only those with the Clan rings were allowed to enter the clan base.
From it, stepped Red Order—armoured in jet-streaked crimson, the kanji for "Demonic Sword" etched across the back plate of his armour. His black Jikatabi boots clicked sharply on the floor. The black katana on his hip shimmered faintly with dull menace as it threatened to consume the souls of anyone who lays their hands on it – with occasional screams of dead humans and monsters that emitted from it and the visages of massacre and ghosts on the sheen of the katana – A World Item
Red Order similar to Nameless Shadow was a player with Samurai syndrome. An old friend of Kai and Shouko, they had met him in the initial stages of the game. He had been a member of a guild later, but after it's destruction he was left with team. On completion of his penalty for failing to protect his Guild, he joined Kai in his clan after many invites. With his personality to venture out adventuring and exploring Yggdrasil alone as he hunted monsters had caused him to but heads with quite a few of his old guildmates with his role-play obsession. But in [ Ignotus Adventurers ], the clan of Kai. He was allowed complete freedom except for some raids, where they called him to participate. As he explored Yggdrasil, mapping and hunting monsters – Being one of the major contributors of data crystals and items to the clan.
And Kai had tagged along on his many adventures, as they hunted monsters and explored new regions of Yggdrasil. With him getting along with Hitoshi - Heiki Kaji – more so than the rest of the clan after Kai, with his Katana and armour repairs. And to forge him new weapons, as he grew his katana collection. He had on one occasion shared his suspicion of love blooming between two plunderers of data crystals and ores from the vault of the clan – Heiki Kaji and Kindred Star to Kai on their venture in the outer region of Helheim.
For Kai to laugh it off.
Red Order had been to obsessed with his role-play that he walked, talked and behaved as a samurai. It had been the first occasion for Kai where Red Order's samurai persona had come off speaking chatting about Heiki Kaji and Kindred Star's synergy, and other was today. As he rushed inside the Clan Base, rather than calmly walking in from the
He rushed inside – As if entering a battlefield. One look, and Kai could already tell: something had happened.
"An attack?" Kai asked.
"No." Red Order exhaled, his voice cutting across the room like a drawn blade.
"I found it."
The enchanting stopped.
Even Kindred Star lowered her hand.
Everyone turned.
Red Order stepped closer to the center, his voice carried uncharacteristic fervor. "I found it," he said again, slower this time. "A World class Dungeon."
The air shifted. Red Order had managed to get everyone's attention. As they focused on him.
Kai's turned around facing him. "Go on."
"It's a thirteen-floor Mega dungeon," Red Order said, voice steady now. "I was mapping the area around Asgard outer region – south of the Labyrinth of Thorns dungeons. There's a hidden passage behind a waterfall. The dungeon entrance architecture is of Greek. Marble columns, gold statues of Greek Gods. There's possibility of a World Item."
******
The Next Day — Twelve Trials Beneath Olympus Dungeon
The skies above Asgard's southern edge were clouded with snow clouds by the time the [Ignotus Adventurers] assembled near the mouth of the waterfall.
The entrance, hidden behind cascading waters and columns sculpted in marble, marked the start of a raid on the abode of the Gods. 'Quite the fancy entrance, comparable to Asgard's Castle.' Mused Kai.
They didn't waste time.
Each floor was its own myth.
The Nemean Lion, whose fur nullified all damage from spells below 8th tier and attacks from weapons below Relic Class, was felled by a coordinated combo from Kai and Shouko—
The Lernaean Hydra, whose regenerative abilities triggered rollback effects on nearby skills, was brought down only after Silent Witch chained it within a region with barriers with Kindred Star's Golems bombing destructive spells on it.
Each floor boss from the legends of Hercules — the Erymanthian Boar, Stymphalian Birds, Augean Stables turned into a battlefield of poison sludge and cursed waters, Cretan Bull, Mares of Diomedes, Girdle of Hippolyta, Cattle of Geryon, and Apples of Hesperides—a riddle floor disguised as a maze.
By the twelfth floor—Cerberus, guardian of the underworld—the party moved in perfect rhythm as they fell the beast.
Answering to their action, after the fall of the Cerberus – The gates to the thirteenth floor opened.
Thirteenth Floor — Dungeon Boss: [Hercules – The Son of God]
The chamber was vast. Pillars of white marble rose to the high-vaulted ceiling, each carved with tales of triumph and pain of Hercules in his twelve labours. At the far end stood a lone figure. Towering, four meters with a giant broad sword on his back.
His frame swelled with buffs, muscles etched with scars upon laying his eyes on the intruders. And he roared – the players only blinked before he was on their face with his broad sword drawn to cut them down.
Kai didn't remember all the moves, only the tempo. The rhythm. Every attack Hercules landed shattered floors, distorted the space. Even blocking his skills dealt damage.
Hercules was unlike Odin. Not because he was stronger – on the contrary Odin could easily whip Hercules with his magic and Gungir. Hercules unlike Odin did not rain down spells in tandem with strikes from his weapon but was on a rampage with no pauses in-between his strikes.
He went Berserk.
And then—after
Finally, after combined strikes from —
Hercules kneeled, as he disintegrated.
******
Thirteenth Floor – The Hall of the Demigod: The Altar of the King of Olympus; the abode of the Gods
The battle hall quieted.
At the far end, nestled beneath a towering statue of Zeus, a golden pedestal shimmered into existence. A divine chalice sat atop it – as if carved from divinity, its liquid contents shifting from gold to red and back again like sunlight on wine. The golden rays shining on the chalice from the broken roof atop Zeus's Statue.
Kai's monocle glinted. The system prompt flickered before his eyes.
Everyone stared in amazement.
Even Shouko said nothing at first.
Hitoshi let out a long breath. "We really found a World Item…"
Kindred Star blinked rapidly, unsure whether to speak or let the moment breathe.
Red Order stepped forward, silently kneeling in front of the chalice. His head bowed as he picked it up. "The Blood of God…" He muttered.
Kai gave a small, amused chuckle.
He walked forward and stood beside the Red Order.
Turning around, Red Order spoke to Kai, "Ligmaballs@69, I am thankful for the Katana you entrusted to me. As a samurai, it is my duty to pay my dues. I pledge on my Samurai Honour and present you with this
Surprising Kai and other members of the Clan with his decision. Kai stood staring at Red Order, lost for words. The possession of World Items was a sensitive topic among many clans and guilds but [Ignotus Adventurers] had an unwritten rule, where the World Items found by individuals – Members of the clan – They are free to decide the fate of the Word Item. While, those found during Clan events, or raids – Will belong to the clan.
When Wandering Soul, intervened. "World Item is all good, but what about making this place our clan base?" She suggested.
"That would be quite risky, with our clan's possession of World Items known by many. With this being a raid dungeon, it will be discovered soon. Especially after the World Announcement of the fall of Hercules – Raid Boss. And the Golden Light show in the skies above the dungeon after clearing it." Spoke Indomitable Soul.
"I suppose there are already many players enroute to this place after the announcement." Manabu spoke, nodding to Indomitable Soul's reply.
"The shouldn't we get out from here, asap." Spoke Silent Witch, in a hurried tone.
As, they got to collecting all the loot from the raid and rushed towards the exit.
Kai silently smiled at the sight, at the camaraderie of his clan, 'I suppose it's time we create a Guild. We will have to search for a few new players soon.' A problem he had been facing, as he mused. When he received a notification, and saw Red Order nod at him silently, before walking towards the exit.
He smiled.
******
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**The End**
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