SWNOVELXO Chapter 5: Chapter-05
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-05
Kurenai Estate,
Tokyo, Neo-Japan,
Earth – Year 2126,
Overlord Verse;
Kai sat in front of his PC setup, the ambient light of the room casting a dim glow on the surrounding. The Neuronal Nano-Interface rested in place, its thin cable snaking from the console to the neural port at the base of his neck. He exhaled, long and steady, the anticipation thrumming in his chest.
"Alright," he murmured to himself, eyes glinting faintly with excitement, "let's do this."
He powered on the system. A moment later, his field of vision shifted, as the interface booted up – he entered the immersive mode. The world dissolved around him, replaced by the menu of the immersive view. His fingers moved instinctively, as he tapped on the Yggdrasil icon. Excitement coursing through his veins.
The logo pulsed briefly before fading into the game's login screen.
'Today's the day,' he hummed, watching the loading animation swirl before him. 'The official launch. I thought I'd be calmer, considering I've already played the beta. But… I can't help it. It's finally here.' He smiled till the ears, unable to contain his excitement.
He entered his credentials for the beta test account—still active, as he had been allowed to continue his beta account to the game—and hit [Login].
The intro cinematic began to roll.
{Welcome to the world of YGGDRASIL, Player. The World Tree YGGDRASIL is dying. The World Tree, with its countless leaves, is dying because of a gigantic monster that appears and eats them, until only nine leaves remain. These nine leaves are the previous incarnations of the Nine Worlds}.
{The World Devourer now continues its advance and tries to devour the remaining worlds: Asgard, Álfheim, Vanaheim, Niðavellir, Midgard, Jötunheim, Niflheim, Helheim and Múspellsheim.}
{We ask you players to stop the advance of the Devourer and protect your world from this catastrophe.}
The intro cut-scenes were improvised—but what truly caught him off guard was a cut scene he hadn't expected to be included.
There he was—his avatar—mid-fight, dodging and weaving through a swarm of Lesser Imps, wooden club in hand, the tattered coat fluttering as he maneuvered through the horde of monsters. The angle was dynamic – edited for dramatic effect, but it was unmistakably him.
A grin crept across his face in reality. "Heh… They really used that?", a joyous emotion spread across his chest, welling with pride. The devs had hinted at it, but he wasn't sure if they would end up using it or not.
The cinematic ended with a flourish, and the familiar
White.
The world blinked out into pure white space—the familiar character lobby with the World tree, Yggdrasil in the distance past the white screen, floating in the Ginnungagap. Players were dropped here at the start for character creation or when they die, before being dropped into one of the Nine Worlds of Yggdrasil. Kai stood staring at the floating console in-front of him.
Then, a soft ding.
A new notification blinked at the edge of his vision—You have received a new message.
He opened it with a flick of his finger. A small pop-up appeared:
Subject: Welcome Back,
As thanks for your participation in the Closed Beta, your character build has been preserved and granted access. Happy adventuring, Travel and unravel the secrets of Yggdrasil.>
Kai smirked. "Great."
He had known it was coming—one of the developers he was in quiet contact with had hinted at this gift a few weeks back. Still, seeing it made it all the more real. And it wasn't just him. There were few others alongside him, who had been allowed to continue their beta account into the game.
'That makes things a lot smoother,' he thought, though the grin faded slightly. 'Still… I should really be careful with how deep I get involved with developers. Every time I get involved too much with Yggdrasil's creation… that same dream haunts me again, threatening me of the impending doom – as the wooden bridge's structure threatens to collapse with my every intervention.'
His gaze lowered slightly, recalling the vivid sensation of the dark wooden bridge suspended between two mountain peaks, the endless abyss below, the suffocating darkness that surrounded it all and his heart beat that slowed down. The feeling of wind against his skin. And the feeling of suffocation as the bridge hinted at collapsing – piece by piece. While he raced through the bridge to reach the other side – tragically he would wake up from the dream before he could make any major progress.
A quiet breath escaped him.
'Right. No more meddling. I'm a player, nothing more. I can't afford to mess this up. I have to get to the New World.'
He straightened, steadying himself.
'Let's see if they have made any changes to world.'
With renewed resolve, he confirmed the character load. His beta character shimmered into existence—Demonic wings, tattered coat, 'And the wooden club.' He mentally noted. 'Yep, can't forget about the weapon that was featured in the cut-scene of the game.'
******
Kai found himself standing on a scorched ridge, blackened rock stretching endlessly beneath his feet, the jagged horizon flickering with rivers of molten lava that moved through the terrain like living veins of fire. The sky above was a deep, sullen red, dotted with drifting ash and occasional flares of lightning dancing through the clouds.
He blinked once, slowly, taking in the full breadth of the world around him.
"So, this is the new and improved central region of Múspellsheim…" he muttered under his breath, eyes scanning the terrain. "Tch. They weren't exaggerating when they talked about improving it even further."
The world was nothing short of breathtaking. Jagged peaks loomed in the distance, some crowned with ancient, crumbling citadels of Giants. Towering obsidian structures pierced the heavens, their surfaces etched with runes and murals of Demons and Fire Giants.
Kai tilted his head up slightly, watching a massive, fire-winged creature glide lazily across the blood-red sky, its screech echoing across the rocky plains.
"Still feels like a dream," he mused. "Everything's far too vivid… almost like this place exists beyond the virtual world."
The distant roar of magma bubbling below interrupted his thoughts, reminding of his purpose in this game.
******
Kai's gaze drifted lower, toward the remnants of a nearby skirmish. The remains of a slain monster, half-burned and pixelated, faded into embers a few meters ahead. A group of players could be seen in the distance, moving toward one of the ruined towers—likely a dungeon entrance.
But Kai? He simply smiled. 'Aren't they too fast.' He mused while he had taken his sweet time watching the cut scenes and in the lobby exploring the changes in the console – And was busy replaying the cut scene of his fight.
He wondered, 'They might have also been part of the beta testing.' He shook his head, trying to rid of unnecessary thoughts. Raising the wooden club, he placed over his shoulder and started his journey.
******
An ugly imp staggered across the burning wastes of Múspellsheim—its body steady, posture upright, and gaze fixed toward the horizon. Crooked horns curled from either side of its head, its skin a mottled crimson that shimmered faintly against the heat haze rising from the scorched ground. Clawed feet kicked up ash with every step, and a faint trail of black dust marked its passage.
Of course, that imp was Kai. Or rather, the game avatar he had painstakingly optimized for his Demon build, helpless as he was.
He trudged forward, alone, across a cracked expanse of volcanic stone.
'How difficult is it to find monster mobs.' He sighed. Remembering the group he had spotted earlier, he sighed. 'They had managed to wipe out a good number of mobs already. And it looked like they had levelled up along the way.'
He exhaled through his nose. The thought of joining them or fighting for the right to dungeon didn't even cross his mind—not out of pride or arrogance, but because the last thing he needed was an unnecessary fight. And besides, there was something unappealing about crashing someone else's rhythm, especially this early in the game. He wished to take it slow at the beginning.
Kai had wandered off in another direction, deeper into the wasteland—away from the ruin and the group he had spotted early.
Sighing to himself, he flicked open the virtual console with a subtle hand gesture. His translucent interface shimmered into view in front of him, and he navigated quickly to his character sheet. The numbers and stats popped up in elegant columns—his level, his skills, equipped gear, and his attributes.
A rare smile tugged at the corner of his lips but soon it froze.
The imp's grotesque expression remained unchanged—flat, with those unnerving, wide red eyes and a sneering mouth permanently curled into an expression that bordered on mockery.
Kai winced slightly as he glanced over at the 3D rendering of his character model.
'Quite an ugly sight…' he mused, before sighing aloud. 'Well, an Imp is a necessary stepping stone for Demon builds. An ugly monster… but necessary. Still to equip Primordial Demon Racial Class – I need to be Level 65, while I'm stuck at Level 27 currently. Still a long way to go.'
He closed the console with a wave.
******
After closing the console window, Kai blinked at the movement in the distance. A group of goblins—fifteen or seventeen, maybe more—lurking just past the jagged rocks, weaving through the smoky orange haze of Múspellsheim's cracked landscape. His eyes narrowed slightly, an imaginary grin tugging at the corners of his lips.
"Perfect," he muttered under his breath.
With his trusted wooden club raised high, he let out a sharp, guttural battle cry and sprinted forward, as dirt kicked up under his feet. The goblins turned at the noise, startled, just as Kai began casting.
"Fireball," he chanted, raising his free hand.
A fiery orb of fire formed in midair, darting forward and striking the closest goblins. The impact staggered them, giving Kai the opening he needed. With a practiced leap, he landed in the midst of the scattered formation, bringing down his prized club with a sickening crunch on the nearest goblin's skull. 'Upgrading this from that dwarf in Niðavellir was the best option after all. The few weapons I have in my inventory are good but nothing beats this. Moreover, during beta server – they had turned off many rewards and shop system. You couldn't get any special reward for beating most monsters except experience and some class upgrades or classes that you could get from defeating specific monsters. Even the monster spawn rate had been reduced.' He mused.
He turned around as another goblin rushed towards him, but he was faster. Ducking low, he smashed its legs from beneath it before slamming the club into its chest. The rest didn't last much longer—one by one, he dismantled the entire horde, wielding his prized club with brutal efficiency, layering in spells where needed.
It was over in less than a minute.
Kai stood amidst the flickering pixelated corpses of the fallen goblins, their bodies beginning to dissolve into shards of light. He breathed out, as he pictured his chest heaving slightly—not from exhaustion, but excitement. A familiar rush coursed through him, that same rush from his many battles in the beta.
Opening his character screen, he watched the notifications pour in—experience, items, and gold. His level had increased by one. With a few swipes, he accessed his class tree and began picking his next skills and spells.
'With each level up, a player can learn three spells from their class tree,' he recalled, his fingers moving automatically as he selected his preferred choices.
A flicker of pride passed over his face. "Efficiency. Precision. This was how you play Yggdrasil."
"Well," he exhaled, glancing at the fading particles around him. "On to the next one."
******
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**The End**
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