On the 10th Floor of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, Momonga sat on his throne, his left hand holding his chin as he looked at everything around him.
The Logout button is gone, and I can't contact any of the Devs.
He calmly analyzed the changes in his surroundings after the time for the server to shut down had passed.
Nazarick was still intact, and so was his avatar and the NPCs that had been present in the Throne Room.
He could see a screen reading [System Upgrade- Loading] at the corner of his eyes.
"Is there a problem, Momonga-sama?" He heard a pleasant voice coming from his right and looked over.
There, someone who was easily the prettiest woman he had ever laid his eyes on was looking at him with a concerned expression.
Everything about her appearance screamed perfection.
Her skin, void of any blemish, contrasted perfectly with silky black hair that fell on her face without hiding any of her angelic beauty. This, one might say, was not a face that should belong to a mortal, but to a goddess.
Her vertical golden eyes, the long horns adorning her head, and the black wings on her hips worked to contrast with her angelic image, denouncing her real nature.
This was no angel, but an evil demoness that occupied the highest seat among the NPCs, the level 100 Guardian Overseer, Albedo.
He stared at her for a while, entranced by her breathtaking face, then his gaze fell to her chest. Noticing its rhythmic movements.
She's breathing.
Interesting.
In Yggdrasil, Players and NPCs couldn't make expressions, and certainly couldn't breathe.
Momonga stood up from his throne, releasing the Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown, which started to float by itself, much like in the game.
He approached Albedo, who now looked a bit surprised.
At this distance, he noticed the sweet fragrance coming from her. Another thing that shouldn't be possible.
"Excuse me, Albedo." He said before touching her face with his fingers.
He felt warmth on his touch; her skin felt smooth and soft under the pressure of his fingers, something that felt pleasant even with his fleshless fingers.
She's alive, he thought. This meant that they should no longer be in the game, but in a different place.
He had already expected this outcome, so he didn't panic.
"Haa~~" He was interrupted by a moan coming from the woman in front of him.
He looked down at Albedo, whose face was now flushed and looking at him with watery eyes full of desire.
"Oh. I'm sorry, Albedo." He apologized and took a step back, returning to his throne.
"No, Momonga-sama. I should be thankful fufufu~. If you want to, we can even have our first time right here~."
Momonga gave her a weird look, then, as if remembering something, asked:
"Albedo, what do you feel towards me?"
"Momonga-sama is the kind master to all of Nazarick, the greatest out of the Supreme Beings, and the man whom I love more than anything." There was no hesitation in her answer, as if she was just stating the most basic fact in this world.
As expected.
Before the server shutdown, Momonga, or rather, the Momonga who hadn't fused with the Demon Lord, maybe I should change my name, altered Albedo's settings so she would be "in love with Momonga".
Seeing Albedo's current state, it was safe to say that the contents of the NPCs' backstories were used as a basis for their current personalities.
"I see." No matter how interesting these things were, he had more pressing matters at hand.
"I'm grateful for your feelings, Albedo, but answering your previous question, I wouldn't call what we're going through a problem yet," he answered her, "But I sensed a change in Nazarick just now."
The NPCs were brought to life, and he couldn't see any of the usual game interfaces in front of him.
Many scenarios played on his head in quick succession. They could be in a version of Yggdrasil that came to life, but they could also be in another world entirely.
How would their standing be in this new reality?
He felt afraid for what this change might do to Nazarick, he noticed, but the excitement he felt was even greater.
Then, suddenly, all these emotions vanished, as if they had never existed in the first place.
What is this?
This was a new experience. It felt like his body was rejecting the emotions he had been feeling. Another thing for him to test, but this would have to wait.
"Sebas."
"Yes, Momonga-sama!" An old butler with silver hair answered him from below the stairs to the throne. Despite his age, his voice was full of strength, and Momonga felt a sense of threat that Sebas unconsciously emitted just by being there.
Sebas was one of the strongest beings in Nazarick, a level 100 NPC who, due to his race, was actually still in his prime despite his appearance.
"Take the other Pleiades and go scout the surroundings of Nazarick, look at anything in a 1KM radius. Don't engage with any creature, and prioritize returning here to report in 1 hour."
Sebas acknowledged his order and left with the group of Battle Maids of Nazarick.
"Albedo."
"Yes, Momonga-sama!"
"I want you to call the Floor Guardians to come to this room 1 hour from now."
"Yes, Momonga-sama!" There was no questioning in her tone, much like with Sebas.
Are all the NPCs this obedient? No one asked anything and just acknowledged my orders immediately.
Maybe it's a default setting for them as NPCs that belong to Ainz Ooal Gown.
He looked at the staff in his hand that represented him as the Guild Master.
"Leave Gargantua out of it."
Gargantua was the Floor Guardian of the 4th floor. It was a gigantic golem, and unlike the other guardians, it was not created by any of the members of Ainz Ooal Gown, but was gifted to them by the Devs after they conquered the Great Tomb of Nazarick in their first attempt, making it their guild base.
He needed to activate it later.
Albedo acknowledged his orders and moved without questioning them.
Momonga felt both glad and concerned with this apparent loyalty.
If his guess was correct, the NPCs should be "The companions that won't betray me" in his wish. It was good that they were loyal, but if they only followed his commands, some problems were bound to emerge in the future.
"Nyx." He looked to his left.
"Yes, Momonga-sama." A calm, feminine voice answered his call.
Nyx had a crude appearance. She was a black skeleton wearing a luxurious black dress that covered her whole body, and yet, despite her lacking appearance, she exuded a noble demeanor that made it hard to overlook her.
On her empty orbits, a silver light shone, full of a calm wisdom that contrasted with her bones and dress.
It fits her.
"Talk with your sisters to verify the situation on each floor."
He wanted to know if there were any immediate problems in Nazarick. The Custom NPCs seemed to be obedient, but there were many Vassals throughout Nazarick(Permanent Monsters summoned with gold). If they rebelled, things would become complicated.
"Yes, Momonga-sama!" She hurried to a corner of the room and began contacting her sisters using [Message].
Momonga internally sighed at the similar responses from all the NPCs.
In the last minutes of the server, he created 7 NPCs.
All of them were level 1 NPCs from the skeleton series.
Time didn't allow him to give them an in-depth customization, so he focused all his attention on their backstories.
In their settings, these were 7 sisters that he created using his own bones. Each of them was granted an intellect rivaling Demiurge's, but with their own areas of specialization where they could even surpass him.
Knowing that these settings still applied, he was eager to meet all of them.
He assigned the seven sisters to different floors so they could work with the NPCs there. A part of him thought that even if his friends abandoned him, maybe their creations could still work together.
As the oldest of the sisters, Nyx was designed to work with Albedo as his advisors in a right- and left-minister arrangement.
Seeing her moving around brought him no small amount of happiness. He couldn't even remember the last time he felt this content.
Compared to this, any potential problem seemed less important.
Momonga then turned his gaze to the screen that had been begging for his attention for a while now.
[System Upgrade- Loading Completed]
[Overlord System activated]
[Do you wish to bond with the System?]
[Yes/No]
The familiar interface appeared in front of him. He remembered how a similar question had been asked when he had just turned into a skeleton in that other world.
The system's name may have changed, but he was confident that, regardless of the name, this would be a good thing.
Yes.
His choice was the same as back then.
[Congratulations, Host, for bonding with The Overlord System]
[Please choose your Symbol of Power]
Hum. This is different.
System, what is a Symbol of Power?
[A Symbol of Power is an item that represents you as an Overlord.
When people see it, they should think of you.
Once selected, the Symbol will form a symbiotic connection with the host.
As long as the host continues to exist, the symbol can't be destroyed or stolen.]
Seeing the description, Momonga didn't hesitate and chose the Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown as his symbol of power.
This Staff was Ainz Ooal Gown's Guild Weapon, tailor-made for Momonga's build, as the Guild Master, but never used before, for fear of it being destroyed.
If the Guild Weapon were to be destroyed, the Guild Base would be destroyed with it.
After choosing it, the Staff melted in his hand, becoming an amorphous golden substance that seeped into his body.
It moved through his bones like blood, and as it circulated, he began to feel a strong mental connection forming between them.
It no longer felt like an item for him to wield, but more akin to a limb he could control with a single thought.
With one thought, the Staff materialized in his hand, assuming its opulent appearance once again, then with another, it seeped into his body, returning to its blood-like state, and finally, with another thought, it transformed into a ring on his finger.
It felt comfortable there, and he would probably keep it in this form when fighting in the future, but for now, he returned it to its original shape.
Then he looked at the open window.
Host: (Name)
Level: 100
Territories: None
Subordinates: None
Influence: 0
Skills: [The Goal of All Life is Death], [Dark Wisdom], [Create High-Tier Undead], [Create Middle-Tier Undead]...
[Congratulations on binding to the System!]
[Do you wish to open the Beginner Pack?]
[Yes/No]
Yes
Momonga had many questions about what these stats meant, but he still chose to open the pack.
[Opening Beginner Pack]
[ Congratulations on obtaining
Fusion
Eye of Discernement
Blessing of Life]