15 Ardere

Valaine stood in front of the ornate mirror in her room in Nazarick, her crimson eyes reflecting a mix of emotions: nostalgia and sadness. 

The unused Ybox on her bedside table weighed heavily on her mind, a reminder of the passage of time. 

A whole year had slipped away since she last logged into the game. A year of battling not just foes within Yggdrasill, but also a relentless adversary in the form of her own deteriorating health.

Her stomach disease gnawed at her insides like a relentless beast, growing stronger with each passing day. The medical treatments drained her finances, forcing her to take on side jobs she never would have considered otherwise. 

Yggdrasill had become a sanctuary, a place where her pain was forgotten, if only for a while.

But now, as the final moments of the game ticked away, doubt clouded her thoughts. 

Why had she returned? Was it merely for the sake of nostalgia, a longing for the happiness she had found in the game? Or was there something more, something deeper driving her back into the digital realm?

With a heavy sigh, Valaine tore her gaze away from the mirror and turned towards Victoria, her personal NPC. 

Victoria had become her confidant, a loyal companion in this world. 

Valaine reached out, her fingers gently ruffling Victoria's hair. The digital character seemed to respond, her eyes expressing understanding, even though she lacked true sentience. 

It was a bittersweet moment, knowing that this might be the last time they would meet, the last time Valaine would experience the comfort of her sanctuary.

Valaine whispered, her voice barely audible in the silence, "Thank you, Victoria. For being there when no one else was."

The guild council room, once a hub of activity, now stood in eerie silence. 

Valaine's footsteps echoed softly as she made her way to the center of the room, where the memories of her guild-mates lingered like phantom whispers. 

The laughter, the heated discussions, the shared triumphs, they all seemed to echo in the vastness of the chamber.

With a gentle sweep of her hand, she touched the smooth surface of the large oval marble table. The cool touch was a stark reminder of the reality around her, grounding her in the present even as her mind wandered through the corridors of the past. 

She sat down, and for a moment, she allowed herself to be enveloped in the silence.

"Why am I even here?" she whispered, her voice barely audible in the vast emptiness of the room. 

There was no one left to answer her question, no guild-mates waiting to strategize or share a laugh. There were only memories, fading and distant, like the echoes of a long-forgotten song.

A sudden noise broke her reverie, and she turned to see Victoria standing there. 

Valaine couldn't help but smile faintly. Even in the midst of everything, her personal NPC remained true to her chaotic programmed personality.

"What are you doing here, Victoria?" Valaine mused aloud, although she knew the answer. 

In a way, the presence of her NPC was a reminder that even in the absence of her guild-mates, there were still connections to be cherished.

As if in response, Victoria tilted her head, her expression unreadable but somehow comforting. 

It was a reminder that in this world, programmed or not, there were still companionship and understanding to be found.

In the grandeur of the throne room, Valaine couldn't resist the temptation of the imposing seat that lay before her. 

Though she was not a guild leader, the allure of the throne proved irresistible. With a mischievous grin, she lowered herself onto the regal chair, settling into its ornate cushions with a sense of mock authority.

In her playful reverie, she struck a few dramatic poses, her form mimicking the grand gestures of a royalty. She chuckled softly to herself.

"Bow before your queen!" she exclaimed, 

Though there was no one present to heed her command.

As she sat upon the throne, a rush of thoughts and emotions flooded her mind. 

What would it truly be like to be treated as royalty? to have all the luxuries and comforts at one's disposal? Valaine's life outside the game had been one of poverty and continued hardship. 

She had never experienced the opulence that the throne room hinted at, and perhaps in the future, she mused, she might find herself in such a position.

Her gaze drifted to the flag adorned with the insignia of her guild-mates, each symbol a reminder of the friends and allies she had once fought alongside.

The bond they had shared in this virtual world had been powerful. It was a connection she cherished, even as the guild itself had gradually faded away.

Her eyes then settled on the insignia of Momonga, the guild leader who had promised to be present on this day, the final hour of the game.

"Liar," escaped her lips in a hushed whisper, laced with a tinge of bitterness.

Momonga had made a commitment to join her, a promise that had gone unfulfilled.

Valaine made her way to the sixth level of Nazarick, drawn by the tranquility of the garden that awaited her there. It was a place she often frequented when she sought solace or simply a moment of respite from the chaos of battle. 

With Victoria by her side, she stepped into the lush greenery, surrounded by the diligent dragonoids who tended to the garden's every need.

Her gaze drifted over the vibrant flora that thrived in this virtual haven, but her attention was captured by a single red rose. 

It stood out like a beacon of passion and life amidst the serene landscape. With a delicate touch, she plucked the petals one by one, the soft velvety texture brushing against her fingers.

As she wandered aimlessly through the garden, she raised her gaze to the night sky, a tapestry of stars that stretched out endlessly above her. 

This level, crafted by Blue Planet, a fellow guild member, had always held a special allure. The celestial patterns overhead were a testament to the artistry and creativity that had thrived within Ainz Ooal Gown.

Valaine's eyes fixed on a constellation that resembled the symbol of Aries. 

In astrology, Aries was sometimes associated with new beginnings, a thought that flitted through her mind like a passing comet. She couldn't help but ponder the significance of that celestial sign in this moment.

But her musings were tinged with a sense of melancholy. "There's nothing new," she muttered to herself, the words carrying a weight of resignation. 

Despite the promise of new beginnings that Aries represented, the reality of her life outside the game felt stagnant and unchanging. 

Her health continued to deteriorate, her financial struggles persisted, and the joy she had once cherished in Ainz Ooal Gown had faded like a distant memory.

She gazed at the red rose in her hand, its petals a vivid reminder of life's fleeting beauty. 

In this digital world, she yearned for something truly new, something that would break the monotony of her existence. With Victoria beside her, she silently made a wish upon that red rose, a wish for a genuine new beginning, whatever form it might take.

Valaine's eyes grew heavy as she rested beneath the starry sky. 

The soft ticking of the countdown to the game's end echoed in her ears like a distant metronome. Her grip on the red rose tightened.

Suddenly, darkness descended like a shroud, enveloping her entirely. 

Then the darkness was shattered by a blinding light.

She shut her eyes instinctively, but when she opened them, she found herself floating weightlessly in an abyss of pitch-black. It was disorienting. She had no sense of direction, no point of reference in the vast emptiness that surrounded her.

Panic surged through her as she tried to move, but her body felt weightless, adrift in an abyss. The sensation was disorienting and frightening. She tried to move, but her limbs felt like they were bound by unseen forces.

In the midst of the impenetrable darkness that surrounded her, Valaine's gaze was drawn upward. 

There, suspended in the void like a colossal celestial body, was a figure unlike anything she had ever encountered. 

A moon-skinned being, its scaly, reptilian skin glimmering in the surreal darkness, hung upside down, a monumental entity that dwarfed even the grandest of planets.

Its expression, if it could be called that, was an enigma. An inverted visage that seemed to waver between a frown and a smile, a paradoxical and unsettling sight that sent shivers down Valaine's spine.

"Good enough" the being intoned, its voice reverberating through the emptiness like a cosmic echo. "She will do"

Questions churned in her mind like a tempest, each one a lightning strike of confusion. 

Where was she? What manner of being was this before her, a creature that defied the very laws of reality? What did it mean by "She will do"? 

Yet, amid the fear and confusion, a flicker of determination kindled within Valaine. 

She refused to succumb to the unknown, to bow before the will of this being. With a voice steadied by a mix of fear and defiance, she summoned her courage and dared to question the being.

"Who are you?" her words cut through the vast silence, echoing into the infinite darkness. "What do you want from me?"

But the being remained silent. 

The silence stretched, a void of answers that only deepened Valaine's sense of dread. 

Before Valaine could react or even utter another word, the unknown being waved his hand in a gesture that defied gravity and reason. 

The being unleashed a burst of energy. It enveloped Valaine, washing over her like a tidal wave. In that moment, she felt her consciousness slipping away, pulled into a void of darkness once more.

Valaine's disorientation continued as she floated helplessly, bound by unseen forces again. 

Her sense of unease grew with each passing moment, the uncertainty of her situation gnawing at her. It felt as though she was trapped in a never-ending nightmare.

Then, unexpectedly, a hole appeared beneath her, a swirling vortex that seemed to defy the very laws of the world. She was sucked into it, and the sensation was disorienting, like being pulled in multiple directions at once. She was being pulled apart piece by piece.

When she opened her eyes again, she was met with a startling sight. 

She was no longer in the void but in a dimly lit room filled with torches that cast flickering shadows across the stone walls. The echoing screams of joy surrounded her, a chorus of exuberance that filled the chamber.

In front of her were several people, all clad in hooded cloaks, their faces obscured in the shadows. 

Valaine's gaze shifted to her own feet, where a red magical circle adorned the ground, surrounded by candles that flickered with an ethereal light. It was an unfamiliar and unsettling sight.

The scent of iron and burn lingered in the air, assaulting Valaine's senses with a vividness that should have been impossible in the confines of the game. 

Yggdrasill had always been a meticulously crafted game, complete with limiters set by its developers to maintain a sense of immersion without overwhelming the players. But here, in this unfamiliar place, her senses were heightened to an extraordinary degree.

Every sound was magnified, from the whispers of the hooded figures to the crackling of the torches that illuminated the chamber. She could hear the faintest rustle of fabric and the subtlest shift of air. 

It was as if her perception had been dialed up to eleven, granting her an acute awareness that went beyond the normal boundaries of the game.

Similarly, her sense of smell was enhanced, allowing her to detect scents with an intensity she had never experienced before. 

The metallic tang of blood mixed with the acrid odor of burning wood and something else, something foreign and unsettling. This heightened sensitivity felt both exhilarating and terrifying.

"This isn't normal" Valaine thought, her mind racing to comprehend the bizarre situation she found herself in. 

The limitations that had once defined her existence within the game seemed to have dissolved, leaving her with senses that bordered on the supernatural.

The hooded figures gestured towards her, their movements filled with a strange sense of reverence or perhaps excitement. 

They were shouting, their voices. A language that Valaine couldn't discern or understand. It was as if she had entered a world with its own language and customs, a world utterly foreign to her.

As she stood there, surrounded by these figures, Valaine's mind raced with questions. Where was she? Who were these people, and what did they want from her?

One thing was eerie to her. 

She felt that she was thirsty. Not water thirsty but something thirsty. 

Then one of the hooded people approached and gave her a wine glass filled with wine?

The hooded figure watched with anticipation in their eyes as Valaine hesitantly brought the wine glass to her lips. 

The liquid inside gleamed a deep crimson, reflecting the flickering torchlight. Her initial reluctance wavered under the weight of her unexplained thirst. 

She took a cautious sip, the metallic taste mingling oddly with hints of grapes and strawberries, creating a bizarre yet oddly satisfying concoction.

It was a peculiar experience, the flavor seemed to dance on her tongue, leaving a strange aftertaste that left her both intrigued and unsettled. 

Despite her reservations, her thirst persisted, urging her to drink more. In an act driven by an impulse beyond her control, she tilted the glass further and emptied it in a single gulp, savoring the unusual taste that filled her senses.

As the last drop passed her lips, a peculiar sensation washed over her. It was as if something had shifted within her, an ancient thirst momentarily quenched. 

The hooded figures murmured amongst themselves, their language still incomprehensible to Valaine.

They seemed to react to her actions, their gestures growing more animated, as if her choice to drink the mysterious liquid held some significant meaning to them.

The figures now bowed before her, their movements fluid and reverent.

Valaine, bewildered by the sudden turn of events, felt a strange. It was as though she had become something more than herself, something revered and powerful in the eyes of these hooded worshipers

What had she become? Why were these hooded worshipers treating her like a deity? The answers eluded her.

With the empty glass in her hand, Valaine felt a strange energy coursing through her veins. Her heightened senses became even more acute, allowing her to perceive the subtlest details in the chamber around her.

A realization struck her: she was not in the game anymore.

Valaine's mind began to put the pieces together. The scene before her, bore all the hallmarks of a cultist ritual.

And It doesn't take a genius to understand. The sensations, the thirst, the taste, they were too real to be part of a virtual reality. Somehow, she had crossed a boundary into a realm that defied the laws of the digital world.

But one thing became clear.

She was part of something occult, something far beyond her understanding right now. 

Valaine couldn't shake the feeling that she had become entangled in a web made by that "being".