Testing Boundaries
(A/N: This is a future note by me as of chapter 25. This story was inspired by "Yellowness" on fanfiction.net by MidasMan. At the time of writing, I used his fic as a baseline for mine. This is why the first 6 chapters are pretty much copy/paste and not something I'm not proud of as I didn't put my own spin on things. If you can bear those chapters and push through, I really do thank you from the bottom of my heart. It does get better and the plot begins to change once you get past it. With that in mind, I hope you enjoy the fanfic!)
[Citrinitas's POV]
'Freedom. I never imagined the day when I can finally move my own body.' I thought to myself, softly closing my eyes as a few tears fell down my cheek. At first, I wanted my first act of freedom to curl up onto my bed and cuddle a pillow. But, this was Nazarick. A dangerous place filled with monsters. 'I can't act weak. Not in this place anyways. I also need to prepare for the upcoming shitstorm.' I thought to myself, wiping my tears away.
I'm no longer Ajax Dalton, as much as I want to be him again. I'm the alchemist plague doctor of Ainz Ooal Gown. I'm the mysterious NPC that never shows his face. I'm the strongest NPC magic caster. I'm Citrinitas. 'If I'm gonna survive in this place, I need to blend in.' I thought.
Firstly, I need to put on my plague doctor mask and hat I took off. My 'creator' wanted me to embody the horror of the unknown and mystery. As such, I keep this mask on my face at all times unless when I'm eating, when I take a shower or when I sleep (all things I do alone). Other than that, the mask stays on 24/7.
I do have to admit, the mask is pretty badass and unsettling. The mask itself is about 3/4th the length of the average human arm. The end of the mask was as sharp as a kitchen knife. There were no straps that held the mask to the face due to the use of YGGDRASIL magic.
The mask was pure white at the front and turned to a dark white/light grey at the end of the mask. Around the eye sockets were trims of black lines. When the mask was put on, the eye sockets glowed a faint white light that contrasted the black trimmings.
What was also interesting was that the mask didn't disrupt my vision at all. When wearing a plague doctor mask, you'd expect to see the long beak within your field of vision. Along with the glowing eye sockets that made me more ominous, the mask should have been useless as you couldn't see jack shit.
'Is it because the mask is a magic artefact? Most likely.' I thought to myself. Magic brought up another issue. The issue was, I knew no magic at all. Well, I did know the magic that was related to alchemy such as transmuting or appraising. It's just that I don't know what spells I can use that are related to fighting like your typical fireballs and magic arrows.
Unlike when I was a 'vending machine' for the players of Nazarick, I never fought anything such as players or other NPC's. I only stayed in my alchemy lab and made stuff like flasks and ores. As there was nothing to do, I turned my attention to studying the alchemy process in-depth.
The reason? Well, I figured that if I didn't pay attention to how to do alchemy, I would have no knowledge of how to do it in the new world. And, if I didn't know alchemy, how would I fulfil my role as an NPC?
I believed that if I couldn't make stuff for Momonga, soon to be Ainz, I'd be tortured by Demiurge and thrown into his happy farm for not being useful to the last Supreme Being. My body shuddered to the thought of the arch-devil flaying me alive and using me for scrolls.
When being forced to make multiple potions on repeat, especially over a decade, the formulas and ingredients to make them often stick to your head. The other reason I studied alchemy was that I was bored and not doing anything would have probably driven me to insanity.
"Let's do some experiments." I said to myself. Though I quickly adjusted, it did take me a bit by surprise to hear a different voice come out of my mouth. Maybe it was just the mask that affected how I sounded but, my new voice was eerily calm yet mysterious. Soothing yet disturbing.
My voice had a bit of an echo to it and was slightly deeper than my previous voice as Ajax Dalton. It did remind me of how SCP-049 sounded in my past life. A perfect mix between a voice that's hypnotic and mysterious.
Before doing anything rash such as exiting my room, I wanted to try out something simple. A spell that could analyze objects and give them descriptions. Pretty much an appraisal spell. Though I've only used them when finishing creating an item for a player, I wanted to see how it worked in the new world.
For curiosity's sake and for information, I wanted to see how powerful the clothes I was wearing were. Were they the best of the best? Maybe they were common artefacts? Though it was highly unlikely, they could have been just simple fabrics used solely for decoration.
"[Appraisal]!" Blue light emanated from my hands as I pointed it at myself. It stayed that way for a few seconds before dissipating. 'Item's too high ranked. Cannot be appraised?' The information of the spell I used filled my head.
'That was … weird.' I thought to myself. 'When I used the spell, it was like I already knew how to use it in the first place. Like it was already a part of me.' I continued to think. Using the spell was the equivalent of breathing or blinking. It came that naturally. 'If using [Appraisal] came so naturally, why don't I know other types of magic? Do I have to test each spell out?' I continued to think.
I theorised that the spell couldn't analyze what I was wearing because it was a 3rd tier spell that I used when dealing with low to middle-class items. That along with my clothes being more powerful than what the magic could analyze.
But the feeling when trying the spell still surprised me. There was a difference between having your body automatically casting the spell and then actually trying to use the spell itself. Sort of like the difference between knowing the rules of a sport and then actually playing the sport itself. Not the best analogy, but the concept was similar.
'Let's step things up a bit.' I thought. 'Maybe this spell can identify what I'm wearing …' "[All Appraisal Magic Item]!" Again, a blue light emanate from my hand as I chanted the spell. This was a 7th tier spell that was much more powerful compared to the first spell as it could tell me about a magic item's creator, manufacturer, you get the idea.
"Ohhhh. The spell worked!" I exclaimed in awe. Unlike with [Appraisal] where the spell couldn't give me the status of my gear, all the information about everything I was wearing was sent to my brain. The spell worked differently compared to YGGDRASIL. There were no panels to read all the information from. When I casted the spell, I immediately knew my clothes properties.
To summarise, the gear I was wearing was the best it could get. While I didn't have any World Item's on me, the majority of my gear consisted of [Divine Class Item's] such as my mask, main outfit, shoes and my gauntlets/gloves. The rest of my gear consisted of other very high classed items.
'That's all well and good. But what if I try and use a fighting related spell?' I thought. That was the next test I wanted to try out. The issue was that I don't know what offensive spells I can use because I have never used them before. I've only seen myself use alchemy related skills. Thus, I know what to say to cast the spell and how to use it.
I'm not sure what proper terms are used to cast offensive magic. For example, do I say [Fire Blast] or [Fire Blaze]? Is the difference of one word be enough to change what spell is unleashed? Maybe nothing will happen. I'll never know unless I see it in action or try casting them myself.
Because of the anime and light novels, I knew the names of some spells. I just don't know if I can use some of them in reality due to class restrictions or other reasons. Then there's the issue of spell's that weren't in the series and out of my knowledge. 'That open's up a whole new can of worms.' I thought to myself, pushing that idea to the back of my brain for the time being.
"Fuck it, I'm thinking too much!" I said to myself. 'Let's hope this works.' "[Maximize Magic: Fireball]!" Unlike the blue glow that emanate from using [Appraisal], a fiery light of red and orange flew out of my right hand, releasing a fairly big fireball that flew directly towards … my bed.
'Shit! My bed!' I internally scolded myself for how dumb that was. 'The bed looked so comfortable too! To top it off, I don't know any spells to fix that mess. Not yet at least.' I sighed as my bed lit up to flames, burning all the expensive looking sheets and flames.
The fire continued to burn the bed until it became ash and dust. Why didn't I call my maids outside to fix the mess? Truthfully, the thought passed my mind. I was just mesmerised by the bed burning down and succumbing to the flames. 'Meh, I'll figure something out later. That's the least of my worries.' I thought, shrugging my shoulders.
'Hell, I'm not surprised if I have something like [Sleep Immunity] as a race trait or something similar. Though I really want to sleep again. I'll find a way to deactivate [Sleep Immunity] if I have it.'
Before casting the fireball, I knew absolutely nothing about what could happen. I had no idea how much damage the fireball would do, no idea how much mana the fireball would consume. Hell, I had no idea the fireball could work with [Maximize Magic]! That was something I said last second.
But, just like with how I suddenly knew how to use the [Appraisal] skill after using it, when I released the fireball, I also knew how to use the spell like it was always a part of me.
'I wonder what other spells I can use?' I thought to myself. 'I guess it will come to trial and error. Once I casted that fireball, I knew everything about it. Will it be the same for other offensive and defensive spells?' I thought, pondering all the possibilities.
"I shouldn't have used offensive spells in my room. That was stupid of me." I said. "Maybe I should try a more harmless spell like a buffing or support spell?" I talked to myself, agreeing with my statement. 'The NPC's could fly in the show, right? Maybe if I try …'
"[Fly]!" I said the name of the spell, remembering it being used in the show. Instead of a glow coming out of my hands like the [Appraisal] and [Fireball] spells, I slowly felt myself being raised in the air until I couldn't touch the ground.
"HOLY SHIT I'M FLOATING!" I exclaimed. It has been every child's dream to fly above the clouds at some point in their lives. And here I was, doing exactly that. I moved around the room at a fairly quick pace, avoiding hitting chairs and bookshelves. Just like when I cast those other spells, I suddenly knew how to fly properly as if I was experienced it before.
'This is such an odd feeling I have to get used to. I'll have to read whatever books that are in my lab or Ashurbanipal and pray that there is a list of spells for me to learn. I'm supposed to be the strongest NPC magic caster in Nazarick. If I want to blend in, learning all those spells is a priority.' I thought, landing on the ground softly, not making a sound.
"Let's see. I've tested some spells I knew related to alchemy, I tested out offensive magic and tried flying. I'll do some more magic casting tests later. Maybe I should try transmuting stuff and see how that works out?" I muttered under my mask.
'Yea, I should try making a potion!' I thought of my next test. I went to my desk and took out some simple ingredients to make a [Lesser Health Potion]. There was no need to exit my room as the materials to make such an item were cheap. I had everything I needed to make the potion here.
Back when I had no control over my body, just like how my body cast [Appraisal], transmuting things together was automatic. I wanted to test the difference and see how alchemy works here. Will I be able to perfectly transmute ingredient's together? Maybe stuff will blow up if I fail? I needed to know about all these things if I were to 'blend in'.
'Let's see here. If I remember correctly, I needed half a vial of [Magic Boar Blood] and one [Leaf of Álfheim] to make a [Lesser Health Potion].' I got the ingredient's that were laying across my room and put them over a transmuting circle that was on my alchemy desk.
'So if I do this …' "[Transmute]!" My hand's started to glow a different shade of blue as I started to move my hands over the ingredients. The process came naturally to me as the ingredient's on the circle eventually changed to a [Lesser Health Potion].
"Now that's pretty fucking cool!" I said to myself. I concluded that every time I cast a new spell or made a potion, all information relating to it would go to my brain and I'd be able to use or make it perfectly. The hard part is figuring out what spells I can and can't use. It took a few test's to come to that conclusion. However, it's better safe than sorry.
Figuring that there were no more tests I could try, I decided to leave my room. I made sure everything I was wearing was perfect and that I got into the role of a mysterious and unknown NPC. 'Ok, ok. Let's fake it until you make it, Ajax … or Citrinitas.' I thought, opening the doors of my room and walking into the alchemy lab.
The alchemy lab was the same as before. The bookshelves were still there, same with the furniture and the aquariums connected to the walls. However, before they were just props. Now, they were real and functional items.
I noticed a few NPC maids wandering around the lab going about their daily business. Some were on the second level, some were cleaning and others were in other rooms of the alchemy lab or their rooms. It was a weird sight to get used to.
When I say maids, I really meant assistants for myself to delegate jobs to. Unlike the 41 maids that wore identical dresses composed of blues, whites and gold trimmings, my assistants wore more unique clothes composed of blacks, greys and whites. My assistants were also not carbon copies of each other unlike the 41 maids. They had unique heights, facial features, and hair.
Not all of them wore plague masks. The ones that did usually kept their masks off and attached to the waist, only using them when experimenting. I'm not sure of the reason however, I did overhear some players talking about Peroronchino winning a bet against Tabula at one point. As much as I hated the birdman, I did have to thank him for letting me see those beautiful, cute and sexy faces.
There were a fair amount of assistants that didn't wear plague doctor outfits. Some had traditional anime-styled maid outfits which took inspiration from french maid outfits. Others were styled to look like witches with their pointy hats and wands on the waist. Either way, they were all very hot.
Before, all the NPC's were just like me. They were all pre-programmed with a set of 1's and 0's to follow and complete the task they were given. They moved stiffly like robots and dutifully completed whatever task was given. Now, they were full of life and emotion. They moved like real beings. Something that I haven't seen in years.
I guessed one of the maids noticed me looking around the area. "Uhm," One of the maids started to talk. It sounded like she was afraid of what to say next, not wanting to displease her master. 'Is that the type of authority I have here?' I wondered.
"Master Citrinitas, is there anything wrong?" The maid said in a shy and slightly quiet voice that sounded cute and feminine. 'Oh God! Will all servant's sound like that? I guess since I have a high authority it would be unusual to refer to me as 'master.' But that sounds so … cringe!' I quickly calmed myself down and got back into character.
"Yes, something IS wrong." I stated. My voice was both authoritative, ominous and mysterious from the slight echo my mask created when I talked. Adding to the fact that I didn't explain why something was wrong made me more ambiguous. The maid's eyes seemed to widen as her hands started to shake, thinking she did something wrong.
"D-d-did I d-do something w-wrong, my l-lord?" She struggled to speak properly. The other maids nearby seemed to stop or slow down whatever activities they were doing and listen in to the conversation I was having.
'Shit, I sound THAT scary? Jeez, the girl look's like she saw a fucking ghost. I better clear up this misunderstanding.' I thought to myself. "Well," I thought of what to say for a moment, trying to think how a mysterious and ominous NPC would say. However, the silence of my thinking made the maid more agitated and fearful.
"Something happened to Nazarick." I stated. This seemed to make all the maids listening in more fearful. "S-something happened to Nazarick? Is Lord Momonga safe?!" One of the other maids exclaimed. The maids seemed to agree with her question, looking at me for an answer.
"He is fine." I simply replied, making the maids more relaxed. "But … Nazarick is not in the marshlands of Helheim anymore." I said, remembering the first episode of Overlord. "Then … where are we?" Another maid asked. "I do not know. I need more information." I simply stated.
'Ok, ok. So far so good. It seems my acting skills are working. Or maybe is there something in my flavour text that is making me more believable? I'm not too sure. Just fake it until you make it!' I cheered to myself in my mind.
As I was about to say some more bullshit I created on the spot, a made with a witch-like attire along with long white hair interrupted me. "L-lord Citrinitas!" She called out in quite a rush. I turned to face her. What shocked me was that she looked just like an anime character from my past life.
"Elaina?" I suddenly broke character out of pure shock. 'What the actual fuck is this chick doing here?! Did her show exist in Momonga's old-world?' I thought. 'Fuck, it might have been the work of Peroronchino and his expertise as a MAN OF CULTURE. Not that I'm complaining but, this changes so many things! What next? Cocytus being replaced by Esdeath?! Ahh, my mere existence already making NPC's that didn't exist now exist.' I sighed.
"Ah, for my lord to know of my name! I'm not deserving of your grace, master!" Elaina exclaimed out of shock. 'Ah, shit. I need to think of something quick. Random bullshit, I choose you!' "Be quick. Why are you interrupting me?" I cringed at the words that came out of my mouth. 'I sound like my superiors in the military. Do I have to talk like this?!' I thought.
"I hope you do forgive me, master. However, Lord Sebas wishes to speak with you. It's an order by the Supreme One." Elaina kindly and calmly stated. 'Sebas? The iron butler, huh. One of the kinder denizens of Nazarick. At least it isn't Demiurge!' I thought to myself.
"Let him in." I said, to which the witch nodded in acknowledgement and quickly shuffled out of the main alchemy room and to the big wooden door that lead here. With precise steps, Sebas Tian entered.
He looked just as he had when I first 'saw' him. Sharp features, greying hair, crisp black suit, and eyes akin to a bird of prey. Despite the mans gentle and human appearance, he was a Dragonoid. Dragonoids share characteristics of a dragon, can have a dragon form, share strengths and weaknesses of a dragon. But, of course, not anything like dragons.
Elaina closed the door behind him, yet she remained in the room. Her posture was demure. Not in a sense of submission, but as a sign of deference. Whether it was Sebas or myself, I couldn't tell. Sebas looked around the room, taking in its features before turning his gaze to me.
Though I felt his eyes all over my body, he must have quickly stopped doing that when I looked at him. Sebas then started to talk. "Thank you for seeing me on such short notice, Lord Citrinitas." He said. "It's nothing." I waved off his reply. "It's what happened to Nazarick?"
"You knew what happened?" He questioned. 'I guess I should roll with what I said to my maid assistants earlier. Damn, saying 'my maids' sounds so cringe!' I internally shook my head. "Not … necessarily." I replied in a more ambiguous tone as I looked around the room.
"All I know is that Nazarick is not in the marshlands of Helheim. As usual, everything was normal. Then," I snapped my fingers for dramatic effect. "There was a change. A shift if you will. It was for a split second but it was enough for at least me to know that something happened to all of Nazarick." I lied through my teeth. I didn't feel some shift, I was crying my heart out and sobbing on the floor of my room!
The iron butler seemed to process what I said in his head. "That is precisely what happened. Nazarick is now surrounded by empty grasslands." He calmly replied to me. I went ahead and pretended to process the information.
"Anyways, what brings you here?" I calmly stated. If Sebas was offended by my bluntness, he certainly didn't show it. "The Overseer, Lady Albedo, has called for an inventory check on all of Nazarick's stores." Sebas said.
"Are you suggesting that something is missing from my lab?" "No," Sebas replied a little too quickly for my tastes. "Givin the extraordinary circumstances, it would not be impossible for whatever force to have transported the Nazarick to have pilfered our stores. With a force that can bypass the defences of the Supreme Beings themselves, nothing should be assumed."
'I guess that makes sense.' I thought. 'Erm, what should I say now? Random bullshit Jutsu, go!' "I'll perform a full inspection of all our stores and have them written up in an hour." I told him. "You can pick it up from one of the assistant alchemists when it's done." I stated.
"Very good, Lord Citrinitas." He accepted, which was a relief to me. "Now, if you excuse me, I have other matters to attend to. I will return for the report in an hour." After a short 45 degree bow, he went towards the door, which Elaina opened and closed just as quickly.
Having literally no clue as to how my alchemy lab was laid out, and not wanting to do any tedious work such, I called out to my assistant maids. "You heard me, do a full inventory check!"
The maids all frantically rushed around the alchemy room, doing what I ordered them to. Maybe they were excited to do some work I had given them. Maybe it was how I worded my sentence along with how I sounded that made them quickly start the task. Either way, they started to do a full inventory check of the place.
'On the plus side of things, I don't need to count everything that's in store. Not yet at least. I need to familiarize myself with … all this.' I thought to myself. To start, I went to the closest bookshelf on the wall and took out a few books and read their titles. Of course, the books were all alchemy themed. From the title to the cover.
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"The Words of Aiwass"
"The Book of Laws"
"Ipsissimus's Decrees"
"Magnum Opus"
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They were a few examples of alchemy books. All of which were huge books that were 2.5 inches wide or just below 6.5 cm. Some books looked brand new with white pages. Others were more worn out from the passage of time and were more yellow.
There were hundreds of thousands of books in the alchemy lab all like them. As much as I hated reading, if I were to blend in as an NPC, I must read and amass knowledge about alchemy. Hell, maybe there's something in my flavour text that can help me absorb knowledge more easily like a dry sponge. Either way, I have a long way to go. 'Time to start reading!' I thought to myself, sitting down on my main alchemy workstation. Slowly gaining knowledge one page at a time.