Roller Coaster

First things first.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Overlord or any of the characters outside my own creations.

I highly advise reading the light novel. While my fanfic doesn't necessarily require prior knowledge of the original story, it does help clear somethings out. I don't intend to explain every single element I introduce, so yea, read the OG.

I guess I should explain the main theme here.

This is a passionate vision of mine. The characters might not behave the same, especially Ainz/Momonga/Satoru and Shalltear Bloodfallen. Know what, let's just say everyone is gonna behave differently, but I will try to retain the original version as much as possible.

This story is not power-leveling and stamping out enemies like a stigma chad. It will be focused on Romance, mostly related to Ainz. What else is there? Yeah, no game system in the New World, so no Status Windows or Levels or any of that stuff. I will try to integrate the power system in a more realistic manner, so expect changes.

Inspiration for writing: AtheistBasementDragon, GearZ and a bunch of other writers down at the Overlord Fanfic server, check it out, it's a pretty cool place.

Bare with my lacking writing skills.

Read Valkyrie's Shadow, it's a pretty cool fanfic.

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Momonga sat on the throne in a way that suggested that he had given up. Although his avatar expressed no emotions, a sense of hollowness was starting to fester in his real body.

The reemergence of Herohero has sparked something within him. He held a fleeting hope that his friends would sprung up at the last minute and surprise him. He had held this hope for the last five years and never once did it come true.

— Herohero did show up, I should be content that one of them even came.

He should, but Momonga wasn't. How could he? Not after all they had been through together. Momonga would never abandon them, he never did even after they all stopped coming.

No new members. Momonga had rejected all the players that expressed their want to join. He didn't have that authority. No, he didn't want unknown people with unknown motives joining the guild he had so graciously built with his friends, his comrades.

There was a stinging pain in his real body, his heart.

He hung his head in shame as regret filled his heart. He was hurting.

The grateful feelings were turning into something dirty and vile; anger, hatred and betrayal.

It was unfair of him to feel this way, he knew that they reasons were genuine and true. He knew this, he understood this. So why? Why did it hurt so much, wasn't he being unreasonable?

He was, but he didn't care. He deserved this selfishness, he loved them, he still did.

But deep down Momonga knew the truth. His friends simply had more important things to do. It was only normal, not everyone was sad and lonely as he was.

It's times like this when he regretted his approach to life. He should have been more outgoing, clinging to the first thing that you resonate with and remaining rooted was unhealthy.

Momonga knew this, and yet he still did it. Even worse, he remained for years after all his friends have left, clinging to that single possibility that they will one day return.

"Maybe I deserve to be lonely."

His avatar's voice echoed. It carried along the halls like it would in reality.

To be abandoned and yet not abandoned. His heart was starting to fracture, he wasn't really sure what to feel anymore. The promise of the game, the guild, the dungeon, had kept him optimistic, but now that was coming to an end.

The shackles were becoming undone. Momonga wished he was ready for it. No, the shackles held a sense of hope and misery, without them he was going to be 'free' from one of those things, and the balance would be broken.

Depression awaited him in the future, the near future. Just hours away.

— I will delay it to the best of my ability.

It wasn't a solution but it would do for now.

Momonga pulled his controller interface and browsed through it. There was still a lot of time left until the shutdown. He had done a lot of self-loathing, it was now time for him to be affirmative. Or at least an attempt to be.

It was a promise to be a better person.

He directed his thoughts to something else entirely. The game.

The developers had updated the game a number of times, and Momonga never got around exploring the new additions as they hindered his initial progress.

He saw a new figure on the creation section and pressed.

There was an option written in emerald - To be infinite.

Momonga observed his in-game credit. He still had a lot of it, and there was no refund policy. This was a choice he didn't regret though.

The option was a total scam. It wanted players to exchange 10 world class items for a shot at creating an avatar on top of your current avatar. It was definitely a meme from the developers seeing how it was only an hour old.

Momonga could definitely make the exchange via world class items, he was probably the only person with the ability to do so within the game.

But he still hesitated, the items definitely held no use as the game was coming to an end, but they still held a sentimental value. Different from guilt, exchanging them just didn't sit well with him.

Excuses.

"Damn it, Satoru! This is what change feels like."

Gritting his teeth, he pressed the option. A sense of betrayal and regret filled him immediately after, then relief and boldness as the feeling of stagnation fluttered.

He at least had the boldness to move forward without the intrusive vile thoughts invading his mind and whispering the futility of it all.

End It.

He grimaced in his real body when he thought about the times he almost came close to ending it all. Rest with the feelings of gratitude and hope still in his heart.

Alluring, but cowardly nonetheless. He knew they would be back, when his guard was down and frustration occupied his heart. Momonga needed the resolve to face the future with all its difficulties.

"I sometimes feel like I'm too timid."

He was, but not anymore, he needed to be someone better, someone decisive and someone bold. He owed himself this much.

He turned to the interface once more and saw the option disappear before a new one appeared.

A notification about the download completion. He sent it away and selected it on the new avatar creations menu.

Integration

Choose or Customize a True Race.

Choose a job class or guardian position.

Customize features.

Instant leveling: exchange credit for levels.

To Be Infinite [Locked: Reach max level in both avatars] [1/2].

Momonga quickly opened up his profile sheet and saw the abnormality. He quickly worked his fingers.

He chose the default superiority race [True Dyig'Eri]. His class, he chose a unique job [Blade Whisperer]. There were a lot of preset customized profiles he had created over the years, he quickly imported the male version into the features option. It was updated and integrated with the [Dyig'Eri] features. Momonga gave it little thought.

This was an opportunity to build a max level avatar from the get go, he wasn't going to waste what little time he had on looks.

The [Dyig'Eri] racial had a default level cap of 50, and the [Blade Whisperer] needed a lot of work as the job had diverse patterns.

Momonga picked [Aura], it was a stable for all melee users, he maxed it out. His second choice was [Sword Dancer], it too was maxed. The third [Fighter], followed by the basic [Warrior], and the final [Arc]. All were sub-classes that maxed out at 10 and focused his [Blade Whisperer] at warrior.

Notification about the [To Be Infinite] option grabbed his attention.

When he opened his profile again, he found it as a title just below [Guild Master]. That didn't mean it did nothing though.

Momonga's focus went to his overall level. It was originally maxed level 100, and after the integration of the second avatar it became level 50 on account to his lack of levels in his second avatar.

But now that he entered the [To Be Infinite] title it stood at level 1.

This could have been a welcome sight to Momonga if the game still had time. But now it just made him let out a dry laugh.

"The developers really know how to pull a prank."

A message entered his chat. He quickly clicked it, hoping it was one of his friends. Apparently, he still held hope.

"Thanks for the laughs," it read, "A small gift for wasting your time."

The world class items he used to exchange for the purchase were all returned, along with the credits he used for leveling up in the form of guild credits. The developers even multiplied it by a billion. He spent 450 credits, so the return wasn't really inferior, but it was useless nonetheless.

He ignored the Developers' pranks, having felt like they had lightened up his depressing mood somewhat.

An escape from the ever-growing hollowness within his heart. Just because he ignored it didn't mean it was gone. Momonga looked at the time.

"Still a while until the server shuts down."

The fact that YGGDRASIL was coming to an end was still jarring. It was his first DMMORPG after all. Satoru wasn't really a gamer, but he liked YGGDRASIL. It also helped that it was the closest thing to a realistic virtual world out of most games.

Well, there were plenty of games that dwarfed YGGDRASIL in quality, but the game had a huge platform and player presence, story, world building and proactive developers.

It was popular in Japan, but never exclusive to it. One of the few games loved by the ever-dying world.

He looked to the side and saw the Staff Of Ainz Ooal Gown. It was the pride of the guild, and Momonga regretted not using it while the game was still young. He could have been unstoppable..

— At least to some degree.

He smiled, and reminisced. Not about the prime of the guild, but after. About himself. About the bitter times, when the promise of reunion was still fresh.

He hunted players, and was named. Not as famous as the World Champions, but close enough.

It was funny how they feared him even though he was weak. Role playing was fun back then.

Momonga noticed he had yet to see his new character sheet.

He used the Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown to access it. It had been a while since he did. A final hurrah before all is lost.

『[Player Master Status]

Name: Momonga

Moniker: Supreme Overlord of Nazarick

Titles: Master of Nazarick, Guild Master, To be Infinite, Dungeon Guardian, Shackle Breaker, Unshackled, True Dualist, Progenitor, High Supreme Being of Nazarick.

Alignment: Unidentified.

Residence: Nazarick.

Sense of Justice: Corrupted

Level: 1 [100]

Race: Heteromorph/ Divinity: Undead/ Dyig'Eri: Overlord/ True Dyig'Eri

Basic Stats.

STR: 965

AGT: 866

SPD: 963

VIT: 523

END: 652

DEF: 745

WIS: 1140 [Broken Limit]

INT: 1308 [Broken Limit]

Reflected Stats.

HP: 135 (45 Dyig'Eri)

MP: 367 (139 Overlord) (56 Dyig'Eri)

PHY. ACK: 215 (156 Dyig'Eri)

PHY. DEF: 248 (126 Dyig'Eri)

MAG. ACK: 278 (67 Overlord) (12 Dyig'Eri)

MAG. DEF: 286 (83 Overlord) (23 Dyig'Eri)

RESIST: 289 (43 Dyig'Eri)

SPECIAL: 307 ( 89 Dyig'Eri)

Classes and Races. [100 x2]

True Dyig'Eri.

Deity (5), True Dyig'Eri (5), Lord (5), Progenitor (5), Ascender (5), Dyig'Eri (10), Others (15)

Blade Whisper.

Guardian (5), Arc (5), Sword Lord (10), Supreme Aura (5), Blade Whisper (5), Fighter (10), Sword Dancer (5), Divine Blade (5).

Supreme Overlord

Skeleton Mage (15), Elder Lich (10), Overlord (5), Supreme Overlord (5), Deity (5), Fractured Undead (5), Ancient Skeleton (5)

Primordial Caster.

Death Weaver (5), Ruler of Death (10), Primordial Caster (5), Time Warper (5), Unholy Caster (5), Death Roamer (5), Necromancer (10), Ninth Sorcerer (5).

Skills, Affinity and Spells.

Spells

Total Spells: 734Tier limit: Super Tier.

Affinity: Death, Holy, Sword and Time

Skills: Total 48.

Title perks.

Master of Nazarick: Territorial Advantage when fighting within the area of Nazarick. [7% to Necromanic Skills and Spells]

Guild Master: Administrative System access increases all reflected stats by 10.

Dungeon Master: 50x creation space than normal guilds. Dungeon System, exclusive sales during special deals, custom dungeon gifts, and rare deals.

High Supreme Being of Nazarick: Custom dungeon title. (10% to All stats to Momonga)

Progenitor: First to get True Dualist title. Early Access to deals.

True Dualist: First to have dual races and classes. Privilege to purchase any one of the remaining World Items

Shackle Breaker: Exceed the game's level cap. Honorary title.

Unshackled: Grow stronger without limit.』

Momonga was surprisingly calm about all this, he would have usually blown a fuse by now.

There was a lot to unpack, A LOT. Unfortunately, Momonga was in no mood to do that. If he did this early, then maybe he could have tried the broken build up on a few unsuspecting players and loot them crazy.

But not now. He dismissed his character sheet and browsed the NPCs of the Tomb.

Momonga smiled when he finally noticed.

— Not guild, ha?

He wondered when that happened.

The list was long, he ultimately decided to categorize them and picked the strongest NPCs in the Tomb.

"No good."

He decided to filter the search until he was left with just level 100 NPCs with guardian titles. The 8th Floor occupied a majority of the NPCs.

『DungeonDenizens

Search Results [Lv. 100] [Guardian]

1 Guardian Overseer

5 Floor Guardians.

65 Area Guardians.

157 Sectional Guardians.』

"I shouldn't have used the dungeon levels this way."

Momonga wasn't really regretful, it was only natural for Guild Master to strengthen their guild after all.

He looked for a certain NPC, his only creation.

"Pandora's Actor."

The hologram of the NPC hovered before him. Momonga had created him after his guild members left as a form of love letter. A doppelgänger with the ability to perfectly mimic the characters of all Forty One of them.

Momonga cringed when he saw his description. It was always weird reading one's work after a few years had passed. The administrative system allowed him to change a few lines and altered his outer appearance without the need for normal steps. The yellow military uniform looked too flamboyant for his liking.

"What am I even doing?"

He finished and dismissed the character.

He always had a passion for creating stories so his NPC had a huge description, he wondered why he dedicated a week to creating something that took a couple of minutes at best.

Momonga looked at the names again, a few he recognized, a few he helped in their creation.

Four names stuck out; Shalltear Bloodfallen, Aura Bella Fiora, Mare Bella Fiora and Albedo.

His friends were very passionate about these NPCs. He brought up the hentai lover's pride.

Momonga ignored the NPC's appearance as he had seen it before and focused on the description. A lot of creepy things and words highlighted in red were visible.

"Did he get banned?"

An honest thought. It looked like his friend was trying to create his ideal fap material. Momonga intruded and cancelled a few lines, plenty of lines. He wasn't judging, but there was a chance that his friend was banned, maybe doing this might make the developers of YGGDRASIL reconsider and alleviate his ban in future games.

He opened the NPCs inventory and was once again stunned. Momonga didn't really want to judge, but maybe, just maybe, his friend was a pervert.

He didn't necessarily read the description and more skimmed through it.

Build wise the NPC was powerful, more so than plenty. His friend was incredibly talented in that regard.

Momonga opened the dark elf twins' profile and was once again stunned by the diversity of his friends. He didn't really intrude much and just left things the way they were.

He felt soreness on his back, his real back. He realized that he had been sitting for six hours straight. He immediately logged in after coming back from work. The hours were inhumane but he still got it better than most.

The appearance of his friend, Herohero flashed as he remembered the fatigue evident in his voice. It was depressing to see someone that tired.

— Worried about someone I barely even know.

Negative thoughts, a herald to the upcoming depression that awaited him come work tomorrow. The fracture was growing even in his reminiscent state.

"Maybe I should go back."

He pondered, as he glanced at the time - 23:57 pm.

"Nahh...it's almost over anyway."

He looked up at the stationary flags and reminisced about old times. His friends, the world they built, their creations, he pointed at Albedo and a wave of discomfort washed over him.

The change wasn't really necessary, but he just couldn't leave it. Not to mention the NPC was too beautiful to be that kind of person.

Beauty? The future. His future. It wasn't clear, not in his state. No, it had never been clear, always taking things as they came, and never planning ahead.

He envied some of his friends. The happy ones. The ones with content. The ones with smiles even in the real world. Satoru was unable to smile, too much pain occupied his real life, too much emptiness, too little memories to ignore the state of the world.

No motivation. No drive. Only the need to survive, to see tomorrow, but that will be gone too.

Momonga switched his focus before the darkness started to seem pleasant again. Before the thoughts came.

He blinked and switched gears. He turned again to Albedo. It was longer this time. There was no focus, he wasn't really looking.

— Don't let it ruin these final moments.

He decided, a false smile would do for now, even if it was to deceive himself.

"I wonder who the perv is between me and Tabula?"

He ran his skeletal fingers down his chin like he was actually giving it some thought.

"Probably Peroroncino."

It was a silly joke, but it did pass the time.

Satoru was a 'bit' worried about his 'future', but he was confident that he would pull through. He had to pull through.

Deception.

Something traced his cheek in his real body. The time was down to seconds now.

He was truly trying, but everything was dark. The feeling was all too familiar.

— Mother.

YGGDRASIL helped him then, but even it had decided to abandon him.

"I should take a day off tomorrow, I don't really want to see anyone after this."

The avatar covered the crackling of his voice well.

The shackles of stagnation.

He ignored them and turned to the countdown.

"23:59:35,

36,

37...

Momonga gradually counted the seconds.

23:59:48,

49,

50...

Momonga shut his eyes, the red dots vanishing.

23:59:58,

59—

With the clock counting the remaining seconds, he waited for all of it to end, his heart no longer something he could count on.

00:00:00