Overlord Elric lowered his gaze slightly, his hand resting against an invisible armrest, as if he were sitting in his throne-like gaming chair back home. A soft sigh escaped his lips.
"I only awakened my past life memories about a month ago," he muttered, speaking as much to himself as to the others present. "And by then, Yggdrasil had already become a forgotten realm—unpopular and nearly dead." He leaned back slightly, staring up at the endless white sky above them, his eyes reflecting a complex mixture of nostalgia and urgency. "They've already officially announced that the servers will shut down permanently in four months. Most of the game's core functions have been disabled already. Creating new guilds is one of them. So it's too late now to start from scratch."
There was a short, contemplative silence before One Piece Elric asked curiously, "Then what exactly is your plan?"
Overlord Elric didn't hesitate this time. "I'm planning to buy the Ainz Ooal Gown guild directly from Momonga himself."
Marvel Elric blinked in surprise. "Wait, what? Just buy it?"
"It might be a little tricky to negotiate," Overlord Elric admitted with a sheepish smile, "but it really shouldn't be too much of a problem. In this world, I might be missing a lot of important things—a proper family, fresh air I can breathe without a filter—but money?" He shrugged. "Money is definitely not one of them. I have more than enough."
Naruto Elric crossed his small arms thoughtfully. "Why not aim for the number one guild, then? Wouldn't that be stronger?"
The thought of acquiring the absolute top guild in the game briefly crossed Overlord Elric's mind, but he quickly dismissed it. "There are several good reasons. First of all, I'm already extremely familiar with Ainz Ooal Gown specifically—their lore, their base structure, their systems. More importantly..." His gaze sharpened with clear conviction. "They have NPCs like Albedo. What else would I even need?"
One Piece Elric whistled appreciatively. "Point taken."
"But the main reason," Overlord Elric continued, his voice growing noticeably more serious, "is that Ainz Ooal Gown only has 41 members total. The number one guild has almost seven thousand members. Most of them aren't Level 100, sure, but you can clearly see the massive difference between them." He paused for emphasis. "If you compare just the guilds themselves—without counting the players—Ainz Ooal Gown would definitely be the strongest by a very large margin. And I don't plan on bringing anyone else with me to the new world."
Marvel Elric nodded slowly, beginning to understand the logic. "And since you don't plan on bringing other players with you..."
"Exactly," Overlord Elric confirmed. He recalled a specific, almost casual boast from the original novel—Albedo, with her absolute unwavering confidence, had once stated that Nazarick could withstand a full assault from at least thirty Level 100 players simultaneously without significant trouble. That was the kind of overwhelming defensive power he needed, the kind of absolute strength necessary to maintain total dominance in that world.
"But even more important," he added, lowering his voice meaningfully, "is that I genuinely don't know if other guilds or their bases can even travel to the new world at all. A lot of individual players got isekai'd over the years, but only one single group ever brought their entire guild base with them."
"Right," One Piece Elric said, scratching his cheek thoughtfully. "So it's basically a gamble."
"Exactly. I don't want to travel to another world completely alone," Overlord Elric admitted honestly. "But right now, after meeting all of you, it doesn't matter as much. Even if I do end up going alone, I have backups now. Support." He chuckled dryly. "But still, if it really comes down to going solo—arriving in a medieval world without computers, without phones, no clean water, no proper toilets—then screw it. I'd rather stay in this crappy polluted world than go live in a complete shithole like that."
One Piece Elric laughed aloud. "That's the spirit! Practical thinking!"
Overlord Elric sat up straighter, clear conviction returning to his eyes. "Moral of the story is—Ainz Ooal Gown is my first and only choice."
Marvel Elric stepped forward, hands casually in his pockets, and gave him a reassuring smile. "Alright then. Everything seems pretty much settled." He turned toward the others. "We're all versions of the same self ultimately. If any of us needs help with something, let's talk about it openly. If not, let's head back to our respective worlds and get to work."
"Fair enough," Overlord Elric nodded in agreement.
Marvel Elric added thoughtfully, "I want to start my plan as soon as possible. And didn't you say your father was injured?" He looked directly at Naruto Elric.
Naruto Elric's expression changed slightly, becoming more serious. "Yeah... he is."
"Fortunately, once you go back, you'll return at the exact moment you left," Marvel Elric said reassuringly. "But still, make absolutely sure you have a solid plan to save him before you leave this space."
A moment of heavy silence passed between them. Then suddenly—"Wait," Marvel Elric turned quickly toward Overlord Elric. "Did the NPC creation system shut down too? Or is it still active?"
Overlord Elric blinked. "No, it's still working. Why do you ask?"
"Thank God!" One Piece Elric exhaled in obvious relief. "Remember to create some scientist NPCs. Researchers. Engineers. They'll be extremely useful for all of us."
Marvel Elric nodded and added, "And your world, even if it's dystopian and polluted, is still at least a hundred years ahead of ours in terms of technology. Learn something genuinely useful from it, then pass that knowledge on to the rest of us."
They all shared a meaningful look. Even though their experiences over the last sixteen years had shaped them differently, made their personalities drift somewhat apart in various ways, deep down they were still fundamentally the same person. And sometimes, just a single sentence was enough for them to understand one another completely without needing detailed explanation.
There was a hidden fear they all silently carried. None of them truly knew what "this" was—the ability to connect across worlds, to share memories and consciousness directly. Was it permanent? Was it temporary? Would it someday vanish without warning?
If it did disappear, and they lost everything—their borrowed power, their connection—then what would be left? If Overlord Elric could successfully travel to the new world, he would be directly invincible there. Naruto Elric was in a similar situation—taking away external powers wouldn't affect him that much. But if Marvel Elric suddenly lost his borrowed power? That would be serious trouble.
So the smartest course of action was to develop technology while simultaneously building their individual strength. That way, even if fate cruelly stripped them of everything one day, they wouldn't be completely helpless. Helping each other was, in the end, helping themselves. This had to be their highest priority now.
"Let's meet again in one week exactly," Overlord Elric suggested firmly. "I've got a quantum chip implanted inside my head, so learning this technical stuff won't take long at all."
Everything had been said. Plans were clearly set. Trust was formed. And then—"Peace out!"
Without giving anyone a chance to react or respond, Marvel Elric raised one hand in a casual salute and vanished from the space in a flicker of light.
The others stared at the empty spot for a moment. "...He also did that the previous time," One Piece Elric muttered, shaking his head with amusement.
One Piece Elric himself didn't stick around much longer either. With a brief wave and his signature carefree grin, he said a quick goodbye and vanished in a flash of golden light, leaving nothing behind but a faint breeze. His usual laid-back attitude remained intact until the very end.
Now, only two remained in the white space.
Overlord Elric turned his eyes toward the last figure standing nearby: Naruto Elric. He'd heard the kid's story just moments ago—a harrowing tale of near-death and desperate survival. The boy, despite his newfound power, still seemed a little traumatized. The raw edges of fear still clung to him like a shadow. It hadn't been very long since the boy had nearly died for the second time in his life and had seen his father being killed almost directly in front of his eyes. That kind of experience fundamentally changes a person.
"...Hey," Overlord Elric said softly, his tone gentle. "Have you thought about how you'll save your father? If you want, you can try practicing the technique on me first. You know—get comfortable with it before you go back."
Naruto Elric shook his head firmly. "No need. It'll probably be okay. And if it's not, I'll just place him in my pocket dimension until you successfully get your power." He looked up, his young eyes gleaming with determination. "Once we're all strong enough, everything should work out fine."
Overlord Elric's expression softened slightly with understanding. "Oh yeah," he suddenly remembered something important. "In Isshiki's dimension, time doesn't flow at all. So it's not like there's any rush whatsoever." He gave a half-hearted laugh, then straightened up. "I'm definitely going to travel to another world. So don't worry too much about your father."
There were too many ways to heal people in that world—magic, items, spells. So he should take it easy.
They exchanged a final nod of understanding. Then Naruto Elric turned and quietly disappeared, fading from view with a gentle swirl of chakra, like leaves caught in the wind.
Now, only Overlord Elric remained alone. He stood by himself in the endless white space—a place that had, just moments ago, been filled with echoes of laughter, arguments, and shared plans. He gazed around slowly, taking in the emptiness, taking in the memory of what had just happened. A nostalgic smile crossed his face.
"...It's really incredible, huh?"
And then, he too vanished.
The white space fell silent once more. Empty. Waiting for the next meeting.