A Theory on Godhood: An Overlord Story

Chapter 60: Watch the Skies, They Bring Doom

Sixth Floor Amphitheatre, One Week after Supremachia

"Let's begin the mission debrief for Operation: Zion. Please open your packets to page fifty-three as I outline our objectives and how we will achieve them. Are we all ready?"

The sound of a bell echoed throughout the Amphitheatre of Ainz Ooal Gown, drawing the attention of everyone present, including the players and NPCs. The venue was filled with over forty-one players and their respective virtual creations, as well as some maids and manservants. If such a gathering had taken place in the usual space, it would have been too crowded.

Ancient One and Punitto Moe stood at the center of a sand pit while their friends and non-playable characters were seated in the amphitheater's ascending rings. An oversized chalkboard had been set up, and the Amnizu Seer was holding a piece of chalk. Everyone in attendance was given a large packet of information that would essentially dictate their lives for the next few months.

Within it was all the information that Ancient One and Punitto Moe had collected on their neighbors. It contained a wide variety of info, ranging from the general attitudes of the populations to their current economic situations, to any notable individuals who might exist within that country's borders, to the prominent leaders in government, and so on.

It was, without a doubt, the single most comprehensive script the two strategists put together. One could liken it to a "wiki" of the New World (albeit quite limited to a specific region). Which meant it took a moment for everyone to shuffle to the appropriate page.

Once everyone was on the same page, he began in earnest. "I am certain all of you do not need a reminder of the chaos which has occurred. Enemies have come to our home and violated our sanctuary. The lands surrounding us are in ruin, the people are terrified, and monsters lurk in the shadows of all. As Momonga so passionately declared, we cannot ever be on the defensive again. Thus, we have constructed Operation: Zion to prepare ourselves for war."

"We have prepared a three-front countermeasure to get the ball rolling," Punitto Moe added, "We will be moving out in a few months to gather up allies and secure any Yggdrasil artifacts that exist in the hands of the natives. However, we cannot afford to overextend ourselves, so we will focus instead on our closest neighbors relative to Nazarick's position."

The leafy player nodded, and Ancient One cast a [Flight] spell on himself. He levitated in the air, drawing a rough outline of a map. At the center, he drew an X that signified Nazarick next to a simplified drawing of some mountains and trees. With a dotted line, he drew two circles on either side of the X. On the left, he labeled "Re-Estize" and on the right, he labeled "Baharuth Empire".

"So far, we have identified them as being Re-Estize and the Baharuth Empire. Our reconnaissance has gathered much info regarding the two nations. There is a third, the Slane Theocracy, but we have exercised caution with observation due to our encounters with the nation." Ancient One said.

"For the time being, we will focus primarily on the first two nations noted on the... roughly passable map here. Re-Estize, as you can imagine, faces intense economic and political strife. The fall of E-Rantel, the destruction of many of its villages and lands, and the constant bombardment on their supply lands have weakened them severely. We will be sending in two teams to infiltrate the nation. One team will be deemed our 'diplomats', whose sole mission is to ally our favor. The other team will be inserted covertly to hunt down and capture the criminal leaders of the capital's underbelly. You'll see some images of who we're talking about on page fifty-six."

Again, the guildmates and NPCs shifted to the appropriate pages. Listed at the top of the page was a small list of various leaders of an organization known simply as "Eight Fingers", who in turn had employed a small but elite mercenary group known as "Six Arms".