Repairing Alcyone’s airship hardly took a few days once Simon pointed out the issue with the engine, at which point they departed from the Sanctuary.
Simon was allowed to wander the vessel, largely because Alcyone had realized he could break out and escape on his own at any time. Most of the crew gave him a wide berth with a new, singular exception.
“It’s good to see you here, Eole.” Simon wasn’t too surprised to find her in the airship’s ‘sky saloon’ and performing for her fellow shipmates.
“Alcyone offered me the chance to join you on your quest, and no true Songstress could have resisted her call,” she replied with a smile. “I’m not sure I can help much, but I will do what I can.”
“You should give yourself more credit.” While Eole started the reigns as rather low-leveled, she could support stronger fighters easily enough since her Class focused on utility rather than raw power. “I actually have an ability that can grant you a sizable experience boost, if you wish to level-up quicker.”
“Of course!” She didn’t even question his offer and immediately accepted his Party invitation, likely because she hadn’t seen him use Devil Brands or do more questionable things. “It’s my first time joining an adventuring group.”
It’s not, Simon thought as he recalled how they had trained with Alcyone and so many others back at the Sanctuary. Merely remembering that particular reign hurt. Could he resume a relationship with Eole this time around? He still longed for the taste of her kisses and the feeling of her skin pressing against his own… just a little longer, a few chosen words, and she could be wholly his again…
No, I shouldn’t think like that. The Eole he had been in a relationship with had died in the Sanctuary on the tip of Louis’ sword. This is her twin sister with different memories and experiences. I don’t think it would be the same.
Simon forced himself to focus and gave Eole some pointers on how to quickly strengthen her Class. She was the third member of his Party alongside Belzemine and Shabram, and lagging behind them as a level 12 Songstress, but spending a whole year with her in the Sanctuary had taught him how to best optimize her progression. He would let her kill his dracozombie too once they landed to let her gain a big boost.
Eole being in his Party also meant he could keep track of her should she be taken away again. No more abductions.
Otherwise, Alcyone called him to her captain’s cabin to privately discuss their plans.
“Okay, so, full disclosure, I asked the Sanctuary’s mages to check the Goatfish’s seal before our departure and they confirmed it’s indeed faltering,” she said the moment he closed the door behind him. “You said you could destroy those crystals?”
“I can, but only in specific conditions. Among others, I must be stronger than the fiend inside.” It was the best explanation he could come up with so as not to risk exposing the reigns’ secret. “Nodens is the weakest of them, so I should be capable of breaking his crystal.”
“But the others are still out of your league… which I don’t take as a good sign,” Alcyone guessed. “Still, thanks for the warning. I would have missed the seal issue without you.”
“You’re too kind, but the truth of the matter is that we’ll have to contend with all eleven of his siblings, each of them stronger than he is.”
“Yes, I’m tentatively giving you the benefit of the doubt on that Zodiac Fiend story.” Alcyone crossed her arms. “Here’s the plan so far: I’m going to put together a crack team of highly talented professionals I know. People with absolutely no chance of being on the Cobweb’s payroll.”
“And then?”
“Then we’ll crash Verney’s place and kill him.”
Simon thought he had misheard for a moment, but it quickly became clear that she was entirely serious. “You… just like that?”
“Yeah.” She seemed puzzled by his reaction. “Why that face? Wasn’t that what you wanted?”
“He’s a Lorean count,” Simon pointed out. “Don’t you have due process to judge him, or need permission from your king?”
“You make it sound so complicated. Even if he’s not possessed, being a Cobweb Weaver alone makes him an associate of slave-running, sex trafficking, drug peddling, and dozens of criminal offenses that would warrant his execution.” Alcyone shrugged her shoulders. “That’s how you deal with demonic cults and criminal rings, Simon: you cut off the snake’s head, then all their underlings start fighting each other to fill the void their dearly departed charismatic leader left, and we can mop up whoever’s still standing once the dust settles. Works every time.”
Simon squinted at her. “Have you… actually done that before?”
“Where do you think all my Adventurer levels came from? You wouldn’t believe the number of apocalyptic and human-sacrifice cults that hang out near old ruins or forgotten Dungeons.”
“I see…” The more Simon considered her strategy, the more he liked it. “Now that I think of it, we don’t actually need Verney alive at all. We can murder him, and then have Voltobauta enslave his ghost so he’ll tell us everything we want to know about the Maiden anyway.”
“Yeah, dead men can only keep secrets when the Necromancer isn’t in town, in which case the grave is his oyster.”
While that simplified things and the idea of brutally murdering Valravn appealed to Simon, there were a few issues with the plan. “We can’t actually simply show up at Verney’s doorstep with an armed party, or he’ll run away.”
“It was a figure of speech, we’re not actually going to crash the Freedom Bird into his castle. The repair costs would bankrupt us.” Which suggested that she would have tried if she had deeper pockets. “I called you here so we could actually bounce off ideas on how to proceed.”
Thankfully, Simon was eager to offer suggestions. He had plenty of intel to share on Verney, and Alcyone had the skills and allies required to corner him.
“Our priority would be to disable his Attic first, to deny him a homefield advantage, reinforcements, and exit strategy,” Simon said. “Your friend Voltobauta could easily subvert one of his fetches and grant us access, but destroying the Attic will require firepower.”
Alcyone thoughtfully stroked her chin. “Would the Paladin’s Sanctify work?”
“I don’t think so.” Alphonse couldn’t dispel Nodens’ Domain when they fought in Cocagne, so Simon doubted he would succeed with Valravn. “The tried and true method to destroy such places is to saturate them with suicide bombers and then—”
“We’re not using war prisoners as living explosives,” Alcyone cut in. She sounded terribly annoyed, as if that suggestion had come up time and time again before.
“Do you take me for a monster?” Simon protested, though he had used prisoners for worse before. “I was thinking about using cows.”
“Cows?”
“Demonically branded cows that explode into man-eating undead flies when they die.”
Alcyone stared at him for a long, unbearable moment before saying, “I think you’re missing the obvious issue with your plan.”
“Finding enough cows?”
“No, the fact that sneaking a herd of cows through those Attic doors would be impractical.”
“Oh.” Oh, true that sounded like a logistical hurdle… especially most of his demonically branded cows gained wings or grew in size. He should research a shrinking spell one day. “Goats and sheep then?”
“I lean more towards monkeys, since they can open doors and Volto has a whole island of them stashed somewhere…” Alcyone hesitated. “I don’t think he would let us borrow them just to kill them though…”
“Goats?”
“Goats. We’ll stop by a farm on our way to the castle.” Alcyone nodded to herself. “Most Weavers will be occupied in their respective territories, so we can cut them off from each other if we bring down Verney’s Attic quickly enough.”
Simon considered her plan. It honestly appealed to him, and capturing or neutralizing Verney would be the surest way to at least delay Helel’s return. Silk and Velvet may still look for the Zodiac Fiends, but they were always scheming against Verney and his faction. Those two struck Simon as more likely to stick to the shadows rather than revive the Maiden. Most of the other Weavers had little ambitions beyond profits. Bert was Verney’s creature and would likely try to take up his master’s mantle, but Simon had slain him once back when he was still much weaker. He could dispatch the Puppeteer again easily enough.
Only Chrom Cruak remained an unknown factor. While he seemed involved with the Maiden’s faction and personally forced Anna to fuse with the Light Megalith in the previous reign, Simon hadn’t interacted with him enough to tell what his goals and objectives were, or even his current location.
We’ll need to hunt him down after dealing with Verney, Simon decided. The Weavers should be isolated from each other without the Attic to sustain their global web of influence and thus be vulnerable. I won’t let any unaddressed loose ends bite me ever again.
He would exterminate the Weavers one by one if that was what it took to wipe out the Cobweb from this world.
“I have a rough map of the Attic, so we can collapse it quickly,” Simon informed Alcyone. “Do you know anything about Verney’s skills and defenses?”
“He’s a high level Fencer, a Warrior Vassal specialized in swords. I saw him fight a few times. He’s probably one of the best swordsmen of our time, with plenty of weapon Techniques and a collection of dangerous weapons.”
That description sounded a bit too familiar. “So he’s exactly like Louis.”
“Verney shouldn’t be as bad as that bastard, since he holds a Vassal Class rather than the Warrior, but he was still tough enough to contend with the likes of Louis,” Alcyone conceded. “And that’s not taking into account whatever abilities he gained from his demon.”
“I think the Twins’ powers revolve around illusions, shadows, and self-duplication. He also managed to split a person into two.”
“Like he cut them in half?”
“More like he divided a person’s soul into twins, who then became the Rogue and an Assassin,” Simon explained, much to Alcyone’s befuddlement. “He might be able to use this ability offensively somehow, and he can also cause people to start fighting each other in certain circumstances by causing them to not recognize each other.”
“So we need a team with protection against mental effects, and small numbers to avoid infighting.” Alcyone nodded to herself. “I’ll go talk it over with Alphonse’s group.”
“That’s a bad idea,” Simon immediately argued. “Besides the fact that they’ll distrust me, Alphonse and most of his allies are too weak to help.” He knew it, he had wiped them out once already. “I know other people—”
“Ain’t no way I’m trusting an Overlord’s minions with my life,” Alcyone cut in. “Besides, I disagree with your assessment. Alphonse still has much to learn, true, but his Class is optimized to defeat demons and he can support us. His dad, Richard, is also the only swordsman in Lore who could hold a candle to Verney in a fight, and Frea hits hard.”
“And their Stalker, Mel, is an ex-Cobweb operative,” Simon pointed out. “She might slip up or be under surveillance.”
“Mel might be an ex-con, but she would rather die than betray Alphonse. Besides, I won’t inform her of our operation. We’ll just keep people on a need-to-know basis.” Alcyone met his gaze. “If you’re serious about working with us to save the world, you’ll have to learn to trust us too.”
Simon hesitated, but she had a point. He would have to confront Alphonse’s party sooner or later. He might as well check whether they were willing to put aside their differences for the sake of defeating a greater foe, one that wasn’t nearly as terrible as Helel.
“Can we at least do some introductions before we enter a fight to the death?” he asked. “This will be quite the stress test otherwise.”
“Of course, of course.” Alcyone smiled. “To be fully honest with you though, I believe it’s teamwork in fights to the death that creates the strongest of bonds.”
—------
As promised, the Freedom Bird stopped by a Valnean farm on its way back to Lore, where Simon proceeded to buy fifty goats.
“Accept me as your shepherd by bearing my brands, and I shall guide your souls to the Wolfless Land!” he preached to them. “Where the grass is always high, and you will never have to fear the lupine menace ever again!”
They acclaimed his rule with bleating triumph. Simon had to admit it felt less good than hearing moos though. Maybe it was the Minotaur in him, or the fact that he found cows more expressive, but branding goats didn’t feel as spiritually rewarding.
Still, he would put his new flock to explosive use.
He was in the process of teaching his minions how to use their newfound Brands of Wrath in the airship’s cargo hold with Belzemine when Alcyone teleported in with a full party without warning.
The first impression that Voltobauta, Ser Richard of Lore, Alphonse, and Frea received of Simon was of him clad in his black armor while surrounded by black winged goats with fiery hooves and demonic tattoos. It wasn’t exactly what he had in mind.
He could have sworn that time stopped for a second as they judged him in an instant. Not only did they all activate their Class outfits, but he could see their thoughts written all over their faces: the sheer disbelief in Voltobauta’s eyes, Frea’s brief flash of horror, Alphonse’s shock turning into anger, and the way his father immediately unsheathed his false Mana Sword copy.
“Oh.” Simon removed his armor in an attempt to appear nonthreatening. “I didn’t expect you so soon.”
Frea was raising her staff at him and Alphonse grabbed his sword when Alcyone moved in front of them to prevent a bloodbath. “I swear it’s not what it looks like,” she said, which was a blatant lie. “Not as bad as it looks!”
“I’ll be damned,” Voltobauta commented. He was the only one who hadn’t grabbed his weapon. “You madwoman, you actually befriended the Overlord.”
“Step away from Belzemine,” Frea ordered icily. Simon was thankful he had removed Gargauth’s brands from his retainer—justifying it as a temporary necessity to gain the White Unicorn’s trust—or it would have caused a huge mess. “I will not ask twice.”
“Frea…” Belzemine gulped, activated her Pyromancer outfit, and moved in front of Simon to protect him. “I will not let you harm his Majesty.”
Her words shook Frea, especially when she noticed the absence of brands on her friend’s skin. “You’re… free?”
“She soon will be,” Alphonse said as he cast a buff to set his word alight with holy power. “Your short reign is at an end, Overlord Simon!”
Simon was about to put his armor back on and teach the Paladin some humility when Frea stopped her ally. “Alphonse, wait!” she said, much to his surprise. The elf studied Simon with caution. “You removed your predecessors’ brands?”
“I did,” Simon confirmed. “I come in peace, and I wish you no harm.”
“Is that so?” Ser Richard asked with skepticism. “Yet you have much to answer for.”
“I have nothing to personally apologize for,” Simon countered. While he was willing to parlay, he had no intention of simply rolling over and letting them judge him. “I didn’t harm any of you in any way, and I am not responsible for my family’s actions. It was my father who ordered your brother’s death and the murder of the last Paladin.”
“Is that your excuse?” Alphonse asked, his anger unabated. “Your dead father was behind everything?”
“I swear to you, Alphonse, my father really was that bad. He murdered my mother and your uncle because they were going to elope, and he planned to assassinate my cousin to justify an elven genocide.” Simon cleared his throat at the silence that followed. “He also ate shifter slaves and cuckolded his sons, which I condemn in the strongest of possible terms.”
“We can prove his words quickly,” Alcyone said. “Volto can just summon Balzam Magnos’ soul and interrogate him.”
“I’m afraid that’s beyond my power,” Voltobauta replied. “I cannot summon any of the Overlords’ souls for a reason I cannot fathom. Truly frustrating.”
“Ugh, seriously?” Alcyone pinched her nose. “Just throw up a lightshow or something, Simon.”
If she asks so nicely, Simon thought. He only had to spare a glance at the two swordsmen in the room barely restraining their urge to skewer him to realize he would need something far more spectacular than a mere Prayer to shock them out of their anger. “Let me confirm, you are all immune to Terror?”
His question caused Alcyone to frown. “Yes?”
“You might want to cover your eyes.” Simon waited a second, but only Voltobauta wisely followed his advice. “I warned you.”
Simon activated his Dreadful Aura along with his Lightbringer Title to bathe them all in his false divine radiance.
The entire cargo hold brightened as his body glowed with enough holy power to put the Paladin’s own to shame. A golden halo brighter than the sun briefly materialized over his head, blasting everyone present with divine terror. Voltobauta immediately raised his cloak to protect himself, while Frea took a step back in shock. Alphonse and his father simply stared in awed silence, as the very Light they derived their strength and faith from appeared to flow out of a Simon himself.
“Lightstone, burn that which offends thee! Kindling!”
The holy flames surged behind him in a spectacular firework of divine power that shook the cargo hold, and brought the fear of the gods back in their Terror-shielded hearts.
“Do you believe in me now?” Simon asked, a chorus of bleating acclaiming their shepherd behind him. “Do you believe in your Overlord?!”
His goats certainly did, but the Paladin’s party simply answered with the shocked silence of skeptics who had witnessed an unexplainable miracle. Simon eventually cancelled his aura and let the darkness return, watching their expressions morph as they attempted to reconcile what they had just seen with their own preconceived beliefs.
“Do you understand now? Either your Light Megalith has blessed me, or it’s so compromised it will even bless the Overlord.” Simon crossed his arms. “Take your pick.”
Frea hesitated a moment before speaking, her expression grim. “We’re listening.”
A/N: this honestly feels like it's going to be Mask of the Jester King II in terms of comedy XD