Draft 4

"Out of all places in our realm, it has to be this god forsaken one...."

Helheim, the Void region

Under the effect of [Fly], two lone magic casters overlooked the barren land underneath them. Cracked earth, wilted plants, ashen sky, the only source of light visible here is the ethereal magenta glow that seeped through between the earth's cracks, as though an alien entity resided had found it's resident here

Though given the lore for this place, it might as well be

For normal players, the Void region is somewhere you won't want to wander without a max-level avatar and a build deck in full Legendary class items- a hotzone otherwise. It is one of the higher-tier destination for players looking for unique job classes and rare material for their items, mostly due to the strength of the mob here- something that guaranteed the dropping of quality Data Crystal upon their death

But for Ulbert Alain Odle, Momonga, and many veteran members of Ainz Ooal Gown, this place marked the existence of something more significant. Though that is the story for another time  

"I agree, it was a surprise from the developer" The skeleton lifted a finger to his chin "But I also couldn't believe you managed to pick out and identified the location just by looking at the party restriction, Ulbert-san"

A notification window popped into existence before him as Momonga took the time to check them out once more

[Abyss]

To enter this dungeon, you have to satisfy all following conditions:

1. Having more than 1 in your party that came form the same guild

2. All members must have their levels maxed out and possesses at least two rare job classes 

3. All members has to have completed [Questline: World Eater] beforehand

4. All members must possess [Yggdrasil's Blessing]

"Elementary, my dear Guild Leader" The goat demon snorted as he flapped his cloak around in a very Sherlock Holmes fashion "It would only be fitting that you wouldn't have a clue about this, though I'm sure an educated guess could be made on your part"

Momonga's gaze remained expressionless, but his body language indicate the curiosity beneath it as he silently implored his friend to elaborate

"The reason lies in your lack of knowledge regarding the lore of Yggdrasil. Though I admire your dedication to the practical side of things through researching stats and properties of everything you came across, it won't be of any consequences to step back once in a while and admire the simple beauty of the world those devs has set up for us to enjoy, like me and Mr. Tabula once did"

If anything, Ulbert now only need a smoking pipe and a contact lens to complete his image of an aristocrat. Simply listening to the charismatic and graceful way he speaks, almost everyone would all but mistakes him for those of the higher class people out there. Perhaps some would even took him for actual royalty if people like that still exists

Of course, the lich and the rest of his friends knew it was just his Chuunibuyou side taking over

"For that reason, I often browse through the game's story-telling section to look for new pieces of information in my free time, and the ones I found would most likely prove more interesting than you'd think" He grinned 

A pang of mixed emotion struck Momonga. He was reminded that the person in front of him often considered Yggdrasil to be the escape from the reality and people he so despised, away from the cruel clutch of that rotten society that bound him down since the moment of his birth

Perhaps they are similar in that regard

"Why? Because many in-game events and famous players has been adapted into the official lore as time goes by, which makes for a deeper immersion and realism for the players who wished to participate in the world building of Yggdrasil"

Hmm...it would makes sense the devs would pull something like that. His marketing experience tells the skeleton pulling such a feat would normally costs no small amount of money to invest. But then again, these are the same people who designed something 9 separate worlds with the size several times that of Tokyo. He wouldn't be so worried about them

"For example, did you know the raid on Ainz Ooal Gown with over 1,800 Players was recorded and adapted into the official forum in the form of a story?" Ulbert sent out a smirking emote "people has been referring to you as The Undead King for some time now"

Momonga choked

"Ah...you didn't know" His voice was awkward as the goat demon scratched his head "Well...back to the point, let's just say that this region in particular has an association with the lore in older updates. It was intended as a continuation to the quest line as the new antagonist that seeks to consume the entirety of Yggdrasil, but the developer couldn't find a way to get around it, thus the project was soon abandoned"

So that's why the requirement was for them to complete the [World Eater] campaign. Furthermore, [Yggdrasil's Blessing] can only be earned by players who are veterans of the game who started playing it when within three months of it's release

This must mean this particular dungeon would only be an exclusive gift from the developers for those who had stayed with them the start until now, as a parting gift, but also as the promise of a new game, of a new chance where they could meet once more on the battlefield

Suzuki Satoru smiled. He wished the entirety of the Guild could be here with him...all 41 of them

<><><><><><><><><><>

The two of them landed on a particular cliff that overlooked the abyss before them- to which the same purple energy from before came from, it's light seems almost unnatural, pulsing erratically like the heartbeat of an actual living person, almost calling out to them in a trance

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Momonga looked over at Ulbert "You don't have to if you find it dangerous. This dungeon looks like it could actually contain a secret World Enemy or something similarly powerful"

In his hand was the Guild Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown. The golden stave still looks as magnificent as the day he first saw it- with seven serpents entwining together near the tip, each of them holding a gem with different color on them that glowed with power

The lich had decided that he wants to conquer this dungeon and made sure the mark of Ainz Ooal Gown, the combine effort of his friends would leave it's mark in this place, potentially as a flex to other players if they ever wandered near here

"Oh, but I'm sure you already has preparations for it, Mr.I-bring-all-the-Items-inside-my-inventory-with-me-just-to-be-sure?"

"W-well, not all of them. The World Items are still in our treasury in Nazarick"

And it's not like he hadn't taken precautions against it either. One of Momonga's cash item [Devil's Greed], a ring on his right hand allowed him to retain all his inventory's content upon death made it quite redundant to worry. Of course, if it's ranks are higher than Divine then it's an entire different matter....

"...I just want to let loose once in a while, that's all"

Ulbert's eyes softened as he reached out a hand and patted Momonga on the back "Come on, I'm just teasing you. No need to get so worked up like that. Enjoy yourself, man"

It's the last days of Yggdrasil here after all

"Alright, here we go" Smiling from the reassurance he received, the undead raised his free hand into the air. Beside him, Ulbert did the same

And thus they began casting the standard set of spells for dungeoning 

[Greater Luck]

Increased loot gained from slain enemies 

[Paranormal Intuition]

Increased evasion rate against sneak attack

[Magic Caster's Blessings]

 Increased Mana regeneration when not in combat.

[Greater Magic Accumulation]

Increased maximum Mana reserve

[Magic Boost]

Increased-

[Penetrate up]

[Greater Hardening]

[Greater Full Potential]

Seeing these kind of things took a while to list and may bore the reader, the author has taken the liberty to make a small time skip for both party's interest

45 seconds later

"I still think I'm not quite ready" Momonga frowned, his body flowing with a myriad of colors from all the buff he just cast on himself. Red for increased ability boost, green for healing, yellow for static resistance, blue for enhanced mobility, white for- ah fuck it, let's just say he's looking like a rainbow right now

'Just how paranoid could you get' His goat demon buddy sweatdropped. "I think you are ready"

"But-"

"No buts, anymore and you'd only be wasting Mana on yourself"

Being a burst damage caster himself. Ulbert has no need for that much defense and passive utility skills, seeing less than 10% of them is used in battle by him. As such, he already finished casting far before Momonga did

The two of them looked at each other

"Cast the spell, Momonga"

Smiling, the lich intoned one last time

[Lead of Yatagarasu]