Alah Alaf - Player After Shocks Before The Great Gods and Greed Kings
The Anthropology of Knife Ears
Ahoy hoy, it's Ziggy. Happy holidays one and all!
Today, let's talk about all the super subtle nuances of the divisive(Ziggy thinks it's actually disliked more than it's liked by the fans)
Volume 15 and 16. Now most reacted negatively to the slow pacing of the Dark Elf village parts
(most however having more positive if mixed responses to the Decem and Antilene fights). What if Ziggy told you however that all the foreshadowing
there alluded to some secret, deeper meaning?
"Maruyama is too much of a hack for that"
NANI
...That or Ziggy just wants to make up some deep reseasoning behind all the information there! What is reality and what is fiction? Who knows! Isn't that
what makes Overlord fun though? Umu umu!
Anyway, the Wood Elves are special because Decem Hougan, their king, is actually a descendant of the Greed Kings,
figures nearly lost to history unlike the Great
Gods who are more prevalent in this region. If you recall, long ago there was a theory that Decem's father was actually Allah Alaf(based on the literal
meaning of his name). What if, hear Ziggy out, that was still true? What if Decem's father was both Alah Alaf AND the fencing Greed King?
Dun dun duuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuun.
Ostensibly that would mean that the Grave Sin entailed Allah Alaf turning on Surshana to join the Greed Kings - this not being passed down(for obvious
societal reasons). But then why would Allah Alaf betray Surshana? Well the Greed Kings came with a Guild base and a guild weapon so to some extent they had
possibly more resources, and we have no idea of knowing the personal relationships between the Great Gods. It could of been simple Greed, or ambition in
Decem's father's case passing on a will to dominate the world. That or it could of been Decem's father wanted to simp for the gender swapped Greed King
leader. The power of cunny can make men do stupid things sometimes! You should see how cringe Ziggy is when he simps! What cringe, such horror!!
Sadly given how much of a Sigma Decem is and a misogynist Ziggy thinks his father was also that sort of guy...
Instead of the Five Great otaku and Surshana it was actually the token evil knife eared team mate and the Five Otaku(where one is a skeleton). The
plot twist! No wonder the Wood Elves put up a fight against Slaine for so long, they were taught to be Rambo bastards by the ultimate dirty fighting
elf! As Papa Nigel used to say, fucking knife ears!
A curious thing about Alah Alaf and possibly the Fencer Greed King being the same person
is that he was a part of two Player waves, 600 and 500 years ago. But what if the reason he was more distant to the Great Gods was because he actually came
in a wave before them? It's never said all the Great Gods arrived precisely at 600 years ago - just they took the world stage at that point.
When you examine Dark Elven culture, you notice a clear lacking of Arcane casters yet many
Japanese aspects such as names, naming order and so on exist in their culture. Of these, the Dark
Elves actually possess more vesitages of Players
than the Wood Elves(Decem remembering his father as a Greed King not a Great God to boot). The issue here is the Dark Elves
lived in Tob up until 300 years ago, a region surrounded by Player influences(Slaine to the South 600 years ago with the Great Gods, the Greed Kings 500
years ago comitting the Grave Sin, and whoever left the Red powered suit behind), but in terms of Dark Elf generations it's at least 400-600 years ago.
A possibility exists that the Dark Elves learned similar things independently of course, but the names are so specific(cringe fruit names from Earth)
compared to Wood Elf names it calls into doubt that liklihood, where even Ainz questioned it. Also, Dark Elves appear to have legends about legendary potions
ie YGGDRASIL potions as well, suggesting they encountered it at some point and most Players would have some on hand. The names are important because
Wood Elf names do NOT match Dark Elf names and neither does the naming order.
================
Originally, based on the conditions of the exchange of that unknown medicine —
which he thought to be related to the one from legend — he had considered it to be
okay to offer up his secret medicines.
[V16]
=================
One interesting possibility is that the God of Life, the God of Light, the Fencing Greed King was actually transported to this world before all the other
Players, possibly 700 or more years ago, first having influence with the Dark Elves(he appeared near Tob first).
The idea is basically what if there was a Player still around that met up with
another wave to join in the next after shock? If that Player was an Elf it wouldn't be impossible. Alah Alaf, based on his name and the old God of Life
theory fits all too well for this- especially if we consider how Time Turbulence has a very suspcious black and white fencing weapon and his outfit also has
the triple diamond symbol found on tier magic tomes in the anime(recall Maruyama sometimes gives So Bin design specifications).
So what evidence is there for the notion the God of Life and the Greed King was also the player from 700 years ago?
One piece of evidence has to wait for a new Overlord season - but if the bow that belonged to Decem's father matches the design of the bow used by
Decem's daughter and also the
Dark Elves(the ones that can no longer be made) then we might have further basis for the connection of Decem's father and the Dark Elves -
more on that later.
Naming order matters because if someone came 700 years ago they might not have found it strange to pass one Last Name First name naming order. If the
Dark Elves didn't even have family names at the time, then a Player who never interacted with other cultures at first would not think it was weird to pass
on Japanese naming order.
Dark Elves have a strange culture - they have many practices that do not rely on magic but also Druid culture that uses elementals. But it's strange how
they practice purely mundane apothecary techniques, not applying magic to it at all(unlike how we learn from Nfirea's character sheet normally it's practiced
in tandem)., oil production, and so forth. Things like etiquette, as well hint at a very rigid culture that is only now
beginning to change, but Dark Elf etiquette in particular is contingent on honorifics and speech patterns that baffle most other modern elves and is a bit too
much like Japanese honorifics. The lack of understanding of Arcane magic also appears dubious if they had contact with any other race or nation.
It is worth noting where Elemental use comes from begins, but given that both Lizardmen and Dark Elves use them and have similar beliefs, it probably
comes about naturally due to nuances of ancestor worship.
================
Alchemist
Pharmacist
Although he calls himself an apothecary, in reality he is much closer to an
alchemist; however, in the New World the two professions are so closely intertwined that it
would not be strange to call him one or the other.
[V8]
=================
What is most suspect however is Blueberry Egnia. A man who lives among the Dark Elves but has pale skin and white eyes - despite all other Dark Elves looking
like Aura and Mare(from the pictures and the descriptions from Ainz - see the Volume 15 illustration of him).
A possibility exists he is related to Decem of course - as the man himself can't remember if he slept with the Dark Elves or not. But
another possibility is that Decem's father left descendants amongst the Dark Elves BEFORE Decem's birth(this makes more sense if you consider Decem's father,
Allah Alaf was around the Dark Elves 700 years ago). Blueberry's power being higher than other Dark Elves and
how other villages have founding families like his suggest there was such a thing as quasi-nobility amongst the Dark Elves to an extent.
It's doubly worth noting that given his family is so prominent and no one brings this us, it's probably common sense amongst them. What's strange is
neither Aura nor Mare nor Ainz bring it up...
If he has YGGDRASIL genetics this could explain why he still looks young and handsome despite being older than his friend the Master of the Hunt. Decem
is also described as being handsome still despite his older age(a few centuries at least).
========================
However, that day, one dark elf man called for everyone to be on guard. The man’s
height wasn’t outside of the average range for a dark elf. However, his long, slender
and supple limbs, whose lively, yet efficient movements made you feel like there
was a power hidden inside them, easily made the man appear bigger than his actual
height.
His refreshing looks were well-proportioned and even within the village, he was
very popular with the ladies
[V15]
“ — Can I ask a question as well?”
The one who spoke was a man who looked like a ranger, standing on the walkway.
That was true for all the Elves here but he had quite a pretty face, it would be
appropriate to describe him as “cool.”
[V16]
“ — Hoo. I felt some strange presence and came over to check but to think it was
some Dark Elves. Twin kids at that.”
A voice suddenly spoke.
Turning back, they found an elf standing about 10 meters away from them.
He had a cold-looking but handsome face, with each eye being a different color.
He was definitely not a servant.
They could feel that this elf was used to ordering others around — one could feel
the haughtiness that was radiated around him
[V16]
=========================
The fact these famillies also have the famous fruit names and Japanese name order suggest a Player's involvement of some kind(Elf culture being identical but
having entirely different names suggest a divergence from some outside factor). And given that Decem's father
had the same traits(that which Decem and Antilene have of pale hair and pale skin) is possibily the hint. Decem's father possibly left the Dark Elves
to join the Great Gods and it might be a gag he keeps abandoning or betraying the sides he is on for a new one every Player wave, where he possibly
betrayed Surshana to join the Greed Kings during the Grave Sin(if he was really Alah Alaf). The habitual evil team-mate. That bastard!!
Recall that Players tend to isekai near races they are most similar to (Ainz appeared near Katze and E-Rantel, as did most of the human Great Gods
appeared in this region around humans) so the possibility does exist the
Elf Greed King who might also be the God of Life actually predated all the Great Gods, arriving in the Player wave before them. This might be why he was called
the God of Life - he had lived a long life already.
700 years ago appears with Dark Elves in the; likely had a fruit name of some sort; he uses the Japanese name order at this time (??? ???)
600 years ago joins the Great Gods that appeared; takes the name ALLAH ALAF(God Nordic Elf)
500 years ago betrays Surshana and joins the Greed Kings; takes the name ??? HOUGAN(The one with precious eyes; the name order is now Western)
Thus Decem's father may have gone by different names in different eras:
700 years ago: (FRUIT NAME) (???)
600 years ago: Allah Alaf
500 years ago: (???) Hougan
Given Allah Alaf is a somewhat botched name, we can ponder that this Player gave himself cringe names or titles. For instance, the Sea of Trees could be
read as Eivuasha or EVIL SHAH's Great Forest. Normally it is easier to think of that as meaning just being botched sounds, but given Allah Alaf could of been
another name from this Player and he gave people fruit names, his naming sense might not have been all that great. Evil Shah actually represents Decem's
ideology in fact as well - with his harem of women and intent to rule the world(with his somewhat racist demeanor - something that stopped him from breeding
with other races normally only making exceptions for strong women).
If Decem's name can be read as meaning wine, then perhaps Allah Alaf's Dark Elf name was GRAPE ???. That could be interesting at least. Well you can also
read Decem's name as literal Roman, as the TENTH, an influence from Slaine's naming sense being roman inspired. There's not enough information to really
make a declaration here what Allah Alaf's theoretical Dark Elf name was sadly but it could be related to Decem's name.
So why did Decem's father appear by Tob and not the Great Sea of Trees? Well one answer is Decem's father was not actually a Wood Elf but a pale Dark Elf.
That's not impossible (albinoism also exists in the New World after all) but as a Player he could easily change his appearance and not look like his race.
Eclair for example looks drastically different from Peroroncino despite being the same race. It would also be ironic if Decem who prided himself as a
Wood Elf was in fact a half Dark Elf to begin with(and he never knew it- also it continues the gag of Decme making false assumptions). This gag would
have broader implications with one of Maruyama's friends but that's a story for another time.
Why should we consider such a theory? Well one merit to this theory is it gives a window into the New World pre Great Gods and pre Tier magic. If this
theory holds true, that means we can postulate how culture was before magic was present - this may even give a glimpse in how the mindsets of people were
warped with the tier magic change to the world in some theories - given how etiquette is now spurned. What can we deduce?
Well it seems Decem's father might have
taught the Dark Elves herbalism(given the Japanese mortar and pestle they use) but he may have even practiced making the bows the Dark Elves use as well -
getting good enough so that not evne modern craftsmen can copy the design. Amongst that, we also see the Dark Elves use oil of some sort, trapping,
bush whack hunting, and so forth.
Metal bows are strange because in Elven culture normally they make all their clothes and weapons out of Elf Trees so it
stands out as a vestige of culture before the Elf Trees (and tier magic that can manipulate it) came into being. But then where did the ore come from
as well as the skill to smith a bow of many metal parts(compound bows are also quite sophisticated in some cases though in this one it is very vague)
? If we had a Player who knew about modern compound bows and all their parts this makes more sense
though 700 years ago bow crafting technology could of been more advanced(and used non magical methods) than it is now in the region
(we have confirmation some societies were more advanced back then). It's tough to say, but Decem's father could of had someone replicate modern
bows via his off hand knowledge of Earth bows. What kind of bows are 'Dark Elven' style however is a mystery since Maruyama sucks at describing things.
Ziggy pictures them being like those more modern bows with pulley wheels on them because of what Aura said about it being metal and having deteriorated
parts:
===========================
Aura stood holding a bow, at a place some distance away from the village. Made of
metal, it was far more burly than the ones the Dark Elves normally used.
It was also taller than Aura.
Aura drew and loosed the string repeatedly, making the bow screech. It was a
greatbow that originally belonged to the village, one that even the strongest of them
weren’t able to draw. The Dark Elves initially widened their eyes when they saw a
child draw it so effortlessly, but they also immediately made expressions that said
they had come to terms with it.
“The way this was stored leaves a lot to be desired. It’s making all these sounds
because parts of it have deteriorated, you know? Is this why no one was able to
draw it? Hnnn, it feels unstable. I wonder if the arrow will really go where I aim it
at. . .
[V15]
==========================
That's just conjecture sadly since we have no illustration of 'Dark Elven' bows. The kanji can mean older bows OR the modern ones. It would be funny though
if the trope of Elves being advanced Rangers is represented in Overlord with them using modern Earth technology bows in a medieval setting.
This might also explain why Allah Alaf was the God of Life - he had lived over a century before he met the other Great Gods and so had far more life
experience than the other Great Gods. This might also explain why he betrayed the Theocracy - he was already detached from their human centric ideology
and abandoned his own elven society before. If we look to the Sunlight Scripture, the scriptured based on Allah Alaf, we do see their Captain wears a uniform
with a salaryman-esque look with a strange scarf cape in so-bin's designs. Perhaps this is a vestige of Allah Alaf's own dressing style?
Within this possibility we can possibly see how Dark Elven herbalism became so advanced and removed from magic and methods in the Tob region now-
if a Player undertook research applying modern knowledge to New World herbs but was not a caster it could explain it(especially if this was all done 700
plus years ago where tier magic was not applied yet so many of it's techniques and secrets do not involve magic at all.
==============
Originally, based on the conditions of the exchange of that unknown medicine —
which he thought to be related to the one from legend — he had considered it to be
okay to offer up his secret medicines.
The Dark Elves’ secret medicines were split into three major categories.
The first one was medicines that could be made through difficult mixing procedures.
The second was medicines made utilizing extremely rare medicinal herbs.
The third was dangerous drugs that had an excessively potent efficacy.
Those were the three
[V16]
================
Mango tries to teach Ainz, we see how he tries to 'beat things into him' not unlike how Decem likes to discipline and train the elves. This might be a shared
trait inherited from the founders of their practices - Decem's father passing on his teaching method to him meanwhile Mango inheriting the same mentality
from those trained in the same school of thought as Decem's father when he founded their apothecary methods.
The Dark Elf elders also have this notion of
proper disciplining though they lament not enforcing etiquette more on the younger dark elves. Yet even the Youth faction seem to have inherited the
idea one has to properly drill practices into others, not unlike Decem's demanor. It's of note as Decem's hobby actually is related to this idea, perhaps
a practice he learned from his father who even passed it on to the Dark Elves?
===========
“All right then — starting today, let’s have you stay here and I’ll teach you. Since
we don’t really have much time. I’m gonna beat it firmly into that body of yours.”
...
“What the hell are you saying!” the Chief Pharmacist said, spit flying out of his
mouth. “I’m gonna make your body remember! As a pharmacist’s apprentice,
you’re receiving instruction so that you can immediately tell how much the amount
of what you’re holding right now weighs!”
...
“However, in the same spirit, they also said this: ‘take proper notes because you’re
stupid. So you don’t make me say the same things over again and over again.’
“. . . Wha?” The Chief Pharmacist’s eyes went wide open, and his eyebrows then
raised in concern, and asked, “. . . stu. . . pid you say?”
“Yes, that is what I was told by my master.”
“I-I see. . . No, no, masters are strict with their disciples. I don’t think they were
saying that seriously, you know?
...
“You get it, then. In accordance with your request, I will teach a rather difficult
mixture. My instruction will be strict, but you won’t cry about it, will you?”
Ainz didn’t remember anything about a request, but even leaving that aside for the
moment, this was the only thing he should probably say right at the start.
“No, please teach me gently.”
The Chief Pharmacist’s mouth fell open with a pop, and then he made a face that
looked like he had swallowed a bitter bug.
It wasn’t as if Ainz had negative opinions about strict instruction. However, between
strict and gentle, he was the sort of person who would choose the latter.
“You got some nerve. . . ”
“No, but I wouldn’t like it if you beat me with a heated pole or something?”
“Y-your master does things like that?”
“No, they do not do things like that, but — ”
“Even I wouldn’t do such a thing like that, alright!”
“I would be very happy if you did not.
[V16]
“This isn’t the time to be saying things like, ‘are we at fault for not drilling it into
them, even if we had to invoke our power as the Council of Elders, after all?’ now
is it? The uncle of Aura-dono, the one who easily repelled the ‘Ursus Lord. I have
no doubt that he is reasonably apt. I don’t want to be glared at by a person like
that.”
[V16]
It was around the same time, while the elders were at their wits’ end trying to
produce a tentative answer, that there were people who were similarly at their own
wits’ end.
It was the youngsters who opposed the elders
...
Certainly, when living in the forest (a harsh place) the first important thing children
should learn wasn’t politeness. There were plenty of other things that were more
important than that — it was necessary to drill into them the things related to
survival
[V16]
“Hoo...” Decem removed his hand that had been pressing down on his nose. It
seemed like the bleeding had already stopped. “I am a little surprised. To make me
bleed...how many decades, no, centuries has it been? I see. You are strong enough
to match your boast, but that’s not the way to speak to a king. That said, this is
rather fortunate. Rejoice, I shall teach you the difference between our strengths and
discipline you.”
[V16]
Decem Hougan
Interests: (To Drill and) Discipline the Elves
[V16]
==============
So first, a time table: the Dark Elves were in Tob 300 or more years ago before a great migration - about only one generation ago(those all being deceased
now, the parents of the now Dark Elf elders who should be at least in their 300 years old if younger memebers are still 200 years old).
Pinision the Dryad remembers the Dark Elves in Tob as does Ryuarius. Given the Lizardmen are approximately
near the Forest of Tob, it stands ot reason the Dark Elves practicing ancestor worship may have been part of the culture in the Tob region possibly since
before Player history - and given the Lizardmen are so isolated this does suggest a common spiritual belief amongst the people of the regions of the forest
at least. This could be the common culture of the time Pre Players which is a great anthropological musing.
==============
The girl fired another arrow.
It weaved through the spaces between trees again and then multiplied. Among the
rain of arrows, the sounds of pitiful cries and trampled undergrowth gradually came
to a halt.
He learned one important thing as a result of the deaths of these soldiers.
She couldn’t kill an ordinary soldier in a single attack. Of course, considering the
ability — martial art — that made the arrows multiply, it stood to reason that each
arrow would have reduced precision and damage. That said, a hero could kill every
one of those regular soldiers with a single attack. It could mean only one thing.
— She isn’t a hero. That brat didn’t step into the realm of heroes
[V15]
Aura: Haah?! Ain-Momon-sama, why this thing? Is it okay to move this to Nazari- that place?
Pinison: 'This thing' is a bit harsh... I was on friendly terms with your race once you know... Although I've been
unable to meet them lately...
...
Pinison: That rain of arrows of light was pretty That's a Dark Elf for you
Hamsuke: You do not seem surprised
Pinision: Yeah if it's that much.
[Evil Tree CD]
“Guu. He rules that fearsome structure. You underestimate him at your peril!
And the Dark Elf behind him; this forest belonged to them before the Demon
Tree chased them away. They might well be mighty foes — but he is not
listening.”
[V8]
“I heard from the elders that we came to this forest more than 300 years ago, but I
have never heard about any Dark Elf who has headed out since that time”
“300 years? You heard it from others? That’s a weird way to put things...Uncle,
weren’t you already born 300 years back?”
[V15]
“It would be one thing if we were different races, but we’re all Dark Elves. Considering the direction they came from,
it’s very likely that they’re from one of the
clans that split off in our parents’ generation. If that is the case, then the differences
in language shouldn’t be that big. When you put all of those together, that was
probably a formal greeting in the style of his tribe.”
[V16]
===============
After religous beliefs comes ethnic divergence.
Dark Elves mainly look like Wood Elves but there is a distinction enough in their faces to spot at a glance - which is common among even
humans on Earth of course. This minor distinction is noticed most often by other Elves. However Antilene had trouble telling Mare's gender but
Decem did not however, which reflects it's more based on the culture you are born around than racial features. In some games it's a racial feat in others
it's just a skill based on the culture so you can take it either way in this case. Ziggy almost wants to laugh if Decem is actually half Dark Elf and that's
why he can spot Aura and Mare's gender as a fellow YGGDRASIL Dark Elf(he just happens to be super pale due to Player cosmetics). Ziggy just thinks it's funny
if he was actually mixed race but didn't know it due to his father's complexion.
======================
“The first one is...do you have any Elf blood flowing through you?”
“Oi, you are being rud — ”
Master of the Hunt tried to stop him but Ainz waved his hand slightly, expressing
that he didn’t mind it.
“It’s fine. No one has said that to me before...but does that look to be the case?”
“Ah, no, don’t mind it then. It just felt like that.”
“Is that so?”
Sharp. Incredibly sharp.
Ainz was currently using the face of some elf he saw in the Royal Capital, with
only the skin color changed to match the Dark Elves. Ainz thought it was perfect
and even Mare didn’t find any problem with it, but for genuine Dark Elves his face
probably looked uncanny, enough to sense it just from the area around his eyes.
[V16]
=========================
In basic Dark Elf culture, names follow the last name, first name order. Traditional Dark Elf culture also appears to be somewhat masculine according
to cultural theory, where the modern generation of Dark Elves are more feminist(less judgemental of women in high positions)
- viewing less distinction between genders. The younger generation
insults the older generation for being sexist, despite one of them being female. Dark Elf names also always have fruit for the surname followed by
a personal name that is not a fruit.
There's no rhyme or reason to the influential families besides we know one is Blueberry meanwhile all the others are not one of these 13 families. It was
probably just happenstance which families became important at that time(though it might be those were the 13 bloodlines descended from the Elf Player).
================
“...I am Aura Bella Fiora. Pleased to meet you”
“Umu. You have done well in coming here, sapling from faraway, Aura Bella Fiora”
The man who stood in the middle — probably their representative — answered her
with somber words. The gap between his appearance and his serious attitude was a
bit striking, because he didn’t really look that old.
Someone in the group of dark elves surrounding them suddenly spoke in a voice
just loud enough to reach everyone.
“Shouldn’t you be thanking the village’s savior first? And why are you referring to
our benefactor without honorifics so naturally?”
“Yes, that’s right. They shouldn’t have greeted her like that if they were truly
grateful. Maybe they are being arrogant because the other party is a girl.”
Some of the women raised their voices.
[V15]
The representative of the elders grimaced.
“Hmph. We were just about to give our thanks now — Aura Bella Fiora-dono. We
are extremely grateful to you for repelling the Ankyloursus Lord and for saving our
village”
“That’s right. The younglings’ impatience is troublesome. There exists an order for
the conversation to follow”
When the female elder who stood beside the representative said this, a woman
somewhere else started murmuring.
“Your order of precedence is wrong in the first place. It would be bothersome if
your brains are also getting fossilized as you grow older.”
Glancing at the Master of the Hunt, Aura found him making an expression as if
he was having stomach pain. He was questioned about whose side he was on in
the past, probably. The elder who stood on the right was also making a similar
expression. The two other elders had grim expressions, the female elder began to
direct her glare at the surrounding dark elves.
[V15]
Ainz knew about a food called blueberry. Like that Plum guy from before, maybe
it’s a Dark Elf tradition to prefix their name with a food’s name. In that case, he
should have just given Aura a fake name as well instead of worrying about how she
would feel getting called by a fake name by her potential friends. What troubled him
was that he didn’t know if their native names for the fruits were getting translated
into something he knew, or if they were just using the same names without knowing
their meaning — that these were traces left behind by Players.
[V16]
“I couldn’t confirm it since you could only see the area around his eyes, but I caught
sight of some features that looked as if he had some Elf blood in him. So, it might
be possible that it was the etiquette for greetings that originated with the Elves?”
Beyond that, they also had another basis for his possible connection to the Elves.
That was his name.
Dark Elf names went in the order of family name followed by given name, while
Elves on the other hand, used the order of given name followed by family name. In
light of that, how they were named was similar to the Elven style.
“Naturally, I wouldn’t know about the Elven way of doing things nor their etiquette,
now would I? Do you two know?”
[V16]
===================
These aspects of Dark Elven culture stand out especially when you notice how they practice bowing and kneeling culture. Also how they apologize
is extremely ingratiating, to the point of servility not unlike extreme notions of apology in Japanese culture. This is of course also in juxtaposition
to all the other cultures however it's prudent to acknowledge that often Japanese cuilture bleeds into other races due to Maruyama's own sensibilities
(some say it's because he's hack, the gall!).
Decem's attitude reflects possibly on his father's own attitude - him demanding such respect for one reason or another. Perhaps Decem's father
who may have influenced the Dark Elves was always a big advocate for proper etiquette? Notice how kneeling and bowing are expected forms of respect from
Decem and how similar practices appear to be etiquette in Dark Elf culture.
========================
Now that he was in a good mood, he asked the weakling
who knelt in his room a question:
“—So what?”
The weakling drew in a breath, but he had no interest in that. All he felt was
displeasure in not receiving an immediate answer to his question. However, he
was not angry enough to kill someone yet, so he did not make use of his might.
He was a merciful king.
[V11]
While he was waiting like that, a man came requesting his permission to enter. He
couldn’t see that female anywhere behind him.
...
Decem nodded regally at the man who was bowing deeply. As he thought, kings
should be merciful like this to useless beings. Feeling extremely compassionate,
Decem decided to reward the loyal man — he didn’t remember his name — in front
of him.
“Do you have any daughters?”
“...Yes...I do”
“You are fortunate. Send them here if they are already of age. If they aren’t, your
wife works too”
The man looked like he was deeply moved. After his body shook all over, he spoke
like he was trying to squeeze the words out.
[V15]
“Please forgive me! To think I didn’t notice it!”
Plum bowed with a tremendous force. If he weren’t carrying the carcass, he would
have probably performed a dogeza — or some Elven form of apology equivalent to
it. This kind of excessive response was why he was thought of as a fanatic.
[V15]
The carcass was being divided up and handed over to the villagers to cook.
“Now, remember to be grateful to Fiora-sama for hunting this!”
Every time a Dark Elf received their portion, they spoke words of gratitude with
their faces full of smiles.
[V15]
“I will be happy to do it!!”
Ainz’s non-existent heart jumped out at the sudden voice from his side.
It was Blueberry.
He had probably climbed down to the ground from the walkway silently while Ainz
was talking with the Master of the Hunt.
“...Sudden shouting is bad for the heart, so could you please stop?”
“S-sorry...I will be careful so that something like this won’t happen in the future.”
Ainz couldn’t admonish Blueberry more after seeing him this extremely apologetic.
[V16]
And there was a point he was more concerned with than that.
The distance between them wasn’t that great. If she had intended to hand it to him,
it could have been accomplished by walking a few steps forward. In spite of that,
she just silently placed the dish on the floor. Furthermore, since she first peeked
her head in, they hadn’t made eye contact once.
Even Ainz understood why.
She had no intention of talking to him.
However — hostility, contempt, hatred — he couldn’t feel any sort of negative
emotions coming from her. Even when she set down the dish, she had a polite
demeanor. It was more reasonable to think that she was just that type of woman
(the type that wasn’t good at talking with people).
...
She set down the dish she was carrying, bowed, and left the Elf Tree. Of course,
Ainz also lowered his head with the same timing.
[V16]
“. . . I pray that such a thing won’t happen, but should the time come, we will be in
your care.”
The elder bowed his head and in time with that, all of the Dark Elves there bowed
their heads as well.
Ainz, seeing that they had all raised their heads, announced, “Well then, I will be
taking my leave here,” he looked over at everyone and bowed his head. Finally, he
sent a sincere and deep bow toward the Chief Pharmacist.
[V16]
Welcome back”
A female’s nonchalant voice called out to him.
Decem immediately felt angry.
To think a woman who probably scraped their heads along the ground for him until
now dared to be so nonchalant!
[V16]
======================
If we look at etiquette, in Dark Elf society a strange aspect of culture is the first Dark Elf woman Ainz interacts with that brought him food.
The way that woman bowed, offered food and did not speak unnecessarily is strikingly Eastern in servant sentiments.
That eastern leaning can also be seen in how she is flustered by things being too direct.
Later, Mango brings up how shame also exists in their dealings having indirect requests, and this appears to have been taught by the Dark Elf elders. The
notion of responsiblity amongst the Elders also is eerily similar to Japanese social norms.
These ideas of indirectness and shame are common sense ideas in East Asian culture due to generations of culture, yet they stand out in Overlord's setting
due to how common sense works there(women are attracted to the strong, power levels fears, might makes right, etc). This is the humor behind how
Ainz sees Hamusuke as a joke but everyone else judges her based on their New World common sense.
======================
dark elf woman finally came and rudely peeked her head into the room from the
entrance. People in this village were usually close enough to do this. When she
finally made eye contact with Ainz, she acted a little surprised.
Ainz felt a little uncomfortable there.
Would Ainz’s presence there really be that surprising?
No, is this sort of reaction appropriate if you were to look into a person’s house —
though we’re just borrowing it — and make eye contact with the person inside?
Though considering the sense of distance in the interpersonal relationships of Dark
Elves, I have a hunch this is a little different...
As if she were greeting Ainz, the woman bowed her head once, turned her gaze to
the floor, entered the room, and placed the dish she had brought with her on the
floor.
The Dark Elves wore shoes even when inside the Elf Trees, because of that, he
had some personal reservations about the tray of food being placed on the floor.
That said, given that the Dark Elves sat on the floor when they ate — as far as Ainz
had seen, less than half of the people here used a table — this might have been the
natural thing to do.
And there was a point he was more concerned with than that.
The distance between them wasn’t that great. If she had intended to hand it to him,
it could have been accomplished by walking a few steps forward. In spite of that,
she just silently placed the dish on the floor. Furthermore, since she first peeked
her head in, they hadn’t made eye contact once.
Even Ainz understood why.
She had no intention of talking to him.
However — hostility, contempt, hatred — he couldn’t feel any sort of negative
emotions coming from her. Even when she set down the dish, she had a polite
demeanor. It was more reasonable to think that she was just that type of woman
[V15]
“I would like to talk about this with the elders, but would you mind telling me
which way I should go?
“I-if that is the case, then I will relay it to the elders!”
“Wha? That’s so...thank you very much! Well then, thank you for being so
understanding!!”
Ainz didn’t say things like, “when we were talking earlier, it felt like you were
telling me to go tell them myself,” he didn’t check with her either because her
proposal was convenient for him. He was just going to take her word for it.
All that was left was for him to get the hell out of there before she said she had
changed her mind or that she wasn’t going to do it after all.
Ainz abruptly announced his farewell to the woman, who was flustered by Ainz’s
sudden and forceful urging, then he walked back to the Elf Tree.
While feeling relieved that she hadn’t called out for him to stop — he had ignored
her as hard as he could — Ainz returned to their loaned dwelling and picked up the
tray she had placed on the floor.
[V16]
And finally, the other reason he could never say out loud was probably him asking
to be taught an appropriately difficult level of mixture even given his lack of time.
One at the level of definitely not being able to remember no matter how many times
he saw it.
He, who wasn’t even a specialized pharmacist, trying to learn high difficulty level
mixtures was outlandish. On top of that, pretty much all of the difficult mixtures
utilized only precious medicinal herbs. Maybe it was for that reason he couldn’t
make a direct request himself.
[V16]
“. . . So. . . what do we do? His knowledge concerning Dark Elf traditions is something I’d like to ask him about though. . . ”
“. . . That’s a little too dangerous. Even if we were to abide our shame and say to
him that we wanted to talk with him privately, I don’t know if he would really keep
his mouth shut. If that’s the case. . . you don’t jump into a briar patch if you’re not
being chased, huh?
“You’re right. It’s best to keep a certain distance, and not approach him.”
[V16]
If the three elders took responsibility for distributing the souvenirs, there would be
some suitable benefits to it.
Of course, there would probably be people who would make their discontent
public depending on what was distributed and to whom. The drawback was the
possibility of them bearing a grudge over it. However, in most cases, that sort of
person would already have a reputation of saying that it was unfair no matter what
they received. It was obvious that some of the youngsters would complain just
because the elders were the ones who divvied everything up. However, if the elders
distributed everything fairly, then everyone else aside from them would probably
look coldly upon the ones who would say that it was unfair.
Therefore, even if the elders placed the duty of distribution upon themselves, they
did not intend to take anything for themselves.
There should be more value in creating an image of them being selfless elders than
there was in pocketing rare goods.
However —
“ — As was just said a moment ago, don’t jump into a briar patch. If we decide to
distribute his gifts, the necessity of directly signaling our gratitude to him would
emerge, whether we like it or not. If that were to happen, we would probably have
to convey our gratitude in a form that followed the rules of proper etiquette after
all.”
“. . . That means in the event that the other party placed a lot of importance on
etiquette, they might regard us as boorish or they might interpret it as us being
dissatisfied with their gifts, correct?”
[V16]
=====================
A very subtle distinction also lies in the fact Dark Elves like Wood Elves seldom use currency yet they have a cultural idea of prices and debts. That is
strange given how Dark Elf society lacks shops and most modern Dark Elves think about ideas in terms of bartering equality. It is worth noting
in the wood elf capital they have shops and dealt in currency but the Dark Elves also notably have no idea about cities of Wood Elves either. So it's hit
or miss.
==============
“By the way, what kind of gifts would make Elves happy? Things like gold and
gemstones?”
“We don’t use metal currency so I don’t think gold would work...”
“I think our village would be most happy about the food and maybe rare herbs.
[V15]
“ — I see. The knowledge of the savages of the frontier would be evaluated as only
of that level, and the Dark Elves who live in this forest, and their pharmacists too,
will be the targets of derision, huh. Would I be evaluated as a pharmacist who
can’t even discern the value of the medicine that was handed to them? Would I be
considered a pharmacist who doesn’t have knowledge that could balance out the
trade? Or, would I be judged to be a greedy pharmacist who can’t conduct business
fairly?”
“Though you might also be praised for buying an expensive item for a lower price.”
“. . . Is that how pharmacists in the city think? They try not to pay the proper price
for the things they are offered?”
...
“Heh-heh-heh — Now then, when it comes to the knowledge that will balance out
the value of this potion, there’s nothing I can offer except the secret medicines I
know. How long are you planning on staying in this village?”
[V16]
There is some fruit and wine inside my room. I should leave this forest with them as
fast as possible, without using magic. After that I will kill everyone I meet to stop
information about me reaching those children’s ears. I can also snatch their goods
at the same time. While doing that I will run to a place as far away as possible. Oh,
right. Maybe I should also carry some valuables. I remember hearing that jewels
and gold coins are useful.
Decem finally reached his room, wheezing his lungs out.
[V16]
===================
What stands out more though is how Decem values wine of all things, compared to how rare alcohol and so on are to other Elves. If you consider Decem's name
could also be a brand of wine from Earth, it's possible Decem learned this practice from his father (a habit he developed after he joined the Great Gods or
Greed Kings?). Notice how Decem drinks from a glass as well, something out of place in his own elven society along with the mirror he owns. Such articles
however are extremely common for anyone in modern society and possibly from Satoru's Earth. In that case did his father also bear the name of a wine for
his third name, a divergence from the fruit names of the Dark Elves(or rather a sense of maturation from simple fruit to aged wine)? Perhaps Decem's father
was so arrogant to think he had become more sophisticated after 200 years of experience. Recall that Wood Elves normally make most things out of wood
from their Elf trees hence why Ainz specifically wanted to barter with metal crafts as gifts and lead into Runecraft.
======================
He walked to the balcony, a glass of amber liquid in his hand.
...
He walked back into the room, imagining the glorious future that would soon
dawn. Facing him was a full-length mirror which reflected his image.
[V11]
“Not clothes, since we also make them from Elf Trees”
“Homes, arrows...and even clothes. Looks like Elven druid magic is very convenient.
You can’t do that, right Mare? ”
[V15]
“These are metal knives created by dwarves, you see? Splendid, right? I heard that
you make some very strong ones here from trees using magic but they probably
aren’t stronger than metal, right? These are made by dwarves who are especially
good at smithing. They are first-rate stuff.”
[V16]
=====================
The strangest dilemma however is the idea of capability versus age tenure in Elven culture. Ziggy has talked about this before as well, but the older
dark elf generation judge
people based off their appearances(someone older being more skilled) even if the two are not the same age(this possibily being why Blueberry was passed
over for promotion as he appears younger than he is while his friend Apple who is the master of the hunt appears older than he is). Some also think
Blueberry's family name was too influential and he was worried of having too much say in society.
As a side note recall how in Slaine age tenure ALSO exists according to Mass for the Dead(outside the purging of salaries for higher posts).
Which is actually at odds with the power level common sense of the New World. The young Dark
Elves going against the elders actually reflects the world' scommon sense going against the strange Dark Elf culture. But what if they were taught this
by Decem's father 700+ years ago and he also taught this to Slaine 600 years ago?
The hatred of the villagers possibly stems from how Blueberry is both older AND stronger but was still not treated well according to their beliefs that
value power foremost. This could also have been a misunderstanding where the elders didn't realize Blueberry was older(possibly due to his super YGGDRASIL
genes) until AFTER they promoted the Master
of the Hunt and due to etiquette could not take back their decision - another reason why the younglings spurn their etiquette.
=========================
Their praise for Aura gradually increased. The fact that the children who gathered
were also listening was extremely problematic.
“...But Fiora-chan is still a child you know?”
A dark elf male, who smelt of herbs, said suddenly.
The expressions of the fanatical gathering changed at once.
“That’s the same as those elders’...those old farts’ way of thinking!”
It was an angry exclamation.
Plum, who had been smiling a few moments before, now looked completely
different, breathing wildly.
“What is age? Is just being older something great!? No! Certainly, there are people
who have accumulated experience and have become skilled with age, but that’s not
something that naturally comes with age. Age cannot be the absolute yardstick we
measure everything against — But, you see! Only ability can be absolute!!”
Ainz agreed with that opinion.
He saw it many times at his workplace. People who were good at something were
good at it from the start, while those that were not would never become good no
matter how many years they spent on it.
“Superior talent! That’s the only power that can protect the most people in this
dangerous place! Only ability is absolute! Even if it is someone young!”
“But...Isn’t Fiora-chan a bit too young?”
Another fanatic replied coldly to the woman who objected, “isn’t that how those
elders think? So you are the same as those elders, huh”
“ — Haa?”
The woman looked at the dark elf with hostility. Ainz could clearly see that the
elders were very much hated.
Frankly speaking, I feel like they are not doing anything that could cause so much
hate...
He didn’t understand the reason why the younger ones had such a bad opinion of
them, but it’s been only two days since Ainz started observing this village. It’s not
like he was observing everything either, so Ainz may have just missed it.
“In order to reject the ideology of the elders — that which prioritizes one’s age —
should we not instead defer to talented Dark Elves like Fiora-sama and even
possibly make her lead the village?”
[V15]
A first-rate Ranger who had accumulated vast amounts of
experience, bearing the ancient and honorable surname of House Blueberry — one
of the 13 families of the beginning — that became the central figures during the
Great Migration.
In his hands, the man — Blueberry Egnia — held a Dark Elf-style compound bow,
of which there were only a handful even in this village.
It was a bow one would not be permitted to use unless they had earned an extremely
good score at the Archery Tournament held in the season when the Becoa flowers
bloomed — once every three years
[V15]
Since they lived in the forest (a dangerous place) they held the opinion that for
the sake of the village, they should yield to those who possessed superior abilities.
Even if you were long-lived, you should give up your seat to someone else if you
were inferior in ability to the younger generation.
It was the elders’ respect for convention and tradition versus the Youth Faction’s
belief in ability supremacism, so to speak.
[V16]
Blueberry Egnia. At 254 years of age, it was his first love.
[V15]
Master of the Hunt’s expression changed considerably for the first time.
“ — I am only a little bit over 200 years old.”
Aura suppressed her urge to take a long, hard look at the Master of the Hunt’s face.
200 years? Is he trying to fudge the numbers? That, or the Dark Elves here count
years differently...
She thought he was lying, but she couldn’t say that to his face. She could already
feel his mood becoming more dejected.
He was probably, no, certainly worried about it.
Aura didn’t feel like consoling him, but if she wanted a good relationship with him
going forward, it would be better if she did.
“Aa — , Hn. It’s just that you exude this air of maturity...in a good way.”
“...No, don’t mind it. It just shows how exhausting life in this forest is”
[V15]
=======================
If you ponder Blueberry is a descendant of Decem's father, and thus has YGGDRASIL genes this might explain why he felt so attracted to Aura - another
being with YGGDRASIL genetics. That might be why his fixation on her was so strangely potent and might hint at how Decem tricked Antilene's mother -
people with YGGDRASIL genes may sometimes be compelled by instinct to reproduce together even if one-sided. It's doubtful if that applies in every case
however. Antilene did not immediately simp to Mare for example - but she did also think Mare was a girl.
Ziggy's head canon is this is all allegorical for how
Antilene's mother was overcome by the same dum dum disorder for Decem that Bluebery had when he met Aura - seeing everything she did
in a perfect light and being overly fixated on her - we call this rose-tinted glasses my smol children.
What stands out the most however is how particular they are as a culture about honorifics, more so than just other New Worlders - drawing a distinction
between no honorifics, chan, sama, and san. You can see etiquette amongst Dark Elves pertain to using honoroifcs based on the Japanese custom - respect for
age and seniority(sempai vs kouhai etc). However the modern Dark Elves use honorifcs based on standard light novel convention - for those who are superior
in many senses of the terms. Now we know Jircniv made some deal about using these as well(there's more to say on that) however if you pay attention Dark
Elves almost explicitly imply the existence of the same honorifics as the Japanese language. The issue here is how drastic auto translate has messed things
up.
Decem's misogyny could also be inherited from his father as well if he passed on that cultural notion to the Dark Elves too. That could just be a
coincidence, but given Decem raped a woman(of a different species but still she was sapient) and how he treated his concubines, there is a case to be made
he was misogynistic. Though he is also racist and looks down on even his own children as weaklings you could argue he's a bona fide asshole, hur hur. Those
do not have to be mutually exclusive however. He could of learned this all from his father too - this might also explain how Decem's father might have
betrayed the Greed Kings when they turned on each other - he might not have liked listening to a woman(who was actually a man on Earth). That may perhaps
be reading too far into things sadly. Decem could always form his own opinions after all.
=================
“...I am Aura Bella Fiora. Pleased to meet you”
“Umu. You have done well in coming here, sapling from faraway, Aura Bella Fiora”
The man who stood in the middle — probably their representative — answered her
with somber words. The gap between his appearance and his serious attitude was a
bit striking, because he didn’t really look that old.
Someone in the group of dark elves surrounding them suddenly spoke in a voice
just loud enough to reach everyone.
“Shouldn’t you be thanking the village’s savior first? And why are you referring to
our benefactor without honorifics so naturally?”
“Yes, that’s right. They shouldn’t have greeted her like that if they were truly
grateful. Maybe they are being arrogant because the other party is a girl.”
[V15]
“ — Everyone! Rejoice! Fiora-sama bagged a big one this time as well.”
Ainz clicked his tongue.
[V15]
But...Isn’t Fiora-chan a bit too young?”
...
“ — First of all, what do you mean by Fiora-’chan’? It should be Fiora-sama!”
[V15]
===================
Let's get a synopsis of Elven and Dark Elven culture.
============
“Not clothes, since we also make them from Elf Trees”
“Homes, arrows...and even clothes. Looks like Elven druid magic is very convenient.
You can’t do that, right Mare?
[V15]
So the reason that physical or magical changes had not occurred in Dark Elves, was
because on top of being the same race as Elves from the start, they were living in
the same environment. There were also hardly any differences in culture, and their
way of life was centered on the Elf Trees. Hence, the classes they gained were, just
like with the Elves, mainly Ranger and Druid.
The differences were just skin color, forms of animal repellent, and other trivial
customs at best.
[V15]
The pillars of authority in the village were the Master of the Hunt, the Council
of Elders, the Chief Pharmacist, and the Rite Master. The Council of Elders was
composed of three people, so altogether there were six people.
[V15]
“We’re fine. We bagged some huge game lately. But even so, we should still tell
the Rite Master what is going on right away, so we can have him start making fruit.
We don’t know how many days it’ll take until we finish confirming if everything’s
safe, after all.”
[V15]
============
Of the Dark Elves and Wood Elves, one thing to note is that Dark Elves lack Priests but Wood Elves do not. Likewise the Wood Elves have some members that
believe in idols or Gods so to speak(likely powerful magical beasts and monsters). Dark Elf society however completely lacks both idols, notions of Gods,
and so on but instead has a belief of Fairies of some sort instead alongside elemental usage, Druids, and so forth.
That does not attest to much but it could suggest a divergence in approach - if Decem's father really was Alah Alaf, then that would imply he learned of the
utility of Priest magic AFTER his time in the Theocracy's foundation, and spread that to the Wood Elves to some extent, or at least tacitly allowed the
worship of Gods-that or by cultural exchange Priest classes developed in the Elven Kingdom. It's interesting how the notion of there
being no Priests or Clerics among the Dark Elves comes up as a difference (one of the ELves Ainz interviews is a Priest)
. Effectively they are a Druid only culture versus the Wood elves who have both Druids and Clerics. Now did the Wood Elves copy the idea of Prists from Slaine
but used different gods? Or did the Elf learn Priest magic while enslaved? Given how Ainz questions the strange prayers of the captured Elf man, to Ziggy
it seems likely that the Elf capital at least could have Priests as the requirements are met there without a Great God figure.
The point here seems to be you can worship anything(be it Cthulu monsters in lakes to Isekaied MMO Players to use Priest Divine magic). It's a bit funny how
there are two Cthullu style monsters in forests related to Decem's father however. Were they mercenary monsters he summoned or something? That introduces an
interesting new origin for these monsters - he might have used them to bait out strong opponents to see how strong the New World was similar to ideas about
the Evil Gods being used by Slaine centuries later. It's worth noting the lizardmen worship their ancestors and acquired Druid magic - Lizardman culture
being the closest to Dark Elf culture.
=======================
The way he was using his slaves was not so much trap finding as having her
serve as a canary in a mine. Eruya’s team was composed of himself and three Elf
slaves with skills different from his — a ranger, a priest and a druid. Giving such
an order to someone like her, who possessed irreplaceable searching skills, was
too much of a waste.
[V7]
“...Are you sure you’re really okay? Did you hit your head really hard when you
got sent flying? Shouldn’t you get yourself checked out by a Cleric?...or would it
be a Druid here? That magical beast might have had some kind of special ability.”
[V15]
It seemed like the Elven capital (the only place the Elves could call a city as they
were not a populous race) was the only settlement that was constructed in a place
without the forest’s cover, on the shore of a crescent-shaped lake. The “seemed
like” was added because these elves never visited the capital and only heard about
it from others.
They could establish that city on a plain because there was a giant monster in the
lake that captured and ate any large monsters that came nearby.
[V15]
They started preparing to wake the guy up after letting him down on the bed. Ainz
looked around the room, trying to find the object he saw when he entered it.
It was a weird (at least he didn’t find it ordinary) wooden sculpture with a bulging
stomach that looked like the cross between a mole and a frog. They didn’t find any
such animals in the few days they had spent in the forest. Maybe it was a mythical
beast from Elven mythology and legends. Ainz took that sculpture into his hands.
As I expected, it’s wood. But...it’s heavier than I expected. Not bad...but if it ends
up killing him...well, there’s nothing I can do about that
It’s very unlikely that they would suspect Ainz’s involvement even if they started a
murder investigation.
Upon seeing Ainz with the sculpture, the twins carried the elf under the shelf where
the sculpture was.
After Ainz gave them a nod, the two went first into the [Gate]. Ainz followed them
and stopped just in front of it.
He then threw the strange sculpture into the air
[V15]
“...Wait a minute”
Ainz stopped before he could activate [Greater Teleportation] as he heard the
suspicion in the elf’s voice.
Did he notice something? Maybe not pinned on us, but still that there’s an intruder?
Was there some kind of monitoring equipment — magic item here because it’s a
shop? I didn’t find any though...
“...Is Tsungoga-sama trying to tell me something?”
Tsungoga-sama? I don’t remember any such monsters in YGGDRASIL...
“Tsungoga-sama. Tsungoga-sama. Please speak if there’s anything I should know”
The elf kneeled on the floor, his head to the ground and the sculpture in his hands
held high. That was the model pose of devotion a highly religious person would
take.
...so it’s just the native religion? That aside, why does this guy talk to himself
so much? Is he intentionally doing this because he thinks that there’s someone
around? Or is he just simply praying to this god called Tsungoga?
[V15]
========================
Dark Elf culture, being where he started however, lacking Gods makes sense if he passed on his common sense as an Earthling in a time before tier magic
created power from belief. This may be why Elders hold power in Dark Elf society as that was the model he passed on to them. But most of all this might
also explain why the Druids of the Dark Elf village have a Rite Master rather than a Master Druid - the name of the title possibily reflecting their
original role as spiritual leaders and managers of rites of passage and so on rather than magic casters(at least in title). If you consider Decem's fahter
came alone 700 years ago, and tier magic didnt' exist then, he likely wouldn't pass along knowledge about gods and the like as a MMO gamer.
Now why Fae instead of something else seems strange but many faiths used to be grounded on spiritual ideas like that including Shintoism, American
animism, and so forth before the massive cult creations of the Bronze age going forward. As we can tell from the exposition, someone taught the Dark Elves
about the trail of fey, and going by the postulation Decem's father was involved with them, one possibility is he had a class related to the fey or
used them to explain some of his abilities. It's tough to say why this idea came into being and what role he had - Ziggy's suspicsion is it was a way
to hand wave his MMO powers in an era before tier magic was wide spread.
It probably extends to their world view of how trees and ancestor worship are linked concepts(a form of totemism).
As a tangent recall as well the Lizardmen worship their ancestors and were Druids not Priests. The main difference we see between Dark Elves, Elves, and
Lizardmen is Lizardmen have more direct ancestor worship, with Shaman job classes. Wood Elves, at least in Decem's case, lean more toward basic Druid
and High Druid classes. Dark Elves are probably similar to Decem's build(given the possible connection of Decem's father and the Dark Elves). As most
Dark Elves and Wood Elves use Elf Tree magic, and Decem appeared ot live in one as well, that might explain why most of them have no notion of shamans in
their culture.
Elves = generalized Druids(HIGH DRUID)
Lizardmen = specialized in summoning(SPIRIT SHAMAN)
==============
. The Lizardmen did not worship any gods, and strictly speaking, their
faith lay in their ancestors
[V4]
“…What’s wrong?”
Zaryusu was baffled by Crusch’s lingering hand.
“—Eh? Ah, that… It was a prayer. A priest’s prayer.”
“I see, so your ancestor spirits watch over those of other tribes, then?”
“The spirits of our tribe are not so petty. Good luck.”
Crusch apologized internally to her ancestors as she peeled her hand off
Zaryusu’s shoulders, because she had lied about praying to them for the victory
of the male she favored.
[V4]
Of course, there were some Lizardmen who stood outside this hierarchy.
First, there were the priests — more of druids, actually — who predicted
upcoming danger by forecasting the weather or aiding the tribe with curative
magic
[V4]
“We druids have spells which can temporarily enchant weapons…”
“…Can you defend against mental attacks, then?”
“We can improve resistance to such attacks, but protecting everyone’s minds
is beyond me.”
“I see… can all priests cast spells like that?”
“Almost any priest can bolster resistances, but I’m the only one in my tribe
who can ward against confusion.”
Crusch realized that Zaryusu’s breathing was somewhat ragged. It would
seem he had realized that Crusch’s position was not for show.
Indeed, Crusch Lulu was a veteran druid, and her powers were probably in
excess of any other High Priest among the Lizardmen.
[V4]
The Head Warriors had led their men into the bloody fray, but now they were
gradually being forced back. Just as they thought the line of battle would
eventually break, the ground before them swelled.
Before them appeared two armless and legless lumps of mud, around one
hundred sixty centimeters tall.
The two clumps of mud began moving.
They had no legs, but they moved adroitly and smoothly over the wetlands,
towards the Beast Zombies. After closing the distance, the mud-clumps sprouted
whips that were longer than them from the places where a human’s arms would
have been.
This was one of the trump cards of the Lizardmen, the Swamp Spirits
summoned by the combined efforts of all the priests
[V4]
Krusch
Druid Lv.8
Spirit Shaman Lv.5
Summoner Lv.2
[V4]
Zenberu is 16, Zaryusu is 18, Sharyusu and Crusch are 17. Crusch is a Druid
however, her magic system is concentrated in Shaman Magic Jobs so her direct
combat ability is lower.
Shaman is a Job that excels as a summoning type so it is not a spotlight role.
Crusch is a Lv. 5 Druid, Lv. 5 Shaman, Lv. 7 Spirit Shaman.
[ARC]
Decem
Druid Lv.?
High Druid Lv.?
Summoner Lv.?
[V16]
“The Trail of the Fey? Isn’t that supposed to be just a legend?”
Someone among the dark elves surrounding them asked.
“...Things like the Moon’s Road and the Trail of the Fey do exist” Although, they’re
inside Nazarick’s sixth floor, Aura added internally. “But I can’t talk in detail about
these things with people who are not chosen by the Fey”
“Fufu. Sorry then. Fio...no, is it fine to call you Aura-dono?”
The female elder’s eyes were burning with passion. The answer was already
decided. Although Aura didn’t really want to, she couldn’t refuse her considering
her master’s orders.
[V15]
“So Aura-dono is also a Dark Elf chosen by the Fey. That’s splendid...Most of the
people in this village are not chosen. That’s why they don’t know how we — the
Dark Elves who lived in the North traveled to this place”
...Dark elves came here using the Trail of the Fey? Does it have an ability like that?
The Trail of the Fey inside Nazarick couldn’t teleport people over that big of a
distance. They were either mistaking it for something else or maybe there was an
entirely different Trail of the Fey.
[V15]
“The Sawtooth Oak...what kind of tree is it? The fact that he used that name back
there, what in the world could it possibly mean?
At the meeting they immediately held upon their return, Peach asked that question while he grimaced. Raspberry,
with a similarly sour expression on his face,
answered.
“No idea, but do you really think we could just ask him that right then and there?...If
it meant the sacred tree that his tribe uses for ancestor worship or in rituals, wouldn’t
he think that he had been insulted if we said we didn’t know what kind of tree it
was?” Heaving a sigh, Strawberry grumbled
[V16]
===============
For instance, as a Fencer he might have had Blink teleportation or the like and used the Trail of Fey to explain his ability(keep in mind
he may have been in a pre Tier magic New World). Another possibility is it is
related to the strange teleporation ability Decem had - to teleport directly to his elemental(spirit). This is a strange power but Dryads, another type of
forest spirit, can also 'teleport' through trees in a similar way in fact in some settings and games.
Either possibility seems likely, but given Cure Elim used
anti teleportation wild magic, and so did Tsa, one of the Greed Kings(or other famous Player) was likely a teleporting scum bag like Ainz. Given the
possibility that Decem's father had a teleportation ability and back stabbed Surshana, the possibility exists he was a honest to goodness backstabber that
literally backstabbed criticaled enemies - passing on ambush critical hitting enemies. The reoccuring joke here is Decem's fahter was continuously shady
be it his own fighting tactics(which it seems he passed on to the elves in the form of bushwhacking) to even how he fought Dragon Lords (teleport 'Nothing
Purse-an-all kid' stabbing kaiju Dragon Lords).
====================
Solution shouted from her place in front of Lupusregina, but her voice could
not reach the ears of Yuri and the Evil Lord, who were inside the cyclone. Yuri
in particular was shifting desperately within the cyclone to avoid being blown
away. While certain classes could use spells or special abilities to teleport or go
incorporeal and thus escape the cyclone easily, she did not seem to possess such
abilities.
[V13]
“I am not planning on anything that warrants your opposition. It’s just, if we can
learn how she received the Fey Blessing, maybe we can get ours back as well”
Ainz felt like the Fey they were talking about were not racial beings, but something
closer to spirits. YGGDRASIL also had the concept of the Fey Blessing. Maybe
the native Fey of this world had such abilities naturally.
It’s also possible that they were building into classes similar to Seelie court and
Unseelie court. Those classes should have a special teleportation ability similar to
the Trail of the Fey if he remembered correctly.
[V15]
In contrast to Cure Elim, who was laughing merrily, Ainz took a stance as
though to show off his crystal.
“Hmph, is that the source of your confidence? — I will not let you flee again!”
A thin, membranous substance expanded and seemed to cover the entire
mountain. It was massive, and looked to have an area measured in kilometers.
While he did not know its official name, Suzuki Satoru knew its effects.
It was a teleportation-blocking barrier. It was the first Wild Magic spell that
the Brightness Dragon Lord had used.
In other words — things had gone as he had anticipated.
However, it would be troublesome if it only looked the same, but was
something else entirely.
[KBA]
The World-Separating Wall it had opened with simply interfered
with teleportation through it. Teleportation was possible as long as the start and
end points were both inside the barrier. He could have simply teleported to the
edge of the barrier and then walked right through the barrier itself.
[KBA]
=======================
As an aside, an older theory was Imina(a Japanese name) was related to Decem Hougan a possible Player descendant(before the reveals of Volume 15 and 16)
given her character sheet(her father
was still alive and she was humiliated in a body of water). However, if we take it that all pale elves are descended from Decem's father, then with this
new theory her lack of a family name along with her classes of Rogue and Bushwhacker could of been signs she is actually a Dark Elf not a Wood Elf. That
does not explain her reaction to Aura's different colored eyes - though that applies to Wood Elves too. Her birthday however does not match Decem's style
of birth day - instead using the Theocracy birth day system. Given Decem's birthday however, it's odd why Imina has that birthday to begin with.
What matters here is Imina has a Japanese name, though Ziggy leans a bit more toward her father was a Theocracy slave or during the period 100+ years ago
before Decem's rape she was one of the rare half elf spawn in the cultural exchange between the two nations.
===========
Seeing his heterochromic eyes, Imina let out a gasp of surprise.
“—Ah!”
[V8]
Ranger Lv. ?
Rogue Lv. ?
Bushwhacker Lv. ?
{ personal character }
A half-elf with a human mother and an elven father. Her father is still alive and well. She
was born with a Talent that made it easier for her to float and harder for her to drown (not
that it would completely protect her from drowning). However, she hated swimming
because she was once greatly humiliated when she was attacked by a monster near a body
of water
[V8]
===========
Some evidence of a cultural understanding of basic mundane medicine is how Dark Elves
actually use stretchers to transport the injured rather than agravate injuries.
As well as Pharmacist(non magical) being a respected position in their culture. We take these ideas for granted but most cultures in the New World
do not practice such things - and the Dark Elves are rare in they value potions and medicines a great deal and do not overly rely on divine magic. The
New World is also a place that frowns upon surgery after all however. It might not mean anything but it could reflect basic Earth common sense for moving
the injured despite the New World beings being far stronger than Earth life forms.
===================
He was carried away on a stretcher made from two wooden poles and rope.
[V15]
And yet, the reason this had not developed into a total conflict between them was
because the four people in this village they deeply respected — the Master of the
Hunt, Blueberry Egnia, the Chief Pharmacist, and the Rite Master — did not wish
to oppose the elders.
[V16]
=====================
The notion of bows is worth mentioning because despite Elf Trees being so valuable, Dark Elves have their own style of bows as well as some
older ones made of metal that not even the strongest Dark Elves can use(due to degradation). It's suspect how the Elves have two sets of bows unique to
them compared to just other Elves. How they are different however is never mentioned. If Decem's father really influenced the Dark Elves however, perhaps
they were made in imitation of the bow Decem inherited from his father - thus they are bows inspired by YGGDRASIL (and possibly modern bows).
Ziggy mentioned this early but he pictures these 'Dark Elven style bows' as modern composite compound bows made of metal. There is no illustration however
the description mentions creaking parts and Ziggy suspects the Dark Elf elders who make oil did not learn to apply such oil to maintain these bows like they
should have been taught. They were taught to make the oil but not the purpose behind it. This is important because if this innovation came about 700 years
ago then its before magical enchantment so weapon maintenance would have to be mundane. How Decem's father knew about bow technology is a mystery but if he
couldn't craft it he could of descreibed the basic design to Dark Elves to create by trial and error.
It's especially strange given Dark Elves know of Dwarves but speak of them as unrelated to their own bows. Likely the bows don't come from Dwarves as they
also lack runes of course, but it's unknown if the humans in the area or other races were using bows like the Dark Elves. Aura implies the bows have many
moving parts, so as compound bows they would be closer to modern compound bows with pulley wheels and so on(like modern hunting bows). There is no
illustration but Dark Elf style and Royal Elf style bows could just be pulley compound bows reinvented by Decem's father in his spare time
over the centuries. This could also explain why Ainz didn't mention the bow as being valuable and why Decem's father had a bow to begin with - he had it
made it from his knowledge of Earth. Once the anime comes out we will be able to say for certain if they are the same style or not and
connect them to Decem's father. Look forward to seeing if the two bows match in design or not!
The shared feature of Dark Elf style bows and Decem's father's bow is they are oversized for little girls and do not appear to be enchanted and cannot resize.
Yet Decem and
the Dark Elfs insist that no one else knows how to make them. They could be data crystal-less bows from the game but Ainz would of probably mentioned
that, so the other possibility seems more likely - they were bows made in this world without enchantments. If Decem's father came 700 years ago then
it might make sense why he would take a stab at making bows with modern techniques(he did not pass it down or the people who used ot make them
died out in some tragedy after only being passed down orally as with the word of mouth of Pharmacy techniques).
===========================
From what they said, it seemed like the Elves could change the shape of trees using
druid magic. Like creating cavities inside the trees or shaping bridges between
trees. An Elf village was just a place where tens of those structures were bunched
up together.
This method of making things out of Elf Trees seemed to be at the core of Elven
culture. Not just homes or furniture, they could also create weapons and armor out
of it. It was possible to make the arrows they used for hunting to be as hard as iron.
[V15]
“Not clothes, since we also make them from Elf Trees”
“Homes, arrows...and even clothes. Looks like Elven druid magic is very convenient.
You can’t do that, right Mare?
[V15]
There sat a girl of around 8 years old who looked even younger than her age would
suggest, as Elves tended to’
She was sitting on a small chair on top of a slight incline, holding a bow too large
for her’ There was a quiver beside the chair with a few arrows poking out of it’
...
First, the bow.
It was the weapon of an opponent who managed to stop the Theocracy’s army by
herself. It should be something good.
...
Retrieving the weapons he gave to his failed creation was certainly not a waste of
time — he should in fact be praised for it. The gear he gave her were things he
received from his father, things that no one else could make. He could not let them
fall into the hands of humans who couldn’t understand their value.
[V15]
Egnia threw aside the Dark Elf-style compound bow and emptied both his hands.
These bows were the treasures of the Dark Elves. The materials used to make
them were not from this forest, but were taken from the land where they once lived.
There were few spare parts to repair them with, and they could never be made
again. He would probably be reprimanded by the Elders for treating one so roughly.
However, he didn’t have the time to carefully store it away.
[V15]
Aura stood holding a bow, at a place some distance away from the village. Made of
metal, it was far more burly than the ones the Dark Elves normally used.
It was also taller than Aura.
Aura drew and loosed the string repeatedly, making the bow screech. It was a
greatbow that originally belonged to the village, one that even the strongest of them
weren’t able to draw. The Dark Elves initially widened their eyes when they saw a
child draw it so effortlessly, but they also immediately made expressions that said
they had come to terms with it.
“The way this was stored leaves a lot to be desired. It’s making all these sounds
because parts of it have deteriorated, you know? Is this why no one was able to
draw it? Hnnn, it feels unstable. I wonder if the arrow will really go where I aim it
at. . . ”
[V15]
“These are metal knives created by dwarves, you see? Splendid, right? I heard that
you make some very strong ones here from trees using magic but they probably
aren’t stronger than metal, right? These are made by dwarves who are especially
good at smithing. They are first-rate stuff.”
...
“Can I take a look?”
“Please, please. Go ahead and feel it in your hands”
Approaching Ainz, he first reached for the arrowheads. A natural choice. He would
be a little surprised if the Master of the Hunt reached for the cleaver first instead.
“Splendid work. I heard the Dwarves are a race that live in the mountains, so they
really can make such fine things... These are valuable goods, correct? What could
be a good barter for this ...”
[V16]
==========================
A funny anecdote is how Dark Elves view bears - especially Ankylursi. The problem being they view magical beasts like normal bears while other New Worlders
treat Hamsuke as distinct from a vermin hamster rodent - they often do not equate normal ecology to magical creatures.
The trope of bears loving honey only further stands out when Dark Elves also view Ankylursi as
very specific about their food. It would be funny if this earth trope was passed down from a Player after all. This could just be Maruyama making a mistake
but something feels strange about it to Ziggy.
This is a very strange observation but it does not quite match the New World so Ziggy can only think someone taught them Earth stereotypes. Given the
Ankylursus lord's intenral thoughts nothing about honey came up so it feels like the Dark Elves were operating off a misplaced stereotype at least.
It could also just be a shout out to Maruyama's university friend Honey who helped him as he thanks this person in the after words at times.
============
“I battled the Wise King of the Forest, and tamed it. Oi, come out.”
They could all see the pearly white fur of the Wise King of the Forest as it
emerged from the trees. The Swords of Darkness gathered around Nfirea,
shocked expressions on their faces as they all took a step back with weapons
raised.
Well, it’s huge, even if it’s a Djungarian Hamster…
Though it had cute round eyes, its massive body was still a fearsome sight, and
it was only natural that these adventurers should be wary on behalf of the client
they were escorting. With that in mind, Ainz decided to calmly say:
“Be at ease, everyone. I have subdued it, so it will not lash out wildly and hurt
people.”
Then, he approached the Wise King of the Forest, and made a show of patting
its furry body.
“It is as milord says; this Wise King of the Forest is loyal to milord, and is
milord’s faithful servant. This one swears to milord that this one will not
inconvenience thee, fine gentlemen!”
In this way, the Wise King of the Forest displayed its loyalty to Ainz.
Perhaps they were on guard because of its vast size, but since it was a cute
Djungarian Hamster to begin with, they would probably stop being on edge once
they got used to it. The problem was how to make everyone think it was the true
Wise King of the Forest. That was the only thing Ainz had no idea how to
accomplish.
And then, things developed in a completely unexpected direction.
“…So this is the Wise King of the Forest! Unbelievable! What a majestic
beast!”
—What?
Ainz looked back and forth between Ninya and the Wise King of the Forest,
checking to see if Ninya was making fun of him, but Ninya seemed to be entirely
serious.
“…Wow, the Wise King of the Forest… so the legends really were true! I can
feel its mighty presence just standing before it!” Dyne gasped
[V2]
I also want to thank my university friend Honey, who helped me correct many
contradictory and confusing parts of the book. I will need your help in the
future as well.
[V1]
Also, to my university friend Honey — thanks for this time too.
[V2]
Honey, thanks for your feedback. I changed it immediately.
[V3]
Honey, thank you for the edits and I am grateful for all the cracks you made.
Cleaning up really is troublesome.
[V4]
Also, thank you for all your help, Honey.
[V5]
Also, thanks for all your help,
Honey
[V6]
In addition, thank you for everything you’ve done, Honey.
[V7]
In
addition, many thanks to Honey, who spotted a major mistake
[V8]
And to Honey who, as a father, said “children are
amazing” at the scene with Marquis Raeven, thank you very much, as always.
[V9]
Also to Honey, my friend from
my student days, thank you as always
[V10]
Thank you for checking the manuscript, Honey.
[V11]
There were many gourmets among the Ankyloursus. They were omnivorous, but
they had particular foods they preferred to eat. If Dark Elves satisfied its discerning
tastes, they had to abandon this village, and even if they did that, it didn’t mean
that it wouldn’t pursue them. Therefore, they should lead it away and separate it
from the village
[V15]
“That’s right! ’ursi have a disposition similar to a bear’s. They probably like honey,
too! We’ll smear it on the meat too and hand it — “
[V15]
=============
A more substantial idea is a unique product in Dark Elf culture - oil. It's flammable but they actually have little use for it.
One idea is it was used for weapon maintenance, but in a world with magical lanterns and the like, it does stand at odds with magical engineering. As they
lack Arcane magic however, it's not impossible why they would rely on oil. As a soceity that can now use Fire Elementals however it would make some
sense why they found it obsolete though. If Dark Elf culture is rooted in tradition it might explain why they even lack enchanted gear for the most
part though that could just be Arcane magic tends to enchant stuff easier.
What's strange is how it's the Elders who make the oil mainly(suggesting it's a traditional craft of some sort). It could just be something used before
tier magic existed as well, but it's difficult to say why they make it with how it's not used often. As Ziggy mentioned earlier it makes more sense
the Dark Elf elders still make it due to tradition but it's intended purpose is weapon maintenance but it can be used for flames. This might be hidden
knowledge because of a fear of starting forest fires however too. Ziggy personally thinks the intended use of the oil was the unenchanted bows.
================
“...it’s oil.”
When Egnia muttered that, puzzled looks appeared on the Rangers around him for
a moment, but they instantly grasped his intentions.
“That’s it! We can douse it with oil and set it on fire using a fire elemental!”
“It’s got that huge body. It’ll be difficult for it to avoid the oil!”
“We’ll summon water elementals at the same time to make sure the flames don’t
spread!”
There wasn’t much oil in the village. It’s not as if it was difficult to come by.
Because its uses were limited, it was one of the goods they didn’t purposefully
store.
[V15]
“Aah. You were right, we are going to the elders’ place now. We need not have
walked if the elders were present with us there, but they were preparing oil inside
their Elf Tree
[V15]
==============
The most humourous irony however in all of these is how in Dark Elven culture the elders were raised for the elders to take responsibility yet Decem showed
a clear disdain for all under him - perhaps a divergence in mentality of Decem's father over the centuries? This more closely matches the thematic motif
of Overlord as depicted in all the anime songs about losing control as one drowns in power and so on.
The irony here is how Decem's belief is what the younger generation believes in but is detrimental for the survival against stronger threats - meanwhile
a powerful entity like Ainz can be pacified by respect and formalism - and him being Japanese only further enhances the effect - making him feel welcome.
This is noticed most prevalently in how Ainz treats the older and younger generation and how the younger dark elves figure been applying etiqutte for the
same reasons it is used by the Japanese.
It's worth noting that as Dark Elf culture vaguely resembles Japanese culture this might explain why even Ainz lapsed in judgement as the master of Nazarick.
===========
While Raspberry and Strawberry were concluding things, Peach looked sullen.
“I don’t mind that, but should we call out to the youngsters to be careful? That lot
are the type to disregard the traditions, and so they might unwittingly insult his
tribe.”
“Hmmmm.” The two other elders also looked sullen now.
“This isn’t the time to be saying things like, ‘are we at fault for not drilling it into
them, even if we had to invoke our power as the Council of Elders, after all?’ now
is it? The uncle of Aura-dono, the one who easily repelled the ‘Ursus Lord. I have
no doubt that he is reasonably apt. I don’t want to be glared at by a person like
that.”
“Be that as it may, do you really think those simpletons would honestly agree with
anything we had to say? For now, we’ll just warn them, and if they were to make
some blunder, the only thing that could be done then would be for us to. . . take the
blame, wouldn’t it? Frankly, I don’t want to have anything to do with that, but even
so, we are the elders, aren’t we. . . ”
“We have to take responsibility. . . huh. I guess that can’t be helped. . . ”
[V16]
“The king? Is it fine for you to be here? Aren’t the humans attacking? Why won’t
you immediately go over there and save your people”
“[Mana Essence]...I see.”
Even Decem’s mana was quite high for this world’s denizens. It was about the
same as Shalltear’s.
HP and MP. Taking Elven culture into account, he most likely had the same class
as Mare, a druid. A backline druid, to be specific.
“Why should I do something like that? Seems like you are misunderstanding what
being a king means. A king is someone who should be venerated as a supreme
existence by his people, not someone who works for them. Mercy is the only thing
the superiors give to those inferior. Understood? And mercy can only be pleaded
for, not demanded. They should be satisfied even if they don’t receive it.
[V16]
The benefits to Nazarick should be greater by doing things that way, even Ainz
understood that much. It wouldn’t have been hard to accomplish by causing MPKs.
In spite of that, the reason they hadn’t done that was —
— Because I didn’t want to.
Life in this village had been unexpectedly fun. Setting fire to this kind of village
with his own hands felt distasteful to him for some reason or another.
That would be a very natural feeling to have. Nobody would want to do something
they didn’t want to do. However, that was an absolutely unforgivable excuse as the
absolute ruler of the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick. The one who was the
head of an organization should prioritize the benefits of the organization
[V16]
==============
For something of tangential interest is the difference between Decem and the Dark Elves in how they incorporate gardens inside their homes. The dark
elves use these gardens to grow food, however Decem had something like an internal field filled with dirt with what appeared to be internal lighting.
That might seem strange to us, however if his father grew up in dystopian Earth, it makes sense to him that having internal gardens just made sense, that
or he took up gardening as a hobby at some point along with apothecary work and so on,
especially in dangerous forests. Decem however used his as a boss arena of some sort, and to detect intruders into his home due to his connection to Behemoth.
The more likely explanation was Decem was taught to make such gardens but not the reason why and so he invented a reason for such a room to exist. This is
not unlike how the Dark Elf elders invented a meaning for the random words they used as part of etiquette. That might just be Ziggy's head canon however.
Likewise Decem's father may have been the progenitor of Dark Elven Pharmaceuticals though it remains to be seen how likely that is. Maybe given he lived
for so long he used his free time to explore new ideas like gardening, crafting and the like. Ainz after all now does the same with all his spare time
and it has not even been a decade yet into the Calicum Era.
=========
The lump of dirt conformed to the man’s manipulation without delay and climbed
to the top of the tree, which Ainz couldn’t see from where he stood.
That was probably the soil the Dark Elves used in their household vegetable gardens.
The Dark Elves had vegetable gardens using planters that they built either inside or
on top of the trees. Even though the planters themselves were made from the trees,
he had wondered how they had transported the soil up to them, this seemed to be
[V16]
They climbed the floors without getting discovered. Upon reaching the floor of
their destination, Aura raised her voice with a hint of suspicion.
“What is this place even?”
The entire ceiling, which was about 15 meters high, was filled with lights covering
all of its surfaces. There weren’t any windows around so there was no doubt that it
was done through some kind of magic.
But, it wasn’t bright enough to be called dazzling.
Ainz moved his body a little to try and see if he received any debuffs.
It would appear that this was not the kind of light the priests would use that
negatively affected the undead. Considering that this was the Elven Country, it was
probably some divine magic related to the druids.
The phenomenon itself wasn’t that weird. After all, Nazarick’s sixth floor was
similar. Even Arcane magic and Psychic magic had light-emitting spells after all,
but the lack of secondary effects made it hard to know which type of magic this
light belonged to.
But that was not what made Aura raise her voice. It was the thing directly opposite
the ceiling, the floor —
— which was completely covered with soil.
Most of the floor, free of any walls or partitions and about a hundred meters wide
in every direction, was covered by soil
...
“...M-maybe they planned to cultivate vegetables and stuff if they ever need to hole
up in the castle...”
Aura raised an “ah” in agreement with Mare’s hypothesis. Ainz agreed as well.
It was possible for druids to cultivate crops here even though there wasn’t any
sunlight coming in. Maybe this light substituted for real sunlight to grow plants
here.
Though the area Aura kicked over was shallow, it was near the edge. It was possible
that the soil further in was deep enough to grow plants.
[V16]
==========
Now in terms of sitting culture, Decem seemed to have taught his daughter to sit in a chair while in the Dark Elf village this seemed to be dependent on
other factors. IT's too vague to clarify much however. Likewise Decem used a bed meanwhile Wood Elves used leaves. What's strange is how Decem's daughter
was clearly more an Archer than a Ranger, not fighting like a Bushwhacker at all(just waiting in position in a chair itself) instead of on a tree branch
like how Dark Elves fight - Decem being her teacher likely resulted in her not using the more traditional Ranger tactics.
In retrospect clearly Decem's daughter was sitting on some Behemoth dirt(likely as a way for Decem to keep an eye on her) but she didn't sit on the ground
like most Elves seem to do.
The conclusion Ziggy thinks was intended here by Maruyama was traditionally people sat on chairs in Dark Elf culture (if we assume Time Turbulence's
outfit came from Allah Alaf and Decem's father he seems to have roleplayed as a fancy dandy or the like). As someone from Earth his father might not have
liked the idea of eating food off the floor people walked on like Ainz. That is mostly conjecture however.
=============
The Holocaust Scripture’s vice-captain, Schoen, tried looking ahead of him while
he hid behind the scattered trees’
There sat a girl of around 8 years old who looked even younger than her age would
suggest, as Elves tended to’
She was sitting on a small chair on top of a slight incline, holding a bow too large
for her’ There was a quiver beside the chair with a few arrows poking out of it
[V15]
As if she were greeting Ainz, the woman bowed her head once, turned her gaze to
the floor, entered the room, and placed the dish she had brought with her on the
floor.
The Dark Elves wore shoes even when inside the Elf Trees, because of that, he
had some personal reservations about the tray of food being placed on the floor.
That said, given that the Dark Elves sat on the floor when they ate — as far as Ainz
had seen, less than half of the people here used a table — this might have been the
natural thing to do.
[V16]
“Come to my room later. I will give you another chance”
Decem started walking without waiting for a reply. He should get these weapons to
the treasury first.
After he returned from the treasury, Decem washed off the dirt from the battlefield
and laid on the bed in his room
[V15]
After [God’s Eye] passed through the wall, it flew up until it found elves sleeping
on the third floor.
He found a father, mother, and two boys sleeping there. It seemed like this house
belonged to a family.
I already heard about this but...how primitive...
The four of them were sleeping soundly on a large amount of leaves collected in
what was supposedly a bedroom. Human villages also used dried grass in place of
a mattress so maybe this was similar to that.
According to the elves in Nazarick, this was what a normal Elven bedroom looked
like. Although it took a lot of work to collect a large amount of leaves, they could
be used for a long time without any issues. When he asked them about being bitten
by insects, they replied that a spell was cast on the leaves to prevent that
[V15]
========================
On the topic of children, possibly the Dark Elf children games may have been passed down from Decem's father as well though there are only so many types of
children games you can come up with.
============
“Hold on, what about Playing House?”
The smallest girl murmured.
The three oldest boys looked a little reluctant.
...
“You were Playing House by yourself.”
“That wasn’t Playing House! I was playing Dark Elf Heroes!”
The children’s conversation shifted to a discussion of what the difference between
Playing House and playing Dark Elf Heroes was
[V16]
============
The last remeaning details concern the Elf City. The way its described sounds like trees, but Satoru, or Ainz notes that it actually almost feels like
a city from dystopian Earth of the 2130s. Did Decem's father plan for that, or was that city environment he found most comfortable, him longing for
Earth culture after centuries? It's hard to say why someone would miss that world given how Maruyama describes it but maybe he was somewhat successful
there and so his life wasn't as bad?
=======================
He already understood how far the Theocracy’s army had advanced. Next, he had
to collect information in the Elven Royal Capital.
The space before him opened up gradually.
Elven houses were made from short and stout trees called Elf Trees and the Royal
Capital where a large number of them were gathered looked like a forest. The
construction was the same as in any other Elven village, but it was especially
striking when they were gathered in such large numbers. Maybe it was because
they were denser in the capital, but it was overwhelming enough to pressure even
him. Ainz felt like avoiding the place because it reminded him of his former
gray-tinted world.
[V15]
=====================
If we analyze all of these details in conjunction it's possible to see a connection between the Dark Elves, Slaine and the Wood Elves. it also is a giga
brain move by Maruyama where these three different culture were all influenced by the same Player(???, Allah Alaf, ??? Hougan) in three different eras
and they became entangled centuries later. It's funny to think another Player went by several other names just like Momonga goes by Ainz now and his other
aliases as well.
What do you think? Ziggy always likes theories that expand the scope of knowledge and having even tiny fragments
of 700 years ago is really fascinating even if it may not be true. The idea that the Allah Alf theory can be combined with this theory though is a bit
too giga brain even for Ziggy! We'll see if any more hints come out in the next volumes.
It's very clever actually to reveal so much about Decem's father this way because we see a gradual change in his demeanor over the centuries as well -
both Dark Elves and Slaine value the lives of the community and even pass on dying for saving others but at some point possibly due to Decem's father getting
older he stopped valuing this idea and we see how selfish Decem became not caring for his nation or people at all. The tricky part is he did care but...
something happened and he changed. Given how he taught the Dark Elves but then passed on a mentality of summoning to the Sunlight scripture we see a pattern
where he teaches people things that are practical but hides his own powers and techniques(not encouraging fencing in either culture). Even for his own
child he passed on Summoning over Fencing. The implication here might be just as Decem could not cope with pain Decem's father might actually not have
been good at managing pain and hence why he taught cowardly or more safe ways to fight. This cowardly nature might even explain why he betrayed Surshana -
why fight and die when you can just change sides and not deal with any pain?
Another reason he betrayed Surshana could be Allah Alaf wanted to use Five Elements Overcoming to bring tier magic into the world but Surshana might have
wanted to preserve the pact with the Dragon Lords SLAINE made. Given how the Greed Kings then went to war with the Dragon Lords, Surshana might have
anticipated the Dragon Lords would not accept Tier magic on a wide scale - likely due to how they think tier magic Players use as vile already. Thus we might
be able to say that the Slaine propaganda was not propaganda at all - the Greed Kings did take the power of the Great Gods but one of them was both a
Great God and a Greed King and it was his own world class item to begin with? Or maybe one of the other God's world class items? What matters is that one
piece of the legend might actually be true but the plot twist was one of the Great Gods was also one of the Greed Kings.
===================
“In ancient myths — little more than legends — there was mention of beings
known as the Eight Greed Kings. They were known as people who had stolen the
power of gods, and the tales speak of how they once ruled this world with that
absolute power.”
[V5]
====================
With how isolated Decem was, perhaps Decem's father was waiting for all the Greed Kings to die to start a world domination conquest with his bloodline. It's
not ever explained if Decem's ambitions was his father's or not - though probably over time Decem's father came to value that bloodline and eugenics does
in fact matter in the New World for power level, what you can learn no matter what you think on Earth. Part of his demeanor could be because of how he
saw Elves could master crafts over centuries easier than shorter lived races(the same applies for Dwarves). Though he could just be racist. Ziggy
head canons he probably went from being the village head honcho to an actual God of a nation so naturally his ambitions escalated to world domination
over time, perhaps out of boredom. and the Dragon Lord war probably cemented his view of his own power. Perhaps Decem and other elf descendants were
seeds left by him thinking of eventually taking on the other Greed King's bloodlines for world control - hence why Decem was so sheltered.
Given he had centuries of experience in nation building at that point, perhaps he saw an opportunity to cull the Dragon Lords and also one up all the
other Greed Kings?
The ambition for world domination the ambition to bring tier magic into the world - with how autistic this man was about learning new techniques
perhaps he had some small hope of learning to master magic as well after centuries of mastering other crafts. The possible reasons behind his actions
of someone whose name we do not even know continue to elude us.
Let Ziggy what you think about this theory! It's pretty mind boggling but it makes sense no? Ziggy always likes theories that are both plausible and expand
the scope of Overlord! If it made you smile in a good or bad way or made you think deeper then this mini article did it's job.
Good bye for now until next time!
=========================
Sunday, December 10, 2023
[Article] The Anthropology of Knife Ears & Grape Allah Alaf Hougan
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