[Tin Foil Rambling] The Alah Alaf Theory Revisited
Ahoy hoy. It’s Ziggy!
How are you all my smol lads and ladettes?
Today Ziggy wants to revisit and update an older theory he’s talked about before. Now the reason this theory existed so long ago was at first just idle speculation. But it became reinforced over time as volumes came out.
That theory is the Alah Alaf God of Light theory.
Originally Alah Alaf was read literally to mean GOD ALF or GOD ELF. Coincidentally this is stylized like Decem’s title - ELF KING. Could just Maruyama’s naming sense however.
That’s the origin of the idea but it became strange why Slaine, a pro human nation would have an Elven God. But then again they also had an undead God. Anyway, there was very little lore back then. The main distinction is how they likely saw them as just Gods not as humans, undead, etc just like how they see angels as special.
With the Light Novels came new lore, things like Antilene created new mysteries. Then we learned about the Elven King, the Elf King Decem Hougan. The idea behind why Antilene was so much stronger than other Godkin stemmed in part also with the possibility she was the scion of two bloodlines awakening at the same time - her mother and her father’s.
The core idea was why or how did Decem even meet Antilene’s mother? How come World class items were never used to assassinate him? One thought was he was a Player descendant and just had a World class item.
These questions provoked new mysteries. Mistranslations did not help but they were valid questions. One possible answer at the time was Decem’s family was related to Alah Alaf(based on the Elf God theory), and so the Theocracy gave them special treatment and interactions with other Godkin. They even could plausibly explain the Elf King having a World class item if he was related to a Player.
Basically it made more sense given his boasts and these strange mysteries to assume he was a Player descendant of some sort. Few people expected him to be a Greed King descendant however. A few people however did point out the Sunlight Scripture uniforms did vaguely resemble suits with colors and color schemes, salaryman suits to be precise. Of note the Captain, Nigun, has a scarf that resembles a tie actually.
Of the Scriptures, the Sunlight Scripture culls demihumans using summons. That is the main specialization of their forces. They are basically the Scripture reinforcing racial bias.
As the anime came out we saw more and more Slaine outfits but that core motif of Alah Alaf and business suits stuck around a bit.
So how does that relate to the Alah Alaf elf theory?
The idea is if Decem’s father was a Greed King and southern culture had suits of various kinds, it was possible Decem’s father wore an outfit similar to a suit though not likely. If you factor in how he seemed to possibly give Decem advice to be a summoner and how to fight ‘elegantly’ (hands off), you can postulate he may have been an upper management sort of some company. Yet his son had a very racially biased view and a ethnic agenda. This came at the cost of him not desiring breeding with humans and also having an aversion to breed with Dark Elves.
That created an interesting connection though - Alah Alaf is thought to be an Elf in some theories strangely connected to summoners and business suits that are black and white, meanwhile Decem Hougan’s father also trained him to be a Summoner and as a Greed King he’s related to business suits and katanas. Decem and Antilene’s eyes are black and white and so likely the Greed King Elf had black and white eyes too. This is based on the idea royalty in Elven culture is related to heterochromia due to that being the outward expression of Awakening of the Elven Greed King’s lineage.
Things get stranger if you factor in Decem’s father was a Fencer. And among the Black Scripture that uses YGGDRASIL items, Time Turbulence the Second Seat uses a Black and White rapier. Decem also was strangely racially motivated though in a world with many races that isn’t very strange. He also seemed to cherish his bloodline.
Do you start to see the connection now?
That begged the question though - how in the world did one of the Six Great Gods become one of the Eight Greed Kings? A flaw of the Alah Alaf is an Elf theory was the Six Great Gods were said to all have perished, and an Elf would of outlived the human Players.
So how did history forget one of the Gods was an Elf? Well we learned also that the Theocracy didn’t used to be so militant against Elves, this was mainly due to Decem desecrating their bloodline of the Gods. What that proved was that Slaine’s history was subject to revision. And we also learn the Elven Greed King did in fact die from Decem.
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Even Decem himself would inevitably die if he turned Behemoth into his opponent. His father was probably the only one who could defeat Behemoth, but he was already dead. That meant that there was no one left who could.
[V16]
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The oral tradition is Surshana was slain by the Greed Kings. The circumstances are unknown and Maruyama teased it was a secret as to what happened.
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“I can’t deny what she’s seen any more. This is magic of the gods. Eleventhtier magic, I believe? That should be it.” “The advent of the gods.” “What’s written here is similar to the description of that god… is it possible he has descended from the heavens once more?” “Impossible. The oral traditions state that the God of Death, Surshana-sama, was slain by the damnable Eight Greed Kings. This must be something else. And if Surshana-sama had actually descended once more, that person would surely have told us. After all, that person is Surshana-sama’s first follower.”
[V10]
By the way, I will tell people that read the concluding part. The oral tradition he is talking about is quite convenient. Due to the passage of time, one part of history has been distorted or viewed as convenient stories in Overlord. In reality it is not expulsion but ’killed/beat to death’. Therefore it is assuredly a Grave Sin. Ah, to Tsa and the Theocracy the meaning of the Grave Sin differs slightly. Tsa had a deal with the 6 Great Gods, to strike the 8 Greed Kings together. Oh it’s dangerous if you catch that guy and extract information! For that reason, could you please vaguely understand things about The Six Great Gods and The Eight Greed Kings and The Theocracy. 500 years ago, some sort of thing happened.
[TWTR]
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Something to consider however is the strange similarities between Alah Alaf and Decem’s father. First is the obvious Elf connection (in theory), but both figures seemed to advocate for summoning specialization. Likewise, Decem’s father was a Fencer with black and white eyes likely, and Slaine possesses a black and white rapier that belonged to one of the Gods.
The details about business suits are circumstantial alone. But together, you might start to see another picture. Like how Decem seems to be able to use his summon at longer ranges like the Sunlight Scripture does. Or how they all do not fight alongside their summons and resort to spell casting situationally.
That might be the end all be all of the details, yet there is one very strange detail in Slaine’s narrative of the Greed Kings. Do you recall it?
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“In ancient myths — little more than legends — there was mention of beings known as the Eight Greed Kings. They were known as gods, and the tales speak of how they once ruled this world with that absolute power.”
Climb had heard the story of the Eight Greed Kings. While they were not too popular, given that they were only children’s tales, anyone with a little bit of knowledge would know of them.
In summary, the beings known as the Eight Greed Kings appeared 500 years ago. Some said that they stood as tall as the heavens, some said they looked like Dragons, but in any case, the Eight Greed Kings devastated the nations in an instant, dominating the world with their power which could move mountains and part the seas. However, their desires ran deep, and they fought each other for their possessions, resulting in their mutual extinction.
This story was not popular for obvious reasons, but debate raged over whether or not it was merely a children’s fairytale. Climb personally felt that it had been greatly embellished. However, a small group of people among the adventurers believed that the Eight Greed Kings existed — and that they commanded powers beyond those of any in this modern age.
The proof of that was a city within the deserts far to the south. Rumors said that it was the capital built when the Eight Greed Kings conquered the continent.
[WN]
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“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.” Climb had heard the story of the Eight Greed Kings. While they were not too popular, given that they were only children’s tales, anyone with a little bit of knowledge would know of them. In summary, the beings known as the Eight Greed Kings appeared 500 years ago. Some said that they stood as tall as the heavens, some said they looked like Dragons, but in any case, the Eight Greed Kings devastated the nations in an instant, dominating the world with their power which could move mountains and part the seas. However, their desires ran deep, and they fought each other for their possessions, resulting in their mutual extinction. This story was not popular for obvious reasons, but debate raged over whether or not it was merely a children’s fairytale. Climb personally felt that it had been greatly embellished. However, a small group of people among the adventurers believed that the Eight Greed Kings existed — and that they commanded powers beyond those of any in this modern age. The proof of that was a city within the deserts far to the south. Rumors said that it was the capital built when the Eight Greed Kings conquered the continent.
[V5]
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Pay special attention to how the Web Novel and Light Novel still have this distinction: in the Web Novel the Greed Kings were thought of as Gods but in the Light Novel they STOLE the power of the Gods.
Why did even Slaine begrudgingly say the Greed King’s stole some power from their Gods while also demeaning them? Was it just to legitimize their own power by saying the Gods could of done what the Greed Kings did? But then why did the Greed Kings kill Surshana anyway? Maruyama suggests there was a pact of some sort. The common thinking is this pact was Slaine abides by the Dragon Lord’s belief that they must unite against those who pollute the world.
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Six hundred years ago, there were gods that saved humanity when it was on the verge of becoming extinct due to a war of existence between powerful races. Those Six Great Gods had passed down the scripture their teachings, causing them to believe that they were the strongest of humanity, and even now they were still training to reach the peak.
For example, Gazef Stronoff. The reason why he was called the strongest was that the Black Scripture has never ever shown itself in public. If they did, the seat of the strongest would easily be stolen by them. This was the truth.
Although they did not have a magic caster that could rival Fluder, they did have priests that could also use the 6th Tier of magic.
“….Could she also be a god?”
“I cannot say that it is impossible…. But she might be a True Dragon King.”
“Are you saying that they broke the 500-year-old World Pact? No, under these cases, the Pact has yet to be broken.”
Edgar frowned. It was an alliance against the poison that stained the world. The strongest contract that protected the Slane Theocracy. It would not break even under the worst circumstances.
[WN]
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But suppose, in theory, Alah Alaf was in fact an Elf. And suppose this pact did exist. What if he disagreed with the pact and the rule of the Dragon Lords? After all, Decem brags that Dragon Lords were only massive but not too powerful as prey for Elves ( like his father). Given how arrogant Decem can be, that isn’t telling much, but if he idealized his father likely he would mirror his father’s attitude to some capacity right?
Think of the phrase ‘borrowing your power’ in Japanese. You likely have seen it before.
That presents an interesting twist in the Slaine narrative - what if the power the Greed Kings ‘stole’(taking without giving back) wasn’t some item of Surshana’s but in fact they got Alah Alaf to betray Surshana for whatever reasons, forsaking his role as a Great God? ’
Dun. Dun. Duuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuun.
Rampossa considered his vassals as treasures. Likewise, Gazef was compared to a treasure by Raeven. If Decem can consider himself a treasure (an object), why can’t a person be ‘stolen’ from a group? Don’t people often accuse those who end up with their exes as ‘stealing’ their ex?
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“Now that you’re fully equipped with all these treasures, you are the Kingdom’s greatest treasure. I heard once that the Kingdom actually had five treasures, but it seems they had all been gathered from the start.” Gazef blushed as he was compared to those treasures, even though he knew it was just flattery.
[V9]
It was only now that Ramposa III realized why they had urged the nobles to mount up and flee in groups just now. “So all we can do is run on foot.” Some of the warriors began removing and discarding their armor. “These men will carry your Majesty and flee.” “And what about you?” Not everyone had removed their armor. For instance, the vice-captain was still wearing his. “I’ll act as a mounted distraction and flee in the opposite direction.” Ramposa III saw the bright smiles on the warriors’ faces, and realized that they had made their peace with death. “Impossible. You are the treasures of our Kingdom! No matter what, you must survive! I still need you to serve my descendants!” “Of course. Although we intend to be bait, we do not intend to die!” That was a lie. They were planning to die. Or rather, they had accepted that death was their destiny. Ramposa III tried to think of something to convince them, but he could not speak. In the face of the warriors’ smiles, everything he came up with sounded insincere and shallow.
[V9]
“From a certain point of view, it’s probably better to save them considering that they could awaken their blood in the later generations like those two, but there are Elves elsewhere too. Plus, I have more expectations for those who could escape by themselves. In a gist, there is no need to save those who are weak enough to get killed by something like humans.”
“Onto the next question then. I heard there is a hidden treasure of the Elves?”
“A hidden treasure of the Elves? Are they talking about me? Or is it about this thing here?”
[V16]
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Maybe if Alah Alaf was really there, he disagreed with the terms of the pact Slaine may have been in (perhaps having disdain for Dragon Lords), didn’t fit in with human society after a century (growing distant like Antilene), and possibly wanted some item of Surshana’s as well(like a world class item). If we know the Greed Kings betrayed each other for possessions, what if one of the Greed Kings who was a Great God betrayed the Great Gods for possessions?
After Volume 14 one thought was Tsa betrayed Surshana just like he contemplated betraying Azuth (this potentially being the Player he killed as he is naturally the enemy to undead from YGGDRASIL). This is reinforced by his words of having committed some sin.
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But… Tsaindorcus sighed. If he was of a similar level to the vampire from last time, this armor would probably struggle in serious combat. However, if he were to not use the armor but face the Sorcerer King in person, he could not lose. That would be true even if he was as strong as the vampire. As long as he fought using his real body, there would be no issues at all.
[V14]
“I don’t think so myself. There are many out there who are stronger than I am. Hmmm… I can win against the Sorcerer King because I happen to counter him.” Tsa’s abilities were more effective against the undead. He had also confirmed in the battle just then that his abilities did work on the Sorcerer King. That was why Tsa had judged the Sorcerer King to be an opponent that did not warrant too much caution.
[V14]
“I have a question, why not tell them that I heard it from you directly?” “Simple, if they had no clue on where the information source was, they would try to investigate it. There is a chance that it could cause some friction among the upper echelons of the Theocracy.” Other than that, there was another reason. Should an emergency arise, he could kill off Azuth without leaving any loose ends.
—Should he just kill Azuth and take the Powered Suit? This was not too bad of an idea to Tsa. If he gave the Powered Suit to someone who was powerful enough to bend it to their will, it would definitely be more useful than letting Azuth keep it. He could also gain a stronger card for his hand then. Personally, Tsa felt no disdain for Azuth, nor did he want to kill him himself; but of what worth were emotions in this world? —Riku… What was I reminiscing for, now that things have turned out that way? Tsa laughed at himself internally. These two hands of his were already besmirched with filth. It was better to do it now than later.
[V14]
He killed a Player in the past.
[V14]
Ah, this is a completely different matter, the natural enemy to Ainz and Shalltear (as of those named so far inside [the story?]) is Tsa.
[TWTR]
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One more outlandish idea was Tsa betrayed Surshana and sided with the Greed Kings (before they did what they did) possibly because he was undead. This Grave Sin for Tsa then would be partially responsible for setting in motion the events that polluted the world by breaking a pact with people who uphold it and siding with people who ‘polluted’ the world far worse.
So the betrayal here would be a triple cross - Surshana was betrayed by Alah Alaf and Tsa, Tsa was betrayed by Alah Alaf and the Greed Kings and the Greed Kings all betrayed each other.
Not a very strong theory but it does answer a few questions (Tsa’s past, the Grave Sin, Alah Alaf’s name, etc). Ziggy likes how it uses designs made by so-bin (which Maruyama gives some input on sometimes). It’s a bit ironic to think Decem’s family is filled with traitors though.
Anyway maybe we will learn the truth behind the Grave Sin in the next volumes!
Whatever you believe is canon in your Overlord!
Ziggy must now depart.
Autism-man, away!
/(o_o)/
