User blog:Da Daimyo/Predictions about Vol. 17 + 18

This document is created by me. Purely my predictions and hopes for the last two volumes in the series. This is a work in progress, so it'll be updated sporadically.

Aftermath of the Elf Country
With the Elf King dead, the Elf Country is left without leadership (though said leadership was arguably ineffective) and the Royal Capital is currently under siege. As Antilene pieced together before her defeat by Mare, the Elf twins with their heterochromatic eyes and power could give a semblance of authority for the elves to look up to and thus keep the Elf Country together. Ainz originally had no intention to conquer the Elf Country, as he did not want to antagonize the Theocracy. However, the end of volume 16 has revealed that he fully intends to destroy the Theocracy, I believe he will use the territories of the Elf Country and the former Re-Estize Kingdom to completely surround the country, letting no one in or out.

Aura and Mare already made headway in one of the Dark Elf villages, creating a center of power for Ainz to rule the region. With the current political situation in the Dark Elf village, a significant segment of the population favors ability and skill over tradition and experience when it comes to leadership. Though this belief was tempered by Ain's appeal to etiquette and formality, the popularity and affection of the Elf twins in the village is palpable, and I don't think it would be too much of a stretch to replicate this in other villages, even in those of the Wood Elves. For Ainz and company to truly rule the Elf Country, the tribal/tributary structure in the Elf Country will have to be replaced with a more centralized form of government. I struggle to imagine how many competent officers in the Elf Country can complete this task, but there must have been some hierarchical structure present to direct the elves to engage in guerilla warfare against the Slane Theocracy and defend the Royal Capital. This would obviously involve integrating the region with the rest of the Sorcerer Kingdom.

There is still much we don't know about the elves: the trail of the Fey, Fey blessing, and whether or not the elves have access to the classes Seelie Court and Unseelie Court. I am unsure if all this would be covered in the last two volumes, but I feel like it would come up as sort of analogous to the "Divine Right of Kings": Aura received the "Fey blessing" allowing her to reach the Sea of Trees, thus legitimizing her authority over the Elves, or at least the Dark Elves. This would achieve rule without fear, which Ainz is very adamant about. But we also have to concern ourselves with what Ainz can gain from the Elf Country, and I believe there are a couple of things that stand out:


 * 1) Elf Tree Magic. This is something foreign to the tier magic system, and the Slane Theocracy is also interested in this technology. The main purpose of this knowledge would be to create cities without any of the typical natural resources (lumber, stone, metal, etc.) involved in making them.  Mare could potentially set up new cities and bases for the Elf Country at a fast pace since he has druidic spells that help nurture plant life. The greatest feat of this technology is the royal castle - itself a giant elf tree - in which the Elf King resides. Ainz has said that this technology was one of the two things he was interested in upon arriving at the Sea of Trees.
 * 2) Elven pharmacy. We already know that Ainz is interested in pharmaceutical knowledge and technology, going as far as to recruit the Bareare family in his goal to recreate Yggdrasil healing potions. The Great Sea of Trees has many native herbs and medicinal plants to aid in those kinds of ventures, and the Chief Pharmacist of the Dark Elf village knew many secret medicines. Ainz has said that this technology was one of the two things he was interested in upon arriving at the Sea of Trees.
 * 3) Trail of the Fey. For all of the Dark Elves to transport en masse that far from the Forest of Tob could be a strategic and logistic technology best kept in the hands of Nazarick and its forces, allowing them to move without needing Shalltear to erect [Gate] spells each time.
 * 4) The elves themselves. I bet that a good majority of the elves, especially those in the Royal Capital, are descendants of Elf King Hougan, and thus the descendants of the Eight Greed Kings. It is possible that powerful individuals can arise out of that country, as we have seen from Rugi (who didn't even have heterochromatic eyes), who was able to hold off an entire army despite herself not reaching the realm of heroes. As long as they keep multiplying, there is a chance for someone as powerful as Decem Hougan to come into being. Elves and their natural aptitude for ranger skills will prove useful in the Sorcerer Kingdom's army, as the Undead are not typically scouts and rangers and would need those vocations filled by citizens for the time being. In addition, the new state-run Adventurer's Guild, where ranger skills would be needed for surveying new land and foreign territories.

Future Status of Antilene Heran Fouche
Considering Ainz's reaction to Antilene's memories, I can only imagine some form of retribution that Ainz will exact upon her. Though she personally was not present during the Shalltear encounter, she still fought Mare even though he gave her plenty of opportunities to surrender. But I believe that Ainz would let Antilene live, for a couple reasons:


 * 1) Her information concerning the Slane Theocracy's defense capabilities and items left by the 6GG. This would prove useful in order to complete his current objective of wiping out the Theocracy. Ainz has already explained that psionically probing for information is difficult as well as mana-taxing, so trying to get her to talk through torture or other means would probably be the best course of action.
 * 2) Ainz has a passion for rarities, and she checks off all the boxes: the progeny of two different groups of players and the possessor of one of the greatest talents in the New World. Though Ainz could simply steal her talent, her unique use of Yggdrasil classes might compel Ainz to keep her to observe how New World natives can use high-level Yggdrasil classes like her Lesser Valkyrie class.
 * 3) Breeding capability. Ainz might like the idea of godkin filling middle management roles in his kingdom and his military, and might even hand her to Demiurge to send her to the happy farm, or pair her up with someone as strong as her. The best candidate for this is Mare, but I wouldn't go so far as to ship the two of them together.

To me, her gaining the favor of Nazarick is unlikely, but not impossible. Ainz is not kind to those who admittedly stand against Nazarick. But who knows? Perhaps Ainz will command her to befriend Aura and Mare, thus completing what he originally set out to do.

Destruction of the Slane Theocracy
It pains me to say it, but I believe that a large portion of this campaign will be off-screen or time-skipped due to how many volumes are left. Ainz would likely not treat this war in the same way he conducted the destruction of Re-Estize; he was operating under methods traditionally acceptable to humans, fielding armies and formally declaring war. I wouldn't be surprised if Ainz tries to impose as much suffering on the Theocracy immediately possible, even if that means the Guardians do not receive as much leeway in their style of command or strategy as before. Ainz understands they are in possession of a WCI, and would equip the Guardians appropriately. Given how quickly Ainz reacted to the information he extracted from Antilene's mind, I have no doubt he would quickly assemble his forces and forgo any of the secrecy and isolation tactics that were displayed in Re-Estize. This will be total war, no holds barred.

The meddlesome nature of the Sorcerer Kingdom in Re-Estize and the Elf Country consecutively will alarm the Theocracy, perhaps to the point where they simply resign their fate and begin transporting people to the hidden village protected by the Ashendust scripture outside of Slane's borders, though I bet Ainz can find its location off of Antilene.

The eventual fall of the Slane Theocracy will finally cement Ainz's nature to the New World and might send ripples even beyond the human countries; the Sorcerer King can be anywhere at any time to witness the destruction of your country should he ever wish. Platinum Dragon Lord likely only set up the Argland Council State to keep the Slane Theocracy and mankind's use of Yggdrasil technology in check, so there may be demihuman countries beyond the human side of the continent that will start to become aware of the Sorcerer Kingdom if PDL were to prepare for a war against Nazarick. Countries like the Draconic Kingdom and Karnassus might already be leasing Undead forces to deal with their own natural security concerns (Equestrian King, Beastman Country), especially after the demise of Re-Estize and the growing international clout of the Sorcerer King. This will finally make known to demihumans on the other side of the continent aware of a country ruled by an Undead king, though I doubt much of that would appear in just two more volumes without it being rushed beyond measure.

Ainz doesn't even need that much of a casus belli to take out the Theocracy; he could claim that the Sorcerer Kingdom extended aid towards the Elf Country, whose leader was slain by the Theocracy and decided to act to defend their sovereignty. In addition, the Sorcerer Kingdom's presence in the Slane Theocracy and the Elf Country could be a bonus for other countries like the Draconic Kingdom. The Sorcerer Kingdom would then share borders with the Beastman Country, who could have journeyed by Crescent Lake to target the Theocracy, as their aim is to feed on humans. Ainz's Undead forces cannot provide them any sustenance, and they likely have some sort of Undead territory similar to the Katze Plains (perhaps one of the territories of the 3 Night Liches?), explaining the appearance of Soul Eaters (Silent City), a rare form of undead in the New World whose existence can only be possible through concentration of undead energy.

Future Status of Rufus
As Antilene's master, Rufus is privy to knowledge concerning the 6GG, Yggdrasil, and players. He would be an invaluable source of information on the nature of players in the New World for Ainz. Undead domination would likely be the only way to get the NPC on his side for him to get enough information and dispose of him should he feel it necessary. We do not know much about this individual for me to give an accurate prediction, so I will leave it at that for now.

For the apprentice of the guardian deity of their nation, their strongest trump card, to fall at the hands of the Sorcerer King's men, the Slane Theocracy will realize the power of the Sorcerer Kingdom and will likely look to Rufus for guidance. It would be laughable, but not impossible, for Rufus to decide to stand against the Sorcerer King in order to buy the Theocracy some time in evacuating.

Governance of the Sorcerer Kingdom
After gaining control over the Abelion Hills, the Re-Estize Kingdom, and now the Elf Country, Ainz will have to figure out how to manage these holdings without stretching his manpower too thin. Currently, there are two foreign policy strategies to secure and maintain his holdings:


 * 1) Carrot and Stick: allowing nations that bend the knee to prosper and be in the Sorcerer King's favor. A prominent in-world example was when the Sorcerer King accepted the Baharuth Empire as a vassal state, while destroying the Re-Estize Kingdom for plundering humanitarian aid meant for the Holy Kingdom.
 * 2) Divide and Rule: creating and fomenting divisions among different groups of people in order to prevent any strong, stable government from opposing the Sorcerer Kingdom. A prominent example would be Demiurge instigating the Demi-human invasion of Roble and Ainz rushing to the aid of the Holy Kingdom, killing the Holy Queen and destabilizing their government, allowing Nazarick to prop up a puppet ruler and a fifth column (Neia's organization) within the Holy Kingdom.

In order to decrease the burden that Nazarick has to carry in holding this all together, the best way for the Sorcerer Kingdom to govern is to reward submitting rulers by granting them partial autonomy or replace impudent rulers with competent and loyal New Worlders or NPCs to rule with partial autonomy. To maintain loyalty to Nazarick, Elder Liches can be sent to aid in administering regions and periodically report to Nazarick on important findings.

I doubt that Nazarick can command the loyalty of every one of his subjects. E-Rantel only worked because Momon was there to assure the people that the Sorcerer Kingdom would do no harm. I don't know if the rest of the world is ready for Undead troops to guard their streets and greet them in the morning. If Nazarick truly wants to attempt world domination, they would need to find competent local rulers to trust so that there is no need to set up a new framework in every single region. An Elder Lich bureaucracy won't magically solve everything since they require extensive training and lack interpersonal and diplomatic skills. Furthermore, you can't expect them to perform better than New Worlders with levels in Commander-type or Dignitary-type classes.

If Ainz can finally get his idea of nationalized schooling going, perhaps he could train and indoctrinate future officials in government posts. But anyone in an administrative position, from Nazarick or the New World, would necessarily have to be long-living like everyone else; that way only efficient and capable rulers are in command for Ainz's 10,000 year plan ;). In the immediate future, people like Renner need to be scouted for, inducted into Nazarick, and granted immortality through race-changing items.

Possible Intervention by the Platinum Dragon Lord
PDL already attempted to take out Ainz, and he will not think about doing that again unless he is separated from Albedo. If Ainz were to pick up on this and create another bait scenario again, but this time without Albedo, he might be able to pull it off and destroy PDL's armor with enough preparation. PDL will likely not consider an all-out war against Nazarick unless he has the right amount of allies. Until then, he will stick with assassination attempts. However, he now knows that Ainz has equally powerful subordinates and would not dare confront any of them without forethought. He also knows that Ainz is in possession of at least one or two WCI, and will not think about one-on-one combat against such poor odds. Whether or not he intervenes this time around will depend on how many individuals he can rely on to aid in his efforts: many of the Dragon Lords are living incognito and unobtrusive lives, but they might remember the alliance they made to counter Players and join PDL if Ainz decides to target one of the Dragon Lords first, which leads into my discussion about the Corpus of the Abyss.

Corpus of the Abyss' Importance and That One
The Corpus, though comprised of many Undead powerful in terms of New World entities, is probably of no significant strategic importance to Ainz. Sure, they might be able to attain 9th-tier magic, and have a lot of knowledge concerning the New World and its application of the tier system that Ainz might want to look into. But keeping them around might be a risk. Even with Undead domination, there are many drawbacks: he can't dominate all of them. There are over 50 members in the organization, and each one has subordinates under their control. For Ainz to be satisfied with his control over the Corpus, he would have to eliminate some of them and keep the useful ones. Said useful ones might be useful as bureaucrats like the other Elder Liches. Even if the Corpus willfully accepts Ainz's yoke, Ainz might not be satisfied with "superficial" control over such a powerful organization. If they willfully submit themselves and were continuously monitored like Eight Fingers and Fluder, then there may be a chance.

If they were to be added to Nazarick, the organization would serve limited purposes:


 * 1) Magical Research. Ainz is very focused on that field and has tasked the Chief Librarian, the Bareare family, the Runesmiths, and others to make cutting-edge technology for his nation. He could have the Corpus conduct research into Undead technology and using different monsters as undead, perhaps even create an Undead chimera fused together by various organs, membranes, and bones of different organisms and whatnot (pure speculation on my part). Fluder can join them in order to gain an understanding of the realms of Life and Death and the esoteric knowledge the Night Liches have accumulated over centuries.
 * 2) Undead Commanders. While Night Liches are mostly magic casters, there could be some that have classes and skills best suited for commanding Undead, even if they are not directly their summons. I'm not entirely sure how this would work but they could be part of the Royal Army's upper echelon and apply Undead-oriented buffs as they command Undead troops. Warrior-type Overlords likely exist, given how Surshana wielded a scythe even though he was an Overlord. Plus, they likely experienced with Undead buffs, especially the ones that rule small kingdoms like Fear (although he's not in Corpus, it still applies) and others.
 * 3) Bureaucrats. As Ainz has noted, the Floor Guardians are being stretched thins by the amount of tasks and responsibilities they have to juggle. If they could be trained similar to the Elder Liches or something, perhaps they could ease the burden that the Floor Guardians are carrying.

Upon hearing about the Sorcerer King and his kingdom, perhaps some members of the Corpus would be interested in forming ties with Ainz in order to overthrow That One, or Ainz will learn of the Corpus through an outside member. That One, who is likely a powerful Dragon Lord (called tier magic "filthy", and capable of subduing an organization of mid- to high-level Undead), is quite possibly either Deep Darkness Dragon Lord or the Elder Coffin Dragon Lord. I personally believe That One is ECDL given that it has a need for their Undead knowledge.

If Nazarick were to directly confront a Dragon Lord, it would force the other Dragon Lords to reform their defensive alliance and eliminate the Player threat. Though they won't have the same numerical strength like in the age of Dragons, they wouldn't dare leave Ainz unchecked. I suspect that PDL has some safeguards already in place for another Player war, since he's likely had a century to prepare for Ainz's arrival and has set up entire countries to aid in his goals. This might mean committing all of his resources (Argland Council State, Eryuentiu, myriad countries) to deal with Nazarick in order to maintain the world order. If the Theocracy is successful in forming ties with the Argland Council State, they could meet the Sorcerer Kingdom on two fronts. PDL had allowed the Theocracy to mobilize Antilene, after all, so this could be his way of supporting their actions while ensuring that the Sorcerer King doesn't plunder the treasures of the Theocracy and thus strengthen himself.

Another way this could go is if PDL begins approaching the other Dragon Lords, informing them of the new threat to the world. This is likely given PDL's fight with Pandora's Actor, and would likely need planning, probably coinciding with the invasion of the Slane Theocracy, just like when he tried to take him out during the destruction of the Re-Estize Kingdom. Either way, PDL is likely going to step up to the plate in the name of the world or whatever justification the Player-hating (understandably so) Dragon Lords can muster.

Albedo's Secret Unit
A part of me thinks that this plot point won't be further progressed in the last two volumes. But I have hopes that it will have some relevance. Aura and Mare are interestingly wary of Albedo at the end of volume 16, probably due to the fact that Ainz threw at them a hypothetical scenario where she went against Nazarick in volume 15. After or during the destruction of the Theocracy, Ainz might actually see the need for a task force to investigate Player and Godkin presence in the New World, and might adopt Albedo's idea into a state apparatus. Although, I doubt this would change Albedo's goal of eliminating the Supreme Beings should they ever appear in the New World. The only hedge to Albedo's ambition is Pandora's Actor, who knows Ainz much more intimately than she does and perhaps deduces Albedo's true intentions and informs Ainz in some way. Whatever the case may be, I do not believe that Albedo will have much leeway to pursue this project, especially with Ainz's new orders at the end of volume 16 and Aura and Mare's distrust when she mistakenly thought that Ainz perceived her true aim.