Overlord IV Episode 5

Albedo and Demiurge

At the beginning of Overlord IV Episode 5, Demiurge returns to Nazarick. Upon arrival, he asks Albedo where Ainz is, to which she responds that he’s on a trip to the Dwarven Kingdom. Demiurge wanted to give Ainz an update in person and ask for permission for his plans.

Until now, Demiurge has been working behind the scenes to bring the Theocracy down. But, Albedo also informs him that his plans may not be moving fast enough for Ainz. After all, during a 3-day solo trip, Ainz reduced the entire Empire to a vassal state. Why hasn’t Demiurge done this with the Theocracy yet?

At least, that’s how Albedo views the current state of things. And this view could cause some problems for Ainz in the future. You see, Ainz has left Albedo and Demiurge in charge of figuring out what to do with the Empire.

So why is this a problem? Because Albedo is under the impression that Ainz intended to subjugate the Empire. And this misunderstanding is going to inform the decisions she and Demiurge make. It wouldn’t surprise me if Ainz comes back to the Empire in complete ruins. Emperor Jircniv may even be working as a slave within Nazarick.

Also, Demiurge might return to the Theocracy before Ainz returns from his trip. If he does so, he might begin to cause some issues there, as well. Let’s say Demiurge takes Albedo’s advice and attempts to subjugate the Theocracy. What happens then? Well, the Godkin probably get involved.

And if the Godkin are actually players like Ainz, I don’t see Demiurge standing much of a chance. Demiurge is strong and very smart. But, we saw that there are at least 2 Godkin. And if they’re the same level as Ainz, they’d definitely have the advantage.

The Dwarven Kingdom

For the first time in the series, we’re going to the Dwarven Kingdom. This kingdom came up in Episode 4 after Ainz saw a weapon with Dwarven runes carved into it. And while we don’t know exactly how, he stated that they’re different from the runes he knows.

To me, this implies that the Dwarven rune development isn’t something that was in the game. Someone taught the Dwarves how to use these runes. At least, that’s my assumption. Ainz seemed surprised that the Dwarves were using runes at all — not just that they were different.

Unfortunately, by the time Ainz makes it to the Dwarven Kingdom, the city is abandoned. The only Dwarf left in the city is Gondo, whom Aura finds deep within a mine. Exactly what Gondo was doing down there (other than mining) is unclear.

According to Gondo, the Dwarves moved to a new city a few miles away 3 years ago. They did this because a race of beasts known as Quagoa attacked the city. And, this is why I said it’s unclear what Gondo is doing within the mines. He’s alone in an abandoned mine in an abandoned city.

Anyway, Gondo’s father was a skilled runesmith, so he’s happy to learn of Ainz’s plan. Ainz hopes to forge an alliance with the Dwarven Kingdom for the Dwarves’ runes. Specifically, he’s looking to revive the art of runecrafting to forge magic weapons.

Enchanting is how magic weapons are currently made. But, as Gondo tells us, runecrafting is far cheaper; it requires fewer materials. There are two issues with this method, though. First, runecrafting takes longer to complete than enchanting. And second, there aren’t many skilled runesmiths left.

I’m sure Ainz will be able to solve those problems.

Attack of the Quagoa

The race that attacked the Dwarven Kingdom is the Quagoa. These are wolf-like creatures that seem fairly well suited to life underground. They eat metal, so the mines dug by the Dwarves would be a good source of food for them.

We’re also told by Gondo that eating metal from a young age strengthens the Quagoa. Because of all the metal they eat, their fur has become hard like metal and works like natural armor. On top of that, the harder the metals they eat, the harder their fur becomes.

Luckily, since this is a game world, it’s easy to identify which Quagoa are the strongest. The grey ones are the normal soldiers, the blue ones are stronger, and the red ones are the strongest. We haven’t seen a red Quagoa yet, but a single blue Quagoa leads the soldiers in the old Dwarven city.

After Shalltear captures and charms the blue Quagoa, he reveals that there’s a larger army. The larger Quagoa army is attacking the new Dwarven city. Meanwhile, his platoon’s job is to capture and kill any Dwarves fleeing to the old city.

Now that Ainz knows the new Dwarven city is under attack, he needs to get over there to save them. If all the Dwarves die, he won’t be able to learn their runecrafting techniques. Also, saving the Dwarves from the Quagoa attack will go a long way toward earning their trust. How will they be able to refuse his offer after that?

Once we get to the battle of the new Dwarven city, I imagine we’ll see our first red Quagoa. It could be that there’s only one red Quagoa that leads the entire army. And if there is, this could be Shalltear’s opponent for her redemption arc.

Conclusion

What do you think of Overlord IV Episode 5? Are Albedo and Demiurge going to destroy the Empire before Ainz returns? Do you think another player introduced the Dwarves to runecrafting? And who do you think will defeat the inevitable red Quagoa? Let me know in the comments.

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My review of Episode 6 is available now.