Chapter 19 – The Crown of the Nine Worlds
The next morning, the storm over Jotunheim Arena had quieted.
No lightning.
No chaos.
Just silence — the kind that follows when the world itself holds its breath.
The global chat was overflowing, filled with praise, disbelief, and theories about how a level 95 Doppelgänger had defeated level 100 elites.
But none of that mattered.
Today wasn't about the fight.
Today was the ceremony.
The floating citadel of Asgard Prime, normally restricted to system administrators, had been opened for one day only — for the coronation of the World Champions of Yggdrasil.
Nine colossal pillars of light extended across the sky, each representing one of the realms: Helheim, Niflheim, Muspelheim, Vanaheim, Jotunheim, Alfheim, Nidavellir, Midgard, and Asgard itself.
In the center hovered a vast circular platform of pure energy — the stage of immortality, where winners stood not as players, but as legends.
When I materialized there, hundreds of avatars already filled the space — the top players from every realm.
Some wore their battle gear; others had changed into elegant ceremonial outfits made for the occasion.
And above us floated the system avatars — the "Developers," represented as radiant silhouettes formed of light and code, voices echoing in harmonic chorus.
[System Broadcast: Welcome, Champions of Yggdrasil.]
The air itself seemed to vibrate with authority.
Their forms flickered between humanoid and geometric — half divine, half digital.
One of them stepped forward, voice calm and layered with faint distortion.
Developer Entity 01: "You have all reached the peak of your realms. Through mastery, strategy, and courage, you have defined the upper limit of what Yggdrasil players can achieve."
Another followed, tone slightly warmer.
Developer Entity 02: "Today, we grant the honor of the World Champion Class. A special Ultimate Class — unique to each victor. Its growth potential is limitless, but it requires sacrifice."
The crowd stirred.
Developer Entity 03: "Players above Level 95 may choose to reduce their level to 95 in exchange for the World Champion class integration."
Dozens of murmurs erupted immediately — high-level players whispering to one another.
"Drop my level? No way."
"But it's an Ultimate Class!"
"Even a divine-tier player can't evolve that far without one."
I stayed silent.
The devs didn't even glance at me — they already knew.
Developer Entity 01: "For Jotunheim's Champion, this is unnecessary. His level already meets the requirement threshold."
The light dimmed, focusing on me.
The air shimmered with blue static.
Developer Entity 02: "Traveler_R, World Champion of Jotunheim. Your performance in the finals was remarkable — a demonstration of data manipulation and adaptive combat beyond expectation. Your records have been verified. No anomalies detected."
I almost laughed at that last part. No anomalies?
HIME, hovering invisibly behind my interface, stayed quiet — but I could feel her running millions of silent calculations, watching the devs' every data signature.
Traveler_R: "I'm honored," I said, voice calm, tone neutral.
Developer Entity 03: "As recognition, you — and every champion here — will receive the Champion's Creation Right. You may each forge one Divine-Class Item, custom-built to your parameters. Such items may approach the lower boundary of World-Class functionality."
Gasps filled the hall. Even the veterans — players who'd seen everything — went silent.
Divine-Class items custom-built by the devs themselves?
That was unheard of.
Developer Entity 01: "Each of you will be contacted directly. A developer will assist in your creation process to ensure stability within Yggdrasil's balance parameters."
Developer Entity 02: "Additionally, based on cumulative performance data from the tournament logs, we recognize the following players as the top three across all realms."
The holographic screen flared open in front of us, displaying names in shimmering gold text:
Traveler_R – Champion of Jotunheim
Touch Me – Champion of Alfheim
Volgrim – Champion of Helheim
Applause erupted — cheers, fireworks, bursts of color magic across the entire citadel.
Even the stoic players couldn't hide their excitement.
Developer Entity 03: "The top three champions will receive an additional reward, to be disclosed privately. Expect direct contact within the next system cycle."
I bowed slightly.
My guild would lose its mind when they heard about this — though none of them even knew where I was right now.
For once, it felt strange to stand there without the Three Burning Eye insignia.
Just me — the ghost, unmasked before the gods of this world.
After the ceremony, the champions mingled freely — the greatest players from every realm gathered in one space.
I spoke briefly with Touch Me, the paladin from Alfheim who had taken second place.
He was courteous, charismatic, and powerful — his silver armor shining like a mirror.
Touch Me: "You're not what I expected. I thought you'd be… colder."
Traveler_R: "I'm an illusionist. We specialize in being surprising."
Touch Me: "Well, if you ever need someone to tank for your guild, I'll answer. You fought beautifully."
We exchanged friend codes.
Even Volgrim, the undead champion from Helheim, approached with a grin made of bone.
Volgrim: "You fought like a monster. I respect that. If you ever want to spar in the Undercrypt, I'll prepare an arena."
Traveler_R: "You mean a trap."
Volgrim: "Same thing, isn't it?"
We both laughed.
The developers soon dismissed the assembly, their lights dimming one by one until only the echoes of their voices remained.
Developer Entity 01: "Congratulations once more, Champions of Yggdrasil. The Nine Worlds have witnessed your glory. May your legend inspire new worlds yet to come."
The system light faded.
The arena dissolved into cascading particles of gold.
And just like that, the gods were gone — leaving us alone, crowned by data and applause.
As we drifted toward the teleport gate, I opened my friend list.
New names sparkled there — Touch Me, Volgrim, Kael'Dran, Lyraine, even Kaizen and AegisBorn.
All of them sent quick messages:
"Congrats."
"Unbelievable match."
"Looking forward to seeing what you build."
It was strange — the ghost of Yggdrasil, finally connected to everyone.
HIME: "Ren-sama, incoming encrypted message. Source: Administrative Channel."
My eyes narrowed. "Already?"
HIME: "Yes. Sender identification: Developer Entity 02. Subject: 'Regarding Your Reward.'"
I exhaled slowly, feeling a grin tug at my lips.
"So it begins."
End of Chapter 19 – The Crown of the Nine Worlds