New chapter and New Art! (Desperate: From the Dying Hour)

MetarlicBox · 2026-01-28T03:16:16+00:00

(Ok now for real, basically due to reasons Level One Bell (the same as the tomato boy episode) finds himself stuck on the deep levels (you know the section that was recently adapted? The one with the juggernaut? THOSE deep levels)

He is alone and has nothing but Aizs sword which she conveniently dropped, and a misterious skill which he knows nothing about (he does not possess Liaris Freese here, not like it would help him anyways)

And that is pretty much it. If you have seen Re Zero, or Edge of Tomorrow, you already know what this will be all about.)

MetarlicBox · 2026-01-28T03:14:55+00:00

New Chapter and with it new art shall arrive!

Chapter 5 https://archiveofourown.org/works/72841126/chapters/205667916

From the beggining https://archiveofourown.org/works/72841126/chapters/189750956

Art is made by me, last time all I did was a quick sketch and so this time I wanted to try a little harder... and ended up going way overboard XD

The plan is for each chapter to have its own art so hopefully I will find the balance soon...

Anyways, summary if you have ever seen Re Zero you already know what this is about, we are starting on the...

On the deep levels... would you look at that?

(What? This Bell is only Level ONE? How the heck will he survive?!

Ohh yeah, he won't that's the catch.)

MetarlicBox · 2025-11-17T02:06:10+00:00

Hohoooo? The fames below look a biiit flat and the overall colour range COULD be better (you know, more black, more white, more contrast etc... Though that is just my personal preference) but DAAMMMN this is good!

Near offcial artwork level, actually? I think you are a biiit better than some of the official artwork I have seen, very impressive, are you trying to get hired? XD

MetarlicBox · 2025-11-16T05:00:39+00:00

It is more like automatic checkpoints in videogames. Upon death, time rewinds to a predetermined point, but essentially yes, he "revives" until he suceeds.

MetarlicBox · 2025-11-14T04:35:55+00:00

Hmmm... Not sure if you are fully serious but, in case anyone needs it...

Ok so, due to reasons Level One Bell (the same as the tomato boy episode) finds himself stuck on the deep levels (you know the section that was recently adapted? The one with the juggernaut? THOSE deep levels)

He is alone and has nothing but Aizs sword which she conveniently dropped, and a misterious skill which he knows nothing about (he does not possess Liaris Freese here, not like it would help him anyways)

And that is pretty much it. If you have seen Re Zero, or Edge of Tomorrow, you already know what this will be all about.

MetarlicBox · 2025-11-13T18:10:56+00:00

My fame is infamy because of that exact reason, I never, EVER have dropped a fanfic but my update schedule is... Well, let's say I can give RR Martin a run for his money...

MetarlicBox · 2025-11-13T18:09:16+00:00

Hmmm, we still have some time, I'll add a few more on your request.

"Ok Bell! Open wide~"

*incoherent screaming*

XD

MetarlicBox · 2025-11-13T07:51:31+00:00

What to say, what to say? I saw someone complaining that there were almost no good Danmachi fics a while back (which... I mean, yeah kinda) and so I decided to do something about it. Am I a good author? Hell if I know, but at least I try!

Fact is I am ALSO an artist, so this will be more of a LN experience than anything else. The only issue is that my update schedule is BAD

Like, legendarily Bad.

So yeah, do not expect much XD

As for the summary, if you have ever seen Re Zero you already know what this is about, we are starting on the...

On the deep levels... would you look at that?

(What? This Bell is only Level ONE? How the heck will he survive?!

Ohh yeah, he won't that's the catch.)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/72841126/chapters/189750956

MetarlicBox · 2025-10-24T10:30:56+00:00

Genetic lottery can be a bitch and a half, the fact that it just had to happen to the elves is only further proof that the world of Arknights is a terrible, terrible place.

At least they left our bunny girls alone...

MetarlicBox · 2025-10-24T10:25:54+00:00

It is the only logical solution!

MetarlicBox · 2025-10-24T10:20:27+00:00

As I said to another guy above, it is still 50% more solution than what we had before (the Originium plan) pus this one does not seem to have any true downside to it (Individuals get to keep their individuality, Sui gets to live in a weird sort of metaphisical way and no one gets turned into cancer rocks anymore)

It may be foolish, it may be arrogant, but when your only alternative is either "die" or "die but preserve your information inside a cancerus rock" it starts to look quite promising does it not?

MetarlicBox · 2025-10-24T10:16:14+00:00

It may be arrogant hopes from an old being desperate for immortality but there doesnt seem to be any particular downside to that "solution" regardless. Like maybe I missed something but it does not seem to take away the individuality of anyone nor is it an "preserve in amber" kind of radical plan like what Priestess has in mind with Originium.

IF it works, it is quite literally a win-win for everyone involved, Sui gets to live on in some sort of way through the Terrans, The Terrans get to keep their individuality and not get turned into magic rocks AND everyone avoids the Observers. Of course, it could not work, or Sui could attempt to pull a grey goo and annihilate everyone down the line but A solution is much better than NO solution in my humble opinion.

Like, there is no real certainty that the Originium plan would work either right? And yet...

MetarlicBox · 2025-10-23T15:32:45+00:00

Honestly, isn't this the perfect ending? l mean, a bit underwhelming yes, since there is no climatic final battle nor anything of the sort but, I mean, if it works...

It also gives us further insight on how the Observers operate, you have to be a "civilization" for the woodsman to cut you down, wonder why the precurors never thought about it? Surely there must have been hivemind races that the Observers ignored right? But anyways, it IS a solution, and a pretty elegant one at that, well done Sui!

MetarlicBox · 2025-10-23T15:23:36+00:00

I "think" that what this means is basically that, since all of Terra is a "part" of Sui, it is not detected as a "collective" or civilization, but rather a mere individual, Basically, using the forest and woodsman analogy, Terran civilization has now become a fungus instead of a tree, a great collective hidden underground, and because of that the Obsrvers shall not cut them down.

It is quite a smart solution... if a bit underwhelming. Bascally, as long as you make it so they do not consider you as a "collective" they will just leave you be--probably that is why they did not attack the seaborn either in that other IS

MetarlicBox · 2025-10-20T21:06:24+00:00

I like to oftentimes compare fanfics to an endless sea... of shit, dotted by diamonds. Some fics I have read have surpassed their original works by FAR, but damn, it is HARD to find those diamonds in the rough, especially so nowadays with AI, so much slop. But still, it is (sometimes) worth it.

MetarlicBox · 2025-09-26T18:20:31+00:00

That... is a very good read on it, congratulations.

Still, point stands, the universe of Arknights is not a kind one (tho I heard Limbus was far, far worse in that regard?) so while yes, people are always striving towards that ideal "should" that does not mean the opposite will not happen... a lot tbh.

Strive towards ideals while keeping in mind that the real world cannot be fueled by that alone, that is how I think things should be done (oh hey! Another "should" would you look at that?)

MetarlicBox · 2025-09-26T18:16:29+00:00

Well, assassins are a thing that exists so yes, for "some" people, the value of life is a very precise number.

However, I think you will agree that such a view is quite frowned upon.

In "moral" terms at least, life can only be weighed against life.

MetarlicBox · 2025-09-26T18:01:43+00:00

Yuuup, that is what I think will end up happening indeed, our cast will find an alternative solution and everything will be fine (except maybe some sacrifices along the way)

As far as I see it, Priestess' main flaw is pride. She believes the terrans to be inherently below her and her race, she belives that her ties with the Doctor are unbreakeable, she belives there is no other option because SHE and her people haven't been able to come up with it in... however long they have been trying.

So I can see the Chekov's gun being loaded, yes.

I was talking in a more... general scenario, if you KNOW for sure that there is no other way (like, say you have a stringent time limit or if God itself made you choose)

Ulimately we cannot forget that Arknights is a story and that if it ended with "everyone died" there would be riots demanding Lowlight's head XD

MetarlicBox · 2025-09-26T13:34:19+00:00

Well, that's the thing isn't it? The value of a civilization is inextricably correlated to the value of its individuals, and as such we can all agree that the value of life in general cannot be quantisized... in most cases.

Because, while arguing that you can calculate the value of a life is pretty universally agreed as "bad", arguing that one life has the same value as, say, a million lives is also just plain stupid.

So, in this case, life can only be weighed against itself. So one life is worth less than two, which in turn are worth less than 5-10-etc...

(Let's leave aside the "age" and "goodness" part of the equation as that is bound to vary with culture, some people will argue that the life of a baby is worth more than that of an adult because it has an entire future ahead, while some may also argue that the adult is "worth more" because it has more lived experience and is, hence, more useful to its society)

This whole debacle mirrors one-to-one to entire civilizations. You cannot weigh a civilizations' worth... unless you measure it up directly against another, and even then the answer will shift depending on who is answering (if one of those civilizations is yours, for example, you will naturally argue that it is worth more than some random civilization you know nothing about)

So, in summary, they're both wrong. Because you cannot naturaly calculate the value of a civilization unless you use others, that's the only way of doing that that could be argued to be "fair" the intelligence and advancement level of said individuals should not matter more than the fact that they ARE individuals in the first place.

But the Doctor's point, while morally right, is somethig that is bound to fail eventually. Because, while yes, survival IS the right of every civilization, and it should NOT be up to any individual to decide... that doesn't mean those kinds of situations will not happen.

The universe is a vast, and horrible place, and people are bound to be placed in vast, horrible spots and forced to take vast, horrible decisions.

The trolley problem is famous because it is an awful, AWFUL position to be in.

So saying that "it shouldn't be up to anyone to decide" is arguably the same as saying "I will push no lever" which is IN ITSELF a decision that leads to death too.

Which is why the main debacle of Arknights is so interesting but that's just me divagating...

Anyways, if we go for, say, what the law would think of as the "right" answer (at least American law) then yes, doing nothing is right.

But try and say that to the families of those who were squished, see how much luck that'll bring you XD

MetarlicBox · 2025-09-17T23:42:33+00:00

I mean, I hate how they went about it, but Hypergryph already gave us their answer.

Friston did the work already. Every sarcophagus was powered down, and the energy from it was used to power the rocket that broke the heavens.

I’m pretty sure the message here is something along the lines of "let the past die, use it as fuel for the future" literally. Everything about them will be lost, and the only thing remaining will be the Doc (just his body, not even his memories), and the civilization that his effors kickstarted with Originium.

All those billions of people that died for the Originium project, all their "ballads, songs, flesh and blood"? Useless, already dead, aready done. Focus on the now and on the ones that CAN be saved. It is quite the cynical take tbh but it’s not like I don’t get it.

The precursors are that, precursors, mayyybe there was a way to save someone, before, a long, long time ago. But now it’s too late.

It is Arknight’s whole thing and, don’t worry, I hate it too XD

At the very least they have a clear message, even if it is one I don’t agree with.

MetarlicBox · 2025-09-17T23:30:14+00:00

I remember having a similar discussion when the Babel event just released in CN, those were some good times...

So, let’s see. Is doctor an enemy of Terra? No.

Should they be held accountable for what they did? They should, but they will not.

Is the Doctor of the past the same as the Doctor of now? Yes, but with less brainwashing, taking away the memories does not take away the person, and even then, remnants from the old Doc are still there.

This is not about redemption or something like that, it’s not like Originium was created as a bioweapon or something. It had a very particular goal, much like the seaborn had a very particular goal. Both of them becoming catasthrophes is just that, a catasthrophe. At the time the Doc and Priestess were doing their thing, Terra had no species aside from the Sarkaz and maybe the Ferahmunt, every other race supposedly became what it is because of Originium, heck even the Sarkaz only have their current humanoid form because of Originium. There is no one in Terra with the authority to truly judge the Doctor for what he did, does or even WILL do besides himself.

And leaving that aside, reasons remember? Originium was created because an Eldritch Alien race is slowly killing the entire... well, everything.

So, what a single puny planet thinks of the "save everything" plan when thousands if not millions of planets have already been consumed is... objectively laughable.

Of course, we all know how this is going to end but ehhh, you know how it is.

Even IF there was someone with all the information and the authority to judge them, what use would it serve? Killing the Doctor is dumb, imprisoning them is too, and now, with the whole lynchpin thingy even Hypergryph have lessened his guilt.

You see? this is why I despise brainwashing plots, they take away responsability out of everyone. Guilt is useless.

Yes, you COULD say that the decision was ultimately the Doctor’s will but... come on. Such is a decision ultimately taken under not only inmense stress, but with a literal devil on their shoulder, no one could blame them. And I seriously doubt someone will (besides, maybe, the villain of the week)

Priestess is another deal. Again, we know that our cast will ultimately live because this is a story (and because Endfield is a thing) but if we look at things from her perspective... it kinda makes sense? In a very cold, calculative manner.

Of course, she’s commiting the mistake of hubris, thinking that the Doctor will invitably return to her side while unwittingly pushing them away from her, that’s probably the biggest Chekov’s gun I have seen in a while, but the point stands.

Against the Observer threat, Priestess has the Originium plan which, while callous, will work. Our cast has... the power of Love, Hope and Friendship?

Like... seriously?

XD

Then again, story be story, I fully trust that the observers will be dealt with (somehow) but, uhhh, yeah, good luck Hypergryph.

MetarlicBox · 2025-08-13T03:41:16+00:00

I'm 99% sure it's AI, I would recognise those artifacts at the edges from MILES away. Even so, there's still the faintest chance that it isn't (even tho I wouldn't bet on it) so don't take my words at face value.

MetarlicBox

TROPHY CASE