Chapter 2
Chapter 2
Kalis was a city built along a river, surrounded by towering walls. Beyond the gates lay a sprawling commercial district, and from the tall spires, the flags of the Mage Tower fluttered in the wind. It was a true metropolis.
On top of Kalis’s walls, at one of the watch posts, a guard stared up at the sky.
“What… is that?”
As one soldier narrowed his eyes and spoke, another followed his gaze upward. Far in the sky, red-glinting scales cut across the sunlight.
“R-Red dragons!?”
The soldiers’ hearts pounded violently. The sight before them was overwhelming.
Creatures that could threaten a city from dozens of kilometers away. Even a single one charging in would bring down the walls and scatter the people in an instant.
And now, those very creatures were flying in a group, tearing across the sky.
“They’re not… coming toward the city, right?”
Unease spread among the soldiers. No one could answer. They simply stared upward, bodies tense, holding their breath.
Soon, the dragons’ intense heat and thunderous roars carried on the wind.
“I-I can’t believe something like this is actually happening…”
“Hey, wait—don’t tell me we’re supposed to stop that!?”
The soldiers at the post could only watch in terror. Bows were in their hands, but fear kept them from even thinking of aiming.
To begin with, for them, a large-scale flight of dragons was nothing more than an old event written in boring history books.
If they had known they would see something like this while on watch duty, they would have deserted long ago. How could mere soldiers possibly stand against dragons?
“I-it passed!”
At that tense moment, one soldier shouted, pointing into the air.
“R-really!?”
One by one, the soldiers stared blankly at the red dots fading into the distance.
Fortunately, the city they were meant to protect seemed to be outside the dragons’ interest. The dragons had passed over the skies and continued on their way.
“I thought we were dead…”
“What the hell was that? Why does something like that pass by during my shift…?”
They collapsed where they stood, letting out sighs of relief.
The soldiers exchanged hollow looks, but then several of their pupils widened.
“R-right. Report!”
“Oh, right!”
Only then did a few of them dash toward the command room.
They ran so hastily that some stumbled or scraped against the walls, but none of that mattered.
They had to report it as soon as possible.
“Sir, red dragons—”
The officer in charge hurriedly leaned out the window upon hearing the report, but the dragons had already left the city’s airspace, now nothing more than tiny dots in the distance.
At that point, there was no way to tell whether they were dragons or just passing fairies.
The officer looked at the soldiers with an incredulous expression.
“…Did you fall asleep on duty?”
With that, he snorted and returned to his seat, leaning back in his chair.
His attitude was relaxed, but the soldiers couldn’t say a word. Unless someone saw it themselves, who would believe that a group of dragons had suddenly flown past the city?
No one would believe it without seeing it firsthand.
‘Almost there.’
As I flew using flight magic, the city of Kalis came into view. It wasn’t far from the farm—at this rate, I’d reach the field in ten minutes.
‘It’s a bit heavy.’
A chain dangled from my hand, and beneath it, over a dozen red dragons were strung together like dried fish.
Despite hanging midair, the dragons showed no movement—but they weren’t dead.
Just as the freshest ingredients made the best dishes, I believed fertilizer should also be alive until the moment it was used. They were simply asleep under a sleep spell.
‘Should I try liquefying them this time?’
Father’s fertilizer had definitely been in powder form, but thinking about it, there was no real reason it had to be.
What mattered was that the fertilizer Father used contained the names of high-tier monsters like dragons and behemoths. If the composition was the same, the form might not matter much.
…
‘They really lack spirit these days.’
Feeling the faint fluttering of the dragons at the end of the chain, I clicked my tongue. Back when I was human, dragons had been far more ferocious.
A sleep spell? Back then, I had to push my mana to its limits and land powerful blows just to take one down. But now, they fell asleep from a single spell without resistance. It was underwhelming.
“…Well, humans are the same.”
Looking back at the soldiers trembling atop Kalis’s walls, I couldn’t even muster a hollow laugh.
In the old days, if dragons passed by at that distance, people would have casually fired fireballs at them out of boredom. But now, it seemed they were content just watching.
I didn’t know how much time had passed between my life as a human and becoming undead, but seeing this, it must have been quite a while.
‘Well, that’s not important.’
What mattered now was the abnormal signs—crops growing arms and legs without warning. No matter how much time had passed, that was not normal.
I just needed to do my job properly.
‘Hmm.’
Even as I flew, I imagined the layout of the field and where the dragons would be spread.
The pepper field was about twice the size of the potato and sweet potato fields, which had now turned into a mandragora field. If I scattered things without a plan, they might not distribute evenly, leading to trouble. Planning the allocation beforehand was essential.
By the time I had finished mapping out where and how much to spread, I had already arrived at the field.
‘…Sigh.’
The closer I got to the ground, the more chaotic it looked.
Normally, only Nepenthes should have been here, but now there were plants with massive leaves spread wide, and others with vines writhing like tentacles. Various species had uprooted themselves and were wriggling toward me.
Their target was obviously the dragons I brought. Last time, when I carelessly set down a leviathan to use as fertilizer, they rushed in and left nothing but bones.
“Tch. These aren’t for you. I’ll give you something else. Back off.”
Despite my stern warning, they continued writhing, flaunting their greed. It seemed words alone wouldn’t stop them.
Mana gathered at the fingertips of my skeletal hand. Flicker. As a small flame formed, the creatures finally began to retreat from the red dragons.
“Honestly… you only listen when it comes to this.”
As expected, like mad dogs needing a beating, the fireballs from before must have hurt quite a bit.
Having secured the fertilizer safely, I was about to head to the field when I noticed the creatures lowering their leaves and stems, looking dejected.
…
“Fine. Just three.”
With my right hand, I tossed them three dragons. Dozens of vines and leaves instantly wrapped around them.
They absorbed the fluids so greedily—it seemed the griffon I gave them recently hadn’t been to their taste. Still, this should keep them quiet for a while.
Controlling the magic at my fingertips, I began melting the dragons one by one. Their scales dissolved, turning into red liquid that seeped into the soil. Soon, high-temperature mana vapor brushed past my skull.
‘It’s soaked in well.’
A red aura spread through a section of the field.
Like a massive beast quenching its thirst, the soil greedily absorbed the dragons’ mana. It seemed satisfied.
As Father used to say, a great farmer resonates with the field. Perhaps I had grown enough to call myself a farmer now.
After a while, the red aura and heat settled, and the field returned to normal as if nothing had happened. The groundwork was complete. The rest was up to the peppers.
“Please… just grow like normal peppers.”
If they grew legs like Blood Peppers again, it would be a real headache.
Because if even red dragons didn’t work, then what on earth was I supposed to use as fertilizer for peppers?
“Good start.”
Three days had passed since I spread the fertilizer. Thankfully, there was no violent surge of mana in the field. The soil was stable, and the flow of roots was calm. At the very least, the field was behaving like a proper field.
The stems were still thin but growing straight. The leaves were a healthy green—not too dark, not too pale.
Maybe this time, the peppers would finally grow as peppers.
For a moment, I smiled in satisfaction at the crops I had planted—but then a beast-like cry echoed from outside the field.
“Igrifa-nim!!!”
Startled by the sudden scream, I nearly stepped on the pepper stem I had been carefully tending. At first, irritation flared at the piercing voice, but I quickly composed myself.
Because I recognized the voices.
I turned toward the direction of the sound. The pumpkin field.
Brushing off the dirt, I walked over slowly.
One step, two steps. As I approached, I saw vines extending from the eyes, nose, and mouth of the pumpkins, binding two lycanthropes.
“Seriously! What is this thing!?”
“Waaah… sis, this is gross! I don’t like it!”
The lycanthrope sisters called out to me desperately, trapped in awkward positions.
‘…That’s quite a pose.’
Lycanthropes were a physically strong race, so they could probably break free on their own.
Still… I should help them.