The Lich's Bargain
Let's check the head once.
The fight ended so easily it was almost boring.
“Kill them all! Recover the great one's legacy!”
The skeleton knight, who seemed to be the leader of the attackers, charged forward with a sword, but Millero, the zombie department head from Endless Operation, dodged the blade with ease and sliced through the bones with a single strike.
“Kuaaaak!”
Skeleton Kim also quickly suppressed the other undead rushing toward him from beside Millero.
But the one who stood out the most was Lumina.
Every time her blue flame passed by, the undead were instantly shattered and collapsed to the floor.
I couldn't tear my eyes away from Lumina.
Despite wearing such a revealing dress, her movements in suppressing the enemy were flashy and incredibly fast.
In battle, clothing shouldn't matter at all.
And even more surprising was that no matter how fiercely she moved, the dress never exposed any important parts.
That must have been some kind of absolute area or something like that.
It was beautiful.
Her battle.
It felt like watching a dance.
It was the kind of feeling where, while appreciating a beautiful dancer's performance, you get lost in it without realizing.
How deeply I had been captivated by the beautiful sight that made me forget it was a battlefield.
Only after Lumina's dance ended could I finally take in the situation.
The dozens of undead who had raided the pawn shop were suppressed in an instant by the three of us.
Unlike the flashy entrance, the exit was rather shabby.
“Cough! Y-you traitors… Your deaths will not be forgiven.”
The skeleton knight with half-broken ribs grabbed at them and glared at the Endless Operation employees.
“Weren't you all scared of death and turned into undead? Why are you mentioning death now?”
Millero retorted with an incredulous expression.
Thud!
He kicked the knight's head with his foot.
The knight's head fell forward as if it had been knocked out.
“You don't need to answer. After all, the words you'd hear from those obsessed with past assets are obvious anyway.”
The security guards from the pawn shop, who had joined the fight late, stared blankly at Lumina and the Endless Operation employees who had suppressed the attackers in one go.
After a moment, they approached the suppressed attackers and quickly tied them up with ropes.
Or not.
“Are you okay? Did you get hurt anywhere?”
Lumina, who had quickly suppressed the undead, came over to me and felt my body all over.
“Nothing to get hurt. Lumina-unnie crushed them all.”
“That's good.”
Lumina let out a sigh of relief and took my hand.
“From now on, stick close to me.”
Her eyes were fixed on the Endless Operation employees, not on me.
Yes, our real purpose was these people.
“Haa, look at the suit covered in blood. This is expensive… I might have to bill for laundry too.”
Millero kicked the fallen radical's head with his foot and clicked his tongue.
“Thank you. It was easier than I thought thanks to you.”
He straightened his clothes and approached me and Lumina.
“The radicals, the former Demon King army… They are anachronistic existences. With the peace agreement, even the demons are living well in Taepyeong City now, but regressing to the past… Isn't it because of such existences that sincere demons and undead are misunderstood?”
Millero, the zombie, smiled kindly.
How brightly could a zombie smile?
To me, it looked like a rotten smile.
“Why is he acting like that?”
“Well, it's because they want to live according to their instincts. They don't want to be bound by Taepyeong City's laws, right? They're basically a criminal group. There are many people in the 7th district who hate them.”
After speaking, he extended his hand.
“It was a good auction. Since we're following orders from above, we had to retrieve the head somehow. If we knew you were such nice people, we would have made a deal before the auction. I think we wouldn't have bid at a lower price.”
The zombie Millero was much more talkative than I thought.
“Department head, unnecessary talk.”
“Hmph, sorry. After fighting, I get excited. Hahaha.”
I asked the still-extended hand of Millero.
“You are from Endless Operation, right?”
Millero's eyes sharpened at my question.
“Um, is the welcome magic broken?”
“Department head, you should have denied it first in such cases.”
“Ah, sorry, I was distracted. No, it's not. Endless Operation? I've never heard of the company.”
“…”
What are these undead?
“The excuse came too late?”
A dull sound of Millero's head being hit came from beside him.
“Department head, if even the brain rots because you became a zombie…”
“You too, wait until your age. Your brain doesn't rot.”
“Compared to corruption, I have only bones left.”
What is this banter duo.
“Haa, this is really.”
Millero, who was doing banter, scratched the back of his neck and smiled awkwardly.
“As expected, the boss's human-like insight in watching with interest.”
He glanced at the security guards of the pawn shop and continued.
“I didn't expect you to identify us in one go. It seems the welcome magic doesn't work on humans at all. It seems to be working properly.”
He seemed to feel no need to hide from me, so he relaxed his posture.
If you know me, the conversation won't be smooth.
“I have a request.”
“…A request?”
“The silver-haired head I won, can you let my group touch and check it once?”
The direct request made Millero's remaining eye twitch.
“Tsk, this is really. Violating company regulations by letting outsiders touch company property.”
His eyes, adjusting his tie in embarrassment, landed on Lumina standing next to me.
“Ordinary humans wouldn't come looking for that head… Lumina, right?”
Lumina's hand, holding mine, tightened.
She looked tense too.
“This is the first time I've seen you without the helmet. You have a somewhat attractive zombie head… If it doesn't bother you…”
“I'll pass. I have a group.”
“Hahaha! Too bad. This is really, a beauty that's hard to let go easily.”
“Department head, you'll hear it from the boss.”
“You can keep it secret.”
“Can you?”
It seemed like it would continue to banter, so I interrupted.
“Hmm, it's not like touching it will wear it out… It's a item the boss specifically asked to keep, and since the radicals were targeting it, it's an important item. I don't have any info, so it's hard to solve on my end, this is really.”
Hahaha.
Smiling kindly again.
Clever.
The salaryman's clever attitude of not solving it on their own line.
Then what's left.
I took out Belarus's business card.
“Then, if I contact the boss directly and request it, is that okay?”
Millero narrowed his eyes at Belarus's business card.
“The boss's business card. I heard you were interested, but giving your own card… It seems you were quite impressed. Hahaha!”
Millero, who had been stroking his chin, shrugged.
“Even so, this requires the boss's approval. Hahaha!”
At that, Lumina stepped forward.
“Then, can you make a place for me to negotiate directly with Belarus?”
“With the boss? Hmm… Since you have the card, there's nothing I can't do.”
At that moment.
Swaaah.
The air in the hall froze instantly.
The first to react was Lumina.
Lumina looked to one side.
Then, the space there split.
Swoo-.
A pitch-black door appeared.
A wooden door that looks like an old-fashioned office inside.
Click.
The door opened.
“It seems the work took longer than expected, Millero.”
A lich with a skeletal form appeared in a suit.
Red light shone under silver-rimmed glasses.
A regular customer who often orders cursed items at our convenience store.
Lich, Belarus.
“B, boss!”
Millero bowed his waist hastily.
“It seems there are more things than I thought. The unexpected competitor and the radical attack at the auction… Well, that's enough reason for being late. No need for a reason letter, no overtime.”
“G, thank you! Boss!”
“Resigned!”
Millero and Kim clenched their fists.
Then.
Belarus approached me and Lumina.
“Human youth, long time no see… No, not really. We saw each other recently with the elf queen?”
“Nice to meet you, boss.”
“I heard you have a request.”
“Yes, I want my colleague to check the head won from Endless Operation once.”
“If it's a colleague, then…”
Belarus snapped his fingers.
Pop!
At that moment, the air felt slightly different.
“Ah.”
A faint sigh escaped from Lumina, who was holding my hand.
I realized at that moment.
The welcome magic on her neck had broken.
“Dullahan Lumina… Long time no see, Lumina. It seemed like the last time was when climbing the tower…”
“Belarus…”
“You came to confirm if this head is your head.”
Belarus gestured, and the glass case holding the silver hair flew over entirely.
The appearance of a beautiful woman with silver hair.
The head with closed eyes looked peaceful, like a sleeping person.
“Yes. I want to confirm. If this is my head…”
“Your eyes will open. And you'll react to me.”
The hand holding mine tightened.
It felt like sweat was filling it.
“No free things in the world. Still, it's a rational company, right? We should receive appropriate compensation. Instead of letting you confirm, there's one condition.”
“What condition?”
At my question, Belarus's red light shone on me.
“Simple. Human youth, you will join our Endless Operation.”
“…What?”
Before I could be surprised by the unexpected condition.
“No.”
Lumina blocked in front of me with a firm voice.
“I can't accept that condition. Rather, ask for something else.”
She rejected without hesitation.
Instead of handing me over, she'd rather give up.
The flame flickering on Lumina's neck flared up fiercely.
The flame that didn't react much during the fight with the radicals burned brightly, making Belarus's jaw clatter.
“Joke. I heard young people do icebreakers with such jokes these days. Right, Millero?”
“Y, yes, ha, hahaha!”
The sight of a salaryman forcing a laugh at his superior's unfunny joke pained my heart.
I recalled my past self forcing a laugh at the factory manager's ajusshi gag.
“If I carelessly touch Jinjo's subordinate, our company will fly away. Why would I do such a thing?”
Belarus let out a bizarre laugh with clashing bones and revealed the real condition with red light.
“50 billion.”
“…”
“50 billion, the total assets you called at the auction earlier. If you pay that money, I'll let you confirm exactly once.”
It was an unbelievable condition.
50 billion just for confirming.
Even as a capitalist company, isn't this too much?
“If this is confirmed to be your head, we will sell it at the 100 billion we paid at the auction. It's like saving research funds for studying this head. Am I showing a rational lich?”
“Alright.”
Lumina answered immediately.
Without needing to think.
“Lumina…”
“It's okay. After all, I came to spend all this money. If I can find my head, that money isn't a problem.”
Contrary to her calm words, Lumina held my hand tightly.
“I hope it's your head.”
“Huhu, thank you.”
“Then, considering the condition accepted…”
Belarus gestured, and the glass case protecting the head slid open.
“Well, go ahead and check.”
Lumina approached Belarus.
I became more tense.
I could indirectly hear how much she had suffered to find her head.
I knew she was desperate enough to spend all the money she collected.
Her hand reaching for the head was trembling madly.
She carefully wrapped her hands around the cold cheek of the silver-haired beauty with closed eyes.
A suffocating silence flowed.
“…”
“…”
“…”
No change at all.
Her flame was still blue.
The silver-haired head remained asleep with eyes closed.
After touching the head for a while, Lumina's hand slowly fell down.
“Lumina?”
At my call, she slowly shook her head.
“…No.”
A hollow voice full of emptiness.
“This is not my head.”