Chapter 158
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 158
Chapter Title: Don't Worry, It's the Thief Crow
Also known as the Ashen Citadel, the Lion Heart King's Castle.
The Lion Heart King was a tyrant and a conqueror.
A merciless dark ruler who committed atrocities no human could endure, utterly indifferent to the well-being of his subjects.
A villain who started wars for his own greed, plunging the people into suffering.
That was the common perception.
But the truth was different.
The Lion Heart King didn't start wars for such reasons.
He simply loved to fight, wandering from place to place picking battles, and the undead who followed him did so of their own accord.
Suffering subjects in the Ashen Citadel?
No such thing existed.
Most of the inhabitants there were undead to begin with.
"Grwor..."
"Clack... clack clack..."
There might be skeletons complaining that the rain hurt their backs, but no one suffered from the Lion Heart King's brutal deeds.
Of course, only those who knew the internal affairs understood this. From the outside, it was viewed as a true hellscape.
A gloomy gray citadel filled with all sorts of eerie wails.
Countless undead roamed freely, with no sign of any law and order being maintained.
Those undead were the citadel's residents, but people interpreted it as they pleased.
Of course, the mindless low-tier undead had mostly been drawn here unwittingly by the Lion Heart King's overwhelming demonic energy.
Even they seemed reasonably content with their current lot in life.
There was that mad scientist who occasionally snatched low-tier undead to turn them into flesh golems, but they didn't think that was so bad either.
...Though, since it was that mad scientist's own words, their reliability was questionable. And with their "grwor" grunts, they couldn't exactly express any grievances.
It was a group made up entirely of undead, but they had their own semblance of order.
High-ranking undead who had been with the Lion Heart King since before he became king commanded the lower ones.
Ruth and Papi.
Death Knights guarding the eastern sector, qualified to command low-tier undead.
With the strength of Death Knights and their respectable status,
plus the Lion Heart King's protection, one might think they could do anything they pleased.
But contrary to what others imagined, they had their fair share of headaches.
"Hold it! Where do you think you're going?"
"Grwor..."
"I told you to report before leaving!"
"Grwoong..."
They sighed as they grabbed an undead trying to wander off in the middle of the night.
Commanding lower undead was more like babysitting than anything else.
"Ruth! Why'd you bring that one along again?!"
"It said it was hungry, so I was gonna feed it a deer..."
"What about the other undead then?!"
"Clack... clack clack..."
"Hey, wait! Where are you off to now? Can't you see a Death Knight is talking to you? Ruth! Grab that one!"
Herding the skeletons and zombies scampering every which way was no easy task.
Still, since it was an order from their lord, the Lion Heart King, they followed without complaint. But it was growing harder by the day.
Bodies that had already died countless times. They'd pledged their remaining lives to the Lion Heart King's grand ambitions, never dreaming they'd be wasting away on such tedious chores. That was the reality for these Death Knights.
And so, today as always, Ruth and Papi cleaned up after the lower undead.
They recaptured the escapees, returned them to their graves, even sang the Lullaby of Hell for the whiners. Finally, they could stretch.
"Urgh... Hmm, looks like rain's really coming. My bones are aching."
"Yeah, Papi. Wanna grab a late-night snack? Seeing those kids eat dried liver earlier made me hungry for no reason."
"Tch, what kind of high-ranking undead snacks? And didn't we give it all to them?"
"True, but... oh yeah, I heard about this. Those witches coming and going here. Apprentice witches, so it's safe. It's this food you just add boiling water to. They say it's amazing. Spicy, settles the stomach... Ugh..."
Ruth drooled, thinking of the noodle dish brimming with red broth.
Papi had almost no appetite, but the reaction piqued his interest.
"Ahem, is it that good?"
"Yeah, it's good. And best of all, lower undead can't eat it. Just for us."
Unlike other snacks, they didn't have to share with the undead.
That appealed to Papi.
"Fine, I'll try a bit."
Papi and Ruth prepared their midnight treat.
They boiled water with Hellfire (mild), tore open the packaging, and cooked it properly.
"Just three minutes now..."
Three minutes.
A revolutionary food that was ready in a mere three.
Papi pretended otherwise, but he was deeply impressed by this wondrous dish.
However, it never made it down Papi's throat.
Crash!
A loud noise like something toppling over rang out.
"What, can't hold out that long and caused trouble again?"
"Hm. Might be nothing."
Accidents weren't exactly rare.
They could eat and respond after.
So thought the Death Knights, but soon they sensed something off.
The sound hadn't come from the graveyard where the undead slept.
It was from their superior's quarters.
"Ruth! Up and at 'em! We need to go now!"
Whether it was their superior or another undead, trouble was trouble.
And so, they had only one choice:
Abandon the precious food about to boil over and head toward the noise.
Crash clatter!
The Death Knights gave their uneaten food one last glance before springing into action.
"...What, it's nothing?"
"Phew. Lucky."
Fortunately, it wasn't the big deal they'd feared.
Not their superior, nor a wandering undead.
Just a crow rummaging around everywhere.
"Caw, caw."
A black crow cawing at them.
"Here for meat? Sorry, nothing for you!"
Ruth snapped irritably.
Still, it was a relief.
They'd tossed the food, but no real disaster.
"...Hm?"
But Papi soon felt something was wrong.
Wasn't that crow's sense of scale off?
"Cackle cackle caw."
Were crows supposed to be that huge?
Its talons gripped something tightly, wings flapping as if ready to take off any second.
"Thief!"
While they stood guard, a thief had stolen from their superior and fled.
"What? A thief broke into my quarters?"
The senior Death Knight still working late into the night.
A Death Knight wearing a hippo-shaped mask—none other than Maha.
Ruth and Papi stood at ease, fidgeting nervously.
She was the undisputed second-in-command of the castle, far beyond what they could aspire to.
"This commander is disappointed."
"Gasp...!"
"Kidding, kidding. Undead are all like that, right?"
Her voice was fairly merciful, but Ruth and Papi felt chills like cold sweat anyway.
She apparently assumed one of the accident-prone undead had stolen something.
Meaning she thought they could recover it anytime, hence the casual attitude.
"Um... Commander... actually..."
But the thief wasn't one of their subordinates—it was a massive strange bird that flew in from somewhere.
"What?!"
Maha shouted in a shrill voice.
With Death Knights on watch, how could an intruder enter the castle?
This place wasn't just about passing through the gates.
You had to breach countless checkpoints all around to even reach the inner castle, and if anyone did, they'd get an immediate report and intercept them from within.
"A crow...!"
But this intruder had bypassed all those defenses.
It had wings, so it flew straight in without passing the checkpoints.
There were countermeasures for flying foes, but they hadn't triggered.
This wasn't some random crow stealing by chance—it had deliberately invaded.
"So, it's definitely the one the Night Witches mentioned...!"
Realizing that much, Maha felt puzzled.
An intruder ignoring the Ashen Citadel's defenses just to steal a few items and flee?
It could've reduced their forces or struck key facilities. No way it left after just that.
And if stealing, why not the castle's relics? What good was her personal luggage?
"Right. What did it take? Anything you've confirmed?"
"Y-yes...! First, the silver coins in the room... and the item His Majesty bestowed upon you..."
Thud.
Maha felt her heart sink.
From her childhood, when she first met the Lion Heart King.
There was one toy he'd given her back then.
An ordinary toy of no real value, but to Maha, it symbolized their bond.
"I see. Stealing that of all things... It's a provocation against me."
But she didn't let emotions take over.
She knew this incident was no ordinary matter; she couldn't afford personal feelings.
"Is that all? Any other damage?"
Her voice was calmer and more detached than ever as she inquired further.
"Th-that's..."
Ruth hesitated to speak.
Maha sharpened her gaze and pressed.
"Speak. No punishment."
"It... took your clothes!"
Clothes?
Her long tail drew a question mark at the out-of-left-field remark.
Even calmly analyzing, she couldn't grasp the enemy's intent.
But hearing Ruth's follow-up, Maha learned the truth.
"Wh-what?!"
Realizing what Ruth had euphemistically called "clothes," Maha was horrified.
Even the cool, composed Maha couldn't tolerate this.
It was an insult she'd never felt even in life.
Her white face beneath the hippo mask flushed with rare vigor.
Embarrassment and rage.
The two emotions swirled together.
She tried to stay calm, but it was impossible.
This was a matter of a Death Knight's honor.
Maha—vice officer to the Lion Heart King and commander of the Ashen Citadel.
She swore to herself she would thoroughly punish the crow that dared provoke her.