Chapter 12
Chapter 12
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: Even Bosses and Santas Survive by Piercing True Feelings (7)
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That was right. I had to capture the death spirit first and turn it into my familiar before I could properly summon and use it. The process was to first look at the death spirit with the Black Eyes skill, then use the Capture skill.
“You had me all tense for nothing.”
Phew. I let out a deep sigh and activated the Black Eyes skill. I focused my mind into my eyes, feeling as if I were opening a new eyelid….
Flash! The moment I opened my eyes, the world looked a bit hazy. It was like a black fog had settled over everything. When I looked down at my hand, I saw it shimmering in a sickly pale green light—something ominous. Even without anyone explaining it, I could guess this was mana or life force.
‘So this is how you detect it.’
Regaining my courage, I stood up on my feet. The corner store grandma used to say you can’t fill your belly with the first sip.
I wasn’t likely to run into any impressive death spirits by this peaceful lakeside, but it was still good to practice the skill in advance. I took a moment to observe the flow of mana emanating from my body, then turned my gaze to the surroundings.
And that’s when my legs wobbled for a different reason.
“Ah, the fishy smell….”
The lake, which had been crystal clear just moments ago, now looked devastated. Its surface was covered with flipped-over fish death spirits.
I was looking at fish death spirits right now. Oh, and there was a dead deer lying upside down over there. The mana swirling around beast death spirits appeared as a dull dead-leaf color, with hardly any flicker.
Pathetic. Utterly pathetic. The best a fish could beat was plankton. Wasn’t there anything else?
Nope.
The scenery everywhere else was the same. A rabbit death spirit pierced by a hunter’s arrow, a rat death spirit circling endlessly around tree roots.
“So utterly worthless….”
I let out a hollow breath and leaned my back against a nearby tree. A spider death spirit descended beside my face with a high-pitched zing, looked around, and then climbed back up its thread.
“Ah, even bugs?”
The more I used the skill, the more mana it drained—it wasn’t a joke. I’d have to deactivate it soon. But it felt like such a waste. I wanted to see a decent death spirit!
Swiveling my head around made me dizzy. And all I could see were gasping fish death spirits and hamster death spirits spinning in place. Expecting to find something worthwhile in the forest had been my mistake.
What if I encountered a human death spirit that had met an extreme end deep in the woods? Nah, that wouldn’t be great either. I still wasn’t mentally prepared.
“Where the hell do you find usable death spirits? I need to use my head more. My head….”
As I idly took a step, a strange sound reached my ears. It wasn’t a sound from the physical world. It was more like static—ultrasonic or electromagnetic buzzing—than a forest noise.
So I could hear sounds too with Black Eyes active? I’d learned one useful fact.
To pinpoint the source, I groped around, scanning the area. The eerie chii-chii came from the grass. Probably just an animal death spirit, but no harm in checking it out before deactivating the skill.
Pushing through the bushes and examining the ground, I soon spotted the culprit(?). It wasn’t just one.
“Whoa, the ants are at war….”
A massive ant death spirit was locked in battle with living ants. It was huge and terrifying-looking. While normal death spirits were cute in their dead-leaf hue, this one felt dark and slimy, like mud stuck under a manhole cover. This wasn’t your average death spirit.
Watching quietly a bit longer, it seemed the ferocious death spirit was gaining the upper hand. It flung living ants aside effortlessly, allowing no openings. No matter how many opponents there were, they were helpless. Plenty suffocated and vanished in its black aura.
“Fascinating. A death spirit attacking living ants.”
Proof that necromancer wasn’t a fool’s profession. Mastering the art of commanding death spirits could lead to victory even against the crown prince, the world’s strongest. As long as I commanded heroes or demon lords stronger than him as my death spirits.
The one-sided fight seemed headed for the death spirit’s victory. In the distance, an ant mound rose like a grave. They were probably fighting over that spot.
“You’ve taught me something useful, so I want to return the favor.”
I pointed my index finger at the ant death spirit.
“I bestow upon you the honor of being my first death spirit. Not that it’s a huge perk or anything.”
Focusing my mana, the Door of Death reappeared like a manhole cover. As I muttered “Capture,” it rippled, then the interlocking parts burst open with a massive creak, protruding in 3D.
The gap turned into teeth, the intricate patterns into multiple eyeballs. Distorted eyelids parted, spilling viscous liquid as ugly eyeballs rolled drrrk.
If there were a deep-sea fish ugly contest, this thing would win ten years straight.
“Eugh! Gross!”
[Capturing… death spirit… so hungry….]
The Door of Death could even speak. Its voice rattled my eardrums like a foghorn mixed with the scrape of rusty metal plates. It gaped its enormous, twisted maw and swallowed the comparatively modest giant ant.
[…A decently large… death spirit….]
The Door of Death grinned by curling its mouth corners wide, then closed its eyelids one by one and slithered away. At the same time, Black Eyes deactivated. My heart felt like it would leap out of my throat.
“Do I have to keep seeing that creepy thing every time I capture a death spirit?”
Covering my mouth with my hand, I kept retching “Urk.” It helped ease the nausea a bit.
“I didn’t want to know *this* intimately why necromancers are unpopular.”
I hurried back to base camp, eager for rest. Dandel and the coachman had already lit a campfire and were preparing food. Warm steam rose from a crude black pot, carrying a savory aroma. But it reminded me of that Door of Death, killing my appetite.
“Duke! You’re finally back? I’ll serve the meal right away!”
“Ugh, no, it’s fine. Not hungry.”
“Gasp! Was the trip too rough? I should’ve been more attentive—truly sorry.”
“No. I’ll rest inside.”
Lying down in the carriage felt a little better. Still dizzy, but I pulled myself together and checked my status window again. To confirm the death spirit list.
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Owned Familiars
- Sugar Princess
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“Sugar Princess?”
A funny name for an ant.
“Wonder if it’ll come in handy later….”
I tried practicing the skill more, but my eyelids kept drooping. Casting magic was exhausting—even moving a finger felt like too much. I couldn’t fall asleep like this…. I needed to find a usable death spirit…. Ah, whatever. Just a quick nap.
….
[Familiar [Sugar Princess] accepts Gluttony’s subspace]
[Familiar [Sugar Princess] constructs a castle]
…
[[Sugar Princess]’s epithet changes to [Sugar Lord]]
[Familiar [Sweet Swarm] added]
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Owned Familiars
- Sugar Lord
- Sweet Swarm
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[[Sugar Lord]’s message: For eternal prosperity]
[[Sweet Swarm]’s message: Hungry]
***
The status window kept dinging all night, but exhaustion kept me from caring as I slept. Mana use drained stamina more than expected. Trying to use skills again made my body feel heavy with fatigue.
Come to think of it, since waking up in Sierra’s body, I hadn’t properly rested. After the funeral, I’d busied myself reorganizing the staff and recalling game knowledge.
Was it a habit from my past nonstop workdays? I could afford a short break until finding Hero Pippin. My old delivery team leader said rest is a skill too.
After dozing on and off in the carriage for half a day, I snapped awake at the village entrance. The carriage jolted to a stop.
“What’s going on?”
It was noisy outside. I opened the window to see what was happening.
“You can’t enter the village.”
“What nonsense is that? Do you know who’s in here right now, Ash?”
“No matter who, you can’t come in now!”
The coachman and a sentry were bickering. The sentry shouted.
“There’s a monster rampaging inside the village right now! Too dangerous for guests!”
To check if it was true, I listened—and sure enough, ominous thumping came from within. Something huge prowling the village. And amid it, an unmistakable voice.
“Pippin! Pippin! You idiot, don’t go that way! You madman!”
The hero had arrived.
To think I’d meet Hero Pippin this soon! Lucky break.
There seemed to be a commotion inside—perfect excuse to send Pippin to ruin. But first, I needed to know what was going on.
I leaped out of the carriage. Dandel panicked and tried to grab me, but I dodged nimbly and chin-jerked at the sentry.
“Open the gate now.”
I’m curious!
“Hey, young master! Step back! There’s a monster inside, and it’s no ordinary—”
As the sentry approached me, Dandel shrieked.
“That’s Duke Gluttony! Do as he says, now!”
“Huh? That crest on the carriage…! Oh my! A duke?”
The sentry hurriedly helped open the heavy wooden gate. The moment it swung wide, a grotesque beast face appeared. We all stumbled back a few steps. Seeing the source of the commotion furrowed my brow.
“Magical beast? That’s a magical beast? I thought it was Pippin, but it’s a monster….”
Its massive body evoked an old apartment building. Mismatched round eyes were car-sized, and its enormous horns scraped the ground like construction equipment.
Kuuuoooo! The throat-scraping roar sent chills down my spine. My first magical beast sighting. But not unfamiliar—I’d fought it in the game.
Black Bison Veridis. A mid-to-late game beast with simple attack patterns but insane HP and defense. It lived in herds on the fields of the Hermit’s Land.
Not something you’d see in a ‘beginner village’ dump like this.
One wrong move, and I’d die.
“Dandel! Run!”