Chapter 11
Chapter 11
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 11
Chapter Title: Wrapping Up (1)
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I scoured the village thoroughly, gathering all the usable items in one place and sorting them out.
Of course, I just pointed things out while my nearly two hundred subordinates did all the work.
Hmm, even though it's a slash-and-burn village taken over by black mages, I expected they might have a decent haul. This is pretty good.
After stripping the personal quarters and belongings bare, we ransacked the village chief's house and found a fair amount of currency and precious metals that seemed to be public funds used during their operations.
They must've been here for quite a while and used a lot, but damn, these guys were richer than I thought.
I didn't know the value of the local currency, but gold coins were bound to be high denomination, so this was a lot.
Especially since we'd uncovered a few gold bars too.
...Is this real gold?
I'd never handled gold in my life, so how would I know?
I pried my jaw open a bit and bit down on a bar. Seeing the tooth marks, it had to be real, right?
My mood skyrocketed, and I turned to inspect the other items.
The weapons and armor used by the minions would be handed straight to the undead.
More eye-catching, though, were the magic tools wielded by the black mages.
From staves and robes to conveniences for daily life, there were plenty.
I slipped on a robe that looked neat and tidy.
It had temperature control and basic defensive functions. I didn't need the temp control, but the defense would help a little.
And I couldn't keep wandering around as a bare skeleton forever.
...Ah, this won't do.
I checked myself in the robe and immediately took it off.
With only bones for a body, it had zero style.
If I layer it like this...
I put on a cloth outfit, topped it with thick leather armor around the shoulders, then draped the robe over that.
Hm, much better than before.
A man was all about those shoulders, after all.
Next, I looked over the staves and picked the best-looking one.
"Hey, Malcolm. Come here."
...Yes.
"Here. Take this one. Give me the one you have."
We swapped.
His had to be the best, right?
I gripped the skull staff embedded with gems and tapped the ground once.
The earth beneath me blackened, and the undead—decked out in gear and loot—sank into it one by one.
Finally, I surveyed the village.
It was the first otherworld village I'd visited, but now it was eerily desolate, not a living soul in sight.
I walked slowly, taking it all in.
I passed the water barrel and firewood stack by the chief's house where I'd stayed, brushing by the village hall where the undead had been confined.
Whoosh—
Black flames erupted wherever I passed, setting the village ablaze.
With the inferno at my back, I reached the center and paused.
The spot where the destroyed undead had been gathered.
Off to one side lay the corpses of what appeared to be the original villagers, piled together.
The weakest zombies had mostly been destroyed in battle.
There were some that could be revived, but I left them and gathered them in the village square instead.
My eyes met those of the sole surviving zombie standing in the center of the villager corpses.
Grrraaah...
It was damaged here and there from the fierce fight, but I recognized it at a glance.
The young zombie who'd helped me take down Jeraph.
I held its gaze for a moment, gave a light nod of respect, and turned away.
Black flames soon consumed everything.
He who'd fought to protect his loved ones finally achieved full vengeance in death, joining his family in eternal rest.
Roar—!
The entire village was burning.
I passed the sturdy log fence I'd helped repair and approached the entrance.
I could feel the barrier, now hazy from the fire's influence.
Detects outsiders, conceals black magic power, defensive functions in emergencies... The inner barriers too—they're pretty advanced.
The black magic concealment was a must-have in every barrier we'd passed.
Probably to hide the 'Fragment of the Immortal King.'
Well, it's part of me now, so it doesn't matter.
Still, they seemed useful, so I replicated the barriers as best I could, erecting a black magic concealment field around myself.
Black magic seemed taboo, so better safe than sorry.
I set the fence ablaze as I exited.
Fwoosh— Fwoosh—
This magical flame would burn only what I wanted, dying out naturally once everything was ash—no risk of forest fire.
And so, I left the first village I'd ever visited, stepping into the eastern forest.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ In the holy land at the continent's center of the Aouterica dimension.
In the worship hall of the central Roselia Cathedral, a girl knelt before the statue of the Main God, deep in prayer.
Silver light began to softly envelop the silver-haired girl as she prayed with eyes closed and hands clasped.
The light faded, and she opened her eyes, rising slowly. She bowed reverently to the statue and carefully exited the worship hall.
"Saintess."
Waiting outside, priests in pristine white robes approached and bowed to the girl.
"Bishop Martin, could you contact the others?"
"Pardon? What for..."
The girl—Riesta, Saintess of the Church of the Main God—stared grimly westward.
"Omens of the Immortal King's resurrection have been detected in the west."
"I-Immortal King? Understood. I'll notify them at once and convene a meeting."
Shocked, Bishop Martin bowed to the Saintess and hurried off.
The Immortal King, who had terrorized the entire continent centuries ago, was no small matter.
I won't let it happen again!
The Saintess bit her lip, clenched her fist, and steeled her resolve.
Hans had thought concealing his black magic would suffice, but the Saintess's ability transcended his imagination.
Thus, one of the continent's greatest powers became aware of Hans's existence and began tracking him.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Hmm... Craving some seolleongtang today.
Heinz, finishing his workout and heading home, detoured to a nearby seolleongtang joint.
No need to agonize over the menu.
"One kongnamul gukbap, one sundae gukbap, one somen gomtang. To-go on the yukgaejang and seolleongtang. Oh, and a large boiled pork."
Just order whatever called to him.
With more mouths to feed and bigger appetites, he'd grown fond of sampling a variety.
He might've held back normally, but today he was in high spirits, so he ate his fill and packed generously.
Hmm... What's the gold price these days?
With the unstable times, it had risen quite a bit, he recalled.
He slurped the takeout seolleongtang while browsing the internet.
A rough calculation warmed his belly and satisfied him.
This place's gukbap is delicious.
Hans was trekking east through the forest, so he couldn't fetch the gold bars yet, but it was as good as in his pocket.
He felt generous toward everything now.
Even a team game troll—he could laugh it off.
"What the hell is that asshole doing?! Come to lane!"
Hmm... Maybe not that generous.
He calmed himself via Mind Hub while Heinz snacked on the boiled pork, digested, and gamed.
Peace settled in.
This could help with mental training too.
He tidied the empty bowls and checked on Hans.
Since becoming a Demi-Lich, Hans naturally exuded a fear effect.
Concealing black magic halved it to direct encounters only, but that was enough—magical beast attacks were rare.
The occasional assailant merely alleviated boredom.
And I can turn them into more undead.
A week had passed since leaving the village.
Were they really heading to a city east? Doubts crept in about trusting Malcolm when a thought struck.
I took down a bunch of bad guys. Should've racked up decent karma by now, right?
They were schemers operating in the shadows, high-level too.
Expecting a tidy profit, he opened the Karma Shop.
⚙ KARMA SHOP ⚙ 『Unique Skill Enhancement (600,000)』 『Status Enhancement –View Details』 『Owned Karma: 792,208』 He'd hoped for a good amount, but this was absurdly generous.
Last check was just over 400k... Were they that big a deal? Or did I do something else?
He pondered but found no other reason.
Guess they were just that evil. Anyway, enhance the unique skill?
All he'd done was snatch the Immortal King's heart and crush the black mages.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Your mental strength has exceeded the threshold. You have acquired the skill 「Clear Mirror Still Water」. Enhancing the unique skill brought a brief headache and the acquisition message.
It steadied the mind against external stimuli and defended against mental attacks.
I have Mind Hub, but that's avatar-only. A body-applicable skill is better.
Perfect timing—he realized he could now summon another avatar.
Hans can't mingle with people easily. Send Heinz and use the new one for outdoor activities.
Hans spotted signs of human passage.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Hans rode a massive skeletal saber tiger through the forest path.
After pushing through beast-infested woods with Malcolm and a few undead, he'd turned attackers into undead mounts.
Faster to ride, and it looks cool!
An undead mage on a skeletal beast—gamer's dream!
He could mass-hunt and make an undead cavalry.
But it wasn't perfect...
Uncomfortable! Riding bare-bones is insanely bumpy!
Skeleton, remember? Every jolt rattled fiercely.
No saddle meant clinging for dear life.
Feet wedged between ribs prevent falls... but riding undead need redesigning?
Daydreaming along the path, trees thinned until the forest's edge appeared.
Over there.
Malcolm on his skeletal wolf pointed with a finger bone.
Far off, city walls rose.
Ooh... A real city? Old man Malcolm wasn't lying.
Glancing at Malcolm beside him, the necromancer flinched and edged away.
I'd grilled him relentlessly whenever the endless forest fueled doubts.
No memories remained from life, but guilt didn't vanish.
I'd tormented him with excuses.
No pain or emotions as undead, so pointless, but still.
I turned from Malcolm to the distant walls.
"Alright. Let's move. You lot, stay put."
No need for the group in the forest outskirts—I'd go solo.
But emerging as undead risked misunderstandings, so I skirted the forest edge toward the walls.
Hans couldn't enter the city, but he'd swap with Heinz nearby.
One more day until the Otherworld Teleportation Circle cooldown.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ ⚔ ENTITY INFO ⚔ 📛 Name: Heinz 🔗 Common Traits: 「Mind Hub」, 「Super Recovery」, 「Clear Mirror Still Water」 🧬 Individual Traits: 「Toughness」 📝 Special Notes: Han Seonghyeon's second avatar. 「Toughness」 boosts stamina and physical durability. Heinz completed the transfer and opened his eyes.
The city walls Hans had found loomed ahead.
A fair distance, but an hour's walk would do it.
He turned to Hans and involuntarily flinched.
Whoa, that's menacing...
First face-to-face with another avatar since becoming undead, and the impact exceeded expectations.
The high undead Demi-Lich's innate fear aura, the ominous vibe radiating from his form.
Skull staff in hand, perched imperiously on the saber tiger skeleton, glaring down with glowing blue eyes—an undead mage.
Pure fantasy synergy.
Bump into this at midnight? I'd piss myself.
Without Mind Hub and Clear Mirror Still Water, he'd be the same.
If he looked this bad to himself, imagine to others.
Trauma on sight.
Keep Hans out of sight.
He organized thoughts, prepared to part ways.
Heinz changed into otherworld clothes and leather armor Hans had packed, grabbing a weapon and travel funds.
Hans took gold bars, gems, and useful magic tools.
Unsure if Earth summons worked, better carry manually.
Soon, Heinz headed to the gates alone.