The Ark Lich

One of the main skills gained upon becoming the Star's Successor.

Alongside Star Claw, it was a blessing skill that erased an opponent's Limit Curse.

A Limit Curse was exactly what it sounded like — a curse that imposed a hard ceiling. The Desert Queen's curse that forbade Isabella from using warps, and the Demon King's curse that had nearly locked Serengeti into eternal sleep, both fell under that category.

This was no different.

It wasn't omnipotent, of course. There were times when Star's Blessing could be used and times when it could not — but fortunately, this was one of the former.

With every limit and every scrap of bad karma wiped clean, claiming Andasar would not be easy.

……Hmm?

I tilted my head at the result that appeared.

Ark Lich?

I'd never heard the name before. Demi-Lich, Master Lich — those I knew. But Ark Lich?

And it wasn't Arch, either. It was Ark.

Noah's vessel had been called the Ark. But that was hardly the sort of word one expected to find in front of a lich's name.

A lich inevitably accumulated bad karma; the sacred vessel of salvation and a creature of undeath should have been as far apart as two things could get.

Had Star's Blessing and Andrew's infinite Indulgences somehow produced this change?

"Ah……"

Andrew's eyes flew wide with shock.

Andasar's form was shifting before him. The severed head reattached itself. Color slowly returned to skin that had been deathly pale.

"Andasar……!"

As she settled into the exact image of her living self, Andrew broke into open tears. He rushed forward and gathered her into his arms.

Then, held against her father's chest, Andasar opened her eyes.

"F…ather?"

"Y-you recognize me? Ah — Goddess, thank you, thank you!"

"Where…… is this?"

"This is Father's home. Are you all right now? Oh, merciful heavens!"

It was the resurrection of the dead in every sense of the word. The two of them clung to each other for a long time, pouring out everything they had held back.

I, however, could not simply rejoice the way Andrew did.

In an instant Andasar had surged to Level 12. She was already far beyond anything that could be called an ordinary human.

And it wasn't merely the level.

……The explanations about her kept scrolling past.

So this is what they meant when they said Truth Inquiry had added a Great Sage function.

The talent Truth Inquiry. The point cost had been so enormous I'd only managed to raise it to Level 3. Even so, it had supposedly added a new function to the Hidden Trait Great Sage.

This must have been it.

A Supreme Species, and Master of the Silent Cradle, no less. Nothing about the description was ordinary.

More lines followed at once.

Cough!

I couldn't stop a dry cough from escaping as I read what came next.

This wasn't a monster. This was a walking catastrophe.

Brutal talent, a domain trait, multiple Hidden Traits, and a maximum level that simply should not have been legal. Class, attribute immunity — there was nothing to discard.

……She's insane.

Having confirmed all of it, I couldn't help a genuine, full-throated admiration.

She was complete. Not a single rough edge. An absolute finished product whose future was already guaranteed.

More than worth the investment. I couldn't think of a better guardian for Labyrinth City if I tried.

And she recognizes me as her master.

Most importantly, Andasar properly registered me as her master. Even so, cold sweat prickled along my spine.

If I had turned her into an Ark Lich back when I'd only just opened the Golden Rule Shop — instead of now — I would have been the one subordinated without a shadow of a doubt.

"……Thank you, Lord Randolph. Truly, thank you. How can I ever repay this grace? Aaaah!"

Having read that first description, I couldn't bring myself to tell him that the Ark Lich was only a lich performing the role of Andasar.

How was I supposed to dump cold water on someone that happy?

I simply listened in silence.

About five minutes of that passed.

"S-Successor! You need to come at once!"

A familiar voice cut in from outside, urgent and strained. I turned, opened the door, and stepped out.

"……What is it, Hudson?"

The door swung wide to reveal Hudson sprinting toward me at full tilt.

Strange. He should have been enjoying a quiet stretch of time with Serengeti at Marquis Weiser's estate. What was he doing here?

He skidded to a halt in front of me, drenched in sweat.

"We're in serious trouble!"

"Serious trouble?"

Serious trouble. How long had it been since we'd dealt with Isaac, and already there was another crisis? At this point, Hudson's idea of "serious trouble" was more terrifying than any plague.

I hardened my expression and stared at him. He only grew more frantic.

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"An e-elf elder has come! They're gathered in front of the warp right now, waiting to take you with them……!"

…………Wait.

For a moment I doubted my own ears.

An elf elder had what?

Come looking for me?

Elves.

They were called the most mysterious race in all of Pangenia. Perhaps even more closed-off and secretive than the imperial bloodlines themselves — which meant information on elves was almost nonexistent.

Even I, who had achieved more as a gamer than almost anyone alive, had never had any real contact with them.

Why would an elf elder come looking for me?

Of course it was baffling. A people who never left their own borders were standing here, now, waiting for me at a warp gate.

No matter how hard I thought, I couldn't find a single thread connecting us.

An elder of the elf race, of all people……

Especially an elder. An elder was the head of a village — but elves did not live in villages. They had rooted themselves solely in the Primeval Forest, which meant an elder of that place ranked among the ten most powerful figures in the entire forest.

Someone of that stature had left the woods, entered a human city they despised, and done it to meet me.

Why?

"Did they say why they were looking for me?"

I asked because I truly had no idea. Hudson answered at once.

"They mentioned Basrak Forest. They said they wished to meet the true master of the greenery there."

"Basrak Forest — Rommel should be there."

"Rommel is not the master of the greenery, is he?"

"Hmm."

I stroked my chin slowly.

So they already knew I was the true master of the greenery, and had come hunting for me. That also meant they had already visited Basrak Forest once.

"Their presence was overwhelming. Even Serengeti took a step back."

"……Serengeti did?"

"Yes."

That was a little unexpected. Serengeti's combat power was overwhelming now — Level 12, one-star transcendent. In the human world she had no equal.

And she had taken a step back.

Yet the city was still quiet. At the very least, no one was trading blows.

"Master. Is it an enemy?"

The voice came from Andasar, still held in Andrew's arms.

……Hadn't she been wearing a sad expression only moments ago?

Now her eyes were as cold as a midsummer blizzard. The shift was instantaneous.

If this was acting, it was world-class.

An emotionless doll. Master of the Silent Cradle — Ark Lich Andasar.

Without warning she had signaled combat intent.

Silent Cradle — her unique domain skill. Inside it she could take the form of an Ancient Species and grow even stronger.

Serengeti, Isaac, Andasar, and me. That was more than enough force to swallow a small city whole. With power like that, we could handle almost any contingency.

I shook my head anyway.

"I don't believe they're enemies."

They hadn't arrived hostile. If they had, the city would not still be this quiet. Serengeti had simply taken a single step back. Had the elves shown any real hostility, she would never have stood idle — this was her hometown, a place she was sworn to protect.

Hudson steadied his breathing and asked,

"What will you do?"

"We'll meet them first."

"S-Successor. May I come as well?"

Andrew cut in without warning. The news that elves had arrived — perhaps the thought that his wife might be among them — set the corners of his eyes trembling like aspen leaves.

Of course, the elf wife who had left him in the distant past would not be here. Still, I understood that aching hope well enough.

"Come along."

I gave a light nod of assent.

"……Elder. Do you truly believe the Master of the Greenery is here? And that he climbed the tower alongside a dryad, no less?"

Ten elves waited before the warp for the Master of the Greenery. Auryll turned to the elf elder with the question.

To her eyes, the humans of this place were simply pathetic. And it wasn't only the humans here. Even Rommel of Basrak Forest had fallen short of her expectations.

"The Queen herself said so, child. She said they would surely be remarkable."

The elf elder smiled gently. Auryll puffed out her cheeks.

"That's exactly why I don't understand. What's so remarkable about climbing the Rift Tower? I could have climbed it alone."

"That tower is not a place one conquers with raw strength alone."

"Can't we just do it ourselves? Why bother with filthy humans……"

"Hush. I told you not to be rude."

"Tch. Not understanding is still not understanding. That human woman seems somewhat useful, but the rest of them are worthless."

The reason the elves had come to a human city was simple: a command from the Elf Queen. Make contact with those who had climbed the Rift Tower.

They had sought out Rommel of Basrak Forest first, and the trail had led them here.

We don't need human help.

Even granting every possible concession, she still could not understand it. Climb the tower with human assistance? Form a party with dirty, foul-smelling humans? She could see no reason worth enduring that.

"Whoa…… are all elves women?"

"They're beautiful……"

"Even more beautiful than the stories."

"I-I can barely speak."

Look at them. Humans staring, drooling, making no effort whatsoever to hide the desire flooding their eyes — standing there slack-jawed and completely exposed.

The stench alone was enough to clog the nose. Did humans not bathe?

How was she supposed to associate with creatures like that?

Disgusting!

Auryll's face twisted. If not for the Queen's command, a Laurel Warrior like her would never have left the Primeval Forest. She had been a little curious about the outside world — but not like this.

Humans, in particular, were even more wretched than ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the rumors.

Not all of them are complete failures, though.

There was exactly one. Among the failures, one who was slightly less of a failure.

Serengeti, was it? The woman who appeared to be the local lord's daughter had, even by Auryll's standards, respectable skill. Unlike the others she did not reek, and she seemed capable of restraining her desires.

But.

Restraint is all it is. An elf's eyes can still see the desire underneath.

In the end, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠humans could not escape their ugly hungers. And Auryll could see Serengeti's as well.

She did not flaunt it the way the others did — but the desire she carried was far larger than theirs. Ten times larger.

Pink.

That was lust.

Playing the demure, self-controlled lady while nursing a monstrous appetite.

Filthy.

Auryll clicked her tongue. Was this simply what humans were?

"The Successor!"

"It's the Successor!"

Then the crowd stirred, and a human appeared.

Two men and one woman.