Chapter 25
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Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 025
Chapter Title: Misty Forest and Standing Alone (3)
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‘No way.’
Gilbert had reverted to an ordinary corpse.
This meant Master hadn’t secured enough mana to maintain his familiar.
There was no way someone with his vast mana reserves would release Gilbert’s summoning without reason.
So, there were only two possibilities worth suspecting.
First, he’d used such powerful magic that he’d drained even the mana needed to sustain the undead.
Second, the familiar’s master had lost his life.
‘Not the second one.’
That’s what I thought.
Then, suddenly, a massive surge rippled from far away.
It felt like an enormous amount of mana churning violently.
And soon after, the aftershock from it swept over my body.
“Hup!”
An intangible energy passed right through me.
Afterward, overwhelming terror engulfed my mind.
A horrifying fear so intense I could barely breathe.
The thought that I had to escape this place immediately filled my head.
“Suuuuhp...”
I steadied my breathing and calmed my mind.
Then, I forced myself to think.
About what had just happened.
‘What the hell was that?’
A wave of mana.
Master had to be at its center.
But the energy that had brushed over me was far too vicious to be his.
Master’s mana, as both a necromancer and earth mage, carried a unique aura of eerie gloom mixed with solemn gravity.
That distinctive presence...
I hadn’t felt it at all just now.
All I sensed was extreme malice.
The most negative mana I’d ever experienced.
‘Run.’
Alarms blared endlessly in my head.
My instincts screamed that I had to leave right now.
‘Gilbert! I need to take Gilbert with me.’
I poured strength into my wobbling legs to barely regain my balance.
Then, targeting the pile of bones—formerly Gilbert—I cast the spell the Underground Guide Grimoire had just taught me.
The bones rattled and shook before moving on their own, assembling into their proper places.
Like invisible hands piecing together a model kit.
But I had no time to admire it.
‘Hurry up and finish! Please...’
Nothing was threatening me directly, but my mind was so unsettled I couldn’t stay still for a second.
The desperate urge to flee this place right away.
It spurred my actions.
So, to distract myself, I recalled the details of the first spell the Underground Guide Grimoire had shown me.
Death’s Reprieve.
A necromancy spell that costs a whopping 100 mana and revives a corpse.
Since that 100 mana is fully dedicated to maintaining the undead, it’s practically a passive skill.
Meaning my available mana would be reduced.
“And what else? What else is there? Anything to think about...”
As I muttered to myself like a madman, I saw Gilbert pick up the sword that had fallen to the ground.
The spell had succeeded.
He looked no different from before, but the aura emanating from Gilbert was markedly weaker.
Obviously more frail than when Master had summoned him.
But that didn’t matter at all.
Now, finally, I could leave this place.
“Run!”
I shouted that at Gilbert and bolted.
I didn’t look back even once.
The intense anxiety that turning my head might make me lock eyes with something I shouldn’t gnawed at me.
“Let’s rest here for a bit.”
I collapsed onto the ground, gasping for breath.
Gilbert, who’d been running alongside me, stopped as well.
To escape death’s terror, I’d run nonstop for thirty minutes without checking direction.
Luckily, I’d made it out of the forest.
The problem was I had no idea where I was.
‘But I’m alive, right? That’s what counts.’
I hadn’t grabbed any money or food, but I’d saved my life.
Once I realized I was safe, thoughts of Master finally surfaced.
‘I wonder what happened to Master.’
He had to be alive.
I couldn’t imagine him losing.
That horrific surge must have come from some incredible spell of his I didn’t know about.
So, I pushed aside my worries about him.
Right now, I needed to focus on myself more.
‘What do I do now?’
After meeting Master, I’d just followed him without making real plans for the journey.
But I couldn’t do that anymore.
Now, I had to think, judge, and decide alone.
A sudden wave of fear washed over me.
‘Can I really survive on my own?’
As I fretted like that...
I suddenly realized it was pointless.
I’d always been a loner anyway.
I’d just forgotten for a moment, living comfortably under Master’s protection.
But the world I came from was like this.
People were harsh, and the outside was full of dangers.
And I’d survived in that world for fifteen years.
Just two months ago, I’d been scraping by on the watery porridge leftovers from the village chief and his family.
No reason to panic prematurely.
‘Yeah, it’s just going back to how it was. No, actually, it’s better than before. I’ve learned magic.’
Realizing I had the power to protect myself filled the emptiness in my heart with confidence.
And there was more good news.
Hadn’t Master said he’d find me no matter where I was?
So, the time I’d spend alone might be much shorter than I thought.
‘Alright, let’s make a plan.’
Before seriously plotting my future...
I gave Gilbert one order.
“Gilbert, if any people or animals approach, touch my shoulder to let me know.”
I gave the command as detailed as possible.
Otherwise, he might act against my intentions.
His intelligence seemed lower than when Master summoned him.
Still, having him around was reassuring.
‘First things first... I need to find people. Hope there’s a village nearby.’
I needed to figure out where I was first.
That way, I’d know my current position.
And if luck was on my side, I could meet a noble and ask for aid.
Just like Master had.
Before I knew it, night had fallen as I wandered aimlessly.
So, I decided to camp on the open plain.
First priority: find a good spot.
I chose the lee of a low hill to block the wind.
Next up...
‘Nothing.’
There was nothing more I could do.
No blanket to lay down, no cloth or poles for a tent.
‘What if my mouth locks shut while I sleep?’
Facing that harsh reality, I worried if I could make it through the night unscathed.
Winter had passed and spring arrived, but nights were still cold.
Still, I didn’t light a fire.
Or rather, I couldn’t.
Someone might see the light and come looking.
‘If Master were here, he could’ve made an earthen shelter with earth magic to block the wind.’
Without him, there were so many more things to worry about.
His absence hit me hard.
Then, a thought struck me.
‘Was it really right to abandon Master and run?’
Master had told me to flee.
I’d obeyed.
But doubts weighed on me—was that the best choice?
Deep down, I knew.
Going back wouldn’t have helped.
Lucky if I didn’t end up a hostage.
Yet I suffered because my pathetic, fear-driven escape kept replaying in my mind.
‘What was I so scared of?’
Looking back now, it made no sense.
I’d only sensed that horrific aura, but feeling mortal terror from that alone?
‘Was dying really that frightening?’
To be honest, it terrified me.
Even now, regretting it, if I went back to that moment, I’d make the same choice.
I hated myself for it.
‘For now, sleep on it and think later. Staying like this will just breed self-loathing.’
I’d been confident about surviving alone before sunset.
Now, I was just anxious and confused.
With my mind so unsettled, negative thoughts snowballed.
My mood swinging like this... that horrific pulse from earlier must have really shaken my psyche.
‘In the end, this all happened because I’m weak. Getting stronger is the only solution.’
With that thought, I cleared my mind as best I could and closed my eyes.
After tossing and turning for a while, I finally fell asleep.
I hunted a rabbit with Lightning Bolt to sate my hunger and boiled stream water from a nearby valley to quench my dry throat.
That’s how I endured for three days.
Master still hadn’t returned.
But something good happened.
I finally sensed signs of people.
‘Someone fighting?’
The moment I entered the forest after crossing the plains...
Voices rang out from somewhere.
Hearing them, I let out an involuntary cheer.
I hurried toward the sound and soon spotted a forest path.
Two groups were facing off there.
‘Bandits and refugees, huh.’
Both groups looked ragged.
Similar numbers too.
But one side consisted entirely of burly men, each armed with clubs or hand axes—minimally equipped.
No different from the bandit packs I’d seen on the way to Horace’s tomb.
Eleven bandits, by my count.
If a fight broke out, too many for me alone.
So, I planned to avoid combat.
“Gilbert, hide here.”
I hid Gilbert first.
If they learned I was a necromancer, it’d give a bad first impression to both groups.
Thud. Thud.
After hiding him, I deliberately made loud footsteps as I descended toward the standoff.
They spotted me soon enough.
“What’s this, a damn kid?”
“Lost, looks like.”
“Wearing thick clothes too. Gotta snatch those.”
The bandits murmured.
They didn’t seem wary of me at all.
Made sense.
To them, I was just an ordinary boy.
So, what I needed now was pure bluff.
“I’m lost. Anyone know the nearest village from here?”
A brief silence fell.
Then the bandits burst into mad laughter.
“Uahaha!”
“What kinda idiot is this?”
“Kid’s lost his marbles.”
Contempt and mockery.
Familiar to me.
It was what I’d dealt with daily in the village.
“Hey, kid.”
As I gauged their reaction...
One approached me.
Club in hand.
His stride oozed confidence.
“Stop. Come any closer, and you die.”
I halted him.
Better to avoid close quarters.
Reacting like this would rile him up, making him act just as I wanted.
“What?”
The man froze at my words.
His face twisted in fury.
My attitude pissed him off, no doubt.
‘He’s mindful of the onlookers. Planning to use me to show off his strength.’
Instead of charging, he quickly glanced at his crew and the other group.
Gauging reactions.
Only after confirming both sides were watching did he move.
“You’re nuts. I’ll fix that head of yours.”
He bared yellow teeth in a grin.
Then advanced again.
His crew cheered him on.
“Bash his skull!”
“No! Strip him first, then kill!”
“Yeah, keeps the blood off.”
They were curious how he’d kill me.
The other group just watched, not intervening.
Not their problem.
A shame.
Time to make it feel personal.
Lightning Bolt
[Instant cast / piercing strike]
A sudden flash of lightning.
It shot toward the approaching man.
“Huh?”
His eyes widened at the bolt.
And that was it.
-184 HP
[One-shot kill]
The bolt struck his chest.
He collapsed without a scream.
And...
The rowdy bandits shut their mouths in unison.
Silence blanketed the scene in an instant.
Now that people were ready to listen, I spoke again.
“I’ll ask once more. Anyone know the nearest village from here?”
Even separated from Master, I was still a mage.
No reason to cower.