Chapter 66

Chapter 66

Fort Polrwin (5)

The battle ended quickly with Kaen’s victory.

“Whew... my clothes are ruined.”

At the very end, the blood mage had tried gathering blood and detonating it to obscure Kaen’s vision, but it had not worked very well.

Thanks to that, Kaen’s clothes were now completely covered in blood.

Still, I had brought clothes for her to change into in case something like this happened, so it was not a major issue.

Kaen received a clean cloth from me and wiped her face.

[ She fundamentally understands how a swordsman should approach when facing a mage... Hmm... Now I am curious who this grandfather she calls her master is. Was there ever a swordswoman with pink hair...? ]

After watching Kaen’s battle, Sierra muttered that.

“I wish she would not get curious about her master, of all things...”

The one fortunate point was that the Sword Saint had no children.

As far as Sierra knew, that was the case.

Kaen and the Sword Saint did not share a single drop of blood, so Sierra still did not seem to have even come close to realizing that her master was the Sword Saint.

Now it was time to collect the reward.

It was not something I needed to use, but a reward to give Kaen.

A foothold for using the “Kaen chance” again later.

Before that, there was something we needed to do.

“Miss Kaen, what is the first thing one must do after catching a blood mage inside a blood mage’s hideout?”

“Mm... Check whether there are bloodstones, perhaps?”

“Half correct. Please look for a bloodstone. I will check whether there are any victims’ bodies.”

After having that conversation, we each split up and searched the hideout.

Well, I already knew, but there were no bodies.

There had been none when I came here in the game either.

It was probably better not to imagine how he disposed of corpses drained completely of blood.

I picked up the reward meant for Kaen and immediately returned to her.

“I found the bloodstone.”

In Kaen’s hand as she said that was a small red stone.

“To be precise, it should be called vampiric iron before it becomes a bloodstone. Could you give it to me?”

I received the vampiric iron from Kaen, bit my finger, and smeared my blood onto it.

Soon, the vampiric iron let out a hum, then shattered into powder.

“Bloodstones have many recipes. But if blood that does not follow the recipe flows into them, they shatter into pieces like this. Their dreams, their vain desires, are destroyed.”

Kaen slowly nodded as she listened to my explanation.

I looked at her and continued speaking.

“The recipe will not be here. Blood mages fundamentally do not trust others, so they have a habit of not keeping such things even in writing.”

After finishing the explanation, I tossed something to her.

“What is this...? A ring...?”

Kaen caught the ring I threw and stared at it.

“I could not find any bodies... but I found this instead. It seems to have magic in it... Since we solved the matter, it would be good if a reward followed, wouldn’t it?”

It was a ring that increased attack power a little, but it did not seem likely to be of much help to me.

As I handed the reward to Kaen, I thought about the reward I needed to obtain.

The lich.

It was a matter concerning that thing’s reward.

***

The day before the Three of Black Blood and Polrwin’s commander Mikhail left the fort.

In other words, it was also the day before the lich would come back to life.

After finishing night patrol without any particular incident and returning, I had come out during the day without sleeping in order to investigate the lich.

The book written in the language of the demons would be useful whether I aimed for a complete resurrection or not.

Because cleaning up afterward would become overwhelmingly easier.

However, I had never faced a completely resurrected lich even in the game.

Putting aside the fact that the reward would improve... it meant that the thing’s existence would become that much more dangerous.

In the end, the question was whether I could handle it alone or not.

According to my plan, I would climb the snowy mountain and deal with the lich as soon as it resurrected.

So as long as I did not die to the lich, there would be no chance of the lich harming anyone else.

Moreover, I had no intention whatsoever of letting my foolish greed cause my death or injure others.

There was not much time left before that Demon God worshiper resurrected the lich.

I needed prior research on the lich before it had been frozen.

The time when the lich had lorded over the North and run wild was several decades ago.

So... I had to meet old people who had personally experienced that era.

But they could not be ordinary civilians either.

At the very least, they needed to have been warriors.

And so, after asking around among the soldiers, I was able to find an old man who had once been a seasoned veteran soldier, but had now retired with age.

He had been an Imperial soldier, and after the war broke out, he had joined the Allied Forces before retiring.

“...Did you ask how strong the lich of those days was?”

“Yes. I heard about the lich while out on patrol, so I grew curious about it. I wondered whether you might know something, sir.”

“Hoho, a lich... what a nostalgic fellow... You are lucky. I was there when that lich was subjugated.”

“Truly?”

The old man seemed simply pleased by the sight of me asking questions. He smiled and stroked his beard.

“You know there are grades among liches, yes...”

“Liches that became undead through demons, and archliches who became undead on their own, correct?”

That was right.

Liches in this world were largely split into two kinds.

Liches granted power by demons and turned undead, and liches who walked the path of undeath by themselves without borrowing anyone’s power.

The latter, especially, was called an “archlich,” and stood in a different league from ordinary liches.

There was a major difference between liches and archliches, and that was the existence of a “life vessel.”

An archlich hid a vessel containing its life force or soul, called a “life vessel,” somewhere no one could easily find, and as long as this life vessel remained intact, an archlich could revive anytime, in any manner.

However, this life vessel was also an archlich’s weakness.

Whether an archlich was immortal or undying, if its life vessel was damaged, it could easily reach death.

“Yes. I still remember the nonsense that bastard was spouting. ‘If only I had a damned life vessel!’ Why did he fall for the demons’ wicked tongues in the first place... Even thinking back now, he was a stupid bastard, hahahaha.”

“Haha, that truly is... a funny fellow.”

I laughed heartily, matching the old man’s words.

The lich I had to deal with this time was not an archlich.

It was a lich that had foolishly joined hands with demons and become undead.

That was why it had been possible for Aisin’s ice magic alone to kill it.

“Yes. He was ignorant... arrogant, and needlessly talkative too. He even announced where and how he would attack... The Aisin, famous for being taciturn, ended up telling him to please shut his mouth. That says enough, does it not?”

After saying that, the old man drank a glass of the expensive liquor I had bought.

Afterward, I continued conversing with the old man and compared his words with the lich I had faced in the game.

“It seems it will be about exactly twice as strong.”

It did not seem that any special elements would be added just because it resurrected in a complete state. Merely that the power of its magic would become stronger.

At that level, I judged it would be more than possible to handle alone.

The lich, the second boss, was an undead and a black mage.

If I focused on the fact that it was a mage, I had “Dispel,” which could nullify magic, and if I looked at the fact that it was undead, I had the “Necklace Containing the Hero’s Protection.”

The necklace was especially reassuring.

It was the protection of the “Hero,” no less.

It had been easy to see even in the game.

If one first obtained this necklace in the Labyrinth, the next boss, the lich, could be defeated very easily.

If anything, demons could sometimes have resistance against the light attribute, making them more burdensome, but the lich in the game, who was no more than undead, could not endure the Hero’s Protection.

Moreover, I had Rebellion Against Heaven. If I used Chapter Two, I could even amplify the effect of the necklace.

On top of that, I had memorized the bastard’s patterns cold.

“Why not have a glass too? You said you are on the night patrol team anyway, did you not?”

“Ah, I am not good with alcohol. I am fine.”

“That is a shame.”

Afterward, I shared some more trivial conversation with the old man.

It was mostly me listening carefully to his stories, but even that seemed enough to satisfy him.

After finishing my conversation with the old man, on the way back, Sierra stopped before me in an alley with no people and opened her mouth.

[ A book written in the language of demons... and a lich too... It seems something has occurred to you, Disciple. ]

“Yes. I am going to return the book to its owner. I have already figured out who the owner is.”

Now it was time to subjugate the lich.

I would aim for the complete reward, not the incomplete one.

***

A man stood before the enormous lump of ice halfway up the snowy mountain.

Today was the day he had waited and waited for.

In his eyes was the image of the lich, dead and trapped inside the lump of ice.

A black mage who had become undead by borrowing the power of demons.

He thought that he, an Apostle following Demon God Helgenas, and the black mage who had become a lich through demons were similar in nature.

Resurrect the lich and strike Fort Polrwin.

That was the order given to him by the “Dark Church” he belonged to.

Fort Polrwin was no easy target.

Even if he resurrected the lich, it would absolutely not fall.

He did not know the will of those above him, but they had said it was enough to inflict damage.

He did not bother questioning the order.

In the end, he firmly believed everything would flow according to Demon God Helgenas’s will.

The fact that not long after he entered Polrwin, the commander would leave his post... he thought that this had to be a revelation from the Demon God.

However, there was one problem.

“To think I lost the book, of all things... A complete resurrection will be difficult, but this should still be enough...”

The man murmured softly before the lump of ice.

He had lost the book needed to resurrect the lich.

It seemed he had lost it while being chased by the yeti.

The fact that a yeti’s shelter was nearby had been information he had not heard either.

A yeti... with his feeble body, he could never face one.

He had somehow managed to escape from the enraged yeti with his body intact, but he could not find the book.

The fortunate thing was that he had memorized the important passage.

The process he needed to carry out now was simple.

He had to place his hand on the lump of ice where the lich was trapped and recite the demon incantation.

Soon, cold ice touched his hand, and just as he opened his mouth to recite the spell...

He sensed a presence behind him.

Someone was approaching him.

“Today is the patrol team’s day off, so no one should be coming here...?”

He hurriedly turned his head and confirmed the identity.

What entered his eyes was a man with white bandages wrapped around his eyes.

An academy student who had come to Polrwin for the field trip.

“Zeto... How did you get here...?”

“We meet in a place like this, Buckland. Was today not your day off?”

Buckland was flustered.

Why had Zeto come here?

Why had he gone out of his way to come to this snowy mountain, to this lump of ice, on a rare day he could rest?

But that question did not last long.

Meaningful words came from Zeto’s mouth.

“Should I call you not Buckland... but Apostle?”

“What are you?”

Buckland immediately pulled a sharpened dagger from his clothes and said that.

However, Zeto’s next words were unexpected.

“For Demon God Helgenas...”

“...we serve.”

For Demon God Helgenas.

After completing the short phrase together with Zeto, Buckland thought.

Perhaps this man named Zeto was an Apostle of the Demon God, just like himself.

But Buckland did not lower his guard.

He had never heard or seen that there was a blind Apostle in the Church.

As silence flowed between the two, Zeto took something out from inside his clothes.

At the same time, Buckland’s body flinched.

Zeto was a person of strength on a different level from himself, someone who had torn apart a yeti’s neck in one slash.

“You left this behind. It is an important item, so you should not lose it.”

What he held out to Buckland was a book.

It was the book he had received from the Church, containing the demon incantation that would resurrect the lich.

Buckland accepted the book in a daze.

However, the question marks did not vanish from his face.

“I thought if the lich were to be resurrected, it would certainly be on this day. Fortunately, it seems I am not too late.”

“Then you too, like me...”

“Yes, that is correct. Given that the place I infiltrated is what it is... we would not have met separately.”

Only then could Buckland understand.

The reason he had not recognized Zeto, even though Zeto was the same kind of Apostle of the Demon God as he was.

The Church had infiltrated Innocence Academy with an Apostle.

If Zeto’s identity was discovered, the matter would grow serious.

Even if it was the Church, they would not be able to avoid damage, so because the risk was so great, his identity had been tightly concealed.

Moved by the greatness of the Church, Buckland laughed and opened his mouth.

“Haha... To think they placed an Apostle in the academy... In any case, thank you. Thanks to you, I can resurrect the lich in a complete state.”

“I will not report this mistake. Please be careful from now on. The beastfolk who was with me nearly found this book.”

Buckland nodded slightly and once again placed his hand on the lump of ice.

At last, it was time for the lich to resurrect.

Buckland read the difficult demonic language aloud and recited the incantation.

By the time he had recited the entire contents of the small book...

—Rumble!

—Crack... crack...

Soon, the lump of ice trembled and began cracking.

“It worked! I resurrected the lich!”

Buckland shouted loudly in excitement and looked at Zeto.

Compared to him, Zeto felt dry and emotionless.

Was it because he could not see this sight, being blind?

Or did even a lich not surprise him?

Soon, Zeto looked at Buckland and asked a question.

“...Then is the resurrection over now?”

“Yes. Soon, the lich will completely break through the lump of ice and emerge, then attack Polrwin. We should flee now as well. I plan to leave Polrwin.”

“That is good. Hmm... Buckland, I have one last thing to say.”

“Hm?”

“The book. You absolutely must not lose it.”

“Ah, if it is that, do not worry.”

Buckland answered like that and carefully tucked the book into his clothes.

“Thanks to him, the complete resurrection succeeded, but is he scolding me?”

Just as Buckland grumbled inwardly...

—Shing.

The sound of a sword being drawn rang out.

Buckland’s head flew into the air.

“...”

Then Zeto, having shaken the blood from his sword, stood quietly before the cracking, crumbling lump of ice.

He was calmly waiting for the lich.

***

On top of Polrwin’s wall, at the sleepiest time after lunch.

Lucia was yawning on top of the wall.

“Haaam... I’m sleepy...”

“...”

Orphel, standing beside her, looked down below the wall without a single reaction.

Orphel had not dealt with Lucia well since long ago.

As part of the wall guard team guarding the fortress wall, they were spending their time leisurely.

“Maybe because there isn’t much snow today, the scenery is nice.”

Lucia struggled to keep her blinking eyelids open as she took in the scenery of the North.

Then something on the snowy mountain entered her eyes.

She could see some strange lump of ice.

Curious, Lucia asked the guard beside her.

“Um, what is that over there on the snowy mountain...?”

“Ahh, since the weather is good, you can see all the way there. That is the grave of a lich that died several decades ago.”

“A l-lich...?”

“Yes. It is the lump of ice created when the lich was caught several decades ago. Orphel, you should know, yes?”

Orphel, who had been listening to Lucia and the guard’s conversation, nodded.

Then the ever-silent Orphel finally opened his mouth.

“...It is a story I heard at least once from my family. They were proud of it, saying it was ice that would never melt.”

“Really? To think it hasn’t broken for several decades either. That’s amazing...!”

Lucia looked at Orphel with sparkling eyes as she said that.

Orphel stared at her quietly, then answered firmly.

“Aisin ice does not break easily.”

“Hehe... That’s fascinating...”

Lucia approached the edge of the wall and looked at the lump of ice.

At that moment, some thunderous roar began coming from far away.

—Rumble...

It was difficult to tell clearly what was happening by sound alone.

“What is that sound...?”

“There was no construction scheduled today.”

“Hurry and find out what is happening.”

The guards on top of the wall began growing restless.

To Lucia’s ears, it seemed to be coming from that snowy mountain.

—Rumble...

Soon, Lucia’s eyes caught the sight of the lump of ice halfway up the snowy mountain breaking apart.

“Um... Mr. Orphel...”

“What is it?”

Orphel tilted his head and approached Lucia.

Lucia pointed silently at the snowy mountain with her mouth wide open, and only then did Orphel’s eyes see the lump of ice breaking apart.

“Over there... the lump of ice... broke...?”