Chapter 210
Chapter 210: The Dead
“I have a letter from my master Enma.”
In front of me, a girl with her hood pulled low reverently presents a letter.
It’s Claire.
Even though she’s a sentient higher undead, she’s of no rank and status. Her position in the Demon Lord Castle is not much different from that of a goblin. So here she is, meekly wearing a facade—
“Thank you.”
As I thank her and take the letter, she narrows her eyes slightly and gazes at me.
Even with her facial muscles seemingly dead, her eyes communicate quite a lot. Is this her bewilderment? That I’m thanking an undead like her, the Demon Lord’s Prince?
Hypocrisy, perhaps.
I tore my gaze away from Claire and opened the letter.
“Dear Zilbagias—”
I averted my eyes for a moment. After taking a deep breath, I began to read again.
“I’m really sorry for almost crushing your upper body’s bones the other day. I didn’t think enough about your exhaustion from returning from the battlefield. I truly apologize—”
It starts off in such a tone, and then proceeds with such a level of apologetic humility, it’s as if they’re doing a handstand, with words of apology and reflection lined up one after another.
“And congratulations on your nobility title to Marquis, as well as your appointment as the Evaroti Governor. You’ve quickly surpassed me in rank. I look forward to the day we can meet again.”
With such formal writing, the letter comes to a close.
Hmm… There’s no mention of my policy to protect the human race in the Autonomous District. Well, if she filled it with apologies and then asked, “What gives?” it would ruin the whole thing.
“…Huh?”
Then I noticed. At the bottom, there was a very small postscript.
“PS: Now that you’ve become more important than me, as promised, I will lick your feet or anything else♡”
“Nhuh!”
I almost choked on the unexpected line.
Claire continues to look at me with exasperation. Does she also know the content of the letter?
“…Uh, I have received orders from my master Enma to ask how we will conduct the next necromancy lecture.”
Claire delivers this with an impressively lackluster and monotone reading. She definitely knows the content.
“Um… That’s right.”
I want to learn about the application of undead creation from Enma sooner rather than later, but there are various discussions regarding the Autonomous District, so today and tomorrow are tough—
“How about the day after tomorrow?”
“Understood. I shall await your presence.”
Bowing politely, Claire then notices Liliana, who is inexplicably at my feet.
“Kyuu?”
“Ugh.”
Claire takes a step back, perhaps instinctively sensing fear from Liliana’s divine aura.
“Sniff sniff…”
“Oh, Liliana, you’re not supposed to disturb us. Let’s go back now.”
Liliana, trying to sniff Claire’s scent with a snort, is hurriedly dragged away by Leila. “Kyuu” sounds sadly distance as it fades away…
“…They truly are beautiful ladies,” Claire mutters coldly under her breath before bowing politely and hurrying away, not looking back.
…As for my return from the battlefield, and having returned after killing humans, Claire didn’t have any words for me.
Well, of course.
“Are you lonely?”
Ante suddenly asks.
Not really? I’m rather happy. They could have said something like, “I’m glad you’re safe!” or “Congratulations on your victory!” Just like Enma, they could throw around surface-level words to butter me up.
But Claire doesn’t do that. She doesn’t hide her resentment towards me. To that extent, it’s proof that her self-awareness and free will remain intact.
I… I’m glad about that.
“You too… struggle, huh?”
Ante says in a voice full of sympathy.
“…Is that Enma’s underling?”
When I return to the room, Barbara emerges gracefully from Leila’s waist rapier.
“The title of doll maker isn’t just for show; you can’t distinguish her from a living person except for her complexion,” she observes.
I see, Barbara must have caught a glimpse of Leila then. When it comes to the “undead” familiar to Barbara, it’s probably only those like skeleton soldiers or heavily armored skeletal knights meant for combat.
“Right. You don’t see that kind of undead in battle, do you?”
“To think such undead could roam so brazenly, it’s the end of days indeed. Truly, the Demon Lord Castle.”
In her semi-transparent ghostly state, Barbara laments, but… I can’t tell if she’s being serious or self-deprecating. Leila had a look on her face like, “Are you really saying that…?” but she kept it to herself.
Still, if you think about it calmly, it is funny that someone without horns or pointed ears can saunter around the Demon Lord Castle without raising suspicion.
…Well, demons and night elves can sense dark magic, and beastmen probably can’t hide the stench of death. On the flip side, if you wrap yourself in the smell of death, use makeup to make your face look sickly, and have dark magic properties, maybe you could sneak into the Demon Lord Castle… Nah, it’s probably a waste of thought.
“That’s the Undead King from Enma’s group… although she’s a trainee,” I mention.
“The Undead King… unlike low-level undead, her former ego likely remains intact.”
Barbara grimaces at my words, looking displeased.
“To cooperate with the Demon Lord’s army of your own volition… she deserves no place among humans! When we defeat the Demon Lord, we’ll drag her out under the sun!”
I feel a pang of sadness at Barbara’s undisguised anger toward Claire. Even after death, Barbara is trying to fight against the Demon Lord’s army. Her anger is righteous, but…
“She’s my childhood friend…”
Barbara looks taken aback, “Huh?” at my careful words as I check the soundproof barrier.
“I told you about how my hometown was destroyed by the Fourth Demon Lord’s Prince. I managed to escape, but she didn’t. The last time I saw her, she was being swarmed by goblins… I haven’t heard the specifics from her. Apparently, she suffered terribly before dying. Then, her soul was picked up by Enma…”
Then I was propositioned.
To cooperate with Enma and retain her ego.
Or to refuse and be ‘processed’ into a low-level undead—
“There was supposedly no choice… She said it was such a terrible end, to ‘just end’ like that… it’s so unfair…”
“……”
After a moment of silence, Barbara breaks down.
“Ugh… Ughh, that’s… too cruel! Why… whyyy! Just when I was finally able to reunite with my childhood friend… this is too much…!”
Barbara starts to sob, big tears rolling down her face—flowing straight back into the void…
“Uuh. Uuhhh…!”
While I appreciate the sympathy, it’s…
—Clearly, her emotional range is much larger than the Barbara I knew in life.
It feels like she can’t control her emotions, or rather that she’s being whipped around by them. Even if I called her forth not long after she died, it seems the rationality dipped in the spirit world has taken its toll.
I might need to inject a bit more dark magic and reinforce her soul’s shell.
…Even if that means.
Somewhat ‘processing’ Barbara’s soul.
I cast a spell, gather dark magic, and send it into Barbara’s soul.
“Ah, thank you. Alex,” Barbara says, her tears drying as she adopts a calm expression. It must’ve been a beneficial act for her. Perhaps she felt her rationality being reinforced, alleviating her unease.
Unlike Faravgi, I’m glad she doesn’t have light magic.
Not knowing how to respond, I simply smiled. My chest hurt. Deep within, something was creaking…
“Hehe.”
Ante lets out a small sound, half laugh, half sigh.
“So, your childhood friend is being forced to obey Enma, right?”
“…I’d like to believe so, but I really don’t know. Her soul is probably being watched by Enma, and besides, there’s no way an underling of the Demon Lord army like Claire would share her true feelings with a demon prince.”
“That’s true.”
“…Maybe she’s gone so far as to think, ‘Whatever happens, happens!’ and is truly cooperating with the Demon Lord army to obliterate humanity. I can’t let my guard down.”
“Got it… By the way, I have a fundamental question, Alex.”
With her chin resting on her hand, Barbara gazes at me with a scholarly look.
“Why is doll maker Enma so passionate about harming humans to the point of siding with the Demon Lord’s army? Despite being a deranged killer, wasn’t she originally human herself?”
“Oh, that…”
If I could just sum it up in one word as ‘crazy’, it would actually be a relief.
“Her goal is, in her own way, the salvation of humanity.”
I couldn’t help but say it in a sarcastic tone.
“Salvation?”
“She’s supposedly delved deep into necromancy, reaching the deepest depths of the spirit world. As a result, she concluded that ‘the underworld does not exist.’ Souls that have perished in the spirit realm are converted into magic, eventually returning to this world and being reborn as new lives. This cycle—the wheel of reincarnation merely reproduces needless suffering and pain, that’s Enma’s claim.”
Barbara looks utterly baffled by my words.
Naturally, anyone would feel that way when suddenly told something like this.
“Two hundred years ago, she manifested dark magic and faced persecution, experiencing all manner of suffering before dying. So, she can’t find value in ‘living’. All life activities, in the long run, only create infinite suffering and sorrow. Therefore, she is determined to end that chain with her own hands—”
And ultimately, she’s trying to build a paradise for the undead by herself.
To be honest, even as someone who has got to know Enma for a while, I can’t help but think her ideology is still insane.
What’s most heartbreaking is that this stems from her own version of ‘good intentions’…
