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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 8
Chapter Title: Fragment of the Immortal King (1)
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It had been close.
"To think its teeth wouldn't even pierce when I bit its neck out of nowhere..."
Whether it was a constant protective barrier prepared for emergencies, its strength wasn't all that high, and it shattered quickly under the undead's bite force enhanced by black magic. But because of it, I hadn't been able to land a fatal blow.
I'd been just as flustered when Jeraph blasted me back with his black magic.
With no knowledge of this world's magic, responding was tough.
Luckily, I'd managed to block him with the zombie behind him, but I'd nearly failed my plan before even attempting it.
I stared down at Jeraph's corpse.
The village youth zombie was still latched onto the nape of his neck, tearing away.
These guys had been rotten from the start.
All the undead here, including that zombie, were people sacrificed to them.
Maybe that's why killing a person for the first time didn't hit me hard mentally.
No, without Mind Hub, it might've been dangerous, but thankfully, it just felt like killing a character in a game.
More importantly, a new issue had cropped up.
"I was actually planning to wait for an opening and smash the back of his head with a rock later."
After observing Jeraph's behavior, I'd gotten pissed and acted right then.
But once I'd harbored killing intent and formed an intent to attack, 'Hans's' body instinctively targeted the neck with its teeth.
The follow-up responses had been closer to moving as my flesh directed.
"That said, it's not like it slipped my control entirely."
It had acted on instinct, but in the urgent situation, I'd let it be—I could've controlled it just fine.
And it had been way more effective than aiming for the back of the head with a rock.
Had I stuck to the original plan, I probably wouldn't have broken the barrier at all.
"Still, if I had to nitpick, this sensation is..."
Right, like a habit ingrained in the body.
I could control it consciously, but unconsciously, it moved on its own.
I realized I couldn't ignore the instincts imprinted on this undead body.
Of course, it wouldn't negatively affect my main body back on Earth, and I could even use this to my advantage, but I'd need to stay cautious.
Now it was time to move on to the next phase.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Malcolm the village chief.
No, Marcos Giocalli, one of the elders of the shadowy organization 'Covenant of Reverse Heaven' on the continent, watched the scene before him with satisfaction.
The black gem pulsating as it absorbed death energy from the surrounding undead.
He had searched for the 'Immortal King's Heart' for decades.
But after all that hardship, what he'd barely found was just an incomplete fragment.
And transporting it to base risked detection by the continent's church, so he'd chosen this remote mountain village where no one came, sealed the fragment there, and begun the maturation process.
A year had passed.
"Soon now. Just a little longer and finally..."
He'd poured no small resources into the 'Immortal King's Fragment.'
It had even shaken his position.
"But once it's complete, everything flips. Stronger than ever..."
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Master?]
Suddenly, communication came from the disciple guarding the entrance.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [What's wrong?] [Master. Well, outside right now...] ◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
"So, my little brother is in there!"
"I told you, that guy left a while ago."
I was causing a commotion in front of the village.
The man in front of me was the middle-aged guy I'd first met when I discovered the village.
"No, the signal is definitely coming from this direction! Just let me go in and check."
"Why would we let some outsider waltz in?"
"Then at least let me speak to the village chief directly!"
If I could lure out the chief like this, perfect, but even if not, I'd get info.
Not coming out meant he was busy with something important, and in this village, there was only one such thing.
"I'm the chief. What's with all the fuss?"
And I'd figured he couldn't easily ignore or kill me.
Someone had come looking for a person they'd thought had no ties and killed, and it could happen again, so he'd want to assess first.
I greeted the kindly smiling chief, Malcolm.
"Hello. I'm Heinz. I apologize for the intrusion, but I think my twin brother Hans is here."
"Hmm, Hans... I remember him. But didn't that young man say he was traveling alone and got lost?"
"Ah... embarrassing, but we had a big fight and parted ways recently. Still, I felt I needed to make up, so I came looking."
He had no choice but to believe.
My face looked exactly like 'Hans's.'
And now, whatever they did next didn't matter.
I'd already achieved my goal.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
While 'Heinz' stirred up noise outside the village, as soon as 'Hans' confirmed Chief Malcolm emerging, he moved immediately.
I'd thought there was a good chance he'd ignore it, but luck was on my side.
Hearing it was a crucial moment, he'd want to handle even minor details carefully.
He probably hadn't anticipated trouble starting from the deepest core, surrounded by barriers and formations, even in danger.
Woooong—
Thanks to that, I stood before the 'Immortal King's Fragment' without interference.
Touching the fragment directly, without Alfred the zombie rat as intermediary, I understood what maturation meant.
And why the undead were placed around it.
"Absorbing black magic from the undead? No, resonance?"
The fragment wasn't just absorbing black magic.
Somehow incomplete, it absorbed black magic while taking in missing information, synchronizing and stabilizing.
Come to think of it, the undead around were all intimidating: ghosts, headless knights, nothing weak.
The weakest-looking was a skeleton knight, still far superior to the ones in the warehouse.
"Wait, does that mean the warehouse I was in was the rejects' storage? Suddenly feels insulting."
Low-grade undead were just impurities in that 'maturation' process.
He'd probably kept me alive to feed any usable undead that emerged to the fragment.
Ended up in the rejects pile since expectations weren't met.
"Should be a relief, but it pisses me off anyway?"
The closer I got, the more overwhelming presence pulled at my body's black magic.
And I realized its danger.
Any living being touching it rashly would turn undead, weaker ones dying just from breathing nearby.
Regardless of its contained power, it was a massive curse condensed.
I reached out toward the 'Immortal King's Fragment.'
"Picky eating won't do. Time to taste some defective junk food."
Of course, I didn't expect it to go down easy.
I had my aces.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
"So, we're twins, you see. We've always been able to sense each other's location since birth."
"Haha, hard to believe..."
The softly smiling chief's face hardened instantly.
Then twisted into a demonic scowl as he turned toward the village.
Something had gone wrong with the fragment.
No time for bickering with this fool.
"Kill that bastard!"
Malcolm yelled as he rushed toward the fragment using black magic.
At his order, the middle-aged man at the entrance, dark knight Bauckal of the 'Covenant of Reverse Heaven,' whirled to kill Heinz.
"...When?"
But no one was there.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ ⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Kill.]
...Terror, despair, grief, pain, oppression, madness, deprivation, hatred, killing intent, desire, rage...
A torrent of negative emotions flooded in relentlessly.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Hate all the living. Blanket this land in despair. The more the world drowns in death, the greater your power grows. Yearn for life. Seize what you lack...]
"Whoa, this is no joke."
The volume of info filtered through Mind Hub was immense.
Anyone ordinary would've had their body turn undead from this inherent energy, mind shattered and assimilated by the fragment.
Hell, could anyone endure this sane?
"Doesn't concern me."
I continued my work.
Malcolm had noticed somehow and was heading here; time was short.
"He's probably got some measures in place."
At this point, it bordered on obsession.
If he could withstand the fragment's influence, he'd have carried it everywhere.
"Let's see if this works. Almost there."
Using the absorbed black magic as a medium, drawing on the sensation of controlling undead, I attempted synchronization with the 'Immortal King's Fragment.'
Impossible for most.
But as an undead, I ignored the violent mental assaults, maintaining self.
"If it works, great; if not and it breaks, at least I disrupted them."
The fragment was incomplete, resonating vulnerably with surroundings to fill gaps.
I slotted 'Hans' into that gap.
The result came quick.
✨ GROWTH ACHIEVED! ✨ Acquired Special Skill: Wicked Wisdom
The text appeared before my eyes.
But I sensed my changes first.
My bony body remained, but my existence's tier had shifted.
New knowledge imprinted naturally in my mind.
"Oh! Now you can talk, huh?"
Resonating black magic in my vocal cords allowed speech, but that was minor.
I looked down at my body.
Between my ribs, a pulsating black gem.
A heart had formed.
⚔ ENTITY INFO ⚔ 📛 Name: Hans 🧟 Race: Undead (Demi-Lich) 🔗 Common Traits: Mind Hub, Super Recovery ✨ Entity Traits: Corrupted Heart, Wicked Wisdom, Mana Affinity 📝 Notes: Tier elevated by power of 'Immortal King's Fragment (1/3)'. Latent black magic assimilated. Mind Hub prevented mental corruption.
And I'd evolved from 'Elite Skeleton' to 'Demi-Lich,' an undead mage of immortality.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Huyan sat guarding the secret passage entrance again today.
Punishment for failing to deal with a zombie rat that escaped yesterday in time.
"Damn that Jeraph, dragging me down too."
Come to think of it, Jeraph had gone in a while ago and hadn't returned.
"Obvious. With that temper, he's venting."
Huyan leaned back in his chair.
A year in, this backwater was as sleepy as ever.
Today's only task: relaying village entrance news to his master inside.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Huyan! You bastard! What the hell are you doing?!]
Crash!
Huyan tumbled backward off his chair from his master's sudden communication spell.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Yes! Master! Nothing unusual here!]
Springing up, righting the chair, rubbing his head, Huyan replied briskly, but his master's tone didn't calm.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Nothing unusual?! What the fu... No, check the fragment now! Hurry! Contact Jeraph too!] [Yes, sir! Checking immediately!]
Due to the barrier around the fragment site, special magic tools at the entrance were needed for internal comms.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Hey! Jeraph! Stop messing around and check the fragment... Huh?]
Rushing to contact Jeraph, Huyan paused and rechecked the tool.
Then tried again.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Jeraph? Hey, Jeraph, you hearing me?]
No reply.
Of course not.
No connection to begin with.
"Wha... what the hell?"
Panicking, Huyan jumped up.
Woooong—
The magic circle at the warehouse entrance activated, and the door slid open.
"Hey! Jeraph! Why so sudden..."
Turning excitedly to the open door, Huyan froze solid.
It wasn't Jeraph.
"Wha... wha... no way, why...?"
Hundreds of undead, led by an ominously glowing skeleton, swarmed the passage.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Commanding the undead was effortless.
The black magic in my body now dwarfed the scraps I'd scraped together before.
Couldn't share senses with all like with Alfred, but it was satisfying enough.
Under me: zombies, skeletons, and high-tier ones near the fragment.
"Their states are poor from long energy drain by the fragment, but..."
Still a boon.
The floor around the 'Immortal King's Fragment' was littered with undead remains, hinting at sacrifices.
I led the undead majestically through the passage.
The exit appeared.
"Barrier there, can't just walk out... Smash it?"
Pausing, I recalled Jeraph's action and raised my hand over the door.
Experiencing Wicked Wisdom's effect firsthand.
Woooong—
The magic circle reacted, door opening.
Black magic was no longer an unknown mystery to me.