The Necromancer Who Was Despised - The Necromancer Who Was Despised chapter 186
“…….”
The bishop fell silent at my words.
◈ Support
Lich. Although it usually refers to high-ranking undead wizards, even a bishop could become one, using divine magic.
Originally, the Miria priests were focused on supporting and empowering the undead, so they were called priests, but in reality, they used dark magic based on mana and magic power, making them similar to wizards who wielded holy power.
Using a former priest was something those who were familiar with supporting the undead were used to, and since they had used magic that transcended human capabilities, leaving behind remnants of their power, it was possible to turn a wizard into a Miria priest or a priest into a skeleton mage.
However, it wasn’t very efficient, so we didn’t do it.
At my suggestion, Bishop Volredi’s expression turned vacant, but only for a moment before he became enraged.
“You promised to spare my life!”
“Is becoming a Lich suicide?”
“That’s… “
“It’s just a change of species. And from the start, you were going to betray us, so why trust a traitor? You’ll just wander into danger and get caught by the Inquisitors, who will brutally execute you.”
There was no need for an inquisitor. If you were caught after defecting, you would be killed without exception.
At the mention of the Inquisitors, Bishop Volredi’s face turned pale.
As someone who belonged to the goddess’s faction, he knew their character better than anyone.
“But if you become an undead, the story changes. You might not be able to resist, but at least you won’t commit suicide.”
“Are you telling me to become a slave?”
“I’m telling you to become someone I can trust.”
“Is a Lich still human?”
“Personally, yes. They have a sense of self, thoughts, and can speak, so what’s wrong with calling them human?”
“…….”
“The proposal is this. If not, well… I’ll tell you the story, but would the Grand Cathedral of Light accept a traitor from the Bright Church?”
You think I’m saying this because you think well of me, but how can I?
As I spoke, I recalled how the Bright Church had oppressed other religions, and Bolledi’s eyes seemed to realize how ridiculous his words were.
I hastily spoke, but thinking back, it was just nonsense.
Not everyone who requests to defect is accepted.
While the bishop’s abilities are not mediocre, they are not valuable enough to be worth tolerating the oppression they’ve suffered.
It’s also uncertain whether they would regain their former power after converting.
And it’s uncertain whether the Goddess of the Grand Cathedral of Light would grant them such mercy.
In the end, the bishop seemed to acknowledge that they would die if they were to switch sides.
“…I’ll do it.”
“What?”
“Rich, I’ll do it.”
In the end, he couldn’t bear to part with his life.
I didn’t think he would really do it, but since he’s accepted, that’s that.
“Is this a new experiment?”
To be honest, I’d never tried making a living, breathing priest into a Rich.
So, I suggested it, and Bolledi accepted, seemingly having an attachment to life beyond my imagination.
I think it’s lucky that it’s not forced, since it wouldn’t be possible otherwise.
Heh.
A light laughter escaped.
“Then… let’s take him.”
I planned to take him as a prisoner of war.
I could have taken him secretly, but I decided to officially take him as a prisoner of war, sharing the information I obtained.
“It’s not like anyone can take him from me anyway.”
I don’t need to be cautious and keep secrets like before.
“A living human, turned into a Rich….”
Eryni was shocked, but I didn’t care.
After putting Bolledi to sleep, I returned to Anelis and secured the prisoners on the carriage.
There were those who were shocked by the undead horse and frightened by the reality of being taken by the dark magician, but suppressing them wasn’t difficult.
As I led them to the former front lines, the knight who discovered us was shocked.
“This is….”
“I’ve annihilated Juter’s main force. This is my achievement.”
It’s not a lie, with dozens of carriages and thousands of skeleton warriors before our eyes.
The powerful undead, including the golem and draug, added to my credibility, and since they already knew my true identity, they had no choice but to let me go.
As I left the front lines, I parted ways with Eryni.
“This incident will be unforgettable for the rest of my life.”
In the end, he couldn’t treat me with the same familiarity as before.
With my military power, which could wage war alone, and my merciless cruelty, including the brutality of turning humans into undead, he could no longer treat me with ease.
I bid him farewell, saying I’d suffered, and thus ended our brief relationship.
“Athena.”
“Yes?”
“Take these people and go to Rinetta’s place with Annelise first? I’m going to meet with the Lord of Doriarem.”
“Alright.”
The two of them didn’t really need to be together.
In fact, I had handed over all the undead to her, so there was no need to take them.
The Lord of Doriarem welcomed me with open arms when I returned, and was overjoyed to hear the results of the battle.
He didn’t seem to have any doubts.
It was impossible to suspect me, considering that I was sent by the royal family.
“I think the neighboring lords can handle it.”
“Yes, that’s right. It was difficult because they were united, but now that they’re scattered, they’re not scary at all. Without the priest and the holy knight, the other lords are just small fries.”
He was treating me as an equal, or even higher.
My achievements had been significant. It seemed he hadn’t expected me to resolve everything so quickly.
I had almost single-handedly achieved this, with only one mercenary’s support.
In that situation, achieving the best results in a short time… being a person sent by the royal family and a recognized dark mage in the neighboring lords’ eyes, it was natural for him to be cautious.
That was correct. If I were to clash with Rinetta, the outcome would be too predictable.
I had to maintain a good relationship.
He wanted to treat me with the utmost respect, but I had to report my completion of the task and use the excuse that the Rinetta family was busy to decline his offer.
I waited until he received the report from the front lines, and once my words were proven true, he couldn’t detain me anymore.
When I returned to Rinetta, the prince had already left.
Naturally, the regent and Untinia had also returned to their homeland.
Prina welcomed me with a bright face, thanking me profusely.
“I thought it was a difficult request, but thank you for granting it.”
“It was a bit annoying, but not that hard. The Doriarem side had already given permission, so it’s not like they can complain about taking a few of their people.”
“I’m sure they’re unhappy, but they can’t show it. You’re here, after all.”
I responded to Prina’s words with a light shrug of my shoulder.
“Oh, and I sent someone to deliver the information I obtained from the bishop and the results of this incident.”
“What about the bishop?”
“The Grand Temple asked about his whereabouts, saying that if he was your prisoner, they would take him in.”
“Tell them you understand, but you can’t let him go.”
It seemed the Grand Temple’s resentment towards the Bright Church was not ordinary.
“I’m sorry, but at least we thwarted one of their ambitions, so there’s no need to be unhappy.”
It was strange, but from the start, they had a common enemy with me. There was no reason for our relationship to deteriorate.
“It’s still good that the neighboring friendly lords are stabilizing. If an external threat occurred, it would be really dangerous… It’s a shame we can’t hire mercenaries, though.”
The balance of power in the lord’s war had greatly tilted in favor of Doriarem.
However, that didn’t mean I could rehire their mercenaries.
I still had to conquer the other lords I had allied with, and in reality, I had won the lord’s war and expanded my territory. As my territory grew, it was natural that I would need to use mercenaries more internally.
The mercenaries from the Juterus side were all dead, so it was even more impossible.
In this situation, there was no way I would leave to find work in another lord’s territory.
“Ah, it seems that mercenaries are needed because of the Monster’s Forest, right?”
“Yes. Although the knights and soldiers within the castle walls can maintain internal security, the forest’s defense is… Well, it’s not immediately necessary, but the Crown Prince gave us a hint before he left. It’s possible that our soldiers may be needed in the future.”
As expected.
However, this was a problem that Linetta had to deal with.
My job was to focus on blocking the dry earth.
If we need more monster corpses in the future, it’s not like we can’t…
“Hmm?”
A thought suddenly occurred to me.
If we do it well…
“I can help with that, Your Highness.”
“How…?”
“As the border is fortified, we can form a separate relief unit. It’s difficult to handle everything alone like the dry earth, but we can buy time and provide partial support, which is feasible.”
Moreover, this was just a form of support, so there was no particular responsibility.
“If you allow me, I’ll be truly grateful… but what kind of compensation should I provide…?”
“I don’t want anything in particular. Please think of! it as a favor.”
If things go as planned, taking on this task itself would be a profit.
“Let’s discuss it after observing the situation. The soldiers haven’t left yet, after all.”
“Yes, I understand.”
I responded, saying that I was also benefiting from receiving help all the time.
It wasn’t a lie.
Although I lacked actual power, being a member of the esteemed founding family and having the royal family’s backing allowed me to avoid external pressure.
Thanks to Prina handling all sorts of external affairs on my behalf like a representative, I could focus on growth, and that’s how I reached my current position.
Of course, I had to pay a price for it, and I wasn’t thinking of serving unconditionally.
However, as long as one side didn’t become too greedy, I could maintain the current relationship.
A relationship where we help each other when we have the leisure to do so, filling in each other’s gaps. That’s all I need.
“Considering my growth rate, it’s not like it’ll last forever…”.
After the necessary formalities, I changed the subject.
“Was there any issue with the Desert’s Shield?”
“No.”
Fortunately, it seemed that no monsters had crossed over or anything.
Artina and Anelis had already handed over the territory’s people to Prina and were heading to the Desert’s Shield with the undead.
Since Prina suggested staying for a day, I didn’t refuse out of courtesy.
She suggested I take a look around the castle’s interior, and since it didn’t seem like a bad idea, I accepted her offer.
The central castle of Linetta’s territory, which I hadn’t seen in a while, was bustling with energy.
It had transformed from its previously neglected state to a fully restored one, and the residents’ faces were also filled with energy.
In the training grounds, I could see regular soldiers receiving support and training, as well as apprentice knights receiving separate education.
Normally, it would be impossible to see the training process of knights, but since I was with Prina, and even if I had come alone, I didn’t think they would have refused me.
I had received that much recognition, after all.
So, I was able to take a break and confirm the changes within the castle walls with Prina, and I could see that the future of this territory was brightening.
It seemed like Prina still remembered the words I spoke when I first arrived in this land, and she wanted to prove that I was right.
To be honest, I didn’t have a bad feeling about it.
After spending a day like that, we received Prina’s farewell and headed towards the Desert Shield.
◈ Support
The people who were already at the Desert Shield welcomed me back with a warm atmosphere.
Top, our main base, was a place where we could return, and Tia’s eyes sparkled as she asked, “Then, can I go too?”
“Yes.”
It’s been settling down, and from now on, we’ll be going back and forth regularly.
Tia will take on a role similar to my deputy, mainly handling Top’s internal affairs and external activities.
I’ll handle the important tasks, but I’ll leave the minor ones to Tia.
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Tia has gained experience, and it’s become cumbersome for me to handle everything alone.
“It’s a suitable scale for Tia too.”
In fact, most of my forces are composed of undead, so there’s no need for separate management.
Although it appears large on the surface, in reality, it’s an elite group, and it wouldn’t be difficult for Tia to manage alone.
Our relationship with the Rineta Earl’s family is also quite friendly, so Tia will mainly be in charge of trading and negotiating with merchants.
Tia has gained various experiences, secured our base, and our situation is stabilizing, so it’s time.
My confirmation brought a very pleased expression to Tia’s face.
“Finally, I…!”