Fragment of the Undead King (3)
I finished my revenge and started cleaning up.
First, I called my undead followers to assess the damage.
The undead that fought alongside Malcolm were nearly wiped out, and those who had battled the resisting black magicians in the village suffered significant casualties too.
[…I think there were about five hundred, but is this all that’s left?]
Out of all those undead, fewer than thirty remained.
I had barely faced over forty of them, but the damage was immense.
If it had only been zombies or skeletons, I might not have minded, but there were some higher-tier undead among them too.
If Malcolm hadn’t used the black magicians as scapegoats, the undead heading toward the village would have been annihilated.
‘Well, had that been the case, I could have taken care of Malcolm faster and gone to help.’
I roughly assessed the damage and examined Malcolm’s corpse.
If my forces were diminished, I could always replenish them.
As long as they hadn’t been completely destroyed beyond resurrection, I could recover some numbers.
Above all, using the corpses of fallen enemies during a battle to bolster my forces is one of the joys of being a necromancer, isn’t it?
‘Hmmm… I wonder if this will work.’
I had seen Malcolm summon undead a few times, but that had been nothing more than a horde of low-level undead.
Well, all the higher undead he had amassed had been taken by me, so it couldn’t be helped.
In the end, I had never learned how to create undead using corpses.
If something went wrong and I ended up ruining the corpse, I would likely cry blood.
It didn’t seem easy to find high-level corpses like this in the future either.
As I was examining, I discovered something strange.
Malcolm’s corpse had no soul.
Having become a Demi-Lich, this was the first time I was checking a body like this, so I wondered if this was normal. Upon closer investigation, I found the cause.
There was a red magic circle etched into Malcolm’s heart, which had forcibly extracted his soul.
‘Was it a deal with a demon that got his soul snatched? Or did an organization behind the scenes take precautionary measures?’
It would have been nice to gather information through his soul, but alas.
I had never tried it, but if I fumbled around a bit, I might have found something.
‘At least it looks like I can use the body, so that’s a relief.’
I tore my gaze away from Malcolm and looked around, finding what I desired.
The kind black magician who had first taught me.
Though his form was ragged and he lay crumpled in a corner, it was a miracle he still maintained his shape.
‘Ah, this guy’s soul was extracted too. But with this much, I should be able to make use of it, right?’
With personal tutoring and even hands-on practice, I approached undead creation with gratitude.
I utilized the knowledge I had acquired about Black Magic, the experience from observing the undead, and the information I gained when resonating with the Fragment of the Undead King to manipulate the black mana.
‘Connect the corpse and the black mana, synchronize, taint the residual mana in the body, alter the physical data… collect the fragments of thought… like this?’
Soon, black flames engulfed the corpse, incinerating everything except the bones.
It seemed to be going well at first.
Snap—! Hiss…
Suddenly, cracks rapidly spread across the remaining bones, followed by the hiss of them crumbling down.
[Uh… sorry?]
I tossed out a light apology.
Still, thanks to this, I could grasp the feel of it.
I immediately directed an undead to fetch the corpse of Geraf from the warehouse and sat down before it to try creating undead once more.
With the help of the ‘Zephy Chance’ that always assists me, this time, I succeeded!
A Skeleton Mage was finally completed.
Confidence surged, but it still felt a bit presumptuous to use Malcolm’s corpse right away.
I felt I needed to try a few more times to solidify my confidence.
‘Well, there’s plenty of material lying around, so I can practice thoroughly and try one last time later.’
I commanded one of the undead to carry Malcolm’s corpse before getting up to scout the village.
Wobble—
My body tilted momentarily.
It was hard to maintain balance with one arm missing.
‘I should solve this issue first, huh?’
I commanded the undead to go search for my right arm that had flown off during battle.
It didn’t take long to find it after scouring thoroughly, but the state wasn’t great.
‘The upper arm part is completely gone? I can’t use this.’
I couldn’t attach an elbow to the shoulder.
If I were a true lich who had extracted and stored my essence to obtain immortality, I would collect the bone powder and regenerate, but for me, that was a stretch.
While pondering, I noticed the remains of a Death Knight that had been smashed just before my fight with Malcolm.
It was completely destroyed and looked impossible to recycle.
As I inspected it, I found the right arm intact, and it seemed to be similar to my build.
‘Perfect! I can replace it with this!’
I quickly grabbed the Death Knight’s right arm and attached it to my shoulder.
Then, using black mana to synchronize the parts just like before, black flames rose, incinerating the flesh attached to the mummified arm and leaving only the bones.
Soon, Super Recovery activated, connecting my body with the Death Knight’s arm.
[Hmm… feels a bit awkward?]
I swung the newly attached arm around and, applying the black magic I mastered over controlling bones, carefully adjusted the size to balance it.
[Now it’s fine! Looks perfectly natural!]
The color of the arm bones was slightly different, but I was quite satisfied.
Perhaps due to the good quality of the bones, manipulating the black mana felt no different from using my previous arm.
[Shall we go gather some loot?]
In this village, I was the only one around, and there were countless items left to collect.
I gazed at the village with a satisfied grin.
*
Regrettably, the undead that had fallen to Malcolm were mostly beyond resurrection.
I revived as many as I could and surveyed the destroyed village.
Undead were scattered everywhere, and I spotted a few corpses that appeared to be minions.
They looked like those who hadn’t been able to join their group after the undead’s sudden assault.
I approached and revived any undead that could be restored, while I turned the minion corpses into new undead.
[This time, it’s a Skeleton Warrior.]
I gathered the newly joined undead and continued to loot the nearby buildings for usable items.
I created undead from every fresh corpse found, but they were fewer than expected.
It wasn’t until I reached the center of the village that I understood the reason.
[So they were all gathered here.]
A fierce battle must have taken place between the two sides here.
Surrounding me were the remains of hundreds of undead, alongside the slaughtered black magician group.
I hadn’t been able to detail the situation after focusing on the fight with Malcolm, but it seemed they had huddled together and fought off against the undead in an alley.
Moreover, the black magicians were all geared with robes and staffs.
Seeing that even the minions were armed, it looked like they had prepared for battle and gathered right after the incident.
[Uh… but the number of undead seems a bit strange? Why are there so many?]
There were also quite a few undead that seemed to have fought in defense of the center.
[Aha, these must have been summoned by the black magicians.]
Upon closer inspection, the higher-tier undead weren’t that numerous. Still, they made quite a difference in holding the line.
And as I examined further, I noticed a few among the minions that were particularly strong.
Most notably, the one who dealt the most damage had been a middle-aged man defending the village entrance.
[I thought he was at a considerable level when detecting the whole village, but I didn’t expect him to be this powerful.]
It seemed that most of the higher undead who assaulted had been destroyed by this man.
Unlike magicians, being a warrior, he likely had a significant difference in the quantity of black mana and combat strength.
[I might be in trouble if I let my guard down just based on the black mana quantity… I need to be cautious moving forward.]
Fortunately, while this fellow had made a considerable effort, he seemed to have collapsed shortly after the black magicians were killed en masse by Malcolm.
[But now he’s my offering.]
One by one, I turned those who looked weaker into undead.
The black magicians turned into Skeleton Mages, while the minions transformed into Elite Skeletons or Skeleton Warriors.
A few I specifically took note of became Skeleton Knights.
As I diligently created undead, I realized the weakest among them was indeed the Elite Skeleton.
I was the weakest in this village!
‘Well, it’s okay, I’m the strongest right now. I’ll make sure to use these guys to their limits from now on.’
There was no particular reason why all the newly created undead were skeletons.
I had utilized the information stored in the fragment to create them, and while I wasn’t sure if it was due to Malcolm’s preferences, the most frequently sacrificed were skeletons, making it the most efficient option.
Plus, since I was originally a skeleton, it was definitely easier to create in this line.
‘Lack of variety, but what can you do?’
However, I felt it was a shame to finish the village gatekeeper as a mere Skeleton Knight, so I put in a bit more effort.
After all, since Malcolm planned to create something stronger, I strove to craft the best undead based on my experiences.
Grumble…
A gurgling sound emanated from a fallen corpse as its head lopped off with a thud.
The body began to rise smoothly and picked up the detached head, tucking it under its arm.
[Oh, thank goodness, it worked!]
A headless knight, a Dullahan was born.
With most of the higher undead wiped out now, this Dullahan became my strongest force.
Although I had a few other Dullahans, their condition wasn’t great.
But that was only until this moment; the rankings could change rapidly.
Now, it was time for the grand reveal of Malcolm.
First, I needed a moment to think.
Out of the knowledge I possessed, there weren’t many undead suitable for a magician.
It felt a waste to make Malcolm into merely a Skeleton Mage.
Ghosts inherently required a soul to be created, and the same went for Liches.
‘Well, Liches are typically created when a wizard turns into an undead of their own volition after succumbing to corruption. So I wouldn’t have that info in the first place.’
Malcolm wasn’t wrong to label me half-baked.
Thinking hard, my eyes suddenly fell on my own right arm.
A proper Death Knight was among the top-tier undead, retaining its self-awareness and combat prowess, matching even that of a Lich.
Though the ones I had kept temporarily had lost their power due to prolonged exposure to the fragment and lacked self-awareness.
‘Of course, I can’t create a Death Knight from Malcolm, but I think I can mimic it somehow…’
The Fragment of the Undead King held information about Death Knights, and after evolving into a Demi-Lich, I had looked over it a few times, plus my right arm belonged to a Death Knight.
[Alright, let’s do this.]
I settled down, placed my right hand on Malcolm’s corpse, and focused.
Through the knowledge I had, the Evil Wisdom whispered methods to me. The power of the heart housed in the Fragment lent its strength.
Black flames ignited from Malcolm’s body.
Yet, unlike before, it didn’t leave just the bones; it seemed to dry up like a mummy as only moisture evaporated away.
I succeeded.
I hurriedly gathered Malcolm’s residual thoughts, embedding his consciousness.
While fragmented thoughts held no value as information, this way, he would have enough intelligence to make his own judgments.
Soon, Malcolm gently floated up from the spot and stood in place.
He raised his eyes, glowing with a blue light, to me and then bowed his head.
[Your command.]
‘Oh… he speaks!’
It was the first time an undead other than myself had spoken, and I was momentarily filled with emotion.
‘Since he has awareness and speech, he should have a name…’
After a moment of thought, I realized there was no need to ponder further.
[Your name is Malcolm. Nice to meet you. From now on, you’ll listen well, understood?]
I figured it would only confuse things if I gave him a different name. Besides, this name, like Zephy, was likely a pseudonym, so it didn’t matter.
He nodded.
Though it had only been a short time since gaining self-awareness, he was still a bit shy to respond for now, but he would gradually improve over time.
Whack!
Unless he wanted a smack from me.
[Respond, you punk.]
[…Yes.]
Thus, I had accomplished all my revenge, and the Malcolm who had killed me became a Death Wizard and my subordinate.
