episode_0080

The hands of Baron Ashro’s butler and the people behind him were covered in eerie robes.

That was why they became the necromancer’s subordinates, and the power they received from the necromancer.

The ability to control corpses can only be used by necromancers.

And no one knows how to become a necromancer.

‘Perhaps even the nine necromancers currently alive don’t know.’

However, there is a power that only necromancers can bestow upon others, and that is it.

Even in the game, it had no official name, so users called that eerie power by various names.

Aura of death, necromancer’s dregs, power of death, and so on. But most users called that power this:

‘Black mana.’

Of course, it wasn’t real mana, so they couldn’t cast spells with it.

However, its destructive power itself was superior to mana.

Even an ordinary adult who had learned nothing could kill a trained knight if they used black mana; its destructive power was that exceptional.

Mordor’s subordinates in the sewers could have used that power, but Loki and Johanna killed them before they could use black mana.

No matter how powerful and threatening it was, it didn’t matter if they were killed before they could use it or if it didn’t touch them.

Loki looked at Baron Ashro, who had collapsed on the floor with a hole in his chest and wasn’t moving.

“Is he dead?”

“Don’t worry. I’ll send you to the same place as the Baron in a little while.”

“I won’t die, but even if I did, going to the same place as Baron Ashro? What a terrible thing to say.”

The butler thought Loki was bluffing, speaking so calmly even in such a dangerous moment.

“Did you think I wouldn’t notice what you were thinking? You must have intended to buy time and wait for someone else to arrive.”

“…………..”

Seeing Loki silent, the butler, who thought he had seen through Loki’s thoughts, continued to speak to see Loki despair.

“But things won’t go as you planned. We tampered with the entrance without Baron Ashro knowing.”

“……………”

“No matter if they’re an Academy Professor, it’ll take some time for them to break through.”

“…………………..”

Loki remained silent, his head bowed.

At first, he was about to mock him, but looking closely, Loki’s head was subtly bobbing up and down.

Surely he isn’t sleeping now?

Now, when he could die?

“Yawn~.”

That madman stretched and even yawned, as if he had slept well.

“It was so boring that I fell asleep. Honestly, I think it’s your fault for waking me up when I was sleeping so well. Don’t you think so too?”

“So, about that,” the madman said.

“Could you please repeat it just one more time? This time, I’ll listen to everything without dozing off.”

“Kill him right now!!!!”

At the same time, everyone except the butler rushed at Loki, their swords wreathed in black mana.

‘Quickly retrieve the drugs and leave this place.’

Spreading the drugs throughout the Empire had failed, but there were still drugs in that fellow’s subspace pocket.

Now it would be difficult to spread the drugs in the Empire, but they could slowly addict other kingdoms starting from them.

When Cardinal appeared, he revealed his identity and tried to kill Cardinal, but Cardinal was much stronger than expected.

If the Academy Professor had taken the drugs Cardinal left behind, it might have become troublesome, but fortunately, that guy took them.

The butler had no doubt that he could kill Loki quickly.

“Do you really think I came all this way without any thoughts, like an idiot? Everyone, now!”

Even seeing Loki shout loudly at the charging men, the butler thought Loki was lying.

A loud thudding!!!!!!!

That is, until the loud sound of someone rushing, enough to make the ground rumble, was heard from behind.

‘They’re already here?’

There hadn’t been any sign of presence just a moment ago!

The men charging at Loki and the butler were momentarily flustered and turned around.

[Surely no one is foolish enough to fall for this? Surely no one is foolish enough to fall for this? Surely no one is foolish enough to fall for this? Surely no one is foolish enough to fall for this? Surely no one is foolish enough to fall for this?]

There, there was a large blackboard with dozens of the same sentences written on it.

Everyone realized they had been tricked after seeing it and hurriedly tried to look back at Loki, but.

Thwack!!!!!!!

Loki threw a dagger at the man closest to him faster than they could turn their heads back towards Loki.

The man, with the dagger embedded in his neck, collapsed onto Baron Ashro.

“It was a lie, and yet you fell for it. To think there’d actually be someone foolish enough to fall for it. What should I do, I feel so bad about this….”

That madman said with a regretful voice, as if he truly felt sorry.

“By the way, contrary to what you said earlier, this person went to meet Baron Ashro before me. Unlike me, this person probably went to where Baron Ashro is, so please say hello to him for me~.”

“Everyone, don’t just stand there stunned, kill him quickly before that guy does something else!”

Unlike before, the butler directly charged at Loki to kill him.

He had to kill that madman quickly before he did something else strange. Fortunately, that guy remained still, as if he couldn’t even react.

“Die!!!!!!”

Snatch.

The butler, who was swinging his sword with a murderous voice, had his hand powerlessly blocked by a hand that suddenly appeared from thin air.

“How are you here?”

“Actually, what I just said about it being a lie was also a lie. There’s no way I’d truly come alone.”

Suddenly, Professor Alicia appeared from the empty air.

“Of course, I came with a strong backer.”

Seeing the butler caught, the others tried to swing their black-mana-wreathed swords at Alicia and Loki, but.

“Kneel.”

-Thud!

At Alicia’s single word, everyone present, except Alicia and Loki, fell to their knees.

* * *

I looked at the necromancer’s subordinates who were still kneeling.

Due to the Dragon Fear, their bodies trembled like aspen leaves.

Meanwhile, Professor Alicia’s Dragon Fear had no effect on me whatsoever.

“Fr-From when exactly……..”

Baron Ashro’s butler said in a trembling voice.

He was probably asking since when Professor Alicia had been here.

“I’ve been right next to you all along, ever since you came looking for me in that room earlier.”

Naturally, I expected them to come looking for me once they knew I was handing the drugs over to the Emperor tomorrow.

The only thing I was wrong about was Baron Ashro being killed by these guys.

Baron Ashro probably didn’t know that these people were the necromancer’s subordinates.

Still, he’s still trash, though.

“Your Majesty, what do you plan to do with these guys?”

[First, we’ll need to interrogate them. Would you be able to bring them here?]

Hearing my question, the Emperor politely requested Professor Alicia, and Professor Alicia nodded.

Bang! Boom! Boom! Bang!

And at the same time, the bodies of the kneeling necromancer subordinates exploded.

Fortunately, no blood splattered onto me, even though I was close to the necromancer’s subordinates; it seemed Professor Alicia had instantaneously used magic to prevent the blood from scattering.

That was the price for receiving black mana from the necromancer.

If they found themselves in a situation where they might reveal information about the necromancer, the restriction on their bodies would activate, causing them to explode like this.

[Is it a suggestion or a restriction spell? Tsk.]

The Emperor clicked his tongue regretfully, but there was nothing to be done.

Unless they captured a necromancer without such a restriction, it was impossible to extract information.

I looked at Baron Ashro, who was already coldly dead.

The Emperor seemed to have noticed my gaze and told me what I was curious about without me even asking.

[Baron Ashro possessed drugs, and I ordered his execution. That’s what will be said.]

* * *

I walked down the quiet mansion corridor, quietly entered my room, and lay down on the bed.

The communication device I had stolen from Lucas, which I used to talk to the Emperor, I entrusted to Professor Alicia.

Professor Alicia would return it to Lucas tomorrow, pretending to have found it.

Lucas had searched so hard for it and couldn’t find it, so it would seem suspicious if I suddenly found it the next morning. That’s why I asked Professor Alicia.

A communication device… I feel like I’ve forgotten something.

“Communication device… call… Oh, right. Yerika!”

Why did I remember this now?

I completely forgot to tell Yerika that I wouldn’t be able to talk today.

Right now, even if someone called the communication device, no sound would be heard.

Basically, when someone calls a communication device, a sound is heard, and you can set it to make that sound or not.

Earlier, when I was disguised as Cardinal, I had turned off the sound because the communication device shouldn’t make noise.

“I’ll have to contact her tomorrow morning.”

Muttering to myself, I pulled the communication device out of my subspace pocket to set it to make sound again.

“Huh?”

A silly sound escaped my lips as I looked at the communication device.

Because the communication device was quietly vibrating.

This kind of vibration meant someone had called.

At first, I thought the Emperor had called because he had something to say, but.

The person who called was Yerika.

I instinctively checked the time.

Four hours had passed since the usual time I talked with Yerika.

‘Surely she hasn’t been calling continuously since then?’