《The Harbinger of Death (Temporary Hiatus)》


 Chapter I

    Chapter I


    He was terrified. He didn''t want them to come back. Every time they came, they would drag someone out with them, never to be seen again. He knew they were dead. He would hear their screams abruptly stop shortly after they were taken outside. An eerie silence would always permeate the air afterwards. Although he was scared, he kept his wits about him.


    The others seemed to be broken. Sobs and whimpers would break out every time they took someone. None of them wanted this. But they had no choice. The merchant caravan he was with had been attacked and most of them captured. Those that resisted were killed. He was just a normal man from a small village working as a guard for the caravan. Upon seeing the way his comrades were murdered, he lost the will to fight.


    Fighting those undead monstrosities was pointless. Ordinary humans couldn''t win against them. The undead never slept, never became fatigued, never ate and didn''t feel pain. Even their strength was greater than a human''s. There was nothing he could have done except to die meaninglessly. He heard the door being unlocked. It was time again. Another would be taken; perhaps it was his turn.


    Three figures moved into the room. It was hard to see. It was night and there was no source of light. One of them stayed by the open door. The other two moved inwards searching for their next victim. They were starting to draw near. He could feel his heartbeat quickening. They stopped in front of him. Was it his time finally?


    Two bony hands reached down...and grabbed the woman next to him. ¡°No!! Please nooo!!¡± She screamed, tears rolling down her cheeks. Her pleading fell on deaf ears. It was pointless to beg these fiends. They had no emotions. She was dragged away, her screams echoing in the room. Finally they dragged her outside and slammed the door. Her screams could still be heard for a few moments. But then they abruptly stopped like all the others.


    How many has it been now? He tried to recall. There were only nineteen of them left in the room now. Their caravan originally had forty members with himself included. Just what were they doing out there. Some time passed; perhaps a quarter of an hour. It was hard to tell. They were back again. This time they took an elderly looking man. The same thing happened. His screams could be heard from outside but then they abruptly stopped like all the others. ''Eighteen now'' He thought to himself. Almost as if counting down until it was his turn. The process had repeated itself twenty-two times.


    It felt as if an eternity had passed for the man. Everyone had been taken now, except for him. It was his turn coming and he knew it. The anxiety bothered him but there was nothing he could do. Once more they came, this time for him. They grabbed him and dragged him outside. He didn''t scream like the others. He wasn''t dragged for long before they dropped him on the ground. He sat up and hastily observed his surroundings.


    There were five individuals in black robes with hoods encircling him. The hoods obscured heir faces. They were each holding a staff as they were chanting something. He could see the hands they were gripping their staves with. ''Humans!? Mages!? '' He thought. All around them he could see dilapidated houses. ''Was this a village?'' In between a couple of houses there were a bunch of skeletons standing in ranks. He couldn''t find any traces of bodies so he surmised that those must have been the other caravan members.


    Surrounding those undead were more skeletons, but these ones were wearing armor and looked more menacing. ''Those were the ones that attacked us'' he thought. Looking at the ground he noticed he was within the center of some sort of pattern. It seemed like a star inside of a circle drawn in red. ''Star in a circle...this...is this a magic pentagram?''


    He had heard stories about the mages of old that would use rituals. In those stories some mentioned magic pentagrams that would serve as a foundation for the ceremony. This was horribly outdated stuff. None of the mages nowadays used these things. In the past these pentagrams would serve as a way for a mage to stabilize rampant mana and amplify a spell. Looking back at the five encircling him, he noticed they were each standing within their own segment of the pentagram.


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    The chanting was growing more intense. The pentagram on the ground was starting to emit an eerie red light. ''Shit! I don''t want to die! I need to do something. If I run they''ll catch me for sure. If I stay here I''ll die like the rest...Fuck it! I''ll try and run. If I can''t get away I''ll at least take one of these bastards with me!''


    The chanting was growing louder. As it did so, the light was in turn growing more intense. It seemed like the ritual was reaching its climax. Right when it seemed like it was about finish, the man roared and dashed towards one of the mages tackling him to the ground. He pulled back his hood and saw a sickly pale, thin looking bald man.


    Surprise was plastered on the bald man''s face. One of the mages that were chanting stopped and yelled, ¡°What!? How is that possible!? Quickly, force him back to the center! We can''t stop the ritual at this point!¡± The man quickly got up and tried to run out of the pentagram. But to his dismay he couldn''t pass through the red light that was being emitted. It felt as if he was pushing against a wall. ¡°Shit!¡± The man cursed under his breath.


    The bald mage he tackled had just gotten to his feet. He looked in the man''s direction, lifted his staff and started to chant some spell. The man, however, didn''t give him enough time. Once more he sprinted towards the bald mage and tackled him back onto the ground. This time though, the force of the tackle brought both the man and the bald mage into the center of the circle. The man started beating on the bald mage''s face repeatedly. Blood splattered up onto the man''s face, but it didn''t faze him. He was determined to at least take this bald mage with him in death.


    The chanting reached its loudest volume yet. Then it suddenly stopped as the pentagram emitted a blinding light. A resplendent column of red light sprung up into the night sky from the center of the pentagram, illuminating the entire ramshackle village. ¡°Shit! This isn''t supposed to happen!¡± One of the mages yelled to the other three.


    They quickly backed out of their positions and gathered to one side. ¡°Damn it! That bastard forced Joss into the center with him!¡± One of the mages exclaimed. ¡°This is bad. That ritual was meant to sacrifice ordinary humans with barely any mana. In return we''d get a lesser undead. It specifically stated that in the tome!¡± One of the mages blurted. ¡°Ugh! Klaas! What do we do!?¡±


    Klaas in a cold sweat looked towards the mage that called out his name and shouted, ¡°I don''t know! Shit-Give me a second!¡± After thinking for a moment he shouted, ¡°Teun, quickly order the skeletons to move back some! Remco, order the skeletal warriors to form up in front of us and shield us!¡± Teun and Remco hurriedly nodded and started to carry out their orders.


    Klaas called out to the last mage, ¡°Niek, keep your eyes on the ritual! I''m going to search through the tome!¡± Having given his orders Klaas started to run to one of the nearby houses as the skeletal warriors moved to shield the other three mages. ¡°Shit, shit, shit!¡± Klaas was cursing to himself as he was running to the house that held the tome.


    ''How did that bastard move!? He should have been under the effects of the binding spell.'' His thoughts were running rampant. ''He was an ordinary human. He barely had any mana! This doesn''t make sense.'' He was almost at the house that they stored the tome in. ''Ugh, out of all the houses, why did we store the tome in one of the furthest ones.'' Panting and out of breath Klaas had just reached the house.


    Before he could enter he almost tumbled to the ground. The ground trembled as an earsplitting roar of thunder shook the heavens. Turning around to see what just happened, Klaas froze in place and his face turned ashen.


    ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **

 Chapter II

    Chapter II


    Red. A vast expanse of red was all the man could see. It was as if he was staring at an enormous crimson ocean. But suddenly, the man felt as if he was being pulled as everything around him faded to black. A vast black stretch of nothingness now appeared before the man. ¡°W-what...is this?¡± The man uttered while processing his surroundings. ''The last thing I remember was being engulfed by that red light...Am I...dead?...Is this-'' ¡°Hell?¡± The man gave voice to his thoughts as he looked around.


    ¡°Hehehehe¡± a vile sounding cackle echoed out around him. ¡°Hehehe...this...is not hell...human...¡± A voice that sounded ancient and nefarious sounded out. ¡°Who''s there!?¡± The man called out. ¡°Who I am...is of little importance...¡± The man looked around attempting to pinpoint the source of the voice as it continued to speak. ¡°Human...Do you desire...power?...¡± Unable to find where the voice was coming from, the man gave up on searching. ¡°Power?¡± The man responded.


    ¡°Yes...power...the power to destroy...to take life...to bend others to your will...¡± As the voice resonated, it contained a viciousness in its tone. ¡°I...I don''t know...¡± The man had a muddled look as he replied. ¡°What...do you desire...human?¡± The man could hear the scorn that the voice held as it uttered the word human. The man was rather puzzled, ''Just what is this? Who is speaking to me? What do I desire? I-'' ¡°I...want to live...¡± The man answered after giving it some thought for a moment. ¡°Live!? Hehehehe, it is too late...for that...human...¡± The voice almost seemed to mock him. ¡°That''s what I desire! I want to live!¡± The man exclaimed.


    ¡°Hehehe, live?...That is not possible...anymore...¡± The voice responded unsympathetically. The man''s back was covered in a cold sweat as he questioned the voice, ¡°What do you mean!? Why isn''t it possible!?¡± In response the man only received silence. ¡°Answer me!! Why isn''t it-¡± Before he could finish, the voice cut him off, ¡°You are...already dead...¡± ¡°W-w-what? A-alr-ready d-dead?¡± The man stuttered. He couldn''t believe it. ''Dead!? But how...how am I here then!? What...just what...'' The man''s thoughts were starting to become disoriented.


    ¡°Th-that''s not...not true...I''m here! Aren''t I!? H-how can I be d-dead!?¡± The man shouted out to the vast expanse of darkness. ¡°Hehehe...¡± The voice sounded even more heinous now as it snickered for a good amount of time. Having finished it continued, ¡°You are dead...currently you are just a soul...without a body...¡± ¡°W-what!? But...h-how can that be!? I can feel my body right now! I can touch myself and I feel my heart beating!¡± The man looked visibly bothered as he called out. ¡°Hehehe...that is just your soul''s way...of trying to maintain...your sanity...¡± The voice retorted back to him. ¡°Th-this...this...no...¡± The man was distressed as he uttered out and fell to his knees.


    The man remained in a stupor for quite some time. Finally though, he snapped out of it. When he awoke there appeared to be a faint glimmer of hope in his eyes as he yelled out, ¡°Hey! Whoever you are! Are you still there!?¡± His voice echoed throughout the void. Some time went by before that ancient and nefarious voice sounded out, ¡°What...do you want...human?¡± ¡°When...when I died...there should have been another man with me! A mage! Where is he!? Shouldn''t he be here as well!?¡± The man inquired of the voice.


    ¡°Hmmm...ahh yes...¡± The voice sounded as if it had just suddenly recalled something it had forgotten. ¡°That other...human...¡± ¡°Yeah! That mage! What happened to him!? Where is he!?¡± The man questioned the voice hoping for answers. Another period of time went by before the voice responded. ¡°Hehehe...that other...human...I devoured his soul...¡± The man was unnerved hearing the voice''s answer. ¡°D-devoured h-his s-soul?¡± ¡°Hehe, that''s right...I consumed his soul...¡±


    The previous spark of hope that had been ignited in the man''s eyes had all but been put out upon receiving that news. A long silence permeated the air. The man was the first to break the silence as he shakily asked, ¡°A-are y-you going to c-consume my s-soul as well?¡± ¡°Hmm...perhaps...and perhaps not...¡± The voice answered in a dubious tone. A long silence ensued again.


    ¡°Why? Why did you consume his soul?¡± The man was the first to break the silence yet again; as he was curious. He didn''t see anything else he could do besides talk with this mysterious voice. Regardless if the voice sounded evil and scheming. ¡°Hmmm...why?...souls grant me power...and that mage''s soul...was a little stronger...than an ordinary...human''s...¡± The voice answered the man''s question.


    The man was bewildered. ¡°If...consuming souls grants you power...then why didn''t you consume mine?¡± He was quite curious as to why he was spared. ¡°Why didn''t I devour...your soul? Hmmm...I suppose...it''s because...you are slightly...different...¡± The voice sounded rather pensive as it answered. ¡°Different? How?¡± The man inquired. ¡°I''ve...been here...for a long time...¡± The disembodied voice sounded as if it was lost in thought as it continued, ¡°in all this time...not once have I...seen a situation...such as yours...¡±


    As the voice finished, the man immediately asked a question, ¡°A situation like mine? What do you mean?¡± The voice sounded agitated by the man as it responded, ¡°You ask...too many questions...human...This is the last one...I shall answer...for free...¡± The voice paused for a moment then carried on, ¡°Usually...when an individual dies...their soul will end up...in the Drahuza Sea...I doubt you''d know...that name, human...I suppose you humans...would call it...the Sea of the Dead...¡± The man nodded and said, ¡°You''re right, I''ve never heard of the Drahuza Sea before, it-¡±


    The voice cut him off. It sounded a bit miffed as it continued, ¡°I...wasn''t done talking...don''t interrupt me...¡± The man widened his eyes, ''Not done talking?...How the hell was I supposed to know when you take such long pauses in between every few words.'' The voice continued on, ¡°Usually when mortals die...they appear in the...Drahuza Sea...alone...never together...When your soul...and that mage''s appeared...you were together...At that time...I found it odd...so I decided to devour...the mage''s soul...and pulled you...into...this void dimension.¡±


    The voice had finished talking and the man was left with even more questions. ¡°W-what? Why though? I still don''t ge-¡± ¡°Enough human...as I have said...I will not answer any...more questions for free...¡± The voice interjected in a snappy tone leaving the man baffled. The man found his current situation very perplexing. He had many more questions he wanted answers to. Why choose him over the mage? Who was this disembodied voice that he was conversing with? How did it pull him into this ''void dimension''? What was to become of him now? He wanted answers and this voice was the only one that had them, whether its intentions were good or bad.


    After thinking for some time the man made a decision to take a chance, ¡°You said you wouldn''t answer any more questions ''for free''. So what is the price for more answers?¡± The voice sounded cheerful as it heard the man''s inquiry. ¡°Hehehe...this price...I doubt...you would wish...to pay...¡± The man furrowed his brow as he sardonically said, ¡°Try me. I doubt it could be any worse than death.¡± The voice seemed entertained as it responded, ¡°Hehehe...very well human...if you want answers...then you will need...to agree to my...proposition...¡±


    The man looked intrigued as he asked, ¡°Hmm, what proposition would that be?¡± The voice sounded overjoyed as it seemed to have hooked the man, ¡°It''s simple...I grant you power...in return...you provide me...with souls...¡± The man was startled, ¡°S-souls? How am I supposed to do that?¡± Seemingly amused the voice responded, ¡°I will grant you new life...in return, you will cull...as many living beings...as I require...¡± The man''s brow was covered in cold sweat as he appeared to be deliberating on what to do.


    The man remained engrossed in thought for quite some time. ''Grant me new life? Gather souls for whoever this voice is? I...I don''t want to be dead...If I can live...there''s nothing for me to go back to though, besides the life of a farmer...If I gather souls, wouldn''t that mean I would need to kill? Would that make me evil?...Evil or not, I''d at least get to live...what do I do?''


    Finally he appeared to have come to a decision as he declared, ¡°Alright, I''ve made up my mind.¡± His tone was extremely resolute. The voice quizzically responded, ¡°Have you...decided...to accept...my proposal?¡± The man nodded and declared, ¡°I have. But I have two conditions.¡± The voice sounded surprised as it spoke, ¡°Oh...what conditions...would those be?¡± The man''s expression was solemn as he said, ¡°My first condition, is that after you grant me new life, you allow me to have free reign to do as I wish. My second condition, is that you answer all of my questions.¡± The voice was taken aback as it responded, ¡°Hmmm...you are a rather...bold human...I can agree...to your second...condition...but regarding the first...hmmm...¡±


    The man interjected, ¡°What I meant by it, was that you would allow me to do as I please without interfering and I of course, would in turn, gather souls for you. But it would be at my own pace and when I choose to do so.¡± It took a few breath''s of time for the voice to respond, ¡°Very well...I can agree...to all of your...conditions.¡± The man looked overjoyed as he exclaimed, ¡°Alright! Then I have a bunch of questions that I hope you''ll be able to answer.¡± The voice acknowledged the man, ¡°Ask...away...¡±


    The man was grinning as he asked, ¡°My first question is, what exactly are you?¡± The voice took a moment to respond, ¡°Hmmm...I am...the god of death...¡± The man was startled, ¡°W-what? The god of death? Y-you...you''re a deity?¡± The voice snickered as it replied, ¡°That''s right...human...I am a deity...and I was...one of the most...powerful...¡± The man had an inquisitive gaze as he asked, ¡°What happened to you? From what I can tell...you sound rather weak...¡± The god of death chuckled as it responded, ¡°Hehehe, indeed...human...you are rather...perceptive...¡±


    The god of death let out a long breath that was audible to the man before he said in a prideful tone, ¡°169,000 years ago...my might...was unparalleled...throughout all the realms...none of the gods...could equal me...¡± The man was flabbergasted as he questioned, ¡°Y-you...were the strongest god!? How did you end up here?¡± The god of death sounded extremely annoyed as he responded, ¡°If you...would be quiet and listen...you will find out...¡± The man showed a look of realization and apologized, ¡°S-sorry, I''ll be quiet and listen now. Please continue milord.¡±


    The god of death snorted and then picked up where he left off, ¡°Where...was I...ahh right...169,000 years ago...my might was unparalleled...throughout all the realms...none of the gods...could equal me...As my power grew...they deemed me a threat...The gods of light...and...the gods of darkness...united...to battle me...In the end...they could not destroy me...however...they found a way...to seal me here...in the Drahuza Sea...and in the process...they direly wounded me...Thus I am trapped here...unable to leave...¡± The god of death stopped talking and silence permeated the air for a good amount of time. The man remained quiet and waited to avoid interrupting. He didn''t wish to be scolded by the god of death again.


    The man assumed that the god of death was finished speaking, so he asked, ¡°God of Death, sir, so I uhh...when I was growing up, I learned that the gods of light and gods of darkness were greatly opposed to each other. They really united to battle you? You''re 169,000 years old? Why did they choose to seal you here in the...uhh...Drahuza Sea and not elsewhere? And...If the gods of light and darkness united to battle you...just what side are you on?¡±


    The god of death responded in an exasperated voice, ¡°Holy shit...you ask way...too many...questions...¡± The man smiled wryly and chuckled as he apologized, ¡°Umm sorry about that...¡± The god of death sighed as he said, ¡°To your first...question...yes they united...otherwise I wouldn''t be stuck here...But to be more precise...my power grew to such...a state...that if all of...the gods of light united...they wouldn''t be able to defeat me...the same could be...said for the gods...of darkness...thus...they decided to put...aside their differences...and combine their forces...to defeat me...¡±


    The god of death paused for a moment then continued, ¡°Hmm..to your second question...my age...is much greater then just...169,000 years...that is simply...the time that I...have been sealed here...My true age...I do not know...as I stopped counting...long ago...To answer your third question...the Drahuza Sea...is where souls go...once their physical bodies perish...their souls...then enter into...the reincarnation cycle...however my physical body...is not destroyed...I was sealed here...and cannot...enter into the reincarnation cycle...and I do not...wish to kill myself...just to reincarnate...and lose my powers...without a guarantee of...regaining them...and the only way for me...to escape besides entering...the reincarnation cycle...is to regain my full power...¡± The god of death paused again for a little longer than before and then continued on, ¡°To answer...your final question...I am neither...light nor darkness...for I am death...and I...consume all...¡±


    The man remained quiet as he absorbed all of the information he received from the god of death. An undetermined amount of time passed before the man asked yet another question, ¡°God of death, sir...are you still there?¡± The god of death sounded tired as he responded, ¡°I am...¡± The man''s eyebrow was raised as he asked, ¡°So you''ve been here for 169,000 years...correct?¡± The god of death was agitated as he replied, ¡°Yes...I''ve already...told you this...¡± The man interjected before the god of death could scold him, ¡°Well...if you''ve been here for that long...and need to consume souls to regain your power...then why don''t you just consume all of the souls in the Drahuza Sea? Shouldn''t you have been able to regain your power long ago?¡±


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    The god of death was amused as he answered the man''s inquiry, ¡°Hehehe...indeed, if it...was that easy...I could have...regained my power...long ago...¡± The man was still curious so he continued his interrogation, ¡°If it was that easy? So then I''m going to hazard a guess and say it''s not easy?¡± Laughing the god of death replied, ¡°Hehehe...indeed...it is not as simple...as it sounds...When a soul enters the...Drahuza Sea...it is at...a random location...and do you know...how vast the...Drahuza Sea is?...The Drahuza Sea is...large enough to...encompass all of the realms...combined...and still have enough room...to encompass all of them...countless more times...Perhaps, it may be more...appropriate to say...that the Drahuza Sea...may just be...infinite...¡±


    The man was startled by the answer he received. Large enough to encompass all of the realms combined and that the Drahuza Sea may even be infinite. Just what kind of craziness was this. Just how vast was the world that the man came from? One could set sail from one continent and take over a year to reach another one. The man had never even left the continent he was born in. Hell, he had never even left the country that he was born in. To speak of realms...just what was this lunacy. The man was baffled if not even overwhelmed.


    The man was ripped out of his thoughts as the god of death continued, ¡°Also...when a soul enters...the realm of the Drahuza Sea...it almost immediately...enters the actual sea...Once that happens...the soul enters into...the reincarnation cycle...Even I...am not able...to touch them...at that point...So the time frame...of when a soul can...be devoured...is extremely short...When the souls of both...you and that mage...entered the Drahuza Sea...I was fortunate enough...that both of you...were extraordinarily close to me...had that not been the case...your souls would have both...plummeted into the sea...¡± The man''s eyes widened. He hadn''t been aware of just how quickly a soul would enter into the sea. It was truly a stroke of fortune or perhaps misfortune to enter the realm of the Drahuza Sea so close to the god of death''s location. Only time would be able to tell.


    The man was still extremely curious about these realms that the god of death spoke of, so he decided to ask, ¡°God of death, sir, just what are these realms you speak of?¡± The god of death sounded amazed as he spoke, ¡°Human...you do not know?...¡± Sighing he continued, ¡°Very well...I shall give you... the most basic explanation...perhaps in the future...I shall tell you more...¡±


    The man was listening attentively as the god of death spoke, ¡°There are a handful...of realms...There are...the greater realm of darkness...the greater realm of light...the greater realm of the Drahuza Sea...and there is the mortal realm...there are also lesser realms...but you have no need to know of them...at this time...¡± The god of death stopped there for a moment, to allow the information to sink in to the man. The man was wide-eyed listening to this information.


    After a few moments, the god of death continued to speak, ¡°The greater realms...are where the gods reside...based on the names of the realms...you can most likely imagine...where the corresponding gods...would reside...¡± The man nodded in acknowledgement. But quickly after a puzzled look crept onto his face as he asked, ¡°Umm, god of death, sir. If there''s a realm for light and darkness...then what about death? Is the Drahuza Sea your realm?¡± The god of death''s voice sounded very bitter when he responded, ¡°No...the Drahuza Sea is not mine...before I was sealed here...I was extremely close...to creating my own realm...a realm of death...but those damned gods...had to interfere and ruin everything...¡±


    ¡°Enough of that...are there any more questions...that you may have?...If so, speak quickly...I do not know how much longer...I can maintain this void dimension for...¡± The god of death quickly blurted out. The man was stunned but quickly recovered as he asked, ¡°What is this void dimension?¡± The god of death sighed as he said, ¡°This is just an empty pocket of space...that I created with...what power I have left...so that we may speak...without your soul entering into the Drahuza Sea...However as I have said...I was wounded in the battle...with the gods...this wound still persists...thus I can not maintain...this void dimension indefinitely...¡±


    The man shook his head as he said, ¡°I have a lot of questions, but I guess most of them can wait. So how are you going to grant me new life?¡± The god of death snickered, ¡°Hehehe...there is a catch to that...you will not be as you were before...are you still willing?...¡± The man was confused, ¡°What do you mean I ''won''t be as I was before''?¡± ¡°Hehehe...you will...no longer be...human...¡± There was a cold sweat covering the man''s brow.


    He was slightly unnerved hearing he would no longer be human. ''No longer be human...well...I''m already dead...what other choice do I have?'' The man thought to himself. Having mustered up the courage to depart from his humanity, the man exclaimed, ¡°Alright! I''m willing...so how does this work?¡± ¡°Hehehe...excellent...let me ask you...is there anything from your past life...that you wish to hang on to?...¡±


    The man brought his hand to his chin and thought for a few moments. ¡°No. There''s nothing. I wasn''t married, I didn''t have children and wasn''t anyone special. I was just a poor village farmer who tried being a guard. There''s nothing from my past life that I wish to hold onto.¡± The god of death could see a small flickering flame of resolution within the man''s eyes when he responded.


    The god of death was jubilant as he replied, ¡°Hehehe...Excellent...now before I return you...to the mortal realm...there are some things...I need to make you aware of...and something I need to know...¡± Pausing there the god of death took a breath before he went on, ¡°First of all...what happened...that resulted in you and that mage...coming here together?...¡±


    A sullen expression crept onto the man''s face as he answered, ¡°The merchant caravan I was with was attacked by mages and their undead. Those that didn''t resist were captured and then sacrificed in some sort of ritual. I managed to force a mage into the center of the ritual with me right when it seemed as if the ritual was reaching its peak. Then there was a blinding red light and I ended up here.¡± The god of death was surprised as he asked, ¡°Oh...so those mages were necromancers...they must have been...using an old ritual to create...undead...You said there were...mages...plural...How many?...¡±


    The man thought for a second before replying, ¡°I think five...at least that''s all I could see, there may have been more.¡± In acknowledgement the god of death said, ¡°Very well...I will make sure...you are prepared...when I bring you back...¡± He paused for a moment before continuing, ¡°Now then, once I do...bring you back...you will be similar to a lesser undead...However you will have the potential...to grow...to unimaginable heights...¡±


    Suddenly a violet light flashed and a ring appeared, hovering in front of the man. The band of the ring was plain, but its color was a flawless platinum. Set in the center of the ring was a lustrous amethyst. At first the man thought it was just a plain ring with a violet gemstone, but upon looking closer he became captivated by its ancient and regal air.


    The man was engrossed with staring at the ring. ¡°Ahem...¡± However the god of death clearing his throat brought the man back to reality. The man couldn''t help but praise the ring, ¡°God of death, sir, this ring is really majestic.¡± Chuckling the god of death replied, ¡°Hehehe...indeed it is...¡± Adopting a prideful tone he continued on, ¡°Now then...this ring is rather unique...I created it with arduous effort, long ago...It is an interspatial ring...with over 50,000 cubic meters of space...you most likely won''t...find another one of its kind elsewhere...¡±


    The man was startled as he exclaimed, ¡°50,000 cubic meters!? That enormous!¡± ¡°Hehehe...indeed it is...however that''s not all...just now I infused some of my mana and magic...into the ring so that you will not...be defenseless when you return to your realm...It will not last long however...once you leave this void dimension...the mana will quickly dissipate...from the ring...as I did not create it...for the purpose of storing mana...You at most, will be able...to cast nine or ten spells...before the mana dissipates...In that time frame...I suggest you deal with those...mages, as fast as possible...¡±


    The man interrupted the god of death to ask, ¡°God of death, sir, umm how will I use the magic you infused into the ring?¡± The god of death chuckled as he said, ¡°It''s simple...once I return you to your realm...the knowledge of the spells...will appear in your mind...You will just know...how to use them...Now then...¡± Without warning there was another flash of purple light as a serrated dagger appeared in midair right next to the ring.


    The god of death continued to address the man, ¡°Use this dagger and cut yourself...then use that blood to bind the ring...This ring is unique in that...you need to bind it with your soul...unlike other interspatial rings...which only require one''s blood...The binding prevents anyone else...from being able to use your ring...so long as you draw breath...well, in this case, so long as your soul exists.¡±


    The man looked as if he wanted to ask something, however the god of death didn''t stop talking, ¡°Since you lack a body and are currently in soul form...using your blood here...is the same as binding it with your soul...¡± Having heard what the god of death said, the man showed an understanding smile as he nodded. He proceeded to do as told, cutting the palm of his hand and applying some of the blood to the ring. Once done, he slid the ring onto his right ring finger.


    Seeing that the man had put on the ring, the god of death spoke, ¡°That interspatial ring...there is one more thing...I need to tell you about it...Unlike other interspatial rings...that would require you to inject some mana...into them, in order to...withdraw and store items...this one requires you to use your soul...¡± ¡°Eh!? M-my soul?¡± The man was slightly startled hearing that. ¡°Correct, but do not worry...no harm can come of it...¡± As the god of death spoke to there, the man relaxed quite a bit.


    ¡°By now...you should be able to sense the ring...as if it was a part of you...Can you sense it?...¡± The man scrunched up his face, he looked to be trying extremely hard, ¡°What are you doing!?...You look like...your trying to take a shit...¡± The man''s face flushed red as he said, ¡°W-what do you mean? I''m trying to sense the ring, like you said.¡± Letting out a sigh, the god of death said, ¡°Close your eyes...and focus on your inner self...¡±


    The man did as told, in five breath''s worth of time, the man grinned as he called out, ¡°I-I did it! I can sense it! Whoa this is weird.¡± The god of death groaned, ¡°You will get used to it...all you need to do...is focus solely on the ring...and guide your soul into it...then you should be able to...see what is inside of it...Then you can take...whatever you wish out of it...¡± As the god of death spoke, the man had his eyes closed.


    After a moment a scroll appeared in a violet flash of light and floated right in front of the man. Opening his eyes, he exclaimed, ¡°I did it! This ring is amazing!¡± The god of death praised the man, ¡°Hehehe...good job...now then...that is all there is to it...¡± The man placed the scroll and the dagger that he used to cut his hand into the ring. Seeing the man''s actions, the god of death spoke, ¡°Good...it seems like you...have the hang of it.¡±


    The god of death was silent for a few moments before he informed the man, ¡°Inside of this ring...I have left many items and tomes...all of which contain things...that are beneficial to you...since you don''t know any magic...you will have to learn...Also, inside contains the method...for you to deliver souls to me...as well as...the method for you to consume souls...¡± The god of death paused for a moment and then said, ¡°Regarding, delivering souls to me...you may take your time...as you will most likely...face many obstacles...¡±


    The god of death stopped talking for a moment. After some time he said, ¡°I will now begin...to send you back to your realm..however, before I do so...here is one last piece of information...so that you may prepare yourself...Although a large amount of time...has passed here...in your realm...not much time will have passed...perhaps only seconds will have gone by...now then...¡± Suddenly a violet mist started to swirl around the man.


    ¡°Henceforth...you shall be called Azrael...along with this new name...you shall shed your humanity...and become my harbinger...The Harbinger of Death...¡± The violet mist that was whirling around the man started to become thicker and thicker. As it started to engulf the man completely, the god of death''s voice rang out one final time, ¡°Remember this...For I am the one that granted you power...regardless as to where you are...I can just as easily, take it away...¡± In a bright violet flash of light, the man vanished from the vast expanse of darkness.


    ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **

 Chapter III

    Chapter III


    Shortly after a resplendent column of red light sprung up into the night sky from the center of the pentagram, the four remaining mages had started to take action. The mage that appeared to be their leader had issued some orders and then had started running to one of the nearby houses in the village. One of the mages started to command the skeletons to move a little further away from the site of the ritual. While another mage had started to command the skeletal warriors, that were watching over the newly created skeletons, to form up in front of where the mages were located to act as their shield should anything dangerous happen.


    While the final mage had kept his eyes on what was happening within the site of the ritual. As all of this was going on the red light had started to slowly dissipate. The mage named Niek who was keeping his eyes on the ritual called out to the two mages who were near him, ¡°Uhh, g-guys! S-something''s happening!¡± The two other mages, Teun and Remco, turned their attention to the light that was slowly fading.


    In just one breath of time the red light had completely vanished, with no trace of it left behind. ¡°W-what just happened? D-did anything come out of the light!?¡± Remco tried to affirm if anything had happened. Niek declared, ¡°The light faded and nothing came out. I guess everything''s okay now, r-right?¡± Teun shook his head as he said, ¡°Don''t let your guard down yet. Remco, let''s continue with our orders. It''s better to be safe.¡±


    Remco nodded as he responded, ¡°Right. Better safe than sorry. But damn, talk about scaring the wits outta-¡± Suddenly an earsplitting roar of thunder shook the heavens as a violet lightning bolt struck in the center of the pentagram causing the ground to tremble violently.


    Almost as if he had arrived with that lightning bolt, there now stood the figure of a man clad in a black hooded robe , right in the center of that pentagram. As he lifted his head up, the man''s face was completely obscured in darkness by the hood. In the darkness there existed two dim purple lights that looked almost like two small flames flickering to life. Those two flickering flames moved to the right and then to the left, almost as if taking in their surroundings.


    As those two flames moved about they suddenly halted on the group of three mages and as they did so, the two flickering flames suddenly bursted forth with vigor transforming into two small vivid purple spheres of light. The thunder that had accompanied the man''s arrival was so deafening that the three mages nearest to where the lightning had struck were momentarily dazed.


    Before they had a chance to recover, the man stepped forward and slowly lifted his right arm. As his arm was lifted the robe''s sleeve gradually slid back revealing an arm and hand, devoid of all flesh. On his hand there was a platinum ring with a violet gemstone embedded in it. This man was none other than Azrael.


    He pointed at the nearest mage and uttered two words, ¡°Infernal Flame.¡± As soon as those words sounded out, a red-black flame the size of a head appeared at the tip of the finger he pointed with. As if the mage was a magnet and the flame was a piece of metal, it immediately flew forward and landed on his chest. The moment it touched his chest, the mage started to scream in agony, ¡°AHHH-!!!¡± It instantly spread to engulf his entire body stifling his screams. Not even a full breath''s worth of time had passed, yet the mage had already been burnt until nothing remained, not even ashes and almost as if having run out of fuel, the flame vanished.


    The mage''s scream of agony seemed to awake the other two from their daze. ¡°Niek!!¡± The two nearby mages shouted simultaneously as their faces paled. As they did so, Azrael turned his attention towards them. Seeing his gaze, the two started to tremble. Azrael started to walk towards them and as he did so, the skeletal warriors were just now coming to the side of the mages. ¡°Q-quickly!! Y-you ten! Shield w-wall!! Y-you ten! Atack him!!¡± A mage yelled out orders to the skeletal warriors that had just reached them.


    The skeletal warriors were skeletons that wore a mixture of leather and chainmail armor while wielding swords and shields. Ten of them moved towards Azrael with the intent to attack, while the other ten moved in front of the two remaining mages and raised their shields, forming a shield wall. Azrael was undeterred as he continued to walk towards them.


    The ten skeletal warriors that had advanced towards Azrael to attack were now just two meters away. At this point Azrael raised his hand and uttered, ¡°Soul Sever¡±. Immediately after those words left his mouth, a black colored shock wave exploded forth with his hand as the epicenter. It struck against those ten undead that were almost within striking range. The moment it came into contact with them, they collapsed like puppets whose strings had been cut.


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    Having witnessed this scene the two mages couldn''t help but start to tremble. ¡°W-w-what do we d-do R-remco!?¡± One of the mages addressed the other. ¡°S-shit! S-shit! Teun!!! S-start chanting your s-spells now!! We can only b-buy time until Klaas finds s-something in the tome to deal with this!¡± Azrael continued to approach unhindered. ¡°Attack him!!¡± A mage ordered the remaining ten skeletal warriors.


    As the warriors moved to intercept Azrael, the two mages were chanting their spells. Before the warriors reached Azrael, one of the mages lifted their staff towards Azrael as he just finished his chant, ¡°Fire ball!¡± A ball of fire that was about half a meter in size appeared in the air at the end of the mages staff. It hung there in the air for but a second before it hurtled through the air towards Azrael.


    Before it could reach him, he murmured, ¡°Negate Magic.¡± The fireball was one meter away from hitting him, but before it could do so it extinguished in midair. ¡°W-what!? W-what magic is t-that!!?¡± The mage who had cast the fireball yelled before immediately starting another chant. The warriors had almost reached Azrael, but once again he raised his hand and uttered, ¡°Soul Sever.¡± Once more a black colored shock wave erupted from his hand as the epicenter and struck those warriors. These warriors, just like the previous ones, all collapsed to the ground becoming piles of bone, armor and weapons.


    The other mage finished his chant and raised his staff towards Azrael, calling out, ¡°Ice Lance!¡± Ice solidified in the air near the mages staff and formed into the shape of a large spear. After it formed it shot forth with great speed. But before it had the chance to impale Azrael, once more he uttered, ¡°Negate Magic.¡± The ice lance had been close to hitting him, but right before it could, it suddenly evaporated.


    Having seen his spell fail, the mage couldn''t bare the pressure anymore and turned to run away. But before he could run, Azrael had already raised his hand and uttered his spell, ¡°Chain Lightning.¡± A black colored lightning shot forth from his palm and flashed through the air as it struck the mage that was trying to run. It then jumped from him and hit the mage that was chanting a spell. Both mages were struck. Standing on the spot, they began convulsing uncontrollably as electricity surged through their bodies. Smoke started to rise from them as their skin started to char. Finally they collapsed to the ground dead.


    Azrael stopped moving and looked around the village. At the edge of the village he could see the group of unarmed skeletons standing in rank. However, he continued to look around. When he had just returned to this realm, he saw that one of the mages was close to one of the houses. Azrael wasn''t going to let this mage live.


    Azrael walked towards the house that he had seen the mage near. He raised his hand towards the house and uttered, ¡°Infernal Flame.¡± A red-black flame appeared in front of his hand and then flew forth. It collided with the wall of the house and the red-black flame quickly spread to engulf the entire house.


    Two breath''s of time passed since the spell was cast. Azrael stood there watching the flames as they burned, waiting for the house and everything inside to turn to ash. Abruptly, the front door of house exploded outwards sending splinters of wood everywhere. Sprinting out of the house was a mage holding a thick looking book. ¡°Fuck! Fuck! It''s hot!!¡± The mage yelled as he exited the house. As soon as he exited he stopped in his tracks as he realized what was in front of him.


    The two spheres of vivid purple light under Azrael''s hood stared at the mage. He slowly lifted his hand towards the mage. Seeing this, the mage trembled and immediately fell to his knees. While stuttering he pleaded, ¡°My Lord Elder Lich! Please have mercy!¡± There seemed to be no effect as Azrael did not stop. The mage continued, ¡°My Lord Elder Lich! Please! I will serve you! I am a fellow practitioner of death magic! I can be of service to you!!¡± Hearing this Azrael paused for a moment.


    The mage''s face immediately lit up. ''I''m going to survive! Yes! I''ll bide my time and find a way to escape the first chance I get!'' Extinguishing the mage''s thoughts was Azrael''s voice that was deep, emotionless and calm. ¡°Corrosion.¡± ¡°NOOO-AHHHH!!!¡± The mage''s scream turned to one of agony as his skin started to wither up and tear open causing blood to flow out. His body started to become thinner as he was nearing an emaciated state. His scream finally turned to gurgles as blood streamed out of his mouth, eyes, ears and nose. He collapsed to the ground a bloody, withered husk.


    ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **

 Chapter IV

    Chapter IV


    The sun had just risen as Azrael stood there staring at the mage that was now a bloody, withered corpse. Clasped to his chest in his hands was a thick book. ''Hmm, what''s that?'' He reached down and pried the thick book from the dead mage''s grasp. He opened it up.


    On the first page was some weird language Azrael had never seen before. He flipped through some pages and noticed some strange drawings. He even came across a very familiar pentagram. ''Hmmm, I can''t read any of this. Guess I''ll hang onto it until I can.'' Is what he thought as he stored the thick book into his interspatial ring. After doing so, he glanced around the village.


    The house that was previously burning from the Infernal Flame was now reduced to nothingness, not even ash remained. ''Wow, that Infernal Flame is amazing. It burnt away even the ashes...Incredible.'' He couldn''t help but praise the god of death''s magic. ''I wonder if I''ll ever be able to cast spells of that level on my own...Hmmm, now then, what should I do next? I suppose I need to learn some magic. The mana that the god of death infused into the ring should completely dissipate soon. I''ll be defenseless after that.''


    Azrael noticed  the skeletons that were created from sacrificing the other caravan members were still standing in ranks unmoving. He approached them and looked them over. ''Hmm, why aren''t they moving? Before it seemed like those mages were giving orders to them. Can I do it too?'' Looking at the thirty-nine skeletons that were standing in ranks, Azrael called out, ¡°Form a line!¡±


    Nothing happened. He tried to command them again, ¡°Obey me and move over there!¡± Once again nothing happened. ''Huh. Odd. Maybe there''s some magic I need to learn in order to command them.'' He shrugged then walked over to the corpses of the two charred mages. He inspected their bodies but didn''t find anything useful. Next to their bodies were their staves. He picked one up and gave it a closer look. ''Just a wooden staff, why were they using these?''


    Azrael knew nothing of magic or how mages used it. He had only seen some mages that were adventurers or travelers that passed through his village. He tossed the staff back to the ground. ''Well, guess I''ll find a place to call my own for the time being and check what''s in this interspatial ring.''


    He looked around and chose one of the inner houses of the village at random and went over to it. He opened the door, ''It was unlocked, based on the state of these houses, I''d say those mages must have sacrificed the villagers some time ago.'' He closed the door behind him as he entered. Walking into the house, there was a simple wooden table and two wooden chairs. Behind them was the kitchen, where a pit for an open fire was located.


    ''This must be the living room.'' He thought to himself. He looked around and noticed there were two windows along with another door that was to his left. He went over and opened it. Inside was a plain room, with a single bed and window. At the foot of the bed there was a trunk to store things in. Across from it was a slightly tarnished mirror. ''This house will do.'' Azrael was satisfied with this house; before he started to learn magic though, there was still one thing he had to do.


    Azrael was extremely curious about what he had become. He walked up to the mirror and looked at his reflection. Currently he was wearing a black hooded robe. His face was completely obscured by darkness. ''Hmm, well here goes nothing.'' He thought as he pulled back his hood.


    When he saw his reflection he was slightly startled. ¡°E-eh! That''s...me?¡± He uttered out. Looking back at him from the mirror was a grey skull with two vivid purple orbs of light where his eyes should be. He turned his head to the left and right checking each angle. ''I suppose it could be worse. At least I''m alive now...er I guess technically I''m undead now? Haha well whatever.'' He was rather relaxed now though compared to before his transformation.


    He looked down and noticed the robe covered his entire body. ¡°Hmm¡± he took off his robe and stared in the mirror. ¡°Hmm, I look pretty ghastly...haha.¡± He looked over his whole body in the mirror. ¡°This is odd. How do I talk? I don''t have any vocal cords. Huh, what about my eyes? Are these orbs of light my eyes?¡± As he muttered to himself, he lifted his hand and covered the left orb of light. When he did so he couldn''t see from his left eye anymore. ''Yep, guess these are my eyes. Haha, I like them. They''re a good color.''


    Removing his hand from covering the orb of light, he tried closing his right eye. As he did so the orb of light vanished and all that remained was the dark eye socket. ''Alright, so they disappear when I close my eyes. Well I guess I don''t really have eyes to close anymore. Haha.'' He pondered as he observed his reflection. The skeleton in the mirror was 1.8 meters tall. It was grey in color with two small vivid purple colored orbs of light for eyes. ''Well I suppose I won''t have to eat or sleep. This could be a pretty amazing blessing.'' He thought as he admired his reflection. ¡°Hmm, I''m even pretty calm. Is this the benefits of being undead?¡±


    ''Well enough of this, I need to start learning how to use magic. Now that I''m undead, most likely everyone I meet will want to destroy me.'' He thought to himself as he picked up his robe. He looked at the robe in his hand, ¡°Hmm, I suppose technically I''m naked right now. Eh, might as well.¡± He put the robe back on and walked into the other room with the table.


    He ambled over to the table and sat down on the chair that was facing the door. ''Alright. Time to check what''s in this ring.'' Closing his eyes, he focused on the ring and guided his soul into it. Doing so he was able to see all of the ring''s contents. ''Wow, there''s so many things. Let''s see...Novice guides to every element. Intermediate, Adept, Advanced, Expert, Master and even Grand-Master guides? So those must be the different ranks for mages?Hmm...What''s this?''


    Inside of the ring there were countless scrolls, books, tomes and many other items. Currently he was looking at one tome in particular. Unlike the others that were labeled as guides this one was slightly different. This tome was rather thin, it had maybe twenty to thirty pages and it''s front cover was blank. ''Hmm interesting.'' He thought.


    He then focused on this tome and one other. They both appeared in front of him right above the table. They then dropped down onto it creating a loud slam and causing the table to shake. ''Hmm, I''ll need to get the hang of this a little more. I''ll have to practice so I can make items appear exactly where I want them to.'' He pulled the tomes towards him. He chose the thicker one first. On the front cover of the tome it read: Novices'' Guide to Fire Magic. ¡°Fire Magic huh?¡± He uttered as he read the title.


    Azrael turned to the first page and on it was the exact same as the cover. Thus, he flipped to the second page. This page explained how mana worked and had the description of the method to sense mana in the environment. It then went on to explain how to absorb that mana into one''s own body to allow it to be used by them.


    Having read it all, he decided to give sensing mana a try. Sitting on the chair at the table, he closed his eyes and attempted to sense the mana in the environment. One breath of time passed, then two, three, four and when the fifth breath of time passed, he suddenly opened his eyes. ''Wow. I can''t believe it. The tome said that on one''s first try it could take any where from half an hour or more in order to even feel traces of mana in the environment. Yet, I was able to feel mana almost immediately. Is it because I''m undead?...Wait, the god of death said that I would have the potential to reach unimaginable heights...maybe this has something to do with that?''


    Once he finished his thoughts he looked at the tome again and read about the process of absorbing mana. Surprisingly it was rather simple, all you would have to do, was enter into a meditative state and compel the mana around yourself to enter your body. It also stated that the easiest way to do so, was to picture something in your mind that represented an empty object being filled and completely focus on it. This would then assist your body in absorbing the mana as it would influence it unconsciously.


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    He closed his eyes again and calmed his mind which happened almost instantaneously. In his mind he pictured an empty bucket being filled with water. Almost as soon as he imagined it, he suddenly felt the surrounding mana start to swirl around himself. After which it flowed directly towards him and started to flood into his rib-cage. As it did so he started to feel a warm sensation swell up from inside of him.


    ¡°Incredible¡± he uttered out. As soon as he did so, the feeling disappeared. ¡°Eh?¡± He was surprised for a moment before realization struck him. ''Ahh, right, I left the meditative state so the process stopped.'' Although the process had stopped he still felt a little different before. He felt like he was refreshed and had extra energy. ''Meditation is amazing'' he thought to himself before re-entering into a meditative state.


    Azrael remained seated in that chair meditating until the afternoon came. ¡°Wow, I feel so full of energy, this is ridiculous. Is this how mages feel all the time?¡± He mumbled to himself as he awoke from his meditation. He got up and walked to one of the windows. Looking outside he said, ¡°It''s noon already?¡± As he was looking outside he could see the skeletons were still standing there in ranks. He shook his head then returned to his seat. ''Alright, so I can meditate now. I think this body assists me with it. The tome said that for beginners it should take much more time than it took me. My body is definitely aiding me.'' He pushed the Novices'' Guide to Fire Magic on the table aside and pulled the thin tome towards him.


    He examined the tome, flipping it over to check the back of it as well. ''Hmm, nothing. It''s entirely blank.'' He thought to himself. Flipping it back to it''s front, he opened it up. The moment he opened it, a black colored mist seeped out from the tome and engulfed him. After a few moments passed the mist was sucked back into the tome.


    Azrael was still sitting there unfazed. ¡°Just...what was that?¡± He looked down and examined himself, noticing there wasn''t a change and that he felt just fine, he shrugged it off. He looked back to the tome and checked the first page. When he saw what was on it he was slightly confused. There were various purple colored glowing runes on the page. He was curious as to what these were.


    He flipped to the second page and saw more runes, except these ones weren''t glowing. ''Huh, I wonder if...'' Thinking to there, he flipped back to the first page and ran his finger across the runes. As he did so a violet light erupted from the runes. The light only lasted for a second before it faded. Once it had completely vanished Azrael let out a surprised gasp. ''This...it directly transferred knowledge to my mind...this...''


    The god of death had thought that it would take too long for an ordinary human to learn certain magics on their own. Thus he created this tome specifically for Azrael. In it there were 27 pages. Each page except the first contained a single spell in the format of runes. In these runes the god of death infused some of his mana along with the knowledge of the spell.


    Once Azrael reached a certain strength or stage, the runes would glow indicating that he was ready to acquire the spell and knowledge. This first page of runes Azrael had touched, transmitted the knowledge of two spells directly into his mind. These two spells were called Soul Drain and Life Drain. The knowledge of the spells Azrael received, told him what they did and how to use them.


    Soul Drain was a spell that once cast, would need to be continuously channeled in order to have an effect. If the you didn''t maintain the spell once it was cast, then it would immediately cease its effect. Soul Drain would assault an individual''s soul. It would steadily drain it away, damaging it in the process and transfer some of it to the caster of the spell. If it was maintained long enough, it could even completely drain an enemy''s soul away rendering them dead. In Azrael''s case, draining an individual''s soul would strengthen his own soul and heal any damage his soul had taken.


    Life Drain had the same requirements for casting in that once it was cast, it would need to be continuously channeled. This spell would drain the life force from a person and transfer it to the caster healing any wounds. If there were no wounds, it would instead bolster the caster''s life force. This spell was also capable of taking an enemy''s life if it was channeled for a long enough time. In Azrael''s case, this spell would take the enemy''s life force and convert it in to negative energy. It would then transfer this negative energy to Azrael. Any damage he had sustained would immediately be repaired and if he hadn''t taken any damage then it would instead increase his body''s durability slightly.


    ''Th-this is incredible! I can''t believe the god of death did this. I''ll need to thank him if I ever talk to him again.'' Azrael was ecstatic, these two spells would allow him to be able to defend himself somewhat should he be attacked and if his soul or body were damaged, these spells allowed him to heal himself. ''This is great. Now I have at least some self-preservation abilities. Now I don''t need to be in a blind rush to learn magic to defend myself.'' He thought for a moment but then shook his head.


    ''No, I shouldn''t be so conceited. These two spells could be considered strong but they have a serious disadvantage. I would need to continuously focus on them in order to keep them active. It would be best if I learn some other magic as well, as soon as I can.'' Azrael turned his attention back to the tome that was in front of him. The previously glowing runes had now stopped glowing. ''Hmm, guess I can only use them once?'' He flipped through the other pages of the tome to see if there were any other runes glowing. Unfortunately there were none. He stored the thin tome back into the interspatial ring and then grabbed the Novices'' Guide to Fire Magic.


    He flipped open the tome and continued to read where he had left off on the second page. A quarter of an hour passed and he managed to read a decent amount of pages. The pages that he read gave a basic explanation on magic. Thanks to this he had now gained a basic understanding of magic and mana. What he learned was everything that had a soul, had mana. The total amount of mana an individual had access to was referred to as a mana pool. The total capacity of the mana pool could be increased by a few methods.


    Method one was to strengthen the soul. Method two was to continuously use all mana that you had and then replenish it. This would function similar to the way in which humans build muscles. By applying a load of stress greater than what your body or in this case mana pool had previously adapted to, would end up stimulating growth. Thus, the mana pool would increase. Method three was to meditate for long periods of time.


    If one meditated enough they would begin to take in more mana than they have and forcefully expand their mana pool. This method is somewhat painful, but if you can endure, it is a surefire way to increase your mana pool''s capacity. Method four was to use external sources. As in special medicines or treasures that boosted the size of an individual''s mana pool. There were also enchantments that could increase the size of a mana pool, but these were uncommon.


    He also learned that mana fueled spells and mana could be replenished by taking in the mana from the environment through meditation. According to the tome, that feeling he had earlier where he felt as if he was full of energy was actually just the feeling of his mana pool being full. The final thing he learned was that in order to cast a spell an individual would need to say a chant followed by the spells name.


    The chant was supplementary. It would stabilize the mana required for the spell and using a chant made some spells easier to be cast. Each magic element had a staple chant. All though there are chants, there are some mages who do not use chants. This is known as Chant-less magic. ''Wait...strengthen the soul to increase your mana pool? Then...Soul Drain will strengthen my soul...so if I use it, I''ll end up increasing my mana pool? Amazing, I really need to thank the god of death.'' He was pretty happy to have learned all this. Before he knew absolutely nothing about magic, but at least now he has a basic understanding.

 Chapter V

    Chapter V


    Having finished thirteen pages of the tome, Azrael finally got to a page that taught a spell. Page fourteen of the Novices'' Guide to Fire Magic had a spell that he could learn. The spell was Firebolt. This spell would create a ball of fire that was about the size of an adult man''s fist. This ball of fire would then be propelled forward rather quickly and impact the caster''s target. However, upon contact it would not explode. According to the tome, this was the difference between Firebolt and Fireball.


    The basic chant for fire magic was: Adara, God of Fire, grant me your power so that I may turn my foes into ash. Once you finish the chant you would then speak the spells name. ''Alright, this is rather simple...Huh, I wonder why Soul Drain and Life Drain don''t have a chant? Did the god of death forget to include it? Eh, no matter. I better head outside to test this spell. I don''t want to burn the house down.'' Azrael placed the tome into his ring. He then stood up and proceeded outside towards the skeletons that were standing in ranks.


    Once there he inspected the skeletons once more. There didn''t seem to be a change. He even tried ordering them again, but to no avail. ''Whatever, I suppose they''ll make good targets.'' Azrael stood about 5 meters away from them. He raised his hand and said, ¡°Adara, God of Fire, grant me your power so that I may turn my foes into ash. Firebolt.¡±


    Immediately after he finished saying the spells name, a ball of fire the size of an adult man''s fist swiftly shot forth from his hand and impacted a skeleton in the shoulder. The skeleton jerked backwards and bumped into the one behind it. After a moment it recovered and moved back to stand in rank with the others.


    ''Hmm, not too bad. It had some good force behind it. But there doesn''t seem to be much damage inflicted to the skeleton, just a hairline fracture...Hmm, then again it''s all bone. If it was flesh, it probably would have been burned and a fracture even if it''s a hairline one is still better then nothing.'' He thought to himself as he observed the results of the spell.


    He raised his hand towards the skeletons again, ¡°Adara, God of Fire, grant me your power so that I may turn my foes into ash. Firebolt.¡± Once more he chanted the spell and upon finishing, a Firebolt the same size as the previous one darted forth from his hand. It impacted the same skeleton, however instead of the shoulder this time it hit the skeleton''s sternum causing it to be blasted off of its feet and crashing into the skeleton behind it. ''Hmm, this spell has a good amount of force behind it. It could actually have such an effect on that skeleton. Guess I should work on my accuracy though...I was aiming for its head with that last one.''


    Azrael practiced the firebolt spell for hours. As he was practicing he would end up feeling tired or drained. This was the effect of running out of mana. Once he felt like this, he meditated for about a quarter of an hour before his mana would be replenished. Thus, he practiced until he ran out of mana and then immediately meditated. Repeating this cycle, hours had passed.


    The sun was beginning to set, when he decided to stop practicing. Looking over the results he couldn''t help but shake his head. ''Hours of practice yet, I only hit the skeleton''s head maybe twelve times total. Definitely need to improve my accuracy.'' The skeleton he had been using as a target was covered in fractures all over its bones. ''Although my accuracy barely improved at least I was able to see just how effective this Firebolt spell is and just how many I can cast at the moment, before I run out of mana. Ten...wish it was more but for now it will do.''


    If any mage could hear Azrael''s thoughts right now, they would shake their head and cover their face with their palm out of sheer disbelief. For an ordinary mage whom was a beginner, being able to cast a single Firebolt with a handful of failed attempts, the moment after they learned the spell, would be considered good. Being able to cast ten while having just learned the spell, with no failed attempts at casting it and with no previous training...this was extraordinary. ''The sun''s setting...hmm...'' He looked over to where the two charred corpses of the mages were. He walked over and picked up their staves, ''This''ll do as a makeshift torch for a bit.''


    Finished with his practice he returned to the house that he had previously been in. Once there, he sat down at the table and placed one of the staves on the table. The other he held in his hand and begun to recite the chant to cast a Firebolt while pointing at the top of the staff. Once he finished casting the spell, a firebolt flew out from the tip of his finger and impacted the top of the staff shattering it. However, the part of the staff that was left had caught fire.


    ''I suppose this will last for a little while.'' He thought as he was holding the makeshift torch. Satisfied with his creation, he took out the Novices'' Guide to Fire Magic. Another hour passed as he finished reading the tome. In that hour, he had to use the other staff as a torch. ''Hmm, only two spells in this tome...well I suppose it is the Novices'' Guide.'' The tome he had just finished reading only contained two spells: Firebolt and Fireball. Fireball, this spell would create a ball of fire that was about the size of an adult man''s head. It would then be propelled through the air towards the caster''s target. Upon contact it would explode.


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    Besides just the two spells, the rest of the tome gave an introduction into the ways of manipulating fire that already existed, as well as fire that was in the form of spells, with mana. This would allow one to change the course of their spell once it was already launched through the air. As well as slightly impair an enemy''s spell that was coming towards oneself.


    One final area that this tome touched upon was how to increase the power and speed of a spell by injecting more mana into it. However it didn''t go into much detail as it stated: to be continued in Vol. II Intermediate''s Guide to Fire Magic. ''Hmm well I suppose I should go practice Fireball now.'' As he thought this, he stood up and proceeded out of the house.


    Standing in front of the skeletons again at about 5 meters away, Azrael thought, ''Let''s see just how powerful a Fireball is..'' Raising his hand he chanted, ¡°Adara, God of Fire, grant me your power so that I may turn my foes into ash. Fireball.¡± Right as the word Fireball left his mouth, a ball of fire the size of an adult man''s head appeared in front of his hand, lighting up the surrounding area.


    It hovered for half a second before it vaulted across the air and collided with the same skeleton he had used for target practice earlier in the chest. Upon impact the fireball exploded in a brilliant flash of light, shattering the skeleton into pieces. ''Wow, that was pretty destructive. Hmm but maybe it was because that skeleton was already fractured all over the place. Only one way to be sure.''


    Aiming his hand at another skeleton he chanted the spell once more. A fireball the same size as before appeared in front of his hand. It acted just like the previous one, hovering there for half a second before soaring through the air and impacting a skeleton in the chest. On impact it exploded and shatered that skeleton into pieces. ''Wow, so the Fireball spell has enough power to destroy these skeletons.''


    Amazed at the results of the Fireball spell, Azrael moved his hand and aimed at one of the empty houses. He chanted the spell and watched as a fireball sailed through the air. It exploded upon impact with the house creating a rather decent sized hole in the wall and making the wall ignite. ''Yep...Fireball has a good amount of power behind it...'' Is what he thought as he watched the outcome.


    ''Well, three fireballs and I still feel okay, let''s see how many I can cast.'' He continued to cast two more Fireballs at the house, littering the wall with three holes. After having cast his fifth Fireball he felt as if he was exhausted. ''Alright so at the moment I can cast either ten Firebolts or five Fireballs before I run out of mana...I don''t know if this is good or bad though...''


    Having figured out his current limits, he stood there and watched the fire burn as it illuminated the night sky. ''Alright, standing here watching the flames burn, isn''t going to accomplish anything.'' Noticing his makeshift torch was about to run out, he threw the remainder of it into the burning house as he decided to return to the house he was in before and look through some more tomes.


    Azrael sat down at the table once more and searched through the contents of the ring. As he was searching he stumbled upon a tome that caught his interest. ''Oh, whats this?'' He thought as he withdrew the tome. The tome appeared a little bit above the table, it fell and landed on it with a thud. Azrael pulled it closer to him. ''E-eh, what''s this! How can I see so clearly right now?''


    He got up and looked out the window only to find that it was still night. He could see the stars and moon. ¡°Just what...¡± He uttered, as he turned around and observed the room. ''I can see everything as clear as day...amazing, it must be because of this body...Now I feel like an idiot for making those torches...'' He sat back down and started to examine the tome.


    As he did so, his interest was peaked. The entire tome was black and very thick. The front cover of the tome contained no words, there was only a skull centered in the middle of the cover. He flipped the tome over to check the back of it, but it was completely blank. Flipping it back to the front he thought, ''Well, let''s see what''s inside.'' He opened it up, when he did so, a black mist spewed forth and engulfed him just like when he had opened the thin tome.


    After a few moments the black mist was absorbed back into the tome as Azrael was unfazed. ''Huh? That again. Wonder what that was about.'' Looking back to the tome, on the first page it read: The God of Death''s Revised Death Magic. After reading that line Azrael grew eager. He flipped to the second page and began to read. He sat there reading for the entire night. It was already late morning by the time he stopped reading.


    In all that time he was only able to read and understand about five percent of the tome. ¡°Incredible¡± he uttered. ''Death Magic...as it''s name implies revolves around death...I suppose I don''t really have a choice in the matter...I''m an undead after all...Well I already made up my mind. If I end up becoming evil so be it...Hmm, my mana still isn''t fully recovered, I guess I better meditate before I begin experimenting.'' Thinking to there, he started to meditate.

 Chapter VI

    Chapter VI


    Noon rapidly arrived. ''Time sure goes by quick when you''re meditating'' he thought to himself. Having finished meditating, he stood up and walked outside towards where the two charred corpses were. Staring at them he thought, ''Alright, so the tome said that first I need to be able to animate the dead, then I will naturally understand how to control them...Huh, that tome seemed like it was specifically written for me..''


    He shook his head dispersing any random thoughts, ''Anyways, the tome also stated that I should start with a lesser undead, well here goes nothing.'' He shrugged, then raised his hand, aiming it at one of the two corpses. He spoke, ¡°Raise Lesser Undead.¡± The moment those words fell, a black mist seeped out of his skeletal hand and travelled through the air, enveloping the corpse.


    Three breaths of time passed before the black mist that was swarming on the corpse started to move. The black mist stood upright becoming a dark figure. The black mist then dissipated revealing a skeleton with glowing blue eyes, standing in its place with the corpse no where to be seen. However at its feet there were some burnt scraps of robes remaining.


    As soon as the black mist vanished, Azrael felt some sort of connection coming from the skeleton. ''Weird...it''s hard to put this feeling into words...'' He thought to himself as he examined the skeleton that was standing before him. ''Will it follow my orders?'' His voice sounded out, ¡°Lift your arm above your head.¡± The skeleton complied and lifted its arm above its head. ''Haha, excellent!'' Although what Azrael had just created was a lesser undead, he was still elated nonetheless.


    ''According to the tome, this is just the most basic undead of the lowest tier. A skeleton. Although that''s the case I now have something to defend me.'' In the tome, The God of Death''s Revised Death Magic, it explained that there are three different categories that undead fell under. There are Lesser Undead, Standard Undead and Greater Undead. The tome even explained what types of undead fell under what category.


    The skeleton that Azrael had just created fell under the category of Lesser Undead. The skeleton is considered the most basic form of undead and it is considered the workhorse of undead. It also stated that skeletons had no intelligence and would follow any order given to it by their master without question. When creating the undead, a minuscule amount of the creator''s soul would imprint itself into the undead. Thus, making the creator the master.


    The tome went on to explain that undead were capable of evolving, so to speak. A lesser undead such as a skeleton, could be ordered to use a sword to fight. After killing enough enemies, it would evolve into a Skeletal Warrior. When it evolves it would become slightly stronger and gain some abilities. Such as when evolving into a Skeletal Warrior, it would gain battle instincts and a hate for the living. It would also start to develop a very small amount of intelligence.


    This was good news for Azrael, as that meant any undead he creates now, will have the ability to grow stronger. Thus there was no need for him to hold back. Azrael looked at the other charred corpse, raised his hand and spoke, ¡°Raise Lesser Undead.¡± Once more, that black mist seeped out of his hand and travelled to the corpse, engulfing it. In three breaths of time later, the mist stood up and formed a figure then vanished, leaving behind a skeleton standing in its place. Also at this skeleton''s feet were burnt remnants of robe just like the previous one.


    If skulls could smile, that''s what Azrael was doing right now. ''Hahaha, excellent.'' he thought. ¡°Raise your arm above your head.¡± He ordered the newly created skeleton and it did as told. He chuckled as he looked at his two creations but then suddenly stopped. Shaking his head, in an awkward tone he muttered, ¡°P-put your arms down.¡±


    Sighing he looked around the village. ''I forgot that they''ll follow orders without question. They probably would''ve kept their arms up forever if I didn''t tell them to stop...Alright, let''s see...'' As we was looking around, he abruptly stopped as his eyes focused on something in particular, ''Oh, I almost forgot there''s still that corpse I could use.'' He walked over to where the final mage had pleaded for his life.


    Staring at the corpse that was a bloody, withered husk, he raised his hand and uttered, ¡°Raise Lesser Undead.¡± After a few moments a new skeleton was standing before him, wearing a bloody robe. ''Alright! Three skeletons now. Hmmm, what to have them do...'' He thought as he looked at his three undead slaves. As he looked around the village once more, he seemed to have a sudden idea.


    Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.


    Looking towards the skeletons he ordered, ¡°You three, gather all twenty of those piles of weapons, armor and bone. Bring them and leave them outside of that house over there.¡± He pointed to the house he was currently calling his own. ¡°Make sure to sort them into three different piles. One for weapons, armor and bones. When you finish, knock on the door of the house and then enter.¡±


    As if they were acknowledging the order, the three skeletons nodded and then moved to do as told. ''Good. I''ll be able to see just how complex of an order they can carry out.'' He waited and watched as the skeletons proceeded to do as told. ''Hmm...I can try out Control Lesser Undead on those skeletons that are standing idly over there.'' As he thought this, he looked to the now thirty-seven skeletons that were standing in rank.


    Walking over to and standing in front of these skeletons he thought, ''Hmm, it felt like Raise Lesser Undead consumes the same amount of mana as a fireball, so I should only be able to cast it two more times. I wonder how much mana Control Lesser Undead takes...''


    Control Lesser Undead was another spell that was contained in the tome, The God of Death''s Revised Death Magic. In the process of creating an undead, the caster of the spell or ritual would imprint a minuscule amount of their soul into the undead that was created. This would allow the undead to recognize the caster as its master.


    Control Lesser Undead was a spell, which was essentially the process of imprinting a minuscule amount of the caster''s soul into the undead target. If the undead was masterless, the caster of the spell would become the master. If the undead already had a master, it was possible for the caster to gain control of it, if the caster imprinted a larger portion of their soul into the undead than their current master already had or if their soul was stronger than their current master''s. This spell is only effective, as the name implies, on Lesser Undead.


    Standing in front of the skeletons, Azrael raised his hand aiming it towards one of the skeletons and uttered, ¡°Control Lesser Undead.¡± Immediately a violet blue energy radiated from his hand and arched to the skeleton he was aiming at. It engulfed it''s upper body for a second and then vanished. ''Did it work?'' He thought as he eyed the skeleton. ¡°Raise your hand.¡± He ordered it.


    The skeleton promptly raised its hand as ordered. ¡°Haha, excellent! Lower your hand.¡± As the skeleton lowered its hand, Azrael was lost in deep thought, ''So Control Lesser Undead feels as though it has the same mana cost as Raise Lesser Undead and Fireball...At the moment I can only cast either of these three spells, five times before I run out of mana...Hmmm, it seems like my mana continues to regenerate even when I''m not meditating, but at a horrendous rate. It''s better to just replenish my mana to full by meditating. It only takes a quarter of an hour to do so after all. But to increase my mana pool by meditating, seems like it will take a lot of time meditating. Even meditating for a few hours at once didn''t seem to do anything...'' He shook his head as he continued to think.


    ''Regarding these skeletons, if I use Control Lesser undead one more time, then there would be thirty-five skeletons left, that I can cast it on. I can cast this spell five times every fifteen minutes so...In about two hours I should be able to have all of these skeletons under my control...'' Azrael crossed his arms and brought his hand to his chin as he pondered, ''Huh...there''s no way I could have done those kinds of calculations before I was made into an undead...Did the god of death increase my intelligence when he transformed me?...Hmmm, well I suppose it''s just one more thing I need to thank him for, haha.''


    Finished with his thoughts, Azrael raised his hand, aiming it at another skeleton. Once more he cast ¡°Control Lesser Undead.¡± The same effect occurred as before, a violet blue energy emanated from his hand and engulfed the skeleton''s upper body for a moment before it vanished. ¡°Alright, you two, follow me.¡± He ordered them. Both skeletons gave a nod and began to follow Azrael as he turned around to walk towards the house he was calling his.


    ''Once I''m done gaining control of these skeletons, I''ll have forty in total. I''ll have to figure out what to do with them.'' He thought as he made his way to the house. As he entered it, he ordered the two skeletons following him to stand by each side of the door. He then walked over and sat down at the table. ''After I run out of mana, I''ll meditate in here. I don''t like the idea of being out in the open and meditating.'' He thought to himself before he closed his eyes and began to meditate.

 Chapter VII

    Chapter VII


    Elsewhere in a manor''s courtyard. ¡°My Lord Garretsen.¡± An elderly man wearing what appeared to be a butler uniform came out of a set of double doors and called out to an obese man in lavish clothes, whom was lounging in a chair being fed fruits by some half-naked servant girls. Snorting the obese man snappily exclaimed, ¡°What it is!? Don''t you see I''m busy!?¡±


    The butler immediately cast his gaze to the ground while bowing and meekly said, ¡°A thousand apologies, Your Lordship. However a messenger has arrived with a letter for you and he said that it is rather urgent.¡± Garretsen grunted back. ¡°Hmph, it can wait! I''m in the middle of enjoying myself.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Lordship. I shall take my leave.¡± The butler turned around and was about to leave the courtyard but suddenly halted in his steps. ¡°Wait!¡± Squaked Garretsen. ¡°Who sent it?¡±


    The butler turned back around to face Garretsen and replied, ¡°Milord, It came from your retainer, Lord Stokes.¡± Garretsen raised an eyebrow as he huffed, ¡°Stokes? I gave him that town to lord over...what was it called...umm...Beckton! Right, that was its name. What the hell could he possibly want?¡± The butler remained silent as he stood there waiting for his lord to finish.


    Garretsen looked at the butler and groaned, ¡°Place the letter on the desk in my study, I''ll read it when I''m finished here.¡± The butler responded respectfully, ¡°Yes, Your Lordship.¡± He turned around and walked out of the courtyard back through the doors he entered from. The moment he was through them he muttered under his breath, ¡°Repugnant pig.¡±


    After an hour had passed, Garretsen finally left the courtyard and headed to his study. Arriving there he walked over to a cabinet and made himself a drink. He then sat down at his desk. Looking over the contents that were on his desk he sighed, ¡°Alright, which one is that letter?¡± He rummaged through some of the papers on his desk. ¡°Ahh, this must be it.¡±


    Picking up a letter and unsealing it, he began to read while sipping his drink. After reading through it, he furrowed his brow and snorted. ¡°Hmph! A village didn''t pay their monthly tribute?¡± As he continued sipping his drink he thought, ''Since he''s short on manpower because of this damned war with the Volux Kingdom, he requests I send him more men? Hmph! Fine. I suppose I can do so. After all, it will put him further in debt with me.''


    He couldn''t help but laugh to himself, ¡°Gahahaha!¡± He stood up and walked over to the door of the study, opening it. He shouted, ¡°Attend to me!!!!¡± His shout echoed throughout the manor''s hallways. Afterwards he returned to his seat and began to write something.


    Shortly after, there was a knock on the study''s door. ¡°Enter!¡± Garretsen called out. The door opened and the elderly butler from earlier walked in. ¡°Your Lordship.¡± The butler acknowledged Garretsen. ¡°Hmph! Good. You''re finally here.¡± As he said this he picked up a sealed letter. ¡°Take this letter and give it to Jaidyn.¡± The butler accepted the letter and said, ¡°Yes, Your Lordship, right away.¡± The butler bowed then left the study to deliver the letter. ''Now then...I suppose I could go enjoy those servant girls some more, gahahaha.'' Garretsen thought to himself. He gulped down the rest of his drink then set the empty glass down and left the study.


    The elderly butler had left the manor''s grounds and was currently on his way to the city''s barracks. The city of Amberhelm was ruled over by Lord Garretsen, who ruled with an iron fist. Amberhelm was located within the Kingdom of Kreris, which was currently at war with the Kingdom of Volux.


    Both of these kingdoms are in a rather central location on the continent of Itos and are surrounded by nations of varying sizes. In this central area, wars were a common occurrence as many nations wished to expand by conquering smaller countries without angering any of the existing superpowers.


    The kingdoms of both Volux and Kreris could be considered small. However the Kingdom of Volux was one of the more powerful small nations, while the Kingdom of Kreris was considered to have only average strength. Due to the war with the Kingdom of Volux, the King of the Kingdom of Kreris, called for all of his vassals to send as many soldiers as possible to participate. This resulted in leaving most of his vassals short-handed when it came to internal matters.


    Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.


    The elderly butler had just arrived at the city of Amberhelm''s barracks. Within it, he had just knocked on a closed door. ¡°Come in.¡± A man''s voice sounded out. Not hesitating, the elderly butler opened the door and walked inside, closing the door behind him. ¡°Oh, it''s you, Liles. What do you need?¡± Amiably asked a man with brown long hair and a trimmed beard as he looked up from the papers on his desk.


    ¡°Jaidyn, the piglet seems to have another task for you.¡± Liles''s voice was filled with disdain as he insulted their lord. Chuckling, Jaidyn solemnly said, ¡°Hahaha, Oi, you ought to be careful talking about him like that.¡± Liles shrugged as he said, ¡°I just speak the truth.¡± He continued in a regretful voice, ¡°My Redthorne family''s ancestor never should have gotten involved with the swine''s family back then...¡±


    Jaidyn slightly nodded as he replied, ¡°Aye, that''s true, I wish my Hall family never became indebted to him back then either...but if that didn''t happen we wouldn''t have become friends, haha.¡± Liles smiled as he shook his head and reached into his pocket, ¡°Right, the reason I''m here this time¡± he paused there and took a sealed letter out of his pocket, handing it over to Jaidyn, ¡°is to deliver you a letter from our lordship.¡± Jaidyn raised an eyebrow as he dejectedly said, ¡°Wonder what he needs done this time...¡±


    Jaidyn broke the seal on the letter and opened it up. Reading the letter he furrowed his brow and frowned, ¡°A village near the town of Beckton, seems to have not paid their tribute this month, he wants me to send some men to ''teach them a lesson''...¡± Sighing he continued, ¡°I swear, I can''t stand our lord''s way of doing things...but I have no other choice...¡±


    Shaking his head, he said to Liles, ¡°Alright, thanks for delivering the letter. I''m gonna have to scrounge up some men to send over to Beckton, so I can''t chat for long...¡± Liles smiled and shook his head, ¡°It''s fine, I need to get back to the manor anyways. You know how our lord is...¡± Nodding, Jaidyn said, ¡°Indeed. Next time, at the Silver Hatchet Tavern, the drinks are on me.¡± Chuckling and saying farewell, Liles left the barracks.


    Jaidyn walked out of his office and walked through the halls. He finally reached a training field where some men were currently sparring. He looked around, seemingly looking for someone in particular. Jaidyn stopped in front of two men who were in the middle of sparring.


    Of the two men, one was tall and had bulging muscles, while the other was of average height and well-built. ¡°Levak! There you are. I was looking for you.¡± The tall man with bulging muscles had his back turned to Jaidyn, but upon hearing his name called out he turned around and crudely said, ¡°Hmm, oh boss, what da yah need?¡± Jaidyn slightly furrowed his brow as he said, ¡°I''ve got orders for you.¡±


    Levak groaned, ¡°Oh, orders great. What needs doin boss?¡± Jaidyn reached into one of his pockets and pulled out a small badge. He tossed it to Levak. Catching the badge, Levak asked, ¡°Eh, what''s this boss?¡± Jaidyn smirked and said, ¡°That''s the mark of a Corporal. You''re gonna lead a squad of men over to the town of Beckton. There''s a village around there that didn''t pay their tribute to our lord. We got orders to bring back the tribute and then some. As well as to ''teach them a lesson'', you think you can do that?¡±


    Levak grinned, revealing a few missing teeth as he said, ¡°Hehe, of course boss. No problem.¡± ¡°Good. Once at Beckton, report in to Caden Stokes. He''s the lord of the town. He should fill you in on any details. You''ll leave first thing tomorrow morning. It should take about half a day to get to Beckton.¡± Replied Jaidyn. ¡°Roger that boss. We''ll get it done.¡± Jaidyn nodded, then turned around and left. As soon as he had left the training field, Levak started to chuckle, ¡°Hehehe, gonna have ta gather the boys. We''re gonna get ta have some fun.¡±

 Chapter VIII

    Chapter VIII


    A couple of hours had passed since Azrael began his routine of casting Control Lesser Undead and meditating. Azrael was currently sitting at the table in the house he was calling his own. He just finished meditating as he opened his eyes and sighed while thinking, ''Alright, now I have all the skeletons under my control. What to do with them though...hmmm.'' He looked up and stared at the two skeletons that were standing on either side of the door.


    ''Those two haven''t budged since I ordered them to stand there...Seems like they''ll follow any order I give them indefinitely. That''s good...Shouldn''t be much longer until-'' His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. It then opened and three skeletons walked inside. ''Haha, right on time.''


    They stopped in front of the table and stood there unmoving. Azrael looked at these three skeletons and then ordered, ¡°You three, stand to the side over there.¡± He pointed to the wall by the door to the bedroom. The skeletons nodded and proceeded to do as told. Once the skeletons were there, Azrael stood up and walked outside of the house.


    The moment he got outside he saw three different piles of objects to his right. He moved over to them and examined them closely. One was a pile of only bones. The second was a neatly stacked pile of swords and shields. The third was an organized pile of a mixture of leather and chainmail armor. ''Hahaha, superb. They were actually able to sort them properly. Huh, odd. The tome said that the lowest tier of skeleton didn''t have any intelligence. If that was so, then how did they sort these items?...Ah well, whatever, doesn''t really matter that much I suppose.''


    Azrael then turned and looked to the left side of the house. There were currently thirty-five skeletons standing in rank there. After each meditation session Azrael would have five new skeletons under his control. Each time he would order the five new skeletons to stand in ranks right next to his house. ''Hmm...'' Azrael called out, ¡°Twenty of you, step forward!¡±


    Adhering to his command, twenty skeletons stepped forward. ¡°Good. You twenty, come over here. Equip these weapons and armor.¡± The twenty skeletons moved over to the piles of sorted goods. They immediately began to put on the leather and chainmail armor. Then they each picked up a sword and shield.


    Looking over the twenty armed skeletons, Azrael was grinning on the inside. ''Hahaha! Excellent! I now have warriors! Well...they at least look like warriors. They''ll need to kill a bunch of creatures to evolve into actual warriors, but at least they look the part.'' After he finished looking them over, he ordered, ¡°You twenty, follow me.¡±


    Azrael, with the twenty skeletons in tow, walked to the house that was next to the one he was calling his own. He entered it and looked around. Nodding he thought, ''This one will do. I don''t want these skeletons all outside, otherwise if anyone comes by the village it''ll be bad news.'' He turned to face the skeletons and ordered, ¡°Clear out everything inside of this house. Throw it outside, behind the house. When your done, wait in front of the house for me.¡± The skeletons all nodded in acknowledgement, then moved to begin emptying out the house. Azrael walked outside and headed towards the fifteen skeletons that were still standing in ranks next to his house.


    He arrived in front of them and examined them while pondering something. He brought his hand to his chin as he was in deep thought. ''Hmm, being able to orally order them is good and all, but if there is ever a situation where I need to be silent...Hmmm, well it''s worth a shot I suppose.'' As Azrael stared at the skeletons he ordered them mentally, ''You fifteen, stand on one foot.''


    The fifteen skeletons all complied by lifting a foot of the ground. Azrael rejoiced mentally, ''Yes! It works!'' If a skull could smile, that''s what he was doing right now. ¡°Alright, put your feet down.¡± He ordered and the skeletons did as told. ¡°Hmmm, the fifteen of you are to lay on the ground in front of this house and not move. Act like corpses.¡±


    As he ordered them, they all nodded in unison. They then spread out a little bit in front of the house Azrael was calling his and suddenly they all collapsed as if they were puppets whose strings had been cut. ''Good. If anyone comes by they would probably inspect the village due to the burnt down houses and the decrepit appearance of the rest. This way they''ll see the skeletal corpses as well and probably investigate them. If that happens at least I''ll be able to lure them in and ambush them. If necessary, I can use the skeletons to buy time for me to escape.''


    Azrael moved back over to the house where he had ordered the skeletons to clear out the inside of it. As he approached, he saw all twenty skeletons standing in rank waiting for him at the front of the house. ''They finished already?'' he thought as he arrived. ¡°You all finished clearing out the inside already?¡± Shaking his head he thought ''Bah, what am I doing? They can''t answer-¡±


    The skeletons all nodded, answering his question. ¡°E-eh!? You all can understand me?¡± They all nodded once more. ''What is this!? That tome said that skeletons are the lowest tier undead and have no intelligence. Wait...maybe since I''m different from normal undead...are the ones I create different as well?'' Azrael looked at them all then asked, ¡°What is 2x2-1? Hold up your fingers to answer.¡± None of them moved to answer the question.


    ''I don''t understand...they aren''t answering, is it because they can''t? Let''s try something simpler.'' He then asked, ¡°What is 1+1? Hold up your fingers to answer.¡± Once more none of them moved. ''Huh...'' He thought for a few minutes before coming up with a possible rationale. ''Maybe...they can understand what I say and can answer simple inquiries, especially if it has to with their previous or current orders? That''s most likely the situation...I guess only time will be able to answer my question.''


    Shaking his head to keep his thoughts from going rampant, he moved to the back of the house to inspect what the skeletons had done. Once there, he saw all of the furniture from inside of the house. ''Good, so the house should be empty now.'' He walked back to the front and into the house. After seeing that the main room of the house was empty, he proceeded into the bedroom and just like the previous room, it was empty as well. ''Good, now let''s test the range of mental orders...The twenty of you outside of the house, come inside now.''


    Azrael walked back into the main room of the house, as he did so he saw all the skeletons filing in. ''Excellent, so mental orders can work at a range too. The extent of the range though, I still need to figure out.'' Once all of the skeletons were inside he ordered, ¡°Alright, all of you are to stay inside here unless ordered otherwise. Should anyone besides me or one of the skeletons come inside here, you are to kill them immediately. Understood?¡± They all nodded in unison.


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    ''Good, now time to test the range of mental orders.'' He walked outside of the house and to the center of the village where the ritual with the pentagram was located. Once there he looked back to the house he was calling his own. He ordered mentally, ''Skeleton with the bloody robe, come out of the house and stand at the door.'' A breath''s worth of time went by and a skeleton wearing a bloody robe walked outside of the house. It then stood at the door motionless.


    ''Haha! Great! So it works at moderate range too. Given that the skeleton was standing by the bedroom door, it would have taken a second or two, to actually get to the door that leads outside and then come out. So are mental orders instant? Only one way to find out.'' After he thought this, he mentally ordered the skeleton in the bloody robe, ''Raise your hand above your head.''


    The moment he finished the thought, the skeleton instantly complied. ''Hahaha! Yes! The orders were transmitted instantly!'' After celebrating in his mind, he ordered mentally once more, ''Lower you hand, you may go back to your former position inside of the house.'' The skeleton did as ordered and walked back into the house. As it did so, Azrael was thinking. ''Alright time for another test.''


    Azrael walked out of the village and glanced around. He noticed that there were fields of corn on either side of the dirt road that led into the village. ''Hmm, another good place for an ambush should anyone come here.''  He walked down the road for about a quarter of an hour, at this point the village was becoming harder to see.


    ''Alright, so coming out this far I can still feel the connection with all of the skeletons. Well, time for the test...Skeleton in the bloody robe, walk into the center of the village and raise your hand.'' After ordering it mentally, Azrael proceeded to return to the village.


    When he finally returned he was elated to see that in the center of the village stood the skeleton in the bloody robe with its hand raised in the air. Azrael approached the skeleton and said, ¡°Haha, excellent. Lower your hand and return to your former position inside of the house.¡± The skeleton nodded and then ambled away.


    ''So the range of mental orders so far, seem to be pretty extreme. Maybe it has something to do with the connection I feel to all of the skeletons. This is good. If that''s the case, then if the connection ever starts to feel weak, I''ll know I''m nearing the limit of my range.'' Having finished his thoughts, Azrael started to stroll back to his house.


    Once Azrael arrived in front of his house, he glanced at the pile of bones that were still there and suddenly had an idea. ''I wonder...if it''s possible...then that would be amazing.'' Thinking to there, he walked in front of the pile of bones. Looking at them he raised his hand and uttered, ¡°Raise Lesser Undead.¡±


    As soon as the words fell, black mist seeped out of his hand and travelled to the pile of bones engulfing it. After a few moments, a figure covered in black mist stood up from the pile, scattering the other bones. The mist lingered for a moment before it vanished. What stood before Azrael was another skeleton. ''This...this...incredible.''


    Through the connection he had with each undead he creates, he can feel just how powerful they are when he is in close proximity. What he felt from this undead was that it was just another low tier skeleton. But this meant that after defeating an enemy''s undead, he could then raise it into one of his own undead. He was at a loss for words thinking about this. ''There were twenty skeletal warriors before, so there should be enough bones remaining to raise nineteen more skeletons. With them, I''ll have a total of sixty skeletons. Hahaha.''


    Azrael had cast Raise Lesser Undead five times and then meditated. He did this for a total of four times, raising twenty more skeletons in total. ''Hahaha, yes...now then...The twenty of you, go into the crop fields directly outside of the village, lay down on the ground and act like corpses.'' Having ordered them all mentally, the twenty of them all nodded in unison and then marched off to perform their orders.


    Azrael then moved to inspect one of the other fifteen skeletons he had laying on the ground acting like corpses in front of his house. Upon close inspection, one wouldn''t be able to tell that they were actually undead. Their previously glowing blue eyes were completely extinguished. They looked and seemed like ordinary skeletal corpses, with their bones slightly scattered.


    Having finished inspecting them, Azrael was satisfied with everything so far. ''Hmm, I should test how fast their reaction time is.'' As he thought this, he looked towards one of the skeletons on the ground and then ordered mentally, ''Stand up!''


    As soon as he finished ordering it, the bones that belonged to this skeleton all started to connect together, forming into a complete skeleton. Once they all connected, the skeleton stood up. ''Hmm...not bad, it only took a little under one or two seconds...Lay back down, act like a corpse.'' After ordering the skeleton to return to its former position, he glanced behind him towards the backs of the skeletons marching towards the crop fields. ''Well, with all of this settled it''s only been a few hours. I think it''s time to read a tome.'' As Azrael thought this, he turned back around and headed inside of his house.


    Once Azrael was inside of the house, he glanced towards the three skeletons standing by the bedroom door. Seeing that everything was copacetic, he slightly nodded, then sat down at the table. Once there he glanced towards the two skeletons standing on either side of the door. Once more he gave a slight nod. ''Now then, time to read up on some more death magic.''


    He pulled the tome, The God of Death''s Revised Death Magic, out of his interspatial ring. This time, the tome appeared about eight centimeters off the surface of the table. It then landed on it with a light thud. ''Hmm, not bad, I''m getting better at making the items appear where I want them to.'' After thinking this, he looked at the tome and then opened it up to where he left off. ''After reading this tome for an entire night, I was only able to read about five percent of the way through it. I''m sure there''s got to be more spells in here...Time to read.'' Having finished his thoughts, Azrael delved into reading the tome.