Chapter 26

Captain Iškur led Ludmila through the cavernous entrance of the domed building behind the statue of High Emperor Archeleos III. A row of skeletal Beastmen that were probably Skeleton Warriors stood guard on either side. She eyed them curiously as they passed, still trying to sort out what the presence of the six statues meant.

“Did you dominate these guards?” Ludmila asked, “Aside from those emulating animal forms, the Undead we’ve come across before meeting you have all been Human in appearance. Or at least Human enough.”

“They belong to one of my colleagues,” he answered. “How much of the plains have you explored?”

“We followed the river from the former Re-Estize border.”

The Elder Lich nodded sagely, as if her reply explained everything.

“That would be why,” Captain Iškur said. “Things change from place to place. Everything west of the Katze River and north of the city that you passed before here is filled with Human-type Undead. The east and southeast of the plains have Undead Beastman forms like mine. Elven forms tend to be found in the cities.”

“In the cities?” Ludmila frowned, “I assumed that everything was of Human origins before now, but the Elves I know tend to prefer places close to nature.”

“Nature is everywhere, isn’t it?” The Elder Lich said, “We’re surrounded by it right now.”

Ludmila supposed that the negative energy-infused environs of the Katze Plains would indeed be considered ‘nature’ to the Undead. Though most of the living regarded negative energy zones in a manner akin to wastelands, the environment wrought by such areas was sometimes referred to as an ecology of its own. Ludmila believed that she possessed most of the same sensibilities as her former self, but she understood that this place was steeped in so much ambient negative energy that it would drive any living being away. As a Revenant, she did not feel one way or another about its presence.

“In this case,” she said, “I’m referring to the natural environments that living Elves might be drawn to. In this region, Elves are usually found in or around forests filled with life.”

“Ah, that ‘nature’. I have no idea why these Elves would be different from the Elves that you know, but I’ve never really fancied those sorts of locales myself.”

“Does something happen when you or Ruin’s Wake enter them?”

“Nothing harmful,” Captain Iškur replied. “It just feels wrong. Makes you want to cosy up the place, if you know what I mean.”

She knew what he probably meant, but Ludmila had never felt the urge to ‘cosy up’ Warden’s Vale. If anything, it was the exact opposite. Ensuring that life thrived and negative energy was kept to a minimum in her territory felt right, despite being one of the Undead.

“Out of curiosity,” she asked, “how do you feel about the living in general?”

“I usually don’t think about them at all,” the Elder Lich answered. “I guess I’m like my colleagues in that sense: if they aren’t around to worry about, then what’s the point in thinking about them? We all have our research to pursue.”

“But you have attempted to visit the ports of living cities to attempt trade, yes?”

“The purpose of my efforts is to secure resources that can be put towards our research,” he said. “It just so happens that the living appear to have control over a markedly unfair share of the world’s resources. They have what we need, and doing something like raiding them for those resources is only a temporary solution that will eventually drive them away. That, or they’ll have something really nasty waiting for us the next time we come around.”

They came to a junction at the end of the entry hall, and Captain Iškur went down the right corridor. Doors were placed at regular intervals on the right side of their path. A glimpse inside of each showed hundreds of Skeleton Warriors on standby.

“Have you ever been attacked here?”

“In Lagaš? Not that I know of. Most of the living around the borders wouldn’t survive the trip and we generally avoid giving them any reasons to come after us. As weak as they appear to be, there’s bound to be a few strong ones around that we don’t want pointed in our direction.”

Captain Iškur’s steps slowed, and he seemed to frown.

“Is something the matter?” Ludmila asked.

“There might have been a couple of reasons,” he answered. “A while ago, we had two fellows living here in the city with us – Death Knights, both. One was almost as old as I am, and the other manifested about a century later. How many years ago was it…ten? More than that, maybe. Anyway, they both got it into their heads to carve out territories of their own. ‘We’re going to become great Lords’, they said. One went south, the other went north, and that was the last we saw of them.”

If two Death Knights had come charging out of the Katze Plains like that, it would almost certainly have been a tale of woe spread throughout the region. Ludmila was sure that the Slane Theocracy would have destroyed the one headed south, but the one headed north would have smashed its way through the patrols of the Imperial Legions, creating a flood of Zombies from all the settlements that it passed. Were the elites of the Empire strong enough to stop such a catastrophe?

“I’ve not heard about either of your acquaintances leaving the Katze Plains,” Ludmila said.

“I guess something got them,” Captain Iškur sighed. “You should have seen how paranoid we were after that. They were strong enough to match all six of us Elder Liches at the same time back then, and we thought the living would mount a reprisal for being invaded. Took us years to muster the courage to leave the city again – I imagined an evil Paladin with a big shiny hammer waiting behind every pile of rubble.”

“An evil Paladin…”

“Uh-huh,” the Elder Lich nodded gravely. “The scariest part is that, not too long ago, I found out there’s a whole lair of them just southeast of here.”

“Altamura?”

“So you know about it,” his voice was grim. “A couple of years back, I thought I finally found someone that would actually interact with me – a little Human girl. She just smiled until I came close, then she whipped out a warhammer and almost took my damn head off! They’re crazies, I tell you. As a respectable Undead noblewoman, I highly recommend that you stay away from any Paladins.”

With the captain’s future appointment with Clara, Ludmila wondered how she might disclose the fact that Corelyn County was also a ‘lair’ of Paladins. At least they didn’t have any crazy little girls with warhammers in the Sorcerous Kingdom.

After walking around what felt like half of the building, Captain Iškur entered a corridor to the left. They reached the bottom of a wide spiral ramp. The Elder Lich cleared his nonexistent throat.

“This leads up to the centre of the dome,” he told her. “My colleagues should be up there…well, they never leave these days, so they will be up there.”

“Are you sure there isn’t anything I should know about them beforehand?”

“Can’t really think of anything in particular,” the captain said. “They’re all just humble Elder Liches, but I guess they can be a bit pretentious at times. You should be alright, my lady – you have a certain presence about you that I sensed right away.”

“I thought it was mana.”

“There’s that too,” he admitted. “What I saw coming off of you was enough to make my eyes pop out if I had them. There’s something more than that, though; I can’t really put my finger on it. It’s an intangible aura: like you’re bigger than you appear to be…maybe it’s because you’re a Noble? Many races have Lords and Nobles. Maybe Undead have them as well.”

What he said did have a sort of logic to it. A Noble was not simply an individual: they represented their territory and its subjects; supported the sovereign and his court, and carried out duties for an establishment that was greater than themselves. To Humans, this would be recognized as the weight of a title – the weight of authority – and manifest as a Job Class with various Skills and Abilities associated with the role waiting to be developed.

As the captain had mentioned, many races had a ruling class – or at least individuals who occupied positions of prominence – that influenced their subjects. Was it possible that the Undead had their own as well? She considered His Majesty, who appeared to have a powerful effect on not just her, but also Lady Shalltear and Captain Iškur. In that sense, the Sorcerer King could be considered a Ruler of Death – a transcendental Overlord of the Undead with the Classes to match.

At the top of the ramp, Ludmila found herself on a raised stage in the middle of a colossal auditorium that occupied the dome she had seen from outside. She stared up silently at the dozens of rows of seats encircling the stage, which filled not just the same floor, but a circle and galley on the balconies above.

Six large daises were arranged around the stage. Upon five of them stood the Elder Lich colleagues Captain Iškur had mentioned, standing amidst stacks of stone tablets. It appeared that, in lieu of having paper to record their research, they had resorted to scratching out their findings on slabs of rubble. Each Elder Lich was adorned in the same tattered brown robes that Iškur wore when she first met him.

They did not immediately look up from their work. Captain Iškur cleared his throat.

“I bring joyous tidings, my dear–”

“Shut up!” An Elder Lich to their left snapped, “Save your inane prattle for the livi…who is that?”

At the Elder Lich’s question, the others raised their heads. Their crimson gazes fell upon Ludmila.

“A newly-manifested being?”

“No – its equipment is too strange. Too complete.”

“From where did you discover this specimen, Iškur?”

Iškur glanced back at her. Ludmila only smiled quietly, and he seemed to cringe.

“I have the pleasure of introducing you to Baroness Ludmila Zahradnik: a Noble of the Sorcerous Kingdom.”

“A Noble?”

“An Undead Noble?”

“Preposterous.”

“There are those that rule, and those that serve…”

“No, there are those that dominate, and those who are dominated.”

The Elder Liches set down their stone tablets, walking forward to look down at Ludmila from the edges of their platforms. Directly before her, an Elder Lich of the ‘Human’ variety raised a hand. The others ceased their ongoing analysis. It appeared to be the most powerful of the group.

“We are wasting time,” it said. “All will be laid bare.”

It stretched out a bony finger towards her.

“No, wait! Eldest–!”

“「Dominate Undead」.”

Ludmila narrowed her eyes.

“Is it normal to attack official representatives in Lagaš, Captain Iškur?”

“N-no, my lady! I can explain–”

“What is the meaning of this, Iškur!”

At the Eldest’s shout, the five Elder Liches leapt into the air, casting flight magic as they did.

That’s useful…

“Dangerous,” the Elder Lich behind them said.

“An untenable risk,” one to the right agreed.

Captain Iškur looked up at his colleagues, who had spread out in the air around them.

“Cease this folly!” He shouted, “The Baroness comes as a herald of His Majesty, yet you would turn her into the harbinger of our demise!”

“He speaks truly,” Ludmila said. “I have not come with belligerent intent.”

“There is no guarantee that you will not harm us in the long span of eternity,” their leader said. “No – it is inevitable that you will.”

Ludmila frowned at the strange sort of faultless logic. Since the Undead had limitless lifespans and the probability of her harming them was not zero, it was decided that she eventually would. But didn’t that same logic apply to every member of their cabal? Did they exist in one another’s company for mutual benefit while at the same time calculating when the demerits of their cooperation would outweigh the merits?

The Elder Lich pointed his finger at Ludmila again. The other four followed suit.

“Eldest–”

“Step aside, Iškur. For the sake of our long association, I give you your only warning.”

“I will not! Are you deaf to our words? Baroness Zahradnik comes in advance of one far greater than herself!”

“And I suppose that she told you this?”

“No! I have personally witnessed His Dark Majesty! Even the great Guphandera Argoros is but a mote of dust at his feet…”

The Eldest’s scoff echoed off of the far reaches of the dome.

“You have clearly gone mad, Iškur. Guphandera Argoros has reached the cusp of Ninth-tier magic. The probability of this ‘Sorcerer King’ being as powerful as you say is next to none.”

“Even the Sorcerer King’s vassals possess magic of the Tenth Tier, Eldest!”

At his claim, the Elder Liches in the corners of Ludmila’s vision wavered. The Eldest seemed to roll his eyes.

“I would not lie to you, Eldest…”

“Perhaps not,” the Eldest said, “but it does not mean that you cannot fall under the influence of some Skill or Ability. It even seems that you’ve been dressed up like some sort of pet. Oh, I can feel it too, Iškur – the insidious will of this thing encroaching on my reason. To trust and confide; to seek solace in its protection. Few are capable of exerting such influence over the Undead. It does not have the look of a divine or arcane caster…a Dirgesinger, perhaps?”

“I told you, she’s a–”

“Well, no matter: render this creature unto ash.”

Ludmila lowered her posture, mind racing to find a way to defeat five Elder Liches at once. The weakest was at least as powerful as Themis, who was a full Adventurer rank more powerful than herself. The Eldest was slightly lower than the powerful Elder Liches created for the Royal Army, who were roughly on par with Death Knights. At least three of them could probably damage her through her fire resistance.

If they used Fireball, then she could dodge their opening attack. That was assuming that they weren’t experienced enough in combat to pattern their spells in a way that their target couldn’t escape unscathed. In that event, she could only hope that she was engulfed in the spells of her weaker assailants.

After that would be getting out of the open, or at least out of their spell range. Bringing the battle to the corridors below the auditorium would be her best option. In her equipment, she could smash through the hundreds of dominated Skeleton Warriors stuffed into the rooms along the way. Still, it was going to be a long fight.

Since escaping to a more favourable location was her first objective, Ludmila preemptively activated Wind Stride, Ability Boost and Enhance Magic Resistance. She waited for the first sign of spellcasting.

“「Maximize Magic – Fireball」.”

The Eldest initiated their assault. Ludmila launched herself forward, in the opposite direction of the ramp. As expected, the first Fireball exploded right on top of it, turning the most obvious escape route into a sea of flame. A crescendo of spellcasting filled the air as the other four Elder Liches followed up on their leader’s attack.

“「Maximize Magic – Fireball」.”

“「Maximize Magic – Fireball」.”

“「Maximize Magic – Fireball」.”

“「Maximize Magic – Fireball」.”

She activated her Phoenix Feather Hairpin, preparing to enact a variation of what she had seen the Elder Liches do shortly beforehand. By skimming over the ground, she could propel herself out of spell range using the enhanced speed conferred by Wind Stride, Ability Boost and her Boots of Swiftness before they could cast their next volley.

The other four Fireballs hurtled through the air, striking the Eldest simultaneously. Blackened bones rained onto the dais below, disintegrating as they fell. Ludmila stopped in her tracks, confused, yet wary of continued attacks.

A regal voice sounded from the seating nearby, echoing around the auditorium.

“My my,” the Sorcerer King said lightly. “It seems that even the cold logic of an Elder Lich does not preclude foolish thinking.”