“You… who are you?”

Lexander Biax felt his body stiffen, his instincts were warning him to run and not look back. Still, he resolutely held into his sword and glared at the dazed zombie.

The second Mort held Evelyn’s blade and lifted it, his aura completely changed. The all-too-familiar aura of sword-users enveloped the glistening silver blade, invisible yet pure. It was purer than anything Lexander had ever seen.

Mort casually sliced the air, causing an unstoppable blast that ravaged everything and sent Lexander flying to the back.

The old Knight’s body reacted in time and defended against the razor-sharp aura, but even with that, he was overpowered in an instant.

“Ugh..”

The elderly turned his head and looked at his left arm, which was lying a couple of meters away. Blood was profusely gushing out of his shoulder and even his head was severely bleeding.

Experienced as he was, Lexander didn’t panic. He took out a strange black talisman from a hidden pocket and slapped it against the gaping bleeding wound.

A sinister aura stopped the bleeding and covered the skin in a slimy matter, which burned Lexander.

The knight bit his intact hand as he endured the pain. Eventually, he managed to recover from the fatal wound, but the shock and disbelief were still shown on his pale and tired face.

“An undead Sword Saint? A-...Am I dreaming?”

…

The stance Mort was stuck in disappeared when he let go of the weapon. Panicking, he turned to look at the paralyzed maid,

“I was defending myself! You saw that, right? No one can blame me. You.. you’re my witness!”

Then he picked up the bags he dropped and sprinted away, his speeding increasing until he turned blurry.

The drug Evelyn had been fed wore off sooner than expected. However, she didn’t turn back to look for the parasite. She was silent as she headed to South with Mort.

She only took brief rests to eat or sleep and ran non-stop, passing settlements and ignoring anything and anyone.

Within a week, she reached the Sanguine Valleys, which were East of Greenbell Forest.

“When we arrive, you’ll have to leave.” Said the gloomy Evelyn as she stared at the bored undead.

Mort stopped wobbling his head and gave her a dumb look before hideously smiling,

“I take you there then I hide. I will follow what Master said.”

Seeing him so nonchalant and relaxed, Evelyn sighed and asked,

“I still don’t understand why you’re so obedient. He’s not even your real Master.”

“What do you mean? Master is Master. He gave me these too… hehehe..”

Mort revealed a small stash of Blood Crystals, which he treasured and protected at all cost. He would eat one once every couple of days, but there were no apparent changes in his appearance.

Evelyn wasn’t able to gauge his strength, but since she had witnessed his display of destructive power against Lexander, she was both wary and relieved.

The duo’s journey continued for almost 50 days, during which they barely conversed. Mort would stick close to Evelyn, never leaving her side, guarding her day and night.

On the 50th day, right after they had crossed the border and entered the swampy forests of the South, Evelyn’s condition became worse.

While she was running, she suddenly groaned and fell down. Her body rolled on the ground a couple of times as she gasped for breath and clutched the tattoo above her right breast.

It was glowing with an ominous black and grey light as if letting out a signal.

Mort approached her and was about to carry her only to hear a shout.

“Eve?”

“Evelyn, you okay?”

Four figures appeared out of nowhere, they were all dressed in tight black clothes with masks covering the lower part of their faces.

Two of them, Jack and Rebecca, respectively Number 24 and Number 34. They were clearly worried for their friend, but with the unusual undead next to her, they didn’t dare get close.

“What the fuck is this?” Spat one of the unfamiliar assassins, drawing a black spear and pointing at Mort.

“Peace. I come in peace.”

The zombie raised his arms in surrender while edging closer to Evelyn.

“I-I’m fine.”

Fortunately, Evelyn recovered and sat up, motioning her old colleagues to lower their weapons.

“He’s not an enemy.”

“An undead? Seriously? We’ve sensed your arrival and came to pick you up. Are you trying to screw us over or what?”

The spear-wielding assassin didn’t hold back as he rebuked the maid and refused to lower his weapon.

“I can explain… but not here.”

Mort eyed them curiously then cackled joyfully, “You’re friends, right? Good good!”

While ignoring the threats, the undead faced Evelyn and performed a clumsy bow.

“Godspeed to you. Till we meet again!”

Then, he crouched down and kicked the ground. The assassins were left dumbfounded as the undead left only a small cloud of dust behind. Within moments, he was hundred of meters away, quickly vanishing between the over-grown weeds and plants.

“You definitely have some explaining to do, Eve. But for now, let’s get you home.”

Jack and Rebecca supported her before they all quietly left, leaving no traces behind.

Militant Capital, 2 months after the incident at Green’s End.

1st Royal Street, top floor of the Silver Spire.

“You bunch of heartless bastards!”

Terden Sidus, the Seat of War, glared at the nine others, his face red and veins almost popping out due to rage and anger.

“Calm down, Terden. This is for the best for all.”

Olivia Vir Divitiae, the Seat of Nobility, had a smug and proud look on her wrinkled face as she leaned back.

“Spectral Steel has thrice the population of Blackcrest. You may not agree with our decision, but it’s the least damaging.”

“Damaging? You worthless whore! Damaging to who? The civilians or yourself? Don’t try that bullshit with me. You want me out of the Consortium.”

“We never said that.” Retorted Kirn Sparrow, the Seat of Deliverance. “You’re a valuable member and a powerful leader. Blackcrest might be gone but you will govern over another territory.”

“The legacy of my family is there! It is my home. I will not obediently step down and let you raze it to the ground to fulfill your modus operandi.”

“Fool! The plague will kill everyone if it’s not neutralized. Stop thinking about yourself!” The Seat of Protection, who was a loud and erratic old man, banged his fist on the table, as was his wont, and angrily shouted back at the furious Duke.

“Piss off with your righteous talk. You want me to think you have a shred of conscience? Hah!”

Terden spat on the ground and stood up, his fists clenched and his face livid.

“Terden, please calm down. This is for our nation, the Militant Syndicate. If we show any weakness, the South will not spare us.”

“Sulong, even you..”

Sulong, the Seat of Order, was an old friend of Terden. However, even he agreed to Olivia’s plot, which is both devious and insidious.

“I, for one, agree with Terden. We have still some time before things escalate. We can still find a way to get rid of the plague. Blackcrest is one of the four pillars of our nation, moreover, we will be forcing hundreds of thousands of people out of their homes. It may be an irreversible loss.”

The Seat of Purity, a calm and beautiful middle-aged woman spoke up with a soft and melodious voice. After saying her piece, she nodded toward Terden and then returned to her usual silence.

“Fuck! I hate it to admit it but Purity and the brainless buffoon are right! Blackcrest is not just a city, it’s a symbol and a line of defense. We would be fools to abandon it.”-Sancha

“Everyone, don’t forget that it was a unanimous decision. It was a fair vote.”-Olivia

“How was it fair when I didn’t even get the chance to vote, huh? I’m telling you, I will not tolerate this.”-Terden

“Since you’re the ruler of Blackcrest, it’s clear that you will be biased. We need an objective and logical decision, not an emotional and subjective one. It’s all for the prosperity and stability of our beloved Militant Syndicate.”

Out of the nine seats, only the Seat of Purity and Sancha sided with the Duke. Ironically, and despite their grievances, Sancha was against the idea of blasting Blackcrest into nothingness.

“Fine. You want to nuke it? You can try.”

While huffing and puffing, Terden uttered those words and then stormed out of the meeting room.

Five days later, in the towering castle at the center of Blackcrest.

Terden was sitting behind his desk, resting his forehead on his raised hands, his head was facing downwards and his eyes were closed and twitching.

“It didn’t go well, right?”

Tired and frustrated, Terden raised his head and looked at the innocent-looking boy standing a couple of paces away.

“There was no way I could convince them. Besides Sancha and Purity, the rest are either idiots or have been bribed.”

Halric sighed and said, “I wasn’t going to tell you this but… Vanessa warned me about their plan a while ago. She offered to take me with her.”

“Oh? Okay.”

Seeing the disheartened Duke, who was neither angry nor expressively responsive, Halric sat across from him and slumped back on the comfortable chair, enjoying the silence for a bit.

“You’re my employer, Terden. Still, I’m also here to remind you not to be stupid. Accept whatever ‘compensation’ they will offer you and move on.”

“I don’t want lectures or words of wisdom, Halric.”

“...”

“What are you going to do?”

The boy chuckled and shrugged, “You already know, do you not?”

Eventually, after a long bout of silence, the duke let out a heavy sigh, “Can you start arranging for my family to leave? The least I can do is to safely get everyone outside.”

“Sure.”

Just as the young-looking Alchemic responded, a magical orb on the Duke's desk lit up. It was a communication device between the Ten Seats, but using it required a ridiculous amount of crystallized Mana.

'The shit? Is this thing broken? Hello?'

Hearing the unpleasant voice of Sancha, Terden rolled his eyes and injected his Mana into the device.

"What do you want?"

'First of all, I ain't doing this for you, got me? However, Olivia is a crazy bitch and I hate her more than you. I will buy you approximately two extra months. Fix this mess of hot shit or find a Sage that could counter the translocation. I'm not involving myself more than this.'

"...." Terden sat there, surprised and confused.

'Ah! And you owe me for this. Don't forget that!'