Necromancer Of The Black Bible (128)

The place where the survivors of Silvandel village gathered was deep inside a cave.

It had been a mining site as recently as yesterday.

The interior was surprisingly bright.

Thanks to the mysterious mineral, “Silvanite.”

Silvanite absorbs the mana in the air—specifically 100% pure Water-attribute mana.

When it has absorbed all the mana, it emits a lustrous emerald light, which is why this place full of Silvanite crystals was bright.

Laerin, having evacuated all the survivors here, quietly left the room and entered another passage.

A deep underground tunnel even the miners had not been to.

This place was very dark, with Silvanite itself being scarce.

Even so, Laerin walked through the passage with calm steps.

There were fairly large stones here and there, but her pace did not falter in the least.

As if seeing everything, she passed through the dark passage and arrived at a vast cavern.

It was very bright.

At its center stood a large stone pillar, and near its middle a tremendously huge Silvanite was emitting a deep emerald glow.

This was the giant crystal the Spirit King ‘Cirrhnua Matter’ used to communicate with spiritcasters.

Laerin approached it and spoke.

“I have returned, Mother.”

Cirrhnua quietly shimmered, and a voice echoed in Laerin’s mind.

-Well done. It seems they thankfully helped.

“Yes. I followed your instructions, and they agreed to help.”

-That’s a relief. Where are they?

“They’re outside the cave, in the forest. They said it’s more comfortable there…”

-Wise.

Laerin tilted her head at Cirrhnua’s answer and asked,

“Why is being outside the cave wise, Mother?”

The crystal began to emit a quiet light.

It was like the gaze of a mother looking at her beloved daughter.

The light that had softly illuminated Laerin flickered once more.

-It’s because the humans who harmed them today might return. Humans, by nature, do not know how to forgive.

“Ah…”

Laerin slowly nodded, and Cirrhnua continued.

-Humans are not as good as you think. If they’ve been wronged, they strive to return it multiplied.

“But…”

Laerin gathered her thoughts for a moment and spoke.

“One of those who helped us today was a human.”

-No. They are all the dead.

“The dead? If they are dead, can they move about like that?”

-It seemed they had received the blessing of a god.

“A god… I remember hearing that he died a very long time ago…”

Laerin’s recollection was correct.

The tale of the god’s death had been relayed to her directly by Cirrhnua.

Even though it had been told quite some time ago, Laerin remembered it precisely.

Pleased, Cirrhnua shimmered faintly and answered Laerin.

-He is dead. Long ago. But his traces and shadows remain. Through a vision I saw the god’s blessing upon those two.

“The god’s blessing… Do you mean it resurrects the dead?”

-It is somewhat different. They freely cross the boundary between life and death.

Laerin’s expression did not relax even at Cirrhnua’s explanation.

It was that difficult to understand.

Cirrhnua continued in a gentle voice to her.

-They have crossed the line of death. You cannot call them alive, nor can you call them dead. Such beings are freed from the basic desires of the flesh. Freed from desire, they can see only the essence.

“What do you mean by ‘essence’?”

-It is the nature originally given by the god.

Cirrhnua’s explanation was difficult, but Laerin slowly nodded. She had already spent a considerable amount of time with Cirrhnua.

“So they were good. Like their god.”

-I do not know… Can we truly say a god’s nature is good?

Taken aback by the unexpected question, Laerin’s expression became complicated. Cirrhnua spoke softly to her.

-Still, you did well. You need not understand it all at once. Spend time with them and you will know before long.

“…I see.”

-First, let us do something important. Tell them: the ambush will begin tomorrow morning when the third rooster crows.

“An ambush… No way!”

At Laerin’s small exclamation, the heartstone quietly shimmered.

At the same time, a vision appeared before Laerin.

A vision of things to come.

After showing Laerin the vision for a moment, Cirrhnua spoke again.

-Grovebern has already made his decision. He will lead a considerable army to this place.

Laerin carefully examined the vision and spoke.

“About… five thousand, it seems. I can’t believe the castle had that many soldiers… But how can we stop such a large force? We only have about sixty people. Excluding the wounded and children, fewer than thirty can actually fight.”

-Do not worry. Those two will have a way.

Laerin’s eyes widened.

In fact, the vision that had played before her eyes ended at the moment the five-thousand-strong army marched on Silvandel village.

From that alone, Silvandel would be razed by them.

No one would survive.

Yet Mother Cirrhnua had given an unexpected prophecy.

Laerin looked up at the heartstone and asked.

“Then… Will we survive?”

-You will.

“Could it be that no one will die?”

-No one will die. Now go and tell them this: at the third rooster’s crow tomorrow morning the ambush will occur, and its size will be five thousand. Tell them to prepare, and they will take care of it.

Laerin nodded with a determined expression.

Then she walked out briskly. Following her mother’s instructions, she left the cave and entered the forest where Verdin and Natasha were.

A small clearing deep in the forest.

The chilly crescent moon hanging in the night sky cast its light through the dense leaves.

At the same time, the silver-banded (eunbandi) glowed faintly and flew about.

Verdin stood in the middle of the clearing with his eyes closed, replaying the battle scene by scene.

The first image that came to mind was when he first drew his sword.

He saw Laerin running from afar and three soldiers chasing behind her.

They all carried long spears, and watching them run with them in hand, they seemed well trained.

‘They were the kind who’ve killed at least ten people, I think.’

He had never been able to read an opponent so well in life, but now he could sense it immediately.

How skilled they were.

Whether they were strong or weak.

How he had to swing his sword to cut them down.

This change had come after William had taught him the sword.

‘He said I hesitated at that moment.’

So the cut wasn’t perfect, and because of that blood was on the blade.

Verdin calmly observed the circumstances of that moment.

He did so to see why he had faltered.

And he found a clue.

<Sir Knight! I know who you’re looking for! I know where she is!>

The word ‘her’ that had emerged from Laerin’s mouth.

At the memory, Verdin’s spirit body trembled once.

At the same time, a wave began to surge in his core.

Verdin felt the wave that would not easily subside and fell into thought.

‘So that’s what it was.’

Princess Lillian.

The vow he had failed to keep while alive.

And the guilt.

The desire to somehow make amends continued to shake his spirit even after death.

At that moment, William’s voice came to his mind.

-A being you must protect can make you strong, but it can also be your weakness.

[I know that, but I cannot forget her.]

Verdin had also tried hard to forget Lillian.

But the more he tried, the clearer her image became in his mind.

Her long platinum hair fluttering in the wind and her blue eyes tinged with lavender as she looked at him.

And the sprinkle of freckles across her nose and the way she smiled brightly whenever they spoke were especially vivid.

Whenever he recalled Lillian so clearly, Verdin could not control his spirit form.

It began to tremble severely, and greenish energy would scatter around because of it.

Verdin barely controlled his trembling spirit and asked William.

[Have you ever experienced this, My Lord?]

• Of course I have.

William continued in a voice tinged with amusement.

-Even I could not control myself when I thought of the enemy who killed me. For a long time I was consumed by uncontrollable rage.

[How did you overcome it then?]

-I killed him.

William continued, recalling that time.

-After tearing that massive Sand Dragon to pieces and absorbing its filthy power, my anger subsided.

[…I see.]

Verdin gathered his thoughts for a moment and spoke.

[If you found your composure that way, then I will do likewise. I will surely find Princess Lillian. I will find her and escort her safely to the Kingdom of Altera.]

William said no more.

Though he could not tell what that silence meant, William’s intent was conveyed.

A warm feeling embraced his spirit.

Then William’s voice was heard again.

-I will support that resolve.

As their conversation drew to a close, a presence was felt.

It was Natasha’s presence, which had by now become familiar.

She walked out slowly through the intermittent chilly moonlight filtering through the leaves.

Each time, light reflected off the black glasses she wore, making her look oddly mysterious.

Natasha approached Verdin directly and, meeting the nearly equal-height Verdin’s gaze, spoke.

“Someone’s coming.”

Verdin focused his mind.

Then he heard heavy breathing and hurried footsteps from afar.

Hearing it, he felt he knew who it was.

“It’s Laerin.”

“What’s the matter that she’s running like this?”

The moment Natasha asked, Laerin appeared in the clearing.

“You’re here!”

Laerin ran straight to Natasha and soon relayed what she had heard from Cirrhnua.

The news that Grovebern’s five-thousand-strong army would strike here tomorrow morning.

Natasha and Verdin were not very surprised to hear this.

They had already anticipated a counterattack of that scale.