Necromancer Of The Black Bible (30)

The bandits handled things faster than expected.

Before the sun had even set, they had already brought us to their hideout.

We were locked inside an iron cage, far from the merchant hostages.

Though rust spotted it here and there, the joints were solid—clearly crafted by a skilled hand.

I was confined with William, while Sanchez and Mobin were in the cage next to us.

Sanchez sighed and apologized to me.

“Father, forgive me. I was too reckless.”

I didn’t answer, only stared at him quietly.

Honestly, he was the strangest one of all.

That someone with such a temperament had survived this long was surprising.

I asked him,

“Why did you want to get involved?”

“Because… it was the right thing to do.”

To risk his life for something that trivial?

Perhaps in my past life, this man had died early.

‘Am I overthinking it?’

Well.

In my previous life, Raiernov had never gone missing, so Sanchez wouldn’t have ended up here anyway.

‘If so, maybe he managed to survive within the church somehow.’

Still, the thought remained—he was strange.

If it had been the real Raiernov, he never would’ve interfered.

That old fox would’ve just pretended not to notice and passed on.

‘Still… his humanity isn’t so bad.’

Even in my past life, I despised men like Raiernov.

Men who gather everything for themselves behind the scenes while posing as saints in public.

But Sanchez was better than that.

Lacking skill, yes, but his nature was genuinely good.

With mixed feelings, I asked him,

“Sanchez. How old are you this year?”

“Thirty-one.”

Older than I expected—the shock from earlier welled up again.

This kind of man had survived for thirty-one years?

Perhaps the Theocracy of Kallios was a better place than I thought.

“Because of me, everything has gone wrong. What should we do now…”

Seeing him sink into self-blame almost made me laugh. At this rate, nothing could proceed—so I calmed him.

“Sanchez.”

“Yes, Father.”

“Think carefully. What could you have done to avoid this situation?”

He thought for a while, then answered cautiously.

“If I had simply stayed quiet, this wouldn’t have happened.”

“And would you have been able to save them?”

I pointed at the iron cage in the distance.

Inside were the merchants captured earlier today.

Sanchez blinked and looked at me with a newfound expression.

“Could it be… Father, you foresaw all of this…”

“Don’t overestimate me. We merely pressed forward. Only Lord Kallios knows whether this will succeed.”

Quoting the scripture Nocturne fed me at the perfect moment, Sanchez and Mobin quickly crossed their chests.

Two circles traced over their chests.

I didn’t know the meaning, but I’d seen it nauseatingly often.

The circles symbolize the world and the god. By drawing them on the chest, they pray for unity between the two.

[I didn’t really want to know.]

Still, I’m looking forward to it.

[To what?]

You and the old man’s scheme. You mean to test your brainwashing here, don’t you?

[Maybe.]

That was, after all, why I came this far.

But the conditions might not allow it. If Sanchez and Mobin witnessed my techniques, what would they think?

If suspicion took root, they couldn’t travel with me to the Theocracy.

‘Kill them, or brainwash them.’

Equinox’s insistent choices from the start echoed again.

I’d prefer to keep them alive, if possible.

[Watch the situation. If you wait, the moment you seek will come.]

[Since when do you support my plans?]

[I don’t support it—it’s simply truth. All human affairs have their proper time. See it, act at it, and you can achieve anything—even something I might not wish for.]

Equinox’s words held deep insight.

My master had said much the same in my past life.

Whenever I grew impatient about killing an enemy, he told me to wait. And sure enough, if I waited, the perfect chance always arrived.

‘Yes. Now is a time to wait. Acting will demand too much yet.’

Then William looked at me.

[I can kill them all.]

[No. Tonight is not your time.]

[Then…]

[I will do it.]

William quietly nodded.

Just then, a bandit underling came swaggering over.

Two wooden trays.

Each held a few pieces of jerky and a bowl of soup.

Steam rose in thin curls from the soup.

‘A meal?’

Why feed us at all?

From their standpoint, they could’ve just killed us.

Perhaps they’re careless? If not…

[No. Not that.]

With the Theocracy’s might, even bold bandits wouldn’t be so careless.

It had to be the opposite.

[They’re afraid of something—that’s why they sent food.]

Everyone knows priests of the Theocracy wield divine powers. Dragging us out and killing us like the others might bring dire consequences.

So they resort to tricks.

Spiking the food to make killing easier.

“Here, your meal is served.”

I took the tray, and Sanchez was given one too.

Sanchez asked the underling,

“Is this all?”

The underling snorted.

“You should be grateful for even that.”

“What?!”

“Anyway, I’ll leave you to it. Enjoy!”

Once he left, Sanchez eyed the bread and soup suspiciously.

Instinct told him something was wrong with it.

But beyond sniffing at it, he did nothing.

It meant he couldn’t discern what was inside.

‘That’s fortunate.’

I decided to reassure him.

I grabbed the bread and bit into it without hesitation.

Sanchez asked, eyes wide.

“Father, what if there’s something in it?”

“You think it’s poisoned?”

“Couldn’t it be?”

“Tch tch.”

I smirked and said,

“Do you know how expensive poison is?”

“Ah…”

“If they meant to kill us, dragging us out and cutting our throats would be cheaper.”

After chewing on my words, Sanchez nodded.

“That makes sense.”

“Don’t worry. Just eat. Tonight will be long.”

“…Yes, Father.”

Sanchez glanced at Mobin once, then took a bite.

Cautious at first, he soon finished both bread and soup.

Soon after, they fell asleep.

Because the food was laced with a sedative.

‘As expected.’

Put them to sleep, then drag them out to kill.

Sedatives are easier to get than poison. Sleep herbs can be gathered easily in the mountains.

So it was only natural for the bandits to use this method.

Killing someone asleep is far easier and less unpleasant than killing them awake.

‘Still, even sleep herbs don’t work on me.’

Since the moment I gained the necromancy Mana Ring, I hadn’t felt sleep.

And no poison touched me either.

Complete immunity to poison and sleep.

In my black magician days, I dreamed of such immunity—but now that I had it, I wasn’t sure it was good.

For I could no longer taste the sweet sleep of my past life.

‘Though in battle, it is overwhelming.’

I bit into the remaining bread.

Chew, chew.

Compared to Sanchez’s cooking on the road, it wasn’t great—but nostalgic.

Dry, tasteless bread.

‘I never thought I’d miss this taste.’

In the cave, I fed only on life force directly from living beings.

That hot vitality surging into my body wasn’t bad—but taste on the tongue still felt more natural.

‘The soup… hmm. Excellent.’

Whoever cooked it, the seasoning was perfect—just the flavor I liked.

Appetite rising, I finished William’s share as well.

For the first time in a while, I felt full.

Looking around, I saw things I hadn’t before.

Pale spirits, staring blankly at one spot.

They were earthbound spirits, trapped here by death.

Their gaze was fixed on one place.

A great bonfire.

There, several bandits drank and caroused.

There were many other bonfires too.

Every cluster of tents had one, with bandits gathered, drinking.

‘A festival, huh.’

After plundering Blackleaf Trading’s convoy, it was only natural they’d celebrate this hard.

With fragrant liquor, fine food worth hundreds of gold in the Empire, and precious jewels and ornaments, their revelry had fuel aplenty.

I could guess the spirits’ identity.

‘The souls killed here without understanding.’

Dosing food with sedatives, then killing—an old trick of theirs.

No rage radiated from these spirits.

Perhaps they didn’t even know they were dead.

‘The dead are the dead. Now—time for my work.’

I rose and focused on the bars before me.

My whole body shimmered once, and I passed straight through the bars.

Whoosh—

A phasing ability gained with the necromancy Mana Ring.

Equinox had said I couldn’t pass through everything, but so far, nothing had stopped me.

Out of the cage, I twisted the lock off, and William pushed the door open.

[William. You just watch.]

[Understood.]

Together, we walked leisurely forward.

The moon shone bright, but the bonfires drowned it out.

William and I melted into the pale darkness.