Chapter 196: Description
The castle was immense. Its towers extended to the heavens, and the crystalline structure at its base was easily two hundred meters long.
Eight skeletal arms, like the legs of a giant spider, were wrapped around the crystalline structure, each identical to the others in terms of arms and hands, and a black obsidian shell created the octagonal shape of an exterior wall.
The inner castle’s keeps and towers protruded from within, jagged and sharp like maw teeth. The general impression was of something squat, thick, and low to the ground.
It almost resembled an upside-down jewel in the center of a ring, if not for the eight skeletal arms that clutched it and the jagged spires that formed its bottom appendages.
Skeletal troops patrolled the black bridges connecting the keeps, towers, and outside walls, each led by a solitary figure bearing a skull for a head and a pair of scythes at its side.
In the stables, phantom horses snorted and pawed the ground, their nostrils flashing with blue flames, while skeletal wyverns, their bones covered in ragged flesh, were cared for by riders.
Ogres and trolls, medium-sized monsters, swarmed about, their bodies covered in the stink of rot and black smoke, their voices a cacophony of meaningless growls and roars.
Most stunning of all was the army of undead, hundreds strong, who waited calmly for commands within the castle’s mobile fortress.
Whrrrrr. . .
Despite its massive size, the castle made little noise as it drifted across the plains, with only a faint hum of machinery discernible above the wind.
The mobile fortress’s three-hundred-meter-wide translucent barrier allowed it to elude notice.
The barrier, which obscured sight and distorted vision, entirely encircled the fortress, allowing it to move undetected under the cover of moonlight and darkness.
Within the huge barrier, the clamor of wraiths and ghosts rang in the air.
Heeeeeey. . . . . .
Heeeeeee. . . . . .
The ghostly cries, filled with envy and hunger for life, was a powerful force in and of itself. Any living thing that entered the radius would become immobilized by the ghostly cries, and any soaring creature would plummet from the sky.
However, some would rise again, their bodies briefly dead, only to shed their rotting flesh and emerge as undead, their eyes burning with green fire and their bodies reduced to bones and ragged flesh.
One such entity, neither living nor dead, stood on a balcony, surveying the scene below. It was a skeleton dressed in full armor; its form emitted the same blue light as its helmet.
It was a lich, a monster produced when a powerful wizard or sorcerer sacrificed their soul and body to explore magical truths beyond the veil of death.
The skull’s emerald eyesockets changed and came to rest on a gigantic mirror suspended in the air, adorned with costly diamonds and elaborate workmanship.
“Is it wise to inform the princess of our presence already? That was not part of our agreement with the Dark Robes.”
The lich’s voice was deep and hollow, like the sound of fog creeping across the ground, moist and frightening.
━The circumstances have changed, Lord of the Dead. The prince has suffered a significant defeat, and public opinion has shifted greatly in favor of the princess.
The mirror answered the skeleton, but instead of reflecting the scene behind it, it revealed a man’s face.
His beard was thick and unruly, and his hair was long and scruffy from a lack of haircuts. His sunken face and high cheekbones suggested a hard existence. His name was Lempard.
“I should have known.”
━Lord were never one for profound contemplation. It makes things harder for your subordinates.
“Subordinate? You flit back and forth like a bat.”
Consider it a commitment to life.
Qualled and snorted before turning away. Lempard leaned closer to get a better look at Qualled in the mirror, then sighed.
━Would you mind adjusting the mirror? From this position, I can only see your sparkling skull.
“Heh. You act as if you have extra lives to waste.
━I apologize if I offended you.
“Never mind. I don’t want your phony apologies. Turn it around.”
Qualled turned his skeletal hand and fingers like long, thin bones and spun the mirror to face forward.
━ Our speed is quite slow. Is there a rationale for this?
“The sun will rise soon.”
━Ah.
Lempard fell silent at Qualled’s modest response. The fortress of Amrath, which claimed Umbero’s jurisdiction and territory, was a movable fortification in its own right, and it served as an undead castle. And the undead were susceptible to sunshine.
The sun also weakened the fortress’s most potent ability, which was to directly strike its enemies. That is why.
“We need to divert as much power as possible to the barrier while we face the sun directly. If we increase our speed now, there won’t be enough magical energy to keep the barrier up.”
━Understood. How long before we arrive?
At Lempard’s question, Qualled refocused his magic. The air before him rippled like water, and a faraway scene became closer with each passing instant.
Fields and little valleys, mountains, rivers, forests, and wetlands sped by at astonishing speeds. Soon, a large plain and rolling hills became visible. Beyond that, there was a fortified city with a castle within.
“We should arrive in two days.”
Lempard whistled softly, astonished by the pace.
━Impressive. To complete that distance, you would need ten days of hard riding, including five horse changes.
“But we can’t move during the day, so it can’t be avoided. Where did the holy maiden go?”
━She will not be able to interfere with you, Qualled-nim.
“I asked where she was. Looking at you now, it seems you’ve failed to secure her.”
Lempard in the mirror sighed, unable to conceal his frustration.
━The Grand Church has chosen not to involve the saint in this controversy. They’ve decided that it’s best not to let the temporal and spiritual powers conflict, especially when one of their most powerful paladins has yet to return.
“Indeed.”
Qualled smirked, recalling the Paladin he held hostage, an incident that even Qualled had not anticipated. A Paladin is in the center of the undead castle.
“So, what happened?”
━ The saintess snuck out. I don’t know how she managed to get past the surveillance, but she is also an accomplished paladin, so she could have easily fought her way out.
“But how can you say she won’t be able to interfere with me?”
━My informants have tracked the Grand Church’s pursuing force. Even the saintess will struggle to confront the full force of the church.
Just then, Lempard’s reflection in the mirror flickered. Qualled’s power couldn’t have run out, so the issue must be with the magical apparatus Lempard employed to project his image through the mirror.
━Oh dear, it seems it’s about to cut off. I’ll contact you again after my magic has recharged. It will probably take around three hours.
“Is that orb of yours inefficient, or is your magic weak?”
━ Some of both. I’ll see you later, then.
Lempard’s image in the mirror had vanished. The mirror’s surface, again restored to its natural function, reflected the pale blue sky of dawn and the brightness of the rising sun.
Qualled Umberto, the lich who had been facing the sun straight on, gathered his magic and murmured a spell. The huge shape of Amrath began to flicker and become transparent.
Soon, the fortress of the dead shimmered like a mirage, and vanished.
🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷
“Wow, you’ve grown even bigger, hasn’t it? Is my memory failing me?
“I’m the same as before. Good to see you again, Lexi.”
Russell encountered Lexi, a dark elf, in Calisden. She was a fighter who could hide her presence so well that he had initially overlooked her, and she held two curved swords like a master swordsman.
Russell had also met Lexi’s younger sister when he bought the claymore he had used to temporarily replace the longsword that had melted during his combat with the troll.
“How’s your sister doing?”
“She is doing fine. I stayed for a few days before leaving again. She is skilled, so she will have no trouble earning a living. I can always go see her later. But you’ve gotten rather famous, haven’t you? Traveling from village to hamlet, combating vampires on some territory?”
“This isn’t really the place to be talking about that.”
Lexi looked around in response to his comments.
“True, it’s a little crazy here. Do you have an inn reserved?”
The Springtime Foal Inn was humming with activity when it unexpectedly welcomed a group of more than a dozen visitors. However, the innkeeper was quick to escort them to their apartments, and Russell threw the unconscious knight over his shoulder into one of them.
When he returned to the dining area, Lexi, the Scilio Weizen siblings, and Calia were looking at her with interest, while Aellasis sat at a table significantly apart from Asharin.
Asharin had been overwhelmed with astonishment and excitement since meeting Aellasis, but she seems to have calmed down now. However, the tail trailing behind her swayed like a puppy’s tail, indicating her inner enthusiasm.
Roscell was the lone one who didn’t fit in. His face was concerned, and he stared blankly into space while sipping the ale that the waitress had handed him.
Russell went down the stairs and sat at the table with his colleagues. Lexi gave him a welcoming look.
“How have you been? Are all the rumors true?”
“Probably. How’ve you been? And how do you know that dragonkin?”
“Asharin? She and I met while heading up from the desert. I had become separated from my sister, and Asharin was searching for something while touring the continent.”
“Searching for what?”
At that point, Asharin spoke up, her voice full of joy.
“Obviously, it’s a dragon! Our creators, masters of dragon blood, world watchers! My parents told me about the legends, and I’ve longed to find them since. Why did they disappear? Where have they gone? And here I am, meeting one.”
Aellasis looked away, disgusted by Asharin’s curiosity. Asharin gasped and swiftly straightened her back.
“Oh, excuse me, Great One. But I was so startled and thrilled. Do you have any other family members?”
“My family?”
When Asharin asked the inquiry, Aellasis turned her head to Russell. Russell, seated in the chair, met her eyes and opened his mouth.
“As far as I know, Aella is the sole remaining dragon. Her mother asked me to care for her.
“Is that so. .?”
Lexi, who had been listening calmly, suddenly lifted her hands and stated,
“Wait, wait. I am having problems following this conversation. You mean this little girl is a dragon?”
Scilio and Weizen, who were sitting on each side of her, exchanged bewildered looks with Russell as she asked the question.
“I teased that little kid a lot. . .”
“I played with her hair because it was so strange. . .”
Russell shook his head and replied,
“I’m not going to explain it twice, so listen carefully.”
His explanation lasted 10 minutes, and Lexi and her siblings looked up at Aellasis in astonishment.
“Wow, she looks like a beautiful girl, but she’s actually. . .”
“Well, I thought something was strange from the moment she started using magic like that. . .”
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