MAEPG: Episode 8
Episode 8 Immortal King’s Fragment (1)
That was close.
‘I bit his neck by surprise, but my teeth didn’t even sink in…’
Whether it was a protective barrier for emergencies or not, it wasn’t that strong and quickly shattered under the undead’s enhanced bite force, but because of that, I couldn’t inflict a fatal wound.
I was also flustered when Jeraph was thrown back by the burst of dark magic power.
I didn’t know anything about magic in this world, so it was difficult to respond.
Fortunately, I was able to stop him by moving the zombie behind him, but I almost failed before I could even attempt my plan.
I stared blankly at Jeraph’s corpse.
The village youth zombie was still clinging to his corpse, biting into his neck.
These guys were bad guys from the start.
All the undead here, including that zombie, were people who had been sacrificed by them.
Perhaps that’s why I didn’t feel much mental shock even though it was my first time killing someone.
Well, to be honest, it would have been dangerous without “Mind Hub,” but fortunately, it felt like I had just killed a character in a game.
Rather, there was a problem to think about.
‘Actually, I was going to hit him in the back of the head with a rock when I got the chance.’
I got angry after watching Jeraph’s words and actions and decided to act right away.
But when I harbored murderous intent and the intention to attack, ‘Hans’s’ body instinctively aimed for the neck with its teeth.
My subsequent actions were also closer to being led by my body.
‘But I can’t say it was completely out of my control.’
I acted instinctively, but I could have controlled it if I wanted to, since it was an urgent situation.
And it was definitely more effective than aiming for the back of the head with a rock.
If I had followed the original plan, I probably wouldn’t have been able to break through his protective barrier.
‘But if I had to define this feeling…’
Yes, it was like a habit ingrained in my body.
I could control it if I was conscious of it, but I would move unconsciously otherwise.
I realized that I couldn’t ignore the influence of the instincts engraved in my undead body.
Of course, it didn’t have any negative effects on my original body on Earth, and I could even use this to my advantage, but I had to be careful.
Now it was time to move on to the next plan.
That was close.
‘I bit his neck by surprise, but my teeth didn’t even sink in…’
Whether it was a protective barrier for emergencies or not, it wasn’t that strong and quickly shattered under the undead’s enhanced bite force, but because of that, I couldn’t inflict a fatal wound.
I was also flustered when Jeraph was thrown back by the burst of dark magic power.
I didn’t know anything about magic in this world, so it was difficult to respond.
Fortunately, I was able to stop him by moving the zombie behind him, but I almost failed before I could even attempt my plan.
I stared blankly at Jeraph’s corpse.
The village youth zombie was still clinging to his corpse, biting into his neck.
These guys were bad guys from the start.
All the undead here, including that zombie, were people who had been sacrificed by them.
Perhaps that’s why I didn’t feel much mental shock even though it was my first time killing someone.
Well, to be honest, it would have been dangerous without “Mind Hub,” but fortunately, it felt like I had just killed a character in a game.
Rather, there was a problem to think about.
‘Actually, I was going to hit him in the back of the head with a rock when I got the chance.’
I got angry after watching Jeraph’s words and actions and decided to act right away.
But when I harbored murderous intent and the intention to attack, ‘Hans’s’ body instinctively aimed for the neck with its teeth.
My subsequent actions were also closer to being led by my body.
‘But I can’t say it was completely out of my control.’
I acted instinctively, but I could have controlled it if I wanted to, since it was an urgent situation.
And it was definitely more effective than aiming for the back of the head with a rock.
If I had followed the original plan, I probably wouldn’t have been able to break through his protective barrier.
‘But if I had to define this feeling…’
Yes, it was like a habit ingrained in my body.
I could control it if I was conscious of it, but I would move unconsciously otherwise.
I realized that I couldn’t ignore the influence of the instincts engraved in my undead body.
Of course, it didn’t have any negative effects on my original body on Earth, and I could even use this to my advantage, but I had to be careful.
Now it was time to move on to the next plan.
____________________
Village Head Malcolm.
No, ‘Marcos Giocali,’ one of the elders of the organization ‘Oath of Heaven’s Defiance’ that was operating in secret on the continent, was watching the scene before him with satisfaction.
A black jewel pulsating, absorbing the death energy from the surrounding undead.
It had been decades since he started searching for the ‘Immortal King’s Heart.’
But after all his hardships, all he found was a fragment in an incomplete state.
And because there was a risk of being discovered by the continent’s church while transporting it to the headquarters, he chose a remote mountain village where no one would come, sealed the fragment there, and began the maturation process.
A year had passed since then.
‘It’s almost time. Soon, finally…’
The resources poured into the ‘Immortal King’s Fragment’ weren’t small.
His position was already shaky.
‘But if this is completed, everything will be overturned. Stronger than ever before…’
[Master?]
At that moment, a communication came in from his disciple, who should have been guarding the entrance.
[What is it?]
[Master. It’s… outside…]
“So, I’m telling you, my brother is in there!”
“I’m telling you, that young man left a while ago.”
I was causing a commotion in front of the village.
The person in front of me was the middle-aged man I had first met when I discovered the village.
“No, I’m telling you, the signal is definitely coming from there! Just let me go in and check.”
“Why would we let a stranger in so easily?”
“Then at least let me meet the village head and tell him!”
It would be great if I could lure the village head out like this, but even if he didn’t come out, I could still get information, so it didn’t matter.
If he didn’t come out, it meant he was in the middle of something important, and there was only one important thing in this village.
“I am the village head. What’s all this commotion about?”
And I expected that they wouldn’t be able to easily ignore or harm me.
Someone had come looking for the person they thought had no connections and killed, and there was no guarantee that it wouldn’t happen again, so they would want to assess the situation first.
I greeted the village head, Malcolm, with a kind smile on his face.
“Hello. My name is Heinz. I came here because I think my twin brother, Hans, is here.”
“Hmm, Hans… I remember. But I think that young man said he was traveling alone and got lost?”
“Ah… It’s embarrassing, but we had a big fight and parted ways a while ago. But I think we need to make up, so I came here.”
He had no choice but to believe me.
My face would be identical to ‘Hans’s’.
And now it didn’t matter what they did.
I had already achieved my goal.
Village Head Malcolm.
No, ‘Marcos Giocali,’ one of the elders of the organization ‘Oath of Heaven’s Defiance’ that was operating in secret on the continent, was watching the scene before him with satisfaction.
A black jewel pulsating, absorbing the death energy from the surrounding undead.
It had been decades since he started searching for the ‘Immortal King’s Heart.’
But after all his hardships, all he found was a fragment in an incomplete state.
And because there was a risk of being discovered by the continent’s church while transporting it to the headquarters, he chose a remote mountain village where no one would come, sealed the fragment there, and began the maturation process.
A year had passed since then.
‘It’s almost time. Soon, finally…’
The resources poured into the ‘Immortal King’s Fragment’ weren’t small.
His position was already shaky.
‘But if this is completed, everything will be overturned. Stronger than ever before…’
[Master?]
At that moment, a communication came in from his disciple, who should have been guarding the entrance.
[What is it?]
[Master. It’s… outside…]
_______________________
“So, I’m telling you, my brother is in there!”
“I’m telling you, that young man left a while ago.”
I was causing a commotion in front of the village.
The person in front of me was the middle-aged man I had first met when I discovered the village.
“No, I’m telling you, the signal is definitely coming from there! Just let me go in and check.”
“Why would we let a stranger in so easily?”
“Then at least let me meet the village head and tell him!”
It would be great if I could lure the village head out like this, but even if he didn’t come out, I could still get information, so it didn’t matter.
If he didn’t come out, it meant he was in the middle of something important, and there was only one important thing in this village.
“I am the village head. What’s all this commotion about?”
And I expected that they wouldn’t be able to easily ignore or harm me.
Someone had come looking for the person they thought had no connections and killed, and there was no guarantee that it wouldn’t happen again, so they would want to assess the situation first.
I greeted the village head, Malcolm, with a kind smile on his face.
“Hello. My name is Heinz. I came here because I think my twin brother, Hans, is here.”
“Hmm, Hans… I remember. But I think that young man said he was traveling alone and got lost?”
“Ah… It’s embarrassing, but we had a big fight and parted ways a while ago. But I think we need to make up, so I came here.”
He had no choice but to believe me.
My face would be identical to ‘Hans’s’.
And now it didn’t matter what they did.
I had already achieved my goal.
_______________________
‘Hans’ immediately moved as soon as he confirmed that Village Head Malcolm had come out after ‘Heinz’ caused a commotion outside the village.
I thought there was a good chance they would ignore it, but I was lucky.
Since it was an important time, they must have wanted to make sure everything was taken care of, even the smallest details.
They probably didn’t expect something to happen from the innermost part of the village, which was protected by a barrier, rather than from the outside.
Wooong—
Thanks to that, I was able to stand in front of the ‘Immortal King’s Fragment’ without any interference.
As I directly encountered the fragment, not through the zombie rat Alfred, I understood what ‘maturation’ meant.
Why they had placed the undead around it like that.
‘Is it absorbing dark magic power from the undead? No, is it resonance?’
The fragment wasn’t simply absorbing dark magic power.
It seemed incomplete, and it was stabilizing by absorbing dark magic power, accepting the missing information, and synchronizing.
Come to think of it, the undead standing around were all imposing individuals, including ghosts and headless knights.
The weakest-looking one was a skeleton knight, and even that looked superior to the ones I had seen in the warehouse.
‘Wait, then was the warehouse I was in a warehouse for defective products? I suddenly feel offended.’
Low-level undead would have been nothing but impurities in that ‘maturation’ process.
They must have killed me to throw me to the fragment as food once a usable undead came out.
I ended up being thrown into the defective product warehouse because I didn’t meet their expectations.
‘It’s actually a good thing, but why am I so pissed off?’
The closer I got, the more I felt an overwhelming presence and the dark magic power in my body being sucked in.
And at the same time, I realized its danger.
If it were a living being, just touching it carelessly would turn it into an undead, and those with weak bodies would die just by taking a few breaths near it.
Apart from the power it held, it was a powerful aggregate of curses in itself.
I reached out my hand towards the ‘Immortal King’s Fragment’.
‘You can’t be picky. Have a taste of this junk food.’
Of course, I had no intention of being eaten so easily.
I had something I was counting on.
‘Hans’ immediately moved as soon as he confirmed that Village Head Malcolm had come out after ‘Heinz’ caused a commotion outside the village.
I thought there was a good chance they would ignore it, but I was lucky.
Since it was an important time, they must have wanted to make sure everything was taken care of, even the smallest details.
They probably didn’t expect something to happen from the innermost part of the village, which was protected by a barrier, rather than from the outside.
Wooong—
Thanks to that, I was able to stand in front of the ‘Immortal King’s Fragment’ without any interference.
As I directly encountered the fragment, not through the zombie rat Alfred, I understood what ‘maturation’ meant.
Why they had placed the undead around it like that.
‘Is it absorbing dark magic power from the undead? No, is it resonance?’
The fragment wasn’t simply absorbing dark magic power.
It seemed incomplete, and it was stabilizing by absorbing dark magic power, accepting the missing information, and synchronizing.
Come to think of it, the undead standing around were all imposing individuals, including ghosts and headless knights.
The weakest-looking one was a skeleton knight, and even that looked superior to the ones I had seen in the warehouse.
‘Wait, then was the warehouse I was in a warehouse for defective products? I suddenly feel offended.’
Low-level undead would have been nothing but impurities in that ‘maturation’ process.
They must have killed me to throw me to the fragment as food once a usable undead came out.
I ended up being thrown into the defective product warehouse because I didn’t meet their expectations.
‘It’s actually a good thing, but why am I so pissed off?’
The closer I got, the more I felt an overwhelming presence and the dark magic power in my body being sucked in.
And at the same time, I realized its danger.
If it were a living being, just touching it carelessly would turn it into an undead, and those with weak bodies would die just by taking a few breaths near it.
Apart from the power it held, it was a powerful aggregate of curses in itself.
I reached out my hand towards the ‘Immortal King’s Fragment’.
‘You can’t be picky. Have a taste of this junk food.’
Of course, I had no intention of being eaten so easily.
I had something I was counting on.
______________________
“So, we’re twins. We’ve been able to sense each other’s location since birth.”
“Hahaha, that’s hard to believe…”
The village head’s face, which had been smiling gently, hardened instantly.
And then it gradually contorted into a sinister expression as he looked towards the village.
Something was wrong with the fragment.
This wasn’t the time to be arguing with this insignificant fellow.
“Kill that guy over there!”
Malcolm shouted as he immediately used dark magic power to head towards the fragment.
At his command, the middle-aged man at the village entrance, ‘Baucal,’ the dark knight of ‘Oath of Heaven’s Defiance,’ immediately turned his head to kill Heinz, but…
“…When?”
There was no one there anymore.
“So, we’re twins. We’ve been able to sense each other’s location since birth.”
“Hahaha, that’s hard to believe…”
The village head’s face, which had been smiling gently, hardened instantly.
And then it gradually contorted into a sinister expression as he looked towards the village.
Something was wrong with the fragment.
This wasn’t the time to be arguing with this insignificant fellow.
“Kill that guy over there!”
Malcolm shouted as he immediately used dark magic power to head towards the fragment.
At his command, the middle-aged man at the village entrance, ‘Baucal,’ the dark knight of ‘Oath of Heaven’s Defiance,’ immediately turned his head to kill Heinz, but…
“…When?”
There was no one there anymore.
___________________
[Kill.]
…Fear, despair, sorrow, pain, oppression, madness, deprivation, hatred, murderous intent, desire, rage…
All sorts of negative emotions flooded in relentlessly.
[Hate all living things. Cover this land with despair. The more the world is stained with death, the stronger your power will become. Crave life. Take what you cannot have…]
‘Wow, this is no joke.’
The amount of information being filtered through “Mind Hub” was enormous.
For most people, this inherent energy would not only turn their bodies into undead, but their minds would be completely destroyed and consumed by the fragment.
‘But it has nothing to do with me.’
I continued my work.
Since Malcolm had noticed something and was heading this way, I didn’t have much time left.
‘He must have taken some measures here too.’
At this point, you could call it an obsession.
He probably would have stayed glued to this fragment all day if he could only withstand its influence.
‘Let’s try it, I wonder if it will work. It seems almost done, but…’
I tried to synchronize with the ‘Immortal King’s Fragment,’ using the sensation of controlling the undead through the dark magic power being absorbed as a medium.
Normally, it would be impossible.
But I was an undead, and I could ignore the violent mental attacks from the fragment and maintain my ego.
‘It would be great if it worked, but even if it didn’t and this became unusable, I’ll just consider it a success for having interfered with them. Let’s give it a shot.’
The fragment was incomplete and in a vulnerable state, resonating with its surroundings to fill in the missing parts.
I inserted ‘Hans’ into that void.
And I could tell the results right away.
《The individual meets the conditions and grows. You have acquired the special skill “Wicked Wisdom”.》
A message appeared before my eyes.
But before I could even see it, I could sense the change in myself.
My body, which was nothing but bones, remained the same, but the level of my existence had changed.
And new knowledge was naturally engraved in my mind.
[Oh! I can talk now?]
I could now speak by resonating dark magic power in my vocal cords, but that was a minor change.
I looked down at my body.
A black jewel pulsating between my ribs.
I had a heart.
<Individual Information>
-Individual Name: Hans
-Race: Undead (Demi-Lich)
-Common Traits: “Mind Hub”, “Super Recovery”
-Individual Traits: “Corrupted Heart”, “Wicked Wisdom”, “Magic Affinity”
-Special Notes: Rank increased by the power of the ‘Immortal King’s Fragment (1/3)’. The dark magic power latent in the fragment has been assimilated with the individual. “Mind Hub” prevented mental contamination.
And I evolved from an ‘Elite Skeleton’ to a Demi-Lich, an immortal mage.
Huyan was once again guarding the secret passage, sitting down.
It was his punishment for failing to deal with the zombie rat that had escaped yesterday.
‘Ah, because of that Jeraph bastard, I’m getting dragged into this too.’
Come to think of it, Jeraph hadn’t come out even though quite a bit of time had passed since he went in.
‘It’s obvious, with that personality of his, he’s probably just venting his anger.’
Huyan leaned back and relaxed in his chair.
A year had passed, but this remote place was as peaceful as ever.
The only thing he had done today was relay the news from the village entrance to his master inside.
[Huyan! You bastard Huyan! What are you doing right now!]
Thud!
Huyan, startled by his master’s sudden communication magic, fell backwards along with his chair.
[Yes! Master! There’s nothing unusual here!]
Huyan, who had jumped to his feet, set his chair upright and sat down, rubbing the back of his head as he replied energetically, but his master’s voice didn’t calm down.
[Nothing unusual?! What the… No, quickly check the fragment! Quickly! Contact Jeraph too!]
[Yes, yes! I’ll check it out right away!]
Because of the barrier surrounding the fragment, they had to use a special magic tool placed at the entrance to send communications inside the warehouse.
[Hey! Jeraph! Stop messing around and check the fragment… Huh?]
Huyan, who was hurriedly sending a communication to Jeraph, stopped and checked the magic tool again.
And then he sent another communication.
[Jeraph? Hey, Jeraph, can you hear me?]
There was no reply.
It was only natural.
The connection wasn’t even established in the first place.
“Uh… No, what’s going on?”
As Huyan stood up from his seat in a panic,
Wooong—
The magic circle at the entrance to the warehouse reacted, and the door slid open.
“Hey! Jeraph! Why did you suddenly…”
Huyan, who was looking back with a relieved expression at the open door, froze.
It wasn’t Jeraph standing at the door.
“Uh… Uh… No, why…?”
Hundreds of undead, led by a skeleton exuding an ominous aura, were swarming the passage.
______________________
Leading the undead wasn’t difficult.
The amount of dark magic power in my body now was on a different level compared to when I had to scrape together what little I had.
I couldn’t share senses like I did with Alfred because I was controlling so many, but I was still satisfied.
After all, under my command were not only zombies and skeletons, but also the higher-ranking units that were near the fragment.
‘They’re not in very good condition, probably because they’ve been drained by the fragment for so long…’
It was fortunate that I was able to salvage this much.
The floor around the ‘Immortal King’s Fragment’ was littered with undead remains, showing just how many had been sacrificed.
I led the undead and marched majestically through the passage.
Soon, I saw the entrance leading outside.
‘There’s a barrier there, so I can’t just go out… Should I break it down?’
I pondered for a moment, then immediately realized something and placed my hand on the door, just like Jeraph had done.
And I was able to experience the effect of “Wicked Wisdom” firsthand.
Wooong—
The magic circle reacted, and the door opened.
Dark magic was no longer an unknown mystery to me.
[Kill.]
…Fear, despair, sorrow, pain, oppression, madness, deprivation, hatred, murderous intent, desire, rage…
All sorts of negative emotions flooded in relentlessly.
[Hate all living things. Cover this land with despair. The more the world is stained with death, the stronger your power will become. Crave life. Take what you cannot have…]
‘Wow, this is no joke.’
The amount of information being filtered through “Mind Hub” was enormous.
For most people, this inherent energy would not only turn their bodies into undead, but their minds would be completely destroyed and consumed by the fragment.
‘But it has nothing to do with me.’
I continued my work.
Since Malcolm had noticed something and was heading this way, I didn’t have much time left.
‘He must have taken some measures here too.’
At this point, you could call it an obsession.
He probably would have stayed glued to this fragment all day if he could only withstand its influence.
‘Let’s try it, I wonder if it will work. It seems almost done, but…’
I tried to synchronize with the ‘Immortal King’s Fragment,’ using the sensation of controlling the undead through the dark magic power being absorbed as a medium.
Normally, it would be impossible.
But I was an undead, and I could ignore the violent mental attacks from the fragment and maintain my ego.
‘It would be great if it worked, but even if it didn’t and this became unusable, I’ll just consider it a success for having interfered with them. Let’s give it a shot.’
The fragment was incomplete and in a vulnerable state, resonating with its surroundings to fill in the missing parts.
I inserted ‘Hans’ into that void.
And I could tell the results right away.
《The individual meets the conditions and grows. You have acquired the special skill “Wicked Wisdom”.》
A message appeared before my eyes.
But before I could even see it, I could sense the change in myself.
My body, which was nothing but bones, remained the same, but the level of my existence had changed.
And new knowledge was naturally engraved in my mind.
[Oh! I can talk now?]
I could now speak by resonating dark magic power in my vocal cords, but that was a minor change.
I looked down at my body.
A black jewel pulsating between my ribs.
I had a heart.
<Individual Information>
-Individual Name: Hans
-Race: Undead (Demi-Lich)
-Common Traits: “Mind Hub”, “Super Recovery”
-Individual Traits: “Corrupted Heart”, “Wicked Wisdom”, “Magic Affinity”
-Special Notes: Rank increased by the power of the ‘Immortal King’s Fragment (1/3)’. The dark magic power latent in the fragment has been assimilated with the individual. “Mind Hub” prevented mental contamination.
And I evolved from an ‘Elite Skeleton’ to a Demi-Lich, an immortal mage.
_____________________
Huyan was once again guarding the secret passage, sitting down.
It was his punishment for failing to deal with the zombie rat that had escaped yesterday.
‘Ah, because of that Jeraph bastard, I’m getting dragged into this too.’
Come to think of it, Jeraph hadn’t come out even though quite a bit of time had passed since he went in.
‘It’s obvious, with that personality of his, he’s probably just venting his anger.’
Huyan leaned back and relaxed in his chair.
A year had passed, but this remote place was as peaceful as ever.
The only thing he had done today was relay the news from the village entrance to his master inside.
[Huyan! You bastard Huyan! What are you doing right now!]
Thud!
Huyan, startled by his master’s sudden communication magic, fell backwards along with his chair.
[Yes! Master! There’s nothing unusual here!]
Huyan, who had jumped to his feet, set his chair upright and sat down, rubbing the back of his head as he replied energetically, but his master’s voice didn’t calm down.
[Nothing unusual?! What the… No, quickly check the fragment! Quickly! Contact Jeraph too!]
[Yes, yes! I’ll check it out right away!]
Because of the barrier surrounding the fragment, they had to use a special magic tool placed at the entrance to send communications inside the warehouse.
[Hey! Jeraph! Stop messing around and check the fragment… Huh?]
Huyan, who was hurriedly sending a communication to Jeraph, stopped and checked the magic tool again.
And then he sent another communication.
[Jeraph? Hey, Jeraph, can you hear me?]
There was no reply.
It was only natural.
The connection wasn’t even established in the first place.
“Uh… No, what’s going on?”
As Huyan stood up from his seat in a panic,
Wooong—
The magic circle at the entrance to the warehouse reacted, and the door slid open.
“Hey! Jeraph! Why did you suddenly…”
Huyan, who was looking back with a relieved expression at the open door, froze.
It wasn’t Jeraph standing at the door.
“Uh… Uh… No, why…?”
Hundreds of undead, led by a skeleton exuding an ominous aura, were swarming the passage.
______________________
Leading the undead wasn’t difficult.
The amount of dark magic power in my body now was on a different level compared to when I had to scrape together what little I had.
I couldn’t share senses like I did with Alfred because I was controlling so many, but I was still satisfied.
After all, under my command were not only zombies and skeletons, but also the higher-ranking units that were near the fragment.
‘They’re not in very good condition, probably because they’ve been drained by the fragment for so long…’
It was fortunate that I was able to salvage this much.
The floor around the ‘Immortal King’s Fragment’ was littered with undead remains, showing just how many had been sacrificed.
I led the undead and marched majestically through the passage.
Soon, I saw the entrance leading outside.
‘There’s a barrier there, so I can’t just go out… Should I break it down?’
I pondered for a moment, then immediately realized something and placed my hand on the door, just like Jeraph had done.
And I was able to experience the effect of “Wicked Wisdom” firsthand.
Wooong—
The magic circle reacted, and the door opened.
Dark magic was no longer an unknown mystery to me.
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