Текст книги "Overlord Volume - The Two Leaders"

Автор книги: Maruyama Kugane

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Текущая страница: 12 (всего у книги 17 страниц)

“I see. So it’s basically like an animal's cry.”

“That’s correct. They can only parrot certain words and can’t speak in any meaningful way. They also seem to have a minimum intelligence threshold and can’t speak if they have not passed that threshold. The details are under research right now.”

The sous-chef also added – “I’m just repeating what Demiurge-sama said.”

“Hmm, Albedo, will it be fine for me to ask you a question? Isn’t it a problem that you, as the Overseer, do not know about the newcomers? What would you have done if there were spies?”

Someone objected before Albedo could answer.

“Ahahaha, Shalltear, that’s a good joke. Of course, because the 6th floor is so wide, it would be obvious for you to think it’d be hard to find an intruder. If they manage to escape the colosseum… and scatter in every direction like baby spiders, it might get annoying if there’s a lot of them.”

Aura’s laughs were empty and her gazes were icy.

“But aren’t you underestimating me? This is my hunting ground. Whether they scatter or not, I can immediately hunt them down. Even if they plan on harming Ainz-sama and somehow manage to escape this floor, they’d still need to get past Guren’s area on the 7th floor, and they won’t be able to survive even a single step on the 8th floor. If they do decide to run away, they’d need to tread through the dark waters of the 4th floor and your area… Do you really think that’s possible?”

Shalltear shook her head.

“It would be impossible.”

“So that’s why it doesn’t really matter if there’re a lot of newcomers on this floor. You don’t need to worry about it.”

“Aura already said everything I wanted to say. The plan is to gather all the new monsters here, or so it’s being discussed.”

“Huh? Not just the plant-type monsters?”

Aura asked in surprise and Albedo simply smiled.

“That was the initial plan, but thanks to you, Aura and Mare, we didn’t observe any problems so far. So we decided to take a step further. But it’s still in the initial planning stage and I have no idea if it can be implemented. So that’s why I didn’t tell you even though you’re the guardian of this floor.”

Albedo stated that she was not finished yet and explained rest of the plan.

“The name is Project Paradise. Starting with the base Aura built, it’s a gigantic project designed to gather monsters friendly to humans to live here.”

“Why is there a specific requirement saying it has to be creatures friendly to humans?”

Albedo started laughing as if she was waiting for the question. It was a very evil laughter.

“That’s the core of the plan. The core of Project Paradise.”

“To be honest, I find it hard to understand. Aren’t we working hard because Nazarick has to be a paradise for the Supreme Beings? Why did you name it like that?”

“It is an appeal to the outside world that we can peacefully co-exist with others.”

“Ah-ha… Is that the angle?”

“My goodness. Shalltear actually understood…”

Shalltear glared menacingly at Aure, showing an expression that could wither even the flames of a century-old love.

“Did you perchance think I was stupid?”

“…W-wait a moment Shalltear. Do you really have to ask, after everything you’ve done so far? Hmm? Just take a moment and try to remember..”

In a moment, as if she had actually remembered all her mistakes, Shalltear’s pupils dilated like a dead animal and she averted her eyes.

After seeing Shalltear’s pitiful appearance, Albedo decided to change the subject.

“Uhmm, Ainz-sama proposed this plan as well. When we were talking about the 6th floor, he mentioned his desire to collect various monsters as well. It’s not an idea you can come up with a narrow view of the world. I talked about Ainz-sama’s talents with Demiurge before, and we came to the conclusion that he’s a genius as expected.”

“Everybody knows that Ainz-sama is a genius, but I have heard that he doesn’t speak much.”

“Demiurge said that, right? Well… Ainz-sama doesn’t reveal his thoughts easily. And sometimes he acts strange, but the saying ‘The wise may seem stupid and the brave may seem timid’ hasn’t been wrong so far.”

Albedo’s eyes moistened as she shook her head.

“I still haven’t figured out why he created the persona of Momon the adventurer, but he’s truly scary… For everything to have been part of his plan from then until now…”

“You mean Ainz-sama disguised as the adventurer Momon? What about it?”

“You’ll learn soon enough… It’s because he has Momon. He will become the foundation of Ainz-sama’s rule. He’s truly great… Even Demiurge’s plans might actually be the result of Ainz-sama’s guidance—”

“What might you be murmuring about? It is a bit scary.”

Albedo pulled herself together at Shalltear’s words and coughed a bit before looking at the other three.

“What was I saying again? Yes, yes! Ainz-sama’s words and actions have deeper meanings behind them. Even though it might be impossible to fully comprehend his intentions, try to put some effort into understanding his plans.”

“It’s too difficult. Ainz-sama’s too smart. Ah, it’s a Spear Needle.”

Two gigantic white lumps with a height of more than two meters slowly waddled their way to Aura from the middle of the village. They were monsters that looked like angora rabbits.

“They are very cute.”

Shalltear was petting one of the white bunches of fur standing beside Aura.

“They’re so soft, I want one too…”

“Feels good, doesn’t it? But when fighting, their fur turns as sharp as needles.”

The level sixty-seven monster, Spear Needle.

When entering combat mode, their fur turned into a thicket of thin needles. If killed in combat mode, the fur wouldn’t return to its original soft state, so it was important to kill it stealthily with a single strike. That’s why the players who hunted Spear Needles were much higher in level than the monsters themselves.

“Is that true? Oh my, how scary.”

Even after saying it out loud, Shalltear kept petting it.

“Well, it won’t go into combat mode unless I order it to, or if enemies are nearby. But realistically, is there anyone who’s really going to be an intruder here? I haven’t gotten any reports from other floors either.”

“Of course. After all, I placed servants with excellent detection abilities on the 3rd floor. It would be hard for anyone to get through them undetected.”

Aura suddenly stopped moving and turned her head towards the colosseum.

“What is it, Aura-sama?”

“A gate from the 7th floor just activated.”

“From the lower floor? Demiurge’s out right now… Maybe it’s one of his subordinates? Are you sure it’s okay not to check?”

“Mmm– Mare’s there, so it should be fine. If there’s a problem, he’ll contact me.”

Aura touched the earring piece on her necklace.

“It’s not something special either. If someone wants to get to the surface from lower floors, they’d need to go through the gate on each floor at specific points. Speaking of which, we have someone who uses magic so they don’t have to run, right~?”

“Eh-hem! The Great Tomb of Nazarick truly is an impregnable fortress.”

“Yea, even if someone uses the super-tier magic ‘Sword of Damocles’ or the World-class item I possess, they wouldn’t be able to destroy an entire floor. That’s why you must never lose the ring which allows you to teleport anywhere at will.”

Everyone looked at the ring on Albedo’s left pinkie finger.

“That’s right. When Mare goes outside, he always puts it somewhere safe. Thinking about it this way, I can comprehend the importance of that ring– Ah! Mare contacted me.”

Aura put some distance between herself and the group before she grasped the earring and started talking to Mare. Aura slowly frowned and by the time the conversation was over, her expression was quite dark.

“Sorry. I don’t know why, but Mare said he’s preparing to go out. I need to go back just in case.”

“Is that so? Well… then should we return, as well, Shalltear?”

“I have no objection.”

“I’ll finish up with the field before leaving. I also want to talk a little bit with the dryads and the treants.”

“Then let’s disperse for now. Thanks for today. I think I finally learned how to spend holidays. If we get the time again… yea, let’s go for a bath together.”

 

Part 2

Mare looked away from the book he was reading to check for movement at the gate to the 7th floor.

He felt a little feedback of power and placed a bookmark before setting the book down beside the chair. He grabbed the staff beside him; the Divine-class item, ‘Shadow of Yggdrasil’.

Mare reached for the magic item hanging around his necklace with the other hand but stopped mid-action.

There was no need to contact his sister. Since there were no reports of an intruder, the person approaching had to be a comrade.

Mare shuffled his way down with small steps as he headed toward the gate.

His sister liked to jump down to the colosseum from the audience seats, but Mare didn’t. The stairs were there for a reason and using them seemed like a show of loyalty to the Supreme Beings. They probably intended for the stairs to be used.

I can’t say that to sister… She’d give me a scary glare…

So he decided that at least he would not let the generosity of the Supreme Beings go to waste and went down through the stairs. Beyond the waiting room, there was a figure standing in front of the mirror that sparkled in seven different colours.

“D-did you wait long?”

“Oh oh! Isn’t it the floor guardian, Mare-sama! For you to come here personally, I am honoured.”

The clown, dressed in a pure white costume with a mask shaped like a bird’s beak, bowed to Mare, who did the same.

“Hello, Pulcinella-san. What are you here for?”

“Well, I don’t know if you’re aware or not, but I’m currently working under Demiurge-sama’s orders. Today, I came as Demiurge-sama’s messenger. Please, take this.”

The clown handed over the folder he was holding.

“If it’s from Demiurge-san, is this the memo folder?”

“That’s correct. My, my, for Mare-sama to come out personally. I was really lucky. If it had been Aura-sama I would have needed to ask her to call you.”

“Huh? Is that so?”

The memo folder was a system devised by the ruler of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, Ainz Ooal Gown, himself. It was a system that allowed floor guardians to write down non-urgent messages and communicate with each other. Nothing similar existed until now.

When Mare accepted the folder, he got a strange feeling and muttered “T-this is…” while staring at it.

“H-huh? But why couldn’t you give it to my sister?”

Since Aura was a floor guardian as well, there was no reason why the message couldn’t be delivered to her as well. She was also a hard worker, so she wouldn’t just throw the folder in a corner somewhere.

“I don’t know the details myself. But Demiurge-sama gave me specific orders to not give it to Aura-sama and hand it directly to you.”

“I see… W-what about Demiurge-san?”

It was a short question, but Pulcinella understood what he meant.

“…I can’t say I fully understand what he meant either. However, I believe the answer or the reason would lie in that folder.”

“Ok… Uh, hmm, speaking of which, uh, what’s Demiurge-san doing right now?”

“He’s conducting a breeding experiment. Humans can breed with each other, but can’t breed with demi-humans. Is this not a true tragedy? For lovers to be unable to bear the fruit of their union just because they’re from different species! To save such unfortunate souls, Demiurge-sama is working hard. To develop that possibility between humans and demi-humans!”

The clown spoke as if he was reciting a speech with both arms wide spread and pointing at the sky. Mare blinked at Pulcinella, who changed so suddenly.

“Ah, please excuse me. I’ve gotten too excited over Demiurge-sama’s generosity of trying to bring joy to humans. Please, forgive me.”

“Ah, it’s, uh, fine.”

“Demiurge-sama said that he would make himself —or rather the demons– the target of the human’s hatred, so they wouldn’t resent each other. Such immense selflessness! This Pulcinella cannot even see because he moved me to tears.”

Pulcinella motioned to wipe his tears on top of his mask. Of course, there were no actual tears and he spoke in his regular cheerful tone, which didn’t sound sad at all.

“…Why would they hate him?”

“I cannot understand why they would hate our kind and generous Demiurge-sama, but he said that himself. Ah, speaking of which, listen to this. Because Demiurge-sama was so generous, he took pity on the starving livestock. So he made them exchange children with each other, roasted them and put them on the table. If he was heartless, wouldn’t he have served them up without exchanging them?”

“I-Is that so?”

“Of course. He even allowed them to say farewell by bringing over both parents and letting them sit by the table… For there to be someone like Demiurge-sama, who would be considerate enough for the family to say farewell while smiling… There won’t be anyone besides the Supreme Beings. I’m sure of it.”

“I guess…”

Mare gave a flat response to Pulcinella’s enraptured speech. He didn’t care what happened to anyone who did not belong to Nazarick. After a couple of seconds, Mare erased all thoughts of Demiurge’s livestock.

“Plus, when starving, their head might say yes, but their stomach might not. Demiurge-sama thought ahead and after warning them, made sure they ate it all, down to the last bit. He is a truly generous…”

Feeling that the story would not end, Mare quickly interrupted.

“…H-how’s Guren-san doing? If I want to send the message back, I might need to relay it to him, but I don’t know what he’s doing and where.”

“…’he’ or ‘she’, I personally theorize Guren is genderless. Last time I saw that person was when Demiurge-sama wasn’t present and it was lying in ambush around the 7th floor’s gate.”

“I-is that so.”

Mare remembered what Guren looked like.

An area guardian which hid its gigantic body in lava and pulled the unsuspecting opponents into terrain that was advantageous for itself – Guren.

It was only level 90, but because it was optimized for combat, in terms of pure fighting ability, it ranked amongst the strongest in Nazarick and could even fight evenly with some floor guardians. Thus, it was the most suitable one to defend the 7th floor in Demiurge’s absence.

“Ah, it seems I was too chatty. Since I already passed on the memo folder to you, I will now go off to spread smiles and laughter.”

“T-Thank you.”

Mared bowed his head and Pulcinella replied softly.

“No need to thank me. I am satisfied just watching your smile, Mare-sama.”

The clown dramatically shrugged his shoulders .

“Until we meet again.”

He disappeared through the gate to the 7th floor while waving.

After watching him disappear, Mare opened the memo. Filled with feelings of superiority and treachery from the fact that only he could read it and not his sister, Mare quickly scanned the page. He blinked a couple times after he finished reading it.

This… it’s more like a message Ainz-sama sent to the guardians than a memo.

The message was addressed to only the male guardians and praised them for their usual hard work. The following content could be summarized as invitation to take a bath together if they had time.

The names of the participants listed were Ainz, Demiurge, Mare and Cocytus. The first two people had circled ‘participating’ between the choice of participating or not participating. Normally, Sebas’ name would be there as well, but he was out gathering information in a human city with Solution.

Uh, what’s the date going to be…

There was a side saying that the date was undetermined and will be arranged for the most convenient date for the participants. There was no reason to hesitate in circling the “participate” option. The message said it would be fine for them not to participate, but Mare just couldn’t refuse a proposal from his kind and generous master. No, there would not be anyone in the Great Tomb of Nazarick who would refuse.

Mare picked up the pencil that was included in the file and circled the “participating” next to his name.

“…Ehehe.”

He smiled while looking at the circle beside his name, but dark clouds soon shrouded his heart.

“Uh, but… how do I give this to Cocytus?”

There were several mentions across the message to not tell anything to the female guardians and Mare could feel his master’s intention of wanting to keep it a secret amongst the male guardians. In this case it would be best for him to hand the message personally.

If I keep it a secret and sneak out… it won’t be good, right? Because if I’m… uh, do they call it “attention”? While I’m getting that, she’d need to defend the floor alone.

Unless it was due to orders, Mare would always tell Aura where he was going, even if he was just going to visit the other guardians. It was the right thing to do since Aura and Mare were both tasked with defending this floor.

Mare grasped the magic item hanging around his neck.

“S-sis? Can you hear me?”

An immediate reply came.

『I can hear you Mare. What’s up?』

“Ah, that’s a relief. Uh, what was it. I need to go visit Cocytus right now. I’ll be back soon.”

『To Cocytus?』

“Yea. I need to hurry.”

『What’s it about?』

Mare’s shoulders flinched for a brief moment. He felt like his voice would crack, but then he barely managed to squeeze the words out.

“N-n-n-n-nothing? It’s nothing… but I need to go.”

『Hmmm…』

Aura’s voice sounded as if she was suspicious, and the thought of that caused Mare’s hands to be soaked with sweat.

But, uh, I can’t help it. It’s Ainz-sama’s orders.

Apart from Mare and Aura’s creator —Bukubukuchagama– Ainz’s words ranked higher than any other Supreme Being’s. It took priority over anything else.

『Well, I guess it doesn’t matter. Go then. Remember that the 5th floor is cold, so protect yourself against it… Ah, but if it’s Mare there won’t be a problem.』

“Y-yeah. It’s fine if I use magic. Then I’ll be off.”

If he kept talking for too long, he might give something away. So Mare quickly took his hand off the magic item. It sounded like his sister was trying to say something else before she was cut off, but whether it was fortunate for him or not, he couldn’t hear it.

“A-alright! Time to hurry.”

Mare activated the most important ring he received from his master.

Immediately after he teleported, Mare felt something white sticking to his face.

It was snow that was flying in the air.

Mare’s breath condensed into a white cloud which was instantly blown behind him. It was the result of the snowstorm and the extreme cold in the area.

The snow and ice flew along with the storm in a frenzied whiteout, and the endless snow covered any trace of footprints almost immediately. Though the weather was designed to make any invader lose track of where they were, it was usually not this severe. Usually, the black clouds in the sky would drop a few sprinkles of snow, and even though this was a gloomy world, the clouds never completely covered the sky.

“……Huh…”

Mare looked to the left and the right. He used the Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown, so he should be close to where he wanted to go.

Mare moved swiftly after finding his destination. There were no footprints left where he walked. There was no soft sinking sensation like stepping on snow, it felt more like walking on hard ground.

This pure white world without a trace of anybody else seemed to be telling Mare that there was only snow here. Of course, Mare knew with his passive magical ESP that this wasteland was just a disguise. The ambushers knew that he was the 6th floor guardian, that was why they didn’t show themselves.

Mare arrived at his destination in silence. In front of him was a gigantic white sphere that resembled an upside down wasp’s nest.

Surrounding the structure were six towering crystals, their sharp edges pointed to the sky. There were human-like silhouettes visible on the inside.

As Mare stepped forward, an unnerving cracking sound came from below his feet. When he turned his attention to the floor, he could see that he was standing on a sheet of smooth ice, unlike the snow-covered plain he had been walking on thus far. The ice looked thick, but he could tell there were dark shadows lurking just under the ice.

Mare kept on walking. He took each step with confidence, as if he knew the ice would not break. Despite the cracking and crunching noise, Mare arrived before the gigantic sphere without a problem.

“E-excuse me. Uh, is Cocytus-san here?”

Mare spoke towards one of the gigantic crystals instead of the sphere.

In response, monsters with the appearance of a female human phased through the crystal. The number of monsters corresponded to the number of crystals and they wore pure white clothes. Their skin was bluish-white and their hair were black. They were “Frost Virgins” , a level 82 ice-type monster, that served as sentries for Cocytus’ residence “Snowball Earth”, as well as his bodyguards.

“Welcome, Mare-sama. Well met.”

“Uh, what about, uh, Coctyus-san?”

“Cocytus-sama is currently outside the Great Tomb of Nazarick, visiting the new lizardmen village.”

“I-is that so.”

The frost virgin replied while bowing.

“Yes. If you have a message to leave for him, we’ll take it for him. What do you wish to do?”

Mare hesitated.

Since he came this far, he could just leave the folder in Cocytus’ room and leave a brief message with the frost virgins. But considering the content of the memo, giving it directly to Cocytus would be fully respecting the master’s commands.

So how would he go to Cocytus, who was outside.

There was no special rule forbidding the guardians from going outside Nazarick. However, there were conditions to meet before going outside. It was because the master had forbidden all independent activity outside the Great Tomb of Nazarick.

The information gathered so far indicated level 100 beings like the guardians of Nazarick were unimaginable walking disasters in the outside world. There would be no problem even if Mare, one such walking disaster, engaged in independent action. It would be the outside world that should be afraid of him, but that was a mistake only possible after forgetting one important incident.

There was an unknown enemy who brainwashed Shalltear and might possess a World class item. There were also glimpses of player activity in the shadows every once in a while.

They needed to take extra precautions because they could not assess how many or how strong the enemies were.

“Hm, mmm. What should I do…”

Anyone who wanted to go outside needed to be accompanied by at least five level 75 servants. Mare had two dragons as direct subordinates, but they were too big to be discreet. It would be best to ask his sister, but considering how the conversation went, he did not want to do something so scary.

Then an epiphany struck him. It was perfect in both level and number.

“S-sorry, but can you come with me?”

“I, I apologize, but we have been ordered by Cocytus-sama to guard this place. With the exception of Ainz-sama, we cannot disobey Cocytus-sama’s order… Please forgive us!”

“Ah, no, no, it’s fine.”

It could not be helped. If he had thought about it, then it would’ve been rather obvious that they couldn’t do so. The next idea that came to his mind was to ask the demon lords in the 7th floor, but unless he gave them a good reason, he would be rejected again. It was true that he couldn’t rely on any floor but the one Demiurge guarded. It was difficult to ask for help from any guardians outside the names that were written on the memo. Also, most servants over level 80 in the Great Tomb of Nazarick were direct subordinates of a guardian and those who were not, were few and far in between.

Because of that, Mare would need to ask Demiurge if he wanted to borrow the demon lords.

But how would I contact him?

The only way to contact Demiurge who was outside, was to dispatch a servant as a messenger or use magic.

But besides him…

Mare remembered the book he had just been reading.

Did he have any subordinates over level 75? But he’s not a guardian… Muu, would it be fine since he’s a man as well? If I ask him to keep it a secret…

“T-thank you! Uh, I’ll be fine.”

“Is that so? I understand.”

Mare activated the ring. His destination was the Grand Library in Nazarick’s 10th floor, Ashurbanipal.

♦ ♦♦

Nazarick Time 9:54

The scenery changed immediately from a snowy plain to a large room. The room was decorated simply, with plain black as a base colour, while dim, reddish light illuminated the area. The ceiling formed a gently sloping dome, with a grand set of double doors on the opposite side.

Golems were standing on either side of the doors that led to the Throne Hall. They were almost three meters tall, nearly as large as the doors themselves. The golems were shaped like armoured warriors and because they were made from rare metals, they were stronger than regular golems made by the Supreme Beings.

“Excuse me, can you open the door?”

In response to Mare’s request, the two golems put their hands on the door and slowly pushed it open. After a heavy, creaking sound, Mare walked in through the open doors that were big enough for several people to enter at once.

The sight that lay before him was more reminiscent of an art museum than a library. Countless decorations added flair to the level, while the bookshelves and even the books themselves looked like ornaments on display.

Not a single speck of dust could be seen on the immaculately polished hardwood floors and the surface was covered in beautiful engraved patterns. The upper area was quite roomy, with a hall-like design, and a balcony extended from the second floor. Even on the second floor there were countless bookshelves, arranged as if they were peeking into the room. The semi-circular ceiling was covered in grand frescos and luxurious carvings.

There were even books in the numerous glass bookshelves across the room. There were many source of light in the room, but none of them too glaring. As a matter of fact, a regular human would frown, claiming it was too dark.

It was impossible to take in the whole interior at one glance because the bookshelves covered the scenery at every angle.

Amidst a silence befitting a library, the doors slowly closed behind Mare. It turned darker since there was no light coming in from the entrance. The stillness in the air panned out to create a creepy atmosphere that made silence sound like another noise.

Of course, for someone like Mare who could see in the dark just as well as during the day, it was not creepy at all.

Mare headed towards the inside at rather fast pace.

This was the “Room of Logic”. For the most part, the library was divided into three large rooms; the “Room of Wisdom”, the “Room of Logic”, the “Room of Magic”. There were also several smaller rooms designed for specialized uses and the individual rooms for the staff. His destination was quite far away considering the size of the area.

To either side of the tunnel were rows of bookshelves with countless books arranged on them.

The books in Yggdrasil could be divided into five large categories.

The first category was a collection of recorded monster data, which was required to summon said monsters as mercenaries.

There were three types of monsters inside Nazarick. The first type consisted of monsters that were created in a similar manner as player characters. The next type consisted of automatically spawning monsters that were under level thirty, and the last type consisted of monsters that were summoned as mercenaries. Mercenary monsters needed to be summoned using a book, a special summoning ritual and adequate amount of gold. Thus, they could not be summoned without a book.

The second category was magic items.

Certain data crystals could only be imbued into a book-shaped object. Items shaped like books usually tended to be single use magic items. The difference between a scroll and a book was that while scrolls could only be used by certain classes, anybody could use a book.

The third category was event items.

It was not uncommon for an item to be required when advancing into a special class, and some of these items came in the shape of a book. Even Ainz needed a “Book of the Dead” when he evolved from a Skeleton Mage into an Elder Lich. There were other books such as “Bibliography of Weapon Research” or “Anecdotes of the Four Great Spirits”. There were also books that taught new magic.

The fourth category was cosmetic skin data.

These books contained the cosmetic skin data of objects like swords, shields and armour. Players with certain blacksmith skills could put new skins on items with this and other appropriate materials.

The fifth category was novels in the form of book shaped items.

Normally, there would be old and classic literature whose copyright ran out a long time ago, but there were also background stories distributed by the development team and original novels written by players in Yggdrasil. There was also fanfiction based on the worlds of YGGDRASIL or game guides in the form of diaries or novels.

The majority of the countless books in the library belonged to the first category, to summon monsters as mercenaries. Of course, there was no need to actually hoard so many copies of them.

Even if they used the guild’s entire gold supply, they still would be unable to use even 1/10th of the books. Because the monster data was not very expensive, the guild members started making a massive number of duplicates. The intention had been to hide valuable items amongst a mass of useless ones.

Mare gave the books a sideway glance as he walked past them.

Then a ghastly shadow suddenly appeared from beyond the bookcases, as if stopping him.

It wore a black hooded robe that seemed to blend into the library itself. On its belt was a jewelry embedded wand, with various straps interweaved with crystals. It had a pale face that looked as if it had been embalmed. Every time it moved, darkness swirled around it ever so subtly.

It was an infamous monster amongst undead magic casters types, an “Elder Lich”.

Their nickname in Yggdrasil was “white palter of false wealth”. Since it was only level 30, it had the second-lowest rank in the hierarchy of Elder Lich type monsters. There were also other subspecies that had different colours called “red palter of false wealth” and “black palter of false wealth”.