"Hmm... there are about five research projects I want to run at once... but only one Lich. I know, I'll take an apprentice."
In a pure white, spotless lab, Lich muttered.
The one who reacted was Alice—the blue-skinned, translucent, voluptuous beauty who, despite surely being busy, always hung around the lab.
"An apprentice, you say?"
"Yes. I want a disciple to research necromancy with Lich. Well, really I want an assistant, or better yet a whole team in the same field. But there aren't many with necromancy knowledge. So first I'll have to take on disciples and raise them myself..."
"Uh..."
"Lich will be a teacher of necromancy!"
"I see."
Alice nodded.
She looked smart, but Undead were basically dumb, so she probably didn't really get it.
"Come to think, Alice, you were a Wisp Ghost in Lich's lab, but you never did research, right?"
"Yes. Like the other Wisp Ghosts here now, I just cleaned, organized, and ran errands."
"...Maybe Undead just aren't suited to 'research' as a race."
"I think so. Even leading Undead troops, unless commands are simple like 'charge,' 'defend,' or 'retreat,' they don't understand. If orders get complicated, they say their brains itch and start scratching their skulls. Skeletons are the exception."
"Why?"
"They have no brains."
"I see. ...Then maybe I should take disciples from the beastmen we captured..."
"You mean beastmen?"
"Yes. The beastmen are beastmen after all."
"I see."
"Bring some from the settlement. ...Ah, make it children if possible. Necromancy takes long to master, and kids' minds are flexible, easier to absorb knowledge."
"If flexibility is important, we have zombies. Their brains are mush."
"Not that kind of flexible."
"Understood. By 'children,' you mean...?"
"Younger than fifteen."
"Understood."
* * *
Alice brought beastman children to the lab.
Average age looked about ten.
Three girls, two boys.
They huddled together, staring at Lich with frightened faces.
"Welcome to Lich's lab. I think I once called myself a skeleton, but truthfully, I was Lich all along. Sorry for the trick."
No response.
But Lich never cared about others' reactions—he just said what he wanted.
"From now you'll study 'necromancy,' become fine Necromancers, and work with Lich to advance the field."
Their tension didn't ease.
Especially the red-haired girl, apparently the oldest, glared at him with open hostility.
"...You, red one. Got something to say to Lich?"
"N-necromancy is blasphemy against God! I can't do that!"
"...Still talking about God?"
"Everyone was fooled by you before, but ignoring faith is wrong!"
"Then do you want to die?"
"...Eh?"
"No, really. Lich respects individuality. If you say 'reviving is against my religion, I refuse,' then I'll let you die."
"N-no, but..."
"Anyway, Lich isn't looking for red hair. So whatever."
"..."
"If others also value faith over life, fine. Even without you, there are twenty-five more. I just thought kids would be easier to teach. Adults with talent could work too."
"Y-you... what do you think life is!?"
"Life is life."
"..."
"In necromancy, the key is recognizing 'life is life, nothing more or less.' Whether you're royalty or rich, to necromancy you're just 'one life.' And the owner of your life is you. If you want to discard it, then we count 'one less life.' That's all."
"Y-you're insane! Life isn't just a number! It's something precious!"
"I dislike 'insane.' That word is unfair. People who call others mad use common sense as a shield to end discussions they don't understand. So let's examine calmly."
"Examine...?"
"Yes. Examine your claim: 'life is precious.' ...Sure, I agree. But calling a Necromancer 'mad' for counting lives as numbers? Meanwhile, you're ready to throw away your only one life for 'faith.' From Lich's view, that looks more mad."
"..."
"Life is a resource. All resources are limited. Wasting them is questionable. And when teachings claim 'something is above life' but fail to name any concrete resource more valuable, Lich calls that hypocrisy."
"..."
"Also, Lich does not see 'faith' as a resource. Tell me—does faith fill your stomach? How much happiness does faith guarantee you?"
"...Even hungry, faith makes me noble."
"If you value noble feelings more than a full stomach, that's too different a value for Lich to grasp."
"..."
"Anyway. Wisp Ghost? Bring me a knife. A sharp one."
"...Eh?"
"You want to die, right? Can't do it barehanded. I'll lend you a blade."
"...W-wait..."
"Want someone else to kill you instead? No. It's your one resource, so you discard it yourself. Normally you should pay all the cost of dying. But if you wander outside for a weapon, Demonkin will kill you—that's bad. That's shirking responsibility. So here, Lich lends you one. A little service."
A white translucent Wisp Ghost handed over a knife with a childlike "Here you go."
It was large and oddly shaped, ceremonial.
"Hand, out."
Lich told the red-haired girl.
She shook, glanced away, and slowly gave her right hand.
Lich nicked her fingertip with the knife.
"Ow!?"
"Sorry. I had to test if it really cut. Attacks don't work on Lich, and only Ghosts are here—physical attacks without attributes don't affect them. So had to test on you."
"..."
"Looks sharp. Good. Here."
"......"
"Won't take it?"
"U...uuu...uuuuuu!"
The red-haired girl trembled and burst into tears.
Lich was confused.
"Eh, why?"
"Lich-sama! Please, wait!"
Alice, who'd been nearby unnoticed (Ghosts lacked presence), tapped his shoulder.
He turned.
"What is it, Alice?"
"I think she want to say 'I don't want to die.'"
"...If she doesn't want to, then don't say 'revival is heresy.'"
"I know, but still! It's... it's this kind of thing, Lich-sama!"
"This kind of thing?"
"Too logical! You say too much, she gets overwhelmed and cries!"
"But Lich wasn't wrong. If there's a flaw in Lich's logic, she should point it out."
"Lich-sama... I'm Undead, so I don't really get the 'life is precious' part, but..."
"Mm."
"I am dumb, and even I know—if someone talks long and complicated, it's scary."
"..."
Lich felt enlightened.
Long complicated words = scary. ...Thinking back, yes, people had frozen up on him many times.
"I see. So Lich was saying complicated things... I thought it was obvious."
"Even obvious things can be hard."
"I see."
Lich faced the red-haired girl again.
She wiped tears with her hand, biting her lip to hold back sobs.
"Sorry. Lich isn't good at communication."
"N-no... no, that's not it... I-I was... actually, I was glad to be revived...!"
"...?"
"I-I wanted to say thank you. Thank you. But I'm Undead... Demonkin... and you people killed us in the first place...!"
"Oh right, that happened."
"The younger kids are scared...! I'm the oldest, I have to protect them...! So I...!"
She really was the oldest.
But only eleven or twelve.
If Lich understood people, he'd be impressed by her loneliness and strength.
But he didn't.
He was Lich.
And honestly, even before being Lich, he didn't.
"Hmm... Lich doesn't get it..."
"..."
"Well, as long as you're not dying, fine. Your life is yours. You decide. Let me heal your cut finger."
"...Th-thank you."
"Since Lich is like this, say clearly what you mean. Lich is bad at reading between lines. Now, will you study necromancy?"
"...If I study necromancy... will I be happy?"
"Studying necromancy won't make you happy. People will say it's creepy, smelly, taboo among Humans, and unpopular."
"..."
"But—if you were glad to be revived, then necromancy did make you a little happy. So maybe, with necromancy, you can make someone else happy too."
"...Make someone else happy."
"Every human has one resource: life. Necromancy is the study of facing life and its value."
"...I'll do it. Teach me necromancy."
"Good. What about the rest?"
When Lich asked, timidly, fearfully, all of them nodded they'd try.
Thus, Lich gained five disciples.