The Soul Eater patted Hailuot's shoulder, reluctant to leave his son so soon.
"Although I can't adventure with you in this world, I promise I'll come whenever you call... well, even if I can't make it myself, I'll do my best to arrange friends to help.
And there's one more important point: don't rely too heavily on the skills and magic the game gives you. Their main purpose is to help you through the adaptation period. That's also why I didn't give you a top-tier spellbook.
After you return to the manor, have Kote take you to my study. There are magic books collected by the Claurend ancestors there, along with the necromancy notes they left behind. Although the magic House Claurend has mastered can't compare to the strongest magic in this world, only by building a solid foundation will you be qualified to touch true top-tier magic."
Hailuot nodded. "I'll remember. Once I'm back, I'll go to your study and learn the ancestors' knowledge."
"As you come to understand this Game World better, you'll understand why I'm doing this. Next is the matter of leveling up... I don't recommend grinding monsters to level at this stage."
Hailuot asked, "Are there other ways to level up?"
The Soul Eater answered, "There are. Some quests also give a lot of experience, far more efficiently than grinding monsters. Although the Heroes World has been open for four years, new Players still enter every moment. All the good low-level Leveling Zones are saturated. Experience gain is slow, and disputes with other Players are easy to start, wasting time on fighting."
I happen to have a quest right now that suits you well."
"What quest?"
The Soul Eater took out a letter. "This is an invitation I obtained before I transformed into a lich—an invitation for the lord of the Olden Cemetery to attend a gathering. Unfortunately, I never got to attend, since I chose to become undead during a legendary quest.
Now that you're the Lord of the Old Graveyard, you can take over this quest."
Hailuot took the letter.
The address on it read: 63 Tibia Street, Scorched Earth City.
A special sealing wax sealed the envelope.
Hailuot couldn't help smiling. "You received this invitation to the gathering four years ago, and I'm attending four years later. Isn't that a little too late?"
The Soul Eater said, "The master of 63 Tibia Street in Scorched Earth City is still there. You can try your luck—after all, the undead have a somewhat different sense of time. I think this invitation might be related to lifting the seal on the Olden Cemetery, a task only an Old Dominator can complete."
"The Seal you're talking about—do you mean the Seal leading from the Skeleton Maze into the Walking Corpse Graveyard?"
The Soul Eater answered, "It's the seal that envelops the entire Olden Cemetery. Haven't you noticed? Even though so many players in the Skeleton Maze are constantly killing Chaos Beasts, the death energy within the graveyard hasn't increased by much. You can barely see any undead condensing from death energy.
Not doing what a member of House Claurend should have done is my greatest regret. I can only leave the task of saving the family cemetery to you."
Hailuot put the invitation away and said, "I'll go try my luck. Is there anything else you need to tell me?"
"That's all! Go to Scorched Earth City and find the Necromancer Mentor to learn your starting Magic. A few simple game-familiarization quests should get you to level 5. I'm going to say hello to a few young friends I just met—I have some Equipment to give them."
Oh right, there's also a gift for Kote."
The Soul Eater looked toward Butler Kote.
Kote immediately bowed. "Old Master, it's a pleasure to see you again. Your servants will be overjoyed to learn that you're safe and sound."
The Soul Eater gave Kote some mage equipment, then said, "I'm glad to see you again too. Take good care of your new master."
"Loyalty to House Claurend is the only value of our existence."
"I trust your loyalty completely." The Soul Eater turned to Hailuot. "Say goodbye to your new friends, then head to Scorched Earth City."
"Okay."
The Soul Eater dispelled the bone wall, then said to Hailuot, "Here, don't tell anyone... that I'm your father."
Hailuot asked, puzzled, "Why?"
"Because... it would damage my image." The Soul Eater said quietly, "I'm a nationwide idol, the Number-One Player. If my Followers found out I had a son as old as you, I'd lose a huge number of fans."
Do you understand?"
Hailuot, sweatdropping, nodded. "I understand. What should I call you?"
"Just call me Older Brother." The Soul Eater walked forward with an arm around Hailuot's shoulder, looking very much like two brothers.
Hailuot, straight-faced, asked, "Are there a lot of girls among your followers?"
The Soul Eater chuckled. "Don't doubt my love for your mother. There's only one woman in my heart—Irina."
The two "brothers"...
The father and son found Misty Rain First Blossom and the other three members of the group grinding monsters nearby.
Hailuot explained that he needed to go to Scorched Earth City to learn his skills, then left the Soul Eater to take a group photo with them. He stored Kote in his inventory before using the Scorched Earth City Return Scroll his father had given him.
After a moment of disorientation, Hailuot appeared inside Scorched Earth City's Central Teleportation Array.
A pale full moon hung in the night sky. Its desolate light shone over the city, whose dominant colors were gray and bluish-gray.
The Undead buildings were tall and slender, like upright finger bones, and gave off wisps of Death Fog.
On the left side of Hailuot's Game Interface, a bone quill wrote an overview of Scorched Earth City line by line.
Scorched Earth City belonged to the Rotten Wasteland, which the Sorrow King—one of the Seven Governors of Death—ruled.
The city's lord was Dorothea, known as the Marchioness, race: Vampire.
Scorched Earth City housed many Vampires, so it kept many Blood Slaves. As a result, it tolerated Living Beings more than other Undead cities did. The many Living Beings who worshipped Death brought the city prosperity, but they also brought conflict.
For you, visiting Scorched Earth City for the first time, this place is full of opportunity.
As Hailuot browsed the overview of Scorched Earth City, figures streamed past him. They included Undead of various forms and Living Beings of various races, making it impossible to tell which were Players and which were so-called game NPCs.
This game is incredibly realistic.
Hailuot looked at the terrifying city before him and couldn't help marveling at its horror-themed design.
It felt like a real world!
【Scorched Earth City's public map has finished updating. Please explore non-public areas on your own】
Following the prompt, Hailuot found the map of Scorched Earth City.
He stood in the city's central plaza, where most facilities serving Players stood nearby.
The Necromancer Comprehensive Vocational Center was on the south side of the plaza.
As for Tibia Street...
At the western end of the city, an Urban District had been painted blood red and marked as the Living Beings' residential quarter.
The Vampire Castle, where the City Lord resided, was at the eastern end of the city.
After familiarizing himself with the city's layout, Hailuot put away the map and headed for the Necromancer Comprehensive Vocational Center.