The instant the wind raised by the shaman vanished, the Shaiov spores covered the Goblin group. They were seized by madness and began indiscriminate slaughter, striking one another and reducing their own numbers.
“Kill them all!”
At my command, Baluka laughed and rushed out.
It was very simple to cut off the breath of bastards flopping on the ground or rampaging in madness.
Baluka stabbed their necks again and again with his daggers as if frost were forming over them, and Karkash swung his axe without rest. I was with them as well, having received Flambeju back from Baluka.
We hunted Shaiov without rest.
There was no need to risk our lives. We only had to cut off the breath of things whose minds were half gone.
―Necromantic Secret Art: Tendrils of Black Darkness.
When Abdul used the necromantic secret art in succession, the remaining creatures barely clinging to life also fell to the ground.
The Shaiov could not control their desire for revenge and resisted to the end instead of fleeing.
The Goblins could not escape their hallucinations and fought desperately, like heroes fighting a Demon King. Against one another.
Shaiov and Goblin corpses piled up like a mountain. At a rough estimate, there seemed to be over 1,000.
Since the poison mist had disappeared, I handed the Necronomicon to Abdul.
―Thank you, Master.
Only when the Necronomicon absorbed blood could Abdul freely use necromantic secret arts. He roamed the battlefield while holding the book, and each time he did, the soaked scene dried up.
After feeding blood to the Necronomicon, Abdul moved the remaining corpses to the Dead-Spirit Realm and stacked them neatly.
When he had handled half the corpses, Abdul said to me,―……The Dead-Spirit Realm is full, Master.
The surroundings were relatively clean.
Karkash and Baluka were gathering the corpses scattered everywhere into one place.
I called them all together.
“Baluka, guard these until we return from Azif.”
***
“Ugh!”
Carlton looked as if he might clutch the back of his neck.
It was because of the mountain of corpses piled up in the backyard of the Veronica Mercenary Office. Most were Poison Goblins and Shaiov, and a few other monsters were mixed in as well.
“There are still more left, so please wait a few days.”
“More left? How much?”
“About the same amount as this. What is the market price for Shaiov and Poison Goblins?”
“Shaiov are 30 silver, and Poison Goblins are 20 silver. The request sheet says 10 silver per nose, but there is a mage who wants Goblin corpses, so I will count them at 20 silver per body. ……I am short on cash, so may I write you a check?”
Branch Manager Carlton’s voice had become considerably more polite.
“Doesn’t exchanging checks require a fee?”
“There is no fee when exchanging them through the Veronica Mercenary Company.”
At one time, the Veronica Mercenary Company had united all mercenary companies in the Rubalt Kingdom. Though it had split apart after Mercenary King Veronica’s death, even now, it ranked among the top 3 in the Rubalt Kingdom.
“Then please do that.”
“Wait just a moment.”
Carlton wrote me a check, and it was worth a full 100 gold. Besides that, he also gave me 7 gold coins and 80 silver coins. In total, it was 107 gold and 80 silver.
With my pockets growing heavy, my heart felt reassured as well. With this money, I felt I could live comfortably even if I went to the city.
The mercenaries’ gazes toward me changed. Not long ago, they had treated me like a brat, but now, they all looked up to me. It was because I had subjugated not only Poison Goblins but also Shaiov, and before that, I had distinguished myself against the barbarians.
“Let’s go, Karkash.”
―Go! Run!
Karkash, who was carrying me on his shoulders, turned back along the path we had come.
As he ran, he hunted beasts or monsters and ate them alive. It was to absorb life force and maintain his summoned state.
I had sent Abdul Alhazard back into the Necronomicon. Unlike Baluka, he did not have any resistance to releasing his summoning. It was because he returned not to Hell, but to his own space.
As I dozed while holding onto Karkash’s head, before I knew it, I faintly heard Flambeju’s shout.
―You lunatic! Master told you to guard those corpses, not increase the number of corpses!
Flambeju had noticed my approach. The sacred object had resonated with me.
―Master, stop him. This one has gone completely mad!
The teenage boy drenched in blood looked back at me and gave an innocent smile.
It was the expression of a puppy hoping to be praised.
“You worked hard, Baluka.”
―Thank you, Master.
When I stroked Baluka’s head, Flambeju looked back and forth between me and Baluka, then turned sulky.
―One corpse~, twoo~, threee~, fooour~.
It seemed speaking in a singsong voice when getting old was universal across all nations.
Abdul Alhazard, whose skin had grown taut and who had transformed into the appearance of a young man in his twenties, hummed the words as he moved corpses into the Dead-Spirit Realm.
Karkash piled the monster corpses Baluka had additionally hunted on one side, and beneath them lay the Necronomicon.
The more blood the Necronomicon absorbed, the younger Abdul Alhazard became, and his body grew firmer.
Abdul, with his dark skin, had a thick, curled beard, and his eyebrows and pupils were especially dark. His limbs and body were on the long side, and though his movements were slow, they were efficient. He looked as if he produced maximum efficiency with minimum movement.
Abdul, who had been storing corpses, approached me with around 200 corpses left.
―The Dead-Spirit Realm is full. It seems it is time to expand the Dead-Spirit Realm.
“You can expand it?”
―There is nothing I cannot do if there are enough sacrifices. If Master permits it.
Perhaps thanks to the overflowing sacrifices, Abdul looked more excited than ever before.
The Necronomicon had swollen after being soaked in blood, and it was moist as if it could not give up a single drop of blood.
There were roughly 3 things that could be done by giving sacrifices to the Necronomicon.
One was making new necromantic secret arts appear in the Necronomicon. Another was realizing powerful arts among the secret arts Abdul Alhazard had learned. The last was receiving information about the world from the Akashic Records.
“I permit it.”
Abdul Alhazard bowed lightly, then began drawing in the air with his staff.
He had created a magic circle around the twisted space leading to the Dead-Spirit Realm. Blood and magic power were mobilized for all of it, and Abdul, who had looked to be in his twenties, had already changed to appear around his early thirties.
Just from Abdul’s appearance, I could estimate the amount of sacrifices the Necronomicon had accumulated.
When the secret art was finally completed, Abdul nodded to me and gathered the remaining corpses.
Once the corpses that had filled the forest vanished cleanly, it felt as if peace had arrived.
We lit a fire and prepared a meal in the place that had been overflowing with blood and corpses until moments ago.
“Are there no healing-type necromantic secret arts?”
―Of course there are. Not only soul and will, but also the flesh is a field deeply handled in necromantic secret arts. Crossing the boundary between life and death can be called the essence of necromantic secret arts. Life Force Absorption can also be called a healing-type necromantic secret art.
Life Force Absorption was premised on another’s death. Even if it did not necessarily kill, it stole vitality and drew the target close to death.
If I did something like that while living among other people, I would end up branded a demon.
“Does that mean resurrection of the dead is possible too?”
―If there are enough sacrifices.
At that moment, the Holy Sword burst out with a sword cry.
WOOOOONG!
―Do not even dream of such a thing!
Flambeju approached me and thrust his face close, but I asked Abdul over his shoulder,“If I were to do it, would I be the first?”
―Maaasteeer!
Flambeju’s reaction was intense.
It meant he did not want to accept absolutely everything just because it might be a great Achievement.
“If I pick and choose too much, I cannot become the greatest. Sometimes, you have to see blood and even join hands with demons to survive.”
That was the way I had lived.
However, Flambeju did not understand my words at all. He fumed and resented me with his eyes, and I did not want to do something Flambeju opposed so strongly either. Because he was my benefactor who had brought me to this world.
“Fine, I understand. We will exclude that side.”
―It is a promise! Swear it!
“Yes, I promise.”
Flambeju snapped his head around and glared at Abdul.
―If I had known he was such an insidious bastard, I would have found Master myself, no matter how difficult it was!
Abdul could not see Flambeju’s spirit, but he could hear his voice. Not only that, those subordinated to me could hear one another’s words.
―That would not have been possible. Finding one person suited to a sacred object on the vast Earth would not be as easy as saying it. It would truly be something magical, so you would not have found him without that being’s help.
“You mean the one who found me was Yog……?”
Remembering Abdul’s warning, I did not pronounce the name Yog-Sothoth to the end.
Abdul merely nodded instead of answering.
It was clear that the cosmic existence called Yog-Sothoth had interfered in my life, but there was nothing I could do right now.
We set out again, ran through the night, and arrived at the Barony of Azif.
The baron, who had learned of our approach in advance, sent out a welcoming crowd. He sent the territory’s residents and soldiers. And at their front was Branch Manager Carlton.
News that I had single-handedly subjugated the Poison Goblin tribe and the Shaiov swarm spread all across the Azif territory.
The children who followed me around grinned broadly, rejoicing and feeling proud as if it were their own accomplishment.
Branch Manager Carlton’s attitude toward me at the mercenary office also became much gentler.
“There is someone who wants Poison Goblin corpses, but they say they only need 100. Goblin corpses are useless, so I will dispose of the rest for you.”
“Thank you, Carlton.”
People burst into cheers when they saw the monster corpses poured out at the mercenary office.
It was because the rumor of the subjugation had been proven true. If they had remained around the Barony of Azif, it was certain they would have invaded at any time and slaughtered the territory’s people.
After entering the office while receiving people’s welcome, Carlton chased away the troublesome crowd and locked the door.
“Was there nothing that came out after killing the shaman?”
Carlton seemed to have discovered the shaman among the Goblin corpses.
It was a horrifying corpse split in two, and unlike the others, it was small and had tattoos carved all over its body.
I had swept up every single thing that seemed to be worth money from the Goblin settlement. Even iron was traded at a high price, so I had gathered all the small scraps of metal as well.
Since I had to handle all of them, I appropriately matched Carlton’s mood.
“There was a staff, a ring, and a necklace.”
“Ooh! Can you show them to me?”
“I happened to need an appraisal anyway, so that works out.”
I took the items out of the Dead-Spirit Realm.
“No matter how many times I see it, it is fascinating. An artifact with such a remarkable ability. By any chance…….”
He was suspecting a sacred object or a demonic object.
“How could that be? There are only 17 sacred objects in the Rubalt Kingdom.”