"Young man, I have high hopes for you. Continue to work hard."
When young Baron Matt welcomed us, he tried his best to squeeze out a flattering smile that made me feel uncomfortable. It was as if he was a muscular gorilla trying to imitate a young girl's smile.
Alright then, this Baron Matt's physical characteristics were revealed. Apart from the fact that he wasn't covered in black fur, he was nothing more than a muscular gorilla that stood upright.
We followed the imperial envoy's arrangements perfectly. We only stayed at Baron Matt's residence for one night, but that was more than enough time for us to do many things, such as accepting bribes, accepting bribes, and extorting people.
There wasn't much time left. Young Baron Matt was quite tactful and directly got to the point. The Bardi National Bank's token money was already in front of us.
Due to the Bardi Empire's strong centralization of power, the Bardi Empire's gold coins had gradually been replaced by the more convenient fiduciary paper money. This small gift was two stacks of the highest denomination paper money in the Bardi Empire, which was equivalent to at least fifty to sixty thousand gold coins, which was more than enough to buy a medium-sized manor.
"… You're insulting my professional ethics."
Although I said this, my tone was abnormally calm, and I looked elsewhere. It was obvious that I didn't look him in the eye. My meaning was quite obvious — "How is this enough? Are you trying to get rid of a beggar? "
Baron Matt grit his teeth. He recalled that although he already had a Count's territory, due to the Bardi Parliament's obstruction, it had already been three years since the last application to increase his Count's rank.
If it wasn't for the assistance of a major figure in the Bardi Empire, he would probably remain a Baron for the rest of his life. If something happened, he wouldn't even be able to keep his territory and his descendants' inheritance.
Matt, who had once been an adventurer, could be said to have started from scratch. As a half-step Legend, he was a famous warrior within a hundred kilometers of the Bardi Empire. He and his companions had built up a considerable amount of wealth during their adventuring career, and as a Pioneer Knight, they had built up a territory from scratch. This could be considered a classic example of a salted fish turning over a new leaf and becoming famous.
Unfortunately, the nobles' tradition of valuing bloodline and family was deeply ingrained. Matt had never been able to remove the title of "Bumpkin" Baron from him. The Baron title that he bought didn't even have the right to inherit. His overly rich and vast territory was also coveted by the surrounding domain lords. All sorts of trouble had never stopped. Not having a title that matched his territory had always been his greatest weakness in the noble system.
After Orloss completed his reform of the noble laws, all promotions for Baron and above had to be approved by the capital's Noble Senate. Matt didn't have any military achievements to begin with, nor did he have any background. It would be impossible for him to be approved for a Count title. Matt had experienced the cruelty of war, and he didn't want to risk his life for the sake of his hard-earned and comfortable life. So, he could only slowly live out his days as a Baron.
He had also consulted with scholars who knew about noble heraldry and knew that his only hope was to seek refuge with a noble who could have a say in the capital. But if those great nobles were to take a liking to him, he probably wouldn't be ridiculed as a "bumpkin".
Matt was quite satisfied with being a noble. After all, he had outstanding personal strength and the heavy hammer he wielded. The nearby domain lords wouldn't dare to do anything to him. However, his son was getting older and older. If he couldn't get the right to inherit the title before he came of age, then this territory would be taken back by the Bardi Empire after he died. How could Matt, who had worked so hard to reach this point, be willing to give up?
Today, Baron Matt encountered a once-in-a-lifetime piece of good luck. The arrival of Rex, the imperial envoy, and Carolyn, the eldest daughter of Duke Matt, caused Baron Matt's burning ambition to become Earl Matt reignite in his heart.
He had already heard that high-level undead were even more useful in front of Emperor Roland than archdukes. As long as this lich helped him say a few words, this matter that seemed like a small matter to major nobles would instantly be resolved.
Matt was used to being stingy, so he felt pained when he saw that the imperial envoy Rex actually felt that his gift wasn't enough. After all, this meant that he would have to pay a large amount of money. But even more than that, he was delighted. At the very least, Rex was willing to accept his gift.
"… Why am I so cheap? Why am I so happy that someone is willing to accept my money?"
Of course, Matt definitely wouldn't show his annoyance and regret. He would rather bury this delight deep within his heart. In order to prevent himself from being viciously ripped off, Matt's expression was pained and annoyed. In fact, he even had an expression of hesitation and regret.
However, I laughed. As expected of a muscle-bound cannon fodder. He didn't even know how to act. If he was truly pained or hesitant, why didn't he just leave? The muscles on his face were about to twitch. His fake anger was as fake as it could be.
However, I didn't intend to expose him. Otherwise, how could I possibly obtain what I truly wanted?
"… Sincerity is the most important thing."
I thoughtfully glanced at the silver Myth-ranked war hammer at Matt's waist and smiled meaningfully. This time, there was no need to pretend anymore. Matt truly had a bitter expression.
[Epic Weapon: Undying Killer]
[Attack Power: 30 – 30]
[Special Effect 1, Undead Butcher: All undead that are hit by this attack have a certain chance of being instantly destroyed.]
[Special Effect 2, Divine Protection: Summon a golden holy domain that will resist the invasion of evil. Duration of 30 seconds. All who forcefully invade will receive 5 Holy Light damage per second.]
[Special Effect 3, Special Effect 4: Since the user isn't a warrior of the Gods, they cannot be activated.]
[There's a line of silver, twisted words on the hammer's handle: This war hammer once belonged to a true Holy Knight. Only a true Holy Knight will be able to utilize the full power of this war hammer. System Notification: Instead of being a Sword Saint, do you really want to be a Hammer Saint? Comrade Luo Dachui.]
I actually saw "Grave Robber's Notebook" and "18 Ways to Use the Luoyang Shovel" on the bookshelf. I instantly understood how this powerful commoner-born individual had obtained such a holy war hammer. At that moment, I even hesitated whether or not I should give this loyal fan of mine an autograph.
The moment I saw the name of this war hammer, I made up my mind to get my hands on it.
"… My name is Undying Killer, and this war hammer is called Undying Killer? This is so unlucky. I can sense the evil intentions of the world. Yep, after I obtain it, I'm going to give it to Heloise to eat. These abilities are perfect for her. "
As for whether or not Heloise, who used to have an undead body, would have a stomach ache from eating it, that was something I didn't even consider from the very start. At the very least, that holy sword "Pale Justice" contained the power of Holy Light, which made the past Heloise unable to eat it. This would be a perfect opportunity to see if she had become stronger after her evolution. I was still hoping that she would be able to continuously evolve and surpass a true God Equipment.
But then I suddenly thought about how it seemed rather strange to use a loli to chop people up. But then I remembered that she was a ten-thousand-year-old fake girl, so I instantly calmed down.
"Tremble, mortal, the Pink Rabbit Jam has gained a new ability. Undead, your end is nigh. Death isn't shameful. Dying in front of this God Equipment is true humiliation. Yep, tie two butterfly knots on the top of this club, draw a smiley face, and put a plush pink rabbit toy on it! "
I couldn't help but laugh out loud as I thought about how embarrassed and unwilling my enemies would be when they were beaten to death by this club. The lich's high-pitched soul voice echoed in the room, causing Matt to instinctively shiver. However, Heloise was the first to become dissatisfied.
"… If you dare to do such a thing, I'll dare to cancel my transformation while you're fighting against a strong enemy. At most, I'll go on camera completely naked and have your reputation as a demon beast king spread throughout the entire mortal plane!"
Alright then, thinking about how the mace I swung out suddenly transformed into a naked young girl, it felt rather … awkward. It would seem that the silly cat still needed to be taught a lesson. I temporarily gave up on this idea. Right now, the first thing I needed to do was to extort this extraordinary war hammer from her.
It seemed quite difficult to make a warrior hand over his personal weapon, not to mention that he was a top-level warrior who was half a step away from Legend rank. But the current Matt was no longer the warrior from five years ago. His peaceful and prosperous daily life had worn away his fighting spirit. His only hope was to obtain his own territory and noble title. And …
"As expected, you came here for this? I was wondering why an imperial envoy and a duke's daughter would come to such a remote territory like mine. It seems that I'll have to hand it over in order to protect my territory. "
In fact, Matt had long since realized that more than half of his reputation as an undead killer was due to this hammer. While his reputation was rising, when the undead became one of the main forces in this country, he would naturally attract a lot of inexplicable hostility and bring trouble upon himself.
This would be the same as wearing a Dragonslayer set of equipment and dragonskin armor in front of a dragon. It would definitely be the same as using your face to attract the attention of the undead. It would be strange if you didn't die.
"As expected, I can't avoid it? Perhaps it's a good thing to hand it over now! At the very least, I've made my attitude clear. "
Matt reluctantly glanced at the high-quality war hammer at his waist and carefully placed it on the ground. Of course, a lich wouldn't dare to touch this Holy War Hammer. Meanwhile, the female Knight behind the lich immediately picked up this heavy war hammer.
She couldn't help but fondle the war hammer lovingly. The moment that war hammer touched her, it began to glow silver and give off a mysterious aura of fighting spirit. Perhaps she felt that her old master had made her lonely for far too long, and she was looking forward to the day when she could return to the battlefield.
"A Holy Knight? No, how could a Knight who believes in the Holy Light possibly be together with a lich? She should be a Holy Samurai of some God. "
Matt soon forgot about his doubts. The most important thing was whether or not the lich would be satisfied with his sincerity, and whether or not he would be able to obtain the title of nobility.
In a sense, this was also the tragedy of a hero in his twilight years. To be able to start from scratch, he might have been fearless when he was young or young, but when he truly had a warm family and enough wealth, he lost the courage to fight and fight.
If he was still an adventurer, and a noble dared to steal his war hammer and the wealth in his pouch, he would have long since used the Tempest Hammer. As for those evil nobles who took bribes and bullied commoners, he would kill them one by one. If he occasionally met someone with a powerful background, he could also beat them up and run away.
This was the case for the Legend-ranked lich before him. If Matt had been in his prime, he would have dared to summon his comrades to help him slay the lich. But unfortunately, he now had to suck up to the lich and bribe him.
Sometimes life was so ironic. But now that he was in his prime, not only did he become a member of the nobility, he even voluntarily gave away his treasures. All he wanted was for the title of nobility, which he had looked down on in the past, to increase his status so that his wife and son could benefit from it.
Matt shook his head and tossed all these unnecessary thoughts to the back of his mind. There was nothing he could do if he missed this opportunity. The hot-blooded hero of the past did his best to recall how corrupt officials and evil merchants who he despised had tried to please others. He then did his best to smile and bend his knees even though he hadn't been hit by an arrow.
As for me, I only smiled and couldn't be bothered with all this. I simply indicated for Yawen to put away her war hammer.
"… It's good that you understand. If you also die, I'm willing to recommend you to become one of us. Right, you should know that Lady Carolyn is especially fond of adventure stories. She's especially fond of adventurer's notebooks and hand-drawn maps. These are treasures that she's always been looking for. If you have these, it won't be difficult for her to speak up for you. "
Adventurer's diaries were records of one's past adventures, as well as a symbol of one's past glory. But since I'd already given away the weapon that was my lifeblood, these mementos of my past glory wouldn't even count for much. Soon, I returned with a cart full of handwritten notes and geographical information.
Actually, these information, especially the hand-drawn maps from veteran adventurers, were my true goal. That war hammer of mine was only something I casually smashed down on the ground. Of course, if a real lich had been here, his first thought upon seeing this war hammer would probably have been to directly kill Matt.
Dispersing the members of Carolyn's entourage far too quickly would delay us from revealing ourselves, but it would also cause us to lose a guide. Of course, it wouldn't be much of a problem if we just followed the predetermined path, but it would be far from enough to satisfy my goal. Nobody would be willing to only use the underground tunnels to escape.
Being a "competent" young miss, it would be a miracle if Carolyn had any knowledge of the geography of the country or had a map with her at all times. However, in this era, maps and city coordinates were actually classified military secrets. Even drawing and studying maps required specialized talents, something that was extremely difficult to obtain among the commoners.
However, I knew that there was a certain special job class that would try their best to obtain the most comprehensive map possible. In fact, they would even have secret paths and paths that weren't on the official map. They would even mark out the threat level of each location and things to take note of, making it easy to use.
Yep, I didn't even need to guess. Of course they were professional adventurers who didn't have a fixed residence. In terms of mobility, there were probably very few job classes that could compare to them. Not only would they not bring a map, a compass, or any information support, but they wouldn't even bring enough food and water to go on an adventure. That wouldn't be an adventure — it would be suicide.
A veteran adventurer's personal adventure journal and map would be far more detailed than any official information source. I wanted to obtain a copy at all costs in order to help me escape if I was hunted down in the future.
By the way, since every adventurer's personal adventure journal was vastly different, their adventurer's journal would focus on completely different things. For example, a certain dragon's journal was basically filled with travel notes about wine, food, and food, as well as maps of each location's harvest. It would definitely be a treasure that any drunkard would desire.
Due to certain special reasons, my personal travel journal was basically an account that intentionally minimized emotional elements. Although there was a tremendous amount of information, it was boring and tasteless. Just reading it would make me want to sleep.
A gnome adventurer's journal could be used as a guide for local merchants, while a beastman adventurer's journal was filled with fighting and killing. As for Adam … how could a musclehead like him possibly have the brains to write a journal?
Although the Matt in front of me was also a musclehead, it seemed that his wife, who was also an adventurer, was quite meticulous. Her diary was very detailed, and there were many records about legends and history, which just so happened to be what I urgently needed to add.
Of course, I didn't lie to this rather old former adventurer. At the very least, I didn't give him a single promise. I simply accepted his gift. It was all his own misunderstanding … Alright then, seeing how he was so understanding, I indeed casually told Carolyn that she would be able to take care of such a small matter with a single note. All that mattered was that she would be able to return to the Empire's capital … As for why I wasn't so sure, that was because based on the current situation, it was highly likely that she would elope with Lilith.
After making such a huge profit, I was still sitting down and making plans for my future when the silly cat suddenly came looking for me. She had a rare serious expression on her face.
"Roland, there's something that you need to take a look at. This time, they're playing quite big. It could be said that they're even more overboard than you were back in the day. "
…
There was a large empty area in Baron Matt's residence's backyard. Large amounts of grains were piled there, and in one of the storerooms, Heloise wanted to show me the grains that could be found anywhere.
The golden wheat still had the frost of winter on it, and it was quite cold to the touch. However, in my eyes, there was nothing different about it.
"What's the matter? Is there something wrong with this? "
"Don't you feel that there's something wrong with the grains that we've been eating recently? They have a special sweet taste. I originally thought that it was a special taste caused by the water and soil here, so I came to take a look at the situation with the grains, but … "
I opened the storeroom and tore open the ears of the wheat. I placed the grains in front of me and slowly chewed on them, carefully tasting them …
"… There's indeed a special sweet taste, but it's also somewhat familiar. It's just like, just like …"
Even though it was already on the tip of my tongue, I couldn't remember what it was.
"Kasolan's Tears?"
"Yep! That's the taste … wait a moment, Kasolan's Tears! That's the best way to touch upon undead magic! "
Heloise transformed into her human form and twisted the golden grains in her hand, transforming them into a fine powder. She then used a series of equipment to purify the powder, add some supplementary ingredients, stir, and combine them. In the end, all that was left at the bottom of the bottle was some grayish-black liquid.
She handed it to me, and I drank it all in one gulp. I could feel the slightly excited power of death in my body, which was my conclusion.
"There's no mistaking it. This is the taste of Kasolan's Tears. I've replenished all the mana I used while carrying those skeletons earlier in the day. This bottle of Kasolan's Blessing is at least an excellent potion. This Kasolan's Tears is of an excellent quality. "
Kasolan's Tears were by themselves non-toxic and harmless. However, potions made from its main ingredient were the favorite of undead mages. Kasolan's Blessing was an excellent potion for recovering death magic. It could also gradually change the drinker's physique and increase their control over undead magic. It was basically the favorite of undead mages.
Pure Kasolan's Tears had long since become a forbidden product of the Holy Church. Not only that, it was difficult to cultivate them. If all the food here had been contaminated by it, then it definitely wouldn't be a coincidence. I could faintly sense the existence of a massive scheme.
Perhaps Kasolan's Tears by itself weren't poisonous, but it was one of the best ways to touch upon undead magic. Many powerful spells and forbidden spells would contain Kasolan's Tears. I absolutely refused to believe that the mastermind behind this scheme would use so much Kasolan's Tears just to improve the taste of the grains.
"Has all the grains here been contaminated? Damn it, is that undead mage so insane? What does he intend to do? "
However, Heloise shook her head.
"I've already asked around. These grains were all just harvested from the surrounding fields. Apart from the farmers, no one else has touched them. They even just entered the warehouses yesterday …"
"How is that possible? Wait a moment, could it be the source …?"
I had an expression of astonishment and disbelief. If what I guessed was true, then this would be far too much of a grand scheme.
"Yes, I've already asked around. These grains are all high-quality seeds from the capital. The average harvest is twice as high as before, and they're all over the country now. Many people have been eating these grains for more than ten years already."
Eating Kasolan's Tears for more than ten years meant that this person's affinity with undead magic had reached an incredible level. Were they intending to mass-produce undead mages? No, there was another possibility. This was a secret technique passed down among high-level undead mages.
Heloise had obviously guessed at this possibility as well, but she appeared rather hesitant. After all, such a conclusion would be far too insane.
"… You should know that undead mages who consume Kasolan's Tears for a long period of time are more than twice as likely to transform into high-level creatures that retain their intelligence after death."
"Damn it! That madman would actually do such a thing. "
"… It's said that all Undead Emperors are insane. I didn't believe it before, but now I do."
The game's storyline only mentioned that the Bardi Empire would rapidly fall into the hands of the Undead Calamity. I never expected that there would be so many twists and turns. If the Undead Calamity was activated here, the entire Bardi Empire would become a land of the undead. Just how insane would someone be to do such a thing?
[Congratulations for triggering the Epic Side Quest: Why is there a Resident Evil in another world as well?]
[The "Zombies" series of achievements have been unlocked. You've exchanged for special gunpowder weapons for fighting zombies. Enjoy the fun of playing Resident Evil in a magical fantasy world.]
[System Notification: I'm really impressed. You didn't activate the main quest, but instead activated the hidden Side Quest. If you don't want this fantasy adventure to become a Resident Evil Apocalypse, hurry up and go to the Cloud Tower to accept the main quest!]
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
