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Chapter 12: The Return of the Sword King (3)

Those red dots were no ordinary red dots. They were intense beams of light reminiscent of the eyes of a beast. But Henry was also someone who could make the nobles tremble with his eyes alone.

“Hector Meyer!”

The moment Henry called out, the red dots began to shake. As it was written in the book of necromancy, the dead man started to regain his memories upon hearing his name. A chill leaked out from the crack of the Underworld, before a silhouette slowly emerged from it like a shadow.

It was the dead Sword King, Hector Meyer.

Hector’s eyes remained closed.

“Hector?” Henry carefully called out his name once more.

Hector’s eyes shot open. Like a corpse that had been revived, his eyes lit up with a glare like the full moon.

He spoke.

- It’s been a while since I’ve breathed fresh air.

He had the demeanor of a newly released prisoner, taking in his surroundings. He soon noticed his engagement ring in Henry’s hand.

- That ring… where did you get it?

“I’ve had it all along. Long time no see, Sir Hector.”

- When did we ever meet? You’re a new face to me.

Hector knew that he was dead, and the man that stood before him was clearly too young to have met him before his death. Hector was confident that they had no formerly established relationship, but the man had still somehow come into possession of his engagement ring. This unsettled Hector.

“Of course we met. We had quite the relationship. It’s been a while, so let me reintroduce myself. It’s me, Henry.”

.

Hector tilted his head.

- Henry? Are you talking about the wizard Henry?

“That’s right.”

Despite hearing that it was Henry who possessed his ring, Hector was still visibly uncomfortable. Henry was the one who had killed him, after all.

- You’re taking this joke too far. You bear no resemblance to the Henry I know, as far as I can remember. Why are you impersonating him?

“It’s a long story. Do you really still need an old-fashioned explanation, even with this kind of evidence?”

Hector obviously could not believe what he was seeing. But as Henry suggested, his possession of the ring was quite convincing on its own. Hector looked in deep thought as he considered the possibilities. Seeing this, Henry said, “There’s no need for you to contemplate so much. I’m the Henry that you know. I experienced death and was resurrected. And by black magic, no less.”

- I see.

Hector did not seem to doubt Henry’s words. He recognized Henry’s personality, which had stayed the same from his previous life.

“The world has changed a lot. Shortly after your death, we achieved continental unification.” Henry explained.

- Oh, that’s welcoming news. I was curious about what happened on your side.

“It only sounds good on the surface. We built an empire and became heroes, but I was executed by the son of Golden, the Golden that you once defeated.”

- Golden’s son? That means he’s the current emperor, huh?

“An incompetent tyrant.”

Hector laughed.

- To hear that the enemy was from within, and that you, the hero, were killed by an incompetent tyrant. My death was a waste.

It sounded like a light-hearted joke, but in fact, it was a bitter criticism. It was a shameful fact, but Henry coolly admitted to his misfortune.

“You’re right. I was so angry and upset that I couldn’t sleep. But look at me now. The opportunity for revenge has come to me once again, has it not?”

- Is that why you summoned me? To join forces and rip that bastard’s head off?

“It would be great if we could, but unfortunately, I’m not capable of resurrecting you.”

- Then why did you summon me? Surely not to gloat about your own resurrection.

“Teach me swordsmanship.”

- What?

Hector looked puzzled for a moment at the unexpected request.

- I must have lived too long to… oh wait, I’m dead. Anyway, what a ridiculous request. Aren’t you a wizard?

“By sheer coincidence, this new body of mine comes from a long bloodline of knights. It has sufficient magic, I have already reached the rank of a mage. In this lifetime, I’m interested in swordsmanship as well.”

Hector chuckled.

- To think, the wizard who killed me would end up asking me to teach him swordsmanship.

Henry stared at Hector with nervousness in his eyes. He had yet to reveal his true intentions.

“If you need an apology for what happened in the past, I will apologize.”

- Apology? What apology?

“Regarding the war.”

- What?

Hearing Henry’s answer, Hector burst into laughter once again.

Henry stared at Hector as if something was amiss.

- You’re a much more emotional chap than I thought. Look. Back then, as you said, we were at war. But I stayed loyal to the Emperor, and I protected his daughter’s honor. I was a knight who died proudly on the battlefield, so why would I hate you?

“I see… I guess I was worried for nothing.”

- You wizards have always been known for being too worrisome, even since ancient times. But that aside, I didn’t know you had a hobby of collecting mementos.

“It’s not a memento, it was something I kept in your honor.”

- In my honor? You’re cracking me up. Are you sure you’re a wizard and not a poet? Or maybe a bard?

“You’re the man who defeated Golden. And you were a formidable swordsman in your own right. Those are more than enough reasons to honor you.”

- You’re not just an emotional one, but a pretty dramatic one as well, huh?

“You’re worthy of that much. After all, weren’t you the Sword King?”

- Pfft! A name given to me only after my death!

It was a bit of lip service. Henry knew he had to flatter Hector a little bit to make him consider the request.

- Fine. I’ll grant your request. But I can’t just teach you for free.

“I already expected there to be a price. What is it that you want?”

- Great that we’re on the same page.

“So, what is it?”

- I want to live like you.

“...?”

- It’s exactly as I said. I, too, have many regrets left from my past life. You’re a great wizard and have already experienced one resurrection, so it should be easy to bring me back to life too, shouldn’t it?

Henry knew that the dead were obsessed with being brought back to life, but he never expected Hector to put forward such a condition so directly. After thinking for a while, Henry decided to be truthful.

“That’s a little difficult.”

- Then let’s pretend there was no deal. It’s you who’s going to lose out, after all.

“I see… I suppose there’s nothing I can do then. I’ll have to look for another way. It’s been fun catching up, albeit briefly.”

- Huh? Huh?

Seeing how quickly Henry gave up on the deal, Hector was noticeably flustered. Noticing Hector’s reaction, Henry quickly capitalized on it.

“Something wrong?”

- N-no! Don’t be like that, I just want you to resurrect me, the same way you did for yourself. If you can do that, then I’ll not only teach you swordsmanship, I will help you fulfill your revenge against the emperor.

“Thanks for the offer, but you see, I was resurrected by chance. All I can do for now is summon the souls of the dead.”

- Nonsense!

“As you said, it’s me who is getting the shorter end of the stick. What would I gain from lying?”

- That’s true but… urgh…

“It’s not that I don’t know what you want. But necromancy and resurrections are completely different types of magic. Besides, I currently lack the knowledge of black magic. I can’t afford to gamble with your life when there’s only one of you.”

Henry’s honesty caused Hector’s expression to darken further.

- I see…

But the dead’s obsession with life was too powerful for Hector to let it go.

- Is there really no other way? If I return to the Underworld this time, I don’t know how long I’ll be stuck in that gloomy darkness again.

“Looks like the realm of the dead is… a more terrifying place than I thought.”

- So please help me! I prayed to God my entire life, but there’s no such thing as God. After my death, there was only endless darkness and despair.

Hector was not alone in this experience. Henry himself had been very close to this eternal darkness as well. He could not help but feel pity towards his old friend, who was trembling in fear. After thinking for a long while, Henry gave his answer.

“Then let’s do this.”

- H-have you found a-another way?

“I don’t know if it’s possible. As you already know, there’s no such thing as a complete resurrection. I achieved the 8th Circle, but even I could not solve the mysteries of resurrection and immortality. But with black magic, the story might be a little different.”

- Keep going.

“Have you heard of necromancers?”

- Necromancers?

To Hector, who was unfamiliar with black magic, ‘necromancer’ was a new word. Even Henry was new to the concept. Information about the original necromancer was so rare that it was only passed down via word of mouth.

“Rumor has it that necromancers have the power to bring the dead back to life by turning them into the Undead.”

- The Undead? Aren’t they the work of the Liches?

“They’re similar, but a little different. Liches seek eternal life through death. They can only lead a false life, within a restricted area.”

- Then what about necromancers?

“They may look like Liches, but they are definitely human. If I had to use the ranks of wizards to compare, I’d say they’d fare around the rank of a mage. And they should be able to resurrect you as an Undead.”

- Are you telling me to become an Undead?

“That’s just the first step. If we keep going down this path, we may be able to find an answer to your resurrection.”

Of course, Hector’s body would have completely rotted at that point. Henry would be lucky to even find Hector’s ashes. But, becoming an Undead was not entirely a bad thing.

“Think carefully. Wouldn’t you rather be in this world as an Undead, rather than be trapped in eternal darkness again?”

Hector considered Henry’s proposal carefully. But the truth was, he had no choice.

- You’re right, being an Undead is better than being stuck in that darkness. But!

“But what?”

- Never forget your promise! If you break your promise, I will curse you to death! Swear to me now.

“Pfft, a knight talking about curses. Stop worrying so much, I’ll keep my promise.”

Even though Hector was the Sword King, not specialized in magic, Henry wondered what kind of curse the remnants of necromancy could conjure.

Just as Henry accepted the promise…

“Mm?”

Red light began to radiate from Hector’s engagement ring that Henry still held in his hand.

- I’ve placed a curse into the ring. I have nothing else right now, so I had to do this. Don’t take it too personally.

Henry had never seen something like this before. He never would have thought that a powerless dead being could cast a curse in such a manner. For a moment, Henry could not help but frown, but he quickly regained his composure.

“I understand. So, I’ll summon you every night when the full moon rises, and I will be under your guidance.”

- Sure, I’ll pass on everything I know to you. No need to procrastinate, let’s start the training right away.

Hector displayed fierce enthusiasm. It was to be expected, considering how he had spent all the time since his death in pitch-black darkness.

‘So this is why they said black magic was dangerous.’

Unlike the enthusiastic Hector, Henry grimly realized the dangers of black magic. But he was not afraid. He knew very well that such a curse held no meaning as long as he kept his promise.