I Became The Academy Necromancer

The severed neck of the Ancient Dragon lay with its tongue hanging out, blocking a side path next to the sewer.

The moment I saw the cold body of the Ancient Dragon, numerous thoughts crossed my mind.

“W-What happened?!”

Xiao Hu, beside me, shouted in panic, her voice echoing throughout the sewer.

There are others here.

We weren’t the only ones in the sewer. However, the speed at which they were escaping was too fast to even think about chasing them.

Ultimately, I was helpless in situations like this.

I need to find a way.

I couldn’t always stand by and watch my enemies run away without doing anything.

“Great Ancient Dragon! Great Ancient Dragon!”

The opponents who just fled could have easily killed someone like Xiao Hu if they felt like it.

The young girl, not even aware of the danger hanging her own life at that moment, wept as she embraced the Ancient Dragon’s head.

Although it was called an Ancient Dragon, at its core, it was a guardian deity and a spiritual being.

Instead of being swept away or sinking in the underground sewer, the massive corpse was slowly dissipating into a cluster of light.

Being a guardian deity, it must have had quite a bit of power.

Starting with the fact that it was killed so easily, if the corpse retained its original form, it was likely that some semblance of consciousness remained.

Yet, it said nothing.

Or is it concentrating on something else to the point where it can’t say anything?

What could it be looking at, even as its death drew near?

I felt my curiosity piqued as I observed the Ancient Dragon’s corpse.

***

“While you assumed that they’re invincible, in fact, there are multiple ways to kill a guardian deity.”

We had left the underground sewer and returned to the Lanlan Diner.

The sun began to rise outside the window before I knew it, signaling the start of a new day.

Even though I had been on the move all night without proper rest, I didn’t actually feel fatigued since this was an artificial body.

In fact, I couldn’t even fall asleep in this body. However, if I kept moving without any rest, I would accumulate mental fatigue and would need to close my eyes at least for a few hours.

It could be seen as a form of meditation.

While Xiao Hu served the tea, I noticed the hatred reflected in her eyes as she paid close attention to my words.

The intense killing intent emanating from the teacup made it quite obvious.

This girl had little talent as an assassin.

But this was an artificial body.

I drank the tea, regardless of whether it was poisoned or not, and continued speaking.

“A guardian deity. Just like the word suggested, their power diminishes significantly once they lose the home they protect.”

“…Don’t you feel any pain?”

“I don’t know what poison you used, but don’t do it again. It ruins the taste.”

“Are you some kind of sage?”

Astonished Xiao Hu by my nonchalant reaction, Xiao Hu looked at me incredulously. However, I continued speaking while my chin rested on my hand.

“However, the term ‘home’ is just a label and isn’t really limited to a specific location.”

Setima’s Angel, who wreaked havoc at the academy, was one of the best examples.

When she acted for the souls of Setima, she displayed overwhelming power, but when she went against the desires of those souls, she was powerless.

“What was the Ancient Dragon protecting?”

At my question, Xiao Hu stared at me blankly before replying honestly.

“I-I don’t know.”

“…”

“W-was it protecting us, the yokai?! You killed them, so its power disappeared—!”

“If that were the case, it wouldn’t have sent all of you to me in the first place.”

The Ancient Dragon tried to cut off its tail, known as yokai, to avoid getting involved with me.

If that was the reason its power had vanished, it would have probably confronted me directly.

Even Xiao Hu didn’t know what the Ancient Dragon had been protecting.

She might have assumed it was the land itself, but considering that it died without even putting up a proper fight, that didn’t seem to be the case either.

Right now, the land was peacefully welcoming another day just like any other.

No…

The one who killed the guardian deity…

While it sounded easy to say, killing a guardian deity was actually unimaginably difficult.

For starters, there was nothing like that in the original game, as the Han Empire didn’t appear in it at all.

Still, it was quite a bold move.

The opponent killed the guardian deity right nose my nose and leisurely slipped away.

It was a remarkably discreet and swift action; even I noticed them only after I arrived at the sewer.

They are quite clever.

I wondered whether this event simply occurred by chance while I happened to be passing through the city or if it was intentionally orchestrated for me to take notice.

Additionally, there were various aspects that bothered me.

“I will also take revenge for the Great Ancient Dragon.”

At that moment, Xiao Hu beside me declared firmly. To take revenge for the yokai, she needed to kill me, and to take revenge for the Ancient Dragon, she needed to kill the mysterious entity.

And so, in this short time, the girl made an ambitious resolution to an absurd extent.

However, Xiao Hu looked quite serious.

“Now I have no place to go nor do I have yokai I am close with.”

“…”

It seemed that the girl, who was maturing through tragedy, was about to follow me closely.

***

“Huh? Where are you going?”

Early morning.

Deia stepped out of the mansion, carrying a bundle filled with various foods.

Findenai, who had been smoking a cigarette outside the mansion since morning, asked upon noticing her.

“To the mountain. I have to offer the tributes.”

Deia offered tributes to the Norseweden Mountain Lord once a month.

While she would also place flowers on the gravestone of Emily, the girl who had been trapped in the mansion’s basement, in the past, she no longer felt the need to do so now that she knew Emily had departed.

Because the girl who would have received them had already gone to the Land of Eternal Rest.

“Huff, I’ll accompany you.”

With Snow White, which she was leaning against, swung over her shoulder, Findenai followed Deia.

She was no longer wearing a maid’s uniform but a rather simple coat and shirt that she had worn during her days with the Scrapyard Nomads.

“Why do you…?”

“Remember that tiger who helped me when I returned from the Republic?”

“Ah…”

She clearly remembered that as it occurred towards the end of summer vacation at Lobern Academy last year.

When Deus Verdi had made a brief return to Norseweden, Findenai heard that Doberman was rallying the resistance in the Republic and decided to check it out. She was almost killed during that incident.

And it was the Mountain Lord who had dealt with the extermination units who had entered the Norseweden Mountain Range and brought her back.

“I just realized that I never got the chance to thank him.”

“Then don’t smoke until we get there. I am really fond of that strong smell.”

“You remind me of someone.”

With a bitter smile, Findenai extinguished her cigarette and continued to follow Deia.

The two had grown surprisingly close since the day they drank together.

Perhaps it was because they shared a drink while longing for the same person that their hearts had drawn closer.

However, a strange question popped up in Findenai’s mind.

After they got somewhat close to the mountain range, she stuffed one hand deep into her pocket and asked.

“By the way, you don’t like Deus in a romantic way, do you?”

“…?!”

It was a completely unexpected and out-of-place question.

Deia was about to ask what she meant, but on meeting Findenai’s crimson eyes, she saw she was being serious.

“I mean, the two of you are siblings, but the way you talk about him says otherwise.”

“Then… what does it seem like?”

Deia asked timidly, and Findenai brushed off the white snow on her shoulder as she replied.

“Forbidden love?”

“Damn it!”

Deia’s face immediately turned beet red as she yelled, her voice echoing through the mountain range, sending the startled birds into the sky.

Findenai, standing right next to her, showed no reaction.

“Me? Him? Are you crazy! We are siblings, you crazy bitch!”

“But he’s Kim Shinwoo.”

“No, that’s…!”

Deia was about to continue her rant, but Findenai’s remark made her stop, as if there was something stuck in her throat.

“In the end, he’s Kim Shinwoo.”

“…”

Deia slowly closed her mouth.

She pondered over how to explain it to her, then hastened her steps and forged ahead.

“So what? He’s still Deus, you crazy bitch! His body is Deus! Do you think I’d get all hot and bothered by looking at that bastard’s face like you do?!”

“Hmm?”

“He’s my older brother! He’s my foolish second brother!”

“Well, okay.”

Findenai, who decided not to press further, replied vaguely, but perhaps that bothered Deia even more, as she frowned and abruptly turned away.

“Why does it sound like you’re not convinced, huh?”

“I believe you—sort of.”

“What do you mean ‘sort of’? Just say it properly!”

Deia raised her voice, determined to keep explaining until Findenai accepted it completely.

A chilly wind swept through the trees of the mountain range, hitting the two of them.

Then, a sudden gust of wind blew in.

Accompanying it was the figure of a giant white tiger.

While the two were momentarily taken aback by the unexpectedly early arrival of the Mountain Lord, Deia immediately began to unpack the bundle she brought.

.

“Here’s this month’s tribute—”

[Deia Verdi.]

The Mountain Lord’s heavy voice resounded with a serious tone, but there was an odd sense of urgency mixed in it.

“Yes?”

Taken aback as it was the first time he had directly called for her, Deia could not hide her surprise.

[Where is Deus?]

The straightforward question pierced the hearts of both Deia and Findenai.

“We don’t know either.”

“He’s missing.”

While it was understandable to ask, the timing felt somewhat odd.

It had been three months since Deus had disappeared. If he were going to ask, he should have done so much earlier.

The Mountain Lord sighed as he slowly gazed at the two of them.

[Are you aware that there exist several other guardian deities like me on this continent?]

“Like Horua from the Marias Great Forest?”

Having already experienced something like this through the Great Warrior, Findenai answered easily and the Mountain Lord nodded.

[Right. And recently, there are those going around hunting these guardian deities.]

“…”

As soon as she heard this, Deia was overwhelmed by anxiety, realizing they should not get involved in this matter carelessly.

They were hunting beings of the level of the Mountain Lord, who stood before them exuding an overwhelming sense of intimidation?

She immediately understood that she did not want to get entangled in this.

[They come for me at any moment.]

The Mountain Lord spoke with a tone that was quite firm yet somewhat desperate.

[Two years ago, I made a deal with Deus when I brought down that woman who crossed over the mountain range.]

“Ah, crap.”

As if remembering some dark history, Findenai smacked her face with her hand.

For a moment, she wondered what would happen if she fought against the Mountain Lord now.

[And I also protected that woman at Deus Verdi’s request.]

Referring to the incident where Findenai had safely returned from the Clark Republic thanks to him, the Mountain Lord continued.

[Now that Deus Verdi is absent, it’s your duty, as his kin, to fulfill the contract.]

“…”

[Protect my home.]

***

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