Chapter 251 Vigilance (Happy New Year!!)
An ice-cold and withered ancient tone echoed in the silent hall. A skeleton with soul fire burning in its eye sockets stood quietly in place, as if awaiting a response from the master on the throne.
The young girl sitting on the throne seemed not to hear, silently playing with a small energy knife constructed from death aura in her hand. After a long pause, she slowly raised her head, her jet-black eyes, devoid of any emotional fluctuation, looked at the robed Lich who was still bowing respectfully. She slowly opened her mouth.
“Then, how can I trust you?”
As if she were a wind-up robot, the Lich, who had been as still as a sculpture, stirred the soul fire in its head again upon hearing the girl’s question. Its body, which had been bowed, instantly lowered further, and its hoarse voice rang out again.
“I am willing to offer my soul fire, Lord.”
Lei’s voice remained unchanged, as if this decision was a matter of course. The surging soul fire violently flickered, and then a ball of pure, ethereal blue flame separated from it, slowly floating before the girl on the throne under the control of energy.
“Mm.”
Kazumi nodded imperceptibly and reached out to catch the blue flame floating in mid-air.
The soul fire felt subtle, possessing the appearance of flame but no burning sensation. Holding it in her hand, it even felt cool.
But what was magical was that Kazumi, holding the flame, could truly feel the connection between the flame and the Lich before her, as if the Lich would be severely injured if she gently squeezed her right hand.
Dark green death aura converged in her hand, finally forming a small, dark green lampshade that enveloped the ethereal blue soul fire. Then, she placed the lampshade, about the size of her palm, on the armrest beside her and looked up again.
“Where is the phylactery?”
Lei, who was in the distance, was stunned by the girl’s question. However, the Lich, with its considerable experience, quickly understood the meaning of its lord’s words. It said with a hint of apology, its pale head tilted slightly.
“My Lord, I’m sorry, my current spellcasting ability has not yet reached the level where I can use a phylactery.”
“…”
Well, now it was Kazumi’s turn to feel awkward. Who knew why she had so naturally asked such a question? Perhaps it was because her impression of Liches from various fantasy novels was too profound, leading the girl, who had been on guard for something, to ask directly.
However, it was not entirely unreasonable. In various novels, Liches were usually depicted as powerful undead spellcasters. To a large extent, Kazumi had a preconceived notion and was trying to get an advantage.
But it was clear that this always rigorous system would not allow Kazumi to gain unbalanced rewards in this area, essentially cutting off the girl’s thoughts on this matter.
However, since both individuals present were undead or semi-undead, there was no awkwardness. Kazumi cleared her throat slightly, glossed over the issue, and skillfully shifted the topic.
“Lei, what can you do for me?”
The girl’s question reactivated the Lich before her. Lei straightened its body, and the soul fire in its eyes had weakened considerably due to the separation. However, it still spoke emotionlessly.
“I can manage the construction and production of the entire territory for you. If you grant me permission, I can also control a small part of the army during special periods.”
The words of the undead were always direct and quick, as if after shedding the skin that once belonged to humans, only ruthlessness and efficiency remained.
Lei’s words made Kazumi, who was sitting on the throne, hesitate for a moment. She tapped the skull of the armrest with her right hand, her eyes fixed on the soul fire within the energy lampshade beside her.
Kazumi did not trust it.
Unlike all the system-produced items so far, the girl had always maintained a suspicious attitude towards this Lich named Lei.
Kazumi did not consider herself a genius with high intelligence, but caution had always been the only reason she believed she could survive in this world of abilities. Reality could never be like novels or animations; the girl was not a child of destiny wearing the halo of a boss.
Regarding the system itself, Kazumi retained a sliver of trust in her heart. Her use of the undead summoned by [Black Coffin] or the system was only after numerous experiments, as the core that they were completely controlled by a mysterious system was not a particularly reliable matter.
Currently, all the undead troops under the girl’s command were under her control. Troops like Corpse Crows would simply obey orders. Although Little Black and Little White possessed a certain degree of self-awareness, their simple intelligence and instincts basically allowed Kazumi to understand their thoughts.
However, a Lich, as an administrator, was completely different: a spellcaster with intelligence and experience higher than the average human, assisting in managing the territory.
These few elements combined made Kazumi have to be wary. She would not foolishly hand over control of the territory to an undead being, whose spellcasting ability might even be stronger than hers, without confirming its loyalty.
The reason for summoning the Lich in the graveyard hall was that the [Imperial Guard], the strongest defensive force in the territory, was present. If the Lich showed the slightest problem with its loyalty, Kazumi would not hesitate to eliminate it, even if its existence could truly help the future development of the territory.
However, it seemed that everything was developing in the direction the girl had hoped for. The Lich Lei, as the administrator, was quite loyal to her. It had not shown any fluctuations even when handing over the soul fire core that controlled life and death, which basically ruled out any ulterior motives. However, she could not completely relax her vigilance, but it was enough to let the Lich play a role for now.
Raising her chin, which she had been propping up with her hand, the girl looked at the Lich Lei before her, playing with the container holding its life-symbolizing soul fire in her right hand.
“Then, in your opinion, what should be the development direction of the territory currently?”
Looking down at Lei with an air of composure, Kazumi’s vigilance slightly lessened as she began to try and test the Lich’s abilities. After all, the future territory would largely need to be managed by subordinates. With Kazumi’s current thinking speed, analyzing the technology tree alone was already a bit overwhelming. As various buildings in the territory increased in the future, she would surely not have the extra mental capacity to plan in detail.
The girl’s question caused Lei’s soul fire to flash, and it rarely showed a trace of emotional fluctuation. It slightly raised its calm skull and began to report the plan, which seemed to have been prepared long ago, seriously to the girl before it.
“My Lord, considering the current situation of our territory, I think we should…”
Just as Kazumi was carefully listening to the Lich, as the administrator, recount the territory’s short-term plans in its hoarse voice, the pocket hidden inside her cloak began to vibrate unconsciously.
Waving a hand to stop the Lich’s narration, the girl frowned, took out her mobile phone, which she had been keeping in her pocket.
What entered Kazumi’s field of vision at that moment was an incoming video call from a familiar, leaping little red flame avatar.
(PS: Happy New Year, brothers, hope everyone can be healthy and have all their wishes come true in the new year!!)
