The Grasslands Will Remember Us Forever (1)
"You say they escaped?"
The lord's office.
Count Terein, having received the messenger's report, asked again.
"Y-Yes. According to the guards, they saw two camels leaving around two hours ago..."
"Then that means those Fallen Leaf bastards failed."
Count Terein recalled the face of the man who had boasted so confidently and asked:
"And Tumen?"
At the mention of the knight he had sent along, the messenger answered with a grim expression.
"His life isn't in danger, but in that condition..."
"So his days as a knight are over."
The count pondered for a moment before speaking.
"I'll have to send a letter to the homeland. I heard there's an opening for an instructor at the knight academy. It should suit him."
Knowing how to reward devotion and loyalty was the virtue of a noble.
He was greedy, but he was not base.
"Incredible. Truly incredible."
Unlike the other riffraff of the Empire, Tumen was a knight he had personally trained.
Yet a mere fifteen-year-old brat had taken him down.
And not even a knight, but a Necromancer!
"Were those murderous fools simply incompetent?"
Muttering that, Count Terein looked out the window.
"Or is the Klein young master truly exceptional?"
He already knew the answer.
Fifteen.
At that age, even the most talented youths would only just begin appearing in tournaments.
For a child that young to escape the grasp of those killers was abnormal in itself.
'And that's not all.'
Immediately after the attack, the boy had left the city.
He crossed that desert crawling with undead and monsters, and did so in the middle of the night.
'He didn't flee out of panic. It was meticulously planned.'
As though he had known this would happen, his movements had shown not the slightest agitation.
After confirming that, Count Terein became certain.
That boy was no ordinary child.
"I intended to dig into what was going on inside his head, but that's no longer the issue."
He had already forgotten the original purpose of excavating the royal tomb.
Now his interest was focused entirely on Young Master Klein himself.
For the actions of a young boy, his conduct was far too bold and reckless, and it captured the count's attention.
"Kuahahahaha—!"
The count, who had silently stared out the window, suddenly burst into laughter.
"C-Count...?"
The count, who always maintained boredom and a blank expression, was laughing.
The messenger was unable to find words at the unfamiliar sight.
"Interesting. Truly interesting!"
He was genuinely fascinated.
What would happen when that boy grew up?
What if he rose beyond the awkward position of second young master and became a true power holder?
Just imagining it sent chills down his spine.
It was the first time in a long while that his blood had boiled with excitement.
"Messenger!"
"Y-Yes!"
At the shout directed toward him, the messenger immediately straightened his posture.
"Prepare the knight order. Bring Young Master Klein before me!"
"Understood!"
There was more than enough justification.
After all, the boy had laid hands on his knight first.
Self-defense because they attacked first?
Ridiculous.
Without witnesses, who could prove such a thing?
"And one more thing."
As if even that wasn't enough, Count Terein spoke to the messenger again.
"Go to the 'Blue Legs.'"
"...!"
At the sudden mention of the name, the messenger sucked in a sharp breath.
The Blue Legs Tribe.
Natives who made their home in the eastern desert overrun with undead and monsters.
At the same time, they were also a mercenary group personally sponsored by Terein.
"At this point, that so-called new chief should have come to his senses by now."
Muttering to himself, Count Terein spoke to the messenger.
"Tell them this. If they capture the young master, they'll be rewarded with gold worthy of the task."
***
The road toward Felician.
The sunlight shining over the eastern desert at midday was dazzlingly bright.
"Hoo..."
Of course, the word "bright" couldn't possibly describe this heat.
The scorching temperature felt less like heat and more like being roasted alive, and my already frail stamina was rapidly hitting rock bottom.
"Young Master! Look over here! It's super wide!"
"Is that so..."
Arin was happily bouncing around under the blazing fifty-degree sun.
Once again realizing she wasn't human, I checked on the camel Stella was riding.
"Bweeeeh..."
The nun was slumped limply between the camel's two humps.
She looked closer to luggage than a person.
"Stop drooping like that. We're almost there."
As I said that, the sound of the camel crossing the desert gradually changed.
Clop. Clop.
No longer the sound of stepping on sand, but footsteps walking over stone flooring.
Hearing that, I immediately unfolded the map and checked the position of the sun.
"Good. We've arrived."
With that, I climbed down from the camel.
"Be careful where you step in the sand. It could be dangerous."
"Don't worry. This isn't sand anymore."
As I said that, I formed a hand seal and created a summoning gate.
. Grrrrr...
Soon, around twenty Skeletons appeared.
"Why are you summoning undead all of a sudden?"
"Why else? Because there's work to do."
Answering Stella, I switched the Skeletons' equipment.
A universal tool with a broad blade and sturdy handle.
The eternal friend of soldiers.
A shovel.
"You see the stone floor underneath? Dig out all the sand so only the outline remains."
— ... Kiik?
The Skeletons stared at me silently for a moment, as though demanding an explanation.
— Kiiiiiiik—!
Soon, sharp cries rang out.
It was basically a protest saying, "Do we seriously have to keep digging even after death?"
"Was there a clause in the contract saying I couldn't make you dig? Move it already."
The Skeletons protested the unfairness, but not a chance.
How many years had I worked as a Necromancer?
Before long, they began digging away the desert sand according to my orders.
"Now the undead are demanding labor rights. Unbelievable."
That's why they should've read the contract carefully before engraving it.
Just because you're a dead soul doesn't mean you won't get stabbed in the back.
"Young Master! I know someone who does things similar to you!"
"Let's hear it."
Watching the way I treated the Skeletons, Arin suddenly raised her hand high.
"Umm... corrupt officials! And evil nobles too!"
"...Who taught you words like that?"
"It was my friends from the orphanage!"
I patted Arin's head as she smiled proudly, clearly pleased with herself.
Evil lord, huh. That's a bit harsh.
Whoever taught her that isn't getting a gift when we go back.
"What is all this...?"
Meanwhile, Stella had apparently recovered and was walking toward me.
"You should've stayed slumped on the camel."
"I was planning to, but my back started burning."
As she spoke, Stella looked toward me and asked:
"A stone slab in the middle of the desert..."
"It's not a slab."
Answering her, I looked toward the stone floor the Skeletons were busily digging out.
"It's a door."
Goooooo...
As the sand was cleared away, what appeared was a massive stone surface.
A black slab contrasting sharply against the pure white sand.
"I told you before, didn't I? That there's a royal tomb of the old Empire somewhere in this desert."
"You're saying this slab is the entrance?"
"That's right."
After saying that, I walked toward the center of the slab.
'It's certain this place is the source of the undead overflowing through the desert...'
My goal was to bring the undead sleeping beneath this door into my legion.
Which meant I first had to get inside.
'I can't just force my way in and end up making enemies of the locals. I'll need to enter properly through the front gate...'
As I absentmindedly traced my fingers across the slab—
"Hm?"
My hand stopped at an unusual texture.
A groove located in the center of the black slab, otherwise devoid of any markings.
Seeing it, I clicked my tongue briefly.
"If it were some kind of spell or mana mechanism, I could've done something about it."
The key to opening the door was blood.
And not just any blood, but the blood of a citizen of the Aishingior Empire, the very empire that built this royal tomb.
"Damn it. Dead end."
I let out a short sigh and stood up.
The Aishingior Empire was already an empire found only in history books even back when I was still Archimond.
There was no way its bloodline could still be found now.
"I thought I'd at least check while passing through, but this makes the whole thing pointless."
As I scratched my head in annoyance—
— Aaaaaaaah—!
The wail of the Banshee I had sent into the sky rang in my ears.
"Hm?"
"What's it saying?"
Hearing the Haunting echoing from the sky, Stella asked me.
"It says someone's coming. Hundreds of riders on horseback."
"The lord's pursuers?"
"That's possible."
I knew pursuit would come eventually, but this quickly?
With slight tension, I linked my vision with the Banshee's.
Dududududu...!
In one corner of the Banshee's wide-open view, clouds of sand were rising.
The riders handled their horses skillfully, clearly accustomed to traveling through the desert.
'...Wait a second.'
A Banshee's eyes see souls, not the forms of the living.
Looking at their souls, so different from those of the Empire's people, I narrowed my eyes.
And then—
"Puhahahat?!"
I burst out laughing on the spot.
"What's wrong with you? Did the heat get to your head?"
"You're the one who's been melting in the heat. Why are you picking on me?"
Even as I brushed off Stella's nonsense, the grin on my face refused to disappear.
"I was wondering what to do without a key, but the key is coming to me all on its own."
"...What?"
Stella tilted her head, clearly not understanding what I meant.
"Aul!"
I called out to the black owl sitting atop Arin's head.
This was a good opportunity.
I intended to finally make proper use of the little guy.
"Kkuk!"
The owl immediately flew over and perched on my finger.
"Since you're traveling with us now, it's about time you started earning your keep."
Stella blinked in confusion.
"But this child is a messenger bird. Is there something else it can do?"
"There is."
I recalled the creature's true form from what I had seen beneath the reformation center.
Then I tossed it into the air.
Fwoosh—!
The owl, which had been no larger than a fist, suddenly expanded, growing into a gigantic form far taller than myself.
"W-What?!"
Just as the startled Stella tried to say something—
— KIIIIIIIIII—!
A piercing cry on an entirely different level from before echoed across the desert.
"You see those bastards charging over there?"
I spoke to the now massive Aul.
"Go rough them up a bit. However you do it is up to you."
The moment my command ended—
Flap—!
Aul immediately flew toward the approaching cloud of sand.
"S-So, that owl is..."
"A bit big for a messenger bird, right?"
Saying that, I immediately formed a hand seal.
"Alright, this buys us some time. Now we deal with the leftovers."
Gathering the demonic energy flowing from my heart, I spoke with the voice of the dead.
— You were complaining earlier about being forced to dig for no reason, weren't you?
Woooooong—!
A massive summoning gate formed across the white sands.
— As you wished. Now it's time to work.
At those words, the undead I had stored away appeared all at once.
Clank. Clank.
Skeletons marched forward in perfectly aligned ranks.
The front line was armed with greatshields and polearms.
Behind them followed countless Skeleton shield-bearers.
"All units, positions."
The moment I raised one hand and gave the order—
Shrrrrrk—!
A tightly organized shield wall unfolded before me with flawless coordination.
Hihiiiiing!
Soon, a cavalry unit kicking up massive clouds of sand entered my sight.
"Archers. First volley."
Fshushushushushuk—!
At my command, countless quarrels rained out from the gaps within the shield wall.