Chapter 14

"Lord Jean-Diago... We are creating a corpse worthy of being offered to him here..."

With a blissful expression, the long-haired undead named the mysterious person. Of course, I had never heard such a name before.

"No, who is he...?"

"You scoundrel, how can you not know him, even though you are an undead...!?"

I had been exploring the dungeon until recently.

"My master, the king of the undead—no, the one who should be the king of this world...! It is by his great power that I have returned to this world...!"

"I don't really understand... Are you talking about a necromancer or something?"

Necromancy itself is a forbidden magic, after all. He doesn't seem to be a good guy.

"Do not compare him to those low and vulgar necromancers...!"

...I got scolded.

"Whatever... You will understand eventually."

Saying that, the long-haired undead tried to carry the unconscious woman to the torture device. I stood in his way.

"What are you planning...?"

"What are you planning? Why do you think I would just stand by and watch?"

"You, an undead, are going to interfere...?"

"No, don't just assume we're on the same side."

I clearly stated my disgust.

Still, I feel like I'm having a smooth conversation with the undead. ...I wish it could be a more enjoyable one.

"Murder is wrong, you know."

...But explaining such a trite moral to an undead is pointless. As expected, the long-haired undead snorted.

"Ridiculous... An undead talking about the principles of life and death..."

I didn't expect to be mocked by an undead.

"If you insist on interfering, I will not hold back... Stay there quietly—'Earthquake Slash'"

The next moment, the long-haired undead seemed to vanish, and then suddenly appeared right in front of me. He had already drawn his sword and aimed a sharp slash at my neck.

Snap!

"What...!?"

The broken tip of the sword flew through the air. In contrast, there wasn't even a scratch on my neck.

"Impossible...? Why couldn't I cut you...?"

The tip of the sword clattered to the ground. The sound seemed to wake the unconscious woman, who opened her eyes.

"Wh-Where am I...?"

The woman, looking around with a frightened face, was told by the long-haired undead.

"...You're awake. From now on, I will give you hellish suffering... Feel as much fear, anger, and intense hatred as you can... Then you might become a corpse worthy of my lord..."

"Ah!?"

"Hey, run! I'll take care of this guy!"

"H-Huh...?"

When I shouted at her, the woman, though trembling, tried to crawl towards the exit of the basement. But the long-haired undead grabbed her leg.

"I won't let you escape...! It is far more fortunate to become an offering to the great one...! In other words, you have been chosen...! Accept this honor with gratitude...!"

"Don't force your twisted logic on her."

I tried to knock the long-haired undead's arm off, which was holding the woman.

Bang!

I might have hit it a bit too hard, and the arm burst. The woman's face turned pale at the unexpected splatter.

"Aaaaaah!?"

On the other hand, the long-haired undead opened his eyes in shock.

"What...? You, not only earlier, but you are clearly not an ordinary undead...?"

"What does that mean?"

"I will forgive you for interfering... In return, come with me... I will lead you to my lord... You might become one of his followers..."

Am I being recruited?

No way, I refuse.

"I refuse!"

I said firmly and kicked the long-haired undead in the stomach.

"Ugh!?"

He flew back and crashed into the basement wall with a squish.

...Wow, he's squished.

And looking closely, his abdomen was gouged out, and his upper and lower body were almost separated. I didn't kick that hard, though...

"Um... Did I defeat him?"

"I, a follower of Lord Jean, cannot be defeated by such a trivial attack...!"

Oh, he's moving again!

"This body is specially made...! It will be repaired immediately...!"

As he said, he quickly returned to his original form.

But during that time, the woman had escaped from the basement. His attention is on me, so I hope she can run far away.

"How is it...! Isn't it wonderful...! This is proof of my lord's immense power...! Even if my head is destroyed or most of my body disappears, I will surely revive...! I have become an invincible undead...!"

"Eh? Why are you so happy...? Wouldn't it be a problem if you can't die?"

I'm suffering because I can't die...

...But, is this guy really indestructible?

I am in a state where I don't even take damage and can be called invincible, but as you can see, this long-haired body is quite fragile.

If this guy can revive from any state, and if I also have that regenerative ability... then it would become even harder for me to die...

Let's try it out.

"Fireball"

"!?"

The long-haired undead's body was enveloped in intense flames. The high heat quickly melted the flesh, revealing the bones.

"It's useless...! Even if I am burned by fire, I will surely regenerate...!"

He shouted triumphantly in the flames. But soon, his vocal cords were burned out, and he fell silent.

In the blazing flames, the completely charred body of the undead collapsed to the ground. The bones continued to carbonize.

Eventually, the flames died out, leaving only a pile of ashes.

"..."

I waited for a while, but there was no sign of regeneration.

"Maybe if it's burned to this extent, it's impossible to revive..."

◇ ◇ ◇

My name is Sou.

I lived and died as a samurai in a distant island nation in the East.

It was a time of great upheaval.

The Edo Shogunate, which had lasted for several hundred years, was on the verge of being overthrown by the restoration army, which was backed by Western powers.

I fought against the restoration army as a member of the shogunate. I cut down many enemies and was greatly feared by the restoration army, who called me the "Sword Demon." However, I was ultimately defeated by the numerous new weapons brought from the West and met my end.

And I was supposed to fall into eternal sleep.

But I was resurrected as an undead from my grave, by none other than Lord Jean-Diago.

In life, I was frustrated by the fragility of my body. I would lose strength when I bled, my wounds would not heal easily, and a single sword strike could be fatal.

If I were invincible, I could fight more—kill more people!

That's why I was surprised.

As an undead resurrected by Lord Jean's great power, any damage I received would be immediately repaired!

Since then, I have sworn loyalty to him and faithfully carried out the orders given to me as a follower.

"Fireball"

"It's useless...! Even if I am burned by fire, I will surely regenerate...!"

In a basement where I was manufacturing a corpse to be offered to Lord Jean, I encountered a mysterious undead. Even as his magic flames melted my body, I was not shaken.

My body disintegrated in the flames, and I calmly observed from the air.

I had temporarily become a ghost.

The body burned by the intense flames was almost reduced to ashes, but it would eventually return to its original state.

Still, this mysterious undead is terrifying.

To be able to cast such a powerful spell... I would like to bring him to Lord Jean.

...Hmm?

What is this...?

I sensed something strange.

For some reason, my ghostly form started to float upward on its own.

W-Wait?

What's happening?

My body is over there.

Why am I moving away?

I tried desperately to return to the ground, but my ghostly form wouldn't listen to me.

Looking up, I was perplexed.

The ceiling of the basement had disappeared, and darkness spread above.

In the darkness, a mysterious door floated.

The door, adorned with ominous decorations, slowly opened—

At that moment, I had a premonition.

Could that be... the door to the underworld...?